#its so cool and the lobby is fun but i find it hard to watch cus i get distracted plus im extra spacey today 😔

[simp999]

A New Home Ch. 6

Various Splatoon Manga x Skilled! Isekai'd Reader

Wc: 1.2k

Back to the start! Previous Next

I really underestimated how many inklings would be here, huh?’ You push and shove yourself through the crowd of people, sorry’s and excuse me’s being heard by the people around you. You have nowhere to put your weapon or bag so you keep them close, finding yourself wedged between the corner of a wall and a railing. You’re close to the battle, which is nice, but you’ve got nowhere to sit. You lean against the railing with your manual and pencil in hand, looking for Mask. He’s certainly harder to spot than the impressively-agile Aloha, Mask’s specialty being sneaky and whatnot. You watch a seeker bomb make its way towards one of the opponents, and you trace the bomb back to a patch of moving ink. 

‘Aha! There he is.’

There are sub-weapons scattered about, and most of the ink stains look like they come from bombs instead of weapons. It doesn’t take long before the opponent is being spawn-camped, with thirty seconds remaining. Mask lazily makes his way over to the cargo box in the middle of stage, having full confidence in his teammates when it comes to keeping the opponents at bay. He leans his lightweight roller over his shoulder, using his other hand to pull out his phone.

‘So he really did just disrespected his opponents like that in the middle of battle? Damn, guess that’s what happens when you’re not prepared for an S4 battle.’

One of the opponents tries to make a break for it on their own, and the cyan team is quick to shut them down immediately, throwing a disruptor and sprinkler near the player, and the ink mine that was placed earlier finished the job swiftly. Mask doesn’t even bother lifting his head up to check out the situation.

‘Imagine having that kind of confidence in your teammates. I could never with the teams of randos I’ve been getting.’ You think back at the many instances of your teammates trying their absolute best at inking… the walls, that is.

‘Yeah, no thanks.’

It’s hard to hear his muffled voice through the gas mask, but you know that he's making fun of Aloha for being so weak. You really thought that the manga overdid it with making him look scary and intense, but the confidence in skill says otherwise. The gasmask isn’t helping either. He may carry himself like a 40-year-old man with back problems, but the way he can destroy his opponents with the element of surprise is something completely unrivaled.

The Squid Sisters announce the complete and utter defeat of the opposing team, reminding the viewers about how Mask can easily destroy his opponents without swinging his roller.

“Did the lenses of his mask just shine like in an anime? Hey c’mon now, this is a manga, not an anime. Quit making him look so scary.”

You almost want to laugh at the iconic trope, but the scary and hopeless aura of the room doesn’t allow it. Save for the energetic fans in the stands, though you’re surprised at how much quieter they are, compared to Army and Aloha’s battles.

‘Mask’s technically stronger, right? Shouldn’t he have more-’

You look behind you and see that most of his fans are grinning ear-to ear creepily.

‘Oh yeah, this is Mask we’re talking about. Of course his fans are kinda creepy.’

This time you’re stuck with the crowd on the way out of Walleye Warehouse, now hearing all the squeals and people talking about how “badass” and “cool” he looked. You cover one of your ears with the free hand you have, the other holding your weapon. 

‘Man you guys are loud, shuddup, will ya? Ugh. Most of 'em are just pretending to be all quiet and scary ‘cause they assume that’s the kinda person they think he likes, though. What a pain, doing things for attention.’

You finally manage to squeeze your way through the crowd and out of the lobby, finally getting a nice breath of fresh air.

‘Ew, people. Anyways, what comes next? Mask doesn’t send the text message right away, right? I think there was a battle around this time. Must’ve been nothing overly important if I can’t remember anything significant.’

You’re in the mood to terrify some opponents, so you decide it’s time for some Turf Wars. You once again focus on the new things you’ve written down in your manual. With light footsteps and more comfortable movements, you easily get some more wins under your belt. You almost feel bad for your opponents, but they were the ones unfortunate enough to decide that they felt like being right here, right now. Your headphones find themselves back on your head, not enjoying how loud the opponents were. Your teammates had a problem with that before the battle started, one of them tapping your shoulder and telling you that you won’t be able to hear it if they yell ‘this way’ or if they get splatted, but you assure them it’ll be alright, not elaborating any further. They’re cautious going into battle, not wanting to lose, but it doesn’t take long before you put the opponents in their place. Right after you splat another one of your opponents, your music cuts out. You think it might be a connection issue, so you ignore it until the battle is over. Now you can hear how loud your opponents are, trying to diss you left and right. Not that they’re in a position to do so as they’re losing miserably, so you suppose this is just their chance at payback in some odd way. Taking a break, you check the headphones.

‘Oh, they’re dead. Carp, forgot to charge them. How annoying.’

You put the velcro strap on your weapon, but it snaps.

‘Just one thing after another, huh?’

You head over to Ammo knights to get another strap for your weapon. No big deal, but it’s still a waste of your time. You figure that you’re better off not battling in his mood, not that you’d want to battle against all these salty kids without your headphones to block em' out anyways.

You remember that you hadn’t yet drawn Mask on the page dedicated to him and his team, so you find yourself a place to sit down in the plaza to draw for a bit. Then, you hear bits and pieces of a familiar conversation. You don’t have the energy to get up and avoid any main characters right now, and you figure that you’re already out of the way enough for them not to notice you. You go on your phone, only half paying attention to their conversation.

“...on’t know who we’re battling, though.”

“You don’t know?”

“No, they just sent us an email. The email is extremely polite, but there’s no name attached.”

You zone out after hearing that, now knowing exactly where you are in the manga.

‘Well then, looking forward to seeing that Sub-Weapon Hell soon.’

With a smirk on your face you stand up, bag in hand.

Next part

apr. 11. 23

#MASK MY BLORBO♡ #splatoon #splatoon 2 #splatoon 3 #splatoon x reader #splatoon manga x reader #splatoon manga mask #splatoon mask #splatoon manga mask x reader #splatoon aloha #splatoon manga aloha #splatoon rider #splatoon manga rider #x reader #fanfic #splatoon fanfic #splatoon manga fanfic #splatoon fanart #splatoon manga fanart

[wolfychaaan]

With You - Frank Morrison x Reader story Chapter One

❗️❗️WARNING❗️❗️

Story features mentions of rape/non con and gore. Please read at own risk. I do not own any DBD characters.

The generator fires and spurts as you flee from its side to run from the encroaching killer laughing hysterically as he opens another bottle of substance to lobby your way. You dash through a maze of corn and wooden boards trying to do anything to keep him away, the cool fall air of Coldwind farms combats the warmth of the sun overhead. You run straight for the tree that holds decaying cow corpses, gross, but you need a way to loop the Clown off your tail. He's giggling and chuckling all the way as he stomps behind you, his gait is that of a lumbering bear on two legs but with all the poise of a human.

Dropping the palette onto the Clown's head you hear him roar and grumble in aggravation as he watches you sprint away back into the corn. You dodge other generators and palettes as you try to find a place to hide or at least another teammate to comfort you. The shattering of glass behind you speeds up your heartbeat, legs burning as you full speed ahead but the splinters of shards dig into your skin through the fabric of your jeans and another unholy concoction from the Clown is airborne. You lose stride from the pain in your legs and the slip in focus causes you to fall to the ground as you trip on a rock. Another bottle hits the hard ground, sending out a colorful potion you've never seen before. Trying not to inhale the substance is hard as you struggle to catch your breath and get to your feet at the same time. Unfortunately, you've already inhaled too much and your vision grows fuzzy causing you to collapse and lose consciousness. The last thing you can hear is the Clown's victorious laughs as he approaches.

Frank sits up on the roof of the killer shack watching everything unfold. Other killers could view other trials but were not allowed to interfere. This was the only real rule the Entity gave other killers, but this situation was different. You were his favorite. He loved the way you screamed when being chased, how cute you were when you were being hooked, and mostly he just found himself entranced by you. He would often observe your trials to get his own kicks but this time he came for a specific reason: to stop the Clown. He heard rumors of the bastard creating some new tonic to make survivors fall unconscious, he didn't know what purpose that would serve until now. He watches the lumbering form begin to tear your clothing off from you.

"Bastard," Frank mutters to himself before pulling his mask over his face.

The Clown licks his lips under the mask in glee as he slowly begins to undress you down to your panties. He giggles to himself admiring his work, oh what he is DYING to do to you. He hears a thump nearby and then a familiar voice.

"That's far enough I think," Frank says, voice laced with venom. The Clown turns to look at who's stopping his fun time and smiles.

"Frank, my boy! Come to admire my work?"

"Shut the fuck up you Gacey wannabe, I'm here to stop it," he flicks his hunter's knife in his palm. The Clown bellows a laugh.

"You can't touch me here son, that would be against the rules. Besides, why do you care? You're a killer just like me, why shouldn't we get to have a little fun?"

"See, normally I would agree with you. However, even I have standards and this crosses that line,"

"And those are?"

"I don't rape unconscious people after drugging them you sick bastard," Frank lunges forward stabbing the larger man in the gut with his knife. The blade slicing into his sternum like a knife cutting off a chunk of steak. The Clown roars and grabs his stomach.

"Y-you little shit!" He growls. Frank wipes the blade winding up for another attack.

"You're not..getting away with this. You'll…you'll be punished by the Entity for you're-" the Clown chokes up bile and blood. Frank kicks him over, leaning a knee onto the larger man's neck so he chokes some more.

"That spider creep can do what it wants with me, after I'm done teaching an old piece of shit like you a lesson,"

The gates lift open with a whail and the other survivors head into the exit.

"Something doesn't feel right," Kate pipes up, rubbing her forearms.

"I agree, we never even saw the killer. This was too easy," David replies.

"Why look a gift horse in the mouth? Easy trial is a good trial!" Ace muses. David gives him a dirty look while Kate starts to look panicked.

"Oh God, where is (Y/N)?!"

"Shit! I barely saw her after the start of the trial!"

"But nobody was on the hooks, did they get away?"

The survivors begin to hear a noise of corn rustling behind them. Emerging from the corn holding you in their arms is Frank. His mask is off to the side of his head, revealing his face to the group. He's covered in blood, none of it his or your's. The group stares at him, Kate noticing you in his arms, clothes torn asunder.

"Oh God, (Y/N)! Is she ok?"

"What the fuck are you doing with her?" David asks in a growl.

"Relax, she's just unconscious. The killer was the Clown, he was going to hurt her but I stopped it," Frank says.

"Holy shit," Ace murmurs. Frank hands you off to David, who takes you in his arms. Kaye moves your hair to check your breathing.

"You guys better get going before you become Entity chow,"

"Wait sug, thank you for helping her but what's in this for you?" Kate asks.

"Nothing, just consider it a gift from a friend," Frank says. The group turns to leave, David carrying you through the gate and back to safety. Frank turns on the heels of his boots and wanders back into the corn to admire his work. The Clown is in slices, slowly being recombined by the Entity's power. He wishes he could kill the creepy old fuck but for some reason the Entity enjoys keeping him around. In moments the Entity's long legs burst from the ground and pull Frank under into the shadowy realm it exists in.

It's dark and numbing in the Entity's space. Frank can't tell if he's standing or floating in the smokey void that houses the ominous being.

"You disappoint me Frank Morrison. You've disobeyed the one rule I give you," the Entity speaks. "Do you know how long it will take to fix your mess?"

"Like there's a shortage of killer clowns," Frank rolls his eyes.

"SILENCE, HUMAN! You do not have the higher ground to speak to me in any way you desire. You've gone against my game, my trials, disrespected my blessings, you must be punished,"

"Do whatever you want with me, but do not touch the rest of the Legion. They're innocent,"

"I am aware. Unlike you, they've been following the rules of my game. Only you shall suffer the fate I provide you,"

"You gonna kill me?" The Entity laughs.

"You would like that wouldn't you, Frank Morrison? No, you do not get such luxuries. I shall punish you in a way that fits the crime," The world goes pitch black and Frank feels his body grow heavy. He loses consciousness.

Frank opens his eyes to see a sky dimly lit with stars, a tangle of tree branches against the skyline, his body aching in pain from laying on the cold, hard ground. He does a check over to make sure he still has all his limbs and appendages, nothing seems to be missing. He sits up, hearing a nearby stream trickling by and feeling an incredible thirst overtake him. Running to the stream he begins scooping water into his palm and drinking. He goes until he feels the dryness in his mouth subside, taking deep breaths to relax himself. He looks down into the water and sees changes in his reflection. His eyes have become a soft grey, the hints of red that coated them from the Entity are gone. Physically he doesn't feel as strong as he was. His usual leather jacket and hoodie have been replaced with his varsity jacket and a t-shirt, with jeans and sneakers instead of his combat boots and camo tactical pants.

"What the fuck…" he whispers to himself. A lot of his piercings he did after becoming a killer were gone except for an eyebrow piercing, the scar across the bridge of his nose from it getting broken remains, with a mop of dark hair on the top of his head but shorter on the sides. He can hear voices in the distance, survivors he thinks. He reaches for his knife but his trusty blade is gone.

You shall live as one of them, this is your new fate the Entity echoes in Frank's head. He panics for a moment, running a hand through his hair, trying to come to terms with what that even means for him. He was now a survivor, no longer killing them but PART of their group. Suddenly he feels a strange ease wash over him because it dawns on who he can be with: you.

He gets up off the ground and begins to approach the fire light in the distance. Survivors are gathering around the flames, chatting, he recognizes a lot of them from his hunts. As he steps further into the light he steps on a stick, the crack makes everyone turn and go silent. Small gasps and murmurs throughout the crowd saying his name or just Legion. David stands up, hands clenched into fists before he barks.

"What the fuck do YOU want?" Frank holds up his hands.

"Whoa whoa, easy, I'm not a killer anymore,"

"Pft yeah right, like we believe that bullshit," Nea snorts from her spot leaning against a tree.

"Killers can't enter survivor spaces!" Someone yells, he thinks it's Meg. More muttering erupts.

"Now hold on y'all, maybe we should hear him out?" Kate suggests. "Are you all forgetting he saved (Y/N)? He let us go last trial!" Everyone stops muttering and goes quiet, exchanging looks. Tapp crosses his arms, David clenches his jaw.

"Go on then," Kate encourages.

"Well, apparently I pissed off the Entity enough that I'm being punished for that. Now I'm one of you," Nobody speaks. The group exchanges glances around, wondering what to do or say. Frank rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. Suddenly he feels someone crash into his back nearly knocking him over, two arms wrap around him.

"YOU SAVED ME!" the voice he's adored since you first came here, it's yours. Frank turns in your grasp to see you giving him a hug, tears streaming down your face.

"(Y/N) don't touch him!" Tapp yells.

"Kate told me what you did and I never got to thank you…and now you're being punished for helping me,"

"H-hey, it's not your fault. I wanted to help you," You let go of him so he can turn to face you, but he wishes you didn't. You wipe at your eyes trying to stop yourself from crying. You were in shock when Kate told you what Frank had done. Saving you from the Clown who tried to do something so horrible to you, and now he was a survivor like the rest of you. You feel Frank's warm hand cup your chin and pull your face to meet his eyes.

"Don't be sorry, I wouldn't let that sicko do what he wanted to you. Besides, this isn't so bad," he smiles, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb. You can feel your cheeks heating up, eyes blown wide as he looks down at you.

"I hate to interrupt the touching moment here but it's not like the Entity brought in a new survivor the same way. He doesn't have a cabin," says a voice, Frank thinks it's Adam.

"H-he can stay with me!" You blurt out. Frank lets go of your face, eyes wide.

"I don't think that's a good idea,"

"He doesn't have anywhere to go, and it's something I can do to repay him for saving me,"

"You really trust this guy?" Jill asks, crossing her arms across her chest, approaching closer to help her friend if Frank tries anything. He glares at her, he never did like cops.

"Listen I get it sounds insane, but I don't even have a weapon on me," Frank says.

"We could always pat him down and double check?" Suggests Laurie from the crowd.

"I'll do it," Leon volunteers, stepping forward. He grabs Frank's shoulder, instructing him to put his hands on a nearby tree while he conducts a search.

"You pat down all the pretty boys, officer?" Frank quips. Leon shoots him a look and Frank winks back. Everyone shifts uncomfortably.

"He's clean," Leon says, Frank turns back around and you give him a warm smile.

"If nobody else is willing to give him a place to stay what's the issue? Besides, I don't really feel like being alone tonight after…today," you look towards the ground, shuffling your foot in the dirt. Frank takes your hand in his and gives a small squeeze.

"I promise I'll be on my best behavior officer," he says, you gaze up at him and feel a blush forming on your cheeks. Jill snorts, glaring at him.

"If it'll make (Y/N) feel safer, and we really don't have a place for him," Jill remarks. The rest of the group just kind of nods and mutters to themselves. Leon approaches you and whispers in your ear.

"If he tries anything you know where to find me," you nod back, feeling his hand squeeze your shoulder. Other survivors begin to disperse, some walking in groups or pairs off to the cabins. Each survivor came with a cabin that replicates where they came from. Yours resembles your old apartment before the Entity claimed you. Opening the door, you flick on the light and Frank follows you in, hands in his jacket pockets. Your living space is small, a one bedroom apartment maybe five hundred square feet. Frank begins to look around, making himself comfortable like a cat in a new home.

"I know it's not very big but it's cozy and better than sleeping outside," Frank flops down on the couch, you wander into your bedroom looking for something comfortable for him to wear. You knew you had sweatpants from an old ex in your drawers and maybe he could borrow a bigger t-shirt. You dig out the pair of grey sweats and manage to find a t-shirt he could wear from your old college. You walk back out and hand them to him.

"Here, for you to change into so you don't have to wear jeans to bed," he gives you a smile.

"Aw, how sweet of you,"

"You can shower off in the bathroom over there if you feel like it,"

"Actually that sounds kinda nice," you show him the bathroom, giving him a clean towel of his own and explain the door can be locked for privacy. Undressing and turning on the shower, Frank steps into the warm water letting it wash over him and down his body. He can't stop thinking about how lucky this turned out for him. Why the Entity would bless him by bringing him closer to you was beyond him, but he wasn't about to question this punishment.

Using some of your soap to wash his body, Frank gently hums to himself. One of his favorite pastimes was singing and humming to himself. He feels on cloud nine right now. You've taken the opportunity to change into your own pajamas, some black pajama pants and a tank top, hearing Frank humming from the other side of the door. He seems oddly happy considering everything, and most times during trials with him he would let you go at the end. The humming turns to singing, Frank has a lovely voice you had to admit. A moment later the water shuts off but the singing continues.

Frank exits the bathroom, running the towel over his hair to dry some of the water out. He keeps singing to himself, wearing the clothes you gave him. He seems so relaxed and happy being here.

"You seem happy," you remark. Frank gives you a wolfish grin.

"It's just been a really great day,"

"I figured you would be upset with all this,"

"Well I'm upset I never got to tell the other Legion members what was going on but I know they're safe and the Entity won't touch them,"

"So you're very close with them?"

"We are like a family," Frank smiles. "It's weird no longer having the intense urge to kill from the Entity's power, physically I don't feel as strong as before," he stares at his hands. You sort of feel bad, he's been separated from his family and dumped here full of people who have already judged him.

"I'm sorry you risked everything to help me," you murmur. Frank's head snaps to look at you.

"Hey don't be sorry, I did it on my own. I wouldn't let that fucker hurt you or have his way with you," he says sternly.

"But why? Weren't you also a killer?" Frank fidgets.

"Yeah but…I'm not like him," You cross your arms across your chest and give him a look.

"I've seen you mori my friends and wipe their blood on your mask while laughing. What makes you different? Why save me?" Frank bounces his knee in agitation.

"I just am ok? Trust me,"

"You can't blame me for being skeptical dude, you would chase me all over the map for kicks. You loved doing the frenzy thing so why-"

"Because I fucking like you ok?! I care about you! I've been obsessed with you since our first trial together! Now I have this chance to…to be here!" You put a hand over your mouth and look at him in shock. Frank's face turns the brightest red.

"I'm sorry for yelling," he says.

"No it's ok, t-thank you for telling me," you look down at the floor. There's an awkward pause.

"Maybe we should go to sleep," Frank suggests. You agree and go to get him some pillows and blankets to sleep on the couch from your bedroom. Frank runs a hand through his hair. He feels like a huge jerk.

"If you need more stuff let me know," you say.

"You've already done a lot, (Y/N). Thank you," you give a small nod before disappearing behind your bedroom door. Frank sighs, leaning back on the couch and groaning into his hands.

You have the worst nightmares of your life, vivid and horrifying as you relive the trauma from the previous trial. It goes further, the Clown keeps you awake but you cannot move and feel everything he's doing. You scream and thrash until you wake up gripping your chest, panicking. Your bedroom door flies open and you see Frank in the doorway. He rushes to your side, you feel tears threatening to drop down.

"Are you ok?! I heard screaming so I ran in here,"

"Y-yeah…just a bad dream," you say. Frank turns on the lamp beside your bed, you can see his face is coated in concern.

"What was it about?" He asks.

"Just the Clown and what happened,"

"It sounded worse than just that,"

"I'll be ok Frank I just need to calm down,"

"Push over," he instructs.

"Wh-"

"Just do it," you push over, making space in the bed. Frank gets in beside you and pulls you into his body. You feel his warmth, a welcoming sensation, wash over you as his strong arms wrap around you. You're pressing into his chest, his hand rubbing the small of your back as he murmurs softly in your ear.

"You're safe, you're ok. I'm here now, I won't let him touch you," and the overwhelming feeling of tears you've been trying to hold back overcomes you and you begin to sob uncontrollably into Frank. You bury your face in the crook of his neck, he continues to rub your back and repeat those words like a mantra. You've never been treated like this before, most of your exs made emotions seem like a huge issue. Eventually your manic sobs settle to small tears and your breathing slows down. Frank continues to hold you.

"That's my girl, let it alllll out. I'm here," you blush at him calling you his girl.

"I'm sorry I've drenched you," he gives a small laugh.

"It'll dry, do you feel better?"

"Yeah…I do. Thank you,"

"Do you want me to leave?" He asks. You grip his t-shirt tightly.

"Please stay, I don't…I don't want to be alone," you can almost see his smile in your mind.

"OK baby, I'll stay as long as you want,"

He sings softly to you, a song you don't quite recognize, eventually you fall back asleep in his arms. Once he feels you safely asleep he rolls to the side to turn off the light beside the bed. Back to holding you close Frank tries to push down the fury he has for the Clown and the fear you have inside you from his disgusting actions. He would make him pay all over again, a thousand times, just to make you feel safe.

Morning arrives and you slowly awaken, laying on your side with your back to Frank and his arm draping around your waist. You slept much better having him beside you, snuggling under the comforter. You give a small stretch, feeling the need to pee. You try to wiggle free but Frank tightens his grip and pulls you back into his sleeping form. You giggle, trying to escape his grasp but he doesn't let go.

"Frank pleaaaase let me go? I need to pee so bad!" You beg. He lets go and you escape, running out of the room. Frank groans and buries himself under the covers once again. He's content with just staying in your bed all day, it was nice to not wake up freezing his ass off like in Ormond. He temporarily falls back asleep when he hears a knock on your cabin door and you run to answer it. Peeking out from under the blankets he can hear murmurs from outside. Two other voices, female from the cadence. Frank drags himself out of bed to investigate.

"You doin' ok hon?" Kate asks.

"Yeah I'm better than yesterday, that's for sure,"

"We were worried about you and Frank staying together, he didn't hurt you did he?"

"No, he actually helped me out of a panic attack last night. It was really sweet!"

"He hasn't tried anything funny has he?" Jill asks. Frank clicks his tongue.

"No! He's been nothing but respectful and kind, honestly you guys are worried over nothing,"

"Don't you think it's weird the Entity dumped him here after all this?" Frank opens the bedroom door and practically runs up behind you. He wraps his arms around your waist and rests his head on top of yours.

"Morning ladies, thanks for coming to check in," Frank says. Jill gives him a dirty look.

"Y'all look awfully cozy for just one night together," Kate remarks.

"What can I say? I'm just that damn charming," Frank smirks. You blush feeling his warmth contrast the cool air outside.

"I'm OK guys, seriously thank you for worrying," you say in earnest. Jill relaxes a little hearing you sound so content, pulling the sleeve of Kate's jacket as a sign to back down.

"We'll see you later then," she says with a smile. You nod, closing the door as the two girls turn to walk away. Frank lets go of your waist but in a swift motion sweeps you up bridal style to take you back to the bedroom. You let out a little squeak when he does, he's still so strong for not having his Entity powers. He puts you back into the bed and hops in beside you, pulling you into his chest.

"Now where were we?"

#frank morrison #dead by daylight #dbd legion #dbd x reader #fan fic author #x reader

[shiningdesignersreflections]

Chapter 3: Art of Freezing the Moment

Narrated by William.

Narrator: As soon as we got home, I started drawing up plans to replicate some of these buildings in paper.

Susan: Paper craft? That sounds fun! I wanna help!

Narrator: This project is quite complicated. Every step requires patience and attention to detail.

Narrator: As for Susan’s offer to help...

William: Well... how about you help me make a few paper cranes?

William: We can hang them from the eaves. They will look like they are flying around the tower.

Susan: No problem! I can do that!

Narrator: When I am getting to a critical stage in the build...

Narrator: Susan runs towards my desk, excitedly waving around a crane she has made.

Susan: Will! Will! Look what I made!

Narrator: She plonks it down heavily on the table.

Narrator: The little kerosene lamp I had been using for light tips over.

Narrator: The flame quickly engulfs the nearly finished paper tower.

William: CAREFUL, SUSAN!!!

Narrator: I grab the fire extinguisher next to the desk and put it out.

Susan: Noooooo! I’m so sorry, Will...

Narrator: Staring at the still smouldering base of the tower, we get a vivid sense of what happened to those old Cloud Empire buildings.

Choose either “What a shame...” or “Fortunately, it didn’t start a fire.”

If “shame,” ...

You: Such a shame... All that hard work...

Narrator: Yeah, it’s very frustrating, but it has given me a better idea.

If “fire,” ...

You: Good thing you know how to use a fire extinguisher. It could have been a lot worse.

Narrator: It’s not that hard, once you know how... But this little accident has given me a better idea.

--

Choose “A better idea?”

You: A better idea?

Narrator: Yeah! We just need to use some fire-resistant materials, then we won’t have to worry.

Narrator: True to my word, I grab a bunch of reference books and develop a new plan.

William: We just need to coat the paper in a special material and it should be fine.

Narrator: I run some experiments to determine which material would be best.

Narrator: Susan watches me, from a distance of at least 2 meters.

William: Okay! Now we won’t have to worry about fire or water damage!

Susan: You really are a clever alchemist!

Narrator: We entered our “collaborative” project in the holiday craft exhibition.

Narrator: We show everyone the beauty of traditional Cloud Empire architecture.

Narrator: On that day, we stood beside our model and told everyone about our inspiration and our journey to Cloud Empire.

Student A: It’s pure Cloud Empire, baby!

Student B: And paper craft is a Cloud Empire thing, too, right? It looks cool!

Narrator: Our paper tower is still displayed in a cabinet inside the student lobby. Students walk past it every day.

Narrator: Cloud Empire inspires me in so many ways. Its paintings, designs, its alchemy...

Narrator: Next time, I’ll find a way to display its natural beauty.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

#william #shining nikki #transcript #chapter 3 #cloud #cloud empire #art of freezing the moment #origami #tower #pagoda #crane #fire #collaboration #arts and crafts #exhibition

[alolanroy]

Watch thread 2022 Pt2

I accidentally deleted the first one, so this is August onwards.

ZZ gundam

This show was a bit of a mess but I enjoyed it. The tone kept shifting and it couldn’t decide how series or goofy it wanted to be. I loved the comedy in the first third with Judao and the gang doing shenanigans, but the middle was a bit of a slog until the return to space. I appreciate the new ideas and locations it introduced, but I can’t say I liked some of the cyber newtype stuff towards the end, though it finally explained a little bit more about them. Unfortunately if you average the high peaks with the valleys I think it lands at a 7.5/10

The Hunt for Red October

Never really felt the tension I think I was supposed to. I’m spoiled 6/10

Free Guy

I got more kicks guessing when certain stages of production were done based on props and references. For example, there is a copy of Dark Souls 2 for the XBOX360 on someones desk equidistant to late 2000′s L33t speak and the streamer Ninja. It feels more like a real movie than a lot of stuff these days. Still Just okay. 6/10

Sandman (2022)

Devoured the first arc in 24 hours. The tone, the music the production and needless to say the writing leaves you with an adaptation that feels authentic without having any knowledge of the original. I’ll remedy that in a while. Episode 5 is a tough watch though, as deliberate as it is. Episode 6 was fantastic though. Do wish we get more moodyness in the second season that had better happen. Final thoughts: IDK what makeup magic they did but Morpheus looks appropriately surreal. 8/10

The Batman

Good movie, but it didn’t blow my world. I like the way it ends a little more optimistically with his transition from vengence to hero. Interesting stuff. The Riddler nails the incel energy, but it isn’t the best to watch at times. I like this interpretation of Bruce as an emo loser who just wallows in himself. Good performances everywhere. 8/10

Krull

This is like a greatest hits album of boring fantasy movie tropes. 3/10

Ready Player One

Not as bad as I had hoped, but not funny bad. 5/10

Morbius

This feels more like a real movie to be honest and it was a fun watch with friends 5/10

Mission Impossible: Fallout

These movies continue to be good! 8.5/10

Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

I thought this was a joke holy fuck maximalist storytelling is based. Its so well made, it has so many neat cinematography, action and flow. It churns out cool moments like nobody’s business. 9/10

Primal Season 2

Great show, everything I said about the first season applies. I found myself asking less of the hard questions or thinking quite so much about my distant ancestors, but it was fascinating almost seeing civilization spring up as the series went along. Primal theory in particular stands out for not just breaking up the formula, but also being a concise reiteration of the themes. My only gripe is that the ending feels abrupt. My assumption it was cut short since it looks like HBO max is going the way of the dinosaur. 8/10

Genesis of Aquarion

I feel like I gave this more than an honest shot because I have a fascination with post-evangelion mecha anime. At first it seemed like a mashup of getter robo three pilot action with a larger cast of pilots, and the first two episodes served up some interesting ideas and the kind of mysteries, imagery and cool character hooks I like from these things. However by episode 3 we stop getting that, and it is replaced by two characters, one of whom is clearly somebody’s fetish. I guess its a school anime now? but that gets dropped because in episode 4 its just training like 12 people and a LOT of feet stuff they have no intention of hiding the fetish for. I was hoping after that this show would be the fun kind of train wreck, but after 2-3 beyond that it just failed to hold my attention. I have no faith that any of the stuff that hooked me gets paid off. Rahxephon this ain’t. 5/10

Hot Wheels Unleashed.

Since I could only find 1 lobby with 3 people in it at 9pm on a Sunday I get the feeling this is a dead game. I can’t judge its multiplayer but I can judge everything else. The amount of paywalls, DLC and lootboxes is shocking. You even have to grind multiplayer for coins to unlock tracks for quick play. This is more skinner box than racing game. 2/10

Gundam Evolution (Launch)

Now I could say something interesting about how the character design encourages more dynamic mid-range gunfights, lack of melee options prevents slap-fights and how preventing additional characters behind a time gate to prevents the pro-genji problem. I could say something about how many of its design decisions are a response to Overwatch’s shortcomings. I will say that it is very fun. matchmaking is fast but not the best. Some matches can be steamrolls, but most of them felt like they came down to the wire. Its a little jankier and lower budget than overwatch but It makes me happy where it counts. Gif sprays, funny weapon ornaments. Very few of the character skins are interesting, which I didn’t expect. The currencies and battle pass system are the only real shortcoming. Its too obfuscated and feels kinda gross. Overall, I had a great time with friends and it’s fascinating to dissect. Its a little janky, but its better than any other current hero shooter, including what Overwatch has become. 8/10

Surf Nazis Must Die

Mostly unwatchable, but I’d like to see a remake since the concept of a old black lady with retro firearms out for revenge is too good to let die. 2/10

General Commander

Theres really nothing here. a boiler plate Geezer Teaser that had one stunt that made me think it might be something. 1/10

Thor: Love and Thunder

This is to Thor Ragnarok what Men in Black: International is to the original Men in Black. I felt nothing 3/10

Elvis (2022)

The greatest compliment I can give one of these music biopics is that it made me care about Elvis and even like his music. 8/10

Wing Commander

Objectively this isn’t that great, but it pushes my buttons like crazy. naval warfare in space, with planes and ftl logistics? Sign me Up! These things bring me joy, and not enough space movies do that anymore. 6/10, but 7/10 for me.

Babylon 5 rewatch 2022

HOLY MOLY. I enjoyed my first watch more since things were more of a suprise, but knowing where things are going is fun as well. Love Walter Koenig as Mr.Bester. 1st and 5th seasons are kinda rough though. 8/10 all things considered.

LOTR rewatch

I enjoyed this way more than my first viewing. I think maturing has helped me appreciate the artistry even more. My beautiful GF ended up loving the hell out of it. Turns out I watched the extended editions for my first viewing because I was confused when some of my favorite scenes were missing. Not much I can say that hasn’t been said. 9.5/10

MIB II

Not as bad as I remember. It still does the thing where sequels try to retread the gags that made the first one succeed to diminishing returns, but its flaws are out in perspective by Men in Black International. 4/10

Who Killed Captain Alex

Love for moviemaking permeates its being. The commentary adds an extra level of comedic punch and sets the fun movie watching tone for those who don’t usually engage with movies that way.. A real joy to watch with friends. 7/10

Torchwood Seasons 1-2

Its not good per-say, its more like a guilty pleasure watch than anything else. This show tries so hard to be cool and slick, but the overall execution just feels a bit try hard at times. By that I mean it tries to differentiate itself from Doctor Who by reminding you as often as possible that people have sex on this show, it gets tiring after a while. Most episodes are hit or miss and I hate that they kept trying to make the cheating subplot happen. Not touching the later seasons because they seem like different animals and they didn’t seem good when I saw them as they aired. 6/10

Guyver 2: Dark Hero

A better tone and one good fight at the end doesn’t make up for a dull movie, a bad soundtrack and baffling sound effect choices. The finniest part of the movie is a rhino monster that makes the cat screech sound effect anytime it does anything. 4/10

Kickassia

I can tell this was made with love and the occasional good joke survives poor delivery. Its dated as all hell, but I can see how it has nowhere to go but down. 4/10

G.I. Joe Retaliation

Gone is the campy toyetic action of the original. While the first didn’t do a great job of selling the fantasy of a multinational team of goofy action figure people teaming up with ocean bases and laser guns, the Joes have been reduced to just a generic Seal Team 6. This feels even more like post 9-11 American exceptionalism but without the gadgetry and camp, it has nothing. The only thing improved is Cobra Commander’s design. Overall this is a movie built to be ignored while watched. 2/10

Mortal Kombat 2021

Surprising in the sense that its pretty fun. The jokes land, the action is cool, the characters and the story is exactly what it needs to be. I want this to be the standard for video game movies going forward. The goofy lines from the games are integrated well enough to be good on their own. Kano is a highlight. Part of me wants more camp like the first MK movie, but I’m happy with what I got. 7/10

Romancylvaniaa Demo

Needs the polish and the sound design is a bit hard to swallow at the moment, but I can see the vision for the gameplay loop. This is a rare demo that actually feels like its still in active development. Fun to see behind the curtains in that sense.. Worried they might not get it shape for release, but we will see. Not going to rate it till then.

Snake Eyes: GI Joe Origins

I kinda wish it went a little farther in either the serious or camp direction. Action is neat enough and the plot is serviceable, but I think the drama could’ve been a bit more. I will say that it does a lot to ‘fix’ the origins for snake eyes into something a bit more complex and it resisted the temptation to make Snake Eyes white. 6/10

Project Nimbus

I think ZoE games don’t work for me, but occasionally charming moments and Ace Combat vibes are kinda drowned out by jank and blandness. At the end of the day it just isn’t fun to play. Default control options are just no fun, weapon switching is awkward and you end up switching perspective. This could’eve been resolved with a greater focus on velocity instead of strafing, less weapons and any feedback for the funnel system. It’s definitely a product of its time.  3/10

Dracula Untold

While I don’t think it is good per-say, I think its a bummer no one talks about this. As a castlevania fan, seeing Dracula go full dynasty warriors on a legion of turks is well worth the price of admission. surprisingly solid, but this franchise wen’t nowhere for a reason. 6.5/10

Constantine (2005)

Not bad 7/10

Pixels

Not as bad as I would have hoped. There were a few actual jokes, but overall the material was thoroughly wasted. The only thing more dissappointing is that I was stuck actually watching it since my two friends got in a A-B conversation as a defense mechanism against watching the movie. 3.5/10

Beast m Machines (3 random episodes)

A distinct step down from Beast Wars. The elephant in the room is that the Maximals look absolutely awful without exception regardless of mode. It really makes me appreciate the lengths the toys had to redesign them. The environments are samey and empty, but not in a way that builds the desolate industrial tone they were hoping for. The writing is probably on par in terms of episodic shenanigans, but removing the camp from the predicons just makes it all kinda dull. Its not cool or funny, its just there. 4/10

Ratatouille

Still a good movie. 9/10

Conan the Barbarian (1982)

Holds up pretty well. I was taken aback by how thoughtful and willing to be quiet this movie is with its storytelling. The bit with the tomb made a big impression on me as a kid and it still stands as one of my favorite movie moments. I especially like how much ‘guys being dudes’ this movie uses to make us really buy the comeradere. I’ll contrast that to modern movies that take that for granted or other fantasy like Krull that throws 10 billion characters at you and expects you to care because one of them makes jokes I guess. James Earl Jones kills it (but that goes without saying) and I’m suprised to say Schwarzenegger fits the role like a glove and is able to convey the character through his brand of action barbarian. 9/10

Oni (2022)

The stop motion is cute enough and I get the practical and stylistic considerations, but this just looked choppy and not terribly nice looking, but that comes down to the designs for most of the cast. In terms of story it talks down to its audience so low they must be in the basement. I’m not really in much of a position to talk about this from a representational standpoint but it felt like it was laying it on thick but also being weirdly shallow with its mythological elements without the creativity or fun. George Takei’s Tengu character is the most interesting but the majority of the characters look like a sticker sheet made by white people for 3rd graders. It’s for childeren at the end of the day, but in the most condescending way. It feels half hearted and doesn’t lean into that magic of stop motion. 2/10

Rider Time: Kamen Rider Zi-O VS Decade -7 of Zi-O! and  Rider Time: Kamen Rider Zi-O VS Decade -7 of Zi-O!

I have no words for how bonkers these two are. These are weird, even on Decade standards. They are a total blast though, make no mistake. The humor and just WEIRD moments keep you engaged and guessing though both of these. A personal favorite is a moment in the final battle where a character hears the results of an election with one vote, politely asks to leave and just walks out with excellent timing. The range and charisma shown by the Zi-O cast really shows how little material they were given in the main series. Certain actors squeeze more out of >5 minutes of screen time than a 50 episode series. 7/10

Hot Shots

I was consistently chucking throughout the whole thing, and in true airplane fashion, there's never not a gag to chuckle at. I should see if Charlie Sheen has done more comedy, his deadpan is great in this. I will say that the ‘mission’ in this movie is suspiciously similar to Top Gun Maverick...hmmm.... 7/10

Missing Link

This movie had no soul. I gained nothing and felt nothing. 1/10

Wendell and Wild (2022)

This movie has more style than it knows what to do with. The atmosphere,  aesthetics and humor are top notch. The artistry of the animation had me glued to the screen and reminded me of the power of stop motion. Anytime Key and Peele are on screen is a treat, and thats saying something considered the quality cast here. The only thing that holds this back is some questionable design choices that wander into racial characters and the captain-planet tier villains are kind of a double edged sword. Nice touch that even the demons respect pronouns. 8.5/10

Macross 7 Plus

Delightful pieces of comedy and character insight that still preserve some of the mystery in the characters. Otherwise pretty unsubstantial. 7/10

Macross 7 Encore

PEAK FICTION. I laughed, clapped and cheered for the last two episodes. They have to be some of the best Macross 7 content. The first episode isn’t as good but I appreciate the insistence on not actually clarifying anything. I will say no more. 9/10

Gasaraki

I’m having a hard time really coming to a conclusion about this anime. It has moments of brilliance but is just bogged down by poor structure and pacing. There is clearly a lot of effort on screen and the final few episodes are fantastic with incredibly high tension over grain embargos of all things. The problem is I feel a lot of this could have been interwoven and restructured for a more enjoyable watching experience. Chunks are just uninteresting and some small arcs just don’t go anywhere. For instance our main character goes AWOL multiple times, but the impact is lessened when only one of them was plot relevant, and the rest just kinda stop. Never more have I been tempted to re-edit something on my own. Ironically, it feels like a wheel spinning most of the time, but it just doesn’t stick the crucial landing in the last episode. I would like to shout out its gulf war aesthetics and interesting mixed media tricks. The effort of having many subtle changes in the opening, and completely different ones for a two episode arc did not go unnoticed. I have to say this but this is a 7/10, but deserves to have been much better.

Action Button Reviews: Boku no natsuyasumi

Since its 6 hours long and is about almost everything else besides what it reviews. I won’t elaborate much. I will say that this takes you places you wouldn’t expect and makes you want to call your relatives and say hello. 7.5/10

WHOOPS KINDA FORGOT ABOUT THIS FOR A FEW MONTHS: LIGHTNING ROUNG

Extreme Job

I haven’t laughed this much at a comedy in ages. In delivers on hit after hit of truly universal humor. If I had my way this would be a all-timer 9/10

Star Wars Tales of the Jedi

NGL I skip anything with Ashoka at this point. Dooku’s disenchantment is an interesting idea they utterly bungle. More importantly, why does Yaddle speak normally?? 5/10

Star Wars Visions

Theres like 3 good shorts in here, but even trigger couldn’t fully execute on the premise. I like the idea of wildly alternate takes with the potential to go back to the samurai roots of Star Wars, but this ain’t it. If this came out parallel to the Animatrix and Halo Legends it apes it would still seem dated with its ‘japanese-ey’ energy that feels like like studio notes were written by people who still refer to Asia as the orient. Overall the creativity flatlined for more than half of these. 6/10

Guardians of the Galaxy Christmas Special.

This made me remember why I liked these characters. The effortless comedy and chemistry of the cast just kinda dicking around is something I would watch for hours. 8/10

Blaster Master Zero

I want to like it but most of the executions is just kind of mid. The biggest game design failure is having enough of the cool mini-dungeons have nothing in them, which de-inscentivises exploration and completion. As a result I didn’t feel compelled to unlock the last world and true ending even though some of the power ups were cartoonishly unbalanced in a fun way. Also, having kinda bad stealth dungeons for the last world made me just want to get it over with and soured the experience. Cute frog. 7/10

1899

I was underwhelmed by the mystery component of this mystery series. It pulls off a ‘it was all a dream’ tier ending that leaves questions for a season 2 that feels like it won’t remember all the threads. Themes didn’t seem as fleshed out as they could have and didn’t really carry any weight with the ending in mind. 6/10

Troll

Godzilla 1998 but for Norway. I ended up having fun. 7/10

999

Holy shit the story is backloaded. Not all of my questions were answered but can’t wait to play the next one 9/10

Destiny 2: Season of Plunder

This is one of the weaker seasons in recent memory. Storywise the drama doesn’t really go anywhere besides the one beat it had with the reveal of Mithrax’s past. I almost feel like its been overshadowed by the new season only 3 days in. The whole community event was just funny in how much of a failure it was. Considering how nothing the upgrades to the Eliksni quarter were, I’m glad I helped cheese it. Overall, I’m kinda bored of the model where we get a new 6/3 man activity every now and then. I also want a cash prize for getting the title before they fixed the ridiculous requirements. I will never tough expedition again. 6/10

Knife or Death

I went in with 0 expectations and got a real treat. This was a perfect watch with my partner. For some reason the combination of American Ninja Warrior but with the most oddball group of contestants is a recipe for a good time. 8/10

Bullet Train

A friend who saw a test screening told me to be on the lookout for this one and boy I was satisfied! 7/10

Bad Guys

Wow, they made a Tarantino movie for kids. Great dialogue and Lupin action. Its still a kids movie at the end of the day, but c’mon. 7.5/10

The Game Awards 2022

I didn’t feel horribly cynical leaving this, so thats a start 6/10

Star Wars Rise of the Resistance

Kinda neat, but some of the effects work better than others 7/5/10

Zardoz

Nothing could have prepared me for the first 5 minutes of this film. Going into it I knew nothing besides the visuals of Sean Connery’s outfit and the head, so I had no idea what to expect from the actual story. The few twists were good enough and I appreciate the direction it went, but at the end of the day, my tolerance for 70′s movie pacing makes me rate it about a 7/10 overall. Fascinating to watch.

Attack on Titan Part 1 (2015)

Wow, where to start. The premise is baffling, the last half hour is the worst day-for-night I’ve ever seen, the homoeroticism is made into incest by the twist, it has the sex-positivity of a Reagan era slasher and the action is terrible looking. Where do I start? I get this was in production before the anime, but the titans have the distinct look of an internet short Corridor Digital would make in a weekend. The comping is all over the place and the practical stuff like the Colossal Titan puppet or the fighting titan either hide the cool stuff behind bad CG steam or are shot and presented in the worst light imaginable. I’m fine with the changes to the premise, but the confusing part is that instead of just casting everyone as Japanese actors, they completely change most of the characters with white names into weird OCs? Wouldn’t it just be easier to change their names and call it a day? I’m so confused by this movies decisions and astounded by the poor technical execution. 4/10.

Attack on Titan Part 2

This sequel was far less interesting by the virtue of being kinda better. The twists are still dumb and the decisions are questionable, but I can’t bring myself to hate it. Its the kind of movie you can skip through and not miss much. 5/10

Pinocchio 2022

Didn’t light my world on fire but I’m glad I saw it. A GDT film to a T, but part of me wishes it had a little more ohmf. Probably the most fascists I’ve seen in an adaptation of Pinocchio by a wide margin. 7/10

Sonic Prime

Sonic Boom may have raised the bar too high. Can we give the multiverse a rest now? I’d score lower but Frogey had a pirate eyepatch in one scene. 3/10

Azure Striker Gunvolt 3

This game is so close to being amazing but has so many little things holding it back that just add up. I originally dislike Kirin in the promotional material since I wanted to play as GV, but I ended up really loving Kinin’s gameplay, maybe more than I ever liked GV. However, they addressed this concern in the worst way possible. switching between Kirin and GV feels overcomplicated and GV trivialized the game to the point I self imposed just not that half of the characters overloaded kit. On the positive side, diagonal aiming feels like it should have been here all along and the mechanic of jumping towards tagged enemies is top tier. The story is where it gets a little mixed. I can’t say what was the localization and what isn’t but I know I don’t like the primal dragon timeskip or the weird apologism for the evil zaibatzu. It feels like it ollies out of all the cool plot threads and characters in favor of a new one with magic dragons. The new cast is great and I love the way they were allowed to interact with other stages and each other. Dialogue got a few good chuckles, but my biggest gripe is that they call Kirin’s talismans ‘fetters’ for some reason. Post game support is a little odd. On one hand, the dlc is as lame as it gets, just new abilities (normal ones in game are random drops) but the extra modes and villain campaign will have me coming back. Its not the greatest but I give it a charmed 7.5/10

[whiteqnn]

PURE [5] - Corpse Husband x Fem!Reader

A/N: It’s been a while.  

part 1

part 2

part 3

part 4

PURE [5]

“Did you guys find anybody?” Felix’s voice sounded out when the man repeated the same question for what seemed like the third time since he joined the call. The number of players showed 7 of them, which meant that they were still missing three people. Sure, they could start the game now, but it would be way more enjoyable and funny with a full lobby. 

“Yeah, Toast will be here any moment. “Sykkuno replied right away. “He just texted me; he should join us in a few.”

“Cool. Anyone else?” 

“I think Corpse was also supposed to join us, right? Not sure though why he isn’t here yet.” 

“Oh, yeah, Corpse will be here soon too!” Jack suddenly chimed in with an explanation. “He said he needed to take care of something first, but he’ll be here before we start.” 

“Great. But that means we’re still one person short.” Felix hummed when Toast’s little astronaut appeared in the lobby “Hey Toast."

“Hey man.”

“Do you have anyone coming?”

“I’m afraid not. I asked MrBeast, but he’s busy, so...”

“Well then, we can just start when Corpse is here, and maybe we’ll find someone in the meantime?” Dave suggested, earning a few hums of approval from the other players. 

“Yeah, I think that’s the best option...” Jack agreed. But then his voice blared out in everyone’s headphones with excitement. “Ha! Corpse is bringing someone!” 

“Who?” 

“I dunno, he just texted me he has one coming and that’s all.” 

“Hm, all right. Let’s wait then.”

***

Corpse fidgeted with his phone, glancing between its screen and the chat in his stream. People were already asking countless questions, but rather than answering them, he was waiting for Y/N to call him. He was nervous - the girl still hadn’t commented on his request. 

The idea to invite her to the lobby wasn’t spontaneous. In fact, he’d been thinking about it for quite some time now, but never found the courage to actually ask if she would like to join them for the game.

It’s been almost a month now since that memorable phone call. A month since Y/N last played with her friends; a month since she considerably reduced her social media usage. 

Sure, she was still active on her youtube channel, but not as much as before the whole haters situation. No matter how hard she tried to just ignore them and simply continue her career, she just couldn’t. There were still these nagging thoughts at the back of her mind, reminding her of all those people and their comments, their messages. It seemed like a good idea to take a short break and sort everything out.

Her fans understood it. They were obviously sad that her videos weren’t as frequent as before, but everyone knew what the situation looked like and that Y/N needed some time for herself. 

Her audience knew it, and so did her friends. Especially Corpse. 

The man kept his word and talked to the girl whenever she wanted to. Which, in the end, was almost everyday. Although at the beginning their conversations mostly focused on her current problem and dealing with it, their topics broadened over the time. 

At one point though, Y/N started worrying that maybe she’s annoying him with her so frequent calls. She thought that she shouldn’t bother him that much - even if talking to him was what really helped her cope with her problems. He already had enough on his plate, and sharing her own concerns with him suddenly seemed like a very selfish thing to do.

But she quickly realized how wrong she was for thinking like that. When one day she didn’t call, figuring out that she should stop troubling him with her own issues, she was very surprised when Corpse reached out to her himself. He expressed how worried he got when she didn’t call, and when she explained what was the reason, he spent the next fifteen minutes lecturing her that she should never think she’s bothering him. 

From that day on, they talked every single day. And they talked about almost everything.

Corpse enjoyed their late night-talks more than anything. He liked to listen to Y/N talk about the things she finds exciting, her hobbies, and her dreams. Hell, she could talk about what she ate for breakfast, and he would still listen with interest. 

And even though they haven’t seen each other in person, even though she still hasn’t seen his face, they managed to get really close during those past weeks. For an outside observer (who also didn’t have access to Twitter) they would seem like a couple of very good friends.

But not for Corpse.

He couldn’t pinpoint when exactly did it happen. They were talking one evening and Y/N was telling him about the TV series she had finished watching recently. He listened intently and watched as her facial expressions changed from excited to frustrated, as she was enumerating everything she liked and disliked about the series finale.

And then he suddenly got this weird feeling in the pit of his stomach, and simply couldn’t take his eyes off her. 

He tried to play it off and act as if nothing changed, but he couldn’t stop his heart from doing backflips whenever she laughed at one of his dumb jokes or called him partner. It was still a running joke between them and among the group of their friends, but there was something in the way she said it that made him instantly smile like an idiot. 

He also started paying more attention to the hashtags on Twitter and Instagram. #PartnersInCrime was still rather popular, even though it was a month since anyone last used this phrase on stream. Corpse also found out that #Y/Nforthebride was trending for some time; he even managed to stumble across a few fanarts. 

There was this urge to send them to Y/N, but he was too nervous that it would make things awkward between them... After all, he didn’t know how she felt about that whole shipping thing. 

That’s why he decided to just leave things between them as they are, and be happy that he’s at least her friend.  

Corpse nearly jumped out of his skin, when he was brought back to reality by the sound of an upcoming FaceTime call. Y/N’s photo appeared on his screen, her smiley face which he had assigned as her contact photo. His lips corners curled up in a smile almost unwittingly. 

“Hey Y/N/N” he said after answering the call. 

“Hi Corpse” she smiled softly upon hearing his voice. Although the screen on her side was dark, she didn’t mind not seeing Corpse’s face. She respected his wish to remain faceless and enjoyed their conversations anyway. 

“Whatcha doin’?”

“Just editing the new video. I guess I’ll upload it in the morning... but I’m not sure yet.”

“Well let me know then, I wanna be the first one to see it.” 

“Sure thing, Corpse” she chuckled, lowering her gaze bashfully. Corpse just looked at her face for a moment, unable to stop smiling to himself. Then he remembered why they were talking in the first place.

“So... have you seen my text?” Y/N sighed at his question but nodded her head slowly. “And what do you think?”

“I don’t know, Corpse...” she ran a hand through her hair in a nervous gesture. “...if that’s a good idea, I mean.”

“Well, it’s been a while. No pressure though, if you don’t wanna play then it’s totally fine.” he quickly clarified. “I just thought it would be fun if you joined us, even if just for a moment. I’m sure everyone would go crazy.” 

Her smile widened slightly at his words, but she still didn’t look convinced. Sure, it was tempting to join them. She wanted to do it each time Sean or Felix bombarded her with messages and codes to the lobby, both inviting her to join the group in the game. But then she remembered how people reacted to her appearance in their streams... and suddenly it didn’t seem like such a good idea anymore.

“We’re gonna play on Polus...” he added after a moment when she still didn’t say anything. “That one map with the planetary base... there’s a lava pit, y’know. Just saying...”

She laughed wholeheartedly at his words, remembering their last game when Corpse jumped into the lava for her. 

“Sykkuno’s gonna be there as well” Corpse continued. “And I promise I won’t kill you this time.”

“Even if I’m the last player alive?” she joked.

“Even then, Y/N.”

Corpse stifled a laugh, as she cocked her head to the side and narrowed her eyes slightly as if trying to spot him in the darkness. 

“Are you streaming, Corpse?” she then asked.

“Not yet. I’m gonna start the stream as soon as you say yes, though.”

“Oh c’mon” she laughed at his words “That’s emotional blackmail!” 

“Maybe. Is it working?” he asked.

Y/N let out a heavy breath and ran a hand down her face. Corpse watched in anticipation as she seemed to have some internal battle with herself. He hoped that she’s gonna agree, he really missed playing with her. 

“All right, then.” she suddenly said, and his breath hitched in his throat. “I’m gonna stay for a few rounds I guess...”

“Wait, really?” he asked, a smile on his face only widening. 

“Well, yeah, partner.” she replied, which made his cheeks go warm “Your imposter techniques haven’t been very effective lately... Someone needs to help you out, or you’re gonna lose your title of the king of the Imposters.” 

“Oh, is that’s how it is now?” he laughed in fake shock. “I wouldn’t have to worry about losing the title if my accomplice hadn’t left me all alone!” 

“All right, all right.” she giggled at his accusations. “Your accomplice is on her way to support you.” 

Corpse smiled even wider at the sound of her laughter. Her eyes shined with happiness when she was giggling, which only brought out their E/C color. The fact that his stupid babbling was the reason for her smile was making him feel extremely proud of himself.  

“But just so you know... I still have no idea how this map works, so I’m afraid I’m gonna need you to guide me around it...”

“Y’know you could as well just say you want to hang out with me...”

“Corpse!” she laughed, her cheeks blushing in embarrassment. 

“Just kidding Y/N” he chuckled at her reaction. “Of course I’m gonna guide you, don’t worry.”

“Okay then...” she said after a moment, looking at the screen again. “I’ll be there in a few minutes. Will you send me the code, please?”

“Sure I will, Y/N” 

“Okay. See you later, partner” she smiled brightly. 

“See you, partner.” 

When Y/N ended the call, Corpse let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. He sighed in relief and ran a hand through his hair, before moving to sit behind his desk.

It was only after he started the stream that he realized he was blushing. Not only because Y/N would join them, but because there was also another thing he wanted to ask her about, but didn’t find the courage to yet... 

***

By the time Y/N turned on her computer and started the game, Corpse has already sent her the code, and there was a Discord invite waiting for her as well. She bit her lip nervously as her heartbeat quickened. 

Was she nervous? As hell. 

She did everything she could to avoid being in unnecessary spotlight since she started receiving those hate messages. Perhaps escaping the problem wasn’t the best solution, but it definitely was a comfortable one. People wouldn’t have a reason to hate on her if she disappeared. 

But then she couldn’t say no to Corpse. And truth to be said - she really missed playing with her friends. From what she’d seen on Twitter, the lobby would be filled with those she’d already played with, so she wasn’t that nervous before the game. What she was nervous about though, was how people would react.

Accepting Corpse’s request was something she did due to the sudden rush of courage. And now there was no coming back.

She knew Corpse would understand if she changed her mind... but she heard how excited he was when she had agreed. She couldn’t do it to him. 

So, once she’d taken a deep breath and put her headphones on, Y/N accepted the invite and braced herself for the inevitable chaos that was bound to take place in the call. She decided to wait with joining the lobby though - at least until they realize she’s with them. 

“..the fuck you’re talking about?!” Felix’s voice was the first thing she heard, which made her roll her eyes with a smile. “It’s not my fault I sound like that! At least I don’t have a liar voice like Rae!” 

“HEY!” the girl yelled “I don’t have a liar voice!”

“You do, you’re using it even now!” Jack argued, much to Rae’s dismay. 

“What is going on here” Corpse’s deep voice sounded out suddenly. 

“Oh, you’re here! Finally” Sykkuno immediately welcomed him with his always happy voice. 

“Yeah, sorry that I’m late guys.”

“No worries, man” Pewdiepie spoke up again. “We were just talking about playing the voice card and that you’re basically the only one who can do it.” 

“Not fair at all!” Rae chimed in, making Corpse chuckle. 

“The voice card...” he hummed after a moment, before adding. “I wouldn’t really say I’m the only one though...”

“Well who else then? Everyone else either starts laughing or have a liar voice” Dave asked, and Rae scoffed at the last words.

“Well what about my guest?”

Y/N inhaled sharply, realizing that now she should probably reveal herself. 

“Oh, right! Who you’re bringing man?” Sean asked with curiosity.

That’s when Y/N typed in the game code, and her white astronaut appeared in the lobby. 

“Wait, who’s- HOLY SHIT” Sean all but yelled, when realization hit him. Y/N laughed loudly at his reaction, and her voice only seemed to prove to everyone that she really was there. 

“KIDDO WHAT THE FUCK” Felix reflected Jack’s response, yelling over his friend.

“Oh my god, hi!”

“What a surprise!” Y/N managed to catch Sykkuno’s words. “It’s so amazing to have you here, Y/N/N!” 

“As I live and breathe.” another voice spoke up, and Toast’s little astronaut came face to face with her white bean. “My lifelong nemesis. Back here snap my neck again, huh?”

“Yeah, happy to hear you too, Toast” Y/N giggled at his words, then she adressed the whole group. “Hi guys.”

“Okay I did not expect that in the slightest” Sean laughed happily “You’re here kiddo!” 

“I am” she smiled from ear to ear, even though they couldn’t see her. 

“Wait- Corpse, is that the thing you had to take care of?” her best friend asked Corpse with suspicious voice. 

“Well...” he trailed off and cleared his throat, making everyone laugh.

“That’s so great Y/N! We missed you so much!” Rae thundered over the bickering of the boys. “The game hasn’t been the same without you...”

“Agreed. I suddenly stopped dying.” Toast commented, making her roll her eyes with a laugh. 

“I don’t know if I should be happy or fucking scared right now.” Felix laughed nervously. “With Corpse and Y/N? We’re fucked now, guys.”

“I promise I’ll go easy on you, I haven’t played in so long I think I forgot all my strategies...” 

“Yeah, sure.” Toast’s forever suspicious voice made her smile wider. “Just don’t kill me in the first roung, okay? I won’t vote you off just stay the fuck away from me you little murderer.” 

“Okay, I promise I won’t kill you...” 

She couldn’t stop herself from laughing, and the smile remained on her face even when they started the game. It only seemed to widen, when she saw the sign Imposter on her screen. 

Only to giggle hysterically when she realized that Toast was the other imposter...

And so the game went on with Y/N and Toast cooperating like perfect serial killers. Corpse did as he promised and guided her through the map, both of them being closely followed by Sykkuno. Because of that she’d just sabotage the map most of the time to give Toast opportunities to kill their friends, but eventually managed to sneak out when her two fellow crewmates were doing their tasks. It just so happen that Pewds was walking past her, and she might’ve accidentally snapped his neck... 

“Goddamnit! I knew it! I fucking knew it was you!” Sean yelled once the game was over and Y/N saw the sign VICTORY on her screen, her small character standing next to Toast’s one. He was ejected at some point because Poki managed to walk in on him killing Rae, but Y/N remained undetected until the very end. Perhaps the fact that Corpse was one of the two crewmates who were left alive had something to do wtih it...

“That was rude” Pewds said in a whiny voice, clearly referring to their encounter which led to his death. “I was just happily walking around, doing my tasks like a good crewmate, and then boom! Y/N happened” 

“I would say I’m sorry... but I’m really not” she laughed, making Felix gasp in shock.

“That’s what happens when you work with Toast!” 

“Good game, Y/N. That was amazing” the man in question said appreciatively. 

“Will you finally forgive me for killing you that one time if I say that being imposters with you was cool?” she laughed nervously. 

“Actually... Yeah, I guess we can bury the hatchet now. AND we should team up more in the future.”

“Great!” 

“Excuse me, what?” Corpse’s voice made the whole lobby laugh. “I don’t remember us cancelling our partnership, Y/N.”

“Corpse...” 

“Are you trying to steal my accomplice from me Toast?” 

“Well she’s a great partner in crime after all...” Toast deliberately used the phrase, making Corpse gasp.

“Hey! She’s my partner! Find yourself your own, Toast” Corpse joked, making Y/N laugh bashfully, her cheeks warming up at his words. 

“Yeah yeah, I remember, don’t worry man. No one’s gonna take your partner in crime away from you...” Toast’s teasing voice made them all laugh, Corpse and Y/N included. 

For the next few rounds Y/N played as a crewmate, running around the map with either Corpse or Sykkuno and doing her tasks. During meetings they joked and laughed, and for a moment, she stopped thinking about what people watching her friend’s streams might think about her presence. After all, there was at least a small chance that they didn’t think about it at all, and simply enjoyed watching their favoirte youtubers. Just as she enjoyed playing with her friends. 

Oh, and by the way, Corpse kept his promise and didn’t kill her even when she was the last player alive...

It was soon time when everyone started slowly leaving the lobby, having played for over three hours. Y/N also said her goodbyes to the others and promised that she’d join them to play a game called Raft next week. 

When she turned her computer off and threw herself on her bed, Y/N immediately grabbed her phone to call Corpse. He answered right away. 

“Well hello, partner...” she rolled her eyes with a smile when he accented the last word. “Or should I say, traitor, instead?” 

“Corpse... you know I would never betray you...” 

“Well how can I be so sure, now that I know how cool it is to be imposters with Toast?” she knew he was joking, she could almost hear the smile in his voice.

“Not nearly as cool as it is with you, Corpse” Y/N grinned from ear to ear when Corpse scoffed. 

“I spare your life so many times and that’s what I get in return? You cheat on me with Toast?” he said in disbelief “I’m disappointed, Y/N, I really am.”

“I would never!” she laughed through her words, even though her cheeks were now red because of Corpse’s words. “You’re the best partner in crime, Corpse, I wouldn’t trade you for anyone else!” 

Not only in the game, she thought.

“Hmm, alright. Let’s say I believe you.” he said after a moment of thinking. 

“I mean it, Corpse...” Y/N said after calming down from her laughter. “I... I really wanted to thank you.”

“Thank me? For what?” he asked, genuinely surprised. 

“Well, first of all for inviting me to today’s game... I really had lots of fun, it was great to play and talk with the others. And I wouldn’t be in the lobby if not for you...” Y/N mumbled, before verbalizing her previous thoughts. “And I also wanted to thank you for just... you know... being my friend. My real life partner in crime. I just wanted you to know I’m really glad I met you...” 

Corpse was silent for a good few moments, and Y/N started panicking that maybe she said something wrong, or maybe he found her spontaneous confession funny, or worse, dumb. She was almost ready to somehow laugh it all off, when his voice cut her off.

“Thank you, Y/N. It really means a lot to me too.” he sounded like he had some troubles with speaking, which made Y/N furrow her brows in worry.

“Is everything okay, Corpse?” 

“Yeah, I...” he stuttered, then laughed nervously. “I just didn’t expect that and... yeah. It’s not something I hear on a daily basis, especially from someone like you.”

Someone like me? 

 “But what you said... it’s mutual.” he said after a moment, and Y/N couldn’t stop herself from grinning like an idiot. “You’re the best partner in crime I could ask for. And not only in the game.” 

She could as well just pass out there and there...

“So uhm... there was one thing I wanted to ask you...”

“Yeah?”

“I was wondering if maybe... you know, if you’d have some time... and if you’d want to of course... would you maybe like to visit me here in San Diego?”

Yeah, passing out seems like a good idea. 

***

This is not the last part. 

TAG LIST: 

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#corpse husband #corpse imagines #corpse x reader #corpse husband imagine #corpse husband x reader #youtubers x reader #imagine

[thefanficmonster]

Let Them Talk

Corpse Husband x Reader (Female) ft. Sykkuno

Warnings: Swearing, Jealousy

Genre: Fluff, a bit of Angst

Summary: We can all agree Among Us is a fun game on its own but what makes it ten times better is playing it with the right company. Y/N could agree 100% Being a streamer herself, she loves playing with the streamer gang that includes her boyfriend and best friend. But, what happens when her boyfriend starts doubting her feelings for him due to her close relationship with her best friend.

Requested by @cheetoscat . Thank you so much for your request! Sorry it took so long to write, I hope the final product is worth the wait. Enjoy! Love, Vy ❤

Y/AU/N - Your Among Us Name

I settle in my gaming chair, adjusting my webcam one last time before joining the Among Us lobby with my friends. 

“Hi everyone!“ I say into the mic, a smile plastering itself on my face. Discord is a magical thing, man. It’s so easy to forget that the people you are talking to aren’t around you or within arm’s reach. You could be separated by miles and miles of land or - in our case - oceans as well. Distance becomes negligible when you hear your friends’ voices, their laughter; when you have a good time together despite being each behind a screen, often times alone.

Well, I’m one of those lucky ones that isn’t alone. No one knows that, though. Everyone thinks I’m a single, self-employed girl that’s straight out of college. And they are 90% right. Only thing is - I’m not single. That would be a shocker in and of itself, but revealing who’s changed my relationship status would be a bomb with a whole new intensity.

Speaking of my significant other who shall remain unnamed - just kidding, it’s Corpse - his form materializes in the doorway of my recording room. I give him a hand signal the camera isn’t able to capture, alerting him of the fact that my mic is on. He replies by blowing me a kiss and walking off down the hall to his recording room where he’ll be stationed for the next three or so hours.

I owe this relationship to my best friend Sykkuno. I’m a pretty new and not very well known on the platform, however, thanks to him I haven’t only obtained a boyfriend, but a following of a little over million subscribers as well. 

It all started with an invitation to fill a spot in the Among Us lobby him and his friends had created. It took him quite a bit to convince me to join, but I eventually caved and agreed. Suddenly, there I was. In a Discord call, in an Among Us lobby with some of the most well-known names on this platform. I’m talking YouTube legends. I was that puppy playing with the big dogs. The newbie tagging along with the big leagues. Or at least that’s how I felt until we all started vibing - talking and teasing each other as though we’ve known each other for years and not minutes.

When I joined the call, Corpse wasn’t present. After everyone else introduced themselves, Sykkuno informed me that we were waiting for Corpse to return. The name sounded really cool to me and I was genuinely very excited to meet this Corpse guy.

And then, out of the blue - no prep, no warning...

“Did you get someone to fill the spot? Oh- Hello, Y/AU/N.“ 

…he started talking and he had me star-struck. Apparently, he also had me a blabbering mess cause I remember blurting out: “Whoa, who’s this guy speaking in bold and underlined at the same time?”

The entire lobby, including Corpse, laughed. Sean, or Jack like they called him most often, answered my question, “That is the voice of God, Y/N. Its source is named Corpse, though.”

Heat spread from the bottom of my neck to the tips of my ears. I was mortified by my own stupidity. I was well aware they couldn’t see me and I was incredibly thankful for that, but I simply could not get myself to open my eyes. “I’m so sorry.” I said through nervous laughter.

“No, no, I like that description. Bold and underlined at the same time, huh?“ His voice sounded even more pleasant when it had that teasing, mischievous note to it. That thought popping up in my head only made things worse for my self-esteem and only made me more embarrassed, causing me to hide my face in my hands. “You sure it’s not in Italics as well?“ 

His question got a weak laugh out of me. “Nope, definitely not. Nothing Italic about it.“

Yes, I don’t even know how some terrible jokes about MS Word fonts got me as far as a romantic relationship, but they did! We’ve been living together for quite some time now, dating for even longer - hiding it just as long. It’s not that we have been actively trying to hide it or something, we just wanted to see how long it would take someone to become sus of us. When we realized no one would notice, we decided that if any rumors about us started, or even fans shipping us, we’d come clean. That hasn’t happened either, so we haven’t had the proper chance to address our relationship and neither of us minds.

At this point, I’m honestly afraid of revealing it to the gaming squad. Sykkuno especially. He’s my best friend, after all. I can see him being hurt by the fact that I kept a secret so big even from him. The last thing I wanna do is hurt my best friend but it’s already too late for that, it’s inevitable.

“Y/N have you looked at Twitter today?“ Rae, another streamer I’ve become close with over the months, says urgently.

Overlooking the tension in her words, I answer: “Nope, haven’t had the time. Why? What’s up?“

Before Rae can say anything else, Sykkuno joins the conversation, his voice somehow even more urgent than Rae’s. “It’s nothing, Y/N. If you see it, just don’t let it bother you, ok?”

Hearing such a tone from Rae isn’t unusual, but hearing it from Sykkuno is completely different and a lot more worrisome. “Well if it has the potential of bothering me it can’t be nothing. What’s going on?”

Just then, my phone dings with two notifications. I check to see they are messages from Rae.

“I sent you screenshots. Sorry, Sykkuno. She has to know in order to address it and defuse it as well. I know better than anyone how fast these rumors can spread, especially if no one reacts to them.“ She says, her tone barely apologetic at all.

I open the screenshots she has sent me and I find myself frozen in shock. Some old pictures of Sykkuno and I have been posted on Twitter by some random user. These pictures have started an entire thread of suspicions surrounding our relationship.

The pictures in question are from a New Year’s Eve party a mutual friend of ours held two years ago. Sure, in the pictures we are a lot closer than what would be considered a platonic proximity. And yes one of the pictures is of me kissing his cheek. Yes we were both a bit tipsy. I acknowledge all those things and yet none of them are concrete reasons for these rumors to have started piling. 

“This is silly.“ I finally say after maybe five minutes of silence on my end. ”This is absolutely ridiculous! And why are people so serious about it as well? Actual, important matters get discussed more nonchalantly than the potential relationship between two online personalities! What is this world we live in?“ I know I shouldn’t let these rumors get to me like this, especially not on camera. Still, I can’t help it. I feel it’s so unfair to Corpse. He has to put up with this as well and it’s by no means easy for him. I’ve been shipped with people from our group in the past and he always took those rumors to heart despite acting like he didn’t care. Neither of us should get worked up, but him getting upset about them creates a domino effect with my emotions - causing me to be hit just as hard as him, in some cases harder.

Rumors of the past aside, this one is the worst by far. Mostly cause even Corpse himself suspected something between Sykkuno and I at the very beginning, when we were still acquaintances, barely crossing into the realm of friends.

I pull up Twitter to look for the whole thread, barely sparing my stream chat a glance in the process. It seems pretty split - those who agree with me and those who think Sykkuno and I make ‘such an adorable couple’. The thread is ridiculously long, and if we take into account that it was only started approximately five hours ago, you can either view it as impressive, amusing or sad. Why sad? Because someone has dedicated so much time and effort into fueling the fire of a weakly supported theory.

I love Sykkuno with all my heart. Everyone knows that - fandom, streamer squad, Corpse and Sykkuno included. I love too much and too platonically to ever even dream of having a romantic connection with him. I thought that was more than obvious, but people are either blind here, or just grasping at straws. One thing’s for certain - they’re stepping on a nerve.

“Hey where’s Corpse? Did he disconnect?” Felix asks, gaining my full attention. My eyes dart to the monitor, searching through the little avatars in a desperate search for the one of my boyfriend. It’s nowhere to be found.

“He just messaged me saying his connection is unstable but he might join us later.“ Rae says, “You guys can invite someone to fill...“

“Bathroom break.“ I interrupt, not waiting for a response before shutting my mic off, putting the ‘BRB‘ graphic on my stream and yanking the headset off. I basically run down the hall to Corpse’s recording room, my heart pounding like a bass drum.

“Corpse?!“ I call out to him, one hand already on the doorknob. When five seconds pass by without a response, I barge in. 

Inside, I find his usual spot on the gaming chair empty and his slumped figure seated on his bed.

“Corpse?“ I try again, watching for even the tiniest change of body language. He remains still as a statue, not bothering to look up at me either. 

His hands are gripping the edge of the mattress, his head hanging low. His eyes are covered by the short curtain of his dark messy curls. I can’t gauge much. Is he angry? Is he sad? Both? How should I approach the situation?

Before I find the answer to any of those questions, I am kneeling in front of him, our height difference eliminated. I gently pry his hands off the mattress and take them in mine, holding them firmly but tenderly. With one hand I reach up to tilt his head so his eyes can meet mine. He complies, his tear-filled brown orbs meeting mine. Those tears have the same effect on me as fifty sharp knives stabbing into my chest. These tears focus their attack straight on my heart, tearing it to pieces.

“Baby....“

He cuts me off, “Why is it always someone else, huh? Do they deem me not worthy of being with you? Do they think you deserve better?” His voice wavers, “Well, they might be right. They are correct and there’s little I can do to prove them wrong. They mean you well, Y/N - pairing you with guys better than me. Those are some loyal fans you’ve got. They only want what’s best for you. And so do I. If ‘best’ is being with someone else then...”

It’s my turn to cut him off. I put an end to his nonsense ramble that’s slowly killing me by pressing my finger against his lips. The sternness of my gaze is beyond me as I get up and walk over to his computer setup. I put on his headset and hop into the call as well as the lobby with his avatar.

“Hey Corpse’s back!” Toast says, “Good to have you back buddy.”

“No, not Corpse.” I say in a casual, nonchalant voice.

“Wait, wha-“ Sean’s voice shows just how confused he is, representing the confusion of the entire lobby actually.

“I know all of you are streaming so this message will be heard by several different audiences so I’m gonna make myself perfectly clear.“ I take a deep breath, “Sykkuno and I aren’t dating. He’s a lovely guy and he deserves to find a girl who will treat him right. That girl isn’t and won’t be me though. I am already treating someone right. Someone who treats me more than right as well. An amazing person. A man-child with a heart of gold. You know him, to a certain extent. He goes by the name of Corpse Husband, but I prefer to call him ‘Love of my life’. Thank you for your time and attention, goodbye.“

I exit the call and turn around to find a stunned Copse looking at me.

“That was meant for you just as much.“ I say with a fake strict attitude, one hand on my hip the other rested on his desk behind me, “Were you listening?“

Within milliseconds, he’s on his feet standing directly in front of me, his lips inches away from mine. “I heard and memorized every word. But...” he pauses for a moment, “I think you have no idea how big of a chaos you just created.”

I smile mischievously, “We’ll worry about that later. For now...” I close the gap between us, connecting our lips in a sweet and passionate kiss. 

@susceptible-but-siriusexual  @simonsbluee  @save-the-sky  @hacker-ghost  @itsminniekat  @bi-andready-tocry  @imtiredaffff  @jazzkaurtheglorious  @hereforbeebo  @fandomgirl17  @chrysanthykios  @maehemscorpyus  @loraleiix  @letsloveimagines  @annshit  @i-cant-choose-a-username-help  @enigmaticmaze  @divine-artemis  @waterlilypat  @idontknowwhatthisisfam  @evi-ka  @classyandfabulous00  @redperson58  @lilysdaydreams  @the-fuck-up-of-today  @slashersdream  @chiefwombathoagiepizza  @solowheein @mythicalamphitrite  @axen-gers  @luckygirl144  @nj01

#corpse husband #corpse #husband #corpsehusband #corpse simp #corpse x reader #corpse x y/n #corpse x you #corpse imagines #corpse husband fanfic #corpse husband fanficiton #corpse husband x y/n #corpse husband x reader #corpse husband imagine #sykkuno #fanfic #corpse fanfiction #fanfiction #x reader #reader #y/n #reader insert #youtube #among us #request #requests open #corpse music

[letsloveimagines]

Title: Crush

Pairing: Corpse Husband x fem!youtuber!reader

Collab with: @the-winter-sxldier-posts

Requested by: @unicornblood4ever

Request: Hi I just saw your request post for Corpse, so if you're still taking requests I have one. The reader have been on a losing streak, and Corpse tries to help. But accidentally rats himself out as the second imposter. With fluff if possible, of course only if you have time to write and everything.

Word Count: 3963

Warnings: a little angts and fluff, i guess?

Note: The images doesn’t belong to me, all the credits go to the respective creators. I only made the collage. Also, I will not make anything to make Corpse uncomfortable, if he ends saying he doesn’t like fanfiction about him, I will delete this.

Part II: Here

                                                            ♦⋅☆⋅♦ 

Y/N sat down at her gaming setup, she was getting ready to start a stream she had been invited by her friend Felix (aka Pewdiepie) to play among us with him, and some other friends. She made sure everything was in order before starting it. She had been doing this for so long, but each time it felt like the first, and there was always that little chill in her belly indicating she was nervous.

She got onto her twitter quickly, just to let people know she was live in case they didn't get the notification about it.  As people started coming in, Y/N smiled at the camera. “Hey guys, welcome to the stream.” She read one of the comments from chat asking what she was gonna be playing on stream today.  “Today we are streaming some “Among Us’ with some friends, and I am getting to who they are before you guys spam it in chat. I’m going to be playing with Corpse, Sykkuno, Rae, Felix, Seán, Lily, Toast, Poki and Leslie.” 

She joined the discord call, as the game loaded up. Y/N had her facecam in the middle on the bottom screen to make sure that she wouldn’t leak the code, once Felix sent it to the discord. Once the code was entered they were in the lobby and Y/N, went to the little mini computer in the game to customize her astronaut, and as always she was quick to pick the white colored one with the pink flower on her helmet. “Hey guys.” Y/N said to her friends in discord with a smile. Felix was the first to speak “Y/N finally you’re here!” She and everyone else laughed as he kept talking, excitedly. “We are still waiting for Corpse and Seán to join before we start, they’ll be here in a minute.” Everyone had said their hellos to Y/N as Seán joined the discord call and the game, followed shortly by Corpse. “Hey, Seán, Corpse.” “Hey, Y/N.” “Whaddup baby.” They both said at the same time making everyone laugh once more, as they all had their characters customized. Y/N’s face turned a few shades of red at what Corpse had said, and her chat was quick to pick up on it. “That is everyone, we are starting the game now.” She muted her mic after Felix had started the game and the black screen with the red astronaut, said shhhhh. Then her screen read ‘Crewmate, there are 2 imposters among us.’ 

She blew out a breath talking to the chat. “At least we can warm up as a crewmate this round.” 

But…

It didn't take much longer for her to get killed, which made her swear. She knew she couldn't trust Felix but she did anyway, and he literally stabbed her in the back… What a traitor. 

                                                             ♦⋅☆⋅♦

The time passed faster than it should have, or at least that’s what it seemed to the group of friends who were just having fun. 

Y/N had now been streaming for an hour, and she was on a major losing streak. She either got crewmate, or voted out first as imposter because she was a bad liar. Or when that didn't happen, she was one of the first ones to be killed, and had to spend the entire game floating from one side of the ship to the other as a little white ghost, completing tasks for her team to win. To be honest, she was already a little irritated about that. They were now in the lobby talking to each other while waiting to start the next game. Y/N's nostrils were flared with frustration after another round of failure at being an imposter. She sighed, unmuting her mic."I just wanted to say that in all of these rounds I must have played a full 8 seconds! Like come on, what's wrong with me today!?" 

That phrase was enough to make the others burst out laughing, including her chat. The comments came and went so fast, sliding on the screen on her right side, that she could barely keep up. 

Sykkuno, like the blessed and pure angel he was, replied amid laughter: "Don't worry, you're just on a bad streak. Better luck next time."

"Yeah, I guess." She answered while moving her mini white astronaut in circles, being quickly accompanied by the black astronaut with horns on his helmet. Y/N smiled at that.

"Stop talking guys, I'll start the new round now." Pewds, who was the host, almost screamed at them. 

Y/N cracked her neck and her fingers preparing herself.

"Stay with me this time Y/N, and I'll protect you." A deep voice was heard through her headphones, causing a shiver to go all the way down her spine. 

"Oh!" She exclaimed surprised, looking at her chat that was going insane with everyone saying how cute that was. "Thank you, Corpse, let's do that."

"No problem." She could hear the smile in his voice. 

The game was started and the black screen with the red astronaut, said shhhhh. Then her screen read IMPOSTER.

Y/N quickly muted her mic, as soon as she stopped listening to her friends speak. "Okay, I wasn't expecting that." She commented to her chat, very surprised, because next to her doll was Corpse's own little character. "Well, maybe my luck is changing. Everyone heard that Corpse and I were going to be together, so at least now we have an alibi if anyone suspects us." Corpse danced around Y/N, suggesting she follow him, and immediately she did. They both went through the ship as he was looking for innocent astronauts for them to murder. They ended up in medbay first, where Y/N faked her samples task, with Corpse watching over her and making sure that no one would find their behavior suspicious. 

And, oh, how her luck seemed to have increased when Felix walked in. Y/N immediately pulled up the sabotage map and locked the medbay doors, and Corpse was quick to kill him. That made the girl laugh hard, yelling out loud. "That was just karma having its way!" 

Then both vented out as the doors were still locked. 

Y/N smiled talking to the chat. “Pewds is dead, next if the opportunity arises we need to get Seán. They are the two that always sus me out even when I’m a crewmate.” She went back to the game as they vented into electrical, since nobody was there presently. They both faked tasks in electrical, Y/N going first with Corpse watching her back. To her surprise, Seán walked in all alone and right as she was going to get her first kill, when Felix’s body was reported. She rolled her eyes. “Damn, so close to getting them both.” She said to her fans as she unmuted the mic, and saw that Rae was the one that found Pewds. 

“Where is the body?” Y/N questioned trying to keep her voice level and calm, to not give herself away. “Pewds is dead in medbay.” Was the answer she got from the other girl. “Y/N and I were in Electrical with Seán.” Corpse said, trying to immediately shift suspicion off of the two of them. “They were already there when I entered the room, however. I don't know where they came from before, though." 

"We came in through storage, after Y/N and I both did the trash chute, Y/N stopped at the gas can and then we came to the electrical to do our tasks." 

Y/N quickly muted herself. "God, Corpse is gonna carry us this round, I can already feel it…I just want one kill and that is Seán, Corpse can kill everyone else... I just want to kill Seán!" She unmuted again as the friends decided that they didn't have enough information to vote anyone, so they skipped and no one was ejected. 

Corpse danced around again for Y/N to follow him and she did. This time they went through weapons. Y/N faked the task against the wall while Corpse faked one as well. Y/N brought up the sabotage map while they waited on the kill cool down to end. 

Y/N  sabotaged the lights, and the two imposters ran over there to turn them on as a way not to give anything that made them suspicious.

"Kill someone, don't wait for Corpse." Y/N read the comments, confused. "I don't know guys, are you sure? Today I haven't won any games as an imposter, so I don't want to give any reasons to make my team lose.” Looking back at the screen of the computer, she smiled seeing that the two little astronauts were touching each other, eye to eye, in what would probably be a strange little kiss. "Awww guys, look! Corpse just kissed me, this is too cute to handle."

But there was something that the fans did not fail to notice, and were quick to tell her that.

                                           User: She's blushing!

                                     User: This is so cute, I'm dying.

                             User: UGH, I ship them together so much!

"Oh, shut up y’all." She said with her face on fire, clearing her throat trying to make her voice normal again. However, the pink tone that painted her cheeks did not want to disappear, getting worse and worse as she thought about it. “Okay, as much as I don't like it, I'm going to do what you said. I’m sorry, Corpse." And then she quickly ran away, going to another path separated from Corpse, looking for someone alone that she could kill.

Hopefully it would be Seán.Y/n would be the first to agree that she was a little obsessed with getting her revenge. But could you blame her? Seán and Felix were almost always the reason she got voted out or killed first.

She went around the map, and on the navigation she found Lily alone. "Oh oh, poor Lily, but I need to do this." She was quick to press the button, kill and enter the vent, leaving Lily's body cut in half behind.

"Quickly, I need to find someone to be my alibi! Where's Corpse?" She came out of a different vent, running and seeing Rae nearby, quickly joining her. It didn't take long before someone reported the body. "Oh no, I'm sweating already."

“Lily’s body was in navigation.” Leslie said.

“And Toast is dead too, so it was a double kill this round.”

"Where have you been, Leslie?" Corpse asked with such a deep and calm voice that if Y/N were not the other imposter, she would think he was innocent. “I was with Sykkuno in security, looking at the cameras.”

“Yes, I was with him.” The mentioned boy said.

“Well, I was with Poki in medbay but I needed to do the asteroids in weapons. So, when I finished in weapons  I went down, and found the body." Leslie replied.

"That seems a little sus to me, to be honest."

"Yeah, seems pretty sus to me too." Y/N repeated after Corpse, trying to help.

"Okay, wait a minute." Rae began, suspiciously. "I was with Y/N for a while because we met in storage, but she came from the right side of the map, I saw it."

"Explain yourself, Y/N."

'Oh no. Busted.' Thought the girl nervously looking at the camera. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and replied as calmly as she could: "Well, yes it's true, but I was in comms uploading. When I finished I left and that's when I found Rae in storage."

"It's her!" Seán accused.

"Definitely."

"What!?" Y/N asked shocked. "No, I'm not the imposter guys, I swear!"

"Y/N, stop, it makes perfect sense. I'm voting." She rolled her eyes, that is exactly why she wanted to kill Seán. 

It was then that Corpse interrupted: "It couldn't have been her, she was with me."

'What?' Y/N asked herself, 'No, I wasn’t. What is he doing?'

"But... You said you were with Sykkuno."

"I... Yeah, but before that I was with her in Comms, but I left to go to the Security."

"And what path did you take?" Rae questioned.

"I went through storage, then electrical and I went up."

"That’s impossible because I went down the left side, and went through electrical and I didn't see you."

"They’re both the imposters, oh my god." Was Seáns revelation. 

"No, we are not. What he said is true!" Y/N tried to defend. 

"I'm going to vote Corpse this time just for his audacity!" Rae exclaimed excitedly. "Then we vote for Y/N!"

"What!?" Corpse said shocked. "No...!"

But it was too late, and quickly his little bean body flew off the ship. ‘Corpse was ejected.’

The girl could do nothing more than gawk at the computer screen, still shocked by what had happened. "No!" She said when she muted the microphone. "The game is already lost. What can I do?" She questioned, guilty.

                                           User: Noooo! Poor Corpse.

                                          User: He was defending her :(

                              User: It's her fault that they found out he was the other imposter.

Guilt weighed on Y/N's heart and she felt saddened. Why did she have to ruin everything? "I know, I'll apologize to him when I can." She whispered to the chat, quietly, running around with her character confusedly. "What do I do now? Do I kill someone or do I play innocent?"

But at that time a meeting was called by Seán who was camped by the emergency button, and everyone got together to speak.

"Yes?"

"Well, we already know who the other imposter is. Are we going to vote her out or not?" He said laughing.

"Guys, please don't, it’s not me."

"Sorry Y/N, but you're the only one sus right now."

"What about Leslie?” Y/N tried. “She left Poki in medbay, she could have gone to navigation, killed Lily, self-reported and said she was in weapons!"

"No, don't believe her!" Leslie shouted. “She’s lying.”

"I know it's Y/N, I'm going to vote for her!"

And one by one everyone voted, and the game was over.

"Good job guys, we did it." The others celebrated while the girl almost pouted.

"What happened, Corpse? I’ve never seen you like that, well, playing so badly I mean." Sykkuno questioned his friend timidly.

There was silence from Corpse for a moment, before he simply said. "I don’t know.”

Swallowing hard, Y/N spoke softly. "Corpse?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"Ehh, don't be. That's alright."

But that was not enough to erase her guilt. "You know Seán this is exactly why I was gonna kill you in the electrical, before Rae found Felix's body. You always sus me out even when I’m  innocent." 

“But you were the imposter this time!”

After a new game where she quickly died (Seán was the one who broke her neck and left her body in admin), the girl was quick to open Discord and send a message to the deep-voiced boy, who as much - as she didn't want to admit it, even more to herself - was her crush.

                                                           Y/N:     I’m so sorry I got you voted out, honestly, I feel so bad about it. I’m such a bad imposter.

                                                       CORPSE:             Y/N, It’s fine, really. There’s no need for you to feel bad about it ♥.

This put a smile on the girl's face again, and her chat was quick to question what was going on. She shrugged her shoulders and gave no further answer, Y/N returned to concentrating on the game, with the corner of her lips lifted in a half smile that she couldn’t control.

                                                           ♦⋅☆⋅♦

Time quickly passed full of fun for the ten friends, and the thousands of people who watched them. Y/N didn't win any of the rounds, but she didn't care about it anymore. After another hour  of playing she decided to say goodbye and finish the stream, feeling the tiredness dominating her. She ate something and took a long and relaxing bath, which eased her aching muscles, and was already in her fluffy blue pajama pants, and was getting ready to go to bed when her phone rang.

Picking it up from the nightstand, she looked at the screen and gasped in surprise seeing who was facetiming her. A shiver ran down her spine. Shaking from head to toe, with her heart pounding, she quickly ran her hand through her hair making sure she was at least minimally presentable, before she answered it, saying nervously, "Hey, Corpse, is everything okay?"

The screen came to life, with her tiny image in the corner and the completely black screen dominating it. Of course he wouldn't turn on the camera, nor did she want him to do it if he didn't feel comfortable. It was already surprising that he actually called, since he has never done that before, and that was what made her even more nervous.

"I just wanted to check on you."  His voice came through the phone. 

That made her face heat up a little. She was thankful that the only light she had on was the lamp on her nightstand and he couldn’t see how red her face got. 

"Cute pajamas by the way." He said while laughing a little bit, provoking her.  

"Well, I would say the same thing, but I can't see anything."  Y/N provoked back.

There was a comfortable silence after that, a silence that the two of them seemed afraid to try to break. The girl laid down on her bed, curled up under her warm sheets, and looked at the black screen kindly, with her head resting on the pillow.

"So-"

"I-" They both said at the same time, and immediately stopped talking when they realized that. “Go ahead-” “You first-”  they once again said at the exact same time. 

Y/N tried to speak. She really tried. She was so prepared to tell him the truth, to tell him how much she was into him, that she was in fact in love with him… She was prepared to say that meeting him, and having him in her life for the past few months was one of the best things that ever happened to her. Y/N was determined to speak, but when she tried, nothing came out.  She stood there, opening and closing her mouth, sighing with a frown on her face. 

"What's up?" Corpse asked seeing that, with concern in his voice.

"Nothing."

"Y/N, you know you can tell me anything."

"I know that." And she really did, Corpse was a good friend, an excellent friend who was always there for her... And that was exactly what she was afraid to ruin with her confession. "You are able to make me so nervous sometimes, even when I think I'm feeling brave."

"Oh, yeah?" He asked, and she could practically see his smile, even though she has never actually seen it. She was in love with a faceless man and she had no idea how to tell him that. 

"Oh, shut up."

He laughed deeply for a long time, and that was enough to make her smile. Finally he stopped and said quietly, almost timidly. "I think what you wanted to say is exactly what I want to tell you."

Impossible, Y/N thought with a sad smile on her lips. I want to tell you how much I love you but… how could I? And who could ever love me?

"No, believe me, it isn't." “And how do you know it isn’t?” Y/N bit her lip a little unsure of how to answer him without revealing her feelings for him. “I-” But she cuts herself off, not having the courage to actually say the words. She pressed her face into the pillow to muffle the groan that came out of her mouth, at how much a coward she was being, but she mumbled out her response that was still muffled. “I just know.”

“What was that?” All he had heard were incoherent sounds.. She sighed, removing her face from the pillow not wanting to repeat what she had said, to save herself the rejection, since he couldn’t possibly feel the same way that she did about him.

“Are you really not going to tell me?” His voice broke through her thoughts. She sighed, trying to get away from the internal battle going on in her mind. “Y/N?” He spoke once again, breaking her out of her thoughts. 

“If I say it... everything is gonna be ruined and weird for us, and I don’t want that. Your friendship is so important to me, you're my best friend.” She ran a hand down her face, furious with herself. “How do you know that, if you don’t say it?” 

“Because I just do, okay?” Why couldn't he just let it go? "I-" She tried to say it out loud, once more. C'mon Y/N, just say it. "I gotta go!" She said quickly tried to end the call, but he wouldn't let her.

"No!" He screamed out sharply, taking her by surprise and then he did something she never thought he would do.

The screen, which was previously completely dark, lit up and his face finally appeared for the girl who loved him to see. Y/N sighed in shock, admiring all his features, from his ivory-white skin to his dark curly hair.

"I have a crush on you too." He confessed quietly, with a soft pink tinge appearing on his cheeks.

Did he just...? Oh my god!  

There was silence again, but this time it was a silence that had become tense and terrifying for both of them. Corpse was nervous waiting for her to say something, and she could tell. His mouth was pressed in a thin line, he didn't seem able to face her as his gaze traveled anywhere but to her, and he fidgeted immensely, touching everything within reach from the rings - that she saw he had on his fingers - to the chain necklace he had around his neck.

"Oh." She sighed softly, not knowing what to say.

He looked at her then, apprehensive and almost ashamed. "Ugly, I know."

"No!" Y/N was quick to interrupt. "You are incredibly handsome just… just as I always imagined." The girl managed to see a small smile appear on his lips as he blushed deeply.

"I..." 

"I’m in love with you too." She confessed, finally without fear. It felt like weight lifted off her to finally get it out in the open between the two of them.

Corpse’s eyes went wide, completely shocked but so, so happy. A huge smile full of shiny teeth on his face, as he focused all of his attention on Y/N. "You are?"

"Yes." She said blushing and smiling intensely as she snuggled up in the blankets, her face almost hidden when she looked at him dreamily.

"I-" He cleared his throat. "Good."

"Good."

"Great."

"Great!"

They burst out laughing, their voices mixing in hamornia. The two looked each other in the eye, separated by a mobile phone screen, separated by kilometers and kilometers... but even with everything that separated them, the world was not able to stop them from falling in love with each other.

"What do we do now?" He questioned.

"Well..." Y/N started. "We'll have to see, won't we? Why don't you start by giving me your address?"

Corpse smiled provocatively, his beautiful eyes shining maliciously. "Of course... But be careful now baby, the devil’s got his eyes on you."

Y/N laughed completely in love.

"Oh, shut up."

                                                            ♦⋅☆⋅♦ Tag List: @breathygasps

#corpse husband #Corpse Husband Fandom #Corpse Fandom #corpse fanfiction #fanfiction #imagines #one-shot #corpse husband imagine #corpse husband oneshot #corpse x reader #corpse x y/n #corpse x you #corpse husband x reader #corpse husband x you #corpse husband x y/n

[c-e-d-dreamer]

Okay, I know hockey player versus figure skater is a super cliché rivalry, but all day today, my brain was like “hockey player Cassian! Hockey player Cassian! Hockey player Cassian,” so here we are. Also, fun fact, this exact event actually happened to my little brother at one of his games. TW for blood and injuries. Hope you enjoy :) @nessianweek

The cool rush of the air conditioning is the first thing that hits Cassian as he pushes through the doors. The throwback pop song pumping out of the speakers and the smell of popcorn from the snack bar hits him next. He shifts the strap of his bag on his shoulder, resettling the weight, his sticks clacking together in his other hand. He makes his way over to the board declaring the locker room assignments for the day, squinting until he finds the Illyrians. He's about to head off toward their locker room when his eyes snag on someone. 

Nesta is perched like a queen on one of the benches in the lobby, her white skates resting beside her. She has a sweatshirt pulled on, but the red skirts of her dress skim across her thighs, and Cassian can see the jeweled embellishments peeking out under the collar. Unsurprising, she has a book opened in her hands, probably another of her smutty romances. Even in the harsh fluorescent lighting, Cassian finds himself drawn into her eyes, the way they glint as they dance across the pages. 

Cassian doesn't have to think twice before he's sauntering over to her. He drops his bag with a loud thump at her feet, a smile pulling across his face at her answering glower. He loves this game they play. The way he pushes her buttons and she pushes his always leaves flames licking up his skin in the most delicious way. He's sure they make quite the sight, the hockey player and the figure skater, but he'll never stop going back for more. 

"What do you want, Cassian?" 

"Love the outfit today, Nes. The sparkles really contrast well with your dark soul." 

"Don't you have to go smash someone into the boards?"

"I'd love to press you up against the boards." 

Cassian throws a wink her way for extra good measure, and the way Nesta's eyes narrow has his heart ticking up slightly in his chest. 

"Prick," Nesta mumbles, opening back up her book. 

With a chuckle, Cassian takes it for the cue that it is, picking back up his bag and heading for the locker room. He offers Azriel an easy grin as he passes him, his brother merely shaking his head at his antics yet again. 

~ * * * ~ 

Nesta hears her sister before she sees her, Feyre's laughing bouncing off the walls of the lobby. She closes her book and grabs her skates, but as she heads for the door, her steps falter and pause as she takes in Elain walking in beside Feyre. 

"Since when does it take both of you to pick me up?" Nesta asks once her sisters are close enough to hear. 

"Actually," Feyre starts slowly. "We were thinking we could stick around for the game." 

"What," Nesta deadpans, taking in both her sisters' expressions and inwardly sighing when she sees they're both actually serious. "Fine. Give me the keys, and I'll pick you both up later." 

"Oh, Nesta," Elain says, taking Nesta's hand in her own. "It'll be fun. Besides, you and Cassian are friends. Don't you want to see him play?" 

"We are not friends." 

"That's for sure," Feyre pipes in. "There is way too much sexual tension for that to be considered friendship." 

Nesta shoots a glare Feyre's way, but her sister merely smiles innocently. The mischievous glint swirling in her eyes tells Nesta she's not getting the keys from her youngest sister anytime soon. Which is how Nesta ends up pressed between her two sisters, the cold of the metal bleachers biting into the underside of her thighs and a shared blanket draped across their three laps. Elain keeps clapping excitedly to her right while Feyre shouts, "go, baby, go" every time Rhysand cuts up the ice on her left. Nesta thinks her eyes might actually get stuck from rolling them so much. 

Despite the equipment and jerseys making it hard to tell the players apart, the whole team blending together into a mash of blues and gold's, Nesta finds she can pick Cassian out fairly easily. She tells herself it's because he's clearly the biggest guy on the team and the hair sticking out the back of his helmet is a dead giveaway. But either way, her eyes always seem to find him any time he's on the ice, whether he’s sweeping along the blue line to make a play or throwing his body against the other team. 

They’re into the third period when Nesta watches Cassian jump over the boards, joining the rush before falling back into the neutral zone as the other team gains possession. He guards his man well as the play shifts to their defensive zone, the other player trying and failing to shake Cassian loose. The player tries to deke around him, but Cassian is quicker, their sticks clashing together. 

It's like it all unfolds in slow motion. The puck popping up into the air between them. The other player raising his stick like he plans to bat the puck down. The stick colliding with Cassian's head. 

There's a collective gasp from the crowd watching the game as Cassian crumbles to the ice, falling onto all fours. And then there's red. A few drops at first, but soon it's a steady stream. It seeps into the ice, spreading out around Cassian like a crimson puddle. 

"Oh my gods," Feyre whispers.

"I hope he's alright," Elain chimes in. 

Nesta knows that her sisters keep speaking, but all she can hear is a ringing in her ears, like a high pitched screaming sinking its claws into her mind. Her hands fist into the blanket in her lap, and she watches with wide eyes as a trainer walks onto the ice, pulling the cage of Cassian's helmet up and sliding a towel under. With the help of two teammates, Cassian's on his feet and skates back to the bench. Nesta's stomach roils as one of the rink staffers and the referees scrape Cassian's blood from the ice, and even when the game resumes, she can't take her eyes off Cassian slumped over his knees on the bench. 

~ * * * ~ 

Cassian can't help but poke at the bandage on his forehead as he checks himself in the locker room mirror. It's still tender, and he winces at the pain that radiates from that spot. Definitely going to leave a scar. At least he got a goal tonight. Small victories. With a sigh, he shoulders his bag, grabbing his sticks by the door and heading for the rink exit. 

When he steps into the lobby, he finds Nesta standing there. Cassian knew that both her sisters were here earlier, but a quick sweep of his eyes around the room shows them nowhere to be found. When his eyes dance back to Nesta, she's already looking at him, something intense brewing in her eyes like storm clouds rolling in. It leaves Cassian captivated, and in a few strides, He’s standing in front of her, dropping his bag at their feet. 

"What are you still doing here, sweetheart?" 

Cassian throws as much cheek as he can into the question, letting that cocky grin he knows gets under her skin slide across his face. He expects Nesta to scowl, to make some snide remark back, to pick up their game right where they left off, but Nesta's face remains serious. He watches in confusion as she crosses and then uncrosses her arms across her chest, takes a deep breath like she's steeling herself. 

"I just wanted to make sure you're alright," Nesta explains, her eyes glancing up to the bandage before settling back on his own. 

"Oh," Cassian says dumbly, blinking down at Nesta a few times before his brain finally catches up. "It was just bad luck. Stick hit just right for one of the screws in my helmet to go right into my head." 

"It looked… bad." 

"Well, head wounds bleed a lot." 

Nesta nods and silence falls like a blanket between them. Cassian's brain kicks into overdrive, suddenly desperate to keep whatever this precarious moment is going, keep her talking to him, keep those eyes on his. It sparks in his chest like a piece of flint, fire burning under his skin. He's so busy floundering, trying to will his head and mouth to produce actual words, that he almost misses the frown that takes over Nesta's face, her eyes caught on his hand. 

"You're not thinking of driving, are you?" 

The sudden question takes Cassian by surprise, and Cassian’s brow furrows in confusion until he remembers his car keys are in his hand. 

"How else would I get home?" 

"You can't drive with a concussion."

"What makes you think I have a concussion?"

"How could you not have a concussion?" 

"If I had a concussion, why would I have gone back out on the ice to finish the game?"

"Because you're an idiot." 

Before Cassian can even splutter out a protest at the insult, Nesta is reaching forward and snatching the keys out of his hand. Then, for good measure, she reaches out and takes his sticks out of his hand too. 

"There's an Urgent Care like five miles away that should still be open." 

With that and a final, firm nod, as if she's decidedly made up her mind and Cassian can't change it, Nesta turns on her heel and makes for the doors. Cassian is left there gaping, blinking dumbly after her retreating form, while his sluggish brain tries to grasp what exactly is happening. Maybe he is concussed. Not giving himself another second to contemplate, Cassian scrambles to pick up his bag, tossing the strap over his shoulder as he hurries after Nesta. 

"Can I at least buy you dinner after?"

#my fic #acotar #nessianweek2021 #nessian #nesta x cassian #nesta archeron #cassian

[fific7]

Ticket to Ride - Part 3

Billy Russo x Reader

A/N: Inspired by The Beatles song of the same name. This takes place in my S1 Punisher AU with Arrogant!Billy in attendance, in which he gets a taste of his own medicine.

Warnings: 18+ NSFW due to sexual content, including unprotected and oral, between consenting adults* in some chapters. Drinking and swearing.

*Irl, please don’t go wild in the country without protection.

(My photo edit)

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

𝕀 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕜𝕟𝕠𝕨 𝕨𝕙𝕪 𝕤𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕤𝕠 𝕙𝕚𝕘𝕙

𝕊𝕙𝕖 𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕥𝕨𝕚𝕔𝕖, 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕕𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕓𝕪 𝕞𝕖

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Billy slammed the door of his hotel room closed behind him. He was fuming.

Damn!!! Damn, fuck, damn, fuck, fuck, fuck! He stormed across the room and threw himself onto the bed, hands linking behind his head on the pillows, glaring up at the ceiling. Apart from anything else, his male pride was injured - he was an ex-Marine for fuck’s sake! And he’d been outsmarted by a... a.. civilian!!

Lying there for a while, wondering what the hell he was going to do now. Micro couldn’t track her phone this time, and fuck knows where she was headed. Or... had she gone somewhere else? Or just moved to another location in London?

His gut told him she’d gone somewhere else. Those apartments she’d been staying in were for longer-term lets, not just one or two-night stays. Maybe she was using that as a base of operations like he would’ve done in the military. Yeah, he liked the sound of that. He sat up suddenly, taking his phone out of his pocket and opening Google Maps. He searched for Wood Wharf and when it listed up, he moved the map around with a finger and within a couple of seconds spotted what he’d been looking for - City Airport.

Billy grinned. He was back on her trail, he just knew it.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Frank jolted awake, and after a few seconds realised that his phone was ringing. He grabbed it, screwing up his bleary eyes as he tried to read the time and who was calling. Shit, it was 1 a.m.! And it was Micro. What the hell?

He accepted the call, hearing Micro’s muffled voice saying, “Frank?” “Yeah, yeah... what’s up, Micro? And you sound like you’re underwater.” There was a slight pause and a swallowing sound, “M’eatin’ a donut. Sorry. Look, Russo’s just texted me again - this time he wants me to search for her on flights outta London City Airport. I said ok... but....” his voice trailed off.

Frank sighed. He hated this, he was stuck slap bang in the middle of all this shit between Billy, Karen and Billy’s girl.

Billy - he could kick his dumb ass for ‘messin’ around’ with Madani. Karen - he really didn’t want to upset his girl. And Billy’s girl - he felt sorry for her that she’d had to put up with Billy’s recent bad behaviour but.... he’d been so relaxed and happy since the two of them got together. So... he’d give his idiot friend a break... but only a small one.

“Yeah OK, Micro, go ahead with what he asked ya to do. Let Russo know once you got an answer for him, then you tell me. And if Karen ever asks, you didn’t call me ‘bout this till a helluva lot later this mornin’. Got it!?”

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Stepping out of the lift onto the landing of the 20th floor, you were met by a view across the harbour and a symphony in red - carpets, walls, doors.

(My Photos - Dec 2014)

The W was even better than you’d imagined, and as you reached your room and opened the door, you loved the view you got all along the beach from the big picture windows.

After you’d unpacked, you dropped a quick text to Karen just letting her know where you were, then left your room to go and have a walk around the local area, called Barceloneta according to your online guide book.

There was a cooling sea breeze, the sun was shining and you turned your face up towards it.

The W Hotel was right at the far end of the beach, and you had a pleasant stroll along it until you reached a busy street called Passeig Joan de Borbó, which ran parallel to the marina known as Port Vell. You passed several restaurants and decided that you’d have an early lunch in one of them, rather than eating at the hotel. You could have dinner or even room service there later on.

Sitting at an outside table, looking at the yachts moored at the marina, watching all the people strolling by on the wide pavement, sipping at a glass of wine.... you gave a happy sigh and relaxed back in your seat.

Billy would never find you here.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Touching down in Barcelona, Billy watched the airport buildings rushing past as the air brakes were applied and the plane began to slow down. He was impressed with how short a flight it was from London; it was only a few hours since Micro had messaged him with the search results and he was here already.

He made his way through Passport Control and headed for the taxi rank, joining the queue and eventually being waved towards one of the waiting cars by the attendant.

Half an hour later, he was checking into the W. He felt excited, pleased, a thrill of anticipation - he’d caught up with her this time. Now all he had to do was dump his stuff in his room and stake out the lobby until she inevitably showed up.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

You’d walked up the full length of Joan de Borbó until you’d reached a new area of town called El Born. There was a lovely park - it had been built over a citadel from long ago when Barcelona had been occupied by invaders - and it was full of narrow little streets and cute artisan boutiques. Stopping for a coffee next to an old market building - the Mercat del Born - which had been converted into a cultural centre, once again you just enjoyed the sunshine and watching the world go by.

You looked around at the beautiful buildings; how lovely it would be to live in an apartment in one of these like the locals did. Most of the buildings had ‘Juliet balconies’, not especially spacious but enough to be able to step out of your apartment, maybe sit and enjoy the fresh air if you had room for a little chair. Some of the balconies had lush green plants in big ceramic pots on them, and you thought that sitting out there in amongst them would be like having your own little cocoon from the outside world.

You had a leisurely stroll through the neighbourhood, taking an interest in the small stores, tapas bars and old buildings. At the far end of the Passeig del Born you admired the huge Santa Maria del Mar, a church which your guide book told you was a fine example of Catalan Gothic. This opinion you agreed with - it was a beautiful church and you ventured inside to quietly look at its impressive yet simple interior.

You came out and turned onto Carrer Montcada, where the famous Picasso Museum was located. Not that you were going to go and check it out - your guide book had given some ‘best times to queue’ and spending time in a line of tourists was not your idea of fun - but you wanted to see if El Xampanyet, a famous tapas bar, was still open so you could have a glass of cava. Unfortunately it wasn’t, it had closed a couple of hours earlier and wouldn’t reopen for another couple. Sighing, you decided to walk along Montcada which would take you to Carrer Princesa, you could walk down it and cut round past the Mercat del Born again, back to Barceloneta and the W.

You were feeling a little peckish and the thought of some chilled cava and something to eat was really appealing.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Billy felt his eyes slowly closing. He shook himself awake behind his newspaper, he couldn’t risk falling asleep but what with his disturbed night’s sleep and then his dash to Barcelona was making even him - an ex-Marine who could function on little or no sleep - feel really fatigued.

Sitting in one of the comfy sofas in reception for the past hour or so was not helping, the quiet hum of voices and people entering and leaving by the revolving doors was soothing him into a drowsy state. The newspaper he’d been pretending to read was in Catalan, totally impenetrable to him so he’d had to resort to just looking at the pictures, not the best at keeping his mind active.

He heard the ‘swoosh’ of the revolving door again, looked up and then froze. It was her!! He peeked round the edge of his paper.

She was heading for the lifts, looking in her bag for her keycard as she walked, she needed to swipe it so she could go up to her floor.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

The lift doors opened and you stepped inside, running your keycard over the reader and hitting the button for floor 20. The doors began to close but then suddenly sprang apart again as someone hit the Call button, and you looked up with the usual polite but disengaged smile that people give each other in lifts.

Billy Russo was looking back at you, a small smile on his face as he hit the ‘Close Doors’ button.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

She’d shrank back from him as soon as she’d realised it was him. Billy was incredibly hurt by that. He wasn’t going to harm her!!! He reached a hand out towards her but she moved even further away from him, right into the corner of the lift.

He said her name, then, “Sweetheart.... please! Just hear me out. That’s all I want to do - talk to you.” She glared at him, “Talk!! You want to talk? Ha!! And why would I want to listen to you!?” Billy grabbed her, getting her in a bear hug, kissing her hard and hungrily. He could feel her struggling in his arms but then she began to relax the tiniest little bit, so he just kept on kissing her passionately.

There was a ‘ting’ as the express lift reached its requested floor, and the doors opened onto the landing. There were two elderly ladies standing there and as Billy’s lips broke away from hers, he turned his head to look over his shoulder at them as they stared. “Ladies,” he nodded, firmly taking his girl’s arm in his and pulling her along with him as he got out of the lift.

“That’s not talking!!” she hissed at Billy.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

You were towed along behind Billy until he stopped outside your door. So.... he even knew your room number. Why hadn’t Karen given you the heads-up this time? You were feeling very uneasy. Billy was on a mission, that was clear.

He’d grabbed your keycard while he was kissing you in the lift. Why hadn’t you struggled harder? Because you’d missed him, of course. You didn’t like it, but you couldn’t deny it.

Now he swiped the keycard against the reader on the door, opened it and bundled you inside, closing the door firmly behind him. He let go of your arm and strode into the room past the centre-located bed which faced the huge window and made his way over to it, looking out at the view it gave of the beaches and the city.

(My Photo - Dec 2015)

He sat on the window seat and turned towards you, “Please... let me explain. Have a seat.” Reluctantly you sat at the opposite end of the long seat, but then stood back up again. You needed a drink. Picking up the bottle of gin from the small table by the window, you walked over to the mini fridge and opened it, taking out a small bottle of tonic water before retrieving a glass from the cupboard above it. You walked over to the large unit under the wall-mounted TV and put it all down, then prepared a G&T for yourself and took a large gulp.

“Nothing for me?” asked Billy, with his best puppy-dog eyes and pout. Heaving a sigh, you went back over to the fridge and took out a bottle of Estrella Damm beer for him, popping the top off it for him. Picking up your G&T on the way back to the window seat, you handed him the beer and sat down.

He took a large swig of the beer, and began, “Sweetheart, I....” but you cut him off. “If you dare to say ‘it’s not what you think’, I’ll chop your balls off, Billy.” He winced, and you shot at him, “What’s her name?” Billy shook his head and opened his mouth to speak, but again you beat him to it, “And don’t give me any bullshit. I’m not stupid.”

Billy sighed, taking another drink of his beer, “I know you’re not, sweetheart. But I swear I didn’t cheat on you, it was just about getting information.” “What. Is. Her. Name!?” you ground out. His head went down and he said, “Dinah Madani. She works for Homeland,” but not meeting your eyes. “Okay, Russo. Now we’re getting somewhere. What exactly did you get up to with Mizzz Madani?” “Nothing! I swear!” You stood up abruptly, and Billy - who’d been leaning in towards you - rocked back a bit. “Oh, fuck off Billy!” you yelled, “I can smell the guilt off you!”

You were getting angrier and angrier, “You say you wanna talk and then all you do is lie! Get out! Go on - just get out of my room!”

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Billy opened his mouth to say something placatory but seeing just how furious she looked, he decided that a tactical withdrawal was probably the sensible option.

So instead he drained his beer, stood up and began walking to the door. He stopped and turned halfway across the room, gazing at her, “But I do need to properly explain all this to you, angel. Let’s talk later, okay? Please - just give me a chance.”

She nodded, “OK. Tomorrow morning.” He walked to the door, feeling defeated, and left her room. At least she was gonna give him another shot.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

The door closed behind him, and you breathed a sigh of relief. Truly, you hadn’t been sure how he was going to react when you told him to leave - Billy had a temper on him. You really didn’t think he’d physically hurt you but he always had that air of danger about him. And you’d been so angry yourself, you’d kind of lost yourself in it.

He might be dangerous, but he was a cowardly little shit when it came to telling the truth. You thought back to what he’d said - ‘Nothing, I swear’ - yeah, a likely story! He must think you were so dumb!

Picking up the room service menu, you had a brief look through it then ordered a cheeseburger and a cup of coffee. While waiting for it, you got your laptop out of your bag and opened it up.

Sorry Barcelona, I haven’t seen even half of what I’d intended to and I’d been so looking forward to exploring.

But instead, I’ve got to love you and leave you.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

Billy stepped out of the walk-in shower wearing one of the hotel’s fluffy white dressing robes, and headed to his mini-bar. He needed another beer. And some food. He flicked through all the stuff lying out on the unit, finally finding the room service menu and ordering a steak and a coffee.

He sat on the window seat while he waited, propped up against the wall with his long legs stretched out in front of him. He was feeling guilty, uneasy and really not pleased with himself. Telling her the truth was turning out to be more difficult than he’d thought. He wondered out loud, “Why is that?” but in fact he damn well knew why. The way he’d been carrying on with Madani was wrong. Even if he’d only been intent on getting information, it was just like Frank had said - cheating - and he knew it. Even if, in Billy’s book, there was Cheating Lite and Cheating For Real, and his overstepping had only been into Lite territory. Was it really that bad?

Who was he kidding? Unsurprisingly, his girl didn’t like to share.

So one thing he knew for sure was that when - if - he ever told her the complete truth, his angel was going to be very, very unhappy with him indeed.

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

You’d ordered a very early room service breakfast and after you’d eaten it while enjoying the view, your belongings were quickly stowed away and you took the lift down to the lobby. After checking out - and assuring the receptionist there was nothing wrong, you just had to leave earlier than you’d anticipated - you were on your way to the revolving door when your phone vibrated.

Karen: Billy got Micro to track you down again, sorry hon! He knows you’re in Barcelona 😳 he’ll be heading out there.

You: Yeah, he’s already here! Caught up with me yesterday evening. Agreed we’d talk this morning. But I’m in a taxi on the way to the airport 😉

Karen: 😂😂😂

Once outside, one of the guest services guys waved up a taxi from the nearby rank for you, and wished you a pleasant journey. The taxi driver asked you which terminal you were headed to, and then you were on your way.

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Barcelona

(My Photos - Dec 2019)

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@blackbirddaredevil23 @galaxyjane @omgrachwrites @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @ourloveisforthelovely @swthxrry @odetostep @supernaturalcat7 @obscurilicious @strawb3rrydr3ss @bruxa0007 @aleksanderwh0r3

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#billy russo #ben barnes #the punisher 💀 #billy russo x reader #billy russo fanfiction #billy russo imagine #billy russo fanfic

[cheri-translates]

[CN] Deep Longing Date (Eng Translation)

🍒 Warning: This post contains detailed spoilers for a date, 心驰之约, which has not been released in English servers! 🍒

More from this collection: Kiro l Victor

[ Released in CN on 24 Dec 2020 ]

The plane is currently flying steadily. I’m entirely focused on the iPad I’m holding, until the end credits of the film gradually appear.

MC: Sigh... I still find it very sweet and warm!

Finally re-watching this Northern European Christmas movie with Gavin, I’m perfectly content, rubbing his arm. 

The fragrance of fresh laundry still lingers on the thick woollen sweater, blending with a familiar cool and refreshing scent. 

Gavin removes his earpiece, tousling my hair. 

Gavin: No wonder you like it that much. The movie is very good.

MC: Of course! It’s precisely because of this movie that I thought of spending Christmas in Northern Europe. 

Pure white snow, burning firewood, colourful lights entwining everywhere, decorated Christmas trees, and streets brimming with a joyous atmosphere... 

MC: I hope it’s really as interesting as in the movie. 

Gavin: It will. 

Gavin looks at me and the anticipation written in my eyes, his expression tender as he keeps the iPad.

“Ladies and gentleman, the plane is about to make its landing at the airport...”

We immediately straighten up, pulling the window shade up--

From high above the ground, a silvery white city embellished with a riot of fairytale-like colours enters our line of sight. 

The homeland of the legendary Santa Claus is quietly awaiting us. 

-

By the time we complete the check-in process, it’s already dusk, and the streetlights are gradually illuminated.

MC: Is the countdown event in the plaza happening at midnight?

Before coming here, I came across a local Christmas custom. Here, the most famous Christmas event is the countdown in the plaza at midnight on Christmas Eve. 

Gavin: Mm, it’s still early. 

MC: Why don’t we take a walk along the street first? It’s Christmas Eve, so there’s definitely lots of good fun and interesting things to see!

A hint of a smile appears on Gavin’s lips, as though he’s long since guessed that I’d say this. 

Gavin: Looks like it was the right decision to make a booking at this hotel. I did some research beforehand - the liveliest local shopping street is nearby. It shouldn’t be far. 

In the midst of our conversation, we’ve already pushed open the doors to the hotel lobby.

The fluttering snowflakes float around like cotton, landing softly on the snow-covered ground and the sharp roof of the lighthouse opposite.

MC: So beautiful...

Gavin and I are standing side by side, our breaths releasing puffs of white mist.

Gavin: The winter here is much colder than in Loveland City. It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen such heavy snow.

Under the eaves, yellow halos from the streetlight fall into Gavin’s amber pupils, revealing an even warmer light. 

Sensing my gaze, Gavin turns his head to the side. The light and shadows outline the handsome bridge of Gavin’s straight nose. 

He chuckles softly, taking my hand.

Gavin: Let’s go.

-

Hearing the rustling of the cold breeze at my ear, and the crunching of snow underneath my feet, a wave of excitement suddenly overflows from my heart. I can’t help but break into a jog. 

Gavin: You’re that happy?

Tugging on Gavin’s hand, I nod in high spirits.

After turning at a corner, street vendors enter our line of sight from not afar off.

Tiny flickering lights intertwine in the air, hanging in front of the small stalls like waterfalls of flowing light, painting the entire street with a riot of colours.

Joyful songs drift in the night air of the city. In the midst of the bustling crowd, every face is brimming with relaxed and unrestrained smiles. 

A movie-like scene unfolds before my eyes, and I feel myself becoming more light-hearted. 

As though he can sense my fascination and elation, Gavin tightens his grip, his gaze lingering on my eager expression, his eyes glistening with a warm light. 

Gavin: Where do you want to go first?

The fragrance of all sorts of food diffuses in the air. Taking a deep breath, I feel the gluttonous worms in my belly stirring. 

Gavin: Shall we try the gingerbread cookies first? I heard the gingerbread cookies here are very famous. 

I didn’t expect Gavin’s suggestion to be exactly what I was thinking. A little excited, I nod several times. 

MC: We could have gingerbread cookies first, then Christmas cake, then drink the distinctive and warm red wine.... Oh yes, I heard there’s even a medieval merry-go-round that we could ride for free.

I count on my fingers, as though listing down family treasures. Suddenly a low chuckle drifts to my ears. 

The moment I turn my head, Gavin’s smiling eyes directly enter my heart, and an unnatural warmth subconsciously blooms on my face. 

MC: Don’t laugh at me. We’re already here, so we must definitely experience everything...

Gavin takes a step closer, helping me brush stray hairs messed up by the wind. A smile remains on his lips.  

Gavin: You’re right. We must do all of these things. You might have been too busy recently, and it’s been a while since I’ve seen you looking so relaxed. It’s pretty nice.

While he speaks, he takes my hand and places it into the pocket of his coat naturally.

Gavin: The pace of life here is very slow. Today, we can take our time. We’ll complete everything you wish to experience slowly.

-

The nearest stall happens to be selling gingerbread cookies fresh from the oven. With an enthusiastic greeting from the owner, I purchase a bag of gingerbread cookies. 

MC: These gingerbread cookies have been made so delicately... 

From the bag, I take out a gingerbread cookie with a snowflake design. Bringing it to my nose, I give it a whiff. Then, I’m filled with anticipation as I take a bite -- It’s fragrant and crispy, and as delicious as expected.

While walking, I hand the bag to Gavin.

MC: Gavin, pick a piece too?

Gavin very quickly takes out a colourful Christmas elf gingerbread cookie.

Gavin: This one. It has a different design, so we can try different flavours.

MC: Sure! I didn’t think you’d actually pick such an adorable design.

Gavin lowers his head to look at the gingerbread cookie elf, then releases an incredibly soft laugh.

Gavin: It could be because... it’s smiling very happily. 

Gavin: Just like you.

Although cold wind blows past by cheeks, I seem to feel a warm sensation instead. Beaming with a smile, I bring the snowflake gingerbread cookie to Gavin’s lips.

MC: Here. You said we’d try different flavours, right? 

He bends down slightly, giving it a bite straight from my hand. Under the illumination of the streetlights, snowflakes land gently on Gavin’s hair.

Gavin: It has a very special taste, and also has the fragrance of ginger. 

While he speaks, I feel the warmth from his lips on my fingertips, enriching the lights and the night scene. 

I can’t help but sigh with emotion--

This seems to be the festival ambience I’ve wanted most.

At this moment, the bell from the plaza chimes from far away. I immediately check the time - it’s almost time to take action!

MC: Cough cough...

I clear my throat. Gavin halts in his footsteps, slightly puzzled. 

Gavin: What’s wrong?

MC: Mm... it’s like this. We’ve already had good food and seen interesting things. So after this--

I deliberately pause. Looking at the crowded street market, a hint of contemplation flashes across the pair of amber eyes which are close enough to touch.

Gavin: Cough. I’ve prepared a gift for you. But you’ll have to wait for a while longer.

MC: ...eh? 

Seeing that Gavin has misunderstood, you can’t help but snort with laughter.

MC: Actually, what I wanted to say was that it’s time for you to receive a surprise!

Gavin’s eyes widen slightly for a second. Then, the corners of his lips bring with them warmth and happiness.

Gavin: Do I need to do anything? 

I hurriedly scan my surroundings. The “prop” that I prepared earlier is already nearby. As such, I blink slyly. 

MC: All you have to do is turn around and wait for me patiently.

Readily following my instructions, Gavin smiles and turns around. 

Just as I take two steps away from Gavin, I whip my head around in unease, plopping myself onto his back and peeping out at him.

MC: I’ll say it first. You must definitely not sneak a peek!

Gavin: Okay. 

MC: And you must wait for me to say that you can turn around before you do so.

Gavin doesn’t respond immediately. He suddenly turns his head, reaching out to tousle my head gently as it rests on his shoulder. 

Gavin: Don’t worry, take your time. I won’t sneak a peek. I can wait for as long as needed for a surprise. I’ll wait for you.

After confirming that Gavin is standing in place, I jog over to the side of the street. The young person who I’d contacted in advance is already waiting not afar off. Behind him is a small and adorable reindeer sleigh.

It’s the first time I’m seeing a reindeer sleigh, and I excitedly bend down to touch the docile reindeer, greeting it softly.

MC: You've worked hard!

With the assistance of the reindeer’s owner, I take the reindeer sleigh and the present, rushing back in a fluster. Everything is ready--

“Cling cling cling”!

Leaning next to the sleigh, I shake the bell on it, then shout loudly towards the tall and straight figure in front.

MC: Gavin, surprise!

Gavin turns around slowly. When he sees the reindeer, his eyes widen in surprise. 

In the next second, an unrestrained smile is on full display. Even his eyes are coated with surprise and a glowing expression.

Satisfied, I use one hand to smoothen the red Santa hat on my head, and use the other hand to support myself lightly on the sleigh. 

MC: The reindeer says that Christmas is here, and it has sent me to give you a present!

I retrieve a red coloured scarf from the sleigh, and show it off as though I'm presenting a valuable treasure. 

MC: Even though it doesn’t look special at first glance, but...

I point at the picture of a golden coloured ginkgo leaf in a corner.

MC: I personally stitched this on needle by needle!

Gavin takes two steps towards me, petting the reindeer.

The colourful lights happen to fall on Gavin’s face. I can clearly see the happiness gradually glowing in his eyes.

He lowers his head, the warm colour of his eyes full of unbridled light. 

Gavin: In that case, could you also personally put it on for me?

Stand on my tiptoes, I wrap the scarf around his neck seriously, and can’t help but admire it. 

MC: My taste is pretty good!

I chuckle playfully. Just as I prepare to step backwards, Gavin grabs my hand. 

Instinctively tilting my head upwards, what fills my vision is a face brimming with happiness and delight. 

Gavin: Thank you. I really like this surprise. Not just because of this scarf. 

While Gavin speaks, his fingers lace with mine, entwining them tightly. The coldness of the winter wind seems to melt into warmth because of the closeness of his breath. 

Gavin: I think the reindeer brought the wrong message. 

He stares fixedly at me, his clear eyes akin to the nicest colours in the snow.

Gavin: What I truly want has only been one thing from beginning to the end. Santa Claus likely heard my heartfelt wish. That’s why he sent the reindeer to bring you to my side. 

Heavy snow drifts in the air, and the coloured lights flicker radiantly across the entire street market. But all the radiance can’t compare to Gavin’s smile before me. 

Gavin: As for the surprise belonging to you... Look forward to it for a little longer, okay?

-

No matter whether I employ hard or soft tactics, Gavin refuses to disclose a single thing regarding the gift. He simply smiles and tells me to wait for a while longer.

Time passes by without us realising it, and the night has already set in. Gavin and I begin heading towards the plaza. 

Along the way, I realise that quite a number of people are chatting excitedly about a “big screen”.

Although I’m aware that there would be a countdown event later, what’s this “big screen”?

As though seeing through my confusion, Gavin explains.

Gavin: The “big screen” they’re referring to should be the one in the plaza. The reason why the countdown event in the plaza is famous is because of the Christmas tree in the middle. It was originally a tree which was already growing in the plaza. Not only that - the tree is over nine hundred years old.

MC: How do you know about this so clearly?

Gavin: ...cough. I did a little research before we came.

A certain warmth and sense of contentment overflows from my heart. Quietly, I tighten my grip on Gavin’s hand. 

MC: Looks like the tree carries the weight of a very ancient history.

Gavin: To the locals, this ancient Christmas tree is akin to the blessings of Santa Claus. Whenever Christmas arrives, people will decorate it diligently, and install a bell switch on its trunk. If you press the switch on the midnight of Christmas Eve, it not only heralds the arrival of Christmas, but also represents that the person who pressed it has received the greatest blessings. This is why everyone wishes to be that lucky person. 

MC: ...I’ve got it! In order to be the lucky person... you’d have to be the person selected on the big screen in the plaza, right?

Gavin: That’s right.

MC: There’s only one chance in the entire year. No wonder everyone’s looking forward it. 

In the midst of our conversation, we arrive at the plaza which resembles an ocean of joy, and I also witness the unique Christmas tree--

At a glance, one can’t seem to see the tip of the tall and towering Christmas tree. The sparkling and flickering star at the top is reminiscent of a brilliant light from high in the sky.

Vivid and adorable decorations and ribbons are strung in layers, filling the entire tree, giving off an especially warm appearance. 

MC: It’s the first time I’m seeing such a tall Christmas tree. It’s so stunning.

Hearing my involuntary gasp of admiration, Gavin’s lips curl slightly.

Gavin: Want to sit for a while at the stall over there?

Perhaps noticing that my cheeks have taken on a reddish hue from the wind, he reaches out to tighten my collar, embracing me gently.

I shake my head repeatedly.

MC: It’s a rare trip. I want to wait for midnight with everyone. There’s also a performance beforehand - it’s so lively.

The crowd gradually grows in size, and the liquid crystal numbers on the big screen start flipping with every second--

In just a few minutes, it’d be midnight. 

Happy and expectant faces appear on the big screen, and everybody waves their hands excitedly and exclaims.

Likely influenced by the surrounding atmosphere, a wave of hope rises in my heart. I whisper quietly to Gavin.

MC: Gavin... do you think we’d be that lucky?

Gavin returns my gaze, a slight yet confident smile on his lips. 

Gavin: As long as you believe it, we definitely will. 

Right after the words leave his lips, the image on the big screen happens to display our side profiles. 

My heart is immediately lifted--

The image pauses for a few seconds, then deviates slightly, finally focusing on Gavin and I!

Staring at my somewhat silly and stunned self on the big screen, I can’t believe this at all.

MC: Gavin, we...

Gavin: Mm, it’s us.

The night breeze tangles with the ends of his hair, blowing off some light snowflakes, and making the smile on his face even more evident.

He reaches out, holding me securely.

Gavin: Let’s go.

Amidst their cheering, the crowd automatically parts to both sides, paving a small path. Gavin leads me step-by-step towards the Christmas tree while I’m still feeling slightly giddy.

When I see the ceremoniously decorated Christmas tree before me, I finally return to my senses. 

Looking into the eyes which contain a smile and are so close to me, I can’t help but reach out to hug Gavin, my face full of excitement. 

Accompanied with a soft chuckle, Gavin encircles me with the scarf. His unique scent burrows into my nose.

I hold onto him, nuzzling myself into his arms. Crinkling my eyes into a smile, I lift my head to look at him.

MC: Gavin, I feel so happy today... It’s like a fairytale which hasn’t been thought of before.

Gavin tightens his grip on me, and light undulates in the amber eyes staring at me.

Gavin: Looks like the mission of letting you experience a different Christmas has been completed pretty well?

MC: Not just “pretty well”! We’re basically extraordinarily lucky today!

Gavin: In that case, I’m a little luckier than you.

MC: Why? 

Gavin: Because the lucky you belongs to me. 

Gavin lowers his head slightly, his lips bringing with them a gentle smile, his eyes filled with seriousness. 

He doesn’t seem to realise just how much the words he said can cause one to turn red in the face.

I open my mouth, wanting to cover the chaotic leaping of my heart. Before the words can come out, I once again feel Gavin’s warm breaths on my forehead.

Gavin: MC, this “biggest blessing” belongs to you. In the year ahead, you’ll have the most blessings. I wish that every day of yours will be happy and blessed. This is my Christmas gift.

My heart surges with emotions. Just as I’m about to say something, I realise something from his words--

Thinking about the surprise gift he mentioned earlier, and the confident tone he used when the big screen was sweeping across, could it be...

My eyes instantly widen.

MC: Gavin, did you...

Before I can finish, the crowd in the plaza begin the countdown, their joyous voices covering my soft exclamation.

Even so, I’ve more or less confirmed the guess in my heart. 

Ba dump. Ba dump. It’s as though I can clearly hear the violent yet excited beating of my heart.

Gavin seems to be in a great mood. The corners of his lips arch upwards, and he pulls me towards the switch on the Christmas tree. 

The countdown from the crowd happens to be reaching its end -- “Three, two, one!”

A second after our gentle push, a gigantic firework scuttles into the sky and blooms. Light-hearted music starts playing, loud and clear.

Beneath the tree, Gavin and I continue keeping our eyes fixed on each other, concealed by the branches. 

Gavin lowers his head, his eyelashes trembling, his clear eyes reflecting my focused yet sparkling eyes.

His fingers glide down my cheek gently, leaving behind a warmth I yearn for.

Gavin: What were you going to say earlier? 

I tilt my head, looking at him quietly.  

After hearing my wish of spending Christmas in Northern Europe, the person before me had started planning this trip, and had given me such a great blessing...

As compared to being selected by the big screen, the person before me is the blessing that I wish to have most. 

I encircle my arms around his neck, shaking my head with a smile. 

MC: Gavin, Merry Christmas!

Gavin: Merry Christmas, MC. 

Without realising it, I tug on his collar tightly, pressing myself to the side of his face. In an instant, all I sense is my heart being filled to the brim.

I can’t see the crowd in the surroundings, can’t see the mottled lights, nor the drifting snowflakes. 

All I can see is this smiling face whose breathing melds with mine. 

At this moment of undulating longing, I wish to convey all the brimming and surging emotions to him. I wish for this familiar scent to more completely encase itself around me--

Encircling Gavin tightly, I stand on my tiptoes, gently closing the distance between us...

-

Phone call: here

Texts: here

#mlqc #mlqc cn #mlqc spoilers #mlqc gavin #THERE SHOULD BE A LIMIT TO HOW CORNY A DATE CAN BE #IT'S NOT GOOD FOR MY HEART

[kaizokuou-ni-naru]

The Voyage So Far: Alabasta (Part Two)

east blue (1 | 2) || alabasta (1 | 2) || skypiea || water 7 || enies lobby || thriller bark || paramount war (1 | 2) || fishman island || punk hazard || dressrosa (1 | 2) || whole cake island || wano (1 | 2)

crocodile is one of my favorite villains in one piece for a number of reasons, and one of them is because he’s such a threat, the first real one faced in the grand line and one of the toughest in all of paradise. the villains from the arcs before this, like wapol or the agents from little garden, could barely even land a hit on luffy in actual combat. so crocodile is introduced here as an absolute force of nature, a complete contrast to recent villains and a very tangible threat. 

it’s an impression he very much lives up to later in the arc by crushing luffy not once but twice, which only makes luffy’s ultimate hard-won triumph feel all the better. luffy closes a huge gap over the course of alabasta in order to be able to beat crocodile, and giving us a sense of just how strong he is from the very start gives luffy clawing his way up to that level a lot more weight. 

the successive reveals of luffy’s family never fail to absolutely delight me, because in any other series they would almost certainly feel contrived, but knowing luffy, it is absolutely unsurprising he just never happened to mention his relatives. nobody asked! luffy’s unique brand of honesty is one of my favorite character quirks, because he’s very straightforward and in fact can’t lie for shit, but his priorities are so completely off the wall that he winds up omitting highly relevant information completely by accident. 

ace’s scene in alabasta really does impress me. oda’s said in an sbs that he knew ace’s fate from his introduction, which i find absolutely unsurprising given the intricacy of his story planning. that means he needed ace’s introduction to make him both likable and memorable enough in the space of just a couple chapters that the audience would be engaged when he became the focus of the story a couple hundred chapters on despite barely appearing at all in the intervening time, and he really succeeded. 

kohza is one of my favorite minor characters in the whole series, and i think he’s a big part of why alabasta’s civil war plotline works so well and feels so real. nobody on either side of the war actually wants to fight, but everyone has been driven to such desperation that they feel they have no other choice in order to save their country; and kohza exemplifies that. he's a good person who loves his country a lot, and who genuinely likes and cares about the royal family and vivi especially, and the only option he can see to save alabasta is terrible, but there’s nothing else he can do. 

it’s just fun for me to think about the fact that if crocodile was literally anything other than a very skilled logia, vivi would have ended the whole entire arc right here. 

i really like civil war storylines when they’re well-done, and i think alabasta is one of the best ones i’ve seen in media. most of it is down to what i mentioned earlier, about how nobody on either side actually wants to fight but feels like they have no choice but to. nobody here is actually in the wrong except for crocodile, and so until crocodile is defeated, nothing can be fixed- which is what luffy, of all people, is the one to realize. 

sanji’s mr. prince gambit is probably my single favorite part of alabasta, and i think one of the reasons i like it so much is because he basically beats crocodile at his own game. crocodile is terrifying in battle, but before anything else he’s a manipulator. he’s always working from the shadows, always deceiving people doing what he wants, and sanji manages to turn the tables on him and do the exact same back to him, twice. 

also sanji looks great in glasses

smoker and tashigi both get kind of unfortunately sidelined after this saga, but they’re both really great characters in alabasta. (tashigi especially; i’ll get to her later.) much like the rebel army, they’re good people trying to do the right thing in the tangled mess of tension and politics and resentment that is alabasta- and when that means working with pirates, they’ll buckle down and do it, despite how much it might contradict their worldviews. 

i love when events align in one piece so that people who don’t particularly like the strawhats wind up working with them for some common goal (as seen most prominently in impel down), and smoker and tashigi in alabasta are the first and still one of the best examples of that. 

the entirety of luffy versus crocodile round one is so well done. we’re a hundred and fifty chapters in, and although luffy has struggled in fights before now and then, we get the sense he hasn’t ever really been pushed to the brink, and he’s certainly never lost.

and then he does, completely and absolutely, without ever even landing a hit on his opponent, and it hits like a punch. 

oda seems to be a fan of characters just barely missing each other- the similar panel of robin and olvia running past each other from robin’s flashback comes to mind.

i’ve always liked that of all the strawhats, it’s usopp who gets the first “luffy is going to be king of the pirates” moment. they’ve all said it by the current chapters in wano (with the sole exception of robin, i believe), but usopp said it first, and that feels significant to me. he’s always been the one who feels the least secure in his place on the crew, but even so, he has so much faith in luffy. 

nami’s fight with miss doublefinger is pretty silly in places and i think it gets frequently (understandably, it must be said) overshadowed by zoro’s fight with mr. 1 directly afterwards, but i really like it nonetheless. it’s nami’s first real solo fight in the whole series, and once she finds her feet she kicks ass, and i really like that. it feels like a very satisfying development for her, to stand up and risk her life in direct combat for vivi’s sake. 

we’re now almost a thousand chapters in and its my firm belief that zoro versus mr. 1 is still one of the best fights in the entire series. i definitely think it’s probably zoro’s best fight- only his match with kaku compares. the narrative build over the course of the fight, from zoro struggling just to match mr. 1 (and getting shredded to pieces in the process) to cutting him down in one final stroke, is incredibly cool and satisfying to watch. it feels like a very tangible step forward for zoro in terms of ability, like a massive obstacle has been surmounted and, as he himself says, he’s now stronger for it. 

its also very cool that this is, i believe, the first appearance of what is probably observation haki, though it isn’t named or recognized as such. i’m always endlessly impressed by all the little moments of internal consistency that oda manages to sprinkle into his story. 

there’s barely any dialogue on these entire two pages, from crocodile dropping vivi to luffy and pell swooping in- the story is briefly told entirely through visuals- and i love that. it gives the impression of a single tense, frozen moment as vivi falls, which is then broken in spectacular fashion when luffy catches her. 

i really, really like the progression that runs through all three of luffy’s fights with crocodile. the gap between them goes from being impossible, with luffy unable to even land a hit and crocodile basically toying with him; to surmountable but still huge, with luffy able to land some hits but still outclassed; to finally putting them on basically even ground. and every inch of that growth on luffy’s part is hard-fought and hard-won and well-deserved. 

crocodile’s confidence in his abilities isn’t misplaced- he genuinely is that powerful. but if there’s anything we know about luffy by now, it’s that he doesn’t ever give up. it’s very fun to watch crocodile’s dismissiveness turn into disbelief turn into rage and frustration when luffy just won’t die. 

luffy is, additionally, pretty clearly a better brawler than crocodile (which makes sense, crocodile is clearly used to devastating long-range attacks with his powers while luffy grew up fighting giant wildlife with his bare hands), which means that by the time of their last fight, where they’re just whaling on each other in the catacombs and crocodile is starting to get sloppy and desperate and lose control, if anything it’s luffy who has the upper hand. 

zoro and sanji’s dynamic is always a favorite of mine, and one of the things i like best about them is how perfectly in sync they always manage to be when it comes to things that actually matter, despite fighting like cats and dogs pretty much every other time. i’ll never understand people who think they genuinely aren’t friends. 

tashigi is really good in alabasta, okay. she essentially has her own entire character growth arc. she goes from her stance in loguetown, where she isn’t even tolerant of (fully legal!) bounty hunters, to here, where she’s forced to confront that the world isn’t nearly as black and white as she’s always believed it to be, that sometimes pirates are good and allies of the government are bad, and ultimately makes the right choice to help the strawhats even though it clearly pains and frustrates her that she can’t do anything more herself. 

i’ll be forever mad that her only really significant appearance after this in punk hazard didn’t really live up to what her character deserved. 

i really like how the countdown sequence is done. the tension is ratcheting up and up and up as the clock ticks down in the final seconds, panels cutting all over the city to show all the different characters, everyone who’s caught up in this conflict and everyone who’ll die if the cannon fires-

and then the clock hits zero, and we get this panel that’s just... quiet, after all the madness, as we see how vivi stopped the detonation. i think oda is very good at setting up his pages so they have a flow to them, so no matter how quickly you actually read sometimes things feel like they’re going very fast and all happening at once and then it slows down and gives the reader a chance to breathe, if only to speed up again later. i think oda is really good at pacing in general, really, both on a micro level like this and on a larger scale. 

luffy’s greatest strength isn’t really his strength. he’s strong, absolutely, but that’s not really why he wins the fights he shouldn’t win. he wins because he just doesn’t fucking stay down. his fight with katakuri is probably the best example of this, because katakuri has him beat in pretty much every category except sheer endurance, and there as here, it’s that endurance that winds up getting luffy the win in the end. 

i do love that it’s the rain that ends the war. not the explosion and pell’s sacrifice, not vivi’s pleading, not even luffy kicking crocodile into the stratosphere, but the rain, the thing alabasta’s been missing for too long, the thing crocodile stole, the only thing all these people are fighting over. 

it’s crocodile’s symbolic defeat- at the same moment his power is broken by luffy, the stranglehold of dehydration he’s been using to foment war and rebellion is all at once gone, and he’s left with nothing at all, and alabasta can finally find peace and start to heal again. 

i always love the little moments that show, usually without words, just how much the strawhats love each other, and all of them unanimously waiting until vivi is out of sight to collapse so that she won’t worry, won’t see how ragged they ran themselves for their sake, is definitely one of them. 

i adore vivi’s sendoff, because while its sad she has to go, the certainty that someday they’ll meet again and that even if not they’ll always be crew manages to make this scene endlessly hopeful instead (which, i think, is also a good summary of one piece’s tone as a whole, at least in its more serious moments). luffy never says goodbye, after all, and nobody ever really leaves the strawhat pirates. 

i’m really looking forward to vivi’s re-entry to the story. i really, really want to see her reunion with the strawhats. 

hey look, it’s the panel my profile picture is from! 

the mystery surrounding robin and her past is built up in little ways long before enies lobby, from her harsh reaction when confronted with by tashigi to her aversion to being called by her given name to this flashback, of her talking to cobra about her dream. of them, the latter is my favorite, because i think it’s probably the most sincere she is until enies lobby- which makes sense, given she thinks she’s about to die. 

like many things about robin in alabasta, this gets cast in a new light by her backstory. if she dies here, so too does the entire legacy of ohara- but she’s so beaten down and hopeless that she really doesn’t see any light ahead to strive for. there’s no hope left, for her, and the whole world against her. 

and then there’s luffy, who creates hope everywhere he goes, who makes her live anyways. 

this is a hell of a spread to hook us very effectively right into the sky island saga. it’s a perfect reminder of just how much we still don’t know about all the endless mysteries of the grand line, and just how many adventures are still yet to be had.

#the voyage so far #arc: alabasta #one piece #opmeta #not japanese #long post

[newtonsheffield]

Hello again!!!! I'm the Spanish girl back in here!

Firstly, I'd like to send you my best wishes for this tough week of work, and I bet we're going to miss you around here this week. But duty calls! And, look, how many people can say they've got a whole week for relaxing after a week of work? 😌 (Perhaps I've misunderstood the whole thing; I've read your posts quite quick and I've understood sth different to what you wanted to say lol)

Well, what can I say with one of the last prompts you have gifted to us...? Kate, Anthony (and his Spanish!!!!!!) and Spain; you got me there. 😂 I even cried the famous "Ole!" when I read all of it (curious note: not all Spaniards use the expression "ole" in daily contexts; it is more like a regional expression that became worldwide famous bc of several reasons that are too long to post here, lol) and I think it's needless to say I loved it... isn't it?

And, I LOVED a lot Edwina's POV and story (well, I've loved everything you have posted and gifted to us, but Eddie has a special place in my heart)! I don't know, but sometimes I get the impression that, in romantic literature, relationships between sisters are not addressed at all and kinda force them to be friends (if they're not rivals... which I find stupid, tbh), not really deepening in the bond between them. Like, they're sisters and they behave more like "my next door neighbour and friend to whom sometimes I'm distant bc life happens" instead of "this person and I share much more than many people can imagine that's beyond friendship and she's more important than anybody else" -idk if this makes sense anymore... I rewrote it a couple of times bc I got the impression I can't express my idea very well 😂-. And that's something I think both of you, JQ and yourself, have achieved and gifted to all of us! We see Edwina and Kate as sisters: they fight, they tease the other, they can't stand each other sometimes, but always, ALWAYS, they care for and love the other just as sisters do. Because of this, I think TVWLM is one of my favourite books in this genre: they give us a two fantastic love stories, not only between a -heterosexual- couple but also between sisters; which is as important as any other kind of relationship.

After my TED Talk (sorry if it's been too much... 😅), I cannot help but imagine an escapade between Anthony and Kate (sans children) and Matthew and Edwina (oh, Matthew... I love you) to Spain just for Anthony, in his stupid one-side battle against Matthew (I love this, tbh; it's sooooo fun 😂), demonstrate Matthew he can speak fluently another language... Just for Matthew be oblivious to this and enjoy a little escapade to Spain with his girlfriend and her family. 😂

Anyways; I hope you're alright and, again, I wish you all the best for this week.

Besos!!! 🥰 (Spanish equivalent for the "Love!" farewell expression; it means "kisses")

Hola! You’re back again! And I’m so glad! 

I do have a week off once I finish work tomorrow (Saturday)!! Very Exciting! I have a scarf to knit, and lots of writing to do so that’s very exciting. 

Oh Anthony on a Spanish beach in tiny little flamingo shorts? Ole! indeed! That is a curious note, I literally love learning things about other cultures and languages so if anyone wants to share a curious note about their culture, hit me up! I will in turn tell you about the curious culture of The Land Down under, and our propensity to butcher the English language!

I agree, Sister relationships are a very curious thing in media. I’m not a huge fan of very contentious relationships between sisters, I’m not saying they don’t exist in real life, they definitely do, I just think having them as constant rivals is exhausting. And Yes! I Love the relationship between Edwina and Kate very much because I see it as a mirror of my relationship with my own sister. My sister drives me more insane than any other person on this planet. We fight, we bicker, I get absolutely enraged when she steals the last property I need for a set in Monopoly, and yet, She is my favourite person. She can say whatever she wants about me, but were anyone else to? It’s fight on sight. I’ll be honest, that all I’m doing is basing their relationship in these fics  on my own with my sister. Nothing special! 

Okay! Here we go! Anthony and Kate + Goose and Edwina +Spain

Kate Bridgerton was many, many things, but she liked to think an idiot, was not one of them. And so, when Anthony had said, in a tone she was sure he thought was casual. “I think we deserve a holiday, you’ve been working very hard to grow the little broad bean after all and your sister and her little gander should celebrate their engagement.” She had known exactly what he was up to. And she wasn’t really sure why she played along along with it. Perhaps something in her thrived on the chaos she knew Anthony would would create, perhaps part of her just really wanted a decent paella. Surely it didn’t matter, the result was the same: Kate fixed an innocent expression on her face and said  “Where did you have in mind?” 

 And so, surprise, surprise, here she was: back on a beach in Spain. She had to admit, eyeing Anthony appreciatively as he paddled demonstratively in the shallow water, his plan had its merits. though thus far his attempts had been... unsuccessful at best. Matthew Bagwell seemed absolutely thrilled to be in Spain, on holiday with his fiancée, giving them helpful facts he knew about the architecture as they walked through the city, a wide smile on his face, Anthony practically purple when he corrected a fact Anthony himself had said.   “Do you speak Spanish, Goose?” Anthony had said dryly in the hotel lobby shortly after they’d arrived. And Kate had rolled her eyes at Anthony, though Matthew was not paying attention. He had his arms wrapped tightly around Edwina’s waist, whispering something in her ear that made her nose crinkle in delight, the sapphire of her engagement ring glinting in the sunlight. And the beautiful picture they made gave Kate’s heart a little stutter. Anthony tutted. “Matt!” He said sharply, getting the man’s attention, Matthew’s glasses slipping down his nose as his head shot upwards in surprise.  “Do you speak Spanish?” Edwina was rolling her eyes now. And Matthew, for his part was completely unbothered  “oh, no. Sorry Mate, might have to lean on your pretty heavily this week.” He said, and Kate caught the smug smile on Anthony’s face and bit back a groan Damnit Matthew.  “I’m pretty fluent in French, German and Mandarin though!” Matthew said smiling happily, turning back towards Edwina, completely oblivious to the scowl Anthony tossing his way. “Of course you fucking are.” He muttered, fixing Kate with an irritated glare as a laugh escaped her!   

The water surely must be a little cool in early October but Anthony showed no signs of it, Beckoning Kate into the water. She groaned and made her way towards him, laughing happily as he tugged her in, his hand resting on her stomach, still no sign of her pregnancy. “Is he watching?” Anthony whispered in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her waist, spinning her through the water So she had a brief image of her sister smiling brightly at her fiancée who appeared to be... bless him building a sandcastle. 

“No. He’s not.” Kate said batting her husband’s hands away irritatedly as he scowled.  “Are you really trying to look more in love than they are?” Kate scoffed, disbelief at her husband’s idiocy rising with in her. Anthony looked indignant. “No! A man can’t take an interest in his wife now? Very poor show Mrs. Bridgerton.” He said, but his eyes, darted towards the shore at the last second.  “Oh I cannot believe you! You’re absolutely manic!” She replied as Anthony attempted to pull her back towards him, Kate putting up very little fight as she tumbled against. him, his voice hot in her ear. “Insufferable I hear.” Kate scoffed. “Ugh! If Anyone’s insufferable it’s him!” 

Kate turned to follow Anthony’s gaze to find Matthew waving at them, grinning broadly, completely unbothered. And Kate couldn’t keep from laughing as Anthony went on another muttered tirade.

Besos! 

#bridgerton and sons au #kathony #anthony x kate #edwina x Bagwell #edwina x matthew #matthew goose bagwell #anthony bridgerton #kate sheffield #kate sharma #edwina sheffield #edwina sharma #goose is a cutie #the ridiculous rivalry between anthony and goose #molly’s asks and answers

[adorehs]

tryst

Hi! This is the first fic I fully completed and I wanted to post it even though I don’t like it much. I know the writing is underdeveloped and the ending is absolutely horrible (tried to expand but everything just seemed bad) but I tried my best. I haven’t written anything for fun in years so I thought I’d give this a try and post it so I can get feedback and improve!

This is my entry for @bfharry’s #boyfriendathon!

Summary: Y/N and Harry struggle to keep their new relationship hidden on a group trip to Ibiza. (3.3k words) 

Warnings: poorly written fluff and smut 

The four of you had been planning the trip for the past year, doing extensive research and saving up for the airfare and cost of living for your week trip in Ibiza, and you had finally arrived on the warm island after a day of travel. As excited as you all were and as much as you would like everything to be perfect, the trip had already started off with a few extra complications. 

For starters, your rental car didn’t have a large enough trunk to fit in all the suitcases everyone had brought along, so atop yours and your friend Tara’s lap you held a suitcase each and the gravel road made the thirty minute drive to the hotel practically unbearable. 

Along with that, you had arrived a few hours before your rooms were ready, so you and Tara stalled in the lobby as Harry and your other friend Niall went to a cafe to pick up a few essentials for everyone. 

When the boys had arrived with your coffees, the receptionist had informed you that your room would be ready in about fifteen minutes so you four sat down with your bags in a huddle around a small table, speaking in hushed voices as you waited for your keys. 

“Didn’t they say it would be ready by noon in the email?” you ask, pulling out your phone for proof. 

“I think so,” Niall agreed, “Maybe one of ours isn’t ready so they're giving us both at the same time,” he suggested. 

Harry groaned in response, “Still, I want to take a fucking nap before we go to the beach.”

You all murmur an agreement as you heard your name being called by the receptionist. You glance at your friends before heading over to the young lady to retrieve the keys for everyone. 

The process was quite quick since you had attempted to check in earlier and had given her all your information then, and soon you had four sets of keys to two hotel rooms. 

“Harry and Niall in 1406, me and T in 1408,” you hand everyone their keys, “They’re adjoined but you still have a separate door.”

“Thank god,” Niall exclaims before hurriedly transporting himself and his bags to the elevator, “I’m exhausted,” he comments when you all join him a few moments later. 

//

A few hours later, you all head to the nearest beach to relax. Niall and Tara led the way as you and Harry walked slowly behind them, his hand resting on your lower back as he whispered in your ear telling you how good you look. 

“Harry,” you giggle softly when he grabs your hand, “Come on you know we can’t…” you trail off, looking up at your friends, making sure they haven’t seen Harry’s display of affection. 

“Yeah,” he agrees with a sigh, “I hate lying to them but they would freak out.”

You and Harry had recently started dating (after a few dates that you promised didn’t have to go anywhere). You both knew that if Niall and Tara found out, they would freak out with the presumption that the group could fall apart in an instant. 

You dropped his hand and sidestepped as you saw Niall peer over his shoulder looking for you both, “Hurry up!” he called out, making you speed walk to catch up with your friends. 

By the time you had caught up with them, you were practically on the beach, so you set down your towels under an umbrella someone had left there before and you strip yourselves of extraneous clothing. 

“I’m gonna go look for somewhere to rent a surfboard, you guys want one?” Tara asks. 

“I’ll just come with, I need one,” Niall decides as you and Harry shake your heads no.

“Okay we’ll be back,” Tara calls out as she begins roaming the beach with Niall. 

Harry smirks lightly and throws his arm over your shoulder as you reach for the sunscreen beside you, “Alone at last,” he sighs dramatically. 

“Shut up,” you shrug his arm off you and replace it with a palm full of sunscreen, “Get my back, please?”

Harry nods, taking the bottle from your hand and squirting some sunscreen onto his hand. He moves your bathing suit straps down your shoulders slightly and you shiver at his gentle touch. Beginning at your shoulders, he massages the sunscreen in, relieving you of hours of stress. You moan lightly at the way his hands work at the crook of your neck and he chuckles under his breath. 

His hands lower themselves across your back with a suitable amount of pressure with every movement, making goosebumps rise on your skin, contrasting with the hot air of the beach. He unhooks your bathing suit and you yelp, quickly holding onto the cups ensuring you wouldn’t flash anyone walking about. “Relax,” Harry advises, “It’s only sunscreen.”

You look over at him with an unimpressed look plastered across your face, “It’s only sunscreen,” you mock him, sticking your tongue out childishly, “This is where it starts, but watch, next time there will be no sunscreen,” you predict. 

“Okay, you got me,” he smiles at you, rehooking your bathing suit and helping you shrug the straps back onto your shoulder. Harry taps your shoulder when you’re situated and kisses you lightly on the nose and then fully on your lips, “Will you get my back?” 

You smile and nod fondly at your boyfriend before shuffling on your knees so you are behind him. Following a similar process to Harry, you massage the sunscreen into his shoulders and press lightly on his back, feather a few kisses on his shoulder blade when you’re done, but scrunch your face together in disgust at the sour sunscreen that found its way into your mouth. 

He laughs lightly and kisses you, holding onto your chin, careful not to transfer the sunscreen onto his tongue as well. “Have I told you how sexy you look in this?” he asks between kisses.

You smile, “A few times,” before breaking out of his hold and reaching for a book you had brought along with you.

He studies you as you open the book, watching how your mouth draws a straight line and your forehead creases slightly as you concentrate on the words. Just as he is about to bother you again, he hears Niall’s laugh. Harry’s head snaps in the direction and he sees Tara and Niall laughing and pointing at a seagull who keeps trying to run away from an inquisitive kid. In both their arms, they hold surfboards and they have changed into wet suits. 

“The stand is over there,” Tara points to a building lined with surfboards, “You can change there too, if you want to come later.”

Harry nods, and through his peripheral vision he can see you do the same, “I’m gonna try and read but I might come out there later,” you reply. 

Harry just shrugs, “I might tan or nap but I’ll go look for food in an hour.”

Niall nods in agreement, “Cool, we’ll try and be back by then.”

Niall and Tara begin walking towards the ocean, pulling their wet suits on completely and Harry glances at you once they are out of earshot.  “So now that they’re gone, wanna make this another date?” he asks shyly.

You set down your book and balance your body on your elbows, “Okay, you have my attention.”

“So, I’m thinking, we get food before they come back and have a picnic on the beach and once they go next time we can do something fun,” he wiggles his eyebrows. 

You look at him, eyes wide in shock, “Harry,” you gasp, “Not here! Maybe next time we’re left at the hotel, but not here!” 

“Fine,” he dramatically sighs, “We can just cuddle if that's what you’re comfortable with.”

“Yeah, that’s what i'm comfortable with, dumbass,” you playfully push him and he dramatically falls over. 

“Jesus, woman!” 

Harry stood up and held a hand out for you, “Let’s go find food m’lady.” He pulled you up and you both started walking towards the pier where there seemed to be a few restaurants. 

You found a restaurant without a line fairly quickly and ordered a few entrees you thought Niall and Tara would like, along with a wrap for Harry and a falafel sandwich for yourself. 

Sitting down with your stuff again, indulging in the food while staring at the ocean. The sun was beginning to set and there was a nice breeze in tow, causing you to shiver. Harry noticed and immediately handed you a sweatshirt he had brought along just in case. He scooted closer to you and circled his arm around your waist as you grasped onto the outerwear.

“Hey, is this the one you gave me on our first date?” you asked once you had pulled the black material over your body.

Harry squinted, turning his head to study the sweatshirt, “Yeah, I think it was.”

“That was so awkward,” you laugh, resting your head on his shoulder, “We tried so hard to not mess anything up, it just ended up silent, like, most the time.”

“Hey!” Harry whined, “That’s because we cared. We wanted this to work,” he shrugged, looking back at the ocean. “I think that’s Tara,” he said, untangling his arm from your body and scooting a few feet away from you. 

You whimper softly at the loss of warmth, wrapping your arms around your body to make up for Harry’s body. You see him exhale deeply and hide a smile as Tara approaches. 

“Oh thank goodness, I’m starving,” she says once she sees the food, “Think Niall’s coming in a few minutes, he’s talking to the lifeguard,” Tara points behind her carelessly. 

“Of course he is, always a flirt,” you glance at Niall who’s helping a girl in a red bathing suit down from the post. 

Harry laughs loudly, “She looks so confused, I think he’s trying to speak Spanish.” 

Tara snorts, “He knows, like, six words. He needs a lotta luck if he’s going to do… that.”

Niall arrives a few minutes later, laughing as he tells everyone about the girl and his limited Spanish vocabulary. You all share a few laughs and retell some old stories as the sun goes down and the temperature drops even more. 

Tara and Niall are shivering viciously because they were still wet from the ocean and they head back to the hotel, claiming they will let you and Harry in whenever you come back. You both bid them a goodbye and are left alone again. 

“Finally,” Harry says, sliding in behind you so your back is to his chest, and wrapping his arms around your front, “We can cuddle.”

“I’d hardly call this cuddling,” you glance back at him, “If this is what you consider cuddling, we’re gonna have a problem.”

“We’re spooning, no?” He smiles at you cheekily and you shake your head. 

“No,” you reply, and with a light push on Harry’s chest to speeden the process you carefully lower yourselves onto the towel beneath you, your toes tickled by a cool breeze as sand gets into your hair, “Now we’re spooning.” 

Harry flips you over in his arms so he is looking into your eyes. His left hand slowly caresses your face as his right traces your lips softly. “You’re so pretty,” he says softly. 

Your smile widens as you bring your hand up to his hair, “You’re prettier,” you counter. 

Harry’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion and he leans back slightly. You tug on his hair and push him back into you as he mumbles, “I think you’re blind. You’re out of my league.” 

“Are you joking? There’s no way you’re being serious.”

“I’m serious! You’re out of my league it’s just a fact.”

“No,” you look at him pointedly, “We are in the same league. Don’t get it twisted,” you crack a smile. 

Harry bursts out into laughter and you follow, falling into a fit of giggles. “Okay, same league,” he agrees. 

The two of you lay there in relative silence for the next twenty minutes, just relishing in each other and cherishing the time you have before the cold air becomes unbearable. 

Once it becomes too cold to think, Harry stands up slowly, wrapping himself in a towel and he holds out his arm for you before helping you up. You both gather all the towels and bags left over and head back to your hotel. 

//

The following day the four of you spent some time sight seeing and learning about Spanish culture. That night you ended up on the beach again, the four of you sitting around a bonfire. 

You weren’t doing much, just eating and talking whilst wrapped up in blankets. Harry found himself staring at your lips as you spoke about a party you went to your freshman year. Safe to say he had no idea what happened at the party. 

You wore a black dress with cherries on that you tied over your yellow bathing suit and Harry thought you couldn’t look better if you tried. A slight tan had made its way onto your body, your hair dry from the ocean water, and an effortless smile lying on your lips as you wrap yourself tighter in a towel you borrowed from the hotel. 

You looked up and made eye contact with Harry, smiling widely before looking down at your hands to not raise any suspicion. Harry frowned slightly and focused on Niall, asking him what he was going to do later that night. 

“Probably go to the pool,” he shrugs, “The ocean is way too cold now.”

Harry nodded, “I’m gonna go to bed in like an hour so I won’t join,” he looked up at you. You nodded slightly as Tara replied. 

“I’m gonna go to the gym, maybe I’ll meet up with you after.”

You looked up, “I’m going to go to bed. All the walking really got to me,” you informed. 

Everyone murmured their ‘okay’s and a few minutes later you had all packed up and headed back to your hotel rooms. 

You and Harry walked slightly behind everyone, Harry’s lips on your ear as they tell you how he’s going to have you tonight. 

Tara and Niall changed and headed back down to the shared lobby and you rushed to knock on the shared door between the two rooms. Harry hastily helped you inside and within seconds his lips were on yours and his shirt was thrown across the room and his shorts were directly beneath him. 

Clad in only his briefs allowed for the outline of his cock to show through the thin, black fabric and you glanced down at it when your lips parted, losing your train of thought for a moment. 

Your eyes widen slightly and your head rolls back as Harry begins kissing along your jawline and down to your neck. He leads you onto his bed, that he had laid a towel on, and helps you get rid of your shirt and shorts. 

He groans at the sight of the white lace set you had put on for him and you smile up at him, laying down on the bed, as he steps out of his briefs. 

“We gotta be quick, babe,” He reminds you, “God you look so beautiful. Quick won’t be a problem.”

You chuckle and lean up and grasp his arms, pulling him down onto you, “Thank you,” you whisper. He giggles lightly as his lips find yours. You pull him closer into your body as he deepens the kiss, immediately asserting his dominance. 

You moan lightly into the kiss as Harry’s hand finds its way down to your panties, pressing light pressure onto your core and moving his hand slightly as you arch your back urging for more. 

Harry’s lips detach from yours and find their way to your chest, his free hand skillfully unclasping your bra and you lean up slightly to help take it off your body. Your bra is thrown across the room and one of Harry’s hands finds your right breast, massaging it, as his mouth attaches itself with your left nipple. 

His tongue works skillfully, circling your nipple and flicking it harshly, hardening it instantly. He playfully nips at it, making you groan in pleasure, before he switches breasts and does a similar routine on the other. 

He kisses his way down to your body and to your core, placing a kiss directly on the wet patch that has formed on your panties. You groan at the feeling and he looks up at you, “You good?” You nod quickly, unable to speak, “I need to hear you say it,” he reminds you. 

“Yes, fuck, yes. Keep going, please,” you chant, closing your eyes and pushing your body towards Harry’s mouth. 

He groans at the contact and moves your panties to the side, attaching his tongue to your clit. He gently bites on it, teasing you further, and you grab his hair pulling lightly. 

He moans into your core, making you arch your back in ecstasy. “Harry, please,” you beg for his attention, causing him to smirk at your desperation. 

He sucks harshly on your clit making you practically scream in anticipation. In a rhythmic motion, you move your hips as he laps his tongue along your lips, making your legs shake with pleasure. He adds a finger unexpectedly and you moan loudly, pulling at his hair aggressively, this time. Your eyes close and your head rolls back, hitting the mattress, as you come unexpectedly onto Harry’s tongue. 

He smiles slightly and stands after cleaning you up quickly. Rolling on a condom, he watches as you rid your panties, sitting up to throw them where your bra lays on the floor. Making eye contact with you, he gets the sudden urge to kiss you. “You look so flawless,” he mutters. 

“You look perfect,” you reply, giving into his gaze. 

He smiles at you and kisses you softly, assaulting your lips, making sure you know you are loved by the man before you. 

He stands and regains his full height again, allowing you to adjust your body as you wish before lining up his cock with your entrance. 

Harry slides halfway into you with a wrangled moan, looking at you to make sure you’re okay. He lets out an exaggerated “Fuck,” seeing your innocent eyes looking up at him through your eyelashes before bottoming out, his hips coming in contact with your feet as you push him back slightly, nonverbally signaling him to move. 

He thrusts into you at a slow pace, making you whimper for more. You look at him with pleading eyes, in which he responds by slightly increasing his pace. “Please,” you whine, looking into Harry’s eyes. 

He smiles at you and pulls out before sliding back in with more force and speed then before. You moan with delight as he groans with pleasure and you allow him to continue his pattern of strokes before he comes, you following slightly after. 

He pulls out, heading to the bathroom to dispose of his condom before coming back and helping you off the bed so you could use the restroom and clean up while he puts the towel under a table in the room so nobody uses it. 

Walking back into the bedroom, you take in the sight before you of Harry putting his shorts back on. His eyes meet yours and he smiles as you continue to stare at him as he gathers your clothes for you. He hands them to you with a kiss and you change quickly into them before sitting back down on the bed to cuddle for a few minutes. 

You face each other and your legs intertwine as you admire each other and whisper sweet nothings at each other. “I love you,” He tells you. 

“I love you,” you reply.

#harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles imagines #boyfriendathon #harry styles x reader #harry styles fic #harry styles fluff #harry styles smut

[penaltbox]

study buddies - owen lindmark

here is a (seemingly) much anticipated re-post of an old fic that i still love so much. feedback is very appreciated; tell me your favorite line or part! i hope you guys like it the second time around, or if you’re new, the first!

__

“he just needs a little help staying caught up with things. the season keeps him busy so we like to ask students to help each other out,” your professor asked, smiling a little. 

this is what you got for doing so well on the first test. you were stuck helping some hockey player study and take notes because he couldn’t be at class often enough. 

just as you’re about to argue a boy comes busting through the classroom door, half out of breath. you see the red wisconsin backpack with a number 18 stitched into it. 

“and here he is. this is owen lindmark, you’ll be working with him,” your professor explains. 

owen smiles and it takes you back for a second. you weren’t prepared for a cute boy to need help and this one actually seemed nice. 

“i’m so sorry i’m late. i promise i’m usually not like this,” he apologizes, sticking his hand out for you to shake. 

you do so, immediately noticing how big his hand is. you swallow hard and pull your hand back, not needing to even think that way. he needed help with class and that was it. the professor lets you both off to do your own thing and owen hands you a schedule. 

“i just figured it might help you to have the hockey schedule. i wrote on there as much info as i had about times i’d be busy so we can work a study schedule out. i’m okay with once a week unless you think we need more?” he says, looking nervous as he scratches the back of his neck. 

you weren’t sure how such a large boy could look so shy, but you decided then that maybe this whole tutoring thing wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

“well, just from looking at this i’m thinking tuesday nights might be our best chance? this is a monday/wednesday/friday class so we’d be studying between those days and then if you have a road trip we’re not missing any study time,” you explain, thinking out loud more than anything. 

he smiles and pulls his phone out, handing it to you, “okay, tuesday’s it is. go ahead and put your number in just so we have them if something happens.”

you take his phone and plug your number in, trying to play it cool. he immediately texts your phone, but you don’t check it. 

“okay, well i have to run to practice, but i’ll see you on tuesday?” he asks, another one of those bright smiles just about making your knees weak. 

“yeah,” you say, knowing your voice sounded a little off. 

he laughs a little and heads off anyways. you quickly unlock your phone, seeing the new message from him. it’s simple. 

‘hey it’s owen 😁’

you shake your head, heading back to your dorm to tell your roommate about this one. you had a feeling it was going to be quite the semester. 

—

owen is surprisingly tolerable for a d1 athlete. he doesn’t act better than other people, he doesn’t mind letting you pick where to meet up to do the studying. he even picks you up food and coffee some days. 

“i hope that’s the right coffee order,” he laughs, setting the cup down. 

you look up at him and smile, pretty surprised by it. you’d mentioned the first week that you loved this one coffee spot on campus and you always ordered the same thing. 

“owen, you didn’t have to do that,” you blush, taking a sip of the warm liquid. it was perfect and he looked like a saint in that moment. 

he shrugs, “it was nothing. i had to pass it on the way back from practice.”

“well i appreciate it. thank you,” you say quietly, opening your book up to the chapter you guys were on. 

you start reading through your notes compared to what owen had and you can feel his eyes on you. you try not to look at first but eventually it’s too much. 

you glance up and find him watching you, a blush dusting his face when he gets caught. he coughs a little and looks down at his book after a second. 

“you really didn’t miss much,” you tell him, “i think you’re probably good to go this week.”

he looks up quickly, a small frown on his face, “oh. well i mean, we already came here. might as well keep working on stuff?”

you nod, telling him you don’t mind that. and even that quick the study dates were officially extended to whatever homework you both had with you that day. 

—

he’d actually turned into a pretty good friend over the month or so since you got assigned to each other and you started looking forward to seeing him every week. it didn’t hurt that he sat by you in class now, too. 

this tuesday was a meeting in the library again. owen looks exhausted and you know he’d had games over the weekend. he must not have had time to get much rest yet, so you try and condense what had been talked about in the last class he missed in case he wants to take off back to his place. 

he lays his head down on his arms, groaning into the table, “i can’t do this any longer.”

you laugh a little at him, “it’s microbiology, o. did you expect it to be easy?”

he peaks up at you with the cutest scowl you’ve ever seen. it’s hard to take him serious when he looks like that and his eye roll tops it off. 

“i should have picked a simple major like the rest of the team. this is ridiculous. i don’t understand this!”

you sigh and pull his notebook towards you. you realize he’d written something down a few lines ago that wasn’t correct about a transfer of disease. 

“owen, come here. you don’t get it because you wrote it wrong,” you say, tapping the table next to you. 

he grunts and gets out of his seat, moving to the one next to you instead. he crowds your personal space immediately, pressing his arm against yours as he leans over. 

you turn your head to explain it to him without realizing how close he had gotten. his eyes are big as he waits for you to explain it and you have to look away from him. you know you’re blushing like crazy, but owen is polite and doesn’t pick on you for it. 

you show him the section in the enormous textbook, telling him where he’d written the wrong thing down. the look on his face after is worth it though because he gets it then. 

what you didn’t expect was for him to flip his book around and stay sitting next to you when he could have easily moved back to his previous chair. you tell yourself not to think about it, not needing to make this more complicated. owen apparently has other plans though. 

“we’ve got a game this saturday,” he blurts out suddenly, “are you going?”

you look up at him, not even realizing it, “oh you do? i mean, i hadn’t thought about going.”

he looks down at his notebook before looking over at you, “maybe you should go. you might like it.”

“do you want me there?” you ask him. you have no clue where that bravery came from and you fully expected him to brush it off. 

he smiles though, “yeah i’d love that.”

—

“brittney, are you sure about this?” you nervously ask your roommate. 

owen had asked you to go, but you figured he probably told everyone to go to his games. brittney jumped at the chance to go when you mentioned it, swearing it would be fun. you knew she had alex turcotte in her management class though and wanted to see him as much as you wanted to see owen. 

“it’ll be fine. you need to stop worrying so much. he’s your study buddy, not a random dude,” she shook her head, going into the kohl center without a worry at all. 

you’d got to the rink earlier than expected so the boys were still warming up. you pull the sleeves of your wisconsin crewneck over your hands, crossing your arms as you watch them move around quickly. 

you find owen easily as they skate around and a little smile makes its way onto your face. brittney’s telling you some story about alex in class and you’re half listening, but also wondering if the guys ever looked around at the people watching them. 

you get your answer when a puck smacks the glass in front of you, making you jump and look back at the ice. you see owen laughing and stick handling another puck before tossing it into the glass again in the same spot. 

you shake your head at him, but you’re not even mad. you imagine he’d be teasing you about it come tuesday but that was okay. 

brittney looks over at you, asking, “what’s going on with you two? are you sure you’re just study buddies?”

you blush furiously, scoffing a little, “yeah, there’s nothing else going on with us. the last thing i need is to try and get with some college athlete just to end up embarrassed and heart broken.”

“okay that’s so dramatic. he obviously thinks you’re pretty cool if he invited you to the game tonight. it means he doesn’t mind being seen in public with you,” she pokes, knowing you were too shy to talk about him much. 

“let’s just go sit down. i need food before i have to watch this,” you mumble, shoving the topic to the side. 

you ended up with surprisingly good seats and the boys ended up winning, which was awesome. owen may have gotten a pretty decent assist and you know you’ll have to congratulate him on that later. you’re halfway down the street from the arena after the game when a text from owen shows up. 

‘wait after for us’

you stop and look over at brittney, showing her the screen. her jaw drops and she slaps your arm, heading right back for the building you’d just walked out of. 

“well we have to wait for him. also, find out who this ‘us’ is. tell him to bring alex,” she says, marching you both into the lobby. 

you send owen a message to tell him where you were, getting more and more nervous as time ticked on. he didn’t send another text back and you frowned at the screen. 

“what’s taking them so long? you don’t think he said that just to make me look dumb, do you?” you ask, checking your phone yet again to see if he messaged you. 

she looks up to respond but a funny look takes over her face, like she’s trying to hide her smile. it fails horribly and you realize she’s looking over your shoulder. 

before you can turn around to look two arms wrap around your shoulders from behind and hug you tight back into someone. you grab onto the arms, jumping when it happens, and see the suit coat that covers them. you know immediately that it’s owen. 

you laugh, relaxing then, and looking up at him as your head rests back on his chest. the smile he gives you makes your heart strings tug and he surprisingly doesn’t pull away. 

“that’s the second time i scared you tonight, huh?” he laughs. 

you blush and nod a little, “yeah, thanks for that earlier. you had everyone around me laughing, too.”

“so how was the game?” he asks, rocking you both side to side. 

“it was a lot of fun actually. your assist was pretty awesome,” you say, trying to keep your cool. 

you look over, feeling bad that you’d forgot to introduce brittney to him but she was already fully immersed in a conversation with alex that had her finding an excuse to touch his tie. you know exactly what’s going on there so you look back up at owen. 

“well, that’s my roommate. she has class with alex actually so it’s a good thing he came with you,” you laugh, still leaning into owen. 

he nods, “yeah when i shot that puck at you earlier he looked over and said he knew her. guess he thinks she’s pretty hot or something.”

you laugh, knowing she’ll love to hear that one later. you’re not sure what to do next, but owen finally steps away, coming to stand next to you. he gets alex’s attention, mentioning something about getting to ‘the house’ before it got too late. 

“you guys can come if you want,” alex says, giving you a little wave as he finally pulls his attention away from your roommate. 

you return his wave but get nervous right away, not really ready for that part of things. you’d heard they partied a lot but you weren’t exactly prepared for that. brittney recognizes it and shakes her head. 

“maybe next time. we’ve got stuff to do pretty early tomorrow,” she explains, saving you from looking like a big baby. 

the boys don’t seem to think twice about it and walk outside with you both as you get ready to go two different ways. alex and brittney get in their own world again as owen turns towards you. god he looks so good in his suit, and you know you’re staring, but you can’t help it. 

“i’ll see you in class monday, okay?” he asks quietly, pulling you into a hug. 

it takes you a little off guard, but you hug him back tight. he’s so big and warm that you get lost in it for a second. as he pulls back his hand trails down your arm, grabbing your hand for a second. he gives you a quick wink before he and alex walk away, but of course brittney caught it. 

“excuse me, what was that?” she tries to whisper but fails completely. 

“i don’t know! he’s never done that!” you blush, trying to comprehend what just happened. 

“he likes you,” she nods, laughing at your expression. 

you shake your head, “no way. he can get any girl he wants. i’m just his study buddy.”

—

owen asks to hang out more often after that. in fact he texts you the day after his game and the day after that as well. when he shows up to class monday morning he brings you a coffee and your heart melts a little. 

you knew to be weary of hockey players. you’d been around enough of them in high school to know how they acted, but owen seemed to be different. he leans over during the lecture to whisper in your ear at one point, which is thoroughly distracting. 

“you wanna go hang in my room after this?” he asks, his voice deeper than you expected. 

“yeah, i’m done with classes after this,” you nod, biting your lip as you look at him. 

the smirk he gives you back lets you know you’re in trouble now with him. he weaseled his way in and you hardly had the chance to stop him. 

the class passes by horribly slow after that, but the walk to owen's room is luckily pretty short. you’d been over once or twice, but not since the game. not since he came up behind you and hugged you. 

you look around this time, not as worried about studying. the late october air is cool in his room and you noticed the window was cracked open a little. the view from his room is amazing and you get lost in it for a second. 

owen comes up behind you, leaning his hand on the wall next to the window. you can all but feel him pressed against you but you don’t move. 

“this is amazing, o,” you say softly, taking in all the fall colors on campus. 

“yeah i really can’t complain,” he says, but you look back to find him looking down at you. 

you clear your throat, blushing hard as you look away. he must have noticed the effect he had on you because he laughs a little and steps away. 

“what do you say to watching a movie?” he asks, heading over to grab his laptop. 

you turn around, sitting next to him on his bed, “sounds like a great idea to me.”

you might be guilty of leaning into him a few times that night, but really it’s his fault. he’s the one that puts his arm around you and lets you lay your head on his chest. 

—

you decide to stay in that friday night but when a handful of texts from brittney come flying in to your phone you immediately panic a little. 

‘dude owens at state street’

‘he’s with some girl??’

‘they’re standing CLOSE?!?’

‘wait she looks kissed. pissed. fuck.’

‘she left. omg alex is here i gotta go’

the whole thing makes your heart hurt and your head spin a little. of course owen was out with a girl. who were you to think you were more than just a study buddy? but he’d been so different lately. you really hoped this was some rude joke being played on you and owen wasn’t how you knew some guys to be. 

you’d tried to keep that night off your mind as much as possible, but you’re not very successful. you can’t text him and ask, but that standing tuesday study date seems to come so much faster than you expected. 

the weekend had blurred by and you found yourself at owen’s door, the agreed upon study location for that week. you suddenly think it might have been better to fake an emergency so you don’t have to go through with this considering he’d been awfully friendly the last time you were in his room for movie night. 

you knock on the door quickly, wanting to get studying over with. you hear a groan that makes you frown and when owen opens the door you’re shocked. 

the room is pitch black, he’s in pajamas with his glasses on, and his hair is a mess. he looks rough, like he wasn’t feeling well and it immediately makes your concern grow. 

“o, what’s up? are you okay?” you ask softly. 

he sighs, looking so defeated, “i caught something yesterday i think. or maybe this weekend. i’ve been sleeping so much and i can’t eat. i hate being sick.”

you can’t worry about who that girl was now even though that’s all you wanted to ask him about. instead you shuffle him back into his room, dropping your bag by the door. 

you reach up to check his forehead considering how rosy his cheeks are, “owen, you’re burning up. have you eaten anything today?”

“eating and keeping it down have been two different things,” he mumbles, leaning into your hand. 

you frown and reach for him, pushing him towards his bed. he easily complies, crawling back under the covers, but pushing them away. 

“no, you need to cover up and sweat this fever out. i’ll run and get you some medicine and food that might be easier to keep down,” you tell him, looking for his keys. 

“i’ll be right here,” he tries to joke, but he’s already falling back asleep as he says it. 

you sigh, pushing a bit of his hair off his forehead. when did you turn into such a sucker for this kid? he had you all wrapped around his finger. 

medicine and food were decently easy to locate and owen is still passed out when you get back to his room. you set everything on his desk, walking over to sit on the edge of his bed. 

“hey, wake up. i need you to take some medicine,” you say, rubbing his back. 

he groans again and peaks up at you, “i’m so tired still.”

“i know. maybe you shouldn’t have stayed out all night friday,” you joke before you realize what you said. you both freeze a little and look at each other. 

“wait, how do you know i was out friday?” he asks, moving to sit up on the bed. 

“uh, i didn’t. i don’t. i mean,” you stutter, not being quick enough to pull yourself out of it.

he shakes his head a little, “you didn’t know. brittney told you, didn’t she?” 

you nod, not being able to look at him then. he probably thought you were keeping tabs on him or something. you’re lost in your own world when he reaches out, putting a finger under your chin to make you look at him. 

“she saw the girl, right? and then texted you about it?” he asks softly. 

you nod again, not trusting your words. you had already said the wrong thing once to get you to this spot. 

he smiles though, relaxing suddenly, “she’s no one to worry about. well not anymore. we used to like talk and hook up, but a few weeks ago i started to really like someone so i told her we had to call it off.”

“oh,” is all you can manage to say. you can’t look at him. absolutely not. you couldn’t let him see how upset you were about it. 

“well,” you say after a second, “medicine is in the bag and so is some food. i don’t think we want both of us sick so i should probably get going now.”

you’re up and moving towards the door before he can even protest, grabbing your backpack and tossing a goodbye over your shoulder. 

you pull your phone out with shaky hands and shoot a quick text to brittney. 

‘he used to hook up with that girl he was with friday. but he “called it off” bc he likes someone else’

you make your way back to your dorm quickly, trying to think of all the ways you’d be able to get out of your study buddy sessions for the rest of the semester. it couldn’t be over soon enough. 

—

“are you sure you don’t want to come out with us?” alex asks, waiting for brittney to finish getting ready. 

“no thanks. i have a paper i need to finish up so that i have study time next week,” you say, looking back at him and smiling. 

you really should do the paper. it needed to get done, but your mind kept wandering. you’d avoided owen for the better part of two weeks, finding a couple good excuses to miss studying. but you’d run out now and this coming week would mean you’d see him again. 

alex and brittney head out for the night, leaving you to yourself. you sigh, turning back to face your computer. you get a couple paragraphs written up when there’s a sudden sharp knock on your door. 

you jump, getting up to go see if maybe brittney had forgot her keys or something. instead the peephole shows you owen standing there. not what you expected. you lean your forehead against the wooden door, taking a deep breath. 

“what, owen?” you ask through it. 

“will you please let me in? i think we both know we need to talk,” he says, sounding so close to the door. 

you hesitate for a second but open it up. he waits for you to open it all the way, giving you a soft smile. 

“well there she is. i thought she transferred schools or something with how absent she’s been,” owen jokes, stepping into the room. 

you give him a little smile and follow him but he stops abruptly, causing you to run into him. 

“shit, i’m sorry,” he turns around quickly, his hands coming up to hold your arms. 

“i’m fine, really,” you say, trying to gently shrug him off. 

he looks hurt, pulling his hands away from you, “hey, what’s going on? did i do something?” 

you sigh, not even sure how to say this or where to start. he deserved an explanation, but you also didn’t want to get hurt and at this rate it was almost inevitable. 

“i guess i was just hoping you were different from other guys i’ve known in the past,” you mumble. 

he frowns, “what are you talking about? what happened?”

you look up at him, “i guess i just hoped you liked me for some reason. i know it’s dumb, but we were hanging out a lot so i just thought maybe it was different for you like it was for me. it’s fine if you don’t, i can’t force you to. it just sucks.”

he doesn’t respond immediately and it makes you start to get nervous. you glance back up at him and catch a half smile on his face. 

“what!” you snap, feeling ready to breakdown about it all. 

“you’re really cute when you’re all worked up,” he says and- wait, what?

“i’m what?” you ask, thinking you heard him wrong. 

“you’re really cute when you’re all worked up like this,” he repeats. 

“that’s all you have to say after what i just told you?” you scoff. 

he laughs and nudges your shoulder, “i like you! have i not made that clear?”

you look up at him with wide eyes. you had to be imagining this. he wasn’t actually saying this right now. 

“what?”

“not very clear then,” he mumbles almost to himself, “i invited you to my game. i even made sure to keep an arm around you so other people saw. we hang out more than we study anymore. we text all the time. you’re the only person i have a snap streak with.”

it all clicks into place a little better and you feel like an idiot. how did you miss all of this? you were so worried he’d found someone else to talk to that you didn’t even see how things had gone for the two of you.

“owen, are you serious?” you ask. 

he nods, leaning in closer, “you really think i was hooking up with some other girl when i’ve got you?”

you blush, leaning against him as well, “i don’t know. i guess i just figured you wanted options.”

owen laughs, shaking his head a little, “no and the  i needed to talk to you but you kept avoiding me. but i like you so i had to let you know, too. you kind of beat me to it though.”

“i like you too, o,” you smile, ignoring the small dig he made. 

he leans down, kissing you suddenly. you press back immediately, his hand coming up to cup your cheek. he pulls back slowly, his thumb rubbing gently on your cheek. 

“i think i could get used to that,” you mumble. 

he nods, giving you one more quick kiss, “be my girlfriend and you can do it whenever you want.”

you know your face is red now and it feels all hot. you nod though, leaning up to kiss him. you pull back and smile down at him, one hand carding through his hair. he hums and closes his eyes for a few seconds. 

“you’re not gonna avoid me for two more weeks now, right?” he jokes. 

“no, you’re stuck with me now,” you laugh, leaning up to kiss the corner of his mouth. 

he opens his eyes again and smiles at you, “movie before bed? i brought an extra shirt you can sleep in if you wanted. i’ll text alex for them to go sleep at our place tonight.”

“that sounds perfect,” you agree. 

and yeah, things with him did seem pretty much perfect. 

#owen lindmark #wisconsin hockey #mine #my writing #hockey fic #college hockey fic #hockey imagine #hockey writing

[dangermousie]

Something Happened in Bali eps 1-2 rewatch thoughts

It's really interesting, rewatching this. God, I'd almost forgotten how much I love Jo In Sung. LOVE. I mean, I love him and his nervous energy so much that I don't even notice So Ji Sub, who normally I really like. (ide note - A Dirty Carnival was the best Korean movie I have ever seen, and what made me truly and utterly lose it for him - but it was so brutally hopeless, it made me depressed for days. Go watch!) Anyway, back to the drama. 1. I'd almost forgotten how unpleasant the two guys and Other Girl are in this, at the start. None of them are monsters (though by the end the Secondary Girl comes close, IMO, even if I end up feeling a repelled kind of pity for her) but they are all in their selfish shells - it's little things, like not helping Soo Jung with her heavy bag or treating her as an extra in their lives. Even their kindness is this thoughtless kind. It's funny because I am not sure if they change in niceness quotient that much (though both the men become much more desperately vulnerable, especially Jae Min) but I guess I get to know them so well and their reasons for being the way they are, I sort of end up not caring - I end up adoring Jae Min as a character, especially, so much. Even if he is the biggest trainwreck I have ever seen as a kdrama lead in my 15+ years of watching kdramas. 2. Soo Jung. I adore her. You could see how annoyed she is she is dealing with the tour group from hell (the other 3) but the way she pushes and carries on is WONDERFUL. So is her drunken camaraderie with Jae Min. She is in another universe from the poised, iced, controlled Young Joo. But it's interesting, she seems so (relatively) well-adjusted compared to the rest of them but as the drama unfolds, you see that this hard-earned cheerfulness is a facade and she is very broken too - between her and Jae Min, I am not sure, which one is more screwed-up. For him, it's his family, but for her, it's her poverty that has made her so. Ha Ji Won SLAYS in this role (so do the rest of the cast, of course.) She’s rough, she’s desperate, she’s grasping, she’s vulnerable, she’s irresistible - in other hands you would never get how two screwed-up, closed-off men would fall so desperately for someone so greedy, so grasping, so flawed - but here you are drawn to her vividness, to her joy, to her intensity, to her unique combo of sunshine and extreme damage. 3. You know, there are hints about her screwed-upness even this early on - the scene where Jae Min offers her $$$ for a one-night stand and she calls him a jerk (and you see by his reaction he doesn't even understand that what he said was insulting - he is puzzled. In his world, everything can be bought and sold, and there is no such thing as affection.) and then asks whether he is going to pay before or after. In her world, there is no room for the grand gesture, for throwing money in his face. She leaves only because he kicks her out (giving her money but not doing anything) telling her to buy her new shoes (hers are broken) and saying "it's not fun any more" (the first of many instances she really throws him off any usual ways he deals with things). And then she trips on her broken heels walking out, sprawling in the lobby, inelegantly grabbing and picking up money. 4. One of the biggest delights of this rewatch for me is contrasting in my head the way Jae Min is going to be with her later - utterly desperate and "brought down" and willing to beg and beg and beg, and the way he is now - emotionally detached, with all the 'power' on his side - I mean, contrast his propositioning her for that one-night stand and the scene where they finally make love, a dozen eps from now. Though she is totally rattling him even now - I love the scene where he first truly notices her - seeing her in the parking lot trying to fix her shoes, eating, and drinking. She is just so REAL and alive and immediate. No wonder he's caught (and then quickly looks away). 5. Jae Min's father needs to die in a fire after being slowly cut with a myriad of razors - the scene in his office in ep 2 where he is practicing golf in his office and Jae Min flinches any time the golf club is in his vicinity, and almost stutters, just - RAGE. Increased 1000x by what I know he does later. But I confess to being amused in the scene where he is throwing things at Jae Min during the board meeting and a flunkie keeps moving things up to him to throw - folders, bottle of water, so he won't run out of things - a definition of a brown-noser.

6. I love how oddly real this drama feels in its filming - people are not glamorized within an inch of their lives and there is no glossiness, no studied detachment, no appeal to coolness or w/e. It is what it is and it knows it. God, I love this drama!

7. (The below is spoilery for the whole thing) Bali has the distinction of having the most dysfunctional couple I have ever shipped. Years of therapy were needed for those two. Yes, my OTP was Jae Min/Soo Jung, despite the fact that the otp's end was murder/suicide. I don't care, I still shipped them - the ending of the drama is one of my favorite drama moments, in actuality - Jae Min becoming more and more unhinged because of his nightmarish family and then finally he believes Soo Jung just played him in order to scam money and ruin his family with her lover. He tracks them down to Bali and finds them in bed. Ironically, Soo Jung has just finished telling her lover that she wants to leave him and go back to Korea to look for Jae Min because it's him she wants. Jae Min, of course, does not hear her (and he is so catatonic at that point, I doubt it would have registered if he did hear). So he shoots her and her lover dead as they lie there. But while her lover is dead asap, Soo Jung has time to look at Jae Min and tell him 'saranghae' which is about the most awesome thing ever - she has never ever told him she loved him before, not through all his efforts to win her heart, not even when they made love. And now she is telling him as she is dying, because it's important to her for him to know before she dies - there are no games or conditions. And of course, Jae Min snapped out of it as soon as he shot and he is falling apart as is and then he hears her tell him she loves him and his face - oh my God. And he goes outside and kills himself and I sit there bawling and hoping his horrific family all have collective heart attacks and die.

Yes. I ship THAT. I don't care what it makes me. The drama makes no bones that Jae Min is beyond messed up - I am kinda amazed he is walking and talking, to be honest. His father wins the incontrovertible award for the worst kdrama father ever and if you know kdramas you know what a feat that is. The scene where Jae Min is on his knees in front of his father, weeping and begging to be allowed to have Soo Jung and his father beats him half into unconsciousness and then tells him it's Soo Jung's fault and he will go after her next and make her disappear and Jae Min is left pleading that he did not mean it and it's not Soo Jung's fault and he misunderstood? FLAMES. FLAMES WHEN I JUST THINK ABOUT IT. So his love for Soo Jung is no help - I don't think any woman could have 'fixed' him, and certainly the hugely messed-up despite her sunny demeanor Soo Jung, with her own major issues and fragility, was about the last person to do so. However, even if they could have worked out their happiness, with the help of some really high-priced therapy, his family made it impossible - in fact they turned the screws on even worse, not caring that their actions were plainly driving him into nonfunctionality land. But then - how else could it end with all the destruction and damage and desperation on both sides and his having no experience with any expression of love that was not entangled with violence. And in context of fiction, the OTP that has the potential for helping each other but dooms each other instead is my jam SO MUCH!

#something happened in bali #kdrama

[moonlitceleste]

New Year’s Day

Timari January Day 1 - New Years Day

@timari-month-event

Note: Happy New Year everyone!! This fic is loosely based off of New Year’s Day by Taylor Swift.

There's glitter on the floor after the party Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor You and me from the night before but

Don't read the last page But I stay when you're lost and I'm scared and you're turning away I want your midnights But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

“Mmph.” Marinette tried and failed to muffle her tired groan through the thick fabric of Tim’s coat.

It was 2:00 a.m. on New Year’s, and the designer was just about ready to go into hibernation.

Steph had prompted (read: bugged) Bruce into throwing a party, and he eventually complied. It was relatively small and nowhere near as extravagant as the annual Wayne Gala, but one could argue that was a good thing. There was no need to uphold a reputation or make conversation with stuffy rich people, after all. Judging by the rambunctious behavior that had occurred all night, the restricted guest list definitely seemed like a good thing.

Naturally, Marinette was invited—she was Tim’s girlfriend, although it was arguable she was part of the family regardless of her relationship with him.

Her closeness to the rest of the Waynes was evident in the way she was immediately pulled away for some “girl time” upon entering the manor. Similarly, Dick and the rest of the boys stole Tim away for brotherly bonding.

They chatted, played games, ate cake, and eventually joined the rest of the family for the countdown. Joyous shouts and yells filled the manor, and Marinette stole a kiss from Tim when the clock hit midnight.

The party didn’t stop there, though; from then on, it was drinking games and group activities. Well, drinking games for everyone but Damian. He received a glass of sparkling grape juice instead. He wasn’t very happy about being “treated like a baby,” according to his words, but Marinette took her own glass of the substitute and joined him. She had some important designs to work on tomorrow, and she really didn’t want to wake up with a hangover.

After a while, people started going their separate ways again. Some couples had taken to a room in order to ring in the new year together; others decided to split up into groups and do other activities. Dick dragged Marinette to the gym to show her a cool gymnastics trick he had devised, and the rest of the night was spent hopping rooms to find people and make conversation.

The excitement couldn’t last forever, though, and soon enough the adrenaline started to wear. After an obvious change in the atmosphere, Marinette decided to wander the manor in search of Tim.

She scoured far and wide but failed to find him in the unnecessarily large residence. Rather than continue to wander aimlessly, she decided to wait in one spot until he found her. Sending a text would have been more logical, but her brain didn’t seem to be functioning correctly through its tired haze.

Now, Marinette was standing in the middle of the Wayne Manor living room. The din of celebration had long faded, leaving way for a relatively undisturbed silence. The area bustling with movement just hours earlier was now empty, aside from her and Jason, who was passed out on the couch. She couldn’t tell whether it was from drowsiness or alcohol consumption.

“You tired?”

Marinette yelped softly at the person who had sneaked up behind her. She whirled around, startled, and met Tim’s face. He was mid-laugh, no doubt finding amusement in her reaction. She crossed her arms and pouted, but she really was glad to see him.

Marinette had only spent a few fleeting moments with him that night; she hadn’t really had the chance due to his siblings whisking her away at every opportunity. She didn’t mind—the rest of the Waynes were fun to be around. Maybe a little too fun, because now she was absolutely exhausted.

She fell into Tim’s arms with ease and buried her face in his neck, nodding in response to his initial question.

“Let’s go, then.”

Marinette smiled, pulling back to grab his hand. She nearly started walking, but paused and frowned at the living room.

There were streamers strewn across the floor, alongside metallic confetti, glitter, and glass bottles. Board game pieces were thrown in a haphazard pile, and there was a half-eaten cake on the table. It was one of many. The two Marinette baked had disappeared remarkably fast, but Stephanie had bought a large one from the supermarket as well.

“We should help clean up.”

Tim’s brow furrowed as he considered her statement.

“It’s fine. You didn’t make this mess anyway.”

“Just because I didn’t make it doesn’t mean I can’t help! Besides, you’re not going to let Alfred clean all this up, are you?”

“Actually, Bruce would make the rest of the family help. But you’re right.”

“I’m always right.”

Tim rolled his eyes at her antics before giving her a peck on the lips. Marinette smiled and gave him an even longer kiss in return, arms snaking around to rest on his waist.

He reciprocated, but to her dismay, gently pushed her away after a minute.

“I thought you said you wanted to clean?”

Now it was Marinette’s turn to roll her eyes.

“Yeah, yeah.”

The two moved forward to gather the various things littered around, trying their best to be quiet so as not to disturb the body draped over the couch.

Cleaning up bottles together after a New Year’s party probably wasn’t what one would consider romantic or fun, but Marinette wouldn’t trade this for the world.

You squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi I can tell that it's going to be a long road I'll be there if you're the toast of the town babe Or if you strike out and you're crawling home

Marinette yawned for the millionth time that night, hands flying up to rub at her eyes tiredly.

She could feel Tim’s chest rumble as he chuckled, and she relished in the heat his body provided. 

Although the back of a sketchy Gotham taxi was a far cry from her ideal cuddling place, she couldn’t complain—the chilly weather gave her an excuse to stay close to him. Marinette leaned back, snuggling deeper into her boyfriend’s chest.

She startled at the brief warmth atop her head as he pressed a kiss on her crown. The designer melted at the sweet gesture and turned around, twisting her body to meet Tim’s ice-blue eyes. He smiled at her tenderly, a genuine one she loved seeing on his face, and she sent back a nose wrinkle in return.

He let out a silent laugh at her antics and lifted their intertwined hands, giving them a kiss. This boy was going to break her if he kept being so charming.

He leaned forward and rubbed their noses together in an eskimo kiss before giving her a peck on the lips.

Marinette nearly whined at his show of affection. The things he did to her.

She turned back around, but only halfway, so her side was laying against Tim rather than her back like before. She would have kissed him again, but she doubted either of them wanted to be caught making out by the taxi driver.

Closing her eyes, she let herself relax, knowing she was safe in Tim’s arms. And when he squeezed her hand one, two, three times, she squeezed right back.

I love you.

Don't read the last page But I stay when it's hard or it's wrong or you're making mistakes I want your midnights But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

“Wait here.”

Marinette tilted her head in confusion as Tim quickly walked away, leaving her standing in the middle of their living room.

The two had just gotten home to their shared apartment and set their thing down. After an exhausting night, what more could he have planned?

Her questions were answered when Tim rushed back into the room, Bluetooth speaker in hand. It was pink, the one Marinette used to play music whenever she was baking. Sometimes Tim would join in, and they’d twirl around in the kitchen and laugh, spatula in hand.

She watched as he pulled out his phone and tapped the screen a few times; seconds later, a delicate melody filtered through the speaker. It was a slow tune—not one she recognized, but the piano notes made for a romantic and dreamy sound.

“May I have this dance?”

Marinette turned to see Tim bent forward at the waist, one arm outstretched like a Disney prince ready to sweep her away. She giggled at his cheesiness and placed her hand in his.

He pulled her forward smoothly, his other arm finding its way around her waist in a classic waltz position.

They stepped off and moved in sync with the music, slowly but surely. Although she wasn’t the best dancer, Tim made it effortless. They glided over the living room floor so smoothly that Marinette felt like a princess at a ball.

It was their own little bubble of bliss, and she could stay there forever, lost in the moment, lost in Tim’s eyes.

And oh, his eyes. She loved all of him, but there was something she adored so much about them. Maybe it was the determined twinkle present whenever he had figured something out, or the happy glint they assumed when he laughed, or the way they softened ever so slightly whenever he looked at her.

Marinette smiled and joined both hands behind his neck. Tim caught on quickly and circled both arms around her waist, pulling her flush against his body. She closed her eyes and tucked her head under his chin, swaying side to side with the music.

They both had a lot of things to do tomorrow, but right now the rest of the world didn’t matter. It was just Marinette and Tim—her best friend, her partner, her world—and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

PERMANENT TAGLIST @avengerthewarrior @bluesimani @enternalempires @flower-girll @freesportspalacesalad @glastwime859 @h1sss @heart-charming @jalaluvsu @nathleigh @too0bsessedformyowngood

#celestewrites #maribat #timari january #timari month #timari #timinette #tim x marinette #cel's fics