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lofitojii · 3 years

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PART [I] Guardian Angel

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Summary: You are a new sidekick to the number two hero of Tokyo, Hawks. You team up with another sidekick, Bakugou, in an ongoing investigation on a serial killer. Unexpected interactions happen that flip the whole case around causing new, confusing feelings which alter your relationships in ways you never saw coming.

Word Count: 4.6k

Warning: Minor Swearing

A/N: It’s HERE!!! The new series I’ve been working on for the last month is finally planned out and I’m super excited about it! Please let me know what you think, there will be posts made for discussions before the new part is released.

NOTE: This is not following the current story at all. The League of Villains do not play any part in this at all, only Dabi.

Guardian Angel Master List

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The fall air was crisp, every inhaled breath chilling your body from the inside out. The leaves looked as if they were on fire, the deep crimson, the burnt orange, lighting up the grey world they resided in. This was your favorite time of year, when you could visibly see the seasons change. Despite the fact the darkest part of the year was right around the corner, you were looking forward to all of it. This year was going to be different, you could feel it ridden within you.

It was your first day at your new job, completely unaware and new to the area. You had moved in the weekend prior, receiving the job through a simple phone call interview. You had no idea who or what your new boss looked like. All you knew is that you were hand picked from a group of qualifying sidekicks to the number 2 hero, Hawks. Apparently he is a very busy man, and the only thing you knew about him was that his quirk was similar to yours. Except he can’t put his wings away.

How can you not know who the number 2 hero is? Well, coming from a rather small town where you worked 7 days a week kind of took up most of your free time, and when you did get a moment to yourself, you were either reading or spending time with the locals. You didn’t care much for TV or the news or social media. You enjoyed quality time and company, something most people didn’t really understand.

Your quirk was known as the ‘Angel Quirk’ meaning you had white wings that grew in size under your control, whenever you pleased. You also had a healing factor to your quirk, using your feathers as a type of medicine as well. You were a Pro Hero’s sidekick back in your home town but received an email one morning that read:

Dear Y/N,

After doing intense research and speaking to your most recent employer and university teachers, you have been chosen to accompany Japan’s number 2 hero, Hawks, as his personal sidekick with the goal of becoming one of Japan’s very own perosnal Pro Heroes. According to your employer, he has said he feels you have greater potential that you can’t utilize in your small town. Please give us a call or email us back. Thank you!

-Hawks Agency

You had no idea your previous employer had reached out until you received that letter. You didn’t mind doing small hero work here and there in your small town but when your boss stressed to you that you could be and do more, you decided to reach out. You didn’t know what you were expecting but you had received the job within the first 10 minutes of your interviewl.

So that’s where you are now, downtown Tokyo, trying your best to understand how the train systems worked. Yeah, you could’ve just flown there but you didn’t want to make a scene before debuting with your new boss. It was just something you had decided, thinking that maybe an article would be released about a new hero coming to town rather than being seen with Hawks himself first. You didn’t want to come off as rude or arrogant, even though you knew you were probably overthinking the situation.

You just wanted to make a good impression, regardless of what your old boss had said about you. They already have this idea of you, and you wanted to live up to that idea. Your boss did speak highly of you, you didn’t want to let anyone down, mainly yourself.

“Damn, this city is huge,” you cursed out loud, looking up from the city map you had picked up at the subway stop before you hopped on. “So if that’s the coffee shop, then I still have about a good mile or two before I get to the agency building. Maybe I should use my wings to get the- OOF!” you were hit in the back, causing you to choke on your words and stumble over onto the cement.

“Sorry!” You looked up to see a man, his red wings casting a long shadow over you. “Didn’t see ya there! Sometimes I’m too fast for my own damn good.” He reached his hand out, letting you tightly grip it as he helped you up.

“You’re good, I was the one standing there like a mindless idiot,” you joked, reaching down to pick up the things you had dropped due to your collision. When you stood up, you noticed that he was already gone. Wow, so much for being polite. He said sorry but what does that mean when he just flies off without saying anything else? Whatever, you had to get to work so you just decided to brush it off.

You expanded your white wings, trying your best to fly higher than the city clouds in order to keep people from seeing you. You thought to yourself that maybe this was the best route to work, clear yet cold skys. Not to mention you would cut your full trip in half. You landed in front of the office building, retracting your wings back to its original, small size before entering the building. You approached the girl that was sitting behind a desk, tapping away at her keyboard. You cleared your throat before interrupting. “Hi, I’m the new sidekick Y/N. Just wondering where I need to go?” You asked the front receptionist you guided you towards the elevators.

“It’s the top floor,” she smiled. “Good luck, Miss Y/N.” You let out a sigh of relief as you stood in the elevator alone. Your day had just barely started and yet you could feel yourself already growing tired of everything. Your temper was rather short today, that man setting something off in you when he left without saying anything. Thank god you didn’t have to worry about him anymore. Tokyo was a rather large city, what are the chances of running into him a second time? You tried your best to shake off the incident that took place this morning, not wanting it to ruin your full day ahead of you.

You walked up to the giant wooden doors, knocking twice before opening them. You were greeted with a huge open window, a single desk sitting in the middle of the room with a beautiful view behind it. There were bookshelves lined with literature you had read or had planned to read. “Similar tastes,” you whispered as you traced along the backbone of the books. The room was empty, leaving you alone to examine the things you found interesting to you.

“You like what you see?” Wait a second… That voice... “You must be the new sidekick. How’s it going? I’m Hawks.” You turned around and were faced with the man that had knocked you over earlier. For some reason, dread took over, your actions visible to the man standing in front of you. “Why the long face?”

“You’re kidding me, right?” you scoffed, the man giving you a blank look. “You literally knocked me off my feet earlier? I dropped everything?” He was still giving you that stupid blank look. “You’re joking…”

“OH! I remember now. Yeah sorry about that,” he scratched the back of his head nervously. “I was in a hurry.” Wow...

“Obviously.” You rolled your eyes at his comment, unimpressed with the lack of remorse that came through his tone. You felt as if this relationship would be decided here, right now, just based on the way you were feeling as he stood there, a stupid grin plastard on his face. You let out a deep sigh, trying to regulate your breathing so you wouldn’t lash out on your new boss who was standing inches away from you. “I guess I’ll introduce myself since we’ll be working together. My name is Y/N L/N, I’m from a small town about 4 hours out of Tokyo. My quirk is known as the ‘Angel Quirk’ meaning I can do anything you can but better.”

“Woah, woah,” he stopped you, waving his hands in the air. “That’s a pretty bold statement, newby. What do you mean ‘better’?”

“I mean I can hide my wings if I want to, and also can expand them when I choose. They regenerate within the hour, I can use them to heal both internal and external wounds depending on how severe the injury is. I can also use them as weapons, hardening them as I please.”

“Okay but can you use them to listen to things? Do you have the ability to use them as an extension of you? As in, can you use them to listen or to track?” He was grilling you with questions, almost as if you struck a nerve with him. It was quite amusing to see him all flustered like this.

“I can use them to track things within a certain radius, the further away from the feather, the harder it is for me to make things out.” He furrowed his brows, crossing his arms over his chest with a huff.

“Okay yeah, your quirk is better in some parts but that doesn’t make you better than me.”

“I never said I was better than you, I only said my quirk was better. You’re the number 2 hero for a reason, I have no doubt in your skill at all.” He really got his feelings hurt that bad by your comment? Talk about a fragile ego.

He let out a sigh, sounding a little grumpy in his words as he went through the paperwork with you. “Oh and take this,” He handed you a bag, his cheeks flushed red. “I don’t know what it looks like but the design team came up with it since we do have similar quirks.”

“A new costume?” You raised an eyebrow, looking at the fabric with the paper bag. It was a body suit, like an actual teddy style body suit, a pair of sheer tights, and some knee high boots. There was also a pair of yellow goggles, matching the ones Hawks were wearing. “What if people think we’re dating?” You didn’t really think about it much until Hawks gave you your new costume that was almost identical in color to his. It was balck and gold, just like his shirt, the cropped jacket being a deeper shade of brown, just like his jacket.

“And? So what if they do? I wouldn’t mind faking it,” he smirked, winking directly at you. He began to laugh as you reached your hand to hide your crimson cheeks. They were warm, you knew his comment made you blush, and so did he.

“Shut the hell up,” you responded, biting your lip. “I’m going to request a new jacket at least. I’m sorry but this color is hideous with the black.”

“You really think so?” he asked, looking at his own jacket. “Well in that case, I’ll ask for them to give us black ones.”

“White,” you stopped him. “I want a white one.”

“White it is, m’lady,” he bowed, getting up from his seat. He leaned over his desk, transitioning from his bowed state, coming face to face with you. He was so close you could smell the lingering fragrance of mint coming from his breath. “I’m excited to work with you.” You quickly got up, bowing in response all in one quick motion, knocking your head with his. It was loud, painful, and embarrassing all within the 30 seconds that it took place. “Ow ow ow ow ow,” he rubbed his forehead, exposing the red bump that was getting ready to form.

You were quick to pluck two white feathers from the right side of your back, leaning over the desk and pressing it to his forehead. “Hold still,” you struggled to get out as Hawks winced in pain. You let out a deep breath, focusing on the feather in your hand. It was quick to dissolve, leaving Hawks in awe with what had just happened. He sat back down, watching you apply the same treatment to yourself.

“Wow,” he breathed, still in shock from what just took place. “Your quirk really is cool.”

“The only downside to my healing is that it’s only possible with the right side of my wings. The left side doesn’t have the same ability,” you admitted while sitting back down, your wings returning to their smaller size so you were able to sit more comfortably. Hawks just sat there, gobsmacked with the events that just occurred. “To be honest, we gotta get this whole bumping into each other thing under control.”

“You’re telling me,” he whispered, leaning back in his own seat. He finally snapped back into reality after being lost within himself. “Go change into your new costume and I’ll put the order in for the white coat. You’re going on patrol today with one of my other sidekicks. He’s newer to the team so it will be good for you two to get comfortable with each other. I will warn you though, he’s a bit of a hot head. Short temper, super egotistical. Great guy though, you’ll love him.”

“He sounds wonderful,” you noted sarcastically. You were soon interrupted by the sound of the door opening, being greeted with a blonde haired man with quite the aggressive scowl.

“What the hell did you say, you damn bird?” You turned your head, taking notice to his rather large grenade equipment covering his forearms. Those have to be super heavy, the look like they weigh more than the man himself.

“There you are! Bakugou, I’d like you to meet your new partner, Y/N! You guys are going to be working together from here on out. You’re still my sidekicks, so we’re still a team here but when it comes to the more lowkey stuff, like investigations and patrolling, you guys will be working together.” Did he really just say ‘lowkey’? How old is this guy? He’s got to be older than you, having started his own agency, right?

“Yeah, whatever,” Bakugou growled. Hawks wasn’t kidding when he said this guy was a hot head, the vibe he was giving off really intimidated you. But then again, you weren’t one to take shit, not even from some punk coworker with a short temper. “I’m leaving in 10. Better hurry you noob.”

“Noob?” You questioned, grabbing your things and following Bakugou out the room. You stopped before you reached the door, turning around and bowing towards Hawks. “Thank you!”

“Good luck, kid!” He waved back, his smile sweet and reassuring. You had experienced something rather unpleasant that morning with Hawks, only to find out he was your new boss. He seemed to be quite the air head, or at least spacey in some aspect. He was interesting to you, and for some reason you wanted to know more about him. The fact he had asked for you specifically out of all the other applicants was even more interesting to you. Did he choose you for another reason? Was it because you had a similar quirk to his? As time goes on, you can only hope that you’ll uncover these hidden secrets you were so focused on. He didn’t need to tell you he was hiding anything, you could just feel something in his aura.

You followed Bakugou who led you to the women's locker room, telling you he would wait outside the door for you to be finished. He actually told you to ‘hurry the fuck up’ but you just rolled your eyes at his demand. You thought to yourself that if anyone else would have been paired up with this guy, you were sure they would resign due to his attitude. You weren’t one to give up, though. You were here for a reason, having a set goal that wasn’t about to be ruined due to some smart asses comments. Not to mention, the children in the foster home you grew up in were mean as hell.

When you put on the outfit, you were flustered by how revealing it was. You did mention that you needed flexibility in your costume but you didn’t think it was going to be some kind of lingerie set. Hopefully the coat you requested is available soon, thinking that maybe it would help cover up some of the more revealing parts.

You exited the locker room, only things on you being your Hero License and your outfit. Bakugou handed you an ear piece, letting you know it’s used for the both of you, two other side kicks and Hawks himself. “So what exactly are we doing today?” You asked, exiting the building with Bakugou by your side.

“We’ve been asked to investigate the west side of town. Rumor has it that some dick head guy has been spotted frequently in the area who has been linked to a chain of murdered victims. All the bodies have similar burn marks, as if it’s this guys sick way of marking his work. Our job is to try and see if we can narrow down his exact location.” You had read over the file prior to moving to the city, being asked by the agency so that way you weren’t too behind on what was going on.

Description: Black hair, scars covering majority of his body, black coat, black shoes, distressed jeans. Last known location: West Tokyo. Number of bodies linked to crime: 12.

“Well then,” you started, letting your wings grow to their full capability. You reached your hand out towards Bakugou, signaling for him to grab on.

“What the hell? What are you doing? I don’t need your fucking help.”

“I get that but if you let me carry you, we could cut our trip time in half and with it being fall, almost winter, it’s going to get dark soon. I have no doubt that you can get there by yourself but if we want to play it smart and more efficient,” you sang, reaching your hand out again for him to take, letting your actions finish your statment. He wasn’t happy about the idea but he knew you were right, making it obvious by his aggressive huff.

You wrapped Bakugou up in your arms, taking off the second you knew you had a secure grip on him. With flying to the west side of town, it really did cut the travel time in half, leaving you an extra hour or so to investigate, much longer than what the estimated time stated. “Land there!” Bakugou yelled, pointing at the roof of a mini mart that was placed in between two rather tall buildings. You released your grip on him, his immediate reaction being annoyed and bothered by the ‘wind’ and you ‘flying too damn fast’. You just ignored his remarks, letting him take the lead on the investigation so he would stop complaining.

“How long have you worked for Hawks?” You asked, taking a seat next to Bakugou. He lowered his glasses that matched both yours and Hawks’, using them to enhance his sight towards the ground below.

“Why do you care?” He growled, avoiding any sort of eye contact with you.

“Well I don’t but if we’re going to be working together, I think it’s important that we have a bearable relationship, don’t you agree?”

“No I don’t. I don’t care who you are or where you come from. We’re co workers, that’s it.” You didn’t expect Bakugou’s words to hurt as much as they did. You barely met the guy and he’s already made his decision on how the relationship was going to be. A part of you wanted to just let it go, to just accept the fact that he didn’t care for personal relationships, but the other part, the part of you that always got you into trouble, wanted to know and be more with him.

“Well I care,” you finally blurted out, causing Bakugou to finally look over at you. “I’m not saying that we have to be friends but if we want to be a strong team, we have to get to know each other on a more personal level. I can see you’re very strong and I also know that we could be really good together. So ignore me all you want but I’m not going to stop asking.” He looked puzzled, as if no one had ever bothered to speak to him like this. It was as if he was thrown into foreign territory and had to figure out how to navigate to the sudden outburst.

“3 months,” he answered, immitadly turning away from you. You couldn’t help but smile at the small achievement you had accomplished. It wasn’t something drastic or something to celebrate, but you took it as a win regardless.

After sitting on the roof for a good half hour, you had decided to take street view, letting Bakugou keep the high ground. You were told that the suspect wore a black coat, had dark features, but the main identifier being his scars. He wore the black coat to hide his arms and body and wore a face mask to hide the scars that are suspected to be on his face.

After mindlessly walking for what felt like forever, Bakugou finally came through the ear piece. “Angel, there’s a man fitting our description on the other side of the street, walking towards your direction.” You were quick to react, trying to spot any signs of a man in a dark coat. You thought you were going to lose him in the crowd, having to make your way through groups of people walking in your opposite direction.

“Bakugou, I don’t-” You were suddenly cut off, being pushed back by the force of colliding with another person. You lost your balance, falling straight onto the concrete sidewalk below you. “Ouch…” You winced in pain, the collision of your bum hitting the hard concrete rattling you a bit. You looked up to see what it was that you had bumped into, Bakugou screaming in your ear before you could put the pieces together.

“THAT’S HIM!” You made eye contact, complete shock written across your facial features as you stared directly at the man you had been looking for.

“Here,” he reached his hand out, offering to help you up from your fall. “Sorry about that. It’s easy to get caught up in these crowds.” You were hesitant to take his hand but did it anyways, knowing that you had to diminish any sort of suspicion. His hand was rough to the touch, as if it was scared more so than dry skin. You noticed his stitches that held his scars together, slightly grazing over them as you released. “Oh uhh.. I got these cause my quirk is too strong for me to really handle.” The man seemed to be around your age, his whole appearance matching the description you were given.

What do I do?

“Oh I wasn’t meaning to stare,” you hesitantly assured him, trying to awkwardly laugh off the situation.

“I haven’t seen you around here before,” he finally changed the subject, the new topic being just as stressful as the last.

“Oh yeah I’m new to town! Just doing an internship so I’m still kind of new to all of this. I’m just out patrolling the area, making sure nothing bad happens. Ya know, the normal hero stuff.” You awkwardly scratched the back of your head, avoiding eye contact as best as you could. In all honesty, you wanted to cut this conversation short and let Bakugou track him to wherever he was planning on going, but your mind had gone blank. You were unable to think of an out so instead, you had to let the conversation carry on until you found an opening.

“Well I bet people will feel better having such a pretty hero like you around to keep them safe.” Woah woah woah… Did he really just call you pretty? And are you actually blushing right now at his comment?? Get it together Y/N!

“Eh- haha. I mean I’m just doing my job, just like any other hero.” Please leave. Please go away. Please give me an opening to get out of here.

“I guess I’ll be seeing a lot more of you then?” His smile was everything but welcoming. You could see that this man wasn’t someone who found heroes pleasant to begin with. The uneasy feeling you had when you made eye contact the first time started to grow, causing you to internally panic. “Cute wings. Reminds me of another Pro Hero I see flying around here sometimes.”

“Uh… Who?” You asked, trying your best to play dumb. He furrowed his brows, your response coming off more suspicious than before. “I’m sorry. Like I said, I’m new here and I don’t even know who I work for. I was just sent here as soon as I got there so I haven’t really met anyone.”

“Huh. Well I’m sure you’ll meet him soon. Especially if you have wings like that,” he said, pointing to your enlarged wings. “He’s a pretty big fan of people who have similar quirks to his.”

“I’ll definitely have to keep an eye out then. Sounds like we’d get along.”

“The names Dabi, by the way. And you are?” Did he really just tell you his name? Was the whole ‘play dumb’ act really working? Could this be some kind of message that he wants to send to Hawks since he was the one who mentioned him?

“You can call me Angel,” you responded, knowing it was better to offer your hero name rather than your real one. You chose the hero name ‘Angel’ because it could be taken as either a hero name or even a birth given name.

“Angel,” he repeated, barely above a whisper. “Fitting.” You didn’t respond this time, wanting to let the conversation end there which Dabi caught onto. “Well I’ll let you get back to work Angel. I hope I see you again.” And with that, he was gone, disappearing from your view into the crowd of people.

You were quick to make your way around the block so that way you could communicate with Bakugou without having to worry about Dabi overhearing anything if he had happened to still be in ear shot distance. “Angel what happened!? Did you get anything?”

“I’ll come find you! Just keep tracking him! I’m on my way!” you told Bakugou before lifting off above the city. You were quick to spot Bakugou who was jumping from rooftop to rooftop, keeping a steady pace and decent distance between him and the suspect. Once Bakugou stopped, you took that as a sign to land on the closest building and follow Bakugou’s actions so that way you could keep a low profile since the suspect now knew who you were. You mentally kicked yourself in the butt, knowing that you should’ve just left after he helped you up.

“What did he say?” Bakugou barked, his vision focused on the cluster of buildings in front of him.

“Well I got his name.”

“And?” He looked over at you, his expression completely unreadable. Were you going to get in trouble for making contact? And on the first day too?

“Dabi.” Bakugou’s face went white, his expression telling you that maybe they knew more about the suspect than they were telling you. “Bakugou, who’s Dabi?”

“I pinpointed the location. Let’s get back to the agency and report to Hawks what we found.”

“I’m not taking us anywhere until you tell me who this Dabi guy is!”

“Suit yourself you dumb bird.” He was quick to blast off, making his way back in the direction of the agency. You were in shock by his sudden outburst, creating quite the distance between you two. What is going on? You were so confused, only being left more in the dark as Bakugou ignored your multiple questions.

Snap out of it Y/N! Follow him!

“What- Bakugou!!”

#hawks #Hawks fanfic #hawks x reader #hawks x female reader #hawks one shot #bakugou x y/n #katsuki bakugo x reader #bakugou x reader #bakugou #bakugou katsuki #Dabi #dabi x female reader #dabi fanfic #dabi x reader

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koreanboyswriting · 6 years

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In Translation Pt. 5

In Translation Series: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

5k Words

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

Genre: Angst / Lil bit of Fluff

How long will you be able to resist Jungkook?

You pulled yourself into a semblance of together, as Mr. Sejin laughed at your shock.

“I understand it’s a lot to take in, and a lot of responsibility, with short notice. But we believe in you and we want you with us as we explore this new venture. We know you understand the States having grown up there, and we could really use your knowledge.” He smiled down at you fondly, and you pulled one onto your face to mimic his, while thoughts ran through your mind a million miles per second.

It made so much sense now, that the night before last they kept calling you part of the team. And the introductions to the important people, and the constant praise. They wanted you to stick around for the long haul. But your stupid self, had gone and fucked one of the members of the band, then fell for him and deluded herself that anything could happen and then went and made him upset too. You almost smacked yourself in the face at the sheer stupidity, but then remembered that you were in the company of someone very important. Then, the mental list of all the reasons you should take the job started overtaking your reasons for not. He mentioned a significant pay raise, which would be amazing, and maybe significant enough to get you out of your shabby studio apartment. And sure, seeing Jungkook every day would rip your heart out, but being back in America would be amazing, maybe you would even have time to see your brother. And maybe, just maybe, you could patch things up with Jungkook and you could just be friends. Although, the likelihood of that happening was extremely low, but you convinced yourself otherwise, just like you usually fooled yourself into other things.

“So, when do we leave?” You smiled at Mr. Sejin again, who clapped his hands together in excitement.

“We leave in two days, I will give you the day off tomorrow to pack, and settle any affairs. The day after I would like you to be here and we will go over the itinerary for the five days that we will spend in America.”

Your eyes widened as you took in the suddenness of the information, you cleared your throat before speaking again, “And what about me? I’m sure my schedule will be much like the boys, but will I have any days off, or free time?”

“Y/n, this will be a very busy and hectic time, we will want you to be with the boys 24/7,” He enunciated this by tapping his left palm with the side of his right hand with each syllable. “Any free time that you will have will arise on the occasion. You will get at least an hour to yourself a day, but this is essentially their American debut. They are not only performing, but also doing a press tour. There will be at least five interviews a day, one paper publication, two radio shows, and two live or video interviews. You will join them at each and every one to make sure there is no insurmountable language barrier. I don’t mean to be too stern, but this trip is of the upmost importance and we need you and the boys to be at the top of yours and their game, do you understand me?”

Mr. Sejin was a great man, and had always been a pleasure to work with, but taking into account your previous faults, you were suddenly feeling like a child when you nodded your head to his prompting question.

“Almost like being an idol yourself, huh?” He gave you a pitying smile.

You pulled up your posture in your chair, and lifted up your head before responding, “Ha! I don’t think I’d be cut out for that job, I much rather like being behind the scenes. But I will do my very best and try not to let you down Mr. Sejin.”

Sejin nodded his head, “Good, I don’t like being let down. That’s all for today, your contracts and waivers will be signed the day after tomorrow, when we go over the itinerary. Your flight is already booked and Dae will pick you up on the travel day and deposit you here, before we all head over to the airport. The flight leaves at nine p.m. Any questions?

“No, Mr. Sejin.”

“Ok great, I’m so glad you could join us, Dae should be around in the lobby somewhere just let him know when you’re ready to go.”

“Thank you again for the opportunity, Mr. Sejin.” You bowed your head and Sejin inclined his own as you stood and exited the room, Sejin’s phone already ringing as the door clicked shut.

You wandered towards the elevator deciding if you should run home while you could, or if you were going to be mature and face Jungkook and the rest of the boys like you should. You pressed the down button on the elevator and found yourself pressing the lower level button, before too many thoughts could cloud your mind. Once the elevator binged open on the lower level, you walked the familiar path towards the large dance room the boys usually practiced in, and found them right where you left them.

Hoseok was singing to himself as he danced in front of the mirror, going over the same fluid popping steps over and over again. Jimin was stretching on the floor, his legs basically in the splits, on either side of him, as he bent his torso forward deepening the stretch. Taehyung and Jungkook each had one earbud in their ears as they intently watched a video on Taehyung’s phone. Namjoon and Jin were laughing loudly as they leaned against the wall, the sweat still visible on their faces, as Jin bent over from laughing so hard clutching a white towel in his hand. And Yoongi was fast asleep on the ground, using his towel as a pillow. You figured they must have been resting for a while, when they all turned in your direction as you put your bag on the ground. Even Yoongi shuffled up, propping himself up on his forearms, turning his head slightly to look in your direction.

Jimin came out of his stretch and looked up at you, “Well?” He said, raising his eyebrows in question.

“I guess we’re all going to my country.” You laughed, as you shrugged your shoulders and raised your hands. They all cheered and gathered around you, Yoongi making his way up slower than the rest still rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“I knew you’d say yes.” Taehyung smirked, as you all sat down in a circle with each other.

“Oh wow, glad I’m so predictable.”

Namjoon chuckled, “I think what he meant to say was—,”

Jungkook cut him off looking at you with emotion-filled eyes, “We hoped you’d say yes.”

You looked into his eyes for a second before clearing your throat and looking at the ground, running your fingers through your hair.

“Oh no, she’s spent too much time with us. She’s turning into Jimin!” They all laughed and Jimin smacked Tae on the arm for his comment, his cheeks turning red. You joined in their conversation, laughing and joking around, never looking at Jungkook for too long.

After thirty minutes, you pulled your bag towards you, signaling them you were getting ready to go. “Thanks for the entertainment guys, but I have to go, unlike you guys I didn’t know about the AMA’s for weeks, so I have a lot to do.”

They all chuckled, Namjoon extending his hand to you to help you up, “I’m so glad you’re coming it takes a little bit of the pressure off me.”

“Well, that’s what I’m here for,” you smiled at Namjoon, who dipped his head back, before turning back to boys announcing that they all needed to continue practicing. They all rolled their eyes, albeit half-heartedly, as they were definitely all excited to work hard for their performance. Hoseok grasped your shoulder, Jimin winked, Tae held your hand for longer than necessary, earning a slap from Jungkook who grabbed both of your hands, who got shoved by Jin, who petted your head, Yoongi following it up by messing up your hair. All of them giving you their versions of goodbye. After glaring at a laughing Yoongi, and smoothing your hair back into place you left the room to their goodbyes being drowned out by the pumping bass, as they went back into practice, their individual selves coming together to form one dancing vision.

You went up the stairs, forgoing the elevator and found Dae exactly where Sejin suggested you would. You slipped into the car, and the ride home was quick and uneventful. Right as you got into your apartment, you grabbed your keys and were off again to your agency. You walked in the door and were immediately greeted by Mr. Lee’s assistant, who guided you straight to your boss’s office. Mr. Lee was looking up at you as soon as you walked in, as if he had been doing nothing all day except wait for you. You plopped into the chair in front of him, and didn’t even get to open your mouth before he did.

“Well, I’m assuming you obviously said yes, I’ve cleared your small jobs that you booked this next week and given it to our new interns. Oh, don’t protest you know you couldn’t have worked them,” he spoke over you, seeing your annoyed exterior. “I’m assuming you remember Kim Byung-hee? He’ll be here in two minutes so I suggest you sit up in your chair and tell him how amazing you’ve been doing at BigHit, since your communication has been rather low.”

Your cheeks heated, and you straightened your posture smoothing out your pants right as Mr. Kim walked in to the office, just as imposing as before if not more so.

“Hello, Miss y/n. How have you been?”

“I’ve been—.”

“Ok, enough of that. I need to know the exact travel contract you have with BigHit.”

You huffed annoyed that he didn’t let you finish, “I haven’t signed one yet.”

He looked at you with incredulity on his face, “Excuse me?”

Mr. Lee looked at you with warning in his eyes, and you cleared your throat before speaking again, “I’m sorry, I haven’t signed one yet, sir.” You finished this time adding the correct honorifics you didn’t add before.

“And when will you be signing one?” Mr. Kim prompted, talking down to you like a common child.

“The day after tomorrow, sir.” You finished, trying to keep the sass from edging your tone.

“I expect a fax from you or Mr. Sejin as soon as you sign one, according to company regulations you do not have to show me the exact contract, but I do expect an outline, and that you sign it keeping in mind that you have a longer, much more binding contract with us first and foremost.”

After he finished, he stood and swept from the room, leaving you looking down at your hands feeling like you just got scolded for touching something you weren’t supposed to.

After your relaxing bath, you walked around your apartment your hair and body each wrapped in a towel, as you threw clothes into the laundry, while hunting for your suitcase you hadn’t used since you moved to Seoul.

It all felt bittersweet, it’s been four years since you’d been home and it felt great to be able to see your country once again. You’d be in LA for the AMAs, so you took the warmth into consideration while packing your bag, throwing in almost all your clothes as you were the queen of over packing. You sat down on your bed looking at the contents of your suitcase and wondered what you’d be expected to wear at the important functions you were to go to with BTS. You of course had nice clothes, but everything you had wasn’t even close to designer.

But surely, they wouldn’t actually take you to the AMAs. And you wouldn’t be on camera for any of their interviews, so surely your wardrobe wouldn’t have to be as high end as theirs. You crossed your fingers hoping like hell that you were right. You moved around your room and finally changed out of your towel into your pajamas. You moved from your room area to your kitchen and started making food, but suddenly everything was reminding you of the day you had spent here with Jungkook.

You were standing at the stove and you could feel his arms around you. Then you were sitting at the table, and you could hear his laugh after you told him how your brother and you used to play dress up and you’d have to be the prince, while Cameron got to be the princess. Then you were standing at the sink remembering when you flicked water on Jungkook while washing the dishes. You couldn’t get him out of your head, and it was torture. There was suddenly nothing that didn’t remind you of him. You sank onto your bed, crying softly into your hands, it all felt helpless. The only person you wanted to talk to was Jungkook, but you didn’t even have his number, much less the courage to even pick up the phone. You sat there for a while, crying, and staring at your phone, thinking there had to be someone you could find comfort in, when you remembered that you had to call Cameron and tell him you were going to be back in America.

The phone rang twice before he answered.

“God! I thought you were going to make me beg for you to call me!”

You laughed, the tears suddenly seeming insignificant as your heard Cameron’s warm voice. “Hi! I’m sorry but I have news.”

“News?! Spill.”

“I’m coming back home!”

“No way! Seriously?!”

“Yes, seriously! Well not home, physically in our home, but I’m going to be in LA!”

“LA? Why LA?”

“Well, BTS is going to be performing at the AMAs, and BigHit is sending me with them to be their translator.”

You were met with silence, you paused for a second, thinking he had out down the phone to get something, but after a minute passed, you spoke up.

“Cameron? Are you there?”

“I’m sorry I just died for a second. Excuse me, what?!”

You laughed, “BTS is going to be at the AMAs!”

“Oh, Jesus, someone help me, I can’t breathe!”

You laughed loudly at your overly dramatic brother. “Babes. I think you’ll be fine.”

“So?! What am I getting?? Tickets to the AMAs? Backstage passes? A date with Taehyung?!”

“Uhm, I don’t know if I have the power for that. But, I’ll definitely ask, okay?”

“Yeah, of course, don’t worry too much about it.”

Even though Cameron made it seem nonchalant, you could feel his disappointment and you wanted to do everything you could for your little brother. You talked for a little longer, steering the conversation in any other possible direction when Cameron asked you if you were seeing someone.

“Look, I know that James hurt you love, but you gotta move on.”

You flinched hearing his name, but recovered quickly to brush it off.

“Cameron, I’m so over him. I don’t even think about him anymore.”

“Then why haven’t you moved back yet? I know you’re too proud to say that you left because of him, but you did.”

“Look, Cameron I haven’t moved back because I’m doing well over here. Hell, I’m even translating for BTS, this opens so many doors for me, and I’m happy here. It’s not like you haven’t seen me in years! I saw you last Christmas. I like it here.”

“Enough to never come back?”

“Well, I’m coming back now, aren’t I? Look can we drop this please I don’t want to talk about him.”

“Fine.”

Cameron had a habit of thinking he always knew what was best for you, and at times you thanked him for it. But now, it was just making you feel small, like you were the younger sibling, and you were fighting right now to have any kind of control over your life. Even if you were losing that fight. You hung up shortly after, not feeling assuaged at all. Looking up at your ceiling fan go around and around, you felt yourself identifying with it on the circular pattern of your life. You were constantly going after unavailable men, whether it be physically or emotionally, and you were constantly getting heartbroken. You were so tired of feeling helpless in your love life, and that’s why you liked the autonomy of your career. You got to pick your clients, you got to choose your rate, and you got to choose when you worked, but now you couldn’t even do that. Byung-hee was pressuring you like never before, and you were signing contracts left and right. And the only person you wanted to be with, you couldn’t be. You stared at the fan blades, and let them lull you to sleep, your weary mind finally getting some rest.

You woke the next morning to your alarm clock buzzing loudly. You slapped your side table a couple times until your hand connected with your phone, you grasped it, yanking out the charger and hitting the stop button. You rubbed your eyes wearily and sat up looking at your open suitcase, and everything that happened the day before came rushing back. You got up quickly and blasted music to drown out your thoughts. You moved around the space putting one of the two outfits you left out, it felt like everything was going in slow motion, and every time you looked in the mirror your eyes seemed more prominent. Every glance reminded you of every emotion that was racing through your mind. So, you turned up the music louder and it helped a little. After you finished applying your makeup, you stood from your chair and grabbed your purse and as usual Dae was leaning against the car as your exited the building.

“Are you doing ok, Miss y/n.”

You laughed sarcastically, “I could be better.” You turned looking out the mirror feeling dumb for falling into your own pity party, but not being able to help it.

“What’s stopping you?”

“Huh?” You turned to Dae confusion on your face.

“What’s stopping you from being with him?”

You sighed, “Dae, look it’s—.”

“No, you listen, did you know that Jungkook came and talked to me.”

You shut your mouth, your eyes open in surprise as you looked at Dae’s face through the rearview mirror as he intently focused on the road in front of him.

“When?”

“Yesterday, he said you had a conversation with him that ripped his heart out, and he couldn’t understand why you didn’t want to at least try.”

You exhaled, your head dropping, your eyesight now fixed on your shoes as your alternative to answering Dae.

“Y/n you’re young, you’re not supposed to have everything figured out. You don’t have to be strong all the time. I’ve made many mistakes in my life and I don’t regret any of them, you know why?”

You continued staring at your shoes shaking your head no, knowing he would see.

“Because I wouldn’t be where I was today without them. I wouldn’t have met the people I know now. And I sure as hell wouldn’t be the person I am today. Life is too short to regret anything, so go for it, you’ll thank yourself later. Why torture yourself when what you want is right within your reach.”

You looked up at the ceiling of the car, blinking the tears back into your eyes.

“Thanks, Dae. Sometimes I get stuck in my own head it’s good to hear someone call me stupid it brings me back to reality.” You both chuckled together, and you suddenly felt light as a feather.

Dae parked outside of the building and you unbuckled your seatbelt scooting towards the back of Dae’s chair, you wrapped your arms around Dae and the chair pecking him on the cheek. His face flushed scarlet and patted your hand warmly.

“Don’t get too lost out there sweetheart.” You smiled at him and slid out of the car.

You walked into the building, Sheri had the phone to her ear and she pointed towards the hallway past the elevator, you bowed your head in thanks and walked towards the hallway. You passed the familiar doors until you walked into the conference room that you had met BTS for the first-time in. They all sat around the table in utter professionalism very much unlike the casualness of your first meeting, where they were all draped around the room. Mr. Sejin was talking on the phone and dictating notes as BTS sat around quieter than you’d ever seen them before, you took the liberty to sit yourself in the only open chair which was at the opposite head of the table from Sejin. You sat down placing your bag on the floor next to you, when you looked up your eyes felt like magnets as the automatically met Jungkook’s who was sitting in the middle of Jimin and Taehyung on the right side of the table. You blushed and looked down trying to keep the heat from your face, but you could’ve swore Jungkook did the same before you looked down. Your head snapped up as Sejin set down his phone and finished dictating notes to his assistant who melted into the wall behind him as soon as he finished.

“Well, sorry for the delay, and thank you for joining us y/n, let’s get started. So first we have several press events to go to. I will lay them out by the days. The first day we get there will mostly be recovery day as I want you guys to quickly adjust to the time difference, because you won’t get much rest after. The next day is a busy one, during the day you have a radio interview and that night you will be doing the mini-concert we talked about on Jimmy Kimmel Live. The following day we have a video interview followed by another radio show and the appearance on the James Corden show. The next day is the AMAs during the rehearsal, you will be interviewed by Rolling Stone, pictures will be taken as well. The next day is the Ellen show, then we leave the following morning. Anything unclear?”

The boys shook their heads in unison, you joining along.

“Then you are dismissed. Please take the time today to do some last-minute practicing then rest up.”

They all stood and left the room, leaving you sitting across the long table from Sejin, you got up and moved to the chair on his left.

“Ok, so shall we start outlining your contract.” You nodded.

You both preceded to go back and forth adjusting times when you would need to be with the boys, the casual conversation evolving slowly into a push and pull argument. Sejin wanted you to be with the boys the entire time, but you argued that you needed some alone space as well. He fought you down from a completely separate hotel room, to an adjoining one with the boys. Although he did compromise from one hour of alone time to two hours, and threw in some signed merchandise for your brother and a ticket to the AMAs, yet he would have to supply his own airfare. You left laughing, Sejin calling you a formidable opponent.

You stood outside your apartment your bag in hand as shivered bundled up in your coat and a beanie pulled low on your head. You kept running back in and out of your apartment convincing yourself you had left something important. You had called your brother the night before though and informed him of the ticket to the show, he was so excited and said he would fly in with mom and dad, who were going on about how excited they were to see you. You were excited too, but antsy. You checked your bag for the sixth time confirming your passport, boarding pass, and ticket for your brother. Just when you were about to run inside for the third time Dae came up your winding street, braking hard in front of you, he rushed out of the car and winked at you as he took your suitcase and tucked it into the trunk. You climbed into the car with him this time taking the passenger seat. Dae looked at you in shock as you buckled your seatbelt wringing your hands in your lap.

“Sorry, I’m really nervous and I just want to be in front seat right now. I don’t know, maybe it will make me feel in control.” You laughed at yourself and Dae just smiled and sped off towards the boys’ residence instead of BigHit.

“Dae I thought we were going to pick them up at BigHit?”

“Change of plans, the agency is swarmed right now.”

“Why?” You asked, worry edging your tone.

“Oh, nothing bad, fans are just all around looking for a chance to see the boys before they head to America. Travel days are usually bad, but not this bad. Their fan groups just keep growing and growing, and I’ve been with them for a long time, long enough to notice that now, is far different than before.”

You raised your eyebrows and looked out the window for something to do, when you came to a sudden halt again, this time in front of the lavish apartment you had left that one weekend morning. Dae parked the car and switched your luggage to a larger van, tucking in your purple suitcase with many others. You stepped out of the car and met the boys who exited the building, all of them wearing some version of the glasses, hat, and face mask combination. Leaving you suddenly feeling bare. Deok-su was present again, his towering figure looming over the boys. He guided them towards the van, you getting caught in the wave and shoved between them in the van. Being one of the younger ones, you were stuck in the back, next to Jungkook and Taehyung. It was your first time in a couple days being in such close proximity to him, that you had force your heart beat to slow done, even though everything around you was moving so fast. Dae got into the driver’s seat, Sejin following into the passenger, and you were off speeding towards the airport.

“Jeez, do you guys always move this fast when you travel.”

The boys all chuckled, Namjoon turning around from in front of you, “Just wait till we get to the airport.”

“Huh?” You said your eyebrows raising.

Their laughs rose again this time Hoseok speaking up, “Yeah, you’ll get to meet ARMY.”

Your face turned a little pale as you looked out the window again, trying to calm yourself down. You were never one to be very into k-pop, you usually tried to avoid it as best you could, you listened to a few songs here and there, as you were living in Korea after all, but you stayed away from the fandoms and phenomenon. But now you were about to experience all of it in it’s craziest form and you were scared as hell, for the flashing lights, and the screaming fans. You enjoyed never being the center of attention, but now you were going to hot from the spotlight shining down your back. Jungkook noticed you fidgeting after all the boys turned away, each of them tucking their headphones into their ears. He slid his hand against yours, stroking the back of your clammy hand with his pointer finger, you turned away from the window, smiling at him sheepishly, he winked in response and entwined his fingers with yours, tucking your interlocked fingers in between each of your legs. You looked back out the window as the buildings and trees raced by finally feeling calm as Jungkook smoothed circles on your hand with his thumb.

Thirty minutes later you were at the airport and being rushed from the car, Sejin and Deok-su took the front and Dae took the back. You were hurried from the car eyes wide, as staff came out the empty the van. As soon as you entered the airport fans were everywhere, and you were moving at breakneck speed, all you could was hold onto your bag as you were rushed along with the boys towards your plane. You wound through the airport with your head down as the boys smiled and waved around you, looking calm, composed, and natural, as if they were born doing this. Soon, you were all tucked into first class zipping towards America, you sat alone once again looking out the window at the night sky, the plane was silent around as each of the boys settled in to sleep, masks pulled over their eyes. You almost yelped when Jungkook hopped into the empty seat next you. He held up his finger over his mouth, warning you to stay quiet. He then held up his other earbud to you and you nodded, putting it into your ear, as Jungkook and you each went back and forth putting songs into the queue, trying to laugh as quietly as you could, as you whispered over the plane engines. Before you knew it your eyes were drooping and you each fell asleep listening to the music, feeling more peaceful sleeping in an airplane chair, than you had in your bed.

(I fudged some stuff to fit how I wanted to write this story, don't come at me lol)

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thelifetimechannel · 6 years

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It’s time for another week of catching up with the alt-Caliborn story line. As always, this is a draft subject to change (I don’t think Gill even got around to looking Dirk’s lines over). See you next week with a regular story update, which will have more Karkat since we sorta ditched the dude for the entirety of Cherubquest.

#tlcstuck #calliope #caliborn #bonus content #that should be fixed

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rebeccahpedersen · 6 years

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Price-Fixing In The Toronto Rental Market?

TorontoRealtyBlog

I’ve been writing blogs for over eleven full years now, and in those eleven years, I’ve told a lot of stories, pointed a lot of fingers, and exposed a lot inconvenient truths about the Toronto real estate market.

I’ve received complaints through my brokerage, I’ve been taken to RECO, and I’ve been sued.

There’s a delicate balance between trying to spread the proverbial “good word,” and both inform and empower the consumer, and keep my name and career in good standing at the same time.

So with that said, I am not going to name the developer, and the real estate brokerage, that are the subject of today’s blog. I honestly don’t think it would make a lick of difference, to be quite honest.

I have been saying for the better part of a decade now that the Condominium Act, 1998, which was likely drafted, edited, and revised from, say, 1995 to 1998 inclusive, is exceptionally out-of-date, and needs a complete overhaul.

Remember back in 2012, when NDP MP, Rosario Marchese, jumped on the bandwagon and started to make noise about significant changes to the Condominium Act? Google it, and you’ll find dozens of articles. But was “significant change” ever implemented?

We’re beyond “change” at this point. The Act needs an entire re-write.

One of the best blogs I’ve ever written, if I do say so myself, is this one: “National Hockey League vs. The Condominium Act (1998).”

Back in 2012, I decided to compare the National Hockey League’s “Collective Bargaining Agreement” to the Condominium Act. Why? Because the CBA was the cause of all the issues between the players and owners, and had to be renegotiated every 5-7 years. Simply put, the owners would discover all the ins, outs, end-arounds, and ways to ‘cheat’ the system, and over time, the agreement needed to be changed.

Do you see the parallel I’m making with the Condominium Act? You’d think after twenty years, condo developers and their lawyers have a pretty good idea of what they can and can’t do, regardless of the intent of the Act.

Now you know me – I’m not a fan of government intervention in a free market. So I just know some of the savvy blog readers are about to comment that this comes off as hypocritical. But I do have a habit of cheering for the little guy, and I do believe in consumer protection.

So for the life of me, I just can’t see why not a single person in a position of power and influence is interested in taking another look at an outdated piece of legislation. And for that reason, I’m not going to put my neck in the guillotine today and name the names.

I will, however, tell you the story in full; with slight adjustments to the who, what, when, where, why, and how.

Last month, a client of mine who is a long-time condominium investor, asked me to lease out his unit a new GTA condominium that had just given occupancy.

For those of you that don’t know what “occupancy” means, perhaps a brief refresher…

Condos are pre-sold, before there’s ever a shovel in the ground. When your individual unit is finished (according to the developer), regardless of what else is happening in the building, you are given “occupancy.” You then wait an indeterminate period – often a year (I’ve seen occupancy last anywhere from one week, to two years), for the building to be registered as a Condominium Corporation.

It’s important to note that once you’re handed the keys and given occupancy, you don’t own the unit. You can’t mortgage it, you can’t sell it, and the occupancy period comes with various regulations, and/or restrictions.

During this occupancy period, you pay an occupancy fee or a “phantom mortgage” as some people call it, to the developer.

My client, like every other person in his position, wanted to lease the unit out during the occupancy period to offset the occupancy fee. This is common, almost automatic, in the Toronto condo industry.

So after he was given the keys, we listed the unit on MLS for $2,195 per month.

About ten days into the listing, something bizarre happened. It’s something that through 14 years in this business, I have never seen before.

I received page through my brokerage front desk (not on an actual pager; we get ‘messages’ and call them ‘pages,’ I don’t know why) that I didn’t quite know what to make sense of.

Why don’t you read it for yourself, and tell me what your first reaction would be. Here’s that page, literally copied-and-pasted from my MS Outlook:

I didn’t know what in the world this meant.

I had to change the list price?

My client wouldn’t be allowed to book the elevator?

Huh?

So I immediately called the developer, and I told the first person who answered what I was calling about. She had no idea what to do with the call. I was transferred twice, told two more people why I was calling, and finally I got a nice young lady who said she knew what the message was.

This is, word-for-word, what she told me:

“Well the developer doesn’t want people setting their own prices. These units have to be at least $2,200 on MLS, because he thinks it will devalue the building otherwise.”

I probably speak to 30-40 different people on the phone, every day, so trust me when I say that I didn’t think this lady knew what she was saying. So I got a bit chatty, and replied:

“Wow, that’s crazy! That’s blatant price-fixing! What’s going on?”

She said, “I know, right?”

I said, “Who told you this?”

She replied, “Well I heard a few people in the office talking about it, so I know what’s the situation. That’s why I took your call, because they didn’t know who to pass the call to.”

I am one-hundred percent convinced that this lady was not supposed to divulge what she did. “The developer thinks it will devalue the building.” There’s just no way.

This reminds me of a story I’ve told on this blog before. It was probably ten years ago now, and I was in the sales centre for Market Wharf. When I told one of the ladies on the floor that the pricing made no sense, because comparable resale properties were already available cheaper, and that there was no room for appreciation, she said, “The appreciation is built in already.”

I smiled and said, “Who told you that?”

She said, “I heard it at our sales meeting this morning.”

This was around the time that pre-construction prices started to move past resale prices, because let’s not forget – once upon a time, you paid LESS to buy an unbuilt promise of a condo, on a parking lot, five years down the line, with all the risks involved. So back at the Market Wharf sales centre, when I remarked that the pricing made no sense, this lady working the floor basically told me what the developer and/or a few sales people must have been laughing about in a meeting earlier that day – that the “appreciation was built in already,” since the developer was going to absorb the future premium, not the buyer, as was the custom.

So back to my situation – with the developer telling me I had to raise the list price of my listing, or they wouldn’t let my client book the elevator.

I knew this was wrong in so many ways (even though, as I’ll explain in a moment, there’s actually absolutely nothing wrong with it at all), so I asked the lady on the phone if she could provide me with something to this effect in writing, and she took down my email address and phone number.

Five minutes later, I received a call from somebody who sounded good on the phone. You know the type – he was sharp, dialed-in, and knew his stuff.

He was also condescending, cynical, and sarcastic. In another life, we would be best friends.

He said, “I understand you have some questions about our request?”

I explained that I was confused by the request, which had simply come through my front desk in the form of a page, and asked him if he could send me something in writing.

He said he couldn’t, and reiterated the request.

Now I wasn’t looking for an argument here, nor was I trying to bait him into anything. I was, after all, just working on behalf of my client. A long-time client that I have done many transactions with, and who I owe a significant duty of care. This request was a strange one, and I needed to gather all the facts. They were asking us to raise the list price by a paltry $5, and essentially threatening us by saying they wouldn’t let us use the moving elevator.

The voice on the other end of the line explained that the client/landlord was holding the unit in the “occupancy phase,” and thus the developer had to provide consent for my client to lease the unit. That consent is unfettered, unquestioned, and in the developer’s sold and absolute discretion.

And this is what I meant when I said there’s nothing actually wrong with the developer, and the real estate brokerage associated with the developer, fixing prices.

They can do whatever they please.

The contract that buyers sign in pre-construction has a clause about “consent,” and that consent MUST be given.

End of story.

The developer, to put it so eloquently, has the owners by the balls.

I asked the voice on the other end of the phone, who said his name was “Andrew,” what his last name was. He said, “I’m not telling you that. Why would I tell you that?”

I said, “Because I don’t know who you are.”

He said, “Well I don’t know who you are,” and I pretty much realized where this was going.

But that’s how I knew I wasn’t speaking to another real estate agent. No self-respecting agent would refuse to provide his or her name. We are our names.

I asked, one more time, to get a copy of something in writing to explain what needed to be done, and why, because I needed to know how to advise my client, and it was impossible to do so with no more than a confusing page through my office, and the results of a testy phone call. “Andrew” said that he would be in touch.

The next day, I received an email from “Andrew,” this time providing his name and title, CC’ing my client (at an email address he hasn’t used in years – really helpful!), two other people at the developer’s head office, and I believe a lawyer.

This email was deliberately vague, making no mention of their request to increase the price, or their threat of withholding access to the elevator, but making a new and far more important, and effective threat, as follows:

–

I spoke with the developer regarding your MLS listing on the above property. Your client is in breach of the Agreement of Purchase and Sale as outlined in the Agreement of Purchase and Sale, clause 17, page 6.

As such, the developer has notified their legal team about the breach of contract. Your client and their lawyer will be receiving notice that due to the breach of contract, they are now in default.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly. In the meantime, I strongly suggest you cancel the above mentioned listing.

–

Amazing.

They were now threatening breach of contract.

And they made no mention of their request to increase the price. Completely strategic, and well-thought-out on their part. Everything that could be perceived as wrong-doing on their part was done verbally, except for the page through my office.

I responded to the email, once again, suggesting that the actual request that was being referenced, be put in writing, since we still were not sure what the request was, or exactly why it was being given – save for his referencing a page and paragraph from the Agreement of Purchase & Sale.

We increased the list price by $5, but I knew how this was going to end.

I was the squeaky wheel. I wasn’t trying to be. I swear, I wasn’t looking for a fight here. I was just trying to protect my client.

But two days later, the developer told my client that he should probably terminate the listing, and re-list with their in-house brokerage.

By the time my client passed this info on to me, I already had the termination drawn up.

In fact, I just had a bad feeling about the whole situation, and was going to tell my client to call the developers and tell them that he had fired me! Tell them, “I can’t stand David Fleming, I don’t know why I hired him, it was a huge mistake.” Tell them whatever they wanted to hear.

Because as I said, the developers have everybody by the you-know-whats. And you do know what, because I already wrote it once so far in this blog.

My client was being bullied, and I was being abused, but I’d gladly take whatever punishment was necessary to ensure he was still in good standing, and his investment was protected.

So we signed a termination, and my client sent it to the developer.

The rest is yet to be determined.

So what do we have here?

Price-fixing?

Anti-competitive acts or abuse of market power?

Can a developer tell a condo-owner what price he or she must be asking?

Can a developer tell somebody to fire their agent and insist that the person list with the developer instead?

Yes, and yes.

They can, because that’s how their Agreement of Purchase & Sale is written. An APS that has been examined, edited, and re-written a hundred times, by some of the Province’s brightest legal minds. That is who a condominium developer hires to protect their interests, and make the Agreement iron-clad.

And what does the consumer have at their disposal?

A Condominium Act that is 20+ years old, and a government that has no interest in taking a real look at the problem. Just stand in front of a podium, say some sh!t that will get people to vote for you, and then move on.

This developer is blatantly price-fixing, and it’s absolutely, completely legal. There’s nothing wrong with it. Because from a legal standpoint, it’s not price-fixing. It’s simply providing consent to lease a unit, or not providing consent to lease a unit.

So to the lawyers out there, provide a counter-argument, please.

Because what if, for argument’s sake, the consent wasn’t about increasing the price by $5. What if it was, say, baking cookies and bringing them to the office? Or what if it was, “I’ll provide consent, if you get down on your hands and knees and lick my shoe?”

It’s a grey area, it can be argued until we’re all blue in the face, but it doesn’t matter. Nothing can, and nothing will be done about this.

Keep in mind that none of this is in writing. It’s all hearsay. Deliberate, and smart.

And scary as hell too…

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