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richincolor · 16 days

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New Releases

A whole bunch of books releasing today to get us ready for our summer beach reads. Which of these is on your list?

Hot Boy Summer by Joe Jiménez MTV Books

Mac has never really felt like he belonged. Definitely not at home—his dad’s politics and toxic masculinity make a real connection impossible. He thought he fit in on the baseball team, but that’s only because he was pretending to be someone he wasn’t. Finding his first gay friend, Cammy, was momentous; finally, he could be his authentic self around someone else. But as it turned out, not really. Cammy could be cruel, and his “advice” often came off way harsh. And then, Mac meets Flor, who shows him that you can be both fierce and kind, and Mikey, who is superhot and might maybe think the same about him. Over the course of one hot, life-changing summer, Mac will stand face-to-face with desire, betrayal, and letting go of shame, which will lead to some huge discoveries about the realness of truly belonging. Told in Mac’s infectious, joyful, gay AF voice, Hot Boy Summer serves a tale as important as hope four gay teens doing what they can to connect and have the fiercest summer of their lives. New friendships will be forged, hot boys will be kissed…and girl, the toxic will be detoxed.

Better Must Come by Desmond Hall Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books

Deja is a “barrel girl”—one of the Jamaican kids who get barrels full of clothes, food, and treats shipped to them from parents who have moved to the US or Canada to make more money. Gabriel is caught up in a gang and desperate for a way out. When he meets Deja at a party, he starts looking for a way into her life and wonders if they could be a part of each other’s futures. Then, one day while out fishing, Deja spies a go-fast boat stalled out by some rocks, smeared with blood. Inside, a badly wounded man thrusts a knapsack at her, begging her to deliver it to his original destination, and to not say a word. She binds his wounds, determines to send for help, and make good on her promise…not realizing that the bag is stuffed with $500,000 American. Not realizing that the posse Gabriel is in will stop at nothing to get their hands on this bag—or that Gabriel’s and her lives will intersect in ways neither ever imagined, as they both are forced to make split second choices to keep the ones they love most alive.

Bite Me, Royce Taslim by Lauren Ho Disney Hyperion

Agnes Chan never expected to be the punchline of her own life . . But how else do you explain getting accidentally run over and seeing a lifetime of careful preparation, endless training, and all your hopes of a track scholarship to college destroyed in a split second? Not to mention the only witness to your humiliation being your #1 archnemesis, Royce Taslim. So, when Agnes finds a new answer to her scholarship predicament in the form of an international stand-up comedy contest for teens, the last person she expects to be up against is also the last person she wants to - Royce. Because for years Royce has represented everything Agnes extreme privilege, popularity, and physical perfection (ok maybe she doesn’t hate that part so much). Behind the scenes, though, Royce’s flawless façade fades away, revealing someone Agnes never expected—someone who shows her that perhaps the best parts of life are the ones you aren’t prepared for—and as the competition heats up, so do things between these two rivals. But will the pressure to win be too much for them to handle—or will Agnes (and Royce) get the last laugh?

Spin of Fate (The Fifth Realm #1) by A.A. Vora G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

The world is governed by Toranic Law, an ancient magical force that segregates people into upper and lower realms based on their morality. It’s said that if the sinful lowers commit themselves to kindness, their souls will lighten, allowing them into the blissful upper realms. But Aina, one of the few lowers to ever ascend, just wants to go back. Desperate to reunite with her mother, who remains stuck in their horror-infested homeland, Aina joins the Balancers—a group that defies Toranic Law by bringing aid to those condemned to a life of suffering in the lower realms. Alongside Aina are two new recruits: Aranel, a spoiled noble spying for the upper authorities; and Meizan, a ruthless fighter trying to save his clan from extinction. Before long, Aina, Aranel, and Meizan find themselves in the midst of a brewing war. On one side, a violent lower king is bent on destroying Toranic Law; on the other, the upper authorities will do anything to stay on top. The trio must face both sides head-on if they want to stop a conflict that could break not only Toranic Law… but the universe itself.

Death’s Country by R.M. Romero Peachtree Teen

Andres Santos of São Paulo was all swinging fists and firecracker fury, a foot soldier in the war between his parents. Until he drowned in the Tietê River… and made a bargain with Death for a new life. A year later, his parents have relocated the family to Miami, but their promises of a fresh start quickly dissolve in the summer heat. Instead of fists, Andres now uses music to escape his parents’ battles. While wandering Miami Beach, he meets two photographer Renee, a blaze of fire, and dancer Liora, a ray of sunshine. The three become a polyamorous triad, happy, despite how no one understands their relationship. But when a car accident leaves Liora in a coma, Andres and Renee are shattered. Then Renee proposes a radical idea. She and Andres must go into the underworld to retrieve their girlfriend’s spirit and reunite it with her body—before it’s too late. Their search takes them to the City of the dead, where painters bleed color, songs grow flowers, and regretful souls will do anything to forget their lives on earth. But finding Liora’s spirit is only the first step in returning to the living world. Because when Andres drowned, he left a part of himself in the underworld—a part he’s in no hurry to meet again. But it is eager to be reunited with him… In verse as vibrant as the Miami skyline, critically acclaimed author R.M. Romero has crafted a masterpiece of magical realism and an openhearted ode to the nature of healing.

Blood at the Root by LaDarrion Williams Labyrinth Road

Ten years ago, Malik’s life changed forever the night his mother mysteriously vanished and he discovered he had uncontrollable powers. Since then, he has kept his abilities hidden, looking out for himself and his younger foster brother, Taye. Now, at 17, Malik is finally ready to start a new life for both of them, far from the trauma of his past. However, a daring act to rescue Taye reveals an unexpected connection with his long-lost a legendary conjurer with ties to a hidden magical university that Malik’s mother attended. At Caiman University, Malik’s eyes are opened to a future he never could have envisioned for himself— one that includes the reappearance of his first love, Alexis. His search for answers about his heritage, his powers, and what really happened to his mother exposes the cracks in their magical community as it faces a reawakened evil dating back to the Haitian Revolution. Together with Alexis, Malik discovers a lot beneath the surface at feuding covens and magical politics, forbidden knowledge and buried mysteries. In a wholly unique saga of family, history and community, Malik must embrace his legacy to save what’s left of his old family as well as his new one. Exploring the roots and secrets that connect us in an unforgettable contemporary setting, this heart-pounding fantasy series opener is a rich tapestry of atmosphere, intrigue, and emotion.

Queerceañera by Alex Crespo HarperTeen

Joaquin Zoido is out and proud of it. And while he knew his dad and sister, Carmen, would be super supportive, he wasn’t quite ready for them to surprise him with a queerceañera, a coming out party to celebrate him. Between all the talks of tastings and venues, and the chirping of his family’s RSVP texts, the question of who will be his chambelán is on everyone’s minds. What Joaquin is decidedly trying to not think about is whether his mom is going attend or if she’s finally replaced him with her favorite godson, Felix—the boy who made Joaquin realize he was gay and who was his first kiss. But when an impromptu lie snowballs into a full-fledged family-group-chat rumor, every Zoido from Texas to Mexico starts believing that Felix is not only Joaquin’s chambelán but also his brand-new boyfriend. To avoid the pity and sympathies of an ill-timed breakup, Joaquin and Felix strike a deal—they’ll stay fake boyfriends until the party. Yet, as the day draws nearer and old feelings spark anew, Joaquin will have to decide whether a picture-perfect queerceañera with a fake boyfriend is worth giving up the chance of something real.

The Unboxing of a Black Girl by Angela Shanté Page Street YA

Written as a collection of vignettes and poetry, The Unboxing of a Black Girl is a creative nonfiction reflection on Black girlhood. The debut YA title, by award-winning author Angela Shanté, is a love letter to Black girls set in New York City and serves as a personal and political critique of how the world raises Black girls. As Shanté navigates the city through memory, she balances poetry with vignettes that explore the innocence and joy of childhood eroded by adultification. Through this book, she illuminates the places where Black girls are nurtured or exploited in stories and poems about personal and political boxes, love, loss, and sexual assault. Many entries are also studded with cultural footnotes designed to further understanding.

This Book Won’t Burn by Samira Ahmed Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

After her dad abruptly abandons her family and her mom moves them a million miles from their Chicago home, Noor Khan is forced to start the last quarter of her senior year at a new school, away from everything and everyone she knows and loves. Reeling from being uprooted and deserted, Noor is certain the key to survival is to keep her head down and make it to graduation. But things aren’t so simple. At school, Noor discovers hundreds of books have been labeled “obscene” or “pornographic” and are being removed from the library in accordance with a new school board policy. Even worse, virtually all the banned books are by queer and BIPOC authors. Noor can’t sit back and do nothing, because that goes against everything she believes in, but challenging the status quo just might put a target on her back. Can she effect change by speaking up? Or will small-town politics—and small-town love—be her downfall?

The Boy From Clearwater: Book 2 by Yu Pei-Yun, illustrated by Zhou Jian-Xin, translated by Lin King Levine Querido

After his imprisonment in Green Island, Kun-lin struggles to pick up where he left off ten years earlier. He reconnects with his childhood crush Kimiko and finds work as an editor, jumping from publisher to publisher until finally settling at an advertising company. But when manhua publishing becomes victim to censorship, and many of his friends lose their jobs, Kun-lin takes matters into his own hands. He starts a children’s magazine, Prince, for a group of unemployed artists and his old inmates who cannot find work anywhere else. Kun-lin’s life finally seems to be looking up… but how long will this last? Forty years later, Kun-lin serves as a volunteer at the White Terror Memorial Park, promoting human rights education. There, he meets Yu Pei-Yun, a young college professor who provides him with an opportunity to reminisce on his past and how he picked himself up after grappling with bankruptcy and depression. With the end of martial law, Kun-lin and other former New-Lifers felt compelled to mobilize to rehabilitate fellow White Terror victims, forcing him to face his past head-on. While navigating his changing homeland, he must conciliate all parts of himself – the victim and the savior, the patriot and the rebel, a father to the future generation and a son to the old Taiwan – before he can bury the ghosts of his past.

Rising from the Ashes: Los Angeles, 1992. Edward Jae Song Lee, Latasha Harlins, Rodney King, and a City on Fire by Paula Yoo Norton Young Readers

Paula Yoo’s latest is a compelling, nuanced account of Los Angeles’s 1992 uprising and its impact on its Korean and Black American communities. On April 29, 1992, following the acquittal of four police officers charged with the beating and arrest of Rodney King and the earlier killing of teenager Latasha Harlins, the city of Los Angeles erupted in violence. Many of these events were centered on the city’s Koreatown, where tensions between the Black and Korean American communities had simmered for years, fueled by economic challenges and redlining and enflamed by sensationalized and racist media. Based on more than 100 personal interviews, Rising from the Ashes follows these events through the eyes and experiences of the families of King, Harlins, shooting victim Edward Jae Song Lee, and dozens of business owners, journalists, police officers, firefighters, activists, and other community members. Deeply researched and compulsively readable, this is a vivid, propulsive, and moving story of a pivotal moment in recent American history that continues to resonate today.

#new releases #young adult books #weneeddiversebooks

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stripper-patrick · 3 years

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Next Lifetime 💫Michael B. Jordan pt 1.

Warnings: smut, fluff, kids, sneaky link turned into family, angst, crying, 18+, NSFW gifs, series

Tags: @rebellious-desires @mrsbanreswillseeyou @eclecticblkgirl @designerwriterchic @bvssmob

Relationship: Michael B. Jordan x black plus sized reader (Azina/Z)

<4 years ago>

I’m throwing my ass back to the music just enjoying myself during this time. I’ve had at least 4 shots and I’m feeling all of them.

I feel someone press up behind me and it’s my best friend Michael whose clearly off the Henny just as much as I am. He grinds against me and as I’m working my hips I feel his dick stiffen. A boldness surged through me, or maybe that’s the liquor, and I stand up turning to him sealing a kiss. I’ve always wanted him no doubt I just never knew how to tell him. I guess being drunk is the best way. His hands grab at my waist then snake to my ass. His sweet Hennessy flavored lips are getting me even more drunk but with lust this time. The glisten of his plump lips being out the diamonds in his grill set plastered perfectly on his teeth.

“Let’s go to my house” I nod agreeing with his request and he grabs my hand leading me outside. He hails down a cab and opens the door letting me get on first. He smacks my butt on the way in and I giggle.

“322 Barron Street please” it’s about a 15 minute ride from here.

The driver begins his route and Michael starts kissing my neck and his hand slips down my shorts. My panties are beyond soaked and now he’s rubbing my clit making me whine.

His hand wraps around my throat whispering on my ear “stay quiet ma” he rubs again and as soon as the driver turns the corner into Michael’s loft I’m bussing all over his fingers biting the bottom of my lip trying to stay quiet.

He wraps his hand around my mouth flicking my clit faster making me shake harder. He pulls out his coated fingers placing them in my mouth. I suck off my own sweet juices and he grabs my by the throat kissing me tasting myself off my tongue. The driver clears his throat and we stop giggling and getting out. He tips the driver and walks past me opening the door. As soon as he gets the door open my pants are already unbuckled and halfway off.

“Damn hold on mamas” he slurs. We finally make it up to his nicely decorated bedroom and I’m pushed backwards flying back first on the bed. Michael comes on top of me and I flip us over grinding down on his already rock hard dick. He grabs a handful of behind moaning in my mouth. I move down to his neck where I kiss it sloppily. We stop kissing for a moment and I remove my shirt while he does the same. I move down pulling down his boxers and pants in one motion wasting no time swirling my tongue on the tip of his leaking dick. A low moan fills the room and I wrap my lips around the entire tip and push my head down letting it hit the back of my throat. I let it get wet then go back up to sucking on the tip while my right hand jerks the base and my left hand cups his balls. I come off with a string of saliva and I use my palm to rub on the top directly allowing the slick saliva to give him pleasure. His stomach caves and a loud moan erupts from Michael as he looks down holding vicious eye contact with me.

“Fuck Z” I continue going to town until he grabs me by the throat pulling me up to his mouth. Michael’s tongue roams my mouth fighting for dominance as he pulls me on top of him. I grab his throbbing dick pushing it inside of my aching pussy feeling him expand my walls gracefully. He leans back laying his head on the pillow as I gasp sinking down on him until our hips meet. I place my hands on his chest and sit on my feet rocking my hips along his shaft. His eyes flutter shut as I work my magic swirling my hips in a sloppy drunken circle. He bites his lip while one hand grabs the back of my head pulling my sweaty forehead to his. The other hand grabs a handful of my ass pulling me down. His dick fills my pussy completely making me gasp. Without missing a second Keith grabs both sides of my head keeping deadly eye contact with me and thrusts his hips beating my pussy from below. I let out a mewl holding his biceps while digging my acrylics into them. I bite my lip as he obliterates hot spots I didn’t even know were there.

My entire body feels like it’s on fire as after he thrusts he gives it aches and caves for more. “You like that? You like being daddy’s lil bitch” he moans pounding me out. Michael moves his hands wrapping his hand around my throat pulling me further and growling in my ear. I try to push away as the pleasure is starting to overwhelm me and he holds me by my hips keeping me right where he wants me. The only that can be heard in the room is the slushing sound of my wetness, the clapping of my ass and his balls slapping against my ass. My legs shake already as he continues. My pussy soaks everything underneath me as I let out a struggled moan cumming harder than I’ve ever came with any other man before. Michael pulls out pushing me up onto his face while jerking himself off in the process. He wraps his hands around my hips tasting the beautiful mess he made. My body jerks and my hand instinctively moves to his head as I roll my body on his tongue. He moans at my taste sucking and lapping on my clit. I smile getting off his face and back on his dick bucking my hips wildly. Michael guides my hips keeping himself as deep as possible. He begins thrusting up again at a fast pace making my eyes roll to the back of my head. He growls again giving me a fair warning that he’s about to cum. Without thinking I scream “cum inside this pussy daddy”

I’m aching from his blows. I sit up and keep bouncing at the same pace as he holds my hips tensing up. His seed spills inside of me and I watch his arch his back when I clench my pussy creating a suction. He moans pressing into my hips more.

Michael sits up kissing me and giving me a hard spank to my right ass cheek. His dick throbs inside of me as our mixtures leaks out dripping past his balls and onto the sheets. Drunkenly I lay on top of him giving him lazy kisses. Time and liquor consumes us and before I know it we’re both asleep in each other’s arms.

…

I wake up with a headache the size of the room. I feel like if I move too fast I’ll throw up. I feel someone warmth next to me and I pause. Who did I go home with last night? What happened? I’m aching between my legs but my conscience tells me not to be scared. I look behind me seeing Michael fast asleep. I sigh in comfort knowing I’m safe. He stirs in his sleep opening his eyes and he sees me. “Morning”

“Morning” I move my legs and notice they’re weak. I pull back the covers and we’re both completely naked. Oh shit. I jump up to the best of my ability and he sits up too

“Mike what did we do last night”

“Well using my context clues we had sex” he says rubbing his eyes

“Michael do you not see an issue with that? You have a girlfriend”

“I know but I mean if I’m being honest I’ve always had feelings for you Z and clearly you feel the same way” he states. I grab my underwear shaking my head.

“Mike that’s not the point you knew we shouldn’t have acted on it especially since you’re in a relationship. This could absolutely ruin our friendship. Lemme ask you this what if we go get together and break up then what you know I’m not friends with my exes. If you can be cool with your ex y’all were never in love or still are in love. There’s no in between” he looks at me with his head hanging low. He knows exactly where I’m coming from. “I’m not tryna lose you as a person in general” Mike goes in the bathroom brushing his teeth and peeing.

I collect my clothes putting them back on and Mike throws on some basketball shorts and a t-shirt he grabs some slides and his car keys . Luckily my car is already at home since Michael and his girl Lori picked me up.

“Z I’m sorry. I know things went too far but I’m glad we at least know how we feel about each other” he says “and I don’t regret what happened last night” I nod and get in his car. He gets in the drivers seat taking off and taking me home.

…..

Lori decided to have a pool party today to celebrate Mike for his birthday. Of course he invited me and being his best friend I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Plus it’s at his new house and I’ve never seen it before. Granite we haven’t talked much or seen each other at all since our ordeal a couple weeks ago. In fact this is the first time I’ve actually seen him since that day.

I walk through their beautiful house with a bottle of champagne in my hand. I see Lori in the kitchen. Honestly me and her have never really been that close. I never really cared for her but I was always cordial with her. “Hey Lori I brought this for y’all” she looks at me taking the champagne without even saying thank you. Bougie bitch. Don’t get me wrong I’m bougie too but best believe I’m as humble and as thankful as they come. I guess that’s why me and Mike are best friends. We’re the same.

I roll my eyes and my heels click outside where I see a bunch of people lounging in the pool and on the sides with drinks in their hand. My other best friend Lamia greets me with open arms. Her perfume makes me nauseous and dizzy “Hey girl” she smiles

“Hey” I say trying to hold my breakfast down.

“Mike is over there. Have you and him talked since then?” As soon as I got home that day I got ready for work and told Lamia what happened. I shrug my shoulders as an answer.

“Only small talk and I’ve low key been trying to avoid him just so the awkward tension doesn’t arise” I say

“Makes sense” Michael begins walking over and I stride a little further away until he catches me.

“Hey ladies” he hugs lamia and I’m next. I smell his cologne and melt. “you want a drink Z” I shake my head

“I don’t feel too hot right now so I’ll stick with water for the day” he nods eyes lingering on me for longer than a second. Lori comes out running his bare back and our contact is broken. While Lori begins talking to him I slip away downing the rest of my water. The nausea is finally gone and I sit on the lounge chair going on my phone. I put on my sunglasses shielding my eyes.

While I’m relaxing in the sun I notice Michael keeps staring at me. I see the small bulge in his shorts and I can’t help but bite my lip, mouth water at the taste of his dick down my throat.

A mid-height dark skin man starts walking my way and I see he has a pearly white smile similar to Michael’s. I get a better glimpse of his face. His name is Jayson. I’ve heard about him before. I heard he’s a player and he sleeps with anything that moves.

He sits next to my feet flashing his smile at me. I sit up with a small smile on my face. “Hey I’m Jayson Mikes friend”

“Yea I know. I’m Z”

“What’s that short for”

“Azina” he smiles scooting closer. I glance up seeing Mikes eyes never leaving me.

“That’s beautiful. Fitting for a beautiful woman” he bites his lip. I take a deep breath and take my sunglasses off. I stare directly into Michael’s eyes and he’s fuming. Dimples are prominent in his cheeks, nose flared, biceps flexed from how tense he is. Jayson moves even closer and that’s when Michael comes over.

“Hey Jay what y’all talking about?” He interjects with his nose held high. A small rage burns in my stomach at how he completely ruined my chance at something. Even if I was just playing Jaysons game right back at him.

“Her name. It’s pretty”

“Oh yea the two ‘A’s in her name stands for aggravated assault. She’s crazy man she beat niggas” he laughs. He’s not fully wrong “but she’s my kinda crazy. Speaking of Azina can I speak to you privately please? Jay you don’t mind right? Course not be right back” before I even have a chance to protest he grabs my wrist and my panties are soaked by the time we enter the glass double doors of his house that Lori happens to be staying in. Just hearing him call my name rather than my nickname has me wanting to be on my knees on this cold marble floor.

“What the hell is your issue?” I ask yanking my arm away. He grabs me again taking me upstairs through the neatly decorated white hallway. We get into his gold coated marble bathroom where he locks the door. I lean against the counter and he folds his arms “why have you been avoiding me”

“I-“

“And don’t lie to me” he asserts his dominance making my clit throb. Silence and heavy thick sexual tension fill the air and I look down at my long pink acrylic nails. He steps closer sealing any space between me and him. His large hand wraps around my throat making me bite my lip “you like seeing me get all jealous? Shit makes you wet mama?”

“Yes” I whimper. And just like that I’m putty in his hands. He pulls me up to his plump lips placing a wet kiss on them. Michael pulls off my duster of a swimsuit coverup. His large hands play with my breasts and my hand moved to his hard on. He’s rock solid now. His hand moves from my breast to my bikini bottoms rubbing my clit. My hips hunk and my hands move to his bicep as his plump lips kiss my neck. My body jerks as his thick fingers slide into my hole with ease. He begins pressing my g-spot like a button making me lose my breath. Michael moves up to my ear whispering “you’re mine”

He pulls his fingers out and sucks them dry turning me around some I’m facing the huge mirror above the sink. I grab the ledge bracing myself as he rolls my bottoms down spanking me in the process. I spread my cheeks feel his warm hard dick press inside of me. He fills me up and holds my hips bouncing me back to meet his thrusts. His breaths become heavy and ragged and my mouth drops open but nothing comes out.

Michael is pressing right on my g-spot making me lose my breath. “Daddy” I whimper.

“That’s my girl take all this shit. You wanna flirt with other niggas ima show you who you belong to” he wraps his hand around my throat quickening his pace. My eyes squeeze shut and my moans get louder. The sounds of our moans and my ass clapping fills the room but we have to keep it quiet so no one comes up here and finds us.

“You like when daddy fill you up bitch?”

“Yes I love it so much” my legs begin shaking as my orgasm approaches fast like a train. He gets close to my ear still pounding me out against the marble counter.

“Look at me when I make you cum” I bite my lip and his grip tightens on my neck. I open my eyes to the best of my ability as my entire body seizes in front of him. My body is on fire and he chuckles biting his lip “you look so fucking pretty taking all this dick like a good little whore”

I whimper jerking around and he pulls out watching my body tense up and convulse. He smacks my already shaking ass. Michael turns me around again putting me on the counter and he gets on one knee licking my pussy. He slurps you the mess he made moaning at the taste. I watch as he pulls my pussy lips back making sure to get as much of my clit as possible. My body writhes from still being sensitive and I grab the back of his head pushing him further in me. I pull off my bikini top rubbing my nipples while grinding on his face. My head falls back and he gives small licks making me even crazier than before. Michael comes up kissing my lips. I can taste myself on his tongue. He taps his dick on my clit before inserting himself again. I wrap my arms around his shoulders as he wastes no time taking me to Poundtown.

His short nails claw down my back and he buries his head in my neck. “That’s it daddy right there” my nails take through his short waves as his hips ripple through me. My moans uncontrollably get louder and he covers my mouth pounding me harder “can’t scream now can you baby?” I whimper eyes rolling to the back of my head as I squirt on his dick “that’s what I want fuck I’m bout to cum” his growls get louder and he kisses me moaning. His body shakes when he leaks inside of me. My nails scrape down his back and he empties his load inside of me.

He stays inside of me staring deep into my eyes. I can’t help this feeling anymore but I need to for the sake of our friendship. Michael’s catches me in a kiss and for a split second I ignore my feelings and kiss him back. As if he were really mine. That thought stops me from going any further “I’m sorry for avoiding you”

“I understand mamas” he kisses me again and pull out grabbing a towel he wipes off my pussy and leans down placing a kiss on my clit making me gasp. I chuckle getting off the counter with his help. My legs shake and I laugh. I grab my clothes putting them back on and making sure I look like I did before I came up here.

“Mike” I hear Lori call from downstairs. To the best of my ability I walk to the door but before I open it Michael grabs my arm kissing me again. This one was more passion than lust. I smile pulling away and open the door. To see Lori coming in. I turn around and turn him around quickly “so this is the master bathroom?” I look at him

“Yea it’s marble counters and the gold trim it’s my favorite and there’s the waterfall shower in there” we walk towards the shower acting like he was explaining me the layout of the bathroom the whole time. I hear loris heels click in the bathroom “baby the boys are looking for you at the pool” he turns around nodding

“Ard come on Z” We walk past Lori and her eyes linger on us.

Me and Mike walk outside and he can’t stop staring at me. He stands at the front of the bar with a microphone “I wanna thank every one for coming out. I wanna thank Lori for putting this together couldn’t have done this without you babe” that word ‘babe’ leaves a stinging mark on my heart as Lori steps up beside her man. She kisses him and then looks at me. I walk backwards dipping out from the crowd. I go inside and grab the champagne I brought. This bottle wasn’t cheap so if they won’t drink it I will. I pour myself a glass and start sipping it. Michael comes in and once again it’s just us alone.

“I’m sorry”

“Don’t be sorry. Look Michael as much as we both want it us being together might never happen simply because you and Lori are a thing and y’all are basically destined for marriage”

“Now you know I’ve been about you and only you for a while”

“I can’t tell cause I’m still single and you’re in a relationship” I sigh “I’m leaving this house is beautiful but you need to figure out what you really want” I extend my arms and give him a hug. He plants a kiss on my neck Mumbling the words I’m sorry again.

I grab my champagne and leave the house with a heavy heart and a cloudy mind. That nauseous feeling is back.

#smut #fluff #series #michael b jordan x reader #michael b jordan smut #michael b jordan #filth

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moon-kn1ght · 3 years

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stay.

Pairing: Marcus Pike x Reader

Word Count: 1.8k

Warnings: mentions of high school, mentions of shrek the musical (i’m sry), fluff, pining,

A/N: this is for @emmikmil! I’ve had so much fun writing this for you and dropping by your ask box often. I hope you enjoy! thank you to @wyn-dixie for the beta!

listen to a similarly vibed playlist here || masterlist

“I just don’t get how I was able to spend so much time away from you Marcus!!” you laugh at your friend on the couch next to you, “Eight years later, and your movie commentary is still making me laugh my ass off.” The credits roll on the movie that you two had been watching, and even though the movie had not originally been a comedy, Marcus Pike had made you laugh so much that your abs hurt.

“Now that we’re both in D.C., I can tell you that you’re going to get tired of it. I may be older but my time in the FBI has stunted my humor level back to where it was in high school,” Marcus jeered. His smile had the same youthful exuberance that it did when you two were kids, working for the government hadn’t taken that away yet. His eyes still held that warm kindness that had drawn you to be his friend all those years ago.

You and Marcus were best friends back in your shared hometown of Troy, Ohio. You two had bonded at age fourteen over a desire to get the hell out of your small town. While your friendship was built on a mutual distaste of home, it grew to be much more than that. Your high school years were remembered with moments of utter joy with Marcus by your side.

There were summer adventures into the countryside to find streams to swim in to beat the unbearable heat. There were late night ‘study sessions’ that routinely involved borrowing Marcus’s older sister’s car to go get McDonald’s and sit and talk for hours. You went to every single one of his football games (even though he was third string). And you were there the one game in four years that he was on the field and caught a pass that resulted in a game-winning touchdown.

He was there for your break-out role as the Gingerbread Man in the school’s production of Shrek the Musical. He saw it every night. And he was there when your date to junior-year homecoming didn’t show up, and even though he vowed to not go to a school dance that year, he stepped in as your last-minute date (and funny enough, your original date showed up with a black eye on Monday, but you never heard the details…).

Maybe you’ve been apart for longer than you two actually knew each other, but the friendship that you two shared in those years could have been enough to last a lifetime. Luckily, with both of you now working in D.C., it doesn’t have to be. Maybe now you can experience another lifetime of friendship, but this time as adults.

You have been silent for a moment too long when Marcus interrupts, “Hey, you still here?”

“Sorry, yeah,” you respond. “I was just thinking about how you never told me how my ex-homecoming date, Brian, ended up with a black eye after he stood me up?”

The memory makes him laugh, “That information is on a need-to-know basis. But what I can say is that conversation was quite helpful to draw on when I was learning interrogation skills at Quantico.”

“I KNEW IT!!” you yelp. You grab the throw pillow from your side of the couch and reel back to playfully hit him with it, but he’s too quick—he reaches and yanks it out of your hands, landing his own solid thwack against your stomach. This elicits a squeal from you, “HEY! Not fair, Mr. FBI. You can’t use your super-agent skills against me, that’s got to be a ground rule.”

“I was only acting in self-defense,” he contends, but releases the offending pillow from his grasp. “But if you insist, I will let you take a retaliatory hit at me, to keep things fair.”

“Hmmm. Now I don’t trust you, Pike. I’m pretty sure you’re the type that would remember where I’m …” You were going to finish the sentence with the word ‘ticklish,’ but you can see the shift in Marcus’s eyes, meaning he knew the end of your sentence before you said it. He lunges towards you, and you’re able to call out an “OH NO!” before he’s on top of you, hands attacking the spots on your body that, of course, he does remember are ticklish.

Everything devolves into laughter. Radiant joy fills your living room, joy that you haven’t experienced in so long.

When you’re able to squirm away and catch your breath, you release a thought that had been on your mind all night, “Marcus, I missed you. I missed you so much.”

You could live forever in the incredibly tender way that he looks at you.

“I’ve missed you too, Ging” he says, reminding you of your high school nickname that formed from your silly but wonderful role in the musical. Like old times, Marcus can still sense the melancholy that hides behind your smile, “hey, we both did it. We made it out. And now we’ve found each other again. Nothing is going to take you away from me now, friends for life, remember?”

You two hug, and time could stop for all you care.

—X—

“I can’t believe I let you drag me to a Quantico bar!” you grumble humorously as you slide out of the Uber you and Marcus shared back to your place. “I know So Many great bars in D.C. proper, and I let you drag me to the suburbs, just to be ogled by a bunch of middle-aged men in ill-fitting suits. I’m never going to forgive you for this one.”

You both are laughing in earnest at your condemnation of the rather dive-y establishment you both got probably a little too toasted at for a Thursday night. You were right, the place was filled with the Special Agent-type that Marcus worked with every day, which is likely why it was tinted in rose-color in his memory.

“In my defense, I am not a woman, so how could I…” the words drunkenly tumble from Marcus’s lips. “Wait I take that back, let me rephrase…”

You spin around to shoot lasers into Marcus as his drunk ramble verges on being problematic. You wag your finger at him, “Hey, watch it captain.” He stops in his tracks and you, tipsy as well, step towards him, maintaining eye contact and continuing the silly motion of your finger, until you two are a breath apart.

He doesn’t back up, in fact, he leans into the proximity of your bodies. “Yes ma’am, I’m gonna shut up, I promise,” he blathers. You rest your palms against his chest, fingers grabbing at his wrinkled dress shirt. The alcohol coursing through your veins is giving you a confidence that you weren’t quite ever able to manifest in all those years ago. His hands come up to rest against your upper arms, not pushing you away but also not yet closing the remaining distance between your bodies.

“Yeah, you better. If you don’t, I’ll have to…” your thought stops short from completing as what’s left of your sober brain starts to comprehend how much contact you have with Marcus. Heat and energy pass through each junction of your bodies, his fingers on your arms, your hands against his muscled chest. Were your feet touching too?

“Or you’ll have to what?” Marcus probes, finally releasing the breath he took in the moment your bodies touched.

His voice prompts you to look up from where you had been staring intently into the wrinkles of his once-pristine dress shirt. His eyes are boring holes into where he’d been staring at your head, desperately waiting for you to do something.

Gods, you want to kiss him so badly right now. You want to kiss him hard and desperate to make up for all the years apart. You want to kiss him soft and tender, so he’ll never leave again.

But what if he doesn’t feel the same way? You can’t destroy this absolutely magnetic friendship that you’ve regained after all these years, just for one kiss. But what if he does feel the same way?

You break away from Marcus. You can feel the energy that’s been coursing through your body from his break as you sever each individual point of contact. You can feel each finger leave the surface of his chest and travel through the suddenly chillier D.C. air. His hands slide down your arms. The last of the contact of your bodies breaks as he squeezes his thumb and pointer finger against your pinky.

“I should go,” Marcus says, fracturing the prolonged eye contact by looking down to the pavement. You look down too, your energy shattered by the sudden loss of contact. “Let’s do this again.” The sound of his voice still holds the joy that filled you both tonight, even as his eyes search the ground for something better to say.

—X—

He always smelled like cedarwood. You can still smell it around you as you close your front door and lean back against it. You know you're going to feel this emptiness tomorrow, a different kind of hangover than the tequila sitting in your stomach threatens you with.

Suddenly, there’s a knock on the door and you jump out of your disappointment. You look out the peephole and it’s Marcus, fidgeting awkwardly. You open the door, “Hey, did you forget some...” you start to ask but he cuts you off.

“Hey sorry for probably scaring you, but I felt something back there. I don’t know if you felt the same thing, but I was wondering if I could kiss you? And if the answer is no, we can forget …” Now it’s your turn to interrupt him. You grab a hold of his shirt in the same place you held him in the parking lot. You pull against him and he leans down and kisses you.

It’s like something in each of you breaks. A floodgate of emotion opens, channeled through this kiss. Your lips search each other for answers you’ve been longing for since the beginning of time.

One of his hands holds your face, while the other finally roams your body. It’s almost as if he’s charting himself a map, so he’ll never lose you again. It traces down your neck, across your shoulders, phantom fingers on your breasts. You’re not sure if his hand is leaving icicles or flames in its wake, but he has every nerve in your body standing on end.

You break from this kiss, but you don’t travel further than to just murmur against his lips. “Marcus are you sure?” you whisper.

He looks down at you and his eyes shine with more joy than you’d ever seen. You cup his cheek in your hand and all his words, all his ability to profess his love dies in his throat because of the simple gesture. He smiles and nods and whispers your name. You could get used to this, the feeling of his lips on yours and your bodies locked together.

“Let’s stay like this forever,” Marcus says, reading your mind.

“Yes. Forever,” you reply and kiss him again.

fin.

#sl fic challenge #marcus pike x reader #marcus pike x you #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal #the mentalist fanfiction #the mentalist #my writing

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nypmphetsbastard · 3 years

Text

PARADIS ISLAND

Genre: slowburn fanfiction, college!au

Pairing: yelena x fem!reader

Summary: college becomes a whirlpool of new people and emotions once you meet a woman by the name of yelena manages to weasel her way into your once perfect life and tear down everything you ever thought to be true. From religious views to friendship, she builds something new. Now, she introduces you to new world she likes to call Paradis Island.

Warnings: angst, smut, hurt/comfort, struggles with Religion, homophobic comments/people

A/N: this story is posted on ao3 {NYMPHETSBASTARD} as well as wattpad {SUGACODED} because wattpad is acting a fool and I need another place to save this story👍

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Leaving home was always a rough time for both parent and child. Anybody who grew up in a loving home tended to stick to that home like glue, not wanting to separate from it and instead choosing to go to schools and jobs closer to home, closer to family. Those without however, preferred their freedom. When the clock struck 12 and everybody went to sleep was the only time they'd have to themselves, the only time they'd ever have to feel safe and relaxed — leaving home wasn't as hard on them.

You...well you were a different story. You didn't like a lot of things, being grabbed, having things snatched out of your hands, people taking your food without permission, somebody talking to you when you're clearly trying to avoid them — the list could go on. But growing up leaving you home never seemed to cross your mind. For whatever reason you felt like things were fine at home, not perfect but not terrible either, nine year old you didn't stop to think that one day you'd have to make the decision to move away from your friends and family. The small town you were in had a lot of older people, ones that never separated from their high school popularity phase and believed that the world revolved around them and them only, the others were newly young adults seeking any way out. You hoped you'd be the ladder.

Your parents had never spoken to you about leaving the house, meaning you grew up only learning what was taught in school. World War One and two, Pearl Harbor, slavery, and other shitty thing America did and or went through throughout the course of centuries on end — all only ever learned or discussed in school. The main focus in your household was religion and religion only. It's what you grew up to be right, nothing else existed in your mind besides that.

There was nothing wrong with that. Well...until around the time high school hit. Senior year was the year stressed to you since you were a freshman, you could barley fathom the fact that you'd have to apply for colleges, work on a bunch of different essays and possibly move away when you were young and you could still barley understand it now. But it was only then, then when they had handed you that slip of paper of which colleges you were going to apply to did you realize something; you didn't want to end up in a boring old relationship with a guy from your sophomore geometry class, get married, have a couple of kids that would send you to a nursing home and never live the life you dreamed of having.

You wanted that Disney channel teenage life, teenage adventures that would give you enough memories to last a lifetime and successfully say you lived your life to the fullest. While your teenage years had been spent in a church every weekday, your nose in school books and your bedtime forever stuck at the time 8:30, you swore your adulthood would be different.

Everything would be different.

"Are you sure you're not missing anything, hun?" Your mother asked nervously watching you pack the trunk up with your suitcase and extra bags. You yawned into your hand due to the more than early hours you guys were beginning the trip in order to make it early to your destination.

"You made a list mom, I don't think there's anything I could miss." She smiled your small joke and got in the passenger seat of the car, "You know, you guys really don't have to come. It's nearly a 4 and half hour drive over there, not including the drive back." You mentioned

"We already told you we're going to stop by my mother in laws and stay for a while." Your father explained, you sighed and got into the backseat of the car.

You brought your favorite stuffy and laid your head on it against the window as you prepared yourself for the 4 hour drive from your old childhood home to a new place where new memories could be made. It felt almost nostalgic watching your entire childhood fly by from behind a window. The blue slide you loved going up and down on till you felt like throwing up. The metal pole that always terrified you trying to go down. The monkey bars you taught yourself to climb because of the lack of friends you had that could teach you. It all seemed to disappear behind flashes of trees and road as the car drifted further and further away from the place you called home.

"Morning sunshine! We're here!" Your father exclaimed, waking you out of your slumber. You groaned quietly and rubbed the sleep out of your eyes, taking a moment to look out the window at the large building in front of you. Gawking at the size, you shook your head and stepped out of the car to get a closer look.

"This is much smaller than the one I went to." Mentioned your father, squinting up at the building and helping you pull your suitcase out of the trunk.

"That's because you went to community college, honey." You chuckled at your moms observation and rolled your suitcase up to the sidewalk.

"Well I'll see you guys—" you started until your words were cut off by your mother slapping her hands down on your shoulders and giving you a firm look.

"I better not come visit you in a few months and see you with a purple Mohawk, piercings and a girlfriend, you hear me?" You nodded at her dramatic remarks and felt yourself internally cringe at her words.

"Hopefully we come back to you with a kind little boyfriend and a college degree we can show off to the rest of the family." Your father said, wrapping his arm around his wife's shoulders and gave you a tight lipped smile.

"Call us when you get settled and show us your roommate."

"And if they're anything we told you to not look like or if they smoke, drink or are sexually active in public, please change roommates."

They listed off, you internally rolled your eyes but still managed to give them a nod.

"Okay, I get it. Bye." You waved them off and stayed on the sidewalk till their old beat up grey car pulled away from the university.

Sighing, you rolled your shoulders back, grabbed all your things and walked the 10 minutes all the way to your side of the dorms. Personally, you had no clue who your roommate was besides their name but you knew even if you got a wild one you wouldn't change rooms. It didn't matter to you wether or not your roommate had purple hair, while your parents and nearly everyone in life tended to stick their nose in the business of others, you had no care in the world about anybody else.

From the moment you stepped into your new room, your nostrils were immediately being wrapped in by the smell of vanilla and incense. You looked around the room and noticed that only half of it was done up while the other was plain and void of any decoration.

"Hello, who are you?" A soft voice asked politely and there in front of you stood one of the prettiest girls you'd ever seen. She was a short young woman with long, disheveled shoulder-length black hair, a Greek nose and relaxed dark eyes.

"Oh sorry! I'm your new roommate, you're Pieck Finger, right?" You greeted her, shaking her surprisingly soft hands and placing your bags down on the floor next to you.

"Sorry about the smell, I'm lighting some incense to cleanse the new room. I just got here last night."

"Mhm, are you religious?" You asked, pointing to the black leather notebook in her hand. She looked down at it but smiled and shook her head.

"Ah no, I'm Agnostic. Although my childhood friend practices Hinduism and I guess I pick up on some things." She explained, you nodded at her words and made a mental note to ask her what the hell agnostic meant at a later time. Her eyes went down to the bags in your hand and reached out to grab your suitcase.

"Here I got this, I'll put this on your side of the bed and let me know if I can help with setting anything up." She offered kindly, you nodded at her offer and the two of you immediately got to work.

As you folded your clothes into a drawer and hung them up in a closet and Pieck finished wrapping your bed in it's covers and blankets, the two of you talked. Talked as if you'd been friends since birth. Pieck felt like someone you could truly se yourself being friends with in the long run of college, she was also someone your parents would most likely accept and allow you to stay with. The two of you bonded over certain interests, Pieck had a knack for writing — poems, full books, it didn't matter; you were the artistic one. Always doodling on something or recreating famous art paintings in your room, usually religious paintings as your parents always told you that if you were going to have painting as a hobby you might as well paint something useful.

"Finally, we're done." You sighed, exhaustedly throwing yourself onto the newly made bed. Pieck chuckled and stood up, grabbing her belongings and putting them into a small book bag.

"Hey, me and my friends are meeting in the library later, would you like to come?" She asked, you mulled over the idea for a quick second and nodded your head.

The walk from your dorm and the library gave you and Pieck even more time to get to know each other. She explained how most people from her old high school had come to the nearest college, it being this one which is why she never worried about not making any friends. Your eyes nearly popped out of your eye socket as you stepped up to the large library building, it being much bigger than any library your town had to offer. Pieck held the door open for you as you stepped in and took a moment to admire the large area.

"Psst, Pieck!" Whispered a voice, you looked over to see a brown haired woman in big round glasses waving the two of you over with a wide grin on her face. Pieck waved back and walked over the round table with the two other people sitting and you following behind her.

"Hey guys, this is my new roommate. This is—"

"Hange Zoë, nice to meet you!" The glasses wearing woman exclaimed excitedly taking your hand in her and shaking it vigorously. A nearby librarian glared her way and hushed her, she smiled and apologized to the old woman.

"I'm Porco." Replied the blonde boy on the other side of the table dryly.

You waved at him awkwardly and sat down next to Pieck, yet it was only after they began pulling out their books did you realize you had nothing with you. Tapping the dark haired girl on the shoulder, you motioned towards the bookshelf's and stood up to leave once Pieck nodded her head.

You walked around aimlessly with no true destination or book in mind till you came across a bookshelf, this one different than the others and tucked away in a little corner. It was old and basic but it still had integrity. The wood was straight and it hugged the wall. On closer inspection you could see scratches, the wood a little more pale where it had been dinged. You touched the roughness, not minding one bit and looked at the books inside. The fiction section had always been your favorite growing up, your parents believed books like Harry Potter were some sort of books that demonic and plaguing words hidden within them so you only ever grew up reading them in short amounts of time in the library before they could find you.

A small gasp made its way up your throat as your eyes landed across a book titled Alice in Wonderland, one of your top favorites. The ladder that usually came along with each bookshelf was currently being occupied yet this specific bookshelf seemed to take up nearly the entire wall of the library — this might've been one of the first things you couldn't successfully grab with ease. You reached your hand up to grab the book, your fingertips only slightly touching them before the book suddenly disappeared from your grasp and a warm presence creeped up behind you, towering over your frame.

Looking up, your eyes met a pair deep dark eyes staring down at you, the book now forgotten in your mind as it was now clouded with the face of the person in front of you. It was only after a couple seconds that you blinked out of your trance and stepped back, falling straight between the bookshelf and the person. You felt...intimidated. The person in front of you was more than taller than you, a height you thought was nearly impossible. They tilted their head to the side, bent down a bit and held the book out in their hand as your eyes stayed trained on theirs.

"Do you want it?" They asked, you nearly jumped in your skin at the sound of their somewhat deep voice.

"Huh?"

"The book." You looked down and finally registered the fact that they'd picked up the book you were grabbing at and now held it out to you.

"O-oh right, thank you." You stuttered, mentally cursing yourself for acting this way. While your eyes strayed away from theirs, they went downward to the person's appearance.

They wore a dark green turtleneck sweater paired with high waisted black pants, accentuating their long legs and black lace up Oxford shoes — their entire appearance intimidated you. The center of their nose pierced through with silver piece of jewelry.

"I..." you regretted opening your mouth the second the words came out, "gotta go," the words spilled out of your mouth as you immediately walked around them and towards your table, the interaction still replaying in your head on loop. It wasn't until you rapidly sat yourself down next to Pieck that you felt like you could breath.

You weren't the most social person in the world but you also weren't the most nervous, but they...their presence, their height, the look in their eyes, it all seemed to send you into frenzy. Ignoring the slightly worried look you got from Pieck, you open the notebook given to you and tried to let the interaction seep away into your memories. Yet it didn't work. Every word on the paper seemed to fly over your head, your mind never sticking to the sentences given to you. Hell, you could barley read about Alice's shitty life without comparing it to what had just occurred. It was all too fresh. Too new. Too...interesting.

"Mornin' Pieck." Greeted a deep voice from behind you, turning around you were faced with a tall blonde haired man with small circle glasses resting on his nose.

"Good mornin, Zeke." Pieck responded kindly, the man looked around the table greeting everyone till his eyes met yours.

"I don't think I've met you before, and who must you be?" He bowed down respectfully and held out his hand, you looked at it confused for a second before sliding your hand into his and watching as he leaned his head down to plant a kiss at the back of your hand.

Before you could protest, a different hand gripped Zeke's shoulder, he pulled away and turned around to find his female companion standing above him with a blank expression on her face — one he'd gotten used to over the course of their friendship. Meanwhile your breath was caught in your throat at the sight of the intimidating person you'd met only moments before.

"Your book, Zeke." They said plainly, Zeke pulled away from you and took the textbook of their hands, thanking them and skimming through the textbook as both of your eyes never left theirs.

"Good morning, Yelena." Pieck greeted her with a smile, finally, Yelena's eyes drifted away from yours and were now on Pieck, the sides of her lips quirking up into a smirk for a second.

"Good morning, Pieck." Your eyes went back and forth between them in confusion until another person popped up behind Zeke.

"Hey guys, hey hange, Pieck." The dark haired man bun wearing boy said, leaning his arm against Zeke's shoulder despite them being the same height.

"Guess I'm just invisible then" spoke up Porco with an offended look on his face, the dark haired boy simply looked at him and blinked.

"Oh no I knew you were there, I just don't care. Anyways, are you guys coming to my big party tonight?" He asked excitedly, Zeke scoffed and pushed his glasses further up his face.

"Tch, we're not children, Eren. Why would we go to some teenage party?" Eren scoffed at the blonde mans response.

"Yeah obviously not you, old man, you're fucking ancient. I was talking to Pieck and..." he looked at you with a confused expression before shrugging and pointing at you, "and her."

"I'm not even that old—"

"Sorry, Eren but you already know my answer." She apologized, Eren pouted and groaned.

"Oh come on, please, Pieck? The last time you went everybody loved you, please?" He begged Pieck, placing his hands on her arm that was leaned against the wooden chair she sat at.

"Aw sorry, kid. I love them all too but I gotta tutoring session today." She apologized sympathetically, patting the boys head and turning to you, "what about you?"

You jumped at the sudden spotlight on you but shook your head regardless, "If Pieck's not going then neither am I." Eren groaned again and tried puppy dog eyes on the long haired woman in front of him.

"Look Pieck, you're deriving your new friend here with the experience of a fun college party." She smiled at his explanation which apparently told Eren enough that he stopped bugging her and stood up to his full height, slamming his shoulder into Zeke's as he walked away and mumbled something under his breath. Zeke almost turned around to go after him until Yelena outstretched her arm to stop him.

"He's a child." She pointed out

"He's a little shit, is what he is." Zeke complained, you looked over at Hange for information.

"They're brothers." She stated, your mouth made an o shape as you finally came to understand why the two seemed to have so much beef between them.

"Half brothers, Hange. Don't associate me with that brat." Zeke huffed, everyone chuckling at the mans clear discomfort with him and Eren being in the same room let alone sentence. "Anyways, we've gotta go, me and Yelena have business to take care of." Zeke said.

"Jeez, you make it sound like the two of you are hooking up." Porco mentioned with a disgusted look on his face,

"What if we are?" He joked playfully until he looked up to see Yelena towering over him with a straight look on her face, Zeke cleared his throat and shook his head, "Kidding, kidding."

The two of them walked out of the library and the three other people at your table continued on their reading while your mind was racked with a bunch of questions of the new characters you just met. You tried to avoid eye contact with Yelena when she was leaving but could still feel her piercing gaze stay onto you until she couldn't anymore.

"So are they?" You inquired with a whisper, leaning over Pieck's shoulder

"Are they what?"

"Zeke and Yelena. Are they..." you raised your eyebrows as the words clicked in Pieck's mind and the other two at the table began laughing into their books.

"No, sweetie, they're not sleeping together or dating." She denied

"Pfft, the day we see Yelena with a man is the day pigs fly." Chuckled Porco, you looked at them confused at their jokes.

"Yelena's a lesbian, babe." Pieck finished your thought and your eyes slightly widened at her response, not expecting it. Embarrassment silently creeped into your mind as you groaned and tucked your head into your arms.

"Well now I feel stupid." The three of them laughed and Pieck rubbed your back.

For some reason, those words felt like a small weight lifted off your shoulders. You couldn't understand why you felt so...happy that she wasn't with Zeke in that way. Maybe you just wanted to her friend. Yeah....that had to be it....her friend.

#yelena #yelena aot #attack on titan #pieck x y/n #pieck finger #pieck x yelena #hange zoë #porco x reader #snk season 4 #eren yeager #zeke yeager

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mihidecet · 4 years

Text

SBI d&d AU: Tommy (1)

Here it is! Tommy’s pov really put the hamster inside my brain in a splendid mood, so his story is currently split into two (might be three, depending on how much more I’m willing to indulge my craving for found family dynamics). I’m probably going to post the second part in a couple of weeks (I’m trying to stick to a schedule, but uni has started again today so who knows).

Thank you all for your likes, reblogs and comments on the last post, I really appreciate them!

Also, as some of you might already know, I’ve been working on character sheets for all of them too. I’m working on the written backgrounds at the moment, but if all goes right I should post the first one next week! Who would you want to see first: Techno, Phil, Tommy or Wilbur?

[Also I should mention, there are a handful of swears, mentions of blood and a not-so-quick description of a dagger, but not as it’s being used for anything bad. Let me know if you’d like me to highlight anything specific to make it easier to skip.]

You should kneel down soon, kiddo. The voice in his head tells him. Usually one would not have voices suggesting what to do or do not, but that was the life of Tommy since he'd agreed to eat a bloody apple and suddenly gained horns and a tail. That was just something that happened to him nowadays. But again, one was not necessarily made to follow said suggestions: he usually either ignored whatever had been said or sassed back - that was just the kind of relationship he had with his patron.

I'm not a child, old man. He answered, in his mind in order to avoid Wilbur's curious glances, and only heard a distorted chuckle in response.

I'm just trying to help you out! You should, totally, profit is guaranteed! Tommy rolled his eyes, huffing out in annoyance at both his insistence and the warped voice he was currently talking in. Go figure that, of all the demons he could have made a pact with, Tommy had chosen the most annoyingly nagging one. Who even used their godlike power to change their voices to unnatural pitches?

Come on, Tommy! Trust me on this! Come oon! The dragged out "on" was extremely aggravating, but just because his patron was bored he wasn't going to amuse him. He had more important things to do, like planning out what to do once they'd reached the apparently haunted mansion in the middle of a forest they were heading towards. If one was to ask Tommy, he'd say that it was just the job of a bunch of thieves, maybe an enchanter, using the abandoned mansion as a base of operations and scaring away wandering people. Everyone had seemed to agree with his idea - hell, even Wilbur had said it had been a good hunch!

Five ... Four ... Didn't he have some other poor soul to torture? Some unlucky fellow to trick into a deal? And was the echoey voice necessary? Did he really need to sound as if he was shouting from inside a cave?

Come on kiddo- Three ... Two ... Almost there! One ...

"ALRIGHT!" Tommy yelled out, stomping his foot down in anger, flames bursting out his hands as his eyes flashed golden and - despite what his stubbornness told him - he bent down.

He hadn't even fully bent his knees when an arrow lodged itself into his hood, which was slightly raised in respect to his head due to the quickness with which he had moved.

"Ohshit-"

"Who the fuck is attacking us?" Techno asked over him, tone impassible and as monotone as always, holding another arrow just in front of his face; he seemed more bothered by the thought that someone was trying to attack them than the fact that somebody had shot an arrow at him.

You're welcome, kid. His patron quipped, finally in his normal voice, before retreating to the back of his mind as Tommy summoned energy between his hands, ready to blast into nothingness whoever had been dumb enough to try to kill him.

Tommy wakes up one morning, and the first thing he sees is the sky. This is because, since he agreed to sell his soul for instant magical powers, he has a distinctively cumbersome pair of horns, which prevent him from sleeping on his side comfortably. A small price to pay, since honestly, who even has the time to spend years studying when you can just shake hands, eat an apple and be set for life?

Since they've stopped being a couple of stubby nubs on the side of his head, he also has to wear a pair of muffs over them, in order to avoid destroying his pillow in case he moves more than an inch while he sleeps. He's gathered enough evidence of how much damage he's able to cause to last a lifetime, so he endures Techno's chuckles at his hand-knitted, sock-looking muffs - damn Wilbur for using wool, it's not like his horns ever get cold.

Anyhow. The first thing he sees, is the sky. The second thing he sees is a knife sticking out of the ground next to his head.

Tommy stares at it, figuring he's either still dreaming or his patron has gotten better at his dream-messages - on top of annoying him during the day and giving him advices once every blue moon, he also enjoys sending him extremely cryptic messages through dreams, which Tommy usually forgets by the time he's awake.

He figures it has to be a dream, because sticking out of the ground next to his head is a perfectly clean and sharpened Technoblade Dagger. Thin, sleek, made in a peculiar metal that looks completely black at all time, as if it was capable of absorbing light. Rumors say it was forged with the core of a fallen star; others say it's made of the blood of his fallen enemies which Tommy finds extremely disgusting and definitely unpractical. The handle is simple, with no added leather - Technoblade always says that leather stains easily and is more a bother than anything actually useful.

But the thing is, that's not all.

Tied to the knife is also a string of white, orange and red strings. A small onyx bead is woven inside.

Aww, look! You got yourself- the voice in his head starts, but Tommy is quick to put a stop to it.

Shut up, this is important. He states, tone firm and serious, just like he was when he demanded his pact a few years before. His patron and him joke around and annoy each other a lot, but he knows that tone, so for the next few moments everything is quiet. Around him, the only sound is of the wind, flowing through the leaves, and the crackling fire, courtesy of Phil, who is probably preparing breakfast for all if the delicious smell wafting over is any indication. Tommy hears everything and nothing around him, while all his attention is focused on 1) the token of friendship innocently sitting next to him 2) trying not to yell out at the pure joy he is feeling right now. This is approval. This is acceptance. This is the confirmation that he is, in all ways, part of this team.

I know, kid. I'm glad you found yourself some good friends.

Tommy huffs out a breath, unable to stop himself from smiling - he does not need his patron's approval, but it is still very much appreciated. The demon's helped him a lot, in his own weird demonic way.

The warlock snatches up both items and mutters an excuse as he quickly makes his way towards the river next to their camp.

The first thing he needs to do is find a good place to keep the bracelet.

The thing is, he can't keep it on his wrist. They get into too many nasty places, he is definitely *not* going to let it get soiled by dirt, blood or sewer water - Tommy also does not want to think about the sewers ever again, but that is a rather common and expected reaction. His ankle is also not a good choice, because of all the walking and trudging in the mud they do.

He's not going to keep it in his pack either, he want it close. He's sentimental about it, sue him.

Do not even start. He thinks intensely, anticipating what his patron could have said about his previous thought, but he gets no answer. Whatever. It's better that way.

His arm, he figures, could be the best choice. The bracelet seems to be long enough for him to be able to tie it around his upper arm, and that way his shirt would keep it covered constantly. Not to mention, his cloak also rests over that area. It would be safe and sound, and nobody would be none the wiser!

Tommy sits down by the river and starts working on it: he struggles a bit with actually tying the knot to keep it in place, but after a couple of minutes he's sure it will hold.

Then, satisfied with his work, he stands up and tries to throw the knife in the air and catch it. He does end up letting out a small yelp and letting it tumble to the ground, but he's sure he'll be able to pull it off in time.

"Technoblade!" He calls out loudly, coming back to the round space they decided to call a camp for a night. The thief doesn't even look up, but he does let out a questioning "hmm?" as his ears twitch up.

"Thank you for the wonderful gift! I'll use it wisely!" Tommy exclaims, pointing the dagger straight at his face. Techno turns towards him, nonplussed, and stares at him through the dagger. A moment passes, then Techno raises an eyebrow and moves the point of the blade away from his face with his index finger.

"Great. How about you start by remembering not to point it at allies?"

"Pfft, of course, of course! It was merely a display of how much I'm already able to use it! I bet I could even defeat you, now!" He declares, turning towards Phil's already ready breakfast and digging in, ignoring Techno's rebuttal of him needing to train for many more years in order to have a chance at defeating him, and most importantly Phil's amused and endeared expression.

The druid can read him too well: he already knows. For what Tommy knows, being an elf he probably has a way of seeing the bracelet under his sleeves from like, the way the material bends around it.

But as he scarfs down his food, he's already hatching a plan. Because while he wants to flaunt his newly gained social status, he does also want to keep this ... for himself. This isn't something he wants to share with the world. The fact that he went from being an annoyingly persistent kid to a friend of Technoblade is a personal success. It's just ... His.

What he can do, instead, is brag about having one of Technoblade's daggers. And what if he exaggerates a bit on how he got it? Who's going to correct him and say that it was actually just a mean to deliver to him a friendship bracelet?

Nobody, that's who.

Of course, he needs just one test to make sure it's going to work. It takes some time, but they eventually reach a small town. Wilbur takes care of securing a room for them all, and a discount in exchange for him performing.

Then, one late evening, they're waiting for their food to be delivered at their table, and Tommy is idly playing with Techno's dagger - he has now gotten extremely better at it, and can now not only flip it in air, but also balance it on the tip of his finger.

A bulky man with a coarse looking mustache brings them their dinner, and eyes Tommy as he keeps playing.

He meets his eyes, and his plan falls into place.

"Did you know, good sir, that this is one of the infamous Technoblade's daggers? My prize for besting him in a duel."

Next to him, Wilbur chokes on his beer and spits it all over his fresh loaf of bread. Phil is laughing as he pats his back, and the bartender eyes him suspiciously, apparently ticked off by his teammates's reactions.

"Is that right?"

"Absolutely! Isn't it, Techno?"

Everyone falls silent - except for Wil, who keeps coughing up beer for a while longer - and turns towards Techno, who seems startled at the sudden amount of eyes on him. This is it, the moment of truth. Everything comes down to what Techno answers now, because this could either be Tommy's best, most glorious moment, or a simply rather awkward instance. A moment passes, then-

"Absolutely." Techno's monotone voice answers, and the suspicion on the bartender's face changes to surprise, then impressed respect as he nods towards Tommy.

"Good job, kid." He says, then leaves their table, and Tommy couldn't be happier.

The game is on.

#tommyinnit #technoblade #wilbur soot #philza #ph1lza #sbi dnd au #sbi au #dnd au #my writing #also #jschlatt #not mentioned by name #but he's tommy's patron #it fit too well alright

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outerbankspreferences · 3 years

Text

50 Wordless ways to say I Love you.

#9. Participating in their hobby even if it doesn’t personally interest you.

WORD COUNT: 1323

MASTERLIST SERIES MASTERLIST

A/N: Okay guys, my brother is staying with and that’s why I haven’t been updating at all. I’m trying to get these out at least. Hopefully tomorrow I can sit down and get some writing done! If you guys want to request something send me some concepts!

You had gotten the acting job of lifetime. You got a part in the new hit television series on Netflix called Outer Banks. You had watched season one while quarantine was happening and fell in love with the show so when your manger asked if you wanted to audition for a part you couldn’t say no. You went for auditions and hadn’t heard back so you assumed you didn’t get the part until the called asking if you could come out and start shooting.

When you got to meet everyone at the first table read, they were so nice and inviting. It was definitely intimidating to go, they were all so close with each other, and you didn’t know if you would fit in or not. The first person you met was Jonathan Daviss, and he invited you to lunch with him and Rudy. After that you hit it off with everyone. You especially hit it off with Drew. You guys spent a lot of time together considering your characters interacted with each other a lot. You got to play Rafe’s lawyer in the second season, so you guys had a lot of scene together.

Drew was always so sweet and would come over to your place and help you run lines together. Always making sure you were comfortable with what was going on. Even though it wasn’t a big role, it was one of the biggest roles you had in your career. He always gave you best tricks to acting and warned you about all the mistakes he made. It was funny listening to the embarrassing stories he would tell you.

You had always been a helpful person, trying to find something you could do always wanting to be with your hands. You always had anxiety and working with your hands always helped. You had been walking by the wardrobe trailer when you could hear a small cry. You stop dead in your tracks, going back to the door. You lightly knock on it asking if the girl was okay. She explained to you it was her first day and she couldn’t make the friendship bracelets the Pouges wore and that has her one job. She had a 20 of them to make and she couldn’t even finish one.

You felt bad for her, remembering all times you said you could do something and couldn’t then got stuck in your lie. You offer to teach her, and even make some of the bracelets for her. You showed her how to make a simple knot, and then got the stuff you needed and headed back to your trailer. Before you went back you stopped by the lunch tent to grab something to eat. You were grabbing a premade salad and drink when you felt someone’s hand on the small of your back. You look up to see Drew smiling at you. “You wanna wait like half hour to eat? I’ll stop by your trailer and we can have lunch together?” He asked and you could tell he was nervous.

You thought the world of Drew. You loved hanging out with everyone, but the time you guys spent alone. You had a crush on him since you first met him, but never said anything because you didn’t want to get your heartbroken. Your last before left some damage and you weren’t sure if you were ready for another relationship. “Yeah, I would love that! I’ll grab us some snacks.” You smile at him. “Okay, I’ll see you later.” He wonders off to go shoot the scene.

You make it back to your trailer sitting on the couch putting some documentary on and grabbing your fruit tray. You clip the string to your pants, and start working away at the bracelet, you had gotten a fair amount done when the door opens. Drew had his hair gelled back for his character, and some shorts and tee shirt. You look up smiling at him. “Ugh, I hate filming in the heat, where’s your fan?” He says barreling through your trailer looking for the fan you kept for days like this.

You laugh at him being so over dramatic. “It’s in the closet where my clothes are, grab some water out of the fridge if you want.” You offer, he normally helped himself anyways. You went back to your show and bracelet. “What are you making?” Drew asked sitting next to you with his lunch offering you half his sandwich. You take a bite, “it’s a bracelet. I was walking past the wardrobe spot.” “You mean the dressing rooms?” He cut in, trying to make scene of the story. “Yes, that’s what I said, anyways the girl working there is new, and she was crying because she couldn’t make the bracelets that the Pouges wear.” You explain to him, “I use to make them in high school, so I showed her and now I’m making some of her. A guess she had to make bunch.” Drew couldn’t get over how kind you were. “I wanna learn! Teach me!” He said excitedly

You looked at him, he’s got to be kidding. Everyone always thought you were weird because you knew how to make them. Some of your friends thought it was cool but not many. You were shocked that Drew wanted to learn. “You actually want me to teach you?” You question giving him a second to back out. “Hell yeah! If you do it, it’s gotta be fun!” He joked with you easing the tension. “Okay here you can finish this one, clip it to your pant leg it’s easier that way.” You explain taking the almost finished bracelet clipping it onto his pants. “Now take the string with this hand,” you grab his hand, putting it into the right position. You were so close you could smell his cologne. He smells amazing. Drew was so nervous. He liked having you this close. “Then you knot this string around this, and then you pull. Repeat it twice for each string then switch to the next color! It’s that easy!” You say looking at him.

Drew hadn’t paid attention to single thing you just said. He was too busy watching your facial expressions, studying the ways your eyes lite up when you explained things to him. “Yeah-uh yeah, I think I have it, just show me one more time.” He says trying not to be obvious. “Okay listen to me this time, over like this twice then switch to the next piece string until you’ve complet- Drew Starkey are you listening to single word I’m saying?” He was caught. “I’m paying attention, just not to the right thing.” He says blushing. “Cheeky bastard, come on, I have to finish these.” You look at him. You didn’t realize how close his face was to yours. You look down at his lips, licking yours, then back looking back at him. He was looking at you, you slowly leaned in, and he did too. When your lips met, it was almost shock. It just felt right. You kissed him, but he kissed you back. You two kissed for what felt like forever, when you climbed on his lap. Things getting more heated until you finally pulled away desperate for air.

You rested your forehead on his, both breathing heavily. “I’ve wanted to do that since the first table read.” You tell him, voice barely above a whisper not wanting the words to leave the two of you. “I know so have I, I just didn’t know if I was reading the signals wrong.” He spoke quietly. You guys stayed quite for another minute. “Y/N?” Drew looks at you, “can we go back to kissing?” He asked already leaning closer; You answer him by leaning down and connecting your lips together. The bracelets were long forgotten, but the kiss wasn’t.

#drew starkey #drew outerbanks #drew starkey blurb #drew imagine #drew-starkey-imagine

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gas-station-trackphone · 4 years

Text

Fic Recs/Mandatory Reading for Reddie fans

Here is an incomplete list of some of my favorite Reddie fics on ao3, because i cannot get over the sheer talent of this fandom’s wonderful writers! A lot of these are the Greatest Hits that you’ll find on almost every fic list, but that’s why I consider them mandatory reading. like if you haven’t read some of these, what are you doing?

the years go by like days by georgiestauffenberg, rated M

the 27 years in between, but better because richie and eddie stay together. every time i think of this fic, i think of that lady gaga meme where she’s like “brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, etc” and maybe it’s bc this is one of the first reddie fics i ever read, but this one is always gonna be my favorite

broken record by spunknbite, rated E

the mother of all time loop fics. every reddie veteran gets chills at the phrase “the house on Neibolt was still standing”

literally everything by stitchy

like seriously just clear a few days bc you’re not gonna want to stop reading this author once you start. no other author has made me literally fucking cackle in one paragraph and sob in the next like this one, pls do yourself a favor and devour all their works like i did

the night we met (take me back) by camerasparring, rated E

ch2 fix-it where eddie shows up at richie’s door alive and with no memory. great slow burn with a wonderfully conflicted richie, 10/10

let’s hear it for my baby! series by cloudings, rated E

OOOOOOOHHH boy! a modern teen!reddie grindr AU that’s both steamy AND sweet?? more like a fucking blessing amen hallelujah

a heart that laughter has made sweet by marjaani, rated E

another lovely teen!reddie fic that’s got it all! sweet, stupid boys, humor, a teeny bit of angst, and some 5-alarm fire smut with some top eddie, as a treat

keep talking. i’ll keep walking toward the sound of your voice. by theappleppielifestyle, rated T

angst with a happy ending is my favorite, and this one is just fantastic. so sweet, so sad! and stan is featured as eddie’s afterlife buddy and idk about y’all but i cannot get enough of stanley uris in my reddie fics. read this, then read all this author’s reddie fics, they’re all amazing

collateral by loosecannon, sheepknitssweater, rated E

a post-ch2 fic that i guess could be classified as fix-it, BUT with some very interesting twists. they beat the clown, everyone lives, but no one really gets the tropey happy ending. the WIP sequel is also incredible and i live for the updates.

the greater fool series by mischiefmanager, mostly rated T with some E

this is a series i’ll reread a lot bc it’s so fucking good. follows young reddie into early adulthood, mostly a bunch of cute shit where they figure out themselves and their relationship. also contains the single best teen reddie fic in existence, he came in through the window, but reading the whole series is a must

brokeback derry and everything else by Amuly, rated E

27 years in between, richie and eddie reconnect in their 20s and meet back up in derry twice a year to remember and love each other before going back to their lives and forgetting. so much pain. there’s a lot of sweet stuff in there, but you can see shit’s gonna get complicated from miles away and the anticipation almost gave me stomach ulcers (in a good way). ultimate angst with a happy ending.

let me name the stars for you by playedwright, rated M

speaking of angst with a happy ending...Martian AU!!!!! this one fucked me up in the best way, i literally called my roommate at 2am to vent to her about my emotions after reading it. i go back and reread chapter 8 just to be overwhelmed by it, and it makes me cry every time. plus, there are awesome sequels/companion pieces in the series! read this, i beg you!

walk through fire for you by hyruling, rated T

unwind after all that angst with some cute, drunk, confused eddie being very upset when he finds out richie is engaged. richie only teases him a little before pointing out the matching ring on eddie’s finger.

in the heat of the summer (you're so different from the rest) by kaboomslang, rated E

post-ch2 slow burn with tags that really say it all, including but not limited to: eddie moves to california and richie is a mess, Eddie Kaspbrak’s Hot Girl Summer, and cute middle aged man dates

pivotal moments by danfanciesphil, polypocket, rated E

high school reddie has a sort of fwb thing goin on, but emotions get in the way. featuring wonderful bevchie friendship, hella miscommunication, cute double dates, high eddie, and a happy ending

like a bullet in the back by jerry_duty, rated M

adult idiots in love! a personal favorite trope of mine! slow burn with a fair helping of angst but a really great ending. richie stays with eddie in new york while he’s there on business, and it takes these losers SO LONG to figure it out but the way they dance around it is very cute

no sense of living without aim [WIP] by liesmyth, rated E

richie and eddie meet on grindr in the 27 years between and hey, whadda ya know, they fall in love! i really love this fic but i’m pretty sure it’s been abandoned. i’ve had it open on my phone browser for like 3 months with no update but i still check it regularly bc i’m pathetic and this fic is just so good i’m DYING to know what happens next so read at ur own risk

a strange sense of familiarity [WIP] by Katranga, rated E

another “they meet and fall in love without remembering” fic, and even though it’s not complete yet, it gets regular updates. oh, also, i’m obsessed with it. they’re long distance fuck buddies who can’t admit they’re in love, and then they get hit with the childhood memories! and everyone lives! what’s not to love! also PLEASE read kisses take like mint and every other reddie work by this author, they are all fantastic

adult friends by sudowoodo, rated T

AU where adult reddie meet at a first aid seminar for work (immediately fall in love), become friends, become best friends, and finally get to be happy. has some super repressed eddie and intensely pining richie, which is always fun, and genuinely made me laugh out loud. also please check out this author’s other reddie fics, there’s some super sweet kid reddie in there that really warms the heart

the mind's a funny fruit by joldiego, rated T

eddie wakes up barely alive in derry, has 0 memory, calls himself richie, and moves in with some lesbians. an absolute must read that ought to be on every reddie fic rec compilation. i read this a long time ago and just thinking about it makes me want to read it again.

now what i'm gonna say may sound indelicate [WIP] by IfItHollers, rated E

it took me entirely too long to find this fic since i joined the fandom, and it’s truly a fucking masterpiece. it’s almost at 200k now and still unfinished, and the slow burn is excruciating, but this is a legendary fic for a reason. eddie spends the first chunk of this fic in the hospital recovering from the massive chest wound, and then he and richie move the recovery to ben’s cabin in the woods. the author’s notes for each chapter are a story in themselves

signs of a new lifetime by swordfishtrombones, rated T

one of the sweetest, most romantic reddie fics i’ve ever read. a fresh take on a classic concept: post-ch2, they’re in love, they haven’t said/done anything about it yet, BUT!!! it’s not angsty! they are all cute and giggly like “you say it first!” “no, you say it first!” and it makes me fucking MELT

broadcasting tower by swordfishtrombones, rated E

back-to-back recs from the same author! bc i love these fics so much! sort of similar to the last one in that they both know what’s up and just haven’t said it, but this one’s got the angst! i didn’t know when i read it that it was the same author as the other fic, and i thought how funny, i found another reddie author that perfectly captures this pair in such a wonderfully romantic way! i also just noticed there’s a follow up to this so now i have to go read that immediately

eurydice; the original comeback kid by Vulcanodon, rated M

for the love of god please read this and the other work in this series. it’s a ch-2 fix-it with some intense action sequences and major pining, and it has haunted me since i first read it

love on the telephone by tempestbreak, rated E

okay this one is really just 30k of pure smut but it’s also so sweet and features a mini sexual awakening for eddie and some insecure richie with an emphasis on how much they love and trust each other. also it doesn’t hurt that the smut is fire, like does anyone else want that twink obliterated, or is it just me?

the boy who loves you by candlejill, rated E

eddie lives, richie confesses, things are chill and then they’re not. richie’s career flourishes, which is always nice to read and is what ultimately catalyzes eddie’s gay awakening and realization of his love for richie. it’s got some sad angsty parts and a very sweet ending, and it up there as one of my favorite reddie fics of all time

richie and eddie break up [WIP] by skeilig, rated M

a refreshing and realistic take on life ch-2 for the losers, because being in love at thirteen doesn’t mean you can fall into a perfect relationship at 40. i’ll admit, i’m hoping this will ultimately be a “richie and eddie get back together” fic, but it’s still a very good read (and often very funny in the second chapter) at the moment in the midst of their break up

september 1989 and everything else by pineapplecrushface, rated T

cute kid reddie figuring it out and making me smile. the follow up to this and the after derry series by this author are also personal favorites

go west by ssstrychnine, rated T

road trip fic! an absolute work of art slow burn with teen reddie in the 90s. it’s so beautifully written i just wish i could go back and read it for the first time again

the edification of eddie kaspbrak by tozier, rated M

character study with some incredible fucking prose, my lord it gorgeous. explores how eddie learns about love as he grows up, and it’s super fucking sad sometimes bc the poor boy doesn’t know how to have the things he wants and i just want to give him a hug, but it’s really a spectacular fic

circular motion by sinchronicity, rated M

soulmate!AU that follows book canon and even though it’s been a long time since i’ve read it and the details are fuzzy, i remember absolutely loving it and thinking it was incredible

tell me you know by RichiesToesHurt, rated E

college losers with some severely pining and jealous richie with a lovely ending

predicament bondage [WIP] by dgalerab, rated E

i resisted reading this fic for so long, recently broke and binged all of it, and now i’m like frothing at the mouth for updates. richie’s a closeted actor/comedian who meets eddie, a professional Dom, when he needs help researching a role. they become friends, they develop crushes, richie realizes he’s a sub, and it’s just so much fun to read

there’s a lot more fics to rec so i might add on to this in the future, but in the meantime my biggest tip for for reading fanfiction that took me embarrassingly long to figure out: focus on the authors! if you read something you like, check out the rest of the work by that author bc odds are you’ll like that too. i mentioned it in a few specific works above, but check out the authors catalogues for these fics. if i included every work by these authors that i loved, this list would be miles long

feel free to add on any great stuff i missed, there’s sure to be tons of it!

#reddie #reddie fanfiction #fic rec #IT movie #it stephen king #losers club #these are mostly just my ao3 bookmarks #there's more in my ao3 if you want to check me out: lilypond3

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grapefrutjuce · 4 years

Text

The first thing is to do with Amira’s outing of Kasim. I don’t blame Amira for this - I blame the writers. The second is the delicate situation that Amira and Dani find themselves in. Tons of rambling, again.

Is there a realistic, plausible circumstance where she might have outed Kasim in some fashion? Perhaps. I generally tend to thing it’s a bit out of character, but let’s say it could happen. People make mistakes, and that is indeed a Big Mistake. My issue is with the way it was framed.

As many people have pointed out, the moment of her decision to implore Dounia to check on Kasim while he was at home with Lucas was basically tension-free. Dounia wasn’t being angry or wrathful, and her gist of the situation was basically accurate. What did Amira have to gain in that moment by choosing to STILL push Dounia to find Kasim, at that exact time? I mean, by that point Dounia was accepting of Dani and Amira and the tone was mostly conciliatory. Amira could have let bygones be bygones for the sake of the friendship. Case CLOSED.

Instead, Amira’s actions came across as quite vengeful and calculating. Maybe if it had been in the middle of a heated argument - we’ve seen her lose her temper before - and she blurts out more than she should have. She could insist on Dounia confronting Kasim immediately (she’s sick and tired of being used and blamed), and he might be outed as a consequence.

But how about as an unintended consequence of Amira lashing out in anger, instead of totally on purpose? Where Amira thinks again and instantly regrets what she’s done, once she realizes? Not to mention completely neglects to mention Lucas or Kasim in her prayers...don’t even know what that’s about.

Plus, this is after Amira specifically told Lucas he could trust and confide in her. After knowing what Cris went through. I’m just baffled at this choice. I can’t really make it make sense, so I’ll just...ignore it I guess.

Now with Dani and Amira’s relationship. After the conversation she had in the library with Viri and Eva, I was wondering what direction things might take. Amira mentions struggling herself, and that she can’t imagine how bad it is for Dani. She mentions her desire to not ‘pick and choose’ from the rules. Eva emphasizes how big a Sacrifice this must be for Dani, because no guy would bother to do the same for her.

With this things in mind, I thought perhaps Amira might go to one of two extremes. One, she might feel guilty about what Dani is ‘giving up’ to be with her and as a result push herself beyond her established boundaries in terms of physical interaction. I didn’t want that to happen because it’s cliche and reiterates the implication that Amira - just Amira, as Dani himself wrote - isn’t enough. Chaos ensues, and she appears weak in her faith.

Or, she might do the opposite and cut Dani out of things unceremoniously (sort of like what OG Sana did when she found out Yousef was atheist). She wants to stick to the rules she chose, why involve Dani at all? She doesn’t want to be this great temptation or struggle for anyone, so maybe they should quit while they are ahead and keep their own separate paths. Given the friendship that Dani and Amira are supposed to share above all else (this is pointed out in the few interviews I’ve read), this makes her seem cold and uncompromising, that she doesn’t believe Viri’s ‘love can conquer all.’ I’m not interested in that ‘hard, fierce, independent’ stereotype for a WOC character.

Now, after the context of their almost kiss and Amira’s conversation with Nora about the situation, it seems like they’re walking on thin ice with option number one.

The almost kiss itself, I didn’t really have a problem with. They are attracted to each other, things are still new. It will be something they need to focus and work on, if they want a future together - there will be times of uncertainty or weakness. Communication will still be the key. I appreciate that Dani did try to break the tension afterward. I can’t say I fault him for following Amira’s lead in that moment. But he didn’t pursue it or pressure her, or act passive aggressive or disappointed. I can’t take such things for granted.

And, others might disagree with me here, but I don’t know if I’d like him being the one to ‘correct’ Amira in that sense. Like, if she had leaned in and he responded by reminding her of the rules they agreed to or turning away or something. In real life, I think it would be fine for him to do so - if they were in a serious, mature relationship. It’s always important to support your partner and encourage them to be true to themselves, or not to do something they might regret.

But on SKAM (a fictional show about a bunch of kids), I think it would irritate me if Dani was suddenly the morality police who had to chastely rebuff Amira’s advances. To me it would read like Amira lacks conviction or agency or both, or that she’s toying with this poor white boy’s heart. Or it would make him seem like the pure damsel to Amira’s lustful villain lol - IDK, just bad optics.

But, Amira’s conversation with Nora? I didn’t care for it, honestly. I didn’t really understand it. When Amira was talking about her decision to wear the hijab to her mom, it was made very clear that it was just that - her decision. It made sense to her and was right for her. But the way she talked about her relationship with Dani, makes it seem completely different. As though she herself wants the same type of relationship her friends have, and doesn’t see why it might not be the best decision for her personally. I mean, if it was her parents who just forbid it - ‘no kissing boys’ - then her complaints would sound normal, that she would feel it isn’t fair. Because your parents have a lot of control and can enforce seemingly arbitrary rules that you disagree with.

Here, that’s not exactly the situation. Amira told Dani she eventually wants to raise Muslim kids, and her education is her primary focus right now. She genuinely didn’t seem interested, or like she would derive much from, a casual relationship. I’m sure she would like to be physically affectionate with him; I’m not questioning that. But the way she spoke to Nora made it seem like she wasn’t choosing to abstain, like she didn’t agree with it and didn’t understand it.

‘You can do it and I can’t, that’s not fair.’ I mean, anyone can do anything. Isn’t that the point? You’re just trying to be honest with yourself in your own soul when you make your choices. So when Amira says she wonders if it’s all worth it, what does she mean? Not worth dating if you can’t do anything physical? Or not worth refraining from contact if you are dating? If she genuinely sees no harm in kissing Dani, or can do so while having a clean conscience, then what’s stopping her? Is it really just boiling down to ‘rules are rules’ for her?

It’s not that she wouldn’t have doubts, all people do. Just the wording, I don’t know. It didn’t sound so much like Amira as it did someone who follows religion merely by rote, with no thought or heart in it. Then why do it at all? I’m not a very good Muslim by any means, but in my view that is not sustainable.

My wish is that the Dani and Amira relationship succeeds to show that being ‘different’ is still valid, and you can choose to express your feelings with your partner in the right way for you. It doesn’t make it any ‘less’ than anyone else’s relationship and it isn’t wrong or dysfunctional. I don’t think the execution is that great, but I still have hope in the message. I’ve seen more than enough Nadia/Guzman types to last a million lifetimes - for once, can we please have the Muslim character worthy of devotion and romance without changing a thing?

#skam españa #amira naybet #dani soto #damira #danmira

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worryinglyinnocent · 4 years

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Fic: Jump

AU-gust Day Eleven: Farm/Ranch AU Fandom: Once Upon A Time Pairing: Rumbelle

Rated: G

Summary: Belle and her horse, Philippe, move to a new town, meeting former show-jumper Gold. A friendship blossoms between them and begins to move into something more.

Jump

Moving across the country was a very different experience when you also had a move a horse. Belle had almost turned down the job opportunity of a lifetime until she had found riding stables just outside Storybrooke who would be happy to let her rent space for Philippe.

Now the day had finally arrived to get him settled into his new home. She had taken a couple of tours of Gold Stables and Riding School before moving to Storybrooke, and she had found them to be clean and roomy, with the resident horses well looked after. Neal and Emma Gold, the owners, were friendly and welcoming, and Neal was chatting with her quite happily as she got Philippe into his new stall until he stopped mid-sentence, looking out over the paddocks that spread out away from the stables.

“Oh, for God’s sake,” he muttered. “Em!”

“What?” Emma was standing in the yard with a group of kids on ponies.

“Dad’s out by the jumps again!”

“Oh, leave him be, if he wants to break his neck then that’s on him.”

Intrigued by the conversation, Belle peered around Philippe and down in the direction that Neal had been looking in (and was now standing shaking his head in despair). There was a set of jumps in the furthest paddock, and Belle could see a figure on a brown horse circling them at a fast trot. They were too far away for her to make out any features, and she decided that it would probably best not to say anything. It was a family matter, after all.

At length, Neal seemed resigned to his father’s stubbornness and continued his conversation with Belle, although she could tell that his attention was only half on her and half on the other paddock. After a couple of minutes, she took pity on him.

“You know, I should probably give Philippe a good brush, get him nice and relaxed. I’m sure that you’ve got lots of other things to be doing rather than talking to the newbie.”

Neal gave a grateful nod and rushed away after welcoming her to the stables again, and Belle put the incident to the back of her mind, concentrating on brushing down Philippe and combing the straw out of his tail. He never particularly enjoyed going in the horsebox, and she wanted to make sure that he was properly calm again before she left him alone for the night.

“Well, Philippe,” she said, palming him some apple and patting his neck, “I think that we might be in for some exciting times here.”

There was a clatter of hooves in the yard, and Belle looked out over Philippe’s stall door to see the horse from the jumping paddock being led in, its rider in a heated argument with Neal.

“Dad, how many times am I going to have to drag you away from those jumps? You know you’re not supposed to jump! You’re barely supposed to ride as it is!”

“You really think that I don’t know that, Neal? Let go.” He batted Neal’s arm away as he reached for the horse’s reins. “I might be crippled but I can take care of my own damn horse.”

Neal threw his hands up in defeat and left in the direction of the house, set back from the yard. His father sighed, looking first at Neal’s retreating back and then at his horse.

“He doesn’t understand, does he? I mean, he’s right, but he doesn’t get it.”

As he began to lead the horse across the yard, Belle noticed the heavy limp, and she could well see why he’d been advised not to ride. He stopped short on seeing Belle and Philippe peering out of their stall.

“Well, Imp, I think you have new neighbours. It’s been a while since you had some company.”

Imp snorted, and Belle couldn’t tell if it was in welcome or derision. She seemed to be eyeing up Philippe rather warily. Belle couldn’t exactly blame her; Philippe was larger than the delicate mare in all proportions.

“Welcome to the stables,” Imp’s rider said. “I apologise for that spectacle, but sadly it probably won’t be the last time you see it.”

He went to move past Philippe’s stall to settle Imp next door, and that was when Belle managed to put all the pieces together.

“Wait. You’re Cameron Gold, aren’t you?”

He stopped in his tracks and turned back towards her, giving a slow nod.

“Who’s asking?”

“My name’s Belle. Belle French. I’ve just moved to Storybrooke to take the librarian job. And obviously Philippe moved with me. I was a big fan. I am a big fan. I’m really sorry about what happened.”

Gold nodded again, but his mind was clearly elsewhere. “Yes,” he said softly. “Yes, so am I.”

Up until a few years ago, Cameron Gold had been one of the biggest names in professional show-jumping, until his horse had fallen badly during the final of the world championships. The horse, a prize thoroughbred named The Price of Magic and almost as famous as her rider, had been put down and Gold himself had been injured badly enough to end his career. He’d fallen into obscurity since then, and Belle didn’t know why she hadn’t made the connection sooner. Gold stables, Cameron Gold.

It was watching Gold in action at the Olympics that had made Belle keep up with riding, even when funds were tight, and it would have been financially advantageous for her to sell Philippe and all her paraphernalia. She’d not had enough money to be able to continue lessons once she was comfortable enough riding alone, so she’d never been able to learn to jump, but it had always been a pipe dream of hers.

She shook herself and got back to brushing out Philippe’s tail. So, she had met the man now. They always said never to meet your heroes, but Gold had seemed nice enough in the few moments that she had spoken to him. She tried to reason with herself that she wasn’t going to bump into him again, but then, if he lived at the stables with Neal and Emma and was out riding a lot, then she would likely see a lot more of him just by dint of them existing in the same space.

Belle sighed. He probably wouldn’t appreciate her hanging around and asking questions about a career that had ended extremely painfully for him, so it would probably be better if she just kept her mouth shut and pretended not to notice, as much as she might want to spend all afternoon talking to him.

Once she was convinced that Philippe was going to be ok, she left the stall.

“I’ll be back tomorrow, Philippe.” He nudged the sleeve of her jacket in protest and Belle sighed. “You silly sausage. You’ll be fine here. Neal and Emma will take good care of you when I’m not here, and there are lots of horses and ponies for you to make friends with. There are so many more than in your last paddock, and face it, you were getting a bit tired of looking at the same faces over and over. You won’t be fighting over that bush with Lady anymore, surely that’s something.”

She heard a low chuckle from the stall next door and peered in; she had forgotten that Gold was in there with Imp. Imp was giving Philippe the side eye, and Belle wondered if she had been a little too optimistic about Philippe making new friends in his new stable.

“Well, you’d be nervous too, moving to a new home and suddenly being faced with a bunch of stablemates you’d never seen before,” she said.

“Oh no, I completely agree.” Gold patted Imp’s flank. “You be nice to your new neighbour now, Imp. Don’t go putting on airs and graces now. I’m sure he’s harmless.”

“Philippe wouldn’t hurt a fly,” Belle agreed. Indeed, a fly had just landed on the end of his nose and it looked like Philippe was going cross-eyed trying to get a good look at it.

Imp poked her nose out of the stall, looked at Philippe, and gave a pointed snort. Philippe snorted back, and it wasn’t long before the two horses were engaged in a full-on staring contest. Gold rolled his eyes and sighed.

“She might be haughty at the moment, but she’ll be fine tomorrow. She’s just a bit highly strung; she gets that from her mother.”

“Is she… Is she Magic’s foal?”

Gold nodded. “Yes.” He stroked her mane. “I wasn’t going to keep her. She’s got jumping pedigree and she really ought to go to someone who can give her a chance to compete properly. But after I lost Magic, I couldn’t bear to let Imp go too.”

He paused, and when he spoke again, it was clear that the subject was changed. “Do you jump yourself? You’ve obviously got an interest in it.”

Belle shook her head. “No, I never had the chance to learn. Philippe’s probably too heavy to jump anyway.”

“I’m sure that’s nonsense, let me take a look at him.”

Gold left Imp and came around to Philippe’s stall, looking at him from a couple of angles. “No, he’ll be fine over the jumps. He’s large, but he’s not exactly a carthorse.”

Philippe snickered in hearty agreement. He, a carthorse? What a suggestion!

Gold went back to Imp. “If you’d like to learn, I’d be happy to teach you.”

“Really?” Belle’s heart began to beat a little bit faster. “Are you sure? I wouldn’t want to be an imposition.”

“I’m not exactly doing much else with my time.” Gold sighed. “Neal is right, I shouldn’t be jumping myself, doctor’s orders. I’ve only just got through enough physiotherapy to allow me to ride again. I’ve resisted teaching for a long time, but I think that the time’s come to accept I’m not going to be able to reclaim my former glory, and I might as well pass on my knowledge whilst I can.”

Belle smiled. “Well, if you’re sure, then I would love to learn.”

Gold worked her and Philippe hard and he could be a strict taskmaster, but Belle couldn’t deny that he was a good teacher, and he never pushed her and Philippe beyond their limits. She was never going to get to Olympic standard any time soon, but she was very pleased with the progress that she had made so far.

Her lessons would, she felt, be going slightly better if Philippe was not constantly trying to impress Imp. She had not noticed it at first, but as time had gone on and as she and Gold had spent more time on horseback together, she had noticed that Philippe was taking a definite interest in his stable neighbour. Whether or not Imp returned that interest was up for debate; she certainly acted aloof when they were in the yard together being brushed down after lessons. On the occasions when they had been loose in the paddock, however, Belle thought that Imp’s frosty side might be thawing out slightly. She had been spotted getting a lot cosier with Philippe than her demeanour in the stables would imply.

They were walking back towards the yard having finished a lesson, Philippe nosing at Imp who kept huffing at him to go away, and Belle glanced over at Gold. As cliché as it was for her to be falling for Imp’s rider as Philippe was falling for Imp, she knew that she was developing more than a little crush on Gold. She liked to think that they were friends – he was giving her lessons for free, after all, and they always got on with an easy camaraderie. Neal had even privately thanked her for giving his father something to focus on to stop him trying out the jumps himself again.

Still, Belle couldn’t help but hope that they could become more than friends.

They had reached the yard and begun unsaddling the horses, and Belle decided to bite the bullet. Do the brave thing, and bravery would follow, right?

“You know, since I moved here I haven’t really ridden much in the area away from the stable,” she said. “I’ve always kept to the paddocks, but I think it’s time for Philippe to stretch his legs a bit more. I was going to take a ride down one of the bridle paths tomorrow after the library closes.” She paused, buoying up her courage. “I was wondering if you and Imp would like to come with us? I was going to take a flat route; it shouldn’t be too taxing for your leg.”

For a moment, Gold looked at her as if she had grown a second head, and Belle began to worry that she had said something terribly wrong. “I mean, you don’t have to…”

“No, no, I’d like to. It sounds like a great lovely idea. I just thought that surely you’d have other friends your own age who you’d prefer to spend your time with?”

Belle shook her head. “Not really. I haven’t lived in the area all that long, and none of my friends can ride. Besides.” His shyness had served to build up her confidence a little. “I’d like to go with you.”

Gold smiled, a schoolboy grin of excitement, and Belle wondered ever more strongly if her feelings might be returned.

“Well, in that case, I’d like that very much.”

#rumbelle #rumbelle fic #Belle French #Mr Gold #Ranch AU #AU-gust #Worry does AU-gust #Fic: Jump

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kaylathekittykat225 · 4 years

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Bonds Across Lifetimes // Dick Grayson X Reader

Warning/s: death, pain, um, flirting? It’s a relationship based one basically

Word Count: 4,217

I thought this was cute, but then again, this is something I wrote almost two years ago and dug up out of my computer, so please don’t judge me too hard core about the corniness.

Here’s my Masterlist.

Enjoy.

—–

Bonds can span lifetimes. The bond of friendship is the foundation to every other bond known to mankind. No one can yet explain how a bond is formed; but whether through magic, other worldly intervention, or something as simplistic as the workings of human emotions, bonds are formed within the first moments of meeting.

Age 8:

Driving through on the outskirts of the city of Gotham is one mistake you would wish your parents never made, but at the same time is happy that you were on the snowy road on the Christmas Eve of 2007.

As you opened your tired eyes, you had to blink multiple times to get the clouds out of your eyes. You looked around, wondering when you fell asleep in the car, taking a while before you notice that the car your family had had as long as you could remember was shoved into a tree on your daddy's side of the car.

"Mommy?" Your young voice squeaked out, looking for your parents around you, not seeing them in the front seats. "Daddy?"

The front window was gone, where did that go too?

You reached for your seat belt, wanting nothing more than to walk around and find where your parents went off to and know why they left you in the car. But your car seat was in the way, pinning the buckle beneath the plastic seat.

"Hello?" All around you from what you could see out the window looked like a bunch of trees with the classic fluffy snowflakes of a Gotham winter covering the car and everything around it.

There were no houses or roads or anything to tell you where you were.

Or the better question, why you were alone in your car.

"Help," Your voice grew quiet, your lower lip began to tremble as warm tears in your eyes began to spill over and run down your cheeks.

A tree branch snapped loudly near you, your sobs stopping to listen for who, or what, was coming near you.

Was it a bear?

Were there even bears in Gotham? Or what if it was Joker, or Penguin, but why would they-

"Robin, really? A stick?"

"Sorry." Two voices began bickering at each other, one sounding older than the other. "I just wanted to get a better look."

Two figures stepped in front of your car; their shadows were all you could see through the heavy snow fall. "They look dead, both of them." The younger of the two voices spoke, the smaller shadow moving around and got darker as it got closer to the car.

"Robin, don't get closer, I smell gasoline." The older and scratchier voice called to the younger one, the shadow stopped getting closer and looked like it started to get farther away.

As the voice spoke, your nose agreed with him, the smell of a gas station whenever your dad would fill up your car filled your nose. You never did like that smell, it smelled like bad corn on the cob. "What if someone else is in the car, Bruce?"

"They would have been killed with the crash as well, there's no way someone could have survived a head on collision with a tree. We need to leave before the cops show up; I called them as soon as I saw the car."

"Wow, you think of everything, Bruce!"

"Robin, it's Batman when we're out on patrol."

"Oh, sorry." The two voices went farther and farther away from you, the shadows fading away.

You wiggled in your seat, trying again to get free from your seat belt keeping you stuck in the car, the gas smell started to like roasting marshmallows and burnt cookies, "Help! Wait! Please! Help me!" Tears rolled down your face as your fingers began to bleed, the plastic cutting into your skin; your screams and sobs now mixing with coughs from the smell and air chocking you.

How could a little one like you possibly understand what the two voices meant when your parents were dead? How could they be? You just saw them a minute ago when they were driving home.

"Help!" Your voice croaked, the loud screaming hurting your throat, the snot you kept swallowing didn't help either.

Something loudly boomed on the roof of your car, a blanket covered the window behind you, which somehow was still together after being shoved into a tree. The only thing now that allowed you to see was the fire burning from the front of your car.

Wait, fire?

"Hi." A face popped in front of your broken window out of nowhere, the hot yellow fire lighting up his black mask and the smile on his face. The sudden movement proceeded to cause you to scream again, leaning into the corner of your car seat with nowhere to go. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here to get you out." You nodded your head after noticing that he talked like a kid your age.

The boy took out a knife, the silver glinting in the fire light, oh right, the fire. You looked over at the front of the car and saw the fire coming closer to you. "You're free." The boy told you, grabbing your hand to pull you out the window and led you away from your car and the tree it was smashed into.

As soon as the two of you stepped behind a tree, a loud and resounding boom filled your ears, a shock wave shaking the ground beneath you.

You pressed your hands to your ears; all you could hear was ringing while you felt someone hugging you to them. Their breath hitting your face, their own heart beat pounding against your cheek, the rate easily out racing your own.

---

There you were.

Shivering in the cold snow up to your ankles, your purple dress torn and tattered.

Your right foot was cold, that shoe lost in the car you now stared at, the flames flickering and lighting up you E/C eyes, still wet from crying.

Your parents were dead.

Leaving you alone in the woods, cold, and with only one shoe.

"You okay?" The person who pulled you out of the car stood next to you, you noticed he was a little taller than yourself.

"Mhm," He nodded with you, wrapping his cape around your shoulders as you shivered. The Robin logo on his chest now visible to you, confirming that the masked person beside you was in fact Robin, one half of the Gotham Caped Crusaders your parents always talked about.

"Um, Batman is just calling the police, and then you can come with us if you want." Your eyes met the white lenses of his mask before you smiled at him. "I'm...I'm Robin by the way. But I bet you already knew that." He smiled down at you; your eyes being even with his mouth saw a missing front tooth, waiting for a new one to replace it.

"I'm Y/N," You said, giggling at the hole in his mouth, his own confused look contorted his face, questioning why you were laughing at him. "Your tooth is gone."

"Yeah," His smile grew wider as he showed off his missing tooth, proudly placing his hands on his hips. "I lost it last week and everything!"

"Cool! I got both of mine a while ago! See." You smiled like him, showing off your two big kid teeth. He looked in your mouth and his smile turned into a pout, crossing his arms over his chest to emphasize his unhappiness.

"That's no fair. I wanna have my big kid front teeth." You wanted to say more, but a big hand gently pushed the two of you forward, one on each of your backs. Your eyes followed the hand up and saw the masked face of Batman.

"Let's get you two kids home. Y/N, I have someone who's willing to take you in. Welcome to the team." His scratchy voice wasn't so scratchy anymore; it was like he cleared his throat of snot.

You and Robin met each other's stare and giggled, quickly racing each other towards the Batmobile, while the legal driver watched you two with a rare smile on his face, happy that Dick may finally have someone close to his age to be friends with.

Bonds can form from a single look. A single touch.

Science still can't explain how they are formed, or why they are so powerful to break.

But it is the challenges they go through that tests the everlasting strength of a bond.

Age 14:

You sighed loudly, but not loud enough apparently to interrupt Zatanna very openly flirting with Robin. Now you wouldn't be totally bothered by this, if it weren't for the fact that the two of you were dating.

A year long relationship with Dick Grayson was the best thing that had ever happened to you, but it was hard to conceal your feelings toward him when the two of you are in the field together.

At Gotham Academy, the both of you are the open couple, at least, open in the fact that the two of you were almost always seen together, holding hands, trying to out run the other in gym, where ever Y/N was, Dick wasn't far behind, the same way around. Having to go into the stoic, teammate only based relationship of being Robin and Y/S/N, you were slowly going mad.

"Aw, come on, Robin, just one date, like coffee, or food, or anything that will get you out of Mount Justice." Granted, you loved Zee, but not right now. Sitting across from the two as one flirted and the other tried writing a report for Batman wanted to make you sick.

"Ah, young love," Wally sighed as he flopped down onto the couch cushion next to you, his masked pulled down as he chuckled at how awkward his best friend was females. "Isn't it just beautiful."

You grunted in response, if you had the power of Superman's heat vision, the hole in Zatanna would be huge. "Hey, Y/S/N, hello." Wally snapped his fingers in front of your eyes, trying to get any reaction from you, he had just made the best joke and no one heard it! What wasted potential.

Shaking your head, you turned to the ginger, apologizing, "Sorry, was accidentally practicing my Batglare."

Wally hummed, turning back at the two awkwardly flirting teenagers, amazed that his ladysman friend wasn't jumping at the opportunity to go on a date with one of the hottest YJ members, "So why is it that Zatanna's the target for your glare?"

A blush quickly made its way up to your cheeks as you diverted your eyes away from the two raven haired teenagers, "She's not, I was just staring in that direc-"

"Oh. Oh, I get it!" Wally shot to his feet, a wide grin on his face as he became aware of what you were up to. "You like Robin!"

"Wh-what! N-no! What made you think that?" Ad hard as you tried to play off Wally's accusation, the ginger saw right through you.

"Oh darling, you've got it bad for him! How long have you liked him? When was it, have you made a move what about..." His lips moved a mile a minute, his words all getting jumbled together as his excitement built.

"Wally!" You screeched, jumping on top of him to firmly press your hand against his mouth to shut him up. "Stop that!" The two of you were not in a funky looking predicament, with you straddling his waist and your face hovering close to his.

"I will not!"

"Ew! Why did you just lick me!" You pulled your hand back, wiping the spit on your pants to get the nasty liquid off. "So, what if I like him?" You kept your voice low, hoping Robin couldn't hear or see the two of you.

"That means so much! You wouldn't believe how much he talks about you! It gets so annoying!"

"Wally! Would you shut it!" You tried moving your hand over his mouth again, but he was prepared, using his speed to flip the two of you over to have him straddling you, his hands pinning your above your head.

"Come on, Y/S/N, what's so bad about liking Robin, it's not like he's a dick or something." You rolled your eyes as the speedster giggled at his own immature joke, not knowing you fully knew Robin on both sides of the cape.

"Honestly Wallace, could you be anymore immature," You growled at him, his face almost immediately washing of any color when you said that. "I finally did it, silenced the ever-chatty Kid Flash."

But Wally didn't react to your jeering, he stared down at you in disbelief, his bright green eyes wide with shock, shock you didn't know you had caused. "Okay Wally, close your mouth before you start drooling on me."

He kept staring at you, almost in a trance while you tried wiggling out from under him. "Wally, don't make me use your...full..." Your eyes widened as you realized what you did. "Crap!"

You as Y/S/N never called him Wallace, you weren't even supposed to know his full name, Y/N, on the other hand, you and he were practically brother and sister with how close the two of you were. "Wally, snap out of it." You groaned as you tried pushing against his hands, but his entire body weight was pressing into them.

What do you do?

What can you do?

Groaning, you accepted defeat, "Uh, hey Robin." Your voice was kinda meek, not really wanting to pull the conversation of those two to you now, even if you were still sick of seeing Zatanna try making a move on your boyfriend. "Could I get some help?"

His head pooped up from the kitchen where he tried retreating from Zatanna to, even though she easily followed him, eyebrows raising when he saw the two of you. "Y-Y/S/N. Wh-what's this?" Even with the mask on, you could read him like an open book, he was confused and almost hurt seeing the two of you situated like that.

"Wally and I were having a wrestling match and then he froze. Just get him off me, I'm losing feeling of my hands." He slowly nodded and ran over to grab hold of Wally, pulling him up and off you.

"Holy...you weren't kidding when you said that he was frozen, he's like a ton of bricks!" Robin groaned as he shoved his limp friend onto the floor next to the two of you, reaching his hand down to pull you to your feet. "What'd you do to him?"

"Well..."

"Y/N?!" Wally decided that this was his time to wake back up from his weird trance like state, his arms flailing as he tried figuring out where he was instead of leaning over you like he was before.

"Wally!" You hissed back, your eyes couldn't be seen behind your black domino mask, but you were quickly glancing at Zatanna who was trying to hide in the kitchen.

"But...you're...the two of you...huh?!"

"Honestly," Robin gently wrapped his arm around our waist, pulling you closer to his side. Looking up at him he had his signature smirk on his face as he smiled down at you. "I'm surprised it took him this long to figure it all out."

You giggled at his comment, smiling at the thought as well. "Oh yeah, I mean, we are supposed to be his best friends."

Wally stood dumb founded before the two of you, his jaw about ready to drop to the floor as he realized this wasn't a joke. "What the hell! Why am I now just figuring out that Y/S/N is Y-" You once again reached forward and slapped your hand over his mouth.

"Wally, another talk for another time, we have an audience now." Zatanna had now fully stepped out of the kitchen, M'gann floating near her, Artemis also looking over her shoulder to see what was going on. "Well, the cats more or less out of the bag," You muttered, still feeling Dick's arm around you, the three girls were all staring at how touchy he was being with you.

"Wanna just come clean?" Nodding up at your boyfriend, you smiled and stood on your tiptoes to press your lips against his, his other arm finds your waist pulled you flush against his body while your arms went around his neck to keep you steady.

"Called it! Pay up!"

"Dang it, I thought I had him!"

"Wally? Hey, Wally you okay? Guys, I think they broke Wally."

The bond of friendship is the building block and foundation to all other bonds. Bonds are meant to grow over time, never staying the same, having the ups and downs. It's the ups and downs that make the bonds stronger. Bonds are always tested, always pushed to its limit, just to see if the bond will stand the test of time.

Age 20:

You sighed as you watched Tim type away on the main monitor of the Batcave in front of the two of you. You were happily sitting by yourself in the large bat like chair watching as the team patrolled around Gotham, you stuck in the Batcave with a busted collar bone, a hip still sore from being dislocated and the job of making sure Tim didn't die from that concussion he got last night.

Tim decided to push Alfred's buttons, who was making a late-night dinner for the crusaders, and sneak downstairs to the cave and use this grounded time to practice his hacking. And in order to get to the monitor, he needed to get you away from it.

"Was jumping me really necessary?" You groaned as you shook your head working on waking yourself up from being bopped over the head with a stapler.

"Sorry," He gave you an apologetic smile before turning back to the monitor, from where you were sitting you could see he had about fifteen different tabs open, all of them being used at the same time and somehow not slowing down the processor.

Tim began muttering to himself about he needed to out hack the Robin hacking system Dick installed to train hackers on how to hack and keep outsider hackers out. Honestly, you were surprised he didn't three more 'hacks' into that sentence.

"Timmy," You groaned as you tried pulling on the rope, your shoulder twinging in pain as you worked to free yourself. "You're going to make this all worse for yourself. You won't be able to go out as Red Robin for weeks if you keep looking at that huge computer."

"But I need to keep up my practice. I need to get better!" Apparently reasoning with a concussed teenager doesn't work well. Who knew.

"Tim, come on, just go back up to Jay's room, we put you in there to stop you from using any of your tablets or computers. You need to rest."

"Have you ever been in Jason's room, I think he left a tuna fish sandwich in there and forgot about it! It smells so bad in there."

You quietly whimpered in pain, you normally weren't this emotional, but with your arm being tied behind your back and your pain meds wearing off, your mind was going through the roof with the pain you were in.

"Timothy, Tim, Timmy, TimTim," Shutting your eyes, you muttered as many little nicknames you could as you tried blocking out the pain. "Can you at least give me ibuprofen?"

"Yeah, give me five minutes."

You gulped, knowing Tim had already forgotten about your request even within ten seconds of him answering you. "Dammit Dick, where the hell are you?"

To say you were angry was an understatement. Your shoulder was pounding, the boy you were told to babysit knocked you out and tied you up and was clearly loopy, watching him click on the same tab five times before realizing that he was clicking the wrong one.

Twenty minutes had passed, and Tim was becoming more and more confused with every second he sat in front of that computer, he wasn't even responding to you calling his name. You resorted to calling out to Alfred, but even he wasn't responding. "Holy crap Tim, did you knock Alfred out too!" Still no answer.

You tried pulling yourself to your feet, but your hip locked up, as if telling you to not even think of moving. "Remind me to tell Batman to never let me babysit Tim again when he's sick."

From outside, you heard the loud roar of the Batmobile followed by the quiet purr of Jason's motorcycle. Thanking every god you could think of, even if it took forever for them to get back, to sighed in relief as the two of them pulled in. "Honey I'm home!" Dick joyously cried as he hopped out of the shotgun seat of the Batmobile.

"Get Tim away from the computer!" You barked at him, leaving Dick confused while he looked for your voice. "Richard Grayson get Tim away from that computer." You ordered once again, not needing him wasting time looking around like the idiot he could be sometimes.

Bruce swished past where you were hidden and pulled Tim out of the chair, pushing him onto the medical bed just to the side to get him away from the bright monitor. "Y/N, why'd you let him out of the room?!" Bruce still had his Batman voice going as he checked Tim's eyes, while the teen weakly fought back.

"I'm sorry he jumped me with a stapler!" You screamed back, Dick finally able to find you, he himself quickly running to you.

"What do you mean he jumped you?!"

"He came up behind me and hit me on the head, with a stapler! How is that so hard to understand Bruce!" You screamed back at him, Jason was slowly sneaking upstairs to see if Alfred had any food ready, he wasn't really in the mood to hear his family scream at each other all night. "You trained him! You taught him how to pick any damn lock!"

"Y/N, babe, calm down." This was very out of normal behavior for you, sure you weren't the most level-headed person, but you were acting very rashly about this. He finally undid the rope around your wrists and helped you to your feet, slipping his arm under your legs and picked you up, keeping very gentle care of both your hip and shoulder.

Hiding you face in your boyfriend's shoulder, you finally had time to calm down, "How am I supposed to calm down when Bruce is blaming me for being jumped? Plus, my arm fricking hurts."

The blacknette sighed "When was the last time you had your meds?" He kicked the up button on the elevator, waiting for the pulley system to meet him at the bottom. He thought he heard you say when they left, but he must have heard wrong. "What was that?"

"When you left." Your voice was louder now, but still muffled by his shoulder, meek in having to confess that you were really in pain right now.

Dick groaned in annoyance, "Babe, no wonder you're so moody." Mumbling an apology, Dick stepped into the elevator and rode it up to the entrance out into Wayne Manor. He walked the two of you up the stairs to his bedroom where he gently placed you on the bed and walked into the bathroom.

You grabbed one of his pillows and shoved your face into it, smiling as his smell filled your nose.

The gentle shake of a pill bottle pulled you out of your pillow cuddle moment and you slowly sat up, seeing Dick had changed into sweatpants and one of his skin tight t shirts, hugging every one of his muscles, somehow making him look more muscular than he really was. "Let's get you some pain meds," He muttered, slipping two of the small red pills into your hand, and pressing a glass of water into the other.

Faster than he could do a back flip, you down the pills and the cup of water, handing it to him as a shudder ran through your body. "Honestly, Gotham needs a new water filtering system." You muttered while hacking, trying to get the metallic taste out of your mouth.

"Or you could just get used to it." He chuckled as he slipped in under the covers with you, sliding himself closer to you till he could at least wrap an arm around you.

You hummed as you considered his offer, "Nah, I'll just keep hating." The smile on your face was very evident as you felt Dick's chest vibrate behind you.

The two of you fell into small talk, asking him how the mission was, anything interest. Whether Bruce's car still smells like slushies from when the two of you bought said drink and spilled it everywhere. This slowly faded away as you felt your eyes get heavier as you felt sleep finally taking you over.

Well you were almost asleep.

"A stapler? Really?"

"Why don't I hit you over the head with one and you can see how well it works Bruce!"

Bonds are meant to be tested. To stretch. To grow. To twist and turn. Almost as though they were meant to be pushed past breaking.

But the best of bonds never break, they are strong through determination and the will of two young super hero legends, no bond between the two can break. It will only grow stronger. Stronger through every day spent together and every day they spend together.

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luvknow · 5 years

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sundial | kim seungmin

genre: kim seungmin x fem!reader | light angst ; friends-to strangers-to lovers ; high school/college/spring break au ; mentions of alcohol ; swearing summary: you’re in love with seungmin at the wrong time. wc: 9.6k

“Oh, my God, finally.”

Inside the posh coffee shop in the middle of downtown, Hyunjin sat at one of the tables impatiently awaiting your arrival. Of course you were late, how could you not be when he chose a place to meet up that was closer to his campus than yours!? And during the lunch rush, of all times. He always had a habit of choosing places or ideas that were more convenient to him, but he offered to pay, so it was an offer you couldn’t refuse. The clout you got for hanging out with his stupidly handsome ass was a plus for your social media points, too, so fine, you’ll hang out with him.

Hyunjin had his glasses hanging on the tip of his nose and shot you a sassy glare that reminded you of when your high school teachers would look at you both when you walked into class late because he had to fix his hair in the bathroom.

“Sorry I’m late.”

“No, you’re not,” he scoffed. “What took you so long?”

“I saw this trash bag on the side of the road and I thought it looked just like you, so I stopped and took a picture. Uncanny resemblance, right?” you teased, showing him the trash bag on your phone.

“You think you’re so funny, huh?”

“I’m hilarious.”

The handsome boy sighed dramatically and handed you your favorite order. “Here’s your drink, although it’s probably half water by now.”

“Thanks, and I’ll live.” You happily took the iced drink from his hands.

Hyunjin might be annoying and unbearable on most days, but he was one of your closest friends who regularly kept in touch with you after graduating high school. Meeting up in coffee shops in between classes or grabbing a bite to eat on the weekends was a regular move and those little meet ups were what brought you two closer together. Sometimes the meet ups had a purpose, like he needed last minute tutoring for an exam the next day that he totally forgot about or he was just lonely and wanted some company for dinner. During those times, you’d talk about random shit like some hot chick Hyunjin met at a party, or this drama you were totally into or reminisce about the good ol’ days and it’s like you never left high school.

Ah, the good ol’ days… Were they really that good if they were spent in high school?

You did miss a lot of your other friends that were in the group. It’s not to say that you and the rest of them weren’t close, it was just that your relationship with most of them was more like picking things up where they left off. Hyunjin also went to the college closest to yours, so you often joked about how your friendship with him was based off of convenience, which was kind of true all things considered, right?

“You’re usually not as urgent when it comes to me being late. I think you texted me more today than you have in a month,” you noted suspiciously.

“Can’t I just be eager to see you ~?”

“No.”

“Caught me. I’m eager to see you because I need an answer from you by the time we part ways.”

“You sound so romantic - like when the guy is confessing to the girl when it’s raining and he’s like ‘I love you! I need to know if you love me, too!’”

“Not to disappoint your fantasy of dating me, but I’m not confessing to you. At least not today,” Hyunjin giggled cutely. “A bunch of us are getting together for spring break at Changbin’s vacation home. You down to go?”

“Ah, the vacation home! We have a lot of memories there.”

Both you and Hyunjin could clearly remember after senior Prom all the cheap booze everyone drank for the very first time and both of you hogging the only two bathrooms to hunch over the toilet puking for hours. It was the morning after when everyone appreciated the stash of ramen Changbin had specifically for lunch with a banging hangover.

“And we’re about to make some more memories as dumb kids in college. So are you down, or what?”

“It depends. Who’s going?”

“The usual: Changbin, Jisung, Chaeyoung, Dahyun, Seungmin, Chan -”

“Wait, Seungmin’s going?”

“Yeah? Why wouldn’t he?”

Seungmin was the only one you didn’t really keep in touch with. There were texts here and there, maybe a Snapchat or two once in a while, but you never made the effort to meet up with him even when he was the one who asked to see you. When your best friend that goes to a different school asks to see you just once every month because he really misses you, the normal response would be for you to be excited because God, you really miss him, too. But your situation was a little more complicated than that.

“Right…” you hesitated.

“Why are you responding like that? You two were like the closest out of all of us.”

You shrugged weakly while playing with the straw in your drink. You hoped your body language could help you lie out of this one. “Even the closest friends can drift apart when their schools are on opposite sides of the country.”

“No, they would find a way to make it work.”

“Yeah, well… This one didn’t go very well.”

Hyunjin sensed your hostility and didn’t push the matter forward. Though his nosy self is curious as to what you meant, you’ll tell him when you’re ready. “Don’t let the awkwardness between you and a couple of others stop you from coming! We’re not the same without you.”

“I don’t know…”

“The _____ I know wouldn’t be such a coward.”

“Hey, I’m not a coward!”

“Then what are you so afraid of!”

“Nothing!”

“All I’m saying is that this isn’t very cash money of you.”

Hyunjin had this charm about him where he could passively pressure anyone into doing anything. It was like the most ordinary superpower known to mere mortals - basically all he’d say to get someone to do something was ‘bet you won’t’, but fancier and with more filler words that made you lose brain cells. Like what does you not being very ‘cash money’ even mean…

“It’s not even for the whole week, it’s during the weekend spring break starts because Changbin has family coming over afterwards. Please come? I’ll be so lonely…”

“Shut up, no you won’t.”

“Give me one good reason why you don’t want to go and I’ll leave you alone. Hell, I’ll even be your alibi and lie for you when everyone asks where you are, but only if you tell me what’s really up.”

Dammit. You had to weigh the pros and cons between telling Hyunjin the truth or sucking it up and going. If you tell him, he’ll stop bothering you, you’ll end up lonely and stuck at home, and now Hyunjin knows that painful secret you keep locked in the apex of your heart. But at least you won’t see the boy in question’s face, you know he won’t go around telling anyone, and your heart is still intact. If you end up going, you’re spending a weekend of a lifetime with your closest friends but that means Seungmin will be there, too. What were you to do if you went and saw him for the first time after avoiding him for so long? Would the heavy weight of guilt rest on your shoulders the whole weekend? Would you feel that familiar crack in your chest? Would your heart be in pieces by the time the weekend was over?

Were you being too dramatic? Maybe. Even though you believed your heart was strong, you couldn’t deny that it was weak for Kim Seungmin.

You could totally lie to Hyunjin, sure, and maybe if he was any other person you probably would have, but your friendship with him meant so much that lying to him was out of the question.

Ok, you’ll go. No one, not even Hyunjin, can know your unprecedented feelings, at least not yet. You’ll suffer through the heartache if it means no one will know.

“Fine, I’ll go,” you said halfheartedly.

“Really!? Awesome! You and I can drive down together. Ah, this is going to be so much fun!”

“I hope so.”

“We’re the closest to the house, so we can leave early and have time to stock up on the goods. Is silver tequila still your drink of choice?”

“Actually, I’m more of a Hennessey girl now ~” you bragged jokingly.

“Wow, are you getting classy on me, babe?”

“For spring break, I am.”

“I suppose Henny-thing is possible on spring break.”

It’s a terrible pun that made you wish you were deaf at that moment, but sadly, Hyunjin was right - anything was possible the moment you see Seungmin.

You met Seungmin by chance. The day you met him was the day the Principal had asked you to show the new kid around school because you shared the same schedule. Of course you agreed because you figured transferring halfway through the year was not easy at all and it’s not like you had the option to decline, anyways. You remembered how shy his smile was, but it still held an undeniable warmth to it - like how the sun rays would peak over the horizon at 6:00 am on a Sunday morning. He matched his smile with a bashful personality, silently nodding and following you around the school like a lost puppy and that’s how it was for about a month. Then you two were partners for assignments, lunch buddies, a carpool dynamic duo, and just like that, Seungmin became your confidant.

Ninety percent of your high school life was spent with Seungmin by your side. The other ten percent was crying over grades, but you easily repressed and replaced those memories with college replicates. You could never do the same to those memories with your best friend. Practically everyone knew how inseparable you two were and that was only because you two came from totally different social classes.

Seungmin was the sports guy. Not necessarily a jock - Minho fit that stereotype more than anyone else - but Seungmin was just naturally good at a lot of sports and still managed to keep his grades up which landed him a full ride to the school he currently attends. All those sports meant a lot of games which also meant a lot of cheerleaders and you know how it goes from there. To put it simply, Seungmin was popular.

You, on the other hand, weren’t as high on the hierarchy of popularity. As long as you weren’t at the bottom of the food chain, the high school protozoan society, you didn’t care where you fell on the infinite layers of the pyramid. But when your friends and his friends and your friends’ friends and his friends’ girlfriends and THEIR friends all knew about how close you two were despite your differences, it was like world peace had spread throughout the school because who knew the star athlete would befriend an understudy like yourself?

That’s pretty much the baseline of how your weird group came together. Seungmin would have his games and matches that you’d always attend and he’d introduce you to his teammates he got close to. You met Hyunjin at a volleyball game; Chan, Minho, and Jisung at a basketball game; Woojin and Changbin at a football game; and Sana and Momo were the cute cheerleaders who never let you forget how much they loved to hug. Seungmin met Felix, Jeongin, Dahyun, and Chaeyoung through you and that was your one big, happy, Breakfast Club-esque loving friend group.

You’re not sure when your heart decided without your consent to flip the switch from platonic to romantic, but you think it was either on one of the nights he sat with you in your parked car with food on your laps talking about the stars and beyond until 2:00 am or when he looked for you in the crowd after winning one of his games. You think it’s the latter because even though those late night talks with mix tapes he made you playing in the background held a special place in your bruised heart, nothing could compete with the feeling of running into his gross and sweaty arms after a game. His hugs were tight, like he couldn’t even bear the thought of ever letting you go. It’s like those cheesy romantic comedy movies set in high school, where the two main characters hug in the middle of the basketball court with confetti falling like snow and they faded out the crowd to focus on how perfectly you fit each others arms.

At least that was how you felt, but you watched way too many rom-coms growing up.

What sealed those feelings in your heart for good like piping hot wax on an envelope was when he asked you to Prom. The way he asked wasn’t extravagant like how all his other teammates asked their dates, but it was perfect nonetheless. It was perfect to you.

It was 9:00 pm on a Wednesday. Your school won this huge basketball game all because Seungmin landed a three pointer right on the buzzer. You went about your natural routine by jumping into his arms before he swung you around, fading out the background noise so it felt like it was just you two in the middle of the gymnasium. When it was time to leave school grounds after he’d finish changing, the skies were pouring.

“Did you bring an umbrella?” he asked you.

“Nope.”

“Same here. Well, I could use a shower after tonight’s game.” Without a warning, the silly boy ran into the rain towards your car with a big grin on his lips, leaving you stunned. Already soaked to the bone, he turned back to you. “Are you coming, or what!?”

“No way, I’ll get sick!”

“You and I can get sick together! C’mon, we won a game today, celebrate with me!”

He ran back to you and dropped his gym bag by your feet before taking your hands and pulling you out from under the awning. The rain was cold that evening, but you focused on the warmth of his hands instead and that was enough to forget about the rain. For a while you two danced as Seungmin screamed the lyrics to Dance Dance and Stop the Rain by Day6 at the top of his lungs with your laughter filling in the gaps.

You felt invincible. You’re in love, and you felt like you could fly forever in the pouring rain. How was he able to do that to you?

Then finally, after catching your breath from singing and laughing, the pouring rain subsided to a light drizzle and it’s the only music you both can hear. You’re too distracted trying to move the hairs stuck on your face to notice Seungmin kept his eyes on you until you returned his gaze with your confused one.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” you wondered.

“You don’t have a prom date, right?”

“No, but thanks for reminding me.”

“Oh, that’s good.”

“How is me spending prom alone good!?”

“Because I was going to ask if you wanted to go together.”

What. “C-Come again?” you stuttered, hoping the rain was a good excuse to hide your nervousness. Prom? Together? With Seungmin? It’s something you could only imagine in your dreams.

Seungmin got down on one knee and pretended the container of Ice Breakers from his pocket was a ring box. “_____ _____, will you go to Prom with me?”

Your body reacted in different ways. At first, your heart felt like it was racing to flat line, then the butterflies in your stomach fluttered like it was midday summer, and then you felt your head pounding against the walls of your skull. Seungmin was the only one who could make you feel this way.

Of all people, he chose to spend one of the most special nights of your high school life with you.

“Yes, I’ll go, you dork. Now get up before the security man watching us through the cameras gets the wrong idea.”

He looked up at you with his sunshine smile and rosy cheeks and its then when you realized you were in deep trouble.

You never questioned why he asked you. You probably should have - were you going as friends or something more? Did he feel sorry for you because you two were the only ones without dates within your friend group? He had people lining up to be asked by him, so he could have easily asked someone else, but he didn’t. Why?

Prom rolled around quickly, a lot faster than you expected and you were completely terrified. Everyone got together at Changbin’s mansion to get ready - the girls stayed in his sister’s room and the guys were hanging out for a couple hours before actually getting ready because it only took them like ten minutes to do so.

Seungmin was dressed in all black, like the rest of them, with his cherry red hair styled handsomely and standing out from all the black. His mouth was gaping when you entered the room. You were stunning, absolutely breathtaking. He held your delicate corsage in its plastic container and you couldn’t help but imagine that this was like how he had your heart in the palms of his hands.

His grin stretched from ear-to-ear the moment you stopped in front of him.

“You’re so pretty,” he teased, tapping the tip of your nose.

Your heart did a flip. “You don’t look too bad yourself.”

And so prom night commenced! It was like any other high school dance except food was provided and the school expanded their budget so they could hire a good Dj for once. The decorations, the food, the occasion itself - none of that mattered the second the dance floor opened up.

Seungmin took your hand and dragged you onto the dance floor, thus making you two the very first couple to break it in. For a couple of seconds, this moment really was like how you’d always imagined it to be - you and Seungmin alone in the middle of the room, not caring about the world surrounding, and simply loving each other’s company. The venue could have been burning around you for all you cared, and even then, you don’t think you’d even notice it because Seungmin was with you.

Your friends and classmates joined in not long after, causing you to shorten the gap with your best friend. With your hands in his, bodies close, surrounded by your favorite people, even though the idea of dancing alone with Seungmin sounded so perfect, sharing the dance floor with all of your friends was nice, too.

Then the slow songs came on and you panicked. How did normal people act in this situation!? Did they just… go right into it? As if reading your mind, Seungmin was already guiding one of your hands to rest on his shoulder. One of his hands ghosted over your waist and the other was occupied holding your other one. It was one thing to hold hands - you were kind of used to the touch - but his hand on your waist was totally new. There were tiny, little electric shocks to your skin whenever you felt pressure in that area. You could feel him switch from ghosting over your waist to actually holding it for the shortest second.

It hit you that he was nervous, too.

“Are you having fun?” you asked, trying to break the awkward silence.

“If I’m with you, always.” Your heart hurts. “How about you?”

“It’s never a dull moment when I’m with you.”

“I’m the life of the party, huh?”

“Well, you’re definitely the party in my life.”

“I’ll hold that title with the highest honor.”

“You better, Kim Seungmin.”

Being in his arms lasted too shortly. The dance ended with Seungmin being crowned Prom King and some girl from the same social ranking was crowned the Queen.

“Hold tight,” he told you. “I’ll be all yours again in a minute.”

They danced to some slow song to commemorate the occasion and somehow you’re not jealous. Rather, you felt alone. Seungmin could have been dancing with anyone. Hell, he didn’t have to be dancing at all for you to have felt that way. Just looking at him, standing within the circle of people, watching him smile the same way that made your heart flip, made you feel so, so small - like the tiny moon being compared to the vastness of the sun. He couldn’t have been more than fifteen feet away from you, yet he felt a million miles away.

What hurts the most was that this - whatever you and him were - was as good as it could get.

That’s just how it was, and that’s how it would always be, because Seungmin fell for the other girl in his arms a week later.

The sun was so warm even though it was only 8:00 am. The feeling was reminiscent of a simpler time. It took you back to when you were still in high school, hanging out with your friends until the sun rose again the next day with the only thing worrying your young minds was what kind of food you all wanted to eat. You and the girls didn’t bother suggesting any places because the guys would be yelling and arguing too much to listen, but it got to the point where you and the ladies were hashtag over it and went ahead to the place and texted the guys, ‘see you @ this location’. Eventually the guys learned to compromise, so now everyone got a turn to pick a place to eat.

The sun wasn’t the same in college. Sunrises and sunsets weren’t spent at the beach, but rather spent in the library on weekdays or you completely slept through them on weekends. At least this weekend you could be in the sun again. It was already off to a good start when you and Hyunjin soaked up the Vitamin D in his I’m-a-privileged-kid convertible.

“Whoa, your car has a camera, too!?” you gushed, pressing every button imaginable.

“Yes, now stop messing with my settings!”

“I call Dj! How do I turn up the bass in this thing?”

The journey to the famous vacation home was a couple of hours away, so with all of the pit stops for grocery shopping and instagrammable scenes to capture, you both would arrive around noon. You both practically wiped out the snacks and frozen foods section of the general store and with the bottles of alcohol and red solo cups in the second cart, the cashier was totally judging your guys’ purchases when the store only opened fifteen minutes ago. You tried to hide your shame behind Hyunjin, but he proudly swiped his credit card and bid the cashier a wonderful day. (“Why are you so embarrassed!? They’ll never see us again.”)

“So are you going to tell me what’s up with you and Seungmin or am I going to have to respect your silence?” Hyunjin asked after eating the french fry you fed him from your fingertips.

You knew he was going to ask eventually, so you weren’t thrown off when he asked, but that didn’t calm your nervous one bit. You might as well tell him. What did you have to lose?

“Promise not to tell anyone?”

“Uh-oh, that doesn’t sound good. But I pinky promise.”

“It’s nothing huge… Things just aren’t how they used to be, you know?”

“You said so yourself that even the closest friends can drift away, but why is it that when you hang out with the others, it seems like things haven’t changed at all? Now that I mention it, I can’t remember the last time I saw you hanging out with Seungmin. When was the last time, anyways?”

“When did we graduate high school…?”

“Seriously, _____!?”

“I couldn’t do it, Hyunjin!”

“It’s not because you’re in love with him or something, are you?”

There was a short silence after what he thought was a rhetorical question and he can only assume from there because God forbid that you’d admit something like that out loud. Harshly, he pinched your arm hoping he’d knock some sense into you.

“Ow, what the hell! I didn’t say anything!” you whined.

“You didn’t have to!”

“It’s complicated, ok?”

“Oh, I’m sure it is.” Hyunjin ran a hand through his messy hair as if he knew delved into something deeper than what he expected. “For how long?”

“I don’t know… Around Prom maybe?”

“Isn’t that around the time he started dating what’s-her-name?”

“Yeah. Let’s just say the whole avoiding him thing started around that time, too.”

“_____, you need to tell him.”

“Are you out of your mind!? Why would I ever do that!?”

“You know they broke up like last year, right?”

Your heart did that familiar little flip. “Really?”

“Yes!”

“But that still doesn’t mean I should tell him. It’ll just make everything more complicated than it already is and what if I ruin the dynamic of this group? What if it gets awkward and you guys have to pick sides or alternate who you hang out with on certain days like kids of divorced parents?”

“That’s not going to happen.”

“How do you know?”

Hyunjin let out a dramatic sigh as if he’s heard this too many times before. “You can’t let Seungmin know what I’m about to tell you. And don’t be mad, ok?”

“What do you mean…?”

“He asks about you all the time.”

Oh. Well that was unexpected.

“He does?” Either the sun was too hot or your heart was racing too fast, but you could feel your cheeks burn brighter after every passing second. Where did you put the sunscreen?

“When he sees you on my Snapchat, whenever he and I are texting, hell even when he’s at some party at three in the morning, he’ll ask me how you are because I guess I’m the closest he’ll ever get to you these days. He really misses you, you know? He wasn’t going to come on this trip unless you were going, so I promised him that I’d get you to go. Luckily that wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be.”

Hyunjin’s words struck your chest painfully and you’re filled with guilt, but you couldn’t risk mistaking Seungmin’s gestures for reciprocating your feelings when in reality he was just trying to be a good friend and make up for your lack of effort. Seungmin was always so caring and thoughtful of you, and what did you end up doing after graduation? Ghosting him and making up excuses because you were a coward.

“It’s up to you whether you want to tell him or not,” Hyunjin said, breaking the tense silence. “But I say shoot your shot.”

“You always say shoot your shot.”

“Yeah, but how often do I make my shots? Like one hundred percent of the time. That’s both precision and accuracy, baby, so you should trust my word.”

“But I’m not you, Hyunjin.”

“Very true, but you could be missing out on something great if you don’t go for it. _____, you and Seungmin… There’s no one out there that could be more perfect for each other than the two of you.”

“You think so?” The way your words came out sounded more like a surprise instead of you begging for some reassurance and you hoped Hyunjin caught that before he fed the little glimmer of hope inside your heart.

“I know so.”

Why did he have to say that?

The vacation house was exactly the same as it was on Prom night, only a lot cleaner. You almost forgot how huge it was - it was the biggest one on the block. Only the biggest and the best for the Seos.

Hyunjin parked behind a shiny black Audi that had Chan’s name written all over it.

“My car is still sexier, right?” Hyunjin pouted.

“I don’t know, dude. You got some competition.”

Changbin, Chan, and Sana greeted you both with open arms and tight hugs before helping you bring all of your stuff and the supplies in. The three were already dressed in their swimwear ready to soak up the sun while dipping their toes into the crystal clear waters of the lake and you couldn’t wait to join in. Sana dragged you to the girls’ room which was really just Changbin’s sister’s room, but it was the biggest one in the house.

“I missed you!” she gushed cutely while clinging onto you like a leech. You weren’t as hug-y like the rest of the group, but you admit that Sana’s hugs were one of the few you missed dearly.

“I missed you, too, you dork.”

“So ~” she sang suggestively with some sort of implication hiding in her tone.

“What…”

“I heard Seungmin was coming ~ And he’s single ~”

“Sana!” you shrieked, covering her giggling mouth. “Shut your pretty little mouth!”

“So you do like him!?” she muffled under your hands.

“How in the hell did you figure that out!?”

“Girl’s intuition? You’re also a terrible liar.”

“... I’m going by the lake.”

“Wait, me too!”

As the hours passed, more and more people started arriving and the fun was just getting started. By the time Jisung and Minho’s loud asses arrived, the tables were already set up outside and the liquor was practically pouring itself into everyone’s cups. All that was left was Seungmin and Woojin to arrive with boxes and buckets of pizza and chicken.

At the edge of the mini pier, Sana kept on nudging you whenever she noticed you look towards the door.

“Nervous?” she teased again.

“You have no idea.”

“Just don’t worry about it! Let the drinks do the talking for you!”

“It’s barely 2:00 pm, you alcoholic.”

“It’s five o’clock somewhere.”

As if God wanted you to suffer, Hyunjin sloppily swung open the back door of the house to reveal Woojin and Seungmin holding lunch.

“WOOSEUNG IN DA HOUSE!” Hyunjin yelled, hoping you would hear.

Time began to move slowly - so slow that you hoped time would just stop so you wouldn’t have to live through the weekend. You instantly regretted agreeing to coming here the moment Seungmin laid his big, curious eyes right on you. He found you right away like he was looking for you and you only. Time completely paused once you were caught under his gaze and you felt like you were turning into stone. You felt like the many men who fell under Medusa’s gaze - where was your Perseus when you needed him? (He was busy eating a chicken leg. Hyunjin was literally The Worst Perseus.)

Time only returned back to normal when he smiled at you. It’s been so long since you’ve seen it, but you could never forget a smile like his that held a special place in your heart - it was irreplaceable. His eyes did the cute little upturn that had your heart racing faster than you realized and now time was moving too fast. Were you panicking? Maybe, but you couldn’t tell. He lifted his hand to wave at you but instead of returning the gesture, you jumped into the lake.

The water was cold. Even though you could see the sun rays from underneath the surface, they didn’t warm up the lake like you hoped. You appreciated the scattering, glittering light for only a second. The colors reminded you of all the fairytale stories about mermaids and pirates and oh, how you wished to be that young and naive again. The union of yellows and blues helped you calm down before you returned to the real world once more.

“Yo, you good?” Changbin called from the pier. Seungmin stood right next to him, worry painting his beautiful face and you felt your body sink deeper under the surface.

“Yeah! I, uh, thought I saw something shiny down there…!”

“Quit being weird and eat with us!”

Reluctantly, you headed towards the ladder on the pier. Water droplets were blinding your eyes when an anonymous person gave you their hand for help and it took a few blinks to see that it was Seungmin.

Under the shade, his hair color was a warm chestnut, but under the sun, flecks of cherry berry strands peaked out proudly.

“Hey,” he greeted before wrapping a towel around your shoulders. You’re shaking, but not because you’re cold. “I think you need this.”

“Hi… And thanks.”

“How are you -”

“Ti~ime to eat!” Hyunjin yelled, dragging both of you towards the picnic table. Thank Zeus for your Perseus.

Woojin found the restaurant where he bought the fried chicken from around midnight the night after Prom. He was so damn hungry after a vigorous game of Smash that he ordered the catering option on the menu and had it delivered. He didn’t want the set up or anything, he just wanted lots and lots of chicken, for all of you of course, and you remembered how much you and the girls clung to him as a thank you for buying real food that wasn’t chips and dip. He didn’t order the entire menu this time now that there was pizza, too, but everyone was happy with the food choices,

Seungmin sat across from you at the picnic table and you wished you had a drink in your hands to chug so you couldn’t worry about his presence. It didn’t help that Sana sat beside you, kicking you at random times throughout lunch both in a teasing manner and as a ‘talk to him, you weirdo’ manner.

“You still only eat the wings?” Seungmin asked.

“Hm?”

Looking down, he was right - you strictly had spicy wings on your plate. Whenever you and Seungmin got a combo plate at any chicken restaurant, you both would split it down the middle. You favored the spicier pieces and Seungmin opted for the milder ones. You expected his plate to be full with mild drumsticks, but his taste must have changed over the years because a spicy wing or two surprised his plate. Yours, on the other hand, stayed the same. What a weird metaphor for how the years in between affected you two.

“Since when did you eat spicy?” you asked.

“Since I didn’t have you hoarding all the pieces.”

“Ah, you should have said something back then! Now I feel bad.”

“You know I could never say no to you.” Seungmin teased.

Despite your restraint, despite the ache in your chest, you couldn’t help but smile. It was nice talking to you again. He was so happy that you were here right in front of him after so long. Even if it seemed like you were miles away.

After lunch, you and Seungmin were the only ones who helped clean up while the rest dove into the cooler or prepared the solo cups for drinks. Luck must have been on your side today - or rather Seungmin’s.

He wanted to talk to you - to ask you how you’ve been; to ask why you never wanted to see him; to tell you he misses you so, so much. But he didn’t. He stayed silent. You stayed silent. It hurts - everything, anything, all of it.

You spent the rest of daylight away from Seungmin. How was it that even talking about something as stupid as chicken wings gave you heartache? Or maybe it was heartburn? Regardless, being near Seungmin wasn’t good for you. No matter how many times today he tried to talk to you, to be beside you, to get you to even look in his direction, nothing worked. It’s like you wanted nothing to do with him.

What did he do to have you hate him this much?

“He keeps looking over here,” Sana noted while you both dipped your feet in the lake. She left the teasing tone behind when she noticed you hadn’t smiled as often as you should be on spring break.

“Why…?”

“He misses you.”

“I wish everyone would stop saying that.”

“Fine fine, I won’t bother you with it anymore.”

Just when you thought you could sit calmly without a care in the world, without wondering about how the boy you loved was looking at you, your serenity was interrupted by Sana pushing you into the lake. The icy water knocked the sorrow out of you and now all you wanted was revenge.

“You bitch!” you giggled before yanking Sana in by her feet.

Then chaos ensued! From the rope hanging on the tree to floating on the little inflatable banana, everyone joined you two in the lake. Laughter filled the open air and for the first time since Seungmin arrived, you didn’t think about him at all, even when you felt his eyes on you.

Your smile was still the same. So was your laugh, your little nose crinkle, and the blush that adorned your cheeks. With the setting sun behind you, Seungmin was reminded how you were still so beautiful. How could he have forgotten? It really must have been that long.

Your hair clung to your face the same way it did when it rained.

After the boys were tired to jumping off of the rope, taking flexing pics with the girls, and a hundred rounds of chicken, the sun set calmly below the horizon. Orion’s belt glittered the night sky first and that let everyone know it was time to bring the festivities inside.

“You comin’?” Hyunjin asked.

“Gimme a sec. The city doesn’t get a view like this, y’know?”

“Don’t stay out too long, you’ll get sick.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

The night air was crisp and cool, peaking through the holes of your knit sweater. It helped you sober up from what little alcohol was left in your system and you felt good even though you were alone. The slow winds dried your hair while you sat contently at the edge of the pier and for a short while, you just enjoyed the reflection of the moon on the water in solidarity.

Seungmin joined you shortly after he wrapped a towel around you again and you’re no longer nervous nor bothered by his presence. It was time to face the inevitable. Seungmin was always quite persistent when it came to you, so why bother fighting it. So here you two were - old, distant friends sitting at the edge of the pier in a tense silence waiting for the other to say something.

“Hi,” Seungmin began.

Your heart flipped. “Hi.”

“How are you?”

He was trying to be careful with his words - tip toeing around you so he doesn’t scare you away. How does one go about a conversation after being absent for so long? How are you, he asked? You’re coasting through torturous monotony. Before you could answer, he corrected himself.

“I guess it’s more like how have you been? It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“A couple of years now.”

“Yeah… why is that?”

His tone was a homogeneous mix of curiosity, hurt, and upset and it was hard to tell the difference. He’s not mad, that you’re sure of, because you had to have your reasons, right? But would you be honest with him about it?

“What do you mean?” you questioned innocently.

Seungmin jumped right into it. “Why don’t we ever see each other anymore? Did I do something wrong?”

No, of course not! “No, that’s not -”

“Then what is it? You don’t answer my calls, my texts, or anything! I need a middleman just to get to you! What am I supposed to do when I’m up at 3:00 am at some party drunk off my ass and I’m somehow still thinking about you and worried about whether you’re eating right or sleeping enough!? I can’t call you because you won’t answer, so you know what I do? I call Hyunjin, and it hurts. It hurts because I’m sitting here wondering if you even miss me, too, or that you already replaced me with him, but I still call him because I miss you, _____. But I also can’t be calling Hyunjin every single time I think about you.”

He was like water breaking a beaver dam with his emotions spilling all at once. Seungmin’s angry and his voice is shaky, but he’s not angry at you. He’s angry at time and how time functioned. Something like this was inevitable, right? Moving cross-country to different schools, dating other people, drifting apart, forcing yourself to forget about him just so the pain in your chest would subside… It was bound to happen.

“Do you remember our promise?” he asked.

There was a huge get-together, one last hoorah at Woojin’s place before everyone parted ways to different colleges. Seungmin would be the first to leave tomorrow and it hadn’t hit you until you and him stood on the rooftop of the apartment complex overlooking a place you called home one last time.

“Are you all packed?” you asked quietly.

“Mhm.”

“Got your teddy bear and everything?”

“You know it.”

“Posters? Decor? Pictures of friends?”

“Yes, yes, and yes, although half of them are of you and me.”

“Perfect.” The tears in your eye were stinging. “How is Yuna taking it?”

“Way worse than you are, that’s for sure.”

“That’s how all girlfriends are supposed to be.”

“It’ll be worse after she drops me off tomorrow. You know how dramatic she can get.”

“Sure.”

Yuna would be the last one to see him. She’d be the last to hug him, to kiss him, to tell him she loves him, and it was better this way.

He nudged you with his elbow and brought you out of your thoughts. “What’s up with you, space case?”

“Nothing, I just…” The tears start to fall. “I’ll miss you a lot. That’s all.”

He chuckled because how could you be so silly? Of course he’d miss you, too, but nothing would change. There was nothing for you to be sad about. Seungmin pulled you into a big bear hug and smoothed out your messy hair that got tangled in the wind. His hugs felt like home.

“I’ll miss you so much, _____-bear. I promise I’ll keep in touch.”

“Ok, I believe you.”

“Never replace me, ok? I’ll fight someone if I have to, I swear.”

“I believe you,” you giggled.

“Promise you’ll never forget me?”

“How could I forget THE Kim Seungmin?”

“Just promise me. Please?”

“I promise I’ll never forget you, Kim Seungmin.”

“Mm, good. You know I love you, right?”

You’re crying harder and it hurts to breathe.

“I love you, too.”

“Did you forget? About the promise - about me?”

Seungmin was looking at you, silently begging for you to return the favor, but you refused. It’s like he didn’t know who you were anymore.

“I could never forget about you,” you reassured. You were unforgettable.

“Then where were you!? Where were you when I missed you? When I missed home? When I aced my final and wanted someone to tell me they were proud of me? When I was heartbroken over Yuna? Or when I just needed to know you were ok!?”

Where were you? Drowning your sorrows in some cheap jungle juice? Dying at the library maybe? Somewhere with Hyunjin? Most importantly, you were probably ignoring those feelings for him deep in the apex of your heart. That’s what you were doing on most days.

All that effort went to waste in the end.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled pathetically. “It’s been rough these past couple of years.”

“Me, too, and that’s why I needed you. Do you not need me anymore?”

You’ll always need him. No matter how far apart you are, no matter how hard you denied it, no matter how much you tried to forget him, deep down you knew you’ll always need him. The heartache would be worth it as long as he was with you, so you should stop fighting yourself, right? It would subside one day.

“I’ll always need you,” you whispered. “Maybe I just needed to be alone. In high school, I didn’t know who I was without you - isn’t that crazy? We’d been stuck together for so long and now we’re facing adulthood alone. Well, I’m alone, at least.”

“I’m lonely, too.”

“Yeah, but you have Yuna.”

“Had.”

“Right, sorry.”

“But you have, Hyunjin, don’t you?”

“I see him like twice a month and we don’t talk about that kind of stuff, so that doesn’t really count in my book.”

“Twice a month? That’s a lot… Yuna and I didn’t even see each other that often…” There’s a hint of jealousy in his tone and you shouldn’t feel accomplished, but it felt good to be on the other end of the spectrum for once.

“Can I ask…?” you hesitated. Were you ready to open a can of worms you weren’t prepared for?

“You mean what happened with Yuna?” Seungmin shrugged carelessly as if heartbreak was just a thorn in his side. “Even I don’t know.”

“What do you mean?”

“One day I’m telling her ‘I love you’ and the next day I can’t say it back.” He laughed but it left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“You just stopped loving her…?”

“Yeah, I guess. I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know!?”

“Ah, don’t get mad!”

“I-I’m not…!” you lied. Ok, you’re not mad, you’re more confused if anything, but how could he not know what went wrong in their relationship!?

“Funny, that’s exactly how she reacted when I said I don’t know.”

“If I ask a guy I’m in love with why he doesn’t love me back anymore and he says, ‘fuck if I know’, you bet your ass I’m gonna be pissed!”

He laughed again, but this time it was genuine. Then a comfortable silence fell in between. Seungmin got what he wanted to say off of his chest and you two were bickering like you would in high school, but he knew there was something you were holding back. The _____ he knew was never this shy around him. Yes, things have changed, but even he speculated it couldn’t be by that much, right?

“Are you ok now?” you asked.

“After the break-up? Oh yeah, I’m fine. The first week was bad, but I’m ok now.”

“That’s good. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you needed me.”

“It’s ok. As long as you’re here now and you won’t ghost me anymore.”

The heartache would be worth it. “I promise.”

“Good, because I don’t think I can continue missing you like this anymore.”

Seungmin loved the moon. She was beautiful tonight, but not when compared to you. In the same sense, you loved the sun, but you loved Seungmin more. The love story of the sun and the moon was tragic, wasn’t it? Fate decided that two beings full of light and love destined to only love each other would never cross paths. They would perpetually revolve around the Earth for eternity only getting a glimpse of each other every twelve hours, seeing the other fall below the horizon just before they could even say hello. But once every four hundred years, the sun kissed the moon during the solar eclipse. Waiting four hundred years was nothing compared to the short moment they shared together. It was worth every second when the timing was right.

“_____.”

“Hm?”

“Have you ever been in love?”

So this is it.

“I have.”

You saw Seungmin tense up next to you. He must not have expected you to say yes right away. “Really…?”

“Mhm,” you hummed with more confidence. Seeing his reaction was kind of fun. Was he wondering who you could be in love with?

“What’s it like?”

“You should know better than me.”

“I wouldn’t say that… But what’s it like for you? What’s it like for cold-hearted _____ to be in love?”

“I’m not cold-hearted! Am I…?”

“Ghosting me for two years is kind of cold-hearted in my eyes.”

“Ok ok, I deserve that.”

“Tell me, _____. Tell me your love story.”

You hugged your knees close to your chest hoping they’d protect your heart a little more than the cage it was already in, but she was wild like a bird and ready to break through any second. Not even you could anticipate how she’d react while you told your story.

“I wouldn’t call it a story,” you shrugged. “There’s no plot, no character development, no comic relief - hell, there’s not even a resolution of conflict. It’s just one big cloud of conflict.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Neither do I, to be honest.”

“Why was it conflicting? Doesn’t being in love make all your problems irrelevant? Doesn’t it make you want to fly?”

“It did at first, but now it feels like my wings have been clipped and just the thought of flying hurts because I want what I can’t have.”

“Now? You’re in love now?” he asked incredulously.

Curse the Freudian slip. “I-It’s just a metaphor…!”

You watched his shoulders relax. “Is your love story happy at all?”

“It’s more of a tragedy than anything else.”

“What happened?”

“How does that one saying go? You can’t help who you fall in love with? I guess I fell for the wrong person.”

“Couldn’t it just have been the wrong timing? Love just doesn’t fall into your lap. If you’re meant to be, you’ll end up with each other eventually, right?”

“I don’t know if I really believe in that.”

“Why not? The sun thought the same thing when he first fell in love with the moon and bam, four hundred years later, when the timing was right, they were together in a painfully beautiful eclipse. Total eclipse of the heart in the most literal sense.”

“Solar eclipses don’t even last ten minutes!”

“That’s not the point!”

“Well, what about you and Yuna, hm? Did you think you guys just fell in love at the ‘wrong time’?”

“No, we simply weren’t right for each other. I don’t think we’ll ever get back together - it’s not like she’s my soulmate.”

“Please don’t tell me you believe in that stuff, too!” you groaned loudly. Even in the midst of all the bickering, neither of you could hold in cheek-burning smiles, arguing just like the old times. You missed this just as much as you missed him.

“Of course I believe in it! How can you not!?”

“That’s not fair, Yuna reciprocated your love. You believe in this kind of stuff because you got to love and be loved and learn that you weren’t right for each other. So obviously, you fell for the wrong person at the time, right? It wasn’t just the timing of things.”

“But we both knew that because we were being honest with our feelings for each other, regardless of how we ended. How can you know for sure you just fell for the wrong guy or if it was the wrong time when you’ve never told him how you feel!?”

“Because you loved Yuna!!”

Crickets chirped in the bushes, lightning bugs danced by the shore, and pesky little mosquitoes stung the surface of your skin. You tried focusing on anything, even bugs, just so you wouldn’t have to look at Seungmin’s twisted and confused face. You should jump in the lake again - you would sink beneath the surface and hope evolution would turn you into a mermaid in a matter of seconds so you could swim away and never return.

You wanted to get up and run inside, but you were too tired. You wanted to cry, but even so, you were too tired. You wanted Seungmin to leave you for good and give you the answer you needed to hear, but maybe he was also too tired…

Even if he did leave, even if he ignored you forever, even if he hated you for loving him as more than a friend, would that make everything easier? It had to be better than this silence, right? It was so quiet that you could hear your heart collapsing as the seconds passed.

When You Love Someone by Day6 played on the shitty speaker of Seungmin’s phone.

“Do you remember this song?” he asked.

You could feel his eyes bore holes into your soul. “This played at Prom, didn’t it?”

“It was our first slow dance together.” Seungmin hopped up from his seat and held a hand out to you. He chuckled at your confused expression. “Dance with me.”

It was a command, not a question, so you reluctantly (gladly) obeyed. With both your hands in his, he pulled you up and guided both around his neck. His hold on your waist was not as shy as it was on Prom night. You’re not used to this confident side of him, but you figured it was just one of the few things about him that changed after not seeing him for so long.

You liked it.

Your collapsing heart was beating rapidly in your chest and with the nonexistence of the gap between you and Seungmin, you swore he could feel it, too. It was so loud - louder than the song playing on his phone. No one other than him could make you feel like you could die and fly at the same time.

“What are you doing?” you whispered.

“Reliving high school.”

“Ew, why?”

“What, you didn’t like being my Prom date?”

“It’s not that, it’s just why would you want to relive high school? It sucked ass.”

His laugh was music to your ears. “Yeah, it did, but it sucked less with you next to me.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Thank you.”

You could feel Seungmin play with the hem of your sweater as the song ended. A queue wasn’t set up, so you and the boy you loved swayed to the crickets chirping in the bushes.

“Are you in love with me now or was that just a metaphor?” he asked.

“Seungmin…”

“I need to know if you loved the wrong guy or you loved me at the wrong time.”

“I…”

Seungmin was always a patient man, but not today - not in this moment. He needed to know your answer.

“I tried everything. I haven’t talked to you for years, I avoided you at all costs, and I almost gave up the chance of seeing everyone all together again because I knew you’d be here and I didn’t know what I’d do when my heart couldn’t handle seeing you. I tried everything to not to feel this way about you, and none of it worked. Maybe you are the wrong guy, maybe it was at the wrong time, maybe it’s both, but no matter how hard I try, I could never stop loving you.”

The tears in your eyes blur the lightning bugs floating around you two. Everything hurts. Even when Seungmin held you tightly against his chest, trying to keep you whole, your confession made you feel broken. There’s no longer that heavy burden of hiding your feelings weighing you down, but you still felt incomplete. Empty.

“_____-bear,” he hushed, calling you by your beloved nickname he made. “Timing is a funny thing, isn’t it?”

“It’s a terrible thing.”

“Only sometimes. But today, it’s almost perfect.”

“How?” you asked, quite insulted that he’d say such a thing with you crying in his arms.

“After two years of trying to get to you, today I got to see you. I got to talk to you. I got to dance with you. I got you to confess your undying love to me. And now I’m here, under the moonlight, with you in my arms. The timing couldn’t be more perfect.”

“Don’t say those things unless you mean it, Kim Seungmin.”

“I could never lie to you, _____-bear. Not when you’re the right person at the right time.”

You sighed heavily, the shakiness in your breath apparent and Seungmin held you tighter. He kissed the top of your head when you buried your face into his chest. He felt like home.

“You make it so hard to stop loving you,” you mumbled.

“Good,” he replied. “Don’t ever stop. Even after I do this.”

“Do what -!?”

Seungmin must have been working out since you last saw him because with ease, he picked you up and jumped into the lake with you screaming in his arms. The water was still cold, much colder than it was earlier today and you knew you were both going to get sick after this. Before you could scold him and swear up a storm, his lips shut you up and you figured this was what it felt like to fly.

“I hate you,” you cried out after pulling away.

He moved strands of hair that stuck to your face. “That’s too bad because I love you.”

You couldn’t handle his corny words, so now it was your turn to shut him up.

The water was cold, but at least his lips kept you warm.

EPILOGUE

“Are they making out yet?” Sana asked Hyunjin who hogged the window space.

“I think so? I can’t see now that they’re in the lake.”

“Finally! It’s about time!”

“Yeah, but now we’re going to get front row seats to their PDA…”

“Oh God, it’s only Saturday, isn’t it?”

“And we’re here until Monday morning…”

“Great…” Sana handed Hyunjin a full cup of some mystery drink. “Cheers to spring break.”

#kim seungmin #seungmin #skz #stray kids #skz seungmin #stray kids seungmin #skz imagines #stray kids imagines #don't get mad at me this has ZERO plot ok it's all filler words aksjdklajdslakj #this did not take long at all wow #like 3 days tbh #omg i know it's a lot of hyunjin too LMAO SORRY #ah.... i'm nervous about this one

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mrs-evadne-cake · 4 years

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“You shouldn't like things because people tell you you're supposed to.” -Books

Since we’re about to hit the Stranger Things Doldrums where it’s been a while since S3 and S4 has just started filming and if you’re anything like me you’re gonna start jonesing bad- I thought I’d make a So You Need A Hit survival kit for myself of some Stranger Things-esque media to read/watch/play during the wait and that maybe you guys might be interested too. Not all of them are gonna set the world on fire- but hopefully there’s some stuff that people haven’t seen before Expect a lot of Small Town Nostalgia, a bunch of monsters, and more plucky, dangerously unsupervised kids than you can shake a stick at.

A Boy’s Life By Robert R McCammon : “Zephyr, Alabama, is an idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson -- a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake -- and a desperate rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible, haunting vision of death. As Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and evil that surround him. From an ancient mystic who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the shadows of his hometown -- for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance. ”- Goodreads

My Best Friend’s Exorcism By Grady Hendrix : “Abby and Gretchen have been best friends since fifth grade, when they bonded over a shared love of E.T., roller-skating parties, and scratch-and-sniff stickers. But when they arrive at high school, things change. Gretchen begins to act…different. And as the strange coincidences and bizarre behavior start to pile up, Abby realizes there’s only one possible explanation: Gretchen, her favorite person in the world, has a demon living inside her. And Abby is not about to let anyone or anything come between her and her best friend. With help from some unlikely allies, Abby embarks on a quest to save Gretchen. But is their friendship powerful enough to beat the devil?” - Goodreads

Something Wicked This Way Comes By Ray Bradbury : “The show is about to begin....The carnival rolls in sometime after midnight, ushering in Halloween a week early. A calliope’s shrill siren song beckons to all with a seductive promise of dreams and youth regained. Two boys will discover the secret of its smoke, mazes, and mirrors; two friends who will soon know all too well the heavy cost of wishes…and the stuff of nightmares.” - Goodreads

The Halloween Tree By Ray Bradbury : "A fast-moving, eerie...tale set on Halloween night. Eight costumed boys running to meet their friend Pipkin at the haunted house outside town encounter instead the huge and cadaverous Mr. Moundshroud. As Pipkin scrambles to join them, he is swept away by a dark Something, and Moundshroud leads the boys on the tail of a kite through time and space to search the past for their friend and the meaning of Halloween.” - Goodreads

Paper Girls By Brian K. Vaughan & Cliff Chiang : “Early on the morning of All Saint's Day 1988, 12 year old Erin Tieng goes on her normal newspaper delivery route in a Cleveland suburb only to be menaced — and then rescued — from some teenage boys with dubious intentions by a trio of other paper girls who have banded together for mutual protection from any lingering Halloween craziness. That's when things start to get strange.” -TVTropes

Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero : “1990. The teen detectives once known as the Blyton Summer Detective Club are all grown up and haven't seen each other since their fateful, final case in 1977....The time has come to uncover the source of their nightmares and return to where it all began. This time, it better not be a man in a mask. The real monsters are waiting” -- Goodreads

The Saturday Night Ghost Club by Craig Davidson : “Growing up in 1980s Niagara Falls--a seedy but magical, slightly haunted place--Jake Baker spends most of his time with his uncle Calvin, a kind but eccentric enthusiast of occult artifacts and conspiracy theories. The summer Jake turns twelve, he befriends a pair of siblings new to town, and so Calvin decides to initiate them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club." But as the summer goes on, what begins as a seemingly lighthearted project may ultimately uncover more than any of its members had imagined.” - Goodreads

Summer of Night by Dan Simmons : “It's the summer of 1960 in Elm Haven, Illinois, and five 12-year old boys are forming the bonds that a lifetime of changes will never erase. But then a dark cloud threatens the bright promise of summer vacation: on the last day of school, their classmate Tubby Cooke vanishes. Soon, the group discovers stories of other children who once disappeared from Elm Haven. And there are other strange things happening in town... The friends realize that there is a terrible evil lurking in Elm Haven...and they must be the ones to stop it.” -- Goodreads

December Park by Ronald Malfi : “In the fall of 1993, the quite suburb of Harting Farms is shocked when children begin to vanish, and one is found dead near December Park--a great, sweeping expanse that is sunken below the streets and surrounded on three sides by vast woodlands--a place children believe is haunted...Angelo Mazzone and his friends discover a link to the dead girl and take up the search for the killer, vowing to stop the Piper's reign of terror. Their teenage pledge becomes a journey of self-discovery and an odyssey into the darkness of their own hometown.” - Goodreads

#books #stranger things #Media similar to Stranger Things recs

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zankivich · 5 years

Text

Neighbors: Shawn x Plus Size Reader Chapter 13

a/n: Hi there. This is going to be good. I promise. Take some deep breaths. Relax a little. Let yourself fall into it. There’s a lot of build up here but it will all make sense in a little while. I promise. If you hate it that’s cool, you can come yell at me. I’ll understand. But I love you? If you like it enough to want to buy me a ko-fi I’d love you forever!

Trigger Warnings: details of sex, anxiety attack

*y/n’s point of view*

Going home is good for a while. You start a huge campaign with Roger’s Stadium to do their new branding. It’s kind of Shawn adjacent, but distant enough that no one brings it up that your boyfriend just happened to sell out a show there. You got to pick someone to help do the low-level research and you quickly paired up with Stu. It meant late nights in the office with your best friend doing what you did best. Marketing was your thing. Understanding different demographics of people and what got through to them best was something that you’d never had to be taught in the classroom. It came naturally. So communicating your product, connecting with people was just fun for you. It just so happened to come with a lovely commission on the side.

You meet with Gina, to confirm and solidify your pitch, but also apparently for a wellness check. After a lifetime of male bosses, you’d never once had one of those, but the second you sat down in her office she quickly flipped the lid on your ipad and made you talk about yourself instead.

“How are you?” She asked.

Your eyes widened slightly. “I...I’m good. How are you?”

“I’m okay,” She chuckled. “You’re used to jumping right into things, aye? Is that it?”

“I guess. Most bosses usually just want me to do the job and move on.”

“Ah. Then this should be a lovely change of pace for you. I have no interest in what you do professionally if you’re not doing okay holistically. The two are deeply intertwined. I’m not saying we’re going to be best friends. In fact we probably shouldn’t but, if at no other point in your day is someone asking you how you’ve been, let that be what your time with me looks like, okay?”

“Okay.” You murmured letting your shoulders relax slightly. “Okay.”

“So I ask you again, how are you doing y/n?”

“Things are good, actually. Stu and I work so well together that sometimes I can’t tell when our friendship stops and when the work begins. We just understand each other’s minds in a really productive way, so it’s really nice to be able to work together.”

She gave you that smile again that said you were doing something wrong causing you to pause again.

“What?”

“I guess I’m just curious how often when someone asks you how you’re doing you immediately start talking about work.”

You signed, hands twisted up in your lap as you struggled to maintain eye contact with her.

“Yea well...There’s not really much going on for me outside of work right now so?”

“Really? What about that famous boyfriend of yours everyone’s always yapping about?”

You snorted. “Famous boyfriend is getting ready for his very famous tour in England at the moment.”

“England, aye? That’s where you flew out to a few weeks ago right?”

“Yea. We uh had a fight that was bit my fault, so I went to apologize and smooth things over. He’ll be heading for Amsterdam come March though.”

She nodded. “That’s a lot for you to handle, I’m guessing. You must fly a lot to go see him? That’s hard considering your job here.”

You peered down at your lap again.

“This is actually the first time we’re doing the whole long term long distance thing. I’m sure we’ll be fine. It’s all a learning curve though. I uh I was planning on going to Amsterdam for the first two shows but that will probably be the last time I leave for at least a few months. I won’t see him for most of the year.”

“Well, shit. That just sucks.”

You smiled. “Yea, little bit. But he says he’ll fly back as often as he can. And with social media and technology now a days I can still talk to him for like hours. We’ll be okay. The hardest part is just keeping myself busy, and thankfully I’m pretty good at that.”

“What about family and friends?”

“Family is...complicated. Friends is Stu and his boyfriend Brian. Most of the people in the office are much older than me though, and we just don’t really care about the same things. I’m good though, I’ve always been the kind of person to go out and do whatever makes me happy. I don’t need a bunch of people around for that.”

She laughed again. “Well isn’t that nice to know. I suppose you can show me your pitch now.”

She loves it. And it’s incredibly validating, and takes a lot of stress of your shoulders. Now all that was left to do was to present the real thing and hope that they liked your design. It seemed like a cause for celebration. So you and Stu made plans to get all gussied up, go out to a fancy dinner, and get wine drunk together before eight pm. You tried to give Shawn a call, he knew how stressed you’d been about it after all, but it went to voicemail. So, you tucked your phone in your purse and went out to have a good fucking time.

“To being in our mid-twenties and finally hitting the fucking glow up! We are in our prime motherfucker!” Stu grinned cheersing his glass against yours.

You snorted. “We sure fucking are. When Ari said it feels so good to be so young and so successful, bitch was not lying.”

“Ugh. I wanna die and come back as that song. I thought that the thing I hated you most for was getting to see Shawn Mendes’ dick in person, but I think it’s that you have the ability to meet my fairy godmother, Ariana Grande, and there’s just nothing I can do about it.”

You peered over at your best friend over the rim of your glass with raised eyebrows.

“Stu...Are you sexually attracted to my boyfriend?”

His eyes widened slightly and his lips parted like a goldfish flopping on a dry surface begging for water. The idiot.

“To be fair...The entire office wants to fuck your boyfriend. Not just me!”

“Wow...That does not make me feel any better you sleez!” You chortled. “You’re my best friend!”

“It’s not like I would pursue it! Besides, Shawn Mendes was on our hall pass list far before you two were playing footsie behind my back.”

“I beg your pardon? And stop calling him by his full name, it gives me the creeps.”

He rolled his eyes at you. “The minute that man figured out how to put on a suit, Brian told me straight up if he ever found out Shawn went the other way, he would leave my ass in a heartbeat.”

“Jesus. So the whole world wants to screw my boyfriend?”

“Little bit, babes. But, you’re the only one who gets to! Don’t worry about the rest of us horny idiots.” He smiled.

“Have I ever told you how good you are at consoling me?”

“No.”

“Good.” You smirked. “You suck at it.”

He swatted at you playfully allowing both of you some time to look over your menus. At least that’s what you thought you were doing. It only took a few minutes of not so subtle stares for you to get the hint. The more you got used to being with Shawn the more you picked up on stuff like that.

“What is it now, Stu?” You sighed plopping your menu down.

“Well...Don’t take this the wrong way, because I completely don’t mean it in a predatory, creepy one at all but...What’s the dick like?”

“Oh god.”

He sighed. “We used to talk about all our hookups! I just want to know that my bestie is getting the dicking down that she deserves. It just so happens that this is internationally famous dick.”

Your best friend was a complete and total dumbass. But, you loved him. And you loved Shawn. And quite honestly not getting to share your experiences with someone was tough. It was hard because you knew Stu might not be able to relate to some of the things you were now experiencing as a result of your relationship, but he was also the person you went to for just about everything and vice versa. Also...sometimes a girl needs to gloat.

You peer around the restaurant as if a pap or one of Shawn’s fans might be lurking around every corner. (Sometimes, it felt like they were.) Stu leaned in in his nosey ass manner

“So like...it’s the best dick I’ve ever had in my life.” You whispered.

“Shut the fuck up.”

You whined dramatically. “I wish I was kidding. The whole hour and a half shows every night of the week translates so well into the bedroom. His stamina is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. His breath control allows him to go down on me for insane amounts of time. I’m talking like the bastard has evolved gills or some shit!”

Stu cracked up laughing and clanked his glass happily against yours.

“To evolving gills, bitch!”

You snorted happily and cheers’d with him again.

“Wait Stu, something happened.” You murmured moving closer in your seat to lean across the table.

“What? What?”

“So I went to the UK obviously to make up for things and I found this plus-size lingerie store while I was there so I thought it might get his mind off things if we like had some fun or whatever.”

“Okay….AND?”

“And so we’re doing...you know, it. And out of nowhere this dominant side of him comes out that honest to god made me wetter than the ocean seas.”

He raised an eyebrow at you. “What the hell does that mean? What did he do?”

You bit your lip taking another gander around the restaurant only for him to swat at you about getting shy just as you were getting to the good part.

“I was somewhat bent over, I guess you could say.”

“Great so you were doing doggy style, get to the kinky shit, sis.”

You rolled your eyes. “I don’t know… It just like started to feel really good and I had a feeling that I was going to…”

“Cum?”

You shook your head softly.

He gasped. “Squirt?”

You nodded.

“Oh. My. God. He’s really dicking you to explosion.”

“Yes. That is accurate. Anyway, I’ve never done that while he was in me before so I guess I started pushing against his hips because it felt so good? And he pulled my arms behind my back randomly and literally fucked me through it. Even when I was screaming louder than I’ve ever screamed before. He said, and I quote: ‘Baby, just let me give it to you. Let me make you feel good like only I can.’ and I just...holy shit Stu it was the best orgasm of my life.”

“You memorized a quote during sex? That is the biggest dick energy I’ve ever heard in my life. I have to go home and now slap my boyfriend because you’ve told me that story. I hope you’re satisfied, ruining other people's relationships. Holy shit, y/n.”

You licked at your lips and smile up at the sky as if God had something to do with it and not your wonderfully aggressive boyfriend.

“Yea. I know.” you sighed dreamily. “I love him.”

Meanwhile…

*Shawn’s point of view*

“What’s your problem? Y/n not texting you back?” Brian asked as Shawn tossed his phone back onto the couch.

He rolled his eyes. “No. But I am a perfectly grown adult who doesn’t need his girlfriend’s constant validation to feel secure in our relationship, Brian!”

“That what the self-help books telling you, bud?”

Brian was walking past after having turned the tv on and he very purposely tripped him. Jackass.

“Is you not getting to blow your load at least three times a day gonna make you an asshole this whole entire tour?”

He reached for a pillow and quickly socked his best friend in the face.

“Why are you such a dickhead, dickhead?!” He snorted. “There’s nothing I can do about having an incredible sex life. That is not my fault!”

“Incredible sex life, my ass!”

He put his hand over his heart and gave him the most sincere face he could offer.

“Bri...it’s a great fuckin’ sex life. Best of my whole life.”

“What does she shoot beams of light out her pussy or something?”

“This is why women hate our whole gender by the way. No, jackass, but she might as well. She is soft and passionate and beautiful and...vocal. Everytime I think I’m in control she does something to put me in my place. It’s wild. She’s fuckin wild.” He sighed collapsing back against the couch. “God, she’s perfect, man.”

Sure, he missed her. He always missed her. But, he also just appreciated everything about her. And talking about their love life wasn’t out of disrespect at all. It was more like bragging out of love for everything that they were together. And also because when it came to sex...they were kind of incredibly good at it.

“You two fuck like bunny rabbits. I’d almost be impressed if it wasn’t a complete inconvenience ninety nine percent of the time.”

Shawn rolled his eyes. “How is our love making an inconvenience to you, oh poor wonderful Brian?!”

“Oh don’t even get me started! Exhibit A, you invite all of us over to your apartment for a party in December. We’re supposed to get incredibly hammered and play mario kart. Not even forty-five minutes into the damn thing, you two assholes disappear into the bedroom, WITH the game system I might add, with the door locked for over an hour. The only reason you even came back out was because y/n wanted more tequila!”

“Hmm...that was a beautiful night. She sounds like a symphony when she cums.” He sighed to himself.

“Gross. Exhibit B! We go to the after party for the billboard awards. It’s supposed to be a good fuckin’ time for everyone--”

“Hey! We had a good fuckin’ time that night! We shared a blunt with Post Malone, Alessia, and fucking Ariana Grande. What could you possibly have to complain about?!”

“Why yes Shawn, that we did. But do you remember what happened after that?” He paused for the briefest of moments before very quickly continuing on. “Y/n for some reason found you smoking to be the hottest thing in the world and decided that she had to have you right then and there. You two left the fucking party and Alessia and I had to uber back to the hotel.”

“Well that is...yea I don’t really have an excuse for that one. Not our best moment. But trust me you didn’t want to be in that car anyway, I ripped her dress that night. It was a bit of a shit show. The only reason the paps didn’t get us was because we penguin waddled inside to hide it.”

“The moral of the story is, as happy as I am that you guys are trying to set an olympic record for fucking, you both suck!”

“You’ve got me there. We both suck...incredibly well I might add.”

He hit him with a pillow and left the room. What are best friends for anyway?

*y/n’s point of view*

“How are things going with Bry?” You asked as Stu worked to pack their bowl.

What better way to celebrate their wonderful friendship date, then ending it with a little weed?

He lit the bowl and took a deep hit, letting it sit in his lungs as he handed it over.

Stu groaned. “They’d be fine if he would get his shit together and propose to me already.”

You took a hit of your own and laughed.

“If you want to marry him so much, why don’t you propose?”

“I’m the one who asked him out in the first place! I’m the one who single handedly kept our relationship going through college. I told him point blank that he needed to propose and for some reason, five years later I’m still missing a ring on my finger!”

“Do you want me to talk to him? Give him the hint?”

He rolled his eyes. “As wonderful as that sounds, no. I want him to want to be with me. I just want him to take a little initiative ya know?”

You each took another hit of the bowl and leaned against each other and the high took over.

“I get it. You want to feel confident in your future. You wanna know he’s gonna be there when you need him. That’s a valid feeling.” You assured him.

“We’ve just been together for so long. And most of the time we are so good together. We communicate well, we have fun together. I just want to know that we’re both feeling the same things. Sometimes he seems so sure that he just thinks we don’t need to talk about it at all.”

“Damn. I think Shawn and I might be the opposite. I think all he wants is for me to talk more.”

Stu chuckled. “No shit. It took me getting you high in my college dorm for you to even tell me anything even remotely personal about yourself. Shawn’s sappy ass probably thinks it’s like talking to a wall.”

“Very funny asshole. I can’t help it okay? I’m the baby of four kids. By the time I was growing up, no one had time to listen to me whine and complain about shit. Shawn just...he understands all of his emotions so well, and he spends so much of his life reflecting on everything no matter how busy he is. I’m trying though. I know it’s necessary, It’s just hard.”

“Do you think you two will be okay with all the touring?” He asked.

Wasn’t that just the million dollar question? You didn’t know how to explain that when you were together it seemed like you could take on the world, like you could do anything together, but that when you were apart you’d never felt weaker. It all feel so sappy and so high school. Not being able to live on your own and per your own person? You wanted to be better than that. And admitting anything else out loud, even to Stu, shook the very foundation of the persona you were trying to force yourself to be.

“Shawn thinks we will be.” You mumbled.

“I didn’t ask what Shawn thinks. I’m your best friend, you can tell me of all people.”

“It’s just harder when we’re apart. So, I fly into whatever country he’s in and we fuck and we go out to dinner and maybe we get high because that’s all there is when you’re together for two or three days. And it’s not until I come back home that I even realize it. Cause when we’re together, I can’t imagine being anywhere else. I could honestly sit in one of those green rooms and just watch him all day, and I’d be happy. I love him that much. But when I get some distance, when I’m back home I realize just how little there is. How little there will be for the rest of the year. I just...I guess I’m hoping I can hold on. Because when I’m with him? It’s the greatest pleasure I’ve ever known.”

“Holy shit babes...That’s deep. C’mere.”

He wrapped his arm loosely around you. You passed the bowl back and forth a few more times until the world grew fuzzy and calm and you were each happier for it. It was a good way to end the night.

***

It’s four in the afternoon. You have a meeting in fifteen minutes to go over revenue for the department. These meetings always made you super anxious. You were the only female senior executive, so any conversation you had about revenue was always in a room full of men. It didn’t help that a lot of the assholes in the office didn’t like the way you were offered the job and definitely held a grudge. You were always dead set on having the best numbers, so no one could say shit. Your stomach was tied up in knots and you just wanted to get it over with, so you could go home and drink a glass--or three--of wine. You’d been stressed about it all week, and it only made it worse that you had started sleeping in Shawn’s apartment because the smell of his sheets was sometimes the only thing that could lull you into sleep only for the smell to eventually fade away. There was tension in your neck and in your shoulders from the tossing and turning, and you just needed the week to be over.

Your phone started to vibrate on your desk and you almost chucked it at the wall. When you saw that it was Shawn wanting to facetime you honestly weren’t sure if that made it better or worse. But, Shawn tended to get anxious when you didn’t answer, so you took a deep breath and opened the phone.

“Babe!” He smiled immediately as his image came slowly into focus.

He must’ve been walking somewhere with the team cause he wasn’t looking at his phone right away. You didn’t really have time for this.

“Hey Shawn. Look, what is it? I’m uh I’m kinda busy.”

“Wait just one sec.” He scrambled a little with the phone before he was finally staring at you, wild curls and beautiful brown eyes to boot. “What’s wrong? You sound stressed.”

“I am stressed. I have a meeting in ten, Shawn; what can I do for you?”

He frowned. “I don’t need you to do anything for me. I just wanted to see you. Hey Jake, I’m gonna go sit for a minute alone alright? I’ll be back.”

“No, Shawn don’t--” But he was already walking away from the group.

“What’s going on, right now? Talk to me.”

Your initial instinct was to tell him nothing was going on, that you didn’t want to talk, you just wanted to muscle through. But you couldn’t help but remember your conversation with Stu a few days ago. It felt hypocritical to say you were trying to communicate if every time your boyfriend asked you to communicate you shut down.

You closed your eyes and pinched the bridge of your nose between your thumb and forefinger.

“I have a meeting, okay? That’s all” You mumbled feeling like an incessant toddler.

He nodded. “Okay, you have a meeting. You’ve told me that. You’ve got a meeting that’s stressing you out. You look flustered. What else is going on?”

“Nothing else is going on. I’m just really stressed at the moment.”

He sighed. “Sweetheart, you don’t need to fight me on this. I only want to help you. You’re breathing is uneven. Are you feeling anxious right now?”

“I--I don’t know. Yea, sure, I feel anxious.”

“How long have you felt anxious, honey?”

“Shawn, what the hell does this have to do with anything?!” you snapped the irritation getting to you.

“I think you might be having an anxiety attack. Try and take a deep breath with me. I know you’re feeling upset, but let’s just breathe for a little bit.”

“An anxiety attack? Shawn what--”

“Hush. Just fucking listen to me okay?”

You stumbled into silence and watched as your boyfriend did his best to calm you down. He had you lean the phone against your desk so that you could place one hand over your stomach and the other over your heart. He had you use your stomach as a guide to let your lungs fill with air, breathing slowly and letting the tension in your back and neck to ease out. His voice was low, calm, and incredibly soothing in your ear. You may have offered him comfort before, but this was something new entirely. At least Shawn could tell when he needed help. You were so delusional about your own wellbeing that you hadn’t even been aware you needed it. It wasn’t until you felt your heart rate calm and your shoulders drop that you felt infinitely better. With this relief came a rather odd rush of sadness that left you crying in the middle of your office in broad daylight.

“Hey,” He cooed face moving closer to his screen. “Why are you crying, y/n?”

“I don’t even fucking know.” You sighed trying to catch the tears before they fall. “I really thought I was fine, Shawn. I thought I was okay.”

“That’s alright. That’s why I’m here. To catch the things you let slip. You do the exact same thing for me all of this time. It’s okay to lean on me once in a while, you know?”

You nodded softly with a sniffle. “I really do have to go to my meeting though.”

“Go. Call me when you get home from work okay? Take a shower, relax a little bit. I’m a few hours ahead of you here, but just call and I’ll be there. We can talk through it.”

“Okay. Okay, I’ll do that.” You mumbled.

“You’re gonna do great, sweetie. I love you so much, okay?”

“I love you too. I’ll talk to you later.”

*four hours later*

“Is that my bed?” Shawn asked leaning back with an arm behind his head with abs on full display.

Ugh.

You nodded. “I’ve been sleeping here a little better lately...Is that okay?”

“Yea! Of course it is. Nothing makes me happier than you sleeping there. That spaces is yours too. That’s why I gave you the key to begin with.”

“Okay.” You murmured not being able to hide the smile that his words brought to your face. “You could probably send me a sweatshirt or something that you’ve worn recently though. The sheets hardly even smell like you anymore.”

He grinned. “I’d love to sweetheart. It’s just that by the time something could get to you from Amsterdam, I think you might actually have already flown to Amsterdam. I’ll be sure to send you back with plenty of material.”

“Good.”

“So...you ready to talk about it?”

“Ugh, I am surprised you're not a licensed therapist with how much you want me to talk about my feelings.” you whined. “How did you even know it was an anxiety attack?”

“I just remembered when I was going through my panic attacks at first, that I didn’t even know what they were called. The doctor said these two words, panic attack and anxiety attack, and I didn’t really know the difference. They sort of sound the same. But you know how like when it gets really bad for me it’s like...super quick? Like one second I’m just thinking about something bad and then the next I can’t see my way out of it?”

“Yea. That’s usually when we start breathing together.”

He smiled. “Exactly. I guess anxiety attacks can be a little slower. My doctor said they can actually happen over a period of days. It’s what makes them harder to detect, but it can also make them much harder on the body. It’s like thinking about something until it consumes you. Not being able to sleep, irritability--even at very lovable and cuddly boyfriends, muscle tension. You seemed to check a lot of boxes, honey.”

“I’m sure loveable and cuddly boyfriends was right in the symptom description, aye?”

“You’re deflecting.”

“You’re digging.”

“I am trying to take an ounce of burden off your back, and you are making it incredibly difficult.”

You closed your eyes and took a deep breath telling yourself to stop being such a little bitch. He was there. He wasn’t going to leave. You could trust him.

“It’s okay to talk to me, y/n. I’m not going to hurt you.” He murmured.

You groaned. “I know. I know.”

“It’s just that...if it were anyone else I’d say that you should find someone to talk to, anyone to talk to but I . . .I’m supposed to be your person. You’re my person and I just--I don’t know y/n, how do I help you through this if you won’t let me?”

“I’m trying Shawn. I swear I am.”

“Hey I know. And I’m trying to be understanding of how hard it is for you. But, I’m also trying to help. I’m gonna need you to at least meet me halfway.”

You nodded sullenly, fingers bunching up in the blankets at the thought of failing him, of not being able to be what he needed.

Shawn sighed. “It’s uh...it’s getting pretty late here. Let’s just talk tomorrow, yea?”

You peered at him through the phone unable to discern how deep of a situation this was from halfway across the world.

“Are you angry with me?”

“N--No. Honey, I’m not angry. I’m just...tired. I’ll call you when it’s morning for you okay?”

“Okay. I love you, Shawn.”

“I love you too. Get some sleep.”

That was certainly easier said than done.

***

*Shawn’s point of view*

He’s in the middle of a meeting when his phone starts to buzz on the table. And he can’t help but reach for it just in case it’s y/n. It is.

y/n: so I couldn’t sleep last night. Surprise. And I just kept thinking about everything that you said, and it made feel really shitty.

y/n: not to say that you made me feel shitty just that that’s how I was feeling

y/n: anyway. I couldn’t sleep, so I tried to think about how I feel and I tried to write it down. I thought I could share it with you. Idk if it’ll help at all I just don’t want to keep letting you down.

y/n: so check your email if you have time. I love you. K. Bye.

And of course the rest of his meeting is absolutely useless. Of course all he can think about is her, about what she might be thinking, about what she might be feeling. And there’s a much bigger part of him than he’d like to admit, that’s wants nothing more than to fly home and cuddle the hell out of her until she gets some rest. The distance between the two of them felt heavier than ever.

“You’ve got forty-five minutes for lunch. Then we’re at the venue for run throughs. Final creative meeting for tour outfits after okay?” Andrew ordered.

Shawn nodded already in search of his laptop.

“Can you have Jake bring me something for the drive? I’m not gonna have time for anything else.”

“Why not?”

“Something is wrong with y/n. I need to check in okay?”

He was so unwilling to focus on anything other than y/n that if Andrew had anything else to say, he didn’t notice. He set up his laptop and found a space to sit in the quiet and read.

So...This is weird. I haven’t written anything like this since my diary in the eighth grade. I just um am tired a lot lately. I don’t think it’s work because I love what I do so much. I guess that’s not great either because I just keep working even when I’m exhausted. And it’s not you. Jesus, it most certainly is not you. I keep thinking that my love for is going to plateau or something, but it never does. It just keeps growing infinitely. I’m not sure if it’s the distance between us at the moment. When I first got home it actually felt good to get back into my routine. I think it’s not until I can’t sleep that I roll over and see you aren’t there that it hits me. It’d just so odd for me Shawn. I want to hold you and talk to you and I can’t because you’re not here. And there isn’t anything that either of us can do about it. I’m not used to there not being a solution. I’ve always been so good at solving things, that now that I can’t I feel like a waste of space. And I know that if I told you you’d tell me to call you but you’re six hours ahead of me right now. Everytime we talk it feels like I’m keeping you from something more important, and I don’t want to do that. I want you to be happy and to tour and have all the success in the world. I think also, and this is just me being honest with myself, even with the people I’ve loved most in my life I haven’t always had my needs prioritized. My mom. My brothers. My dad. So I really try to take care of myself and prioritize myself. I never learned how to let someone else do it for me, because every time I tried I got let down. Your so endlessly kind to me. And you love me like i’ve never been loved before. Me not letting you in when I’m struggling is not malicious it’s just innate. I’m trying to unlearn these things and it’s much harder to do when I don’t even realize that I’m doing them. I’m sorry if I upset you. I’m sorry that you stayed up for me last night only to be disappointed. You mean more to me than a hundred of these pages could explain. I know I keep asking for time, for some leeway, and maybe your getting sick of that. I guess I’m sorry for that too. I promise you it’ll be different, if you let me try. I want to try. I love you enough to do that for us.

He sits with it for a while. There’s a feeling in his chest that he’s never had with y/n before and then there’s another feeling into response to it. He gets out the app on his phone and meditates for a while because he just doesn’t know what it is at first. And it isn’t until after he’s breathed for twenty minutes and they’re in the car on the way to his next meeting that he gets this overwhelming wave of deja vu. It’s so visceral that he feels himself become sixteen again. He watches himself get off the plan in Toronto and drive to his first girlfriend’s house. He watches him explain to her that he’s got to go away and live his dream, and that them being together is only going to hurt her, that it would kill him to keep hurting her. This idea that...it doesn’t matter how much we love each other, it’s never gonna matter, because all I’m ever gonna do it hurt you. And if I love you, if I truly and genuinely love you, then isn’t the greatest act of love I could ever show you to let you go?

It fills him with anger. Anger because this was meant to be different. In hindsight it makes him feel like a child who had been shouting at the top of his lungs that he knew something that he so clearly didn’t. Maybe Andrew was right. Maybe Brian had gotten annoyed for a legitimate reason. Maybe their love wasn’t what he thought it was. Or, even worse, maybe there love was everything it felt like. Maybe it was larger than the two of them, maybe it was complex and beautiful and wonderful. But, maybe that only meant it would consume them in the end.

After that there’s nothing but sorrow. Because his thread, his being, his life was so deeply intertwined with her’s that he could see no way out, couldn’t imagine not being with her.

For the first time in a long time he was completely at a loss. And it seemed as though he had opened up a can of worms that was only going to hurt them in the end. What the hell was he supposed to do now?

Taglist: @kitykatnumber @lou-and-me @ourlittleshawnie @mutuallynotmutual @wanderingmendes @peacedolantwins2 @chels-nyc @justbeingoceana @hayyitsfayy @claredolphinbear24 @september-lace @literallyshawn @mchutchmendes @liliane106 @iloveshawnieboi @samwillllson @illloveyouforever1 @grittyisaho

#shawn mendes #Shawn mendes fanfic #Shawn mendes fic #Shawn mendes fanfiction #Shawn mendes fluff #Shawn mendes angst #Shawn mendes au #Shawn mendes one shot #shawn mendes smut #Shawn mendes series #Shawn mendes blurb #Shawn mendes x you #Shawn mendes x y/n #Shawn mendes x reader #Shawn mendes x fat reader #Shawn mendes x thick reader #neighbors fic

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littlemisssquiggles · 4 years

Note

Hi there, I have another question I think you’ll find interest in. What do you like about Ruby as a character? Is she relatable in a sense? In my opinion, she seems a unique combination of standoffish and eager to make friends as well. But her over enthusiasm turns other people off at times like Weiss in Vol 1 at first. However I also noticed that she likes to isolate and sit off by herself at times and doesn’t like being the center or attention (if it occurs she redirects it towards smn)

Hello again Sweet. Hmm that is an interesting question. I guess what I can say is that I like Ruby Rose because she’s type of young protagonist that I tend togravitate. The type of plucky, genuinely optimistic hero who’s in it notfor the glory or the fame but because they sincerely want to help others.

Ruby’s inspiration and motivation for choosing the huntress lifestyle deriving from her desire to be just like the heroes in the fairy-tale she loved as a kid isrelatable to me since I myself was inspired by the stories and media that Igrew up watching as budding squiggle meister. That kind of things sticks with you no matter how old you get so it was nice to see that reflected in Ruby’s personality as part of her character.

If I may be honest, Ruby didn’t become one of key favourite characters until V5.V5 was the eye opener season for me. I really enjoyed Ruby’s development forthat season particularly when it was shown through her sparked friendship withOscar. I adored how the show decided to pair these two together and show Ruby being the one to chum up to Oscar the most out of everyone else.

Seeing Ruby befriend Oscar felt almost like a passing of the baton type of moment a bit. In the past, Ruby was the baby of the bunch. She was the youngest huntress in a school of older more experienced huntsmen from all walks of life over Remnant.

Although Ruby definitely has more combat experience than Oscar, having been raised in a family of huntsman, that didn’t stop her from enduring who her own fair of personal obstacles having to prove her worth since she was also slapped with the badge of leadership.

To me, it was great watching Ruby grow from an enthusiastic, somewhat naïve and introverted kid into a better-rounded girl who is capable of befriending anyone she meets while inspiring them with her resolve.

I like how Ruby didn’t really start off being the unquantifiable spark of hope that Ozpin pegged her to be. It’s a role she grew into over the seasons and V4 and V5 were two seasons that solidified that for me as a viewer and long-time fanof the show.

Watching Ruby giggle and smile at Oscar was a sweet moment. Not just for the obvious cuteness of the scene but because all I could think about during that bit was that once upon a time, this used to be the same little girl who felt she didn’tneed to make the effort to reach out to others and form meaningful bonds. Nowlook at her.

“Okay, first of all what does meeting people have to do with fighting? And second, I don’t need people to help me grow up. I drink milk.”—Ruby Rose (RWBY V1CH4)

“…I wanted to protect my friends.”—Ruby Rose (RWBY V6CH8)

In my opinion, it’s hard NOT to like Ruby in some way because when it came todeveloping her as a person through her relationships with the people she caresabout, that’s one aspect of her character that I’ll admit the Writers handled prettywell even up to V6.

I guess you could say it’s for this reason why I’m taking issue with Ruby’scharacterization for this volume. The Ruby this season…doesn’t feel like theRuby I’ve been watching grow up for the past six volumes.

I mean, in some ways she’s still is but she’s obviously fumbling right now.

There is no doubt that Ruby is losing herself for this volume. I haven’t enjoyed watching her behaviour for this season at all. I mean her usual bubbly energy and enthusiasm at being a huntress is as always a delight. However looking past that and glaring straight into the eye of the huge Goliath Grimm in the room, her actions towards withholding the truth from their supposed allies and the choices she’s chosen to make.

The tethering thread she’s placed her and her team on with the General and most annoyingly of all, her complete and total nonchalance about it is almost infuriating to watch.

Ruby’s behaviour for V7 is reminding me a lot of her attitude back in V5 in regards to her repressed grievances over the death of her friends and the Fall of Beacon. She needed a wakeup call back then and I’m just over here impatiently awaiting the next one that’s definitely going to come if she keeps going down this road.

I love Rubes as a character, I really do, but she’s clearly not acting likeherself. I can’t be the only one who’s made that obvious observation, right?

The PLOT is clearly having Ruby repeat the same moves as Ozpin, right? This means there is a chance she might face the same kind of punishment as he did once the truth is out. As I’ve stated multiple times before, I don’t wish for the truth to be forced out again. But at this point…who knows? Anything can happen now.

But yeah, that’s as much as I can say for Ruby. I like her and one of my concerns for her for V7 was that the CRWBY Writers were going to have her learn a tough lesson—y’know understand the huge difficulties and emotional burdens that came with the many mistakes that Oz and the other Wizards were forced to make over the lifetimes.

Basically I can see this arc that Ruby’s having right now being the Writers’ way of having her fully come to understand what Ozpin went true by letting her being in his shoes all the way up to the point of no return.

I’ve been nervous about the tables turning and the PLOT putting Ruby in the same position as she once had Oz last season forcing her suffer the same kind of punishment and repercussions as he did in the face of people who once trusted her.

I didn’t want it to come to that. However…at the rate Ruby’s been going, I don’tknow what to expect anymore. As I’ll repeat again. Rubes is my girl. My little red rose. But…she needs a huge wakeup call man and I can’t help but feel like she’s going to be getting her comeuppance very soon; granted that everything goes south instead of north.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2019)

#sweetgm2 #squiggles answers: rwby #ruby rose #oscar pine #professor ozpin

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storytime-hoe · 5 years

Text

Tough Love Ch.4

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x O/C

Summary: Story picks up during season three as the group goes into Woodbury to rescue Glenn and Maggie from the Governor. However, they pick up another prisoner of Woodbury, Emma (O/C). She is a thief who fears friendships after her hard losses. She stays on the move, studying communities from afar and then robbing them blind. She has stayed alive this way for a while until the Governor catches her in the act. Now she finds herself with the group from the prison in a mission to kill the Governor for what he has done to her. She plans on stealing supplies from the prison group after the Governor is killed, but she might be growing a little too close to the groups members, especially one man in particular: Daryl Dixon.

Warnings: Slow burn, language, usual twd violence, mentions of abuse/rape

Authors Note: Gonna be honest and let you know Daryl isn’t really in this one and I really needed to establish some things with other characters and stuff. But like this chapter might disappoint a lot so I will post the next one tomorrow and not keep you waiting for something good. Thanks for understanding xoxo

Previously: Ch.1 Ch.2 Ch.3

I swear when I arrived at the prison I instantly cursed myself for spending so much time on Woodbury when I should've been focusing on this place. Sure, the prison was harder to get in and out of, but I could have managed it. I spent a month planning out how to sneak into Woodbury to steal their things, when the prison was a gold mine for me. They didn't have the man power that the Governor had, but their food supply was much more diverse. When Maggie brought me inside, I couldn't believe what this group had managed to scavenge. They didn't have very many people, but the few that they did have were no pussies. They were a damn tough bunch, that was for sure.

And they were currently all tense as hell. Daryl running off with his brother had a negative effect on everyone that knew him. I could feel the collective hate for Merle that bounced around the concrete walls because he had stolen away someone that everyone looked up to. It was a little strange for me to see how upset people were. I wondered if Daryl even knew how much these people loved him. And if he did know how could he just leave them all behind?

I felt uncomfortable joining in on the group. I didn't know their names well yet. There was no formal introductions these days, but I was picking up on them slowly. Carol, with her short grey hair, seemed the most bothered about Daryl. She put a bony hand up to her mouth and sucked in a breath when Rick told her. I felt numb watching her feel emotion for someone. I hadn't had that pleasure since my brother. He was the last person I ever really cared about. The thought of befriending anyone else made me ache. The more people you love, the higher the risks of getting hurt. And I was not getting hurt again.

That's why I started to mentally plan my departure. My mind went to picking out which items I would take with me when I left, that was, after I killed the Governor. Once he was dead I would be taking all I could carry and going on my way. I had no current desire to spend more time here than necessary. I wasn't sure where I would go next, and frankly I wasn't worried about it. I would figure it out along the way.

"Maggie might have some clothes that will fit you," said a sweet voice from behind me.

I turned around to see a young girl with blonde wavy hair. In her arms she held a chunky little baby. I was shocked at the sight of it. I stared at it in half disbelief. The child crooned and held my gaze for the longest time. It looked calm, like it had no worries in the world. I envied that.

"Um," the girl shifted the baby on her hip, "I'm Beth, and this is Judith."

I blinked myself free of my stare and looked at her vacantly. "The mother?"

Her quick glance to the ground told me the answer to my question, but it was a little boy who stalked by and answered me aloud.

"She's dead," he said plainly, not bothering to stop to look at me.

I could tell instantly he was not a fan of me. I was a stranger, it made sense that he was cautious.

Once the boy was out of earshot, Beth spoke again. "That's Carl. His mother died having the baby."

Asking the question was stupid and rude of me in the first place, but my people skills were a little rusty. I should have kept my mouth shut, then maybe the kid-Carl- would not have ended up scowling at me from across the room every two seconds. I had accidentally created an enemy out of the poor kid. But, if he needed a person to hate after the tragic events of his mother's death, then I didn't mind to be that person. I didn't care what anyone here thought of me in the end.

"We have a water trough out back," Maggie said, saving me from the depressing conversation with Beth. "I can show you to it, let you get cleaned up," she said with an attempted grin.

"Afterwards I'll take a look at you. I can already tell you'll need a few stitches on your brow." I turned again to look at the old man who had spoken from his bench beside Michonne. He had introduced himself as Hershel. He was obviously the doctor that Rick had mention, judging by how he was cleaning out Michonne's wound on her leg.

"Thank you," I muttered to them. Hearing the words coming from my lips sounded weird. I hadn't been verbally grateful to anyone in what felt like a lifetime. It was strange having people look out for me again. I almost didn't know how to react to all of this. I was anxious and out of place here, another reason I was eager to kill the Governor and leave as soon as possible.

Maggie took me outside and around the corner where they had a supply of clean water stored in round barrels and low troughs. She left me with a rag to wipe off with and neatly folded jeans and a loose white tank top. I looked down at the worn out clothes that I had lived in for more than I would have liked. It was about time I peeled these from my skin.

I was left by myself outside of the prison. I groaned as I lifted my shirt over my head with much effort, every muscle screaming for me to stop. Looking at my stomach I saw the black and blue decorating my skin that was left over from both Merle's torture sessions and my last encounter with the Governor.

I dipped the cloth in the water and wiped off the dirt layer that rested on my sensitive skin, doing my best to decipher grime from bruise. It took me forever to clean up the mess that I had become, dabbing at the crusted blood that coated my face. I spent a solid twenty minutes just untangling my hair and re-braiding the wet hair down my back.

I took my sweet time cleaning myself up, basking in the comfort of the soft rag against my skin. All the while my mind was wandering off to things I was trying so hard to forget. I don't know why I cared, but I couldn't help but question how Daryl was doing out there with Merle. I barely knew the guy. The only time we spoke was when we were angry and had to speak; it was never under good circumstances. Still, I thought about how he was handling Merle and for some odd reason I felt the urge to need to protect him from Merle, as if he hadn't lived with the man for his entire life.

I shook away my thoughts and stared down at the small barrel of water I had used and turned a dark brown color from rinsing off. I didn't even recognize myself in the reflection of the dirtied water. The bags under my eyes had darkened ten times since the last time I checked and my cheeks looked sunken in a bit. I guess I hadn't got the sleep or nourishment I needed in Woodbury. I looked worn out, like I had been through hell and back, and I certainly felt that way too. Every breath hurt my insides.

I tossed my old clothes away, leaving them behind as the last part of Woodbury. Walking back into the prison, I made my way to Hershel, who was finishing up looking over Michonne's injuries.

"I was hoping you wouldn't be as roughed up as her," he addressed me as I slowly entered. "But by the looks of it you might be making my job more difficult."

His kind smile reached his eyes. The welcoming vibe about him gave me the courage to approach and sit down on the bench next to him. He immediately began with the gash on my eyebrow. It took several stitches to close it up. He put ointment on anything else that I had on my body, but it was my ribs that I was dreading he look at. I lifted up my shirt for him and when his brow drew in in concern I knew it was bad news.

He pressed around on it and I sucked in a breath between my teeth. I didn't even notice that Michonne was staring at my bruised torso until afterwards.

"I don't think any of the ribs are broken too bad," Hershel started as he was getting a wrap ready to put around my mid section. "A few may be fractured. It'll just take time to heal them."

I stood to let him warp the cloth tightly around me, keeping everything inside of me in the right place. While he was still working on me, Glenn had gathered Michonne, Maggie, Beth, Carol, and Carl around so he could discuss going after the Governor. He thought we should attack the Governor before he had the chance to come at us. I noted how he mentioned that the whole front of the prison was not secure. I soaked in all they said about the place for after my job with them was done and I would be sneaking out on my own. They gave me everything I needed to know, all their weaknesses.

"How do we know the Governor is going to attack? We coulda scared him off," Maggie said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Michonne rolled her eyes. "He had fish tanks with heads." My head jerked up to look at her as she spoke. I had known he was a sick man, but I wasn't expecting this. "Walkers and humans," she continued. "Trophies. He's coming."

My heartbeat quickened at the thought of the Governor coming back here and taking me back with him. Or putting all of our heads in tanks for him to take pride in everyday.

"We should hit him now," I agreed with Glenn. The group turned to look at me, as if forgetting I was there.

"What?" Beth looked at me like I was crazy.

But Glenn was quick to support my statement. "He won't be expecting it. We'll sneak back in and put a bullet in his head."

"We aren't assassins," Carol informed him, but he wasn't listening.

"You know where his apartment is," he said to Michonne, walking up to her eagerly. "You and I could win this tonight."

"Don't even think about leaving me out of this." I took a step forward only thinking better of it after Hershel placed a tender hand on me to hold me back so that he could finish his work.

Glenn looked me over, his one eye still swollen slightly from Merle's beat down in Woodbury. "Hershel just said you have fractured ribs. I don't think you can go in there with us."

My temper was quick to rise, especially when people were telling me what I was and wasn't capable of. "You can barely see out of one eye," I pointed out. "And Michonne isn't exactly up for this either."

Michonne didn't agree with me, but she didn't disagree either.

"Rick won't allow it," Hershel offered up as he was cleaning away his bloodied rags and medical supplies.

Glenn turned to face him. "You really think he's in any position to make that choice."

I furrowed my brow. I hadn't noticed the absence of their supposed leader. He looked out of his mind back when he took me from Woodbury, and I must've been right judging by how everyone glanced around at each other. I could only guess how this world had finally messed up another person's mind. That's when I noticed Carl. His mother died after she had her baby, so her death must have been recent enough that people weren't over it yet. Including Rick.

"We know the Governor is coming back, so why are we still here," Hershel said in his mesmerizingly calm voice. "We can't stay here."

"We can't run," Glenn responded firmly and his expression only softened after Maggie stormed away from the conversation and into her own cell.

Glenn ran a hand through his hair and finally decided against going after the Governor, but we weren't running either, thank God. He drew out a map of the prison for us so we could at least busy ourselves with helpful work.

He was taking Carl down to the tombs they called it. It was a part of the prison that was backed up with Walkers. They had managed to get in and it was only a matter of time before they took over. I argued to go down with the two boys, which they finally agreed upon. I needed somewhere to get out my frustration, and killing Walkers was the only solution right now.

I felt fire coursing through my veins when I killed one after the other. I hadn't gotten the chance to take on so many Walkers in a while. And I really missed it. It felt so natural to be swinging out recklessly at a Biter and to finally give zero fucks about the world.

After countless hours of killing the meander-thaws, which was the therapy I needed, we went back up with the group. Glenn made a decision to go on a run alone, leaving us there to defend ourselves if the Governor appeared. I felt the place was vulnerable without any real fighters around. Again my mind went to Daryl. If he was here we could have stormed Woodbury again and easily fought the Governor. But yet again Merle ruins it all by taking him away.

"We don't need you here."

I looked to my side to see Carl was glowering at me still. He had stared daggers at me the entire time we were in the tombs together. I was honestly surprised he didn't try to push me into them in hopes that I would get bit.

We were standing outside the prison building now, watching Hershel crutch his way to the outer fence to convince Rick to come back to planet earth.

"According to Rick, I'm your best shot at touching the Governor," I smiled mockingly down at him. "Sorry kiddo, but you're stuck with me."

"My dad's wrong. He's been wrong a lot lately."

I peered at him from the corner of my eye. "Dad, huh?" That made more sense of why Rick was so upset about the recent death of Judith and Carl's mom. She was his wife too. She was someone he loved more than anyone, of course he was having a hard time coping.

Carl tilted his wide brimmed hat back to get a better look at me. "Why do you want to be here anyways?"

"Why do you hate me so much kid? What did I do to you?"

His jaw clenched before he answered. "I need to protect my family, and you are someone that puts them in danger."

"Just be glad you still have family to protect." I remembered again his mother and stupidly decided to add to my previous statement. "Well, more family than most of us, anyway."

Carl went silent. I felt bad for the wave of grief that washed over his face as he thought about his mother too. I was an ass, I knew that. It's just how I was sometimes. I finally took my eyes form Hershel and Rick and gave the little man my full attention, tipping his hat lightheartedly. "Listen, I am not trying to hurt your family here. Okay? I just want the Governor dead. And I can't do it all by myself, as much as I wish I could. That's why I'm here."

His expression went back to it's sternness in a second. "We still can't trust you. Doesn't matter if we have common goals."

I grinned at him. "You're one smart kid. Stay that way." I looked back towards the prison building where his baby sister was probably taking her third nap of the day. After Woodbury, I understood taking precautions when it came to strangers. Hell, I respected Carl for the way he wasn't being fooled by nobody. But, him not being entirely convinced I was here for the Governor's head only was pissing me off slightly. Because he was entirely fucking right.

Carl would be my number one difficulty when it came down to robbing the prison. I would have to make sure he didn't fuck it all up for me.

***

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@daryldixonandfrogs

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