#did living with my parents for one year after college really make that big of a difference?

[bbybaku]

BOY NEXT DOOR SHIG

i actually really like this one. like might be my fav thing I've ever posted lol. slow burn i fear. ends w smut. as always

follows the American academic calendar sorry its all i know and it'll make sense why at the end

5k ish words (sorry idk how this one got so long)

warnings: uhh slow burn, smut, multiple positions, make out, dirty talk, choking, dom shig, slight voyeurism, slight exhibitionism

you went to college a little over an hour away from where your parents lived.

which meant you only really went home and stayed with them on school breaks. Summer, Thanksgiving, Christmas break.

You didnt think or wish to be back at your parent's house, your whole life was at college. Your friends, your stuff, your job.

That was until your parents got a new neighbor over the summer.

He was tall and kind of lanky. He had long fluffy blueish-white hair that was a little past his shoulders and always slightly in his face.

You saw him and what looked like his dad moving in.

Their new house was the one right next to your bedroom window.

Your parents went next door to introduce themselves. They came back and told you that the boy was only a year older than you and he was also in college.

You asked more questions, what school? What is his name? Does he live at home? is he on social media?

but they said they didnt know. They told you to go over and introduce yourself but you had a better idea.

You knew better then to open your bedroom window. For all you knew the new boys dad could be in the room directly next to yours.

But you did it anyway. You took down the curtains, opened the blinds and opened your window.

It was summer after all.

You never got the opportunity to talk to the boy over the summer.

You saw him in passing.

He was akward. When you saw him in the neighborhood he would give you one of those closed-mouth smiles and lift his hand in a wave. he was so hot in one of those loser-man type of ways.

You also saw him doing yard work. He never took his shirt off but he had more muscle on on than you initially thought.

Luckily, the neighbor boy also took the bedroom across from yours and he seemed to notice your open window.

Sometimes in the evenings he would open his too.

there was a little bit of distance between the houses but you could still occasionally hear the music he was listening to, you could hear him talking while he was gaming, and sometimes you would wait until he was in his bedroom with his window open to change clothes.

you hoped he would notice. maybe even take interest.

but as the summer ended and you packed up for school you knew you had to accept that it was too soon. you knew it needed time.

as the semester progressed you tried to forget the neighbor boy. you went out with you friends, you went to class, and you lived your life but he was always there in the back of your mind.

no matter where you were or what you were doing you couldn’t help but think of him. what he was doing, where he was, his long slender hands, the veins on his forearms. when you would listen to him talk to his friends. if he had a girlfriend.

obsession is a big word but you were swiftly approaching it with how often you thought about him.

when you went home for thanksgiving in mid-november you were actually ecstatic, unlike your usual sadness to have to leave your life behind. not this time, you were going to get to see him.

even if if was in passing or if it was just listing to him play video games through his window.

something was anything.

and anything was something.

just like he did over the summer he opened his window in the evening.

you tried not to stare into his house but it was much more decorated and lived in than it had been over the summer.

he had posters on his walls, better lighting, furniture arranged to be more fung shiu, and dirty clothes on the ground.

what you would do to get a hold of his dirty laundry.

he still played video games at night and listened to music.

you still changed infront off the window.

you two saw each other in passing and he did the same thing he did over the summer.

a closed mouth smile and his hand would lift up as a wave.

but now your parents and his dad were friends so they had more to tell you about him.

you had to play it cool they couldn't know that you were obsessed, no you were asking out of morbid curiosity.

your parents told you his name was tomura shigaraki. his dad adopted him, it was just the two of them, he was a year older than you and he was in computer science.

and no it did not seem like he had a girlfriend.

you had to hide your excitement.

how much did he know about you? was he even interested?

as your excitement began to dwindle and you got ready to leave home and go back to school for the last few weeks of the semester you herd someone call out your name.

you looked up and sure enough getting out of his car was the neighbor boy, tomura.

“hey! you’re (y/n) right?”

you tried to control yourself. you knew your face had to be beet red.

“oh yeah hey”

“well i just wanted to say hello" a pause. he looked around a little awkwardly, then finished his train of thought "im tomura.”

you gave a small smile “it was nice to meet you tomura, i guess ill see you around”

he did his little wave and went inside.

you could feel the butterflies in your stomach.

you couldn’t get his devious little grin out of your head.

he had to be interested. you two were the same age and the same demographic. he was a loser and you were beautiful.

if you weren’t obsessed before, now there was no denying it.

the last three weeks of the semester went by agonizingly slow. even your friends noticed your distracted demeanor.

you chose not to tell them. you didn’t want to ruin the magic. and you didn’t want to sound delusional about the neighbor you’ve been stalking and only spoken to once.

when the semester finally ended you were practically already packed and ready to head home.

you spent the entire drive trying to calm yourself down. knowing you had to play it cool around the neighbor boy. around tomura.

you got home and pulled into the driveway, you noted that his car was in his driveway.

you walked in the front door and were met with not only your parents, but also tomura and his dad.

your eyes instantly met.

you dropped the bag you were carrying.

“oh hey” you said not breaking eye contact.

“uhh what’s up” he said sounding nervous but there was no denying that he was happy to see you.

your parents introduced the two of you. he awkwardly shook your hand. you could feel how clammy they were.

your mom announced that tomura and his father would be coming to their yearly holiday party that they throw every year.

you had to rein in your excitement.

“oh, I'm excited to see you guys there”

they left and you immediately went upstairs to scream into your pillow, with your window closed of course.

the holiday party's theme was to wear holiday-esc clothes, you knew who would be there so of course you wore a little black dress and a santa hat.

you saw tomura walk in but you didn't approach him, not yet.

he was wearing a collared shirt under an oversized dark green sweater with Christmas symbols on it that looked thrifted.

you helped yourself to the access of alcohol that both your parents and their guests provided.

you had left your window closed the last few days in anticipation of seeing him tonight.

you noticed he was drinking a beer. your eyes met from across the room. he was standing next to his dad, talking to a group of neighbors.

you were talking to a different neighbor, an old lady who was telling you to dress more modestly.

you risked a glance. he was checking you out. how little you left to the imagination in your little dress.

he caught your eyes and blushed, looking away instantly. he was back into the conversation as soon as he looked away and you looked back.

you excused your self for more alcohol.

you talked to your mom

felt the warm effects of the alcohol.

made eyecontact with tomura.

talked to some more of the party guests

more prolonged eye contact.

You were laying it on thick with your "fuck me eyes"

after what felt like an eternity of dancing around each other finally, your parents were talking to him and his dad.

you joined the circle, only a little motivated by the alcohol you had been drinking all night.

the alcohol that mad the blood rush between your legs a little more than usual.

your parents were asking him about college. he answered their question but was staring at you.

"- yeah I dont really have plans after graduation I'll probably just go wherever the wind takes me kind of thing"

he didnt take his eyes off you. even after he finished talking. he was a good head taller than you. his hair had gotten longer but it still looked good on him. you noticed the contrast of his light hair against his dark eyebrows. he was well-groomed. clean shaven. you wondered what he would look like first thing in the morning with stubble and no shirt on-

"Y/n?"

"Sorry?"

"they were asking about your plans after college"

"Oh um- Im also not sure yet, Ive been looking into grad school but I'm still on the fence,"

your eyes flicked to tomura, an invitation.

"Now, if you'll excuse me I'm gonna go get some water."

he took the bait, "I think im gonna get some water too"

he followed you to the makeshift bar on the kitchen island.

you poured yourself another drink.

he cracked open another beer

“so what are you drinking?”

he shrugged and took a sip

“doesn’t taste very good”

you simply nodded. you could feel the heat on your cheeks. all these months of thinking about him and now you have absolutely nothing to say.

“so you study-“

“can we quit it with the small talk?”

he stepped closer to you and wrapped his free a hand around your waist, he leaned down so that his mouth was right next to your ear.

he said it just quietly enough that only you could hear, “i don’t want to act like i haven’t been jerking off to you changing in front of your open window and you can’t act like you’re not the little slut who opens her window and gets naked for me.”

you flushed. your blood should be cold from the embarrassment but it wasn't.

it was the opposite.

you felt like you were on fire.

it felt like your excitement was pooling in your underwear.

you realized he was still holding on to you, he hadn't moved.

it was like you and tomura were the last two people on earth. your surroundings a blur,

"wanna get out of here"

"yes. yes please" you whispered.

"thats what i like to hear"

he took your hand and walked you to the back hallway of the party since so many people were blocking the front door and the stairs.

he stopped you in front of one of the doors.

you wanted him so bad that a drunk makeout next to the guest bedroom was enough.

your back was against the wall and one of his hands was leaning against the wall next to your head.

"do you ever think about me when you're away?" he whispers.

you run a hand down his chest. stomach. brush your fingers against something else.

something hard.

"all the fucking time" you whisper back.

he doesn't say anything.

he pins your back to the wall with his body. his hand runs through your hair.

his hand does it again.

youre looking down.

his hand grabs your jaw and forces you to look up him.

he inspects your face, eyes lingering on your lips,

and then he kisses you.

not a little gentle kiss.

your mouth is met by his wet open mouth.

your hands locked around his neck, one of his hands found your waist and the other was in your scalp.

you could feel his hard on.

you rubbed your sex on him and he sucked in a breath while kissing you.

his tongue was exploring your mouth, he wanted in while simultaneously sucking on your bottom lip and biting your tongue.

tomura was warm, he smelled like ocean and spice and laundry detergent. he was all you wanted and more.

he pulled away from the kiss and took a step away from you. he wiped your mouth with his sleeve and then wiped his.

an old man you recognized as one of your moms coworkers wandered back into the hallway.

you quickly understood why tomura just pulled away.

“this isn’t the bathroom” he said looking between the two of you.

you and tomura look at each other and fake a laugh.

his face was flushed, his hair a mess, and your there was a tint the color of your lipstick around his mouth.

"oh yeah we were just talking about college. the bathroom is that way." you pointed to where the party was happening

the man smiled and walked away.

once he was gone you and tomura went right back to what you were doing.

this one wasn’t like the first one though.

it was rougher. it was something more

tomura grabbed your jaw with one hand and squeezed your ass with the other, saying between passionate kisses,

“you have no idea how badly i’ve wanted this”

he pulled on your hair, forcing your head to angle up towards his face.

you can’t ignore his big strong hands, the length of his fingers, the veins on his arms just peeking out from under his rolled up sweater sleeves.

your santa hat must have fallen off a while ago.

his other hand on your ass kneaded it like it was bread dough.

he grabbed at your ass by the handful, pulling on the skin and fat and muscle before letting it go, occasionally feeling your waist, the swell of your hips, and then going right back in for your ass and repeating the process.

his tongue explored the inside of your mouth like it belonged to him. he sucked on your bottom lip, shoved his tongue in, sucked on your mouth with his entire mouth all in no particular order.

you pressed your hips into him and liked what you found.

with one arm wrapped around his neck, you other massaging his scalp and occasionally pulling his hair, a signal to him to come closer to you.

you moved back and into him again. grinding against him. he was hot and hard.

you removed your hand from his scalp and palmed his member.

he pulled off your mouth but not your body and let out a shaky breath.

“if we start with that i won’t be able to stop” he whispered into your hair.

“who said that’s a bad thing” you whipered back.

you could feel his smile against you even though you couldn’t see his face, “i never said it was bad but maybe we should find somewhere more private”

“can we sneak out to your place?”

this was when he pulled his body off of yours and you could see his smirk, “i think that’s a great idea.”

the two of you tried to tidy each other up as best as you could but there was no denying the fact the the two of you just did something. both of your cheeks were flushed, hair was ruffled, and clothes disheveled.

there was also no denying his excitement. you pulled his sweater down to help him attempt the hide the tent in his pants.

he mumbled out a "thanks" and looked away blushing.

he walked out into the party first, raising his eyebrows at you as he said to meet him outside in ten minutes.

you counted to 100 before entering the party so as not to look suspicious.

you didn’t want your parents old and nosy friends know yours and tomura’s business.

you found your parents and stood in on their conversation. casually looking around every chance you got to find him. you spotted him in the kitchen standing next to his dad talking to a woman.

he was standing with his hands in his pockets, slouching, his cheeks still pink, his lips a little swollen, and his his looked like someone had just ran their hands through it.

you noticed you were staring. then you noticed he was staring at you too. he gave you a small smile and he pointed his head toward the front door.

you gave him a small nod in agreement.

you whispered to your mom that you were going to go sit outside and to not worry about you.

she had a few drinks in her system and was more concerned about her holiday party than whatever nonsense her daughter was up to, so it was easy to slip away.

you instantly started walking towards the front door when you felt a hand grab yours. you didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

the next five minutes were a blur.

your hand in his.

running over to his house.

his frantic effort to unlock the front door.

instantly making out against the front door once inside.

running up the stairs with him right behind you.

hands intertwined.

barely making it to his room before, once again, aggressively making out against his closed bedroom door.

tomura peeled your desss off in one fluid motion and picked you up throwing, you on his bed.

he whipped his sweater off, and climbed on top of you.

you began to undo the buttons on his white button down but he stopped you,

"ah ah, not yet. its my turn"

he pulled one of your breasts out of your bra, nipple already hard, and put his mouth around your nipple.

his right hand finds yours, interlocking fingers and pressing you to the bed.

his left hand finds your other breast and kneads on it. pulling on your nipple, grabbing the flesh with his palm and fingers.

all while milking your other.

his mouth sucking and teeth bruising there was nothing you could do to conceal the unholy wimpers he coaxed out of you.

his eyes find yours.

“look at me” he says then resumes what he was doing.

your mind couldn't form coherent thoughts.

the only thing you could focus on was the pleasure you were experiencing at his hands.

and mouth.

your hips find his.

you could feel his rock-hard member in his pants.

your free hand finds his member between the two of you and you rub your hand up and down him over his pants.

he inhales shakily.

"mmm not yet" he whispered into your breast.

he maneuvers to switch sides, his mouth now on the opposite breast and his hand cupping the breast his mouth was just on.

your back arches and you moan as his mouth makes contact.

you couldn't stop yourself from grinding your hips against his again.

he bit your nipple in response, getting a yelp out of you.

you knew for sure by now that you were soaked through your panties.

since Tomura had taken your dress off your arousal was evident but his attention was still on your breasts.

he was holding one of your hands and the other was in his hair, nails scratching circles on his scalp and occasionally pulling on his hair.

your hips still moving against his you gave a tug on his hair for his attention.

he kept his mouth where it was but stopped what he was doing, lazily looking up.

you pet his hair and whispered "can we please?" pushing your hips into his for emphasis.

he raised his eyebrows slowly.

he removed his mouth from your nipple dramatically with a loud sucking noise.

he sat up and switched the position he was in to now hold down both of your wrists with one of his hands and to hold your hips down with the other,

"I said not yet,"

and he turned his attention to the nipple he had previously been working on.

you thought you couldn't have been more aroused but with his new found control over you? you could have come just from the sight of him.

your hips struggled against his arm, seeking any form of release as you whimpered in pleasure from the love he gave to your nipple.

you came out of your trance and realized he was still fully clothed and you were still wearing your bra and underwear.

he removed himself from you slowly, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and pushing his mane of hair out of his face.

you were breathing heavily and slightly disoriented from what he had just done.

"lets get rid of these, shall we?"

he started to pull off your underwear. and you went ahead and removed your bra.

"it cant be fair that im the only one who's naked?"

you motioned to him still being almost fully dressed save for the sweater he had been wearing over his now half unbuttoned button-down shirt.

shigaraki sighed and began unbuttoning his shirt

"I thought you preferred to be naked?" he looked up at you and smirked "or are you just a show off?"

you didnt really have a good response to his call out so all you could do was stare at him.

you watched him undress making sure to emphasize one of your signature looks, the fuck me eyes.

he definitely noticed your gaze.

he smirked back at you as he stood up and shucked off his pants.

Leaving him in nothing but a pair of blue plaid boxers.

your favorite.

he crawled back onto the bed and sat on his knees in between your legs, where you lay on your back. head propped up with pillows and still panting from what his magic mouth and fingers just did with your nipples.

he locked eyes with you, hooked his hands underneath your knees, and pulled your bottom half up to him.

he pushed your legs up, essentially folding you in half as he brought his mouth down to yours.

He kissed you sweetly and deeply. with care but also disrespect like he would stop if you asked you him to but you were pulling him closer, scratching his back, and grinding against his member.

so he squeezed your thigh, groped your boob a little tighter, and explored the cavern of your mouth a bit deeper with his tongue.

his hand previously on your tit found your throat. he choked you as his mouth pulled from yours.

the pressure of his hand caused your mouth to open, searching for air and only getting a little bit of it.

he squeezed tighter as he licked down the column of your neck and back up.

kissing your mouth lightly one last time as he released your throat and started kissing down your body.

kissing down to your soaking wet sex.

his hand stroked your face at first. he kissed your jaw, your neck, your chest, booth boobs, your navel, then he found the space between your legs. he lifted your legs over his shoulders and started kissing you there too.

he kissed your clit similarly to how he kissed your mouth at first. softly. respectfully. passionately. like he was waiting for permission.

you gave it to him by grabbing a handful of hair and rubbing yourself against his face. you could feel his nose and his smirk on your sweet spot.

he took your invitation, and you could hear him inhale through his nose he grabbed two handfuls of your ass and went to work.

with his mouth on your clit you could feel him sucking on it, lapping his tongue against it, and eventually sticking two fingers into your sopping entrance.

you couldn't hold your moans in. especially once his veiny, long-fingered hand was pumping in and out.

your first orgasm didnt even build it just ripped through you, without anything you could have done to stop it.

shigaraki, satisfied enough with his handy work sat up and whipped your wet from his mouth with the back of his hand.

you could have orgasmed again from the sight of his flushed cheeks and messy hair in the ambient lighting of his bedroom.

"your so fucking hot" you couldn't stop yourself from saying.

his hazy eyes found yours "You should see yourself right now" he gave you that smirk after he said it.

there was no hiding his arousal. he pulled his boxers down and his member sprang free.

he was hung.

8 inches long and thick.

all you could do was stare your mouth slightly open and your blood pumping between your legs.

"you like what you see i take it," he says that fucking smirk on his face.

all you could do was nod your head.

he spits on the tip and starts pumping himself as he moves forward toward you.

he hooks his arm under your right leg and maneuvers himself between your legs.

"you ready?"

you hum in response

"mmm i need a yes"

"yes, I am ready"

"good girl, thats what i like to hear,"

he inserts himself slowly, you feel the familiar sting of being stretched out

tomura pauses, looking at you as if asking permission to continue.

your hand is covering your mouth but you nod for him to continue.

he does.

you look down to see that he is not even halfway in.

"oh my god" you whisper "its so fucking big"

he just smiles, not losing his focus on what he is doing.

once hes almost all the way in he pauses again, looking at you for permission to continue.

"can you start moving slowly?"

he doesn't acknowledge your words other than thrusting in and out as slowly as he can,

with each thrust in you couldnt with hold your whimpers.

tomura was slowly increasing speed and how deep he was going,

"is this okay" he asked his breath slightly shaking

"oh my god yea" you struggle to get out

he pushes the leg hooked. under his arm up higher and finally bottoms out in you,

you both moan.

"fuck, youre so tight,"

"you youre so big"

his hand hound your face and stroked your cheek before he took your jaw in his hand,

"youre so fucking beautiful"

you could feel your heart flutter in your chest as he pounded in and out of you and an unholy speed.

"lets switch positions"

you hum in response, so fucked out that you couldn't form coherent words.

he grabs a pillow and flips you over, shoving the pillow underneath your hips.

he taps the small of your back, you spread your knees and arch your back for him, grabbing one of the other pillows to hold in your arms.

tomura grabs hold of your hips and inserts himself, going in smoother this time.

just because the entry was easier did not mean the new angle was any mind boggling.

and tomura was not holding himself back in the slightest, he moaned once he was all the way in and wasted no time in absolutely fucking the shit out of you.

you didnt know it was possible for a human being to experience pleasure like this. your second orgasm of the night rips through you with an inhuman moan.

tomura gathers up your hair and pulls you toward him,

"came again so soon? thats my girl"

he wraps one hand around your throat the other finds your shoulder to use as leverage as he continues to fuck you from behind.

his thrusts begin to stutter losing speed and consistency,

"im close i wanna see your face"

"okay" you say through breaths

he once again flips you over, pumping himself as you readjust the pillows under your head and hips,

tomura heaves your legs up and enters you one last time.

your hands find the back of his head and you pull his face up to yours as he resumes his no longer consistent pace.

his hand finds your throat and your other hand finds his bicep, squeezing at the cords of muscle,

you look up at him slowly, from the sight of his cock entering in and out of you, his muscular upper body, to his big red eyes staring down at you. watching you watch him.

one last orgasm rips through you, starting in your stomach and then spreading to your core and to the rest of your body.

tomura finishes at the same time as you, pulling out and coming all over your stomach and boobs.

the two of you just sit there for a moment. both of you breathing heavy. both of you fucked out of your minds.

tomura is the first to break the silence.

he swallows and rubs his jaw,

"do you think we should go back to the party because I kind of want to do that again?"

m.list

#shigaraki smut #lov smut #mha fanfiction #mha smut #shigaraki x you #yandere shigaraki #mha headcanons #shigaraki tomura #bnha shigaraki #shigaraki x reader #mha shigaraki

[girlscience]

I don't know if my life is just extremely charmed. but listening to my coworkers talk is so bizarre to me? the way that money is the only measure of success or good life that they care about blows my mind. we are talking about furthering our education and the only thing they are looking at is how much the salary for that field pays. I understand money is important, but that's honestly not something I've given even more than a passing thought to with the programs I'm applying for? I just don't get it? We do science, don't you care more about the work than the money? Am I just blind because I haven't ever had money troubles? I don't know.

#like one of them is a single mom with a teenager so I get you want money to support both of you and to send them to high school and college #but the other one is a single late 30's man with no kids or pets #why do you need a salary that high? #like.... half the time I think I'm basically rich? I am absolutely not lol #but money is definitely not something I worry about right now? #maybe during/after grad school that'll change but as it is I am very comfortable #I can't imagine that it would be much different for them? (with the exception of the kid obviously. two people need more money than one) #did living with my parents for one year after college really make that big of a difference? #idk I get I've never lived in poverty and I've never been in serious debt so money stress is something I haven't felt #but money has just never been that important to me? #as long as I can afford groceries and clothes and a home.... 🤷🏼 save up here and there for a little treat of some kind #I just don't get it. making 100k 500k six figures etc is so so so important to sooo many people (not just my coworkers) #and I'm over here wondering what the fuck you even do with that much money #what purpose does it serve. savings? #maybe I'm just showing my whole ass here and everyone will read this and be like 'please shut up you don't get it' #but money talk is everywhere at work and online and in the world #and I just thought we agreed there were other measures of success that were more important #I thought we all knew money mattered to be healthy and safe but that in the end didn't mean more #I thought idk people wanted jobs to support them but that mostly people went into things like science because they want to help the world #am I just a fucking idiot?

[hbyrde36]

STWG Daily Prompt 3/9/24

Written for the @strangerthingswritersguild

Prompt: Bite

Rating: G | WC: 867

Emotional hurt/comfort, Steve Harrington's parents being the worst, the best uncle Wayne Munson, supportive boyfriend Eddie Munson, the party loves Steve Harrington

Steve had given up on his dad long ago, he was never going to be the kind of man Richard Harrington had always wanted his sons to grow up and be, but he’d held out hope for his mom—hope that someday she would learn to love him the way she loved his brother.

More than ten years between them, and the fact that the Harrington’s had moved to Hawkins only after Christopher had graduated high school and gone off to college, meant no one really knew Steve had a sibling. 

The party, Robin, Eddie—especially Eddie because how could they have been dating for over a year now and him somehow still not know about this—were all stunned to learn of the existence of another young Harrington.

He hadn’t meant to tell them at all, but then Christopher and their parents made a surprise visit home so that his brother could take possession of their grandmother’s ring and pop the question to his girlfriend of a whopping 9 months. Less time than he and Eddie had been seeing each other and didn’t that get under Steve's skin to know he’d never get to propose to his boyfriend with a family heirloom, not only because gay marriage wasn’t legal, but because his parents would never dream of handing down a piece of jewelry to their least favorite son.  

Steve wound up having to make the rounds, letting everyone know movie night was canceled because his brother was in town. Naturally they all wanted explanations for why this was the first they were learning of this mysterious person, and by the time he got to Eddie’s place, Steve was a mess. 

Years of mistreatment and neglect bubbled to the surface, and not just the big things but the little sniping comments, the small injustices—inequities between the way Mr. and Mrs. Harrington spoke of their older son vs their younger—hurt feelings that he’d pushed all the way down in order to function, in order to put a fucking smile on his face and hide the fact that he was damaged goods who not even a mother could love. 

It all came spilling out of him on Eddie’s bedroom floor as his boyfriend held him, rocked him, was his rock, tethering him to the earth.

When it was all over and Steve was calm, Eddie asked him why he still spoke to them, why he still lived in their house when he and Wayne had both–on separate occasions–invited him to live with them instead.

“They’re my family.” Steve said, shrugging. “I don’t have a choice.” 

“Of course you do, Stevie. You always have a choice. If you were to decide right here and now that you never wanted to see or speak to them again, you are allowed to do that. You hold all the power here. I’ll support you in whatever you decide, but I have to say in my humble opinion, they never deserved you.”

Steve took the night to think about it, though in the instant Eddie had said the words, given Steve the power to take control of his own life, he’d known what he was going to do. It was his life, he could do with it as he wished. He was already doing that with almost every other part of it, so why was he still letting his mom and dad hold any power over him? Why did he subject himself to their passive aggressive comments and disappointed glares?

In the end he never went back, not even to get his stuff. Wayne and Eddie did it for him, leaving behind his keys and his beloved car. 

A small price to pay for freedom. 

He called the next day and left a final message on the answering machine. 

“Please leave your message after the beep.”

“Hey mom. You’re the hardest one to say goodbye to, the last member of this family I held out hope for so you’ll have to forgive me for not doing this in person. My car keys are on the table by the front door. I know the BMW is in dad’s name and I know he wouldn’t want me keeping it under the circumstances.”

“I am no longer a Harrington. I’m sure you won’t mind because you barely thought of me as one to begin with but it’s official now. I’m moving on, and moving in with my boyfriend. Yes, boyfriend, because I am nothing if not a consistent disappointment.”

“It took me longer to see it with you because I've witnessed the way you care for the people around you, most of them anyway, and what you’ve done for this community.”

“You are a good person, except when you’re not. And you were a great mom, just not to me.”

There was no bite in his words, just a sad truth finally spoken aloud.

Steve hung up the phone feeling lighter than he ever had in his whole life, and sat down to dinner with the people who really loved him. His found family, who’d all dropped whatever they were doing at a moments notice to throw him an impromptu moving-in party at his new home with Eddie and Wayne. 

Thanks to my beloved @penny00dreadful for having a look over this 🥰

#stwgdailyprompt #steddie fanfic #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #stranger things #steve harrington's parents #steddie fic #wayne munson my beloved #steve harrington/eddie munson #steve x eddie #fanfic

[amatchinwater]

I Know What You Want From Me / Eddie Munson x fem!reader

Summary: Song fic of 18 by Anarbor, your parents kick you out when you tell them you can't be with Jason because you're already dating Eddie...except that you aren't. So now you have to go to Eddie after not speaking for years and ask to not only live with him, but pretend to date you too. What could possibly go wrong there?

Warnings: 18+, explicit sexual content, fingering, oral (f receiving), p in v sex, semi-public sex (they're in the woods), squirting, unprotected sex (reader on pill, but not stated until after), cream pie, choking, spanking, protective reader (Jason gets his shit rocked), angst with a happy ending, fluff, protective Eddie, reader's parents are awful

Words: 9746 (oops?)

a/n: I feel like I've been working on this forever and a day. With the finale, I had to stop because angst wasn't something I could handle just yet. But the fluff and ending makes the angst worth it. Requests are still open.

Master list

Part 2

Not my gif!! Credit to the lovely @msmischief101

It’s been a long time since you’ve pulled into Forest Hills Trailer Park. A really long fucking time. Part of you wants to turn around, just get on the highway and never look back at this godforsaken town and their prejudiced beliefs. That having money and a pristine lifestyle makes you worth something. It’s bullshit. And you fucking hate it. And you want out. Hell, your bags are already packed in the backseat behind you.

You’re eighteen, legally, if you really wanted to, you could run. Run as far away from not only Hawkins, but Indiana in general. Now that you’re eighteen, you have a sizable trust fund. Your father wanted to rescind your rights to it. Change it to where you’d only see a penny once you were twenty-one. Or worse; married. Somehow your mother convinced him not to do that, that you’d be able to use the money for college. 

You’re not even sure you want to do that either. 

But there was one person in your life who told you that no matter what you did, they’d always stick beside you. While that statement hasn’t held true these last six years or so, it was far from it being his fault. No, you shamefully hold that crown. 

Once you started to rise up the social ladder in school and your father got a big time promotion at work, your parents forced the social debutant bullshit on you. You hated every single second of it. Every one of those dumb parties they dragged you to. The dinners and get-togethers. They all sucked. And everyone there was so vapid and full of themselves, you wanted to scream. 

Now that you’re eighteen and “supposed” to be looking at prestigious colleges for some job you’ll never want, your parents did the worst thing imaginable. They tried to set you up. Quite literally wanted to give you an arranged marriage. God, the look your father gave you like it was supposed to be some wonderful gift you should be grateful for. As if being pawned off to someone like Jason Carver is to be coveted. 

Fuck that. 

So you did something really stupid. Like, really stupid. You told them that you couldn’t be with Jason because you were already with someone else. You’d hoped it would just be enough to make them drop the issue. It wasn’t. They poked and prodded until you gave them a name. You told them the only person in Hawkins you could even remotely think of. 

Eddie Munson. 

The conversation with your parents was pretty short after that. Being told to pack your bags and not come back if you wanted to align yourself with “someone like him.” That if you were grown up enough to make your choices, to go live with him and see how long it lasts, and not to come crying to them when you wind up pregnant. 

You did exactly that. Grabbed everything you felt couldn’t be replaced and left. But for some reason, instead of just driving towards the town limit and getting the fuck out of dodge, you found yourself on your way to the trailer you used to spend a good chunk of your childhood in. 

Because you grew up there. You were once neighbors- something your parents try very hard to forget- and childhood best friends. You used to be on a first name basis with Wayne. And despite what everyone says about him, that he’s a freak or the satanist propaganda, you know Eddie. Knew Eddie. So maybe there was some small part of you that hoped Eddie was still that sweet kid at heart and would let you crash for a few months until graduation and then you could leave Hawkins for good. 

It was a stupid idea from the start. One not fully formulated or even properly processed. 

But here you are, pulling up to the familiar, yet foreign trailer with Eddie’s van parked right out front. And of course it’s pouring rain. The day your life goes to shit wouldn’t be a nice, calm evening. No. When have you ever been that lucky? When is anyone that lucky? 

Turning the engine off, you sit and listen to the rain patter against the roof of your car. Contemplating leaving again. Maybe the real reason you came here was so that you would be convinced to stay. Eddie has never been one to run from his problems. The bloody nose he gave Jason a year ago for taking a swing on him is proof of that. So maybe you really want someone to tell you to man the fuck up and grab life by the balls or some shit. 

Just some strange words that manage to sound inspiring because they’re coming from Eddie’s goofy grin. 

“Fuck it,” you grind your teeth, shoving your door open and stepping out into the storm, wincing when the freezing water sinks into your skin. “Shit, shit, shit,” you jog up to his front door, thankful for the awning over the porch. Not letting yourself be talked out of this, you pound on the door to be heard over Shout at the Devil being blasted from Eddie’s room. 

“Henderson, I already told you-” Eddie’s yelling as he yanks open the front door, “-you’re not Henderson.” 

“No,” you shiver, hands rubbing your arms. How did you possibly get drenched in the ten steps it took you to get from the car to his door? Eddie’s features are guarded and you can’t help but shiver again. From the cold or his stare, you’re not really sure. Maybe you should just leave. The highway is sounding more and more tempting. “I should just-” you trail off, gesturing back towards your car.

Eddie finally takes a look at your state and his eyes widen, furrowed eyebrows losing their tension, “no, come in,” he opens the door further. “I-I’ll get you a towel,” Eddie runs off. 

Shaky bones carry you over the threshold, goosebumps only getting angrier at the warmth of the trailer. It looks exactly like it did the last time you were here. Except maybe a few more hats have joined the collection on the wall. Eddie comes back with two towels, placing one on the couch and offering you the other. “Thanks,” you take it, toweling your hair before wrapping it around your shoulders, sitting on the one he’d set down for you. “I’m sorry to just barge in like this,” your eyes begin to burn with tears. 

“What happened? Are you okay?” Eddie sits beside you and you can practically feel his warmth radiating off of him. That's how cold you are. 

“I did something really stupid,” you admit, shaking your head, wanting to curl up in a hole. “My parents want to hand me over to Jason. Pretty bow and everything,” you choke out a laugh. “Like I’m some prized trophy wife or some shit.” 

“Jesus Christ,” Eddie nearly shouts. You laugh sarcastically, nodding your head. His face twists, “but hang on, that’s a stupid thing they did. What stupid thing did you do?”

You fiddle with the fraying corner of the towel, dropping your gaze to your lap, “I told them that I couldn’t be with Jason.”

“That doesn’t seem stu-”

“Because I’m in a relationship with you,” you pull your head back up, meeting deer in the headlight brown eyes and a slack jaw. Nerves make your tongue ramble, “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I told them that. You were the first person that came to mind when they wouldn’t stop asking me who could be more important than Jason. And I just- I didn’t know what to do. So I just thought- I don’t know what I thought. But w-we used to be best friends once, I-”

“Yeah, once,” Eddie tongue in cheek scoffs, “then you got popular and I didn’t matter anymore. So, what? You thought you would just come here and I would live up to this fantasy relationship? Because it’s you?”

Your head drops again, “they told me if I wanted to be with you that badly that I should go live with you. That they didn’t recognize their daughter anymore. They kicked me out, or maybe I just ran. I don’t know, Eddie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to drag you into this.” Tears spill from your eyes, when you look back up at him, “I’ll just get back in the car and leave town like I should’ve done in the first place. I’m sorry,” you take the towel off your shoulders and place it in his lap, getting up off the couch. 

You make it all of three steps until Eddie’s hand wraps around your wrist, “wait.” He sighs as you turn to face him. “Let me get this straight, you told your parents you were dating me because I was the only person you could think of that was better than Jason?” 

Rolling your eyes, you scoff, “well, duh.” It might have been instinct that made you say it, doesn’t make it any less true. Jason doesn’t hold a candle to Eddie in any situation. Not to you. Years of separation be damned. 

“And you now have nowhere to live?” You shake your head no. Eddie sighs again, “I’ll do it.” 

“W-what?” You ask. Because surely you heard him wrong. Eddie doesn’t owe you a fucking thing. “What do you mean you’ll do it?” 

“I’ll help you keep this facade that we’re dating for the sake of your parents and Jason,” he sneers at the name. “Move in here with me, Wayne won’t mind. He still asks about you from time to time, I’m sure he’d love the idea. And then, when you graduate, you’re free to do whatever you want.”

Blinking rapidly, you nearly stumble backwards. Shocked that Eddie would do this. “Why?”

“Your parents are assholes,” Eddie laughs and you do too. He’s far from wrong. “Pissing them off by pretending to date you and giving you a safe place to live? Fuck yeah, I’ll do it. Besides, I’m sure if they told you about it, Jason already knows. Which means I get to make that asshole jealous. It’s a win-win.” He laughs again, softer this time along with his smile. “And you’re right. We were best friends once, maybe we could be again.” 

“I really don’t give a fuck what Jason or my parents think, Eddie. I’m just sick of them thinking that they can control me,” you tell him. “But if giving them the finger is enough incentive for you, then I appreciate it. For what it’s worth, I really miss having you as my best friend.” 

“Me too,” he smiles, pulling you into a hug. “How about you go take a shower and I’ll make you some hot chocolate. Booze free this time,” Eddie chuckles.

You laugh, remembering when you were younger and neither of you thought Wayne would notice the vodka two twelve year olds put in their drinks. “Honestly, I probably wouldn’t mind it this time around,” you pull away. 

“Comin' right up,” Eddie grins, heading into the kitchen while you go down the hallway. 

Stopping at the bathroom you poke your head around the corner, “hey, Eds.” He stops humming, milk hoovering the pot, quirking an eyebrow at you. “Thank you,” you smile, tucking into the bathroom to shower off before he can answer. 

—

At school the next day, you’re not really sure what to expect. Eddie drove you in his van and you were given more than a few looks from people you don’t even know. Which were thankfully easy enough to ignore. Somehow you’re also lucky enough that all of your classes before lunch didn’t have a single one of your “friends” either. Friends meaning Jason’s friends who were nice to you because you had money and a pretty face. 

But your actual lunch period? Practically the entire basketball team shared the same block as you. And the second you walk out of the lunch line, Jason immediately finds you. You’re wearing darker clothes and have certainly kept your head down. How the fuck did he find you so fast? 

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you everywhere,” he smiles with too much teeth. Voice so sweet it’s sickening. 

“Should’ve hid better,” you mumble, clutching your tray to your chest to keep a barrier between the two of you. “Did you need something?” You ask, eyes scanning the room to find literally anyone you could run to to save you from this. You find Eddie’s friends from Hellfire all around the table, but no sign of Eddie himself. You know their names thanks to Eddie telling you about them last night. But you don’t really think you can just go up to them for help. 

“Well, I was talking to your parents the other day,” he pushes his hands farther into his letterman jacket pockets, ducking his head to appear coy. “I was hoping you’d like to go on a date with-”

An arm snakes around your waist and you nearly jump out of your skin, until you hear, “there you are, babe.” Eddie curls you close to him, kissing the side of your head, “you ready to go sit?” 

You turn to him with a grateful smile, ready to answer, but someone else’s words come out. 

“What the fuck is this?” Jason snaps. 

“I’m sure you know Eddie,” you smile sweetly, fighting the eye roll at the jock before you. “My boyfriend,” you state, loving the way Jason’s eyes are ready to bulge out of his head. Eddie chuckles smugly beside you, his grip tightening only just. You’re actually glad he’s getting something out of this too. Even if it’s just shoving it in Jason’s face. Makes it feel like you’re not using him.

“I thought they were joking!” Jason seethes, “you’re seriously with this freak? You chose him over me? A freak?” 

“Eds, could you hold this please?” You extend your tray towards him, which he takes with a confused expression. “Thanks,” you kiss his cheek, turning your attention back to the blonde. “One, no, it’s not a fucking joke. Two, he’s not a freak. And three,” you slap Jason right across the cheek with a resounding crack, silencing the cafeteria. “If I hear you say some shit like that about him again, you’ll be lucky a slap is all you get. Fuck off, Jason.” 

“Holy shit,” Eddie sputters a laugh, “that was fucking awesome!” Wrapping an arm around your shoulder, Eddie walks you towards the Hellfire table, neither of you caring about the grumbling jock behind you. Or the hushed chatter that’s fallen over the cafeteria. “And here I thought I was the one coming to your rescue,” he teases, placing your tray on the table surrounded by his wide eyed friends. “Come here,” Eddie sits down, his arms locking around your waist to pull you into his lap. “Thank you.”

“I’m your girlfriend, Eddie,” you remind him. Though it’s just for show, it doesn't mean that you’re not going to act the way a proper girlfriend should. Defending your boyfriend from an asshole definitely fits the bill. “I’m not going to stand by and let someone talk about you like that.” 

“So I definitely heard that right?” Dustin, if you remember correctly, stares at you two. “You two are dating? Since when?” He shrieks. 

You freeze for a second, you hadn’t thought that through. 

“For a few months now,” Eddie offers, his thumb rubbing reassuring circles on your waist. “Her parents are pretty strict," he rests his chin on your shoulder, humming in contemplation, "so we’ve been keeping it quiet for a bit. But, she was ready to go public with it.” 

“Slapping Carver in front of the whole cafeteria is pretty public,” Jeff laughs, “and pretty sick!” He offers his fist to you. 

You can’t help but laugh, feeling welcome at their table as you reciprocate the fist bump. It’s actually really nice. 

“My girl doesn’t mess around,” Eddie turns, kissing your neck. 

Maybe you two should’ve gone over some boundaries. Because that felt a lot better than it should’ve and you two aren’t even technically together. But then you remember that everyone is supposed to believe this so that Jason and your parents leave you alone. If even anyone suspects it’s not and word gets out that this isn’t real- you shiver at the very thought. And the way Eddie said ‘my girl’ sent a whole different kind of tremor down your spine. 

What have you gotten yourself into?

—

Somehow you managed to survive the first two weeks of publicly “dating” Eddie. Jason for the most part has left you alone and you haven’t seen or heard from your parents either. It’s so freeing. It makes you wish that you had stuck to your guns when you guys had moved out of the trailer park and kept Eddie in your life. Even listening to them and doing everything they wanted, they still turned around and did the worst thing imaginable. So what else could they have really done if you’d stuck by Eddie’s side the whole time? 

It’s too late to know now, but at least you can make up for the lost time by being here now. Eddie doesn’t seem to mind it. The dinners you share while Wayne is at work. The hasty breakfasts the three of you share in the mornings before school. The weekends though, the weekends are your favorite. Because unless Corroded Coffin has a gig, you and Eddie just hang out at the trailer together. 

“What did you wanna do today?” You ask, flopping down on the couch beside Eddie and throwing your legs on his lap. 

Rubbing your exposed calves, he purses his lips, “I was thinking I should probably take you on a date.” Eddie leans his head on the backrest of the couch to look at you. “You’ve been living here for two weeks now. While it’s all good and well that we’ve been annoying the living hell out of Jason at school, you know how people in this town love to gossip.” 

“Okay,” you draw out the word, furrowing your brows. Not really understanding why Eddie is willingly wanting to be with you romantically outside of school. That would make this feel real. You’d definitely feel like you were using him if you did that. 

“If people see us walking around town together, I’m sure word would get back to your parents.” Eddie pats your leg, “Jason isn’t the only one we’re supposed to be convincing, right?” 

He’s got a point. If your parents get a whiff of this relationship’s fallacies, they’ll drag you back home kicking and screaming. “What’d you have in mind?” You ask, warming up to the idea quickly. 

“There’s a double-feature of Nightmare on Elm Street at the theater tonight,” he shrugs, tracing shapeless designs on your skin. “We could do that and then walk around town with ice cream or some shit. That’s a couple-y thing to do, right?” 

You smile brightly, basking in his shyness. “That sounds really nice, Eds,’ you nudge him with your foot. “Most girls would swoon over a date like that. Well, they’d fight for some romantic movie. But I’m so down for Freddy. When does it start?” 

“About an hour.” 

“I’ll go get ready!” You hop up from the couch, practically running out of the living room, leaving Eddie chuckling on the couch. 

“Thank you,” you hear Eddie say, grabbing your ice cream cones from the girl behind the window of the cute little ice cream shop in town. “M’Lady,” he offers you your chocolate peanut butter scoops, holding his now free hand out for you to hold while you walk back to the van. He’d left it parked by the theater so you could have the whole ‘experience’ of a date. Eddie is just as serious as you are about making this seem real.

He’d even apologized to you for the neck kiss and you sitting in his lap. Explaining to you that he’s a pretty tactile person, that he’s only acting how he would if he was actually dating someone. He was adamant in you telling him if he makes you uncomfortable- he doesn't. Your heart throbbed painfully in your chest that you’re keeping some girl from being in an amazing relationship with such a sweet guy. Even more so when there’s an even worse pang at the thought that you don’t have this for real for yourself either. That this thing you have going with Eddie is fake. 

There’s this small part of you wondering if this could be real. 

“Thanks,” you smile, taking his hand, licking the creamy goodness. Eddie laughs a little at you while you’re walking and eating your desserts. “What?” You ask, licking your lips. 

“You got a little-” Eddie gestures towards your face. A group of girls walk past you arm in arm and Eddie smiles, “here, let me.” He leans in and kisses you, tongue brushing along your bottom lip for the smallest of seconds. Enough to send a shiver down your spine that certainly can’t be explained by the ice cream when his mouth is so warm. “Better,” he grins again, dragging his thumb from the corner of your mouth. 

There’s a blush violently burning your cheeks as you blink rapidly. You don’t even know what to say, so you turn your head, biting away a smile and reclaiming his hand to walk down the road again. “Thank you for tonight,” you say, tossing your napkin in the trash as you pass it. “It-” you pause, thinking you heard someone call your name. Shaking it off you try again, “it was really nice. So, thank you.” 

“Of course,” he drops your hand to wrap his arm around your shoulder, pulling you close to his side. Kissing the side of your head, Eddie says, “I’m glad you had a good time. Enough people are out tonight so-”

“Y/N!” 

You definitely heard it that time. Eddie did too. Whipping around, you see your parents stalking their way towards the two of you. Speak of the devil, right? “Fuck,” you curse under your breath, anxiety stowing only just at the protective way Eddie tightens his hold around you. 

“Say the word and we run, okay?” He whispers in your ear, "I've got you." 

All you can do is nod as your parents come to a halt in front of you. Your father barely even looking at you, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. Your mom on the other hand can’t decide who to set her daggers for eyes on, you or Eddie. 

“Mrs-”

“Don’t.” Your mother holds her finger up at him, “you don’t get to talk.”

“Excuse me?” You sputter out.

“And you,” she sets her fury on you now, “it’s time for you to come home young lady. Enough playing house with him,” you mom can’t even say his name, yet the word holds the same amount of venom. “This isn’t you. Please, just come home and all will be forgiven.” 

Anger boils inside of you. Not asking how you are or caring if you’re happy. Just more of them telling you that you’re ‘not yourself’ and you’re so over it. “Fuck that,” you snap. “I’m not going anywhere with you. My home is with Eddie. Yeah, he has a name, mom,” you lace the word with as much disdain as she’d offered him. Shocking her to her core not only from your language, but your behavior. Good. You finally feel like yourself.

“Then we’ll cut you off,” your dad’s stern voice cuts in. “See how long it takes you to come crawling back with no money.” 

“First of all,” you square your shoulders, “both Eddie and Wayne make money. Second,” you chuckle dryly, “you’re really going to love this. I went to the bank. I’m eighteen now in case you forgot. I transferred everything into my own account. That money is mine. But if it means more to you than your own daughter, I’ll gladly give it back. I can very easily get a job. I don’t need anything from you.” 

Your father puffs his chest, “listen here-”

“No, I think it’s time you listen,” Eddie cuts him off. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with her or how she chooses to live her life. She is fucking incredible! And there's definitely no thanks to you fucking assholes. She’s an adult and capable of making her own decisions. And unlike you, I’d never hurt her or force her to do something she doesn’t want to. You want to stay with me, right?” He looks over at you.

It’s rhetorical, you're almost certain. But you answer it anyway, “absolutely.” 

“There is it,” Eddie grins widely, opening his arms at your parents. “She’s made her choice.”

“Let’s get out of here,” you pull gently on Eddie’s jacket, trying to coax him away. Eddie death glares at your father, but starts moving with you, only turning once you’ve yanked a little harder. 

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Your father snaps, his hand grabbing your arm tight enough to hurt. 

You whip your head around to face him, seething, “let go of me.” Eddie looks furious, ready to punch him in the face and honestly, you’d probably let him. But that’s more of a scene than you’re willing to cause right now. You won’t let Eddie get in trouble over you. When your dad makes no move to let go of you, you say, “let me go or I’ll scream.” 

He drops your arm as though it’d burned him, whispering your name with hurt eyes. 

“Come on, princess,” Eddie’s arm curls back around your shoulders, keeping you close. No longer face to face with your parents, your chest tightens and your eyes burn. Not because you miss them, but all of your emotions have boiled over, demanding release through tears. “Wait just a minute more,” Eddie rubs his nose in your hair, “don’t give them the satisfaction.” He opens the passenger door for you and you crawl inside. 

The second he’s settled in his seat, the tears fall freely. “I’m sorry they said that to you,” you sob, chest constricting. 

“Why are you apologizing to me?” He stares at you wide eyed, speaking softly. “I should’ve punched him in the face for what he said to you, are you kidding?” Eddie reaches over, cupping your face and wiping your tears with his thumbs. “No one should talk about you like that. Especially not your parents.” 

“Can we just go home please?” You ask, hoping sheer willpower will make your tears cease. Your eyes already feel sore. 

“Of course,” he rubs your cheeks again, leaning closer to kiss your forehead. “Here,” Eddie pulls his leather jacket off, handing it to you, “you’re shaking.” 

You smile softly, sliding your arms through the sleeves, the scent of Eddie so close calming you down enough that the tears well up, but don’t fall. It’s one thing to defend Eddie from some dickhead jock like Jason. Watching him stand up for you to your own parents, treating you vastly better than they ever have? Heartwarming doesn’t even come close.

—

“Do you need anything?” Eddie asks after you’ve showered and are just sitting up in bed, he’s changed into sweats now and a faded Metallica shirt. 

“Not unless you have something that can make my mind be quiet long enough to let me sleep,” you answer, curling your legs to your chest and holding them. 

Eddie purses his lips, “I could roll us a joint,” he offers. “I usually smoke before going to sleep. It could help. Only if you want to.” 

“I’ve never smoked before,” you whisper, embarrassed by the fact that you’re ‘dating’ a drug dealer, yet have never done any yourself. “But I trust you,” you try to smile, but it falls flat. Still a little too upset over earlier. “I’m willing to try if you think it will help.” 

“Best sleep you’ve had in a while,” Eddie smiles, walking over to his dresser, grabbing a wooden box from the drawer. “Are you sure?” He asks one more time, sitting down beside you, “I don’t want you to think I’m pressuring you or anything.” 

“You’re not,” your smile is genuine this time, “I’m sure.” You stare at his fingers while Eddie pinches the weed into the thin paper. If you weren’t so upset, your brain would probably short circuit at the way his tongue glides along the edge. That shouldn’t be allowed to look like that. 

After he takes two puffs of his own, he hands the joint to you, blowing the smoke out. “You might want to take small hits,” Eddie suggests when you bring the rolled paper to your lips. “Small hits,” he repeats, hopping up from the bed, “I’m gonna get us a drink real quick. Small,” Eddie enunciates. 

You don’t really know what’s considered a small hit, so you inhale maybe halfway, doing your best to hold the smoke in your lungs before letting it out. A cough bubbles in your chest that burns nearly as much as the weed. Eddie comes back just in time with a can of soda for you. Cracking it open with a fond smile on his lips, he tosses some snacks on the bed beside you. “Not as bad as I thought,” you say after taking a sip. You take another hit, handing it back to Eddie once he’s seated. 

“Are you going to be okay?” He asks, squinting around the smoke trying to go in his eyes. 

With a heavy sigh, you prop yourself on the wall beside the bed, “I think so? I’m not even sure why I cried to be honest. They suck and I don’t know why I expected them to react any differently than that. I’m more angry about the way they treated you.” You take the joint back from him, Eddie scooting over until your thighs and arms are pressed together. Pulling the smoke into your lungs, you appreciate it not burning as badly as the first time around. Enough to take a bigger hit, “this is definitely helping. So are you,” you whisper. 

Eddie nudges you with his arm, “happy to help. You’re my best friend and I’m always going to be here to take care of you. Until you get sick of me that is,” he teases.

Laughter bubbles in your chest, your cheeks hurting from how much you're smiling. Whether that’s the weed or just Eddie in general doesn’t really matter to you. “Aww,” you coo, absolutely certain that your newfound confidence is from the drug, “I don’t think I could get sick of you, Eddie.” You tell him, playing with a lock of his hair, surprised when he doesn’t tell you to stop. “I’m really grateful for everything you’re doing. And I meant it, I don’t expect you and Wayne to take care of me for free. I’ll get a job if it comes down to it.” 

“Please,” he snickers, handing the roach to you to finish off, “Wayne is overjoyed that you’re here.” Eddie wraps his arm around your shoulder and you tuck your head into his neck. “If there was mention of you leaving, he’d probably pay you to stay. He really did miss having you around. I think he secretly always wanted a daughter.” He takes the almost burnt paper and places it in the ashtray by the bed. 

“But he got the metal head outcast with a heart of gold instead,” you smile though he can’t see it. “Just-” you huff a small breath, “thank you, Eddie. For everything.” 

Eddie kisses the side of your head, “of course, princess.” Too high to care, you giggle at the name shooting warmth throughout your system, but it’s broken off with a loud yawn. “Looks like I’ve done my job,” he chuckles softly, “I’ll let you get some sleep.”

You lay down on the pillow, pulling the blanket over you, but when Eddie tries to get up, you reach out and grab his hand. “Eddie?” 

“Yeah?” He whispers, soft eyes looking over your tired face. 

“Could you-” you swallow the barrier in your throat in the form of nerves. “Will you stay with me? I don’t really want to be alone right now,” your voice barely above a whisper. 

Eddie smiles softly, his thumb brushing along your knuckles, “yeah. Yeah, I can do that.” He lets go of your hand so you can move over to give him some room to lay down beside you. The moment his back touches the bed, you curl up to him, resting your head on his chest. A contented sigh sounding off listening to his heartbeat in your ear, along with a dopey smile on your face. “Better?” He teases, though his arms wrap around you, one hand rubbing your back while the other plays with your hair. 

“Thank you,” you mumble, already falling asleep. 

—

Controlling your emotions seems to get harder and harder the longer this plays out. Having Eddie back in your life is honestly the best thing that’s ever happened to you. And you couldn’t be more grateful for him. Not just for having him as your best friend again. But over the last month and half, your heart thought it would be a really good idea to evacuate your chest and take home inside his. Graduation was supposed to be the light at the end of the tunnel. Now it just seems like an ominous deadline.

The day you lose Eddie. 

You’re far from ready for that. In fact, being with Eddie, actually being with Eddie, doesn’t seem like all that bad of an idea. But this was supposed to be temporary, even for him. How in the hell are you supposed to propose that? It’s not like Eddie has shown you any hint that he’d want this to be anything but an act. At home, he’s just your friend. Aside from getting high together, he sleeps on the couch so that you can have the bed. 

What you should be focusing on is the book in your hands while the group plays through their session. But your eyes keep trailing back to the head of the table. Eddie, Dungeon Master himself, sitting on his throne while having the time of his life. He truly is a novelty to watch like this. Carefree and enjoying himself. It’s amazing. 

“NO!” Dustin yells, startling Pet Semetery right out of your hands. 

Usually you’re better at not jumping from their antics, but the teen does not sound happy. Meanwhile Eddie is cackling and knocks a piece off the board. Flicking your eyes around the table, you notice it was the last piece standing aside from the one indicating the monster the group had been fighting. They lost. 

“Another ruthless, unbeatable campaign?” You muse, looking at your thrilled ‘boyfriend’ while everyone gathers their things to leave.

“Always, princess,” Eddie bounds over to you, leaning on the armrests of your chair, “always.” The doors close, leaving you two alone. “Don’t act like you didn’t help.” 

Narrowing your eyes playfully, you look up at him, “yeah, I thought they’d at least have a chance though.” 

“You’re far too devious for anyone to stand a chance,” Eddie closes the distance and kisses you. 

Instinct and pure want for him, you kiss back for a moment. Pulling away with immense effort, speaking with a small voice, “no one’s here, Eds,” you whisper. “You don’t have to act like you want to kiss me,” you say, trying to gauge how he might feel about the situation. He just kissed you after you both heard the doors close. But you also don’t want to get your hopes up too high either. That there could be a reality where Eddie wants to be with you for real too. 

“Yeah,” he clears his throat, his face unreadable, “you’re right. Sorry,” he clears his throat again, “let’s go home.” 

When you grab your book and stand up, Eddie heads for the door, keeping a step or two of distance between you. Is this just how he would act if you guys weren’t pretending to be together? Because when you’re alone, he’s not this cold. Silent. Or did what you say upset him?

Even when you make it to his van and he opens the door for you and you mutter, “thanks,” all Eddie does is offer a pinched smile. 

His silence continues the entire drive home. Eddie doesn’t even sing along to the music he plays. Nor does he drum his hands on the steering wheel. It’s putting you on edge and you want to say something so badly. But you also don’t want to risk actually pissing him off either. So, you follow his lead. Not saying a word while he drives you both home. 

Things don’t get much brighter from then on either. Eddie follows you into the bedroom, grabs his acoustic guitar, and goes right back into the living room. You are absolutely not going to sit in bed and cry about change in behavior. Not at all. You’re going to do it in the shower so there’s no chance of Eddie hearing you, like a smart person. 

Smart, right. 

If you were so smart you’d tell Eddie how you really feel. 

—

“Are you coming to band practice today?” Eddie asks you while you’re putting some mascara on in the bathroom. “You don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” he scratches the back of his head, “the guys do love it when you come though.” 

“Just the guys?” The teased question spills from your lips before you’d even had a chance to filter them out. But it’s out in the air now.

Eddie grins for the smallest of seconds, “I like when you watch us too. You actually give us honest opinions. Will you come?” 

“Can you give me two more minutes?” You ask, waving the mascara brush around, “I’m almost done.” 

“Take your time,” he smiles, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder, “I’ll be out in the van.” 

Quickly, you finish your makeup and go back into the room to get your shoes on. Not wanting to wear a bra, you find one of Eddie’s hoodies and throw it on over your thin shirt. You’ve never seen him wear it, but his spicy cologne rests on the fabric. You allow yourself a moment to bring to sleeves that barely let your fingers peek out of it to your nose to breathe him in. The cologne, the smoke, the very essence of Eddie. Pretending that his arms are wrapped around you instead of his clothes. 

Not wanting to take too long, you snatch the book off the bed and run out the trailer to meet Eddie in the van. 

You sit through the covers of Iron Maiden and Motley Crue while you read your book. They’re actually really good and you do enjoy listening to them. It’s always nice to see Eddie in his element. Happy and perfectly himself. It isn’t until he mentions something about playing a new one that you start to pay attention a little more. It’s different from what they usually play, and has to be an original because you don’t recognize it either and can’t imagine any other voice than Eddie’s singing it. 

Then the chorus hits, and they have your full attention.

“So if you wanna piss off your parents, date me to scare them, show them you’re all grown up,” Eddie sings, his words the night you ran to him echoing in your head alongside the lyrics. “If long hair and tattoos are what attract you, baby, then you’re in luck.” 

Eddie wrote a song about you. Eddie wrote a fucking song about you! But your eyebrows furrow, because it doesn’t sound all that nice, to be honest. Like he’s letting his frustration out through it. You told him you didn’t care about what your parents thought, assuming that was just the incentive for him going through with this.

“You know, I’m broke, so you pulled out your Daddy’s card,” he continues with the song. The memory of you two grocery shopping together flickering in your brain. 

You had wanted to make dinner for him one night as a thank you, but couldn’t find much in his kitchen. He’d told you Wayne didn’t get paid until the weekend and that all his money from dealing went to take out. You promptly dragged him to the store and bought enough food to stock the entire kitchen. Yes, you even made sure he- and you when you chose to partake- had plenty of munchies around too. 

“Should’ve seen this coming from a mile away,” Eddie hasn’t looked at you once the entire time he sings. The rest of the guys just seem to be jamming out. Except Gareth, his face starts to twist, something mixed with confusion and understanding, his drumsticks almost falter. “I’ll play your game. I know what you want from me.” 

But this- this isn’t a game to you. Eddie isn’t a game to you. In its bones, it’s a great song. But your eyes are burning. Blurring with tears as the song goes on. Every lyric a knife to your heart. 

“And I know it’s just a phase, you’re not in love with me,” Eddie finally looks at you as a tear falls from your eye. You quickly wipe it away, seeing the same pain reflected in his big, brown eyes. “And I know it’s just a phase, you’re not in love with me. You wanna piss off your parents, baby. Piss off your parents, that’s alright with me.” 

The song ends and you hastily wipe the rest of your tears away, ducking your head back into your book so the rest of the guys don’t notice them. It’s bad enough that Eddie saw them. You knew you should’ve said something to him last night when he kissed you. You fucking knew it. And now you’ve hurt him. Hurt Eddie enough that he wrote a song to express himself. You feel like the biggest jerk there is. 

—

Something told you that you needed to drive yourself to school today. Eddie didn’t question it. You guys had another silent night at home. Didn’t talk about the song or confess your love to him. But you did decide that you will be doing that today. You just needed to have a moment to sort the words in your head into cohesive sentences. 

Then lunch rolled around and Eddie mentioned he’d be meeting Jason in the woods after school to sell to him. That sounded really fucking weird to you, he just waved off your concerns. But you also heard about Chrissy buying from Eddie too, so you didn’t think anything of it if he didn’t either. It wasn’t until you were walking to your last class that you happened to pass Jason in the halls talking to his friends about how they were going to jump Eddie when they met up that it all made sense. 

Why you wanted to bring your car. Why the whole concept of Jason buying drugs didn’t sit right with you. You skipped your last class to wait near the spot they’d meet. Your baseball bat sitting in your passenger seat. You’re not about to just let Jason hurt Eddie. But you’re also not an idiot. You watch from your hiding spot while Eddie sits on the bench waiting for the unknown threat to show up. 

He can take care of himself against Jason, that’s been proven. But you don’t want to see what would happen if it was three or more guys. When Jason first shows up with three other guys whose names you could care less to remember, your nerves light up. Eddie’s too because he rises from the picnic bench with his arms raised. Grabbing your bat, you get out of the car, careful to stay out of view. 

Inching closer, Jason’s voice finally makes it through, “she’d never actually want to be with a freak like you. No way. She wants to be with me, just like her parents want her to. Maybe if you let her go, we won’t hurt you.” 

Yeah, fuck that. Clenching your hand around the bat, you step into view, “back off, Carver,” you command. Swaying the wood back and forth. “I warned you once already.” 

“Princess,” Eddie warns, but you don’t want to hear it. He might have pieced together why Jason is here, but you’re not backing down. Never again. Not since the moment you stepped foot in his trailer what feels like ages ago.

“Can’t you see he’s corrupting you? Just come with me so that I can take care of you,” Jason yells back, looking honest to god perplexed. “This isn’t you. He’s messing with your head.” 

“He’s letting me live!” You shout, tired of everyone trying to tell you what’s best for you. Like you’re incapable of figuring that out for yourself. One thing’s for certain, it isn’t fucking Jason. And it isn’t your fucking parents either. “He takes care of me better than anyone else ever has! Eddie makes me happy!” 

“Aww, princess,” Eddie coos softly, making your heart swell. 

“Don’t make me say it again, Carver,” you swing the back at your side again.

“Grab him!” Jason snaps and two of the guys grab each of Eddie’s arms, pinning them behind his back. You hadn’t even noticed they were getting closer to him, you were so focused on making sure Jason didn’t do something stupid. Eddie struggles in their grip, loosening their hold, only to be forced still. 

Looks like Jason did do something stupid afterall. “I warned you, Jason,” you spit, swinging the bat, hitting him in the face with a satisfying thwack. He stumbles to the dirt, clutching his split, bleeding cheek. The remaining jock, not holding Eddie, helps Jason to his feet. Whipping your head to the others, “let. Him. Go,” you growl while Eddie stares at you with literal heart eyes. The boys keep their hold, flicking their gaze to their captain who's whining. Good. “Fine,” you huff, swinging the bat again, connecting with one of their legs. 

Eddie stumbles as they release him, the one you’d hit falling to the forest floor, yelling in pain. His partner in crime helps him up and you aim your bat again, a crystal clear warning. One that even Jason pays attention to and all four jocks limp away. Once they’re out of view, the bat thumps to the ground and you face Eddie. 

“Are you crazy?” He asks, pulling you close, staring in your eyes waiting for an answer.

“Don’t ever tell me again that I don’t love you, Eddie Munson, do you understand me,” you rush out, crashing your lips to his. A soft moan combined with an absolute sigh of relief pushes past your lips when he holds you tighter, pulls you even closer, and returns the kiss. 

“Why would you do that?” He breaks the kiss, holding you by the small of your back. “Where did you even get a bat from?” 

“That dick led you out here just to jump you. I heard him in the halls. I wasn’t going to just let him,” you roll your eyes, brushing his bangs from his eyes. “I told you it felt weird.” 

“And the bat?” Eddie repeats, looking where it's laying on the ground. 

“I’m a girl in a small town,” you state like it should be obvious. “It’s called self defense.” 

He snorts, “hot.” You playfully punch his chest, making him laugh. He quickly grabs your hand, bringing it to his mouth to kiss our knuckles. “So, I make you happy, huh?” Eddie grins slyly, cocking an eyebrow at you. 

“Very,” you smile back, leaning in to kiss him again. Hard. Pressing into him until he’s backed against a tree, groaning into your mouth. “I’ve been wanting to tell you for weeks,” you admit, pulling at his bottom lip with your teeth. Lovingly swiping it with your tongue at his hiss from the action. 

Suddenly your back is against the tree and Eddie’s hips are digging into yours, the bulge in his jeans leaving nothing to the imagination as to whether or not he’s believing and enjoying your words. “I told you I wanted to marry you when we were kids,” he rasps in the small space between your mouths. “You coming to me soaked and asking for help, even as a ploy I’d accept it if it meant you being in my life again. I never stopped wanting you, princess. Ever.” 

“Good,” you reply, claiming his mouth again, Eddie’s hands gripping your hips. You moan when he kisses down your neck, biting at the crook and your eyes roll back. “Eddie,” you whine, trying to spread your legs for more friction. He shifts, his thigh pressing between your legs, rubbing beautifully against your clothed pussy. It’s not enough and you whine again, “Eddie, please.” Every pent up feeling you’ve had for the last month ready to burst at the seams. 

He chuckles against what’s surely a purple mark on your neck, “right here?” Eddie teases, licking your abused flesh, nipping his way back up. “Can’t let me take you home first?”

“No,” you say once his blown, brown eyes fall on your face, “I can’t. I need you, Eddie, please,” you gasp. Breathing becomes harder the longer his thigh digs into you, sparking flames deep in your core. 

“Right here in the woods, huh?” He asks, a shit eating grin plastered on his face. “Maybe Jason was right,” Eddie chuckles, cupping you where it aches, “maybe I did corrupt you.” 

“Good,” you moan, grinding against his hand, “I’m yours to corrupt, Eddie.”

Eddie’s eyes darken further, pupils widening and getting hazy, “that’s my girl.” His fingers undo your button and zipper before yanking you to him, pulling you back towards the picnic table. Pushing you down face first onto the wooden surface, he drags your pants and underwear down in one swift motion. “Look at you,” he tries to coo, but it’s so full of lust that it’s raspy and thick, “so wet for me already, princess.” Eddie kisses your spine, making you shiver, “last chance,” his hands rub your ass. 

“Please,” you croak, eyes burning, needing him inside of you right now. Groaning a guttural, “fuck,” when his tongue dips inside your dripping cunt. “Eddie,” you gasp, him eating you out better than you’ve ever felt before. The long licks and the way he pushes his tongue as far as it will go to tease at your clit. It’s intoxicating and before you can beg for more, two fingers push inside you and you keen. Hips bucking at the pressure against the bundle of nerves deep inside. 

Your moans turn to a mewl, Eddie nipping at the back of your thighs, his hand cracking over your ass. The sting shoots white hot jolts of electricity through you, an orgasm beginning to warm you from the inside out at a startling rate. Kissing your ass, you feel Eddie smile, “you taste so fucking good princess. So fucking good. God,” he groans, “and you’re all fucking mine. Aren’t you?” His fingers move faster and all you can do is moan and nod, thighs shaking with the need to come. “Aren’t you?” Eddie repeats with another slap to your ass, wanting an actual answer. 

Like he isn’t taking away your ability to form proper thoughts let alone understandable words. Huffing your breath, trying desperately to speak, “y-yes, yours,” your gasp, his tongue joining his fingers, flying you over the edge. Wave after beautiful wave slamming into you in quick succession. Had Eddie not had his fingers inside of you, you’d have slumped right off the table. “I’m yours, Eddie,” you groan when he removes his fingers, half hearing him undo his own belt and the slide of his pants. 

“Good girl,” he soothes the spot he’d smacked with loving strokes of his palm, spitting into his other hand. A whine escapes your lips feeling the head of his cock glide against your pussy. “Ready, princess?” Eddie asks, tapping your cunt with his dick. You think you say yes, you’re almost certain the word came out of your mouth. All you really care about is that Eddie heard your consent and his dick slams into you completely. “Fuck, you’re so tight, baby.” 

A groan shifts to a whine when he slowly drags himself out of you to the tip, sliding back at the same pace. “Eddie,” you whine again, trying to push your hips back to make him move faster. The heat in your core burns at a dizzying rate from the surprising intensity of the leisurely roll of his hips. But his grip on you is sure, you’re completely at his mercy.

“Look at that,” he gasps out, doing it over and over. You can only imagine that he’s just watching himself disappear inside of you and enjoying it immensely. “So pretty,” Eddie moans, thrusting harder, but only just. Still pulling out till just the tip of his cock is left inside you and ramming himself forward. The pace punches moans from your chest and has your eyes roll back with every deliberate jab to that sweet spot. 

“Ed- fuck!” You cry out, his control of teasing you or keeping up with his own pleasure snaps along with his hips. Eddie holds your hips hard and rails into you harder. Thrusting with abandon and the coil inside of you winds tightly. Threatening to break at any given moment. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” you moan repeatedly, eyes blurring with lust. 

Eddie fists his hand in the back of your hair, yanking you up to his chest, “that’s right, let it all out, princess.” He wraps a hand around your middle, trailing his fingers down to circle around your clit. “I wanna hear how good I make you feel,” Eddie bites at your neck, sucking what has to be a constellation of marks on your skin, his thrusts not once faltering. “Come for me, pretty girl.” 

His words, his hands, his cock, him. Eddie flies you right over the edge of your orgasm. The coil snapping so hard you feel your pussy spasm around him and do something it’s never done before, even when you’ve played with yourself. You cry out, screaming a moaned, “Eddie,” as your cunt gushes around him. A tear falls from your eye, overwhelmed with sensation but Eddie holds you close, keeping you grounded with an orgasm infused smile on your face. 

He doesn’t gentle you through it, his fingers never ceasing their toying with your clit, “you’re gonna come for me again,” Eddie moans in your ear. You’re nearly overstimulated, but oh so addicted to the feeling of his dick inside of you that you couldn’t care less. You’d come as many times as he’d get you to. “Then I’m gonna come inside my pussy, understand?” 

“Please, please Eddie, fuck,” you moan, your cunt clenching around him with a vice grip. You want to meet his thrusts, but you’re too lost in the perfect pace he’s set that you hadn’t even noticed the all too familiar tingle creeping up on you. Thighs shaking, you hold his arm, the hand in your hair snaking around to a light hold on your throat. Another grunted moan in your ear from Eddie is all it took for you to fall apart again. A breathless scream as your pussy squirts around his cock once more. 

“That’s my girl,” Eddie’s grip tightens around your throat. His fingers finally leave your sensitive clit alone to hold you steady, thrusting a few more times until he shoves himself inside. Eddie lets out a moan, spilling himself deep inside, warming you from the inside out. “Fucking hell, I love you,” he pants, peppering your neck with sweet kisses. He carefully helps you back onto the table top, your hands propping you because your legs are far from stable. 

Your mind is blissfully quiet, only caring about being in the moment with Eddie. You’ll deal with the thought of doing this in the middle of the woods later. Right now, you just want him. Eddie pulls out from your sore pussy as gently as he can and gingerly pulls your pants back up. Kind of pointless considering they’re pretty much instantly soaked from his come leaking out of you. But that’s okay too, you like the feeling. You turn to face him, finding he’s already got his pants pulled up too. 

Reaching out to hug him, Eddie does you one better, scooping you up into his arms in a bridal carry. “You okay, princess?” He asks, kissing the top of your head when you tuck into his neck. 

“I’m okay. Some water would be great right now though,” you mumble, the pure scent of Eddie mixing with the woods around you is better than any aromatherapy out there. “And food. God, and a bath.” 

Eddie chuckles, bending to grab your bat from the ground, “good thing I have a cooler and some snacks in the van. Think that’ll be enough till we get home and I can make you something?” 

“‘S perfect, Eds,” you smile against his skin, curling your fingers in the ends of his hair as he carries you to his van. “Will my car be okay?” 

“I’ll have Gareth or Jeff come get it for you.” Eddie stops in his tracks, “uh,” he chuckles. “Do we need to stop at the pharmacy?” 

Lifting your tired head, you ask, ”why,” heavy lidded eyes barely focusing on him. 

“We didn’t use a condom,” he states, “and I definitely didn’t pull out.” 

You laugh, thumping your head back into his neck, “Eddie, my parents controlled every aspect of my life, you really think they wouldn’t put me on the pill?” You resume playing with his hair and he begins walking again. “I would’ve stopped you otherwise,” tugging his hair lightly you giggle, “it’s more than okay, Eddie. Just get me home so we can eat and take a bath together.”

“Coming right up, princess,” his smile is evident in his tone and he kisses your hair again. 

Part 2

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson #eddie munson smut #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson angst #stranger things 4 #stranger things #Match Writes

[xmalereader]

ID Leon Kennedy x Teacher! Male Reader

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|| Masterlist ||

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Authors Note: This sat in my drafts for months and didn’t even finish it properly 😭, but oh well. In order for the ages between Sherry and Leon to make sense it would have been RE4R Leon instead of ID Leon, but fuck it, it doesn’t matter. Enjoy this trashy draft!

Summary: Leon is in need of a teacher for his daughter, Sherry and is recommended one of the best homeschooling teachers.

Warnings: Fluff, mentions of family, slight age gap, Sherry needs parents, single dad leon, language, homesickness, really short, mentions of Hunnigan and the DSO, mentions of Claire and Chris, Infinite Darkness Leon.

Word Count: 3.2K

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He always wanted to be a preschool teacher, teaching young kids and watching them grow. He had a way with kids he knew how to talk to them and interact without making them uncomfortable. He grew up in a household with six sisters, he was the only boy in the family and took majority of his time raising his own sisters while his parents worked to maintain them. He never hated it, he enjoyed taking care of his sisters, learning how to do their hair, take them shopping, finding out which clothes fits best with what shoes.

His sisters knew that his dream was to be a teacher one day and to teach younger students, after he graduated high school he quickly went to college to get his proper degree, spending day and night studying and getting his work done. Passing tests and finally reaching graduation, only for everything to crumble.

He’d applied to many schools and was denied. Not because he wasn’t educated enough but because he was a man who wanted to teach young children which caused many schools to be suspicious about him. He had a clean record and showed no signs of trouble but that didn’t matter to them. His dream of being a teacher came crashing down to the point where he was close to giving up.

It wasn’t until he applied for home schooling, hoping to get something. It took him a few days to receive a call from a family who wished to have a teacher for there kids. After they looked at his records and file they quickly accepted him, giving him the chance to interact with the families kids and educate them. The kids he taught were between eight to ten years old, giving him the chance to teach different levels of education.

He was with the family for a year before the kids were officially sent to a public school, his time spent teaching the kids gave him hope in advancing only for the wife of the family ending up recommending him to one of her co workers. She told him that he was a single parent raising a ten year old daughter.

He didn’t meet up with this new client until a month later, giving him time to prepare for a visit and to meet up properly with his new student and parent. Y/n was given an address of where his new client lived, imagine his surprise when he arrives to a large house, big enough for a large family.

He was confused, checking the address twice to make sure that he was at the right place. Did a single parent really live here? Perhaps the job they worked provided them enough money to afford such a big house. He gives himself some time to allow his anxiety to subside before stepping up to finally knock on the door.

It only took a few minutes for someone to come to the front door, pulling it open to come face to face with the most attractive man he’s ever seen. Y/n can’t help but swallow nervously as he asks in a soft voice. “Mr. Kennedy?” He questions, hoping that this man standing in front of him wasn’t his students father.

“Yes, that’s me.”

Fuck.

“I’m Y/n.” He sticks his hand out for a friendly handshake. “You called about homeschooling your daughter, I believe?” He asks, shaking Kennedy’s hand before he was let inside.

“You were recommended to me by a co worker, she told me that you are good at teaching along with Interacting with kids.” His students father raises a brow, guiding him inside the house, giving Y/n the chance to look around the place.

“Yes! Martha was her name—“ he referred to the mother of his old students. “She told me very little about you, telling me that you are a single parent raising a daughter on your own and looking for a teacher.” The two end up in the living room with Y/n sitting down a little further away from Kennedy. “Mr. Kennedy—“

“Please, call me Leon. Mr. Kennedy sounds a bit weird to me.” He chuckled out.

“Right, Mr—Leon. Can I ask, why not send your daughter to a public school? I’m not saying that I’m a bad teacher I’m simply curious to know.” He didn’t want him to think that he was judging Leons decision of homeschooling his daughter, he was curious to know. Most families had attachments to their kids and weren’t ready to send them to a public school, others were concerned about there safety.

He watched as Leon sighed to himself, siting back in his own seat. “I took sherry out of a bad situation, took her under my wing and signed the adoption papers after everything. Her situation caused her to close up.” Leon began to explain, getting Y/n’s attention. “She’s open around me and a few friends of mine but she’s not great with strangers or kids her own age. I believe that it’s a smart decision to have her homeschooled until she is ready.”

Y/n nods along at his words, taking everything in. He’s never dealt with a child who has been through trauma, but he’s willing to accept a challenge and provide the proper tools to help. “Is there anything I should know about Sherry? Perhaps curtain things she doesn’t feel comfortable with?” His question catches Leon by surprise. He guesses that not people ask about his child’s worries.

“She doesn’t like needles or tight spaces nor the dark.” Leon starts to name off a couple of things. “She doesn’t like shouting, it scares her and sometimes she can freeze up.”

Y/n takes mental note of all of this, making sure that he doesn’t do or say anything that will cause the poor kid to panic. “I will make sure that I don’t put her in a tough position, I always want to make sure that my students are comfortable. I would like to meet with Sherry first, if that’s alright? I usually spend my first day getting to know my students before I officially start their studies.”

Leon was hesitant, eyeing him up and down before coming to a stand, nodding his head. “Yeah, follow me.” With that, Y/n comes to a stand and follows Leon deeper into the house. Guiding him down a hall towards an open door, Y/n makes sure to stay back as Leon steps inside, giving the door a soft knock to get his kids attention.

“Sherry, your new teacher is here to meet with you. Think you’re up to it?” Leon asks as the young girl gives him a nod as she stands from her desk chair, coming to stand by Leon’s side as Y/n enters the room with a soft smile. He makes sure to provide her enough space to feel comfortable with as he stands from afar.

He gives a small wave. “Hello Sherry, I’m Y/n.” He intrudes himself, holding onto the strap of his book bag as he swallows. Leon is watching him closely as he approached her. “Honestly I haven’t heard much about you, all I know is that your dad here wants me to be your teacher—“ his eyes avert towards her desk where he takes notice of a Microscope.

“Do you like science?”

That gets the kids attention.

“I know a thing or two about science, I see that you like doing on hands projects.” He continued. “Perhaps I can teach you a few things, what do you think?”

“Will I see real micro organisms?” Sherry speaks up, her voice high pitched but soft. Y/n smiles with a small chuckle. “Of course, you’ll be able to work on the real stuff. Perhaps we can see how many germs things have?” He suggests.

Sherry is quick to nod, finally opening up to him and claiming that as a victory.

“Do you want to see what I’m working on?” Sherry asks, walking back to her desk to show him her own work that she’s been doing. Leon gives him a reassured nod when he glanced over to him, being granted permission to get closer to her as he stands next to her desk, looking down at the different tools that she had. The material before him is worth hundreds, if Leon was able to afford all of this it made him question what he did for work.

Sherry went on a ramble about her discoveries, showing him everything and pointing out random things that she found. Y/n listens to her and asks a few questions here and there, the child showed high interests in science and it made him question how far up her educational level could be.

After spending a few minutes with Sherry under Leon’s supervision, he is pulled aside by Leon while Sherry is distracted by her own hobbies.

“She’s a good kid, fast learner too.” Y/n says with a smile as he follows Leon out of the room and into the hallway. “I want you to be her permanent teacher.” Leon blurts out getting Y/n’s eyes to widen. “Per—But I usually only teach for a year.”

“And I want you to be Sherry’s teacher. Look, I have met with many teachers and none have made her to open up like you did. She’s usually quiet and doesn’t speak, most of the ones I’ve met so far have given up on her but you haven’t. I saw the way she reacted, she’s comfortable with you and I’d like you to be her teacher. I’ll pay you double and would like it if you moved into our guest bedroom, I spoke to to the agency about your living situation and know that you still live with your family.” Said Leon, catching Y/n by surprise, opening and closing his mouth, not knowing what to say.

“Mr Kennedy—Leon, you don’t have to do that—“

“I insist.” Leon cuts in. “Sherry needs a teacher.” He’s pleading at this point that Y/n can’t resist the offer, sighing to himself he nods in response. “Okay, I—I want to teach Sherry. I just have to get some things packed up before anything else.” He says softly.

“Thank you.” Leon tone is laced with relief once his offer is accepted and is quick to show Y/n the guest bedroom and where he will be staying, letting him know that he’s welcome to come and go as he pleases that he was still free to do so since he was here to teach Sherry.

It felt weird for Y/n.

He was going to be Sherrys teacher that was also going to be living with her and her father, under the same roof. This was new to him and knows that he would have to get adjusted if he is to teach Sherry.

After Leon provides him a key to the place he lets him know that he can move his stuff in whenever he can, giving him the time that he needs with his packing. When Y/n arrives back home to his family he is bombarded with questions from his younger sisters, always wanting to know what kind of kids he will be teaching. Y/n answers his sisters questions with a smile on his face before they leave his side after he was done answering their questions.

His sudden smile faltering and going noticed by his mother who knew that something was wrong the minute he walked through the door.

“Something happen?”

His mother is quick to assume as his father rolls his eyes at her, but Y/n gives off a small shrug. “Well, I got the job but this parent seems persistent to have his daughter learn, he’s had many other teachers see her, but none were to her liking nor was she comfortable with them. She liked me a lot and her father wants me to move into their house until she is ready to go to a public school.”

He can see his mothers face shift into a sad one. “So, you will be leaving?”

Y/n nodded. He couldn’t always going to live with his family he was going to be twenty six soon and affording a place on his own was rough without having a roommate and with Leon’s offer he knew it would be best for him. He was getting paid to live and teach his daughter. This would be the first time he leaves the nest, finally being able to go somewhere that he can provide him the support, not only that but he was being paid double. “I’ll be fine, I can still visit.” He reassured her knowing how worried his mother will be when he leaves the house.

After his discussion with his parents, he gets their help on packing up a few boxes. There’s a lot that he leaves behind for them, letting them know that he already had the necessary stuff back at Leon’s house, not too worried about leaving stuff behind for his sisters to keep. He didn’t have much to pack and is quick to move into the Kennedy household in less than a day.

It felt odd using a key to a strangers house, his stomach filled with knots at the idea of coming home to someone else. His years being sheltered by his parents created anxiety along with fear of change, they were always together and it was finally his time to follow his own path.

His first night there was uncomfortable for him. The silence was new to him for many nights he would hear his sisters gossiping non stop until midnight, falling asleep to their voices and waking up to them arguing about who was going to use the bathroom before school started in order to get ready for the day.

He didn’t hear the sound of his sisters voices in the morning instead he woke up to the sound of silence. Leaving his room and heading to the kitchen where he finds Leon cooking his daughter, Sherry a decent breakfast. Y/n stood frozen, unsure of what to say or do only for Sherry to take notice of his presence and smile at him.

“Morning!” She calls out loudly, getting both Y/n and Leons attention.

Leon looks up from his cooking and gives him a small greeting. “Sleep well?” He asks while Y/n rounds the table, sitting down next to Sherry who bounced in her seat, excited to have him here. “A bit, I’m used to waking up early with the sound of my sisters arguing.” He chuckled out.

“You have sisters?” Sherry’s voice is laced with curiosity as she stares up at him with wide eyes. “Yep!” Y/n smiles at her. “Six to be exact.”

“Six?!”

Y/n laughs at her small outburst. “That’s a big family.” He hears Leon say, finishing up on the cooking and serving them all their own plate. “I’m the only boy in the family.” He blurts out, taking his own plate of food and thanking Leon, staring down at the nicely well cooked breakfast.

“And you? Any siblings?” He suddenly asks Leon.

“Only child.” Leon answers, sitting across from the two as he focused on eating his food.

“I’m guessing its just you and Sherry right?”

Sherry speaks up before Leon could. “And Aunt Claire and Uncle Chris.”

Y/n knew that Leon didn’t have any siblings, it’s possible that these aunts and uncles of Sherry’s are close friends of Leon’s who he’s claimed as family. “You must love your family, a lot, huh?” He chuckled at Sherry’s bashful smile as she goes back to eating her breakfast, finally giving Y/n and Leon the time to talk.

“Can I ask, if its not a problem, but what do you do for work?” Y/n is quick to shove food in his mouth, keeping himself distracted with something.

“Office work.” He answers with no hesitation, feeling Sherry’s eyes on him, knowing damn well that what the man did was not just any ‘office work’ she knew that his job was dangerous and was lying to keep them safe.

Y/n’s eyebrows raised in surprise, another question coming to mind but keeps his mouth shut, not wanting to bother the man any longer. “Oh? I expected something totally different.” He chucked out nervously, clearing his throat and finishing up his food before rushing to the sink to keep himself distracted with the dishes he is currently washing.

“You don’t have to wash those.”

Leon speaks up from his spot on the dining table but Y/n is quick to cut in. “I want too, besides if I am to be living here to help teach Sherry, I might as well and be decent and do my own dishes. Let alone any chores I have of my own…” He mumbled softly before focusing back on his task in hand and setting the wet dishes aside to dry.

Leon chuckled to himself, knowing that he shouldn’t argue back with his daughters teacher. “Very well,” he states, turning to Sherry and giving her a soft kiss on the head after he finished his own breakfast. “I have to head out.” He announced, getting the young girls attention. “How long will you be gone this time?” She pouts out.

“It’s only for a day, Claire will come by to stay the night.”

“Will uncle Chris be with you too?” She questions.

“Yes, both Chris and I will be out for the day. So, again, Claire will come by tonight after your schooling is done.” Leon promises, watching his daughter frown at his words. He knows that his job is dangerous and is sent on long missions, he’s spoken to Hunnigan about wanting to spend more time at home, which is why she tasked him with the shorter missions. But, even those felt too long for Sherry.

“It’s only for tonight.” Leon reassured Sherry who gave a curt nod, pushing her unfinished plate aside before leaving the dining room. Leon knows how stubborn she becomes when he is needing to leave for a mission, Y/n on the other hand didn’t know how to deal with the situation, the tension building up in the room as he quietly moves around the kitchen, distracting himself from what he witnessed.

Y/n looked around frantically, looking for something to do, something to clean but Leons kitchen was already clean. The man kept it clean for him and his daughter, after cooking breakfast he had cleaned up his own spills and washed the dishes that he’s used all expect the pan that he was rushing to clean in order to run away from the awkwardness that filled the room around them.

Leon had been staring towards the direction that Sherry disappeared too, sighing deeply and standing up straight. “Let me know if she causes any trouble.” He speaks up, getting Y/n’s attention and the teacher nods. “Of course…” He whispers softly and watches Leon leave his own house, giving Y/n the chance to sigh in relief once the tension disappears.

It was only his first day and had no idea how react to this change and instead focused on finishing up his cleaning and get started on Sherry’s schooling.

#Leon Kennedy x male reader #male reader #resident evil #resident evil x male reader #Leon Kennedy #ID Leon Kennedy #teacher AU #male teacher reader #one shot #drafts #Resident evil x reader #Leon Kennedy x reader

[stevesbipanic]

To my most lovely @undreaming-fanfiction Happy Valentine's Day love youuuu 💕💕💕 I hope I managed to do all three of your prompts justice (small routines, learning new things about each other, and ghosts of your past) ENJOY!!!!! And Ty @artbean for putting this together 💕💕💕

After five years together there's not a lot of things Eddie doesn't know about Steve.

He knows that Steve likes to colour co-ordinate the calendar on their fridge and that his favourite day of the month is the first since he gets to write out everything on a clean slate.

He also knows that Steve has a particular way he does his hair, and that it was a big deal just seeing it done let alone being taught how to do it, it helps he now knows Steve loves a good head scratch.

He knows that Steve is an early riser and always goes on a run, but will shower and curl back in bed with him if Eddie is still asleep.

He knows that there's an order to how and when he checks on their family. The Sinclairs are first, making sure he's waited until Lucas should be back from training and Erica back from Tracey's, calling there too if there's a sleepover. Next is the Wheelers, Nancy promising him they're all ok if they're visiting and Mike letting him know if she's available that night if she's at college. Then the Hendersons, Claudia inviting him to dinner in the background as Dustin regales his day. Max is next, letting Steve know if she wants to stay over that night. The Byers are the end of the kids, El and Will promising him it's really over. Wayne is near the end, back from his shift safe and sound. Before they dated Eddie was during this time too, helping him to sleep just hearing Steve's voice. Robin is last and she'll be on the line until they're both safely in dreamland.

Eddie loves learning new things about Steve, especially when now they're further and far between. It comes as a suprise when it's something as simple as tea that teaches him something new about his sweetheart.

They're visiting Steve's grandma, who was a lot cooler about the whole boyfriend thing than Steve's parents were.

"Your grandpa, Otis, had a friend, Freddie, who kept a picture of his boy in his pocket, would've gotten him in a lot of trouble back then but love like that was worth dying for."

She had been I'll lately so him and Steve had taken a drive up to visit her, now living in a retirement home in Indy. She was a riot in Eddie's opinion, and made a mental note to make sure they visited her more, he was happy to drive them, anything for Steve.

They were halfway through a game of Scrabble, where Eddie had successfully convinced Steve that Megadeth should be allowed (it shouldn't), when the question was raised.

Edith, yes Eddie also got a delight out of the fact that they shared a name, buzzed her nurse who popped her head in knowing there were visitors.

"Everything good, Eds?" Eddie's eyes twinkled in mischief, he was teasing Steve about the name similarities when they got home.

"A spot of tea, darling? I'm parched and I'm sure these lovely boys are too. Steve, sweetheart?"

"Oh yes, milk and two sugars please, but cubes on the side instead of scoops of it's not trouble."

Eddie's heart skipped a beat at his answer, "Eddie, you want a tea?"

"Oh um, yes, same as him, please ma'am."

"Such polite boys, we need more grandsons like you visiting," she laughed leaving to make the tea. It was surely just a coincidence that Steve took his tea like that, he's sure plenty of people do.

The real suprise came when the tea was set down, cubes on the side, and Steve picked one up and mixed it in, leaving the other alone. The game continued, Eddie eyeing that lone cube, a similar one on his own saucer. When Steve took his last sip of tea he picked up the cube and popped it into his mouth, crunching it. Eddie did the same.

"Done that since you were a kid, always a sweet tooth."

Steve laughed, "It's how my nanny did it when we played tea party with Carol."

Edith smiled, "She was a lovely woman, shamed they moved outta town."

Something settled deep in Eddie's heart. The rest of the afternoon it sat there, and through the goodbyes and hugs, all through the drive home too.

Eddie didn't mention it as they made dinner, Steve doing the chopping and as always Eddie dutifully stirring. The feeling sat there through the night as they watched tv, curled up in a blanket built for one not two. Nothing was brought up as they cleaned up, Steve washing, Eddie drying. It wasn't until bed, in the safety and quiet of their room that Eddie asked.

"Your nanny? What was she like?"

Steve's eyes lit up, "Oh she was the best, noone as good before her and no-one as good after. She loved taking me to the park, sometimes if his dad said it was ok her son would come too, he was fun, built the best sandcastles. She always baked me cookies too, especially if Carol was coming over for a tea party. And she would tell me the little extra sugar was a treat and that I should always have something a little sweet in life."

Eddie's eyes were tearing up by the time Steve finished, "Eds, baby are you ok?"

"What was her name?"

Steve's eyebrows crinkled, "Sarah, why? Oh." He said, remembering the dark curls that surrounded her face, the ones on her son, the boy laying across from him.

"Your mum, oh Eds, so when the tea? I'm sorry." Steve knew about his mum and how when she died it left Eddie all alone.

"Can't believe in five years, we've never had tea," a wet chuckle followed Eddie's words.

A sad smile graced Steve's face, "We should have more, need a bit more sweetness in my life."

Eddie smiled at him, "Knew there was a reason I called you sweetheart, and I clearly won you over with my awesome sandcastles."

A laugh burst out of Steve and that sound was sweeter than any sugar Eddie could eat.

#happy valentine's day #stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #sweetandspicyexchange

[iamasimperyk]

Meeting his daughter -Rafe Cameron

Summary: You meet his daughter for the first time and you are kind of nervous.

Warnings: Fluff, mention of divorce, mention of taboo topic, not proofread, English is not my first language

Pairing: Professor!Rafe x Reader

Rafe told you the truth. After that night he and his wife talked about a divorce and both agreed with their decision. The only thing Rafe didn't tell his wife was that you were his student.

To your surprise, his now ex-wife was not as cruel as you thought. She was actually quite nice. She was willing to allow Rafe to visit his daughter whenever he wanted and had every second weekend designated as dad weekend.

His daughter's name was Daisy and she was a literal angel-at least that's what Rafe told you.

Today it was your first time to meet her. To say that you were scared was an understatement.

"Y/n, calm down. She will love you." Rafe chuckled, watching as you paced around his expensive home.

You placed the chocolate cake you had made on the table before you started to look for any dirty spots you could possibly clean.

"I am the reason her parents divorced," You mumbled, wiping over the marble floor.

"That's not true, and you know it. Neither of us was happy in that marriage, and it was definitely not a great environment for a child." Rafe sighed, laying his hand over yours to stop you from cleaning.

You looked at his beautiful blue eyes, kissing his cheek.

You loved moments like this. When it was just you and Rafe, you could be a normal couple before having to hide again at college or anywhere you went.

"I love you," Rafe smiled, his eyes holding nothing but honesty.

"I love you too," You wanted to lean in and kiss him when the doorbell suddenly interrupted you.

Rafe gave you a reassuring nod, before he opened the front door, revealing Daisy and her mother.

"Daddy," She let out an enthusiastic scream and ran into his open arms.

"I missed you too, pumpkin." He said in a gentle tone.

You stood there, watching the scene in awe. It was one of Rafe's sides, that not a lot of people were allowed to see since it made him vulnerable.

"Hi, Y/n." Rafe's ex greeted you. You had already met her a few weeks ago and somehow the two of you got along really well, even when you were the complete opposite of her.

"Hi, nice to meet you again," You smiled and took Daisy's backpack out of her hand.

A moment later, Daisy let go of her dad and turned to her mother.

"Have fun with Daddy and Y/n, I will see you on Sunday." She kissed her daughter's forehead and gave her a big hug.

Afterwards, she walked to her car, and Rafe closed the door before turning to his daughter, "I want you to meet my girlfriend Y/n."

Butterflies interrupted in your stomach at his use of words.

Daisy looked at you with curious eyes, but turned to Rafe quickly, signalling him to pick her up which he immediately did.

"She is really pretty," She tried to whisper but you heard her clearly.

Rafe chuckled, "I know."

Daisy turned her head towards you, "My name is Daisy, I am three years old and my favourite colour is blue."

This little girl was adorable and you couldn't help but melt at her words, "Hi, I am Y/n, I am 20 years old and my favourite colour is Y/f/c."

Of course, it was a silly introduction, but you wanted to make her happy and it seemed like it worked.

"Do you want to see my toys?" She asked, her eyes full of hope.

You quickly nodded, "I would love to."

Rafe set her down, and she immediately took your hand, pulling you into the living room.

Rafe stood in the doorframe, watching you play with his daughter.

This was a new chapter of his life, and he was excited to explore it with you by his side.

A.N; Please don’t be mad at me that this chapter is full of fluff and Daisy and her mom actually have no problem with the reader😭

#rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron x you #rafe cameron x y/n #rafe cameron #rafe x you #rafe x reader #rafe x y/n #obx #outer banks #outer banks x reader #outer banks x you #outer banks x y/n #rafe cameron fluff #fluff #professor rafe cameron #professor!rafe cameron

[flemingsfreckles]

Be a Good Teammate pt. 4

Jessie Fleming x Reader

Read Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 first!

Preview: You and Jessie have dinner at her new place.

Warnings: it’s angsty yall, buckle up (just for a bit), swearing, very brief mention of sex (no descriptions, nothing like that, but it gets mentioned)

WC: 5.5k

A/N: I think this is the end of this series. I never intend to make it more than 1 part honestly, but you all enjoyed it enough so here we are at Part 4. This also ended up more angsty than I had planned so, whoops :)

It was nearing 5pm when your Uber pulled up in front of the address Jessie had sent you. You thanked the driver and hopped out. You hadn’t thought much of the address, not noticing that there wasn’t an apartment number or a unit letter attached to the end of it, so you were surprised to find yourself standing in front of a house instead of an apartment complex as you had expected.

It was a small little blue house, wood fencing all around, a good sized front yard, a few trees, it was exactly what you would expect Jessie to pick out. 

You pulled your phone out of your sweatpants pocket to let her know you had arrived. You had gotten back to the hotel, quickly thrown on a Nike sweatshirt and a fitted pair of gray joggers.

“Hi.” You look up to see Jessie walking through the doorway and down the steps toward the fence gate. You put your phone back in your pocket, not needing to let her know you were here anymore. She reached the gate, unlatched it and held it open for you to come inside. You notice that she quickly looks you up and down as you walk through into her front yard. You can’t help but do the same to her.

Jessie’s hair was down, still slightly wet from her postgame shower, she was wearing a lavender colored long sleeved shirt and a pair of sweatpants. She looked cozy, as if she was ready to cuddle up on the couch for the evening like she had mentioned wanting to do.

“You bought a house?” Your curiosity gets the best of you and you can’t help but ask. 

“Yeah, I did. I lived with Janine and her fiancé for the first few weeks while I looked at places, and then I had to leave for the gold cup and I just couldn’t find any apartment that felt like home. I started looking at houses instead once I got back. This was actually the first one I saw and I really liked it. It’s not too big, which works since it’s just me right now but has some room if I need it in the future.” Your brain wanders to the thought of Jessie having her own kids in the future, you knew she wanted them and you had seen how good she was with kids over the years. 

“Plus I figured even if I’m only here for a couple years, I can keep the house. It’s only been a few weeks but I love the area. I'd consider coming back here to settle when soccer is over.” She opened the front door, stepping back to let you walk in first. 

You slip off your shoes, placing them on the mat next to the door where Jessie’s shoes lay neatly in a row. Looking up you realize you're standing in her living room, there’s a large gray couch, a small table in front of it, a tv, a bookshelf that’s filled with books and art and other trinkets. 

“You can keep a plant alive now?” You tease her as you see she has a variety of green plants. In college you had watched her become what you described as a serial killer of plants.

“I’m getting better. A lot of them were housewarming gifts from my teammates so I maybe just haven't had enough time to kill them.” 

Stepping out of the entryway you walk over to her bookshelf, looking at the various titles, there’s a couple photos placed on the bookshelf, one with her parents after she had won the gold medal, one of her and her Chelsea teammates holding up a couple trophies, one of her and her siblings all wearing matching Christmas pajamas. The opening to the kitchen was just to your right, you step in its direction before turning to look at Jessie who was following closely behind you.

“Can I see the kitchen?” You don’t want to invade her privacy by inviting yourself to take a tour of her place.

As if she read your mind she gestures her hand in the direction of the kitchen. “Go ahead, I can just give you the whole tour now while we wait for the food, it should be on its way by now. I was also thinking we can watch the Angel City and Orlando game, only if you want it should be on at 7. ” She looks at the clock mounted on the wall. 

“Yeah that sounds good.” You reply as you step into the kitchen.

Her kitchen was cute, the same wood accent from the outside of the house scattered throughout. She offered you an ice pack for your nose as you stood looking at her fridge. You declined, having just taken the pain meds, it was bearable pain. 

As you continue to move through her house Jessie makes a few comments here and there about what she liked about the house so much, the wood flooring, the large windows that let in natural light, the little nook that she had set up to be a place to read. Hearing her talk about the little things, paint colors, furniture was so simple and yet it made you feel like you were back to your old friendship. The simple minded discussions, the joking around, all the tiny moments you would have with her, it hit you how much you really missed just her existence and company.

You get to two closed doors at the end of the hallway, you point at the one closest to you and look back at Jessie.

“Linen closet, nothing exciting unless you want to see towels.” You move your finger to point at the other. “My bedroom.”

“Oh,” You’re not sure what to say, the closed door seemed like an obvious sign to not go in. Jessie again, able to tell what was running through your head, speaks up.

“You can go in, I just close the door out of habit. I don’t have anything to hide.” Wanting to see her bedroom, you push open the door. It reminds you a little bit of her bedroom in your college apartment. Not much as far as decor, just a few special things on display throughout. Her bed in the center of the room, a nightstand on one side.

“Sorry it’s still a mess in here, I haven’t had a ton of time to dedicate to unpacking and I was more focused on the rooms everyone else would see.” You look around, trying to find the mess she was referring to. Her bed was made, no clothes scattered across the floor, no pile of clean laundry to be put away, no water bottles on bedsides, not even dust, just a few boxes stacked neatly in the corner, the one on top open as if she had been in the middle of unpacking when you had arrived.

“If this is what you consider a mess, we have completely different standards of mess.” You let out a laugh, Jessie doesn’t say anything, just gives you a smile and slow nod. 

You’re interrupted by her phone ringing, she picks it up and before answering the call she points around the corner. “If you want to see my bathroom, it's through the closet. I’ll be right back.” 

She walks out of the room and you hear her answer the call. You take a second look around her bedroom, looking at the couple of personal items that were scattered, photos of her and her Canada teammates, photos of her family, photos of skylines and nature that you assume she had taken. She has her array of cameras all neatly set on a shelf, displaying them. Making your way over to her closet you walk through to peek into her bathroom. It looked like a bathroom, nothing too special about it, a shower, toilet, a vanity with two sinks, her toothbrush, hairbrush, and other bathroom things just placed neatly around one side.

You turn back to go wait in her bedroom being done looking at the bathroom. You walk into her closet, taking a quick glance around, the closet had more boxes in it than unpacked clothing items. Each box was neatly labeled, varying in sizes, all stacked on top of one another. You look at what clothes she had unpacked, it was nearly all clothes for training, one pile had clothes with the maple leaf and the name Canada across them, the other a mix of red, green, some blue, with the thorn’s logo and Portland across them. Looking back toward the exit of the closet your eye catches on a box, more specifically the label of the box catches your eye.

It was a box with your name on it. Printed carefully along the side, in Jessie’s handwriting. You could feel your heart begin to race. You couldn’t move, your eyes staring, your own name looking back at you. Why did she have a box with your name on it? 

“Foods here.” You didn’t even hear Jessie coming, the sound of your blood rushing through your ears muffling outside noises. She comes around the corner, you quickly look away, not wanting her to see you and think you were snooping through her stuff. You weren’t, but you could see how it could look suspicious, but then again she was the one with a box labeled for you. She must’ve seen your sudden movement as she looks at you with a questioning look, then at where the box sat, you see the moment she knows you’ve seen the box. Her eyes widen and dart back to you. You expect her to say something, she does, just not about the box.

“It’s on the kitchen table.” Her face returns to a relaxed state, almost emotionless.

“Perfect.” Mirroring her behavior you decide maybe you’ll both just pretend that box doesn’t exist. Maybe you’ll just let it eat away at you for years, just like you had done with your feelings for the girl. You follow her out of the closet and bedroom back down the hallway and into the kitchen. 

You both make a plate, grab a water, and sit down at her kitchen table. She sits first and you’re then forced to make the choice between sitting next to her or across from her. You decide on sitting across, hoping she doesn’t judge your choice. It’s quiet for the first few minutes, just the sound of silverware. Jessie keeps her eyes down, looking very interested in the plate of food sitting before her. You knew it was going to be awkward, seeing her in a non-football setting for the first time in so long, you were prepared for the small talk, asking about your family, your friends, the weather, you weren’t prepared for whatever this was. Both of you sitting here thinking about that box brought a whole different level of unexpected discomfort, it was making you itch.

“Your girlfriend doesn’t mind you having a box with another girl's name on it?” Unable to hold it in any longer, you let the question come out, you quickly kick yourself for asking that way, bringing her girlfriend into this conversation. Jessie picks up her head and puts her fork down.

“She’s not my girlfriend anymore.” Choosing the wrong time to take a sip from your glass you choke slightly causing a coughing fit. Jessie just looks at you as you try to calm down. Once you stop coughing she continues muttering the words, “and she actually did mind. A lot.”

Your brain is spinning, you heard her keep talking but your mind kept repeating the words she had spoken “not my girlfriend anymore”.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you split.”  You now feel guilty for bringing up the girl.

“Of course you didn’t, you stopped talking to me, you didn’t get to have the privilege of knowing that we split.” Her tone of voice was shifting, becoming annoyed. Wanting to ask more but also not wanting to pry on a relationship you barely knew about.

“Why didn’t you just get rid of the stuff? If that would’ve made her happy?”

“I don’t know.” She pauses looking down at her hands. “I mean I do, it’s,” she sighs. “To be fair it wasn’t just the box, she had always been a little suspicious of our relationship, I told her the truth, that there’s never been anything between us, we didn’t have a history. And she believed me, I think, at least at the start. But then when you stopped talking to me, she’d catch me watching your games, checking up on you, looking at old photos of us, and she eventually found some clothing of yours that I had put away, along with the notes we used to write each other, the birthday cards, the Polaroids, everything. I wasn’t intentionally hiding but it was out of sight out of mind for me. I didn’t need the constant reminder that I had been dumped by my best friend. She again made the assumption that we had dated, or at least had slept together. She read the letters claiming friends to talk to each other in that manner. That was just the start of the mess.”

Nodding along to her story, you try to show her you’re paying attention, and you were, it was just hard when your mind was drifting to a hundred different thoughts. 

 “And then the rumors started about my transfer. I hadn’t told her about it, I hadn't even mentioned the idea of leaving London. I wasn’t even sure it was going to go through, it was a lot of money for Portland and I was waiting on visas and medical and all that bureaucracy and we got into an argument about it. She accused me of moving for the wrong reasons, she brought up you.” Jessie pauses for a minute as if to collect her thoughts before she continues.

“ I then said some things about you I shouldn’t have said to her and then it was over with her shortly after.” The volume of her voice drops as she rushed her words at the end of her sentence.

“You could’ve just thrown it all out at the start, if that would’ve fixed things with her, I wouldn’t have known.” Your statement is true, you didn’t even know she had kept all those things you wouldn’t have known if she had gotten rid of them.

“It wasn’t that easy, I know we weren’t talking, and like I said we weren’t even friends, but fuck I missed you so much. You were my best friend for nearly 5 years, only to get dropped without a reason and I was mad at you, sure but I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of that box of stuff.”

“There was a reason, I hope you know that.”

“Well you didn't give me a reason, if you just would’ve told me I could’ve fixed it or apologized or something. Instead I just had to sit and run through every decision I had ever made questioning where I went wrong with you, what I did to hurt you.” You can see tears welding in her eyes as she continues to stare at you, despite the tears, her eyes are cold and make you feel tiny under her gaze.

You stayed sitting, staring back at her, having no clue on what to say to her, stuck between wanting to apologize and also wanting to yell back at her. You silence allows her to continue.

“I would’ve done anything to have you back in my life, all you had to do was ask, but it felt like you wanted nothing to do with me. And that fucking hurt.” Her fist comes down hard on the table, it startles you, making you sit back away from where you had been leaning against the table. You cross your arms as you sit back and bow your head to stare down.

“I couldn’t ask.” It comes out quiet, from your mouth almost as if it was an accident.

“What?”

“I couldn’t ask you to fix it, it wouldn’t have been fair.” Speaking louder you bring your head back up to look at her.

Now it’s her turn to say nothing. She looks from you to where her hands sat on the table. She just waits, giving you the space to give her more information. You know you owe her the explanation, what you don’t expect is the word vomit that comes out once you start.

“I couldn’t ask you to break up with her, I couldn’t tell you I was jealous of her, I couldn’t bring myself to tell you those things, you seemed so happy with her, it wouldn’t have been fair. I had my chance for 4 years before she existed to tell you and I didn’t, but I also couldn’t stand seeing you so happy with her, it tore me apart, I wanted you to be happy and you were. It just sucked that you were happy with someone else. It sucked trying to be a supportive friend, I hated having to hear about your dates, and hearing about your first kiss, and I really hated having to hear all about the first time you two fucked.” The last word coming off with extra emphasis, the memory of her call to you after their night together briefly plays in your mind, only making you more upset.

“I hated it Jessie, but I sat through it for as long as I could because I wanted to be there for you. I wanted to be a good friend to you. I wanted to still be your best friend but I couldn’t and all I wanted was for her to no longer exist. I started to think horrible things about her and your relationship and that’s when I knew I needed to take a step back for my own health. I was no longer being a good friend to you. So I stepped back.” Your voice was loud, you were slightly out of breath barely stopping between words as you yelled across toward her, you’re not sure why you were yelling, you weren’t trying to yell at her. It wasn’t her fault she had found someone to make her happy that wasn’t you. But the past year of frustration had built and built and unfortunately this was the time the wall broke, and here you were practically shouting at Jessie across her own kitchen table.

Jessie doesn’t say anything. She stands up from the table, the sound of her chair scraping the floor was the only noise in an otherwise silent room. Grabbing her own empty plate and then extending her hand she offers to take yours. You pass it to her. She walks them over to the sink, putting them down, running the water over them. You stand up, not wanting to feel like a terrible house guest, you start packing the leftovers back up. You open the fridge door and place them inside. The water shuts off and Jessie puts the plates on a mat to dry. She walks past you, not saying anything as she moves into the living room. You hear the noise of the couch, assuming she has sat down you take a few steps toward the other room. 

She’s sitting on the couch, bent over with her head in her hands. Her thumb is rubbing against her temple and she’s bouncing her knees. Leaning against the doorway you stay quiet, you feel bad for yelling at her, seeing her overwhelmed like this because of you, tugged on your heart. You wanted to rush to her side and hug her but you also knew that would probably be the worst thing you could do. You stayed put, leaned against the wall just watching her. She lets out a large breath and then sits up. 

“What?” 

“I didn’t,” you shake your head, not sure what she’s asking. “Nothing. I didn’t say anything.”

“I know, but you look like you want to, so what? Just say it. Don’t be a coward again.” Her words are harsh, insulting you in a way she hadn’t ever before. To be fair to her you realized you had also never yelled at her before either.

“I’m not a coward.”

“Hiding your feelings for 6 whole years, 5 of those years when we were best friends feels a little cowardly, but that’s just my opinion.” You hadn’t seen Jessie like this often, especially towards you, she was almost being mean, not caring what she said to you or how she was saying it. 

“Fine, what did you say about me to her? Before you broke up, you said that you said stuff to her about me that you shouldn’t have. What did you say?” You can’t help but ask, the question of what she had said had been sitting in your brain since she mentioned it.

When Jessie doesn’t respond right away you push her. “Don’t be a coward.” You mock her tone from earlier using her own words. She rolls her eyes at you.

“She accused me of moving to try and be closer to you, she said I wanted to rekindle our relationship. And by that point I couldn’t take her nagging about you anymore and so I was honest with her. I told her the reason I had kept all of your stuff, the reason I checked up on you, the reason I would look at old photos of us, even though you didn’t care about me anymore. I had to tell her my memories of you were comforting for me.” She looks you in the eyes for a second before looking down at her hands.

“Those memories felt like home, that you felt like home. And I then had to tell her that was something I had never felt with her.”

You’re not sure how to respond, trying to process all of Jessie’s words before saying anything back to her. You move off the wall and sit down on the couch, putting some distance between where you both sat.

“Naturally, admitting having feelings for someone else to your current partner doesn’t go over well so that was the end of that.” She mumbles as you sit down.

“You have feelings for me?” Maybe you had heard her wrong, doubting that this conversation was actually happening. She slowly blinks at you.

“Did they check you for a concussion after the hit?” Her question only confuses you more. 

“What?” 

“Oh my god.” Jessie throws her hands up. “Yes, I have feelings for you. That’s what I just said, I just didn’t really know that they were those kinds of feelings until you stopped talking to me and I realized how important you were and that it felt like I was missing a part of me that no one besides you could fill. And then I had her, and that was fine for a little bit, but she wasn’t you.”

You have half a thought to call her out, call her a coward the way she had to you for hiding her own feelings, but decide against it. 

The silence takes over the room, you’re not sure what to say to her. What do you say to someone you’ve been secretly in love with for 5 years when they finally admit they want you back? Where do you even start to make up for the time you both wasted? Where do you go from this conversation? 

Thankfully you don’t have to figure it out at that moment as both your phone and Jessie’s vibrate and light up, both of you reviving the notification that the Angel City and Orlando game was set to start. 

Jessie looks up from reading the notification, “Do you still want to watch the game? I understand if you don’t, I probably wouldn’t want to stay around someone who called me a coward.” 

“I want to stay, if that’s okay. You can yell at me and call me whatever, but just being around you has really made me realize how much I’ve missed your company. So, I’d like to stay if you’ll let me?” 

“Of course.” She reaches for the remote on her coffee table and points it toward the tv turning it on.

“Can I get that ice pack you offered earlier?” No longer caught up in the intense conversation you feel the pain from your nose starting to return in full force. Jessie tosses the tv remote in your direction and hops up from the couch immediately, rushing to her freezer. She comes back with an ice pack, a bag of frozen veggies, a towel, and a bottle of pain meds. 

“Do you want to just sit and hold it or lay down? I can get you a different pillow. I brought the towel in case the direct ice is too cold. And if you want these.” She gives the bottle of medicine a shake. “I also wasn’t sure if the ice pack would sit nicely on your face so I got this.” She holds out the package of frozen vegetables to you. 

“Yeah that’ll actually probably work best.” You take it from her hand. “Thanks.” You add. She placed the pain meds on the coffee table and leaves to put the other ice pack back in the freezer. You use the remote to find the game, and Jessie returns as they commentators start talking about the starting lineups for each side.

When Jessie sits down you notice she sits a lot closer to you then the two of you had been before. Your hips and thighs are only inches apart. She leans back and puts her feet up onto the table. 

You both sit in what is now a more comfortable silence, watching the game. You both make comments here and there about footwork, ball movement, passes, shots, critiquing and complementing the players. At halftime Jessie stands up, takes the now thawed bag of vegetables from you and brings it back to the freezer. She comes back from the kitchen with a bowl of popcorn and waters.

When she sits back down, she closes the gap between the two of you. The outside of her leg now resting against the outside of yours. She places the popcorn bowl so that it rests on both of you. Jessie leans back to rest against the back of the couch and you do the same. The game starts back up again, you both focusing your attention back to the tv. 

It only takes 5 minutes into the second half for you to feel Jessie shift in her seat. She’s moving only slightly but being hyper aware that she’s pressed up against you, you can’t help but notice her movements. Your breath catches in your throat as you feel her lean her head over, placing it to rest on your shoulder, leaving her body more forcefully against yours. Your whole body tenses, not wanting to move and disturb her. 

You stay like this for a couple minutes. Deciding you couldn’t let her make all the moves you glance down to see Jessie’s hands resting on top of each of her thighs. You place your own hands in the same position, then move the one closest to her, in her direction. You move just as slow as she had until your pinky finger is hovering just over hers. You slowly let your hand fall on top of hers, she doesn’t pull away, or tell you off. Instead she flips her hand so her palm is now facing up. Eager to finish what you had started you now quickly move your hand, interlocking your fingers with hers. You wait a minute, then let the pad of your thumb gently rub against her thumb.

You stayed in that position, holding her hand, her head resting on your shoulder as the two of you watched the remainder of the game. Wanting more time with Jessie you desperately were hoping for an insane amount of added time, unfortunately only 3 minutes are added and the game is quick to end.

Jessie pulls her head off your shoulder, sitting up with a yawn.

“I should probably get back.” You say, realizing it was nearing 9pm and while you didn’t have a curfew, you still didn’t want to be caught coming back too late by any of your teammates knowing you’d never hear the end of it, especially since they knew you were at Jessie's.

“Right.” Jessie stands up from the couch and flips a light on. The sun had gone down as you watched the game and the two of you were in the dark without the light from the tv. She holds her hand out to you, you take it and stand up. You quickly pull out your phone and order an Uber, thankful you were in a larger city and your ride would be here in less than 5 minutes. You move toward the door, bending down to slip your shoes on before standing up facing Jessie. 

“It feels weird to say that I had a really good time tonight with all the yelling that happened, but I did. I had a really good time with you Jessie.” You smile at her.

“I had a good time too, this was nice. I’ve missed you.” She replies to you. She holds her arms out to you, offering a hug. You take a step toward her, leaning in to wrap your arms around her waist as she places hers on your shoulders. You stay hugging, longer than a normal friend’s goodbye hug would be. You both release the hold on each other but you don’t move back from her. You stay face to face, your eyes staring back at her brown ones. 

Much to your surprise Jessie is the one who makes the move. One of her hands comes up to your cheek, her fingers are warm and soft on your skin. Her eyes break contact with yours dropping to your lips quickly and then back up. She starts to lean in but stops just moments before your lips would connect.

“Is this okay?” Her voice is barely audible, quieter than a whisper. 

“Yes.” Before you have a second to think about kissing her it’s already happening. It’s a gentle kiss, her lips just placed on top of yours. She starts to pull away a second later, but you let your head chase her lips, giving her a bit more forceful of a kiss. In doing so, you bump your nose against hers causing you to pull back quickly from her, hand coming to clutch your nose.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry I forgot about your nose.” Jessie’s eyes are wide as her hand comes to rest on the forearm of the hand holding your face.

“It’s okay Jess, that was my fault, I forgot too for a second.” You wipe your hand under your nose and look down at your fingers making sure you’re not bleeding again. “It’s not crooked or anything right?”

“No, but those black eyes are starting to come in.” Her eyes dart between both of yours. You both let out a small laugh and then are left in silence.

“I’d like to take you out sometime, on a proper date, if you’d want that?” You look at her hopeful she’ll want to continue whatever the two of you started.

“I do, I want that.” She smiles back at you, you let out a sigh of relief. 

“Okay.” You can’t help but smile big back at her.

“Okay.” She just repeats your words.

“I should be going.” You repeat your words from earlier, you knew you had to go, you just didn’t want to.

Jessie moves her hand from your forearm up to your face to grab your chin. You think for a second she’s going to kiss you again but then she’s pushing your head away from her and to the side. She moves in and places her lips on your cheek. 

“Once your nose is healed you can have more on the lips.”  She says teasingly. The gentle gesture has you blushing more than the kisses to your lips did. She releases your face and you see her eyes look at your cheeks, the blush growing. You turn quickly facing the door, grabbing the handle and stepping out. 

“Goodnight Jessie.” 

#jessie fleming #portland thorns #jessie fleming imagine #jessie fleming x reader #jflem #woso imagine #woso x reader #canwnt

[kookslastbutton]

Too Late to Dream ༓ jjk (m) || ch. III

✑ Summary: You did it. You married your college professor. You even bought a house together. Against all odds, everything had fallen into place. But after two years of marriage, you begin feeling something was missing. You want a baby but your husband can’t say the same.

Pairing: economics professor!jungkook x fem!artist!reader

AU/Genre: angst, smut, fluff, marriage au, age gap, series

Rating: M, 18+

Word Count: 3,375

Warnings: 8-year age gap, big flashback of bromance between Tae and JK, slight drunkenness, family drama in-laws, imperfect relationship with parents, pent-up issues/desires, jk has daddy issues, mentions of therapy, kookie trying to be a good husband, needy kook 😶

Now Playing: Make It Right, Tryna Be, Infinity, It Will Rain, Heaven+

A/N: chapter 3 is here! I know its so short 😩 but I promise it sets up the next chapters really well! Also, I wanted to get into jk's background a little this time, his undergrad days, and Taehyung of course. It's a big leap but they're older now so...meh. Tysm for everyone's patience! 💞

<< ch. II ༓ ch. IV >> | series masterlist

There weren’t many people Jungkook envied in his life. He was 34 years old, had top-notch experience as an economist within the business and legal sphere, and taught at one of the finest universities in South Korea. He also earned his Ph.D by the time he hit 30, which was undoubtedly the cherry on top.

But if there was one person who could shake the ground from under his feet it would be Kim Taehyung.

The pair met during undergrad through mutual friends. Jungkook had been invited to an off-campus party his first year and Taehyung was an unexpected third party. The man was so put together that it was as if Michelangelo himself reached down and sculpted him from the clay.

16 years ago

“Hi,” a low, baritone voice rumbles. “I’m Taehyung.” He sticks his hand out, waiting for a shake. He’s a little timid but mostly stands upright with a few pieces of his caramel hair falling over his eyes.

Jungkook chuckles at Taehyung’s stark formality. “What’s up, man!” He slaps Taehyung’s hand casually. “Jeon Jungkook.”

Taehyung reeks of sophistication and has the most annoyingly gorgeous face. His boxy grin could charm the pants off anyone who was two feet from him. Hell, even Jungkook feels a little starstruck by him.

Though barely acquaintances, it doesn’t take long for Jungkook to realize they are on opposite ends of the same stick.

Taehyung comes from a wealthy upper-class family. They have four mansions plus a beach house. Every Christmas, he goes to Italy to visit his aunt and uncle. For his 18th birthday, Taehyung got a brand-new Corvette, red with black rims. Everyone wants to be him…everyone wants a piece of Kim Taehyung.

But underneath the surface of his flashy lifestyle is something oddly endearing. Jungkook can’t quite put his finger on it but as the night goes on, he enjoys the man’s company. Taehyung seems to latch onto him as well which shocks both of them to the core.

“Seriously hyung,” Jungkook slurrs. “I don’t know why you’re hanging around me this whole night when you could be getting off with one of the fifty girls who’ve come up to you. Are you playing it cool are you really a loner or something?”

Taehyung snatches the beer bottle from the younger’s hand. “That’s enough drinking for one night Jungkook. You’re about to pass out, I can tell.”

“I’ll decide when I’ve had enough.” Jungkook grabs the bottle back, taking a big slug before wiping his mouth off with his arm. “Something to know about me Taetae. I live by the work hard, play hard kinda philosophy.”

Taehyung cringes at the pet name but chalks it up to Jungkook being off his rocker. “That’s the type of philosophy that’s gotten my family to spend millions on useless crap. It’s fun for a while but it never lasts. I don’t recommend it Jungkook.”

Jungkook snorts. “So you are a loner huh? Because my parents have been stuck in the same loop for years. All work, no play. It’s caused them both to lose every hair on their head. Do you wanna lose your hair by the time you’re 45 Tae? I wouldn’t think so with those luscious locks of yours. Bet some chick would love to yank on them while–”

“I’m not a loner.” Taehyung interrupts, feeling a surge of embarrassment creep up his cheeks. He knows the looks people shot at him and while he didn’t entirely hate it, it always took more than it gave. All he wanted in those moments was to retreat into himself with his paints. Taehyung loved art and like many, found it therapeutic. “I’m not a loner,” he repeats. “I’m just not interested.”

“Sure you’re not buddy.” Jungkook gives a nod but remains largely unconvinced. “But you didn’t answer my question. Why you hanging around me? I’m not that cool ‘cause if I weren’t here, I’d be at the library right now with my nose in the books. Economics doesn’t slap all the time you know.”

Taehyung is silent for a moment before answering.

“I feel like a normal person with you," he starts. "Everyone looks at me like I’m some spoiled golden boy who they can get a free ticket of off if they talk sweet. And yeah, I’m aware of the advantages I’ve had…the struggles most people have that I don’t. But I’m still a real person that wants what most people do...purpose, belonging, someone that just gets them.”

Taehyung takes a breath before continuing.

"I really fucking love painting. It’s my heartbeat honest to god and I’m tired of being looked at as merely an object of someone’s unfulfilled wishes and desires. I like that I don’t need to worry about that with you. I think...we come from different backgrounds but we’re cut from the same cloth Jungkookie. Oh, are you-are you crying?”

“Fucking beautiful Taetae. You’re straight out of Vanity Fair you know that? I’m more of a Forbes magazine guy myself though.”

Taehyung throws Jungkook a puzzled look. Is he being condescending or is this just the booze talking?

“‘Cause I’m a small-town boy with great ambition, intelligence, and gall? We covered this earlier man, keep up!” Jungkook emphasizes his words, hands flying about.

“Right,” Taehyung joins in, recalling the conversation. “You’re father is an analyst for the city and your mom’s an accountant. They want you to get a job nearby after graduation but you don’t want to because–“

“Because it’s too small, boring, set in its traditional ways, and I for one am not fucking with it.” Jungkook sends Taehyung a lopsided grin. “You got a pretty good memory man. Maybe we can be friends after all.”

“I’m so glad,” Taehyung drawls, a slight trace of sarcasm. Jungkook doesn’t notice, however, too busy staring at the strobe lights dancing across the ceiling.

“Hey!” he suddenly pipes up, eyes wider than before. "What are you doing next Friday?”

“Uh, I don’t know. Why?”

“I got this boring family reunion to go to. Happens every year. I don’t wanna go but my parents force me to. You wanna come?”

Taehyung hesitates. “A family reunion? I know I said we’re cut from the same cloth, but we’re not…related Jungkook.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ll ask my parents if I can bring a friend. They won’t give a shit as long as I’m there. Also, I heard from my brother that Ha-Yun’s gonna be there.”

“And Ha-Yun is…?”

“Some girl that my parents want to set me up with. Family friend’s daughter. I went to high school with her.”

“So you think that if I’m there I can be your right-hand man or something? Make you look good in front of your future wife?”

“Fuck no. I’m hoping she’ll go to you instead.” Jungkook laughs when he sees the color draining from Taehyung’s face. “It’s nothing against her bro. She isn’t weird or anything. I say this lightly but, I just don’t wanna go out with her and she’s not my type.”

“I’ll think about clearing my schedule for this but I’m not being your meat on a stick,” Taehyung seethes. “But since we’re on this topic, what is your type?”

“Mm, not sure.” Jungkook shrugs. “Someone who’s unexpecting I guess. Like you shouldn’t be together because it's outside of the usual. But you can’t help it. You gotta have this person or it’s over. What about you?”

“Easy,” Taehyung mutters. “I like artists.”

“Artists huh? Like you? Well, I guess I can understand.” Jungkook smirks before leaning his head back against the couch. “One day, I’ll find an artist for you Tae. I promise.”

Oh, the irony.

present

“Jungkook, stop! I need to get up.” You struggle in his arms, biting back a grin. Jungkook has you in a locked position. His hard chest presses close against your back and his leg hugs your body.

“Mm,” he groans. “It’s not time yet.”

“Yes, it is. Also, you’re nearly suffocating me.”You wiggle your body but to no avail. Your husband always tends to get needier as the school year approaches.

"I just don't want you out of my arms yet. Is that a crime now?"

No. No it's not, you sigh to yourself. By this time next week, you’ll be waking up to an empty bed. "Okay." You glance at the alarm clock. "Ten minutes and then I really need to get ready for work."

"Fifteen," Jungkook mumbles.

"Twelve."

"Thirteen."

"No. It's twelve or I'm going now." Jungkook gives a cute grunt and tightens his grip. He really doesn't want you to leave this morning.

"Fine," he says. "Twelve. But we're snuggling again tonight."

"Jungkook. Can't. Breathe." Being spooned by your husband is nice but this isn't spooning anymore. He's completely cacooning himself over you. As soon you feel him shift his weight off you, hand loosening from your waist, your ribs hum in relief.

After what seems like three minutes of complete silence you decide to bite the bullet and ask the question that's been on your mind for the last couple of days.

"Um Jungkook?"

"Yeah?"

"When we went to get ice cream the other night. There was something that happened...to you." You're uneasy bringing it up but you can't shake your concern. When Jungkook saw the little girl with her dad, he went into a bit of a trance. He didn't talk, didn't move, and was pretty numb to your presence all together.

"Oh god," Jungkook groans. "I was hoping you didn't notice but you're my wife so I guess it's fine."

Crap. Was this a sore subject for him? You twist your head over your shoulder, just enough for your ear to be near his lips. You're in high alert now. "Why weren't you hoping I noticed?"

"Isn't it obvious? It's embarrassing." Jungkook smacks his lips before continuing. "But do we really have to talk about it? Spilling ice cream on my shirt at 34 isn't something I really wanna relive through early morning conversations."

Oh he thinks....of course he thinks that's what you're refering to.

"I'm not talking about you being clumsy Jungkook. I'm talking about the little girl with the ribbons. When she was with her dad, you kinda went a little frozen."

Jungkook doesn't reply immediately so you prod him a little. "I just wanna know if everything was alright. I suppose with our current situation I get it if it hit you in a sort of way. Good or bad, whatever the feeling was, you can tell–"

"They seemed happy is all," he croaks, voice dropping an octave. "The kind of happy that makes someone's entire soul stop, I guess. Like they had something special that no one else could. Does that make sense?"

If you look down you think you'll see goosebumps. The words coming from your husband's mouth are, at most, mumbles but they aren't coming from a place of unease or hesitation. Instead they allude to something warm, wholesome, and new.

"Yeah of course, it makes perfect sense. I had a similar experience when I met Si-woo. The way his face light up when he saw his mom comforted me but I felt envious too. Is that wrong of me?"

"Not at all. I think it's a natural response when you see something you want but don't currently have. You know, there was one thing that popped in my thoughts while I watched that father and his daughter..."

"Hm?"

"I thought, maybe I'll be happy too. If we actually have a kid, we'll be happy together like them or something." Yawning, he continues. "I dunno, honey. Kinda sleepy still so if I fall asleep I love you and I hope work goes well. But we can keep talking if you want."

You untuck your hand from under your head and close it over your husband's arm; the one draped around your waist.

Hope. Real hope.

"Dammit why won't you open?!" Jungkook bangs the jar on the side of the kitchen counter. He's been trying to get it open for the last five minutes. With you at work, it's his turn to prepare dinner.

"Take a breath kid," Yoongi says from the other line of the phone.

Jungkook ignores him of course, continuing beat the shit out of the jar in his hand. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you. You stupid jar!"

"Kid!" Yoongi tries again, this time grumbling. "Stop doing that and go get a butter knife or something to hit the side of the lid with. It'll pop right off and I won't sue you for making me go deaf."

"Hyung–"

"Oh I thought you didn't call anyone that anymore. Now that you're a real boy and all. With big boy things." Jungkook shakes his head, hearing the older man snort through the speaker.

"You been talking to Taehyung?" That big mouth, he's become as bad as Jimin. What happened to the more reserved Tae he met in undergrad. He likes him better than this new, cocky mf.

"He may have slipped out a thing or two. But I'm glad to see you're still scared shitless of me that you'll keep calling me hyung."

Jungkook slams the jar on the counter, having enough. "Why the fuck did you call hyung? Can't you tell I'm a little busy right now."

Yoongi chuckles. "Alright I'll stop picking on you. I need a favor. The wife and I want to go out just the two of this weekend. I know you got your professor duties starting but would you and __ be willing to look after our gremlins for a couple hours Saturday?"

"Uh–I'm gonna have to talk to __ about this but maybe?" You and him have babysat for Yoongi's twins a handful of times before. They get a little rowdy but it's been mostly fine. Jungkook's not sure if either of you have the energy or time this weekend though. "I thought you usually got a babysitter."

"Yeah, usually but they're unable to this weekend. I'm hoping this time the babysitter will be you and __. We won't be long but we'd really appreciate it if you guys could do this for us. Could you maybe let me know by Thursday if you can?" Yoongi waits for an answer.

"Yeah alright," Jungkook finally responds. "I'll talk to __ about it when she gets home. No promises though." Jungkook wipes the sweat from his brow. It was a little hot in the kitchen. "Listen Yoongi, I gotta get back to prepping dinner but thanks for that tip about opening the–"

"Jungkook! Hello?" A familiar but muffled voice hollers from the front door. "Are you home?" The door bell is pressed continually without rest.

"Uh my ears," Yoongi pipes. "Who the hell is at your door?"

Jungkook walks towards the front of the house, peaking out the window. What the fuck are those two doing here? "Damn it, I gotta go hyung. My parents have decided to pay an unexpected visit." Before Yoongi has time to reply, Jungkook ends the call.

fuckfuckfuckfuck, he repeats under his breath. Could they not have called beforehand? It's a friggen' ten hour drive. Did someone die or something? Why are they here?

"We can hear you Kookie," Jungkook's mother coos in a sing-songy tone. "No one died. We just wanted to see you and __."

Jungkook opens the front door, not even caring if his face shows he's pissed off. "Mother it'd be nicer if you, I don't know. Planned these things?!"

"I told you," Jungkook's father grippes. "I told you woman, didn't I? We should have called. You never listen to me!"

"Oh shut up you goat," Jungkook's mother pushes her way through the door and into the house. "My son loves me and he's happy to see me." She wraps her arms around Jungkook's waist and presses her cheek against his arm.

"Yeah," his father steps in the house. "He's just jumping with joy with that silly apron on. C'mon, he was obviously in the middle of something. Ugh I'm sorry son. Your mother is, well, you know how she is." He slips out of his shoes and shuffles to the kitchen. "Whatcha cooking anyway? Something good I bet."

Jungkook rubs his face in agitation. __ is not gonna like coming home to his parents running around the house.

"You're not mad at me are you?" His mother lifts her chin, big doe eyes just like his own. "We just missed you and we figured you'll be busy with teaching soon so...we just decided to drive down last night."

Trying to smile, Jungkook brings his arm around her. "No, no I'm not mad. I'm glad to see you and __ will be too."

"Jungkook, why the hell are your parents here?" You force yourself to keep a low voice. Your in-laws were steps away and they had the sharpest pair of ears you knew. You didn't want them to hear a single beat.

Your husband pulls at his hair, pacing small circles around the bedroom. "Trust me, I didn't invite them. They just showed up. I don't even know why they're here besides they just wanted to. I'm really sorry."

You yank your silk blouse over your head, tossing it in the hamper. "I love your parents but you're gonna need to tell them this can't be happening." You change into a basic t-shirt and jeans. "I know they're probably a little lonely with you and your brother so far away but I'd be a far better host with some pre-warnings."

"I know. Mom's just so-" Jungkook pauses, scratching his head. "Persistant...and dad will do whatever she wants."

"Look I get it. Saying no is hard when they just want to see us. But what if we had something going on tonight?"

"You're right, you're right," he sighs. "I'll try bringing it up to them."

"Anything else new happen while I was gone?" You mean it as a joke. You really do. Jungkook gives you a look that says yes though. Excellent.

"Well, uh...Yoongi hyung asked if we could babysit Saturday. Him and the Mrs want to go out but thier regular babysitter isn't available that night."

Groaning, your shoulders slope down. "Wha–uh at this rate why the hell not? I was just looking for more things to do."

"Honey," Jungkook makes his way over to you. "We don't have to if–"

"You guys still in there?!" Jungkook's mother intrudes, pounding on the door. "You better not be having coitus! Though grandchildren would be nice if that were to ever be in the cards."

"Coitus?" You mouth silently. Jungkook's parents were a little old fashioned sure but who the heck still says coitus?

"We'll be out in a second. Can you and dad set the table?" Jungkook responds, girmacing at his mothers word choice.

"Okay but wrap it up in there. I'm only here for two days. I wanna see my beautiful daughter in-law!"

You and Jungkook immediately exchange a slack-jawed expression. "What?" With the door thrown open, your husband's eyeborws furrow. "Mom you can't be serious."

"Oh don't look so worried!" The older woman lets out a restrained chuckle. "We're not gonna stay in the house with you or anything. We got a hotel. But ten hours is a long drive and I really wanted to see you. Your father and I don't hear from you often and you didn't come to the last family reunion. What do you expect us to do? Just not see our son?"

"Please don't say it like that Mom," Jungkook combs his fingers through his hair, teeth grinding together. "You know that __ and I are–"

"Always happy to see you!" You rush next to your husband who's startled by your sudden change in demeanor. "Jungkook's just been a little anxious about returning to the university. But we'd love to spend a couple to days with you and dad. Let's start with dinner!"

You usher everyone down the hall and towards the dining room. Jungkook's mother is filled to the brim with joy while your husband slightly, actually very, concerned.

A/N: Apologies for any editing errors! Also close to adding some spicy stuff but we gonna wait on that a little longer 😉 Lmk what you think and if you wanna join taglist comment or send an ask. Thanks!! 😙💗

Masterlist

Taglist:

@frieschan @oldermenluverrr @tatamicc @kookswifesblog @llallaaa @sunnybyeol @namtaeh @exactlygreatcoffee @whipwhoops @yoongisducky @ktnj91 @junecat18 @thvlover7 @yoongiworshiper @ellesalazar @monbebe234-blog @parkinglot-nights @borahaexoxo @hobiswhore @kimseokjinbangtan @jjk97091 @mk-id @blueberry711 @givemethemaknaes16 @iammartian07 @jjkluver7 @jiminshi20

no reposting, copying, or translating my work– © kookslastbutton

#bangtanbathhouse #jungkook smut #jungkook fluff #jungkook x reader #jungkook angst #bts smut #bts x reader #bts imagines #bts fanfic #bts au #fic:toolatetodream #kookslastbutton

[rxmqnova]

Hello there!

Can you write one with Wanda x Reader, like they are together for i don't know, seven or eight months, yn is russian and practically lived her whole life in there but two years ago her parents had to move for work.

So they are in college, they knew each other in there, and then a new student came to their class, Nat.

Yn introduced herself and her girlfriend, and when Nat told her that she is russian, they inmediately became friends, the country was a connection for both of them, they missed it a lot.

Wanda was happy for Yn, because she saw the way she talked about it with Nat, but sometimes she thought Yn was happy with Nat, not because they are for the same country, she was a bit jealous, not that Yn gave her motives for that, she always respect Wanda. When the three of them went to have lunch, Wanda didn't want to go, even when yn tried to talk to her in the conversations they have, she felt out of place, she never went there, she didn't understand the things they were saying. So when they finished, they said their goodbyes to Nat and went to their room, yn felt something was wrong and then Wanda talk to her about what was bothering her and Yn reassure her that she only saw her life with her, told her about she introduced Nat to a friend of her, Maria, she doesn't have to worry about it. (You know, a little love speech) and she gave her a promise ring she supposed to give it to her in their first year anniversary.

The right one

Y/N: 20 years old ——————————————————

NO ONE'S POV It's another school day and Y/N with her girlfriend only just stepped into the classroom. As usual, they sit down at their desks and start planning what will they do after their lessons.

"Hey, hm. Sorry to interrupt. Is this seat free?" A redheaded girl approaches the pair, making both, Wanda and Y/N, look up at her.

"Yeah. It's free" Y/N speaks first, the russian accent still hearable in her voice as she's been living in New York for only 2 years. "Are you new here? I don't think I've seen you yet?"

"Oh yeah. I switched classes. I'm Natasha, by the way" Natasha smiles at the pair with hope to find new friends.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Y/N. This is my girlfriend Wanda" Y/N smiles warmly introducing both of them to the new girl.

"Hey" Wanda smiles too, giving Natasha a small wave.

"Natasha… that's a typical russian name" Y/N tells, smiling at the thought of her hometown.

"Yeah, well. I'm Russian, so" Natasha shrugs, making Y/N gasp immediately.

"No way! Me too! I only just moved here about 2 years ago" Y/N squeals happily.

"Wait. Like actually? I'm here for a bit longer, but this is really cool. Did you move here for college?" Natasha asks, continuing the conversation while Wanda just watches them, happy for her girlfriend that she has someone to talk to about her hometown.

"Nope, my parents had to move here for work, but it's really nice here. And I ran into Wanda, so that's a big plus" Y/N says, interlocking her fingers with Wanda under the table which makes the brunette smile even more.

"That's sweet, how long are you together, guys?" Natasha asks, switching her gaze to Wanda to involve her into the conversation.

"About 8 months now" Wanda answers, her smile never leaving her face.

———

That's how Natasha and Y/N became best friends. The two constantly talk about their lives in Russia which makes Wanda really happy. She loves the way Y/N's eyes always shine when she talks about her hometown with Natasha, though she feels a bit left out lately.

"Do we really have to go, Y/N/N? I'd much rather stay home with you" Wanda sighs, holding her girlfriend's hand and trying to get her to stay home tonight.

"Wands, we promised it to Natasha. She's already waiting for us. We can't just cancel it" Y/N sighs too, rubbing her thumb over Wanda's knuckles.

"Can we at least go home earlier? We haven't really been together lately and I really want to spend some time with you… alone" Wanda gives in, knowing there's no chance Y/N would stay home with her tonight.

"Sure" Y/N smiles, leaning in to kiss her girlfriend's lips. "Come on now, we're already late and I'm hungry" She says, dragging her girlfriend away.

The pair meets with Natasha in front of the restaurant which luckily isn't that far away from Wanda and Y/N's apartment, so Natasha didn't have to wait for long.

As always, Y/N greets her friend with a warm hug on which Wanda can't help but feel a little jealous. She knows Y/N would never cheat on her, but the feeling of jealousy is just there. Especially when Y/N gets so lost in a conversation with Nat and Wanda's just sitting there and listening.

This time Y/N noticed Wanda's discomfort though, just when they sat down at the table. Y/N listens to Nat carefully, trying to find an opportunity to involve Wanda in the conversation.

"Well, and then Yelena-"

"Yelena? That's your younger sister, right?" Y/N jumps in, earning a nod from the redhead. "Cool. I'm an only child, but Wanda has a twin brother" She says, looking at her girlfriend and hoping she'd say something.

"Wait, really?" Natasha asks surprised.

"Mhm. Pietro" Wanda smiles at the thought of her brother.

Unfortunately, that's all what Wanda said, so Natasha got back to her story. Y/N tries again and again, hoping her girlfriend would eventually join, but that just never happens.

It's not like Wanda wouldn't want to, but the brunette has no idea about the things the girls are talking about. Of course Y/N told her a lot from her life, but she still can't really imagine what's Russia really like when she's never been there herself.

After a few more failed attempts of trying to involve Wanda in the conversation, the pair says goodbye to Natasha and go back to their apartment.

As soon as the door of the apartment shuts, Y/N decides to break the uncomfortable silence that's been with them ever since they left the restaurant.

"Are you okay? Is anything wrong?" Y/N asks, looking at her girlfriend with worry in her eyes.

"… I just… You and Nat seem to have such a great connection and I just… I always feel a bit left out and I'm scared that one day you'll realize that I'm not the right one for you. I mean… you and Natasha just seem to be a perfect match and I always just sit there and watch you" Wanda admits, her eyes filled with tears by now.

"What? No. Wands, of course you're the right one for me. I love you… I love you so damn much and I couldn't imagine my life without you. Natasha is just a friend and we might seem as a perfect match, but that's just because we both miss our hometown and love talking about it. We're completely different people, but you and I… we are the perfect match, Wanda" Y/N smiles softly, taking Wanda's hand in hers and rubbing her thumb over Wanda's knuckles as tears are quietly running down Wanda's cheeks.

"Really?" Wanda asks quietly, a small smile formed on her face from Y/N's last words.

"Really. Do you know Maria? Maria Hill from the other class?" Y/N asks, earning a nod and a confused look from her girlfriend. "Well, I kinda introduced her to Natasha and the two actually seem to get along really well. Natasha even told me she liked her, so you really have nothing to worry about. My heart belongs only to you" The girl smiles, making Wanda chuckle a bit at how cheesy that sounded.

Y/N suddenly drops Wanda's hands, rushing to the bedroom to take something and then quicky rushing back.

"And to prove you I'm really serious about us, I have here something for you. My original plan was to give it to you for our first year anniversary, but I think this is the right opportunity" Y/N smiles, opening the little black box she's been holding. "This is a promise ring. There's no one else I would love to spend the rest of my love with than you, Wands. I'll change it for a real engagement ring one day. I love you so much, Wanda Maximoff"

The ring is now on Wanda's finger and the brunette can't help herself but immediately hug her girlfriend tightly, pulling her in for a kiss right after.

"I love you too, Y/N Y/L/N"

----------------------

Wanda Maximoff masterlist

Masterlist

#wanda maximoff #wanda x y/n #wanda x you #wanda x reader #wanda maximoff fic #wanda maximoff fanfiction #wanda maximoff x you #wanda maximoff x reader #wanda maximoff x female reader #wanda maximoff x y/n #fanfiction #natasha romanoff #natasha x reader #natasha x y/n #natasha x you #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x female #natasha romanoff x you

[tiyoin]

Tiyoin the voices got to me again. I was scrolling tho tik tok and came across a video ,and it reminded me that you mentioned reader doing a sport before attending twst in the singing au. Wanna give a guess what sport I saw??

It was ✨figure skating✨. Just imagine it for a sec. Do I know anything about skating?? No. But the idea of anxiety reader being one is beautiful. Especially since skating isnt a confrontation sports like soccer and, reader doesn't have to be in contact with someone while performing their act.

I see reader starting the sport when they were young. They may have seen it as a way to put themselves out there while doing something they enjoy and find relaxing. They didn't compete in big contests with thousands of people watching (girlie would not make it). They would only get to county or district level of the contest B4 the nerves got to them. Most likely self sabotages at the end so they wouldn't have to seen and judged by so many. Reader does has a few gold medals tho. Yuu has been their personal cheerleader for a few years now. Going to as many contests as he can to just support reader and know they're not alone.

✨Now✨

What if there is a different competition (w/o a overblot hopefully) which a sport is picked randomly. Whether you want it to be a school vs school, dorm vs dorm or maybe grade vs grade you can decide. I think it could work with any of them. Like they pick a few people to represent their side and to complete. The ones that physically compete get prizes (💰) and the others get bragging rights and a 🍕 pizza party or smth like that idk.

Anyways, Yuu is like *puppy eyes* pls reader 👉👈we poor. And reader knows Yuu is only asking cuz they they really need the money and he would never make them do smth that would harm them. Yuus real motive is maybe this will help reader make friends or less be less anxious around their classmates. And he knows Reader is gonna win cuz none of the others skate.

The only ones in NRC that I can see being able to skate to a degree is Rook, Jade or Ortho maybe Epel too. He probably hated it till his grandma said only strong people could skate cuz it's hard. I think his home town is gets snow right? Can't recall rn.

Depending on which VS is picked the outfit and preforment is gonna be a easy choice or the hardest thing in the whole contest. Maybe a duet gets thrown in there. ➖👄👁️

Overall reader is ✨stressed✨ rightfully so. The creeps are recording, admirers admirering, rivals showing up left and right. Reader gonna need a nap after everything that's happened.

Another 3-5 am ask woooo. Sorry if there is any spelling errors. Why do the best ideas always come when I'm tired 😩. I can send u a tik tok I saw that inspired me if u want. Also I don't mean to mention Rook in every ask he just shows up w/o asking. Like my fav is Malleus and I haven't send a single idea with him.

Maybe it's cuz Rooks a Sagittarius and I'm a Gemini. They are sister signs. That's probably why he lives in my head rent free. I hope a good night.

MEL- I NEED TO KISS YOU BRAIN RIGHT NOW!!

especially with the death of YOI: adolescence... a sad day for anime lovers' everywhere (im on desktop so i can't do any emojis </3)

I actually had a really big skating phase. still do and would love to have prof. lessons. i wanted to do it so. badly. my parents said 'no' and that it was too late for me, so i mourn that. believe it or not, i was in soccer and almost did it in college.

but the ice feeling so freeing whenever reader steps onto it. they're not worried about sweating because of ice, and they can move how the want when they want.

reader would 100 PERCENT self sabotage themselves. filling their head with nonsense and because of all those thoughts (especially) 'dont miss this spin, dont miss this spin' only to miss it because they were focusing on whether they would 'miss the spin or not')

but in their home world, reader is phenomenal!! they're amazing! they got scouted by amazing coaches who wanted to tap into their raw potential, who were impressed by reader's hard work and drive... but reader always finds a away to miss things up for themselves.

OH MY GOD AHHH SPORTING COMPETETIONS WERE ALWAYS MY FAVORITE ARCS IN SHOWS

ITS LIKE THEIR OWN MINI OLYMPICS HAHAHA (reader: wdym you guys dont have olympics?)

ofc there's a pre sign up and auditions. reader is thinking and mulling it over. because trying out for the boys team is very different than the girl's team, is co-ed even allowed?? this is an all boys school after all!

(yuu brings crowley to their audition to convince him to give them student-ship so they can compete and WRECK those snot-nosed princes.)

maybe there's a partner skate? and you know that the admirers of reader that can skate and sign. the. fuck. up.

I WANT SKATER JADE!! I WANT IT I WANT IT I WANT IT!! but home boy would probably not be able to skate at the level of reader just because he's og a fish and if he started skating when he turned human then he'd only have a year of experience </3

but lets just say there's a sports thing they have... not club but dedicated for this event... then i can see jade being somewhat on reader's level. but there's still a difference unfortunately

ROOK HUNT SKATED OUT OF THE WOMB!! ortho could professionally skate sine... 5 minutes ago? like c'mon guys get on his level.

though i can see rook rather being an observer. he also called it 'ice dancing' because that's what it is to him. but if rook trying out for this instead of his usual sweep of archery, all to stop some... he doesn't have a word for the level of disgust he'd have if he saw you dancing with a slimy no name.

plus he will be able to experience your growth! not just as a skater but as a person! he can also get closer to you!

vil. vil can! ice dance. he needed to learn it for a film and he's always liked the feeling of being on the ice. which makes pomefiore the contenders for being on the team / being reader's partner during partner categories.

epel would want ot learn hockey but was forced into ice skating by his grandma HAHAH she'd say that he can learn to play hockey after he's mastered the ice or something. it's something he's NOT proud of- but (if this is the point where him and reader are on good terms) then he'll happily play up him being a skating pro.

i can also see vil forcing epel into skating for the school. like wdym ice skating is for girls? get your ass on the ice NOW

SILVER AND LILIA WOULD ALSO BE ICE SKATERS AHHH. but it's a bit dangerous for silver to be on the ice but if it means helping support his friend then he's gung ho about it! just... please keep an eye on him in case he starts falling (he's usually good about that. making it to the sides before he was able to face plant on the ice. but lilia is always present in case of such emergencies (and if the designated watchers arent able to get to him in time))

lilia has dabbled in a bit of everything. so if you see him whip out a quad (with only a little bit of stumbling, as he complains about his bones again) he'll act like it's not hard (it's not- for him)

BUT IF MALLEUS WANTS TO GET INTO THAT ICE SKATING ACTION THEN HE'LL SPEND HOURS AT IT. the prince bale to do things a bit differently than everyone since he's.. ya knw, thee malleus draconia.

crowley ; you can barly even skate! why are you at the try outs!

malleus :... give me a week (and the mofo MEANS IT)

and dw i get random spouts of 'rook hunter-itis too. I DONT MIND YOU BRINGING HIM UP CAUSE I LOVE HIM- AND MALLEUS AHHHH)

#tiyoin 🔎 #twisted wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twisted anxiety 🌀 #mel <3

[skzhua]

you are my safe haven ('your eyes' series)

♡ "You were the first person I thought of at the moment."

pairing: lee minho x reader.

genre: fluff, angst.

word count: 10,529

warnings: swearing, suggestive, unrequited love mentioned, minho being minho (savage and flirty).

summary: your relationship with minho has always been tricky. either he was roasting the shit out of you, or he was flirting with you shamelessly. when things start to get complicated with your childhood friend, chan, why is he the first one who come up in your mind?

a/n: this one took me so long to write, but it might be my favourite one ever. i just fucking love lee minho, lmao. i'm so sorry for not posting as regularly as i used to, i'm very much struggling with school and other, but i'm trying my best! anyway, enjoy~

SERIES MASTERLIST

You and Chan met when your parents used to live across from each other. Being a year apart only, it made things easy for the both of you to get along. You had gone through everything together whether it was growing up, changing schools, making friends, etc. The last big step you had taken together was moving on your college's campus. You roomed with a nice but shy healthcare student, Youngmi. Although she wasn't a social butterfly like Chan was, she grew more at ease with you as time passed.

Another semester starting meant more homework and less free time, and that involved no more nights out with Chan at the local diner. Over the holidays, his friend, Minho, had started to come to your usual hangouts. Nothing against him, but his presence did affect your relationship with Chan. Your crush on him had only been growing since college started and Minho's presence wasn't much of an help if you wanted to confess at some point. Anyway, it's not like you could tell Chan that his friend was causing you problems when really he was doing nothing wrong.

Your first day was finally over. Checking your message app, you saw nothing from Chan. Weird, since he would always answer you. Your last class was with Minho, and after you had put everything in your bag, he was still at his desk, not having moved a bit other than jamming to his music.

"Minho, can you not?"

The man acted as if he had heard nothing and went on with humming happily to the song he was listening to. Despite how much your friendship with him had improved, he remained one of the few people you would give away to Satan to save yourself with no hesitation.

"Min." you tried again, but you were left with no response.

Out of impatience, you snatched his earphones out of his ears, resulting to Minho spatting out one insult after the other. "I was vibing, you moron! You're seriously no fun, weirdo."

"Wow, I'm so affected by your lame insults." you rolled your eyes.

"I'm going soft on you, kitten."

And here it was again, the sudden shift from insults to flirts. Quite honestly, you never understood how he managed to pass from one another so smoothly, nor could you comprehend how it took you by surprise each time. But that's what Minho is, a flirty jerk who loves to provoke.

"Why are you so pressed, anyway?" he asked as he lazily followed you out of the class.

"We're going to the diner, remember?"

"I forgot, actually. See, that's why I need you around." he winked, but you dismissed his antics.

"Chan hasn't replied to my messages yet, it's not like him."

"It's the first day of school, I bet he has hundreds of meetings."

He was surely right, but you learnt with time to not base your thoughts off of Minho's because he never cared about anything other than himself. And right now, he didn't give a damn about Chan not replying to you.

"I don't know, should I call Bin to see if he's with him?"

Minho deadpanned at you. "Are you his mom or something? He's fine, probably just busy. Plus, I'm here. Can't you enjoy my company for once?"

You sent him a disgusted look, unimpressed, as you went outside. That's when, from afar, you saw your best friend. He was as handsome as ever, still wearing his oversized black clothes, and laughing cutely. And he was laughing with a girl. You had literally never seen her before, though you were convinced to know everyone in Chan's social circle.

"I told you he's okay." Minho huffed.

"Sure." you replied, unfocused. "Wait here for a moment, will you?"

You passed your bag to him, not letting him protest, and you ran to Chan to hug him from the back. He was startled for a bit, until he realized you were the one who took him by surprise.

"Hey, there!" he smiled widely before hugging you back tightly, ruffling your hair in a sweet manner. "I haven't seen you all day, where were you?"

"Class... And the best out of this is that I get to finish the day with Lee Minho." you fake-gagged.

"He's not that bad, just a bit annoying." he chuckled. "How was it, other than that?"

"Fine, I suppose. I just really don't want to be back in class. The teachers went over their planned projects, and I wanted to shoot myself just then."

"Don't say that, you'll do just fine. I know it." he said, rubbing your back.

"Thanks, Channie." you blushed a little.

Chan soon realized he had been ignoring his new friend since you appeared. "Y/N, this is Eunhee. She's in my sound art practices class. Eunhee, this is my best friend, Y/N."

You ignored the pang in your heart from the label he used for you, but still greeted the girl sweetly. "Hi! Happy to meet you!"

"Likewise." she replied, seemingly uneasy by your presence despite her polite smile. "I can go find my dorm alone if you two want to hang out."

You turned your attention to Chan expectedly, but his answer crushed you a bit. "No, no. I'll show you." he hurried to tell her, before looking at you sadly. "Do you mind going without me for today? I'll join you later."

You tried your very best to hide your disappointment, but let's say it wasn't much of a success. "Yeah, sure. Do you want Minho and I to order for you?"

"It's fine, thanks. Later?"

He brought you in his arms again, kissing the top of your head as some sort of apology. You felt down enough, you didn't want to break your façade in front of him. So you hurried to join Minho back, who had patiently waited for you at the same spot. He frowned upon seeing your glossy eyes, but you didn't let him question it. You took your bag from him and started to walk to the diner immediately. However, Minho was stubborn. He sped his pace up to catch up with your own and fixated his gaze on you. You attempted to ignore it, but he can be very intimidating when he wants to be.

"What?" you snapped at him, annoyed.

"You like Chan."

You stopped on your tracks and looked at him incredulously. "You're seeing things."

He scoffed as he stopped walking as well. "Please." he elongated the word. "You're almost drooling at the sight of him. And when he's not with us, you only talk about him."

"I don't drool! And I talk about him because we barely have anything in common."

He smirked. "Now, now, kitten. You barely know anything about me, how can you be so sure?"

"You're a pain in the ass." you groaned, starting to walk again.

He followed closely as he laughed alone. "This is a fact, though. We barely talk about anything else than Chan. You must like him, then."

"Then talk about something else, if it bothers you that much."

He paused for a second, trying to think of any moment you two had without mentioning the older man. He could not think of a single one. He had tried to get to know you on many occasions, but Chan would always end up being the main topic. He had noticed way before today that you had a crush on Chan, but he thought it wasn't his place to bring it up. However, today was different. He was sick of seeing you check him out from afar and do nothing about it, so he thought of giving you a little push. Clearly, you were more stubborn than he initially thought.

"Do you actually want to talk with me?"

You let out a chuckle. "I mean, sure?"

"You don't seem sure."

"Like you said, we don't know much about each other, other than our mutual friend."

You reached the diner and opened the door to let Minho in first. He didn't wait for you to sit at the usual table you would be at with Chan. You joined him quickly, and he sent you a sly smirk.

"What is it now?" you breathed out.

"I want to talk."

You shrugged your shoulders, acting uninterested. "Please do."

"Do you even remember my cats' names?"

The question was unexpected for your part. In all of the things he could have brought up, you expected school, life experiences or hobbies, but certainly not his cats.

"I do, actually." you proudly responded, and he quirked an eyebrow. "I'm telling you, I remember!"

"What are they?"

"Soonie and Dori."

He gasped, putting a hand on his chest to enhance the dramatization of his reaction. "How dare you forget about my beloved Doongie?"

"My bad." you nonchalantly shrugged.

"You're such a bad friend."

"Are we even friends, Min?" you huffed.

"I only allow certain people to call me Min, actually."

You wanted to ask him what he meant by that, but Chan entering the place interrupted you. For the first time in your life, you wished he hadn't come join you so soon. He said hi to Minho briefly, before coming to sit down next to you. The server soon came to take your orders, and you asked for your usual burgers.

"Who was your little friend?" Minho asked Chan on purpose, resulting to getting a death stare from you.

"Eunhee. She just tranferred here, so I was showing her around. She's very nice, actually. She even writes lyrics like me! I read some of it, and she's got some talent."

Hearing him talk about someone else with so much praise did not feel good. Nonetheless, you smiled along Chan's talk and pitched in the conversation from time to time.

"I'm sure the two of you would get along well." he finished his monologue about the girl.

"Yeah, she sounds fun."

The night came to an end quickly, and Minho insisted on paying for the food, despite Chan's protests. You were walking to your dorm, when Chan had to go a separate way since he wasn't living close to you. He hugged you good night, and was off to go home.

Minho kept quiet as he walked you home. He didn't mind since his building was next to yours. Although the silence was enjoyable, he felt like something was off. You were acting as if he wasn't there and he couldn't help but notice when you sniffled discreetly.

"You like him that much, uh?"

Not in the mood for his teasing, you groaned in annoyance. "Shut up, Min."

"I'm genuinely asking." You hesitated, not sure if you should be telling him about this. "Hey, I'm serious."

He stopped you and put his hand on your shoulder. While Minho was never one for physical contact, you did know he would not think about it twice when it comes to his close ones. Apparently, he did care about you more than you thought. For some reason, you trusted him enough to tell him. Probably because it was becoming too much of a burden that you needed to confide in someone.

"I'll always be a little sister in his eyes, right?"

He didn't actually expect you to say anything, but he was pleasantly surprised you did. "Depends, things like this can change, you know."

"You don't get it. I've tried for years to get this man's attention, and the moment he meets Eunhee, he seems infatuated with her..."

"For years?"

You nodded your head slowly, ashamed to have been looking at the same man for that long. It's not like you did not try, you actually dated here and there. Nonetheless, Chan was always the one to pick you up after each breakup.

"Rough." Minho simply said.

You ended up changing subjects, as he started to spill out about his cats. He said he rented a dorm for himself so he could have his babies with him, and that he did not think it through when bringing in his third one. Especially because Dori has so much more energy than the two others.

"Thanks, Min." you said as you came to the front door of your building.

"For?"

"I don't know. For being there."

"Sure." he shrugged his shoulders. "Good night, Y/N."

"Good night."

You really tried to make Youngmi feel at ease around your friends, and mutiple times. The girl had not much interest in coming out of her shell. You understood that, but her having been in college for a year already, you would have expected her to open up more. Still, her befriending you was already a success.

"This is, like, the only free break I have this week, so enjoy while I'm here." Chan laughed out as he headed towards the cafeteria.

"What if I don't?" you joked.

"Then you are revoked from any bestie privileges. No more driving you home after a night out."

You gasped as to seem shocked. "Who would tuck me in and treat my hangover, then?"

"Youngmi can do that." he shrugged as he nodded his head towards the girl walking next to you.

She didn't say anything as she looked at you in confusion. "What?"

"Nevermind." you sighed.

"Hey, Y/N, look." You followed to where Chan was pointing as he tugged your side, and your eyes landed on Eunhee and Jeongin sitting at a table. "We should join them."

"I don't think we should do that." Youngmi spoke.

"I thought you knew Jeongin and get along with him well."

"We don't want to impose ourselves." you added.

"It can't be too bad. Plus, Eunhee is very easygoing. Let's go."

No matter what you were going to say, you knew Chan was not going to change his mind. You forced yourself to follow him, and Youngmi had the same expression on her face. When you reached the two others, Jeongin's face turned red as his gaze stuck on Youngmi.

"Hey." she waved at him shyly.

"Do you mind if we join?" Chan asked, although he was already sitting down.

"Go ahead." Eunhee replied kindly.

Hesitant, you still sat down and started to eat. Chan began to discuss with Jeongin while the remaining three of you kept quiet. You and Eunhee exchanged some glances, and you felt bad for being so on the edge around her. She hadn't done anything other than being friendly, and it wasn't fair from you to give her the side eye.

Looking around, you tried to find Minho in the crowd. You spotted him quickly, but he did not see you as his eyes were set on someone else. More specifically, Byeol, his ex-girlfriend. He was sitting across from her and they were exchanging obvious glares. You were starting to wonder why he even sat with her, since he had previously told you he doesn't like to think about her. You observed the two of them for a bit, until they shifted glares into smiles. What the hell was happening?

"Youngmi." you turned to your friend. "Don't you think it's weird he's hanging out with her?"

The girl shrugged, since she didn't know them that much. "It looks normal to me."

You then heard someone choke, which turned your attention to Eunhee, who was coughing like crazy. As Jeongin attempted to make her feel better, you took out a napkin and wiped off the water she had spilled. She gave you a small smile, thankful.

"What do you mean, me? What did I do?" she said after she stopped coughing.

"She asked me if I'd be interested in tutoring you."

You hadn't noticed that Chan was the one she was talking to, until he answered. Tutoring? Wasn't he busy enough already? You chuckled as you thought this was an horrible idea, and Eunhee did the same, visibly seeing this as ridiculous as you were.

"What's funny?" he asked Jeongin, not sure to have caught on what made you two laugh.

The young man shrugged, not very interested in the conversation. "I mean, do you even have time to tutor? You barely have any time for the guys and I."

"It would be during the class period." Eunhee groaned at Chan, seemingly not happy with what she was hearing. "She said you're going to fail if you keep going like this."

“Come on, Chan. We’re barely halfway through the term. I can manage myself.”

“Not sure about that. You have halfway left that you can use to actually get better instead of barely passing.”

She gave you a look, almost pleading for your help, but you really didn't know what to tell her. So you shrugged your shoulders, and turned back to Youngmi to continue chatting.

“I’ll think about it…” you heard Eunhee say.

Lunch time went on pretty quickly. Youngmi had class, so you walked with her to her course. Your day was pretty much over, and you were planning to hang out with the boys for the evening. But nights at the diner shifted to you and Minho being alone while Chan needed to attend the student association meetings. Either that, or he was too tired and wanted to rest.

Unlike what you would have expected, it didn't affect you as much. Minho was much different than your best friend, there was no doubt. His weird behaviour, though, was odd enough to make you forget that Chan had pretty much abandoned you. He was still consistent with his texts, but you barely actually saw him around, today being an exception.

You joined Minho in front of the restaurant, and didn't bother waiting for Chan since you knew it would only be the two of you. He started to talk about his day and other fun things. But honestly, your focus was not cooperating as you were mostly in your thoughts.

"No, but can you blame anyone? Hyunjin's butt is great." Minho went on with his story-telling.

You mixed your milkshake with your straw in boredom, as you nodded along Minho's talk. "Yeah yeah, Hyunjin's butt is nice."

He raised an eyebrow, offended by your lack of commitment in this one-way discussion. "You're not listening."

"I am! I just told you Hyunjin's butt is nice!"

"Y/N, you've never seen the guy." he rolled his eyes at you.

"That is untrue!" you raised your finger to point at him in defense. "He's the one looking like he was made by angels, right?"

Minho scoffed, a smirk forming. "That would be me, princess." His cockiness almost got to you as you were at loss of words. "And we both know my ass is cuter."

You snorted at his statement. To be fair, you had checked his ass once, and there was no denial that he had a good one. You were not going to feed this ego of his, however. Just then, a ping was heard from your phone.

Chan: Hey! Changbin and I would like to have a little gathering with the others tomorrow. You in?

Y/N: If that means I can finally see you, yes!

Chan: I'm so sorry about that! I had so many meetings and so much work to do. It's supposed to be mostly done, though, so hopefully we can see each other more from now on.

Y/N: Otherwise, I'm complaining to the school that I want my best friend back.

Chan: Stop, you know I'll never leave you.

Chan: See you tomorrow?

Y/N: See you tomorrow.

"Something tells me Channie's the one you're texting." Minho teased.

"Shut you. I could say the same with you texting Byeol earlier."

This spilled out of your mouth without you thinking. You did not understand why it bothered you this much when he was chatting with his ex-girlfriend at the beginning of your night together. It was surely because it was impolite to be on your phone when you're hanging with someone already. Though, you just did the same and he was not bothered at all.

Minho blinked a few times as his eyes were set on you, before he breathed out a huff. "What do you mean?"

You stuttered as you tried to explain yourself. "I-I... She and you were- I meant, earlier today-"

He grinned at your sudden change in attitude. He rarely saw you shy or embarrassed, because you were rarely in this kind of state and also because you were good at hiding your emotions. To say he didn't like it would be a lie. You were damn adorable with the flush on your cheeks, and he had to suppress himself from slipping out a comment about it.

"You were definitely not listening to me earlier, then." You frowned before gesturing for him to continue. "The whole butt thing was because Byeol had accidentally texted me instead of her friend, and she was complimenting Hyunjin's ass in that message. That's why I was laughing then."

"Oh." you breathed out as you nodded your head slowly.

"If it makes you feel any better, I smile much more when you're texting me." he winked.

"Now, for real, you need to shut up."

Being the first one to get to Chan's dorm, you made yourself at home as you sprawled across his couch, scrolling through your social medias. Chan had plans with Minho and would be coming home with him later, so you hadn't seen him yet. Changbin, however, was there.

"Do you think this is a good plan?" he sighed loudly.

Frankly speaking, you had not listened to one word he said since you were too focused on replaying the cat video Minho had just sent you. "Uh? Yeah. It's an excellent plan." you replied nonchalantly, before chuckling at the video again.

"And, you were not listening." Changbin let out a sigh. "Is this Minho's cat?" he asked, upon seeing the ginger feline on your phone.

"Yeah. Soonie fell off this morning while he was filming him. Poor kitty, but this is quite hilarious. Especially Minho panicking and running to save his child." you went on to explain, a smile still on your face.

"You have it for Minho, now?"

You froze in action from his words. "What?"

He realized that, maybe, he shouldn't have said anything as he scratched his head while awkwardly chuckling. "Forget it."

The doorbell rang and Changbin almost ran to the door to open it. He let Chunhwa in before giving her a big hug. She had brought drinks for the evening, so she straight went to put them in the refrigerator.

"Hey, Y/N!" she waved at you.

"Hi." you smiled. "What did you get for us?"

She raised a pack of beer and a bottle filled with a dark-coloured liquid. "Beers for the guys, and I found this fruit punch thing. I thought we could try it out." she shrugged as she put them down, and pulled a Fanta out of her grocery bag. "And I got this for our Jisung."

"About that." Changbin started. "He won't come tonight. He said something along the lines that Hwayoung was out with some guy and that he didn't want what happened last time to repeat itself."

Last time you hung out all together, Hwayoung had went on a date before joining you and was looking like a wreck. Jisung had to comfort her in Chan's room, and let's say some stuff happened.

"Oh well, I'll have the Fanta, then." you said as you got up to take it from your friend's hand.

Soon enough, the guys came back after they stopped by the convenience store to buy some snacks. While Changbin had already placed the board game on the table, Chunhwa took the time to help Chan out with preparing the ramen soups he bought. Minho sat next to you and thanked the girl as she gave him the food.

"Where is Jisung?" he asked as he started to dig into his soup.

"He's probably comforting Hwayoung again." Changbin answered, which made you feel bad for him.

"If he keeps doing this, he'll end up in a deep depression." you breathed out before the entire room nodded in agreement.

"You're one to say that." Minho said as he nudged your arm.

You glared at him before hitting his arm playfully. You only hoped Chan didn't get what he meant by that. The evening continued as you all picked your pawns to play. You conversed simultaneously since it had been a while since you saw each other. Changbin and Chunhwa were being painfully obvious about their crushes on each other, and Minho kept on bugging you, claiming you were cheating.

"I talked with Eunhee." Chan said, clasping his hands together which took you aback.

"And?" you frowned.

"She accepted my offer. I told you she would."

Your heart sank. No matter when you would talk with him, he always brought her up. Even if you took your feelings out of the situation, it almost looked as if he wasn't your best friend anymore and it hurt. You felt Minho putting a hand on your thigh, probably to bring you some kind of support.

You forced yourself to smile, before managing to say a small "That's great."

You could see that Chan noticed your lack of enthusiasm, but he went on nonetheless. "Yeah, I'll text her the details later. It'll probably be once or twice a week. Depends on her level, honestly."

"Right." you coughed out as you felt a lump forming in your throat, and Minho was quick to notice as he tightened his grip on you slightly. "Sorry, I have a headache. Minho." The boy shot his head up immediately. "Do you mind helping me get some medicine?"

"No, of course." he assured before standing up and offering his hand to help you up.

He gave you a worried smile as you came face to face with him. You didn't know when it started exactly, but he had started to let himself be more vulnerable around you. You almost never saw him having any sort of emotions. Seeing him care this much about you made you feel both weirded out and safe.

Chan watched the scene happen in front of his eyes and frowned in confusion. "Are you alright? I can help if you want and-"

"No." you immediately shut him up. "I'm okay, really. Thanks."

The poor guy was left even more confused when Minho took you away, bringing you to the bathroom. You both closed the door and you stood in front of each other for a moment without saying anything. While he was waiting for you to talk, you genuinely just wanted to enjoy his presence. But as the silence grew, Minho finally decided to break it.

"You could have asked Chunhwa to help you." he said, since he didn't why exactly you chose him to comfort you.

You shrugged, not too sure either. "You were the first person I thought of at the moment. I mean, you had a pretty strong grip on my thigh."

He coughed awkwardly, his ears turning red. "I see. And yeah, sorry about that.

"It's okay. It kind of helped, actually." you admitted.

Another silence took over, but he was the first to speak again. "Do you want me to talk to him?"

Your eyes widened at his proposition. "Are you crazy? Don't do that."

"No, I won't tell him about your crush, or whatever. I can mention to him that it's annoying that he only talks about her." he shrugged his shoulders.

"Min, we both only talk about Chan whenever we are together." you stated the obvious. "I bet you are more annoyed about that."

"Fair enough, but you don't bring up how talented and amazing he is every two seconds."

You laughed at this, and it visibly made Minho relax. If he managed to make you smile a little, that was good enough for him.

"Still, you don't need to do that. It's just as if I'm losing a friend, that's all."

"Do you want to go back home? I can walk you there."

You hummed quietly while nodding a yes slowly. "Actually, yes, that would be nice."

He took a step closer before rubbing the side of your arm, not forgetting to replace the hair that had fallen onto your face as well. "Then, we shall take you home, princess."

You hoped he didn't feel your heartbeat fasten its pace, nor your heavy breathing. He was never a physical person, and his touch felt electrifying. You knew damn well he was only doing this for you to feel better about your whole situation with your best friend, but you were starting to wonder if a part of him actually enjoyed these kinds of moments.

Your train of thoughts was stopped when he let go of you to open the door again, letting you walk out first. As you joined the others, you saw Changbin and Chunghwa being in their own world, and Chan giggling at his phone, most likely texting Eunhee. Oddly enough, it did not pain you as much as it did earlier. Somehow, feeling Minho's body hovering behind you in a protective way compensated.

"I'll go home, if you don't mind." you said to nobody in particular.

Chan let go of his phone, while the two others simply gave you a thumbs up before going on with whatever they were doing. "This early?" Chan asked.

"Sorry, I don't feel so well." you attempted a smile.

Chan stood up and joined you at the front door, concern all over his face. "Let me walk you to your dorm, at least."

You shook you head as a no before gesturing to the man standing behind you. "Minho's coming with me already. Thank you."

"Alright." he trailed off before he gave you a tight hug. "Let me know if you need anything."

"Always. Good night Chan. Bye, guys!" you addressed to the others.

You were quick to leave, and you felt bad Minho had to keep up with your fast walking. Nonetheless, he didn't complain and you found yourself outside of the building soon, breathing in the fresh air.

"What are you going to do for the rest of your night?" Minho asked.

You pondered for a minute, trying to figure out the options in your mind, but nothing came up. "I don't know. Knowing Youngmi, she's already sleeping. That means I can't do much other than sleep too."

"Are you tired?" he asked, and you answered with a no. "My place is close to yours, if you want to hang out."

You never went over at his, meaning you never met his cats. This was a good opportunity to get some cuddles with them, that only if Minho allowed you.

"Do I get to snuggle with Soonie, Doongie and Dori?"

He frowned. "Who do you think you are? Some privileged woman? The cats are off-limit." To that, you pouted at him. "Y/N, no."

"You want to me to feel better or not?"

"You seem to be doing good, now."

"Min, pretty please." you whined like a child.

He let out a sigh, deadpanning at you. "Fine. Not more than an hour of cuddles, though."

Feeling victorious, you took his hand and dragged him rapidly to his dorm. He almost fell from your sudden excitement, which took him by surprise. You were especially strong for someone who barely did anything else than study and work. At his building, he took the lead since you didn't know where he lived exactly. He let you inside first, being the well-mannered man he is, and you were greeted by an orange ball of floof who was visibly confused upon seeing someone who is not Minho.

"Doongie." he said before pointing to the other orange cat who was sitting on the cat tree in the corner of the room. "Soonie. And I have no idea where Dori is."

"You sent me so many photos of them, I would have recognized them without your help."

He sent a glare your way. "Just be grateful you get to meet them."

"Yes, thank you, Min." you laughed before crouching down to pet the cat. "Hello, Doongie." you cooed at him.

Minho huffed at the sight. His cat seemed to be liking you a lot. He went to Soonie, only to see Dori jumping on the cat tree to join his brother. He patted their heads lovingly. At least, he still had those two who didn't betray him. However, he realized he spoke too soon when you joined him to scratch the cats' bellies.

"You traitors." he muttered at his children. "It looks like they love you more than me."

"I'm just that much likeable." you teased.

"Sure you are, kitten."

Your eyes widened as realization hit you. "You call me kitten because of your cats?"

"Why else?" he shrugged as if it was nothing. "I like cats and I like you. This is only logical."

Your eyes went even wider, your heartbeat pacing faster. Did he just tell you he liked you? The Lee Minho who was known to be the most detached person on Earth, the one who never showed his true emotions?

"You like me?" you breathed out.

He rolled his eyes at you. "You're my friend, of couse I like you."

Oh. He meant that kind of liking. You were not certain on why it disappointed you so much. You thought you liked Chan. Well, you did, but ever since Minho came in the picture, you didn't know if you were starting to lie to yourself about your feelings for your best friend.

"Wow, Minho is finally admitting he actually likes having me around."

"Don't let it get into your head too much. This only happened because Chan's busy." he scoffed as he walked to the cupboard in his kitchen. "Now, do you want to feed the kitties?"

You didn't think twice before hopping to join him. You helped him serve the cat food and put it on the ground. You observed them eat together, as you petted their backs. He was babying Dori and Doongie, while you were spoiling Soonie with scratches. Needless to say, you felt like you were two parents watching over their children. And it felt strangely comfortable. If someone told you months prior that you would be in Minho's apartment, feeding his cats, and feeling like you wished it'd be like this all the time, you would not believe them. Because you couldn't quite believe it at this instant.

"Did you want to do something in particular?" you asked after the cats were done eating.

"Hmm." he hummed, thinking for a moment. "We could watch a movie. I have some drinks if you want to do that while watching."

"Sounds good to me."

You opted for a comedy movie while Minho prepared the popcorn and the drinks. You both had already drank a little when you were at Chan's, but some more couldn't hurt. Mid-way through the film, you were already feeling tired and tipsy. Way more than tipsy. Of course, Minho noticed since you were starting to lean on him. He tried to move away, but it was like you were trying to absolutely have some sort of physical contact with him.

"Bruh." he spat out when you were now full on laying on him.

"Uh?" you said as your eyes fluttered opened. "Ah, sorry, Min. I'm just very tired."

"Yeah, it's fine."

"Do you mind if I sleep here for tonight?" you mumbled out and Minho froze.

Normally, he would have kicked you out at that point without any second thoughts. However, your pleading eyes with your tired figure did something to him, and he couldn't just say no to you.

"I'll take the couch."

You pouted before shaking your head violently. "Sleep in your bed. I'll stay here."

"Y/N, you're not okay. Sleep in my bed."

"Or we can sleep together."

You took his lack of answer as a yes, and stood up on your feet clumsily. Luckily, he caught you in time before you tripped on yourself. You grabbed onto him to find some balance as he led you carefully to his bed. Once he tucked you in, he was about to leave, but you took his wrist to stop him.

"I said we can sleep together."

"I'll just wash up, I'll be back."

"Do you have cucumbers?"

He looked at you weirdly. Sure, you were drunk, but this was so random. You explained briefly it was for a skin care routine you wanted to do to relax. Although it now made sense, he didn't quite understand why you wanted to pamper yourself while being so tired. Nonetheless, he obliged and brought you sliced cucumbers.

"I'll go shower while you do your thingy."

"I'll wait for you."

Your behaviour was strange, but you were awfully cute and you smiled widely at him, hurrying him to go wash. He absolutely adored it, but he knew this was only because you drank. He beat himself up for wanting this to be genuine. The picture of you waiting for him to go to bed and falling asleep together was more than appealing to him. However, he had to remind himself that you liked Chan, and that you'd known the latter for years. He could never do that, come in-between the two of you. He finished his shower thoughts by simply telling himself to get over it. He didn't like you. He couldn't like you. Not like that.

When he came back in his room, he was met with the image of you watching a kids show on his personal TV. Some people would act like horny jerks when drunk, but you were a total child. Alongside with you was Dori, whom you had somehow managed to kidnap to cuddle with. Minho loved it. But he couldn't.

"You didn't use the cucumbers." he pointed to the plate, still full of the vegetable.

"I told you I'd wait for you."

He quirked an eyebrow, starting to see where this was going. "I am not doing some self-care shit with you."

"Min..." you pouted.

"No."

You patted the empty side of the bed and, lazily, Minho sat down as he was still glaring at you.

"Please."

"I'm going to sleep."

You huffed. "You're no fun. Chan would have done it."

Oh, how wrong was it of you to say that. It awoke something in Minho. Whether it was jealousy or pride, he didn't know, but he knew he didn't like it. Instantly, he picked two cucumbers and placed them on your cheeks.

"There. Happy?" he grumbled.

"Very much." you giggled. "Your turn."

You spent the next hour or so playing with cucumber slices, either throwing them at each other, eating them, or shoving them on Minho's eyes. It might had been the first time you saw him genuinely having fun. Not cocky or insufferable like he usually was. He was at ease, and so you were.

It was around 1am when you both grew too tired to continue your self-care session. You snuggled into the blankets and brought yourself closer to the man laying next to you. He stood still as he looked right back at you. He didn't stop himself from reaching out to the side of your face, patting your head.

"Thank you for tonight." you mumbled tiredly. "I think I like you too."

He immediately caught on that you were referring to your previous conversation. Fortunately, because otherwise, he would have went on full panic mode.

"That's good, pretty. Sleep well, alright?"

"You too, Min."

You and Minho were definitely no longer friends after that night, but nor had you stopped speaking to each other. Quite the opposite, actually. Think of any act of affection a couple would do, other than kissing, and there you got what was happening between the two of you. Chan had almost disappeared, now spending most of his time with Eunhee. You did visit him occasionally to make sure he wasn't exhausting himself too much but it never lasted more than five minutes. That also meant your crush on him had completely vanished. It couldn't have stayed for long, anyway, after you woke up in Minho's bed that morning, realizing you had fallen in love with him instead.

"Strawberry." Minho said, standing up firmly for his choice of milkshake, as he nudged your arm.

"Chocolate." you said, coming closer to his face.

He sighed in frustration. "We had chocolate last time."

"If you're so pressed with your strawberry, just order one for yourself."

He smirked. "But you want us to share, don't you?"

It was annoying how right he was, and you huffed in defeat. "Strawberry it is."

"There you go. I knew you were going to give up."

"Shut up."

He took you by the waist and brought you closer, as if you were not close enough already on the small cushioned bench. You continued to bicker playfully, when you heard the front door's bell. Turning your attention on where the sound came from, you easily spotted Chan. He stood still, baffled at the sight in front of him. He started to question himself mentally, wondering if he had really cancelled on you two that much that he didn't notice you were dating. Coming back to his senses, he walked to your booth and sat in front of you.

"Hey, guys. Am I interrupting, or..?"

"Of course not." Minho exclaimed. "Glad to see you after, I don't know how long."

You could hear the pettiness in his voice, so you hit him slightly with your elbow before speaking. "We've all been busy, it's okay." you smiled. "So, what's new? How are things with Eunhee?"

"It's good, I guess. We had a... moment, and she is pretty much ignoring me since then. You know, when you came over the other day." he explained, while looking pretty clueless.

"What kind of moment?" Minho asked, stretching his arm out to wrap it around you, which earned a look from Chan.

"Uh, I'm not too sure. We danced in my room-"

You cut him off with a laugh, and he glared at you. "That's the cheesiest thing you could have done. No shit you were acting weird when I came over." you snickered, and Minho soon joined you as he tried to ignore the slight jealousy he felt from learning you went over to Chan's recently.

"Yeah, you two are no better. You were all over each other when I walked in." he rolled his eyes.

That was enough to shut the both of you, knowing well this was an unspoken thing you had going on. You never brought it up, and didn't intend on doing so anytime soon.

"So." Minho coughed out awkwardly. "Your moment?"

"Right." Chan nodded. "Well, we were dancing in my room and, I don't know what happened, but I almost kissed her. And, I don't know, she didn't look like she wanted to, so I back off. And now, I'm lowkey stressing out about it because I surely didn't want to make her uncomfortable."

"She wanted you to kiss her." you responded without hesitation.

"You think so?"

"Chan, I know so." You hesitated to continue with your point, but feeling Minho's hand rubbing your arm let you know it might be time to tell him. "I'm convinced she likes you, because she acts the same way as I did with you."

He frowned his eyebrows. "You like me? Aren't you and Minho... well, you know?"

"I used to, and that's not important." you dismissed the topic. "What I'm saying is she keeps sending you memes to make you smile, she gets shy around you, she said yes to your tutoring..."

"And you told me she even bought you coffee for one of your lessons with her." Minho added.

He looked at you both, still uncertain. "Should I invite her to my party, then?"

"What party?"

"My end of the school term party. In two days."

"Go for it, yeah." Minho encouraged. "Are we invited?"

"If you promise to keep it in your pants, yes."

Right. A party. With girls. And Minho. The guy who hooked up here and there after his breakup with Byeol. The same one you were currently in love with. Great.

"You know me better." he laughed with Chan. "I'll behave, I promise."

Later, on the walk back to Minho's, since you had planned to stay at his place, you were more quiet than usual. You were holding hands, but your grip was loose, and you couldn't focus properly.

"What's wrong, kitten?" he asked worriedly.

"What do you think of Siyeon?" you said, mentioning a pretty girl in your common class.

"What is this question?" he chuckled, not sure in where you were going with this.

"She's cute, has good grades, is nice to everyone. And Chan is going to invite her at the party, probably."

He raised an eyebrow at you. "Your point?"

"You could ask her out." you shrugged.

With that, Minho let go of your hand. "I could, but I won't."

"Why? Sorry, but it just hit me that you haven't gone out with someone in a very long time."

"I don't know. I suppose I'm not very in the mood of fucking around anymore. You also stopped talking about Chan with me. I'm not the only one acting differently." he pointed out.

"I said it earlier, I don't like Chan anymore." you rolled your eyes.

"Well, then. Our romantic lives are bland."

"They are."

The conversation was cut short as he didn't have anything else to say. He took your hand again, and led you to his dorm. You got there pretty quickly, and you still hadn't said a word to each other. It didn't mean you didn't understand what was happening, both of you implying the lack of love you had could only mean one thing.

The moment he closed his front door, he grabbed you by the waist to pull you closer and crashed his lips onto yours. You were taken aback at first, not sure on how you should be reacting, but it quickly faded as you melted into the kiss. While he was needy, he was also being extremely gentle with you, making sure he didn't hurt you in any way. It didn't take long for you to get to his room, and he pushed you down gently on the bed. Now hovering you, he deepened the kiss before moving down to place small pecks on your neck.

"Min." you mumbled between heavy breaths, and he hummed against your skin. "This is not a joke, right?"

He separated his mouth from your skin to look at you curiously. "What do you mean?"

"You used to be very... physical with other girls. I just want to make sure I'm not some doll you're playing with before throwing it away."

He looked at you with fondness as he stroke your cheek softly. "I thought I made it clear I've wanted you for months, now. Not just physically, like you said." He pecked your forehead. "If I can have you." Kissed your cheek. "I don't want the skin ship only, this time." He stopped as he glanced at your lips. "I want all of you."

You were the one to initiate this time when you brought him closer, kissing him hungrily. The unspoken tension there was before was no longer there. It was like kissing each other had dropped all of your walls, and you were now fully exposed to one another.

"I fucking hated it when you cried about Chan." he said in-between the kisses.

"Really?"

"Fuck, yes." he said, going back to sucking your neck.

"I hated how much you flirted with me, knowing you weren't sincere." you admitted.

"Trust me, kitten, I was fucking sincere."

You started to play with the hem of his shirt, tugging in a few times. He backed away and smirked at you before leading your hands to help him take off his shirt. The sight in front of you was mesmerizing. You already had the idea that he had a good body because of his dancing, but you certainly did not expect him to look this hot.

"Damn." you let out without thinking.

"I know, I'm hot." he winked at you.

"Of course, you know." you rolled your eyes.

"I'm joking." he chuckled as he pecked your lips. "Are you okay if we continue? I want you to feel comfortable."

"I'm more than okay."

The party started out well. You had come in advance to help Chan with the preparations, but mostly to help him calm down. The poor guy was so nervous, not knowing whether Eunhee was going to show up or not.

As people kept coming in, you kept on looking out for any signs of Minho. He texted you he had some errands to run for the cats before coming, but you just wanted to see him. After your night together, you spent the next two days doing finals which didn't allow you to meet up again. The morning after, however, he did ask you out on a date to which you gladly said yes. Although labels were not discussed, it wasn't necessary because you both knew you wanted the same thing.

"Hey, Seungmin!" you welcomed the man as you opened the door.

"Still acting like Chan's place is yours?" he joked.

"I've come here so much, it's like my second home." you laughed with him. "Come on in!"

You joined Chan back in the kitchen as he was starting to prepare the snacks. You started helping him out, though you were very much distracted. Looking at your phone every minute or so, Chan pointed it out, making fun of you.

"You tell me to stop doing that with Eunhee, and you're doing the same with Minho."

You froze in place before slowly turning your head to him. "I never told you I was seeing Minho."

"Y/N, you two have been eye fucking each other for weeks. It did surprise me, but I'm not blind. You love him."

You blushed, as shyness crept over. "Yeah, he's really great."

"I can see that. I haven't see you so happy since, well, since forever actually. I'm happy for you."

"Thank you, Channie."

You exchanged smiles before going back to preparing the food. It felt great to spend some quality time with him after such a long time.

"You two fucked, haven't you?"

Your eyes widened from his words.

"Chan!"

"What?" he said innocently. "You have dark spots on your neck, that's all."

You grew embarrassed, but couldn't help but laugh. You haven't noticed until now that Minho had marked you that much. You thought he was being gentle enough to not have done so, but it was visibly the opposite. Just then, you noticed a familiar figure appear in front of you, which made the both of you shut up.

"HI! Eunhee, um, wow. You made it! I mean, I didn't expect you to be here. I should, uh-" Chan spilled out, straightening his posture.

Trying to prevent him from embarrassing himself any further, you hit him slightly with your elbow to shut him up before turning your attention to the girl in front of you. "Good to see you."

"You too. I hope I'm not interrupting." she flickered her gaze between the two.

"Of course not!" you both denied, not wanting to give her the wrong image.

Chan stood there awkwardly before starting to walk away. "I should go greet the others. Talk to you later?" he told her, and you gave him a look as to ask him what he was doing.

You didn't know what to say to her. Seriously, it was Chan's responsibility to talk to her and fix whatever happened between them. You just kept on pouring bowls of chips, but ended up speaking.

"I really didn't expect you here. Chan had kind of given up after you ignored him."

It came pettier than what you had intended, but at least the message was there.

"It wasn't intentional. I mean, I did purposely ignore him but I had reasons." she justified, but you shook your head for her to stop.

"I'm not asking you to tell me why, you must have had good reasons. I just..." You hesitated to keep going, afraid you would be saying something you shouldn't. "He told me about how you almost kissed and I'm just letting you know that Chan is not someone to play around with. I don't know why he likes you so much while barely noticing me, but I'm warning you. You don't know him like I do and I know Chan is going to prioritize who he loves first. I don't want this thing going on with you two to be hurting anyone."

Her silence was torturing you as she was processing everything you told her. You replayed the scene in your mind, trying to spot anything you could have said wrongly. But nothing came to you.

"I came here to fix things with him." she finally spoke. "I don't know the history between you two, and visibly you are closer than anyone here. If I hurt you in any way, I'm so sorry. I just wanted to pass my class, that's it."

You had definitely fucked up by indirectly mentioning your former crush on the guy. This was obviously not the outcome you were expecting, you simply wanted to let her know that Chan was precious and needed to be taken care of even when he didn't want to.

"No, I-"

"It's okay, Y/N. You two clearly have something going on. I know for a fact Chan doesn't like me like that and he's way better off with you."

She left before you could explain any further. You cursed under your breath as you tried to catch up to her. However, you were stopped when someone brought you into a hug before familiar lips met yours.

"Hey, there." Minho grinned at you. "You're looking beautiful."

While your heart wanted to stay with him and melt at his compliments, your mind knew you had to make things right with Eunhee.

"Thank you, Min. I have to do something real quick. Do you mind getting me a drink in the meantime?" you pecked his cheek. "I'll be right back, okay?"

"Alright." he nodded before bringing you into another hug. He leaned on your side so his mouth could be next to your ear. "I'm sorry about the hickeys, by the way."

And he left. He was surely making you feel things, but now was not the moment. You walked through the crowd of people, trying to find Eunhee, but you simply couldn't as there were too many people. Looking behind you, your eyes laid on Chan, alone in the kitchen. You went to him as fast as you could.

"Chan!" you exclaimed out of breath. "Have you seen Eunhee?"

When you took a better look at him, his face had nothing but confusion, sadness, and pure anger.

"What did you say to her?"

And, you were fucked. You shut your eyes closed, taking a deep breath to prepare yourself for the argument that you felt was coming. Chan was rarely mad, but you did not want to be around when he was. Now that he was actually pissed, it was even worse that it was at you.

"So you saw her."

Chan rolled his eyes, as if it was the most obvious thing. "She said you were waiting for me in the kitchen. What have you told her?"

"Nothing untrue, I swear." you breathed out, trying to be careful with your words. "I think she misinterpreted a lot of what I said."

"What did you say exactly?" he asked again, growing impatient.

You took a deep breath in, and searched for any help around, but everyone was having fun and Minho was nowhere to be seen. "I might have spilled out I had a crush on you, but she took it as if I still do." He groaned in frustration, passing his hand through his curly locks. "I also said you like her, and I might have mentioned that you two being together could potentially end up hurting the both of you..."

If you thought he was furious earlier, now he was on full rage mode. Honestly, you had never seen him so mad, and it frightened you quite a bit.

"Why on Earth would tell her that?" he almost growled at you.

"Why? For fuck's sake, Chan, how was I supposed to know what to tell her? You left me there because you were too much of a baby to face her yourself." you snapped at him, which he had seemingly not expected.

"You know me enough to not say shit like that! And I am hosting this whole thing and I saw people coming in. It was the least I could do."

"Fuck off with your lame excuse, because we both know Changbin was already doing so. And for your information, I don't know you as well as I used to because sir decided to disappear out of my life."

He huffed at you as he looked around. He was lost and didn't know what to do now.

"Yeah, I told you already that I'm sorry. But if you love me so much, you wouldn't have told her off by saying you have a crush on me." he yelled out, being heard by almost everyone in the room.

Behind him, you spotted Minho's eyes already staring at you. He was fuming too, walking towards your direction. You didn't know whether he was angry because of you or Chan, but you were definitely worried at that point.

"Y/N." he called out.

"Minho, can we not-"

"So it's Minho, now?" You exhaled loudly, wondering how the night had even taken this turn. "I thought you said you were over him."

"Minho, stay out of this." Chan put his arm in front of him to prevent him from approaching you any closer.

You recognized the protectiveness Chan had of you within his tone, which reassured you a bit that he still cared, at least. Minho didn't fight back, but sent you a disappointed look instead.

"I'll leave you to it, then."

With that, he stormed out of the apartment, not looking back. Meanwhile, the tears you had been holding back until then flooded out and you broke down as Chan held you.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm sorry, it's my fault."

The softness he had after being so enraged took you by surprise, but you truly needed your best friend at the moment. "I'm sorry." you sobbed out.

"Y/N, it's okay. Don't be sorry. You know I can be pretty stupid, right?" he pat your head, and you nodded as a small laugh left your mouth. "I'm the one at fault, here. I should have talked to Eunhee myself, and I shouldn't have yelled at you. Minho is very sensitive, you know that, right? He'll come around, I'm sure of it."

It amazed you how he was still able to find the right words for any circumstances. You loved him, for real. But not that kind of love. This one was reserved for Minho. The only thing on your mind was to run after him. You hurt him, and you couldn't bear with the thought.

"Thank you, Chan. I'm also sorry."

He shook his head. "I told you to stop saying that." It made you chuckle.

"Do you think I should go after him?"

He smirked. "Go get your damsel in distress."

Still sobbing, you snorted at his words before you hurried to get out of his apartment. You felt grateful to have went so many times to his place to know his dorm number. Otherwise, you would have given up much quicker. You stopped in front of his door and knocked softly. You heard someone moving from the other side, and heard a sigh.

"Min." you called out.

To your shock, he opened the door, only a bit, and looked at you. He looked tired, and you noticed he had changed into his pyjamas. He hummed as a greeting, obviously still mad at what happened.

"Can we talk?"

He really didn't want to, but your puffy red eyes and simply the sight of you was enough to break him apart. So he let you in. You smiled widely when you were greeted by your favourite cats. You scratched their heads briefly, before turning your attention back on Minho. He was leaning on his counter (which was hot, let's be honest) and crossed his arms as he waited for you to talk.

"I really and certainly do not like Chan."

"Reassuring." he commented, but received a glare from you to tell him to let you speak.

"What happened was he left me alone with Eunhee and I said some things to her that she interpreted as if I still liked him. Chan got mad and he impulsively said that. I told him about us already, he knows."

He frowned at your words. "Us."

"Yeah, us." you repeated, taking a chance by walking up to him.

Thankfully, he let you place yourself right in front of him. He uncrossed his legs so you could have some space, and you approached him. You took his face in your hands, looking at him lovingly.

"What did you tell him about us, precisely?" he asked, placing his hands on your waist.

"I told him that you're great."

"Just that?"

"He knows we fucked."

He raised his eyebrows as he looked up. "Should have expected that."

You slapped his cheek playfully as you pouted, and he chuckled because you were just adorable. "Shut up."

"Sorry. Go on?" he laughed.

You got closer to him, your lips lingering over his. He would have kissed you, but he wanted to hear what you had left to say.

"And I admitted that I might love you."

He backed away, not having expected this. "Love?"

You sighed. "Dude, we've been acting like a couple for months, and we see each other pretty much every day. Don't act surprised."

He frowned even more. "Dude? Really? I call you princess, kitten, or pretty. And I get dude."

"Min." you whined, but he could only laugh.

He loved messing around with you, but he knew when to stop. "I'll be dude if that's what makes you happy, love."

You grinned from ear to ear. "Shall I take this as you love me too?"

"Don't make me say it, kitten."

You chuckled and played with his hair. He adjusted his posture and was now the one hovering you. His eyes went straight to your lips, and he didn't ask to kiss you before doing so. You smiled and kissed him back, not forgetting to hold him close.

"I fucking won over Bang Chan." he bragged after pulling away from you.

"That was an easy win." you snorted.

"Ah yeah? Am I that irresistible?"

"You know you are."

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[libraryofloveletters]

Love You From The Sidelines

Lewis Hamilton x Fem!Reader 

Warnings: long lost love, unrequited love, pining, lewis isn't sure if he’d hallucinating or not, reader is a little stubborn and a little rude, reader’s brother and bestie are their number one supporters, one mention of the silverstone accident (no graphic details), mentions of car accidents and parental death.

Word Count: 4.3k

Author’s Note: this has been sitting in my draft for months and I finally have the motivation to finish it. I'm not really sure what this idea is but go with it // also age gaps and timelines are definitely off, sorry! just go with it. 

-----

High school sweethearts -- not exactly. 

He wasn’t truly in school, making appearances here and there but focused on his career. The jump from F2 to F1 was a crucial time. 

You were his grounding spot. 

The bedroom window creaked when he snuck in, laying beside you in the tiny bed as his head rests on your stomach. The two of you living in a fantasy world for those few hours.  

“You’ll be by my side of course,” his fingers interlock with yours. He brings your hand up to his lips. “Married, 3 kids and a dog, a big house on the hill just like you always wanted.” He tells you, lips pressing to your ring finger.

“You mean that?” you asked, your own hand cupping his jaw as he looked up at you. 

“I promise.”

Of course you believed him, you were 18 years old. Young and stupid was the story of your life. Lewis’ jump from F2 to F1 went by in the flash of an eye. You both got wrapped in the whirlwind. 

You had watched him become an internationally known star; Sir Lewis Hamilton. 

The same Lewis Hamilton that promised you a big house on the hill, marriage and 3 kids. The same Lewis who you fell in love with the first time you spoke to him. The days went by, the distance growing between you two; they say absence makes the heart grow fonder but that’s not true when you’re 18 and 19, young and in love. 

Well, at least you were; you loved him so much it hurt. He was your first love, how could you not? 

The day he left etched in your memories. 

He used the front door and not the window; hint number one. 

You were sat on the staircase as he cupped your face. “I can’t, I have to focus on racing. You understand, don’t you?” 

You nod, knowing if you spoke, you’d cry. 

You didn’t hear from him after that day; no calls, no letters, no texts. A final goodbye and he let go of your hand, walking out your life. 

You did what any friend or ex-girlfriend did, you watched from the sidelines. You watched as Lewis grew into this amazingly talented and humble man, as he had always been to you, but it was nice to see others appreciating that. 

He was happy and successful and you were beyond proud. 

His name chanted through the streets when he won, an iconic win every time if not anything else. 

Lewis’s name is written across your heart as it was to millions of other people out there but for very different reasons. 

2022. 

You have grown over the years, a lot has changed since he walked out of your life. You went to college, you became a nurse, you took your little brother, Marcus,  in after your parents passed. 

It was Sunday today, half past 10 and the race was set to start in half an hour. 

The smell of french toast and coffee filled the house as your brother dragged his feet down the stairs. 

“Morning,” the boy yawns, sitting at the kitchen table. 

“Morning kiddo,” you smiled at him, sliding a mug of tea over to him. 

It had become a tradition; every Sunday morning, you two were up and watching the race. You had convinced yourself that you weren’t watching for Lewis, that you simply enjoyed the sport but who were you lying to? 

You got into F1 because of him. Had you not been watching for him, you probably wouldn’t have never watched a race in your life. 

Your brother got into it too, deeming the Brit his favourite racer. It warmed your heart to see him take such a strong liking to Lewis.  

If only he knew. 

He was much too young to remember the few months you and Lewis shared together. Before you were lovers, you were friends. You grew up together, you knew his parents and his siblings. Somewhere, buried deep down in a photo album, there are photos of you and Lewis as teenagers with your little brother in a baby blanket. 

He’s 13 now, his 14th birthday in a few days and his one wish was to go to Silverstone and watch the race. 

How could you deny him that? 

You had the tickets hidden away in your bedroom, your best friend Jenny was coming with you two as well. He just didn’t know yet. 

The race has started, the Canadian GP title ran as you two settled in on the couch in front of the tv. Lewis was starting 4th, Carlos, Fernando and Max in front of him in that order.

You said a quiet little prayer in your head, hoping that someone out there was listening and would keep him safe. It was a stupid thing to do, he probably didn’t even remember you but you remembered him; he was your first love. 

You always held him in a special place in your heart. 

The race was going well, he's steady on the tyres and the strategy seems to be working. It was a long 70 laps, Carlos was so close to his first win that he could taste it and somehow managed to slip through his fingers. Max ended up in first place along with Carlos in second and Lewis in third.

“You know how your birthday is next week?” You asked Marcus, looking over at him; your brother's birthday was June 30, just in time for the Silverstone race weekend.

He nods, eyes fixed on the tv screen. The podium was running, Ted’s notebook on next, he was always so proud to see Lewis on podium; the smile on his face like no other. You reach over and pull something out of the side table. You have to run upstairs during the race under the guise of getting your phone charger, which you did but there was another reason you had gone up.

The three tickets dropped on the coffee table in front of him. The boy looks down at the tickets and takes a moment to figure out what was in front of him. When it registers to him that those are the tickets for next week's race, he looks over at you. “What- are you serious ?” He asks, holding back a grin. 

“No, obviously those are fake.” You teased, a smile on your face. 

The little boy, not so little anymore, wraps his arms around you and pulls you into a hug. “Oh my god! Thank you!!” He lets go of you and picks up the tickets, reading them off. “Wait, there’s three.” 

“Jenny’s coming with us.” You tell him and he smiles. 

Your brother loved Jenny as much as he loved you. You and Jenny had met in college, the two of you got lost on your way to psychology class and ended up spending the afternoon in the library.

Jenny was an only child, and her parents came from money. She was way more well off than you, so when she found out that you were going to school along with raising your brother, and managing the household; she couldn't resist the urge to help you. She helped in any way she could, whether it was watching Marcus so you could do an exam or for you to pick up an extra shift at work and sometimes, she even picked up bills when she knew you couldn't. 

You have always tried to pay her back but never did Jenny take a cent back  from you. It's like you've gained another sibling and Marcus loved her like he loved you.

---

Race Day; Silverstone 

The three of you were walking into the track, you and Jenny watched Marcus’s face light up with excitement as you walked through. He’s all decked out, his black Mercedes hat and shirt as you head down towards the grand stands. 

“Hold on,” Jenny calls for him, reaching into her purse for something. You’re both looking over at the woman, waiting to see what she pulled out. There’s a little blue envelope that she pulls out and hands over to Marcus. “Happy birthday,” she tells him, smiling. 

Marcus smiles at her and he opens the envelope. He was expecting a birthday card but instead finds 3 passes for the Mercedes meet and greet. Marcus looks at her and back at the passes. 

“Jenny!” He laughs, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a hug. 

She smiles, rubbing his back softly. “Go on, get in line.” She tells him, letting him run off to find the line. Both you and her are walking behind him. “Jen,” you start, looking over at her and she already knows what you were going to say. 

“Y/n, don’t. He’s a good kid, it’s the least I could do.” 

“It’s too much.” 

“You bought my ticket, it was the least I could do. It’s his birthday gift.” 

You two find Marcus in the line, the 3 of you patiently waiting to go through the line to meet the Mercedes drivers. You and Marcus go to see George first, he was kind and sweet; he signed your brother’s hat and yours, took a picture with your brother before you moved on to Lewis as Jenny moved up to meet George. 

Marcus is so shocked when he’s in front of Lewis, he’s gone quiet. You give him a nudge, letting him step towards the driver on the other side of the table. 

“Hi,” Lewis smiled at the boy in front of you, he glanced at you and he paused; you looked so familiar, did he know you from somewhere ? Nonetheless, he looked back at the boy, “did you want me to sign that?” He asks, nodding towards the hat in his hand. 

“Yeah, please.” Marcus hands the hat over and he’s so quiet and shy, you can’t help but chuckle. 

“Thank you,” you say to Lewis when he hands the hat back over to Marcus. “Marcus is one of your biggest fans, aren’t you?” You pinched your brother’s cheek and he swats your hand away, “y/n.” The boy groaned; you were embarrassing  him in front of his idol. 

“Sisters,” Lewis chuckles, “they’ll always baby you. Mine is like that too.” He tells Marcus with a smile. “Thank you for the support, it means a lot to me.” He smiles, a hand resting on his chest. 

Marcus thanks him once more for signing the hat and Lewis leans over and signs his top for him as well, telling him that he’ll see him around. Marcus’s face has lit up, smiling from ear to ear. “Best birthday present ever!” He says to you and you smile, your arm over his shoulders as you two walk off to the side, waiting for Jenny. 

Lewis can’t help that he overheard your conversation and he can’t shake the feeling that he somehow knows you from somewhere. 

You were chatting with Marcus while Lewis signed something for Jenny and you can feel him looking at you but you brush it off. Jenny came over and you three were ready to walk around for a bit more. You glance over your shoulder once more before you walk off and your eyes meet his; Lewis flashes you a smile, the same smile that used to make your heart skip a beat. 

The three of you end up wandering around for a bit, about to head towards the grandstand when a woman comes running after you three, shouting for you to stop. Her pristine white shirt catches your eye, as does the little Mercedes emblem stitched onto it. 

“Are you one of you Marcus ?” She asks and your brother’s brows furrow, slightly confused. “I am,” he says, sticking to your side. 

“Oh good, I found the right one.” The woman lets out a breath, smiling. “Here, for you.” She hands over 3 passes to you guys. 

Marcus reads the badges; passes for the paddock, the back says guests of L. Hamilton.

“Wait, what?” He asks, handing one to Jenny and the other to you. 

“They’re from Lewis,” the lady clarifies. “He said he wanted you three there.” 

Before you could ask the woman a question, Jenny and Marcus are following her like lost puppies towards the Mercedes garage. Your stomach is doing flips as you jog to catch up with them; god, you really hoped he didn’t remember you. Today was about Marcus, not Lewis trying to dig up ancient feelings, ones you pushed away a long time ago. 

Once you get to the garage, she shows you around for a little before telling you to help yourself to anything and set in before the race. You were watching as Marcus and Jenny poked around, you sat in your seat and waited for the countdown to the race to begin. 

You always felt nervous before the race start; the man you love -- loved, was about to get in a car and drive at ridiculous speeds; it’s human nature to worry. 

But you’d never felt it like that before. You felt like you were going to be sick when they sat next to you, talking about how the mechanics were telling them how fast those cars can really go. 

The numbers kept going higher and higher, as did your urge to throw up this morning’s breakfast. 

That’s when you see him; race suit hanging off his hips, black fireproofs clinging to his fit body, Angela running behind him. “Hi,” he stops in front of you guys and you barely look up. 

Marcus looks like he was going to freak out but he says hi nonetheless. 

Jenny is the only sane one currently.  

“Thank you for the passes,” Jenny says, Marcus nodding. 

Lewis waves them off, “it was nothing. I overheard you talking to your sister.” His eyes find you, you can feel his gaze burning into you and you finally glance up at the man. “You said it was the best birthday present, figured I'd give you the full experience.” 

“I hope we didn’t put you out.” You finally say and he shakes his head, smiling. 

“It was no problem at all. I had extra.” 

Angela tells him that he’d needed on the grid in two minutes and he says his goodbyes. Marcus wishes him good luck and Lewis thanks him and promises to be back after the race to chat some more. He heads towards the front of the garage but not without looking back at you once more, your eyes catching his and you look away. 

“Why does he keep looking at you like that?” Jenny asks you and you look at her confused. “What? Who?” 

“What’d you mean who?” Jenny rolls her eyes. “Lewis, duh. Seems like he likes you,” she wiggles her eyebrows. “What a man, you’d be so lucky.” 

“Oh like he wouldn't be lucky too.” You joked, earning a laugh from her. 

The race went well, Carlos took his first win which was an amazing thing to see and Checo was P2 with Lewis in P3. George unfortunately was not aloud to restart the race after stopping to help Zhou but he stopped for a good reason, it was nonsense and unfair that he didn’t get to, but rules are rules you suppose; even if they are stupid. 

Lewis had to get to press but when he returned, he found the three of you again and ended up talking to you; by you, I mean Jenny and Marcus for a good while. You smiled and nodded along, you didn’t have much to say, you didn’t know what to say. 

What were you supposed to say? Hey remember me? The girl you ditched when you started F1?

Yeah, I think not. 

Lewis gets Marcus one of his Mercedes team shirts, two actually; a black and a white, “for variety” he told the boy. He signs one of them and takes a few pictures with you guys. 

“Oh y/n, don’t you want to get in?” Jenny asks after you take the picture of her, Lewis and Marcus.

“It’s alright,” you smile, “I'm sure Lewis has places to be.” 

The man smiles, “not really, come on.” He nods towards Marcus, calling you over. Once again, your stomach is doing flips as you hand the phone to Jenny and stand on the other side of Lewis, the driver between you and Marcus. 

His hand rests on your back and the spot feels like it’s on fire. It’s the first time he’s touched you in years and still, you felt the same way; like you were 18 and in love again. 

It was getting late and all of you really needed to go. Traffic was surely going to be a madhouse to get out of there and you still needed to do dinner for Marcus. You all thanked him for his kindness today, his eyes lingering on you as you said your goodbyes. You can hear Angela telling him they’re doing a debrief which gives you a sense of relief; you can leave without the fear of him tracking you down and asking if he knew you from somewhere. 

How would you explain that to Marcus and Jenny? Oh yeah, no biggie but I dated seven time world champion Lewis Hamilton when I was in high school. 

Marcus was exhausted by the time you three got back to your place and frankly so were you. You opted out of a fancy dinner, ordering takeout and Marcus says you can do dinner at a restaurant another day. 

Dinner was eaten on the couch, watching the reruns of Ted’s Notebook whilst you three chatted about the day. You were in the kitchen, sticking candles into Marcus’s birthday cake, 14 to be exact when the doorbell rang. 

“I'll get it!” Jenny shouts, walking towards the door. 

You hear the door open and it's quiet, so you venture off to see who’s at the door. The kitchen towel swung over your shoulder and you brushed the frosting off your fingers as you walked over, “Jen, who’s at the -” 

You stopped like deer in headlights. 

Jenny takes a step back, still in the entryway but you and Lewis are face to face. “What're you doing here?” You ask. 

“So it is you. I thought I had been losing my mind all day.” 

“Why are you here, Lewis?” You pass a hand through your hair, nervously shifting from one foot to the other. “How'd you even find me?” 

“You haven’t moved, y/n.” He glances around, “lived in the same house your whole life.” 

“Yeah, not all of us are well off like you are.” 

The words come flying out before you could stop yourself. You see the look on his face; you knew how he grew up, what his parents did to keep him in karting, what he faced before he even got a chance. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that.” 

“No,” he says, “it’s fine.” 

“I don’t have time to chat, the cake will melt.” 

“So invite me in.” He says it as if it’s the most normal thing in the world. 

“Lewis-” You get cut off by Marcus saying the same thing, the boy coming down from his bedroom. You couldn’t say no now, Marcus has already seen him. You step aside, letting Lewis come in and Jenny has walked ahead to pull Marcus into the living room and you’re absolutely sure they were forming their own theories as to why he was there. 

He looks around as he walks in, admiring the pictures on the wall. “You kept it up.” He smiles, a photo he had taken of you sitting on a bench in the park, a bright yellow dress on. “It was my mum’s favourite.” You tell him. 

“Was?” He says quietly, looking over at you. “Yeah,” you breathe, “she and dad passed in an accident when Marcus was 4.” 

“Oh. Y/n, I didn’t know. I'm so sorry.” 

“It’s okay, life happens.” You shrug, walking off to get the cake from the kitchen.  Lewis follows you, “wow nothing’s changed.” He looks around. 

“Don’t have the time to change it,” you tell him, stepping past him towards the living room. Marcus was sitting on the couch when you and Lewis walked in, you set the cake on the coffee table and Jenny lit the candles, the three of you singing him happy birthday, counting to 14 before he blew out his candles. 

“I’ll get plates, hold on.” You get up, walking off to the kitchen. 

Marcus exchanges a glance with Jenny and that’s when Marcus turns to Lewis. “How do you know my sister?” He asks the driver and Lewis looks confused. 

“Y/n never told you?” 

“Told me what?” 

“We dated when we were in high school.” 

Marcus’s mouth forms an O, excusing himself and rushing off to the kitchen. “YOU DATED LEWIS ?!” Marcus shouts and you turn to face the boy, “what?” 

“Lewis said you guys dated, how come you never told me?” 

“Lewis told you that ?” Your arms folded across your chest and you see the accused peeking into the kitchen, “hi,” he says quietly and you give Marcus a look, one he knows too well; time for him to go. 

Lewis replaces Marcus in the kitchen and you two are standing across from each other. “Why would you tell him that? Honestly, why are you even here?” You ask him. 

You’re also 100% sure that Jenny and Marcus were eavesdropping but that's the least of your concerns. 

“I’m not sorry for coming back, if that’s what you’re asking me.” He says, leaning on the wall. 

“It’s not what I'm asking.” You say, gathering the plates to take to the living room. As you go to step out, Lewis blocks the doorway. “Move.” You go to step past him and he doesn’t move.

“Y/n, please. I remember, you know.” His eyes meet yours and everything in you wants to believe that. “I promised you I’d come back, we’d get married, 3 kids and a dog, big house on the hill.” He sighs, his gaze burning a hole into you. “I'm sorry for not coming back.” 

“You don’t have to apologize, we're both grown. We have our own lives, I didn’t expect you to come back.” 

Lewis sighs, his hand resting on yours. “I wanted to. I love you, y/n, I always have. I just- my focus shifted, but it doesn’t mean I forgot about you. I got caught up in my career but I never stopped loving you. No one ever came close to you.” 

“I don’t need an apology, Lewis.” 

“I love you, y/n. It’s always been you. Can’t we at least try?” 

Your heart is telling you yes, run back to him; Lewis was the love of your life and just like he had said, you had never found anyone that compared to him. 

No one came close to him. 

Logically, you should say no. Tell him to leave and wish him well. You couldn't put yourself through that again. 

“Okay.” You say, nodding. “We can try.” 

“Okay,” he smiles. “That’s all I wanted.” 

----

5 years later. 

“Is everything ready?” You called from the kitchen, Marcus and Jenny hanging the banner the girls made on the wall. 

“Should be ready now!” Your brother called back. 

You and Lewis ended up working things out, he went on to win another championship, putting him at a world record of 8 championships and you were all beyond proud. 

Later that same year, you found out you were pregnant. Twins the first go around; Stella and Victoria. The two girls are four now and they are everything like their father. 

You moved while you were pregnant, a big house on a hill. It wasn't too far from where you two had grown up. Lots of yard space for the kids to play and for Roscoe to run around. 

Marcus was living with the four of you even though he was 19 now; he will always be your first baby. 

Speaking of babies, your little man was active, jabbing you in the side with his foot. You were due soon, this one makes 3. A little boy this time. 

“Stel! Vic! Daddy’s going to be home soon! Come in!” You shout to the girls in the backyard when you hear the door open. You can hear Jenny and Marcus talking to your husband and the girls come running in. 

“Daddy!” They shout at the same time, the man dropping to his knees to hug his girls. 

“Hi babies! I missed you two soooo much.” He says, kissing them on the cheek. 

Roscoe was nudging Lewis’s leg with his head and Lewis pats the dog’s side, cuddling with him for a moment. You come walking into the entryway, your hand resting on your bump and Lewis smiles when he sees you. The diamond ring on your finger catches his eye. 

“Mrs. Hamilton,” he says, getting up to give you a kiss. 

“How was the flight?” You ask him, your hand on his jaw when he leans down to kiss your bump. The girls have run off with Jenny, Marcus and Roscoe. “It was fine,” he says, standing behind you now.

You lean back onto your husband, his hands on either side of your bump, your hand coming down to rest on his. “Welcome home baby.” You whisper to him. 

He smiles, kissing your cheek. “Thank you, darling.” 

-----

taglist: @timetoracewrites​ @diorleclerc​ @lickmeleclerc​ @halsteadssneakylink​ @dragon-of-winterfell​ @benedictscanvas​ @elisaa-shelby​ @hnmaga-blog​ @czechoslovakiandisco​ @dr3lover​ @troybolton14 @Lovingroscoee @compulsiveshit​ @somanyfandomsbruh​  @damnyoulifee​ @barzysreputation​ @vickyofalltrades @yeolsbubbles​ @barzysreputation​ @thybulleric​ @valkyrie418​ @ricsaigaslec​ @idkiwantchocolatee​  @sessgjarg @molliemoo3​ @bisexual-desi​ @sunf1owerrq​ 

#lewis hamilton #lewis hamilton x reader #lewis hamilton x you #lewis hamilton x y/n #lewis hamilton imagine #lewis hamilton one shot #lewis hamilton fanfic #lewis hamilton fluff #f1 #f1 x y/n #f1 x reader #f1 x you #f1 imagine #f1 fiction #f1 fic #f1 fanfic #f1 fluff #f1 one shot #formula one #formula one fic #formula one fanfiction #formula one fluff #formula one x y/n #formula one x you #formula one x reader

[larissagwentarth]

Friends to Lovers

Summary: Larissa and y/n had a friendship when they were younger after separating for 4 years they reunite but will they have the connection again?

Larissa and y/n were friends since childhood. Every moment they could spend together they would hide in the treehouse that y/n father made when she was 8 but as she got older it changed,it was big enough to fit in a sitting area, a small bookshelf and a rug full of blankets. One afternoon Larissa and y/n were lying on the floor y/n head was on her lap listening to Larissa read pride and prejudice as y/n listened to her she knew she like her since they first met but was scared to tell her also her mother would disown her she did not agree with who she really was.

“Larissa will you miss me when we go to different colleges” 

She put the book down and looked at you and smiled at you hiding the sadness in her face. 

“yes my love” she said as she strokes your long beautiful hair 

She was beautiful with her blonde hair and her blue eyes which reminded me of the gorgeous weather we are having at the moment. Just looking at them makes me feel so much love for her.

After summer i stood in the treehouse remembering the happy memories that were made here knowing that we are separated and i never told her how i felt i saw the book and decided to take it with me so i had something to keep the memories in my mind. 

“Y/n we need to go” her mother shouted. 

She closed the door for the last time, wiping the tears in her eyes. 

After graduating and moving to Jericho unpacking while looking an email came up on my laptop it was a job offer at a school which is not far from where i live Nevermore Academy i was so excited i stopped unpacking and started to celebrate i think this the positive thing i needed after going to college and having no one to be there for me it after my parents found out about my Sexuality and that i liked girls they old school so they believe that a women should be with a man so this was like an achievement that i have done all by myself without them looking down on me. 

I woke up early in the morning for the interview. I just stared at the ceiling thinking about all that I've been through and the jobs in the past and how this is gonna turn into a new experience for me. I made it to the school and sat outside for 5 minutes in the car trying to calm my nerves.

I ask one of the students where the principal office was i saw the name 

Principal weems 

I knock on the door and waited for a response 

“Come in” the voice said 

I walk into the office and i see a familiar face and the past come rushing back to me 

“Larissa”

#larissa x reader #larissa weems #gwendoline christie #fanfiction #lgbtq #larissa weems x reader #larissa weems x y/n

[stevesbipanic]

Based partially off headcanons I've talked about with @steveshairychest and @amoris-no-smut

For the first few years of Steve's life he didn't really care about Christmas. Christmas was some boring adult thing that happened when it snowed. Steve liked the snow, but Christmas was boring, it was wearing a tie and shoes that hurt his little feet and being dragged around a room meeting people he didn't know before being sent up to his room to be quiet.

His first year of kindergarten he was very confused when it grew closer to Christmas. Kids started talking about someone named Santa Claus and presents? Maybe Santa Claus was one of those people his parents made him meet, Steve wasn't good with names. Steve had gotten a present from one of the adults at the party once, it was a small toy truck, maybe that person had been Santa Claus.

Steve knew about Christmas trees, his parents had a big one in their living room for the party, he hadn't ever seen his parents bring reindeer to their party, and why did Santa Claus wear red, that wasn't a suit, they wore suits at the party. He liked snowmen though, he and his new friend Tommy made one in the playground the day before break.

When his mother was dressing him for the party he asked her.

"Mommy, who's Santa Claus, is he coming to the party, did he give me my truck last year?"

"Steven I've told you you're too old to call me mommy, you call me mother remember."

"Yes, ma'am. But is he coming?"

"No, Santa Claus doesn't come to our party."

"Oh."

And that was that.

By the time he started grade school Steve was no longer naive. He knew that Christmas wasn't an adult party for everyone else. Everyone else decorated their tree in silly ornaments as a family. Everyone else got presents and a roast dinner and Santa Claus. Steve didn't get any of that. Maybe Steve wasn't good enough to get that.

Steve didn't care about Christmas once he started high school. Christmas didn't make you popular or captain of the basketball team or get you a girlfriend so who cared. His parents didn't host the party anymore, he's sure they had one somewhere else, they didn't come home enough to have one anymore.

The first Christmas Steve ever had was in 1985. Robin insisted he spent the holiday with them since she knew Steve's parents were away. She didn't know Steve had never had a Christmas. For the first time Steve decorated a tree, he sewer popcorn into strings, he baked and iced cookies, he had a family dinner and felt warm. For the first time Steve got a Christmas present. A soft yellow sweater from Robin who promised not to steal this one. Steve finally understood why everyone loved Christmas.

There was something else that had been nagging at Steve for years that he knew every other kid got. A birthday. He'd been to Tommy's birthday parties as a kid, he celebrated Robin's in November with her. He got the kids a birthday present every year. But he didn't know his.

Eddie had started hanging around Family Video after he graduated. He didn't have any solid plans yet and also wanted to hang out with Robin before she went with Nancy to college. Plus Steve was always there.

"Hey, Stevie my birthday is coming up soon, wanna come over and get drunk with everyone?"

"Course, Eds, wouldn't miss it."

"When's your birthday by the way, hope I didn't miss it already."

"Oh um, you might've."

"I might've?"

"I-I don't know my birthday. My parents never told me, I know I was born in 1966 that's about it."

"You don't know your birthday?" Robin had come back from the backroom and was shocked to learn this information.

"Your parents never had like a party or anything?"

"They didn't even celebrate Christmas properly, Eds, my birthday was hardly a priority."

"Wait, so last year?"

"My first Christmas and it was perfect, Robbie, thank you."

Robin went over to the counter and dialled Nancy's number.

"Nancy Drew we need you!"

Nancy was able to sort through old records and find Steve's birth certificate. The four of them were sat in Steve's living room, envelope in his hands.

"Well, open it sweetheart, when's the big day?"

Steve's hands shook slightly as he pulled out the paper.

"Oh."

"Oh?"

Steve handed Eddie the paper.

"Oh, Stevie."

"Told you they didn't celebrate Christmas properly."

Steven Richard Harrington

Born: 25th December 1966

"Well, there's only one way to fix this, Stevie. We're going to throw you the best Christmas/20th birthday ever!"

And celebrate they did. Together Steve and the party decorated a tree in his living room and hung balloons, baked Christmas cookies and a birthday cake with far too many layers and wonky icing, and under the tree was two gifts from everyone.

"Just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you don't get birthday presents, love."

When Steve cut to the bottom of his cake he pulled Eddie into a kiss and stood under the mistletoe. It was a perfect Christmas and a perfect birthday.

Now Steve really cared about Christmas all thanks to his real family.

#angst and fluff #christmas #stranger things christmas #stranger things #steve harrington #steddie #stobin #poor steve #ficlet #steve centric

[mia-tiny]

Coming Home | K. Hongjoong

⇒ pairing: k. hongjoong x fem!reader

⇒ smut, estranged friends to lovers, small town nostalgia, slow-ish burn?, unprotected sex (big no no), oral & fingering (fem receiving), tame dirty talk, reader called “baby,” mutual pining, car sex, some light drinking

⇒ word count: 14.4k

⇒ summary: After six years spent in the city, coming back to your rural home for the holidays has you confronting your feelings not only about your old life, but also about your estranged best friend who you left behind.

💕 view my masterlist here

🖤 view my Kinktober ‘22 masterlist here

⇒ author’s note: my first shot at a longer, more slow burn style fic. thinking of mixing it up between longer pieces like this and my usual oneshot style fics going forward.

Six years.

That is how long it has been since you’ve returned to your humble hometown deep in the middle of nowhere, but somehow the dilapidated city limit sign on the side of the road looks exactly the same as it did years ago, with chips of paint peeling off at the corners and a faded graffiti tag covering half the town’s name. It welcomes you back into a world you left long ago in search of neon lights rather than the glow of bonfires and bustling streets instead of gravel paths.

It’s not that you hate this town, in fact growing up here was filled with joy and freedom, but you had always wanted to see what else the world has to offer. Ever since you can remember, you’ve imagined yourself living the glamorous city life that you always saw on TV, and everyone here knew you had plans to leave the rural ways behind. You’ve always wanted to open a cute little cafe on a busy backstreet with the best coffee and pastries in town, maybe even expanding the business to become a chain once you’re making enough money. This dream is why you ended up moving away for college and never coming back. Well, at least until now.

Coming home for the holidays hadn’t entirely been your decision, though. For many years, your family has traveled to you instead since it meant a fun vacation away from home, but your mother’s recent surgery took that option off the table this year while she is still recovering. Your choices for Christmas were therefore to either sit at home alone in your pajamas or to make the long drive back to this quaint town that you haven’t really thought about twice since departing.

In many ways, returning feels almost like breathing with how natural and ingrained it is in your nature, but in some ways it is also oddly terrifying. Just feeling the familiar breeze and warmth of the rural sun on your skin has you unsettled, as if you are being pushed to confront the life you left behind in comparison to the one you’ve been living. You’re not entirely unaware of the fact that city living isn’t as perfect as you’d imagined it to be, but you’ve never allowed yourself to dwell on that thought long enough for it to take root.

If you’re being honest, you must admit that it has definitely been difficult to keep up with such high living expenses, working multiple jobs, and adjusting to the hustle and bustle of the fast-paced urban landscape. Making friends and finding a community has also been much harder since most everyone is so closed off or caught up in their own self-centered drama. Still, even if it isn’t as glamorous as you imagined, it is something you’ve always wanted, so surely it’s right.

As you cruise along, you notice that the antiquated shops and homes littered along the main stretch of road look as though they have been on pause since you left, even every pebble and every leaf at their feet having waited patiently in their spot for your return. The recognizable scene breeds a sense of comfort steeped in the thought that no matter how far you stray, this little town is a constant. Are you perhaps the only thing that has changed?

As you pull down a few back streets and onto the humble paths with houses spaced much more generously than in the city, your parents’ little cabin-esque home soon comes into view, and you can already spot your dad waiting for you on the porch. A smile immediately brightens his face as he notices you, and you stick your arm out of the open window to return his giddy wave. By the time you’ve made it down the driveway, your entire family has spilled outdoors to greet you, even including your grandparents and some uncles and aunts who have come over to welcome you back home.

Through the enthusiastic hugs and mandatory cheek squeezes, you can already smell the sweet scent of your mom’s cooking wafting through the house. Even though she is still recovering from her surgery, you can’t imagine she has made anything less than a feast to celebrate your presence. You soon come to find, however, that she has truly outdone herself by inviting half the town over for a party in the evening. This wasn’t quite the greeting you were expecting after such a long and tiring drive, but it shouldn’t really be surprising to once again be showered with the overwhelming love that has always been available to you here. In a town this small, everyone just feels like extended family with how well you know and look after each other. Consequently, they all want to be present for your homecoming, and you’ve got only an hour to prepare yourself for the extreme degree of affection about to come your way.

With family greetings set aside for the moment, you lug your packed suitcase up the squeaky hardwood stairs and into your childhood bedroom. Your parents have left it virtually untouched despite you having been gone for so long. The walls are still a faded baby blue and your twin bed sits in the corner, covered by a tacky floral comforter that you had thought, at age thirteen, was the pinnacle of home decor. Bookcases filled with cheesy teen romance novels and small plastic trophies sit alongside your worn wooden desk, which you take a seat at with a heavy exhale that gives away how tired you already are. Seven hours in the car is perhaps a few too many.

Your eyes glance over the old pictures stuck to the wall just over your desk and you smile at the nostalgic images. The one on the end catches your attention with its bright pop of orange and you lean forward to peel it off for a closer look. Sure enough, it is a photo of you and Hongjoong from your high school graduation in which you are laughing obnoxiously at something he must’ve said. Or you were perhaps laughing at his hair, which he had to dye orange for the event upon losing a bet with you over whether or not he would cry from watching Titanic. He did, of course, and his loss is now forever recorded in all your graduation pictures.

A small chuckle escapes you as you recall the fond memory, but part of you also saddens as you gaze at the image. Like everything else in this town, Hongjoong was something you ended up inadvertently leaving behind despite your long history with one another. He had been your neighbor from the time you were both born just days apart, meaning you naturally became best friends as you spent your childhood together playing outdoors or making mischief. You both grew into your adolescence as partners in crime and many things changed, but he was always constant. Until you left.

It wasn’t that you wanted to abandon him, but you suddenly had a life where he wasn’t constantly by your side, something neither of you really knew how to manage when it came to maintaining your friendship. As time went on, and life got busy, you both just ended up slipping further apart. Now it has been years since you spoke last and every time you think of him, you can’t deny the pang of guilt that eats away at your heart.

He won’t be here tonight, will he?

A moment of panic washes through you as you imagine having to face him once again after all this time, but you quickly relax as you realize he probably left this town as well. He has always had many artistic passions and talents, so surely he has found his way to bigger and better things. He was always meant for greatness, after all.

Thoughts of Hongjoong set aside, you diligently prepare yourself for the amount of energy you’re about to expend rehashing the last six years of your life to every single person you’re about to see. There is no doubt in your mind that they will all want to know every last detail, but only after spending time gushing about how much you’ve grown. It will likely get to be a tiring process, but they’re all people you love who are simply excited to see you, so you choose to see it as endearing rather than irritating.

The first hour of the party goes by smoothly with family friends and neighbors pouring into your home and spilling out into the backyard where your father has started a bonfire. The amount of hugs you’ve received in your lifetime has likely doubled from tonight alone, but it feels amazing to be so warmly welcomed back. Falling back into the natural rhythm of the small-town life comes easier and easier with each guest that arrives even though your level of exhaustion keeps slowly increasing. One cup of coffee on the way here was definitely not enough.

Still, it is great to see everyone and hear what they’ve been up to. Your neighbor, Amanda, who runs the liquor store in town, is especially quick to catch you up on all the local drama you’ve missed. Apparently Peter and Larissa have gotten a divorce and are in the middle of a nasty custody battle, John’s son got a full college scholarship for football, and there is thought to be a new ghost haunting the local library (because the lights flickering sometimes must mean a ghost). These are only the first three things she tells you and there is so much more that you can’t even keep track of, but just hearing about it has you feeling connected to the town again in a way that you missed.

In the middle of letting Amanda retell the entire timeline of her last relationship that you hadn’t been privy to, the front door creaks open once again and you glance in its direction to see who else has arrived, only for your heart to immediately hit the floor. Even from across the crowded room you can tell exactly who it is stepping in timidly with their beaming parents in tow. And much to your dismay, his eyes glaze over the swarm of people until they lock on yours while you continue to openly gawk at him in shock.

Kim Hongjoong. The one and only person you were afraid of running into tonight.

He looks both the same and completely different at the same time. The skinny, clumsy boy that you once knew has been replaced by a mature, handsome man who bears resemblance, but has clearly grown into himself over time. His hair is no longer the faded orange you last saw him with when you left for college, but is instead an ashy light brown that makes his complexion glow. The raggedy old band t-shirts he used to live in have now been replaced with a crisp white button up paired with an oversized brown cardigan, leading him to look both dressed up and dressed down at the same time. He has even accessorized with some wire glasses and multiple new piercings, some of which are connected by flashy silver chains.

Since when has he known how to dress this well?

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. He’s coming this way. Pick your jaw up off the fucking floor and compose yourself before you end up looking like an even bigger moron!

“Y/N!” Hongjoong’s mother sing-songs as she pushes past her son to reach you with outstretched arms.

���Mrs. Kim!” you call back with a forced amount of enthusiasm as she envelops you in a crushing embrace. She was always like a second mother to you, so you would be elated to see her if it weren’t for her son’s presence making your brain glitch in an absolute panic.

“Oh, darling, I’ve missed you so much!” She swings you from side to side in her excitement, almost tipping you over before her husband prompts her to let you go, also saying hello in the process. She settles for resting her hands on your shoulders as she takes in your appearance with total glee. “I can’t believe you’re finally back! How is the city treating you? Is it just like you thought it would be? What about the jobs there? I’m sure you must’ve met so many incredible people! Oh goodness, Joongie, come say hi!”

Despite asking so many questions, her hysteria doesn’t even allow you to get a word in before she is pulling her son out from behind her so that he can face you. Your expression surely pales in that instant and you can feel your palms moisten with sweat. You both just stare at each other for a moment, his expression unreadable as the rest of the commotion in the room is completely droned out of your mind.

“Oh, baby, don’t be shy! You used to be best friends! She’s still the same girl you grew up with,” his mother prompts, entirely unaware of the strange tension thickening the air.

“Hey, Y/N,” Hongjoong finally utters, sticking out his hand for you to shake. You look at it, frozen in place by the distance in his action.

“Joongie, don’t be silly. Give her a hug, it’s been forever!” Mrs. Kim once again chimes in with a motivating nudge on his shoulder.

He glances at her in a manner that clearly reveals his discomfort, but quickly suppresses the feeling and avoids eye contact as he steps forward to embrace you loosely, your torsos not even touching as you awkwardly lift your hands up to pat his back. Even if he has changed so much, one thing is for sure: he still wears the same cologne you had gifted him at age 16 when you cordially asked him to cover his “man odor.”

When he pulls away, neither of you can look at each other. Your heart is beating out of your chest and you want nothing more than for the floor to open you up and suck you down into hell. As if seeing him again isn’t uncomfortable enough, his mother being this clueless has made the interaction one thousand times worse. You need to escape this situation right now.

“It’s so great to see you all, thank you for coming!” you start off graciously with the most hospitable voice you can muster. “I’m actually going to head to the restroom, but please make yourselves at home. There is dinner in the kitchen if you’re hungry and seats out back as well. I’ll be around.”

You begin slowly walking away while speaking so that by the time you finish, they are unable to suck you back into a conversation. Your feet carry you to the bathroom in a mad rush, though you try not to let the other guests see just how panicked you are. As soon as you make it there, you slam the door shut and lock it, your back then resting against the wall as you take deep breaths.

In the weeks leading up to this trip home, you hadn’t really considered the possibility of seeing Hongjoong again. Whether that was because you truly forgot about him or because you convinced yourself that he would’ve vanished into thin air, you aren’t entirely sure. Since you stopped talking to him, any reminder of his existence and what you had let go was always a painful assault on your psyche. Instead of recalling all of the great memories together, your heart has been plagued with guilt and shame over the ending of your friendship. Seeing him in person again, especially combined with his distant attitude, has your negative emotions festering at ten times the usual intensity.

You sink down to sit on the floor as you try to grapple with the other major issue occupying your brain. As soon as he walked through the door, beyond the guilt you felt, all of the suppressed feelings you’ve always harbored for Hongjoong rapidly came rising to the surface.

The chemistry that the two of you have shared throughout your lives has always been deeper and more meaningful than how either of you connect with other friends. The spark between you has always been sort of an unspoken acknowledgement in your relationship, something too delicate for either of you to address lest it open up doors you are both too afraid to enter.

You could always feel it, though. When you would play hooky together to go see the latest superhero film, the nights under the stars that you’d spend getting high by the lake, the way he would obnoxiously call your name across the hallway at school, his words of comfort and encouragement after your every break up. In all these moments and more, you could tell just how deeply connected you are in a manner that transcends friendship, and you could tell that Hongjoong felt it too.

At the same time, however, you knew that the second you gave in to these feelings, you may have never been able to let go. You were terrified of falling so deeply into Hongjoong that you’d never escape. It always felt as if just one wrong move–

You jump in surprise as a loud rasping on the door abruptly wakes you from your thoughts.

“Oh, uh, just a moment!” you call in a hurried response, pulling yourself from the floor and taking one last deep breath to steel yourself before facing the party again.

You open the door and leave your temporary sanctuary so that your uncle can enter, the laughter from the next room practically teasing your anxious state as your moment of solitude ends. You just have to get through this party.

For the next couple hours you work diligently in avoiding Hongjoong at all costs, trying your best to make it look natural as you keep your distance. Every few minutes you scan the crowd to make sure he is still on the opposite side of the room and try not to stare long enough that he will feel your gaze burning a hole into the back of his head. Honestly, you can’t even focus on half of the conversations you have because you are so actively wrapped up in this game of cat and mouse that Hongjoong doesn’t even know he’s participating in. Your methods ultimately work out, however, since you are able to avoid him late into the night.

By the time things start slowing down and most of the guests are relaxing out by the fire, your head is pounding with how exhausted you are, your energy having been sucked out by both the taxing journey to get home and the anxiety-fueled nightmare that has been this party. Needing some time to just decompress and not be the center of attention, you wait until the living room is empty to snatch a bottle of expensive red wine and tiptoe up the stairs to your room, praying nobody sees you escaping your own celebration.

As you have done many times before, you yank open your dormer window that overlooks the front yard and slip out onto the roof with your drink in hand. Long ago, you spent many wistful nights in this exact spot, staring up at the stars when you needed to just be alone and think. Something about sitting here under the vast night sky always made your problems seem much smaller as you paled in comparison to the infinity of space before you, but that same sense of comfort doesn’t come as easily tonight.

You lean back against the rough shingles of the rooftop and take a few heavy gulps out of the wine bottle, hissing at the taste since you’ve never really been a fan of reds. It’ll do the trick, though, and you’re not really in the mood to be picky. A heavy exhale escapes you and you close your eyes, the sound of chatter spilling out into the night air from the guests mingling on the other side of the house. Your thoughts immediately drift where you wish they wouldn’t as Hongjoong’s appearance permeates your mind.

As if right on cue, the sound of light knocking against your window sill causes you to gasp and look over in surprise.

“Hey,” Hongjoong casually calls with his body stuck halfway out the window already. “Figured I’d find you up here. Mind if I join?”

You hope that your nervousness doesn’t show on your face and he can’t hear your heart as it now thumps dangerously against your chest. Still, you scooch over to make room for him.

“Sure.” He climbs onto the rooftop and takes a seat next to you, the proximity of his body making you hyper aware of your every movement. “Want some?”

You offer him the bottle of wine, to which he chuckles but graciously accepts, taking a prolonged drink before frowning at the taste just like you did. You can’t help but laugh lightly at his reaction, some of the nerves dissipating just marginally.

“I guess we’re still not quite proper adults just yet, huh? When wine still tastes this bad,” he jokes as he hands the drink back over.

“If that’s what defines adulthood, then I guess not.”

The moment of jest fades away as you both gaze up at the sky and a thick silence settles between you. This must be the first time you’re next to Hongjoong and yet you can’t find anything to say, but, thankfully, he breaks the deafening sound of six years spent apart.

“Sorry about my mom back there. She’s, you know… her,” he apologizes stiffly without bringing himself to look over at you.

“It’s okay. I wouldn’t have expected anything else from her. It’s actually kind of comforting to come back and find that almost everyone is still the same as before.” You pray he doesn’t ask you to elaborate on the ‘almost’ since it exclusively applies to him.

“Yeah, things around here don’t change as quickly as in the city, I suppose.” He lets out a steady breath and you gulp down some more of the wine. “How is it out there? Everything you ever dreamed of?”

You can’t exactly tell the emotion behind his words and you consider just how honest you should be. Is he just asking out of pleasantries? Are you still close enough that you can start airing your grievances about city life? Even if you are, do you really want to put those thoughts out into the world in such a way that makes them significantly more real than when they just live in your mind?

“It’s fine. You know, different,” you answer vaguely, shrugging off his inquiry. He finally turns to face you.

“It’s fine?” he questions. “What does that actually mean? Because it doesn’t mean fine.”

Goddamn this man and how well he can read you even after so long. His tone and demeanor, though, feel so familiar and warm that you can’t resist wanting to open up to him as if no time has passed at all. Sitting together like this, he somehow still feels like your safe space even though tonight has been painfully awkward up to this point. Nonetheless, you feel a little strange to immediately start unloading onto him and decide against it.

“It is fine, though,” you answer, but it even sounds like a lie to you this time. “I mean, it’s not the perfect life I imagined, but nothing is perfect.”

He seems to think about your answer momentarily before giving a small nod. “That’s true, I guess. Have you opened up your own cafe yet?”

You bite the inside of your cheek in embarrassment. “No, not yet. Living expenses are really high there so I haven’t been able to save up yet…”

“Oh,” he mumbles at your feeble response. “What do you do for work, then?”

You can tell he is asking out of genuine curiosity, but your face burns in shame. “I work as a barista and a bartender, both part-time. It’s a lot of work, but I haven’t really been able to start a career just yet…”

“Ah…”

You take another swig from the bottle before passing it over to him, pulling your knees closer to your chest as he also drinks. After spending your entire life boasting about how you’ll thrive in the city, admitting all of your unexpected struggles to him has you feeling increasingly disappointed in the outcome of your six years away.

“You do like it there, though, right?” Hongjoong asks earnestly, his gaze shifting to study your face as you contemplate the answer.

Yes. Of course you should say yes… Why are you not saying yes?

As you look into his eyes, the word ‘yes’ doesn’t come as easily as it usually does when you’re asked this question. Just as you felt when you first drove into the city’s limits, you feel like, for the first time in six years, you are truly being forced to consider the reality of your urban life compared to the life you had here. The doubts you’ve had about your move, which you have always so diligently repressed, are finally at the forefront of your mind as you are faced with everything you left behind. And that fact that Hongjoong’s caring eyes continue to bear down heavy on you doesn’t help your effort to ignore the aching in your chest.

You rip your gaze away from him and look back up at night sky, afraid of what spiral you would start heading towards if you shared that moment with him any longer.

“You know, I was really surprised to see you tonight,” you state in an attempt to change the topic.

“Yeah? Why is that?” You are thankful that he also directs his attention back to the constellations as if giving you permission to avoid his earlier question.

“I just assumed you would also end up leaving this place. Move on to bigger and better things. Maybe become a new age artist or something.” He chuckles at your terminology.

“A new age artist, huh? I mean, I guess I could’ve done that, but I never really needed much more outside of what I have here. As long as I have the things that are important to me, I’m perfectly happy.”

You spare a side glance at him to see the beauty of his smile under the pale moonlight. You can’t help the slight jealousy that arises at his simple attitude towards contentment, as if it is almost too easy for him to be pleased with life.

“So you’re just doing perfect then? All sunshine and rainbows?” The slight edge in your voice gives away your saltiness, but he doesn’t bother commenting on it.

“Well, no. There are still things I want and regrets I have, but it’s like you said: nothing is perfect.”

What regrets could he possibly have, though? Hongjoong has always been the type to live exactly as he pleases without worrying about the reactions or judgments of others, so you can’t help but be curious about his statement.

“Regrets? Of all people, I wouldn’t expect that from you.”

He sighs as if thinking deeply over the subject and smiles minutely, though the supposed happiness doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Doesn’t everyone have regrets, though? Things they would do differently if they had the chance?”

He gazes at you once again and, for a moment, his expression almost betrays the intentions behind his cryptic statement. Your heart is suddenly beating at twice its normal rate from the strange tension that thickens the evening’s cool breeze, and you wonder if he can feel it too. The look in his eyes has you falling deeper into his stare until an episode of roaring laughter from the party down below wakes you both from the prolonged moment.

Hongjoong clumsily clears his throat as his eyes flicker here and there, eventually bringing the wine bottle to his lips to take another gulp. Needing something else to focus on besides your body’s heated reaction to the man beside you, you act swiftly to change the subject yet again.

“You know, I told you about myself, but I still don’t know what you’ve been up to. Surely you’re not still working under Barry, are you?”

Hongjoong laughs boisterously from being reminded of his chaotic part time job in high school. Looking for extra cash to spend, he had taken up a few shifts at Barry’s restaurant supposedly just to wash dishes, but he ended up being the cook, server, manager, host, and personal assistant all in one. Every day he would come over after work with a new story about the day’s adventures that got wilder as time went on, but at least he got paid pretty well.

“No, definitely not. I would’ve been worked into an early grave by this point if that were true,” he chuckles, the mood lifting instantly with the sound of his laughter. “If you’re really curious about what I’ve been doing, I could take you tomorrow to show you.”

Your cheeks burn at his offer, but a small “sure” escapes you before you can stop it. He smiles at you in earnest and you match his expression despite the nervousness growing in your chest over what you’ve just agreed to.

“Hongjoong!” you hear his mother call in the distance. “Joongie!”

He exhales begrudgingly and hands you the bottle of red. “I guess that’s my cue. Note to self: next time, don’t carpool with your parents.”

You snicker at his comment, knowing full well that, despite his words, he will likely do it again if they ask him to because he cares about them so much, even if it means being on their schedule.

Hongjoong carefully stands and shuffles his way closer to the open window, stopping when half his body is already inside to peek out and see you once again. “I’ll pick you up around one.”

“I’ll be ready.”

He seems to hesitate before speaking. “I’m really glad I got to see you tonight. I missed you.”

Before you can reply, he has already escaped indoors, off to find his parents so he can escort them home. You let out a deep sigh you weren’t aware you’d been holding, your breath turning instantly to fog that dissipates into the chilly night. Your heart is a hurricane of unclear emotions just from this one conversation. Some of Hongjoong’s words even echo mercilessly in your mind.

Doesn’t everyone have regrets, though? Things they would do differently if they had the chance?

You try your hardest to not imagine exactly what he is referring to or think of the things that you are suddenly feeling regretful over. Having to ponder either has your chest constricting with anxiety and doubt, so you simply lay back against the cold shingles of the rooftop once more and search for images in the bright rural stars that can finally shine freely without the overwhelming light pollution of the city.

In considering your plans with Hongjoong, you think that tomorrow can’t come soon enough, but you also hope it never comes. It is a strange contradiction that leaves you feeling torn between both hope and fear. You aren’t even sure what exactly you are wishing to happen tomorrow, but for now you at least decide to go to bed so the chaos in your mind will cease.

~

By the time one o’clock rolls around, you’ve spent the entire morning frantically obsessing over what to wear, how to style your hair, and how much makeup to put on. It’s not like there is much fashion guidance for meeting up with your estranged childhood best friend with whom you have an inexplicable deep-seated connection that you’ve always been afraid to approach. Your family simply observed in confusion as you tried on every piece of clothing you brought in your suitcase, had a mini mental breakdown because you should’ve packed something better, and ultimately ended up in the very first outfit you tried on. By the concerned way they’ve been looking at you, they surely believe that the city must have turned you into an absolute nut. Honestly, they might not be wrong.

From where you sit anxiously bouncing your leg on the living room sofa, you can hear Hongjoong’s car crunching down the gravel driveway and force yourself to take a steadying breath before you stand.

“Be cool. It’s just Hongjoong. You got this,” you murmur to yourself in assurance despite your dad being seated just a few feet away.

“You do got this, sweetie,” he teases as you shoot him a playful glare, to which he chuckles amusedly. You’re just thankful he doesn’t ask why you’re freaking out so much about meeting the person you spent your entire youth with. That level of nosiness really is more your mom’s speed, but even she has refrained from questioning your odd behavior today.

Hongjoong is already climbing the few stairs to your front porch when you step outside. He stops and stares for just a split moment, his eyes raking instinctively over your figure in a manner that has you trying to ignore the burning heat in your cheeks.

“Hey. You look nice,” he compliments while flashing his perfect smile in your direction.

“Thanks, you do too.”

It may just sound like pleasantries, but he really does look good in the oversized navy sweater and light denim jeans he is wearing. Him wearing nice clothing is something you aren’t quite used to yet, but you definitely aren’t complaining, even if it does cause butterflies to erupt in your stomach.

“Ready to go?” he asks as you join his side.

“Ready if you are.”

He leads you to the same SUV he’s been driving since high school and kindly opens the passenger door for you, waiting until you are settled to close it gently. You can’t even remember how many nights you spent hanging out in this car just talking or getting high on some relaxed weekends, the two of you often finding a secluded place to park and just chill together. It isn’t a luxury vehicle by any means but Hongjoong had specifically upgraded the sound system long ago just so you could bump the new music you were always playing for him. Even if he wasn’t into the music itself, he adored seeing how excited you’d get when sharing something you love, so the AUX cord effectively came under your ownership despite the fact that he was always the one driving.

“And we’re off,” Hongjoong hums to himself, having climbed in the driver’s seat and started the car during your nostalgic flashbacks.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going yet?”

“You know where we’re going,” he jokes merrily. “I’m going to show you what I’ve been up to.”

You roll your eyes with a dramatic scoff, knowing he’s pressing your buttons just for fun. “You know what I mean. Do I only get to find out once we get there?”

“Bingo,” he sing-songs. “No spoilers.”

“Oh god, you aren’t going to take me to some murder den, are you?”

He slaps his thigh dramatically as he bursts into laughter, the sound like music to your ears as you settle back into a comfortable rhythm rather quickly.

“Definitely not, but if I were taking you to one, I wouldn’t tell you anyways.”

“Fair point, but be warned. I took two taekwondo lessons in college and can be lethal when I want to,” you mock with a playful chop of the air for emphasis.

“Ah, I will watch out for your amazing white belt skills, then,” he snickers. “You really haven’t changed at all, have you?”

“You don’t think I have?”

Honestly, you had been thinking that you were the only thing to have changed (besides his appearance), but his words do make you think that you have been settling more and more into yourself as you spend time with him. 

“No, you’re definitely the same weirdo you’ve always been.”

You lightly slap his arm in retaliation for the name calling, to which he responds in a comically dramatic fashion. As you both continue to joke around, though, his words still linger in the back of your mind. Are you really the same person you were then?

It takes all of five minutes before he is pulling up to the curb near one of the old brick buildings towards the end of main street. It almost looks like a townhome with how it’s sandwiched on both sides by other buildings, a quaint style signature of small towns. Of course you recognize the place, but you’ve only ever been in the storefront at its base, a cute little candle and soap shop run by the couple who lives three doors down from you.

“Ah, so you’re a chandler now?” you ask in confusion as you both exit the car and step onto the uneven stone sidewalk.

Hongjoong laughs under his breath in reply and envelops your hand in his as he leads you to an unmarked entrance. It is positioned to the left of the shop’s windows where one building almost becomes the next, and you likely wouldn’t have paid it any mind if he weren’t pulling you inside of it.

Rather than focusing much on the door, however, your mind is busy trying to comprehend his casual attitude towards holding your hand, as if he wasn’t trying to give you a handshake instead of a hug less than 24 hours ago. But because he treats it normally, you don’t mention it or pull away either, especially not remarking on the fluttering feeling it gives you even as he takes you up a set of creaky and uneven stairs. The dim lighting here also makes you think maybe you were right about the murder den…

As you reach the second floor, Hongjoong lets go of your hand to fish his keys from his pocket, using the only golden one to unlock the first door on your right. Once you both step inside, you are relieved to find that the walls and floors are not covered in plastic and blood. Instead, you find a quaint photography studio equipped with fancy lights, multiple tripods, a plush couch, backdrops ready to be rolled down, and a messy desk in the corner.

“Wow, Joong! This is amazing,” you coo, the nickname naturally slipping out as your eyes continue to wander around the room.

“It’s nothing special. I’ve been renting this space out for a couple years after saving up enough so now I actually have a place for shoots,” he explains humbly. “I also do nature photography that I license out since there are so many pretty landscapes around here.”

“So this is all yours?”

“Yeah. It’s not much, but it makes me happy.”

You glance over at him to see his contented expression as he talks about his work, making you pleased that he has found something meaningful and satisfying to do. At the same time, you can’t help the tinge of jealousy at seeing how much he loves what he does. Every time you even think about having to go to work, you’re instantly put in a bad mood and dreading the moment you have to clock in.

As Hongjoong feels the weight of your stare and his eyes meet yours, you immediately whip your head elsewhere to continue looking around, ignoring the rush of embarrassment flowing through you from being caught. You do your best to pretend you don’t hear his under-the-breath chuckle.

As you scan over his work space, you notice the wall of framed photos and stroll over to admire his work. You recognize all the smiling faces inside the portraits and a grin creeps onto your face at the sight.

“Are these–”

“Everyone in town, yeah. Well, not everyone is up on the wall, but the rest are in my portfolio. When they found out I wanted to pursue photography as a career, they all decided to come get their portraits taken to support me and get me started financially. Sweet, huh?” he remembers fondly as you continue to admire the heart-warming joy on the faces of everyone you know.

“Really sweet.”

Looking at their happy expressions, you feel a mixture of fondness and melancholy pang in your heart. All of these people who have loved and looked after you at some point in your life, facing you now with such elation…

Though you can’t quite explain why, it makes you sad to think of them all continuing to live happily without you while you were gone. It’s not that you want them to have spent the time miserable or anything, but you can’t help feeling like you’ve missed out on a happiness that you had always been a part of.

You think back on the photos that have been taken of you over the last six years and can’t imagine a single one where you are smiling as genuinely as any of the people here. You’ve had to force a smile on your face for long enough that it felt normal, but seeing these portraits puts your thoughts into a different perspective, especially considering their backstory.

“They really did all that for you?” you ask not because you don’t believe it, but because it is difficult to comprehend such a beautiful act of kindness that shows just how much the people of this town care for each other.

“Yeah. The perks of small town living, everyone is basically one giant family.”

“Right. You definitely wouldn’t see something like this in the city…” You wonder if Hongjoong can pick up on the sadness behind your words or the way your face has fallen. He steps up right next to you and looks down in concern, signifying he must have noticed.

“You haven’t made any friends there? I’m sure they would do a similar thing for you,” he coos in an attempt to comfort you, but you just sigh as a frown continues to decorate your face.

“I have a few, but that’s not what I mean. This kind of community. This kind of connection…” You pause as you try to think of what it is you mean to say. “When I’m there, it feels as though I could disappear into thin air and no one would notice. No one would care. I have no place there. Not like you all have a place here.”

The impact of your honest words only hits you as you hear them escape your own mouth. You never fully realized the degree of dissatisfaction you have been living with until this moment in which the truth that you’ve been ignoring has begun clawing its way out of the depths of your mind and into fruition. Somehow speaking these grievances out loud immediately makes them feel exponentially more real.

It doesn’t help that, right above the sofa, there are a few smaller, blurrier pictures hanging that catch your attention. As you step in front of them to get a better look, your heart practically cracks in half at what you find.

“Oh, those are just… some old pictures,” Hongjoong mumbles awkwardly, unsure of how to address this entire situation. 

In each of the small frames sits an image of you two, the timing ranging all the way from childhood up until the day you left for college. In each of them, by his side, you look truly happy… and so does he.

You carefully remove one from the wall and sit down on the couch to stare at it. Behind the layer of glass is the same image of you two at graduation that you had been admiring just last night, your face painted in joy as you laugh at Hongjoong. The very same man, though now grown up, takes a seat directly next to you and peeks at the picture as well.

Despite the embarrassment he is feeling from you discovering his little montage of fond memories, his heart is starting to ache at how quickly your mood has sunk since entering the room. He can tell just how much sadness you are carrying, and he can’t help but feel it as if it’s his own. After all, you two have always been so intensely connected that you share each other’s pain just as much as you share your happiness.

Seeing you move to the city, despite always knowing that day would come, was one of the darkest times of his life. But, being the supportive and caring friend (or whatever it is that you two are) that he is, he never once let you know just how badly he wished you would stay. He has always made it a priority to put your happiness and your dreams first because, even though he has never said anything, it has always been you.

Everything in his life has forever centered around you, including his heart– no, especially his heart. He has known that he loves you since before he can ever remember. As kids, he knew that he loved being with you and being friends, but it was only once he got older that he fully realized the depth of his feelings and what “being in love” truly meant. Even as a young teen, he was sure that this was the only word that could describe his affection for you, and he has always been pretty damn sure that you feel the same way too. 

At the same time, however, you had already been dreaming of an urban lifestyle for a long while, taking any opportunity you could get to gush about your future endeavors. The question of whether or not to approach your shared feelings plagued him for years, but he knew that crossing that line would possibly keep you from pursuing the new life you’ve always wanted. Hongjoong, sometimes far too mature for his age, refused to be the one thing holding you back from happiness. If you wanted to move to the city and live that glamorous life, then that is what he wanted for you too. 

As a result, he resolved to never push the boundaries of your relationship unless you were the one to initiate it. He would only allow himself the pleasure of being with you if that is what you decided that you wanted. That doesn’t mean it didn’t kill him every day to hold back, though.

Seeing you like this, he wants nothing more than to scoop you up in a giant hug, kiss your forehead, and tell you anything and everything that will make you smile again, but maybe that is pushing a bit too far. Instead, he chooses to address your notion of having no place, the idea of you truly believing no one cares upsetting him immensely.

“You know, you have a place here too. Not just ‘us,’” he calmly assuages you, though it just makes your heart ache more.

“Not anymore. I left.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t come back.”

“After spending my whole life talking about how I’m going to make it big in the city? I may not be succeeding in life right now, but to become that big of a failure…”

“It’s not failure,” he interjects with authority, causing you to finally look up at him. “Changing your mind and choosing what makes you happy doesn’t make you a failure. It makes you really brave, actually.”

When you fail to respond, he worries that he may have been too forward and quickly back pedals.

“I’m not saying you have to come back. What you want to do with your life is up to you. It’s just that you don’t seem… happy.”

His words hit you like a truck, as well as the realization that follows.

You don’t seem happy?

No, you aren’t happy.

You aren’t happy that you chose to move to the city. You aren’t happy that you so easily let Hongjoong leave your life. You aren’t happy that you’ve settled for dissatisfaction for the past six years. You aren’t happy that you are now here next to the person who makes you happiest, in the place that makes you happiest, only now realizing that you aren’t fucking happy.

And in this moment, you’re curious as to whether he isn’t happy about it either.

“Joong?”

“Hm?”

Although he doesn’t show it, his heart beats at a mile per minute in anticipation of what could possibly be going on in your mind. Even though he can usually read you like a book, there are times when your formidable silence causes anxiety to course through his veins and occupy his every thought in trying to decipher your emotions.

“When you said you have regrets– things you would do differently… what exactly were you talking about?”

Here it is. The moment you’ve always dreaded would come in which one of you finally addresses the unspoken depths of your relationship– finally makes it known that you’ve both been skirting around this delicate subject all along. You never thought you’d be the one to do it, and yet here you are.

Hongjoong’s mind is a flurry of chaos as he registers exactly what you are alluding to, trying to decide whether or not he should admit the truth that you’ve both left ignored. His mind flashes back to the moment he spotted you yesterday and the rush of emotions that instantly flowed through his body. It was as if the past six years he spent trying to let you go meant nothing as you reappeared in his life like flowers once again blooming after a long, hard winter. Even through his awkwardness and anxiety during that first interaction, he could feel the same familiar comfort that only you could provide, a comfort that makes him feel safe and loved.

Now, sitting here as you watch him expectantly, he can’t bear the thought of letting you go again. Just imagining it has him feeling like someone has reached into his chest and ripped out his beating heart. If you hate the city as much as you appear to, would it really be so bad if he finally allowed you both to explore this thing between you? Would he really be keeping you from anything if it’s a life you’ve already explored and, supposedly, don’t like? Even if you haven’t directly said that you want him, surely you wouldn’t bring this matter up if you didn’t want to hear his honest answer.

Hongjoong looks like a deer in headlights at your question as he contemplates his reply, and you are about to take it all back.

Fuck it, he ultimately thinks to himself, speaking before you can retract your query.

“You,” he states simply, a more confident expression appearing on his face as he has collected himself and realized it is now or never. Your eye contact never breaks and you can hear the sound of your heart pumping against your chest. His hand even rises to cup your blushed cheek, his touch sending sparks of electricity through your body.

“The one thing I would do differently… I would go back and be selfish. Let you know that you leaving tore me apart inside. Let you know how I really feel about you– how I’ve always felt about you. I would do everything possible to stay in contact with you, no matter how much it hurt.”

“Joong…”

“I wouldn’t wait until I’ve already lost you to realize just how badly I need you.”

His thumb gently rubs back and forth against your cheek as he speaks more eloquently and sincerely than you’ve ever heard him before. Tears burn at the corners of your eyes, but you refuse to let them spill.

“Joong, you haven’t lost me,” you murmur softly.

His eyes search yours for a split second before he is leaning in–oh god he is leaning in. Your limbs are instantly frozen as your brain struggles to process the dramatic turn of events in the past few minutes, your mind in an absolute state of confusion and chaos as he gets closer. For the first time ever, he presses his lips gently against yours, and it is enough to shock your system awake.

A split second later, you are shooting up from your position on the couch. Hongjoong follows your lead in a panic, his face flushed from the kiss.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have–”

“No– It’s not– I just– I just… need to think,” you stammer with difficulty while trying to look at anything but him.

In your moment of fight or flight, you quickly set down the frame you were holding and rush out the door towards the exit. You can hear Hongjoong following you outside and onto the sidewalk. When you continue past his car, and in the direction of your house, he calls after you.

“Y/N! Just let me drive you home!”

“No, it’s okay. I’m going to walk… and think. I need to just think.”

You feel awful leaving him with such an anxious expression on his face, but you turn and keep walking anyway, driven solely by autopilot like some kind of robot programmed to escape emotionally turbulent situations. Of all the things you imagined happening today, this was not something you foresaw: the weight of the world crashing down upon your shoulders as you realize how much you hate the life you’ve made for yourself, only to finally dive headfirst into the feelings you’ve always harbored for Hongjoong just moments after.

It is overwhelming to say the very least.

~

A few hours later, as the sun is just beginning to set, you pull up to the secluded spot by the lake where Hongjoong’s car is already parked. You two used to hide away here all the time as teenagers, where no one was ever able to find you. Together, you’d discovered the little opening long ago and made it a point to keep it a strict secret, a place where it would only ever be the two of you. Hongjoong has also regularly used the space as a little getaway where he does all his thinking, much like how you stargaze from your rooftop. That is exactly why you knew you would find him here.

After running off earlier in the day, you spent a few hours just trying to process everything you are feeling and what it all means. Your poor parents were once again mystified at your odd behavior as you locked yourself away to think, but you’ve ultimately come to many realizations and conclusions that you should’ve acknowledged years ago. With your thoughts in order, your next priority is to visit your best friend and sort out the whole situation that you’ve created. You’re sure he must be feeling just as unsettled as you were after the events of this afternoon.

As you park next to his SUV, you see Hongjoong’s silhouette seated by the edge of the water. He doesn’t need to turn around and look to know it is you, so he just waits as you approach him, the only sounds being the crunching leaves under your feet and the crickets singing in the distance. You sit to his left where there is room on the small blanket he uses to keep his pants from getting dirty. A cold breeze rustles the trees and you pull your jacket even tighter around your body. The warm hues of the sunset cast his features in subtle hints of pinks and oranges, causing you to momentarily admire his beauty even though the tense air has your chest feeling tight.

“Figured I’d find you here. Mind if I join?” you ask, echoing his words from last night in an attempt to lighten the mood. He glances over and offers you a small smile, but you can clearly see the anxiety still resting in his face.

“Technically, you’ve already joined,” he replies in jest, bumping his shoulder against yours lightly to show that he doesn’t actually mind. You turn your gaze back to the water so it’s easier for you to speak. If you could still see every minute change in his expression, you aren’t sure you’d be able to say what you’ve been pondering for the last few hours.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” your murmur as your fingers fiddle with the hem of your shirt. “I’m sorry I freaked out on you.”

He sighs. “I should be the one apologizing. I shouldn’t have said anything and especially shouldn’t have done anything without your permission–”

“No, Joong, it’s not that.” You can feel his stare burning holes into your skin, but you still can’t bring yourself to look over. His silence prompts you to continue. “It was just a lot for me, all at once. About the city stuff, I just started acknowledging a lot of things that I’d ignored for so long, and it was obviously overwhelming to suddenly realize that you hate the life you’ve chosen. I mean, I’ve spent my whole life working towards and dreaming of the glamor of the city so it kind of feels–and I don’t even know if this makes sense–but it feels like part of my identity. I’ve placed myself on this path and deviating from it felt almost like a betrayal… or a failure.”

“You already know what I think about that,” he mumbles in response to your last statement.

“I know, I know. Objectively I can see that it doesn’t necessarily make me a failure, but it’s hard to not feel that way.” Hongjoong hums in understanding, staying mostly quiet to let you say what you need to. Nonetheless, half of his mind continues to worry about when you’ll address his confession.

“I realized I’ve spent my whole life thinking I would be someone that, in reality, I’m just not. As much as I’d love to be that person who thrives in the fast-paced, achievement-oriented world, that isn’t what actually made me happy. I spent so much time dreaming about a new life that I didn’t even stop to realize that I was already happy here, where people know and care about me.”

You smile up at the glowing pink clouds in the distance, surprisingly at peace with your realizations after spending hours thinking them through (and perhaps freaking out for a number of those hours, but that is beside the point).

“I guess, subconsciously, that’s why I never came back to visit until I was forced to. Maybe some part of me knew I would remember how life used to be filled with so much joy and love, so I just pushed everything away that reminded me of this town. Including you. Which wasn’t fair.”

“Does that mean you’re moving back?” Hongjoong tries not to get his hopes up too much as he asks the question, but he can’t hide the excitement in his voice. You spent a long time considering this question once you came to terms with all your feelings about the last six years, but the answer seems both incredibly simple and incredibly complicated at the same time.

“I think I want to, but what would I do here? I can’t just come back and mooch off my parents.”

Even if your parents would be fine with it, your pride won’t allow you to take that big of a step back after living on your own for so long. Although you are pretty damn sure by now that you want to come home, there are a lot of logistics that you need to take into account.

“You could do the same thing you’ve always dreamed of: open up a little cafe with the best coffee in town. Just do it here instead of there.” Joong forces himself to keep from blabbering on about how he knows the perfect spot just a couple buildings down from his studio, the people you could contact to get it remodeled, where to find some good discounted furniture, and more. No matter how desperately he wants you to come back, he refuses to pressure you into anything.

Opening up shop here isn’t something you’d even thought about since you’d always been so stuck on your vision of a busy backstreet cafe, but starting a business here would actually make a lot of sense. Of course, it would take a lot of work and monetary investment, but considering how the community helped Hongjoong in his photography career, you are sure that they wouldn’t let you fail either. Having that sense of support as a foundation makes the idea seem all the more appealing.

“Do you think I’d be able to do it?” you ask for the last boost of confidence you need to make up your mind.

“As cliche as it sounds, I think you can do anything you set your mind to.” You chuckle at just how cheesy he is. “It wouldn’t be easy, for sure, but you already know that everyone here would do anything they can to help you. And I may not know a ton about business, but I can offer my services as well. I’d do whatever it is you need to make you happy.”

Your cheeks burn at his suave words. Even if he didn’t mean to sound so romantic, his statement has you melting. How could you have ever let him leave your life?

From the fluttering of your heart, you remember that there is one other unresolved issue that you two have yet to discuss.

“Joong?”

The sound of your voice immediately suggests where this conversation is going. Hongjoong feels as though his heart has stopped beating and his breath silently catches in his throat. He had almost forgotten the main reason he was so anxious to talk to you in the first place, but now he can tell what is coming next. The tension in his chest only gets worse once you turn to look at him with earnest eyes.

“What you said earlier…” you start, a blush coming to your face from saying this out loud. “Did you really mean it?”

“Would I joke about something like that?” You know he wouldn’t, but you want to hear him confirm it.

“That’s a cop out. Yes or no,” you push.

“Yes, of course I meant it. Every word.” Hongjoong’s racing heart thumps wildly against his chest despite the cool attitude he is attempting to display.

“Why didn’t you bring it up back then? Before I left?”

“I never wanted to be the person who held you back from your dreams,” he admits, surprising you slightly. You thought maybe he was just too afraid or didn’t want to risk your friendship, but this…

“What do you mean?” He exhales and finally turns his face away from yours, the eye contact becoming too intense for him to maintain while also discussing this topic.

“I was afraid that by bringing up… us, you might not try living the life you’ve always wanted. Telling you how I felt, knowing it would make it hard for you to leave, just felt like a selfish thing to do,” he admits in all honesty. He rubs his hands against his jeans as he continues, too antsy to hold still. “When you asked me that question earlier, I just couldn’t imagine letting you go a second time. I didn’t want to make the same mistake again.”

You can feel your eyes welling with tears from hearing just how much he truly cares for you, enough to put his own happiness aside and whole-heartedly support your dreams even when they didn’t include him.

“So you’ve felt it too?” you ask timidly as you both gaze at each other once again. You’ve always known the answer to this question, but hearing him say it out loud is something entirely different, a tipping point that neither of you will be able to turn back from. You don’t even need to clarify what you’re asking because Hongjoong just knows.

“How could I not?” he scoffs, the answer seeming obvious to him. “But I’ll never pursue anything that you don’t want.”

“Who said I don’t want it?” You aren’t sure where your sudden brazenness comes from. Perhaps you are just surprised he hasn’t stopped to consider just how much you care for him too, even if you made some mistakes along the way.

Hongjoong blinks a few times in confusion. “But earlier, you ran off when I…”

“Joong, it really was just because it was a lot to process all at once. It isn’t because I don’t feel the same way about you.”

Hongjoong feels like his heart has swollen to ten times its normal size as his anxiety over the earlier interaction is quelled. And now to hear you finally confirm your own feelings for him, he thinks he must be on cloud nine.

You gently reach over and take his hand in yours, the sensation familiar except for the (now overtly) romantic context. His warm skin heats your frozen fingertips that have continued to get chillier as the sun has tucked itself away beyond the horizon.

“It has always been you,” you explain softly. “I always knew you were my person– my soulmate– but I was afraid to acknowledge that it was love for a long time. The answer seemed so obvious, but also so uncertain and scary.”

“Do I scare you?” he jokes, flashing his blinding smile in your direction as you laugh and roll your eyes. It is relieving to have the serious tension washed away.

“As if you could scare anyone,” you scoff. “I was afraid of– I don’t know– ruining our friendship, I guess. You never approached it, so I just ignored it too.”

You gaze at your intertwined hands as your thumb strokes his skin softly. “Earlier today, when I was questioning everything I’ve ever wanted, the only thing I never questioned was wanting you.”

“Yeah?” 

You give him a timid nod. Hongjoong seems to get even more nervous as he clears his throat and plays with your fingers restlessly. “Now that we both know, what are we going to do about it?”

Compared to earlier, when he boldly laid his heart out in front of you and made the first move, he is now much more shy. You can tell his stomach is erupting with butterflies, just like yours is, and it is honestly adorable. Your eyes flit back up to his face and you see his blushing cheeks under the fading light. He looks so perfect like this and there is only one thing you want to do.

Before you can overthink it, you boldly reach around to the back of his neck and pull him closer to connect his soft lips with yours. After a moment of surprise, he returns the kiss whole-heartedly, his hands resting on the sides of your face as he holds you near. You melt into each other’s embrace, the kiss entirely different from earlier. Instead of being shrouded in uncertainty and confusion, it now feels like you have finally found something that has always been missing. It just feels right. 

From the way your lips move in perfect time to the warmth that fills your heart, Hongjoong feels like home in every way possible. All of the worries you’ve dealt with in the past 24 hours, perhaps even the past six years, fade away at the comfort of having him in your arms, where he plans to stay forever.

As you get lost in the sensation, your kisses get more desperate and heated. Hongjoong has no problem matching your pace, though, when he has already waited over 24 long years for this moment. Your hands get a little excited in roaming his body, feeling down the expanse of his broad shoulders and toned chest. You never allowed yourself to fantasize about being this physical with him, but now it’s as if the floodgates have opened and you want nothing more than to be all over him.

When your hand just barely slips under the hem of his sweater and makes contact with his skin, he gasps at the chill of your fingertips and separates your lips. His hands are still pressed against your cheeks as he caresses your skin. You simply peer into each other’s eyes, a hungry look enough for you both to understand what’s going to happen.

With a playful giggle, you shoot up from your spot on the ground and start jogging towards his car. Halfway there, you glance back to find him still seated.

“Are you coming or not, slow poke?” you call out, breaking him of his daze. It takes only seconds for him to bolt up and over to you, grabbing your hand and tugging you along the rest of the way with a giddy smile on his face.

“Hold on,” he commands as he jets from one side of the car to the other, rapidly folding down the backseats of his SUV to create one big, flat area in the back of his car. Your body tingles with excitement at the sight. He has already climbed inside when he reaches his hand out to you. “Are you coming or not, slow poke?”

You roll your eyes at his cheekiness and follow his lead, albeit a bit ungracefully. Within moments, you two are all over each other once again, hands roaming freely as he guides you to lay back against the floor of the vehicle. It is by no means comfortable, but you can’t bring yourself to be bothered by the stiff surface, not when all of your senses are being entirely consumed by Hongjoong and the heat radiating from his body.

He hovers over your form, one hand keeping his weight from crushing you while the other follows the curve of your torso down to your waist, where his fingers dig into your flesh needily. Feeling desperate, he grinds his hips against yours, eliciting a moan from both your mouths at the pleasurable friction. Only when your hands grip at the hem of his sweater and start to pull it off does he break the kiss and grab your wrist to keep you still for a moment. He gazes down at you softly and you wonder why he stopped.

“Are you sure you want to move this fast? You don’t usually sleep with guys so quickly, or at least you didn’t before. And it’s me, so I don’t know if that changes things…” he babbles somewhat awkwardly, wanting to make sure you have thought this through.

You grin at his concern and press a quick peck to his cheek. “Joong, it’s because it’s you that I want to move this fast.”

He blushes beet red as the corners of his lips perk up.

“Are you okay with this?” you ask, not wanting to pressure him into anything.

He simply scoffs. “Is that even a question?”

With that, he is sitting up and pulling his top off in one fluid motion. You’ve seen him shirtless plenty of times in your life, but this is different. Not only has his body become more toned and mature, just the thought of this sight being all yours from now on has your pussy aching for attention. You can’t help but reach out to run your fingers down his abdomen, admiring the goosebumps that raise on his skin from your featherlike touch. Your hand settles on his belt buckle and you give it a good tug, pulling him back down to press your lips against his.

“Fuck, that was hot,” he pants through hungry kisses.

His nimble hands make quick work of your jacket and shirt, only breaking away from you when he has to. As he goes to unclasp your bra, you fumble with his belt buckle, reaching into his pants to palm him over his boxers as soon as you get it open. He groans at the sensation, his cock already hard in its confines.

“Excited?” you tease as he removes your bra entirely, leaving your top bare. He smirks haughtily as he tweaks your pebbled nipples and evokes a small gasp from you.

“You act as if I won’t find you already soaking wet for me when I slip these jeans off,” he purrs before bringing his lips down to suck on one of your breasts.

Hearing such filthy words coming from his mouth for the first time has you reeling and a moan unknowingly escapes you. He glances up with a look that clearly reads “that’s what I thought.”

God you never knew he could look this hot. From the lecherous glint in his eyes to the controlled dominance in his tone, everything about this man is driving you absolutely crazy. Still, his challenging statement has you wanting to provoke him just a bit more. 

“You think I’m that easy, Joong?”

He chuckles at your instigation while he now focuses on swiftly stripping your bottom half. 

“Not easy,” he coos as you lift your hips so he can remove your jeans and underwear. “Just horny.”

Your heart races as he gently spreads your legs apart and gazes down at your needy sex. He bites his lip at the sight and curses under his breath. A mixture of excitement and embarrassment settles in your gut from being so exposed. Here you are, laid out bare for your best friend–now more– to feast his eyes upon. It is almost too much to handle, your heart fluttering wildly at the scene playing out before you.

Hongjoong wastes no time in lowering himself onto his stomach so that his face hovers just inches from where you crave him most.

“You’re even prettier than I imagined.”

He wants nothing more than to dive right into you and never again be separated from your perfect pussy. Needing to prove a point, however, he runs his middle finger up the length of your slit, smirking as he sees it glisten in the dim moonlight.

“Who’s the excited one now?” he taunts, usurping the upper hand in this battle of wills.

Before you can quip back at him, he is licking a flat stripe along your cunt, his tongue stopping as it meets your clit to suck it past his soft lips. You moan erotically from the sensation and your back arches, only to be pushed back down by Hongjoong’s firm hands. He begins lapping at your sensitive bud, causing you to reach down and grip at his locks. The sting in his scalp only spurs him on.

“So good,” you whimper pathetically, all thoughts of denying just how badly you want him now gone out the window. When his tongue flicks against you just right, you gasp. “Fuck, why are you so good at this?”

He just smirks against you and glances up to meet your eyes with a puppy dog look that would scream pure innocence if it weren’t for the fact that half his face is obscured by your needy pussy, which he devours like a man starved for a thousand years. Your praise, combined with the euphoria painted on your face, has him dying to please you even more, so he brings his hand down to your hole and easily slips his middle finger inside. He curls it up to rub along that certain spot inside you and your toes instantly curl in pleasure.

Small droplets of water run down the car’s windows from how foggy it has become, neither of you having to worry about the cold outside since you’ve practically turned Hongjoong’s vehicle into a sauna through your body heat. In fact, it is almost too warm for comfort, beads of sweat forming at your brow, but neither of you pay it any mind.

“More, please,” you mewl feebly.

Like the gentleman he is, Hongjoong obliges by adding another finger along with his first and dragging them languidly against your walls. His tongue never lets up its movement, switching between sucking and lapping at your clit as you grip his hair hard enough to keep from floating off to heaven. As you moan his name, his fingers pick up their pace and you can feel the knot in your core tightening. Your soaking pussy makes a lewd squelching sound as he continues and you immediately feel embarrassed, but the way that Hongjoong groans so obscenely in response to the noise clues you in to how much he likes it, thus washing away your trepidation. The pleasure is overwhelming, and you can’t help but buck your hips against his face, especially when you notice him grinding against the floor of the car in an attempt to alleviate some of his own neediness. 

“Gonna cum for me, baby?” he slurs as he hears your shameless whimpers and feels you clenching harder around his digits.

As tempting as it is, you don’t want to cum just yet, so you use your hold on his hair to pull him off of your sex. His fingers automatically stop as well as he looks up at you in confusion.

“You okay?” The worry is palpable in his voice and you can tell he thinks he’s done something wrong. 

“I’m fine, Joong. I just want to cum with you in me,” you explain, your brain fogging at the vulgar sight of his glistening lips and chin.

“Fuck you’re killing me.” Your filthy request, and your obvious desperation for his body, has him melting like putty in your hands.

He pulls his fingers from your hole and makes a show of licking them clean, his eyes never leaving yours as you watch with bated breath. As he releases his digits with a pop, you can’t take it anymore. You spring up from the floor, kissing him passionately as you guide him to lay down on his back. Your diligent hands take no time in removing the rest of his clothing, his cock springing free as you slip off his bottoms.

“Holy shit,” you curse emphatically as you take in his impressive size. “You’ve been walking around with that thing between your legs this whole time?”

“Well it’s not like I got it installed last week,” he chuckles as he strokes his length casually. You don’t even bother acknowledging his joke. You are simply too desperate to have him inside you to waste any more time on fun and games.

You swing your leg over to straddle Joong, grabbing the base of his dick to help position it at your hole. As you look down at him, he nods minutely, as if approving of this final line that you two are crossing. In response, you start to slowly sink down on his cock, your pussy wet enough to make the process easier despite his overwhelming size.

“Oh my god,” you gasp with your mouth agape as you fit him entirely inside. You’ve never felt more full, and you can tell Hongjoong feels just as good by the elongated moan that he lets out. “You’re so fucking big.”

“And you’re so fucking tight.”

He lets you take a minute to adjust as you feel your walls flutter spastically to accommodate him. His hands rest on your hips, rubbing small circles into your skin as he bites his lip and waits for you to take the lead. Only when you start to move on your own does he assist you in grinding down on his length. A stuttered groan escapes him and your head falls back as you bask in the feeling of his dick pressing into all the right places.

“You have no idea how long I’ve dreamed of this,” he purrs as the car rocks with your movement.

The thought of him having fantasized of this scene before has your core clenching. You wonder how many nights he stayed up imagining you underneath him, filling you up perfectly and pleasing you just as you deserve. Your (previously) seemingly innocent best friend must have touched himself a thousand times to the thought of your desperate moans begging for more as he stretches out your tight cunt, only to then face you each day as if he didn’t spend each evening with you running around his mind while his hand was down his pants.

“Did your dreams feel as good as this?”

“Nothing feels as good as this.”

He playfully smacks your ass and, in an effort to satisfy him even more, you switch to bouncing on his thick cock. The car squeaks in protest with each meeting of your hips, but the breathtaking pleasure is immediate. Joong, who consistently lets out unabashed moans, intertwines your fingers with his so that he can support your movements. Using your held hands as leverage, you increase your speed and intensity.

Hongjoong watches you with his bottom lip between his teeth as you get lost in the pleasure and pathetic whines fall from your mouth. He becomes transfixed by the way your tits bounce so pornographically in time with how you fuck yourself on his dick, your soft flesh looking so deliciously pliant from this angle. As his hands move back to your hips to urge you on, he even admires the small divots in your skin created by his fingers. Everything about you just seems so incomprehensibly perfect at this moment.

Eventually, your pace starts to falter as your thighs burn with exhaustion and Hongjoong takes that as his cue. You yelp in surprise as he uses his strength to swing you to the side and onto your back, once again positioning himself above you. Your hands rest on his shoulders as he pauses for a moment to just marvel at your beauty.

“I can’t believe this is finally happening,” he admits shyly despite the fact that his cock is still plunged deep in your pussy.

“How can I make you believe it?” You peck along his jawline before meeting his lips for a much slower, more romantic kiss.

“Cum for me.”

He once again begins lazily pumping his dick in and out of your cunt, your nails digging into his shoulders from the feeling.

“Harder, please,” you fuss impatiently.

Hongjoong smiles to himself at how adorable he finds you when you pout, but quickly submits to your request by beginning to pound roughly into you. Even though you asked for it, the force behind the snapping of his hips takes you by surprise, causing you to let out a gasp that turns into a high-pitched moan. He sucks a hickey into the sensitive spot on your neck as you wrap your legs around his waist and listen to the sound of his pleased groans.

The knot in your core is again tightening from his unrelenting assault on your pussy and Joong can feel you clenching desperately around his cock. He sits back on his knees and uses his hands to push your legs up against your chest, effectively folding you in half, before continuing his absolutely brutal pace. From this angle, he perfectly hits your g-spot with every thrust. Spots dance in your vision from the mind-boggling pleasure and you can tell that your climax is just moments away.

“Hold your legs, baby,” Hongjoong commands as he also senses your impending orgasm.

Though your limbs feel like jelly, you somehow manage to grip the backs of your knees, keeping yourself in place as Joong lets one hand go to rub furious circles against your clit. Your toes curl as your muscles tense instinctively, your body sent into overdrive by his expertise.

“Holy– fuck– Joong–” you pant through forceful thrusts.

“Let go, baby,” he purrs. “Cum.”

His indecent demand is the last straw that sends you over the edge, your legs shaking as your high washes over your body. Your mind goes completely blank and his name falls from your lips like a mantra as the euphoria seems to last for hours.

Hongjoong can barely keep pumping into you with how tightly you constrict around him. His own orgasm isn’t far off, and after a few more thrusts into your fluttering hole, he is pulling out and spilling his seed over your stomach with a moan.

As you both start to come down from the bliss of your climaxes, you slowly let your aching legs back down and Joong lays down next to you. Both of you fight to catch your breath and slow your racing hearts. Eventually, Hongjoong grabs one of his socks from where it was strewn earlier and uses it to clean his cum off your skin. You giggle at sight and rest your head against his chest the moment he is done.

“That was–”

“Amazing,” he finishes, to which you agree.

“And to think that 24 hours ago you were trying to shake my hand when we met again like some kind of diplomat.” He chuckles at the memory and his cheeks redden even more than they already have.

“Leave me alone,” he gripes childishly, though his tone clearly indicates that he isn’t genuinely upset about it. “I didn’t know what to do and I panicked.”

You laugh at his embarrassment, the joy of teasing him truly never getting old. “I just can’t believe how fast this happened.”

He scoffs in disbelief. “How fast? Baby, this didn’t take 24 hours to happen, this took 24 years.”

He has a point, but a different part of his statement occupies your attention.

“Call me that again.”

“What? Baby?”

“Mm hmm.”

He grins mischievously to himself. “You like that, baby?”

You nod and timidly burrow further into his chest as he snickers and pets your hair lovingly. You wish you could just stay like this forever, frozen in time with his arms around you and your skin pressed flush against his.

“You know we’re going to be the talk of the town now, right?” he sighs.

“I don’t know. We might be beat out by the possible library haunting. Sounded pretty serious if you ask me.” His chest vibrates as he laughs, the sound like music to your ears.

A comfortable silence settles between you, a stark contrast to the awkward tension that clouded your interaction just yesterday. Although it technically took 24 years in total to get together, the process of falling back into Hongjoong after being away was undoubtedly rapid and passionate. It seems wild how much your life has changed for the better and how much happier you already are after spending so little time here. And, even though things in your life are more unsettled and unsure than ever before, you somehow feel the most at peace and comforted that you ever have, but apparently that is what coming home will do to you.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

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