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#and my dude my man WITH THIS PLATFORM NOW WITH THIS AMOUNT OF PEOPLE what's stopping you to actually pursue this
abbythewritor · 7 months
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"Fairness" One Piece x Saitama reader, 1.
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"Just a Normal girl looking for an everyday life. At least, if you call sailing across the seas with idiots with useless dreams a simple task, then you might wanna see a doctor. Seriously."
Warnings: Blood, gore, mentions of Luekimia, and heaps amount of blood and strength. It might be a little cursing, but not bad, and maybe some flirting in there, but it's mostly clean.
Other things:
-You didn't get bald due to your powers; you got bald to an extreme illness.
-You part of the straw hat crew, but others are interested in you and your power.
-Everyone that is a male is taller than you.
-Monsters from the OPM world will appear in One Piece, and I'll make some new monsters you will fight.
Enjoy the first chapter, everyone.
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-15 years later-
-Location: Impel down.-
“And yeah, that’s how I got my powers, and how I ended up here is a long story."
I was held in a prison of some sort, as I was chained next to a black hair dude and a giant ass sumo-looking man who looked like a fish. They both listened to my story as the fish dude hummed in response. “I see, so you were fighting someone and woke up here, as you killed the monster who brought you here, bringing you to have no way back? That is interesting, ma’am; your clothing is quite odd, so I knew you weren’t from this area.” He explained as he sighed, my body leaning against the wall. “Yeah, but it’s exciting; the people here are stronger than where I’m from; you all have powers, too? What’s both of your deal? Why are you arrested?”
The black haired male laughed, as a skull with a mustache was tattooed onto his back. “Well..how I got here is a long story. I was fighting a pirate named Blackbeard, who murdered a crew member of mine.” My eyes widened. “Pirate? So theirs pirates here?” He laughed. “Man your clueless, no wonder, but yes, the whole world is filled with pirates, I’m one as well, apart of a strong crew, the white beard pirates.” My head tilted. “I’m guessing the tattoo on your back is the marking of your captain?” He smirked. “Close, it’s white-beards Jolly Roger, every crew member has a marking of it on part of their body.” “I see.” I smiled slightly. “So it’s like a tribal thing? A promise?” The boy nodded. “I guess, I wouldn’t call it tribal, I’d call the tattoo meaning, fearful and exciting.” I smiled more. “It looks cool, though you never told me why you got here?” He sighed.
“After Blackbeard got a kick of me, the marines captured me, and here I am now, probably to get executed.” My eyes widened. “Executed, what for? Being a pirate?” He nodded as the fish man spoke. “Fire fist ace is one of the strongest members of the white beard pirates; any pirate in the world that roams these seas will get executed, no matter how low or high the bounty is.” I looked to the ground. “Doesn’t seem fair, since this black beard guy seems to be why you here….?” “The name's Ace.” I nodded. “Right, Ace. Don’t you not want to die?” He chuckled lightly From my question. “Y/n, a pirate in a life and death situation, always has to make a choice for the better of his crew or the people. Even though I’m not a threat to most, but to the naked eye, I am, so the Marines give them what they want, but me, if I do die on that platform, I’ll die doing what I loved, sailing across the world.” My heart broke slightly. "But, from what I heard from evidence, aren't pirates supposed to treat their crew like family, Ace? Isn't your crew basically your family?" "Of course." Ace smiled more. "But, even a pirate has to die, even if the family is against it." I nod again. "That seems understandable. Too bad these chains drain our powers; I would get us out of here. Say, fish man, what's your deal?" The fish male looked to the floor as his legs were crossed. "My deal, hmm? Well, first, my name is Jimbei, and I used to be one of the warlords of the sea."
My head tilted. "Used to be?" He nodded. "Indeed, I was against the marine's actions to go against the white-beard pirates and arresting Ace, and for that, I'm here." My brows furrowed with irritation. "That's dumb for wanting someone to not get executed; you say he said they shouldn't mess with your crew, Ace-san. How strong are they?" Ace laughed. "That's a good question, Y/n, but my crew is pretty strong, as my Captain is a Yonko himself, as all of the seas fear his name; it's pretty impressive, as he's rather old and sick now." "Ah, I'm sorry to hear that, but he must be the best captain to you and your crew mates." He nodded. "Indeed, without him, I'd probably be forced to be a Marine and to walk without freedom." I smile gently. "You made a great choice then; freedom sounds nice; you guys must have gone on many adventures." "We did, and it was terrific; I'd never forget the people and creatures I've met; my life grew more since I joined him, and I could never repay him." My heart warmed with his explanation as I looked to the Jail floor, feeling terrible that this friendly stranger was getting executed for something so simple, living his life.
As silence arose through the three of us, footsteps came to our cell as guards stood before Ace, probably getting him for his execution. I stayed silent, as Jimbei, as we just watched, our hearts ill and disgusted as they showed no emotion. "Oi Y/n, Jimbei." We looked at him as he turned with a smile. "Don't let other people tell you what you should do or look like; that's a decision you should make yourself. Besides, Y/n, too bad I'm getting executed, or I'd take you out, but it was nice to meet a cute girl like you." His wink didn't affect me, as I smiled. "Thank you, Ace; I wish your death to be quick and painless and that you will be in a better place." He chuckled. "I hope so, but..I have a favor, Jimbei...if..you ever see my brother...tell him I love him..ok?" Jimbei hesitated, sad that he said this, as he nodded sternly, accepting his request before the guards took him away, leaving me and Jimbei in the cell. An empty feeling was in my heart, as the thought of that Ace guy dying from what he didn't even do in the first place made me angry.
The silence was heard for an hour or two until new voices rose as your head perked up. Jimbei raised a hand to be quiet, as the voices didn't sound like Marine guards but a younger singer, a masculine-gay-like voice, and a deeper elegant voice. Confused, I saw a boy with a straw hat that described the brother Ace was talking about me, and Jimbei's eyes widened as a unique-looking woman and man were following him. He seemed to be looking around for Ace as he stopped in front of our cell, looking straight at the fishman. "Oi?! Have you seen Ace?! Where is he?!" I frowned. "I-uhm sorry, sir, they just took him a few minutes ago..." His eyes widened with fear as he turned to the group, telling them they needed to find him, but Jimbei and I were confused about how they could get there until Luffy explained the situation.
My eyes widened at how he broke into this place as the lady-man beside him explained how she lived here for words, as they all planned to escape and go save Ace. As he called for him, I wanted to help, as did Jembie, causing the straw hat boy to turn. "Let us help you!" I nodded., as Luffy's head tilted. "Help? How should I trust you both? How do you know my brother? "I only knew Ace for 5 hours, but he is lovely and deserves a little fairness instead of death," I spoke as Jimbei explained. The straw hat boy smiled brightly and then laughed. "Alright! Any friend of my brothers is a trusted ally for me!" Soon enough, the man with white and orange clothing cut our cell with his scissors hands; as both of us were free, I smiled, turning to him. "Man, that's a cool power you got." He bowed. "Thank you, madam!" I nodded while turning to Jimbei. "Are you alright?" He nodded. "Just a few grazes from the cuffs, but I'm stronger that, what's the plan, Mugiwara?" Jimbei looked to him and continued. "We can still get to your brother, as they are just transferring him now, but we must hurry!" He nodded simply. "Sure, but who are you?" Bianca's eyes shot open, surprised that Luffy didn't know him. "Luffy! That's Jimbei! One of the warlords of the sea!!" His eyes widened this time. "REALLY?! COOL!" Jimbei shook his head. "Used to be, not now, but we must not chat; we need to get to the ship they are transferring Ace to!" Luffy nodded. "Yes! But, how do we get out of here-" He was interrupted when a weird laugh arose, and I saw Luffy freeze, turning in the direction of another cell, where a man with stitches across his face was laughing and smirking at him. "If you wanna get out of here, set me free...I can create a hole in the ceiling! What do you think?" I was surprised at this man's height, as he had a golden hook for a hand. He looked straight at Luffy with a sly smile still on his face. "It's been a while......"
"Straw hat..."
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"Luffy, do you know this guy?" He seems pissed and irritated as both of them stared watch each other down, the tall man still holding a smirk on his face. It was silent as your question wasn't answered until the hookman spoke. "I thought there was no reason to get back on the street. But Whitebeard and the Navy are gonna start a war? It's my chance to finally bring down that old man..." He honestly spoke, my head tilting. "Wait, white beard, you mean Ace's captain? How are you supposed to defeat him when Ace says he's one of the Yonko's? Aren't they supposed to be strong?" Your question was ignored again when Crocodile looked you up and down, not recognizing you immediately as he turned back to Luffy.
"I don't care how strong he is; this war has piqued my interest. And with my power, you and I could get out of here." He spoke, still looking at Luffy, who clenched his fists. "It's not bad, huh? We both get what we want, after all...." "His voice was defiantly deep, as it didn't affect you, but it was pretty attractive, as my arms crossed.
"Why should we trust you? Are you an ally of Luffy's or something?" His face fell annoyed as he looked at me. "I'm never or never will be an Ally...just making a deal with this brat...and how should he trust you or the fishman either..? You look like a dangerous girl yourself, cute, but probably untrustworthy..." My head tilted. "Untrustworthy? Is it because I'm bald? It always confuses people, but Luffy here seems angry towards you, which means you must have been in his past, correct?" The man chuckled. "You are smart, girl, but yes, I was...this brat ruined my plans..." "SCREW YOU WERE GONNA DESTROY VIVI'S HOME ASSHOLE!" As I understood the situation, Luffy snapped as the man blankly looked at him. "That was a long time ago. I lost interest in that country." He spoke, Luffy glaring harshly at him, as Crocodile smirked and Bianca stepped forward. "Straw hat, boy, release him." My and his eyes widened. "Wait, are you serious?!" He asked, as I was confused. "Yeah, why would we do that as Luffy feels in danger from him?"
She smiled, looking at us both. "His power will aid us greatly." "AH! Ivan-chan! If you knew what he's done-" "You wanna keep going right?!" Jimbei spoke as Luffy paused, then nodded. "Then free him because we need Crocodile to make it to Navy HQ!" Crocodile scoffed while looking at Ivonka as She smirked at him. "Long time no see, crock boy." Luffy was shocked. "You know him?!" She nodded. "Just a passing acquaintance. I met him when he was just a rookie!" I smiled. "I see." Ivanka laughed. "So don't worry; if he does something funny, I can bring him under control in case he betrays us." I nodded. "Sounds like a plan; step back, you three." Confused, the three stepped back as I got close to Crocodile's cell, as I just quickly grabbed the bars, and Yanked the door off. "WOAH! SO STRONG!!" Ivanka yelled, her eyes shooting out of their sockets, as the tall man emerged. I looked at him. "Hey, is your power sand?" He seemed surprised as his eyes widened slightly. "Yeah..kid, how did you know?" I pointed to the sand under him. "Lucky guess, that's pretty cool." He smirked at you. "Thanks. You pretty strong yourself, lady." "Y/n." His head tilted as I smiled. "The name Abby, nice to meet you all." Luffy smiled as Ivonka smirked, Bowing back with respect. "Nice to me, you Y/n-san! I'm Ivonka! My My, you are quite cute, dear! Never met a bald girl before!~" My eyes widened. "How did you know I was bald?" She smirked. "I wear wigs myself, dear, so I know what's real hair and what's fake, so how did you lose your hair? A battle?" I sighed with a smile. "It's quite a long story, but it's a time for later; we should get out of here, Crocodile, right? How can you get us out?" He smirked down at you as sand flowed around his body; soon enough, he shot up it towards the ceiling, creating a giant hole to the next floor. My eyes widened slightly, impressed. "Let's go!" Luffy ordered, jumping up first, followed by Jimbei, Crocodile, and Ivanka, as the scissors man helped me up, all of us soon running to the exit.
But. as we escaped the hole, we ran into some other people, like a ballerina man named Bon-chan, as Crocodile got his regular close on. "Oi, Y/n." He spoke as I turned, us waiting to head deeper on this floor. He held up a cloth, looking down as a cigar was in his mouth. "Can you help me out?" He asked, as I looked at his dirty shoes, and I nodded. "Sure." As he sat on a box, I gently grabbed his foot as I cleaned his fancy shoes. "These must be expensive; how rich were you?" He smirked. "I'm still rich; it seems like you never were around money." My head shook. "Nah, I really wasn't into money, but seriously, you must have been in a powerful position to earn a lot of money." He chuckled. "I was a warlord, actually." My eyes widened. "You mean like Jimbei?" He nodded. "Yeah, but my actions removed me from my position, as Straw Hat kicked my ass.." I snorted as he glared harshly at me. "Why are you laughing?" I shook my head. "Think it's funny a kid like him kicked a grown man's ass. You must have done something terrible to the kingdom he talked about." He sighed. "Yeah, that was a long time ago...now I'm striving for something different, don't know what yet." I finished as I set the cloth aside. "Well, whatever it is, I hope you don't get caught by the Marines again." He chuckled. "You can say that again..." "ALRIGHT! LET'S GO!" Ivanka yelled as I nodded, everyone soon following her. We managed to get to the snowey area, as I was in the same clothing, the cold not effecting me as all of us surrounded Ivanka, as she told us the plain.
Crocodile was next to me, as I was next to Luffy, the group listening carefully.
She warned us if we still manage to get to through front, their will be enemies and marines everywhere, as we still will be fighting hard to get out of here. She said we should also steal a Navy ship, as it's our best chance of being able to get to the marine Headquarters ace was going to be at.
The plan sounded good, as she said we still need to get more people to fight with us. Jimbie nodded with agreement. "We already have a lot, but this place is still dangerous, and there might be a chance only little of us make it out alive, so it's best to free more prisoners." I nodded as well. "Yeah, and who knows how this 'war' is going to go on, and how strong you say Ace's crew and the marines are." Ivanka smiled. "Right! So, when doing to these different floors, our Job is to free as many prisoners as we can! So let's unleash mayhem in this place like it has never been seen before!" Everyone cheered, except crocodile, Luffy and I, as we were already ahead of the group.
I was next to Jimbei as the four of us were climbing up stairs, as Jimbei spoke up. "It's 10 before morning!" He spoke, then continued. "The execution is at 3 in the afternoon! They'll defiantly do it on time!" He finished, as Luffy ran faster, as we all followed, as I looked to Jimbei. "Why don't they do it earlier? I mean, it's like they are asking for something to go wrong." Crocodile smirked. "Because Marines are idiots..." I nod. "I see. well then..."
As we stopped at the lock door, I ran forwards, spinning, as I kicked the door right off, smoke arising as the boys eyes widened, but soon then smirked as I cracked my Knuckles, looking ahead as Marines began to surround us.
"Let's make sure to get there on time."
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banananutsmuthie · 1 year
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Congratulations on your writer anniversary!
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Would you rather: See Weki Meki blow up in Korea with their remaining comebacks but they disband after their contracts expire? Or keep the group for another 5 years with their steady growth they have now?
What’s your favorite work you’ve written? What’s the most difficult to write?
What are some of your favorite works now? Any favorite writers at the woment?
I really like this picture of Yoojung :)
Assuming normal contract length of 7 years, it would mean they have 2 years left. I think it'd be better to get 5 more years out of them if its guaranteed in that situation.
I would probably say YouWeMe Part 9 was my favorite to write. It's not the hooniest, nor is it popular. It's not even my best work and it's not even reader insert, but what I loved is finally piecing all the foreshadowing and events of the previous parts of YouWeMe together and revealing everything to the reader from the perspective of Yoojung. YouWeMe was my pet project and seeing readers send asks after every part released got me excited with the thought of, "Oh man, you thought the red notebook was the plot twist, wait until the real plot twist drops!"
For most difficult to write, I'd probably say Fairytale was very draining because of the amount of research I had to do for the medieval vernacular. Like no cap, I googled the etymology of a lot those words and made sure it was at least within that medieval time period, words like "Ræd, and "Badde". Then there was the research into things like what I would find in a dungeon, and which fairytales I could use as a template for the story. I even spent a lot of time on the descriptions of all the members, trying to liken real-world event that happened to them in ways that would fit in the story. For example, Wendy's real-life injury portrayed in the story as "forgetting to drop the drawbridge for her", or Irene's controversy with her stylists. It was so much work that by the time I got to the smut part, I was already pretty drained.
As for the last question, there are A LOT of excellent writers and a lot of extremely well-written fics. Many of them you probably already know. So instead, I wanna shed a spotlight on some writers and fics that fly under the radar/aren't as active, because they absolutely deserve the praise and accolades as well.
@themanthemyththeverite - Anytime I read any of Verite's work, I'm always in awe of his prose, no word is wasted in his storytelling. Legitimately one of the best. Probably the one writer where I read his work and think, "God damn, I wish I could write like that." That is not hyperbole. Hope you're doing well, good sir!
@sorrowedgazed has two of my favorite angst fics with time machine (ft Minju) and this is how you fall in love (ft. Chaewon). They tug at the heart strings in ways that I never expected on this platform.
@cataboliac - I spoke with him recently even though he hasn't been active; he's legitimately one of my favorite people on the platform and an overall likable dude. I'm not usually a fan of AU and know nothing about WJSN, but super hero Yeoreum in Super Yummers: Chapter 1 had me immersed in the story from the first paragraph. It's been over nine months since it released and I still think about it to this day.
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defensefilms · 1 year
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How To Add Value With Sports Media Content Creation
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What I can do for clients right now:
1. I provide over 1000 photographs of any training session or single game event. Typically that will get selected down to about 100 photographs or so. I have shot tournament events, providing the client with over 3000 action photos, along with posed photographs of each team.
2. I can provide video footage in 24fps, I can also provide over an hours worth of footage for games and such. I use a Canon 60D, a Canon 5D Mark 3 and a Panasonic Mdch1 for long recording.
3. I provide the option of editing your video clips/footage into 1 video for marketing/advertising/promotional use like a corporate video.
4. I have hired talent to conduct on-camera interviews with the brand/person sponsoring and/or hosting, along with people of interest and public figures.
6. I have hired crew/extra Camera Operators to help with shooting.
7. Scouting locations and contacting people of importance for permission to shoot.
8. Create Graphics/ images.
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One of my favorite content creators right now is a guy named Flash Film Academy, and I like dude’s content becasue there’s a focus on the business aspects of content creation on his channel.
See, it’s not so much that I can create content, it’s more about what problem can the content solve, and who does it have value to? Keep this in mind.
I’ve also been watching a boatload of content by photographers that either photograph professional sports teams or events like Formula One, and what they all have in common, is a process that allows them to chop down the images or footage quickly on-site/on-location. A process that allows them to begin post production and/or marketing without stopping shooting and or missing important highlights or action.
Another content creator I’ve fallen in love with, is a guy named Futur and I like his stuff because it gives pointer on how to do a better job of haggling and negotiating to get more out of a client. He’ll do these mock negotiation videos where he role plays as the client or the freelancer, and shows you tips on how to handle certain questions, negotiate better or screen a client.
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The ideal Sports Media Company/Service:
1. Must be able to capture immense amount of photographs/footage
2. Find talent/crew to help in shooting, editing, planning, co-ordinating
3. Must have relationship with equipment rental facilities
4. Must know and be familliar with the most reputable sports arenas in the country.
5. Must have contact with sports agencies and representative of pro athletes
6. Solid branding
7. Has an on-line community 
8. Exists on various platforms provides content via podcasts,vide oessays
9 a) Patreon
b) Youtube
c) Instagram
d) Twitter
What’s On My Plate Right Now:
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1. Yeah, I See The Way The Necks Lookin’
So right now, I’m dealing with a client that owns a semi-professional sports team, and bro’s set-up is big time, I mean impressive.
This guy has his players on monthly stipends, he provides accommodation for all of them, has players coming in from West, East and Central Africa, he’s got contact with a bunch of the biggest teams in the Province, and he’s gotten players signed to first division/pro teams.
Now my man says he wants edited videos of specific player’s highlights during games.  No problem, just so happens to be right in line with things I’ve done in the past, right.
The idea here is that, he’s going to take these videos and send them to pro teams, after which the players will hopefully move to thier new team, get a new contract, and he and the club, get the transfer money and a signing bonus.
It’s a smart move. Here’s the problem. We need to talk about a pay increase.
I’m becoming a one-stop shop for all this guy’s content creation needs, and I think remuneration is in order here. Ideally what I want, is either a retainer, or a pay increase per call, big enough to where I can start to add some man power and muscle to what has been a one-man operation up to now.
Or he can go back to using that stepped-on video shit he was shooting on his phone. Lol, I’m tryna get to that Griselda level too, nahmean?
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2. Approaching Sports Agencies And Seeing Whose ‘Bout It, ‘Bout It
This here, according to me, should be the thing getting most of my attention for the foreseeable future. 
Working for teams as an independant contractor is cool, but these are the guys that really open doors. Sports Agencies are the guys that can get me straight in to the door of a professional sports teams. 
Look, this here is a look, but from what I’m seeing, is that it is more likely to happen if I’m shooting sports other than soccer. 
Look, I’ve been hangin’ out with some of friends in the semi-professional soccer circuit, and the one thing I’ve come to learn, is player rights in South African football is a very dodgy affair. 
Players don’t like to say who owns their rights, and in a lot of cases, guys don’t know, and are completely not equipped to deal with these legal and contractual issues at all. So when I go looking for sports agencies/representatives of players, it is a curiosity that is not met with any kind of warmth or welcome because they don’t know me.
This appears to be less true in the sport of Rugby, which appears to be more transparent about these things and while I don’t understand the sports as well, i could damn sure learn. 
Collaboration or working for a sports agency helps the resume, gets me in the door with a better network, and of course, the cheese baby.
I still may try hitting up creative agencies, but I feel I want to explore every option with the sports content thing because it’s so different as far as working hours, if you do approach an agency and it also depends how the agency uses you. 
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3. Headhunting the NBA and NBA Africa Representatives
Basically, I want an interview with Joel Embiid or Giannis Antetokounmpo.
This is a pipe dream but if you peep LinkedIn, there are doors that can be opened, however, it’s gonna take time, focus, strategy and thinking about my moves.
There’s a guy, I only know him via LinkedIn, but he’s local, and he happens to be very plugged in to basketball on the African continent. 
All these pipelines that produced guys like Pascal Siakam, Emmanuel Mudiay, Luc Mbah Moute, Luol Deng, Al-Farouq Aminu, these guys all come from small networks of basketball hubs throughout Africa, that are most lively in West Africa.
If you are African, and you want to be involved with basketball, you have to go West.
Now, there’s a league called the Basketball Africa League, I’ve seen it on ESPN a bunch of times, and my guess, is that bro is very plugged in to this league, so we’re gonna pull his coat.
What I want is an opportunity to photograph some of the BAL’s league games, cos that’ll definitely help the portfolio/reel, but in building communication with bro bro, hopefully he can help show the road to NBA Africa and their events. 
Two birds, one stone. That’s how everything has to be now.
The head of NBA Africa is a guy named Franck Traore. Bro, the next time Embiid or Giannis is in the country or on the continent, that’s the guy that they likely have an obligation to do appearances for, and that’s gonna be how I get my interview.
I could try to go direct to Franck but I don’t think that’s a great plan, plus there’s all the other things I could gain from it by going the long way.
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dansolomon · 2 years
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Twitter brain
Elon Musk bought Twitter today. There are all sorts of takes, most of them smart, about what that means for Twitter and the Internet and democracy and how it is proof that we are living in an oligarchy, when one man is able to marshal an unfathomable amount of resources ($44b, the purchase price of Twitter, is more than the GDP of 46 nations!) in order to make the most expensive purchase by an individual in human history. Go read those, if you’re trying to make sense of this! It’s got me thinking about something else, which is the way Twitter has affected my brain.
I don’t mean that in a bad way, like when people talk about how the hellsite has given them brainworms, etc (even though, I dunno, maybe that’s true for me too). But I’ve been on the site for thirteen years now and I think in tweets a lot of the time. If, as I expect, this man controlling Twitter changes my relationship to the site, that’ll change, too. Which is a lot to reckon with! I’ve written for the Internet basically my whole life. When I was younger, I thought in LiveJournal entries; big, meaty paragraphs about not very much except feelings and details, very much intended to be read by the couple hundred people who subscribed to my posts. My brain composed those entries throughout the day, as I rode the bus or waited between bands at shows. Before we had phones with us all the time, I sometimes wrote those thoughts on paper, so I could type them up when I got in front of a computer, so people could read them.
I don’t think in paragraphs in the same way I did when I was mostly expressing myself in personal blog posts. (If I did, I reckon I’d update this more often.) When I react to the world, I tend to do so at roughly tweet-length, since the first place I will go to express what I mean to say will be a place where you only get a couple of sentences and you want to be pithy so people connect with it. It’s not necessarily a bad thing—there’s something to be said for concisely distilling what you mean to say; in some ways, it reminds me of when I used to write poetry—but the fact that Twitter has been my first-impulse medium for saying whatever it is I am going to say has definitely shaped the way I think.
With that in mind, I’m going to choose to be agnostic about my future on Twitter, and whether my expectation that I’m going to use it less (maybe not at all, in time) is good or bad. That’s just speaking personally, of course—politically, one capricious dude who thinks he’s the smartest guy in the whole world controlling one of the world’s major communication platforms sucks ass, even if he just runs it into the ground, which seems plausible. For young people right now, they kind of come out of the box shaped like the Internet. Their contours, from birth, have gaps for TikTok and YouTube and whatever else kids are into. For those of us who are a little bit older—whose lives had some form and structure before the Internet, who were actively molded by it in real time—I think maybe we’re more like memory foam. The indentations are there, but it doesn’t sound so bad to have the chance to bounce back.
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THE MARVELS looks to lose money at the box office. I mean... It's MCU Movie #33... 33... And how many "losses"? QUANTUMANIA? This movie? The 2008 INCREDIBLE HULK that didn't make its money back? Not counting the COVID-era release of BLACK WIDOW?
That's a hell of a track record!
Some are saying that the ongoing strike, which ended just recently, played a part. Maybe? It does help to get the actors to do press and promo, but part of me feels that it wouldn't have made any difference... Because it's the 33rd movie, you had to have watched multiple shows and movies in order to know what's going on (and maybe you don't have Disney+ to watch WANDAVISION and MS. MARVEL), and the MCU's goodwill has been rather sloppy lately because of some of the recent movies not really meeting audiences' expectations. Especially when you're paying upward of $14+ at night to see these things, and another $41+ for concessions. (A slight exaggeration, but you get my point, right?) But yeah, strike shmike, look at how FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY'S did a couple weekends ago. It just boils down to "what people want to see".
And clearly THE MARVELS was not high on the list. Post-ENDGAME, the game has changed. A competently-made superhero movie that's basically a homework movie for a future movie, with rushed VFX just isn't enough anymore. People, I feel, want to see superhero movies with a vision behind them of sorts. Note how well GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 held up, note how much people love the SPIDER-VERSE films, etc. etc. I feel like a movie like BLUE BEETLE would've been a respectable hit in - say - 2017, not now.
Of course, this is all going to be drowned out by people that we quite frankly shouldn't give the time of day to. The people who honk "WOKE WOKE WOKE" like a flock of defective geese, sadsacks who hate Brie Larson so much that she lives in their heads rent free... They hate her over something she said in 2018 that she was... Absolutely correct about. I wish I had that kinda power, just to exist and be me, and make a bunch of men who will never amount to anything worthwhile angry.
Hint hint, there's money involved. It's why we need to just ignore these people, cut off their income and revenue streams. They thrive off of hate and outrage, and getting people like us to watch their rancid loud nonsense and platform them in the form of dunking them. That's still giving them attention.
I don't know. I think most "normal" moviegoing audiences don't care. I've worked at movie theater for 8 years now, and only a few customers do I hear this kind of weird-ass antisocial talk from. They didn't reject THE MARVELS because it stars three women. I mean, WONDER WOMAN made big bucks. CAPTAIN MARVEL itself was a billion dollar smash. SPIDER-VERSE is about a Black Puerto Rican Spider-Man, and the deuteragonist is a Spider-Woman, possibly a trans Spider-Woman at that! And this year, we had an anti-imperialist anti-war and probably anti-American movie make HUGE bucks both domestically and worldwide, we had a literal Barbie movie with tons of Barbie characters of different races and even a TRANSGENDER Barbie, and it became one of the highest-grossing films ever. At the end of last year, we had an AVATAR sequel. Environmentalism, colonialism, that's as "woke" as you can get! Like, you can't look at me with a straight face and tell me that THE MARVELS is going to lose money because it's "woke".
No, it's going to lose money because it's just more of the same, and audiences have kinda moved on from that. It happens in cycles with all kinds of movies.
It's an inert conversation that's been going on for far too long. Algorithms thrive off of chuds who complained about every STAR WARS movie made since Disney bought the franchise, who complained about MAD MAX: FURY ROAD, who complained *incessantly* about a GHOSTBUSTERS movie lead by women, dudes who are deathly allergic to anything that isn't about straight white men. It's a vocal minority, and that the conversation should be more about why the MCU is running out of juice for storytelling reasons and meeting audiences at where they're collectively at. Not why these perpetually-unsatisfied people will never be satisfied.
I mean, this past election cycle, we saw several Republican losses. And in 2022, that "Red Wave" turned out to be a "Red Mirage". Most angry chuds, if they don't vote Republican, then they sure seem to be their biggest base. The overlap with them and MAGA and such. I'd like to think that most normal Americans who aren't extremely-online don't give a shit about who's starring in what. Again, look at how BARBIE did. Republicans make it seem like Americans are fed up with transgender folk (among many other "issues" they're trying to run on), and in BARBIE, the transgender Barbie played by Hari Nef was no background character. She gets *a lot* of scenes... And it still made like $1.4 billion. Maybe because, shocker, most Americans aren't fazed by that. They don't care if you're not white, gay, trans, whatever- They just wanna grill! And are probably fed up with Republicans constantly telling them to be afraid of people who pose no threat.
I dunno, just a hunch?
This year, we saw QUANTUMANIA open in the triple-digits, but score an abysmal 2x multiplier. We're seeing this movie open with relatively low numbers. DC flop-a-doo'ed with SHAZAM 2, THE FLASH, and BLUE BEETLE. I don't see AQUAMAN 2 doing great, either. It looks more of the same, backwash from 2017. James Gunn's SUPERMAN: LEGACY needs to really stand on its own in order to make an impression and get people back for a new take on Kal-El. As for the MCU, I still think DEADPOOL 3 is locked to do great next summer because... People love that character, and the last two movies satisfied audiences. And Hugh Jackman returns as Logan, which is a plus. Not that the movie needed it to do great, but it's an added bonus, and given that this is a Deadpool movie, it'll likely be an irreverent takedown of what's wrong with superhero movies lately. All these forced cameos and multiverse plans that seem to not add up, and such... The rest might see diminishing returns as well. Are people up for another Captain America movie? THUNDERBOLTS? Yet another take on Fantastic Four? Blade, even? Or whatever is off in the future, like a 3rd Doctor Strange movie or that ARMOR WARS project? How many more of these movies can you belt at audiences before it's just a small group that dutifully shows up for them?
This is the conversation I'm much more interested in. Not so much the "death" of the superhero movie, but where it goes and how the MCU's path informs things going forward. Again, my theory is that we're going to see audiences respond to more director-driven films and films that have - again - some kind of vision. Films like THE BATMAN, GUARDIANS VOL. 3, ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, etc. And on the TV end of things, stuff like INVINCIBLE. New and dynamic takes on this type of story.
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justfangirlthingies · 3 years
Text
Caught my eye (Corpse Husband x reader)
Soulmate AU: In which everyone has one eye in their own eye colour and one in the colour of their soulmate. However, when you are close to meeting each other, your vision will change to the soulmate's one, letting you know you are close. When your eyes meet they will change their colour to their original eye colour.
Word count: 4189 words
Warnings: cursing because that is automatically given when writing about Corpse
Another Soulmate AU from my Wattpad account let's go!
Staring into the camera were a pair of, colourwise mismatched, eyes, one iris a deep brown and the other one a shimmering (e/c).
It was not unusual for someone to have two different eye colours in one set of eyes, it simply meant one had yet to find their significant other.
Pressing record on your camera you let your eyes stay right in front of the lens for a second before rolling backwards on your chair, your torso now in frame as well "Hello all of you beautiful individuals! I'm (y/yt/n) and as always I welcome you here!" You waved at your camera, a warm and welcoming smile gracing your lips. "In case this is your first time stumbling over this channel" you paused a second and giggled "Hi, welcome to this chaos!" Slowly you neared the camera again "Leave while you still can" you whisper shouted into your microphone.
"No hold on don't leave please! I was just kidding" You joked at your camera.
A happy sigh escaped your mouth as you leaned back in your chair "Today is q & a time isn't it?" You wiggled your eyebrows at the blinking light in front of you "Well let's get to it then...hmm...lemme see. Youtubetrash asks 'how old are you (Y/n)?' Do you always have to ask that question guys?" You scold playfully "I'm 19, but I really don't get why this is so important to you that I have to answer it in every video, like do you want to know the exact amount of days and minutes? Will you stop asking it every goddamn time then?" You chuckled as you ran a hand through your (h/l), (h/c) hair. "Right, next question! SusanIsAFish wants to know which eye colour my own is. I can easily answer that with either 'both are' or 'hell if I know' I've always had two eye colours like how am I supposed to know." A grin spread on your face as you continued to interact with your community's questions...
"Alright alright these are the last two questions guys. Nightmaresscareme...honestly same" you laughed as you read the users name out aloud. When you calmed down again you cleared your throat and continued "Ahem, anyways they wanna know if I found my soulmate already and who it is....Do I look like I found my soulmate?" You asked smiling as you approached the recording device once again and pointed a finger at each eye. "I have no Idea who it is but maybe you find whoever it is because all of you people are little Sherlock's I swear, you find out everything." Laughter erupted from your throat once again as you pointed at your camera.
"Last but not least, (y/n)stan asks 'when will you collab with Jack again? The two of you promised to make a video or something together?' Woah calm down, honestly I don't even think he remembers that, it was years ago. How do you even remember that (y/n)stan? I swear to god that's exactly what I meant with ya'll being Sherlock's." You wiggled your eyebrows again "But if you do remember, Seán and you magically happen to see this video. What happened to our collab plans dude?" You giggled "Alrighty guys that's it for today's video. Stay awesome my dudes, dudettes and in betweens and I'll see ya in the next one!" You winked and waved before stopping your recording and going straight to editing your video.
Just as you were about to upload your piece of work, your phone rang, scaring you in the process and causing you to delete your video. You groan in frustration holding your head in your palms.
"This better be important..." you mumbled to yourself as you went to check your phone. Seriously?! It was a Twitter notification. You sighed and ignored it for now, saving your video was a priority right now.
After hours of retrieving and re-editing your footage you finally uploaded the video to the worldwide known platform and picked up your phone to see what Twitter wanted from you.
As you opened the app you saw that it was a private message from none other than Jacksepticeye. What a freaking coincidence you thought, a smile now appearing on your face as you read the message. All your frustration was gone and instead replaced with confusion and laughter.  "What kind of message is that?" You muttered as you shook your head laughing.
Jacksepticeye:
Hey (Y/n) what colours are your eyes again?
(Y/T/N):
What kinda question is that? Lmao
Jacksepticeye:
Just answer my question dum dum :)
A raven haired male was on a discord call with his online friend that he had just revealed his face to. "Jack what are you doing now?" The young man laughed at his friend.
"Hold on, I'm texting someone."
The dark haired man sighed and waited "that's not very polite you know" he smiled.
"Pschh I'm finding your soulmate, what's impolite about that?" The Irish man looked up from his phone and back at his Computer screen. Only to start laughing at the other's reaction.
"Corpse? You good?" He kept on laughing at the dumbfounded expression on Corpse's face.
Who as a reaction turned off his camera, suddenly feeling very insecure towards his friend again.
"What do you mean?" His deep voice asked cautious.
"Don't worry man I'm not leaking your face or any info to anyone" he smiled reassuringly. "Your eyes just reminded me of someone else with the same or very similar ones. At least I hope I remember their eye colours correctly" He rambled on.
"Oh..." came from the other line, which was now more quiet than usual.
Seán noticed the change in his friend's behaviour and immediately stopped what he was doing. "I'm sorry Corpse..." the Irishman scratched bis neck awkwardly "I should've asked you first"
"I-it's fine. I just can't imagine anyone wanting to be my soulmate" the male sighed.
His friend flashed an encouraging smile at the screen "Dude! Anyone would be happy to be your soulmate. I know I would be! You are great, I know you probably don't believe me but I mean it bud. Besides, your soulmate is your other half, it's like they were made for you"
One could hear a sigh coming from the black screen as Corpse turned his camera back on, his pink tinted cheeks now showing up on screen as well. He had put his eye-patch on, leaving only his brown eye visible. "And you're really sure?" He asked quietly.
"100% sure! Anyone with half a brain would know how lovable you are" the blue eyed male grinned. "Besides, the person I'm thinking of also has a YouTube channel, I think I still owe them a collab, sooo I could maybe invite them to play some kind of-"
He cut himself off. "They answered!"
(Y/T/N):
Well they're like brown and (e/c), it's such a weird mix though.
Jacksepticeye:
Interesting.
Hey (Y/n), how about we do that collab? You could fly out and we meet up
(Y/T/N):
You still remember that? XD
Yeah sure I'd love that, I just had someone ask me about that collab today.
But seriously dude why are my eyes interesting to you all of a sudden? You found my soulmate or smth 🧐😂
Jacksepticeye:
😏😌🤭🤫
Right....
So when are you coming?
(Y/T/N):
Dude!
You literally just asked me if I even wanna come! Like come on, you think I've booked a flight already? Just like 10 minutes after you asked me to travel there?
Jacksepticeye:
As a matter of fact I don't just think so, I know it ;)
So when do I have the honors of picking your jet-lagged ass up at the airport?
(Y/T/N):
:(
...
This weekend
Time skip
A happy sigh escaped your lips as you felt the plane reaching the ground of its destination. You swiftly grabbed your bag and left the plane to get the rest of your luggage.
A yawn escaped your mouth as you grabbed your stuff, staying awake during the whole flight probably wasn't your best idea, but you couldn't help it. To you it was simply impossible to fall asleep on a journey by plane.
Your eyes skimmed the airport as you were searching for your friend.
After a few minutes of looking around you decided to sit down and wait, he was probably still on his way to the airport.
Just as you decided to open up your phone you got smacked in the face... With a balloon? "What the hell?" You whispered as you were pulled up from your seat and embraced. "(Y/N)! Hey! I haven't seen you in forever"
You looked up a little confused as you reciprocated the hug. "Well hello to you too Seán"
He chuckled and grabbed one of your bags before dragging you with him. "How can you be so motivated and energetic?" You giggled and tried to keep up with your Irish friend. "That (Y/n), is simply because I'm not sleep deprived like you"
Setting up his stream was a curly haired nervous mess. He was always nervous when he had to stream. But today was somehow worse.
The half Mexican ran his fingers through his hair. It was just a game with friends right? However, he had never played this game before.
His nerves getting to him caused Corpse to cancel the idea of a stream. "I'll just be there and play along, that's fine too. I don't need to stream every time I'm playing a game with my friends..." he muttered to himself.
With a bottle of water beside him he started the game and went through the tutorial. "Man this game is fucking cute" he laughed before joining the discord call, just to be engulfed in a complete chaos of voices.
"Hey Corpse is here! Hi hi!" A Swedish voice boomed through his headphones along with the rest of the group greeting him. "Hey guys" he replied as he joined their server in the game. "So what are we doing? Why is no one starti-" the deep voice started but was cut of by someone else.
"HOLY FUCKING- Who the hell was that?! Hello by the way" The whole call erupted in laughter at the reaction of the (h/c) haired individual.
"Uhh hi, that was me" Corpse answered laughing as he scratched his head nervously "and you also just answered my question for me thank you, whoever you are" Everyone laughed once again.
"Okay but seriously who are you?" Dave asked.
"Jack! You said you told em that I'd join" you huffed as you glanced At your friend next to you, you were sharing one discord account for this call as you sat right next to each other and didn't want the quality of the call to go down because of an echo. Both of you streamed online on twitch.
"Whoops! I thought I did" he chuckled once more as he introduced you to the party. "Well then..." he coughed in an attempt to clear his throat "Drum-roll please! this is (Y/n), they came to visit me this weekend. (Y/n), that's Dave, Felix, Joel, PJ and Corpse."
"Hi" you said suddenly a little nervous because you thought everyone knew you'd join.
Luckily no one seemed to mind that you were here as they greeted you. In fact, they seemed ecstatic to meet you.
"So have any of you not played this before?" Pewds asked the group. "Uh yeah, me" Yours and the deep voice said simultaneously. "But I did the tutorial" Corpse added. "Well I didn't" you laughed. "Great then we're all set, shame on you though (Y/n)!" Seán shouted.
"Jeez man, you told me to skip it and I can hear you! I'm right next to you and not deaf in case you didn't know" you sassed back, causing laughter to bounce through your headset once more.
"(Y/n) and Corpse you two haven't played before that means you count as one person for the group things cause both of you are noobs and if you count as one we have even team numbers" The swede joked.
"We're the Meowfia" Jack laughed, starting off with his puns for this game.
(Y/n) snorted at that as everyone chose the animals of their teams. Corpse chose the cat with an eye-patch along with his team. "Maan this is peer pressure!" Your voice called out "lucky for me I like cats"
"That is the truth" the Irish voice boomed through the call once again, "I mean you should see, even their headphones have cat ears"
"I wanna see that!" Dave shouted.
"Can we see them in your cam Jack?" PJ asked.
"Not completely, they're streaming on Twitch though, its at (Y/YT/N) on Twitch and YouTube" Seán smiled as he pat your back.
"You can't just expose me like that!" The cute voice answered panicking.
"I gotta see that, hold on!" Felix shouted as he opened up your stream smirking as he followed you. "Corpse, they'll ruin your life" he continued as your cheeks flushed a bright red, suddenly feeling so exposed and put on the spot "why...why am I ruining his life?" You asked, cocking an eyebrow.
Corpse had also opened up your account as he stared in awe at the enchanting individual now on his computer screen. Were you the one Jack had meant? No it couldn't be.
"Well you see, he wrote a song about cat girls ruining his life. Right Corpse?" This statement made him come back to reality and quite flustered at that "Huh? What-  ...ohhh uhm- uh- yeah" he responded in a stutter, the pale skin of his cheeks heating up and turning red.
"Corpse are you alright?" you asked, concern not only laced in your voice but also written all over your face, which he saw. This whole ordeal just made him blush more. There was a short pause "...Yeah.." the raven haired responded. But not even a second later a laugh erupted in the call "Did we just catch you right handed?" The voice belonged to Dave. "What do you mean?" Corpse asked confused. While he waited for a response from his friend, he started fiddling with his rings as he kept his eyes on (Y/N)'s stream which was still pulled up on his screen. "Well, did we catch you watching her stream?" Dave replied trying to hold in his laughter.
Your expression changed as your eyes went wide and you looked right at your camera "Is that true?" Your voice chimed in as a hint of pink spread across your cheeks, one of your eyebrows arched. "Well..." The man with the username 'CORPSE' cleared his throat "I had to see if Jack and Felix were speaking the truth..."
A smirk spread across your face "And? Were they honest?" you laughed as your Irish companion moved his face into the frame of your camera wiggling his eyebrows. The only answer you got to your question was silence before the deep voice continued "Alright let's start this game." Yet another laugh escaped your throat when you noticed the lack of a reply to your question. However, one could say that silence was an answer on its own.
The young guy sighed loudly after the game had ended, rolling back, away from his table, in his gaming chair he ran his hands through his curly hair. The game was fun, but it was exhausting for the man to concentrate on a game this long. Just as he was about to get up, turn all devices off and leave, he heard a familiar sound coming from his computer screen.
A discord call and video call at that was incoming from none other that Jacksepticeye. So, Corpse rolled forward in his chair again as he checked if his camera was turned off and covered. After reassuring himself that his face was hidden he accepted the call. "Hey whaddup?" He greeted his loud friend who immediately responded with a "Hey my man". His mismatched eyes widened as he looked at the screen, it was not only Jack on the call...they were there as well, a shy smile plastered on their face as they kept their eyes closed "Hey Corpse, tell me when your camera is off. Sean told me it might be on and I don't want you to accidentally expose yourself to me." "Oh yeah, it's off. You can open your eyes it's fine." Just as he finished his sentence their eyelids slowly fluttered open as they stared at the black screen and waved. There was no way to describe the feeling that went through him as he admired you in awe. He seemed starstruck and without thinking he blurted out "You have to visit San Diego sometime, but like soon"
Your eyes widened slightly not knowing how to respond to that "Umm...yeah I dunno, maybe someday?" Jack gasped dramatically "You never invited me over even though I'm the one you trusted enough to show your face to!"
Yet another time today, the male behind the black screen felt a blush grow on his face. "Well i-it's your fault for introducing me to your friend. And umm sorry if I was a bit too blunt there" He stuttered. "No it's fine. I'm a very spontaneous person ya know." You replied an embarrassed smile gracing your lips once more "But you could be a killer for all I know...sorry you probably hear that one a lot haha. Also, would you even be comfortable enough to meet up..." slowly you started drifting off with what you were saying. As soon as you realized you were trailing off of the topic at hand, you tried to get back to the conversation "ahem.. yeah, anyways as I was saying...someday sure. I mean...I am traveling around at the moment because I flew to Brighton. Maybe you know, we could get to know each other a bit better first" you smiled nervously as you replied.
"Ah yes...of course. Though I do have a question for you Seán. Is (Y/n) the one we spoke of a few days ago?" came back as a reply. He had a plan to gain their trust if they really were his suspected soulmate. The man next to (Y/n) nodded and gave a wink to the camera they used for the call. This action just confused you even more and it must have shown on your face because your loud friend started laughing at you. "Don't worry it was nothing bad" Jack reassured. "Hold on, is this about the random-" there was a lot of shuffling coming from the black screen. The noise had startled you a bit, causing you to stop mid sentence. "the random question about my eyes?" You continued your question, looking at that Irish friend of yours, but you didn't get a reply for there was another loud noise coming from Corpse's side of the screen. You shifted your attention back to the screen in front of you again just to be met with more shuffling and a sudden colour change of the screen. Your eyes widened as you saw a face only briefly for a split second before your vision suddenly changed. You looked around to see an unfamiliar room and as you saw the sight before your eyes you felt as though they were going to pop out of their sockets at any moment.
No...
No fucking way...
"Holy shit" you heard the words leave both your mouths. You just stared at the screen in front of you to see yourself, who apparently sat on the other side of the screen next to Seán. And you also saw the live view of a young man with black curly hair, dressed in black in a small window of the computer. You felt really dizzy all of a sudden and the light before your eyes went black briefly before returning to more used surroundings again.
Realisation dawned on you as you blinked a few times and spoke aloud "I-I just imagined that right? There's no way. C-Corpse you didn't happen to experience that right now, did-did you?"
"Holy fuck..." you heard a low mutter coming from the speakers.
Jack looked at you, eyebrows raised in confusion for a second before realization dawned on him and a knowing smirk appeared on his face as he shouted "CALLED IT!"
The two of you could not yet comprehend what was happening, let alone listen and realize what your mutual friend had to say.
After a few minutes of complete silence you tore your eyes away from the pen on Jack's desk, which had become the most interesting thing and perfect staring partner for the past minutes and shifted your gaze back to the young raven-haired individual before you, a small smile and a huge blush grazing your facial features as you spoke up, voice quiet and soft, but also full of nervousness "soo...umm...Corpse, are you gonna give me that address in San Diego?"
The question stood in the room for a few moments as silence engulfed you once again. Corpse's expression on his bright red face however, showed he was pondering."Y-yeah of course...sure...I-I'll text it to you if you give me that number of yours..." Then there was a pause. "Whe-When can I expect you then?"
This time it was your turn to think. "How about directly when you leave Brighton?" Jack chimed in. "But th-that's like in two days..." you stuttered in response. It was a nice idea and you did feel a pull to meet this handsome stranger as soon as possible. "Well yeah, that's the point is it not? I already checked for flights while you two where staring off somewhere....Sooo? Should I buy the ticket real quick? You can thank me later." Your mismatching eyes kept switching your gaze from your friend who had made this crazy suggestion and your apparent soulmate who now wore an eyepatch and was watching you expectantly while patiently awaiting your answer. A small sigh left your lips as you made your decision. When you tried to verbally answer though, your voice had left you, so you made eye-contact with the man also known as Corpse Husband, who had trusted you enough to reveal his face to you, and just gave him a small nod. He seemed to understand and gave you a reassuring smile.
"It's final then?" Seán, who had watched this whole ordeal unfold asked smiling happily as you just nodded once again "Y-yeah"
Two days later you found yourself on yet another plane ride, but this time it was not to England, nor was its destination your home. You sat on your seat in silence, music which you couldn't concentrate on, blasting through your headphones while you  twiddled with your fingers, bouncing your leg up and down quickly. What were you gonna say? He would pick you up outside of the airport in order to avoid bumping into things when the view-switching-thing would happen.
Meanwhile, the faceless YouTuber had finished tidying up his apartment and prepared everything for your arrival. He would be lying if he said he didn't look you up on the socials to learn more about you.
About half an hour before the plane would land he drove off to your designated meeting spot. He arrived there 10 minutes early so he could mentally prepare himself. About 5 minutes later he put on his black face mask and exited his car. At first he was gonna wait for you here, but his nerves and heart got the better of him, so he made his way closer inside the airport building to meet you halfway. What he didn't know was that your plane would land early. So, as he made his way through the people, which was way out of his comfort zone already, he started to see black dots clouding his view, but suddenly he came from the other side. Oh no. The body kept walking until he saw himself in the crowd.
Your eyes met as you tried to navigate through the crowd of people, it was hard as you had to control your own body somehow even though you could only see what your soulmate would usually see. Finally you had gotten somewhat closer to one another and as you came to a halt, your bodies mere inches apart as your eyesight returned to your own again. You looked up at the man in front of you in awe. Your eyes were fixated on his as you noticed the (e/c) in his one eye fade away, just to be replaced by this beautiful shade of brown that was in his other eye. The colour you knew so well because you had seen it in the mirror in one of your own eyes everyday. "Your eyes" you whispered. He smiled in return "yours too..it's nice to meet you (Y/n). My soulmate. You are even more dazzling in person" he complimented. "I can't say anything else besides the same applies to you" You smiled in return as your face went red. "Well then...Shall we?" he grinned as he took one of your backpacks and started walking. "Hey! Wait up!" You laughed as you ran to catch up to your soulmate...
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crazydemigod666 · 3 years
Text
Be Gay, Do Crimes
I didn’t plan on doing a sequel to this, but, here we are! If you enjoyed part one of my, what are we gonna call this, heist!au? Crime!au? Then I hope I managed to create a pleasing sequel too!
TW: none that I can think of besides some swearing? And Remus making comments about Roman getting laid? I mean, it’s Remus, dude.  Let me know if you want me to add anything. 
Ships: Intruality, Analogical, Roceit, brotherly Anxceit, brotherly Creativitwins, brotherly Logicality
Word count: 4824
Summary: So, as it turns out, this coincidental gathering might prove to be quite useful. Or, Janus had one last heist planned, and he could use the help of his brother and his soon to be brothers-in-law. 
Taglist: @gattonero17 Let me know if you would like to be added! 
Part 1 | Part 3 |  Part 4|  Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7
“Come now, you have an opening right there, mon petit frère.”
Virgil frowned, a small snarl painted on their face as he watched the scene before him.
“Je suis plus grand que toi, putain, “ he snarled.
His brother tapped their fingers against the board in disdain. “Language, Virgil.”
“You’re the one that asked me to play with you. Hate to tell you, but that comes with the foul language.”
He reached out to take a bishop, but paused, letting his hand hover midair. The amount of possibilities were visible before him. He could easily take a knight, but that would expose him kingside. Knowing his brother, they were definitely planning something. Openings were easy to take advantage of, but could very well disguise a trap behind them.
“I didn’t ask you to come play, I asked you to come train. You were by no means obligated to accept my offer”, Janus smiled innocently, a pawn twirling between his fingers.
“Not obligated?” Virgil scoffed, feeling a bead of sweat roll down his cheek. “I would find this pretty damn obligatory, brother dearest.”
He threw up his head to gesture to the elaborate set up in study:
Different kinds of wires, beams and display cases were strategically placed around the room, with Janus sitting comfortable in the center. On the table in front of him was a chessboard, the black and white squares faded with decades of use.
Janus put the pawn down, instead trading it for a saucer and a cup, silently taking a sip from his tea. He flicked on the light beside him, the warm yellow glow covering both him and the board.
“I have no idea what you’re implying, Virgil. It’s just a game of chess. A brotherly match, totally normal”, he looked back at the board, taking in the pieces left.
“And I merely suggested you take the opening I left for you. That bishop seemed like a good idea, why not take it?” he grinned slightly behind his cup.
“Because”, Virgil huffed, moving from one corner of the room to the other, “I am in no mood to practice glass cutting today to take it.”
Janus put down the saucer and cup, lacing their fingers together as they leaned back into his chair. “You’re the one that agreed to practice today. That means every skillset you have.”
“I did not agree to this, you forced me to”, he leaned down over a small wooden chest, avoiding a red beam above his head as he took a few tools from his pocket, fiddling with the lock.
“I woke up to my suit neatly folded and a black king laying on top of it when I walked out of my room. It wasn’t exactly subtle.”
“I never said you had to put it on and come join me here”, Janus crossed their legs and put a hand to their chin.
Carefully, Virgil had opened the lock. Having scanned the chest and having found no evidence of any traps or other hidden snares, he took a rook from the bottom and put it in his pocket.
He turned around, taking a deep breath as he prepared to jump. He glanced around, letting the search lights from the balcony above them pass by, dodging those and the trip wires near the platform in the centre.
Graciously, he landed opposite Janus, placing the rook on the board and taking a pawn from his brother.
“If I hadn’t come here to play, you would have expanded this game to the entire house. Last time you did that I had to ration candy bars so I could survive the trip to the attic to take your queen. So, yes, I had to come here.”
He placed his hands on his hips. “Or you would have brought the game to me, frangin.”
“Alright, alright”, Janus put up their hands, “you caught me. I admit it! I have deceived my little brother, oh, I am such a terrible person, take me away!”
“Gods, you’re such a drama queen!” Virgil crossed his arms, feigning annoyance.
“Me? A drama queen? Oh sweetie, first of all, I am a king. Second of all”, he leaned forward, brows furrowed as he looked at the board, moving his queen to take the rook Virgil had placed on the board only seconds ago. “I wouldn’t accuse me of being dramatic when you were the one being so erratic yesterday about that boy.”
Virgil played the redness of his cheeks off as a result of the rigorous maneuvers he performed earlier, and definitely not as a reaction to his brother mentioning the events of yesterday.
“I-, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“No?” Janus tilted his head, blonde hair framing their delicate features and obscuring their mismatched eyes from gleaming in the dim light. “I’d say you were rather frantic about all the possible outcomes of that date you had with him. Logan, was it not? Seems like an intelligent one.”
“It was not a date!” Virgil grumbled. “Just, I don’t know, an outing? With friends?”
“An outing”, Janus laughed. “Now who’s being deceitful, eh? I don’t mind you being involved with him, you know. His records are quite impressive and-“
“You promised not to look into his history!” Virgil hissed, throwing his hands up in the air.
“I did, and I didn’t look into his history. Just a, routine background check. Nothing more than that”, they assured him.
Unconvinced, Virgil paced around the board, tugging at his gloves. “You also said that about the guy that tried to convince you to sell our house. And we both know where he ended up.”
Janus sighed, getting up from his chair and walking over to Virgil, he put his hands on his shoulders. “Look, it’s not my fault that man decided he wanted to double cross people who have the money and reputation to hold grudges and execute them. And if I helped those people find him by giving them a nudge in the right direction, am I really that guilty of a crime?”
“You’re guilty of being a jerk.”
Janus dipped his head, chuckling as he looked up at their younger brother. “I do what I must to protect my valuables, and like it or not, you’re one of them. Did I have to do a check on that boy? Perhaps not, but I need to know that if you he’s the one stealing your heart, he’s going to treat it right.”
“He’s not a thief. Not like us, at least”, Virgil smiled.
“Ah, romance. Absolutely disgusting. Horrible. Can’t stand it.”
“Do you ever shut up?” Virgil gently pushed them away.
They looked at him softly. Their baby brother, seventeen and already more skilled than most of the members of their trade. He felt his chest bubble, the feeling warm, but unnerving. Was it pride? Fear? A mixture of both? Janus didn’t know.
But having their brother here, falling in love for the first, and hopefully, last time, it didn’t matter. He would always be there for him. Of course, that didn’t mean he would make it easier for Virgil. That was not their style after all.
“If you want me to back off, I will”, they said eventually. “He seems like a good kid, and from what I’ve gathered, he seems really interested in you, too.”
Virgil rubbed his hands together, the texture from the gloves soothing. “You really think so?”
“Mon petit frère.”
“Still taller than you.”
“He’s head over heels for you, I can tell. And for what it’s worth, you have my blessing.”
“I-“, Virgil stared at the floor, unsure what to say. “Thanks, Jan.”
“Of course”, he smiled. “That being said, if he so much as looks at you wrong, they’ll be digging up his skeleton in 300 years’ time.”
“Holy shit, you are the worst”, he groaned, burying his face in his hood.
“Relax, I’m just teasing”, he turned back to his chair, placing himself across the board once more. “So”, he said.
“Your move, Virgil.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------
“So let me get this straight”, Janus sighed, pinching the bridge of their nose.
“Good luck with that”, Roman chuckled as he put down a tray with cups and a tea pot. He then moved to join his husband on the sofa, the faint sound of the fire place crackling in the background.
“You are anything but straight.”
“Lucky for you, yes”, they smiled. “But, as I was saying”, Janus turned to face their guests, “how, exactly, did you manage to screw up so badly?”
“It wasn’t our fault!” the men before him yelled in unison.
Man. It was going to be a long night.
“Right, of course, it’s the fault of those poor officers chasing you. It’s not like they were doing their jobs, or anything”, Janus pouted.
“Janus, please, it’s embarrassing enough as it is”, Virgil appeared from the doorway, having traded his suit for black jeans and a purple hoodie. For once he was grateful for his brother hoarding his clothes so much.
“We already know we fucked up.”
“Language, brother.”
Virgil groaned, hands digger deeper in his pockets. “Je sais que nous avons fait des erreurs, putain. C’est mieux comme ça, frangin? "
" Not really that much better, but I will let it slide, given your current situation.”
“Speaking of which”, Remus piped in. “Can you, like, explain shit?”
“What would you like me to explain, Mr. Kingsley?” Janus glanced over at him as he took a cup and poured some tea in it.
“Urgh, it sounds weird when you say it now”, Roman muttered, draping himself across Janus’ lap. “Haven’t heard that in so long.”
“You think that’s the weird part here?” Remus cackled. “How about the part where I haven’t seen you in years, and the first time I do, it’s you getting dick from this dude!”
“Hey!” Roman shot up, “Who I get dick from and what I do is none of your business! I’m allowed to have a life of my own, you know?”
“Didn’t you ever think to let me, your twin ¸ know you got off the street into his bed?”
“ Our shared bed ”, Janus said casually, taking a sip. “And calling our marriage a way of getting off the street is a bit crude.”
“You got married?! ” Remus nearly jumped out of his seat.
“Remus, dear, calm down”, Patton put a hand on his arm. “I’m sure he has a reason for not telling you, right, Roman?”
Roman huffed, crossing his arms as he laid back down. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you. Hell, I wanted you as my best man, but I couldn’t.”
“Why, does your husband not like me?” he glared at the blonde.
“Oh no, they do, for whatever reason that is”, Roman looked up at Janus. “But for safety reasons, we decided against inviting anyone.”
“What do you mean safety reasons?” Patton asked as he moved to make space on the couch for Virgil.
“Well, it’s not like you want everyone to know you’re marrying one of the greatest heads of organized crime, you know?” he gestured with his hands.
“Good fucking gods, and you call me a delinquent?” Remus scoffed.
“Wait wait wait”, Virgil held up his hands, interrupting the conversation. “So, is this back when you were ‘going off the grid’? Was that…to get married?”
“Your deductive reasoning is as marvelous as always, Virgil”, Janus put down their cup. “But yes, this was back then, more specifically, that special gig I needed Logan for, if you recall.”
Logan shifted awkwardly in his seat, trying to avoid getting involved to no avail.
“Logan?” Virgil looked puzzled. “I know you said you were not allowed to give me any details, and I don’t hold it against you that you didn’t tell me my fucking brother got married, but what, exactly, did he need you for?”
“Well”, Logan adjusted his glasses. “I might have, perhaps, altered, so to speak, a few files. Pulling a few strings, as they say. Just some paperwork to make it official but not too conspicuous. Changing a few names here and there, routine work, really.”
Virgil looked unimpressed, raising an eyebrow as he explained further.
“Oh, and I also officiated the ceremony”, he said lastly.
“You can do that?” Patton looked at him surprised.
“Apparently!” Virgil exclaimed. “Must’ve been quite a boring ceremony since you were only gone for a day or two.”
“I told you it would be a simple job”, Janus clarified, fiddling with his black pearl earring. “Nothing Logan told you was a lie. Besides, I did tell you I was changing my last name and that I was taking up permanent residence in our ancestral home.”
“Janus, you change names every 3 years and you were already spending most of your time here. It wasn’t exactly a wedding invitation you sent me. I’m not mad, though.”
“You’re not?” Logan moved to fill a cup of tea for himself, offering a cup to Virgil as well, who accepted it gladly.
“Of course not”, he replied, taking the cup.
“Am I a little upset I didn’t get to congratulate my brother on it? Yes. Do I dislike it that my boyfriend had to keep it a secret from me? Also yes, but I’m not mad. I know that a lot of secrets are involved with this trade, and I told you from the beginning that as long as it isn’t information that would compromise our relationship or our work, you are free to keep as many secrets as you want. You don’t need to share everything with me, you know?”
“I know”, Logan sighed as he looked at the dark liquid in his cup. “But that doesn’t mean that I like to do so.”
“As heartwarmingly disgusting as that entire thing is”, Remus spoke again, diverting the attention to himself again, “and I will definitely want to know details about that since you didn’t even tell me you got laid, which, I assume you did, given your husband looks like hella fine”.
“Remus!” Roman threw a pillow at him, which landed on the floor behind the couch.
“We have more pressing matters than the cat being out of the ball bag”, he said.
“Surely, it’s not that bad?” Patton coaxed, trying to diffuse the tension growing in the room.
Janus elegantly raised an eyebrow, green and amber eyes staring intently. “Oh, is that so?”
He moved to turn on the tv, a looped breaking news broadcast coming into view.
“….after having left behind the statue, now broken beyond repair, the suspects moved towards the museum where a jewelry theft had just taken place. It is unknown whether or not the two are connected, and police investigators have yet to find any evidence that could lead them to apprehend the culprits. ”
“Damn, those reporters are fast”, Patton muttered as he stared at the screen.
“As you can see”, Janus turned off the sound as he let them all take in the report, “getting you out of this will prove to be a bit tricky.”
“You can say that again”, Roman whispered as he looked at the close up of the wreckage of the statue on tv. “Although I have to admit that was pretty well done, with the rainbow and such.”
“I’m more worried about the jewelry, darling”, Janus softly put his hand through his hair. “Did you put the gems away yet, Virgil?”
“Yeah, up in the safe, as per ushe”, he said, leaning onto Logan.
“Alright, that’s at least one less thing we need to worry about. If they can’t find the gems they can’t accuse you of stealing them. I can try to get you all off the hook, but that won’t come easy, or cheaply.”
“I’d say you have money enough”, Remus gestured around him. “Place looks loaded.”
“I never said the price was in money , Remus.”
He got up from the couch, walking to the bookcase on their right. “Nor did I say I was the one going to pay it.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Patton looked at him worriedly.
“It means”, Janus scanned the books on the shelf, “That you will have to work for it.”
“Jan, come on”, Virgil stalked over to him. “Don’t let those two be involved more than they already are. I’ll go do some extra errands for you in their stead, but please, let them off the hook.”
Patton, moved by how his future brother-in-law, although he did not know about that part yet, would offer his neck for him and Remus, pleaded instead that he wouldn’t let anyone else take blame for his own misfortunate mistake.
“As much as I would like to be off the hook”, he said, “I don’t want anyone taking the fall for me. I knew that what I was doing could go sideways. Granted, this went waaaay more sideways than I expected.”
“Understatement, Patton”, Logan mentioned nonchalantly.
“And I apologize, for interrupting a crime of which I have no memory of seeing” he winked, receiving groans from both Logan and Virgil in return, “ but whatever it is you need from me, I will do it myself.”
“You mean we, will do it ourselves”, Remus corrected him. “It takes two to tango, and the two of us will tango into jail or Hell together. Not than an angel like you has any place in Hell, hot stuff.”
Virgil let his hands slide over his face, grumbling behind them: “That’s going to be your brother-in-law, Logan. I pity you.”
“Yours as well” , Logan neglected to say, given how that was not another detail that had to be made public yet.
“None of you are going to jail. I don’t advocate for Hell though, only for the Devil on occasion”, Janus spoke again, having found the book he was searching for.
“But if you want those charges to disappear and for all of this to go away quietly, there is however, a solution to all of your problems.”
Virgil eyed him warily. “What are you planning? And what part do all of us play in it?”
“Well”, Janus opened the book and took out a small plastic card. He strode over to the coffee table, silk bathrobe flowing around him.
“ If , and I do mean if ¸ I were to pull something off like that, I would need the help of some people, but they won’t help me just because of ‘friendship’, or ‘old times sake’. I would need to offer them something valuable, something worth their trouble.”
He traced the wood engravings on the side of the table, resting near the middle. They landed on the smooth curls of a laurel wreath and slid the seemingly unmovable wood downwards, revealing a slot behind it. He explained further as he put the card in, causing a display to emerge from the surface of the table.
“Lucky for you, I have just the opportunity for you to help me find it.”
They entered a code on the display, and the surface of the table lit up, illuminating the room in a blue glow. Several diagrams and sealed files were projected above it, the holograms showing multiple statistics and tabs.
“Darling, I thought we agreed to no more gigs”, Roman crossed his legs, chin resting on his hand with a pout. “You were not allowed to work more! Doctor’s orders!”
“Just because you have a doctorate in literature does not mean you can deem every demand you have as ‘doctor’s orders’, my darling.” Janus glanced over his shoulder.
“However, I did say I wasn’t going to work anymore, and I never break my word.”
“Then what do you call this?” Logan moved to select one of the files, gently pulling Patton’s hand away from the holograms, on his way to meddle with everything before him, if Remus wasn’t quicker.
“This seems like quite some work.”
Logan moved through the files, circling through them as he pulled out his tablet again, syncing it with the table. He noticed several blueprints of a large building, presumably the one projected before them, along with a few folders about several people. Among them, he spotted a file about Patton and one about Remus.
“Have you been keeping tabs on them?” he flicked his wrist to display the files, Patton’s large smile floating alongside Remus’ cheeky grin.
“I’m impressed you got my good side”, Remus stared in awe.
“You have a good side?” Roman mocked him.
“Do you have a butt side besides the one where your face is supposed to be?”
“We have the same fa-, nevermind Roman, just let it go.”
“How and why do you have files about us, Janus? Or do I need to address you with a more formal title?” Patton gulped, seeing how the person before him was definitely not someone to insult by accident, given how the file before him even contained an incident from when he was 13 and set, albeit it not that intentionally, a backpack from a kid on fire.
Was it on purpose because the kid was calling one of his friends a racist slur and because they were bullying her? Totally. Did he mean for that fire to be caused by a minor explosion that was actually his main plan? No, but hey, no one got hurt and it wasn’t that bad, and the backpack was even salvageable. Sort of. With sooth stains. And burn holes. But still salvageable!
“I wouldn’t go so far as to address me with lord or Mr. Prince-Fouché, Patton, considering such formalities were thrown out the window the minute you set foot on my doorstep at 3 am, but as for your question about the files”, he motioned for the files to disappear as he set himself down on the edge of the sofa next to Roman, “I keep a tab on everyone that comes even near any or could become one of, my assets.”
“We’re assets?” Remus wondered out loud.
“No, you’re just an ass”, Roman chided. “Virgil and Logan are the assets.”
“Now, sweetheart, I wouldn’t dismiss your brother’s potential that easily.”
“You’re not actually considering hiring them to work for you?” Virgil looked shocked.
“Come now Virgil”, Janus looked disappointed, “you of all people would know me better.”
He rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms. “You don’t consider hiring them because that would imply an equal exchange while in this scenario you have nothing to lose but only to gain, thus it isn’t ‘hiring’ them, as it is to ‘recruiting’ them or crudely said, ‘using them’.”
Janus clapped their hands, straightening his back as he lauded his brother. “Well done Virgil, I am so proud of you, mwhua, so good”, he moved his hand in a kissing gesture.
“Either way”, Logan prevented Virgil from throwing something at his brother, placing a hand on his as he asked further about Janus’ intentions.
“What ‘potential’ are we talking about? I made it very clear from the beginning you were to leave Patton out of this business. That includes his fiancé.”
“Ah, as I recall, I mentioned I were to leave him out of anything to keep him unaware of your occupation. An ‘Ignorance is bliss’-clause, if you will. However, that doesn’t apply anymore, does it?”
He grinned a sharp smile at the shorter one of the brothers. “You seem to have walked into something, haven’t you, Patton?”
“I-, I suppose so?” Patton caught a glimpse of a sour look on Logan’s face, before continuing. “Does it matter?”
“Are you not in the slightest surprised you brother is a thief and conman?” Remus asked. “Not to mention he’s dating emo nightmare over there, whose brother is a major crime lord, who, btw is dating, no, sorry, married to my brother of all people. You gotta admit, Darling Daisy, the odds of that are insane, even for my crazy bullshit.”
“Oh, nothing surprises me about Logan anymore”, he shrugged.
“One time Logan blackmailed the principal by hacking into his email account, finding evidence of his affair when I said the man looked at me funny. Two weeks after that I said I was sad because they cancelled a concert that my friend was going to perform at and all of a sudden they got more funding that they had in the decade before it. Or that time when this really, really bigoted professor refused to teach one of his students because of her sexuality, Logan threatened to leak evidence of his money laundering practise at a shop he owned, and then later did it anyway because he called his bluff."
The silence that followed the room after that was deafening.
“Or that time on the football field when-“
“Apapapap, no one needs to know about that, okay, Patton?” Logan quickly interrupted him. “You’ve made your point.”
“Suuuure”, Roman glanced between the two brothers. “Anyhow”, he yawned, “you were saying, darling?”
“Yes”, Janus cleared his throat before picking up the subject again, “bottom line is, if you were to lend me your capabilities, for this, personal project , I could clear your names and we will never speak of this again.”
“You mean the work that you claimed was totally not work?” Virgil sneered.
“This is not work, this was simply, a, how do I put it, a project a friend asked me to have a look at, and, well, who am I to decline an intriguing puzzle?”
“That’s putting it a little lightly”, Virgil stood up from the couch taking the tablet from Logan. “According to the files and notes on this ‘intriguing puzzle’ of yours, this looks more like a level 6 heist to me. And one you need help for, as it turns out.”
He magnified the projection of the building, showing that it was in fact the famous casino of none other than grand business mogul D. Witcher, one of the wealthiest people of the century. Aside from having established a chain of successful gambling sites, he was also notorious for being the man who owned to most land around these parts, more often than not at the expense of the people who used to live on said land.
As expected of any sane (or in this case, insane) businessman, the building was heavily fortified: windows and doors so structurally sound you would need a heavy set of explosives to make a scratch in it. The complex of over 80 stories was guarded top to bottom, from the upper pool deck and loft, to the underground money storage. But as it turned out, that was not what the intended target was. Instead Janus had marked a spot on the 69th floor, at first glance a floor like any other.
“What’s so special about this that you need all of us to help you acquire….Whatever it is you want to steal from D. Witcher?”
“It’s not so much stealing as it is returning, hm?” Janus moved to show the object of their interest. “You would understand that, don’t you, Virgil?”
Virgil blew the bangs from his face, looking at the object floating before him.
“A suitcase?”
“A suitcase.”
“Now hold up”, Remus stood up, standing before the table. “You want us, two random guys you just met and your brother and his boyfriend, to help you with a crime, for which, if we get caught, the punishment is even worse than the one we face now, and said crime, is to break into a heavily fortified casino, to steal a fucking suitcase?”
“Correct”, Janus stated plainly.
“Sounds insane”, Remus chuckled halfheartedly. ”I’m in.”
“What’s so important about that suitcase?” Logan asked. “Is it filled with immeasurable wealth?”
“Immense treasure?” Patton added further.
“That is for me to know and for you to not ask about, understood?” Janus stated clearly.
“Yes sir, ma’am, erm, captain”, Patton half saluted him.
“Anyway”, Roman joined Janus at the table, leaning on his shoulder. “This project of yours, it means you’ll be working again, huh?”
“I believe so. All in the interest of helping your brother, among other things”, they replied.
“Well, I suppose that means you want to wield my expertise as well?” he smiled softly, mischief twinkling in his green eyes.
“If you would be so kind, of course.”
Remus made a motion to separate the two, who were seemingly leaning in for a kiss. “And what expertise would that be, exactly?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know, weather boy?” Roman grinned.
“Well yes, that’s why he asked”, Logan interjected. “But he is not a weather boy, to my knowledge?”
“Lo, let it pass”, Patton tapped his knee. “So, what is it you want from us, exactly?”
Roman slipped past his husband, letting his bathrobe swell around him.
“Well, Patton, that depends”, he smirked.
“Depends on what?”
Roman grinned, gently booping Patton on the nose, to Remus’ dismay.
“What’s your dress size and vocal range, pretty boy?”
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Anyways, couldn’t let crazy Hendery’s personalities be the end of DYVLONY right? Here is the High Court Magistrate’s turn :)
Mending souls
(oneshot, can be read separate, included in DYVLONY series)
Pairing: Xiao Dejun (Wayv) x virgin Reader (Y/N) pseudo Anna
Word count : approx 7.5k, prepare to read under the cut
Warnings: not our shiny Xiaojun, but a bit darker version with a problematic need for all things neat, and hate for all kinds of body fluids... loss of virginity, first time sex (safe sex), some form of punishment, Xiao being a bit yandere. 
Bill.
Another bill.
Another bill.
When does this end?
You thought to yourself.
College bills won’t pay themselves and the job you’d gotten at a local pub didn’t pay much either, the tips were mainly your income. So, when a job opportunity presented itself in a form of middle- aged man, you didn’t think twice, before agreeing.
A couple of dates every week, with a random stranger, but you’ll get paid for it, sounded ok, at that time. The job description however scared you a bit.
An escort.
A man or woman who is hired to go with someone to a social event- often used from escort agency services/ a person or group accompanying another to give protection or as a courtesy.
-Prostitution? – your college roommate Lea asked.
-No, not at all, - you stated, - I don’t have to sleep with anyone for this, not unless I want to, this company guarantees that I will be safe, they always provide a driver from their own company, who is near enough next to us all the time.
-Still sounds like prostitution, - Lea was a realist, she would say it for what it is.
-I suppose it is some kind of prostitution, I will be giving my time for the other person, but it is worth it, like the man sad, I would be able to pay college tuition, and we’ll have some extra left over, maybe we can both afford something then.
Lea sighed. Her job didn’t pay much either, and you both were struggling, but this was it, a job Is still a job.
-Fine, - she stated, - just be careful, alright?
You nodded and got dressed. Tonight, you will be a dance/music major, and you will accompany a businessman to a simple dinner. Yet, when your driver reached the destination as a five- star hotel, you felt under- dressed.
-What? – you sucked in a breath, - they told me it’s a small dinner.
-It is miss, - your driver announced, - only up to fifty people.
-Fifty? – your head was spinning, yet your nerves were somehow calm. You were not Y/N tonight.
You were Anna, art student, a confident dancer, who looks gorgeous in her outfit. Your driver nodded that it was the time, and soon you were inside the hotel, greeted by an elderly man, who was your partner for the evening.
-Miss Anna, I presume, - he extended his arm to reach for your hand, and kissed the top of your palm, - you look beautiful. My name is Sir Arthur de Clemence, I am a sponsor for many students over the country, and I am trying to attach more people to my fond tonight. See all these people, - he mentioned to the hall, - they have millions to spare, and with your help, I might be able to do that.
-Yes, sir, - you nodded, - I will do my best.
He nodded and you both headed inside.
A small talk with nearly every guest was your first talk. Flashing your best smile, you turned the conversations into- how small artists help locals survive in smaller towns and so on. It really was working, and by the end of the night, Sir Clemence was able to snatch at least thirty people on his side, all thanks to you.
When driving back after the event, your phone buzzed.
Your jaw dropped. You had just earned an amount that ended with five zeros in your bank account.
You ran into your apartment to find Lea asleep on the couch.
-We did it!!! – you ran towards her and jumped on top of her.
-What a, - Lea woke up from her slumber.
-We did it!!! – you shouted again, and Lea was wide awake now. You showed her your bank statement, and you both started jumping like kids.
-Oh my god!!! Oh my god!!! – she screamed.
-We have got to celebrate this!!!- you stated, and Lea nodded.
Weeks after weeks, the money kept going, your alter ego- Anna was who ever she had to be. A pro gamer, a barista, a literature student, even a stripper once. She was someone who was fearless, who would help you get through everything. To accommodate with your changes- you wore wigs, glasses, your lipstick was different for every person you played.
And after every couple of weeks, you and Lea got to celebrate.
-Did you hear? – Lea asked you, - Wanderlust club is throwing a party, wanna go?
You nodded. It was one of the coolest clubs there was, everyone wanted to get inside, and tonight you would.
As expected, it was crowded, people dancing, chilling at the tables, you both popped a champagne, drinking it ever so slowly, to feel the bubbles sliding down your throat.
-Is this what feeling posh is like? – Lea asked, you nodded.
-It’s just the beginning, - you stated, - I will be able to pay off my loan in a couple of weeks, and then we will get yours too, - you smiled, Lea nearly cried.
-You would do that for me? – she re asked.
-Always, you are my best friend Lea, I would do anything for you.
-Ah, you are making me cry now, - you both laughed and headed to the dance floor.
One moment you were next to Lea, and the next, grinding against someone’s crotch, feeling their hands around your waist. Once turned around you noticed it was an ex-partner of yours, who you accompanied a few weeks back.
-Mr. Roger? – you asked. – what are you doing here?
-Can we speak in private? – he invited, and you followed.
Once outside, he let you to the alley behind the club.
-What is this about? – you asked, - I don’t quite understand.
-Anna, - he started, - I have missed you.
His hands went to grab onto your waist.
-Mr. Roger, you should not be here, - hell, he was not supposed to find you, all your meetings had been confidential, without your real identity and all. – you should not be seeing me like this.
-I had to find you, - he stated, - I…. have been going crazy without you.
He reached for you once again, and you stepped back.
-This is not right, - you said, - I am getting back.
As you walked, his hands grabbed you again, pressing you against his torso, you kneaded him with your elbow and tried to get out of his grasp.
-Hey, - someone shouted, - what’s going on here?
You recognized him as the bartender from the club. He had a towel on his shoulder, and he was carrying a bin bag.
-This is not your business dude, better leave, - Mr. Roger spoke.
-He is attacking me, - you said, - get me away from him and if necessary, call the police, would you?
The bartender led you inside, giving you a glass of water and a pill.
-This will reduce your dizziness from the alcohol, - he stated and you drank without hesitation.
-Tastes funny, - you said, and somehow your words were getting slurpy, as if your mouth was filled with your saliva, -what is thisssss…. – you tried to ask.
-I am sorry, - he said, - I truly am.
You had no idea what had happened. Once unconscious, your clutch-bag had been taken away from you, and you were lying next to few other unconscious bodies, waiting for couple more, so the task would be completed.
Michel sighed, rubbing his eyes. This was wrong what they were doing.
His friend Jack on the other hand, had no issues with this. His mind was blinded by the money.
-Got one? – Jack asked when stepping in the room. Michel nodded.
-Good, good, - he patted the younger’s shoulder, - two more and we are ready to go.
Soon with nine other girls you were thrown in a van and driven away, a few hours later, tied in a spaceship, to be sent elsewhere, and later on, flying through the waves of different galaxies, till you crash landed on a planet, different from your coordinates.
* Planet DYVLONY 10043567901;1102033149001*
A gun was pressed at your neck, a sharp, stinging needle pierced through your skin, an injection that made you wide awake. You woke up with a groan while breathing in. The air- unknown and different, was burning your lungs.
-Her vitals are stable, - someone shouted. You felt disoriented.
The high court magistrate Xiao Dejun was watching through the glass, how all ten girls were injected a serum, vaccine, and a microchip, to help you communicate. Your naked body were one of the final ones, and for some reason he felt like a pervert watching you like that. Your body was beautiful, your curves in all the right places.
-Sir, - Dejun’s assistant spoke, - shall we get them ready?
-Yes, please, - Xiao nodded, - I will get Detective Ten here asap.
Greeting the detective as he arrived, Dejun led him through the doors.
-Don’t think of us as uncivil, - Xiao spoke, - since we don’t know why they are here, we cannot allow them to roam free, if you know what I mean…
The doors opened and Ten arched a brow. Dejun wasn’t looking happy either, but this is what they had to do, precautions, if you will.
-Greetings aliens, - Detective stepped on a platform, and started his interrogation. Xiao knew, Ten will get answers, one way or another, he was a Detective for a reason. – Have they been on drugs?
Xiao nodded to his assistant who handed Ten a file of information.
-The lab tried to make a sample from their blood, but couldn’t, whatever it was, didn’t last long in their system.
-Long enough to transport them to this planet though, - Ten stated.
Later behind closed doors both Detective Ten and Magistrate Xiao Dejun talked about what to do next.
-What did they say? – Xiao asked.
-We were right, the girls were not meant to be here, and they all are harmless, so we need to take action now.
-I know what you mean, - Xiao agreed. – what do you think we do?
Ten sighed and bit his lip.
-We should provide them with home, someone to look after them, - he started, - I can be one, maybe you?
Xiao nodded.
-What about the members of society council?
-Maybe, - Xiao spoke, - but I want to choose.
-Choose? – Ten asked, - ahhh, I see, - he smiled, - has one of them already caught your eye? – Ten winked and giggled.
-Ha, - Dejun poked his shoulder, - it’s not like that, she just seems to be the youngest out of all of them, so, I decided to choose her.
-If that’s what you like, why not, - Ten agreed, smirking.
Once at home, Xiao pulled out your file. It contained a lot of your photos, naked and dressed, from many different angles, information that you had given them. Anna. Your fake name, but no one has to know that.
Opening one of the bedside drawers, he took out a USB, attaching it to his pc. A video started playing and Dejun bit his lip. Choosing to remake the video, he started to work on it. He even re-made the sounds. Clapping his palm onto his other hand, which was formed in a fist, he made sex-like noises, and spoke into microphone.
-Ten, you have to see this, - he spoke, in the video Anna was crawling on her knees, grabbing onto Dejuns’ trousers, touching his cock, and sucking on it afterwards. – she’s a naughty girl.
He announced in the mic, playing forward the video, he made sure, that his partner indeed looked like Anna (you) from all the angles. No one would ever know. Xiaojun remembered the mess his partner had made after the sex, how angry he got, when she smeared her secret all over his abdomen.
Anyways, she got to sit on a bag of peas (a method of punishment used in schools, a long time ago, bag of beans or peas, since small in size would poke at your knees and hurt as hell,) after that stunt. Not on his watch is anyone to make him dirty like that.
Not two days had passed, when Xiao returned to the high court to pick you up. One by one you all got split up, taken to different peoples’ homes, to be taken care of.
-Hey, Suzy, - Xiao greeted, - I am here to pick up Anna, - he smiled.
-She is ready, you just need to sign these papers, - she handed the documents to Xiao, and he filled them in, simple questions of- does your house have a spare room and if you had already purchased clothing for Anna etc. Yes. Xiao was prepared.
You were shaking. This was scary. Who are you about to get? Yet you were the one who were hoping for someone nice, so you put your façade on, bringing in the person you are playing. Anna.
-Anna, - you were greeted by a female DYVLONY, - your guardian is here to pick you up. Follow me.
Once through the door, you saw a back first. Then the brown hair, a person wearing a suit.
For some reason, the person you pictured was Mr. Roger at your first meeting, you got goosebumps all over your body, and then he turned around.
You knew the guy. High court magistrate that you had encountered many times when you had just landed. He was with you when you were being examined. Behind his stare though, there was something else, he seemed like a nice guy, so you put your thoughts aside to focus on your travel to your new home.
Xiao was driving. So, you thought, to make things not so difficult, might have a chat, a small talk, just to get you going.
-What do you do for a living? – you asked, Dejun was very focused on driving, but he gave a small smile before talking.
-I work in the High court, - he started, - I am one of the magistrates there.
-I see, - you spoke, - so you assist in cases and all that?
Xiao nodded.
-What were you on your Earth? – Dejun asked.
You thought briefly, what to tell him, you were a student and an escort? Do you really tell him?
-I was in school, actually, - you started, - but I did various side jobs.
-Like what? – he continued.
-Uhm, - you bit your lip, - I was a bartender.
-Was a bartender? – he re- asked, - and after that?
Do you tell him? He might not know what it is though, right?
-I worked as an escort, - you spoke softly, more quiet than normal.
-So, what does an escort do? – he was curious now.
-Just, you know, - you breathed in a sharp breath, - like a person to be company for another person. Simple as that.
Xiao nodded.
-And you get paid to do that? – he thought to himself, you nodded.
-Yeah, see, a lot of people are lonely like that, - you stated, trying to figure out a way to change a subject. – your car is neat, - you nearly squeaked out a random sentence. But then it really was neat, there was not a single bit of dust, the cleanest vehicle you had ever seen.
Xiao flashed a smile. He was really good- looking, it was clear as the sky.
Once parked up by his house, he led you both inside the house. It amazed you how clean it was everywhere. You left your shoes at the hallway before putting on a pair of slippers, which Xiao had given to you.
The house was small, but comfy, two floors, by the looks of it. Xiao led you to your room, but you stopped by his room seeing how it looked like. There were various toys on one of the shelves, and it looked creepy as fuck.
-This is my room, - Xiao was right beside you.
-Oh, - you snapped out of your trance, - I’m sorry, I just noticed those… - you pointed to the shelves.
-I see, - he said, - let’s go, shall we?
You nodded and followed into your room. He opened a cupboard; everything was placed in it neatly. Socks, jumpers, underwear, you name it, he had it. All stacked up elegantly, nothing hanging about.
-Thank you, - you said.
-I’ll let you settle in, - with that he left you alone, only then you could get some time to roam through the cupboards. You started doing that when you met up with your clients back on Earth, some of them had planted microphones and cameras in their hotel rooms, so it had made you a bit paranoid. You had never told Lea that. As far as she had to know, you were always safe while at your job.
Xiao walked back to his room, opening his computer, he clicked send the video, adding a thumbs up, before getting back to you. You were literally roaming through the cupboards, half of the clothing now onto the floor. Xiao found you, arms deep in the drawers.
-What on DYVLONY are you doing!? – he shouted.
You jumped, landing on your ass.
-Ouch, - you shouted, swearing a “fuck” after that.
-Nope, - Xiao announced, went straight for you, grabbing your ear, while you grabbed his hand, he pulled you up on your feet, dragging you out of your room, down the stairs. You followed him with an “ouch” after an “ouch”.
Once in the kitchen, he sat you down on a chair.
-We don’t speak like that in this house, - he said, opening one of the drawers, putting a cloth on the table, followed by a box of silver cutlery. – and we don’t throw things around like that!
He stayed quiet. You didn’t quite get what he wanted from you.
-So, - he started, - I am giving you a punishment, - your eyes widened and heart- beat went up, - you will polish this, - he mentioned to the silver cutlery. You nodded taking the cloth in your hand. One by one you took out the pieces, wiping them clean, putting them back. Really there was nothing to polish, they must have been cleaned only a couple of days before.
-This is easy, - you said.
-Ha, - Xiaojun laughed opening few more drawers where you were greeted by a few more sets of silver.
You mentally face-palmed yourself.
-You will clean ALL OF THEM, - he announced.
-I’m sorry, - you whispered.
-I know you are, - he stated, passing you more sets.
A few hours later you thought your hands were to fall off. Clean. Wipe. Polish. Your stomach rumbled. Xiaojun leaned closer, next to you ear, his breath tickling your throat.
-Hungry?
You jumped back in your chair, your nape hitting Xiaojun in the face in the process. When he grabbed his nose, you went to help him.
-I am sorry, I didn’t mean to, - you said, nearly sobbing, he was groaning in pain. When he moved his hands away from his face, you saw the blood first.
-There better be no blood, - Xiao said, your lip trembled now, teary eyes looking at him. He walked away, upstairs, probably to the bathroom, while you fell to your knees, crying. He was angry, it was frightening. Most of the times the calmest people are the most scary when it comes to things like this.
Minutes passed while you were on the floor, until you heard footsteps approaching. Xiao leaned down, putting his hand around you to help you get up.
-I’m sorry, - you sobbed.
-It’s fine, - he replied, - let’s get you something to eat.
He sat you back to the chair, and when you saw his face, there was not a glimpse of blood or anger, he looked like before, the smiling court magistrate that you met before. You wiped your eyes in the back of your hands, and the sleeves of your onesie.
Throughout the dinner, you couldn’t face him, not once you looked his way. When you finished eating, Xiao took the dishes and washed them, drying them off straight away. You looked up at him, finally. He smiled at you.
The kind of smile that makes you warm. A nice smile.
-Shall we go upstairs?
You nodded, and he led the way, but to your surprise he stopped in front of the bathroom.
-Is everything alright? – you asked when he opened the door, he didn’t respond, but mentioned for you to walk inside. You stepped inside and he followed. There was a pile of bloodied tissue in the rubbish bin that caught your attention.
The next thing you know, your face is nearly in the bloody tissues, and you are on your knees.
-Who did this? – Xiaojun asked.
You couldn’t say a word, you were in shock.
-Who did this? – he asked again, pressing your head down more towards the tissue. You started crying. – who did this? – he asked the final time.
-I’m sorry, - you sobbed.
-I am not asking you that, - he said calmly, - WHO DID THIS?
Throughout your sobs and cries, you manage to squeak a very quiet “me”. He let go of your head.
-Me, - you said one more time, the same quiet like before, - I did this…
And then it was all too much, your cries, your feelings on high alert, and then… everything went black.
*48 hours later*
Xiaojun was next to your bed, sitting on a chair. The doctor had just left, saying that you must have had a couple of rough days, that knocked you out like this.
He was scared.
He did this to you.
You looked so peaceful like this though. He must have had scared you with his behavior. He couldn’t do anything about it, that’s what he does, he had been brought up like this, and so will you. You will get used to it; he was sure about it.
There was a couple of pills that the doctor recommended, and an injection, which Xiao was against off. He would not do that to you. So, pills it were, he just needs you to wake up, and then you both could continue with your life.
He waited an hour, and one more, and then he made you soup, then he was ready to wake you. Once he walked in your room, he noticed you were sat upright, looking disoriented.
-Hey, - Xiao greeted, your body pressed back, as if to hide from him, - it’s ok, - he said, - don’t be scared, I won’t hurt you.
This time, Xiao got on his knees, leaning down, asking for your forgiveness.
-I should not have reacted like I did, and I apologize, - he said, - I am truly sorry, I will try to take care of you like I promised, if you let me…
You nodded.
He got back up, bringing you some warm soup, and giving you water to drink the pills.
-Doctor gave these for you, - he smiled while handing them to you, - they should help, for the anxiety and stress that you’ve been through.
You nodded, pretending to drink the pills. When you thought he wasn’t looking, you turned your head to spit the pills out, but Xiao’s hands got to you first, his hand clamped down on your mouth.
-Swallow, - he said. – it’s for your own good.
You nodded a “no”.
-Please, - he said, - it really is for your own good. Please?
You swallowed the tablets, not really wanting to, but it was the only option for you. Only then, Xiao let go of your face.
-I know I scared you, - he said, - if you behave, it won’t happen again, ok?
You nodded once more. God only knew what he was about to do, and you? Would play nice, not to anger him. Oh boy, was it ever that simple?
Following days, he was at home. Both of you would have breakfast, then doing house- work, you would clean, he would do the same, you would watch him rearrange his toys, and then would be lunch, and every other day you would go for walks.
On this particular day, he took you to church.
You were greeted by a smiling pastor, who seemed off.
Once you sat down in one of the isles, you listened to what pastor Kun would be talking about today.
-Family, - he said, - family is only one, the one that we had chosen before we were born. Family is our beginning, and it is also our ending. Turn to your right, - pastor preached, - are you with your loved ones? Your friends are also your family. They are the ones who make you who you are.
Your brain gears started to circulate in motion. Family. Why is Xiao like this? There is something that must have happened, it’s your task to find out.
Walking back, you looked around, smiled at the kids who ran around, a simple interaction like this made you feel welcome.
-Tell me about your family, - you said looking up at Xiao.
-There is not much to tell, - he replied, - my father was very strict, my mother was too, they both were, but thanks to them I got where I am now. I focused more on learning and knowledge than running around with friends or girlfriends.
You nodded. Strict. That’s probably not the right word.
-Who made you obsessed with cleaning? – you spat out and then shut your mouth with your hand. Xiao stopped in his tracks. He looked at you, the deep orbs searching yours, as if he was looking directly into your soul.
-Why don’t you tell me your real name? – he simply replied, starting to walk again, away from you, towards the house.
-What? – you asked, going after him, - what does that supposed to mean?
He looked at you unbothered, raising his eyebrows.
-I know you lied about that; I am not stupid you know…
-So, what!? I lied… AND? – your voice escalated, - you have no proof!
Soon you were back in the house, behind closed doors, where no one would hear you arguing.
-And that Is supposed to make It normal? – Xiao talked back at you, - proof? I have called your name, and you have not responded so many times I started to think, that something is off, until I realized, that Anna might not be your name, that you might be a traitor, who has stolen someone’s identity.
-I told you I was an escort, you know what else escorts do? – you shouted, - I transform into other personalities, turn into a different person, to earn money. One day I can be someone to seduce you, - you stepped closer, touching Xiao’s chest, - a different time I can be your worst enemy.
You stomped upstairs, going in Xiao’s room.
-What do you think you’re doing? – he asked, going after you.
-I told you, I can be whatever people wanted me to be, so which me do you want? You chose me for a reason? And what is that reason, huh?
With a swift movement, your hands threw all of his toys on the ground, like a maniac, you threw every single one of them down, Xiao was screaming, while trying to catch you.
-What are you doing!? – he shouted.
-What you gonna do about it? – you shouted back, and it was like a switch had been activated. Gone was the calm and happy Xiao from minutes ago. Next thing you knew, you were on your stomach on the ground, your face pushed down into the carpet.
-What is this behavior? – he asked, pushing your face even more, if that was even possible. Somehow you managed to turn your face at the right time, gathering your saliva, spitting him in the face. Xiao jumped back. He looked so disgusted.
-What? – you bit back, - don’t like a bit of drool? You neat freak!
You were ready to make a run for it.
-I have seen the weird things you do, - you said, - you dislike blood and other body fluids, barely manage to live through the mess in the bathroom after I have had a shower with my hair sticking everywhere… yet you drink coffee and tea that contains grains, through a straw. What does it make you? You are disgusting!
Xiao pursed his lips, calculating what he will say next.
-I think that mouth of yours needs washing with soap, - he said matter- of- factly, - everything that comes out of it, sounds like a lot of shit…
When you understood what he was about to do, it was too late, he had grabbed you, pushing you into the bathroom, down on your knees, already next to the sink. Holding you in between his legs so you wouldn’t move, his hands gathering the liquid soap, trying to get it in your mouth, you were pursing your lips, trying your best not to open your mouth. His fingers blocked your nose, and you breathed in to get air back into your lungs, and Xiao pushed the soap in your mouth.
It burned like hell, your tongue tasted the bitterness, and your mouth was burning, tears were already streaming down your face, and your face was pushed up, Xiao was looking down on you, his face happy.
-Whose fault is this? – he asked, - I wouldn’t have to do this if you were a nice girl… right?
When you were sobbing like mad, he let go, and you spat the soap out, some of it had already went down your throat. Washing your mouth, you sobbed even louder, Xiao was still having a hold on you.
-Who are you? – he asked.
-My name is Y/N, - you spoke softly, tears slipping down your face.
-My classmates called me dirty, - he said, - so my mother made sure, I was not…
Back to your feet, Xiao had washed your face, made you sit on the bean bag, while he puts his toys back into place. You were still sobbing in between, while Xiao talked.
-I did choose you, - he said, - for my own hunger and desires. I made you someone else in my mind. I thought you would be different, once you would be mine, but expectations didn’t match reality, - he looked at you, - don’t worry, I won’t give you back, I intend to make you mine…
He smiled.
-What you do is not right, - you talked quietly, - you can’t make me yours, I should do that willingly, you punishing me is not right.
Xiao let out a laugh. He walked over to you.
-That’s the only thing I know, that’s how I keep control…
-When I was Anna, that’s how I kept control.
-See, we are not so different, you and I.
The after taste from the soap still lingered in your mouth. He was right in a way, and in a normal situation you would have ran away, but not here. As an escort you had come across a lot of broken souls, people who just needed someone to talk to, near enough like a next of kin, a family member who would listen to them instead of blaming them for something.
-I’m sorry, - you whispered, - your parents had no right to do that to you. I know, me saying this won’t change nothing either, but I need you to know, you can always change, of you find the right person.
Somehow those words stayed with Xiaojun. They made him feel weird. Change? How?
Hour after hour, day after day, and he still had not found the answers he was looking for. He walked home, leaving his car by the High court. Fresh air would help him think. Passing by the church, he made a d-tour. It’s like the god himself drove him to come to confess.
Inside the church, he sat in the cabin. Pastor Kun on the other side.
-I don’t know how to change.
-Why do you need to change? – Pastor asked.
-I have hurt the person I was supposed to care for, - he breathed in, - I shouldn’t have done that… she deserves more than that.
-Now the more important question is what are you willing to do for her to change this? Don’t you think?
-I know, father, but how do I change?
-Remember, when you are a child, your parents taught you everything… this time you both have to teach each other something, starting with small things, baby steps, smaller and then bigger. Slowly, you have to accommodate each other, start with trust, continue with anger issues, and so on…
-Yes, - Xiao said, - I will make sure she is cared for, she is loved, and I will make her happy.
Pastor Kun smiled on the other side. Xiao was a tough man, but he had a heart of gold.
-Thank you, - Xiaojun said, and then he left, going back home to you.
You had just made dinner, washing a pot, when Xiao’s arms trapped you in a back hug.
-I am sorry for hurting you, - he spoke, - I will try to master my issues if you’d let me.
You touched his hands with your wet ones. Xiao cringed.
-Let’s start with this, - you said, giggling, - fluids.
-Nope, - he tried to step back, - not ready for this, - but you didn’t let him. You turned around grabbing onto him and wiping your nose in his chest. – what the hell!!!
He was getting angry, but then he tried to suppress it down, instead of bursting out in anger, his hands grabbed your bottom. You thought, you might play a little, let some of that Anna’s personality slip through. You licked your lips, and Xiao raised his eyebrows.
-No, - he warned, - whatever you are about to do, don’t… - he warned again.
-Yes, - you said back.
-No no, - he shook his head.
-Yes, I have to, - you laughed a bit, wetting your lips again, and then you did it. Your lips reached his.
A wet smooch on his lips, the wetter the better, your saliva coating his dry ones. He had closed his eyes in the process. You leaned in again, doing the same over and over again. He was cringing so badly, you actually felt bad for the guy.
God knows, what his family had pumped into his system.
-This is natural, - and then the unimaginable happened, he kissed you back, his mouth drinking from yours, and your tongue asked for entry in his mouth, now both tongues touching each other, plenty of spit shared now.
Days passed. Just like this. You- trying your best to ease Xiao into all the things he despised, some even so ridiculous, and he kept warning you, that you apparently “make him angry” all the time. But it was not it. You started to develop feelings for him in the weirdest ways possible. Somewhat like a Stockholm syndrome founds its way through someone who has been taken against their will, your body grew accustomed to his needs and his wishes. During the day he left for work, and after work, you tried to tease him with all sorts of weird crap.
This particular day you were feeling hungry for his attention. So, you did what you do best in a situation like this- cause trouble.
You went in his bedroom and swapped over a couple of books. You see, a normal person would not notice shit, but not him. Xiaojun would notice that near enough as he would walk through the door. You greeted him when he came home.
-Dinner will be ready soon, - you announced.
-Ok, I will change my clothes and I will be down soon, - he smiled, touching your head and kissing your forehead. You watched him disappear, only to see him come out, - were you in my room?
You nodded “no”.
-Are you sure? – you nodded a “yes”, not saying nothing. He looked at you suspiciously, - is there something you are not telling me?
-I don’t think so, - you said, and walked back into the kitchen.
Xiao didn’t bother changing clothes, he went straight for you, pressing you against the kitchen counter.
-What are you doing? – he asked again.
-I don’t know what do you mean? – you faked innocence. He leaned in, his lips nearly brushing against yours.
-Are you sure? – he teased you now.
-Mmh, - you nodded. He giggled letting you go.
-You are making me crazy, - he whispered.
-I love you.
The three words that you were hiding from him all this time, managed to slip passed your lips. Xiao stopped in his tracks. What did you say?
He trapped you again in his arms.
-What did you say? – he leaned closer, and you were looking everywhere but not him.
-I…, - you struggled, his hand reached for your face, and he was holding your chin up to see into his eyes, his loving eyes, how he scrunched his nose when you did something to tease him, how his eyebrows raised when you pretended to be someone else, just to see his reaction, - I love you…
He smiled with his eyes, his lips widening in a grin, he felt like a douchebag, but he knew what was next for you both, so his lips touched yours in a loving manner, starting to kiss you slowly, just barely touching your lips in the process.
You on the other hand felt like you were thirsty, and you joined in, grabbing onto Xiaojun’s body, kissing him passionately. He put your legs around his hips, taking you with him up the stairs. His lips were now attacking your neck, and grabby hands- your butt in the process.
Once on his bed, he got rid of his jacket and shirt, leaving him in a tank top, and getting back to what he was doing. You stopped in between to get rid of some of the clothing, when he had left you only in your bra and trackies, his body was on top of yours, his lips returning to yours.
-Xiao…- you whispered, he looked up, - I… I haven’t done this… with anyone…. Yet.
He didn’t look surprised. For some reason he always had assumed that you hadn’t, maybe it was just the way he saw you at first, and then, he just never bothered to ask.
-I am ok with that, - he smiled, - only if you are.
You nodded eagerly. Minutes later, he had gotten rid of your trousers, your panties on display. His arms caressed your skin, he was extra gentle and slow, to prove that you could trust him, and he would only continue if you would nod or reach for him, which you did. Your hands found themselves in his hair, pulling him closer to your own hungry body.
His hands travelled south, slipping past the waistline of your underwear, going down on your sex, you nearly bit him, since no one had touched you there, this was a new sensation, and it was making your body tingle and your heart rate going up.
-It’s ok, I just have to stretch you a bit, if that’s alright with you, - you nodded, feeling how his fingers were moving up and down on your lower lips. You knew that he is not really ok with body fluids, but for some reason he didn’t mind your wet lips nor your dripping sex.
-I should ask you the same thing, - you giggled, getting more comfortable at his touch, he smiled back.
-You might just be the reason, why it’s ok, - he replied, as simple as that.
One of his fingers found your entrance and eased its way inside, your walls snug around it. You had closed your eyes; it was making you nervous and excited. While moving one of his fingers inside your tight walls, he soon added another one. You grabbed onto his arm.
-Give me a moment, - you whispered, the feeling making your head spin, - can… can I be on top when we do this?
Xiao was surprised. Not once he had heard a request like that, but he nodded anyways, soon you had changed positions, your legs spread over his lap, his fingers working their way inside your pussy, coaxing moans from you.
-Oh, don’t stop, - you whispered, biting your lip, - please… don’t stop…
And he didn’t, he worked hard to get you to orgasm, not slowing down till you came down from your high, now completely sat on his lap. His lips found yours. Tender lips brushing yours, quiet whispers leaving his mouth to make sure you were good.
When your hands reached for his pants, it was clear that you were ok to continue, and he let you play a little bit, his hand helping you work on his member through his pants.
He moved you off his body, so he could get rid of his trousers, his dick standing proud, a happy trail towards it that you hadn’t noticed before. You gulped. How is he going to fit? Like how?
Xiao got you out of your thoughts, with his own hand, returning to his member, massaging it, you felt your throat dry out a bit. Alright, watching a porn was completely different to what was in front of you now. Then the idea of a horrible sex scene found its way to your mind, and you had to shake your head to get rid of it. No time for that bull.
He reached for you, to kiss you again, then slowly moving back to the cupboard next to his bed, taking out a condom and slowly slipping it on, then sitting back down on the bed, helping you get on top of him again. He pushed you down slightly, so your pussy lips were grinding on his naked member, sparks of pleasure went through you. You looked down and helped him position himself right under your entrance. The tip of his cock was now slowly pressing into you, your hands were on Xiao’s shoulders for stability, grabbing a bit strongly onto him now.
Xiao let you move on your own accord, watching your reaction as you sank down lower on him.
-Help me, - you whispered, and he helped to push your hips down, his dick penetrating your virgin vaginal walls, and you sank down with a hiss. A tear escaped your eyes, Xiao kissed it away, his hands caressing your sides and your back, till you nodded with a quiet “I’m ok”. The stretch was something new, a bit painful, a bit extraordinary, if you could call it that.
Xiao’s lips kissed yours, then your neck and lower to your front, just above your breasts, his hand touched one of your breasts, groping and massaging, and his lips latched onto your nipple. Your head fell back, enjoying the feeling, and your hips started to move. The burn you felt in your abdomen, was slowly fading away, your vagina pulsing around Xiao’s member, and he helped you find a rhythm. You knew, you won’t be able to keep up for much longer, but you had to make sure, you were comfortable enough to give into him completely.
He let you enjoy your ride, but then he said:
-That’s it, - and with that he flipped you over, your body under his, - you had your fun… now it’s my turn…
The lovemaking sounds were in the air, with tender kisses, slow and sensual movements, his hand touched yours, fingers entangled with yours, and his eyes searched for your eyes, the feelings felt even on a higher level. The eye contact made it even more personal, not only because this was your first time, but it was also Xiao who made it special for you.
Changing the rhythm to faster movements, coaxing more moans out of you, that he swallowed with hot kisses over your mouth, he felt you tightening around him one more time, as you orgasmed, your lips not making a single sound, only when Xiao returned to continue his pelvic thrusts to chase his own high, you moaned and screamed, driving him into oblivion, and him taking you with him, your body convulsing and turning into a hot lava, bursting at the seam, while his hot seed filled up the condom.
He held you tight against him as you both were trying to catch your breath, he pulled out slowly, earning a whine from you.
-Let’s get you cleaned up, - he said, but you didn’t allow him to move.
-Not yet, - you giggled, - stay a bit more… - your body was sweaty, and so was his, and he was not happy about it at all.
-Y/N, - he warned you.
-Yes…? – you laughed again, - too much body fluid? – you giggled, earning a sigh from Xiaojun. – if we have a bath, I will want to make you dirty again soon after that…
You said that as a fact, and Xiao shook his head.
-Ok, - he gave in, hugging you again. – but only because you asked so nicely.
-See, it’s not that bad…
-Oh, it’s bad, - he replied, - and I am still not used to this.
-But you will be…? – you smiled, kissing him.
-I will be.
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sugarsugarmoon · 4 years
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Summary: The summer that you meet Kim Taehyung proves to be a cruel summer. kth x reader
“I’m drunk in the back of the car, and I cried like a baby coming home from the bar. Said, “I’m fine”, but it wasn’t true. I don’t wanna keep secrets just to keep you. And I snuck in through the garden gate every night that summer just to seal my fate.” Taylor Swift - Cruel Summer
Genre: angst, fluff, smut
Warnings: vaginal fingering, swearing, recreational alcohol use, protected and unprotected sex, impact play, light choking, everyone’s fingers in everyone’s mouths, smol amounts of exhibitionism, oral sex (f. receiving and m. receiving)
a/n: this is mostly just a story that I wrote a bunch of my friends into. Anyway, I didn’t even read it all the way through once. It could make no sense at all. It’s my your queen of not editing and not having someone beta read. I don’t remember who else I was supposed to tag. @moonpjms @glossyfever @onherwings @softguks​ @ot7always​
WC: 18K+
You pulled up your hood then firmly tucked your arms around yourself. You ducked your head as you ran across the street through the rain. The awnings covered most of the sidewalk, but the street was uncovered, rain splattering all over the black asphalt. The neon and LED lights from the shops bouncing off the wet ground, creating a constantly changing abstract art display. You felt yourself hesitate as you were coming upon the curb because you were entranced by the dancing colors.
Leaving work this late hadn’t been your plan today, but at least you’d come prepared with a jacket, knowing that the monsoon season tended to span most of the summer. You, however, had forgotten your umbrella at home. You admonished yourself in your brain for being such an airhead today, like always. Thank God for Find My iPhone, or you’d constantly be in trouble.
You look at the sidewalk ahead of you, still glinting with the lights from the shops and business, and you sighed in exasperation upon seeing the large sections ahead of you that had no awning. Normally it wouldn’t be a big deal, but you were supposed to meet friends tonight at a bar in Gangnam. You were already running behind, not to mention the 30 minutes on the train that you had ahead of you. Now, you also had to worry about looking like a drowned rat, with your hair falling stringy and wet around your face.
You stand at the edge of the awning as if you’re looking down a steep precipice for your inevitable end. You stand for one more second, close your eyes, and accept your fate. Before you can take a step into the downpour, someone clears their throat behind you. You turn quickly to see a tall man with dark shaggy hair standing a little too close to you. You can’t see most of his face because he’s wearing a mask and a hat with a bill, but his eyes are sparkling just like the lights off the wet pavement.
“You look like maybe you could use an umbrella,” he says, and you can tell just from his tone that he has a smile on his face.
Normally, you wouldn’t accept help from a strange man on the street, but it’s raining and you’re late.
You sigh and say, reluctantly, “Are you going anywhere near Saetgang station?”
He shifts his weight in an energetic kind of way. “As a matter of fact, I happen to be going to Saetgang station.”
He shifts his umbrella to his left hand and holds it over you more than himself. You walk with your shoulders touching, and after about 2 minutes, he talks. He isn’t looking at you, but you still know it’s for you because no one else is around.
“You can just call me Tae, by the way.”
“Oh, thanks,” you pause, unsure if you want to give him any more information about yourself than you have to; stranger danger and all that. “I’m y/n.”
“Y/n? That’s an unusual name for around here.”
“Well, I’m originally from the States, but I moved here when I was very young. My dad worked at the consulate and my mother was an English teacher, so I’ve been here most of my life.” You realize the insane amount of detail you’ve just given him, and you shake your head at yourself. To shift focus, you snap, “Besides, Tae isn’t that common for around here anyway. If you were traditional Korean, wouldn’t your name be three syllables? Whoever heard of a traditional ‘just call me Tae.”
“Hey! Come on. I’ve got a Korean name. I would just like to have a tiny bit of anonymity, thank you very much. Not all of us are open books, Ms. my-father-works-for-the-consulate.”
“Worked.” Your tone drops, and you keep your head down as you see the stairs down to the subway before you. You thank the universe or God or whoever was listening to the shouting in your head for the awkward interaction to be over.
As soon as you are down the stairs and out of the rain, you thank him and try to scurry off. Hopefully you’ll never have to see that jerk again.
You swipe your transportation card and make your way to the platform to wait for the next train. The train from Yeoui-dong to Gangnam comes every 12 minutes, and you have the times memorized in your head. The last train had come at 7:11pm. You look down at your watch. 7:22pm. Perfect timing you think to yourself. Despite being slowed down slightly by just-call-me-Tae, you were still perfectly on time.
When the train arrives, you clamber inside around the car stuffed with bodies. You find a place to grab the railing overhead and cast your eyes at the floor of the car. It’s best to avoid eye contact on the train.
After the first stop, the people inside shift around, and the shoes in front of you now are not the same as the last pair. The person before you before was wearing black shoes, the kind that are so shiny that you could see your reflection in them. These shoes are slip on loafers with a little decorative metal clasps on top. Something about them is familiar. Oh shit.
You draw your eyes up the slender frame before you, and you take in the muscles on his chest that you hadn’t noticed before. When you finally look at his face, he has a smug, amused grin showing his teeth. You roll your eyes, and then your heart speeds up.
“Are you following me? What do you want? I don’t have any money.”
His eyebrows shoot up his forehead. “Oh my god! No! We just happened to be on the same train! I’m meeting friends at SAHM in Gangnam, I promise!”
The panic in his tone makes you want to trust him, but you still remain wary. As his words set in, you roll your eyes again.
“Seriously? SAHM? Are you kidding me call-me-Tae?”
You know you didn’t tell him where you were going except to the station, but the fact that he says he’s going to the same bar as you seems too crazy to be coincidence.
“Yes?” he says, the surprise wiped from his face to be replaced by confusion.
“Why?” you ask to yourself in exasperation.
The train stops, and people shuffle around the car. You get pushed a little closer to the man in front of you, and you feel your cheeks redden.
“Well, my friend is hanging out with his girlfriend and her friends tonight, and they invited me and some other friends too.” He’s confused, and you want to call him an idiot for not realizing that the question wasn’t directed toward him.
He reaches into the pocket on his long, sweeping tan coat. You recoil ever so slightly from the unexpected movement.
He plucks his phone from his pocket and holds it toward you. “Dude, relax,” he laughs. “I’m not stalking you. I’m not going to murder you. You’re fine. I see you clutching that pepper spray. Use it if you need, but maybe just not in the confined train car.”
You become aware of the fact that your hand is in your purse, gripping your pepper spray, and you feel a little embarrassed. You mutter an apology.
“Look.” He holds his phone out to you.
Very clearly in the group chat he shows you are several people making plans to meet up at SAHM tonight. You roll your eyes again.
“If you keep doing that, they’re gonna get stuck like that.”
Every moment with this man is more embarrassing than the last, and you cannot wait for the ride to be over. Only one more stop before yours, and you can get off the train, mosey around the station for an inconspicuous amount of minutes before going to SAHM to meet your friends.
You ride the rest of the way to Gangnam with your eyes on anything but that embarrassing man, and he doesn’t push the conversation any further.
When the doors open, just-call-me-Tae bows slightly and says it was nice to meet you. Then he disappears into the sea of people in the station.
It’s about 30 minutes later when you finally make it to the bar, and you see your friends across the crowded space. The place has a kind of rustic feel to it, lots of wood and exposed brick. It reminds you of the hipster bars back in the states when you visited family last summer, and your cousin, Lindy, had insisted that you just had to try the new bar in town. You had a good time, but those fancy hipster drinks were stronger than you thought. You’d ended up drunk, flirting with the bartender. You even started an argument with Lindy when she refused to let you go home with a stranger in a country that you didn’t know well or speak the language perfectly.
You wriggle through the crowded bar to make your way to your friends. You smile at the sight of them all laughing and drinking together. Your friend, Rey, has her arm around the waist of a guy a little taller than her, who has a mask and a cap on, covering most of his face. You assume it’s her boyfriend, who she talks about non-stop but rarely goes into detail about.
Once you reach them, you see your friends’ beautiful faces and smile. They’re all gathered around a tall table, drinking and talking loudly. You say hello to all of your friends, hugging Rey last.
“y/n, this is Jimin. I’ve told you a little bit about him,” she shouts over the loud bar sounds, beaming up at him. She’s so precious when she’s in love.
She’s talked vaguely about Jimin for a long time, and you aren’t totally sure what his job is. You know that he travels a lot for work and that sometimes Rey goes with him. You know that she never says exactly where he lives or who his friends are or anything like that. She’s so smitten that you are so excited to finally meet him.
“Hi, Jimin. I’m so glad to finally meet you!”
You shake his hand and exchange pleasantries. His eyes are the only part of his face that you can really see, but they are full of light and excitement and joy. You feel overwhelmed by the feeling of happiness in your chest just from meeting your friend's boyfriend.
“y/n, I brought some of my friends along. Everyone else has already met them, but I’d love to introduce you.”
Jimin’s friends are all gathered together, talking and drinking. Jimin pulls each of them over to introduce them, the smile in his eyes shining above the mask. He finally pulls over a man with white shirt, when he turns, it’s undeniable that the face before you is the same one that you’d hoped to never see before. Luckily, you’re drunk and having fun, so you feel a little more relaxed.
“This is my best friend, Tae,” says Jimin. Tae shakes each of your hands, and when he gets to you, he hesitates as he says, “Nice to meet you.”
“Hi, I’m y/n,” you say, with snark dripping off your tongue.
“y/n? That’s such a unique and beautiful name.”
You blush a little bit, and you’re not sure why. You know he’s just making a joke, making up for what he said before. The alcohol pulsing through your body leaves you feeling a little hazy as you realize that you’ve been holding his handshake for too long. You yank your hand away from him and rub your cheek gently.
You turn from him and make your way back over to your friends. “y/n, you are so red!” exclaims Ahhyun.
You duck your head and cover your face with your hands. You’re just red because you’re embarrassed by Tae nothing else. You throw back the rest of your drink and track down the server to get another one.
After a few drinks, you are feeling silly and giggly with your friends. Everyone, including Jimin’s friends, decides to play a game around the table, and everyone is giggling and drinking. You’ve missed nights out with your friends like this, and for some reason, you keep finding yourself next to Tae.
Someone suggests that you all play suck and blow because apparently you aren’t actual adults with real jobs and retirement accounts. At least not tonight. You end up next to your friend Seoyeon on one side and Tae on the other. As the card goes around, you look up at Tae thinking about the fact that he has yet to remove the mask from his face. He sneaks the straw from his drink up under the bottom and drinks. You laugh to yourself at the silliness of it all.
“Are you going to be able to play with that mask on?” you ask him pointedly.
“Of course. You have no idea how strong my skills are.” He giggles and sets his drink on the table.
You finish your drink, and you feel that fuzzy feeling in your head that tells you that it’s probably time for some water. You watch the group pass the card from one person to another. Jinhee intentionally drops the card as she turns to her girlfriend, Ash, an adorable girl who is studying abroad in Seoul. You feel yourself blush as they kiss, and you melt a little bit more. You’re such a hopeless romantic, and love makes you so soft.
You get the card from Seoyeon and turn to Tae. He tries his hardest to hold the card against his mouth with his mask on, but it falls. Everyone laughs as he keeps his face close to yours.
“Oops,” he whispers. His tone hints that maybe it wasn’t an accident, but you can’t tell.
Suddenly, your mind is full of the image of you pulling down his mask and kissing his lips hard, tasting the sweet alcohol on his tongue. You want to put your hands in his hair and pull his hat off. His shirt is loose, and you long to see the shape of his chest underneath it. His collarbones are poking out of the top of his shirt, and you can see how perfectly your mouth would fit on them.
You are completely lost in the lustful thoughts when someone drops a glass on the floor, and it shatters. You realize the thoughts that you’ve been having, and you feel like the heat immediately shooting into your cheeks again. You decide to head to the bathroom to try to rinse your face with cold water. Maybe it will sober you up and keep these thoughts about Tae out of your head.
You splash the water on your face and wash your hands. This is the first time that you’ve looked in the mirror since before you walked in the rain, and you can see that your hair, while not as bad as it could be, is windblown and messy. Your fingers fumble through your hair until you get it slightly more presentable. You rinse your face once more, trying to wash away the redness in your face from the drinks.
When you stumble slightly as you exit the bathroom, and you trip slightly and grab onto the arm of the man that you trip into. You look up, and a tall gruff looking man is looking down at you.
“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry,” you mutter and try to slip away from him.
“Where are you going, cutie? You didn’t even introduce yourself yet,” he says as he grabs your wrist.
“Look, I should really get back to my friends.” You’re panicking a little, and you try to wiggle your wrist free of his grasp.
“Ah, honey, won’t you stay and chat a while with me?” he starts to pull you closer to him, and you yank your wrist away from him.
“Oh goodness, darling, there you are. I’ve been looking for you,” a male voice announces from behind you. When you whip your head around, Tae is standing there.
You scoot closer to him and grab his hand. “Sorry, babe, I didn’t mean to get lost. It’s just so crowded in here. I lost direction.”
The man who had been trying to get you to stay with him looks disgruntled as Tae pulls you into his side. Before he can say anything, Tae pulls the mask down from his face and the bill of his hat up a bit to reveal the absolutely gorgeous face before you. There’s something super familiar about it that you can’t quite place. Upon seeing his face, the guy mumbles some apologies and skulks away.
“Really? Your face scared him? That pretty thing?” you ask, drunker than you felt a minute ago.
Tae laughs and pulls his mask back up. Then something clicks in your brain. You’ve seen that face before in the subway, all over the television, all over the internet. Oh fuck.
“Thanks. I have to go,” you blurt out and slink away from him.
“Wait!” he shouts after you, but you keep moving through the crowd to your friends.
When you get to the table where you’d all been gathered and grab your bag. You say a quick goodbye to Ahhyun, seeing that Rey and Jimin are way too wrapped up in each other to notice. You slip out the front door onto the cool, wet sidewalk. Luckily, the rain has stopped, so you can walk briskly toward your apartment, your shoes slapping against the wet pavement.
When you’re a little way away from the bar, you slow your walk slightly, trying to process what just happened. Tae, who is an idol, had just attempted to protect your honor in public. Why was he even there? Shouldn’t he be...dancing or something?
You’re not sure why you’re so angry at him just for being who he is. Your ego is a little bruised in that you thought this guy might actually be interested in you, but there was no way that someone like him was going to be interested in someone like you. You’d seen the female idols and movie stars; he could have anyone he wanted.
You shake your head to try to get the image of him with a beautiful super model, laughing about the girl at the bar who flirted with him like a child by being mean to him. The sound of feet on the wet sidewalk pulls your attention away from your thoughts. You turn around, and you cannot believe your eyes. Tae is walking briskly toward you.
“You’re kidding me, right?” you blurt out, hoping he isn’t within earshot.
“Look, I know we don’t really know each other, but I felt like I connected with you in a way that I haven’t with other people,” he huffs out. “Plus, you didn’t look at me differently when you saw my face. I mean...you did, but it was almost disappointment on your face. You have to know how rare that is for me, right?”
You feel the corners of your mouth tugging back. You didn’t want to admit how beautiful you thought he was or that you thought his sense of humor was funny, but it was true. You were glad that he was here because the way it felt to stand next to him was warm and real.
“I just don’t really know what you want from me,” you say as you turn your face away from him.
There’s no way that a famous idol is standing in front of you telling you that your disappointment made him feel good. You shake your head again.
“Just...hang out with me. Just one time. It will be casual, and I don’t expect anything from you, but it’s worth it to me to try to see if we can even have a friendship. I like you. I think you’re funny.”
You blush and push your hair behind your ear. You inhale and exhale deeply, trying to slow your thoughts. You don’t want anything about your life to be in the spotlight; you don’t want to be seen in public with an idol. You don’t want to have sasaeng fans who wish death upon you for just being near their “one true love.”
“I don't know. The kind of attention you get isn’t the kind that I want in my life. I don’t want everyone in Korea knowing who I am.”
His eyes drop slightly, and his shoulders sink a little lower. “You won’t have to have that kind of attention. We have ways to make sure that you aren’t seen. We can be really careful. Come over tomorrow. We can have dinner, and I can show you that you don’t have to be in the spotlight.”
You pause and sigh. “Fine.”
You can see the smile in his eyes, and you fish your phone out of your bag. You open Kakaotalk and hand it to him. He sends himself a message and hands it back to you.
“Trust me. This is going to be fun,” he says.
“I hope so. I gotta get home though. Have a goodnight, Tae,” you mutter awkwardly.
“Thanks, y/n. I will. Thanks.”
He walks away quickly, and he turns back and looks over his shoulder once before you turn and walk away from him toward home, smiling to yourself.
*****
“Kim Taehyung!”
The shout greets Tae in the hallway as he makes his way toward the practice room the next morning. He has a little bit of a headache from drinking too much, but he doesn’t let that get him down. Tae still feels the way that it felt to hold your hand in the bar. He doesn’t want to be dramatic or anything, but he feels like you might be his soulmate. He would never say that out loud though.
The voice down the hall belongs to his manager, Minjoon, who is looking at him with disappointment in his eyes.
"Kim Taehyung, I cannot believe that you slipped your team again and spent the whole night out. At a bar, Tae? Really? What if you'd been seen? What if you'd been mobbed by people?"
Tae smiles at him, with the dreamy look still in his eyes. "But I wasn't. And Jimin was out too!"
Minjoon rolls his eyes at Tae and leads him away by the wrist.
"Yes, but Jimin took the proper precautions, and he took Beomseok with him."
Tae rolls his eyes and begins to walk away. "I'm sorry, okay? I won't do it again."
His manager lets him walk away, and he feels a damper starting to fall on his good mood that he thought that nothing could ruin. He makes his way to the practice room and flops down on the floor. Jimin is in there practicing hard in the mirror, hair pushed back off of his forehead and sweat shining on his brow. He ignores Tae for a couple of minutes, focused on getting the correct moves down. Finally, he looks up and sees the lump that is Tae lying on the floor.
"What's wrong with you? I thought you had a good night last night?"
Tae flops over again, so he's turned toward the mirror, looking at Jimin's reflection in the eyes. He brings his hand up and runs it through his hair. He lets the memory of your scent sink into his brain for a moment.
"Sometimes I just get so sick of not being able to be a normal 24 year-old. Not have to take security everywhere. Not worry about the spotlight. Don't you?" he asks, feeling the desperation in his voice.
"Of course I do. My relationship would be so much easier if I was able to just be a normal guy, but I chose this life. I think that Rey loves me, so she knows that this is the way that things have to be. It can be hard some days, but it's the way it is. Plus, Minjoon-ssi shouldn't have yelled at you. Beomseok hyung was there."
Jimin walks across the room to where Tae is lying on the floor. He encourages him to stand up, and when he finally gets Tae off the floor, Jimin heads to the boombox and puts on the song "My My My" by Troye Sivan. Jimin starts dancing silly all around the room, beckoning Tae to come dance with him. Soon Tae is laughing with him, and the two are singing loudly and dancing wildly around the room. When the other members come into the room, Yoongi rolls his eyes, and Hoseok joins in dancing.
After practice, while they have time to eat lunch, Tae decides to go ahead and shoot his shot. He opens KakaoTalk and pulls up your messages. The only thing in there is a message from him to himself.
Hey, y/n, I was wondering if maybe you'd want to come over for dinner tomorrow?
Now, all that he can do is wait. Wait for you to read it. Wait for you to decide. Wait for you to respond. Even though his schedule is very busy lately with press and practices, he feels like waiting for you has been the most important thing that he's waited for in a long time.
As he waits, he eats his Kimbap quietly. Namjoon comes up to him and sits next to him.
"Hey, Tae, are you all right?" he asks gently.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"
"You've been really distracted all day. Just kind of smiling into space."
Tae takes a moment to think back to his effort in practice earlier, and he realizes that his hangover and daydreams have made him noticeably less engaged than usual. Shit.
"I'm sorry, Namjoon-hyung. I will get my head back into it." He hangs his head slightly as he says it. Maybe having you come over tomorrow was not the best idea.
Namjoon sighs and wraps his arm around Tae's shoulders. "Hey, I know how you get. Just...don't put everything into this one person, okay?"
Before Tae can question it, Namjoon has gotten up to take his bowl to the staff before they start work again. He turns and looks at Tae one more time before he leaves the room to head to the studio. Tae sighs deeply and throws his head back on his shoulders. What am I even doing? he thinks to himself.
Your name shows up on his screen when he's all but resigned himself to not hearing from you. When he opens the message, he doesn’t know what else he had expected from you.
Fine.
His heart leaps slightly in his chest at the thought of it, and he smiles at his phone. Instantly, his mind is darting between all the things he wants to do and all the arrangements that he wants to make for you. For the rest of the day, he feels like he works hard enough to make up for how much he was dragging in the morning.
*******
Be ready at 8:00. I'll send a car for you.
That's not ominous at all you think to yourself. You weren't sure if this was a good idea, but you suppose if anyone can figure out how to sneak around fans and paparazzi, it's the famous idol who simply rode the subway with you last night.
You curl your hair slightly and slap on a small amount of makeup. You don't want to look like you tried too hard, but you didn't want to look like a total schlub either. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you actually are impressed. Trying not to look too long, you pull yourself away from your reflection as you start scrutinizing that your eyeliner is slightly uneven on each side. The last time that you'd done that, you had ended up with half of each of your eyelids covered in black liquid liner, and you'd had to remove the entire look at start over.
You had sent Tae your address the day before, so you assumed that you should just wait outside for the driver. The elevator ride down from your apartment is long and slow. You realize how mildewy and old the elevator smells, even though your building was built in the 80s. When the doors of the elevator slide open, you see a black town car with black tinted windows sitting in front of the front doors of your building.
You had never seen a car with such dark tint on the windows, but this must be the kind of car that Tae has to ride in all of the time to avoid being seen. You walk up to the car, your flats making your steps nearly silent through the lobby. You see your reflection in the pitch black car. A white crop top and a purple pair of cut off shorts with flats on your feet. The outfit had seemed like a perfect summer outfit that flattered all the right parts of your body without looking like you were trying too hard to be fancy or dressed up for a "date."
For all you knew, this wasn't even a date. It was just two people hanging out. While you were lost in thought, the driver of the car came around and stood next to the rear door.
"Miss y/n?" he asked in such a formal tone, that you felt taken aback. No one ever talked to you so formally. You were the youngest in your team at work, and you were so used to being everyone's dongsaeng that you didn't know what to do with all the respect he was giving you.
"Yes, thank you," you blurt out awkwardly.
He opens the door for you, and you clamber in. The ride is almost 45 minutes with traffic, there's always traffic in Seoul. You have plenty of time to think about all the ways that this could go wrong. Think about how you're going to see your face on all the gossip sites tomorrow. You hardly let yourself relax or breathe as you sit in the car. Maybe it won't be so bad. Or maybe it will be a nightmare.
Finally, the car reaches the first gate of an apartment complex, and the driver gives the man at the gate his idea. The security office records it in a big binder and waves him on.
"You'll need to get out your ID for the second gate, miss," he says back to you.
You fish your ID out of your bag and hand it up to him as he pulls up to the second gate. He hands the IDs to the security officer, who enters the information into his computer and wishes you both a good night. Wow. You didn't know what you expected, but it wasn't this. It makes sense though.
The car pulls into the garage, and after parking, the driver leads you through the concrete labyrinth. You have to check in at the front desk too and be led by someone else in a black suit to the elevator and up to the apartment.
When you get to the door, he knocks in a unique pattern and waits a moment before Tae swings the door open.
"y/n! Hi!" he exclaims. He is beaming, and the smile spread across his face is infectious.
Shit. He's so beautiful.
He leads you into the apartment where there is a chef in the kitchen who barely looks up at you. There is one man sitting in the living room, and no one else to be seen. The man on the couch turns around and grins at you, popping up out of his seat. His eyes scrunch up slightly as he smiles at you. Shit. He's so beautiful too.
"Hi, I'm Jungkook," he says as he extends his hand out to you.
You shake it, blushing. "hi, I'm y/n."
Tae seems to see the blush in your cheeks, and he puts his body slightly between you and Jungkook. You smile to yourself at the possessiveness and jealousy that he seems to feel for his roommate.
"Jungkook was just leaving. Weren't you?"
You laugh out loud at the obvious "hint" that Tae is trying to drop. Jungkook laughs too, and the two of you make eye contact.
"Actually, I wasn't. I was just going to hang out and watch TV for a little while." He gives Tae a teasing look, and Tae flushes from his neck up to his cheeks. There's a small pleading look in his eye. It must be hard for him because his whole life is surrounded by people, even though some of them are his friends.
"Oh, you know what? I actually told Laur that I would call her tonight, and I should probably go do that because I love her." Jungkook trails off slightly, making long hard eye contact with Tae. "it was nice to meet you, y/n. Have fun!"
Jungkook disappears into one of the doors down the hall. You turn to Tae after you watch Jungkook make his way away from you. Tae has a slightly hurt look in his eyes, but he tries to hide it from you with a smile.
"What? What's wrong?" you ask.
"No. Nothing. I just don't want you to feel like you can't hang out with the other members if you want to."
You grab the sides of his face and make him look at you. "I'm here for you. I agreed to hang out with you, not them."
He smiles at this and leads you to the couch. It's a huge sectional that takes up most of the room, and you follow his lead in sitting right in the middle, leaving a little space between the two of you. You are still hesitant and don't know him well. You aren't trying to cuddle up on the couch with him just yet.
He grabs the remote to turn on the TV. On the screen are the titles of literally hundreds of movies.
"We can watch whatever you want," he says in a more normal and steady tone than you've heard from him since you were on the train.
"Why don't you pick?"
He smiles huge, and from the look in his eyes as he reads each of the titles, he is in his element. Ultimately, he selects Midnight In Paris. Before he hits play, he looks at you to confirm his decision. You nod toward him gently and smile up at him. He's taller than you remember, even sitting next to you.
You watch the movie, laughing along at Owen Wilson, until the chef in the kitchen announces that food is ready. He graciously brings it to you, and there is so much to choose from you don't know what to choose. Kimchi jjigae, oi kimchi, samgyeopsal, galbi, and tons of other food are spread out on the coffee table in front of you.
"I don't know what you like...so I told him to just make some of everything. I figured you can't go wrong with the staples."
Tae sounds nervous, but it looks amazing. There's no way you could pass up a meal like this. The two of you lean over the table, watching the movie and laughing, and eat way more food than you had planned on eating.
Once you're finished, you lean back onto the couch, certain that you're going to fall asleep. Already, this has been so nice, but you realized that you've hardly talked to Tae at all. Your plan was to come here and get to know Tae better to decide if spending time with him was worth the struggle.
When the movie ends, Tae turns to you to ask what you think of the movie. You hesitate for a second.
“It’s not that I didn’t like it, but...Woody Allen?” you know you shouldn’t be starting into it the first time you’re hanging out.
His jaw drops slightly, but after a brief discussion, he agrees that it’s hard to separate the art from the artist and there are amazing directors who haven’t done even half of the terrible shit he did. You were impressed with his maturity, and you decided that you’d definitely give him a chance.
“Would you like a glass of wine?” he asks as you sit awkwardly in silence after that discussion.
You can’t think of a single reason that you should say no, and a glass of wine sounds delicious. “Yeah,” you smile. “Why not?”
Tae heads into the kitchen, and when he returns, you laugh at the comical size of the wine glass. It is roughly the size of your head, and even though it’s only half full, it is roughly the amount of two or three glasses of wine. 
“What? These are the only glasses we have,” he laughs along with you as he sets them down.
After you’ve had the entirety of one glass of wine, you are feeling lighter and looser and less awkward. You forget about the fact that Tae is one of the most famou men in the country, and you are just hanging out with your friend. The two of you talk about your childhoods and exchange embarrassing stories from high school.
You don’t feel yourself scooting closer to Tae, or maybe he’s scooting closer to you. His face is just a few inches from your face by the time you realize it, but you don’t want to move away from him.
“I’ve had a really good time with you, tonight, y/n,” he whispers, leaning even closer to you.
You can feel his breath on your lips, and you can smell his skin and his breath. The smell of the Cabernet mixed with lavender and vanilla, and it’s more intoxicating than any drink that you’ve had. The condensation his hot breath leaves on your lips makes your skin tingle. 
“I’ve had such a wonderful time, Tae.”
You close even more of the space between the two of you. There’s less than an inch in between your mouths. You can’t stop your lips from darting down to his mouth. Shit. He’s so beautiful. His mouth is a perfect pout with his pillowy lips tinted slightly darker red from the wine. When you look back up at him, his eyes are on your mouth too. You can see him tracing every curve of your lips. Your heart pounds in your ears at the thought of kissing him, touching him.
Tae moves to close the distance between the two of you. Your lips ghost across each other, but before you can fully feel the rose petals of his, you hear a key in the lock. You feel like a teenager being caught by your parents, so you jump back from him, putting at least a foot of space between you and Tae.
Tae turns toward the door and the gorgeous, thin-framed man coming through the door. Behind him is a tall, blonde girl who is stunning. Tae’s face is flushed from the wine and the embarrassment of the moment.
“Hi Yoongi-hyung,” Tae mutters as he averts his eyes. “Hi Soph.”
The man hardly acknowledges Tae, but the woman sends a warm smile Tae’s way. “Hi, Tae! How’s your date?”
Your eyes widen at the word date, and you choke slightly on the breath that you were taking in at the moment. Her eyes dart toward you, and she immediately turns pink. She immediately becomes awkward, and Yoongi turns toward her and laughs at the blush in her cheeks.
“Well, this has been sufficiently uncomfortable.” Yoongi turns to you. “Hi, I’m Yoongi. This is my girl, Soph.”
“Hi. I’m y/n, and I am, indeed, sufficiently uncomfortable.”
Yoongi laughs and then leads Soph down the same hallway that Jungkook disappeared into, entering a different door.
After they’ve been out of sight for a moment, you turn back to Tae and say, “I should actually probably head out,” rubbing your arm awkwardly, still warm in your cheeks.
Tae calls the car for you, and a few minutes later, the rhythmic little knock on the door tells you it’s time to go. Tae walks you to the door, and before it opens, he leans in and presses his lips to your cheek. A huge smile spreads across your face, and you’re sure the security agent can tell that something just happened between the two of you.
On the way out of the gates, you can see through the tinted windows the young women gathered around outside of the gates in a contained area. They are holding signs and wearing t-shirts with Tae’s name and face on them. It gives you an uneasy feeling in your stomach, but once you’re past them, you can’t help the warm feeling that is bubbling inside of you from the night.
*****
“You didn’t even kiss her?” Jimin asks, exasperated as he sits on the couch next Tae. The two sip wine together while the television plays in the background.
Tae groans and throws his head back, hand on his forehead. “I tried, but Yoongi-hyung ruined it. He came in right when I was going to.”
Jimin starts giggling uncontrollably, eyes shut tight. His laugh is infectious, and no matter how much Tae doesn’t want to laugh at his own misery, he can’t help but laugh that of course it was Yoongi who interrupted. Any of the other members would have been cool about it, but Yoongi just had to make a sarcastic comment. The two laugh for a long time, the wine pulsing through their veins. Taehyung feels grateful that they don’t have to work early tomorrow, but this was not the end to the night that he had hoped for.
Taehyung had an image in his head of him kissing you, fingers laced into your hair. He imagined what it would feel like to have your lips against his, the smoothness of them and how pert they are. You would have leaned closer to him and run your fingers over his neck. He would have slowly moved his hand up your leg, feeling your skin up to the frayed hem of your shorts.
Tae feels himself hardening in his loose linen pants and adjusts himself awkwardly. The thing about these loose flowy pants is that while sitting down, they don’t hide anything. He looks over to make sure that Jimin didn’t see, and when he’s confident that he didn’t, he relaxes slightly.
“I’m going to though,” he states.
“You’re going to what?” Jimin asks.
“I’m going to kiss her. I’m going to make her mine.” A smile stretches across his lips, and he sinks back into the couch to watch the rest of the show with Jimin.
*******
Three weeks after hanging out at Tae’s, you are sitting at your desk looking over an expense report that someone messed up the spreadsheet for. Everything in one of the columns is one row off, and you are trying to fix it and all of the equations.Your phone vibrates next to you, and you welcome the distraction from the tedious work.
You can’t help the smile that spreads across your face as you see Tae’s name appear on the screen. Though you hadn’t seen him in person since the day that you went to his place, you were able to text everyday and video chat a few times. Things with Tae felt simple, like he was your oldest friend in the world. You couldn’t believe how well he knew you even after such a short time of knowing you.
Tae: Tonight?
What a vague message. What did he want tonight? To video chat? To hang out? For you to do your laundry?
You: Tonight will be Thursday night, yes.
You are always a little sassy with him, and he dishes it right back. The dynamic that you’ve built between the two of you is natural. You’re pretty sure this what people mean when they say that two people have chemistry, though you’ve never really understood the expression.
Tae: Oh thank goodness. I thought it was Saturday, and I’m busy Saturday.
Tae: Since it’s Thursday, do you want to hang out tonight?
You smile. You’ve been looking forward to seeing Tae since the last time, and you want to be able to pick up where you’d left off before Yoongi had interrupted the two of you. After video chatting with Tae several times, you learned that’s just sort of Yoongi’s M.O. if he interrupts anything. Be awkward and sarcastic then move on. A solid technique.
You: I guess I can pencil you in.
Tae: Excellent. Be ready at 6.
You look at the clock, and it reads 3:30pm. You only have 2.5 hours before you’re supposed to do god knows what with Tae, and you know that you are not looking your best. You figure you can leave at 4:00 if your boss doesn’t see you and you ask Aecha to cover for you.
When she agrees, you thank her profusely, slip your purse off the back of your chair, and head out the door. You get out without any trouble and walk briskly toward your apartment building. Your head is swimming with the idea of seeing Tae and the possibilities for the evening. You’re trying not to get too ahead of yourself, but all you can see in your mind’s eye is the shape of his body.
It’s been months since you were even interested in a man. You’re most recent ex, Yongsoon, had been a delightful man, but he was so boring and predictable. You never felt challenged by him. You never felt like he was that passionate about anything. You’d ended things, and even during the break up, he’d seemed so apathetic about the whole thing.
Tae didn’t feel like that. He was bright and vibrant. He had so many passions, from art to film to fashion. He made you feel like you could shine as bright, reach as high as you wanted. He also made you feel like you wanted to see what was underneath his whole clothes.
You shake your head as you unlock the door to your apartment. Stop being lustful, y/n! You rush around your apartment, trying to make your hair and make up look better. You decide that tonight, you’d like to wear a skirt. In the heat of mid June, you wanted to be able to move freely. Plus you loved the way that your black skater skirt swished when you walked or twirled. On top, you wear a purple shirt, tied up at the waist.
When your phone turns over to 6:00, you take one last look in the mirror, grab your bag, and try not to sprint down the stairs. Outside, once again, you can see the black town car with tinted windows waiting for you. The sight of it makes your heart leap a little, and you smile again. Everything about Tae makes you smile.
The driver meets you at the rear door, and he lets you into the vehicle. Expecting it to be empty, you jump a little upon seeing a figure inside. Sitting on the driver's side seat, Tae is wearing black slacks, a button up shirt, and beret-type hat. He has his mask pulled down around his chin, and he’s beaming at you. You climb in next to him, mumbling a hello as you get comfortable.
“Didn’t expect me to be here, did you?” he asks, with a sly grin on his face.
“I honestly didn’t know what to expect. You just told me to be ready. You didn’t even tell me what.”
He laughs, amused at his own vagueness. “It’s best if you only know what you need to know.”
“Well, can I know where we’re going now?”
He smirks at you and then announces, “We’re going to Ihwa Mural Village!”
He can’t be serious. A public place? While it’s light outside? With an idol? You start to panic as you think about all the possibilities of things that could go wrong. He could get rushed by people. You could get hurt. He could get hurt. It was far too risky.
Seeing the panic in your eyes, he blurts, “Don’t worry! I went the safe route this time. I have security who are going to be there, and we should be in the clear. They’ve cleared it out for a filming. We did everything we needed to keep us safe.”
You relax slightly, but you still know that people crowd around movie sets and things like that on the street. You know that Tae would never do anything to intentionally hurt you, but you are terrified.
“Hey,” he grabs your hand and squeezes it with his. “It’s going to be okay, I promise.”
The feeling of his warm palm in yours is comforting and feels like home. You wiggle your fingers slightly, just to take in the sensation of each of his between each of yours. 
“Okay. I trust you,” you mutter, trying to believe your own words.
The car pulls up into an area that you’ve seen before and know is usually crowded. This time, there are only three men outside, all wearing black jeans. Tae pulls up his mask and pulls down the brim of his hat. You pull your mask over your face, wishing you’d known to bring a hat with you today, but hoping everything would be fine.
After a while of walking on the deserted street, looking at murals, making jokes, and taking pictures, you get lost in the moment with Tae. You let yourself breathe into the way that his hand feels in yours, the warmth of his body next to yours. His scent is soft and subtle, just like him.
After about an hour of walking around Ihwa, he asks if you’re hungry. You smile broadly at him, but quickly realize that half of your face is covered with cloth. 
“Yes, I am starving!” you exclaim, feeling the hunger pangs in your stomach for the first time. You had been so distracted with Tae that you forgot that you hadn’t eaten since breakfast.
Tae laughs, and he leads you back to where the car was parked. The driver lets both of you into the car, and Tae thanks him by name. He slides over to the seat in the middle and wraps his fingers around your knee while you ride together. You feel him slowly creeping closer to you, and you know that if you turn it’s all over. Isn’t this what you want?
While driving through a tunnel, you turn your face to see Tae’s. His eyes are searching your face, and you can’t resist it anymore. You move toward him and press your lips to his. It’s soft and sweet, and he moves his mouth slowly, positioning his bottom lip between yours. You shift slightly, so you can turn toward him more. He wraps his hands into your hair, running his fingers along your scalp. Your hand traces its way over his shirt along his collarbone. You can feel the heat growing between your legs, but you become aware of the third person in the car.
You pull away, panting slightly, and drop your head, cheeks burning. You can’t wipe the stupid grin off of your face if you wanted to, but you don’t care because the way that Tae’s mouth felt against yours is burned into your brain forever. You’ll never forget how he melted like chocolate on your lips. Or how he tickled your scalp just right while his exhales made the peach fuzz on your face stand on end. Your senses feel heightened after kissing him, and you know that you want to do it again.
The two of you ride the rest of the way in silence, with your fingers entwined on top of your knee, and you can’t help but think that this is maybe the beginning of something wonderful.
When you get to the gate of the apartment complex, you try not to look at the crowd of people who are wondering if Tae is in fact inside this car. You pull your ID out of your wallet, and Tae pushes your hand down.
“You only have to do that when you aren’t with me.”
Once inside, he leads you to the apartment. Before he opens the door, he turns you around to face him. You’re looking up at his perfect face. He is so smooth and symmetrical, and you feel so homely next to him. He plants his hands on the wall behind either side of your head, and he leans down to you. He gives you a quick kiss on the forehead. Then the nose. Then each cheek. Then the lips. It’s so soft and sweet that you think you’re going to melt or explode or both.
He unlocks the door and leads you inside. In the kitchen, a chef is preparing food again.
“Dude, how do you do that?” you gawk at the man working in the kitchen.
“Do what?” He follows your eye line and laughs. “Oh, Bonhwa-ssi? I texted in the car. He works for us, and he’s the greatest guy ever.”
Bonhwa looks at the two of you briefly, then he goes back to chopping and preparing. You can see that this meal is a little different from the last one, but you are so excited to eat anything that your mouth starts to water.
The two of you hang out at the dining room table until Bonhwa brings over the hamburgers and sides he’s prepared. Tae is smiling at his food, and you get to see him just as he is. One bite in, and you know that you’ve never had a hamburger this good before. You try to force yourself not to eat too fast, but you can only restrain yourself so much because it is so good.
After you eat, the two of you sit at the table just staring at each other for a while. You feel a little sleepy, but you don’t want to miss a moment with Tae.
“Do you want to see my room?” Tae asks awkwardly.
You aren’t sure if he genuinely wants to show you his room or if this is his awkward attempt at getting you into a more private space. On both fronts, you are more than happy. You want to see the inward private space that’s kept only for Tae, not for the public figure. And you would be more than happy to have some private time with Tae because you can’t stop thinking about the way he felt against you.
You nod, and he pushes back his chair from the table. He helps you up onto your feet and leads you by the hand down the hallway. He opens the third door in the hallway, and upon entering the room, you feel Tae in every inch of the room. In the corner are canvases, blank and painted, stacked in the corner, and an easel stands tall above them. A desk sits in the other corner, scattered with pens and pencils. It looks like he’s been brainstorming or planning or writing, and to the small messes side there is a nice desktop computer. You don’t know too much about gaming computers, but you do know when you see a nice one. This one is definitely a nice one.
His bed is made with a gray comforter on top, and there are lamps on either bedside table. He flicks them on quickly and shuts off the overhead light.
“I hope you don’t mind. I just like the ambient light better,” he says quietly, making his way across the room to you.
Every picture in the room draws your attention. There’s one large painting on the wall. It looks like an acrylic painting done with a palette knife. It’s beautiful, and the muted colors swirl together to create intricate patterns.
“This is so beautiful, Tae. Did you do this?”
He chuckles a little and sneaks in behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist, resting his chin on your shoulder. “I wish. No, I bought this one. I hope someday to be able to do that.”
Seeing the things that Tae loves and hearing his aspirations as an artist fill your heart with warmth. His fingers sneak along the top hem of your skirt, tickling your skin and make you shiver in place. You let him continue to do it, and you drop your head back against his shoulder.
He pulls you closer against him, your back flush against his chest, and you can feel the growing stiffness in his pants against your ass. You smile. Knowing that you made Tae excited like that causes your chest to swell with pride. 
He has the option of any woman in Korea and probably the world, and he is choosing you right now. His fingers continue to dance along the skin of your waist and the top of your skirt. They slowly dip under the waistband, tracing small circles under the fabric. You can’t control the small moan that leaves your mouth when his fingers creep into the waistband of your panties.
He exhales sharply, and you feel him press against you. His other hand makes its way to the bottom of your shirt and ghosts underneath the cotton. You are rapt in the smell and the feel of him. You never want anything but his soft skin to be touching you again.
“Is this okay?” he whispers into your ear before he continues.
“Yes, it’s so much more than okay.” You turn your head, and your lips find one another. This time the kiss is desperate and pleading. It feels like if you don’t kiss him without enough passion, he won’t know how badly you want him. All of your desires try to escape off your tongue, dancing against his. Your hands try to find purchase on his hips, and you grip him on the top of his pants. One hand slides to the bulge that’s pressing against his pants and against you. His cock is hard and thick, and you immediately feel wetness pooling in your panties the second you touch it.
All you can think is how badly you want that cock in your hand, in your mouth, in your pussy. You want all of him tonight, even though you know it’s a little improper. Tae’s fingers dip all the way into your panties while the other hand finds your nipple. He gently pinches it between his index finger and thumb. He rolls it carefully, and the arousal shooting to your core is almost overwhelming. His other hand is tracing small circles through the wetness between your legs. He slides his fingers up and down your slit from your entrance to your clit. He moans a deep, low groan into your neck.
His wrap around the skin on your neck, teeth nipping at you. His breath is hot on your neck, and you lean further into him. He slips one finger into your entrance, and you inhale sharply. He begins a slow pace with his finger inside of you, just barely giving you what you crave before pulling back out again.
His teasing sets you off. You turn around to him and kiss him hard, caressing his tongue with yours. You drop to your knees before him and glance up at him, smiling, before your fingers undo the button on his slacks. Once you have his pants undone, you yank them to the floor. His cock is pleading to escape the confines of his underwear and who are you to deny it. When you pull him out, your mouth immediately waters at the sight of it. It’s thick and smooth, and you cannot wait any longer to have it inside of you. 
You let one droplet of spit fall slowly from your mouth onto the shaft of his cock. You use your tongue to swirl the wetness around it, making him slick for you to take him all the way in. Your hand wraps around the base, and, as you look up into his eyes, you slide him into your mouth. With his cock inside your mouth, you use your tongue to massage the head, slowly flicking it around the tip. Tae groans.
His hand slides into your hair, gripping it firmly. You bob your head up and down slowly, taking in all that you can, using your hand to rub it up and down as you take it into your throat. You press your face against his pubic bone, the hair tickling your nose slightly, and Tae’s hips thrust slightly further down your throat. You gag around him, and he moans again. You moan around him, knowing the vibration will feel good, plus you are so beyond turned on.
You feel his cock pulse slightly in your mouth, hardening further. He pants and uses your hair to pull your mouth away from him.
“Fuck, you make me feel so good. I’m going to cum too fast.”
You smile at his words, using your tongue to wipe the spit off of your fingers. His eyes widen and he pulls you up to his level. “Get over here.”
Tae picks you up and throws you gently against the bed. He stands above you and rips his shirt off over his head, tossing it aside. His fingers slide up your thighs and loop around the waistband of your panties. He pulls them off, leaving your skirt on.
“You’ve been teasing me all day in this skirt, haven’t you? You knew how good you looked in it when you were getting dressed.” He’s panting a little and his hair is sticking to his forehead slightly at the sweaty spots.
The gruffness of his voice and his words are making you a wanton mess for him. You know that you look good in this skirt. You know that it’s pretty short and shows off your legs. You, however, did not know that it would have this effect on Tae. With your panties thrown aside, he pulls your shirt over your head, revealing the lilac lace bralette that you have on underneath.
“Fuck,” Tae whispers to himself, eyes raking over every inch of your tits.
Tae climbs on top of you and plants his lips against your neck. He’s teasing the delicate skin and leaving little nips all over your chest and collarbone. His mouth makes its way down to your breasts, and he pulls each one gingerly out of the cups of the bralette. He marvels at them for a moment  then takes your right nipple into his mouth. You moan immediately, having extra sensitive nipples.
“Tae,” you moan out, hand lacing into his long dark hair. “Please.”
He looks up at you smiling. “Please what, darling?”
“Please....” you’re a little embarrassed to say, but you’re too turned on to care. “Please fuck me.”
He growls in his chest and pushes himself away from you. At first you think that you’ve offended him, but then he opens the drawer of his bedside table. He pulls out a condom, holds it up, and smiles at you. You take it from his hand, tearing the packaging to get the little latex shield out. Rolling it on to his cock, you can feel how hard he is, and you get even more aroused, looking at it and feeling it.
Once the condom is in place, Tae lies you back on the bed. He aligns himself with your entrance, and before he pushes himself inside of you, he asks, “You’re sure this is okay?”
You blush slightly because you did just moments ago beg him to fuck you, but you smile up at him. “Yes, Tae. I am so so okay with this. Please.”
He smiles and pushes himself slowly inside of you. Your eyes meet his as he hovers above, his eyes growing in intensity. His thrusts are rhythmic and deliberate, and you can’t believe that you feel like you’re going to cum already. Your fingers claw at his back, and you know that you’re leaving little scratch marks behind.
Soon, he pulls his cock almost all of the way out of you and thrusts it back inside, less gently than before. Your hands, unable to control themselves, grip firmly on his arms. You can feel how wide your eyes are, and you gasp for air as he does it again. Your head is growing foggy, and you feel yourself hurtling toward your orgasm, unstoppable. 
Your pussy pulses around his cock, and Tae moans out your name. The sound of your name falling off his lips while he’s inside you is enough to send you over the edge. You feel the muscles in your pussy contracting, and your clit feels like it’s covered in warmth. The orgasm tears through you, and your mind goes completely blank, only pleasure exists.
“Fuck, you’re squeezing me so tight,” Tae pants out. As you come down from your orgasm, he starts thrusting faster and less rhythmically.
“Cum for me, Tae. Please,” you say, and that’s all it takes to send Tae over the cliff. He moans deeply and spills inside of the condom with his buried deep inside of you. His breathing is rough and jagged, and you can feel all of his muscles clenching. You run your fingernails gently over his back as he comes down. The two of you stay there wrapped in each other for a moment.
With a sigh, Tae pulls his softening cock out of you. He slips the condom off and tosses it into the trash. “Stay here,” he says and disappears into the bathroom.
At this moment, you’re very glad that all the guys don’t have to share one bathroom. When he returns, it looks like he’s washed his face and gotten all the wetness off his cock. He tosses you a warm, wet cloth.
“You can use that bathroom if you need to.” He points from where he just came, and you smile at him, popping up off the bed to go take care of yourself.
When you come back out of the bathroom, Tae is standing there in his underwear, looking much more shy than his behavior just minutes ago.
“Just so you know, I wasn’t planning on that happening. I don’t want you to feel like I just brought you here for that.” He rubs the back of his neck and looks at you through his eyelashes.
“Tae, it’s okay. I really enjoyed it.”
“I just don’t want you to think that I’m just trying to use you or something. I’m not like that. I really care about you.”
You don’t know how to comfort him or make him feel validated. You hadn’t at any point in time thought that he might be using you. You’d been having filthy thoughts about him since the train ride that first night. You cross the room to him and throw your arms around him. Your fingers run through his hair at the nape of his neck.
“Tae, I asked you to fuck me. I wanted this more than I care to admit. You looked so good in that outfit today. I couldn’t help myself.”
He wraps his fingers into your hair and pulls your head back gently. He angles your head so that your mouth is free for him to kiss. He presses his mouth hard against yours. Your lips are swollen and bitten, but you kiss him back with all the affection that you're feeling. You part your lips for his tongue as it snakes back into your mouth. You feel yourself getting aroused again, and you laugh into Tae’s mouth.
“Tae, I worked all day. I kind of want to just take it easy,” you say against his mouth, immediately regretting it when his breath is no longer on your lips.
He laughs and pulls you into a hug then lets go. He walks over and picks up your shirt for you. You still have your skirt sitting on your hips where he left it, and you adjusted your bra in the bathroom. With your shirt adjusted on you, you watch Tae put on a shirt and a pair of loose comfy pants.
“Want to watch a movie?” he asks.
You smile up at him, taking his hand. “As long as it isn’t Woody Allen.”
***
After that night in Tae’s bedroom, whenever the two of you are together, you struggle to keep your hands off of each other. Whether you’re in the kitchen at the apartment, in the car together, or in Taehyung's room, you are touching each other somehow.
Being with Tae feels amazing when you’re together, but it’s hard because he is so rarely around, and you can’t have normal dates with him. After about 3 months of talking, you’ve only seen each other a few times. You feel grateful for the time that you have with him, but half the time he is too exhausted to do more than lie on the couch or in his bed together.
You love the way that Tae makes you feel, but you don’t love the way that you feel when you see him on some gossip site. You know they’re just fishing for whatever story they can get, and his name gets clicks. It still doesn’t feel good. You have mixed feelings about everything in your relationship, but you keep it to yourself.
One Friday afternoon, Tae texts you to make plans for the weekend. You see the text, but you are swamped with work and ignore it. Two hours later, he texts you again, asking if you’re angry with him.
You: No. I’m not angry. I’m just busy. What’s the plan?
Tae: I’ll pick you up at 7 tonight. I’m taking you to dinner.
Tae: AND BONUS! You can stay over tonight if you want.
You haven’t been able to stay the night at Tae’s place throughout your whole relationship because he has manager’s coming in early every morning. The other member’s girlfriends tend to leave around the same time that you do, and you’ve made friends with some of them. You feel your heart flip slightly as you read the words. You smile to yourself, trying to plan what cute jammies you’re going to take and then not wear.
When Tae picks you up, you’re wearing a dress with lace panties underneath. You made yourself up a little bit, but you figured you didn’t need to dress too nicely since dinner with Tae was always just at his house. When the driver, Beoseon, opens the door, you are taken aback by the site of Tae in a suit. He looks deadly, and you feel sinful just looking at him.
“Wow. I feel underdressed,” you say as you kiss his cheek.
“No way. You look amazing!” he says as he gives you a cheeky look that you have grown to recognize from him. “I have a special plan for us tonight.”
The two of you are all smiles in the car, hands searching each other. You hook your fingers into the waistband of his trousers, and you sneak your way into his pubic hair, resting at the base of his cock. You don’t wrap your hand around it, don’t grab on to it. Instead, you just run your fingernails gently over the skin through the hair. Teasing Taehyung is one of your favorite things because he’s normally silly and mild mannered, but as soon as he gets aroused, he becomes a determined little demon.
Tae sits still, smirking over at you while you tease. You can feel him growing harder, but he doesn’t reveal any of it on his face. Working Tae up just means that things are going to be better for you later. You smile to yourself thinking of all the things that the two of you could do.
“So, what are we having for dinner tonight?” you ask casually, as your fingers caress his cock gently, and you look up at him.
“Like I said, I have something special planned. It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you. Though, if you keep that up, I’m gonna have something else in store for you too.”
The car turns a different way than it usually would to take you to Tae’s place, and you look at him with surprise. He has only taken you out the first time when you went to Ihwa Village. You’d had so much fun wandering around looking at the art with him, but you were worried about being in a public place. It was Friday night. Places would be busy. People would be walking wherever you went.
The car pulls into a service parking lot under the Horim Art Center, and you look at Tae confused. You go in through the employee entrance and take the elevator up. When you walk through the doors of the restaurant, the entire place is empty except a server, a bartender,and the kitchen staff. You turn to Tae and smile. He takes your hands in his and pulls you along to the table.
“Only the best for you, jagiya.”
The man leading you to the table pulls out a chair for you and then for Tae. This place is so fancy, and you feel a lot underdressed in your summer dress. You feel like this is the kind of place that you need to be dressed to the nines in high heels with your hair actually done instead of messily curled when you got home from work.
“Kim Taehyung, you did not tell me that I needed to be dressed for a place like this,” you glare at him.
He laughs. “y/n, you do not need to be dressed up. It’s just you and I here. We aren’t trying to impress anyone.”
“Well, maybe I’m trying to impress you,” you coo, trying to use your seductive tone on him.
Realizing that it’s just the two of you in the restaurant, you are determined to get him worked up. You slide your hand sneakily under your dress, and Tae quirks his eyebrow at you. You remove the black lace in one swift movement and the reach under the table to place it in Tae’s hand. It’s a little more awkward than you’d pictured, but it does the trick when the warm fabric hits his hand. You see his eyes widen at the feeling of them.
“Is someone feeling a little naughty?” he asks.
You wink at him and open your menu like nothing just happened. The food on the menu is all super expensive, and you are taken aback by the prices on it. You wouldn’t spend this much on dinner, opting instead to just go to the barbecue by your house. You look at Tae, and he’s smiling softly at you, an intimacy in his eyes that you haven’t seen before.
The waiter comes over and Tae orders wine for you, and you order your food.
“Tae, you shut down this whole restaurant just for me?”
“Of course not. That’s absurd.” When you cast him a confused look, he smiles. “I shut down the whole museum.”
You can feel the heat in your cheeks as the flattery overwhelms you. You know that he’s rich and famous and can do things like this but still.
“We can eat and take in some of the museum...then go back to your place maybe?” he asks.
What? What is happening? I thought he said you could stay the night with him, not him staying the night with you.
“What?” you blurt out after finishing your sip of wine.
“I’ve just never seen where you live. Not in person anyway. I just want to feel what it feels like in a space that you created.”
Your heart feels like it’s going to fucking explode. You absentmindedly start running your foot up the inside of Tae’s leg, and you reach for his hand across the table. He grabs yours loosely with one hand, and the other hand snags your foot and pulls it up toward his crotch. While the waiter delivers your food, Tae slides your shoe off, and you press your foot gently against the bulge in his pants. You can’t even start eating yet you are so focused on the way that Tae feels in your hand and against your foot.
You adjust the way that your fingers are intertwined and move both of your hands toward your mouth. Your tongue creeps out of your mouth, and you lick up the length of his pointer finger. With a satisfied little smile, you pull your fingers away and sink your whole mouth down onto the finger, sucking slowly up the length of it, staring into his eyes. There is a fire behind his eyes, and he growls a little under his breath.
“Filthy girl. We should eat dinner, and then you can tease me some more.”
“Though this food looks amazing, it’s not really what I’m craving right now, Tae,” you pout.
“Tell you what. If you eat your dinner like a good girl, you can come sit in my lap.”
Tae chuckles to himself, placing your foot on the floor, adjusting himself, and picking up his chopsticks to eat. He looks like he’s proud of the comment he’s just made, and you roll your eyes at him. You can’t deny that the comment sent heat straight to your core, but you don’t like proving him right.
You straighten your napkin in your lap and begin to eat. You look at him through your lashes, but you make sure to hold your posture perfectly like you are unaffected by his comment. The two of you eat silently for a few minutes before picking conversation back up.
When you finish eating, Tae takes you on a tour through the whole museum. He shows you all of his favorite exhibits, and the two of you spend much of the time laughing and kissing. You aren’t sure if he’s forgotten that he has your underwear in his pocket or if he’s just biding his time, but you love the little game that you’re playing.
By the end of the evening, your heart is full to bursting with the love for the man with you, and you don’t ever want to let go of his hand.
“Tae…” you pause.
He raises his eyebrows and looks at you with that curious, dark stare of his, and you feel like you’re going to melt.
“You feel like home.”
The smile that rips across his face feels like the first warm day of the spring. It wraps you up in its comfort, and you feel yourself falling even deeper for him in that moment. There are things about his life that you don’t love, but you know that you love him.
“y/n, no one has ever felt more like home to me than you do.”
You can’t control yourself, and you throw your arms around him, pulling him tightly against you while you kiss his lips. This kiss feels different, like the first kiss after saying I love you. But I love you means so many different things to so many different people, and the feeling of being home feels right to you.
Later that night, you are lying naked on Tae’s bed, hair tousled, feeling exhausted. You and Tae are having your designating scrolling time on your phones, and you hear him whisper, “Oh fuck.”
“What’s wrong?” you ask him softly, worried that something has come up with the band.
“I-I have to go.” He shoots up off the bed and throws a pair of pants on quickly before darting to the door.
You look flabbergasted at him, worried that something is really wrong.
“I’ll be back soon. I promise.”
He disappears out the door, and you’re left to wonder what you should even be doing.
*********
“This is so bad,” Tae groans as he holds his head.
He’s pacing in the kitchen while Jimin is trying to comfort him.
“Honestly, it can’t be that bad. The company will take care of it. There were only so many people there, they’re going to find who did it.”
“It’s….just...these pictures are bad, hyung. They’re really bad. Look.”
He hands his phone to Jimin whose eyes widen upon seeing the pictures on the screen. Tears are starting to roll down Tae’s cheeks, and he looks at Jimin wildly. Jimin wraps his arms around him and holds him closely. Neither man is really sure what to do.
On the screen of Tae’s phone are several slightly grainy photos of him in the restaurant earlier that night. Your face is completely visible, and your tongue is running along his finger in one of them. His finger is in your mouth in another.
“This is so bad,” he sobs out. “I can’t believe I did this to her.”
While Jimin is telling him to just breathe, you emerge from Tae’s room, hair messily thrown up. You look confused and as soon as you see the tears in Tae’s eyes, you run to him.
“y/n, I fucked up,” he whispers.
“Tae, it’s going to be okay. Shhh. Breathe through it. Tell me what happened.”
The way that you’re looking at him with so much concern in your eyes about something that he’s done to you, the last thing that he ever wanted to happen to you, something he promised wouldn’t happen. He can’t say it, so he just picks up his phone and hands it to you.
“What the-” you trail off as you look at the pictures retweeted by hundreds of thousands of people already.
Your face turns white as you look up from the screen at Tae. Your expression is grim, and he can’t tell if you’re angry or sad or numb. He’s so worried about what you’re going to say as you look at him. Instead of saying something, you turn and walk down the hall back into his room. He looks puzzled at the door, unsure what the hell you’re doing.
You return with your bag that you brought to stay the night and your phone in hand. You don’t look at him as you walk out the front door of the apartment.
“Wait, y/n, wait!” he shouts after you, taking off down the hallway.
Jimin catches him and holds him firmly in place, deceptively strong for his size.
“You have to let her go. You have to let her handle this on her own.”
The hot tears are gushing from Taehyung’s eyes, and he feels like a volcano of devastation is erupting out of him. He isn’t sure he’s ever sobbed this hard and definitely not in the last few years. His stupidity and carelessness caused you to be photographed with him. He is the reason that risque pictures of you are now online. He knows that the company will catch them, if they haven’t already, but it’s not consolation for the cost of losing you.
******
Your chest heaves as you ride in the back of the car. Beoseon is silent, but you can see his eyes flitting back to you in the rearview mirror every couple of minutes. You wish it wasn’t such a long trip home. You just want to get out and walk and feel the cool air on your face. This car is suffocating, the air inside stale and recycled. You ride in the back of the car until you can’t take it anymore. Beoseon pulls over and lets you out, and you take off briskly down the sidewalk.
You breathe in the humid midsummer air, and you think that this has to be a joke. Taehyung and Jimin had to be playing the worst prank of all time on you. He was going to call you any moment and tell you “gotcha! Jimin took them!”
It wasn’t though. You weren’t going to get that call because you say the tweet. You saw the retweets. You didn’t even want to think about the comments on it. You just want to go home and become one with your bed. You wonder if The Secret applies to becoming furniture.
You wonder to yourself why Tae hasn’t even texted you yet. You feel like this would be one of those things that he would continually text you about like that time that he thought he’d made you angry when you were arguing about mint chocolate ice cream. This was a much bigger thing than fucking ice cream, and now, radio silence.
You turn the corner, and the breeze against your skin feels calming. You can feel yourself sweating, and you realize you left your underwear at Tae’s house. You don’t even care. You left your dignity in the restaurant when you had your lips wrapped around his finger. How could you be so stupid? Nothing is private. Especially not when you’re with him.
The tears come again as you make your way up the stairs to your apartment. It’s only a matter of time before you’re getting calls from people. It doesn’t say your name anywhere, but you know how stan twitter works. They’ll find anyone and dox them.
Once in your apartment, you strip down and put on your comfiest sweater and sweatpants. The air conditioning makes you feel as chilly outside as you do inside. You can’t believe this is happening. You can’t believe you let this happen. You curl up on your bed on top of the covers and fall asleep, face wet from the tears soaking into your pillow.
You didn’t leave the house or go online all weekend. Instead opting to clean your entire apartment and reorganize your entire bedroom. You felt a little better being away from the situation. You felt worse knowing that Tae hadn’t called or texted at all. It seemed like he’d completely resigned himself to you leaving and wasn’t going to fight for you at all.
You had resigned yourself to showing your face at work on Monday, and you hoped that you would have a normal day. When you walked into the building, everything was completely normal, almost everyone ignoring you, and you feel hopeful.
The work day ends, and the only conversations that you’ve had have been about spreadsheets and the copier. You heave a sigh of relief as you walk outside. You never thought that it would be so easy to get away with dating an idol. Maybe his company took care of it? Maybe you were lucky, and no one recognized you.
Tuesday is a different story. It starts with glances from the other girls in the office.
Wednesday, Aecha comes up to you and stares at you for a minute before you turn to her.
“Can I help you with something?” you ask, thinking maybe she needs help with a task.
“Do you really know Kim Taehyung?” she asks, eyes wide, nervously holding onto her left arm with her right.
You roll your eyes. You knew this couldn’t last.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you say, with no expression on your face.
“There are just these pictures and...they really look like you.”
Her nervousness is palpable, and you feel your hands getting clammy. You had already decided that if anyone asked about it you would deny deny deny.
“Well, maybe I’ve just got one of those faces.” You shrug and turn back to your computer.
Aecha stares at you for a moment longer, but then she sighs a nevermind and walks away. After she’s gone, you let out an exhale of relief, but you are hoping that she’ll spread the word to the rest of the women at the office. You hope that no one thinks it’s you. Such lewd behavior in public could lead to you being fired.
That night is when the notifications start. Thousands of them every hour. Eventually, you turn your phone on to airplane mode just to get away from them. This. This is what you were afraid of. You decide not to read of the messages, fearing that the content could be detrimental to your already fragile psyche.
You get a phone call from your boss telling you that you should probably take the rest of the week off, and the two of you will talk about next steps when you return on Monday. You knew at that moment that your life wouldn’t be the same. You wished you had someone to talk to about it. That’s when you remember that Rey has been seeing Jimin for almost a year. There’s no way that she hasn’t been exposed if you have after a few months.
You find her number in your contacts. Afraid to turn on your phone, you hesitate slightly then swipe the screen to allow connectivity. You ignore all the badges on every app you have and call her.
You can hear voices in the background when you call her, but she sounds relieved to hear from you.
“y/n hi!” she exclaims, a little too eagerly upon picking up.
“Hey, do you have a minute to talk?”
“Of course I do,” she says to you. You hear her whisper off to the side, “shut up, it’s y/n.”
There are muffled whispers on the other end. “Oh, I can talk to you later if you’re busy.”
“No, no. I’m not busy. I want to talk to you.”
“Did you hear about the pictures?” you ask meekly. 
“I did. Yeah. I saw. I’m so sorry, y/n. How are you holding up?”
“I honestly don’t know what to think. I don’t feel that bad about it in general. I haven’t read any of the messages, and I haven’t had too much happen in person either. The worst part is that I haven’t even talked to Taehyung since that night. I just don’t even know where we stand. Is he embarrassed? Is he in trouble? Does he want nothing to do with me anymore? I thought I knew what I wanted, but it’s hard when I have no one to talk to about it.”
She pauses for a moment, and you look down at your phone to see if you dropped the call.
“All I can say is this. It’s going to be hard and trying and challenging. Sometimes he’s going to be gone for months at a time. Sometimes he’s going to be too tired to talk. Sometimes people who think they���re meant to be with him are going to hate you. I decided that it didn’t matter. As long as I had Jimin, I could make it through anything. I loved him too much to not fight for him.”
Her words hit you in your heart, and you immediately start crying. You thank her and hang out the phone. You lie down on your bed staring at the ceiling for a long time, and you aren’t sure at what point you drift off to sleep.
*****
“Kim Taehyung!” a shout echoes down the hallway.
“Why is everyone always yelling my fucking name?” Tae grumbles to himself.
He stands up from his bed, dressed messily, face unshaven. When he gets to the hallway, Jimin, Jungkook, and their girlfriends are all standing around in the dining room, staring at him.
“Did I hear that you have called or text y/n AT ALL since the night that she walked out of here?” Jungkook demands. Even though he’s the youngest, his tone is commanding and dark. If anyone knows about the pain of having their private photos leaked, it’s Jungkook.
Shit.
“She doesn’t want anything to do with me. She made that clear when she walked out on me.” Tae turns to go back down the hallway.
“Seriously? You haven’t talked to her. You’ve literally said zero words to her since you showed her that someone took pictures of an incredibly intimate moment. How do you know how she feels?”
Taehyung shakes his head. “No, no. If you could have seen the look on her face...I broke the one promise I made to her.”
Jimin walks up to Taehyung and grabs him by the shoulders. “Hey, look at me.” When Taehyung lifts his eyes up to his friend’s, he can feel the tears welling behind his eyes.
“Taehyung, if you love her like you say you do, if she feels like home, you would fight for her. You know that.”
He feels the water fall on to his cheeks, and he can’t stop all the doubt running through his mind. It’s like Jimin sees it in him, and he says, “you can’t get caught up in what ifs. You have to go to her.”
He nods and runs back to his room. He throws on a casual outfit and calls Beoseon on his way out the door. He knows that if he doesn’t do something right now, then he won’t be able to say all the things that he needs to say to you.
****
A gentle knock on your door wakes you from your sleep. At first, you aren’t sure if you even heard it, when you blink your eyes open, looking around confused. Then it comes again.
You drudge yourself up off the bed and maunder to the door. The sight out of the peephole is one of the last things you expected to see. Standing in the hallway outside of your apartment, a sullen-looking Kim Taehyung is knocking softly against your door.
You unlock the door and swing it open to face him. He simply stares at you for a moment. He opens his mouth and closes it again like he doesn’t know what to say.
“Why don’t you come in?” you mutter.
Once inside, the two of you stand, shifting your weight between your feet. You aren't sure what to say, but you know that you can't just stand here in silence any longer. The things that are unsaid between you hang in the air. It's thick and heavy and difficult. Seeing Tae's face after the last several days is painful, and you hope that he'll speak first.
"I..was an idiot," he says.
It isn't really what you expected, but it was true. He was an idiot.
"Yeah. You were."
He winces slightly at the bite in your tone, but you know that he has to have more words to say.
"I wrote a song for you."
Well...this conversation is not going how you expected it to.
"Well, I'm glad you were writing a song in the five days that you weren't talking to me after a super embarrassing photo of me was posted on the internet."
You turn away from him and start to walk toward your bedroom. He grabs your hand before you are too far away from him. You remember the man in the bar the night that you met, and you freeze, melting a little at the memory. The way that he felt that first night was the reason you'd even agreed to any of this at all. The warmth of his palm on yours reminds you of all the things that you loved in your time together.
"Look, y/n. I can't ever apologize enough for abandoning you when this happened. I should have immediately called and texted and come over and hired a skywriter. Instead, I was a coward and assumed that I would know what you would say to me about it. I didn't even talk to you before assuming that you were done with me and wanted nothing to do with me. I broke a promise that I made to you. I can tell you that the company is taking legal action against that line cook, and they were fired. It doesn't change what happened, but I just want you to know that I'm trying to do everything I can to make it up to you."
You know that Tae didn't mean to hurt you. You know that. But it doesn't change the fact that he did.
"Taehyung...I know that you didn't mean to, but you hurt me. You broke promises."
"y/n, please. I love you. Please forgive me."
Those three words hang in the air, wrap around you, and overwhelm your senses. You know that you feel that way about him, but the fact that he said them first fills you with joy.
You leap at Tae, and he grabs you as you jump into his arms. You kiss him hard, breathing him in. Your lips move together, and you know that it's all worth it for him. You pull back, wrapping your fingers around his neck, messing gently with his hair.
"I love you too, Tae. You are worth it."
He grabs your bottom lip between his teeth, and you feel your heart quickening in your chest. You tug at his hair. He lets your lip go, and you slip your tongue across his bottom lip. You want to feel every inch of him, taste every part of him. Your tongue traces his bottom lip and then sneaks into his mouth. His tongue finds yours, and they feel like they were meant to be together.
He pulls back from you and drops you down on the couch. He pulls his shirt over his head, and then he grabs the hem of yours and rips it off, tossing it aside. You aren't wearing a bra, so your nipples harden at the cool air and the arousal. Tae growls quietly in the back of his throat, and he leans down to kiss you. You pull him toward you until he's on top of you.
He laughs as he kisses you, and he presses his torso against yours. He wraps his hand in your hair and pulls gently. "Is this okay?"
He pulls a little more. You nod fervently at the small sting in your scalp. He pulls harder and harder, and you smile as he pulls your hair hard. The pain makes the wetness between your legs grow, and you can't wait until he hurts you again.
"Tae?" you stare up at him. "Do something for me?"
“Anything, my love. Anything.”
“Will you...slap me?” His eyes widen, and he stiffens slightly. “Shit. If you’re not into it, then we really don’t have to do that.”
“No, yobu, that’s not it. I really love it. It’s just that I hurt you emotionally already…”
“Well...make the outside match?” You thought it would be fun and flirty, but it just sounded kinda rude. You laugh to try to make it clear that you aren’t actually upset with him.
He stares at you for a moment, then he brings his hand up away from your hip. It smacks against your cheek, and you try not to flinch as it comes down on you. The sting in your skin makes you soak through your underwear. 
“Now, I’m going to show you how much I love you,” he whisper-growls in your ear.
He drops his weight back on to the couch and pulls you into his laugh. You slightly awkwardly straddle his lap from the position you’ve been placed in. Taehyung slips two fingers into your mouth and pulls your jaw open. He rubs his fingers on your tongue, and you moan in the back of your throat. He pushes his fingers further into your mouth to back of your throat.
He brings his other hand up to the back of your head, stroking your hair, and says, “Good girl.”
Around his fingers, you plead, “Pleath Taehong.”
He smiles at your inability to properly pronounce the words.
“You sound so desperate with my fingers in your mouth like that. Sweet dumb baby can’t make words when she’s so turned on.” He’s smiling and pressing his fingers further into your mouth again. “You don’t know how desperate I am though, jagiya. Should I show you?”
You nod, and his hand leaves the back of your head and wraps around your throat, squeezing gently. “Use your words.”
“Yes Tae.”
You are starting to drool down your chin with your mouth so wide open, but you don’t care because you want to cover him in your spit. Tae shifts his weight and pulls his pants down, hard cock bursting free as soon as the fabric that contained it is gone.
“Do you see what you do to me? Every time I see you, it’s like the first time again. I feel like I’m infatuated. A lusty mess.”
You moan around his fingers, and your spit drips from your lips onto his cock, and you smile at the sight of it.
“Does my lovely baby like to see her spit on my cock?” he asks, smirking at you, still holding your jaw open.
“Yeth.” More spit falls from your mouth.
“My love, I just want to feel you,” Tae whispers against your neck. His mouth finds purchase on your collarbone. He bites down hard and then sucks the skin where he’s just bitten. He looks up at you with so much affection in his eyes, it almost hurts.
He pulls his fingers from your mouth and sucks the drool off of them. You feel like you are going to explode if you don’t get some sort of stimulation soon.
“Bedroom?” you ask him.
“Bedroom.” he states back.
You lead him into your bedroom, and he pushes you back onto your bed. You pull your sweatpants and your ruined panties off and toss them aside. Tae stands before you, completely naked, and you marvel at him. He’s so beautiful and so perfect, his honey skin stretched just right over every curvature of every muscle and bone.
Shit. He’s so beautiful.
He slowly lowers himself between your legs, and you can’t believe that it’s possible to grow any wetter until you do. He positions himself about your clitoris, blowing cool air on the aching bud. You squirm beneath him, but he holds your hips in place. His tongue makes contact with the sensitive skin, and you immediately moan. He pulls away after one lick and blows again. The pleasure and the desire are overwhelming. Your mind is losing control.
“Please. Please,” you beg without knowing what in particular you are begging for. His touch? His tongue? His love? All of it?
He chuckles against your folds, and the stimulation makes your squirm even more. He isn’t touching you, but you are dying for his touch.
“Hold still.” 
He holds your hips as the gyrate, trying to get attention in some form. He pushes a little hard on your hips, but you can’t control yourself. You are out of your mind, and you need his touch now before you die for the lack of touch.
Smack!
Tae’s hand lands on your inner thigh heavily. You look down at him with wide eyes. “I said hold still.”
With all the power you possess in your mind, you force your hips to quiet. You hold perfectly still while panting in anticipation. You want to be good so that he’ll reward you with the thing you want most, and your brain tries to focus on still hips instead of those still lips.
Finally after what feels like years, he dips his head and traces gentle patterns through your arousal. Every time his tongue passes over your clit you moan but fight to keep your hips still. You feel yourself losing your grip, hips shuddering from the pleasure, and Taehyung slides a finger inside of you. Slick with your arousal, it easily caresses the bundle of nerves inside. The stimulation from his tongue and his finger immediately send you over the edge.
It’s sudden and forceful. It feels like all of the emotions, anger, sadness, hopelessness, all burst from within you, melting into your orgasm. Your pain melts away as the only thing left in the room, hell, the world is the sensation that Tae is giving you. Your fingers pull at his hair, and even the feeling of his soft locks is too much for you, adding to the pleasure.
As the feeling begins to wind down, you can’t stop your hips from rolling against his face. He doesn’t seem to mind, hands wrapped around your ass and hips, pulling your hard against his face. When he pulls away, his chin is shining almost as much as his eyes.
“I love you, y/n.”
He climbs up on top of you and kisses you deeply. You taste yourself on his lips, and you moan into his mouth.
“Tae...fuck me raw?”
You stare up deeply into his eyes, and you hear the intake of air from him being startled. He nods, and his cock presses against you. He slides his cock through your folds, and the way the head of his cock feels against your clit causes your to shudder. It feels like small shockwaves that are left over from your orgasm are rocking through as the stimulation continues.
Once his cock is coated in your wetness, he pushes himself inside of you, and you moan a deep, heavy moan as he sheaths himself within you. The stimulation is already pushing you toward another orgasm, and you can feel yourself pulse around. He has a way of making you cum over and over so quickly.
“I love you, Tae,” you whisper, and he starts to move his hips in rhythm. The thrusts leave you breathless. He repositions himself so that his weight is resting on your legs, and he is pushing your knees up near your chest. It burns in your hamstrings, but the feeling inside of you demands more of your attention.
You moan loudly, hearing your own sounds echoing off the ceiling and the walls. Tae repositions once more. He’s holding your ankles, pressing himself deep inside of you. Another orgasm tears through you, and while you clench around him, Tae spills inside of you, filling you full of his cum. You feel him fucking it deeper inside of you. You relish the feeling of being filled with Tae, knowing that there will be a day soon where you will make him fill every hole with him.
You both pant in each other’s arms before you finally start talking.
“I mean it, y/n. I was such an idiot. I’m so sorry. I know that it doesn’t change what happened, but I think that we can try to figure out a way to make this work.” His eyes are a little desperate again, veiled in exhaustion.
“Kim Taehyung, if someone is worth it, you make sacrifices. For what it’s worth, I love you. Ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?” you giggle as you say it.
He flips himself onto his back and pulls you tightly against his chest and kisses your nose. “Far from it.”
*****
On an unseasonably warm November afternoon, you lie on the roof of the recording studio where Tae is working today. He had a few minutes to sneak away for lunch, so you brought Banh Mi for him. You kissed him on the cheek when you saw him and greeted the other members.
The two of you lie looking at the sky, picking out shapes in the clouds. He’s gently holding your hand, and you are tossing Swedish Fish into his mouth.
“Isatrashcan!” he says with several gummies in his mouth.
“Isa what?” you ask, laughing at him incredulously.
He points out a long cylindrical cloud. “It’s a trash can!”
He looks so proud of himself, and you can’t help but love that about him. The sexy man that ruins you and dominates you. The devastatingly handsome man who wins awards and forgets to call you when he’s on the road. The oblivious man who almost cost you your job and almost broke your heart. He is also the love of your life.
You lean over and kiss his lips, smiling at him. You know that this trash can cloud is just the beginning of many adventures to come.
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jeawrites · 3 years
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Dream is enrolled in a challenge arena that he's been practicing for for months. He gets in the arena only to find out that the challengers have been partnered together and he's been assigned "Technoblade" who has a deadpan voice and looks very much not thrilled to be there. Over the course of the tournament dream finds out techno was actually very nervous about the tournament and kinda shut down b/c he doesn't know how to talk to people. Dream's opinion of techno improves greatly as he figures out Techno's way of thinking and they end up winning the competition together :')
(This is a lovely idea for a first meeting and I can't express how happy it made me)
Dream crossed his arms, gripping slightly at his hoodie sleeves.
Of all the bad luck they changed the rules of the event. Which, normally he wouldn't bat an eye at- especially in a partners based rule. He enjoyed teaming to an extent and he was social enough to build some sort of chemistry to a stranger.
But, not this guy. Not with the way he's acting.
Techno Blade.
He remembered hearing gasps and whispers of the name as people hovered around the duo's listings. And, when he saw his name next to the one causing that much stir he figured it was because it was someone cool. Now he's figuring its because the guy is terrible and known for that.
Normally Dream wouldn't be thinking like this and he'd shrug off a bad played and carry if needed, but he worked so hard for this one. He trained for days and days for months only for his partner to be some stoic wannabe "cool guy".
Dream was competitive. He had to be in a challenge like this. He was not prepared to lose early, he didn't even consider it a possibility and he wasn't going to start now.
They stood together on the waiting platform to be lifted to the start. Hunger Games wasn't too bad but this wad meant to be a series throughout the week leading to a final sky wars 2 v 2. In order to move on they had to place in the top 50 of 110.
He tapped his foot a taf impatiently and finally sighed out in some form of defeat. He had tried talking strategies with the guy and he tried to discuss what he might be trained in but Techno either evaded the question or he gave some mysterious answer of "you'll see". Whatever that means.
"Do you... Know anyone else in the tournament?' Dream decided to ask. Maybe he just wanted to get a sense on the guy and try and read his character, ready to over analyze the question.
Techno glanced towards him, his lips pursed before he nodded slightly. "I... Have a couple friends playing," he answered, looking up. His voice was bland, nearly toneless but it held a slight shake in it like his voice was wavering on the deepness it held. Like he was putting up a front.
Dream nodded and felt a little relieved that they could talk about something then. "I do too," he replied with a shrug. Before any other words could be said, however, the platform shook and then slowly began to rise.
Day light shined down on the huge circle and Dream grinned a tad, happy to finally be free and out. Rhe countdown began as soon as everyone was up, and there was a grace period of thirty seconds declared.
He turned on his heals to face away from the middle, a tad surprised to see Techno was doing the same. The man's eyes were narrowed and he was clearly ready to run.
Maybe... He had a plan after all.
The alarm rang out and people took off every which way, but Dream and Techno stuck together. They found a building and a couple of chest, quickly looting them.
Dream had spotted another one and went to grab at it before hearing the sound of swords clashing. He turned with wide eyes and watched as Techno skillfully knocked someone down, their body being teleported away. "Woah," he mumbled. "Woah! Dude that was awesome!" he exclaimed, quickly opening the chest as his mouth ran. "That was so smooth, you look like you didn't even take a punch! That's so cool," he laughed and stepped back after grabbing some food, smiling towards the other from behind his mask.
Techno offered him a small and hesitant smile before he gestured back. "I heard a commotion to the right of us, we should head left and out," he said.
Dream nodded happily to that idea.
--
Only 20 more people had to be eliminated before the event ended. Dream and Techno were camped out at mid, sharing in a small conversation as they enchanted their stuff and waited.
"So did you practice before the event?" Dream asked, "you sorta brushed me off the last time I asked."
Techno nodded a bit. "I practiced a bit... Sorry I ignored you," he said, "I... Was a little stressed coming into this. I was honestly unprepared for how many people showed up," he sighed softly. "Then teaming was announced and I got paired with a stranger and that, no offence, made me... I don't know. I wasn't here and really didn't want to be here," he said
He handed Dream his helmet and continued enchanting. "Phil says I'm probably the worst at meeting people cause I'm awkward," he mumbled, rolling his eyes. "I wasn't entirely ready to have a chatty teammate."
Dream felt like something finally clicked then and he felt a tad guilty for dissing Techno at the beginning of the event. "So you're awkward," he noted with a nod. "You must really be in your element here though! You talk a lot when it comes to fighting," he said. Then he chuckled. "Guess its my lucky day that was the case. I was fully prepared to drop you if you weren't going to help out."
"I wouldn't blame you," Techno said, "I'd probably do the same thing."
They shared a quick laugh and the game continued.
After ten minutes Techno and Dream had ended up eliminating five of the remaining teams. The game ended and the winners were gathered in the center to see where they ended up on the leader boards.
Techno and Dream topped the event. Both were tied for first in an equal amount of kills.
With day one coming to an end, Dream honestly couldn't wait for the remaining week and his time with Techno.
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writingwip · 3 years
Text
A fic I probably wont finish but the thoughts there. Anyone’s free to take it up if they want. Basically Five wakes up and finds out he’s the god of a cult. Klaus better explain this one in .5 seconds or Five’s gonna have his head on a stake. 
Five had found himself sat on a throne of sorts, expression wild and confused. People were lined up on both sides with fruits and drinks held neatly on platters and kneeling stiffly with faces respectfully angled downwards. They all had on similar clothing, soft flowing fabrics that draped over them but fit nicely, deep blues and soft beiges. The room was lit with candles and incense that made him feel sleepy and lightheaded. 
A bizarre experience is how Five would put it. Bizarre and slightly amusing and confusing and interesting. 
He had caught the eyes of a figure standing out among the rest, closest to him and wearing slightly altered clothes. He had a little cylindrical hat with funny symbols Five realized were his math equations, only if all the letters and numbers were shoved into one image haphazardly made to look semi-symmetric. His eyes lit up as they made eye contact and a smile quickly took over his face. Five already wanted to punch him. 
“Awake at last, my lord,” and oh jesus, he was being called a lord. What had he gotten into this time? “We have long awaited you to arise. Welcome back, dear lord,” and the man deeply bowed. Five wasn’t sure whether to run yet or see where this was leading. “Lord Klaus had predicted today would be the day you awoken and joined us once again. Such divinity has blessed us and we had quickly gotten ready for your arrival.” Klaus? What had that oaf done? Five sighed and stood up. 
He had been sitting criss-cross on a soft, velvet pillow sat on a raised platform. Surrounding it were more candles and a burning stick of incents strong enough to make Fives head dizzy. This was ridiculous. 
“Where is Klaus?” Five asks the man. He seemed downright euphoric that Five had spoken, let alone directly to him. He was quick to fully stand and reach his hand out, offering support as Five’s legs wobbled. Five shot him a glare and raised his hand as a warning. He would slap this man if it came to it which, judging by how he’s acting already, it will. 
“Lord Klaus and Lady Vanya are awaiting you in the congregation room,” The man says quickly, shuffling forward slightly before turning back to Five to see if he was following. As if he were a child. Five sneered and walked in front of the man if just to prove a point. He felt an ache in his chest and eyed the food platters suspiciously, taking an apple off of one. The woman who was holding it squeaked and when Five looked away he heard a bang. He was pretty sure she passed out. Five had half a mind to tell everyone to fuck off but his head was too busy trying to figure out what was going on to really put the thoughts into action. He wondered idly if it were poisoned or drugged, but quickly pushed that thought away. These people were way too adoring of him to try to touch him, let alone poison him. Plus, he was almost sure Klaus wouldn’t let a weird cult drug him. Almost. He shoved the apple into his mouth and made it to the end of the room, pushing the two doors open with a grunt. 
Sweet, succulent fresh air invaded his lungs. It wasn’t choking in incense and body heat. Thank god. The door opened up to a bright room with an arched dome ceiling entirely made of glass. Sunlight streamed in and lit up the white pillars supporting it all, dancing across the fresh green leaves that decorated the walls and sat prettily in the center of the room. It had soft looking benches lining the walls, though other than that it was barren. It was a room made to look pretty and that’s about it, apparently. Such a waste of space. Five stepped in and looked around. There were three doors on each wall. Five looked back to the man trailing behind him and gave him a pointed look. The poor buy was sweating bullets. 
“Right this way sir,” He stumbled out and veered off to the left. The air was fresh and crisp and slightly cold, like a cloudless october morning. It made his fingertips cold to the touch. He rubbed them together and followed the man. 
“Who are you?” Five asked, just so he could stop calling him ‘the man’. He jumped up at the broken silence and looked nervously towards Five. 
“I’m the head priest, my lord. Priest Bence, of your religion, sir,” Five’s brow rose at ‘your religion’ but otherwise didn’t comment on it. He’d grill Klaus on it when they got there, for now he’d like to enjoy the pretty scenery and let his stiff joints loosen up and pop. 
They ventured through a few more rooms with similar architecture, though some were more furnished than others and were obviously meant for people to hang out in. It was all very cozy and bright, something Five wasn’t much used to. 
With a final push of a door the lighting changed. It was still bright but it shone with a dulled yellow glow. Soft pews lead up like dominos to a stained glass window portraying… something. Five couldn’t really wrap his head around the colors, though they were obviously meant to represent a silhouette of a scene. Five wasn’t much of a visualiser anyways. 
Directly below the intricate glass were his siblings. Two of them at least. Klaus was sat on a bright pink bean bag chair that looked wildly out of place front and center in a church setting, gesturing bodily as he narrated whatever odd story Klaus spun. Vanya was standing, leaning against the wall and looking at Klaus with a smile. 
When the door closed behind them, the two looked up. Smiles, soft and warm and kind and so uncanny directed at Five, were immediately on their faces. 
“Five…” Vanya said, voice choked up as if she were about to cry. Five really hoped she wouldn’t because he was lacking in social skills and wouldn’t know how to comfort her. Thankfully she seemed to be holding it in. 
“Five, buddy! We’ve been waiting like, forever for you! Took you long enough, sleeping beauty!” Klaus was grinning ear to ear and even he seemed a little choked up. What was going on? Five made his way up to his siblings as they patiently waited. Head Priest Bence trailed after him like a lost duckling all the way, making as if to grab for Five then quickly putting his hands back. It was odd and awkward and Five just wanted him to leave. 
When he got in front of them Vanya leapt in for the kill, hugging Five tightly and burrowing her head in his shoulder. Klaus was standing now, kicking the bean bag slightly to the side and squeezing the two siblings. 
“Group hug!” Klaus laughed. Fives fingers twitched. There was silence for a second before Klaus looked directly at Head Priest Bence. “Dude we’re having a moment. Go, shoo, off to the dinning hall or whatever,” and before he could even finish his sentence the man was out the door, eager to accept any of their orders it seemed. Five watched him go with detached amusement. He pulled away, though both siblings looked dejected. He couldn’t find it in himself to feel bad. 
“What the hell’s going on here?” Five asked first, arms crossed loosely over his chest. Vanya and Klaus looked at eachother knowingly. This can’t be good. 
“Straight to the point as always, Five-o!” Klaus grinned. Vanya snorted and rolled her eyes.
“Yeah, it’s good to have you back. It's… it’s been a while,” she said and her eyes fogged up again. 
“How long exactly?” Five glowered. He felt like he wasn’t going to like this answer. The two siblings sent each other looks again. He really hoped they didn’t learn telepathy or something. Vanya looked away first and Klaus looked victorious. 
By god they did, didn’t they?
“It’s uh… it’s been a couple… hundred… years?” She stutters out and looks at the opposite wall with great interest, fiddling with her hands. Five wants to either slam his head through the stain glass or scream into one of the very soft pillows. Possibly both if he positioned himself right. Klaus looked at him with a shit eating grin. He knew exactly what this was about. 
Five could settled for neither of those options and instead wanted to punch his brother directly in his stupid nose. 
“You really are sleeping beauty with your hundred year rest,” Klaus grins. 
It would be so easy. He could probably break his nose.
Surprising even himself, Five showed an impressive amount of restraint. He only punched him in the gut. Vanya choked on a giggle as Klaus hunched over. 
“I wasn’t even the one to tell you,” he wheezed out pathetically. “This is totally unfair.” Five scoffed. 
“You know damn well Vanya’s my favorite,” and Klaus said nothing to that, admitting defeat and slumping down to the floor. Five looked down on him like a lion looks down on a prairie mouse. Vanya smiles goofily next to him, crouching down and patting Klaus’ back. 
“Why didn’t you guys just, i dunno, wake me up?” Five hisses, arms tightening around himself. Vanya opens her mouth to reply but Five cuts her off, “And before you say it’s one of those self-induced healing comas, I know I had like a thousand viles of that kick start you could have pumped into me”. They’re both quiet. 
Klaus still seemed winded so Vanya spoke up after a few hesitant seconds. “Your lab… may or may not have… blown up…” She smiles nervously. Five clutches his arms tightly against his chest and closes his eyes, taking a deep breath in and letting his tense shoulders unwind. He opens his eyes and smiles back. 
Vanya screams, sharp and ringing, and books it towards the door. Klaus is scrambling to stand up and clutch the bean bag up to his face, cowering in a corner. Five’s smile widens and a vein throbs in his head. 
He had been awake for less than twenty minutes and he already felt a headache ebbing its way into his temple. 
With pinpoint accuracy he picks up the nearest object, a wooden pedestal that was probably supposed to have a book on it, and chucks it directly at Vanya. She’s out the door in time, however, and now there's a wooden pedestal halfway out the door. He hadn’t been trying to actually hit her, he never would, but hearing that sentence had him teetering the line more than he had ever thought possible. 
By the way she said it, she definitely had something to do with it. 
Five looks over at Klaus with a cold glare and he flinches deeper into the small corner. He sighs, head in his hands, and takes a minute to compose himself. Klaus peaks his head over the bean bag and gives him an innocent look. 
“Okay, I’m fine now,” Five declares and Vanya shakkily opens the door. Wood Splinters rain down from the gaping hole only plugged up by the pedestal itself. She creeps up to him, though she has no real fear lining her shoulders. 
“So let me get this straight. I was out of commission for a few hundred years and since none of you could wake me up, you decided to start a cult,” Five practically growls. Klaus is now stomach-down on the bean bag, kicking his feet to make it slide back over to his siblings. 
Klaus makes a placating expression of contemplation before shrugging. “Yeah pretty much,” He says. 
Five contemplates murder, for just one second. One beautiful second. 
“And why am I a part of it, pray tell?” Five asks, annoyed. He had made it specifically clear that he didn’t want to be a cult leader or a ‘god’ a good few thousand years ago after the train wreck that was his first and last cult. At least, it used to be his last. He was genuinely confused, knowing his siblings would comply with at least those restrictions when asked to. Vanya's face screws up a bit, looking almost pained. 
“When you, uh, were attacked and put in that state, we weren’t sure where your body was. We’re still not entirely sure. We just got word a few hundred years ago that there was a small cult forming around an ‘immortal sleeping child’ and we were willing to take a gamble and look into it,” Vanya muttered out, seemingly embarrassed. So they had lost his body then? How?
“What happened? Why was I attacked in the first place?” Five asks, walking over to Klaus and sitting next to him. He leaned heavily onto the beanbag and Klaus shuffled over, though Five never climbed on. 
Vanya’s fingers grew somehow more twitchy. “That's the thing…”
Klaus beat her to it, though his usual happy air was completely gone. He looked serious for once. 
“It was one of us, and we don't know who”
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Thoughts on the female gaze?
Thank you for this ask @palominojacoby​ because I have so many thoughts! Too many to contain in one answer. 
So, I’ll mull over what’s top-of-mind, related to the female gaze. In a nutshell: 
- I’m digesting Joey Soloway’s wonderful Tiff Talk on the female gaze. It’s funny and poignant and a great primer on the subject. You can find it on Youtube, or there is a written transcript you can find here. 
- I’m thinking about what terrifies men about the feminine gaze (my preferred term for it): one, that they won’t be the objects of it and; two, that the feminine gaze is out of their reach. It is a space or a viewpoint that they don’t have access to but feel entitled to. They want to capitalize on it, and exploit it, just like they are allowed to exploit everything else. This needs to be watched and it needs to be called out. 
- The older I get, the less interested I am in consuming or experiencing art or media created by heterosexual white men. I’ve been in their head space long enough. I’ve been consuming their media and their opinions and their gaze for thirty-four years, and I think, by now, I know what they have to say, and I’m no longer interested in it. It does not inspire me. 
I want to be submerged in the feminine gaze. 
 For the long version, read below the cut. Buckle up, it’s going to be long: 
While eating lunch today, I watched Joey Soloway’s Tiff Talk on the female gaze. Early in their address, after they defined the male gaze, and after they did a funny riff about all the things that the female gaze isn’t (Magic Mike if it were written, directed and produced by a woman/placing women into male roles in your typical Dude Movies), they remind the audience that men have had control of the camera more or less for 100 years (and control of the everything else forever). 
Then they say this: 
So for there to be actual gender parity in the gaze – the kind that would actually make it reasonable for a reporter on the red carpet to say to me – things are getting better for women, right?
We would need the next 100 years of almost every single movie to be produced, written and directed by women. Like, let’s check in again in 2116, people.
And then after that – we could start on the 50/50 thing.
It was that very math – which is perfectly reasonable math – that made me realize that not only do women have to be inspired and funded to start making a fuck of a lot of things in record numbers, but for things to even out, well that’s why I asked that audience of cis men to please: STOP MAKING THINGS.
It did not go over well. 
They then explain why this matters; why it matters that Cis men have controlled art (and everything else) and why it is so important to wrest that control away.
ART IS PROPAGANDA FOR THE SELF.
Yep, TV and film-making and fuck, all culture making, is people going, “I’m okay! And people who are similar to me are okay! Watch this ½ hour then be more on my side! In case of Armageddon! Zika! Trump! Hitler!” 
We all need friends and so we make tribes with our art.
Simply put, Protagonism is Propaganda. Protagonism is Propaganda that protects and perpetuates privilege.
So if only cis men are creating art (or the only ones whose art is amplified), their point of view, their selves, their gazes are the only ones that are going to be privileged in spaces far beyond the art world. Protagonism as propaganda affects politics, personal relationships, economics, etc. etc. etc. 
Joey Soloway’s definition of the female gaze: 
The female gaze is a conscious effort to create empathy as a political tool. It is a wresting away! Perhaps a wrestling away of the point of view. [A wresting away] of the power, of the privilege propaganda for purposes ---​of changing the way the world feels for women when they move their BODIES through the world, feeling themselves as the subject.
It’s a great speech. I highly recommend it. 
During the Q&A after, the third question is from this Cis old white guy, who asks this fucking nonsense: 
My body, right now, is feeling shaken and inspired by everything that you said. So, I just want to ask you, I might be misunderstanding, but I think you your definition of a cis male, is those of us who were born with a penis and identify as male. [Joey Soloway affirms this definition] I’m wondering how you would feel about differentiating those of us who get it and those of us who are perpetuating...
And I just...lost it. (Note: Joey was extremely gracious in their response. I will not be.) Like, holy shit dude. You just sat through this extremely thoughtful, extremely funny talk about the female gaze and how the male gaze and perspective has been privileged for a millennia, and maybe, just maybe, it’s about FUCKING TIME to center other perspectives and YOU IMMEDIATELY TURN THE CONVERSATION BACK ON YOURSELF. YOU INSECURE, FRAGILE LITTLE MAN. SHUT THE FUCK UP FOR 2 FUCKING SECONDS. 
Holy fuck....
Again, you’d think after so long in power, men would be just a tad more secure, but they just fucking aren’t. They’re insecure little bastards (don’t come into my comments and “not all men” me on this). 
I think they are afraid of two things. 
1) That if feminine creators are actually given the space and the funding and the amplification to create feminine gaze works, cis men aren’t going to be the objects or even the subjects of that art. 
I think this terrifies them. Not only are they not going to be behind the lens, but they might not be in the picture either. This is something I’m still mulling over, and don’t have much more to say about it at this time.  
2) They really don’t like being told that a space isn’t theirs. They don’t want the feminine gaze to be out of their reach. They see feminine gaze works gaining notice and prestige and critical acclaim, and they want in. 
This had me thinking about something I’ve noticed in film. Every time a feminine (or queer) gaze film gains critical acclaim, there is almost IMMEDIATELY a rush by white cis male filmmakers to capitalize on that success. 
And it’s exhausting. In Joey’s speech, they say this: 
Sometimes the first gasp of this re-centering of ourselves is a kind of paralysis when it occurs to us how we have been groomed to stay quiet simply by having TAKEN IN all of this work, all of our lives of consuming such an overwhelming amount of cis male artists splashing in their privilege, by telling their stories which work like propaganda that suggest how we should act, for access to their attention. 
And how that stops us from gathering our own attention on ourselves. Like, I wish I could put into film the feeling of being eleven years old, to look around the classroom. Walls lined with presidents, looking around the ceiling of the whole damn room -- ALL of them men? And to think, I’m going to be the first woman president, and then on that very same day, same body, walking home listening to Rod Stewart, because he was my favorite, singing along to Tonight’s the night. Thinking I’m going to be president and then singing “Don’t say a word my virgin child / Just let your inhibitions run wild / The secret is about to unfold / Upstairs because the night’s too oldTonight’s the night? Gonna be alright / Cuz I love ya babe / Ain’t nobody gonna stop us now.” 
Singing along to a pedophile grooming an underage girl to have sex with him. When I sang along, was I Rod or the virgin child? It didn’t matter: my presidential power dreams got lost throughout all of my adolescence, or had to do extreme high jumps throughout my life, dreams of power getting lost in being sister golden hair sublime, sugar magnolia, being the lady in red, your body is a wonderland, you look wonderful tonight, you do, you look so wonderful night. 
I can’t even listen to the radio anymore, I mean, it’s a problem. This Female Gaze is a political platform, it means we start to call out how awful it is to be offered access in exchange for succeeding at being seen. 
We are so tangled up in the male gaze, that one or two or three or four or a dozen, or fucking one hundred feminine gaze stories ISN’T GOING TO BE ENOUGH. 
So when I see a feminine gaze film like Portrait of a Lady on Fire gain critical acclaim, I applaud and I’m excited and I want more.
But then...
Inevitably...
A shithead like Casey Affleck produces and stars in The World to Come, a tale about two women who fall in love on the frontier, adapted from a short story written by Jim Shepherd (if you couldn’t guess by the name, spoiler: he’s an old white guy). 
and...I’M SUSPICIOUS. 
I haven’t seen the film. And I’m not saying men can’t make films that center women, or women loving women. They can, and they obviously have all the resources to (so don’t come at me about cancel culture or gatekeeping), but... 
I’M SUSPICIOUS
and furthermore....
I’m just not that interested. I’m not interested in what Casey Affleck or Jim Shepherd have to say about the experience of being a woman who has lost a child, or is struggling with her marriage, or with material comforts, or is falling in love with another woman. 
I’m interested in what women have to say about those experiences. I’m a woman who has experienced those things. I don’t need, nor do I trust a dude to tell me what that feels like. 
Which brings me to my final thought. 
I want to be submerged in the feminine gaze.
I want to consume media created by feminine artists for feminine viewers. It’s what inspires me. It’s what makes me curious. It’s what I want more of. 
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Welllp These Are Books: the April 2021 Edition
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I did not read Romeo and Juliet this month. I read a bunch of other books. Like, a bunch. More than one series. Because Big Bang burnout is real and grown adults missing their deadlines is a real good way to stress me out. So, I read a bunch. Good books, very bad books, books that caused limbs to flail. For positive and not-so-positive reasons. Naturally, all those reasons must be shared. Under the cut with occasionally long and rant-prone reviews, as well as spoilers. Beware of spoilers under the cut. Please keep telling me what to read, internet. My library wish list is almost comically long now.
GIVE ME ALL THE WORLD BUILDING AND SNARK AND FIGHTING! WITH MAGIC! AND SWORDS! IT’S MY FAVORITE THING IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD!
Shades of Magic Series by V.E. Schwab
Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black. After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.
— Picture it, approximately twelve forty-seven am. My husband is asleep. I am reading. The second book in this series ends. And I say, right out loud, at what might now be twelve forty-eight am, HOLY SHIT IT JUST ENDED. Justin thought we were under attack. No man has ever snapped awake quicker. He was not pleased. At least not in the same way that I was about these books. Which I goddamn LOVED. Loved. The world building. The magic. The banter. Rhy and Kell’s relationship. Once more. RHY AND KELL’S RELATIONSHIP. Which I might have cared about more than the romance??? Maybe??? I cannot get over how good this world building was. I know people have quips with it, and that’s fair. I saw the “twist” coming in the first book, and I think trying to preserve that left some plot holes that are understandably frustrating. Because Lilah definitely needed depth perception to fight as well as she did. Also did Schwab really refer to her as a cross dresser in her author’s note? Yikes. She wore a dude’s jacket, like—c’mon V.E. Other than that though. I loved it. Also shout out to @peglegsjones for suggesting this one in my 2020 post and call out to me for taking so long to read it.
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone. . . . A convict with a thirst for revenge. A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager. A runaway with a privileged past. A spy known as the Wraith. A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.  A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.   Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.
— I’ve talked about how little I cared about anything that happened in Shadow and Bone before, but I kept seeing gifs of the Crows in the Netflix show and my brain was like: huh, I could like them. So, after some help from the very helpful internet, I’m happy to report I do in fact like them. At one point, I slunk into the couch. Like that’s how overcome with emotion I was. Kaz ripped a dude’s eye out! For Inej! Matthias loved Nina’s laugh! I would like to hug Jesper. Seriously, this hit all my high points and world building and banter and I lol’ed at “scheming face.” I would like my hold to come through faster on the sequel.
THEY DID NOT CALL INTERMISSION HALFTIME AND MY COLLEGE EXPERIENCE WAS WAY DIFFERENT THAN THESE KIDS
The Off Campus Series by Elle Kennedy
Hannah Wells has finally found someone who turns her on. But while she might be confident in every other area of her life, she’s carting around a full set of baggage when it comes to sex and seduction. If she wants to get her crush’s attention, she’ll have to step out of her comfort zone and make him take notice…even if it means tutoring the annoying, childish, cocky captain of the hockey team in exchange for a pretend date. All Garrett Graham has ever wanted is to play professional hockey after graduation, but his plummeting GPA is threatening everything he’s worked so hard for. If helping a sarcastic brunette make another guy jealous will help him secure his position on the team, he’s all for it. But when one unexpected kiss leads to the wildest sex of both their lives, it doesn’t take long for Garrett to realize that pretend isn’t going to cut it. Now he just has to convince Hannah that the man she wants looks a lot like him.
— The first book in this series was free on Amazon. So, I read it. And really liked it??? It was so chock full of cliches and badly written tropes and Garrett probably should have accepted that Hannah didn’t want to go out at the start, but like—he was cute? And as we all know I am TRASH™ for stories set in the same verse, so, like, I just kept reading these trashy college hockey books. Trashy is a compliment here. God, these kids had so much sex. So much. An incredible amount, really. I once had a guy tell me he was physically attracted to me, but not emotionally attracted to me in college. Like, that was my college experience. The first and second books were the best, I think. I didn’t really like Dean that much.
MAYBE IT WAS BECAUSE HE WAS A RABBI???
The Intimacy Experiement by Rosie Danan
Naomi Grant has built her life around going against the grain. After the sex-positive start-up she cofounded becomes an international sensation, she wants to extend her educational platform to live lecturing. Unfortunately, despite her long list of qualifications, higher ed won't hire her. Ethan Cohen has recently received two honors: LA Mag nominated him as one of the city's hottest bachelors and he became rabbi of his own synagogue. Low on both funds and congregants, the executive board of Ethan's new shul hired him with the hopes that his nontraditional background will attract more millennials to the faith. They've given him three months to turn things around or else they'll close the doors of his synagogue for good. Naomi and Ethan join forces to host a buzzy seminar series on Modern Intimacy, the perfect solution to their problems--until they discover a new one--their growing attraction to each other. They've built the syllabus for love's latest experiment, but neither of them expected they'd be the ones putting it to the test.
— Ok, I know that sounds bad. Again, I’m a creature of predictable habit and this was the sequel to The Roommate, which I absolutely LOVED last year. But where as the relationship in that one was kind of swoony, this one was...I don’t know, really. Everyone was a well-rounded character and the plot was good, but there was this semi-invisible something that made it difficult for me to get fully on board with the whole story. Honestly, it might be because he was a religious figure?? Also, they got together real quick. Like zero to sixty in twenty-six seconds flat.
I KNOW IT’S BAD, IT WAS BAD AND YET—I CANNOT STOP READING IT???
Too Wild to Tame by Tessa Bailey
Sometimes you just can't resist playing with fire . . . By day, Aaron Clarkson suits up, shakes hands, and acts the perfect gentleman. But at night, behind bedroom doors, the tie comes off and the real Aaron comes out to play. Mixing business with pleasure got him fired, so Aaron knows that if he wants to work for the country's most powerful senator, he'll have to keep his eye on the prize. That's easier said than done when he meets the senator's daughter, who's wild, gorgeous, and 100 percent trouble. Grace Pendleton is the black sheep of her conservative family. Yet while Aaron's presence reminds her of a past she'd rather forget, something in his eyes keeps drawing her in. Maybe it's the way his voice turns her molten. Or maybe it's because deep down inside, the ultra-smooth, polished Aaron Clarkson might be more than even Grace can handle . . .
— Last month I read the first book in this series and it was absolutely ridiculous. This one even more so. The Clarksons are still on the road trip (sans one sibling because she fell in love in a week in the first book) and Aaron was, like, not a root’able character? Very Edward Cullen I’M A BAD GUY, BELLA vibes and his relationship with Grace was so strange. Super rushed again, obvs. Meeting in the woods is weird enough. Professing love forty-eight hours later is decidedly unbelievable. Also there was a kidnapping involved? I totally put a hold on the next book in the series.
COME UP WITH DIFFERENT TRAUMA, I DARE YOU! OR NO TRAUMA. WHAT A CONCEPT!!
The Trouble With Hating You by Sajni Patel
Liya Thakkar is a successful biochemical engineer, takeout enthusiast, and happily single woman. The moment she realizes her parents' latest dinner party is a setup with the man they want her to marry, she's out the back door in a flash. Imagine her surprise when the same guy shows up at her office a week later -- the new lawyer hired to save her struggling company. What's not surprising: he's not too thrilled to see her either after that humiliating fiasco.
Jay Shah looks good on paper...and off. Especially if you like that whole gorgeous, charming lawyer-in-a-good-suit thing. He's also infuriating. As their witty office banter turns into late-night chats, Liya starts to think he might be the one man who truly accepts her. But falling for each other means exposing their painful pasts. Will Liya keep running, or will she finally give love a real chance?
— I had such high hopes for this one. Which is on me, I guess. Because I didn’t hate this one, but it was...not great. Maybe I’m just getting old and crotchety but I am BEGGING romance writers to come up with different trauma for their female protagonists. Not every woman has to have been assaulted to rationalize their current personality. Doesn’t have to happen. Like, ok, yes it does happen. Far more than it should. But that’s an entirely different story, and I am so tired of female characters getting absolutely destroyed by their past only to have that be their defining characteristic for so much of the book. Until a nice man they were initially mean to shows up and he’s UNDERSTANDING and he CARES and it’s just, bleh. It’s bleh. Tired and predictable and I’m over it.
IN WHICH I SHOULD HAVE LOOKED AT THE COVER
Much Ado About You by Samantha Young
At thirty-three-years old Evangeline Starling’s life in Chicago is missing that special something. And when she’s passed over for promotion at work, Evie realizes she needs to make a change. Some time away to regain perspective might be just the thing. In a burst of impulsivity, she plans a holiday in a quaint English village. The holiday package comes with a temporary position at Much Ado About Books, the bookstore located beneath her rental apartment. There’s no better dream vacation for the bookish Evie, a life-long Shakespeare lover. Not only is Evie swept up in running the delightful store as soon as she arrives, she’s drawn into the lives, loves and drama of the friendly villagers. Including Roane Robson, the charismatic and sexy farmer who tempts Evie every day with his friendly flirtations. Evie is determined to keep him at bay because a holiday romance can only end in heartbreak, right? But Evie can’t deny their connection and longs to trust in her handsome farmer that their whirlwind romance could turn in to the forever kind of love.
— Ok, so I had had this book on hold for so long that I genuinely forgot about it and forgot who it was written by. Samantha Young wrote that one book that I called the worst book I had ever read. Only I did not realize that when I started reading this one. So, you see how this sets us up for disaster. Because this book was a disaster. Everyone was goddamn annoying. And whiny. Shit, everyone whined. About everything. Also, the actual writing was atrocious. I am not usually one to be like “men can’t write,” but at one point I told both @shireness-says and @optomisticgirl that this book must have been secretly written by a man because no woman writing it would be so obsessed with pointing out where her cellulite was. Like, what??? Also the first sex scene? Oh my God, I laughed. Guffawed. The so-called love interest literally asked: “Are we going to have sex now?” And then they just did. It was so bad. Also there was a dog? Who went everywhere with the so-called love interest. And they just never explained that? I thought it was going to be part of some crushing and depressing backstory. Nah, he was just there.
HOLY SHIT THIS WAS SO DUMB I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS WAS A BOOK! A BOOK MEANT FOR YOUNG ADULTS! WHAT IS YOUNG ADULT???
The Queen’s Secret by Melissa de la Cruz
Lilac's birthright makes her the Queen of Renovia, and a forced marriage made her the Queen of Montrice. But being a ruler does not mean making the rules. For Lilac, taking the throne means giving up the opportunity to be with love of her life, the kingdom's assassin, Caledon Holt. Worse, Cale is forced to leave the castle when a horrific set of magical attacks threatens Lilac's sovereignty. Now Cal eand Lilac will have to battle dark forces separately, even though being together is the only thing that's ever saved them.
— Remember last month when I was like: can’t wait for my hold to come through on this sequel so I know what happens? What an idiot. THIS BOOK WAS SO DUMB I CANNOT BELIEVE IT WAS A BOOK. As always in my rage-induced rants, no apologies for spoilers because seriously do NOT read this, but Lilac (legit, that was her name) married some other dude but just kept fucking Cale??? Like she had a secret door? So he could come in and they could fuck?? I just—oh my God. So, all these things kept happening. Magic and bad stuff and horses were killed. Lilac’s mother was the absolute WORST. Honestly the most worthless character who at one point was like “well, my story is over, guess it’s time to leave,” and then just left?? Forced Lilac into a marriage of alliance and no love and then everything evil was defeated in point two four seconds. It happened so fast I wasn’t even sure it happened. So, then I’m like, ok, how are Lilac and Cale going to end up together? Because this is YA and that’s how it’s supposed to work. Only her being married and that marriage requiring an heir is something of a rather large hurdle. Don’t worry! Remember when Lilac and Cale were fucking? Everyone totally knew. Including the king Lilac is married to. Who is somehow like...ok with this? And tells Cale that Lilac is pregnant. ISN’T THAT WONDERFUL! Sure, because now they can lie and claim its the king’s heir. ONLY IT’S CALE’S KID! AND CALE IS COOL WITH THIS! His entire internal monologue during this is about how he realizes he might not ever be able to tell his kid he’s their father, but he’ll be around and that’s good. Wait, what??? But there’s more! Not only is Lilac having Cale’s kid, but the king she’s married to is in love with one of Cale’s spy associates. So the king and the spy are going to go hang out (and presumably have their own kids) at one castle and Lilac and Cale are going to go to another. Lilac and the king never get divorced or annulled or whatever. Everyone stays as is and married as is and—they all live happily ever after? This was presented as a good ending, I swear. What the shit, guys, seriously.
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404marner · 3 years
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let’s talk about mitch marner...again.
i had to miss tonight’s stream because i had work. and work always makes me mad. then i went on twitter which was, of course, on fire. and then i got madder. so now we’re gonna have a little chat.
i’m going to take this opportunity to plug myself. i’ve done with before and it’s my pinned post. very in depth compared to this.
mitch did a charity stream, to be fair most of them are, any money donated goes toward his charity, but tonight in particular was a sanctioned stream. and instead of that being the story, it was he said it’s cold in toronto and if they have to play somewhere else, he hopes it’s warm. 
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i’m not entirely sure what the beef is with mitch. let’s explore (AGAIN)
his holdout? because mat barzal hasn’t re-signed yet. and neither has pierre luc dubois. who are both inarguably the best or one of the best on their respective teams. and they haven’t been in the news every fucking day. (to be clear: i’m not saying they should be getting hate or media pressure. no one should, but mitch did and that’s my point) 
or is it the amount of money he made? because connor mcdavid is making more money and the oilers have been less successful than the leafs since. (and before anyone tries to argue mitch marner isn’t as good as connor mcdavid. i know, but they aren’t making the same amount, mitch makes less so i feel as if it’s a valid point to make - 15.3% of cap space vs 13.4%)
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do people think he’s a bad person? using his platform to raise money for the homeless. then just all his foundation does aside from that. all the work they did during quarantine, helped in part by the money he raised while streaming. not only that but the amount of people that know him personally advocating for him, saying he’s so genuine and such a good guy?
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if we were told mitch’s comment was said by someone else, would it be blowing up the same way? what if it were john tavares or jason spezza? what if it were connor mcdavid (about edmonton)? would we still be hearing all this noise?
this brings me to my final point. mitch is notoriously not like a typical manly dude in the nhl. he likes to snuggle, he wears pink, he talks about mental health. most attacking him on twitter. are men. so is this a masculinity issue? is hating mitch for hating the cold rooted in fragile masculinity. should he stand outside in shorts and say i love the cold, would that fix it? is it a capitalism issue? “this guy makes more money than me playing a sport so now when he says something i probably agree with but have to put up with anyway i get mad!” rage against the system then man.
i’m unsure. but i’m tired of logging on twitter to see it in flames over something small. we all know toronto athletes aren’t allowed to have a personality but like. holy shit. this is me kindly asking all the dudebros of hockey twitter just shut the fuck up
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rosecorcoranwrites · 3 years
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Censorship and Banning Books
As I mentioned in my last Rant Rave Review, as of last Monday, six books by Dr. Seuss are now officially out-of-print, and they are out of print due to supposedly racist, offensive, and/or stereotypical images. The company that owns the rights to these books is no longer publishing them and some websites are no longer selling them. People who do own the books, or who swooped into stores and bought them the day of the announcement, are now selling them for hundreds or thousands of dollars. So, what are we to make of all this?
Is Dr. Seuss Racist?
There are actually three questions here: is the man racist, are his books racist, and are those images racist? The answer to the first is, he kinda was, and then he got over it. During the war, he was openly against the Japanese, and in favor of the internment camps, then went to Japan during the occupation and realized, hey, maybe these are just people. Apparently, he wrote Horton Hears a Who in response to the US occupation and dedicated it to a Japanese friend. People can change, if you let them.
Okay, well, what about his books? This is an obvious "no". Race basically doesn't come up in Dr. Seuss stories, except "The Sneetches", which is actively against racism. Which, in some people's fevered imaginations, makes it racist. Yes, in some Olympic-level mental gymnastics, saying that whatever race you are isn't important, ie being against "racial essentialism" means that you are a racist. Such people think that the story doesn't address "structures of power" and "systemic oppression". This is true. It's instead a story about a sleazy businessman who goes in and preys on existing racial biases in order to make a buck, constantly telling people to think of their identities in terms of their outward appearance. You'd think the racial essentialists would appreciate the representation.
But I digress.
What about the images themselves? Are they racist? Not having seen all of them, I can't say for sure, but some are definitely cringy. Take the yellow skinned "Chinaman who eats with sticks" in And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Though one could argue that the entire book uses only five colors: yellow, red, blue, and touches of purple and green, this man is the only human whose skin is colored at all. Later editions of this book have actually changed the image and text:
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Honestly, I think this is fine. The meter still scans, and the image isn't straight-up removed. I mean, we could maybe discuss whether it's okay to alter an author's work, but he was alive when at least one of these these changes was made, so I think he allowed it.
Next we have some from If I Ran the Zoo, like this one, of some Asian dudes who "all wear their eyes at a slant":
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I think, in this case, the text is the problem, but not the picture. Though some describe this image as "exotified", I think it's more just exaggerated, as are most of Dr. Seuss's characters. He doesn't do things half way. Aside from that, the picture is kind of cute and silly; nothing in it is derogatory or mean to the helpers. The text on the other hand... oof. Yeah, I would say this is a true example of something "offensive". I could see changing that (as long as the meter still scans!).
And then there are the fellows holding the tufted mazurka:
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That's pretty bad. So bad that as a child, I don't think I actually registered that those were supposed to be humans, but rather other Seussian creatures. It doesn't help, again, that in his color pallet, people that would ordinarily be brown are now black-black, not unlike the most racist images of yesteryear. But the fact that their lips are left uncolored, I think, is what gets me. It's a little too close to black-face for comfort. Again, I think it would be okay to alter the image: color in their lips, change the shading. I know some people quibble with their costume, but some peoples do wear little amounts of clothing, so I don't think thats the issue here.
I can't speak to the other books, because I haven't seen those pictures, but I would say, yeah, some of the images and phrasing are problematic. I don't think that means the books are racist. Seuss isn't saying the Asian helpers or the African mazurka wranglers are less than the white child running the zoo. He is exotifying them to some degree, but the degree to which that is being done can, I believe, be fixed with very minor alterations.
Should the Books Be Banned?
Again, I think there are a couple questions here: are these books being banned, and should they be banned?
In our increasingly-willing-to-cancel culture, people like to talk about the difference between government censorship vs. corporate censorship, which is a valid topic. But when it comes to huge corporations like Amazon banning books from their website for hate speech or Ebay halting the ability of vendors to sell certain titles on their platform, to say "it’s a private corporation, so it's not censorship" is disingenuous. Maybe it doesn't violate the First Amendment, but it is censorship. A single bookstore refusing to sell a book, a single library refusing to carry a book, is censorship.
A single company that owns the rights to a book refusing to sell it is 100% censorship. I'm personally offended by the idea of any book being out-of-print in the day and age of print-on-demand, but I'm especially sickened when companies pull this nonsense. This is similar to foreign companies who refuse to publish novels, games, and videos in English copyright striking fanlations; they are not losing money, so why do they care?
In the case of the Seuss estate, or whoever owns the rights, all that they are doing is denying poor people access to books. That's right, if you can shell out $786 for a children's book, you can read these delightful stories. What's that? You're a single mom who works two jobs? Well, sucks to be you.
What's really vile is that people are saying, "It's only six books. You still have the others." First off, this is admitting that those six books are now censored and unavailable. Secondly, this is a stupid argument. It's like saying, "Well, the Nazi's didn't burn every book in Germany. There were plenty of others." What if I wanted to read the ones that were burned?
And that brings us to the question of whether or not those books ought to be banned. Heck, should they even be altered? Some of you might have balked at my saying I was fine with the images being changed; isn't that censorship? I think that would take it's own blog post, but here I'll just say that I don't think the changes I discussed would really alter the content, message, or meaning of the work. That being said, I don't think you have to change the images either.
That is, I think it's okay to publish, purchase, own, and read problematic material. As many commentators have pointed out, no child is going to be made into a racist by reading these books or seeing these images. Any racist or even iffy overtones are going to go right over their heads unless parents point them out. If, in the one in a million chance, your child actually notices anything wrong with the images, like "why is his skin yellow?" or something, then you can have a conversation about how sometimes, back in the day, people drew some not-so-nice pictures of Asian people and thought their skin should be painted as yellow, but we don't do that anymore, but this book was written a long time ago, etc etc. If they ask about what a Chinaman is, say it's an old word for a Chinese person, but you should never say it, because it can hurt people's feelings. Talk to your children; it isn't hard.
Should Any Books Be Banned
If you've been paying attention to what's been happening in book land lately, you'll know that Dr. Seuss's books are not the first to be put on the chopping block. Last year, Abigail Shrier's book, Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters, was removed from Target due to requests of trans activists. It was returned after backlash. Now I think it might be banned again? Who can even keep up anymore. Similarly, When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Moment, by Ryan T. Anderson, has now been removed from Amazon for being "hate speech".
In the microcosm of the library world, I've had some people take issue with certain controversial books. When processing our new books, my part-timer picked up Irreversible Damage and asked, "Did someone request this?" as if we shouldn't have ordered it if they didn't. Both that book, and White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, by Robin DiAngelo, were face out in our new book area, since they were the newest books. The former was turned backwards or put spine out with the older books multiple time by patrons, the latter turned backwards once. During the election, I found books for and against Trump hidden behind other books.
My question for people who do this in the library, and for corporations who do essentially the same thing on a massive scale, is who exactly do you think you are helping? Do you think anyone's mind is going to be changed on Trump? Or transgenderism, or white fragility, just by reading a book?
If the answer is "no", then why bother banning or hiding them? If the answer is yes, then that means you think books have the power to change minds, but you want to deny that opportunity to people. Rather than debating ideas, or writing a better book, or showing people why they shouldn't think a certain way, people are increasingly trying to banish certain ideas entirely. How dare an author question X, Y, or Z idea? How dare people be allowed to have an opinion different from the one we say they should!
What's so frustrating about cancel culture and censorship is that people think they really are trying to do the right thing. What they don't realize is, the people they cancel also think they are doing the right thing.
Take Irreversible Damage: obviously, those that want it banned think that trans kids will be hurt by the ideas expressed in the book, that they will be denied hormones and surgeries and so forth. I'm sure Abigail Shrier believes that trans kids would be hurt by no one examining the idea of wether or not they should be given hormones and surgeries as minors. Both sides care about kids. Both sides are trying to figure out how to help people. If you think that Shrier is wrong and her book is dangerous, then write a more compelling argument explaining why she's wrong.
An example of the right way to go about this is with White Fragility, a book that some people see as problematic, if not racist against white people or black people or both. People have written books specifically refuting the ideas in the book. Others have compiled titles that handle race more tactfully and that can be read instead. And that's the thing; you can choose what to read. You can choose never to read a book deemed problematic, but you have no right to take that choice away from other people.
Where Do Libraries Fall Into All This?
That "right to read" is one of the pillars or librarianship. The reason libraries exist is so that all people, regardless of money, have equal access to books, movies, and other aspects of our shared culture. We librarians understand that books are important not just for education, but also entertainment and escape. Stories are how we as humans process ideas, and everyone has a right to expose themselves to ideas--even controversial or dangerous or flat out wrong ones. They have the right to examine different sides of an issue and form their own conclusions. To try and control what a person reads is to try and control what they think, and no government or corporation has that right.
Thus, libraries don't ban books, wether those books are literary classics, modern treatises on current events and ideologies, or silly picture books by Dr. Seuss.
So it was with some concern that I got an email saying that our county library district would be taking the six Seuss books in question out of circulation. The rationale was that, given that a single book was selling for hundreds or thousands of dollars, some sticky-fingered patrons might steal then from the shelves or "lose" them after checking them out.
Though this logic was sound, I still had misgivings, especially because of incidences of library censorship in the past. Yes, even libraries have not been immune to the scourge. During the Cold War, some libraries would keep books about communism behind the reference desk so that people would have to ask to read them in the library. Not only did this potentially help identify commies, it also discouraged people from reading the books.
Thus, when our new policy is to keep the Seuss books "at the desk" and only let them be read in the library, is that not censorship? Is this accidental censorship, or perhaps intended by the very cancel culturists who want all problematic books to be sent down the memory hole?
No, I don't think it is, because--despite what the very mob who’s in favor of all of this would have you believe--intention matters. Reasons matter. We are not trying to make the books harder to read; we're trying to keep the books from becoming impossible to read. By protecting the books from theft, we're ensuring that the poor as well as the rich can enjoy Dr. Seuss's stories. This, in my mind, is similar to chained up bibles: it looks bad, until you remember that books were rare and expensive, and illuminated manuscripts even more so. If someone steals a book, no one gets to read it, but if a book is under lock and key, some people still can.
Of course, everyone could, if companies would simply stop censoring books, if stores would stop banning them, and if well-intentioned but short-sighted activists would stop digitally burning them. But maybe that's too much to hope for at present. For now, we librarians will have the books safe and sound for when you want to read them. You have only to ask.
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greekgeek21 · 3 years
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Percy Jackson and the Avengers: Convergence - the avengers are humbled
Welcome back! I know it's been awhile but I hope I didn't lose too many of you. I just wanted to say thank you for all of the support I've been getting on all platforms. Honestly, I did not expect this story to take off the way it did.
Now that that's over, I'm gonna clarify something for SOME PEOPLE. I started writing this last October, which means that I have absolutely no interest in going back over already-edited work just to change a minor detail some people seem to find maddening. This chapter, I can say for certain, was written during December, so I don't always remember what happened. Okay?
This chapter is kinda just one big fluffy piece but I love it so no hate pls.
Now please remember to comment, like, follow me, and reblog!
- you author
Ω ♆ Ω
"Okay! Assignments...Annabeth and Piper, go with Widow, Frank with Hawkeye, Hazel and Leo with Tony, and Jason and Percy with Bruce and I. Everyone okay with that?" Steve said.
"Yep."
"Got it, Cap."
"This should be fun..."
The heroes separated into their groups and stood, waiting for more orders from Captain America.
"As I said before, this is just to further evaluate and document your abilities. It shouldn't take long. That's it, get to work," He ordered, turning and walking towards the sparring pads with Jason, Percy, and Dr. Banner.
They were back on the training floor for the evaluations, after an uneventful lunch break. Well, unless you count Frank's disgust with the attempt at proper Chinese food as eventful.
Ω ♆ Ω
Despite them being on the sparring mats, Percy and Jason would not be sparring. Even to someone who doesn't know the full extent of the sons of the Poseidon and Zeus' relationship, it's pretty obvious that they should not be allowed to fight each other. Their personalities are almost exact opposites; Carefree vs Serious.
"Just show us something we haven't seen from you before, and then we'll build from there," Bruce told the teens.
Percy and Jason looked at each other expectantly, waiting for the other to begin. Their powers were similar in the way that they could get out of hand quickly. Neither of them wanted to be the reason that the tower lost power or got flooded. Zeus knows it would be a mess to clean up.
After a whole two minutes of waiting for them to get started, Steve let out a sigh, "Oh, for God's sake! Jason, you go."
"Umm...let's see here," Jason muttered under his breath, looking around the room for inspiration, "Oh! I got it!"
He positioned himself a couple of feet away from a practice dummy and held his hands together in front of him. Taking a deep breath and imagining his goal, he let sparks fly around his hands. He let them grow for a couple of seconds before slowly starting to separate his hands. While doing this, he made sure a line of electricity was stable between his hands. He kept separating his hands until he couldn't anymore, and then he slowly released his grip on the line from his left hand. He made sure to keep feeding the lightning rod so that it held form.
Meanwhile, on the sidelines, Percy, Steve, and Bruce were all watching with equal amounts of shock. Percy had never seen or known Jason could do this, and Steve and Bruce were completely new to all of this. Then, Jason proceeded to shock them further.
He made the line of electricity into a whip. He made a lighting whip.
Percy was so proud of his friend's imagination. It was almost enough to make a grown demigod cry...
Jason readied his whip and struck the practice dummy, slicing it completely in half. Then, he turned to his group, smiling and making the lightning dissipate. It should've been illegal how easy he made it look, in Percy's opinion.
"Dude! That was awesome! I didn't know you could do that!" Percy exclaimed, slapping the son of Zeus on the back with a proud, blinding smile.
No matter what it seemed like sometimes, Percy was the big brother of the Seven.
"Yeah! That was pretty good, son," Steve said, nodding his head in appreciation, "Now we only need to get that process sped-up and it will be an amazing asset in a fight."
"This means you could do so much more with your abilities, including maybe providing infinite power, which we have been searching for for decades! You kids are truly lucky to have these powers," Bruce rattled off.
Percy whispered to Steve, "Does he get like this a lot?"
Steve nodded, "Yeah. I tend to tune-out the sciency rambling and just focus on stuff I can understand. He had Tony if he needs to bounce ideas off of someone, anyway."
"Got it," Percy said, "I guess this means I'm next?"
He had thought about this a lot during lunch, and had decided to go into the exercise with the comfort and ease he had possessed using his powers before Tartarus, and see where he got from there. Like Annabeth said, it was all in his head. He just needed to believe that he had control, and he would get it.
Simple, in theory.
"Yep. I want you to copy Jason, but with water," Steve said.
He gave more specific instructions to Percy because he felt like he needed that. He was a leader, and leaders need to notice and know what their troops need. Percy needed specifics because he was cautious with using his powers, and he wanted to know exactly what was needed of him before going in. That way there is no possibility of him losing control.
Once again, only in theory.
"Okay, Percy... you got this," Percy muttered to himself, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet and cracking his neck.
He shook his hands out once before readying himself in a slightly-more relaxed version of Jason's stance. But this time, he did not hold his hands together. Instead, he reached his hands out towards the bucket of water the Avengers had brought to the sparring mats earlier. Taking a deep breath, he felt the barely-there familiar tug in his gut before a tendril of water was rising from the bucket and reaching towards his outstretched hands. Percy willed it to wrap around his arms and hands, and then he slowly put his hands together like he had seen Jason do (he wasn't quite sure how he planned to make the whip yet, so this seemed like the best bet). Taking another deep breath, he started separating his hands, but keeping a solid tendril of water stretched between them.
He tried to move slightly faster than his cousin did, just because of the ever present, unconscious competitiveness ingrained between them.
Finally, he let go with his left hand and let the water form into a whip in his right. It kept shape, but was more flexible than the rod had been. Percy turned to the other practice dummy and whipped it twice, forming two straight slices right through the rubber.
Everyone in their group stood in shock, including Percy after he had deposited the water back in the bucket. He hadn't known he could use a whip.
Must be another natural demigod thing, he thought. Most weaponry came easy to him (except archery, of course).
It took a moment for them to recollect themselves, but Steve shook himself out of his stupor first, "That was...impressive, Percy. I didn't know you had such control over your powers."
The demigod in question shrugged modestly, "Yeah. I didn't really either, to be completely honest."
Jason surged forward and hung an arm around his friend, "Stop being so modest, Kelphead! That was amazing!"
Sure, Jason had done the same thing, but he hadn't gone through literal Hell and come back scarred forever, emotionally and physically. But mentioning that topic wasn't wise, so he stuck with just congratulating his older cousin.
"What else do you want us to do?" Percy asked Steve and Bruce, trying to move the attention off of him.
"Well...I guess just do a couple more small things with your powers and then we can be done. I think you've proved your point of not being newbies," he answered.
Percy and Jason smiled at each other once, then nodded at the Captain.
Ω ♆ Ω
"Okay, Frank, let's see what you got! Any special skills besides turning into animals?" Clint asked.
Frank shifted from foot to foot, "Well, I'm pretty good at archery, I guess. Better than my swordsmanship, anyways."
Clint smirked, "You guess? If you're going to be on this team, you need to be completely sure of your skills. So let's see what you can do."
Frank had grabbed his bow and magical quiver during lunch because he figured he would need it for something during this exercise, so he only had to sling the bow over his shoulder to be ready. The quiver was designed by Leo to never run out of celestial bronze and imperial gold arrows. The celestial bronze ones were normal, and the imperial gold were exploding. A combination of both metals would shoot out hardening foam (also designed by Leo) to stop monsters. Or in this case, people.
He set himself up on the first line on the archery range, and let the arrow fly. It hit the bullseye dead-on. Frank turned to look at Clint to find him raising his eyebrows in appreciation.
"Good. But I'm not impressed until I see you do that from a longer distance and on the move, so let's work our way up there, huh? I'm interested in seeing if we can finally have another good archer on this team," Clint said.
Frank smiled, "I've been doing this practically my whole life, so I'd hope I was pretty good by now. Plus, I've been in battle before, shooting on the move."
There was the newfound confidence that still baffled a certain son of Poseidon after a whole year. You go into the deepest parts of Hades with a shy Canadian Baby Man, and then miraculously you make it out and the kid is taller, buffer, and much more confident.
"Sounds interesting... Any war stories you care to share with the class?" Clint asked, intrigued.
Frank's happy expression steeled over, "I think I'd rather keep those to myself, thank you. Maybe another time."
Clint nodded, but you could see he wasn't going to let that go. Frank had made a mistake saying he had seen battle before. It was pretty obvious that the teens had, but he had just confirmed it, therefore furthering the Avengers' curiosity.
So, basically, he had screwed them over further and faster.
With a great sigh, Frank went aimed and shot another arrow, choosing to ignore the awkwardness that had formed between the two archers.
Ω ♆ Ω
Leo and Hazel were... unsure how to react to Tony's exercise, to say the least. They got over to their part of the room and their eyes immediately tunneled-in on the giant block of metal in the center. Nothing special about it besides the fact that it was black, and about four feet tall, and four feet wide. They weren't sure what to make of it.
Tony was beaming next to them, which was a sure sign of nothing good. It was pretty maniacal, too.
"Mr. Stark... what exactly are we doing with this?" Hazel asked.
Somehow, Stark's grin managed to widen even more before he answered with, "Oh, you know, a simple thing, really. I want to see something unique from both of you, so I brought this out of storage. I designed it years ago, not knowing what the hell I would be using it for, but it turns out my genius brain was just preparing me for this moment where I would evidently be training a bunch of teenagers... but anyway! This will mold to any specifications that I need it to, kinda like the LMDs. Just tell me what you're planning to do, and I'll program it to follow your needs."
Hazel raised her eyebrows at Tony's complete disregard for modesty. The others were not kidding when they said he was an arrogant mortal. She was even considering going all "I am your superior because of my divine blood" on him, but then she remembered that that would make her a huge hypocrite.
Leo, on the other hand, was starstruck. He was convinced that he could never come up with even half the stuff Tony invented. He was a true genius in every right. A role model of many Hephestus kids.
"So... who's going first?" Tony asked.
"I'll go!" Leo exclaimed, like an eager child vying for their father's attention.
"Great! That's the spirit! What're you gonna do?"
Leo thought about it, and then the perfect idea came to mind. It wasn't really using his usual extravagant and fiery powers, but it wasn't any less impressive. He wanted to impress Mr. Stark, and this was the way to do it.
"Make it the hardest safe to crack in the world," he answered, a, well, fire lighting up his eyes.
Tony was intrigued, that's for sure. It was pretty obvious what the kid was planning on attempting, but it would be just that: an attempt. Nobody could crack this safe. It was designed by himself personally to house some of his most secret projects for the Avengers. He was literally the only one in the world that even knew of its existence. There was no way Leo could pull off cracking that type of safe without years of preparation.
But, he still programmed the block to make itself into the safe. If anything, it would show these teens how not to underestimate Tony Stark.
"Okay, kid. Good luck," he said, and then whispered, "You're gonna need it."
Leo didn't comment on Tony's quieter remark, but he did smile wider at the prospect of a real challenge. Sure, he could come off as a little overconfident sometimes, but he really was smart and powerful when he tried. He just wasn't a serious child of Athena, he was a fun son of Hephaestus, and he would act as such.
Still, when the block turned into something he had never seen before, he took a deep breath, focused his mind on the task at hand, and got to work.
Tony was smiling wide over his shoulder, interested in seeing how far the kid could get, but little did he know, Leo had this under control. To someone who didn't know him, what he was doing would seem weird, but he was actually just listening to the machine. Yes, listening to it.
He had his ear pressed up against the safe, both hands pressed flat against it next to his head. Leo was already learning the mechanisms of it, and in no time, he would be able to tell the safe to open itself without even lifting a finger.
He was almost vibrating with excitement over how Tony would react. It was sure to be a show.
Sure enough, a little less than a minute later, there was a series of soft clicking heard before the light on the pad flashed green and the door was open.
Of course, it was empty, but Tony was still in shock. A sixteen year old kid had beaten his strongest security system besides JARVIS. It wasn't possible. There was no way that Leo had just cracked his safe.
"No. Not possible," he insisted, turning with wide eyes to stare at the demigod, who had a proud grin on his face.
"Yep, it is. I just did it. Were you not watching?" Leo said, channeling his inner-Percy for sass.
Tony so wanted to protest more, but he knew it was futile. Plus, having someone almost as smart as him around might be some fun. Bruce was always worrying whenever they worked together, and Leo gave off way different vibes.
"I was watching, still working on believing, though," Tony said, "That was some pretty cool shit there, kid. Care to tell me what it was?"
Leo said, "I just talked to the safe. It was a little harder to crack than some of the other ones I've done before, but I got through to it eventually. It was pretty strong. Good work on that design."
"Thank you... I guess," Tony said.
Tony couldn't remember telling Leo who had created the safe, but he figured he would get the same answer as before if he asked. Believing these kids' powers was a little difficult, especially when all of them defied the laws of any science. Tony was starting to think that they were Asgardians, with how they fought and everything.
"Well, let's move onto Hazel. We don't have all day," he said, turning to the daughter of Pluto, who had stayed to the side during Leo's entire turn, "What are you gonna do? It's gonna be pretty hard to follow up on that performance."
Hazel had had time to figure it out while she was waiting, so she answered right away, "I won't be needing the box for my turn. I just need you."
Tony gave her an incredulous look, "What do you need me for?"
"Just tell me a metal. Any metal in the world, and I'll bring it here," she answered.
Okay, Tony was done. There was NO WAY that was possible, and he knew it. He wasn't stupid. These kids were messing with him now.
"Seriously?! I'm not falling for that! You can't do that!" he exclaimed.
Hazel just gave him a knowing smile, "I get that a lot. But I always seem to prove those people wrong..."
Tony sighed, "Okay, sure. Let's do... Vibranium."
He kept a straight face on the outside, but on the inside he was smiling like a maniac. Vibranium could only be found in Wakanda, and they barely had any left. There was no way she could get it all the way here, even if there was any left.
Hazel nodded and closed her eyes, letting her powers search for the precious metal. She had heard of it before from some people in the Underworld. Apparently, it could only be found in a small country in Africa, so she had to widen her search.
It didn't take long to find some, but that was only because what she found was Steve's shield. She hadn't known that it was made of vibranium, and stored that knowledge away for future use. Then, she kept looking.
Soon, she found some and told a very small piece to come to her. You couldn't ask her how it reached all the way up through the tower, but she always just concluded that it was magic. It's the simplest solution.
When she opened her eyes, a content smile on her face, she looked up at Tony with expectation of a shocked outburst, only to find him looking expectantly at her. So he hadn't figured out what she had done yet, apparently.
"Look down," she instructed.
And Tony did. Only to find that a small rock of Vibranium was poking up from the floor. At first, he wasn't sure how to react, but then, he reached down to touch it, trying to make sure what he was seeing was actually true. But before he could put one finger on it, Hazel shoved him away.
"Don't pick it up! It's cursed, you idiot!" she yelled, but then her own face slacked in shock.
She hadn't meant to say that last part. It was the truth, but her powers could definitely be linked back to the gods. She was not going to be the one to let the secret slip. That was going to be Percy or Leo, if anyone.
"That's amazing," Tony breathed, openly staring in shock at the metal.
But before another second had passed, the rock popped back through the floor and was gone as quickly as it had come.
When Tony looked up at Hazel in question, all he got was a shrug in response. It wasn't safe to keep the metals lying around.
Tony physically shook the shock out of him, and said, "Alright. That was pretty impressive, I'll admit, both of you. We can be done for the day. I'm gonna go check out what some of the others are doing."
"Yeah, I'll do that too," Hazel said, turning to Leo. "What about you? What are you gonna do?"
"I think I'll try to help JARVIS find the bad guys," he responded. "I'm getting nervous just waiting for them to blow something else up."
While Tony was walking away, he yelled to Leo, "Don't break anything! Everything here costs more than everything you own!"
Leo wasn't so sure about that, considering the amount of celestial bronze he owned, but he didn't comment on it.
Ω ♆ Ω
Annabeth and Piper were hard to find an exercise for. Neither of them had very obvious superpowers (one didn't have one at all), in Natasha's opinion. She wanted to see how much the others would have to protect them if it came down to a fight of powers. Sure, she didn't have any abilities, but she had also been training how to make up for that almost her whole life.
So, if anyone could find a weakness in these two girls, it would be her, and Natasha was determined to find it.
"Okay girls, this shouldn't take too long. You're only throwing knives at moving targets. The trick is, you won't know when the targets will pop up. You'll be standing in the middle and holographic targets will form around you at random times, always speeding up. If you're as good as you say you are, you can handle this no problem," Natasha said, eyes piercing into Piper and Annabeth.
"Yeah, we got this," Annabeth shot back, standing proud. "I'll go first."
Natasha was not making it unknown that she didn't trust the demigods, and Annabeth was not going to let that continue. Only the "kids" knew what was really going on, so the adults needed to get in line with their way of doing things before somebody got killed. These people that they were hunting had already killed many people, so they knew they were capable of it. This makeshift group needed to be a well-oiled machine by the time they found the bad guys.
"Okay, just step into that square on the ground, and it'll begin. Piper and I will be stepping out of the range," Natasha said, grabbing Piper's arm and dragging her back about seven yards, "Let's begin!"
It seemingly came out of nowhere, the target. Annabeth had barely been able to grab some of the knives from the table next to her before it formed. It was an orange color, and very pixelated. As soon as she shot the arrow right through the bullseye, it exploded in a shower of orange pixels. She barely had time to let that sink in before another one popped up. They seemed to be stopping the knives, but as soon as they deformed, the weapons just dropped to the ground.
It was rapidly speeding up, but it was nothing to being overrun with monsters trying to kill you. Soon enough, the targets started moving, so she had to adjust her stance to hit them where they would be, not where they were.
It was exhilarating. She hadn't had this much of an adrenaline rush in a year!
Her five minutes of throwing seemed to end all-too-quickly. Soon, the targets stopped popping up, and Natasha was walking towards her with an almost-impressed look on her face.
"Not bad, Chase," she conceded.
"Thanks," Annabeth responded, going and helping Piper pick up the knives lying around their area.
When she got to her, her friend looked up, "That was pretty good, Annabeth. I don't know how I'm supposed to follow that, though."
Annabeth rolled her eyes, "Oh, shut up. I could've done better. And you'll do great, Pipes. I trained you, right?"
She had a light twinkle in her eyes that always came when she was joking around (and that wasn't often). Piper had been trying her very best to see it out as much as possible after Tartarus. Percy and Annabeth put on a strong front, but the Seven could all see they were still recovering, and probably would always be. Nobody just jumped right back into things after something as traumatic as that trip through Hell.
But Piper didn't let it be known how proud she was of Annabeth for making a joke; that would only stop the fun right in its tracks.
"Thanks," Piper said, picking up the last knife before replacing Annabeth in her previous spot in the square.
In her opinion, she wasn't doing as good as Annabeth, or making it look as easy, but it wasn't too difficult. She had been practicing all the time on her fighting skills, and she especially focused on daggers. Knives were balanced a bit differently, but it was the same concept. She just had to compensate for the loss of weight.
Soon enough, Piper found the flow and could slightly anticipate when the next target would pop up.
Annabeth knew Piper would be fine doing this exercise. Sure, it got the blood flowing, but it wasn't the hardest thing they had done. They had fought in actual wars.
Before Piper had known what happened, the targets stopped showing up, and the five minutes were up. She was breathing a little heavily, but a giant grin was taking up her face.
"Not bad, either," Natasha complemented, "You will probably be able to take care of yourselves in a fight."
"Probably?" Annabeth glared.
Natasha returned the glare, "Probably."
Annabeth wanted to say more, but a shout from Leo, who had just sprinted back into the room, interrupted her.
"Guys! Guys! We got a hit!" he screamed, eyes wild with excitement.
Ω ♆ Ω
Everyone but Hazel and Tony stared at Leo in confusion and concern. They didn't know that he had gone to work with JARVIS on tracking the bombers.
Tony ran up to Leo, "What? Where?"
"In Las Vegas," Leo answered.
The rest of the heroes had all formed a group around Leo. Percy and Annabeth had naturally gravitated next to each other. At Leo's answer, they clasped hands and shared a look. They knew why Las Vegas was chosen: The Lotus Hotel and Casino. Flashbacks to zebras and old games flashed through their minds.
"What would they want in Las Vegas?" Steve asked.
"Who cares?! We're going to Vegas baby!" Tony exclaimed, pumping his fist. "JARVIS? Prepare the jet."
Tony was the only one who hadn't noticed the oldest demigods' reaction towards
Las Vegas. He didn't realize how bad this could really be. The demigods didn't have the time to make sure the Avengers didn't get stuck in the casino, if that's where they were going (which it probably was).
"Um, care to share what's bothering you two?" Steve asked Percy and Annabeth.
"We've been to Vegas before. If we're going where we think we might be going, this could be bad. You need to listen to us exactly, okay? It's important," Percy answered.
Tony gave him a confused look. "What are you talking about, kid? We'll be fine. I don't need a teeanger telling me how to do what I'm best at."
Annabeth glared at the billionaire, "And what is that; what you're good at? Because I thought it was being lazy and never taking anything seriously."
"Annabeth, just let it go. We'll just have to watch him closer." Percy said, resting a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder.
With one last glare at Tony, and a warning look to the other Avengers, Annabeth stormed out of the training room, heading back up to her room to prepare without another word. Mortals were so stubborn, she thought, especially when you're trying to protect them. It's literally their birthright to protect mortals, and they never let them!
Storming into her room, Annabeth grabbed a duffle bag and started stuffing supplies into it: weapons, spare clothes, ambrosia and nectar, armor, and a couple other things. She was so distracted by her anger that she didn't see the shadows fluctuating in the corner, or the black snout poking out.
She didn't see it until it was too late.
Ω ♆ Ω
"Are you going to tell us what that was all about back there?" Jason asked Percy as the rest of the demigods were walking back to their rooms.
Percy sighed, exhausted with the day but knowing it was not even close to being over, "Las Vegas is where Annabeth, Grover and I went during our first quest together. We got stuck in the Lotus Hotel and Casino. It's the home of the Lotus-eaters. They trap you in there and you don't feel time passing. We were in there for a week without realizing it. It's dangerous, man."
Piper and Jason shared a worried look, and Piper said, "So... we need to keep a close eye on the mortals on this mission, right?"
"A very close eye," Percy nodded.
When Percy reached Annabeth's door, he decided to go check on her. "Go get your stuff. Let's meet in the living room."
"Okay, Aquaman," Leo said, dashing into his soot-stained room.
Percy wasn't sure what he was expecting to find, maybe Annabeth crying, screaming, or angrily throwing things into a bag (that's the most likely), but he was NOT prepared for nothing. Literally nothing; the room was empty. There was an open duffle on the bed, along with a couple of weapons lying around it, but no Annabeth.
He wasn't getting worried yet, though. She could just be in the bathroom. That was a viable option. He would not allow himself to freak out yet. At least not until he checked the bathroom...
... And the bathroom was empty! Now he allowed himself to freak out. He started storming around the room, tossing things around looking for a clue as to where she went, anything!
"Annabeth! Wise girl!" he called, though he knew it was fruitless.
In their lives, nothing was ever as easy as simply calling for someone and they came back. Annabeth was missing, and he had no idea how to find her.
Unless someone was stupid enough to leave a trail of shadows, that is. Looking in the corner, Percy saw that the shadows in the right corner were moving around unnaturally, a lot like what happened after they were used for shadow travel. He had spent enough time around Nico to understand what it looked like.
So this meant that someone with access to shadow traveling took her, and that wasn't a long list. It was probably a hellhound that took her! Oh, were they going to pay.
Percy could feel his powers slipping, and the walls were giving scary creaks. No matter how much he wanted to just explode, he knew that he had to take a deep breath and focus on recentering himself. He would be no help to Annabeth if he wasn't in control. Some part of his brain was telling him that maybe letting off a little steam WOULD help get his powers under control, but no, he promised Annabeth. And Percy refused to break that promise if he could.
"JARVIS!" he yelled, already rushing out the door, "Call everyone to the living room! Now!"
"Right away, sir," JARVIS responded.
Percy ended up just running to the living room, not wasting any time being careful. Annabeth was missing, and he needed to find her and get her back NOW.
His emotions were running high, so he could sense all the water and liquids around him (it was a lot), and it was becoming distracting.
When he got there, only Steve, Clint, and Natasha were waiting so far. Though Hazel and Frank walked in right after him, probably having heard him scream before JARVIS had even called everyone.
"What's going on?" Steve asked, concern filling his eyes.
Percy paced and said, "Wait until everyone else is here. Then I'll tell you."
His mind kept flashing pictures of all his and Annabeth's enemies. Years and years of fighting monsters and wars were playing on his brain. There were so many possible people, even if it probably was the current gang that they were searching for. He didn't want to let himself believe that mortals could be so messed-up that they worked with monsters, monsters that they couldn't even begin to understand. It was so far-fetched, and yet it was his life!
As these thoughts were going through his head, the rest of the team had finally made it in. They were all sporting confused and concerned glances. Natasha seemed to have figured out that one of them was missing, and that it wasn't normal for that person and Percy to be separated. Annabeth was missing.
"Percy, man. Stop pacing and tell us what's wrong," Jason laid a hand on his friend's shoulder.
Percy's eyes got a little misty as he told them, "Annabeth is missing. Taken. She's gone, and I don't know where to find her."
Hazel gasped.
Nothing was right with this. Percy without Annabeth was wrong. So wrong. They needed to be reunited soon, and quickly.
Percy started pacing again, absentmindedly twirling Riptide around his fingers. He had decided that it was best to start in Las Vegas and go from there. There was a good chance that it was the gang who had taken her, and that they were holding her there. It was his only idea.
The others had just been sharing worried looks and a few whispered thoughts before Tony suddenly jumped up, holding his phone like it might explode.
"Guys, I think I know who has her..." he said, making a few hand gestures before his phone screen was projected in front of them.
It was a picture. Of Annabeth.
She was hanging from celestial bronze chains, with a leather gag in her mouth, and shackles on her ankles. Her hair was a matted mess, and she was unconscious. Even so, Percy could see that she had a black eye, probably from struggling. She wouldn't go without a fight, that's for sure. But still, this was not the Annabeth they knew. The Annabeth they knew was a strong force to be reckoned with. This...person was not her.
Percy let out an almost animalistic growl at the sight. They were going to pay, whoever had taken her. All of them.
"It has a note," Tony said, throwing up another picture.
It said:
We are The Truth Seekers. We have your blonde bitch, and she will be dead in the next 24 hours unless you reveal yourselves. The world deserves to know! It is our right to know the monstrosities that go unseen, right beneath our noses! 24 hours, or she's dead. We're at the Lotus Hotel and Casino, another one of the hidden monstrosities in our world. Tell the truth!
Percy was going to kill them. He didn't care if they were mortals, they were going to die. They hurt Annabeth, he hurts back. Worse.
"We need to suit-up, and then we can get going and rescue her. But first, we need a plan," Steve started to speak, but before he could, the world flooded in.
Screw control, Percy thought.
He let the pipes and burst and break the windows. Standing on the very edge of the empty window seal, he let out the loudest taxi whistle the Avengers had ever heard. Waiting only a second for a black blur to show up on the horizon, Percy jumped.
Ω ♆ Ω
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