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full-of-jams · 4 years

Text

Tangsuyuk Love

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

Summary: College student Jungkook passes cute notes with a customer who always orders take-out tangsuyuk at his part-time job. Meanwhile he’s trying not to miserably fail his Math class, while hiding his ever-growing crush on you.

Genre: college au, f2l, fluff, smut, one shot, did I mention FLUFF?

Warnings: mild swearing, sexual content, hold your heart palpitations!

Word Count: 11.5k

A/N: I wanted to write something light and sweet before I continued with Good Riddance. It will be easy, she said. It will be fun, she said. It will be quick, she said. Ha. haha. ha. ha. Ignore my pain. Enjoy!

°°°°°°°

[09/04 18:34 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY] 1 Tangsuyuk (large) 1 Jjamppong 2 Kimchi Mandu ---------------- Note: Without pineapple! Please make the jjamppong extra spicy, my boyfriend just broke up with me T-T

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (large) -- 20,000 1 Jjamppong -- 5,000 2 Kimchi Mandu -- 6,000 1 Soju -- 0

Total: 31,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: Service! Nothing’s better than the fresh taste of soju to lighten a heavy heart :) Cheer up LatteIsHorse-Nim!

Paper Note: JK-nim, thanks for the soju. It sweetened my bitter night. This is Tokki, please give him a loving new home! TT-TT

Jungkook was fucking terrified of you. If it weren’t for the fact that he was close to failing Statistical Analysis, he would’ve considered faking a stomach flu and making a beeline straight out of the library.

“If you have a box containing 3 white, 4 red and 5 black balls what is the probability that you will draw a white ball on your first draw and a black ball on your second draw?” you asked again through gritted teeth.

You looked up at Jungkook and were met by an empty stare. Usually you enjoyed tutoring your fellow classmate. He was a smart and funny guy, maybe a bit awkward at times, but always trying his best. Today every little thing grated on your nerves. It took you every ounce of energy to get out of bed and look like a presentable human being this morning. You really didn’t want to sit here for another hour if the boy was just going to stare at you like a petrified statue. “It’s really not that difficult. You just have to apply conditional probability.”

Jungkook let out a frustrated huff and pulled at his hair, “I really don’t know, this doesn’t make any sense! Why do I even need this stuff for my major? Who cares if I pull out a white ball or a black ball first? It’s not like I’m planning on becoming Houdini!”

Sometimes you pitied him, but who on Earth had an irrational fear of Gauss distributions and probability?! They were beautiful, harmless, abstract concepts of life. Your sympathy was muffled by a thrumming headache. All the late-night crying already had you chugging water and slapping ice cubes on your face at breakfast. Right now you just wanted to go home, change into your pjs, order some tangsuyuk and binge watch Boys Over Flowers. The cringy acting and Go Jun Pyo’s luscious locks were the only things that made your miserable life feel a bit less pathetic at the moment. “Jungkook, we went over this last time. Just apply the damn formula,” you snapped.

“Why are you being so scary today?” he asked wide-eyed and apprehensive.

You took a deep breath, rubbed your temples and tried to calm your inner turmoil. It wasn’t his fault; you were just in a really shitty mood. “I’m sorry. It’s not my day today. Is it okay if we rain check? I promise I’ll make it up to you next week.”

Jungkook wasn’t used to seeing you this distraught. He wracked his brain on how to lift your spirit. “Hey, do you want to hear this math joke my friend Jin told me the other day? What do you call an angle that is adorable?”

The boy scrunched his nose adorably and waited for your response. He was really handsome, you noticed that back when you two first met. Back then you just didn’t have a reason to care. Back then you still had a boyfriend.

“I don’t know, tell me,” you answered.

“Acute angle!” he said with a timid smile.

Despite your foul mood you had to snort at his joke.

Jungkook’s smile grew wider. It wasn’t a full laugh, but at least your frown disappeared. He discovered early on that you had a soft spot for bad math puns.

Although he absolutely detested Statistical Analysis, he has come to enjoy your study sessions over the past couple of weeks. The TA of his class, Namjoon, was a close friend of Jungkook’s and a sunbae of yours. Once he discovered that his favorite dongsaeng was abysmal at reading a z-score table, he immediately referred him to you.

At first Jungkook was very reluctant to accept any help. He was a mechanical engineer for fuck’s sake! He calculated distributed load across uneven surfaces and directional derivatives all the time!

His inner protests died down during your first session when you unwittingly asked him if he was constipated while he tried to calculate the standard deviation. During your second session he noticed you liked to doodle small geometric and fractal comics on his work sheets whenever he was solving a problem.

‘What did the triangle say to the circle?’ ‘You’re pointless!’

By the time your third session rolled around he still hated statistics, but it was too late and he’d developed a hopeless crush on you. Your monologues about dead mathematicians and the beauty of an infinite series were oddly captivating. He didn’t think he’d ever met anyone who was so passionate and animated about anything in all his life.

“Is everything okay?” Jungkook asked carefully. You seemed tired and a bit wary. “I-I mean, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t feel like it. Sorry, it’s none of my business,” he immediately added.

You smiled at his flustered state. Jungkook’s heart stumbled when your smile turned sad and you said, “No not really, but I’m sure I’ll be fine sooner or later.”

[13/04 19:12 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

1 Tangsuyuk (large) 1 Jjajangmyeon 1 Jjajangbap ---------------- Note: JK-nim! Omg your tangsuyuk is the best! I could drown in that sauce! How is Tokki doing?

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (large) -- 20,000 1 Jjajangmyeon -- 4,500 1 Jjajangbap -- 5,500

Total: 30,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: LatteIsHorse-nim! Little Tokki is doing well and bravely guarding our store! Don’t drown, but here’s some extra sauce for you to enjoy. I asked for it to be without pineapple. Hwaiting!

“Yah! Why does it smell like rotten take-out in your bedroom?” Jisoo asked.

Scowling has become your new go-to expression. “Too soon. Just let me wallow in my self-pity and sorrow.”

If you didn’t know any better you would’ve thought your friend was playing ‘The Floor Is Lava’ considering how gingerly she walked across your room. Safely on the other side, she ripped open a window to let some much needed fresh air in.

“I think you’re going to be wallowing in mold and fungus instead,” Jisoo commented with disgust. “Wallow all you want, I’m here to support you, girl. But I can’t allow you to turn your place into a biohazard zone. Isn’t your sister bothered by this?”

“My sister doesn’t care; our rooms are off limits to each other. As long as we both keep the common area clean, she won’t complain,” you said.

Jisoo sat down on your bed and patted the empty spot next to her. She immediately retracted her hand. “Eww, is that tangsuyuk sauce on your sheets?” she asked, completely appalled.

You shrugged and thumped onto your bed.

“So what are your plans for tonight?” she asked, trying to suppress a shudder.

“It’s Monday night. What plans could I possibly have?”

“We’re in college! Weekdays, weekends, they’re all the same!” your friend exclaimed. She looked at your sprawled-out figure. “I told you from the very beginning he wasn’t good for you. I know it doesn’t feel like this right now, but you’re lucky he’s out of your life. I really can’t watch you torture yourself over a jerk like him. Let’s go out to Hongdae!”

“I can’t go out. I already have plans.”

“Didn’t you just say you didn’t have any plans?”

“I lied. I have a date.”

Jisoo paused for a second, unsure how to respond. “Really? With whom?”

“Gong Yoo. We promised to kiss each other on first snowfall,” you responded listlessly.

“Yah!” Jisoo yelled and smacked your butt.

“Oww! What was that for?” you cried in surprise, rubbing the tender spot.

“Re-watching Goblin is not a date! You scared me for a second,” Jisoo said.

“How is it not a date? I meet a hot oppa, multiple hot oppas, we have dinner together, I giggle and blush and at the end of the night I get kissed to sleep.” You sat up and gave your friend a weary look. “I really don’t want to go out right now, but also don’t want to be on my own. Can’t we just stay in and watch a drama?” you asked with the saddest face you could muster.

Jisoo wanted to argue, but she couldn’t resist your pout. “Fine. But first you change your bedsheets, I’m not gonna sit in moldy tangsuyuk sauce all night. And I get to choose the drama.”

“Call!”

[16/04 17:58 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

1 Tangsuyuk (small) 1 Kimchi Kimbap 1 Beef Kimbap ---------------- Note: JK-nim thanks for the extra sauce! It was delicious. Are you a dipper or a pourer?

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (small) -- 13,000 1 Kimchi Kimbap -- 2,500 1 Beef Kimbap -- 2,500 1 Soup -- 0

Total: 18,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: LatteIsHorse-nim! Personally, I’m a dipper, but I don’t discriminate! I added some broth as service for you. It’s chilly tonight. Don’t catch a cold!

Paper Note: JK-nim, let’s be friends? I’m also a dipper! Did you know that butterflies can’t fly when they’re cold? Here is one that I folded, sending back my warmest thoughts to you on this frosty spring night.

The first thing that caught your eye was Jungkook who was patiently waiting at the library entrance. Despite the steaming goods in his hands, his entire body was shivering. The temperature suddenly dropped last night, but he couldn’t be bothered to dig up his padded jacket when he left the house this morning.

Before you could even greet him, he shoved a hot milk tea towards you and mumbled, “Here, it’s cold today so I thought you could use something warm.”

You were surprised by this sweet gesture. “Thanks,” you reached for it and examined the drink in your hand, ”How did you know I like black milk tea?”

He ducked his head and mumbled something into himself.

“Sorry, what did you say?”

Jungkook lifted his head. His cheeks and nose were a lovely wash of pink from the cold. “You mentioned once that you’re an OG milk tea drinker, so I just guessed” he repeated again, louder. “I saw this bungeoppang cart on the way here. We can share them while studying?” he said, holding up a small paper bag.

Your heart warmed and for the first time in weeks your face split into big smile, “Sure, I love bungeoppang! We’re not allowed to eat inside the library. So how about we eat everything first before they get cold and then go in?”

The both of you took a seat on a bench. By now Jungkook definitely regretted being too lazy to find his jacket this morning, but he was determined not to let it show. He passed the bag full of bungeoppangs to you.

You happily reached for one of the fish-shaped pastries and started munching on it. Your face crinkled, steam came out of your mouth. Jungkook’s heart skipped as he watched you in fascination. Your cheeks were flushed. A sudden instinct to stroke your rosy skin overcame him. Instead he reached for a bungeoppang and took a careful bite. “Are you feeling better today?”

“A little bit,” you said between bites, “I’m really sorry about last time. I feel bad now. I ditched you and now you’re treating me to snacks.” You went on and stabbed your straw through your milk tea. “I should be the one treating you instead.”

“I like to treat you,” Jungkook said, mesmerized by the way your lips moved against the straw. He suddenly realized what he was doing and cleared his throat, “A happy teacher is a good teacher! You’re already spending your time tutoring me.”

A laugh slipped out of you, “Jungkook, you’re paying me for your lessons. But it’s okay, this bungeoppang and tea definitely hits the spot, so I’ll accept it with a grateful heart. What are you drinking?”

Jungkook looked down on his drink and gave it a shake, the black pearls swirled around buoyantly. “Banana milk tea, I prefer sweet drinks.”

You leaned back against the bench and looked up at the clear blue sky. “Sweet things are the best combat against the bitter taste of life,” you sighed. You closed your eyes and soaked in the crisp air. Jungkook felt your melancholy, he could warm your body, but he didn’t know how to warm your heart.

“Sorry that I’m bothering you with my personal stuff. It’s just that I had a really bad breakup recently. I shouldn’t let it affect our lessons,” you said with a wistful smile as you lifted your head again.

The boy next to you remained silent. You turned and saw a contemplative look on his face. “It’s alright, everyone can have a bad day,” he finally said, “You don’t have to pretend to be okay when you’re not. If you’re never angry or sad, you won’t know when you’re happy.”

His words stunned you. Has Jungkook always been this thoughtful? You turned away from his gaze and looked down at the pastry in your hand. “They’re rhombus shaped,” you muttered in an attempt of distraction and showed your bungeoppang to Jungkook. “The fish scales,” you added when he looked confused.

“Ah yeah, the scales. It’s actually erroneous since most of the bungeoppangs depict a ganoid scale structure when in fact carps have cycloid scales to allow for a greater flexibility,” Jungkook explained.

A blank look appeared on your face. Probably the same blank look he had whenever you tried to explain the Bayes’ theorem to him. He let out an awkward laugh, “We studied the mechanics of fish scale structures in Material Science. You can correlate the flexibility of a scaled surface depending on its underlying geometric structure and material. It’s pretty cool stuff.”

“I can’t believe you can geek out about the geometry of fish scales, but don’t know how to define your probability population,” you snorted in disbelief.

“Hey, when will I ever need to calculate the probability of two people with the same birthday in a room? I just have a hard time learning stuff I never have to apply,” he said defensively.

Then you suddenly had an idea. “Tell you what, how about this? If you pass your statistics final, I’ll treat you to the best Chinese take-out in town! You can order whatever you want!”

Jungkook didn’t want to dampen your excitement by telling you that his part-time job already allowed him to eat as much Chinese take-out as he wanted. “Okay, but don’t complain when you go broke. My record was five jjajangmyeon and two tangsuyuk in one sitting.”

You batted away his challenge. “First you have to pass your finals,” you teased.

“I’ll pass,” Jungkook said.

You smiled at his cute determination. “Then it’s a date.”

Jungkook beamed back at you. “It’s a date.”

[05/05 18:21 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

1 Tangsuyuk (large) 2 Pork Mandu 1 Tteokkguk 1 Jjajangmyeon 1 Tteokkbokki ---------------- Note: No pineapple plz. JK-nim! Happy Children’s Day! For this special occasion I’ve decided to order all of my childhood favorites. Life is too short to eat bad food. I hope today you treat yourself to something delicious as well!

“Yah! JK! Your girlfriend placed an order again!” Yugyeom yelled across the store.

A mop of black hair peaked out from the back of the shop. “She’s not my girlfriend, she’s just a regular,” Jungkook yelled back.

“A regular you flirt with,” Yugyeom snickered, “I saw all the notes you left her in the system. ‘Don’t catch a cold!’, ‘Hwaiting!’ Don’t tell me that’s not your lame attempt at flirting.”

Suddenly an angry Yoongi stomped out of the kitchen. “Keep it down boys, we have guests here.”

Jungkook went up to the register and printed out the online order. “Hyung, can you make a large tangsuyuk without pineapple?”

“It’s a national holiday, there’s like two people here tonight,” Yugyeom muttered under his breath.

“What did you say, Yugyeom?”

“Nothing, hyung!”

Yoongi snatched the order out of Jungkook’s hand and gave both boys another irritated glance before he headed back into the kitchen.

“Hey JK,” Yugyeom said in a lower voice as he moved next to his friend, “aren’t you ever curious how LatteIsHorse is like? I mean, she must have some sense of humor judging by her username.”

“Sometimes. Don’t you ever wonder how our regulars are like? But it’s not like I’m ever gonna meet them or know it’s them when they come into the store,” Jungkook said with a shrug.

“You could though. Mingyu’s out on delivery, Eunwoo’s off so we have a free bike. The store is dead tonight. You could go deliver the order and have a look,” Yugyeom spurred him on.

Jungkook considered his friend’s suggestion. Every time he opened his locker a little origami bunny and butterfly stared back at him and brightened his day. It was true, he was curious how LatteIsHorse was like. “Okay I’ll go, but don’t pretend you’re doing me a favor. You just don’t want to do delivery tonight.”

A pretty girl in a Yonsei hoodie and shorts opened the door. She somehow looked familiar, but Jungkook couldn’t place from where. Maybe he met her on campus before.

“Delivery from Golden Bang,” Jungkook said, holding up his metal box.

“Ah great! I’m starving!” the girl said.

Jungkook started unloading the box and handed the dishes to the girl. Once he was done, he lingered awkwardly in the doorway. The girl gave him a curious look, clearly wondering why he wasn’t leaving. Jungkook gathered his courage and said, “I’m JK by the way.”

What followed was a beat of silence. Jungkook could feel his ears burn.

“Err, it’s nice to meet you, I guess? Is there anything else you need?” the girl asked after the painful pause. “Ah got it! Just a sec!” She ran into the apartment and came back with her wallet. “Here’s a tip, we’ll put the dishes back outside for pick up,” she said as she scrunched a bill into Jungkook’s hand, “Thanks for your hard work. Happy holiday!” And then she shut the door right into his face.

What just happened? Jungkook was stupefied. After an eternity he finally moved and mechanically pulled out his phone. He checked the delivery order on his app. LatteIsHorse – this was the address. She didn’t recognize him. Why was he so naive to believe that she would remember him? All he wanted in that moment was for the ground to open and swallow him up.

“Dinner’s here,” your sister said as you came out of the shower. “Did you order banana milk?”

“No? Why?” you joined her at the dinner table and started rummaging through the dishes. “Where’s the receipt?”

“I threw it in the trash,” she said. When she saw you opening up the trash can and fishing for it, she added, “Gross! What are you doing? Why do you need it?”

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (large) -- 20,000 2 Pork Mandu -- 6,000 1 Tteokkguk -- 4,500 1 Jjajangmyeon -- 4,500 1 Tteokkbokki -- 3,000

Total: 38,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: LatteIsHorse-nim! Happy Children’s Day to you too! I added my favorite childhood drink, banana milk! I hope it brings back as many happy childhood memories for you as it does for me.

There, sitting on the table, was a small bottle of banana milk. A smile spread across your face. “I need to file it away for tax purposes.”

Your sister looked at you like you were crazy. “Let’s eat already, I’m starving. Wash your hands.”

[14/05 16:55 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [TAKE AWAY]

1 Tangsuyuk (small) 1 Jjajangbap ---------------- Note: JK-nim, hope you’re doing well. I’m in the area today, so I thought I’d stop by and say hello in person! Is it weird that I feel a bit nervous?

The restaurant door wasn’t going to open itself. The past 15 minutes of you standing in front of it has proven that. You had some errands to run in Hongdae after school and decided on a whim to place a pickup order at your favorite take-out place.

Why was it so difficult to enter a restaurant? If you steeled your nerves any more, they’d probably break from how brittle they’ve become. You just had to open that damn door.

Sometimes you wondered if you liked that place more because of its great tangsuyuk or because of JK’s little notes which always managed to put a smile on your face.

One thing was for sure, you weren’t stalling because of the tangsuyuk.

“Welcome to Golden Bang!” a bright male voice rang across the restaurant as you passed through the door.

You walked up to the register and sneaked a peek at the boy’s name tag, ‘Yugyeom’. You felt a slight twinge of disappointment.

“I’m here to pick up my order? LatteIsHorse?” you asked tentatively.

A sign of recognition flashed across Yugyeom’s face. “Of course, your order’s ready! I’ll just bag it up for you,” he said cheerfully. He walked away and quickly came back with a white plastic bag full of food. Then he printed out your receipt and handed both to you.

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: YG ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (small) -- 13,000 1 Jjajangbap -- 5,500

Total: 18,500 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

You looked around the restaurant, it was empty since dinnertime was still a while away. You wondered if Yugyeom was managing the store alone right now. At least the cook must be in. “Your tangsuyuk is really delicious. It’s probably my favorite.”

Yugyeom gave you a big smile, “Happy to hear that you enjoy our food so much. The tangsuyuk is our chef’s family recipe. It’s one of our most popular menu items!”

You wringed your hands and finally decided to bite the bullet and straight out ask, “Is JK here? He usually takes my orders when I order delivery, so I just wanted to say hi.”

“JK’s shift doesn’t start until 6, so he should be here in about half an hour. If you want, I can relay a message,” he said with a knowing smile, “Or you can also take a seat and wait for him. I’m sure he’d be thrilled to meet you.”

No way you were going to sit here for half an hour and wait up for a stranger. “Ah no, that’s alright. If you could just say hi from me, that’d be great,” you quickly replied with a flush. JK would probably think you’re a creepy stalker.

“Sure, can do! Enjoy your day!” Yugyeom said merrily as you walked out the store.

A feeling of both relief and sadness passed through you. You slowly walked down the busy streets of Hongdae as you reprimanded yourself for being so stupid. What were you going to say to JK anyway if you met him? Thanks for being nice to me? You’re the reason I don’t burst into tears every single night? You’re the reason why I don’t feel completely alone when I’m sobbing into my food over Song Joong Ki’s acting? Thanks for making me gain 3 kilos in the last month?

Whatever you said, it would’ve only made you sound pathetic.

A crippling wave of desperation suddenly washed over you and rooted you in your tracks. A single tear rolled down your face. Then another. You dropped down into a crouch and started to bawl. You couldn’t fathom how you’ve reached this all-time low in your life. Why did you feel so incredibly sad about being stood up by a stranger? Especially when that stranger didn’t even know you were coming?

“Y/N?” an alarmed voice asked. You looked up when you felt a soft shake against your shoulder.

Through your tear-blurred eyes you recognized Jungkook’s face. He crouched down next to you and asked, “Is everything okay? Are you hurt?”

You shook your head and tried to wipe away your tears. It was a useless attempt as they kept on streaming down your face.

Jungkook hesitantly pushed your hair out of your face and asked, “Do you want to go somewhere else so you can tell me what happened?”

You gave him an imperceptible nod.

His hand gently moved down to your arm, afraid that you were going to push him away. With a steady grip he slowly helped you back onto your feet. Then he slid his hand through yours and led you down the hustle and bustle of Hongdae until you ended up in front of a convenience store located in one of the quieter residential side streets. He sat you down in a plastic chair and told you to wait. After a while he came back with a packet of tissues, a bottle of water and two red bean popsicles.

You gratefully took the tissues and loudly blew your nose. A small part of your brain told you to act more ladylike, especially in front of Jungkook, but the bigger part didn’t really care and just wanted to drag you back down into the pits of loneliness. A strangled sound came out of your mouth as you started to hiccup, making you sound like a drowning cat.

You expected Jungkook to laugh at your weird orchestra of emotions. Even you found it absurd and would’ve laughed if you weren’t already crying and hiccupping at the same time. But all he did was quietly open the water bottle and hand it to you.

As soon as you lifted the bottle to your mouth another hiccup made you almost spill the water on yourself. You held your breath for a few seconds and then took a careful sip. It seemed to work. You took a bigger sip, when another hiccup racked your body and you squeezed water all over your face.

There was a bewildering moment of shock, then you started to laugh deliriously. Forget before, this was your lowest point in life. This was so pathetic that it was hilarious again. Your laughter garbled whenever you hiccupped, only causing you to laugh even harder. You would’ve continued laughing for another long minute if you weren’t choking for air.

A small smile played around Jungkook’s mouth. He took another tissue and started wiping down your face. You hiccupped under his touch. He must think you’re a nutcase.

“I have a question. We have to do some statistical testing in my Quality Management class. What would a hypothesis look like if I wanted to analyze any deviation in a spare parts production line due to temperature conditions?” Jungkook asked.

Did he really forget hypothesis testing already? He finally managed to get it after four sessions! You frowned slightly. “You could set up a null hypothesis stating that a variation in temperature does not significantly impact the parameter of measurement in your production line. Jungkook did you seriously forget this?!” you said indignantly.

Jungkook gave you a playful laugh, “No, I think you drilled it so hard into my brain, I could probably recite all variables of the standard deviation formula if you woke me up in the middle of the night. Your hiccups stopped though.”

They did.

Embarrassment set in as you realized your predicament. Maybe your hormones were going crazy, maybe you were going crazy. You were getting whiplash from the emotional roller coaster you were on. In an attempt to hide your disgrace, you picked up another tissue and wiped away the remaining water, snot and tears.

There was tangible awkwardness in the air.

“I hope you like red bean,” Jungkook said shyly as he unwrapped a popsicle, “Red bean is my favorite. My friends keep on calling me old fashioned, but it just reminds me of the time when my mom used to buy me these after taekwondo class. I think I liked the popsicles more than I liked going to class.” He sighed in reverie and held up the popsicle for you.

You stared at his hand. You remembered how it felt against yours just a few moments ago. Firm, warm and steady. Then you looked up at Jungkook. He hid it well, but you could tell that there was concern behind his encouraging smile.

“This is so embarrassing,” you said as you accepted the popsicle and turned your head away from him, “I don’t know what is wrong with me right now. I’m usually not like this.”

“Did something happen earlier?” Jungkook asked cautiously as he unwrapped his own popsicle and took a bite out of it.

Did something happen earlier? Why did you cry? Where you really crying just because you didn’t meet JK?

“No,” you said and slowly shook your head, “I don’t know. I just suddenly felt overwhelmed.”

Jungkook hesitated before he asked, “Are you sad because of your breakup?”

Were you sad because of your ex-boyfriend?

“I don’t think so. In the beginning when we broke up I was devastated, but I don’t think that’s the case anymore,” you said more to yourself than to Jungkook. “Everyone told me I was lucky to be rid of him. I really didn’t understand why. But I think it’s becoming clearer now. Maybe it’s not sadness. Maybe it’s fear. I think I just feel lost. I don’t know who I am anymore. Maybe it scares me to know that I was able to lose myself and I don’t know if I can find a way back.”

Before you knew it, you spilled your heart, your deepest and darkest fears to Jungkook. You barely knew this boy, yet it still felt oddly comforting. He remained quiet and listened.

“I wanted to meet someone today, but they weren’t there,” you continued, “I think in that moment I just realized how utterly lost I was on my own.”

Jungkook searched for the appropriate words. How do you respond to someone’s most vulnerable thoughts? “I mean you know what they say. It’s not about how much you’ve lost, it’s about how much you have left.”

He peeked at you to check if it worked.

“Jungkook, did you just quote Iron Man at me?” you asked incredulously before a giggle slipped from your lips.

You noticed how his cheeks dimpled when he gave you an embarrassed laugh, “Sorry, I was trying to say something that would cheer you up. I’m probably not doing a very good job.”

In that second you realized how kind-hearted Jungkook actually was. Your heart squeezed. “Don’t say that. Thanks for listening to my problems. And thanks for the red bean popsicle. I also ate this a lot in my childhood. Mainly because my sister hated them. She always used to steal my ice cream out of the freezer so at some point I asked my parents to only buy me red bean popsicles. She never touched those,” you reminisced.

Jungkook laughed at your story, “Your sister sounds like a piece of work.”

“We used to fight a lot, we used to never get along,” you became thoughtful, “At some point that stopped. I think we just grew up and grew to understand and accept our differences. She doesn’t steal my food anymore. I don’t steal her clothes anymore. We may not always agree, but we respect each other’s decisions.”

“You know, for someone who just said she feels lost, you sound pretty self-reflected right now,” Jungkook mused, “Maybe you need to do the same as you did with your sister. Understand yourself and accept the differences of your past and present.”

You paused at this. He was right. You were so desperately trying to fend off these negative emotions that you never took the time to actually think. You were chasing an image that never existed. Not in the past nor in the present.

“You’re surprisingly good at giving advice. Thanks, Jungkook,” you said.

“Surprisingly? What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, offended. The glint in his eyes gave his teasing away.

Laughter pealed from you. Jungkook was captivated by the sound. He drank in the way your eyes creased with mirth and followed your fingers as they brushed back your hair.

Jungkook’s phone vibrated. “Oh shit!”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, don’t worry. I was actually on my way to work and my boss is asking me where I am,” he said as he stuffed his phone back in his pocket.

Jungkook startled when you suddenly jumped up. “Then you should get to work! You should’ve said something sooner. I’m so sorry for keeping you here!”

“No, it’s really fine. I’ve done enough overtime. He won’t complain if I’m a few minutes late,” he said, “Are you feeling better?”

You ignored his question and pushed against his shoulders to get him out of the chair. “Go to work, Jungkook. I’ll be fine, your red bean popsicle did wonders,” you responded placatively.

When he still didn’t move, you grabbed his arm and pulled him back onto the main street. Jungkook’s skin scorched under your touch. “Go to work, Jungkook,” you said again with more emphasis.

“Are you sure…?” he asked, unwilling to let you out of his sight before he knew you weren’t just going cry again at the next street corner.

“I won’t burst into tears,” you said as if reading his mind. “You were right, I need to reconcile with myself. So I’ll go home, enjoy my dinner and think about who I am and who I want to be. And you,” you said giving him another gentle shove, “need to go to work.”

Jungkook saw the stubborn look on your face. He wondered if you realized you were using your teaching voice right now. You weren’t going to take no for an answer. “Okay fine, text me when you get home?”

You waved away his concerns. “Sure. Go already,” you said with a big reassuring smile. “See you tomorrow at school!” you added before you turned around and walked away.

“You’re late,” Yugyeom said as soon as Jungkook entered the store.

Jungkook gave Yugyeom a sheepish look and only muttered, “Yeah sorry, something came up on my way here.” Then he rushed past him to the back of the restaurant and changed into his uniform.

Once he came back out he noticed Yugyeom throwing him strange looks.

“What?”

“Your girlfriend says hi,” Yugyeom said with a hint of amusement.

“Who?”

Yugyeom gave Jungkook a meaningful look, “LatteIsHorse. She ordered pick up. I think she was hoping to meet you. She’s cute. She looks like she’s probably a college student around here.”

“I know,” was all Jungkook replied.

Yugyeom’s eyes bulged in curiosity, “You know? You know she’s cute or you know she’s a student? You never told me what actually happened that night!”

Jungkook gave him a tired look and said, “She didn’t recognize me. She wore a Yonsei hoodie, so I guess she goes there. Nothing else happened.”

“Hmm, that’s weird. She was asking for you today, so she definitely knows your name,” Yugyeom said.

“Who knows, maybe she was having a lot on her plate that day,” Jungkook said with a shrug. He wondered where you lived and if you already got home safely. “Why are you obsessing over this so much?”

“Man, do you know how painful it is to watch your sorry attempts at flirting? I’m just trying to help you out, mate,” Yugyeom quipped.

“I wasn’t flirting! I was just trying cheer someone up who was obviously feeling down! It’s called being a decent human being,” Jungkook exclaimed.

Yugyeom gave him the side eye, “Yeah, that’s still not gonna get you laid.”

[19/05 18:47 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

1 Tangsuyuk (small) 1 Bibimbap ---------------- Note: JK-nim, I visited you at the store last week, but you weren’t there. TT-TT I hope you don’t think I’m weird, I just really like talking to you. You always manage to put a smile on my face when I’m having a hard day. We’re still friends, right?

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (small) -- 13,000 1 Bibimbap -- 5,000

Total: 18,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: LatteIsHorse-nim! I’m sad that I missed your visit to our store. I’ll try harder the next time! I added some extra bulgogi to make up for it. :) Of course we’re still friends. I don’t wish any hard days upon you, but I’m glad to hear that my words have a healing effect. In case you ever need a friend to talk to, feel free to talk to me. 010-1234-5678.

The study sessions with Jungkook continued per usual. He still struggled and had frustrated outbursts from time to time, especially when you forced him to revise probability distributions. When you finally reached regression analysis, things became easier.

Although your sessions remained the same, something in your dynamic changed. The both of you became looser and more playful around each other. He wouldn’t clamp up anymore and you felt more at ease around him. You became friends. He never once mentioned that disasterous afternoon.

At home, on the evening of the incident, you shot Jungkook a text and slumped down on the couch. Your sister was out that night, so it was just you in the apartment. Normally, the eerie quiet would’ve unsettled you and you would’ve distracted yourself from your deafening thoughts. But that night you just let them scream, yell and tear at you.

It was an excruciating process, but in the end your head was clearer, your heart calmer. You still weren’t quite there yet, but at least you made a first step out of the endless pit of desperation.

There were other things you noticed about yourself. Gradually you realized you didn’t mind being on your own anymore. You rediscovered your love for drawing and created you own mandala art. You also learned to code your own website and now had a clickable version of your cv on the go. Although you made time for yourself, you weren’t a hermit. You went out for drinks with Jisoo and soon asked Namjoon to take you along to your university’s Math Club. There you met a lot of familiar faces that you’ve encountered in class but never talked to. With them you spent animated evenings discussing stimulating math problems and exchanging incredibly bad math puns.

You also started noticing things about Jungkook. He wasn’t as timid and shy as you initially thought. Once he got over his awkwardness, he turned out to be quite a cheeky and goofy guy. He teased you or told you silly jokes whenever you were on a break. Despite his obvious aversion for statistics, he still took your lessons very seriously. Diligently listening to your explanations and trying to solve the problems to the best of his abilities. His study-mode showed you other sides of him. The cute pout he had whenever he tried to hide his confusion. Or the two little ridges which formed between his eyes whenever he was concentrated and deep in thought. More often than not you fought the urge to smooth them out with your touch or even better, with a kiss.

“Is something wrong?” Jungkook asked when he caught you staring.

“No,” you quickly said, “I was just thinking that you don’t seem to have much trouble with regression analysis.”

“I don’t know, the relationship between the variables just makes much more sense,” Jungkook said.

You looked at him and considered, “Hmm, maybe you don’t need my tutoring anymore?”

Brief dismay crossed Jungkook’s face. “My finals are in three weeks. I think I’d still prefer if you helped me revise the earlier chapters,” he said, “Unless you need more time to study for your own finals.”

Being in college meant that you were always in dire need of more time. That constant nagging voice in the back of your head telling you to study was an occupational disease. But you didn’t have to kid yourself, those four hours a week spent on Jungkook weren’t going to make or break your grade. Besides, you enjoyed spending time with him. You wondered if he felt the same.

“It’s alright, I’ll help you revise. Just don’t embarrass me on your finals. I don’t want Namjoon to tell me afterwards that you didn’t manage to calculate the mean of the population or worse, read the scoring table upside down,” you teased him light-heartedly.

Jungkook’s ears turned bright red. “That happened once!” he said, “How long are you going to hold that over my head?”

You laughed at his indignation. “Don’t forget, you’ll get endless tangsuyuk if you pass.”

[26/05 20:09 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

1 Tangsuyuk (small) 1 Jjamppong ---------------- Note: JK-nim, I’d like to get the advice of a friend. There’s this kind, sweet boy that I really like. I would like to tell him how I feel, but he’s seen me in my lowest and ugliest moments. Maybe he’ll think I’m just baggage? I guess I’m afraid of his rejection.

Golden Bang 7 Wausan-ro 29-gil, Seogyo-dong

Server: JK ------------------- TO GO

1 Tangsuyuk (small) -- 13,000 1 Jjamppong -- 5,000 1 Soju -- 0

Total: 18,000 -------------------- Thanks for ordering at Golden Bang! Have a golden day!

Note: LatteIsHorse-nim! It’s only human to fear rejection. I can completely understand. I also have someone I really like. She’s really pretty, smart and funny. Spending time with her makes me really happy, but I never managed to tell her. Maybe we should both gather our courage and cheer each other on? I’m not saying that drunken confessions are the way to go but consider this soju a symbolism for (liquid) courage.

Paper Note: This is a flexagon. Whenever you need a word of encouragement give it a flip!

Jungkook examined the hexagonal origami in his hands. On the outside it read ‘Flip Me!’

He gave the flexagon a flip. ‘JK you’re the best!’ And another. ‘The world needs more people like you!’ And another. ‘Don’t forget that LatteIsHorse is always rooting for you!’ And another. ‘Aja, aja, hwaiting!’ And another. ‘Thank you for being my friend!’

Jisoo barged into you room and flopped onto your bed. ‘Ahhh! I’m so glad you finally cleaned in here. Seriously, if I find another rancid noodle stuck to my clothes, I’ll call in a hazmat team.”

“I don’t know why you’re complaining so much. It’s not even your room,” you said.

“Hey, where are you ever going to find a friend like me?”

Your friend sacrificed many a night away from college parties to binge watch handsome oppas sweep equally beautiful unnies off their feet with you. And she wasn’t shy telling you that.

“Let’s go out tonight,” Jisoo suggested. She rolled back onto her feet and started walking around, inspecting your cleaning job.

“Our finals start in two weeks; I really don’t want to spend my weekend nursing a hangover.”

“I’m not saying you have to get wasted. Tonight is the Pre-Game Night. We have to go!” Jisoo demanded.

The Final’s Pre-Game Night was a campus-wide tradition. Every semester on the Friday a week before finals huge parties were thrown to signal the beginning of the end. It was like a dare – were you confident enough to get completely drunk and still hope to pass your finals? Naturally everybody on campus joined in and drank.

“Not getting wasted at a Pre-Game party? That’s like saying you’ve decided you don’t need to breathe. I really don’t think…”

“What’s this?” Jisoo suddenly interrupted. “LatteIsHorse-nim! Personally, I’m a dipper, but I don’t discriminate! I added some broth as service for you. It’s chilly tonight. Don’t catch a cold!” she read aloud, “LatteIsHorse-nim! Happy Children’s Day to you too! I added my favorite childhood drink, banana milk! I hope it brings back as many happy childhood memories for you as it does for me.”

You flung yourself across the room and almost tripped over your own feet trying to rip the receipts out of Jisoo’s hands.

“Oh. My. God. Is your take-out guy flirting with you?!” she asked.

“No! He’s just a friend. We send encouraging notes to each other,” you tried to explain.

Jisoo threw her hands in the air. “Okay that’s it! We’re going to the Pre-Game party, whether you want or not. You can’t tell me that the only flirting interaction you have is with a stranger who delivers you tangsuyuk!”

The place Jisoo picked out was ram packed and buzzing with energy. It was an open dorm party; all the common rooms were transformed into dancefloors. Different types of music played from each corner of the building. Crates of alcohol were stacked against the walls.

The both of you grabbed a beer and made your way through the crowd.

“You’re going to have fun tonight, alright?”

“I don’t think this works that way,” you laughed.

“Then put some effort into it. We look way too cute for it to go to waste,” she said as you roamed around the floors and explored the different areas. You looked down on your dress. It was a pretty warm night; you had opted for a flowy summer dress with a blush pink floral pattern. Jisoo was right, it was cute.

You discovered a familiar face at the edge of the crowd. “Sunbae!” you said.

Namjoon turned around gave you a surprised smile. “Y/N! Out of all the places on campus, we meet each other here tonight. What are the chances?”

He was surrounded by a group of friends, you spotted Jungkook right behind him. The boy gave you an excited wave. A slow smile spread across your face. “I don’t know, but why don’t we ask Jungkook to calculate it for you?”

Namjoon let out a hearty laugh while Jungkook groaned in exasperation.

“Do you see what I have to put up with every week, hyung?”

“Didn’t you just say it’s the best thing that happened to you?” Namjoon taunted, “You have some nerve showing up in front of me tonight. You better ace your SA finals. Do you know how many favors I had to pull to get Y/N to tutor you?”

“What do you expect me to do?” Jungkook sputtered, “Go home and lock myself up on Pre-Game Night?”

If it weren’t for Jisoo you would’ve done just that. Speaking of Jisoo, your friend cleared her throat and gave you a painful nudge in the side.

“Ah yes, uhm, Jisoo you already know Namjoon. This is Jungkook. You know, the guy I’m tutoring.”

Jungkook gave her a small wave.

Jisoo didn’t even try to hide her amazement. “This is Jungkook? But you’re like wayyy cute!” She turned to you and added still loud enough for everyone to hear, “Why didn’t you tell me he was cute?!”

The embarrassment was obvious on Jungkook’s face. You could tell that Namjoon was getting a rush out of his dongsaeng’s reaction and before he could provoke him any further you decided to jump in.

“Who wants to go dance?” you asked loudly. You turned around and headed to the dancefloor without waiting for any of them to respond.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were tutoring a hunk?” Jisoo muttered under her breath.

“He’s not a hunk. Don’t call him that.”

“Yeah but he’s hot. You made him sound like he was a nerd.”

“He is a nerd.”

Your friend gave you a glare, “Why are we arguing about this? I know you’re not that oblivious.”

Of course you weren’t oblivious to Jungkook, but you weren’t going to tell Jisoo that.

“Let’s dance.” You grabbed Jisoo’s hand and twirled her around.

Namjoon and his friends joined you on the dancefloor. The mood of the crowd was electric. Music pulsed through your veins. Drinks flowed, shots were downed, people pulled out their best, lamest, craziest dance moves. Everyone celebrated like the world was going to end.

After a while you became hot and needed a new drink. You looked around for Jisoo and saw her grinding up against one of Namjoon’s friends. She’d be busy for a while. You inconspicuously moved away from the group and decided to go get some fresh air.

“Wait up,” Jungkook said as he appeared next to you, “are you getting something to drink? I’ll join you.”

His dark curls were slightly matted with sweat. His baggy t-shirt clung to his body. You weren’t sure if it was the alcohol or Jisoo’s damn voice whispering into your ear. He was hot.

You circled your arm through his and pulled him through the crowd. His muscles shifted under your touch. You grabbed two drinks from a crate and handed one to Jungkook, your nerves tingled when his hand brushed against yours. The both of you remained in comfortable silence, leisurely walking through the dorm, neither of you in a hurry to get back to your friends. You explored the facility areas, weaving through pounding and quiet parts of the building.

“You look really nice tonight,” he said after a while.

The heels of your shoes echoed against marble floor of the dark hallway. “Thanks, Jisoo raided my closet.”

“She’s really something isn’t she?”

“She’s the best. I’m grateful to have her as my friend.”

Somewhere further down the hallway you made out two figures pressed against the wall, probably trying to find a quiet place of their own.

“You also look nice,” you said to Jungkook.

“I’m wearing the same things I always do,” Jungkook said, his voice turning shy.

You were getting closer to the couple. You could see how the guy was sticking his tongue down the girl’s throat. She seemed to enjoy it from the sounds she was making. Lucky them.

Your next words were definitely fuelled by your tipsy state, “I guess that means you always look nice.” Jungkook missed a step. You had to laugh at his blunder.

The couple in front of you broke apart and looked in your direction. More annoyed about being interrupted rather than embarrassed being caught. You were about to make a funny comment to Jungkook when your heart stopped and you froze.

A string of saliva still clung to the guy’s lips. His eyes widened when he recognized your face in the darkness. “Y/N?”

Your breath hitched and your grip tightened around Jungkook’s arm. He glanced between you and the guy, the situation slowly dawning on him.

“Why did you stop? Who’s that?”, the girl whined.

“No one,” the guy responded as he returned his attention to her and they started making out again.

Jungkook didn’t know if he wanted to puke or punch that guy. A sharp pain in his arm brought him back to his senses. Your nails dug into his skin. He put his hand around yours and loosened your iron grip.

“Let’s go,” he said and quickly pulled you past the couple. You followed him in a daze. He stopped once you were outside of the building, hidden away in a quiet corner.

His hands reached for your face and he lifted your eyes to his. “Breathe.”

You closed your eyes, let out a long breath and let your head fall against the wall behind you. The horrible encounter replayed in your mind. You had to open your eyes again.

There he was right in front of you. Worried Jungkook, kind Jungkook, beautiful Jungkook.

Your hands reached behind his neck and you pulled him a bit closer. You tried to decipher his gaze, it was dark and yearning. Everything was a haze, the alcohol in your blood made you daring.

“Kiss me,” you whispered.

His mouth crashed against yours. Your hands slipped up into his hair and your bodies entwined. You opened your lips and sucked in his hot breath. Your tongues found each other; he groaned at your taste.

He moved one of his hands down your side until he found purchase on your leg and hitched it up against his waist, pressing his body further into you. You let out a moan when his hips ground into yours.

All your senses drowned in Jungkook. You drowned in his scent, you drowned in his touch, you drowned in his heat. You tried to use Jungkook to drown out the grotesque image from before. Suddenly the heat of the moment disappeared, and a cold shower ran down your spine.

You broke away from your breathless kiss and put your hands against Jungkook’s chest to put some distance between you. He gave you a disoriented look.

“I’m sorry. We shouldn’t have kissed.”

Jungkook’s eyes grew wide and alarmed. “Did I do something wrong?”

His lips were swollen, his hair was mussed. You wanted nothing more than to pull him back in, but you couldn’t. Not here. Not like this. He deserved better.

You pushed yourself off the wall and gave him a small shove. He immediately let go of you and stepped back. “I shouldn’t have kissed you like this,” was all you said before you ran back into the building.

The next day you woke up to a splitting headache and a heart full of regret. You really needed to talk to Jungkook and explain to him why you ran away the previous night, but you were too much of a coward to pick up your phone and contact him. You decided it was better to talk to him in person at school.

The following week at school you waited for him in the library. Your heart was in your throat. Your prepared speech played in an endless loop in your head.

‘I’m sorry I ran away. I shouldn’t have kissed you in that state. It wasn’t fair to you. You deserve better than that.’

You looked down on your phone to check the time. A message blinked. You opened and read through it. Your heart sank. He wasn’t coming. He wanted to study the last week before finals on his own. He thanked you for your time.

Slowly you got up and packed your bag. You blew it. You wanted to do him right, but you only caused him pain. Thinking back, you realized he gave and gave and gave and all you did was take. He was right to stay away from you. There was no way he’d be happy with someone like you.

The week passed and finals week commenced. You immersed yourself in your exams and tried to get over your heavy heart. You were pretty sure you aced Geometry II, but the Numerical Analysis exam was nothing but a blur.

Although your heart ached, you didn’t fall back into the same dark pit of the past. You didn’t feel lost, you got on with your life. Nobody noticed the Jungkook-sized hole in your heart except for you. You wanted to talk about your feelings, but you didn’t think Jisoo or your sister would understand. They’d probably just tell you to get out there and find a new guy.

Another week passed. You were walking out of your professor’s office, finalizing the details of your summer internship, when you bumped into Namjoon.

“Y/N! What are you doing here? Aren’t you off for summer break yet?” he asked.

“I was just discussing my internship with Prof. Kim,” you said.

“Ah you’re participating in his research program?” Namjoon said, “I heard it’s really interesting, he’s intense though.”

“I think intense is fine for me, I need something to do with my brain. Otherwise I’ll just go crazy,” you said with a smile.

“Speaking of intense, what did you do to that kid?” Namjoon suddenly asked.

You tensed. Did something happen to Jungkook? “What do you mean?”

“Did you brainwash him or something? He got a 98 on his SA final! When I handed him over to you, he was still asking me why the positive and negative z-scores tables had different values,” Namjoon said in awe.

Relief washed through you and your chest filled with pride. “Watch out sunbae, I might be coming for your TA position,” you said with a wink.

At home you sprawled out on the couch. Your sister’s classes ended earlier than yours so now she was away with her friends travelling the countryside. Your mind wandered as you stared up at the ceiling of your quiet apartment. You really wanted to call Jungkook and congratulate him, but you didn’t think you should. He clearly didn’t want to be in contact with you, you hadn’t heard anything from him since his text canceling your study sessions.

A pang of sadness washed through you. It should have been a happy moment for the both of you, you should be eating tangsuyuk together right now. You really wanted to tell someone about your joy and your grief.

Then you suddenly remembered your friend. Your friend who never judged and always had something wise to say. Maybe he would understand the conflicts of your heart. You got up and dug through the receipts on your desk until you found the one with his phone number on it.

You hoped he wouldn’t think you were crazy, but then again, he was the one who offered himself to talk to you any time. You typed in the number and hit call. Your phone dialed when suddenly the number displayed switched to a name. Jungkook.

You quickly hit the cancel button and stared at your phone. Did you accidentally hit Jungkook’s contact? Was your phone broken? This time you typed in the number more carefully and hit call. Again, the display switched to Jungkook’s name. You hit cancel.

Your heart began to race. You opened up Jungkook’s contact and compared it with the number on the receipt.

Holy shit.

JK was Jungkook. Jungkook was JK.

The stranger who cheered you on and made you smile whenever you felt down was Jungkook. You combed through all your receipts and reread them one by one. What was the probability for this to happen? This was so bizarre, but it made so much sense. Jungkook was the kindest person you knew. Why wouldn’t he be kind to a stranger who needed some uplifting words and comforting tangsuyuk?

[13/06 18:20 PM] User: LatteIsHorse ---------------- ORDER [DELIVERY]

3 Tangsuyuk (large) 6 Jjajangmyeon ---------------- Note: JK-nim, I hope you’re doing well! Can I ask you for a strange favor? Would you mind delivering today’s order to me? I would really like to meet you and thank you in person for always being by my side! <3

The doorbell rang. Your heart pounded painfully in your chest. You slowly walked up to the door and opened it.

“Delivery from Golden…,” Jungkook’s voice faltered.

“Hi JK-nim,” you said quietly. You opened the door wider. “Thanks for coming today.”

“Y/N? What are you doing here?” he asked.

You had to smile at his look of utter confusion. “I live here. Come in, you can put the food on the dining table.” You turned around and walked back into the apartment.

Jungkook hesitated before he followed you inside. He moved up to the table and unloaded his box. He tried to steady himself. “You’re LatteIsHorse-nim?” he asked skeptically, “I’ve been here before. Last time someone else opened the door.”

He has visited you before? “Oh, that was probably my sister. I live here with her. She’s out travelling right now.”

“So you’re on your own right now? Why did you order so much food?” he asked. A giant mountain of neatly stacked dishes graced the table.

You came up and pried the metal box out of his hand. Then you moved in front of him and unclasped his bike helmet. He flinched at your sudden closeness.

“To celebrate. Congratulations on passing your Statistical Analysis exam. Namjoon told me you passed in flying colors,” you said in a gentle voice. “I promised you the best Chinese take-out in town, didn’t I?”

Jungkook still looked shell-shocked and simply stared at you.

“I’m sorry about that night at the Pre-Game party. I’m sorry I ran away. I owe you an explanation.”

Jungkook regained his wits and swallowed. “It’s okay, you don’t have to explain yourself. I get it, we were drunk. It was a mistake.” He looked down and tried to turn back around.

You grabbed onto his hands before he could move away. “Jungkook, look at me.”

He stopped turning, but his eyes remained on the floor.

You took a deep breath and squeezed his hands. “I really like you. I’ve really liked you for a while now.”

His eyes shot up to your face.

“The reason why I ran away that night was because I felt guilty. I probably would’ve ended up kissing you anyway, but in that moment, I kissed you because I wanted to forget. I didn’t want our first kiss to be like that. I wanted it to be the me who liked you and not the me who tried to drown out her shitty ex-boyfriend. I’m sorry if I hurt you.”

There was an unreadable look in his eyes. Your heart fluttered in nervousness. “How long have you known I was JK? How long did you know I had a crush on you?” he asked.

You could feel your blood rushing through your ears, the butterflies in your stomach beat like crazy. “Since today. I was sad because I thought I couldn’t share the promised meal with you. I wanted a friend to talk to, so I thought to call you. You who was always kind to me, even when I wasn’t kind to myself. Isn’t fate strange? We cheered each other on to find each other.” You had to laugh at the irony of it all.

Your hand hesitantly moved up to his face and stroked across his cheek, “I’m sorry I hurt you. I’m sorry I made you sad.”

Jungkook melted against your touch. “If I’m never sad, I won’t know when I’m happy.” Then he closed the gap and pressed his lips against yours.

It was a sweet but sad kiss. Filled with happiness and sorrow. Every touch was filled with an ‘I missed you’ or an ‘I’m sorry’.

Jungkook pressed you against the edge of your dining table, he lifted you up and you wrapped your legs around his waist. You both deepened your kiss. Your hands snaked through his hair and pulled him closer into you. Jungkook braced his hands against the table and instinctively ground his hips against your core. You moaned his name at the sensation. The both of you broke apart to catch your breaths, you pulled at his jacket and removed his layers of clothing.

You stilled at the sight of his bare chest. He was truly beautiful. Your fingers traced along his skin and marvelled at its silkiness. Jungkook shuddered under your touch. His hands moved under your shirt and you both lifted it off your head. Then you gripped his hands and slowly led them around your back, urging him to take off your bra. You wriggled out of your jeans and laid yourself completely bare in front of him. Jungkook stopped and stared at you, equally amazed.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.

Your heart swelled and you pulled him back into a kiss. Both his kisses and his hands left a burning trail down your body. His mouth sucked on the soft skin of your neck while his hands moved across your breast, across your stomach, lower and lower. Wetness gathered between your legs.

“Jungkook,” you sighed. The muscles of his back shifted under your touch.

He released your neck with a loud smack and looked at the artwork he created. He still couldn’t get over how overwhelmingly beautiful you were. Your cheeks flushed, eyes bright and his name at the tip of your tongue. He felt himself strain against his confines.

“Please,” you whimpered. You looked down at his hand and tried to silently command him to touch you.

He kept his eyes trained on your face when his fingers moved lower and slid through your folds. Another moan left your lovely lips. He teased you with his touches, gathering your wetness until he finally pushed down where you wanted him most. Your hands dug into his back, your hips bucked, and you threw your head back in pleasure. He steadied your hips with his other hand and slowly pushed a finger inside of you. Another loud moan echoed through the room.

Jungkook was transfixed by you. He added a second finger and started pushing in and out. Your eyes squeezed shut in pleasure and small breathless pants left your mouth. Jungkook increased the speed of his movement and marvelled at the way you reacted under his touch. Then he moved his mouth to your breast and closed his lips around your nipple. You raked your hands through his hair and arched into him. Your core tightened around his fingers. All your nerves were on fire.

You pulled him away from your breast and guided his mouth back to yours. Your tongue traced his lips and you swallowed his moan. You wanted more, you wanted him closer. His fingers curled and his thumb pressed down on you. Jungkook held you tight as you shuddered and fell apart around him.

He rested his forehead against yours, your breath mingled as you both panted into each other. He slowly removed his hand from you and traced his mouth with his slicked fingers, then he moved them to your lips. Your tongue licked the tips of his fingers. His grip tightened around your waist.

“I want to feel you,” you said.

Jungkook shuddered at your words. “Where is your room?”

“The door behind you.”

Jungkook lifted you off the table, you tightened your legs around him and gave him another kiss. He walked you both to your room and gently laid you down on your bed. He took off his pants, then slowly moved onto the bed and hovered above you.

“Tell me what you want,” he said.

Your fingers caressed his face. “I want you to be happy.”

Another shudder ran through him. “I am happy. What else?”

You traced his eyes, his nose, his lips. “I want to be the one making you happy.”

Jungkook couldn’t contain himself anymore. His heart felt like it was about to explode. He covered your body with his and pressed himself into you. Your eyes rolled back as he entered you slowly. You felt so full you wanted to burst out of your skin. You could feel how the Jungkook-sized whole in your heart filled up again.

He rocked into you and took your breath away. Your nails raked across his back and left red lines against his smooth skin. Jungkook ducked his head into the crook of your neck and moaned against your skin. Every pull dragged pleasure out of you, every push brought you closer together.

You wanted more. Jungkook gave you more.

You wanted him closer. Jungkook pushed deeper into you.

With every moan, Jungkook pushed harder, pushed deeper. He wanted to melt into you. He wanted the lines between you and him to disappear. Your desire was his desire. His pleasure was your pleasure.

Jungkook could feel you tightening around him. He moved his mouth over yours and gave you an ardent kiss. The light of your desire turned brighter and brighter until it burst apart into a thousand little flames. You cried against his lips and let the heat consume you. Your body pulsed around his and the overwhelming sensation brought him right over the edge with you.

The both of you laid on your bed and clung to each other. Neither of you willing to let the other go. Your pounding chests beat in tandem. Jungkook stroked his hand across your hair and kissed your head.

“I want you to be happy too,” he said.

“I know,” you said as you smiled against his chest, “You make me happy.”

Jungkook pulled you tighter into him and you remained silent for a while. His hand traced lazy patterns against your skin. Your breathing evened out.

“Are you allergic to pineapple?” he suddenly asked.

You looked up at him in surprise. “No. Why?”

“Because you always order tangsuyuk without pineapple.”

“Oh. That’s because my sister hates pineapple.”

Jungkook frowned, you pulled yourself up and kissed the little ridges between his eyes.

“What?” you asked.

“I think the jjajangmyeon is all soggy by now,” he said.

You had to laugh. “Probably, but the tangsuyuk should still taste great.”

Jungkook kissed you with a smile. “You’re right, tangsuyuk always tastes great.”

°°°°°°°

02/05/20

4K notes · View notes

watchmegetobsessed · 3 years

Text

Locked up Christmas - Harry Styles

❄️ FANFICmas 2020 ❄️

Read more about FANFICmas here!

happy holidays everyone!! this is the first one of my two christmas fics, the second one coming tomorrow, giving you well enough content to keep you busy when you’re not stuffing your belly or enjoying your time with the fam haha. let me know what you think!

word count: 5k

masterlist

Fishing your keys out of your purse you curse a little as your eyes fall on the big double doors. This is not how you planned to spend your Christmas evening, but you are desperate to earn that promotion in January so now you have to make sacrifices, such as leaving your family home, come into the office and smooth out some things your boss emailed you about a few hours prior.

“Who the fuck is working on Christmas?” you mumble to yourself as you try to find the right keys on the chain. The woman is completely nuts, you’re not even sure how she was able to score a husband because the woman lives in the office.

“Think about the money, Y/N,” you tell yourself. It just gonna be a solid two hours in here, you’ll be out of the building by nine and make it back home to watch Home Alone with your nieces. They begged you to stay and your heart was breaking when you had to leave instead of playing board games with them, so now you are desperate to get it done as fast as possible.

Unlocking the double doors you walk through every damn morning, you walk inside and lock them back up behind you, not wanting any creeps to scare the shit out of you, entering the building while you are in here.

You are so busy cursing your boss out that you almost don’t even notice the lights on upstairs in one of the offices, but when you do, you stop in your track, knowing well whose office it is. Taking a few steps closer you see the tall guy walking around, searching through his shelves with his hands on his hips.

Harry Styles has been working two offices down from yours this past year and you’ve had the fattest crush on the dude ever since he smiled at you on his first day, introducing himself. From his magical green eyes, through his several tattoos he tries to hide under his shirts, to his luscious curls, the guy is a walking, talking perfectness, making you turn into a stuttering teenage girl every time he even looks in your way, let alone when he comes up to you to talk about anything.

Standing in the open area of the cubbies, you debate whether you should say hi or go straight to your office, and though your nerves would appreciate the second option, you know it would be rude to just ignore his presence when it is literally just the two of you. So shoving your keys into your bag you head towards his open door, hoping you won’t make a fool out of yourself.

Just as you are approaching the entrance of his office, his eyes fall on you and you can’t just not notice how adorable he looks as he raises his eyebrows at your arrival.

“Y/N? What are you doing here on Christmas?” he questions, a stack of paper in his hands as he stares at you, a slight smile playing on his pink lips you’ve daydreamed about way too many times at work. You notice how he is wearing a simple white t-shirt, a brown, knitted cardigan and jeans, something you have never seen him in, he is always wearing stylish suits and crispy looking shirts, making sure his appearance is spotless. But you kind of digging this loose, casual version of him.

“I could ask you the same,” you chuckle tilting your head to the side. “I uhh—Samantha emailed me about one of my cases, so I have a few things to go over.”

“But couldn’t it wait?”

“I’m really hoping to get the promotion in January, so it couldn’t.” Harry nods in understanding as he glances down at the papers in his hands. “What about you?”

“Oh, I came in this afternoon, but I kind of got stuck, so now I think I’ll just finish it anyway.”

“You’ve been here all afternoon? Didn’t you want to spend the day with your family?”

“Well, my family lives in the UK. My mum got a cruise from her boyfriend so she is on the Caribbean sea right now and my sister is working through the holidays as well, so we agreed to have Christmas a little later this year.”

“Oh, I see,” you softly say, feeling a little bad for the guy to be stuck here at Christmas even though you know he is gonna see his family, just a little later. “Alright. I’ll just—I’ll be in my office then,” you mumble motioning down the hallway and he nods with a soft smile.

“Sure, sure!”

You jump right into work, eager to finish as soon as possible, and for your biggest surprise, you find yourself breezing through the case faster than you expected. Maybe it’s the emptiness of the whole building, the complete silence or just the will to leave finally, but you manage to finish everything before half past eight, putting you half an hour earlier than you expected to be done. You quickly pack everything up and shut your computer down before grabbing your coat and bag to head out. Just as you step out of your office, Harry emerges from his, wearing his black coat and a backpack hanging from his shoulder. Your eyes meet and he chuckles softly, waiting for you to catch up with him so you can head down together.

“Finished everything?” he asks, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Yeah, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. How about you?”

“I think I’m like two weeks ahead now, but at least I’ll have a breather after the holidays.” He politely lets you ahead as you step out of the office area, into the stairwell, the two of you walking down the stairs shoulder by shoulder. “Heading back to the family?”

“Yeah, promised my nieces to watch Home Alone with them.”

“Classic.”

“Uhuh, very fascinated when you’ve seen it a thousand times, but it’s their first time,” you chuckle shaking your head.

“I feel like everyone is complaining about seeing it so many times, but deep down, we all know we’ll keep watching it till the end of times,” Harry smirks and you nod in agreement.

You step to the exit and push your keys into the lock, trying to turn it, but it doesn’t want to move, just stays stuck in it. Wiggling it a little you start to feel nervous, thinking how Harry will see you as a complete idiot who can’t even open a damn door, but no matter what you try, the key stays stuck.

“I uhh—It’s not opening?” you anxiously say, glancing over at Harry. Furrowing his eyebrows he asks if he could try, so you step aside and let him make an attempt to unlock the door.

However, the key stubbornly stays the same, as if it was cemented into the lock. His grip tightens around the metal, his other hand holding onto the handle of the door, shaking it in hopes it’ll magically open up, but that’s not the case at all.

And then you hear the snap. Your eyes widen when you see that the top part of the key stays on the chain and Harry holds it up just as shocked as you are, the other part still in the lock, broken and totally ruined.

“Please say we didn’t just lock ourselves in and broke the key into the lock on Christmas,” you mumble, shutting your eyes, hoping that when you open them it’ll all just go away and Harry will be holding the door open for you. But then your eyelids flutter open and your gaze is met with Harry’s anxious eyes.

“I uhh—I wish I could say that we didn’t, but we did.”

Letting your head fall back for a moment you take a deep breath, contemplating what you did that made the universe turn against you, but you don’t remember killing babies to earn this, so you are left with your boiling rage.

After a moment of mess you realize it’s time to pull your shit together and figure out the fastest possible to get out of this building as fast as possible.

“Alright, we-we need to call someone,” you breathe out, pulling your phone out of your pocket, trying to figure out who you should be calling in this very specific situation.

“Should we call Samantha?” Harry asks, still holding your keys in his hands.

“It’s not that we need another key, she wouldn’t be able to get us out. We need a professional, right?”

“Yeah, good idea.” Harry is quick to pull his phone out as well, opening up Google to find a locksmith that could free the two of you.

A few minutes later the both of you are frantically calling numbers of businesses you found online, but most doesn’t even answer and though you know it’s reasonable, since it’s Christmas, but you’re mad that with each passing moment the feeling that you’ll be stuck in here all night grows. The two of you are pacing around in the hall as all calls go to voicemail or just simply stay ignored, making you desperate.

When you are about to give up to find just one locksmith in the area who could help you out, the ringing finally stops and a voice answers your call. The old man doesn’t seem delighted to be disturbed at such time, but as you describe the situation on your hand, he quickly realizes his help is much needed.

“Now, Miss, I have some bad news,” he tells you and you feel your stomach drop to the floor.

“And what would that be?”

“The soonest I can get there is around midnight. I’m out of town, but I could leave right now.”

Closing your eyes you inhale sharply. It’s not that bad, you tell yourself. At least he can come, that’s all that matters.

“Alright. It’s fine, we really need you, Sir. And again, I’m really sorry to bother you on Christmas.”

“I’ll pack up and leave now. Will contact you when I’m there,” the man tells you before you hang up and meet Harry’s anticipating eyes.

“He is coming, but he’ll get here around midnight,” you tell him and he immediately checks the time on his phone.

“So… we are stuck here for three more hours?” You nod, pressing your lips together. “Alright,” he sighs, hands on his hips. “Could be worse, right?”

“Yeah, definitely,” you nod, trying your best to see the best side of the situation. You might be missing Christmas with your family, but you are stuck with your work crush for three entire hours, so yes, it definitely could be worse.

Harry runs a hand through his hair, nodding to himself as if he is acknowledging the situation, and the turning to you, he smiles softly.

“There are some leftovers from the Christmas party on Wednesday. You hungry?”

Soon enough the two of you are seated in the kitchen, roaming through everything Harry found in the fridges, from saggy fries to fried chickens and veggies, you are sure you won’t starve to death until the locksmith arrives to rescue you.

At first, you both are just eating in silence, kind of still processing that this is how you have to spend the evening. Harry reaches over to get some more peas onto his plate and his cardigan rides up on his arm, your eyes falling to the several tattoos and before you could stop yourself, you speak up.

“How many tattoos do you have?”

His eyes flicker to you, then follow your gaze on his arm and he smiles softly. You can feel the heat crawling up your neck for a moment, his smile is so enchanting. He has to know the effect he has on females for sure.

“A lot. Don’t even remember the exact number if I’m being honest.”

“Really? Can I ask where else you have? I mean other than your arm.”

“Well, I have the most on this arm, then just one on the other. Some on my chest, my upper stomach, above my hips and a couple on my feet and leg,” he explains and your eyebrows raise at the amount. You figured he had quite a few, but it really sounds like a lot. You push down the urge to ask if you could see them, though your imagination is soaring right now, thinking about all the different inks splattered across his body.

“All planned or were some impulsive?”

“Most of them were random,” he chuckles shaking his head. “Do you have any?”

“I do,” you shyly smile, glancing down at the plate. “I have… well, I have one, but it consists of three parts.”

“Oh!” he breathes out and waits for you to elaborate.

“I have the sun, the moon and a few little stars on my back along my spine. It’s not big either, so you won in the tattoo game,” you chuckle.

“But I’m sure yours is way more sophisticated and planned out.”

“That I’m sure of,” you nod laughing and he joins you. “Would have never though you have so many under your suits,” you admit and his eyes jump up to you, a playful smirk tugging on his lips.

“Well, I didn’t think you had any under your pretty dresses, if I’m being honest.”

Now you are sure you are blushing hard, something in the way he said it making your hormones act up in a blink of an eye. Has he been thinking about what’s under your dress or did he just phrase it weirdly?

“What else is there you think is unlike me?” you find yourself asking and though Harry seems slightly surprised by the question, he leans back in his chair, looking at your intently, as if he is trying to read you like a book.

“I think that… the way you dress at work is far away from your real style,” he states, eyes glaring down at your current outfit that doesn’t give a lot away about your style. You were already in your pj’s when you decided to come into the office, so you just threw on a black t-shirt and a pair of boyfriend jeans. You can’t hide the smile that curls up your lips at his statement. “Am I right?”

“I guess you are.”

“So what are you like when you are not wearing your colorful blazers?”

You choose not to comment on how he noticed that you have a collection of blazers in basically all existing colors, so you always have something to put on with your dresses and pencil skirts at work.

“What do you think my style is like?” you challenge him tilting your head to the side. Pursing his lips he takes a few moments to think over his answer.

“I think it’s a lot of vintage jeans and shirts, oversized jumpers, tiny hoop earrings… maybe some turtlenecks, but the funky types, nothing serious. You seem like the type of person who likes to be cozy but also fashionable.”

“That was very specific,” you chuckle softly, but you are also impressed by how spot on his description was.

“Was I right?”

“Yeah,” you nod. “But add some loose maxi dresses. I love them too, especially with sneakers.”

“Fits the picture perfectly,” he smirks as you both continue your feast.

You have never been alone with Harry for this long and you feel like you cracked the code to stop feeling nervous around him. Yes, you are still quite anxious about doing or saying something stupid, but the more you talk, the easier you find it to be around him. He is great company, an amazing listener and an even better story teller. Once you start sharing tales about your childhood and teenage years, Harry opens up about what it was like growing up back in the UK and he tells you all about the little pranks he and his mates did through high school.

“You had such a baby face!” you beam when he shows you a picture of himself when he was just fifteen. He is definitely recognizable, but he was lacking that hint of manliness back then, a rounder face and smoother lines made him appear very youthful, while now he is definitely a charming, mature man.

“I know, worked hard to lose that,” he chuckles leaning onto his arms on the table. “Alright, now you have to show me one too,” he says locking his phone once you give it back to him. Chuckling you unlock your own phone, looking for a photo you could show him, though you don’t have many to choose from.

“This one was taken on my sixteenth birthday,” you comment sliding the phone over to him, a picture of you shown on the screen from your birthday where you are sitting on the couch, hugging the puppy your parents surprised you with as a gift. Back then you had longer hair and a bare face, free of any makeup since you didn’t start wearing any until you were eighteen. You had a few pimples and spots on your forehead, but overall it’s not a disastrous photo.

Harry takes his time examining the photo and you see his smile grow wider with each passing moment.

“What?” you question him.

“Nothing, it’s just that… If we knew each other back then I just know I would have crushed on you hard.”

Your lips part at his blunt answer, you were definitely not expecting him to say that and it’s making you feel some kind of way for sure.

The two of you pack up everything left from the food, cleaning up after yourselves and as Harry washes the plates you two used, you check the time, seeing that it’s only quarter to eleven, leaving plenty of time still until the locksmith arrives.

“It’s so damn quiet in here, I’m not used to hear… nothing,” you tell him as you follow him out of the kitchen. Harry turns to you with a sly smirk.

“Wanna have a private party? I know for a fact Jim has a Bluetooth speaker somewhere in his office.”

“I’m absolutely in,” you grin as the two of you head towards the corner office.

Harry was right, the Bluetooth speaker sits lonely on Jim’s desk and you don’t hesitate to borrow it for your entertainment in this absurd situation. He connects his phone and sets it down on a random desk outside where the cubbies are.

“Alright, what’s your song request?” he asks opening up Spotify.

“Guess what kind of music I listen to,” you challenge him arching an eyebrow and as his eyes meet yours, he smirks back confidently before he turns his attention back at the phone in his hand. You watch him scroll for a while before his finger stops on a song and after a moment of hesitation he taps on it at last.

“Don’t come at me if you don’t like it,” he warns as the song starts playing through the speaker and you immediately recognize it. I Feel It Coming by The Weeknd and Daft Punk flows through the empty office area and you can’t push down the smile that tugs on your lips. “Did I do good? You like it?” he asks with bright eyes.

“You did. I do like The Weeknd and it’s a fun song,” you nod and Harry throws a fist into the air in victory.

“Yes! Alright, you guess next,” he tells you handing you the phone and you need a moment to think about what he might like. A specific song pops into your mind and though you know you’re taking a risk with choosing it, but something is telling you he is the kind of guy who appreciates this kind of music. You patiently wait for your song to end before starting the one you chose for him.

You intently watch his reaction as Juice by Lizzo starts playing through the speaker and the moment you see the corners of his mouth curl up, you know you guessed right.

“It’s one of my guilty pleasures,” he admits, his head immediately bopping to the rhythm.

“No need to call it guilty pleasure. It’s a great song,” you tell him handing back his phone and with each passing moment his body gets into the rhythm more and more until he is full on dancing.

You let out a laugh, watching him sway and move around, enjoying the song and you can’t stop yourself from joining him. Jumping around, the two of you make the whole place your dance floor, moving around between the desks and cubbies, letting loose as the song fills the whole place.

“It ain’t my fault!” you hear Harry sing from across the room and you can’t hold back your laugh. Seeing how funny you find it, he makes his way towards you, swirling and moving his hops around. He is not a bad dancer, in fact, he is perfectly on beat with his movements, but he is definitely not a professional, though you find it quite adorable, while the way he doesn’t care to dance carefree is making him incredibly hot.

He dances around you, relentlessly singing the lyrics that he seems to know by heart. It’s quite the sight to see him like this, so unlike but still… very much like him. This version is even more attractive and you wish you could see him like this more often.

One song follows the other and the two of you absolutely let loose, putting on the show of your life, forgetting about everything else, it’s just the music, Harry and you. He shows you his favorite songs and you do the same, feeling a special connection through the process, because in a way, he is baring his true self to you through the music that’s closest to his heart and you are happy to be the person to see him like this.

“What’s a song that turns you into a rockstar?” Harry asks, panting a little from all the dancing you two have been doing in the past hour. You stop in motion thinking about what he just asked.

“A rockstar?”

“Yeah, you know, one that makes you sing and dance and perform like you are in the middle of your sold-out show at Wembley.”

You love his specific descriptions of feelings. Smiling to yourself you don’t have to think long about what song it is for you. After searching it you add to the queue and put the phone down to the nearest desk as you turn to Harry.

The starting beats of Plastic Hearts by Miley Cyrus start playing and you immediately feel the adrenaline rushing through your veins. You’re ready to completely change right in front of his eyes. Grabbing a chair you push him down to sit as you walk away from him, snatching an abandoned bottle of water from one of the desks, using it as your microphone before starting your performance. Hooking a finger into the elastic in your hair you pull it out and let your hair fall to your shoulders as you start singing along the song, sending him a seductive look over your shoulder.

“Hello, the sunny place for shady people, a crowded room where nobody goes…”

You know every line by heart and the fact that you’ve been listening to it on repeat the past few weeks just helps your case. You are able to put on quite the show for Harry.

Dancing around the desks, even hopping on one and lying down as you sing into your pretend microphone, you truly make yourself believe there are thousands of people watching your performance.

“I’ve been California dreaming, plastic hearts are bleeding!” you shout the chorus, completely letting loose, dancing towards Harry who is watching you in awe, lips parted, eyes bright as they follow your every move. “Keep me up all night! Keep me up all night!”

Right in front of Harry, you drop to your knees, whipping your head around, your hair flying with it before you straighten up and look straight into his eyes. Hunger fills his eyes, raw passion and you see how his knuckles are turning white as he is gripping the sides of the chair he is sitting in. You can’t push down the satisfied smirk that tugs on your lips.

He stays put as you live out your wildest rockstar dreams, turning the whole office into your stage. With a heaving chest and heavy pants, the song ends and nothing follows. Turning to face Harry you see that he turned the music off so no other song started after your performance. Now he is standing, eyes burning down on you and the tension is thicker than ever.

It’s about to happen, you feel it. He wants you just as much as you want him. Is he gonna act up about it? Will he finally break what’s been building up between the two of you?

All your questions get answered as soon as you see him leap towards you, your body starts moving at the same time and just when you are about to meet in the middle in the hottest kiss you’ve ever gotten, you jump back hearing your phone’s ringtone on a desk near you.

“Fucking—“ you hear him mumble under his breath as you rush over, seeing that the locksmith is calling.

“Hi!” you pant into the phone and immediately realize how ambiguous you must have sounded.

“Miss? I think I’m here. Can you come to the door in question?” you hear the man.

“Yeah! We’ll be down in a sec! It’s the front door.”

Ending the call you turn to see Harry standing behind you, his green eyes burning a hole into your head and you can tell he shares the same thoughts as you and though you’d love nothing more than to continue what was about to start, but you can’t make the locksmith wait.

“Come on, we are getting rescued,” you chuckle grabbing your stuff and Harry follows you downstairs.

The old man is standing with a bag of tools at the entrance, he sends you a small smile when he notices you.

“This one right here?” he asks through the glass and you nod. Harry stands beside you as the two of you watch him get down to work. Though the tension is still there, you can feel it radiating from the both of you, you still manage to hold yourself back.

It doesn’t take long for the man to get rid of the ruined lock and the door finally opens up, letting you and Harry out of your prison. He quickly fixes up a new one and gives you the keys. You already know Samantha won’t be happy about having to copy a new set of keys for everyone, but there was not much you could do.

You obviously pay a fortune for the guy for everything he did tonight, he surely was a hero. It’s way past midnight by the time you say goodbye to the man and watch him drive away, leaving you and Harry standing in the parking lot.

The sexual aspect of the tension between the two of you has definitely fallen back, but something is still there and you really don’t want to ignore what was about to happen before the locksmith called. Luckily, it seems like Harry thinks the exact same thing.

He runs two fingers over his lips, clearly trying to come up with something to say, and then he finally speaks up.

“Listen, about what happened in there—“

“Want to come over to mine?” you blurt out before you could stop yourself, clearly surprising him. Then you feel a wave of awkwardness about how blunt that was, so the urge to fix it a little takes over. “I-I mean you could come over to my place for the night if you want, and since you-you don’t have family here now, you could just come to my family tomorrow for lunch, it’s always so much fun, we play board games and stuff. B-But I get it if you don’t want to.”

Harry smiles widely at you, finding your word vomiting quite amusing and cute if he is being honest.

“You sure I wouldn’t disturb if I joined for lunch?”

“Of course not,” you smile warmly. You already know your nieces would be all over Harry if he came, wouldn’t even let him alone for a second for sure.

“Then… I would love to go. And… to your place as well,” he adds, a soft blush appearing on his cheeks.

“Okay, then follow me?” you chuckle nodding towards your and his car parking near to the other.

“Yeah,” he nods, smiling wide as you both head to your own cars. You have to bite into your bottom lip to stop the excited squeal when you unlock the doors. Right as you are about to open up the door on the driver’s side, someone grips your wrist and turns you back around. You gasp a little, but immediately melt into Harry’s arms when his lips press to yours, holding you tight in his embrace.

His lips taste like French salad dressing and mint after the feast you had earlier and the gum he chewed on afterwards. They fit so perfectly with yours, moving in sync as you let your hands wander over his upper arms and broad shoulders until they come to a halt at the base of his neck. He is such an amazing kisser and you just know that whatever happens between you and him after this, you’ll surely have a hard time looking at him at work and not think about how he tastes on your lips.

When he pulls away, he pecks your lips one more time before his arms fall from around you.

“Sorry,” he smiles nervously, even though he has no reason to be. “I just… had to do it before we leave.”

“Glad you did,” you smirk and kiss his soft lips one last time before sending him away to his own car. He shoots you one last charming smile before you both get into your cars and head straight to your place.

Thank you for reading, let me know what you thought about it!

#harry #styles #harry styles #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles au #harry styles fanfic #harry styles oneshot #harry styles one shot #harry styles x you #harry styles x reader #harry styles x y/n #fanficmas2020 #fanficmas 2020 #watchmegetobsessed fanficmas #watchmegetobsessed fanficmas 2020

498 notes · View notes

kiribaku-queen · 3 years

Text

The Blood King and his Queen [3]

Pairing: Bakugou x reader

Romance, Angst, Drama

Word count: 2.3K

Summary: From being a mere servant girl to marrying the scariest prince in existence, your world changed right before your eyes. Exchanging places with the princess, you knew, wasn’t going to be easy. But could you have found love on the way? Or was it never meant to be?

A/N: I hope you get just as much second-hand embarrassment from this episode as I did. Thank you for waiting and being patient! I hope this chapter was worth waiting for! Look forward to the very end for a special ending scene. Honestly, I was imagining it like an anime and its like an extra that they put in... idk please bare with me. I thought it was funny! Let me know if you’d like to be added to the tag list! :) happy reading, loves!

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Dinner was eaten in silence. After your smart remark, you didn’t have anything more to say to each other. At least, you didn’t know what to say to him. Was it the best choice to be sassy with him? Probably not. But did he deserve it after being rude to your first? Absolutely.

You looked up from your meal to see Bakugou stuffing his face in an angry matter. Only, Bakugou wasn’t angry. He was just like that, little did you know.

The next morning was no different. Breakfast was eaten in silence. If it wasn’t for that small interaction you had with him the night prior, you would have sworn the mighty Blood Prince was mute. But Kirishima swore to you that the prince doesn’t usually act this way. You’d believe it when you see it.

You had joined Bakugou for breakfast and to your surprise, the table was full with dishes; dishes you recognized and dishes you’ve never seen before. Everything was neatly organized and pretty to look at. It was a sight that you’ve seen before. You don’t know why you’re shocked every time.

“Princess,” Bakugou’s deep voice greeted you out of nowhere. You were startled and confused to hear the prince greet you. Up until this point, he has never even greeted you let alone acknowledge you when you step into the room. Was he finally out of his ‘bad mood’, from what Kirishima told you?

“Your Highness,” you greeted him back with a small bow. Kirishima led you to your spot at the table. When you got situated in your seat, he moved like how he did the previous night and stood guard while you and your ‘fiancé’ enjoyed your meal.

The food presented to you, although foreign looking, looked mouthwatering. And when you looked closer, there were many dishes that you actually knew but only plated differently. So of course, you dug in. Like a princess, no doubt. Or, what you thought like what a princess would do. You took itty bitty bites with your best posture: back straight, chin high, careful not to spill any food on you. Since you don’t have many chances to talk to his highness, meal times are the only times that you could make an impression. Last nights endeavors didn’t seem like it made a lasting impression of hate. Looks like its time to bring it up a notch.

“Excuse me for the corniness, your highness,” you started. Bakugou glanced up. Once again those piercing red eyes made you hold your breath for a second. You raised a spoonful of the yellow corn that was on your plate and gave a cheeky smile. “But this is really a-maize-ing!”

Only the sound of your laughter echoed throughout the dining room. Kirishima’s jaw physical drops in shock. Meanwhile, Bakugou stopped chewing, stopped eating and stared at you.

“Lettuce celebrate to our engagement,” you continued to joke, stabbing your fork in the green leaf and held it high as if you were giving a toast. Bakugou’s face didn’t change one bit. But Kirishima looked mortified. He looked back between you and his angry-looking friend, afraid of how he would react to your not-so comical puns.

The longer he stared at you with his blank eyes, the more cold sweat you began to accumulate. The more cold sweat, the more nervous you became and thus, the more panicky you became. He wasn’t laughing at anything you were saying. You panicked. This was not the reaction you were hoping for. You had to say something. You gave him a nervous laugh again and frantically searched for the next best thing.

“Kiwi at least be friends?” you lifted up the delicate fruit with a glimmer of hope in your eyes. Again, no reaction. Kirishima wanted to cover his face so bad. He couldn’t take this torture anymore! But he had to remain professional. “No? Okay,” you gave up, your voice disappearing into a whisper. Pouting and looking down, you ate your meal quietly. You’ve never felt more embarrassed for yourself than in this moment. Heat rose to your cheeks and you wanted to hide away, never to be seen again.

The moment you looked down in embarrassment, Bakugou tried to stifle a laugh. The sides of his lips couldn’t help but curl up in a small smirk. He tried to eat something to calm him down, but as soon as his lips met the metal fork, his lips curled into a side smile that couldn’t be hid. But you were unable to see this side of Bakugou due to your mortification. Kirishima, on the other hand, raised a brow in amusement. This wasn’t a sight you could see every day.

“Kirishima,” Bakugou addressed the red-head. Straightening his posture, Kirishima put his hands beside his back and raised his chin high.

“Your highness,” Kirishima answered.

“Make sure the princess is ready by the time the horses are packed. We have a long trip ahead of us,” the prince announced and was about to leave, but not before you stood up to stop him.

“Trip? Where are we going?” you asked in a frantic matter. There was a moment’s pause.

“As my queen-to-be, you should know the kingdom, no?” he glanced back. This time, his eyes were not so aggressive. There was amusement and a hint of a challenge, as if he was trying to challenge you. The prince made his way out of the dining hall and back to this residence.

After taking you back to your room to get ready for your trip around the kingdom, Kirishima made a pitstop at the prince’s quarters to pay visit.

“I saw that,” Kirishima commented, relaxing the moment the door closed behind him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bakugou tried to brush it off, but he knows that he’s been caught.

“I’ve never seen you like that around a princess, before. You like her?” Kirishima teased. Bakugou let out a breathy smirk.

“She’s interesting, that’s for sure,” he admit.

“I mean, what was she saying out there? Out of character for a princess, right?” Kirishima finally let out a laugh.

“So out of character that it was funny,” Bakugou, too, let out a small laugh. A moment of laughter passed and Kirishima got serious.

“You think she’s the one you’re looking for?” he asked. But Bakugou couldn’t say for sure.

“We’ll find out after this trip, won’t we?” Bakugou grabbed his iconic cape, draped it over his shoulders and powerfully made his way to the front entrance.

By the time that you were finished getting ready, you made your way to where Bakugou and a group of soldiers was getting geared up. You were dressed in a lighter, more fit for travel, dress. If you moved, the dress wouldn’t be in your way. Although white, your servants packed you many more dresses just like the one you were wearing. Your hair was flowing naturally down your face, leaving an ethereal, fairy-like appearance.

Bakugou has brought several soldiers along for the trip, all either carrying a box, securing it on the cart, or making sure that all the materials are present. Insides the boxes ranged from a variety of things: food to wood to medicine supplies. You weren’t sure why you need so many things, but you thought it was for safe precautions? Bring more so you don’t worry about it.

“Your highness, everything has been prepared,” Kirishima announced, saluting to his highness. Bakugou stood tall with his signature glare that didn’t seem to faze Kirishima at all.

“Double check?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“We have extra food and clothing?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“The tent is packed?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“Weapons are secured?”

“Yes, your highness.” Bakugou flared his nostrils and nodded his head.

“Good man. Let’s head out!” he bellowed. On cue, all of the soldiers that were coming were hopping on their horses. You looked around nervously. You had never ridden a horse before, let alone seen one in person. Did they expect you to know to ride one? But there was no extra horse for you. You were about to ask Kirishima but then, a hand is reached out to you. Turning around, you see the Blood Prince, himself, giving you his hand.

“My lady,” he gently grabbed the tips of your fingers, bringing them to his lips. His gaze never leaving yours for a second. You were expecting him to kiss your hand, but instead, he gently laid his lips on top of his thumb where it rested between his lips and your fingers. Heat rushed to your cheeks and you couldn’t stop the shocked expression that was blatant on your face.

The prince helped you on the horse but what you weren’t expecting was him to hop on the same horse right behind you. His presence closer than what you have wanted in such a short amount of time. His arms reached around your waist to grab the ropes, unexpectedly pulling you closer to his chest.

Sitting in front of him, you were as stiff as a board. You couldn’t relax your shoulders because if you did, you would be resting against his body. The beginning of the ride was met in silence. No talking was happening, not even among his solders. Talk about an awkward trip. You hoped it wasn’t going to be like this the entire trip. You would be so miserable.

It took a while to escape the palace grounds, but once you did, you were surprised by how beautifully green and luscious the scenery ahead of you was. The sight bestowed upon you was nothing like your imagination. From the rumors, if the prince was that bad of a person, then surely his kingdom would portray that same image: full of poverty, death, killing, blood. But no. His kingdom was thriving.

In order to continue on with the trip, you and your crew had to pass by the local town. The people looked content and happy. They were flourishing! There were many stands selling essentials such as clothing and food. Others were selling odd objects foreign to you. The smell of meat grilling and sweets filled your noise. Kids were running around without a care in the world. There was so much going on that you didn’t know what to focus your eyes on.

Bakugou happened to look down at you, only to see your eyes wide with excitement and wonder. Your head twisted left and ride to grasp the whole world around you. Bakugou looked at you and back at what your eyes were focused on. Behind you, he had signaled his soldiers to halt and move to the side. But you had noticed immediately.

“Why are we stopping?” you asked, curiously.

“One of these idiots forgot something.” Bakugou made up on the fly.

“But we didn’t forget anything,” the soldier with electric blonde hair commented, so quietly that you couldn’t overhear him. Kirishima just nudged him in the gut to shut him up. “Would you like to explore with me while they get it taken care of?” Bakugou asked. You were surprised but intrigued by his question. This was probably the only time in your whole life that you could explore in such a manner. You had to take advantage while you could.

“Please,” you say.

And just like that you looked like a child exploring the world for the first time. And really, that’s what it was. All your life, you served the princess. Your earliest memories were of the palace. You never knew what it was like outside the palace. Everything fascinated you: the food, the smells, the sights, the clothes, the jewelry, the accessories, the people. How could you not know about any of this?

Bakugou watched you closely as you explored on your own and smiled to himself. He was not expecting the princess to act like such a kid.

“You must never get out much in your kingdom,” he comments. You look at him with a shy smile.

“Was it that obvious?”

“Maybe just a little,” he jokes. Your shy smile turns in a more comfortable, laid back laugh.

“I’ve never been outside the palace walls. It’s a first for me,” you say. You weren’t wrong. You were speaking for yourself, but you’re sure the real princess was able to explore her kingdom.

“Now that won’t do. Get whatever you want, my treat,” Bakugou offers to you. Your eyes up once again like a kid. Bakugou gives you his head of approval and now your options were opened like you never imagined. Anything you wanted? What did you even want? You felt like just looking was a treat for you. You were about to decline until the sight of the street food caught your attention. You got a closer look and the smell just enticed you immediately.

From there, it was nonstop to discovering new foods. You tried all these sweet that you didn’t know existed. It moved from food to trying on luxurious clothing and feeling fabrics that was foreign on your skin.

You were following Bakugou around blatantly. He was commenting on some things to help educate you better. But your eyes were so easily distracted. Due to the overflow of people, if you didn’t pay attention, you could easily get lost within the crowd. Unlucky for you, the moment you looked away, the prince had already disappeared from your vision. Panic ensued in you. No matter where you turned your head, you couldn’t see that tall, blonde anywhere.

“Bakugou!” you reached out, terrified. Thank god Bakugou has good ears. The instant you called his name, he was already looking back for you. You reached out and grabbed his forearm, tightly, determined not to let go. Your actions caused Bakugou to become flustered.

“Don’t get lost,” he scolded. Idiot¸ he thought while covering his mouth and looked away. He wanted to hide the very clear blush that was on his cheeks.

A/N: As always, I would love to know your thoughts! The adventure officially begins now! If you would still like to be tagged for future chapters, please let me know! They are always open!

Spoiler! Next chapter will make your heart go doki-doki <3

Tagged: @superblyspeedydragon @melasnchz-things @animexholic @bkgwrites @sam-i-am-1025 @apexqueenie @katsukibabe @germfart3 @tspice283 @angie-1306 @bakugous-trauma @bakugousmrs

After scene credits:

“Oi, you seeing what I’m seeing?” Kaminari, one of the soldiers chosen to tag along, observed. Kaminari and Kirishima were resting on top of the roofs, getting a clear view of you and the prince.

“Shut. The. Fuck. Up. Kaminari,” Kirishima rubbed the temples of his head. Kaminari pouted and continued to drink out of his canteen.

“I’m just saying,” he mumbled, sadly.

#bakugou x reader #katsuki bakugou #bakugou #bnha bakugou #bakugou imagine #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #bnha imagine #bakugou angst #bnha art #bakugou romance #bakugou drama

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fandomscombine · 3 years

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Heartbreak Woman [Cho/Cedric Ending]

Warning: Angst! Brokenhearted!Reader

WC:1454

I proposed 3 varying endings and the response was across the board so I decided why the heck not write ALL 3 choices!

a/n: I haven't been active on tumblr this past month. Motivation to read & write wasn't really there. Feelin pretty crap. I don't think it's my best work- I actually wrote this ending last month but delay posting it since I promised to post all 3 endings back to back- but with the recent burnout, my progress is slow. Proofread it and push the insecurities & anxieties away and here we are. Love was put into this, I hope you enjoy it! Don't worry, the other 2 endings are on the way.

I tried posting this 9 times now and it keeps saying error. this is me testing it with mobile so formatting is hard but I hope it posts

BG: You were hoping that your best friend, Cedric to ask you to the Yule Ball. Instead you were roped into helping him ask Cho out. It broke your heart, but at least this way while helping him out you could pretend that he was doing all the sweet things to you. On the other side of the picture, Harry was too heartbroken upon learning that Cho is going out with Cedric.

Read the main story before it diverges ending here!

>>>Heartbreak Woman [Main]

>>>MASTERLIST<<<

Did Harry Potter really just ask you out and you said yes?

Touching your forehead, it wasn’t bleeding anymore but there is still a slight sting to it from the collision with Harry’s broom. Yes. That definitely happened. You thought to yourself, this isn’t some delusion from the injury.

This is good. This is good. Hyping yourself up. You enjoy his company and that should be enough to stop your thoughts from going about a certain Hufflepuff boy. The same boy you had abruptly left alone in the greens. It’s not his fault nor it is Cho’s for wanting to date each other. You have nothing against them, they are both such lovely and kind people and not to mention popular- it was only a matter of time that they got together, Hogwarts’ Power Couple.

No, it’s just you and your stupid feelings falling for your best friend and agreeing to help with the courtship.

‘Y/n? Hii.” The voice reels you back to reality.

You blinked. “Cho! Hi!” Greeting her loudly had been taken by surprise. You dial down your volume. “What can I do for you?”

“It’s actually what you did, really… I just wanted to say thank you.”

You were confused, why was she thanking you?

“For helping Cedric I mean” She clarified. “He mentioned that you helped him with the picnic idea. It was very sweet. It was what made me finally say yes.”

“That’s awesome.” You force yourself to smile. “I’m glad you guys are together, I can finally get that git to stop bothering me with date ideas. That’s 3 weeks of my life I’m not getting back!” There was some truth to that statement, now that she and Cedric are together you don’t have to go through the pain of practice dates with Cedric.

“You y/n are the absolute wingwoman! Legend material!” Cho praised. “You're like my fairy godmother!” She continues, wrapping you into an embrace.

“yayyyy….That’s me…” You mumble into her luscious hair. Grateful that Cho couldn’t see your face. Pulling apart, you don’t let her go quite yet. With hands on her shoulder, you stare unwavering. “Just don’t break his heart yea? He’s really smitten by you, promise you won’t hurt him.”

Cho is taken aback a bit, your words clearly coming from a strong emotional bond with the boy. Thoughts of love, Eros, passed through her mind but brushed it away - It can’t be y/n help them get together. Y/n’s words must come from Philia love, y/n and Cedric had been best friends since before they could talk! Everyone knows that. They have a soul connection that can’t be replicated. “I promise.”

14th February.

Valentine’s Day.

This holiday sucks.

No, not for the reason that you’re single. Nah.

Today is a downer as you won’t be able to do your annual tradition.

See every since 3rd year you and Cedric would be in a pink ensemble outfit complete with red heart sunglasses. Spreading chants of self love and showering fellow single students and professors with compliments. This all started out when your roommates teased you for not having a date for Valentine’s day. When Cedric had heard about it, he went all out. The boy basically made sure that every single person knew how wonderful, beautiful and intelligent you are.

It was this day onwards that 2 things happened.

Complementing and advocating for self love, Philautia, in a pink get up became an annual Valentine’s tradition. (Even a couple of students joined the cause, expanding from you just both into an association/group of sorts.)

You started to see Cedric in a new light. In other words, you were falling in love with your best friend.

Scanning the Great Hall for pink cladded pupils, you were glad that the group had saved you a seat however a certain Hufflepuff was out of sight. Taking a deep breath, you cleared your head. Get it together y/n. Today is about sharing love and do NOT think about Cedric and Cho going on a romantic date in Hogsmeade.

You were about to take a step forward when-

“Argh!” Shutting your eyes as the hall spun around.

“Relaxx!! Relax! It’s just me.”

Feet back on solid ground, you turned towards the perpetrator, the one boy you did not want to see right now. “What the fuck Ced! Don’t scare me like that!”

“I’m sorry…” Cedric raises his arms in surrender. “Is everything alright?”

“Yea everything’s fine.”

Cedric raises a brow. You forget that this boy can see through your bullshit.

“Only had a couple hours of sleep, that’s all.” It wasn’t a lie, in fact you’d only gotten 3 hours of rest last night, it was just the case of omitting that his upcoming date with Cho was the reason for your restlessness. You don’t want to blame it on jealousy, but it is.

Grabbing hold of your hand, he pulls you towards the group. "Alright then, I've got some spare sleeping potion if you need."

You wave to your fellow singles as you sit down."uh..thanks Ced." You couldn't stop vocalizing your confusion as to why Cedric is still right next to you. Normally you wouldn't complain, but today was Valentine's Day.

"Ouch y/n!" Cedric sassed, eyes focused on piling food onto his plate." Just because I have a girlfriend now doesn't mean I would disappear on my best girl."

My best girl. It hurts to be called that in another context than you wanted.

"Don't you have a date with Cho today?"

"Yea but Madam Puddifoot’s Tea Shop doesn't open until 11am. Which gives me time for our annual Valentine's tradition!"

"But you're taken."

"Yes….but I could still help spreading the love!" Cedric glanced around. "No one minds that I come to join you right?"

A murmur of Nos filled your eyes.

"Haha! See I told you!" Cedric brags, wrapping an arm around your shoulder. Looks at you straight in the eyes, those gorgeous grey irises melting away your defenses."You can't get rid of me that easily." He whispers, loud enough only for you to hear. You could feel the heat filling up your face due to his closeness. Too busy lost in the rapid beats of your heart, you failed to notice his face getting even closer.

A softness like cotton grazes your cheek.

Cedric kissed you!

Your mind is close to being short circuited. The area of where Cedric's lips were a nanosecond ago is cold as ice. The cold contrasted with your now burning hot, blushing face.

You could live in this forever. All external environments quiet, blocked out of focus. Cedric's arms around you while the butterflies in your stomach bursts out, occupying your whole body with sheer giddiness from having his lips on you.

But the daydream breaks.

"Hey Love! You ready?"

"Morning!" He greets, kissing her. "Uh…" It's only 9:34am. You nod, silently telling him that it was okay to miss your annual tradition. You weren't expecting any quality time today, yet he managed even if it was just for breakfast. "Yea.. give me 10 minutes to go change and I'll pick you up at the courtyard?"

"Sounds great. Be quick cause I miss you already!"

"Sure will sweetheart." He pecks her lips again then waves goodbye to the table and he's off, running.

The tension changes once Cedric is gone.

"Can I talk to you outside y/n?"

"uh yeah" Once outside. "What's up?" Trying to sound casual. Cho inviting you to speak privately isn't usual-seeing that you were the couple's go to accomplice for surprises.

"I see the way you look at him."

"I'm sorry?"

"I know.you like him. y/n. I know you like Cedric."

"Cho.. you can't be serious, he's my best friend!"

"I wasn't sure then.but just now..the way you act around him. the way you look at him. y/n is undeniable. It’s so obvious-I had assumptions then but everyone just brushes it off as your childhood friend with each other. heck even both of you say that."

"Cho…."

"I didn't bring this up before because I felt insecure, jealous even that I can't live up to the standard of relationship you and Cedric have.”

You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. There were too many revelations bombarding you all at once, that you are having trouble processing what is going on.

“But I am tired of what ifs and worrying.” Voice quivering, she continues. “You've got to tell him, y/n."

The words snap you back into place.

"Cho… I can't. I can't ruin your relationship."

If you love someone and they love someone else, you let them go.

Everything Taglist :@gruffle1

HP Taglist:@onlyfreds

Heartbreak woman Tagist:

@joalinbenefits @the-natureofme @romanoffs-heart @justmesadgirl @plumso @gleefulleve @wolf-phoenix-lover @ceofcedric @savvy7392 @cedricsfluffyhair @thewayilookatbacon @LIONLIKEWOLFLIKE @mellifluous-cosmos

#cedric diggory x reader #cedric diggory #cedric diggory imagine #cedric diggory angst #cedric diggory fluff #cho chang #harry potter x reader #cedric diggory imagines #cedric x cho #cedric diggory x cho chang #fandomscombine writes

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cacoetheswriting · 3 years

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chasing a feeling pt. II - spencer reid

Warnings: this goes from angsty, to fluffy to smutty tbh: swearing, a lil jealousy, small alcohol consumption, smut, really 18+, dom!Spencer/sub!reader dynamic, oral sex (receiving and giving), choking, a little dirty talk, rough and kinda sloppy sex, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it!) Word Count: 4.5k Summary: this is part two: Conflicted about his feelings, Spencer decided to apologise and try to convince you to stay. He appears at your door in the middle of the night and the two of you work through your differences - or do you? (these two can't catch a break oops, PART THREE is out now)

| PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE |

Spencer found himself stood outside your hotel room door. The rest of the team was fast asleep by now, after all it was nearly two in the morning. He should be in bed too, however, after tossing and turning for hours straight he sprung out of bed and his feet carried him here. Was it the guilt? Because he was riddled with it. Mixed of course with a faint feeling of anger. The emotions spread inside his body like a disease making him nauseous.

His fingers curled into a fist and he knocked three times. No answer. You were probably sleeping which made all of this so much worse but he knocked again, this time using more of his strength.

He heard shuffling inside. No turning back now. He took in a deep breath and anxiously waited for you to open the door. To his surprise however it wasn't you that greeted him sleepily, it was the officer you flirted with earlier that day. Shirtless. Spencer stood frozen, dumbfounded. The guilt feeling present inside of him just a second ago was gone. In the blink of an eye it was replaced by ire and annoyance. How dare you.

“Can I help you?” The officer asked quietly, one hand on the door as if he was ready to shut it in Spencers face any second. “Yeah uh, I’m here for Y/N.” The officer yawned. “Can’t this wait? It’s like two a.m.” “No, it can’t wait.” Spencer grumbled. His anger levels spiking. He wondered how in the hell you got his number since the napkin it was written on currently lay at the bottom of Spencers hotel bin. “What are you doing here anyway?” “No offence agent but that’s kind of none of your business.” The officer smirked at Spencer who's fists were now clenched by his sides.

He was mad, borderline furious. You tell him you're leaving again, make him feel as if it's all his fault, and then land yourself in bed with another man? All in the space of a couple hours? What a sick joke.

“What’s going on?” You appeared behind the officer wrapped in a white hotel robe. Your eyes landed on the brunette doctor and the air caught in your throat. “Spencer.” His name escaped your lips so faintly you weren't sure at first you even said it.

Nervously, you turned to the officer and asked him kindly to leave - ‘duty calls’ was your excuse. You reassured that you’d find him later, maybe grab some lunch. Spencer watched as the officer nodded and disappeared into the dark room to grab his things. He came out moments later, kissed your cheek while saying goodbye, and walked away leaving you alone with the brunette agent.

Spencer rolled his eyes at the interaction as you stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind you. You looked up to meet his gaze expecting the worst. The look spread across his facial features however wasn't one of animosity or bitterness. It was grief. That can't be right?

“What are you doing here?” You asked sheepishly. “I came to apologise, see if there is anything I could do to make it better between us and maybe get you to stay but it seems you’re doing just fine.” Spencer huffed irritated; you detected a hint of heartbreak in his voice. “Spence-” “Just forget it Y/N.” He sighed, turned on his heel and began walking away.

“Spencer!” You hurried after him. “Spencer, please!” He continued to rush ahead, ignoring the sound of your pleas. Did he really despise you that much? Yes, what you did tonight was bad considering everything else that happened but was it cause for this much animosity? Probably.

You managed to catch up with him just as he reached the elevator. He pressed the arrow button as you stepped between him and the metal door - just in case it opened. “Spencer let me explain.” He rolled his eyes. “I don't want to hear you have to say.” He gritted through his teeth, jaw clenched.

“It’s not what you think.” You blurted out. “Really? So you didn't have sex with the half-naked man I encountered at your door just moments ago?” When you didn't respond, Spencer smirked. “That’s what I thought.”

There was a quiet ‘ding’ and the elevator door swooshed open. Spencer manoeuvred his way around you and stepped inside. Not wanting to let him get away, or rather win this argument, you followed. The machine began to move.

“I only did it because-” “Because what?” Spencer interrupted taking a step towards you. “Because you needed someone to make you feel better? Because you wanted to make me jealous? Or maybe because you wanted to prove to yourself that you weren't just soliciting yourself earlier? That the two of you really made a connection!?” He belittled.

As you stood there stock-still listening to his outburst, you found yourself thinking about earlier today. About the fight, the words that were said, the pure unfiltered anger the two of you seemed to fuel inside one another. Your mind then wondered to the kiss. That passionate, fiery, lustful kiss. Spencer has never kissed you like that before. No. He used to be so timid. He’d kiss you so gently, as if he was afraid to hurt you. Earlier was the complete opposite however. When his lips smeared across yours, his body pushing into you, it was as if he wanted nothing more but to break you.

You bit your bottom lip unconsciously at the thought. A small act that Spencer noticed immediately. He stopped mid-sentence. His gaze lingered on your mouth for a second. Those full, luscious, soft lips. Fuck. He looked back up to meet your gaze and was about to say something, resume the fight, when the elevator door opened brining you both back to reality - ‘ding’.

He surged out towards his own room, you following closely behind.

“You are not the victim here Spencer!” You jeered after him. “You made my day impossible, and don't pretend you didn't. I decided to quit after one day with you. Quit a dream job because your ego couldn't handle the fact that I was back in your life and not for reasons you might have wanted!”

He stopped in his tracks causing you to bump lightly into his back. He turned around in his spot. Eyes narrow, lips rigid and pursed into a thin line. “I didn't want you back in my life Y/N! I haven't thought about you in years!” “Your mom would disagree.”

Spencer blinked. “What did you just say?”

The brunette doctor stepped towards you. You ambled backwards until you hit a wall; bouncing off the facade with a soft thud. Only inches away, he placed his hands flat on both sides of your head trapping you completely. Heat radiated off him as if you were standing next to a fire.

“What did you just say?” He repeated, the sound of his voice stern. His hot breath hit your skin sending a shiver down your spine. You swallowed, but unwilling to show him how scared you were beginning to feel you crossed your arms. Spencers eyes immediately travelled to your bosom which was now barely covered up by the clinging robe. He let his arms fall before averting his gaze.

He ran his hand through his already messy hair and looked up to meet your stare as your body relaxed. A raised eyebrow and a sly smirk present on your facial features. “What?” He seethed trying to come off unbothered; but he was betrayed by his own actions as his eyes once again wandered to your visible cleavage. “Are you going to yell at me some more or just continue goggling at my boobs?” You asked, the smirk on your face spreading wider.

“Perhaps you should be wearing something more appropriate to bed.” Spencer ridiculed. “Do you always sleep naked or was that just for the gentleman caller I found in your hotel room?” You couldn't help but roll your eyes. “I bet you’d like to know doctor Reid.”

He huffed at your comment but didn't deny it. Satisfied that you managed to rattle him, you continued. “Is this better? Can you concentrate now?” You asked sarcastically as you uncrossed your arms. “Or perhaps you’d prefer this?” Your fingers fidgeted with the cotton rope around your waist untying it, your eyes glued to the man in-front of you. The robe fell open revealing well, everything.

There was something about Spencer hat always drove you crazy. It crept up on you, this weird feeling you only ever experienced when you were with him. He stirred something inside of you that you couldn't explain no matter how hard you tried. After all these years apart however you forgot this sensation even existed; the two of you moved on with your lives. But now the switch was yet again flipped and unknowing to you, the feeling was mutual.

Spencer pelted at you, grabbing each side of the garment and closing it. “Very mature.” He breathed heavily. “Someone could have seen you.” “Someone did see me.” You teased. Spencer ignored you. Instead, he looked down and focused on tying the robe shut. He could feel your eyes burning into his skull. His fingers shaky as his mind raced. The image of your naked body impeded in his brain.

Spencer was rigid tense. He knew deep down that he couldn't control himself much longer around you - which is why he was so angry. The question he’s been asking himself this last day once again riddled his brain: How come you still had such an effect on him? You broke his heart when you left, in that moment he swore he would hate you forever. And he kept that promise until he saw you again. The minute his eyes landed on you the angry facade rumbled but his conscious continued to tell him you were evil, so he acted as if you were. Now he was conflicted.

There was a brief moment of silence when he finished. Spencer sighed. He seemed unwilling to look up and meet your gaze, or let go of your robe for that matter. His fingers trailed along the cotton bind, tugging at it lightly. You could not help but let out a mellow giggle. “I don't think you can make that any tighter Spencer.” A faint smile graced his facial features. For a split second the robust, irate man that gave you the cold shoulder these last few hours disappeared. In-front of you stood a young Spencer you loved all those years ago. “S-sorry.”

“It’s okay.” You reassured while placing a hand gently on his bicep. “Honestly, I should be the one apologising right now. Thinking about this now it would have been a good idea to call you before my first day and see if you wanted to meet up. We could have talked this out calmly. It would have saved us a lot of awkwardness.” He chuckled, finally looking up to meet your gaze. “You mean save us the arguments.” You rolled your eyes playfully. “Right.”

Slowly, you moved your hand down his arm until you reached his knuckle. He let go of the robe and intertwined his fingers with yours. His touch was gentle as he rubbed circles into your wrist using his thumb.

“When did things get so screwed up?” Spencer asked, his eyes scanning yours as if he was searching for the answer deep inside of your soul. “Probably when I left.” “No.” He shook his head, giving your hand a soft squeeze. “It must have been before that otherwise you wouldn't have left.” “Spencer.” “According to a study by Bumpass and Sweet from 1989, the odds of successful lasting relationships are even slimmer than those of marriage. Over half of non-married couples break up within two years and about ninety-percent dissolve within five years. Realistically, we stood no chance.” “I don’t entirely agree. We were crazy about each other but we wanted different things. You just started with the BAU. I was knee-deep in studying for the BAR exam as well as completing my training at the academy. Honestly, I think we were just too young and expected too much out of one another.”

Spencer sighed. He stood quiet for a moment before letting out a short laugh. “I guess our ambitions are to blame then.” You giggled. “I guess you’re right.” He lifted his free hand and tenderly caressed your cheek as you smiled at him. “For what it’s worth, I’m really proud of you. You’ve really done everything you said you would do.” His words caught you by surprise. “Are you forgetting that I left you? You were pretty mad about that a few hours ago.” He smiled; his hand now cupping your cheek. You leaned into his touch. “I’m still pretty mad but I think that’s just because of the way you left-” “Without an explanation you mean?” You interrupted and he nodded. “I looked for you. Spent months trying to figure out where you could have gone.” “I’m sorry Spencer. I really am.”

“Why did you leave Y/N?” He asked. There were now tears forming in your eyes. “I-I eh-” You took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I-it was as if one morning I just realised that I wasn't myself anymore, I didn't know who I was. And near the end we hardly saw each other. The last thing I wanted was for us to start fighting, we were both so young and dumb. I watched us wither, and I just thought I would be better off alone.” “But you could have told me.” He placed a strand of your hair behind your ear before going back to holding your cheek; not breaking eye contact. “Spencer, I knew if I told you than you would have talked me into staying. I needed to figure out who I was before I could let myself grow old with someone.”

Spencer nodded, taking in all of the information you just provided him with. He let out a deep breath. “Do you want to raid the mini-bar in my room? We could continue this conversation over a glass of something strong.” He offered, you smiled. “I’d like that.” Hand in hand, the two of you walked towards Spencers hotel room.

“So where did you go? Like I said I trying looking for you but it was as if you dropped off the face of the earth until I got a tip that you were in L.A.” You smiled meekly. “I uh stayed in Virginia for a while. After graduating from the academy I decided that I wanted to just pursue law for a while so I got an internship at a small firm. Plus I figured it would be the last place you would look for me, home.”

He unlocked the door when you reached his room and pushed it open, allowing you to enter first. He followed and locked the door behind. You switched on a lamp situated on one of the nightstands as Spencer rummaged through the mini-bar. He took out two small bottles of gin and poured the content into clean coffee mugs. You made yourself comfortable on his bed, kicking off the white hotel slippers you leaned back against the headboard and spread your legs straight in-front of you. Spencer handed you one of the cups before taking off his own shoes and sitting down beside you.

He clinked his glass against yours and took a sip of his drink; squinting his eyes slightly as the clear liquid burned down his throat.

Over the next hour you answered every question he asked, as honestly and truthfully as you could. All the puzzle pieces aligned themselves in Spencers brain and for the first time since you left he felt whole again. You told him about everything you’ve been doing. He returned with a detailed explanation of everything that has happened to him; from becoming a godfather to his recent time in jail.

“No wonder you’re so mean looking now.” You teased, nudging his arm. “And what’s your excuse?” He clapped back, smirking as he finished his drink. He placed the empty mug on the side table and rested his head against the bed-frame; tilting it slightly to look at you.

There was a brief moment of silence. Only this time it wasn't uncomfortable or angry, it was peaceful.

“Y/N?” “Yes?” You waited patiently for him to ask his next question, but he never did. Instead Spencer leaned in, his hot breath hit your skin igniting a fire that was built up inside. In the space of a heartbeat his lips were on yours. The warmth of his closeness was soothing and you shut your eyes instantly.

Spencers hand closed around your jaw, pulling you further into his lips, as his tongue pushed inside your mouth entwining with yours. The two of you began feverishly making out like a couple of high schoolers. Tips of his fingers tangled in your hair, tugging it. You sucked on his lower lip, he bit your tongue playfully as it danced with his. His stumble grazing your chin as your heads moved from side to side to the rhythm of your heartbeats. A quiet moan escaped you causing the brunette doctor to smile against your mouth while deepening the kiss even further.

Each of your bodies relaxed into the sensation. His tongue eagerly explored your mouth as his hand moved down from your face to your neck. He gave it a gentle squeeze making you moan again, only louder this time. Spencer groaned at the sweet sound of your pleasure; biting down on your lower lip hard before pulling away.

In one swift motion, Spencer yanked you down by your waist so that your head was resting on a pillow. He straddled over you, his lips now at your collarbone. He kissed up until he met the hollow of your throat. You could feel his member grow harder through his pants, pinning into your leg. He moved to the side of your neck, sucking and nibbling as he traced along. Your body arched into his, chest swelling - there will definitely be a faded purple bruise on your neck greeting you in the morning.

Your hands made their way underneath his t-shirt, tracing the muscles of his toned back. His lips moved up to face yours allowing you to swiftly remove the garment over his head and throw it to the ground. His tongue traced down your jaw as his hands worked on the cotton rope belt of your robe. He undid it quickly; the garment fell open.

Spencer pulled back for a split second to admire the view before burying his head between your breasts. He cupped them in his hands, his thumbs rubbing harshly over your nipples. Hastily, you tangled your fingers in his hair and bit your own lip as his mouth latched on to one breast; his fingers pulling the nipple of the other.

His free hand moved down your body until he reached your inner thigh. He traced circles into your flesh, and you instinctively tensed the closer he got to your pussy. You ached for his touch and Spencer knew it too. Smiling against your naked flesh, satisfied that he held all the power, he steered himself down until his face was at your entrance. He wrapped his arms around your thighs steadying them before diving in without warning. His tongue swept from your opening to your clit.

Throwing your head back, squirming and writhing, you dissolved completely. He continued licking you out. His lips sucked on your clit as a finger slipped inside of you. Instantly, he found your g-spot and massaged it while sliding in and out creating the sluttiest wet noises you had ever heard. Moans of pure ecstasy left your mouth only enticing him more.

The brunette teared away but before you got a chance to complain his fingers were in your mouth. You could taste your own saltiness as your tongue instinctively enveloped around them, sucking. Spencer smiled wickedly at the sensation. It didn't take long for him to jerk his hand away, and grab your face by your jaw. His nails dug into your cheeks.

“Get on your knees for me.” - a simple instruction which you obliged straight away, no hesitation.

Both of you now completely naked. The head of Spencers fully erect cock rested on your bottom lip. You ran your tongue over it, vertically, letting your lips close off at the tip. But Spencer wasn’t willing to give up the control. He grabbed the back of your head and thrust his shaft fully into your mouth. Your eyes went wide at the intrusion and it took you a second to accommodate this length.

He withdrew. You managed to swirl your tongue over the tip of his dick when he plunged back into your mouth. He pushed past your gag reflex and into your throat making you moan into his member. He repeated the act a few more times gradually increasing speed. “Fuck yesss...” Spencer groaned, watching you intently. Your jaw ached as he fucked your mouth; your lips in a tight O as he pumped into your mouth so forcefully you struggled to keep up.

He drew out briskly. He pulled you back onto the bed and positioned himself on-top of you. His face inches away from yours, a caring look spread across his features for a moment. “We can stop if you want.” You shook your head. “No, I want this. I want you.” Smiling at your response, Spencer leaned down and pressed his soft lips against yours.

In that same moment, he pushed his cock into your wetness. You moaned against his mouth at the sensation. His tongue breached your teeth, once again intertwining with yours, and you felt him pull out only to thrust back in deeper this time. You trembled underneath him as he pushed back and forth in slow strokes; each movement creating gasps of pleasure.

He increased his speed. His thick member pounding into you; a smacking sound now echoing in the room. His mouth trailed hungry kisses along your jaw, his stubble grazing your skin. His fingers found your neck, wrapping around it gently. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. The brunette doctor continued to thrust in and out of you as you circled your hips, grinding against him. Your tits bouncing at the created friction. His panting mixed with your shallow breathing and moans - you could feel your orgasm building rapidly.

The tighter your pussy clenched, just aching to explode, the harder he pushed into you. He fucked you deeply, roughly. His fingers digging into your neck as he bit down on your shoulder. Eyes rolling, you screamed his name over and over. Your hips buckled with each strong thrust, you threw your head back.

His name rolled off your tongue again as he pinned you to the bed by your throat, careful to avoid your windpipe in the process. His mouth found your ear and when his hot breath hit your skin a shiver tingled down your spine. “Cum for me.” He whispered and that was all it took. You screamed, body writhing under him. He moved his face back to meet your lustful gaze. A smirk circled his around his lips as you cascaded into an orgasm which rolled through your entire body.

Your back arched and your hands grabbed at the sheets. Spencer continued to fuck you. His thrusts still as rapid and rough as before. His movements didn't die down until his own orgasm overcame him. Your hips buckled as one last moan escaped you; eyes still locked together. His lips found yours as he exploded, your juices mixed trickling down your inner thighs.

The two of you were breathless and sweaty as he rolled off you. Looking at the ceiling above, both of you tried to steady your heavy panting. Spencer placed a hand on his chest which propelled up and down heavily.

“That was-” You began, trying to organise your thoughts. “Amazing.” Spencer finished your sentence. He tilted his head to look at you. You did the same, smiling at him warmly. He reached out his hand and slowly, while caressing your cheek with his thumb, placed the loose strands of hair behind your ear.

The two of you lay there like that for a moment longer before reality struck. A knock on the door caused you to jump out of bed scrambling for your clothes. You wrapped the hotel robe around you and hid behind the wall as Spencer put on his pants and went to answer the door.

“Emily, hey.” Spencer cleared his throat. You listened in, holding your breath so not to make a sound. “There’s been a break in the case. Can you get dressed and find Y/N? JJ went by her room but there was no answer so we’ll just meet the two of you at the precinct.” “Sure.” You heard the door creak; as if he was about to close it but stopped. “And Reid-” “Yes?” “Please be on your best behaviour. We want Y/N on this team and I won’t tolerate bad bearings like earlier today.” You knew she was referring to him calling you a whore.

The door shut. You shuffled out from behind the wall and looked at the brunette doctor. “You didn't tell Emily I was resigning?” You asked, slightly confused. He shook his head no slowly as if he was scared of your reaction. “Why?” “I- eh- wanted to first try and convince you to stay.” He admitted letting his shoulders fall. In that moment, a terrible realisation hit you.

“Is that why you slept with me?”

“What? No!” He was taken aback by your question. This couldn't possible be what you were thinking now.

You began to feel sick to your stomach. Head dizzy as a whirlpool of emotions hit you out of nowhere. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god...” Your hands clasped your mouth out of shock.

“Y/N-” “I have to go.” You cut him off and pushed past him to the door. “No, Y/N listen to me.” He grabbed your arm as you reached for the handle but you shook him off. “I’ll just meet you at the car in ten. I’ll talk to Emily myself when we get to the precinct.” You barked, possibly too harshly, and hurried out of there as fast as your legs could carry you.

You found it hard to believe that Spencer would stoop as low as have sex with you to make you stay. But then again in the last twenty-four hours he’s proved that he is not the person you once knew.

The brunette doctor called after you but you blatantly ignored him. In the distance, you heard him curse loudly and slam his door shut. A lone tear trailed down your cheek. You wiped it away quickly trying to contain yourself. No, you weren’t going to let him get in your head like that. This was your dream job, your life. You decided a long time ago that he wasn't going to influence your decisions, now was no time to stop. If he wanted to fuck with your head, fuck you, than two could play that game.

story taglist: @ashwarren32, @haylaansmi, @spencersblog, @lovebodymindstuff, @april-14-blog, @wooya1224,

masterlist

#criminal minds #criminal minds fanfic #criminal minds fanfiction #criminal minds fic #criminal minds fandom #spencer reid #spencer reid fanfic #spencer reid fic #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid x oc #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x you #spencer reid x y/n #spencer reid fluff #spencer reid angst #spencer reid smut

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harrylilies · 3 years

Text

The Royal Series | Pt. VI

The Royal Series Masterlist

"What do you mean I have to take him with me? I'm going on a two- day trip with my friends." You asked your grandmother in shock.

"Which is why it's the perfect way to get to know each other. I know you don't like following the formal way so do it your way." She told you before sipping her tea.

You laughed in disbelief, shaking your head before looking at your grandpapa, Prince Philip, "Please say something."

"Darling," Prince Philip sighed before looking at his wife. "You know how Y/N hardly gets to go on vacation with her friends and this seems like a duty."

You motioned with your hands at him as you looked at her, mouthing an "Exactly.”

"Fred is 26, he will fit in with Y/N and her group of friends."

"Why are you doing this?" You whispered, leaning back on your chair in defeat.

She put her hand on top of yours, looking at you with soft eyes. "It's for the best. For you."

You shook your head, "This isn't what I want. It’s what the government wants. What you think is best."

"It's what you need." She finished for you before standing up, making you stand. "Amsterdam is an exotic place. I expect you to not do anything you might regret, sweetheart." She told you before looking down at one of her corgis, Willow.

"Oh, can I hold Fred's hand? Maybe steal a kiss or two." You said sarcastically, knowing well that you were pushing her buttons, something that made Prince Philip snicker under his breath.

"Y/N," she looked at you, "As long as it's nothing that can be held against you, harm you or downgrade you, you're free to do anything you please."

"Free," you chuckled before nodding. "Yes, Ma'am."

After she left the room, you were left with your granpapa who instantly approached you and put his arm around your shoulders, his sympathetic eyes looking at you. "But you have fun on your trip. I'm sure Fred isn't half bad."

"I know he isn't, Papa." You sigh, feeling him squeeze your shoulder. "I feel so pressured."

"Everything will be alright, darling. You just have fun for me, will you?”

"How was your nap?" You asked Fred politely as you and your friends sat, having breakfast in the hotel.

"Very satisfying," he chuckled, pouring himself a cup of tea. "What about you?"

"Haven't really slept. Nia and I decided to play monopoly instead." You chuckled, adjusting your jacket.

"Hear it from us first, Princess Y/N of the UK breaks royal rule and plays Monopoly. Scandalous!" Fred said in a dramatic reporter voice, making you laugh.

"Come on, you must have broken a lot of rules before."

He nodded, "I don't really go by the rules." He shrugged before chuckling, “Except for that necklace I gifted you, I’m sorry. That was my mother’s doing.”

"How scandalous and vulgar." You joked, putting a hand on your heart dramatically.

"Your Royal Highnesses are needed in our conversation." Your friend, Nia, joked. You and Fred looked at her together, "We were saying we should go canal cruising right away. Although I'm scared to shit."

"Why? Not a fan of water?" Fred asked her.

Nia shook her head, laughing. "I'm a terrible swimmer. Can't rescue myself if I ever fall."

"It's true. She swims like a sad cat." Eddie joked, laughing more when Nia swatted his arm.

"It's alright, we'll all be together so I doubt you won't get rescued if you fall." Fred smiled, putting his loosely crossed arms on the table.

"Are you saying we can fall off?" Emma asked, cocking an eyebrow at him.

Fred instantly straightened his posture and shook his head, looking back and forth between Nia and Emma. "I didn't mean that. Not that way."

Emma laughed, "I'm just joking."

"Oh." He chuckled, scratching the nape of his neck.

"Well, it's comforting knowing that we have a professional swimmer with us. Very assuring." Trevor said before putting his fork down, "Because Y/N here, said she was skipping on this activity."

They all nodded, knowing what you already told them. You gave them a sheepish smile, shrugging, "Sorry."

"Don't apologize. You fucking better make use of these 4 hours we're gone in." Nia pointed at you.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Also send us pictures." Farrah said, elbowing you.

"You're all embarrassing."

"Do I look bizarre?" You ask one of your personal guards, Andrew, motioning to yourself. You had a "Treat People With Kindness" black hoodie, the hood covering your head, black trousers and your black vans on. You had your sunnies on, opting to not get recognized.

Andrew shook his head, "You don't, Your Highness. I don't believe people would notice."

"Told you to call me Y/N, Andy." You chuckled, taking your phone out.

"It's a habit." Your other guard, Sid, said.

You chuckled again as you texted the one person whom you were impatiently waiting for.

I'm outside x

Almost instantly, you received a reply.

I'll let Jeffery come and get you x

You waited for about 3 minutes before the black door in front of you opened and out came a grinning Jeff. "Your Highness, good to see you again."

You smiled, "Just Y/N. And thank you, Jeffrey. It's good to see you, too."

"Just Jeff." He corrected you teasingly as you walked inside and backstage. "Harry has been all over the place since we knew you're coming. Doesn't shut up about you. Don’t tell him I said that though."

You felt your cheeks heat up, only giggling in response. You stopped in front of a brown door that had "DRESSING ROOM" beside it.

"He's inside." Jeff said, knocking. "Harry?"

"Come inside!"

You grinned, glancing at your guards who chuckled and took a step back. "We'll wait here." Sid said.

Jeff opened the door for you, motioning for you to go inside.

You took off your sunnies, holding them in your hands instead as your eyes fell on the man in ruffles in front of you who was looking down, his head snapping up once he noticed your presence.

"Y/N," Harry breathed out softly as his face broke into a grin, taking long strides towards you before wrapping his arms around you, his head buried in your neck as he brought your body closer to his. "I missed you."

Your arms around his shoulders squeezed him tighter, closing your eyes as you let his warmth engulf you. "I missed you, too, H."

At the nickname, Harry felt himself smile. He pulled back, his hands moving to your face as he softly and so gently stroked your cheeks with his thumbs. "H, huh?"

You let out a small nervous chuckle, shrugging as you wrapped your arms around his torso and looked up at him. "It slipped."

"I love it." He confessed quietly.

Your hands moved to his arms that were covered by the silky shirt, feeling so soothing and satisfying under your fingers as you looked at him. "This is the part when you kiss me." You teased him, feeling your faces get closer.

"And this is when you kiss me back."

If you could describe Harry's lips against yours, you'd use the word "melting.”

Melting was what you felt, slowly letting the feeling of his lips on yours let you loose. Melting went your worries and everything around. Melting went all the judgement and overthinking. Harry's lips absolutely melted you.

Pulling away with a smack and smiles, Harry pecked your lips once again softly. "You have very kissable lips."

"Yeah?" You looked up at him.

"Yeah." Harry confirmed, leaning down to steal one more soft and quick kiss.

"I like the ruffles." You said, running your hands through them.

"Jeff says I look like I came from the wrong era." Harry said, looking down at himself.

You laughed, shaking your head. "You look just fine. I told you that you would."

"’Nough about me. Nice sweatshirt." Harry's lips turned to a smug smirk, looking down at you wearing his own merch. "I was so nervous that I got Farrah's address wrong and it wouldn't be delivered there though."

"I told you I can get it online."

"And I told you to consider it as a gift." Harry shrugged. "Can you help me with my hair? It won't-" Harry patted his head, looking up, "It won't sit."

You laughed, taking a hold of his wrist to get it away from his head.

"Sit down." You urged him to the vanity chair, him sitting and giving you a wide toothed comb. You began to softly comb it, enjoying how luscious and soft in felt. "So, are you coming tonight?"

Harry looked at you through the mirror, his eyes focused on how concentrated you looked as you combed his hair gently with a faint smile on his face. "Do you think your friends will like me?"

"You already liked Farrah as far as I know and she liked you. My friends are fun to be around, promise." You nodded, glancing at him through the mirror before looking at his hair.

"What were their names again?"

"Eddie, Nia, Trev and Emma." You replied instantly before your move hitched, pursing your lips. "And-and Fred." "Fred?" Harry repeated, "Don't remember a Fred in the text you sent me a couple of days ago."*

"Yeah, he's just," You gulped, shrugging your shoulders. "He's just a friend of ours that joined last minute."

Harry nodded, his index and thumb moving to graze his bottom lip; something you picked on was a habit of his when he felt nervous or in thought.

"What are you thinking about?" You asked gently, putting the comb down before softly beginning to run your fingers through his hair to fluff it.

Harry sat up straight, lacing his fingers together in his lap as you both looked at each other through the vanity mirror. "You know I don't consider you a fling, don't you?"

"Uh," your eyes moved to look at his hair again instead of him, shaking your head slightly. "I didn't actually."

"So you," Harry paused, stopping your hands from moving by grabbing them and putting them around his shoulders instead. "You think you're a fling?"

You shrugged, feeling his thumbs gently stroke your knuckles. "I don't know, I-" You stopped, "I don't really know what do you consider me, Harry. Whether you see this going anywhere or you're scared. Or if you feel like I'm too much to handle or not. I don't know if you think this is worth it. Or if-if you just think this is adventurous and risky, gives you that thrilling feeling. It happened to me right after uni and I think I stopped understanding people's intentions ever since. When it comes to that I mean." You confessed, giving him a pursed smile after you finished as you looked back at him. "I don't have history, Harry. I don't-" You paused, shaking your head as you let out a low laugh, "I don't know."

"Y/N," Harry said softly, holding your hand and moving you till you were in front of him, letting you stand between his legs as he looked up at you.

His hands moved to hold your waist, looking up at you as you rested your hands on his shoulders. "Then I will tell you what you don't know. What you should know is that I like you. I really do. I don't care about your status or if you have guards around you all the time. Fuck it, I don't even care if I have to wait for you for three hours outside your flat and behind bushes because your grandmother isn't with us being together. I," Harry chuckled, shrugging his shoulders, "Call me a sap, a total cliché tosser but I have never felt like this about anyone before, Y/N. So here I am, an hour before my show begins, with everyone outside and the world oblivious to me having Her Highness Princess Y/N of the United Kingdom in my hold and me only caring about everything that you wish you can show to everyone, including your family, and about being there when you try new takeout," he chuckled,

"And what I'm trying to ask you is, do you want us to be-" Harry stood up, towering over you and wrapping his arms around your waist.

And there you stood; oblivious to his heartbeats that Sarah could probably use instead of her drums, his body hot and his nerves feeling as though they were about to get wrecked.

"Do you want us to be together? Exclusive?" Harry asked, "Do you want to be my girlfriend, Y/N?"

You let out a small laugh of shock, looking up at him before raising your eyebrows. "Are you serious?"

"Dead serious." He nodded.

Instantly, your hands cupped his cheeks and you brought your lips to his in a deep, strong kiss, tilting his head slightly to feel all of it before pulling away. "Are you sure?"

"I can't stop," Harry said, almost heaving, "I can't stop thinking about you," he pecked your lips, "Kissing you," he kissed you again. "Knowing that you're mine. That I'm yours. I can't fucking stop thinking about it, Y/N.” His hands were than tangled in your hair after dropping your hood, his eyes looking into yours. "Fuck," He licked his lips, glancing at yours before looking back into your eyes. "What have you done to me, you minx?”

You giggled, "I haven't done," You shook your head. "Anything.”

"Lies." He joked with a smile drawn on his face.

"Think I just became your girlfriend."

At the confirmation, Harry only pressed his lips to yours.

"What do you mean you didn't tell him about Fred?" Emma asked as you sat on her bed in the hotel, watching as she towel-dried her hair.

"I mean I didn't tell him about Fred. I told him that he's our friend."

"Why did you do that? You're together now, Y/N. He should know." Nia said, plopping beside you on the bed.

"What do I say?!" You groaned, "Hey Harry, by the way, I'm somewhat arranged to marry Prince Fred by my grandmother and the government. Hope it's alright." You sarcastically said.

"Okay, I don't think she should tell him." Nia said, looking at your other friends. You chuckled, shaking your head at how easily convinced she was.

"It sounds bad," Farrah said before turning to look at you as she fixed her hijab, "But put yourself in his shoes. What if he knows about it later when it's already too messy?"

"I won't let it reach that. I'm going to do something about it." You said, glancing at your friends. "It's not like I'm going to allow that marriage."

"Still." Nia said before she popped her newly red-coloured lips.

"If I really did put myself in his shoes and I know that the woman I'm with is basically arranged to marry someone else, I'll probably run off because what's the point of fighting against the queen and the country’s fucking government? I’ll be done for." You opened your arms questioningly.

"Didn't you say that he told you he doesn't care if he hides behind the bushes because your grandma doesn't support you?" Farrah asked, pointing her mascara at you. You nodded. "Then there you have it. A keeper."

You sighed, about to drop on your back when Nia's hand on your back stopped you. "You ironed that suit. Don't mess it up because your life is fucked up."

"Wise words." You mumbled, sitting up. You nodded, standing up and looking at them. "Alright I'll tell him,"

"Yes." They all breathed out, nodding.

"When it's the right time." You continued, hearing them groan in response. "We've just got together today!"

"Look, baby," Emma approached you, putting her hand on your shoulder, "We'll be here for you whenever you decide to do whatever you want. You're a grown woman and you handle complicated shit everyday in your life. We trust you, okay?"

You smiled, nodding. "Thank you, Em."

"I second Em."

"Third her." Farrah smiled at you, blowing you an exaggerated kiss.

"That jumpsuit looks good on you, by the way."

"Speaking of looking good," Nia began, standing up and scrunching her curly hair as she looked in the mirror. "Fred isn't half bad. He's decent."

You, Emma and Farrah looked at each other with surprised smirks before looking at Nia who noticed the change in the room, looking back at you. "What?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?" Emma challenger her teasingly.

"Like I just told you I want to shove my tongue down his throat." Nia replied.

"Your words, not ours." You teased her, laughing when she gave you a "come on!"

You raised your hands up in surrender, "Just think I should let you know that I'm a taken woman and as far as I know, he's single."

"You three," Nia pointed at you, raising her eyebrows, "Are shit, do you know that?"

"Come on, it's almost 7. We better leave." Farrah said, checking her phone.

Meeting with the guys in the lobby and getting into the cars, you all drove towards the restaurant which Eddie told you was one of the best. Harry had texted you prior, telling you that he was almost there.

"Better early or I won't get the friends approval." He had texted.

Walking behind Trevor who turned to look at you over his shoulder, "Can I give him the if-you-hurt-her-I-hurt-you talk?"

"Absolutely not." You scolded him under your breath before chuckling.

"Geez, fine. Guess I'll stick to the embarrassing stories."

"Trev-" Trevor speeded off while snickering, letting you stop behind Fred.

"You look nice, Y/N." Fred smiled softly at you.

"Thank you, Fred. So do you." You smiled back, nodding your head.

"I was uh," he cleared his throat, looking behind you for a second. "I was meaning to ask you about something."

You nodded, urging him to. "Sure, what is it?"

"Is Nia-" He looked behind you again before lowering his head and voice, "Is she seeing anyone?"

Not knowing how to contain the grin, you glanced behind you at her before looking back at Fred. "She isn't actually. Want me to put in a good word for you?"

"No, no, I-" He shook his head instantly before looking down at you, "Would you? Would you do that?"

You hummed, nodding. "Of course."

He nodded, "Yeah, that would be-that would be nice."

You chuckled before nodding at him and looking in front of you, grinning when your eyes fell on the one person you absolutely wanted to kiss.

"Come on. Let's meet that boyfriend of yours." Emma whispered in your ear as you all walked towards the table where Harry stood, his hands behind his back and a welcoming smile on his face.

You were almost standing in line, watching your friends greet Harry who was grinning, shaking everyone's hand.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Harry." Emma smiled at him before sitting down; not before looking at you and giving you a discreet “ok” hand sign and a thumb up.

You approached him, smiling when he quickly leaned in, greeting you with a peck on your lips. "You look incredible." He whispered.

"You look handsome, too." You replied. Harry pulled your seat out for you, making you sit near him as he sat at the head of the table, you sitting on the first chair to his left.

"Y/N told me you went on a canal cruise, how was it?" Harry asked, smiling as his hand rested on your knee.

And so, the conversation started flowing naturally and easily, filled with laughter and playful banter.

"I saw the video, that one you posted on your Instagram story," Eddie pointed at you before looking back at Harry, "You're bloody talented, mate."

"Right? You have amazing vocals, Harry." Farrah agreed.

You smiled as you looked at Harry, seeing his cheeks slightly turn to faded pink, making you put your hand on his on your knee. "You should hear him live. It's exactly like the studio version." You told them.

"Hey! We should definitely go once." Emma suggested, looking around at everyone on the table who agreed.

"You're welcome to any time." Harry politely said with a sheepish smile.

"Any time isn't convenient to these two royal highnesses." Trevor motioned with his hand at you and Fred, making your smile falter slightly.

Harry's eyebrows raised before looking at Fred, "Oh, excuse me. I wasn't aware that you were-."

You looked down, your ears almost perked at the conversation as the girls eyed you. Fred chuckled, nodding. "Eh, piss off,” he joked, “It doesn't matter. I'm probably going to give it up as soon as I can."

"Oh," Harry almost absentmindedly began rubbing your knee with his thumb, affectionately. "But why? If I may ask so."

"Y/N can tell you about it or she probably already did. Expectations, force, control, all that. No offense to you, darl," Fred looked at you for a second before looking back at Harry. "It's the whole marriage thing that tipped me off." "Marriage?" Harry asked confusingly, seeming interested in the talk.

"You know what? I think royal talk is the last thing we need right now," Nia interrupted them, you releasing a breath. "Harry, where's your next show?"

#the royal series #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles imagine #harry styles x princess

264 notes · View notes

bitch-butter · 3 years

Text

(Modern!AU Webgott idea. Longish? Will eventually be called true bluish light. Tell me if this is interesting lol

Rated C for mentions of Joe's poor COVID protocol)

* * *

The blackout curtains that hung over the single window in the somewhat narrow bedroom were intensely effective, shrouding the occupants of the bed in a heavy darkness that even the daylight outside could not permeate. The still potent smell of sex lingered over the room, sweat and saliva and everything else casting a gross and homey aroma over the rumpled sheets and discarded clothing along the floor. Just around the edges of the curtain was a thin, white glow, but beyond that absent suggestion of light the room remained dark and still, as though nobody was there at all.

Pulling in a deep breath, Joe admitted he really shouldn’t have been there.

Shouldn’t have stayed the night, at least, if anything for the sake of his own reputation. He’s not typically one to go full spoons with a stranger (or, practically a stranger) no matter how good the sex had been, and he’s definitely never been one to spend the night somewhere that is not his bed. He’s spent years crafting his bed, has read actual magazine articles about how to create the best, most comfortable space, and after many years of hard work he is lucky enough to have created what many have called the Coziest Place in America. Suffice it to say, he does not like to spend a night in someone else's bed and he doesn’t think he needs to apologize for it.

This bed isn’t the worst, though.

And the guy that came with it wasn’t the worst either, he had to say. Joe had been ready to delete the app that led him to this guy and his bed, but it’s funny what a ‘ping’ on a lonely Friday night after nearly a year of no sex could do. Turns out that celibacy has made him into a fucking cuddler.

He’s not all that sorry about it. Keeping his distance from contact with other humans has handily prevented him from catching COVID thus far, and not everybody in his circle can say the same thing, as Tab had caught it first out of all of them via an ill-timed jaunt to Miami and Lip had had it twice now by virtue of his shoddy lungs and over-eagerness to lend a hand to people in his building. But a year is long, and half a bottle of cold Kim Crawford accomplished a lot at diminishing his capacity to give a shit about anything other than getting some attention on his dick. As long as the guy had sworn he tested negative, which he had, and Joe himself had tested negative, which he was, he saw no reason not to waltz into a total strangers apartment to merrily screw for as long as they both could stand to.

And it turns out this guy can stand a lot.

Joe has to admit at least half the reason he spent the night was that he actually was exhausted by the sheer voracity of their fucking. They oughta hand out medals for this shit, or something.

He finds himself smiling as he lets his mind wander over their earnestly passionate exploits of just a few hours past, and proceeds to let his eyes linger on the form of his companion. Though the room outside the warm enclosure of the blankets is a little cool the guy has one bare leg stretched out along the sheets, pressed up tightly against Joe’s own blanketed legs, with the remaining covers bundled against his chest. Resting mostly sideways on his belly, his face is turned towards Joe in sleep, mashed into the pillows and yet somehow managing to look as effortlessly gorgeous as he had looked in his photos on the app. His body moves with deep breaths, the steady inhale and exhale in combination with the sheltering warmth of the blanket nearly lulling Joe back to sleep.

Nearly.

He needed to get up, at the very least to find his phone and check the time. As carefully as he could he extracted his body from the tangle of covers, stepping lightly onto the carpet with his eyes on the other guy's face all the while, mindful not to disturb him. The night before he hadn’t even bothered to check his messages before passing out, and as such headed straight for the amorphous blob of his pants that rested just a foot away from the bed, crouching and reaching into his back pocket to grab his phone.

He hadn’t told Babe where he was going, as he’d only gathered the stones to go circa 11p.m. and he figured Babe was either asleep or performing his Getting Ready to Fuck routine and wouldn’t want to be disturbed. He almost feels sorry for Babe, who had loved the idea of dating a future doctor until this year when the sexiness of it was side-swiped by the actual danger the position entailed. As such, the Getting Ready to Fuck routine had an extra layer of manic energy to it, and Joe knew better than to try and pull Babe’s attention away from the hours preceding Gene’s rare, rare, rare visits to the apartment.

Even so, the amount of message icons he was presented with was unexpected to say the least.

He raised his eyebrows, nearly humming in interest as he noted the time. Jesus Christ, these blackout curtains are really worth their salt if it was nearly noon.

Tapping into his messages, he found a trickle of anxiety rolling down his spine.

FRI AT 11:42PM

Babe

Hey where r u?

I gotta talk to you

SAT AT 12:00AM

Babe

Are you coming back?? Srs need to talk

Feb 5 12:00AM

Missed call/Mobile

Babe

SAT AT 12:02AM

Gene Roe

Hi Joe, it’s Gene. idk if i gave you my number?

Trying to get a hold of you, call/text when you get a chance

Thanks

SAT AT 12:20AM

C h u c k

Babe is trying to find you

Feb 5 12:30AM

Missed call/Mobile

Babe

SAT AT 12:50AM

Speirs Ron

Why am i getting texts at 12:45 at night asking me to find you?

Well, something is fucking happening. And he’s at least 100% sure he wants no fucking part of it because any drama that starts after 11p.m. is the drama of the goddamn devil.

Fighting not to heave an enormous sigh, Joe reluctantly acknowledges that he should pull his clothes on and get out of here if there really is an emergency in the vicinity of his roommate. Looking back over his naked shoulder Joe tries to catch a glance at the guy in the bed, at the length of his bare leg in the semi-darkness, and the angle of his shoulder protruding from the blankets where he curled. He’d happily get back in that bed and go another round or five.

As though alerted to Joe’s presence by the cosmos, his phone begins buzzing in his hand. Huffing in annoyance, he attempts to reject the call at least until he can get out of the room, but throws himself off kilter and bangs his elbow into the bedside table, jostling a glass of water and a pile of paperbacks.

“Shit,” he curses, grasping at his elbow and shooting a glance back to the guy, whose eyes are already open and alerted to the noise.

Damn it.

The guy blinks slowly, bleary, for a moment before pulling his face from his pillows and angling up onto his side. “Hi,” he greets softly, running a hand through his mussed hair.

“Hi,” Joe nods back, grimacing. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

The guy shakes his head, looking for all intents and purposes like he means it. “Not at all,” he sniffs, meeting Joe’s eyes in the darkness with a still-sleepy smile. “What time is it?”

“Oh man, it’s like noon.”

Furrowing his brow, the guy nods back before shooting Joe a wry smile. “We tired ourselves out, huh?”

Joe laughs, seeing his phone light up in his hand with a new message. “Speak for yourself.”

At the interested quirk of the other man’s brow Joe hastily gives a shake of his head and stands. “I’ll get out of your hair quick, no worries, just be a minute.”

The guy frowns, sitting up in the bed to let the blankets pool around his hips, hands coming to rest between his legs. “Oh, well, don’t feel like you have to.”

Joe pauses, pants in hand. “Oh, it’s not -”

“I mean, if you want to go then for sure, but like…” the guy waves a hand, pursing his lips before smiling and coughing out a laugh. “Are you hungry? I have eggs, I can make you something before you go.”

He hesitates, eyes pivoting from the guy, to his phone still in his hand, and back to the guy and his open, expectant face. After a moment, he clears his throat. “You know, I could eat.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I could, could you?”

The guy smiles, and even in this mostly dark room Joe can see he has dimples and has to hold himself back from practically swooning, cursing his half-drunk self of the night prior for not remembering exactly how attractive this guy was. “I could use some coffee, is what I can use,” he says, stretching his arms over his head, and Joe is treated to the sight of his bare, bitten up chest. Usually he doesn’t take much notice of his partner's body hair, but as he lets his eyes trace over the guy's chest and legs as he moves to stand he finds himself clearing his throat and getting a little warm along his neck.

“Yeah, tell me about it,” he responded distractedly, pulling his eyes away from the luscious sight of the guy's ass as he bends to retrieve his underwear and instead moving to put his own on. After a second thought he pulls on his shirt as well; might do him some good if he finds himself flushing up at just a glimpse of this guy's ass.

As he slips his shirt over his head, the guy turns to him with a bit of a sheepish look on his face. “Can I admit something?” he asks, lips scrunched.

Joe pauses, still grasping the hem of his shirt. “What?”

“I…” he starts, before chuckling somewhat awkwardly. “I don’t totally remember your name...”

A fair bit of relief surges through him at that, and Joe finds himself huffing out a laugh of his own, and adds another one at the half-embarrassed and half-expectant smile the guy gives him. “Can I admit something back?”

“What?”

“I don’t remember yours either.”

The guy's eyes widen minutely, before he tips his head back and laughs, nodding gently as he rubs a hand over his face. “Is it bad manners to say that’s a relief?”

“I think it’s alright as long as neither of us care,” Joe said, pushing his hair back, before stepping up to the guy and extending a hand. “I’m Joe.”

The guy grasped his hand in a sure grip. “David,” he replied with a little shake of their hands, before leaning in and pressing a dry kiss to Joe’s cheek. “Nice to meet you.”

Joe turned his face into David’s, catching his lips in a tender, if chaste, kiss. “Nice to meet you.”

#webgott #modern!au #it's my personal hc that joe not only loves to be in bed but is Very particular about it #mentioned:baberoe #this AU sponsored by Kim Crawford

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larryfanfiction · 4 years

Photo

Disney AU

🌹 Elysian by wonderlou (81k) Beauty and the Beast AU

“What could be it, Niall?” Harry asks gently with a sigh. He slouches down further into his chair, crossing his arms lazily across his chest. He is bored. He has been bored for five years straight, but even more so now that his one interest has shut himself out entirely. Harry had not even heard from Louis, not since last night, not since he had gotten on his nerves so much that he was torn between knocking him out and smiling in surrender to the slight awe he felt. Louis is opinionated like no one he’s ever seen, but his voice is honeyed; high-pitched and indignant. Harry is nothing short of entranced.

Or, Harry is running out of time to fall in love, but with Louis, it seems as if there’s all the time in the world.

🧜🏻‍♂️ The Importance of Body Language by zimriya (11k) The Little Mermaid AU

Harry really has no idea how he’s going to get out of this one. After the little incident with the fishing wire, he’d been told that under no circumstances was he to visit the surface of the water, as he is the heir to the throne and his safety is essential to the continued existence of their underwater society. Or something. Harry loves his mum, but there’s really only so much talk of royal duty a prince can take before he does something drastic. Like purposefully disobey her strict instructions to stay under the sea for the rest of his natural life, and instead swim too close to a human ship and get himself spotted by none other than the unfairly attractive Prince Louis Tomlinson, for example.

Needless to say, Harry is fucked.

🧜🏻‍♂️ Hey baby won't you look my way by larrysbitchx (10k) The Little Mermaid AU

Louis want’s a prince charming. Harry might just be him. But what happens when a human and a merman fall in love?

🐶🐱 We Could Live This Life Forever by dearmrsawyer (31k) Lady and the Tramp AU

When Harry’s adoptive parents bring home a brand new baby of their own, he fears they won’t want him anymore.

A Lady and the Tramp AU where everyone’s human

⚓️ Drowning In Your Eyes by smittenwithlouis (45k) Pirates of the Caribbean AU

“Capt’n Styles, are you certain of this? They be attracted to man-made light.” “What is? Sharks?” The young blonde asks in terror. “Worse than sharks, lad. There’ll be flesh eating mermaids upon us in minutes, mark my words!” Paul huffs as he continues to wave the bright lantern in front of him, “And Captain Styles here, has us bait!” Or: The Pirates of the Caribbean inspired au where Harry is a fierce pirate who holds the heart of a beautiful merman.

👑 Because You Saw Me When I Was Invisible by supernope (32k) Princess Diaries AU

A (not so) loosely-based Princess Diaries AU, in which Harry finds out he’s the heir to the throne of a country he’s never even heard of.

🏹 Not in Nottingham by UserFromPluto (11k) Robin Hood AU

“Love him?” The prince repeated, “and does this prisoner return your love?” Harry did not answer but stood looking at Louis, trembling and heaving breaths. Louis met his gaze, hair falling over his eyes, arms gripped roughly by two guards. “Harry,” he said simply, “I love you more than life itself.”

(Robin Hood au in which Harry and Niall steal the show, Liam’s big heart gets him in trouble, and Zayn and Louis really should stop being arrow magnets)

👠 a dream is a wish your heart makes by theneverending (22k) Cinderella AU

Fairytale retelling of Cinderella, where Harry is a servant boy who’s too kind, Louis is a prince in an arranged marriage, Liam is Harry’s step brother, and Niall is Louis’ dutiful grand duke.

👠 your rainbow will come smiling through by hazkaban (17k) Cinderella Story AU

when harry isn’t working at his stepfather’s cafe, he’s trying to make swim captain and trying to finish all his coursework on time. when he’s not doing any of those things, he’s talking to the boy he met on the oxford hopefuls subreddit. when they decide to meet, he’s elated. he finally gets the chance to meet the boy he’s been crushing on! when the day comes to meet his prince, he learns that his online crush is none other than louis tomlinson, captain of the football team and friend of his terrible stepbrothers. now harry has to decide whether telling louis the truth is the right choice or if it’s better to just let sleeping dogs lie.

🦎 long hair don't care by ballsdeepinjesus (20k) Tangled AU

He catches his breath and stands, brushing dirt off of his breeches when he hears a scared peep behind him. Louis spins around, startled, and is greeted by the sight of an extremely pale boy with extremely luscious dark brown curls. His hand starts to reach out involuntarily to try and pet his hair, but he stops it quickly and tries to smooth it into a bow. He glances up, fluttering his lashes, and levels the trembling boy with a charming smile.

“Hi,” he drawls. He doesn’t see the frying pan until it’s too late. Everything goes black.

[harry is sheltered and louis is a thief. or, a tangled au.]

🦎 You Were My New Dream by larryshares (48k) Tangled AU

Prince Harry has spent the majority of his life trapped within the castle walls, forced to hide from the kingdom he never asked to be born into. He doesn’t want to be the next King of Eroda, because according to his father, kings don’t wear dresses, paint their nails, or braid flowers into their magical hair. And Harry happens to love those things about himself, almost as much as he thinks he could love the new combat instructor his father has summoned to mold him into a more acceptable man, just in time for his impending coronation.

🧚🏻‍♀️ no place to call home by suspendrs (21k) Peter Pan AU

“What are you smiling about, Harrison,” the boy spits, body language suddenly getting defensive. “I’ll have you know that I’m-”

“Harry,” Harry interrupts, giggling. “My name is Harry. And if you’re not called Peter, then what are you called?”

The boy tilts his chin up slightly, surveying Harry like he’s checking if he’s worthy of knowing something as important as his name. “Well, Herschel, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Louis.”

Or, Louis isn’t Peter Pan and Harry isn’t Wendy and Neverland is nothing like Harry thought it would be, but it’s perfect anyway.

🧚🏻‍♀️ Tell Every Lost Boy (that you're my man) by LittleLostPieces (17k) Peter Pan AU

A modern-day Peter Pan AU, wherein Harry struggles with his overwhelming jealousy when Louis brings a new mate into their makeshift family.

Starring Louis as Peter Pan (obviously), Harry as Tinker Bell, the others as the Lost Boys, and Greg as Wendy

🧚🏻‍♀️ faith, trust and pixie dust (and a little bit of something else too) Peter Pan AU

“Are you seriously apologizing for taking out a bullet that was lodged in my shoulder and saving my life?” he asks slowly. “Y—yes?” the boy looks unsure of himself now.

“Marry me—”

For once, the boy isn’t the only one blushing and Louis silently curses Earthen terminology for making its way into his vocabulary.

Taking a deep breath to regain his composure, he coughs out, “I mean thanks. That was very nice of you…?”

“Harry,” the boy fills in quietly, flashing Louis a tentative smile. Louis thinks it suits him well and he mouths the name to himself, liking the way it rolls off his tongue. He watches as Harry hesitates before asking his own question, albeit doubtfully.

“And you’re—you’re P—Peter Pan, right?”

Or, the one in which Louis is a punk Peter Pan and Harry is an insecure flower child.

❄️ The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway by timefornothing (17k) Frozen AU

“Lou! Give me my glove!” Louis held it back away from him, blue eyes glittering with desperation. “No, Zayn. Please, I can’t live like this anymore! We can’t keep the entire world shut out! I can’t live like this!” His words rung out shrilly, making the crowd go silent. Zayn stared at Louis, eyes wide with unimaginable pain. Finally, he swallowed hard, whispering quietly, “Then leave.” He took one more look at Louis before it was too much, then he turned away, stalking towards the back of the room. or the one where One Direction are the characters in Frozen. Starring Louis as Anna, Zayn as Elsa, Harry as Kristoff, Niall as Olaf, and Liam as that stone troll that always knows what to do.

♣️♟ like cabbages and kings by you_explode (60k) Alice in Wonderland AU

When Louis was a kid, he had a series of very vivid dreams about a place called Wonderland. There were rabbits wearing waistcoats and talking cats and ridiculous tea parties, and amidst all the absurdity, there was a boy. A boy with dimples, big green eyes and the sweetest soul Louis has ever known. Louis has always kept a place in his heart for that boy and for his funny dreamworld, and when he’s twenty-five and his life falls apart, it turns out Wonderland might not be so imaginary after all.

🌿 Let's Fall in Love in a Place You Want to Stay by embro (134k) Tarzan AU

A George of the Jungle / Tarzan AU where Louis is a model who meets Wild Man Harry in the Congo. He was raised by apes and barely speaks a word of English and turns Louis' life upside down.

🗡 Dirty secret by iilarryii (122k) Mulan AU

"Dad, you can't go!" Louis yells to his father as he watches him pull out his sword.

"Louis, you know that I have to. It's the pack leaders orders," Dan says calmly. "I need you to promise me that you'll take care of the family if I die."

"So what? You'll just give up?"

"Of course not. I am just willing to die for my family's safety."

"So am I."

The Zoely pack is attacked by rogue alphas and the pack leader orders all alphas over the age of eighteen to protect their pack. Dan Deakin is one of the strongest alphas in the pack, but there is one problem. He has a wife and six kids to feed and look after. Louis is the oldest child and the one who wants to protect their family.

Or a Mulan AU where Louis is an omega who takes his father's place in the war.

📕 You Bring Me Home by reminiscingintherain (22k) Saving Mr. Banks AU

"Are you willing to fly to LA to meet with Tomlinson?" "I suppose I don't really have much of a choice, do I?" Harry grumped. "I'm assuming he's paying?" "Business class all the way," Liam nodded. "And he's kindly arranged for me to accompany you. So at least you're not going to be on your own." "Please do tell how that's a good thing."

Or, the one where Louis wants to turn Harry's book into a film, and Harry's very picky about what happens.

[Saving Mr Banks AU]

☂ Harry Poppins by jacaranda_bloom (32k) Mary Poppins AU

When Louis’ best friends pass away he finds himself with an instant family. Maddie and Thomas are wonderful children but take an immediate dislike to every nanny that sets foot inside their house. After nanny number six is summarily dismissed Louis is at his wit’s end, that is until an unusual man arrives on their doorstep. Harry Styles is like nothing any of them have ever encountered before, and perhaps, exactly what they’ve been looking for all along.

🐎 It's the Climb by lululawrence (25k) Hannah Montana AU

Louis stretched out his back and turned around, startled to see the most beautiful man he’d ever encountered in his life riding towards him on a horse.

He had to still be asleep. This was one of those super weird dreams people had where the knight in shining armor (or in this case, red sleeveless flannel) literally rode up to them calling their name. - The Hannah Montana AU where Louis is a world famous punk rock singer with a stage name of William and Jay drags him back to Tennessee for the summer. In her attempt for Louis to get back to his roots, he just so happens to reconnect with Harry, and things never go quite as Louis expects them to.

🎬 Supposed to Be by kikikryslee (26k) Geek Charming AU

“I’m making a movie for a film competition, and I want you to be in it,” Harry told Louis. “I think you would be a great leading actor in it.” “Why?” “Because it’s you. I mean, who wouldn’t want to know all about the amazing Louis Tomlinson? It would be a great movie.” “You don’t have some weird crush or, like, secret obsession with me, do you?” Louis asked. Harry bit his tongue so he didn’t say “Ew, I have standards.” He didn’t think that would go over well. Of course, that was assuming Louis understood what that meant. — Or, the Geek Charming AU where Harry’s a film geek, Louis’ a popular jock, and they both need each other to get what they want.

🐮 Love and Other Antidotes by haztobegood (16k) Emperor's New Groove AU

Arrogant pop star Harry Styles is transformed into a cow by his bandmate Amy Z after a heated argument. Left in the back of a truck, Harry finds himself at a rural farm hours away from his band. Harry has three days to make it back to London and turn back into a human before his next show. His only chance to reclaim his glamorous life rests with a kind farmer named Louis. They must work together to find the antidote before Amy Z finishes him off and takes over the band.

⚽️ The Game Plan by Justalittlelouislove (5k) Game Plan AU

Louis's life is exactly how he likes it: all about him. When it suddenly gets turned on its head and one little lady makes a huge impact, will he learn to handle it or run for the hills?

🎈 Up by Thingssicant (26k) Up! AU

Louis Tomlinson thought he had everything he wanted. He had a wife and daughter, a good job, a house with a white picket fence, and even a few pets along the way

It’s only when he turned 71 that a load of balloons and poorly timed knock on the door changed his life forever

🏰 Teacups by sincehewaseighteen (25k) Disneyland AU

"Looks like your attraction is not any body’s cup of tea today,” he puns cheekily. Harry rolls his eyes and lifts the box onto the counter easily, dusting his hands off without a blink of an eye to Louis. “I think it might be your costume.”

“Alright, babe, you listen here.” Harry comes forward and makes sure he’s close to Louis’ ear. Louis swallows carefully when Harry speaks. “Cut this shit out, you’re no Peter Pan in my eyes. You’re a fucking twit. I know what you’re like, and that’s all you need to worry about.”

or the au where louis works as peter pan at paris’ eurodisney while harry’s the mad-hatter who works at the teacup ride, and just so happens to be the annoyingly gorgeous man louis is in love with.

🏰 Unbelievable sights, indescribable feelings by serenityandtea (8k) Disneyland AU

Louis and Harry spend a pre-Christmas weekend at Disneyland Paris with their three kids. Lots of fluff, rides and a meeting with Santa.

Everyone says that Disneyland is utter magic.

Louis definitely thinks so when he catches the look on his husband’s face; Harry looks completely ecstatic. Never mind their three children; Louis would go through all this hassle again just to have his husband beam at everything around him once more.

🏰 Acorns and Thimbles by izetta (12k) Disneyland AU

There is a startling amount of Disney films where the couple falls in love after just one day. Louis isn't entirely too convinced of how realistic that is, but he thinks he is starting to understand how they all felt.

Or an AU where Louis is Peter Pan at Disney World and Harry is a park guest.

🏰 Magic by dolce_piccante (3k) Disneyland AU

AU. Girl!Direction. Harry and Louis go to Disney for a wonderful holiday filled with familiar characters, fireworks, and some Magic Kingdom magic.

🏰 Faith and Trust and Pixie Dust by kotabear24 (10k) Disneyland AU

Harry Styles and his son, Lucas, are spending four days at Disneyland for Lucas' sixth birthday. Louis Tomlinson is Peter Pan there, and takes a shine to both the boys. He gives them tickets to a Peter Pan show that night, and spends the evening with the two before spending the night with Harry. Lucas and Harry both find themselves getting attachd to Louis, and Louis finds the same himself.

🏰 Once Upon a Dream by objectlesson (26k) Disneyland AU

“M’not gonna half-ass our fake relationship,” Louis almost snaps, voice sharp with a defensive edge, like Harry wandered too close to a bruise with needy fingers. “Now kiss me again. We’re gonna make every shitty tourist here wish they had stayed in the Midwest. We’re gonna burn Disneyland down with our gay. ”

Harry shuts his eyes and opens his mouth, because he can’t fucking say noto Louis.

Or, a fake dating AU where everyone is lying and they happen to be at the Happiest Place on Earth.

🏰 The Way You Make Me Feel by MiniMangaFan (6k) Disneyland AU

“You couldn’t last a damn day without trying to sleep with me.”

“I can last a whole fucking week,” Harry says, rising to Louis’ challenge.

“Wanna make a bet on that, Styles?”

“You’re on,” Harry grins.

Or, Disney AU where Louis and Harry try not to fuck in public places.

_____________________

Deleted fics we have a copy of (just send us an ask):

⚪️ Bittersweet and Strange by Keep_Calm_And_Read_Fic Beauty and the Beast AU

He agreed to stay so his sister could go free, but he never signed up for this. Beauty and the Beast AU in which Harry is taken prisoner in King Louis 'The Beast' Tomlinson's castle, Master Liam Payne may or may not be a torture specialist, Master Zayn Malik may or may not be the Master of War, and no one will tell him what the hell Niall does around here. Basically, Harry hates his enemy with a passion. Then he kind of has a passion for hisenemy. Then he wonders if he and Louis are enemies at all.

⚪️ The Dreams That You Wish by Keep_Calm_And_Read_Fic Cinderella AU

Cinderella/Ever After AU in which Louis is the world’s sassiest servant, Harry is a closeted prince with a deadline, Zayn is Harry’s chaperone, Liam is given the unenviable task of trying to distract Zayn long enough that his sister, Druscilla, can seduce Prince Harry (hint: doomed to failure) and Niall is the worlds most inappropriate fairy godfather. Destiny, romance, mistaken identity, sexcapades and oblivious!everybody abound in this gross bastardization of one of my all time favourite fairy tales.

More Masterposts

#disneyau #ma #disneyauma #masterpost

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molinaros · 3 years

Note

Romantic question prompt 20 for claude/byleth 😌😤😤 gotta live up to my horny on main disc tag

anything for you, anonymous whose identity i know perfectly well!! i decided to take some artistic license with this one because i was sort of at a loss for what to do.

20: “can you feel my heart beating?” Claude/Byleth

(Byleth’s gender isn’t alluded to and pronouns used are they/them so you can read as you want to interpret it.)

cw: innuendo, suggestive touches. there is no explicit content whatsoever.

if you prefer to read on ao3 or feel like sending some comments or kudos, you can find this fic here!

Mid-afternoon sun beats down upon the monastery grounds, bearing down upon the thick glass panes of the greenhouse with a formidable heat, leaving the air inside sticky and humid. It’s perfect for the plants - less so for people. Claude lifts a hand from its poised place on his partner’s knee to wipe the sweat from his brow, and feels less guilty about breaking position when he looks back over to see Ignatz crouched beside his stool and easel in the middle of the room, scraping from the tiles a splotch of yellow paint that has melted off his palette. He takes the opportunity to steal a glance at his lovely Teach in all their royal finery - a crown designed to incorporate the delicate embossing Archbishop’s tiara while offsetting Claude’s own Almyran headdress by colour, paired with a tight fitted suit and a splendid cloak. They’re sweating bullets just sitting there.

They side-eye him carefully. “Something caught your eye, your Highness?” Byleth teases.

Claude turns his gaze forward again to meet the artist’s keen gaze, but tightens his hold on their waist all the same. “Just appreciating the view.”

“You should be looking straight ahead. I doubt your lords will be half as amused as I if our royal portrait immortalises you ogling me.”

He shrugs, keeping a forced smile. They’ve been sitting here for hours now; he’s earned a little fun. “You shouldn’t be so distracting. I can’t tell what’s making me sweat; the weather, or...” Claude’s hand strays south from their waist, squeezing a hip clad in tight white satin.

Byleth slides his grip back into place without so much as flinching or casting a glance in that direction. “King of Almyra can’t handle a little sunshine?”

“Humidity,” he corrects, choosing instead to get adventurous with the hand resting on his partner’s knee, inching up toned thigh toward neatly folded hands, “dry heat is no problem, but this just makes me feel... sticky.”

Two hands, primly clasped, nudge his own back toward Byleth’s knee. He turns to look at their face - still a picture-perfect smile, eyes fixed on Ignatz’s easel as he dabs a splash of mint over the centre of his canvas. He scoffs loudly, indignant at that stone-carved demeanour.

“Um, Claude? Could you-”

“Sorry, sorry.” At Ignatz’s request, he faces forward again, but his placating smile is accompanied by a pinched brow. “You really do live up to your title, don’t you? I can’t understand how you do it. Nothing I say ever seems to shake you.”

Byleth’s mouth twitches at the corner, sending Claude’s heart racing. They take a deep breath in, reaching for the hand on their knee to link one finger. The touch is enough to make him giddy, but his betrothed, not so much. “Years of practice,” they remark softly. He snorts derisively. Ignatz looks pointedly at him again and Byleth pinches his leg until he jack-knifes up and apologises. “Keep still. Ignatz is offering a discount rate as a special gift to us; I don’t want you to ruin the portrait.”

Reluctantly, Claude gives in and settles back into place. He tries to distract himself with their surroundings - ivy climbing the pillars that cage them in, a luscious backdrop of tall, plump-stemmed monsteras that bend under the weight of the dew, nestled under the fanning leaves of the palms, a wreath of rich leaves spread like a crown behind their shoulders. It would make for a beautiful portrait, courtesy of Ignatz. Claude and Byleth had decided they wanted their betrothal portrait to be painted on monastery grounds, but their former classmate had been the one to suggest the greenhouse. Even Claude’s un-artistically trained eye could see it was the smart choice. Byleth’s pale hair stood stark against the other rich greens crowding the soil, at a perfect contrast with the sumptuous reds of the ripening fruit on the Morfis plum trees, the rich brass of their crown and silk of their suit reflecting gorgeous jewel tones over their skin, weaved through spread locks of their hair and bouncing through the brilliant green of their eyes, always verging on luminous. The shade of the plants held the structure of their face in the perfect amount of shadow, underscoring sharp cheekbones, illuminating lips that he already held comparable to budding flowers. He could care less about the matching of his own hair to the earthy tones of the bark and soil, or how his eyes and sash mirrored the green of the undergrowth and the mint that filled the room with waves of freshness, how the sun brought out the colour in his cheeks and made his skin look dewy and bright. He could always get away with being reasonably handsome by his own standards, but Byleth - his Teach - looked stunning. It would be criminal not to be a little distracted. He tries and fails several times more to busy his eyes with the pretty new blossoms or how Ignatz holds his brush so tightly when he details that his knuckles blanche. It feels like a fool’s errand to look at anyone other than his fiancé.

Ignatz chews at the end of his thinnest brush for a moment before leaning over his canvas and calling their names. “Do you think you could move in just a touch? It might look a little cozier if you’re leaning into one another.”

Claude wastes no time in hoisting Byleth toward himself, one arm wrapped around their back and the other on the inside of the crook of their knee. They adjust to clasp the hand on their leg between both their own, leaning into the crook of his neck. He feels a flutter pass his chest on its way to his stomach.

“Comfortable?” Byleth asks earnestly.

“Very,” he answers, “though I can’t help but wonder if there’s better positions. You’re so beautiful among the plants, it would be a shame if nobody but I ever got to see how lovely you’d look if we... crossed swords.”

They sigh peacefully, nestling further under his jaw. “My axe is bigger than yours. I wouldn’t want to outshine you.”

He groans. “I just can’t break you, can I?”

“I don’t understand why you so desperately want to.”

“We’ll be married before the year is out. What kind of husband would I be if I couldn’t make you even a little flustered in front of all the officials?”

At last, he draws a chuckle out of Byleth. It’s small comfort, but it’s comfort enough after having spent hours in and out of silence in sweltering heat. “If I tell you my secret, will you promise to behave and be quiet until this portrait is finished?”

“I’d say nary a word for the rest of my days if it meant I could learn the key to keying you up. Unless the secret was more talking, of course.”

“Can you feel my heart beating?”

He frowns. “No..? I thought you didn’t-”

“Exactly. All the red-cheeked sweating, clammy skin, shaking hands, everything you show in response to being teased, I’m almost entirely immune to. I have the perfect game face.”

“So unfair!” Claude exclaims. “But you said ‘almost entirely’, so there must be something. Tell me, Teach, what’s your give?”

He watches with keen eyes as Byleth slowly lifts a hand to brush their hair behind the shell of their ear. The tip, a sharp, draconic point, is flushed pink and slightly twitching. He bites back a grin. “You are so going to wish you’d never me that,” he purrs as they sweep their hair back into place, “as soon as this painting is finished, I’m going to make certain you regret it.”

Byleth tightens their grip on his hand and smiles - not just smiling for the picture, but a grin. “You know,” they murmur into his neck, “I think I already do.”

#writing #my writing #ask #prompt #claude von riegan #byleth eisner #claudeleth #byleth x claude #bylaude #gender neutral byleth #thank you for the prompt!

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rhomsfanfic · 3 years

Text

Tease

[My Commission Info] | [My Ao3] | [Ko-Fi]

a/n: Some spicy OsaAka because why not :P

Rated: Mature Characters: Miya Osamu X Akaashi Keiji (Haikyuu!!) Genre: Lemon Words: 1790

“You’re imagining things,” Akaashi mumbled against Osamu’s lips as the door to his apartment finally made way for the two to stumble in, arm in arm. “My mother adores you!”

He was cut off again before he could say more, Osamu not wasting time with getting out of his shoes and coat before helping Akaashi, stripping him of his clothes with much pleasure. “Does she adore me-” he asked, urging Akaashi forward into the dark hallway, knowing the way to the bedroom well, “-or my cooking?”

Akaashi couldn’t help but laugh, the sweet, amused sound echoing through the apartment while his pullover came off, landing somewhere between the bath and living room. Neither of them was very bothered by leaving traces of themselves around, hoping that soon enough, they’d be able to move in together and create many more such traces. But for now, pullover, jeans, and socks had to do, leaving a trail from the entrance to the bedroom.

“I’d wager she was equally impressed by both,” he finally replied, letting himself down on the edge of his bed, wasting no time to fumble with Osamu’s sturdy belt. His body was still comfortably warm after wearing his winter ensemble, but all the more exciting were Osamu’s cold hands on his shoulders dragging forward over his arms and to his hands, resting there. It wasn’t always visible what went on in Osamu’s head. Still, he had no qualms when it came to Akaashi’s actions, gladly accepting his boyfriend’s care when it came to undressing him too.

In fact, Osamu might have always been the more impulsive and straight-forward with his desires of the two.

For onlookers, that might be a fact when comparing the two, but not for Osamu. Not for someone who was allowed to be so close and observe Akaashi daily. No one would ever come to enjoy the various facets and adorable gestures Osamu’s boyfriend made over the day. And even more so, no one would know all the feelings Akaashi could stir up in Osamu.

Playing with his pen while Akaashi thought, or the way he always subtly held the popcorn in Osamu’s direction while they watched a movie. The formal yet hopeful question of ‘Are you coming over tonight?’ in his texts, or subtle interrogations about presents for anniversaries. In many aspects, Osamu couldn’t get enough of Akaashi, and it was reassuring to know that Akaashi seemed to feel the same. Even so, he was still full of surprises even after months of dating, but Osamu wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Otherwise, where would the courage and willingness to tease come from? He might have learned it from Osamu, but Akaashi’s perfection of it was his own work. Even now, at the first meeting with Akaashi’s parents, he had not given Osamu any chance to remain calm. As if it wasn’t nerve-wracking enough to meet his partner’s parents, no, Akaashi had made it almost impossible for Osamu to keep his composure. Surely, he meant well at first, reaching for Osamu’s hand under the table, squeezing it reassuringly, but the devil in disguise didn’t fool anyone with his adorable, happy smirk and gleam in his eyes.

Not when his hand wandered way further than just Osamu’s thighs beneath the dinner table.

“I couldn’t help it,” Akaashi confirmed his suspicion as if reading his mind, grinning mischievously. “Thought I’d take some tension off of you.”

“Oh, ya were having fun, alright,” Osamu retorted, but he couldn’t help but grin too. Akaashi gave him an innocent shrug, batting his eyelashes blamelessly as he finally pulled down Osamu’s pants, fiddling at the waistband of his boxers now. But two big hands were quick to stop him, and Akaashi didn’t squirm as Osamu brought them back, pushing his boyfriend into the mattress. “Now’s my turn, though,” he declared, and Akaashi chuckled challengingly under his boyfriend’s watchful eyes. “We’ll see about that,” he retorted, and Osamu accepted his lover’s provocation, licking his lips in anticipation.

With Akaashi’s help, it wasn’t hard to slip his briefs off, legs parting as they were freed of the restriction of underwear, with Osamu kneeling down before the bed. “Stay down,” he instructed as Akaashi was about to sit up again, keeping himself propped on his forearms instead. “Why?” he asked his partner, and Osamu gave him an impish shrug, “Just let me enjoy the view.”

It wasn’t an empty promise of what he was going to do because as soon as Osamu’s tongue rolled over the exposed tip in front of his mouth, Akaashi’s cheeks began to redden. Words he perhaps would have liked to say were stuck in his throat while one hand vainly covered his face. The only adorable sounds that rang out were a mix of moans and satisfaction. His free hand first resting on top of Osamu’s hair before Akaashi couldn’t help the need to grip into the soft and luscious strands under his palm, feeling Osamu smirk against his cock. To Osamu, it was a sight for the gods.

There wasn’t a single second wasted against Akaashi urging, lips closing around his member, causing a wave of emotions in him. Osamu might not have been one to prolong the inevitable, but he sure was a thorough lover, starting out slow with Akaashi’s tip, sliding it over his tongue into the back of his throat, easing both of them into the pleasure. Bringing his hands up to Akaashi’s shaft, he began massaging it together with his mouth, building an effective motion to edge Akaashi on. Both of them liked the idea of watching each other, but Osamu had - quite literally - the upper hand in this, Akaashi barely able to keep his eyes focused on his lover’s pleased gaze.

However, just as quickly as he initiated the caress, Osamu was able to take it away again, not even waiting for Akaashi to call out his name excitedly before he let go of him. Disappointment laid in the way Akaashi’s shoulders dropped, and he muttered out a displeased groan, the cold of the room laying down on his heated skin now that Osamu was gone. “Looks like someone got a bit eager there,” Osamu chuckled, and not wanting to admit his need for more, Akaashi only huffed.

“Tell me, little Owl, where’s it that you want to come? Face? Hands? Or-”

Letting his tongue slip out from his lips, Osamu grinned, his chest heaving in the feeling of victory as he looked at Akaashi’s eyes growing darker with lust upon seeing the open invitation.

“Mouth?” he breathed out sensually, watching the absolutely splendid sight of Akaashi gulping, both of them knowing the only right answer to this question. “You’re awful today,” Akaashi noted, knowing he was pudding in Osamu’s hands. Teasing was an art, after all. Akaashi had studied it well, but Osamu still was the master between the two.

“You mean awfully good,” Osamu retorted, probing his tongue against the shaft once more and reveling in the sound of Akaashi’s sharp breath.

“Just do it like always--”

“Keiji,” Osamu interrupted him. “Choose.”

Biting his bottom lip, Akaashi could only watch the teasing kisses Osamu left on him. It shouldn’t have needed so much overcoming for him to admit what he wanted, but usually, it was Osamu doing as he felt like at that moment. Akaashi never had to voice it before - even when he could have - especially not when all options were very satisfying as long as it was Osamu he could trust with them. But even Akaashi realized it was a game played by two, so there was no weaseling out of it.

“M-Mouth,” he finally stammered out, embarrassed over his own voice breaking. However, the sound of joyous anticipation couldn’t be hidden from Osamu’s ears. “Decided to be honest, haven’t ya?” he teased but wasted no time to envelop Akaashi’s cock with his lips again.

Letting himself fall back into the mattress again, Akaashi tried to take deep breaths in an effort to recollect himself. There were too many things wasted in the quick passing of the day, so at least this feeling, Akaashi wanted to treasure for as long as he could. Sure, there’d be other nights they would spend intimately together, but this one would only happen once.

What Osamu didn’t know was that Akaashi thought alike about Osamu’s habits, as he did over Akaashi’s. Even now, he couldn’t get the thought out of his head of his usually so easygoing partner triple-checking the mirror before they went out to meet Akaashi’s parents. Or how his palms were slightly sweaty when Akaashi reached for his hand under the dinner table. Osamu was many things, especially reliable and a tower of strength for his boyfriend. But besides his on-point teases and the gentle spark in his eyes, today he had been absolutely adorable. Akaashi didn’t even know Osamu could get flustered, but he was humble and sweet in the face of Akaashi’s parents.

He would have loved to treasure these memories of Osamu by fully immersing himself in his pleasure, let it excite every fiber of his so that his body could remember it forever. But Akaashi would have been damned if he didn’t truly enjoy this to the end, and Osamu was practically all he could think about anyway.

“Osa--!” Akaashi still managed to croak out, digging his hands into his partner’s hair. Osamu didn’t even need to think of complying, embracing the pulsating shaft with his lips, feeling the hot spurts over his tongue. He let Akaashi live out the waves of pleasure, causing fragments of ‘Oh gods’ and Osamu’s name to fall even more plentiful from his lips. In fact, he was basking in the view spreading before him, Akaashi completely and happily losing himself - and Osamu wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Letting off, Osamu came to his feet, wiping the corners of his mouth clean and giving Akaashi a winning smirk while the latter’s chest was still rising and falling quickly. “Ready for more?” he asked, and Akaashi’s eyes immediately shot up to him, the shine in them speaking more than a thousand words, but his mouth only muttered, “Really?”

Osamu had to chuckle, realizing it was a question asked in exciting anticipation, and he leaned over Akaashi to kiss him from the corners of his mouth down his neck to his collarbones. “Really, really,” he assured him. “You won’t be able to walk tomorrow when I’m through with you.”

For that, he earned Akaashi playfully smacking him in the chest, protesting, “I have work tomorrow!” before the two fell into simultaneous laughter, exchanging another kiss and another.

Both knowing that there were nights, like this one, they’d never forget.

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orsuliya · 3 years

Text

I did it. I cracked the code. Solved the mystery. And it only took me sixty-eight episodes to do it! My fellow Monarchies, I can proudly say that I finally know why Song Huaien is the way he is. All those exalted theories about how he is a follower at heart and takes on the moral qualities of his current master? Clever conjectures about his inferiority complex? Pish and tosh!

The truth is that Song Huaien’s skull is mostly taken up by his glorious hair and the miniscule amount of space left means that his brain is absolutely tiny. So tiny that it can only process one single line of code at a time to the exclusion of all external factors and considerations. Also, all that hair causes enough interference that it is not always possible to switch those lines in a timely manner - sometimes things get stuck in those luscious locks.

Don’t believe me? Well, let’s see then. During Huizhou arc and Zilu’s coup Huaien’s one line of code says: protect Awu with your own life. And so he does, blindly and without hesitation; even torture doesn’t make him go against his instructions. But then something shorts out or maybe he gets infected with malware. You really need to be careful in the capital, you know. The next set of instructions: money, Awu, lots of swag. Xiao Qi tries to reset Song Huaien, alas, his efforts are in vain. The Hunt of Doom manages to dislodge something and then it’s all: get justice for Xiao Qi! Until the Wangs get to him and then it’s a merry-go-round and fun for all. Daddy Wang tries to enter a permanent line of: money, Wang name, Daddy rules, but it doesn’t work all that well or at least not forever. Suddenly the Yuzhang Acting Company gives their great performance and lo and behold, Song Huaien finally accepts a floating code which has been knocking on his skull for some time: be Xiao Qi but better. That’s why he kills Daddy Wang and why he’s so insistent on repeating Xiao Qi’s greatest hits. Only, you know, bigger, better, with more oomph. Poor thing, he doesn’t get that size isn’t everything.

Still dubious? Well, have a look:

Yes, Huaien, it is true that this coup succeeded only thanks to your men. But I sincerely doubt that this weird hybrid of Ningshuo Army and Imperial Mooks can actually serve as a basis of anything except a shameful defeat. As you should know, really. Stop channeling Xiao Qi, you are not him and your men are not Ningshuo Badasses!

Besides, I don’t think Song Huaien actually has that much of an army at the moment. If those rumoured 200 000 soldiers were loyal to him, he wouldn’t have needed to suborn the capital garrison for his coup. Xiao Qi was out of the way, there was nothing stopping Huaien from marching those mythical forces to the capital. Not that it would have helped much in the long run.

Daddy Wang was a Wang, you see; even if his legitimacy was suspect (and he actually tried for some with that false edict!), at the end of the day he still was a Wang of Langya with really solid credentials after serving as Prime Minister for something like a decade. Song Huaien is a nobody out of nowhere. Sorry, but it’s the truth! In order to hold onto the throne, he would need to be able to defeat every other possible claimant in the field; scaring them away also works. Sorry, but Song Huaien must be both criminally stupid and absolutely mad to think it can actually work out for him! Unless... his mind got totally bound up in this be Xiao Qi but better idea.

Not to mention that Xiao Qi is in Ningshuo, not dead. And while he might not care for the throne, there is still one thing in the capital he cares about, staged performance or no staged performance. Really, if Song Huaien was capable of logical thinking or any thinking at all, he would have taken Awu hostage... or sent her straight to Ningshuo as a sign of good will, if only to buy time to mobilize more forces before seeking a fight. What does he do instead...?

Well, he reads his current set of instructions out loud: I will have everything Xiao Qi has and everything he doesn’t have. And then, I kid you not, he asks Awu to be his Empress. Yeah, that’s a great idea. What the hell is wrong with you, Song Huaien? I get that you want to have what Xiao Qi had, but there is stupid and there is THIS. And I am not even speaking of the fact that Xiao Qi will kill you dead. You know what’s the first thing Awu does once Daddy Wang gets dragged away? She locates the nearest available weapon and calculates how to get to it. Which Song Huaien notices and so kicks the sword in question away. Yeah, I can already see how this Empress idea would work out.

Luckily, this time Awu doesn’t need to playact for her life, doesn’t need to walk a bleeding edge between survival and achieving her goals. This is no Hulan Arc 2.0, even if Song Huaien seems to be channeling Helan Zhen at the moment. This time Awu doesn’t need to worry about taking revenge or defending herself - her avenger and defender should be already inside the palace gates - and so she can let herself go.

That slap must have been so very satisfying! And she doesn’t even know how disgusting Song Huaien really is. See, I don’t think Yuxiu’s body has even managed to stiffen up properly before her husband proposed to her friend. UGH.

Xiao Qi’s timing is absolutely impeccable. Never has there been a rescue more timely nor more attractive that this one! Well, except for all those previous Xiao Qi Trademarked Rescues, but you get what I mean!

HELLOOOOOO, GENERAL!

Song Huaien gets skewered and this finally reboots his tiny brain! It resets it so hard that he returns to his original programming from way before the protect Awu set. Yup, he’s running an ancient Ningshuo brothers forever routine now.

Brother... Take me back to Ningshuo. I don’t want to stay in the capital anymore.

Well, I, for one, sincerely hope that Xiao Qi leaves you in a ditch once he realizes that both Yuxiu and Hu Yao are dead.

#the rebel princess #monarch industry #episode 68

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mightyfineblog · 4 years

Text

‘Give In To Me’ Joe Mazzello x Reader

Smut, smut, smut; hold it there good girl; teasing; orgasm control; bad girls get punished; l-bomb; don’t get daddy mad;

1.6k words of pure smut

A/n: This one is for all my Joe girls!

Enjoy:

“You didn’t just do this!” Joe pulled you in an alley on the side of the pavement.

“Have you lost your mind?” He hissed, squeezing your arm. His eyes were dark and angry.

“Ouch.” You tried to wriggle but his grip got harder.

“Let go of me.” You raised your voice, but his other hand covered your mouth stopping you in place, forcing you to look up to him.

“You, lovely…” he gulped his anger “do not get to act like a brat in public.”

Your breathing and heart beating were getting heavier by the second, the thoughts of his actions were flashing through your mind, giving you the pinch of excitement.

“It’s your fault.” You mumbled underneath his fingers on your mouth.

He lifted an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side. Running his tongue quickly to each corner of his mouth, caught your glimpse.

“Hm…” his body oozed confidence and dominance from every pore.

“Is that so?” not releasing his palm off your mouth, he lowered his head to your ear.

“Is my girl jealous?” His breath pierced through and sent shivers all over your body.

You felt intimidated and embarrassed right at the spot, and his body shutting every move you tried to make, didn’t help. You were helpless and all at his mercy.

“I think you, are.” He chuckled from the bottom of his throat before abruptly moving your chin to the side. He inhaled the smell of your neck and sucked his mouth onto it.

“J-Joe.” Your eye rolled back and knees got weak, when you felt his luscious lips against your jaw.

“P-please.” You breathed out when his hand released your mouth and slid down your thigh.

His sweet torture suddenly stopped when he let go of you all at once and turned around.

“Damn it.” He ran his hand through his hair.

“You.” He turned around and pointed at your painting figure, but didn’t say a word more.

“You make me loose control and do stupid things.” You finally spoke.

“You, should be controlling yourself.” He exhaled and took your hands in his.

“Who was she?” you hissed.

“Does it matter?” he pulled you in his brace.

“Okay, okay, I may.. be a bit jealous.” You rolled your eyes and rested your head on his shoulder.

“Wait until we get home, baby girl.” He slapped your bum “I’ll make sure you know that I’ve eyes only for you.” He squeezed your bum and met your lips for a demanding kiss. Biting your lower lip, you were ready to melt in his hands.

“Keep it for later, baby…” his strong hands embraced your whole body.

“Now, behave, or else.” He let go of you and pointed you out. You were all hot and bothered from the adrenaline rush but walked out back into the restaurant.

Though you were sure, you’d be getting it real good when you get home, you were still nervous about this woman shifting around your man in her little number. So that thought kept you on your toes for the rest of the night. Joe, of course, sniffed your tension, and would pay attention to her instead of you, just to give you a hard time.

When the two of you finally got into the car, you were more than hot and certainly more than bothered.

“You are such a dick!” you hit the lid of the compartment in front of you.

“Careful.” Joe hissed in a warning tone.

“Careful? You were the one who was flirting with some other woman the whole night!” you raised your voice.

“I told you earlier. It is nothing.” He hit the pedal making you lie flat on your seat.

“Plus, you’re the one who made a little scene…” his knuckles were white on the steering wheel. His right hand slid off right to your thigh. His touch made the breath hit your throat. He noticed and an evil smirk appeared on the side of his lip.

“And yet, you’re frustrated and” his hand moved up and squeezed, making you buckled your knees together “excited.”

“I’d tell, watching me flirt and pay attention to somebody else tonight, gets you going. Pushes your buttons.” His fingers slid up more until reaching your knickers where he applied pressure.

His actions were already making you wet enough for you to confess.

“Talk to me.” He kept making cirlces againt your core, sendind shiveres all over again and again.

“I….” you moaned.

“It pissed me, seeing you… with … her … and… not… me!” you squeacked at the last word, when his finger passed your underwear and attached straight to your sensitive bud.

“You were sayin, love?” He cooed.

You could feel Joe’s wild side come in, prevailing over his body, like poison taking over his bloodstream. His eyes were dark and body strong and demanding.

“Please.” You mumbled, when your senses started to heat up.

“Please, what?” his lips formed a smirk.

“Please, daddy?” You were hoping for the right guess.

“Ahh, baby. You sound so sweet, I could take you right here, right now.” His husky voice oozed in your ears, giving you shivers.

“What’s stopping, you then?” You bit your lower lip.

“Not when I’m driving.” his hand released the sweet torture on your core, just when your breath had started to hitch your throat.

“I’ll take care of you at home.” He gave your thigh a tiny slap.

You were left panting and anticipating the moment he pulls up the driveway, just to see what he does next.

“Let’s go.” He turned off the roaring engine and hopped off. You followed like a little kid, following lollypop.

Once inside, you waited with anticipation, but Joe didn’t seem too bothered.

“joe…” you walked up to him and situated yourself in his lap.

“Oh Joe…” you rubbed your body against his, resting your head on his shoulder.

“You alright, baby girl?” He nonchalantly asked.

“You haven’t forgotten me, right?” You moaned, rocking yourself against his hips, trying to get the smallest of release, you could.

“I’m showing you, exactly how much I love you.” He hissed and slid his hands up your dress.

“In fact.” He quickly switched places and was on top of you now.

“I’m going to show you, exactly what you’re getting. And why you should never do such scenes in public, little girl.” He stood up and took his belt off.

“What do you say? You’ve been bad, huh?” his raspy voice brought you to your knees.

“Gotta punish you now, don’t we?... bend over.” He demanded.

“W-what? With the belt?...” you bit your lip.

“You’re going to enjoy it more than it would hurt, I promise…” he gave you a sweet kiss on the lips.

“Now bend over my knees.”

You compliantly did so. Joe exposed your bum and played with the hem of your knickers. Massaging your bum cheecks he broke the silence.

“Count with me to 5…” he sounded excited and calm in the same time.

“Only if you kiss it better afterwards.” You perked your arse a little higher.

Before you knew it his first slap had hit your skin.

“Fuck!” you squaked.

“Count!” his hand massaged the place.

“One.” It wasn’t that bad.

“two” you squeaked even higher.

“’three” you cried out when the third slap came, making your eyes blur.

“Can you take two more?” he prompted, massaging the red skin of your bum.

“Yes, daddy.” You couldn’t hold the excitement forming in your stomach.

“that’s right baby girl.” The next two slaps came through very fast.

Before you knew it, Joe had you flipped on your back.

“Will you make a scene like this ever again?” He took off your knickers and slid down his trousers.

“No.” you shook your head with teary eyes.

“Not convinced yet baby.” He lowered himself over you and kissed you passionately.

“I will never leave you for another. You just have to give in to me. Say it.”

“Please. Please fuck me.” Your hands buried in his hair. Digging your nails, pulling his hair strands when he entered your hot and dripping wetness.

“Fuck.” His head fell on your shoulder.

“God, you’re so tiny, you feel amazing.” He kissed you and started thrusting slowly at first. He then picked up the speed.

“I’m so close, daddy.” You whined, being already at the edge for some time.

“Hold it for daddy. Be a good girl and I’ll let you cum with me.” He stated, moving his hand between your bodies. Finding your clit, he rubbed it, makin it harder for you to hold the explosion forming in your stomach.

“Please.” You begged.

“So needy today. Okay. You can cum with me.” He sloppily thrusted a few more times.

“Now.” He grunted, releasing his hot mess all inside if you, filling you completely. This was more than the push you needed to come, you exploded with shaking orgasm. You body convulsing uncontrollably underneath his for what felt like the longest time ever.

“God, I love you.” Je kissed you on the lips.

“I love you too.” You mumbled with last breaths.

“Stay. I want to feel you some more.” You kissed him again.

“I really want you fuck me like this more often.” You managed after you were able to catch your breath.

“Funny. I thought you liked being a good girl….” He poked your nose.

“Just keep cuddling to my arms, please.” He smiled and took you in.

“I can never image me anywhere else…” you sighed and snuggled.

#Joe mazzello #joe mazzello smut #joe mazzello x reader #joe mazzello x reader smut #joe mazzello imagine #joe mazzello fanfiction #joe mazzello fanfic #joe mazzello fic #joe mazzello daddy #mighyfineblog #joe mazzello angst #joe mazzello borhap #borhap smut #borhap imagine smut #borhap fanfiction #bohemian rhapsody smut #ben hardy smut #ben hardy imagine

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heyyyharry · 4 years

Text

Chapter 9: To The Grave

(from ‘The Winter and The Crown’)

…in which Harry remembers something.

Word count: 5.3k

AU: queen!y/n, commander!harry

Description: Y/N and Harry set off on a new adventure to find ‘the cure’ for an ancient curse, meanwhile, the enemies are plotting to take her kingdom.

Wattpad link (Reyna as Y/N)

Jo lit a lantern in the corner, shut the window, and started changing out of her heavy dress into her nightgown. She could feel Mary's intrusive gaze burning holes on her naked back. She tried to ignore it. She tried to ignore Mary. She didn't know how long she'd have to share a room with this witch. Probably until Y/N returned.

If Y/N returned.

Unfortunately, she couldn't even worry about that in peace with the witch stalking her like her own shadow.

"Don't you have better things to do than watch me change?" she asked, wrapping a thin coat around herself as she padded straight to her bed. She wasn't looking at Mary, yet she could feel a smile in the witch's voice.

"You're very pretty."

Jo thought about saying thanks. But she didn't. Mary didn't deserve her thanks. "Go to sleep," she said. "There's a lot to do tomorrow."

As Jo lay down on her back, pulled the covers up to her chest and placed her hands on her stomach, Mary was still sitting crossed-legged on the bed beside her, watching.

"I'm serious. Go to sleep."

"I can't."

"Lie down and close your eyes."

There was only silence. Mary still wasn't moving. Jo let out a harsh sigh then turned over, facing away from the witch. "Stay up then. I don't care."

"Thank you for today."

Jo hadn't expected that, so she was speechless for a moment. "What do you mean?"

Mary giggled softly. "I thought you hated me after what I'd said the other day."

Jo scoffed and shook her head. "All I did today was let you help the maids. It didn't change how I felt about you."

"Oh," Mary replied quietly. She sounded so sad that Jo almost apologised. But then Jo remembered that the whole reason Y/N was out there on her own on this cold winter night was because of Mary, and she immediately stopped feeling guilty.

"Thank you anyway," Mary whispered as Jo didn't speak. Jo heard the sound of sheets ruffling, and the candle beside Mary's bed was blown out. Darkness engulfed the room. Jo shut her eyes and listened to the crackling sound of wood logs burning in the fireplace. The Northwind was whistling outside her window. She let her mind wander, wondering what Y/N might be doing right now, if Harry was still alive, if Lance was still awake.

Those thoughts turned to worry, and worry kept her alert. She ended up lying there, staring at the window. Moonlight left a white square on the carpet. She could see the snowflakes twirling slowly as they fell. Her heartbeats slowed and her breathing became in sync with Mary's. She suddenly wondered if Mary had already nodded off. Why would she care, though? It didn't matter if Mary was awake or not.

"You can't sleep, either?"

The voice startled her even though it was the softest she'd ever heard. She looked over her shoulder to see Mary with her eyes wide open, gazing at the ceiling. Mary turned slowly, and their eyes locked in the semi-darkness. A smile messed up her already scarred face as she spoke, "You know what my sisters and I used to do when we couldn't sleep?"

Jo hated herself for wanting to continue this conversation. "What?" she asked with a sigh.

Mary excitedly sat up on the bed like a happy child. "We braid each other's hair! Distraction and concentration will get us sleepy."

"I'm not braiding your hair, witch."

"Oh, I'd do yours. You don't have to do mine. You have really pretty hair."

Jo squeezed her eyes shut as she exhaled sharply. "Fine."

"Yes!"

Jo pushed herself up. Mary got out of her bed. Instead of sitting down, she stood there, waiting for permission. Jo was probably too exhausted to think straight because, for a second, she thought it was so nice of her.

She scooted over and patted down on the mattress. Mary sat down crossed-legged as Jo turned her back to the witch, letting her luscious blonde hair fall to her lower back. She and Y/N used to do this all the time. Y/N wasn't good at lady-like things. Mary, on the other hand, was rather skilful.

"You were telling the truth. You've done this a lot," Jo remarked.

"What do you mean?" Mary giggled. "Why would I lie about braiding my sisters' hair?"

"I'm sorry. Trust issues," Jo said, making Mary giggle again. It was then that Jo realized that she liked the sound of it.

"I used to braid Y/N's hair. Not since she was crowned Queen, though."

"Because the King was always here?"

"Yeah," Jo said, trying not to sound sad or disappointed. She waited for Mary's intrusive questions, knowing she had plenty of those piling on her tongue. But there was only silence. "Go on. Say it."

"What?"

"I know you want to say something."

"Oh." Mary let out a snort, her fingers frozen in Jo's hair. "I just wanted to say that...the Queen is so lucky to be adored by so many people."

Jo curved her lips. "Well, I wouldn't say 'lucky'. Too much of something is never a good thing. Even if it's love."

"I wouldn't know."

"What do you mean?"

"I've never been loved. Never would be," Mary said, sounding more amused than upset and resumed working on the braid. "I was beautiful, you know."

"Yes. Y/N told me."

"Harry thought I looked like her."

"I could imagine."

"And I used to think that looks were all that mattered, but that's not true."

Jo swallowed as her shoulders slumped. She had thought beauty was a weapon, too. Using it so freely had been the biggest mistake she'd ever made. Sometimes she thought if it hadn't been for her, maybe Harry and Y/N never would have met. It wouldn't mean Y/N would love her, but maybe they would have run away together and have a new life in a cottage somewhere in the forest, far away from here, safe. Even so, she knew this was Y/N's destiny, and she was just a boring side character in it.

"Done," Mary said. Her cold fingers rested on Jo's bare shoulders, making her flinch. Jo thought about pulling away, but Mary gave her shoulders a squeeze and it was so comforting that Jo didn't even want to move.

"You're right," she said, staring at the moonlight on the floor. "I'm getting quite sleepy now."

"So am I," Mary said, yawning. Her fingers slipped right off Jo's skin, and Jo could finally let go of the breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

"Good night, Josephine," Mary said.

"Good night," Jo said, lying back down with her back facing Mary.

"Your Majesty! The emissary from Theros is waiting for you in the throne room."

All eyes skipped to Lance, who was sitting at the end of the meeting table. The announcement had struck him like lightning. He wasn't expecting any emissary, especially one from Theros.

"What's his name?" Lance asked, leaning back in his high chair.

"Lord Wallace, Your Grace."

George Wallace. Lance had met him once at one of Lance's father's annual balls. If Lance remembered correctly, Wallace was a short fat man with a kind face. He used to be King Edgar's most trusted advisor. The fact that he'd travelled all the way here on Calanthe's command was rather suspicious, yet it was unbelievable that he could be a part of Calanthe's evil scheme.

"Would you like to see him now or should I–"

"I'll see him now," Lance said, rising from his chair. The ministers all rose and bowed their heads as Lance made his way to the door and followed the guard into the corridor.

Did George Wallace know that Y/N was absent? Would he still speak to Lance without the Queen's presence? Should Lance be concerned already? There hadn't been any news on what Calanthe was up to, so this could be as bad as he feared.

Lance told the guards to make sure the gates leading in and out of the castle were secure, then he entered the throne room with only two escorts, not wanting to alert the emissary.

As expected, George Wallace didn't look shocked to see Lance instead of the Queen. His nonchalance made Lance's stomach shrivel. It seemed like Wallace already knew that the Queen wouldn't be here. But how could he know that when nothing from Isolde could cross the border to Theros?

"Sir Wallace," Lance said from the high throne. "What a pleasure to meet you again."

"It's my pleasure, Your Majesty," said Wallace with a hand on his chest. "I travelled all the way here to see Her Majesty. Is she not here?"

Even with that question, the look on his face revealed that he already knew the answer.

"No, my Queen is away for two weeks," Lance said, "but whatever you're here to discuss, you could discuss with me."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Wallace said with a scornful smirk.

Lance gathered his fingers into fists. If he could lock this man up for giving an attitude, he would do it without a second thought.

"Queen Calanthe of the high and low courts of Theros sent me here to discuss the matter of war and peace between the two kingdoms."

"War and peace?" Lance tried his best not to scoff as he rested his chin on his knuckles, drumming the fingers of his other hand on the armrest of the throne. "So your Queen admitted to wanting to start a war with Isolde."

"Well, Your Majesty, my Queen has always loved peace–"

"Surely," Lance muttered. If Wallace had heard him, it didn't show.

"But there has been some tension between the two kingdoms since King Egon sent an assassin to murder his own uncle, our beloved King Edgar."

"Has there been a trial?"

"Pardon, Your Majesty?"

"A trial for King Egon," Lance said breezily. "You called my betrothed's late brother a murderer in front of my face in her court, so I'm just wondering if I missed a trial or anything that proved that King Egon had been behind the murder."

Wallace worked his jaw for a second and soon managed to regain his composure. "No, Your Majesty."

"Then I advise you to watch your words, Sir Wallace."

"My apology, Your Majesty. May I say it again? There has been some tension between the North and the South since King Egon supposedly sent an assassin to murder King Edgar."

The corner's of Lance's lips arched in contempt as he chuckled. "Let's just get straight to the point, my lord. What does your Queen propose?"

"Our Queen has enough power to win this war if it's to happen, so she wants to give Queen Y/N a chance to keep Isolde. She wants to have power over twenty low courts in the North."

"You're joking."

"I'm afraid not, Your Majesty."

Lance narrowed his eyes as he sucked in a breath. "Bold of you to come in here and say these words to my face," he said slowly yet angrily.

Wallace, on the other hand, looked as calm as ever. "Those aren't my words, Your Majesty," he said. "I'm only the Queen's messenger."

Lance held the man's gaze for a long moment. He knew Wallace wasn't forced to be here. He was proud to be here and to witness Lance's reaction to this insulting offer to report back to his Queen.

"I'll have to wait for my Queen to return to discuss with her," Lance said coldly. Of course, he knew Y/N would never agree. He would never agree. Calanthe probably already knew it and had only sent Wallace here to taunt him. Whatever her motives were, it was better to have Wallace here and keep an eye on him than let him go back to that snake.

Wallace didn't look at all disappointed in Lance's response as he happily said, "I'd also love to stay to meet the Queen, Your Grace."

"Good," Lance breathed and waved for one of his guards. "I assume you must be tired after that long journey, Lord Wallace. You'll be escorted to your room and treated as our guest."

Wallace gave a bow before he followed the guards to the door where he stopped and turned around. "What a beautiful ring you have, Your Majesty."

Lance tried his best to look unbothered as he peered at the red stone on his finger. "It's one of a kind."

"It must be," Wallace said. "It's...glowing."

Lance mustered a single smile as he tightened his fists. With caution, he watched the guard escort the emissary out of the room.

Y/N knew Harry felt bad about what had happened because he would keep initiating conversations with her. She wanted to laugh and smile and act like nothing was wrong so he'd know she wasn't mad at him. Sadly, she hadn't felt good since she put the knife into that man's throat. It wasn't easy to kill someone and walk away like nothing had happened. She'd thrown up as soon as she'd woken up. Thankfully, Harry wasn't there to see it.

The old Harry wouldn't have judged her without knowing the reasons behind her actions. What was worse than the feeling of guilt she had to carry after killing that man, was the way Harry had looked at her before and after. He didn't trust her, so how could he expect her to trust him?

If she told him that her marriage with Lance was fake, and that she and Lance had been putting on a show and acting like they were in love to win the people's sympathy – the star-crossed lovers who could not live happily ever after because Calanthe was out for their blood – what could guarantee that he wouldn't run around spreading the words? He didn't have to tell every single soul he knew. Just one and the rest would hear it the next day. She could not risk that.

However, she should have told him about the deer, the moon lady, and the shadow man. She hadn't thought that she should, because it wouldn't have made any difference. She was the only one who could see the lady and the man, and only she could hear the deer talk. He wouldn't be able to help. Still, she'd need to tell him everything from now on. They were stuck in these woods together, and the only way for them to survive was to not keep secrets like that. She guessed she'd been at fault, too. They both had been wrong.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

She nodded even though she was holding onto the reins for her dear life. Harry stopped his horse, hopped onto the ground and helped her dismount Thunder. She felt like fainting, probably because she hadn't eaten since yesterday's afternoon. He gave her some water and bread and they sat by a tree, eating and watching the clouds roll by as if this was completely normal.

"We don't know where we're going," she said, hating the silence. "We could be walking in circles this whole time."

Harry blew out his cheeks as he rested both arms on his knees. "Well, if we can't find the lake, at least we could hope that we'd be able to find our way back."

Y/N said nothing. She could not tell him that the kind of magic that had erased his memory had taken away many years of his life. For all she knew, he could die tomorrow. If she told him that, would he be more determined to find the lake? Or would he want to give up for her own sake? Knowing Harry, she believed it would be the latter. He'd tell her that he didn't have anything to lose while she had too much to lose.

"You're not still mad at me, are you?" he asked, quietly.

When she looked up, he was giving her a speculative kind of look.

"No," she said flatly.

"Are you telling the truth?"

"See? You still don't trust me."

To her surprise, he burst out laughing. "See?" he mimicked her tone, shaking his head. "You're still mad at me."

She didn't reply, only sneered at him.

"Ask me anything," he said.

She blinked. "What?"

"Ask me anything and I'll answer honestly. To prove that I trust you."

"I know a lot about you, you know."

"I know." He grinned. "You could ask me something you don't know or something you already know to test me."

Y/N wetted her lips as she glanced skyward. She took a moment to sort out her thoughts. "Tell me...the most memorable day of your childhood."

Harry pursed his lips, thinking. "Well, I was seven or so. Kenny and I chased after this rabbit into the forest and found a rabbit family. We brought two little ones back home and were very excited to take care of them. The next day, they both ended up being cooked for dinner. Kenny and I cried so hard. I probably cried more than she did because I really loved my bunny."

He buried his face into his palms and burst out laughing as he finished his story. Meanwhile, Y/N sat there, gawking at him with a stone-cold expression. As soon as Harry saw it, his laughter died down at once.

"I'm sorry," he said, clearing his throat. "I should not have laughed. Poor bunnies."

Y/N shook her head as she mustered a smile. "No...it's just..."

"Just what?"

It's not the right answer, she wanted to say. She'd ask him this question before, and every single time, his answer would be the night he was working in the kitchen at her uncle's dinner party. Maybe that night didn't exist in his mind anymore. Because all the memories relating to her had been erased.

"Have I told you that story before?" he asked.

"Yeah," she lied.

He groaned in disappointment but was quick to smile again. "See? I trust you."

"I suppose," she sighed, rolling her eyes. "All right. Now you get to ask me a question."

"Really?"

"Yes. I just gave you permission."

Harry rubbed his palms together mischievously, making Y/N laugh.

"Oh, I was going to ask you something embarrassing," he said, "but I have a more important question that I've been wanting to ask."

"And that would be?"

Harry looked oddly reluctant, so Y/N was slightly worried about what he wanted to know. "I...um..." he began to stutter. "Well...the night in the cave...um...after I'd saved you from the river."

The fact that his face reddened as soon as he brought it up was too hilarious. Y/N was trying her best not to crack up and interrupt him.

"I tried to keep you conscious by asking you a question," he said. "I asked you to tell me your most precious memory. And you said...sunset. That was it."

"Oh."

"What does it mean?"

Y/N knew exactly what it meant. She could picture the scene in her head. Wind in his hair. Tears in her eyes. And she could still hear his voice telling her, "I fell in love with you at sunset."

"I don't know," she lied again, peeling her eyes off his in fear that he might notice her dishonesty. "I forgot. Maybe I just...didn't know what you were asking."

"Oh, that makes sense," he said, sounding unbothered.

And so she told herself that he believed her only so she could stop thinking about it. "We should get going. It gets dark quickly."

"We really should," Harry agreed, stood up and gave her a hand. Y/N got back to her feet then released him as fast as she could. And as she got onto Thunder's back, she could feel that his eyes were still watching her.

They kept on moving. It wasn't too long until the last daylight had faded and darkness took over the forest. Having spent over a week on this mountain, the dark shapes of trees had become familiar yet unusually comforting to Y/N. She still missed the palace, her soft warm bed, and sleeping in somebody's arms and not having to wake up crying over a nightmare.

But it didn't matter anymore, because she was now familiar with the cold and darkness; she was no longer afraid. Loneliness, however, was something she could never get used to. And the fact that Harry was with her this whole time, yet it felt like she was on her own, made her think that things could never go back to the way they'd been before she'd lost him. Sometimes, like earlier, he would look at her like the part that loved her was still fighting for its freedom. Sadly, most of the time, he felt like a stranger.

Maybe she should just give up, let him go like she'd said she would. One would always be happier without the burden of the past. It was easier for her to say otherwise because she had never been in his shoes. But it was human nature to choose the easy way out. So if the same thing had happened to her, she might have also chosen to forget.

It didn't have to hurt. They could still be happy. Just not together. She already had someone who loved her back home, someone she would marry, someone that would be by her side as she ruled a kingdom, someone whom her people would accept. And she knew she loved Lance; she just wasn't sure if it was the same way that she loved Harry, but feelings could grow, given time. As for Harry, he could travel the world, be whoever he wanted to be, or he could go back to his family, and he'd meet new people, fall in love and have children. She would get over him eventually. She'd lost so many people and moved on. She could do it again...

"Your Majesty."

Y/N blinked fast and caught Harry staring at her with an unreadable expression.

"You seemed distracted."

"Sorry." She cleared her throat, hurrying around the trees to catch up with him and the horses. The moon was bright tonight and the air was cold, so they'd decided to get off their horses and walk to keep themselves warm. "You were saying?"

Harry thinned his lips. "I said I remembered something."

"Yeah, what is it?"

"No...I mean...I had this vision just now...I remember something."

Y/N felt a hard quick pulse in her throat as shock froze her to the spot. She gaped at him as he looked skyward as if trying to keep that memory from slipping away. Her heart beat faster, pounding against her ribcage so hard it hurt.

"We were setting off on a journey," he started, his eyes pinched shut as he kneaded his temple. "You, me, the King and many others."

"And?" she prompted, impatiently.

"You...you told me to stay alive."

"It was the day of the attack," Y/N said quickly, her voice quavering. "What-what else do you remember?"

He swallowed, the look in his eyes softened as they met hers. "I-I wanted to hug you, but I think I wasn't allowed to. That...that was also the last thing on my mind before I lost consciousness...I wished I'd held you one last time."

Y/N could not utter a single word. She threw both arms around his neck and together they ended up in a heap on the snow-covered ground. She was laughing uncontrollably and he was, too, even though she could tell how confused he was.

"You remember..." she whispered, arms tightened around his neck.

Carefully, he placed his hands on her back and pressed her closer against him. "Well, not a lot, but–" she sensed a smile in his voice, "you do give great hugs."

She pulled back and cupped his face. "This is good. This is very good. Believe me. You will remember everything."

Was it the cold or had his cheeks turned a bit red? Well, it didn't matter. She was already too happy. The first memory of her that had returned had been the last one he'd had of her. Maybe he'd start remembering backwards. If so, it wouldn't be too long until he remembered how much he'd loved her.

It took Y/N a moment to realize that she was still on top of him, so she hurriedly apologized and pushed herself up off the ground.

He chuckled as she adjusted her clothes and asked him if he was all right.

"Your hugs are as violent as I expected," he teased, head tilted to the side. "But it's all right. I liked that." There was a quiet moment before he went on, "I think some of the things in my dreams were real memories, too."

"Yeah?" She hated how elated she sounded even though he didn't seem to notice as he gave a nod.

"I just can't tell them apart. I think I need more time."

Y/N swallowed, keeping her voice calm and steady. "I understand."

She hated it, though. Time. But she didn't mind waiting as long as Harry wasn't giving up.

"Please be patient with me."

At first, Y/N thought that those words were her own. When she realized they were his, she looked at him with her eyes wide and mouth open, wondering if he'd hit his head when she'd knocked him to the ground.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

He suddenly seemed reluctant and shy. "I thought about what you said, and...also...that memory of you made me think...you meant a lot to me in the past." He looked up and their eyes met. "So I want to remember."

She pressed her lips together, trying to compose herself before saying, "Good," with a single nod. Her heart blossomed as she watched dimples appear on his pink cheeks. There was a look of wonder in his eyes as he cocked his head to the side and said, "There's something in your hair."

She froze as he outstretched his arm, and his fingers brushed gently over a strand of her hair. A tiny bit of light dashed up over her head, startling them both.

"A firefly!" Y/N exclaimed.

There wasn't just one.

All around them, fireflies, thousands of them, appeared from the trees and the grass. It felt like they were walking through stars.

"I've never seen so many fireflies before," Y/N said.

"Maybe they're not really fireflies. Maybe they're the spirits of the forest trying to tell us something."

"I hope they won't kill us."

"What are you talking about?" Harry scoffed, waving away a swarm of light by his head. "They're harmless."

Y/N let out a nervous laugh as the fireflies danced around her feet. "This reminds me of the ballroom on my tenth birthday," she said. "They put up decorations that looked like a thousand fireflies!" Then she threw her arms over her head, got on her tiptoes and did a twirl. Harry chuckled as she offered him a hand. "Would you like to dance?"

He shook his head fast, hands clasped together behind him. "Oh no, I don't dance."

"Yes, you do," she said, giggling. "You're just not good at it."

"I'd rather not embarrass myself in front of you, Your Majesty," he made a face and glanced around, "or our new friends."

Y/N scoffed as she rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, come on. Don't kill the joy. I'll guide you." Without waiting for him to say yes, she grabbed him by the hand and pulled him in. He let out a surprised gasp. The startled look on his face was soon replaced by a nervous grin. "Put this hand on my waist. Now hold my other hand. That's right. Don't think. Just follow my lead."

And so they started to dance without music in a sea of fireflies. Harry was careless and kept stepping on her foot and apologising for it only to do it again. It took him a moment to finally relax and realize that she wasn't going to murder him for not being able to dance. Then it didn't matter who was taking the lead anymore; they were just dancing like they were the only two living creatures in these woods, like time had stood still, and this moment was all that they had.

If they died in the morning and this was the last memory they shared, Y/N would be happy to take it with her to the grave.

"There you are. What took you so long?"

"I had to wait for the Lady-in-waiting to sleep."

The tiny figure pulled the hood over his head, revealing his round face under the dim firelight from the lantern Mary was holding. They were in the courtyard. Mary had been in the castle long enough to know that the guard, who was supposed to be watching this area, would always give himself a long break at this hour.

"She killed one of our men," George Wallace said, glancing nervously around to make sure no one was here but the two of them.

"What?"

"That bitch," he hissed. "Soon Queen Calanthe will rule over one hundred kingdoms and I cannot wait to see what she'd do to the brat."

Mary wanted to say that Calanthe was around the same age as Queen Y/N, but she wasn't going to have a debate with Wallace right here right now.

"The Queen wants me to check on you."

"I'm fine," she said, putting an arm around herself guardedly. "They treat me well." Too well. Sometimes she allowed herself to forget that she was here as a spy, not a guest.

"The Queen doesn't care how they treat you, idiot," Wallace said coldly. "She wants to make sure that you didn't lie to her about the lake. It seemed like Y/N didn't know where she was going."

"The lake does exist," Mary said. "Believe me. Y/N is the only way for us to find it. Blood calls to blood."

She wasn't sure if her words had pacified Wallace. It was hard to tell as he always seemed harmless yet he was one of the most calculated men in the Theros court.

"I must go now," he said, securing his robe. But instead of leaving right away, he eyed her up and down and lowered his voice. "They have been treating you well, haven't they?"

"Yes."

"Mmmm." He lifted his non-existent chin. "If you betray the Queen, the Monks will know about it." Mary swallowed at the thoughts. "They'll make sure to put up your ugly head at the gate after we've won the war."

Just like that, he turned and walked away. Mary clenched her teeth and her fists as she waited until his tiny figure was out of sight to return to her room. She had wanted nothing more than to break Wallace's neck, but it didn't mean what he'd said wasn't true.

No matter how well these people had been treating her, it was either her or them. And she didn't survive this long to continue putting other people's lives above her own.

#harry styles #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles series #harry styles writing #harry styles x you #harry styles x y/n #harry styles x reader #tctm series

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papermoonloveslucy · 3 years

Text

TIME: A CLOWN WITH GLAMOUR

May 26, 1952

TIME: The Weekly News Magazine ~ Lucille Ball: Prescription for TV; a clown with glamour. May 26, 1952.

On Monday evenings, more than 30 million Americans do the same thing at the same time: they tune in ‘I Love Lucy’ (9 p.m. E.D.T., CBS-TV), to get a look at a round-eyed, pink-haired comedienne named Lucille Ball.

An ex-model and longtime movie star (54 films in the past 20 years), Lucille Ball is currently the biggest success in television. In six months her low-comedy antics, ranging from mild mugging to baggy-pants clowning, have dethroned such veteran TV headliners as Milton Berle and Arthur Godfrey. One of the first to see the handwriting on the TV screen was funnyman Red Skelton, himself risen to TV's top ten. Last February, when he got the award from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as the top comic of the year, Skelton walked to the microphone and said flatly: "I don't deserve this. It should go to Lucille Ball."

By this week, the four national TV rating services (Nielsen, Trendex, American Research Bureau and Videodex) were in unaccustomed agreement: each of them rated ‘I Love Lucy’ as the nation's No. 1 TV show.

Lumps & Pratfalls. The television industry is not quite sure how it happened. When Lucy went on the air last October, it seemed to be just another series devoted to family comedy, not much better or much worse than ‘Burns and Allen’, ‘The Goldbergs’, ‘The Aldrich Family’ or ‘Mama’. Like its competitors, Lucy holds a somewhat grotesque mirror up to middle-class life, and finds its humor in exaggerating the commonplace incidents of marriage, business and the home. Lucille's Cuba-born husband, Desi Arnaz, is cast as the vain, easily flattered leader of an obscure rumba band. Lucille plays his ambitious wife, bubbling with elaborate and mostly ineffectual schemes to advance his career.

But what televiewers see on their screens is the sort of cheerful rowdiness that has been rare in the U.S. since the days of the silent movies' Keystone Comedies. Lucille submits enthusiastically to being hit with pies; she falls over furniture, gets locked in home freezers, is chased by knife-wielding fanatics. Tricked out as a ballerina or a Hindu maharanee or a toothless hillbilly, she takes her assorted lumps and pratfalls with unflagging zest and good humor. Her mobile, rubbery face reflects a limitless variety of emotions, from maniacal pleasure to sepulchral gloom. Even on a flickering, pallid TV screen, her wide-set saucer eyes beam with the massed candlepower of a lighthouse on a dark night.

What is her special talent? TV men credit Lucille with an unfailing instinct for timing. Producer-Writer Jess Oppenheimer says: "For every word you write in this business, you figure you're lucky to get back 70-80% from a performer. With Lucille, you get back 140%." Broadway's Oscar (’South Pacific’) Hammerstein II, hailing Lucille's control, calls her a "broad comedienne, but one who never goes over the line." To her manager, Don Sharpe, Lucille is "close to the Chaplin school of comedy—she's got warmth and sympathy, and people believe in her, even while they're laughing at her."

Western Mirage. Lucille explains that the TV show is important because "I'm a real ham and so is Desi. We like to have an audience. We like being up on our toes." But the show also allows her some time with her ten-month-old daughter, Lucie Desirée, and for the first time in eleven years of trouping, gives her a home life with husband Desi. Says she: "I look like everybody's idea of an actress, but I feel like a housewife. I think that's what my trouble was in movies."

Actress Ball was a long time arriving at the calm waters of motherhood and housewifery. The daughter of Henry and Desirée Hunt Ball, she was born in Jamestown, N.Y. (near Buffalo) at what she calls "an early age." Pressed, she will concede that it was quite a while ago: she admits to being 40. Her father was an electrician whose job of stringing telephone wires carried him around the country. When Lucille was four, he died of typhoid in Wyandotte, Mich.

Lucille spent her childhood in Jamestown (1920 pop. 38,917), but managed to see very little of it. Mostly, she inhabited a dream world peopled by glamorous alter egos. Sometimes she imagined herself to be a young lady of great poise named Sassafrassa, who combined the best features of Pearl White, Mabel Normand and Pola Negri. Another make-believe identity was Madeline, a beauteous cowgirl who emerged from the pages of Zane Grey's melodramatic novel, ‘The Light of Western Stars’. To get authentic background for Madeline, young Lucille corresponded with the chambers of commerce of Butte and Anaconda, Mont. She read and reread their publicity handouts until she felt she knew more about Montana than the people who lived there. It was the powerful spirit of Madeline that caused her for many years to claim Butte, Mont., as her birthplace. Only in the most recent edition of Who's Who did she finally, grudgingly admit to being born in Jamestown, N.Y.

Horrses to Warter. While she lived there, Lucille did her best to rid Jamestown of dullness. Sometimes she gilded reality by imagining that the family chicken coop was her palace ("The chickens would become my armies"). She remembers that she was always unmanageable in the spring. "I'd leave the classroom for a drink of water and never come back. I'd start walking toward what I thought was New York City and keep going until someone brought me home."

By the time she left high school at 14, she had staged virtually a one-man performance of ‘Charley's Aunt’ ("I played the lead, directed it, cast it, sold the tickets, printed the posters, and hauled furniture to the school for scenery and props"). In a Masonic musical revue, she put so much passion into an Apache dance that she threw one arm out of its socket. Jamestown citizens still remember her explosive personality with wonder: it took quite a while for the dust to settle in Jamestown when Lucille finally left for Manhattan at the age of 15.

Probably because of the dreamy mental state induced by Sassafrassa and Madeline, Lucille is not too clear about dates, events and people. In New York,

she headed straight for John Murray Anderson's dramatic school. At the sound of her voice ("I used to say 'horrses' and 'warter' "), her teacher clapped hands to his forehead. Anderson tactfully told Lucille's mother that her daughter should try another line of work. Lucille made a stab at being a secretary and a drugstore soda jerk, but found both occupations dull. She answered chorus calls for Broadway musicals with a marked lack of success. When she even lost a job in the chorus of the third road company of ‘Rio Rita’, a Ziegfeld aide told her: "It's no use, Montana. You're not meant for show business. Go home."

Periodically, Lucille did go home to Jamestown. But she returned again and again to the assault on New York. She managed to get into the chorus of ‘Stepping Stones’, and held on until the choreographer announced that she wanted only girls who could do toe work ("I couldn't even do heel work"). Lucille turned to modeling, progressed from the wholesale garment houses through department stores to the comparative eminence of Hattie Carnegie. She still has a warm feeling for people in the garment trade, because "they're the nearest thing to show business in the outside world. They're temperamental and jealous. I like them." She had a great many admirers. One of them, Britain's actor Hugh Sinclair, says: "She disarmed you. You saw this wonderful, glamorous creature, and in five minutes she had you roaring with laughter. She was gay, warmhearted and absolutely genuine."

As a model, Lucille called herself Diane Belmont, choosing her name in honor of Belmont Park Race Track, where fashion shows are sometimes staged. But it was another few years before Lucille finally got her break. She was walking up Broadway past the Palace Theater when she met agent Sylvia Hahlo coming down from the Goldwyn office. Sylvia grabbed her and cried breathlessly: "How would you like to go to California? They're sending a bunch of poster girls there for six weeks for a picture. One of the girls' mothers has refused to let her go."

$50 to $ 1,500. The movie was ‘Roman Scandals’, starring Eddie Cantor, and it was six months instead of six weeks in the making. Lucille was grimly determined to keep her foot in the Hollywood door. She got a succession of bit parts in such movies as ‘Moulin Rouge’ and ‘The Affairs of Cellini’, worked for three months with the roughhouse comics known as The Three Stooges ("It was one continuous bath of Vichy water and lemon meringue pie").

When RKO picked up her contract, she gradually emerged as a queen of B pictures, then began making program movies with comics Jack Oakie, Joe Penner and the Marx Brothers (’Room Service’). Her salary rose from $50 a week to $1,500 and her hair, already turned blonde from its original brown, now became a brilliant but indescribable shade that has been variously called ‘shocking pink' and 'strawberry orange.' While she was in ‘Dance, Girl, Dance’, and being hailed by Director Erich Pommer as a new 'find' (by then,

she had been playing in movies for six years), she met a brash, boyish young Cuban named Desi Arnaz.

Gold Initials. Desi had come to Hollywood to make the movie version of the Broadway hit, Too Many Girls. Taking one look at luscious (5 ft. 7 in., 130 Ibs.) Lucille, who was wearing a sweater and skirt, he cried: "Thass a honk o' woman!" and asked: "How would you like to learn the rumba, baby?" He took her for a ride in his blue convertible, with the gold initials on the door, and she shudderingly recalls that the only time the speedometer dipped below 100 m.p.h. was when he rounded a curve. On the way home, Desi hit a bump and, as Lucille tells it, a fender flew off. He simply flicked the ash from his Cuban cigarillo and sped on.

Lucille was as dazzled by his full name (Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y De Acha III) as by his history. The only child of a prosperous Cuban politician who had been mayor of Santiago and a member of the Cuban Senate, Desi had fled to Miami with his mother during the revolution of 1933. His father, a supporter of President Machado, was put in jail, and the Arnaz possessions disappeared in the revolution.

After six months, Desi's father was released from jail and rejoined his family in Miami, where he went into the export-import business. Desi, who was 16, enrolled in St. Patrick's High School (his closest friend was Al Capone's son Albert), and got a part-time job cleaning canary cages for a firm which sold birds to local drugstores. He soon found steadier work as a guitarist in a four-piece band incongruously called the Siboney Sextette. The critics agreed on Desi's meager musical gifts. "He was always off-beat," says theater owner Carlos Montalban. "But he's an awfully nice guy—a clean-cut Latin."

Conga Line. Whatever Desi had, it was something the public liked. He began beating a conga drum in Miami and soon nightclub audiences, from Florida to New York, were forming conga lines behind him. His good looks and unquenchable good humor interested producer George Abbott, who was searching for a Latin type to play a leading role in ‘Too Many Girls’. "Can you act?" asked Abbott. "Act?" answered Desi, expansively. "All my life, I act."

The courtship of Desi and Lucille was predictably stormy. Says a friend: "He's very jealous. She's very jealous—they're both very jealous." They were married in 1940, while Desi was leading his orchestra at the Roxy in New York and Lucille was between pictures in Hollywood. She flew in from the coast; they got up at 5 a.m. and drove to Connecticut, where they were married by a justice of the peace. Since they had no apartment, Desi compromised by carrying his bride across the threshold of his dressing room at the Roxy. Hollywood offered odds that the marriage would not last six weeks.

The marriage lasted better than six weeks, but after four years trouble blew. Desi kept moving about the country with his band, and Lucille, when not making pictures, mostly sat home alone. Their marriage was drifting on the rocks, and only World War II averted immediate shipwreck. Desi refused a commission in the Cuban army and was drafted into the U.S. infantry. He was moved on to Special Services, and spent much of the war shepherding USO troupes from one base to another.

In 1944, Lucille filed suit for divorce. She won an interlocutory decree but never got around to filing for her final papers. The reason: she and Desi were in the midst of a new reconciliation. But all the old difficulties remained. Lucille would sit night after night at the clubs where Desi's band was playing, but that resulted in rings under her eyes rather than a new intimacy. She tried cutting down on her movie work by starring in a CBS radio show called ‘My Favorite Husband’, and Desi also took a flyer at radio. They worked out a vaudeville act and toured U.S. theaters with their new routines.

Lucille credits Desi with being the one who was willing to take a chance on TV. "He's a Cuban," she says, "and all Cubans gamble. They'll bet you which way the tide is going and give you first pick." But it was a real gamble. Movie exhibitors do not look kindly upon movie stars who desert to the enemy. If the show flopped, Lucille would have no place to crawl back to. They told CBS that they would give television a try only if both of them could be on the same show. At first, they wanted to play themselves. They compromised by turning Desi into Ricky Ricardo, a struggling young bandleader, and letting Lucille fulfill her lifelong ambition of playing a housewife.

The decision to film the show also made CBS bigwigs uneasy. It would cost four times as much as a live show, and the only interested sponsor, Philip Morris, wasn't prepared to go that high. Again there was a compromise. Desi and Lucille agreed to take a smaller salary in return for producing the show and keeping title to the films.

Real Plumbing. Long years in the practical business of orchestra leading had given Desi considerable organizing ability and business sense. He set up Desilu Productions (Desi president, Lucille vice president), and leased a sound stage from an independent Los Angeles studio. Because Lucille was ‘dead' without an audience, a side wall of the studio was knocked out to make a street entrance, and seats installed for an audience of 300. When a show is ready for the cameras, the audience laughter is picked up on overhead microphones and used in the final print.

Though ‘I Love Lucy’ is filmed, it is more like a play than a movie. All of the lines and action are memorized and, whenever possible, the show is played straight through from beginning to end, and not shot in a number of unrelated scenes. The action takes place on four sets; two of them represent the Ricardos' Manhattan apartment, a third shows the nightclub where Ricky's band plays and the fourth is used for any other scenes called for by the script. Says Desi proudly: "We have real furniture, real plumbing, and a real kitchen where we serve real food. Even the plants are really growing; they're not phony."

Desilu Productions hired a pair of veteran troupers, William Frawley and Vivian Vance, to play the family next door and serve as foils and friends for Desi and Lucille. Academy Award-winning Karl (’The Good Earth’) Freund supervises the three cameras, and Director Marc Daniels (soon to be replaced by Bill Asher) gives Lucy its rattling pace. The writers—Jess Oppenheimer, Bill Carroll and Madalyn Pugh—turn out scripts that do not impose too much on the audience's credulity and are reasonably free of clichés. The writers are held in an esteem not common in TV. Lucille bombards Jess Oppenheimer with photographs flatteringly inscribed to "the Boss Man," and Desi has presented him with a statuette of a baseball player and a punning tribute, "To the man behind the ball."

"Wanta Play Cards?" Desi and Lucille live an unpretentious life on a five-acre ranch in the San Fernando Valley. The only Hollywood note is a kidney-shaped swimming pool, and the most recent addition to the house (a wing devoted to daughter Lucie and her nurse) cost $22,000—more than the house and land cost originally. Neither Desi nor Lucille has ever been socially ambitious, and their friends are the same ones they have known for years. Both Desi's mother (now divorced from Arnaz Sr., who still lives in Miami) and Lucille's Mom live nearby.

At home, Lucille, who collects stray cats and dogs, is an amateur painter ("I use oils because it's easier to correct mistakes than with water colors"), and generally considers herself a lazy, lounging homebody. She is fascinated by Desi's boundless energy.' He spends weekends fishing on his 34-foot cabin cruiser, Desilu; plays violent tennis; likes to cook elaborate dishes. Says Lucille: "Everything is fine with him all the time. Wanta play cards? Fine. Play games? Fine. go for a swim? Great." There's only one problem: "Desi is a great thermostat sneaker-upper and I'm a thermostat sneaker-downer. Cold is the one thing that isn't great with him."

Sex & Chic. Though life has grown noticeably more placid for Desi and Lucille, it promises more money than they ever made before. Desilu Productions has already branched out beyond ‘I Love Lucy’. It is filming TV commercials for Red Skelton, and is at work on a new TV series, ‘Our Miss Brooks’, starring Eve Arden. Three of the best 30-minute Lucy shows are being put together in a package and will be experimentally released to movie theaters in the U.S. and Latin America. This year, ‘I Love Lucy’ has grossed about $1,000,000, and sponsor Philip Morris has signed a contract for 39 more shows beginning this fall. All of the old Lucy films can be sold again as new TV stations go on the air (eventually there will be 2,053 TV transmitters in the U.S., compared to today's 108).

In reaching the TV top, Lucille's telegenic good looks may be almost as important as her talent for comedy. She is sultry-voiced, sexy, and wears chic clothes with all the aplomb of a trained model and showgirl. Letters from her feminine fans show as much interest in Lucille's fashions as in her slapstick. Most successful comediennes (e.g., Imogene Coca, Fanny Brice, Beatrice Lillie) have made comic capital out of their physical appearance. Lucille belongs to a rare comic aristocracy: the clown with glamour.

#Time Magazine #Lucille Ball #Time #Lucy #1952 #Desilu #Desi Arnaz #I Love Lucy #TV

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