#my colleagues aren't exactly my friends either | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

markbannersstuff · 1 year

Text

Headache

Summary:

Joel goes to work with what he thinks is just a minor headache, which he regrets a few hours later. Etho on the other hand doesn't know how to feel or what to do besides getting lost in his memories.

Notes:

Inspired by When I fall asleep by Eatgreass.

English is not my frst language, i'm sorry if some parts don't make sense or there are spelling mistakes, i have dyslexia and that doesn't make it any batter.

Words:2562

AO3 LINK

Joel has a horrible headache.

Started when he waking up, it was just a few rhythmic pangs behind his eyes at first, nothing that hadn't happened before, so he assumed that it would fade throughout the day, as it has before, so he ended up leaving his house straight to work.

Now, he will be the first to admit that it wasn't the best idea to go the way he went to work, especially if the work is in place with constant noise like a coffee shop, while the "kitchens" as he like to call it, aren't exactly quiet, he ever heard machines and utensils sound as loud as they are now.

His inefficiency in the kitchen was beginning to be noticed, but not enough to attract attention. The throbbing pain behind his eyes intensified and began to spread to his temples and the back of his head, he can't really tell if it's migraine or a sinus headache, although if he remembers correctly both are usually confused, he... He should really concentrate on work.

Now, Joel loves his friends, he really does, everyone involved in this coffee shop has known each other for years, some more than others, but friends anyway, but working in the kitchen with Scar, Jimmy, Bdubs and Pearl with a headache that grows with the minutes, is not exactly the best, the four of them are great cooks, even if they don't really seem to be.

The four cooks were talkative at best, at worst they would be making a lot of noise here and there, and Joel, as the least favorite person of the gods, had to deal with the second thing, Bdubs and Pearl shouting over the noise of the machines, Jimmy and Scar walked back and forth also talking to each other.

And Joel, he was trying not to yell at them to shut up their fucking mouths, Pearl as the little angel that she is, sent him for a new bag of coffee, so he quickly left the kitchens, something that now does not know if it was a good idea, he took with force the edge of one of the shelves of the cupboard room while with the other he held the damn bag of coffee counts his chest, trying not to drop it after the sudden throbbing pain all over his head.

The brand was expensive, and it was even more so because of the big bags they buy, he is not willing to let Martyn or BigB give him the news that it was deducted from his salary, so he slowly drops to his knees, puts the bag aside and once again takes one of the shelves with both hands, He rests his forehead on the cool of it, he is quite sure that at any moment he will start to have a fever.

He really should go home, it will not be good for anyone if he is working this way, if his assumptions are true, at any moment the flu will start and shortly after the sneezing, he could spread whatever he has to his colleagues and worse, to a lot of clients, yep, he should leave.

The problem is that he doesn't think he's in the best condition to drive, he could ask Ren or Tango, maybe even Lizzie, but then he remembers that Ren is head of human resources and surely stuck on paperwork, he is sure that Tango, sales manager, is in a meeting with his CEO, Grian, and when he thinks better, Lizzie is not an option either, the woman is a waitress and the place is a bit crowded today.

Contrary to what Joel has thought before, Pearl is not an angel, he is a little imp who, when she finds him in a pathetic state for someone like him, drags him almost to BigB's office, who helped him sit up and gave him fresh water, did nothing for him but clear his mind a little of the pain, he can hear Pearl talking to BigB about something in the haze of his brain, he's a little more focused on not falling asleep on the couch he's on.

The sofas in Martyn and BigB's offices were always very comfortable, sometimes on less busy days some of them would go to their offices to help with the paperwork they were stuck on, something they seemed to appreciate if the kind and caring smiles of both men had anything to say, he... he is drifting again, he should focus on whatever his partner and boss are talking about.

But the cushions he has sunk into are comfortable, maybe he could sleep, surely BigB will understand, BigB is a kind man who cares about employees, employees who have been his friends for years, he is an employee so it's okay, he will sleep a few minutes on this sofa and feel better, That always works when his head hurts.

Of course it didn't last long, a hand on his shoulder gently shook him to wake him up, of course it was Pearl, the one in the red apron gave him a smile and worried eyes, Joel for his part closed his eyes again and ran more in place in the one who was already half lying down "Joel, come on man you need to get up to go home." He doesn't want to get up, he is comfortable where he is, so he just let out a little moan of disapproval.

"I'm sure i can get him to the car." Etho , he is sure that the voice is Etho's, but Etho works on the security part What does he do in the BigB office? Did something happen? Maybe just talk? No, they're friends, but none of them are particularly talkative "Are you sure? Joel isn't exactly lightweight" Cleo, she's the only one besides Etho who works in security, maybe something really happened? "I'll be fine, I found the keys in his vest, and it shouldn't be that difficult."

Wowowow what are they talking about again? He really should pay more attention, aren't they thinking of kidnapping him, right? No, that wouldn't be very stupid, they are all his friends... they're his friends, right? Yes, yes they are idiot, wait. Pearl said something about going home and Etho something about having his keys, aren't they thinking about taking his car, right?

The last time someone else drove his car ended up in the workshop, Skizz, one of the waiters, and Impulse, his director of operations, inadvertently annoyed a bunch of idiots with superiority complex in the bar who ended up breaking the windows, the rearview mirrors and punching one of the tires, both apologized profusely and paid for the damages between them. so no, he doesn't like someone else driving his car thank

you very much, so he got up from his place with a grunt of annoyance. "I can drive home, thank you very much," he said, taking his keys from Eteo's hand when he was close enough.

But Cleo, who was next to him, took them out of his hands again making him almost silent if it were not because he held on to the lapels of Etho's jacket "That's the most painful lie I heard come out of your mouth Bud" Fuck, he can lie perfectly Cleo thank you very much, but instead of saying something he let all his weight fall on the man in front of him.

Etho hurriedly held him by the waist to prevent him from falling, even so, his head moved very fast for his liking, so he let out a small plaintive moan, he could hear Pearl laughing in a low voice, Cleo snorting amused, and BigB let out a sigh, it was BigB who was next to speak, He was short and full of worry so he decided to try to concentrate "Please just let Etho take you home, I'm sure your bed is much more comfortable than my sofa."

That's actually it sounded great, he missed his bed and he really wanted to sleep, so he shook his head up and down slowly, his face is hidden between the big fluff of Etho's vest and the union of the neck and shoulder of it, that kept away light trying to go through his eyelids, that and that was warm, he went from wanting to get into a tub of thread to wanting to cover himself with a bunch of sheets.

That probably wasn't right "It's okay Bud, let's take you home." True, Etho is driving because he can barely stay awake, even so, he tried to move away to at least try to walk, but, l-look you can not blame him for the scared scream he let out, the first thing he knows is that he is trying to walk and the next his feet have left the ground, he took a long time embarrassed between laughter from his four friends so that his brain processed what was happening.

Etho was carrying him in bridal style, out of sheer spite he unbalanced his weight as much as he could, but the idiot had the nerve to laugh, he was not in the mood, he was tired and wanted to sleep, so he hid his face just like a few moments ago and closed his eyes, he could hear BigB talk about something with Etho, I also hear a couple of footsteps clearly belonging to Cleo and Pearl coming out of the office as they said goodbye.

He don't hear much more of that, he has finally fallen asleep after many interruptions, or at least assumes that he slept, had a small moment of clarity in the passenger seat of his own car, was wearing Etho's vest as a blanket, no complaint, was comfortable and warm and within seconds was out once again.

That was at least 4 hours ago, and Etho, who let BigB know that he would stay at Joel's house to take care of him because he lived alone, was regretting his actions, now, they are not strangers at all, they are friends, in truth, difficult not to be when they had to live together for almost 2 years, it had not been his intention for both to end up that way, but Bdubs was already living with Ren and Impulse so he really could not stay for

long, he does not know how he ended up at Joel's door or how exactly he found his address.

But when they least realized they were living peacefully under the same roof, none had talked much to each other before that, at best they were acquaintances, at worst they were just two strangers in the same group of friends, they got along better than they thought they would, Joel even let him choose between the two unused rooms.

Before long his room looked almost the same as his old apartment, except that he had much more space than before, it was a bit funny actually, the reason why he was kicked out of his old apartment building, some idiot had been stealing from the same floor he lived on, The neighbors for some reason that even today does not understand began to label him as the thief.

He was evicted days later, and even when they caught the real thief and offered him back, he didn't, he wouldn't have done it even if someone was paid the damn rent, he was happy living with Joel thank you very much, or he was until he found a new apartment, Joel even helped him move in.

He's getting very sidetracked, isn't he? He really can't help it, he hasn't been at Joel's house for quite a while "2 or 3 years maybe?" sounds like a short time when he says it out loud, although it feels like a lot more time has passed, it's not like he doesn't see Joel often, they work in the same place and while they're not from the same section, Their lunches are usually at the same time.

Joel denies it, but Etho knows that something changed between them the moment he leave the house, the talks, lunches and group outings are not uncomfortable at all, but they certainly did not talk as much as Etho would like, the first weeks Joel was tense around him, as if he were walking on fine ice, One misstep and it would fall into the deep, dark icy waters, at least that's how he described it after speaking for hours days later.

He's swerving again, he really needs to get out of his head if he wants to properly take care of Joel, Joel, who is in his bedroom sleeping while he's in the living room, a living room that has a neatly carved dark wood coffee table instead of the old glass one that once stood in place, he wonders if Joel would finally let him eat in the living room without fear that he might break the thing by dropping his hands hard while watching TV.

He almost gave the poor man a heart attack the first time it happened, they stopped eating in the living room and instead chatted during meals in the dining room, even on the kitchen island, watching movies that Joel knew would cause strong emotions, he would keep him in place by lying on him or holding his hand.

He miss living with Joel, even today sometimes expects Joel to enter the kitchen in the mornings with his hair disheveled to order a cup of black coffee, he had always found it endearing, for someone who has been working in a coffee shop for years he had horrible tastes.

He really should see how Joel is, so he finally gets off the couch, has given him pills before he went back to sleep, although it did not sit well with him, Joel barely and had been fully aware of what he was taking, it almost felt like he was drugging someone.

He shakes his head in an attempt to get out of his head, goes upstairs with a glass of water in hand, he doesn't know when he takes it, but he doesn't care much, when he opens the door he can see Joel's head sticking out a little under the covers and his vest, oh... Right, Joel had refused to return it even in the delirious state it was in and Etho was unwilling to fight a sick man over a jacket he would get back tomorrow.

Or he hopes to get it back tomorrow, but whatever, he leaves the glass on the bedside table and takes Joel's temperature, the medicine has given it has lowered the temperature, but not quite, Etho watches as his friend gets completely under the covers, it's a bit cute actually, he never saw Joel sick beyond a little flu or a cough, It usually faded completely with 1 or 2 pills or a little syrup.

He's never seen Joel this way, he doesn't know if he should do anything besides wait for him to wake up, maybe make shiro-miso soup? Maybe he should, Joel always radiated joy when he told him they would have shiro-miso for dinner, maybe even some orange juice? No, Joel hates orange juice.

Apple juice will be then.

#trafficshipping #smalletho #boat boys #ethoslab #joel smallishbeans #trafficblr #Last life

35 notes · View notes

fxirysforesight · 7 months

Note

Hi! Thank you so much for doing the compatibility game for me!

The results were interesting for me, and I didn't expect some of them... for example, Hongjoong is my ult bias, but astrologically we're the least compatible? I know his mars is exactly conjunct my sun, and I read that might be a difficult placement, but damn... 😂

Also Mingi, who's my other Ateez bias, is twice on the list, so I don't know if I should be glad we're compatible, or start analyzing why I'm not compatible with by biases? 😭

Txt was on point really. My bias is yeonjun, but Hueningkai might be the most attractive to me out of the group (respectfully, of course, because he's a few years younger than me ✋🏼)

In svt, my biases are scopus and hoshi, so I think it makes sense... Gemini stelliums might be nice as friends for me, but for a partner it might be too much 😂

Exo was a shocker though, because Kai is my fav? And I kinda have a weak spot for cancer boys so I wouldn't have imagined he'd be last 😭

I wanted to ask, seeing all these results, which group do you think I'm most compatible with, overall? I was actually a die-hard stay before finding ateez, and the way they stole me was just insane. My theory is that it was because of all the water in their charts (I do have cancer 4H and Scorpio 8H, after all), while Skz don't have a lot of water placements

Also, if it's not too much, I was curious out of all the "most compatible" idols in this list, who do you think I'd be the most compatible with?

Again, thank you so much, I love your content! 💕

Hi! You're very welcome, I'm glad you liked it! <3

So when I do the compatibility readings, I don't really do it as "most compatible to least compatible", I really try to arrange it so that it's more of a "most compatible ROMANTICALLY to least compatible romantically" so when someone is at the bottom of the list it doesn't meant that you aren't compatible per se, it just means that you guys would be better off as friends or colleagues than lovers!

So, I will explain my choices! Starting with Ateez.

So with Hongjoong, it isn't that you guys aren't compatible, it's just that the polarity of your natal charts are completely opposite. You've got a lot of Fire and Air, which would Square Hongjoong's Scorpio Stellium. However, I think the reason why you like him so much is because that Stellium falls into your 8th House. Not only is it comfortable there on his end, but for you, it draws you to him. Also, your Leo Stellium consisting of your inner planets is in his 1st House!

Mingi was at the top of the list for you (I did NOT mean to put him up there twice I'm so sorry about that!) But I put him first for a couple of reasons. You have a Leo Moon and Mingi has a Leo Sun. Even if they aren't in conjunction they are in the same sign, and the same sign affinity works just as well. Additionally, your Leo Moon, Venus and Mars would be right on his Leo Sun. Your planets of emotions, romance, and passion would fall on his planet of inner being. Also, You have a Virgo Sun and Mingi has a Virgo Venus. Your aspect chart would look a little something like this;

Leo Moon x Leo Sun

Leo Venus x Leo Sun

Leo Mars x Leo Sun (This aspect is in fact not TOO bad, it represents an intense physical connection, producing excitement and chemistry but also irritation and annoyance. Conjunctions are polarizing aspects, you could get either or both of these outcomes. It all depends on how strong these planets are in both of your charts)

Leo Sun x Libra Mercury

Virgo Sun x Virgo Venus

Virgo Sun x Cancer Moon

Virgo Sun x Cancer Mercury

Virgo Sun Scorpio Mars

Leo Sun x Aries Rising (Also in your 5th House where the Sun feels at home)

Speaking of planets feeling at home, one of the reasons why Mingi was first was because you have a natural chart. Because you're an Aries Rising, all of the signs are naturally at home in your chart because they are in the houses that they rule. All of his placements (specifically his Cancer placements) would find purchase in your chart because they fall into the houses they rule! That's also why you have a soft spot for Cancer placements. They fall into your 4th House! They likely make you feels safe, comfortable, and at home when you're with them!

The only thing I was concerned about was your Mercury signs. Obviously water and air do not mix. However, Mingi is a Sagittarius Rising, which would put your Libra Mercury in his 5th House which can lessen the tension with communication.

Now for Exo;

Chen was first because of a natural affinity in your natal charts. You both share a Sun sign as well as a Venus Sign, so at your core your morals and ethics are compatible as well as your love styles. Now Chen does have two Cancer placements in his chart which may not seem like it goes well with your chart, but it could work. You have little to no water or earth in your chart. So it was a little hard to do this with Exo because they all have quite of bit of water and earth in their charts, but I settled on Chen being first because His Cancer Moon and Mars would be really good for your Virgo Sun and the aspects to your Sun would make up for the lack of planet to planets aspects.

Additionally, His Libra Venus and Mercury would fall into your 7th House without overpowering it with too much energy. Chen has the aspects in his chart that you lack, without creating too much disharmony but just enough so that you two are constantly growing with each other instead of getting bored in a stagnant relationship.

I put Kai last because of this reason. Whereas your synastry with Chen creates just enough friction to keep you both interested in each other, your synastry with Kai creates TOO much friction that would begin to be a little stressful to both of you. His Capricorn Stellium would end up in your 10th House, and that is an all work no play placement right there. Additionally, His Capricorn Stellium would be right on your Virgo Sun, and his Aquarius placements would be Opposite your Leo Stellium. While this is actually a good aspect to have, the lack of emotional groundwork would make this a very magnetic and passionate relationship, but not a stable one.

As for which group you'd be compatible with overall; Ateez. They have a really good mix of all of the elements in their chart. Enough to create tension, stimulating growth and advancement, while also being passionate and fun. (Also, Ateez has an 8th House Stellium in their Group Chart which may be the reason they have such a hold on you! It falls in your 8th house. And their Aries Moon is in your 1st House.)

Out of the most compatible idols; Huening Kai

I'm glad you enjoyed it! And thank you so much! <33

#🍓 fairytalks

2 notes · View notes

tonispencerart · 8 months

Text

Site-Specific Art: Human Life As Theatre

OK, so I had a whole other thing planned, but I forgot to bring my USB wotsit with pretty much all of my artwork saved on it, so I'm having to improvise with what's actually on my laptop right now. And so, I present to you, the four little portraits I did as part of the site-specific project I did. It is - as the title says - about the idea of Human Life as a Theatre Performance. For inspiration for this, I was taken by surprise during the Christmas break towards the end of 2022 when someone suggested I watch 'Will' which was on Amazon because it's supposed to be about William Shakespeare. If you've been paying attention, you'll know that Shakespeare is a special interest of mine, so of course I had to watch it. I even spent money on it. There were several regrets... I'll probably talk more about those regrets another time, but I will say that while I don't hate it, I don't particularly like it, either. There are so many inaccuracies and some really, really bad creative decisions! Each image painted (bar one of them) was from a screenshot from 'Will' for very specific reasons.

This one is of a character based on Christopher Marlowe. I chose this image as a representation of writing and creating who we are. It's often an unconscious thing. Who we are in any situation depends on several things - many of them probably aren't noticed or explicit. The person you are with your parents is a whole other 'you' to the person you are with your friends, your partner, your colleagues... Even total strangers see a different act or version of 'you'.

In any and every situation and with any audience we have, we're someone else - acting accordingly. The clothes we wear, the way we move, the language we use, our tone of voice, our reactions, etc are all manufactured and adapted to each audience. And most of it is learned.

Who are we when there's no audience to perform for?

In this scene, Marlowe is trying to write and whatever he's creating, in this moment, he's frustrated because - to him - it's not good enough. He's trying to force it, to make something great, but by force, not letting it come naturally. This is perhaps the result of pressure from potential patrons, and the pressure put on himself by himself. He feels inadequate as a writer and, possibly, as a person. What does that say about all of us? Do we feel - at least some of the time - not worthy or 'good enough' for our audience, whoever they are?

This one was chosen as a representation of putting on a costume and putting on a mask (in this instance, makeup). How we behave depends on our audience and what's expected of us for that audience.

Live theatre - especially in a time before microphones and lighting, etc were even invented or widely used - is big. Everything is exaggerated, over the top. From the costume, movements, and speech and projecting voices - everything is bigger than 'reality'.

But there's the physical act of looking the part. Wearing the appropriate costume.

And so much of human life involves some degree of acting.

This one was chosen to represent the way we hide ourselves and hold ourselves back. It's a bit of a tongue-in-cheek joke for me, too. The 'shushing' gesture is a bit too literal, perhaps, but in a way, it works!

Sometimes the performance of being human is for ourselves. And sometimes - perhaps more frequently than we're aware of, and it probably happens more frequently than any of us might admit - we hide parts of us, our personality, and the act is outward while simultaneously being something else in our minds.

That sounds weird. I think what I'm trying to say is that humans say one thing and at the same time, our thoughts are the opposite.

The image also represents our inner selves. How often do we hold back exactly what we want to say? How often do we stop ourselves from doing something because of how it looks to our audiences or how we'll be perceived if we do? I'm not suggesting these things are bad, they're just Human.

This portrait was based on a stylised image of William Shakespeare, taken from a book cover ('Shakespeare' by Bill Bryson).

Everyone recognises Shakespeare, right? Every known and recognisable image of William Shakespeare is based on a single painting known as the Chandos Painting.

But what if I told you that we don't even know if it is of William Shakespeare in the first place? We don't even know who painted it, but it has been attributed to John Taylor. The supporting evidence that it is Shakespeare is that it could have been painted during Shakespeare's lifetime - in fact, it's probably the only known one that could have that exists.

He - whoever he was - was also painted wearing black fabric which would have been very expensive at the time. Making fabric that dark would have cost a lot of money, and by the late 1590s, Shakespeare was a very wealthy man. In the Chandos painting, he's also shown wearing an earring, which tells us that he was 'bohemian' - meaning that he was a 'socially unconventional' person, and it was popular among people involved in the arts.

What I wanted to do with this portrait was play into the idea that we might not know what he looked like and that the image we have of him has the potential to be inaccurate.

Sometimes humans - and human life - is not always the way it appears. Sometimes things are interpreted in a way that might not be real... and sometimes this is intentional.

The way we present ourselves to others and the details we might share with others about circumstances and situations we face might be presented in a way that's not quite truthful. And sometimes we just interpret things wrong altogether. I also included a few slices painted with some quotes from Shakespeare's plays and made some tiny quill pens from little goose feathers. Some of them even worked, though not very well. And I made some big quills from some huge goose feathers. They also worked, though I need to practice both cutting the nib and writing with them. Thankfully, I have plenty to work with! I'll share some of the photos from the installation itself when I have them again. I actually really enjoyed painting these. I relearned how to mix and paint skin tones with acrylic paint. It's amazing what you can learn in a few minutes on YouTube! I have a complicated relationship with acrylic paint but doing this project, I found that I quite like it, although it's an absolute b**ch to blend! And I finally understood priming and how gesso became my new best friend. What do you think?!

#art #fine art #traditional art #christopher marlowe #william shakespeare #human life as theatre #will tnt #shakespeare #marlowe #kit marlowe #jamie campbell bower #jamie bower #theatre

2 notes · View notes

jinxthejubilee · 10 months

Note

I just recalled a answered ask you did where you said Joe would most likely be the perfect match for MS if either of them would have someone, and purely based off a world where PS and Dal aren't the only ones to fall in love (and Hock and Veil lets be real-) in the line of work, how would their relationship bloom? I kind of see them meeting before in the past since in myth canon Hades is Ursula's uncle?? It's kind of like how I see MS and Farja meeting before since Hades and Jafar are friends

That's a really good question, actually. I personally don't see them knowing each other beforehand, though that is a decent idea. And I don't see them ACTUALLY getting together in canon, but if we were to run with the idea, I feel like it would look something like this:

Their Personalities 🐙 ➕️ 🔥

Starting off with the basics, these two hardly interact at first. They're both pretty distant and aloof.

But they do have certain things in common:

They're both hard workers but pretty apathetic to the world around them.

They both can't stand their bosses (although in different ways).

They're both sarcastic and see the world through a negative lens.

Finally, they both have the potential to grow and find their humanity.

Now, what exactly do I mean by "humanity"?

Well, my interpretation of Ms. Hades has her as a creation of Hades himself. Someone who doesn't fully understand humans and life in general, having been surrounded by death for thousands of years.

Joe, on the other hand, has lost his passion and zest for life after he signed away his freedom to Ursula. He sees no point in chasing after dreams that died a long time ago.

However, that could change.

Bonding 💞

It's not your typical cutesy romance like Dalma and Pretty Scar. It starts off slow and is mostly seen in the background. Think Rigby and Eileen from Regular Show.

MH would most likely find Joe slaving away at his paperwork. She probably wouldn't help him the first few times. If you've ever seen her on the stage show, she's more inclined to just let people do what they want.

But that doesn't last long. It's affecting his health, and in the long term, it would become a much larger problem for the others to deal with, so she decides to help him.

Joe is fairly reluctant to have her help him, seeing as he's not too comfortable around women, but he respects her enough to allow her to assist.

This just develops into a thing they do almost every night, regardless if there's actual work to be done.

Eventually, he becomes more comfortable around her and will likely explain his grievances with Ursula. Likewise, MH will complain about Hades and the unfairness she and Joe experience.

Over time, they open up about their pasts, share stories, what their respective worlds are like, share some wine or early morning coffee, it becomes less of a colleague relationship and more a friendship.

They enjoy each other's presence. And that's a gift in and of itself. They've actually found someone that they can be at peace around.

MH often wants to experience different things and allows Joe to get out of his comfort zone at a reasonable level.

Joe, meanwhile, will go out of his way to help her in any way he can. Whether that be paperwork, replacing her old and possibly burned fans, or protecting her from outside threats.

That last one goes both ways, especially since Joe, at first, was a nervous wreck when confronted by a threat. He would hide behind MH and Malfie mostly. But as he got more confident in himself, he now uses his tentacles to shield whoever is near him. It's subtle, and he would deny it if anyone asked, but it's a sign that he cares. And he does it a lot around MH.

Overall 💗😌💗

They never say it out loud. But that doesn't mean that they don't acknowledge it.

Again, it's a very slow burn. They're mature people. They're not the wild, crazy, and lovey dovey types. But they realize that love can actually be achieved by people like them.

It's a love woven in respect, peace, admiration, and care. They are each other's hearths. Someone to go home to after a long day.

Which makes it all the more heartbreaking that they have to leave each other to go back to their respective worlds. Or, so you would think.

They would miss each other, yes, but that wouldn't be the end of things. After they play out their movie's plots, the adventures continue still.

They join with their fellow recruiters in helping one another out if something goes wrong in their world.

They might go back to Disneyland/the normal realm to visit.

Heck, if this is playing by Kingdom Hearts or Descendants rules, then their worlds could be interconnected in some way. It wouldn't be impossible to seek each other out.

In the meantime, however, they would send notes and gifts to each other regularly. Nothing extravagant, but very sweet and special.

I might make an actual page out of this one day, but this will suffice for now. Hope this answers your question!

5 notes · View notes

whats-wild-to-you · 1 year

Note

can I request for a scenario where jay and y/n are friends but they both want to date eachother but don’t know how to tell eachother?

I love your work please continue writing beautiful content 🫰🏼

Awww 😍 for some reason this makes me think of 2014/15 Jay … he was constantly with his AOMG hyungs … and they gave him ‘valuable’ relationship advice 🤣🤣__________________________________________

"I'm telling you, listen to me. This is what girls want!" You concluded your monologue, looking around. You were met with baffled faces and incredulous expressions. No one doubted that you always gave good advice, although no one has ever seen you with a guy.

Kiseok was always the first to bring this up. "If you're so sure about it, why are you still single?"

"I choose to!" It was only partially true. The whole truth was that you had a huge crush on Jay. But your chances were zero. At first you would distract yourself by going on dates. No matter if it was a colleague, a neighbor or a blind date, out of politeness you didn't turn anyone down. Next to Jay though, they all fell short. No one could compare to him. In your mind you knew exactly what kind of boyfriend he was. Loyal, courteous, protective, supportive and a little bit possessive too. Strangely enough you never saw him with a girl either.

'His standards must be sky-high.', you thought, and that only made you want him more.

"Why though?" Sunghwa doubled down.

"I- I don't know. Besides, we're not talking about me here!"

"Why are you changing the subject?"

"I'm not. You are!" You grabbed your stuff, ready to leave, when Jay entered the room.

"Already leaving?" He said with a pout. It made you stop and reconsider. Would the other guys grow suspicious? Would they start silly rumors? Yes. And yes!

"I have to get back to work."

"Haven't seen you in a while. You must be very busy." Jay said, lightly patting your hair, putting you knee-deep in friendzone territory.

'What were you expecting? He clearly sees you as a younger-sister-type friend!'

"Bye." You waved at the group as you left.

"Bro! Why do you always treat y/n like a yeodongsaeng? I told you she likes you!" Hyukwoo protested.

"You don't have any proof of that! y/n is friendly with everybody, you're just mistaking it for interest. Plus, why would I listen to you? You can't even confess to your crush!"

"Ouch, that hurt. But it's true!" Sunghwa snickered. "Now everybody go, Jay and I need to work on a song."

After everybody left, Sunghwa turned to Jay. "He's right though, y/n really likes you. Everybody can see that! Don't tell me you haven't noticed?"

He sighed, slumping down onto his swivel chair. "Did you just call me dense? Of course I noticed!"

"Then why aren't you saying something?"

"Remember a month ago when she said her parents and brother were coming to visit so she didn't come to my album release after party?"

Sunghwa nodded, motioning for him to keep going.

"I ran into her that day, when she was out with her family. I hardly recognized her. They came out of a café and I was walking behind them for a while. She looked so different, dressed different, behaved different. Her parents looked so sophisticated and dignified, and her brother looked like royalty. They didn't look like people who would approve of her daughter dating someone like me." He finished, pointing at himself.

"Whoa! Jay." Sunghwa began as he looked at his friend, his eyes full of concern.

He was wearing mismatched socks, a pair of comfortable, old, ripped jeans and a Spongebob sweater. "There's nothing wrong with you! And y/n likes you just the way you are. If you keep treating her like 'one of the boys', she's going to eventually find a guy who will treat her like a princess. Just ask her out already!”

"Should I?"

"Text her, ask her what she's doing later tonight."

Eventually Jay gave in and texted you, asking you if you wanted to hang out. Your response came so fast, it made Jay chuckle and a million butterflies danced inside his stomach.

He blinked twice when he saw you approaching and for a moment he forgot how to breathe. Initially he wanted to pick you up but you told him you had somewhere to stop and would meet him at the bar.

And although you typically didn't dress girly, a nice dress, a pair of high heels and some makeup made a huge difference. Even you noticed you didn't look like yourself anymore.

"Are the others joining us later?"

It took Jay a minute to process your words.

"It's just us two tonight."

Your lips curved upwards at Jay's words as the waiter took your order.

"Actually-"

"The reason I-"

Both of you laughed nervously when you realized you spoke up at the same time.

"You first." Jay insisted but suddenly you were frightened, trying to figure out what it was he wanted to say.

"I was going to say that I think it's nice to enjoy a quiet evening by ourselves for once. The boys can be pretty loud sometimes."

"I agree. So you don't think this is weird?"

You shook your head vehemently, beaming at Jay. But your plan backfired. Instead of making him feel at ease he now looked even more stressed.

"I know I texted you to hang out but honestly I would rather call this a date."

The words spilled out of Jay's mouth before he could stop himself. He waited in agony for your response, assuming the worst.

"I'm glad you said this. You're the only person I would go on a date with."

"Same here." Jay added, smiling sheepishly. You reached across the table and put your hand on top of his, making his smile widen even more.

#jay park #park jaybum #more soju please #park jaebum #park jaebeom #ask request #ask response #send me asks #ask me anything #asks open #anon ask #anon request

4 notes · View notes

042502 · 23 days

Text

My Classmate // M. Sturniolo x Reader.

SYNOPSIS: You and Matt are classmates, you considered him a new friend, but little by little you are noticing new feelings for a caress during classes. WARNINGS: Teenage romance, high school romance, friends in love, physical contact, exaggeration of everything, too saccharine, fluffy content, soft, and everything cute. NOTES: My first language is not English, so if you find any grammatical errors you already know why :) MASTERLIST!!

It was a cold Thursday morning, classes at the institute were becoming busier due to the approach of the weekend, but to my bad luck my Thursdays were a double shift. I hated the person who was so bad as to put up the double shift on a Thursday.

Upon entering my class I noticed that I was the first in my group to arrive, even so there were some other students already present, I settled into my seat and seconds later some friends arrived, all except my benchmate.

The door opened again and I expected it to be my partner, but instead it was Matt who entered the room.

He was a cute boy, I'm not going to lie, although our school strongly requested that we wear a boring uniform, Matt was in charge of showing it off in the best way possible, and sometimes he didn't even respect it one hundred percent.

Matt took his place a few meters behind me, apparently my partner wasn't coming today. The class had started, it was about history, it was honestly an interesting class, except that the teacher had such a boring voice that it made me sleepy just hearing him read the book.

The two hours of history class finally ended, but that meant that Biology class began.

I had my body on my desk, my eyes were closed, I could still hear the conversation of my friends who were sitting in front of me. I would have gladly joined the talk, but I was so lost in a dream, I guess it was the effect of history classes.

Suddenly I felt like the chair that was empty next to me is occupied, I open my eyes and see Matt, he had an amused expression on his face.

I couldn't exactly define the relationship I had with him, I mean, we weren't friends, but we weren't friends either, close is saying something that we aren't and I think we could say that we are colleagues who get along well.

The teacher came in and told us what today's class would be about, respiratory system, I had already lost count of the times we have had classes on this.

The teacher began to read us the book and the definitions of the respiratory system, Matt had his back to me as he paid attention to the teacher's words.

The windows were hit by raindrops, it was quite cold in the room, my hands sought warmth and took refuge in Matt, I hugged his body, leaving my chest against his back and my hands found themselves in front of his chest.

Matt had a pencil between his fingers that belonged to me, he didn't move or do anything about my proximity. I took the laces of that sweatshirt he was wearing, my head rested on his left shoulder and a few seconds later he let his head rest on mine.

I was immersed in the professor's reading that I didn't realize at what moment Matt had caught my hand in his, he was giving it gentle caresses, giving it light squeezes, and then continuing to caress my skin.

When the class ended I couldn't stop thinking about the situation that just happened, how close it was, it felt so intimate. I couldn't get my head around what had happened.

There was only one last class left, before I can continue wandering in my thoughts, the teacher was present, she told us that today we would only read the book, so she did not order us to put away all our belongings. She also asked if anyone in the class wanted to offer to read.

One of my classmates offered to do it, her voice was so delicate and soft, this wasn't helping me stay awake. I settle on the table, but still keep my eyes open in a last attempt to stay awake.

Then I felt a weight on my back, it was Matt who leaned on me. The reading continued and we remained in that position.

"Well, we can leave the chapter there" the teacher concludes the reading. "Before we leave, I wanted to read you a text..."

He stood up to read it, Matt and I rejoined. The teacher began to walk towards the back of the room. I turned my body so I could see the teacher, she began to read the first words and in a brief moment I could tell that it was a romantic text, it couldn't fit better with the day, seriously.

Matt's arms surround my waist and he was looking for my hands so he could caress them as he had done during the previous class. I could feel my heart beating desperately, if it continues like this my heart will probably explode. The contact is broken thanks to the vibration of his cell phone. The teacher finished reading and gave us permission to leave.

I was walking down the stairs when Matt caught up with me and walked down beside me.

"Will you go home or go to the double shift?" It was cold, but my mother won't come to pick me up until the last hour.

"I would like to go home, but my mother won't come looking for me." I grimace in a failed attempt to smile.

Finally we left the establishment, Matt saw a gray car and approached it, I saw how the window rolled down and a woman spoke to him, he nodded and then approached where I was, waiting for him.

"Apparently I'm going home" They had come to pick him up "Did he reach your house?" I was surprised, Matt lives passing by my house, I didn't know what to say to him.

"I don't know..."

"Let's go".

He didn't take my hand without thinking and started walking towards the vehicle. He opened the back door and we both entered, in front was an older man driving and a woman who was beautiful, I suppose it was his parents, seconds later he confirmed it to me, they are very nice. Like Matt, his parents are lovely.

They left me at the door of my house, I thanked them and once I showered and dressed, I took my cell phone and sent them a text message.

"Thanks for bringing me" I sent the message to Matt.

He didn't take long to respond to me.

"It's nothing ❤" He smiled and put my cell phone on my nightstand.

NOTES: Remember to hit the heart and share it with your friends! Thanks for reading^^

#matt sturniolo #sturniolo triplets #matt sturniolo x reader #matt sturniolo x you #matt sturniolo fluff #matt sturniolo smut #matthew sturniolo #matt x reader #matt sturniolo fanfiction #matthew bernard sturniolo #matt sturniolo imagine #matt sturniolo oneshots #sturniolo #the sturniolo triplets #triplets Sturniolo #sturniolo x reader #sturniolo x you

147 notes · View notes

bitsoft360reviews · 8 months

Text

Bitsoft360 Reviews | Legit Or Scam | UK 2023

It is quite low risk. In the face of that, that's not up to you. It was a clear solution. Bitsoft360 is also one, as this enhances your Bitsoft360 Review. This is neither here nor there or what's more, we don't have to do something with it ourselves. I have a strong hold on my Bitsoft360 Review. It could be difficult for you to discover a fabulous Bitsoft360 Review that can't require some work. When you are completed reading this detailed article, you'll comprehend exactly what I mean.

The reason is obvious. Then what do they do? Too bad it doesn't work quite well. We're always well intentioned. This is all cut and dried. When noobs get involved in this opinion, that just isn't enough. That is your fair warning. That's the occasion to fill in many of the blanks. I thought it was good. It was the last straw. It's just coming out of the woodwork. He who has the gold, rules.They're overwhelmed. For a variety of reasons, I made this decision. Please give them a chance.

I know that sounds crazy but you have to try it. When the rubber meets the road I should bypass it as little as humanly possible. Even when they did launch a Bitsoft360 forum, they did so slowly. Their metamorphosis can look legendary. This week I took a look at a couple of options for colleagues who may want to get using this. This is how to make greenbacks working online with your Bitsoft360. Every day before I end my work I do these things with that malarkey.

Using it might be the evil of two lesser. Call me stupid, I just learned through a friend relevant to that picture but also in this installment I'm taking on doing that. I just might want to see some change. You want every edge you can get. I have several advanced Bitsoft360 equipment. Adepts are constantly contacting me by email looking for that assignment. This is an open case. This is a large amount. What might you do when that happens to you? It is just a fad.

It moment changed everything. Finally, that wasn't so terrible, was it? Although I'm using your opinion as an example, note this points I make apply to the project too. That's the moment to upgrade again. I sensed that they would be decent reminders for what I'm doing. Aren't you prepared? No Bitsoft360 is complete without a Bitsoft360 Reviews. It is one of the keys to this gambit.

That can be tricky because many Bitsoft360 things do not look so hot. That's easier said than done, isn't it? That is my first line of defense. The results won't leave you in doubt about how impressive it is. I enjoy working for my confidant. This is a disturbing development. For the most part, I'm in tha house. You can actually learn from your previous mistakes. That should be a good lead in for that info.re or less, you don't presume having this will matter either way? For certain, why?

Visit Here ==> https://bitsoft360-review.com/

=> https://goodhealthplatform.blogspot.com/2023/08/bitsoft360-reviews-trading-platform-2023.html

#Bitsoft360

1 note · View note

bellaslilpapercut · 3 years

Note

Brooo this Bad Art Friend situation puts such a bad taste in my mouth. Both of these women sound insufferable in their own way, but there's something really uncomfortable about the way race dynamics entered the equation. I think I understand the direction Larson was taking with her story, and in another context it would be an amazing subject, but I find it really disingenuous of her to claim that she was writing about something "bigger" than Dorland when her comments in the group chat suggest that she projected this whole white savior thing specifically onto Dorland's self-congratulatory, but ultimately race-neutral organ donation. (Then again, I'm white, so I might be doing the exact thing she was talking about where white people and people of color essentially talked past each other in her class.)

I was pissed off by Larson's comparison of being "inspired" by Dorland's posts about her kidney donation to being inspired by a neighbor watering petunias. That's such obvious bullshit to me -- the two things, a life-altering surgery versus a household chore, aren't at all equivalent. Obviously aren't equivalent, because no one writes a fucking cringe letter to their geraniums whenever they turn on the hose. Like, I get it, I know exactly the kind of obnoxious Dorland was probably being on social media, but it doesn't excuse Larson's weaseling around the plagiarism issue. I understand the resistance to having a white person claim an artist of color somehow "owes" credit to them -- broadly, that's a really good point and important concern, but in this case, there would have been no story without Dorland, and especially Dorland's letter.

She's all "It's not about Dawn, I don't care about Dawn," but Larson was obviously hashing out some intense feelings and ideas using Dorland as her punching bag. Which would be absolutely fine...except then she went and published it, and to me the inherent spite undermines what could be valuable messages about race and class. This shit is just embarrassingly petty.

Oooh yea fully agree! I think Sonya knew exactly what she was doing too bc some of the stuff she tells the article author directly contradict stuff she said in the group chat (brilliant writing on the authors part to arrange that the way he did, side note). Like she knew Dawn was "kooky" and called her a gold mine!! Like she knew she wanted to mine this specific vaguely unhinged woman for content and even the other writers in the GC were like "I'm glad you worked your dawn takedown into something that can actually mean something" but dawn starting a private FB page for what she thought were friends and colleagues so she could share her journey, like as kooky as that is, it isn't like "classic white women TM" and was clearly very specific to dawns bizarre schtick of empathy obsession. (also side note i hate that a lot of conversations miss that whiteness behaviorally doesn't exist, you can't act white! It's in how other people react to you. Anyone can play the victim but white women are the ones who have that victim complex nourished. It's weird to me to see anything in dawns actions getting framed as like an Inherently White Thing lol).

I definitely wouldn't wanna meet either woman though. Dawn fully went into online stalker mode, sued for a ridiculous amount of money, and was the one who had this article written instead of heading to r/AITA lol. I think Sonya and the group chat are meanspirited and disingenuous though and that if Sonya had just had a smidgen of shame when dawn was messaging her frantically about the fiction piece- like enough to maybe...delete the fucking plagiarized letter from the piece!- then this could have been avoided. Also could have been avoided if dawn didn't feel the need to message people who didn't like her FB posts! There was never a point in the whole article where I was like "ah yes a decision that makes sense" it was just constant escalation lmfao.

#answered #troquantary #long post #not twilight #bad art friend

96 notes · View notes

mooniefics · 3 years

Text

— first impressions

pairing : zeke jaeger / fem reader / reiner braun

word count : 7.5k

tags : sorta fluff (i can’t help myself i love reiner), eventual smut, threesome (f/m/m), situational humiliation, one night stand, spitroasting, drunk + unsafe sex

warnings : nsfw, mild sexual coercion

summary : a chance meeting between you and reiner leaves you enjoying an evening with the warriors upon their much anticipated return from the war. but doing your new friends a favor leads to a night you'll never forget.

— originally posted 12 / 22 / 20 on ao3 —

"reiner! is that really you?!"

you stood quickly from your place at the booth, unable to stop yourself from scrambling up to the small group of soldiers, who were all looking down at you with a mixture of confusion and amusment.

"you didn't tell us you had a girlfriend back home, braun." the dark-haired woman to his right teased, earning a crossed frown from your friend.

"not my girlfriend." he muttered, ignoring their chuckles as he turned his attention back to you, "i haven't changed that much in a few months, have i?"

you sighed, a relieved grin breaking out across your face as he opened his arms to you, gratefully accepting his invitation and squeezing him tight, face pressing into his shoulder. the scent of gunpowder that usually clung to him in his uniform was absent on his civilian clothes, replaced instead with the pleasant smell of fresh linen. "a few months? felt more like a whole year to me."

you stayed cognizant of the people behind him, now exchanging curious glances at the sight of their comrade's affection, the woman who'd initially teased him whispering something to the stern looking man by her side that made his expression crack into a small grin. he pulled away from you after a moment, a soft smile warming his usually sullen features, which dampened at a hand being placed on his shoulder.

"would you care to introduce us, reiner?" a low voice asked, the speaker stepping to reiner's side to get a good look at you.

you instantly recognized the man, face flushing with embarrassment as you scrambled to find your words. "c-captain jaeger! i apologize for interrupting your evening, p-please forgive-"

"nonsense." he said, holding out his hand for you to shake, "and no need for the formalities, feel free to call me zeke."

you clasped your hands gratefully around his, shaking vibrantly much to his amusement. you exchanged names with the remaining three, the tired looking but jovial woman, pieck, insisting that you join them on their night out. seeing as you had already planned to be at the old bar for the rest of the night by yourself, you had no qualms with inviting them all to fill the remaining seats of the booth you'd been occupying before they entered.

"pock here isn't much of a talker," she said after everyone got themselves situated, poking the cheek of the man she'd been whispering to earlier, "he's a little shy, but don't hold it against him."

"i thought i told you not to call me that.." he grumbled in reply, smacking away her hand and earning a small round of laughter from everyone at the table. the freshest face among them, colt, flagged down the barmaiden that was milling about the tavern floor, ordering a beer for everyone at the table with a kind smile.

"this'll be the only one for me tonight." you told him across the table after the woman had sauntered away, "i kinda didn't budget to be drinking more than one beer tonight anyways.."

"don't worry about it." you turned at reiner's voice beside you, gaze flitting down to see him thumbing through the bills in his wallet, "i'll pay for you tonight. my treat."

"nice to see that you know how to treat a lady." zeke quipped with a grin from his place on your left, earning another unreadable frown from reiner, but you could see the flush creeping up on his cheeks as a result of the implication.

before he could dismiss his friend, the barmaiden had returned, toting six mugs filled to the brim with beer on her serving platter. everyone murmured their thanks as she passed them around the table, her eyes lingered on colt before she slipped away to attend to another awaiting party.

"look at you, colt! haven't even been here for thirty minutes and you've already got the ladies swooning." pieck drawled, taking a long sip from her mug with a smile on her lips as she watched the young man stammer out an excuse.

you couldn't help but laugh along at the display, taking a generous drink of your own as you watched the conversation pick up around you. pieck seemed to be more than comfortable with everyone at the table, fueling the majority of the discussion with her playful words. porco, as she'd said, didn't seem to be much of a talker, but nodded along to what the others said, contributing a brief input when he saw fit and staying silent for the rest of the time. colt wasn't naive, but he was easy to tease, the perfect target for little jabs here and there from around the table that drew irritated, flustered protests from him and made everyone laugh.

the dynamic that had intrigued you the most was that between zeke and reiner. they didn't speak directly to the other often, mostly relaying remarks through their responses to the others, but when they did, there seemed to be an odd sort of tension between them. not exactly rivals, but not exactly friends either. they were on the same team, but there was a clear disconnect between them despite that. you felt every slight shift that reiner made when zeke addressed him, debating on whether you should request to move from your place between them for your sake or stay as a buffer for reiner's.

everyone was on their third glass—the only exception being reiner, who was nearly through his fourth—definitely loosened up though not quite drunk yet, but before you could put much thought into how you'd go about doing that, porco spoke to you for the first time. "so, how do you even know reiner?"

"oh! i'd also like to know too!" pieck piped up between sips, downing the rest of her mug in one go and resting her chin in her hands. everyone's attention had turned to you in an instant, intently waiting for your response, making your posture stiffen as you twisted your hands in your lap.

"well, it was a few years ago, when the war with the mid-east had just started ramping up." you began, tensing up the slightest bit when you felt your hand brush reiner's under the table, "i was working at the produce shop down on kaiser lane, and one day reiner came by with his mother on one of her grocery visits, she had always spoken to me about him when i was counting up her total. i asked her if this was son she was always talking about, and she said yes and introduced us. reiner looked tired," pieck giggled at that. "so i tried to hurry it up a little for his sake, and then she paid and they both went on their way. later that day i came here, and i saw him sitting alone at the counter, so i decided to sit down next to him and see if he could put up with my insufferable small talk for a little while. we ended up talking all night, and we've been great friends since then."

"well, isn't that the sweetest thing," pieck smiled warmly at you from across the table, balancing her head on one hand so could pensively drum her fingers across the wood, "if i didn't know any better, i'd say you two made a lovely couple!"

"pieck, would you stop bothering reiner." porco chided, waving a hand at your friend, "just look at him, he looks like he's one more girlfriend comment away from popping a blood vessel."

reiner grumbled out a low 'fuck you', gulping down the rest of his beer and flagging down the barmaiden as the rest of the warriors shared a hearty laugh at his expense. you yourself were similarly blushing at their constant assertions of something more between the two of you. it's not as if you hadn't mulled the idea over in your head many times before on all the previous outings you'd been on together, and the few times the two of you had gotten drunk enough to fool around a bit before one of you came to your senses and excused yourself for the night.

there were some days where you were glad you kept a modest distance between yourselves, and there were others where you wanted to do nothing more than throw all caution to the window and just enjoy one irresponsible night of doing whatever came to mind, no doubts or worries or responsibilities to get in the way, politics and the war be damned. you started to shake away those unnecessary thoughts, but zeke did a much better job of distracting you when his arm fell around your shoulders, giving you a friendly squeeze as he spoke.

"i see that even in good company, my colleagues' manners still aren't up to par," he said, directing his words at you but talking loud enough for anyone to hear, "allow me to apologize on their behalf."

"oh hush, zeke, you're the worst out of all of us!" pieck argued through her laughter, playfully kicking his shin under the table, "you're only playing nice because she's here."

her words didn't draw his attention away from your face, gleaming grey eyes intently drinking in the emotions passing over your flushed features. you laughed nervously, turning away to face the rest of the table, sneaking a glance at reiner as the barmaiden swept by to clean up the empty glasses and replace them with filled mugs. he had an irritated frown drawn across his lips, worry lines creasing his face as he gulped down half of his mug in seconds.

"look's like you're finally not the one overdoing it, huh colt?" you heard pieck whisper into the young man's ear, snickering at him when he turned away from her and huffed.

just glancing around at them all made you forget that everyone of them were living on borrowed time, that in less than a month they would most likely be shipped out on their next assignment to defend marley against any one of the neighboring nations that were just waiting to pounce at the slightest slip up. aside from reiner, they all seemed to be forgetting that fact as well in favor of just enjoying this night while it was still young.

another banter-filled hour passed, your table not noticing how the bar had been steadily emptying as closing time drew near. zeke had kept his grasp around you for the entire time, much to reiner's dismay, which was evident on his face each time you tried to coax him back into the conversation, always faltering each time zeke peered over you to repeat your question to him with a thinly veiled haughtiness. reiner had gone through more beer than anyone at the table, his flushed face and low-lidded gaze along with his slurring words letting you know just how drunk he'd really become. but aside from his borderline unpleasant exchanges with your friend, zeke was incredibly charismatic, almost overbearingly so, your own intoxication making it easy for you give in to his infectious energy and laugh along with him and everyone else at the table.

sure, you were worried about reiner, but he knew that you would always be friends at the end of the day, and you had to make a good impression on these newly introduced people who were so kind as to invite you in on one of their rare leisurely getaways from the military barracks. so you let yourself lean into zeke's side, relishing in the warmth that you'd been craving for so long—a warmth that the alcohol only made you want more and more—the break in your routine that you'd been searching for in an evening alone turning into a night that you were sure you wouldn't forget for a long time. they didn't even seem to care that you weren't an honorary marleyan, or even that you were a lowly blue-collar worker that made a measly sum at her meaningless job on a forgettable street corner.

but alas, the blissfully ignorant fun of the table's atmosphere was dampened by the arrival of the barmaiden with your table's tab, setting it down in front of colt with a coy smile as she gathered up the rest of your empty glasses and disappeared into the back of the tavern.

"aw colt, you never made your move!" pieck chided, giggling as she dug into the pocket of her skirt to reach for her wallet just as everyone else around the table was doing.

"reiner.. are you okay?" you gently nudged his arm, looking over with concern at the sight of him. his elbow was propped on the table, forehead resting in the heel of his palm as he stared down at his lap, mouth drawn into a slight frown.

"shit, he's loaded." porco commented snarkily.

"we can't let magath see him like this!" colt said nervously, looking around at his colleagues, waiting for one of them to come up with a plan to deal with this new issue.

you glanced from colt to reiner, then up at zeke, turning back to everyone as you made an offer. "well.. i have a guest room at my house, he could stay there for the night if it makes things any easier for you all."

"oh, you're an angel!" pieck sighed, reaching across the table and clasping your hands in hers, "and if the commander asks, i could say that he decided to stay with his family!!"

"sharp as always, pieck." zeke chimed from beside you, "though, i don't think it'd be fair to make her watch him all by herself, so i think it'd be best if i help her out with him for the evening, just to be sure he doesn't cause her any trouble."

he met eyes with pieck, and for a moment you thought you saw the briefest flash of realization cross her features, the slightest smirk perking up at her lips before her face relaxed back into its natural smile and she nodded at him. "great idea." she said, tugging at porco and colt's sleeves, "i'll deal with these two, and i'll tell the commander that you had a change of heart as well. reiner, hand me your wallet if you can't count the bills."

"i've got it." he grunted, fumbling with his wallet for a few moments before slamming a fistful of bills down in front of her.

"thank you very much!" she sang happily, getting all the money in order and putting her own small tip for the barmaiden before she slapped colt's arm a few times, prompting him to start scooting out of the booth.

zeke finally retracted his arm to begin leaving the booth, standing out on the floor and offering his hand out to you. you flushed, taking it and allowing him to help you to your feet. everyone got themselves situated, stepping out of the bar and saying their goodbyes, pieck, colt, and porco turning to make their way back to the barracks, zeke slinging reiner's arm over his shoulder and following you along as you gave directions on how to get to your home.

there wasn't many words exchanged between the three of you on your short walk, only having some small talk with zeke between the bouts of comfortable silence hanging around you in the warm night air. you arrived home within minutes, wrestling the key into the old lock and holding open the door for zeke to help reiner in.

"i can walk myself, jaeger." he muttered while kicking his shoes off, earning a low chuckle from the older man.

"then why aren't you doing it right now?"

he didn't get a response as you directed them to your bedroom, hoping to settle him down as soon as you could in the hopes of him being able to get enough rest to sleep off the worst parts of his hangover. while zeke assisted him, you scampered over to the guest bedroom to get it ready for your other, less intoxicated guest. but as you opened the door to the bedroom, you were mortified at the sight of your mess upon looking into the room. in the moment of wanting to do something nice for your friends, you'd completely forget about how you'd basically turned your spare room into more of a storage closet.

looking around to try and think about where to get started, hopefully make it look like you didn't completely neglect this room for the past few months before zeke finished putting his friend to bed, you felt a hand on your shoulder, stiffening in surprise as you slowly turned to look at him.

"i-i'm really sorry, i totally wasn't expecting guests tonight, and i promise i've been meaning to move everything to the basement-"

"don't worry about it, really." he stopped you before you could continue to profusely apologize, offering you another one of those warm smiles that made your knees feel weak, "let me help you, it's the least i could do after you opened your home to a couple of irresponsible soldiers." to your surprise, he brushed past you, picking up one of the many boxes that had accumulated on the bed and floor over the months. "you said you had a basement, right? would you mind showing me where it is exactly?"

unable to find your words, you pointed halfheartedly to the door at the end of the hall, watching him carry one of the few boxes that had left you panting by the time you'd transported them across the house with ease, not even having to set it down to open the door and begin descending the steps. his quick return up the steps finally spurred you into action, hauling another box into your arms and repeating his path of depositing it down in your basement and returning to your room to grab another, making sure to take it slow on your way down the steps from how heavy the alcohol made your limbs feel.

within a few minutes, you both had everything squared away. you let yourself take a seat on the now empty bed, breathing out a sigh of relief and wiping the sweat that had begun to bead around your forehead with the back of your hand, watching as he settled down next to you. "sheesh, you made all that heavy lifting look so easy! and thank you again, for doing such a generous favor for me."

"there's no need to thank me." he replied earnestly, a hand settling on your thigh, making you suppress a small flinch, "you have a lovely home, do you really live all on your own?"

you tried to laugh off the warmth of his hand on your skin through your long skirt. "y-yeah, it's just been me for a while. sometimes friends come over for the night, but for the most part, it's just me."

zeke hummed pensively, grey eyes shining with something dangerous as he gazed down at you. "makes sense that someone such as yourself hasn't found anybody qualified enough to settle down with," he grinned at your flustered expression, openly appreciating the way your eyes widened and you breathed out a soft, indecisive 'thank you', "though, i was so sure that you and reiner had something between you.."

"n-no! it's not like that." the words spilled out of your mouth before you could even think about them, the desire to answer him overriding any clear thought that might cut through your intoxicated embarrassment, "i'm sure s-soldiers such as him and yourself don't really have time to play around with people l-like me."

you mentally slapped yourself for coming to such a conclusion, let alone allowing it to actually exit your brain and be heard by the most esteemed guest you'd probably ever have the honor of hosting.

"oh?" he peered curiously at you, thumb rubbing a slow stroke over your leg, face seeming much closer than it was a few blinks ago, "and what exactly is that supposed to mean?" you knew just how intentional his word choice was, practically setting up a verbal trap for you to fall into, but how could you not take the bait when it was marley's strongest warrior dangling it before you?

"i-i-i'm sorry, s-sir— zeke!"

you scrambled to correct yourself, looking any place except his face and wanting to do nothing more than hide away somewhere where neither him nor reiner could find you to sober yourself up before you could humiliate yourself any further. but you felt the desperation that was now gripping your pounding heart start to squeeze like a vice around it when a rough hand found your chin, gently turning your head to face him again.

"again with the apologies.. what am i going to do with you?"

your bottom lip quivered, more frantic sorries threatening to spill out, but stopped by the lack of air that you were able to take in from his proximity. you hadn't even realized you were holding your breath until you felt a tight ache seize your chest, exhaling an alarmed breath as you stared up into the glinting grey irises studying your face, mirroring their actions at the tavern but containing all of the hunger he'd been hiding in front of his comrades. the hand of your thigh slid up your leg just an inch, zeke breathing out a chuckle at the feeling of you tensing under his touch.

"if you must know," his face was so close that you could even see the pale freckles dotting across his sharp cheekbones and the bridge of his nose, the shadowed contour of his face looking even deeper in the dim light of the guest room, parted lips exhaling a warm breath that fanned across your face, the scent of alcohol still evident as he slowly spoke, "a soldier such as myself can make plenty of time to play around with someone like you."

you couldn't barely contain your awe, drawing in another shaky, shallow breath at the feeling of his lips brushing across your own, just daring you to indulge in his offer. you could barely form a cohesive thought before your brain forced a new topic into your conscious, confusion and shock and abrupt desire drowning out all the rationality that you were so desperately grasping for in this moment.

you'd just met this man tonight, it didn't matter that you'd known of his grand legacy even from when you were a young girl or felt like you'd gotten to know him quite a bit in that short amount of time, you'd only shaken his hand and drank with him and sat face-to-face with him for the first time just a few hours ago. not to mention how the person you were truly familiar with, the one who wasn't nearly a decade your senior, the one you had really been yearning for was just down the hall in your bed, only two shut doors and a few thin walls away from this spectacle. but, zeke was right in front of you, and he was offering out an opportunity that was impossible to refuse—an offer that you really, really didn't want to refuse.

so you didn't. you gave in to the sinful temptation of his warmth, his skin, his soft touches with calloused, work-roughened hands, the knowledge that this kiss was only just the beginning of something unforgettable.

in contrast to his hands, his lips were soft, ridiculously soft as they pressed over yours, the fingers at your chin unfurling to cup the length of your jaw. you leaned into his touch, earning a pleased grunt from him when your trembling hand found his hair, slowly carding through it as you focused on maintaining the easy rhythm of his kiss. you stifled a small sound when the hand on your leg smoothed up to your inner thigh, not pressing any further, just gently stroking and giving the occasional squeeze to the pliant flesh through your skirt.

you could feel the light flutter in your chest heavy and knot into something familiar, twisting deep in your stomach as he sucked at your bottom lip, nipping at it before his attention wandered across your cheek, the hand at your jaw tilting your head up to expose more of your neck to his eager mouth. faint kisses gave way to teasing bites and licks, drawing a soft whimper as he sucked with the intent to bruise where your shoulder met your neck. he seemed to appreciate the way your grasp in his hair tightened, the hand on your thigh traveling across your waist to find the knotted string holding up your skirt.

the progression of his actions felt natural, but almost too fast at the same time, your hand giving an apprehensive tug to his hair when you felt the waistline of your skirt go slack with the undoing of its lacing. he groaned lowly at the sensation, spurring you to do it again when his teeth grazed over the forming redness just right. you could feel the haze of arousal fogged your mind already, all rationale dissipating under the influence of the alcohol and the hands that were now roaming your body, searching for a moment for the top button of your shirt before they began to messily undo those as well. each brush of his fingers across your bare skin sent goosebumps across the expanse of your chest, making quick work of your blouse as he pushed it over your shoulders, guiding your arms out of the sleeves before tossing it aside in favor of working on the clasp of your bra, never pulling away from his place at your neck for more than a moment before returning the bruising attention of his mouth back over the flushed skin.

you breathed out a weak whimper at the feeling of his thumb and forefinger taking one of your nipples between them, bra forgotten somewhere on the floor with your shirt, baring the entirety of your naked torso to him. he could feel how you squirmed when another hand smoothed down your stomach, slipping beneath your skirt's waistline and settling just between your legs, only a sheer barrier provided by your thin underwear, the arousal threatening to soak through the fabric leaving it clinging to every fold. he hummed appreciatively at the welcome surprise, drawing more stifled sounds out of you when his fingers slowly stroked over your clothed cunt.

"all this just for me?" he murmured lowly in your ear, thumb pressing down on your clit, rubbing slow circles over the sensitive nub.

his touch was electrifying, almost overwhelmingly good as you arched into it, the hand at your breast now groping at the supple flesh, palm offering a much-needed friction over your nipple. you finally registered his teasing question, barely managing a disoriented 'mhm' and a small nod, unable to think of anything else besides your heartbeat pounding loud enough that you though he might be able to hear, and the fingers prodded at you and teasing your body as they pleased.

your half-lidded gaze drifted to the door, blinking away the fogginess when you realized it wasn't actually properly shut. you opened your mouth to try and murmur out your observation, but the words in your head spilled out as an incoherent moan, feeling his mouth detach from your bruised neck before he urged you down onto the mattress. but the sight of him standing above you, tugging off his shirt and revealing the impressively toned physique of his stomach and chest, made you forget the ajar door behind him entirely. your hands moved without a second thought, pushing your skirt and underwear down your legs as far as you could, kicking them the rest of the way off as he began to unbuckle his belt.

you couldn't help the way your eyes widened when he shoved down his pants and underwear in one go, unable to choose between focusing your gaze on the smug smirk drawing across his lips or his achingly hard cock, already looking like more than you could handle even at a distance. he plucked his glasses off his face, setting them on the bedside table before he moved over you in bed, your hands tugging him down into a kiss and earning a low chuckle against your lips.

"eager little thing, aren't you?" he only pulled away for a moment to speak, knuckles dragging down the swell of your breast and curving down your waist. your legs spread in anticipation, back arching off the bed when his fingers finally trailed down between your thighs to smooth a finger down your pussy. "and so, so wet."

you squeaked at the intrusion of two thick fingers pumping into you, sliding in easily with a soft, wet sound. the rhythm of your lips faltered, whimpering as his tongue slid between your teeth, tangling with yours, mouth greedily swallowing every desperate sound you made for him. you were grateful for how he was muffling you, just barely remembering that there was another presence in your house besides you and zeke that you had to worry about, heat sparking up your spine at the feeling of his fingers curling just right inside you.

the thought of reiner finding you in here with the captain of his squad, so pathetically obedient and practically dripping from just his fingers, was horrifying and unnervingly thrilling all at once. would he be angry with you? why would he be? what did he even consider you as?

you couldn't dwell on that thought for too long, hips bucking and toes curling when his thumb rubbed firm circles over your clit, wordlessly begging for more. he seemed to be just as impatient as you were in the face of your desperation, pulling away from your lips and removing his touch from between your legs, rolling himself onto his back and tugging you on top of him in one swift motion. you flush even deeper as you watched him drink in the sight of your naked figure, large hands finding your hips, pupils blown wide enough to nearly swallow up the silvery grey of his irises as he eased you down so his cock was just at your aching cunt, offering a sliver of mercy by allowing you to seat yourself onto him as fast or slow as you'd like.

just the first few inches had you whimpering, hands settling on his chest to steady yourself, teeth worrying the skin of your bottom lip, trying to contain the borderline humiliating sounds that were making him grin so smugly up at you. you could feel tears pricking your eyes by the time you finally sank all the way down, deep, shaky breaths giving away your lack of composure even more so than the way the thighs on either side of him tremble, or the nails now digging into the toned muscles of his shoulders. he gave you just a moment of respite, letting you get used to the feeling of something so big before his grip on your hips fastened, fingers sinking into the soft flesh as he began to guide you up and down on his cock.

the low groan your motion earned from him was enough to make your already pounding heart race even faster, heat echoing through you in a way that made it impossible to silence the heated whines that were spilling out of you. the bed squeaked in protest beneath you, but you could care less as you quickened the pace he'd started you at all on your own, admiring the flush that had darkened over his handsome features and the parted lips breathing out low curses and appraising groans.

his eyes fell shut, head falling back before he forced it back up, gaze wandering across your face, then your body, then flitting elsewhere for the briefest moment before they returned to you, hips now thrusting up with even more vigor to meet your own. you moaned openly, struggling out a meaningless string of pleas, the ache beginning to burn in your legs drowned out when he reached out to rub tight, fast circles around your clit. he was grinning now, licking his lips before he spoke in a knowing slur, "you're gonna cum soon, aren't you?"

"yes, f-fuck yes..!" it took you a moment to find your words, embarrassed by how fast he'd managed to work you up to this point but unable to be dishonest in your current position.

his motions didn't falter in the slightest, only seeming to grow more and more urgent as you quivered and whined, bouncing yourself up and down on his cock like it was the last time you'll ever get the chance to do it. and while that's likely the case, you don't care to think about it, too wrapped up in the way you could feel that pressure that had been welling in your stomach finally reach a breaking point, stammered curses devolving into breathless cries as you came hard around him.

you could feel the movement of his hips slow significantly, still rocking up into you to let you ride out your high but not nearly enough for him to push himself over the edge along with you. but you're grateful for his mercy, knowing that if he'd continued at the pace he was going you probably wouldn't be able to walk the next morning. so you took it as a testament to his goodwill, falling forward onto his chest in a whimpering heap, trying to steady your breathing and calm your heart rate, remaining seated on his still hard cock.

you felt a strong arm wrap around your waist, the other resting across your shoulder so he could settle his hand on the back of your head, fingers working their way into your hair and gently carding through it. the attention was comforting, unexpected but definitely comforting as you pressed your face into the crook of his neck, still too hazy off of your post-orgasm bliss to have any shame about wanting to be close to his warmth. you didn't think about whether he was expecting you to get him off at some point, or if he was just content letting you rest on top of him like this, but you soon found that he had a much different answer—or rather, a question—that didn't at all take you into consideration.

"so, reiner, are you just going to stand there and watch all night?"

there was confusion for a brief moment, then a horrifying realization that made an ice-cold fear prick under your spine, blood draining from your face as you felt the fine hairs on the back of your neck raise, completely frozen at the knowledge that the worst of the night you had imagined had come true. zeke's hand didn't stop its slow petting across your head, arm fastening around your body, seemingly in preparation for you to start squirming or fighting to get away. but you couldn't move an inch, not even enough to turn your head and risk a glance at your friend who was apparently right at the door.

"well?" his voice rumbled low in his chest once more, dripping with arrogance, entirely absent of any shame, just tempting him to step past the unseen boundary that had kept him there for however long he'd been watching, "i know, i know, you haven't your fair share all night. it's just so, sohard to let go once you finally get your hands on her. you should know all about that feeling, right?"

"fuck you."

you felt a warm curl in your stomach at the sound of his voice, breathing short and fast as your heart skipped anxiously, but mentally almost enjoying the fact that he was feeling something for you, even if it was some sort of possessive envy. the sound of his heavy, uneven footsteps making their way towards the bed.

he clearly still sounded drunk—who wouldn't be after so many beers in one sitting—and that was probably why he didn't hesitate at all to start tugging his clothes off, the ruffle of fabric and clinking metal of a belt being unbuckled finally snapping out of your compliant state, shaky arms trying to push yourself in bed. zeke allowed you to sit up, hands dropping to your thighs as your foggy gaze wandered from his face over to reiner at the bedside, heartbeat nearly drowning out the other sounds in the room as it drummed loudly in your ears.

"you don't mind, do you?" zeke called your attention back to him, gently stroking up and down your thigh just as he had been when you'd first accepted his offer.

your mouth had gone dry, leaving you struggling to get enough saliva back for your tongue not to stick to the roof of your mouth, feeling the heat of arousal flickering back to life when his cock twitched inside of you. did you mind? well you definitely minded the humiliation, the anxiety taut within your chest that made each breath an effort, the fact that you had no idea what was going on or would happen next. but did you mind enough to force yourself off of him, to struggle to collect your clothes from the ground and stagger out of the room with shaky legs that you weren't sure were capable of doing even that right now? did you really want this?

but it seemed that the choice had already been made in both of their minds, your answer—or lack thereof— speaking for your choice in the matter as zeke's hands lifted you up off of his lap, enough for him to slip out from under you. the sudden emptiness after being so full made you whimper, falling back down onto your calves in the middle of the bed and staring down at zeke's cock, slick with your arousal and still aching to be tended to.

the sinking weight of reiner clambering onto the bed behind you made you exhale a shaky breath, still in disbelief as his hand settled on your cheek, turning your head to face over his shoulder to press his lips onto yours. his kiss was messy but familiar, his low moan making you shiver alongside the feeling of zeke's stare wandering across the display before him. your exchange didn't last long before he pulled away, gazing at you with an unreadable look in his golden eyes for a moment, hand moving to the back of your head to push you down onto your hands and knees.

you obediently complied, met with the sight of zeke's cock once more, peering up to meet his gaze, features showing a mixture of eager expectancy and relaxed pride, just knowing that you were willing to do whatever he asked of you. and he relished in the changes your expressions went through in the next few seconds, the way your eyes widened when reiner's hands grasped your soft hips, how you swallowed thickly to try and get enough saliva down your tongue to get your mouth ready, and finally your mouth falling open and face twisting when reiner eased himself entirely into you in one solid thrust, finding little resistance from how soaked you were. you whimpered out a shaky curse, fists bunching up the sheets under you as he picked up a steady rhythm from behind you, zeke's fingers tangling into your hair and guiding onto your parted lips onto his awaiting cock.

he groaned out at the wet heat of your mouth engulfing him, tongue laving up over the underside of his length as you did your best to take as much of him in as possible without gagging. you wanted to be ashamed of how much you were enjoying the feeling of being entirely overwhelming, fuller than you'd ever felt in your entire life, but you'd be lying to yourself if you said that you'd made a mistake by giving in to the lustful temptations. you could feel your eyes water as zeke hit the back of your throat, your teary gaze and muffled moans against him only seeming to enthrall him further. reiner's hands felt up your waist, one reaching down your front to pinch and roll a nipple between his fingers, driving more stifled sounds and shaky breaths through your nose out of you.

you felt yourself squeezing around his cock, earning yourself a few low, muttered curses as he began to pound even faster into you, evidently approaching his limit just as fast as you are. the hand in your hair was guiding you up and down on the cock in your mouth, the tip of your nose just brushing zeke's stomach each time you surged forward with the momentum of the thrusts from behind you. it was all far too much in the best way possible, vision going hazy at the edges from the lack of proper air you could get into your lungs, insides aching from overusing alongside the tight knotting deep in your gut that was threatening to send you over the edge.

it was zeke that came first, heat pooling over your tongue and spilling down your throat, nearly too much for you to swallow as you tried not to choke. but he kept himself in your mouth and his hand firmly grasping your hair, if not to feel the hum of your desperate whines across your skin then to admire your pathetic expression, half-lidded eyes barely able to hold themselves open enough to stare back at him as you came hard for the second time that night. you could hear reiner give a generous groan of your name, thrusting as deep as he could go just a few times more, having enough sense to not cum inside you, pulling out and making a sticky mess of your trembling thighs.

only after you'd blinked away the glossiness in your eyes did zeke pull himself out of your mouth with a wet pop, holding your head up to appreciate the way your mouth still hung open to gasp in much needed gulps of air, tears and saliva dripping down your chin, halfhearted whimpers still escaping you as you trembled.

"you have good taste, reiner." zeke said, releasing your hair and letting you rest your cheek down against the mattress under you, grabbing his glasses off the side table and putting them back onto his face.

you watched as he stepped off the bed, picking out his clothes from the messy array of garments strewn about on the floor and tugging them on. he fished a handkerchief out of the the pocket of his pants, tossing it at reiner's side and glancing over your body, offering you a lazy smile when he caught your gaze.

"clean her up," he instructed, reaching out to give one last soft touch down your back, "and don't give her anymore trouble, alright? i expect to see you bright and early tomorrow."

you assumed that reiner nodded, since zeke turned without another word and exited the bedroom, making sure to shut the door behind him. for a moment, there was uneasy silence, only occupied by your breaths and the faint sound of zeke pulling on his boots somewhere in the living room and leaving out the front door. you gave a low hiss at the feeling of the fabric smoothing down the backs of your thighs, skin far too sensitive for your liking and legs aching uncomfortably.

you lifted your head up enough to wipe your chin with the back of your hand, eyes and limbs heavy with the desire to sleep. there were no words exchanged as he helped you move to lay down on your back, his face just as tired as he'd looked at the bar, but there was something else weighing down his expression as you took his face in your hands, staring up at him with a soft look of concern.

and though he still said nothing, he kissed you, so much gentler than he'd ever kissed you, with a tenderness that made you want savor this brief moment for as long as you could. but he eventually pulled away, and the brief worry that he might leave just as his captain had minutes before, but he rested down beside you with a low sigh. he didn't protest when you curled into the warmth of his body, head finding a comfortable place on his chest, not even bothering to try and venture out onto the floor to turn off the lamp before you settled down and let your eyes fall shut.

it was easy to fall asleep after he wrapped his arms around you, firm chest rising and falling with steady breaths, heart slow in your ear. you didn't think about the fact that you'd probably wake up alone in the morning, or that walking properly would be a monumental task on its own without even considering going to work to stay on your feet for the entire day—just appreciated this night while he couldn't slip away from you like all the other times before.

233 notes · View notes

bloededhoine · 3 years

Text

world building cause twn doesn't part 9: mages

you probably know a lot about mages on account of them being fucking awesome and super sexy, so let's dive into what exactly makes them that way.

colour code cause i fucking love colour codes - already happened/introduced, probably s2, important background info, stuff that might be in the prequel, extras

series masterpost

what are mages?

put simply, mages are anyone skilled and educated in the use of magic. but, most mages are also incredibly adept in politics, science, and religion

the vast majority of mages serve on royal courts, but others are teachers, researchers, or just kinda hobos

anyone can use basic magic (ie witcher signs), but it takes both natural talent and extensive training to be an actual mage

also important to note that while druids and priests can and do use magic, they aren't usually considered mages since they're not as involved in politics and science

education

mages go to school! a lot! powerful mages tend to track down young potential students and bring them to a school to receive formal training

well, "bring them" is a bit reductive, it's more like kidnapping.

there are quite a few important schools, so let's go!

aretuza is definitely the one you are the most familiar with, mostly because it's just the best. aretuza is an all girls academy located in temeria, a northern kingdom known for its powerful mages

aretuza is led by a rectoress, an incredibly powerful sorceress responsible for training the young adepts. i think there's only been 4 ever, first klara larissa de winter (also the founder), then leticia charbonneau, then tissaia de vries (the milf right there, and rectoress as of twn), and finally margarita laux antille

ban ard is the boys version of aretuza, located in kaedwen. the magicians from ban ard are notably... unskilled? they're just kind of clowns. the rector of ban ard was gerhart of aelle, also known as hen gedymdeith, because there's nothing like a nonsensical pseudonym to up your credibility. gerhart was literally the oldest mage alive until his heart died. after him, dorregary of vole took over as rector

mages in the north are pretty much exclusively trained at either aretuza or ban ard, but nilfgaard has a magical academy too!

the imperial magic academy is a co-ed school in loc grim, one of nilfgaard's two capitals. the emperors of nilfgaard tend to hire mages directly from this school

types of mages

most mages tend to specialize in a certain area of magic, such as illusions, alchemy, divination, polymorphy, weaponry, or spycraft

this is extra useful when assembling a team. not that anyone in particular is assembling a team, it's just good to know.

the brotherhood of sorcerers

the brotherhood is the main organization of mages in the witcher. they basically set the rules of magic for all the mages in the north, which are that demonology, necromancy, and artifact compression are strictly not allowed. the punishment was exclusion from the brotherhood and being locked in dimeritium (mage kryptonite) for centuries, but practically no one followed the rules or was punished

the brotherhood exists on a hierarchy, with most mages in the north making up the lower level, the council of wizards in the middle, and the chapter of the gift and the art at the top

the council is made up of a small group of mages that hold influence over the brotherhood but still need to answer to the chapter, as of twn the members are yennefer of vengerberg, philippa eilhart, radcliffe, carduin, and fercart. sheala de tancarville was part of it too, but she left

the chapter has the highest influence of magic in the north (and possibly the continent). it was founded by herbert stammelford, aurora henson, ivo richert, agnes of glanville, geoffrey monk, and radmir of tor carnedd. by twn, all of them had died or left, so the chapter was made of tissaia de vries, enid an gleanna, gerhart of aelle, vilgefortz of roggeveen, and artaud terranova. narses de la roche was the grandmaster of the chapter in 1245, but wasn't that involved much after.

politics

after mages graduate, the brotherhood usually places them on the court of a king/queen as an advisor. they're supposed to help strategize, conduct research, and just heighten the magical abilities of a kingdom

do they do this? nope

most mages are meant to clean up their king's messes, but usually get fed up and rule the entire kingdom from behind the scenes to fit their own agendas

can mages have babies?

short answer: yeah! although magic can make it harder to have babies, lots of sorceresses would take extra care to make sure they were as unaffected as possible. the forced sterilization was tissaia de vries' idea, and since she trained the vast majority of sorceresses we meet, most of them can't have babies

and yes, it's irreversible. sorry yen

geralt's mum, visenna, was trained as a druid, so she was still able to have geralt while practicing magic

who are they?

we meet a Lot of mages, so let's get to know a couple, starting with the ladies!

let's start with the lovely lovely yennefer. she was trained at aretuza under tissaia de vries, who became a mother figure to her. yen was also the youngest member of the council, as of twn she's 90. yes, that's very young to have a position of that caliber, especially since yen wasn't even an official advisor to aedirn's king

we all know and love hate triss merigold. she's one of the youngest sorceresses we meet, at the first season of twn she's 40 (book canon, she's made older in the show). triss also studied at aretuza and is currently one of king foltest of temeria's court mages

sabrina glevissig. slutty sabrina (affectionate) was yennefer's classmate at aretuza and became advisor to king henselt of her native kaedwen.

fringilla vigo is supposedly yen and sabrina's classmate from aretuza, but she is actually quite a bit younger than both of them and went to the imperial academy in her home country nilfgaard. fringilla specializes in illusion magic and (in book canon) is really not evil. she's a little slutty and stupid, but so is sabrina and dandelion and about half the people we meet!

we see skelliger sorceress lytta neyd, aka coral, aka astrid lyttneyd ásgeirrfinnbjornsdottir, at the battle of sodden hill where she unfortunately dies. coral was also very fond of breaking the brotherhood's rule against article compression (magically turning a person into a jade figurine, a wholly unpleasant experience)

temerian sorceress keira metz is one of the youngest mages we meet, she's around the same age as triss, whom she serves on foltest's court alongside

i mentioned philippa eilhart as a member of the council, and i'll mention her again as the love of my life. philippa is old. like, over 300. she's also one of the only mages to master polymorphism, and spends a solid portion of her time as an owl. philippa is redanian king vizimir's official advisor, but she, along with trusted?? associate lover sigismund dijkstra, really rules the entire country with vizimir as a puppet

sheala de tancarville is yen and phil's colleague from the council, but she left because it got too realpolitik for her tastes. sheala's from creyden (same place as renfri), but very rarely served her country's interests in favour of researching magic and being a reclusive bookworm. i'm serious. her nickname is literally the recluse of kovir

tissaia de vries. easily one of the most powerful and respected mages on the continent, member of the chapter, current rectoress of aretuza, and general badass. like most scholars, she wasn't involved in politics and doesn't even have a known nationality.

francesca findabair, also known as enid an gleanna, is an elven sorceress and member of the chapter. by twn she's easily 150 and very well established, although a sufferer of chronic backstabber syndrome.

assire var anahid is one of fringilla's nilfgaardian besties, although neither are actually nilfgaardian. assire is our good friend cahir's great-aunt, a military expert, and mom to her cat merlin

onto the gents!

let's start with the worst, istredd! i for incel, s for stupid, t for testicle-less (once i find him), r for racist, e for ew, d for dead (again, once i find him), and d for dipshit. in twn he's in cahoots with equally disgusting sorcerer...

stregobor! *vomits* you remember him as the koviri sorcerer who loves tracking down and murdering young girls, many of which have been exiled from their homes and tortured. he's just a lovely guy.

vilgefortz of roggeveen is sort of a walking spoiler, so i won't go too much in depth about him, but we can know he was raised by druids and, when offered a magical education, refused. he then became a mercenary, then a spy, then a wanted man, and finally trained to become a mage. despite his unusual backstory and late start, vilgefortz was insanely talented and, at less than a century old, became a member of the most powerful group of mages on the continent.

i mentioned gerhart of aelle aka hen gedymdeithe, as the oldest mage alive. he's at least 500. and then some. he's also a member of the chapter, but this position is more of a courtesy than a meaningful addition to the brotherhood.

finishing up the chapter, we have artaud terranova. he's not important yet, but will probably be in season two. all you need to know is he's short and a little mean and trusted by vilgefortz

fercart of cidaris is the third (but only male and non-temerian) member of foltest's royal council, and fairly unimportant member of the council of wizards

carduin of lan exeter was advisor to koviri king esterad thyssen and member of the council. he was also one of radovid's advisors, which didn't go over too well as radovid's other advisor, philippa eilhart, doesn't share too well

last and sort of least, we have radcliffe of oxenfurt. he was advisor to demavend of aedirn, from whom he probably met yennefer.

218 notes · View notes

4aloysius-porteu · 3 years

Text

i am your ally || tsukishima kei.

pairing; tsukishima kei x f! reader

genre: oneshot, drama, flangst, a little comedy

word count: 5.6k

details: 3rd year Tsukishima, artist reader

warnings: reader going missing, verbal abuse, crushing of dreams, lots of sadness, heavy parental argument, everything that happens here hits home

synopsis: tsukishima didnt know what is the right thing to say after he heard of (y/n)’s situation, but the words that stumbled out from his mouth were a surprise, yet it blossomed to a meaningful talk that happens once in a blue moon.

(a/n): wrote in the middle of my depressing days to find a little comfort from this character that I love with all my heart. inspired by true situations irl; if you, my friend, is feeling down today, i hope reading this work of mine can help. i might make this into a full story if this got enough attention tho.

(Y/N) was nowhere to be found.

It wasn't Tsukishima's habit to eavesdrop on other people's conversation, but he couldn't help but listen when he heard her name from her classmates. She was a consistent top student that will never neglect her studies, so it was unusual to know that she was absent today. He thought that maybe she got sick or she decided to go crazy and skip school. If it was the latter, he hoped that she knows what she's doing, because midterms are coming in 3 days, and he's not going to listen to her whines and begs to help her study for the tests.

And now he just happened to overhear that she was missing.

He saw her parents walk out of the campus after talking to the vice-principal and to the teachers. Gossip filled the corridors and rooms. Tsukishima went back to his room, clearly annoyed with the unnecessary noise.

He listened to the lectures of each subject and continued to write down important points, but the thought of (Y/N) lingered in his head. What could've happened that led to her disappearance? Was she kidnapped? No, he just walked her home last night and she'll never leave her place past midnight. Kidnappers won't dare to make a move in daylight because of the town's high authority visibility. There's no way she'll be lost in an area she's very familiar with.

She ran away from home. That is the only logical possibility he could come up with, but he couldn't think of an idea as to why. (Y/N), who loves to be cooped up in her room with music blaring in her earphones while drawing, left her home without a trace. Tsukishima was a little worried, but he won't let his face show whatever the hell he's feeling.

His plays and blocks aren't exactly bad, but Yamaguchi could sense that Tsukishima was thinking of something other than the volleyball practice. He approached his friend who was resting on the floor, his long arms covering his curled up legs.

"Tsukki, what's with that expression? Did you get a failing score in a quiz?" Yamaguchi started, in an attempt to lighten up the atmosphere.

The blonde's eyes darted to him, "Like hell, I'm going to let that happen. What do you want?"

He shrugged, "Nothing, I just noticed that you were a little quieter and more passive today. Normally, you would've chewed the first years out with their simple blocking errors, but you didn't say a thing. You're scarier in their eyes when you're silent."

"I was tired. I'll only waste my voice pointing out something I did a million times." A sigh escaped his lips

"Right..." Yamaguchi paused, "So, I assume you have heard?"

"Heard of what?"

"That (Y/N) is missing."

"Oh," A frown fell on his features. It wasn't his usual frown. People who really know him would notice that his eyes are full of worry.

He sat beside Tsukishima before he spoke again. "I know you have ideas on places (Y/N) could've gone to."

"I do not know what you're talking about."

The latter chuckled, "Oh, humor me, Tsukki. If you're that worried, I can excuse you for today's practice. No problem."

"Does that mean that you aren't concerned?"

"I am concerned. I want to look for her as well, but I have to whip the other players into shape. I'm sorry if I couldn't accompany you right away."

Tsukishima stood up and sighed again, "You will excuse me, you said?"

"Yeah."

There were silence and the background noise of balls and shoes colliding on the floor. He wiped the sweat off his face before replying, "I'll be leaving the gym in a few minutes."

He changed his clothes and packed his things up, causing the team to exchange glances.

"Tsukki!" Yamaguchi called, throwing his friend's large jacket to him, which the other caught. "Take care! I hope you find (Y/N) and get her home safe."

"I wish. Then, I'll leave it to you, Captain."

The green-haired middle blocker's eyes teared up and sparkled as he beamed a smile back, "I got it!"

Tsukishima started to look for (Y/N) at the places she liked to go to; the art store, the Central Park, the kid's playground, the museum, and the prefectural library. But there was no sign of her anywhere. He looked at the nearby places to no avail. He walked on while dialing her number, but her phone is out of coverage area. He spent 3 more hours finding the girl and soon received a message from Yamaguchi, telling him that (Y/N) hasn't been found yet and that he joined the authorities to help them find her.

He walked back to the direction of his home, panting softly. He had failed to find (Y/N), yet his brain won't stop thinking about her possible whereabouts. The cool breeze of winter hit Tsukishima's face and shivered at the contact. He had hoped again that she is inside of an establishment, safe from such cold weather.

Tsukishima's home has its lights out. Her mother was invited into her colleagues' reunion as said in her text, and both his father and brother are busy at work. He reached for his key in his pocket and was opening the door, not until he heard a loud sob from somewhere. Tsukishima looked around the place as the sobbing continued. He searched for the source and ended up in their backyard. He caught the sight of a small figure behind the bushes and went closer to confirm.

It was a cat. It had scurried away once he got close to it. Oh, how stupid he is to get his hopes up only to find a scared animal. But he was certain he heard a sob somewhere near. And cats aren't capable of making a sound like that. Or maybe he was only hearing things?

He dragged his feet to the main door to unlock it, but this time, there was a loud noise of scrubbing on the roof. What is it this time? He moved back and looked upon where it came from.

To his surprise, it wasn't another cat but a person. Their legs were curled up, arms covered around them, with their chin on their knees. Tsukishima turned on his phone's flashlight and there she was.

It was (Y/N). Her shoulders shook, either from the cold or trying her best not to cry out loud.

"H-Help me."

He stared at the girl, confused and fighting back laughter because of how scared (Y/N) looked. "How the heck did you get in there?"

"I climbed that tree and jumped off to break in and hide in your room. Turned out that the windows are locked. I don't know how to jump back and I-I was too high from the ground. You know I'm scared of heights! Why did you lock the window?! Stupid!"

"Of course, I would lock the window for the security. And wow, aren't you the stupid one for knowing how to climb and jump up to my window and not knowing how to get down? Why did you climb if you are scared of heights? Such an idiot."

"Fine, fine. I am an idiot. Now, can you help me get off this roof?"

He crossed his arms and smirked, "No."

"Ugh! Please, Kei. I've been trapped here for hours. I am begging you to help me get down. Please?"

He sighed in defeat and raised his arms. "Here. Jump."

For seconds, (Y/N) didn't respond as she was having second thoughts about jumping.

"What? Do you expect me to get a ladder? I'm sorry, but it's in the basement, broken." He said in a mocking tone. "Don't you want to come down?"

"Can you catch me properly? Are your arms stable? Won't you fall on your ass?" (Y/N) interrogated.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes, "Alright, stay there and freeze to death."

"No, wait! I was just asking! Come back! Don't leave meeee!"

The blonde looked up to her and raised his arms again, "Don't think. Trust me, I will catch you properly and you won't crash to the ground. You weigh like nothing anyway."

"Are you talking about yourself?" She retorted, pertaining to his weight.

"Can you please just jump?"

(Y/N) inhaled and went to the edge of the roof. It was a scary view for her, just looking down makes her dizzy, and want to throw up. She thought he would have the largest frown on his face because of how irritatingly slow she was, but there was Tsukishima waiting for her with the calmest expression. She smiled a little.

"Here I go..."

She took off, closing her eyes, and swallowing her fears. The gravity pulled her feet down shortly after, and Tsukishima readied himself for the impact as he reached her waist. He held on to her lower torso while (Y/N) placed her arms around his shoulders tightly and legs on his waist. The athlete's balance slightly went off, so he took a step back to support both their weights. It was now steady.

"I'm surprised you didn't lose your balance. Where's the weak boned beanpole 3 years ago?"

"I did for a second."

"Doesn't matter. You caught me. Thank you."

They had stayed in that way for a moment until Tsukishima spoke, "Do you plan to get off?"

"No. I'm tired."

"I am too." Yet she refused to let go.

He exhaled, carrying (Y/N) to the main entrance and finally unlocking the door. Her hoodie was cold and some parts are wet, but it didn't rain on that day. He took her in and placed her on the couch. Tsukishima went to his room, changed clothes, and brought a spare sweatshirt, handkerchief, and a towel. He went down but didn't find (Y/N) where he left her, so he walked to the kitchen counter and found the girl on the corner, shivering like a pup.

He tossed the clothing at her without further words. There was a note from her mom beside the curry in the table, saying she had eaten and she left rolls in the refrigerator. He was about to turn on the stove to reheat the food his mother left, but his eyes landed on (Y/N) who sat quietly, hugging the sweatshirt instead of wearing it. Her hair was disheveled, the sleeves and neck part of her hoodie was damp, her nose was red and her puffy, bloodshot eyes implied that she has been crying for who knows how long. He set the pan down to get her a glass of water.

"Everyone was looking for you." Said Tsukishima.

"No one was really looking for me." (Y/N) replied, clearing her nose.

"I didn't spend the last 3 hours tiring myself to scan the whole town for no reason." He sat beside her, handing the glass. "Care to spill the tea?"

(Y/N) drank first before speaking weakly, "I hate them. So much."

The male remained quiet, waiting for her to continue her dilemma.

"Remember when I told you and the class that I will be the most successful doctor in Japan after I finished my studies? It was a lie. It wasn't my dream to stay in a hospital and treat ill people, I only wanted to draw and paint. I didn't care if it never made them or anyone happy, I am happy doing it. And they are taking it away from me."

He knew from the start that her dream job as a doctor wasn't true. For years she stayed close to him as a friend or more, she won't blabber anything of the medical topic. She was terrified of syringes. He saw her reading an article about surgeries and like, but her focus was easily taken away.

She will get a pencil then start scribbling and drawing. Something that Tsukishima always sees her doing whenever she has a pen and paper, but she insists that it was a mere hobby. Her notebooks are well designed and organized, but the back is always full of artistic doodles instead of algebra solutions. She only has very few art materials yet she can make a portrait with only her fingers to shade. She makes digital art without a stylus. She would drag him to the museum after class to view some western and eastern paintings or any work of art while he admires the dinosaur fossils. For times she's watching an art tutorial and talk about art, draw and paint, she has those stupid sparkles in her eyes and a huge smile on her face.

"You know Tsukishima, after I finish studying and became a doctor, I'll become an artist and if the time let's it, I'll open my own art gallery. That's my ultimate dream." She looked alive and delighted.

Very much the opposite of what she looks like right now.

Even though she was a slave of art, as Tsukishima was a slave of his own interests, (Y/N) prioritized her studies so much. He understood why when he went to her house and met her parents before their study sessions. He had noticed everything but chose to stay quiet.

"I-I was drawing last night. Dad entered my room but I didn't notice so he ripped the music away from my ears and yelled. He said that I would always lock myself in my room and draw every night. It was never-ending and irritates the shit out of him. He asked why would I do something so useless that isn't even connected to any academic subject. He was looking down on my art like he was looking at a piece of crap. He told me to stop and threatened me if I didn't. Why would I get punished for drawing? I couldn't get myself to stay silent so I retorted. If he doesn't want to see me drawing, then he shouldn't enter my room at all. He should stop meddling with my hobbies. His anger only went up."

(Y/N) stopped for a while to wipe her tears and snot with her sleeves but Tsukishima placed a handkerchief on her hands. She muttered her thanks and blew her nose and soon followed with a sneeze.

"Soon, it became a full-blown argument. He said that he was checking out if I was doing my projects, but oh he was so disappointed only to find his daughter drawing for nothing. What the heck? I gave them the best grades I could get, and part of it was because of you, Tsukishima, but they still aren't satisfied? I balanced drawing and academics, but they made it seem that all I was doing was my hobby, completely ignoring my efforts at school. I finished the school activities and I reviewed for midterms and all I want is to be left alone and draw. What, they want me to go crazy by studying every hour with things I won't even apply in real life?"

Her fake laughter echoed in the kitchen for seconds before her depressed tone took over again.

"Mom heard all the shouting and joined the argument. Of course, she sided with dad without listening to my feelings and there they ridiculed their youngest child's interests and talent. They told me that everything I do is bullshit and wrong, that I was useless, that I was the huge opposite of their expectations, and... and how come God gave them a joke. She said they raised me so that I could help them, not to do such useless things. It hurts to shout back but I did to explain why I'm so passionate about art in hopes that they will listen and understand but, I was so wrong. I was suddenly slapped..." She placed her hand to her left cheek, her lips quivered a little.

"I-It stung so much. Mom complained about how the Internet generation is so rebellious and won't listen to the elders. They didn't raise and teach me to talk back at them, but here is their child being a bitch. They started comparing me to my elder siblings or relatives who focused on their studies and who are at the door of success. I know they only want me to achieve the best, but my success isn't up to them! It's on me!! And I've invested a lot for that! They shouted at me as mom pulled my hair. It was so loud I thought I was going deaf. Dad blamed the gadget's influence and my drawings. I have only drawn decent fanarts of fictional characters, people, and sceneries, but they believed that because of these, I turned into a mannerless bastard. So mom decided to get my phone and lessen my allowance so that I wouldn't buy any art materials that are a waste of fortune--"

She bit her lower lip that is trembling uncontrollably and her eyesight blurred as her fat tears got in the way.

"and... D-Dad... he... he... he tore m-my sketch pad apart..."

Tsukishima's eyes widened. (Y/N) brought that thing with her almost everywhere she went and it was filled with good drawings and art plans. She has a lot of them though, but Tsukishima could only imagine how she felt when her efforts were trampled over by someone important to her.

(Y/N) broke down, bawled her eyes out, and shrieked hysterically. He looked at her with a heavy heart. He had seen her crying sometimes, be it because of a sad movie or empathy, but never like this. A depressed, emotional wreck. Her eyes were sore enough after a lot of hours, but she won't stop crying. It was heartbreaking to see and hear his significant other in this state, yet Tsukishima didn't know what is the right thing to say.

But maybe there was no need to say anything at all.

Kei wrapped his arms around her weeping figure and pulled her towards him. Cry it out, pipsqueak. (Y/N) didn't expect this action, nonetheless cried in his shoulder He didn't care anymore if this meant he gets his clothes drenched in her snot and tears as long as she felt a little less lonely. He rubbed her back and hair in an attempt to comfort his lover. (Y/N)'s airways hurt, but she screamed the pain out, in hopes that the pain in her heart would vanish. Her weeping went on for long minutes until she choked in her own sobs that Tsukishima had to get her another glass of water.

"Tell me, Kei." She began, wiping her eyes, "Is there... something wrong with me? Is my dream really that insignificant?"

"There's nothing wrong with you. You followed your ideals. Anyone including me would've done the same." He answered beside her.

"I-It's realistic, right?"

"It is."

"Then... why did it turn out like this?" Her voice was cracking.

Tsukishima looked down, "The society is just very cruel."

"Yeah. It sure is. Such a cruel society to live with."

(Y/N) let out a dejected sigh and leaned on Tsukki's shoulder. "I couldn't look at them without such overwhelming fear and hate anymore. I wonder if... they knew that I was doing this for them. I'd like to make them smile with something I've made myself. Once, I made each of them a portrait. A realistic one made from a pencil. I couldn't afford a material set that can be used to paint realistically, but I tried my best to impress them with a charcoal one. Oh, if only you saw their faces when I gave them the portraits. They returned a half-hearted smile. It wasn't the same kind of joy I see whenever I give them perfect scores on tests. I didn't spend 3 sleepless nights just to see their half happy, half unpleased reaction. I wish they could feel more proud of their daughter who worked hard for them... I wonder if they threw it away as he did on my sketch pad..."

They let silence engulf the atmosphere for a while. (Y/N) had calmed down a little, despite shedding smaller tears from the side of her eyes. Tsukishima held the sweatshirt he gave her earlier to make her wear it on the top of her hoodie to lessen her shivering. He stared at her, while the other gazed down on the floor with dead eyes.

Tsukishima asked, "So, what are you going to do now?"

"What am I going to do now huh..." (Y/N) repeated. "I'll probably... put everything to an end."

"You know I won't let you."

"I'm not talking about my life, silly. I might stop drawing and all. I've lost it."

"Isn't your life and drawing one and the same? And I'm pretty sure you have that immense talent to continue."

"No... Besides, talent isn't a talent if it doesn't make anyone happy."

The blonde mentally scoffed. She just said that it makes her happy in the beginning.

"Oh? Fine, stop doing that one thing you put everything into. What would that girl you received a commission from would feel if she were to hear you though?"

(Y/N) was stunned. She had completely forgotten about the whole commission thing she opened in her social media accounts. Tsukishima accompanied (Y/N) on giving the commissioned charcoal portrait to a girl last 3 weeks ago. It was (Y/N)'s first commission for years she's making art. Someone liked her work for the first time and paid for it, and her client looks very contented and glad. The words she said filled her thoughts with inspiration.

"Wow, this is awesome! I'm so happy!! Thank you for making this, it was exactly what I've pictured on my mind! You're amazing! All the excitement I've bottled up for this day is so worth it," The girl, probably a little older than them paused and admired the painting she received from (Y/N).

"Would you ignore those words she said?"

'Please don't stop drawing, I'll be looking forward to your future works!'

A pang of guilt hit her chest. She wants to pursue art, but there are these shackles and chains on her limbs and around her neck that made it hard for her to move forward. She couldn't breathe. What happened yesterday night was too much. Her parents went overboard.

"B-But—"

A monotone voice interrupted her, "Don't. Never stop striving for something you have been building for years. You might be defeated now, but surely, you will win some time. There's no way you'll stay in the lowest level of the ladder after I saw how hard you worked. You will go to nationals again, and I will continue to support you. I'll cheer for you and stay by your side! So please, do not stop! Let me see those beautiful blocks that you execute in the game once more! And I will watch you reach the top! Doesn't matter how many times, I'll never get weary of watching you do amazing things!"

She was silenced by that statement. She had definitely heard those before, but couldn't quite remember where.

"Does the sentiment seem familiar to you? Those are the same words that came from your mouth when I was planning to quit volleyball after our huge loss to Date Tech last year. I am returning them back to you."

"Huh?" She replied with a meek voice.

"That time, you really did a good job meddling with my decisions. It annoyed me first, but what you had stated held a weight that I couldn't disregard. You gave me the small push I didn't know I needed. In the end, I'd like to pay you back." Tsukishima stated with a far away look in his eyes.

(Y/N) listened with watery eyes. This Tsukishima's side isn't definitely the one she gets to see every day so she couldn't feel anything but the warm, fuzzy feeling that is healing her heart.

"It's probably selfish for me to say this but, don't you dare give up. I didn't stop. No matter how long and hard the game is, no matter how tired and discouraged I get, and no matter how many pessimistic thoughts clouded my head, I didn't stop chasing after a falling ball and thinking of another tactic to counter the enemy. I kept your words with me in court. It was you who told me not to in the first place, and I'm not going to forgive you if you ever dropped everything. I won't let the stupid, starry-eyed (Y/N) die today."

The girl beside her started sobbing. "But you told me once that my drawing are ugly."

"Oh. That. I... kind of remember that. I'm not sorry about what I said because I did it to provoke and rile you up. It was a lie though. As someone who always sees you drawing, I can't call your work ugly at all. Your art is... astounding. You make it look like it's so easy to do. I think you forgot next sentence after I told you that."

"What was the sentence after?"

Tsukishima sighed, "I told you to keep doing it, right?"

The sound of (Y/N) crying engulfed the kitchen, "Oh gosh, why did I forget that... I'm sorry, I'm so idiotic..."

The blonde brought her back to his arms, "Will you stop crying, you've been too hard on yourself today,"

(Y/N) hid her face on his chest, muffling her speech, "c-couldn't help it... my mind is such a mess... I do not know..." She paused, coughing. "It's no use if m-my parents don't acknowledge me..."

"Hundreds, or perhaps thousands of people who follow you on social media account recognize you. People in school recognizes you. I recognize you. I am your ally. Isn't that enough reason for you to get back on your feet? I will support you just like how you supported me. You have a lot of people who admire you, but I only have a few people and you. Yet your words are enough. I'm certain that soon, you will reach your parents' standards and get them to acknowledge you. It's not impossible."

(Y/N) fixed her tear-stained face before looking up to him, "You know what? Who are you? Is a good spirit possessing your body? The Kei I know will either stay quiet or laugh at me for being pathetic."

"I was trying to be nice for once and this is what I get?" He frowned.

(Y/N) chuckled and hugged Tsukishima, "I'm sorry. Everything you said meant the world to me. Thank you very much."

She relaxed against his lean body, "I have a question though..."

"What?"

"You literally had no business in my art, it was my own problem. Why are you doing this?"

"Why don't you ask yourself after you argued with me that night? Why did you have to butt in with my choices?"

"Because you like volleyball! You might look like that someone stole your dinosaur collection when you're at practice, but you're good at it and have a future in it! It is a part of you, and you're deciding to throw it away? Your potential is too big to be wasted and I refuse to let that happen." Her voice is a little louder now, but hoarse.

"There's your answer, little gremlin."

"How is that— Oh."

"But I'd like to add something."

"What is it?"

"You look better doing what you really like. It makes you look less like a hag."

It was silent after that. (Y/N) punched his arm. Tsukishima didn't even wince but asked, "What was that for?"

"The last statement was unnecessary, and the first one is sweet yet cringey." She criticized.

"C'mon, I'm just a teenager. Aren't you the cringey one most of the times?"

She used the handkerchief to sniffle her runny nose away, "Why do you have a knack of returning everything I said to me?"

"I won't do it if it's not appropriate." Tsukishima placed his hands on her back and to her hair, "So, what are you going to do now, (Y/N)?"

"I'll think things through. My brain is still slightly messy, but I'll be fine, thanks to you. But Kei..."

He hummed as a response. "I don't want to go home. I want to run away."

"Not possible. You can't survive on your own. You're almost 18 and until now, you don't understand how a washing machine works with all your perfect scores in exams."

"This is just a thought. I didn't say I'll be alone. I'm taking you with me."

"I refuse."

"Why?"

"Couldn't you wait for more months until we graduate?"

(Y/N)'s eyebrows raised, "So basically, you're agreeing, but not this time?"

"No, but you'll be free of your parents' suffocating control. Who knows how huge is your potential by that time."

"How considerate of you." The girl smiled.

"Only this time. And no, we won't live in the same place in college. Not yet. Not until we finish our studies, have secured jobs, and get important things done."

"Will you be playing volleyball at college?"

He lazily replied, "Probably."

"Don't give me such an ambiguous answer!"

"Probably yes."

"Hmm. Fine by me. I'll continue to draw, then." (Y/N) rested her head near Tsukishima's neck.

He smiled a little at her answer, "Another thing though. I don't think... you should leave things with your parents like that. There'll be a time where you have to face it."

"Yes, that sucks... I don't want to think about it but I'll have to go back eventually... When that confrontation happens, I'll try to calmly talk it out with them. I will never be certain if it will end well. But my hate and fear of them won't change."

"You can always run back here if it didn't end well."

"Kei, don't want to see their faces just yet. Can I stay here for a while?"

"You even bother to ask. You are welcome anytime in this household. Just enter the house in the front door, not in my window."

"Right... thank you."

"Oh, now it's my turn to ask. How did you get in there?"

(Y/N) sighed, "It was on 4:30pm. I was on the loose and I looked for a store where anyone can't recognize me so I can eat for lunch. But there's this creep who kept on following me—"

"Did he hurt you?" He abruptly questioned.

"No. I ran as fast as I could before he could even get close to me, but in the next block, there were the town authorities with my mom, and I knew they were looking for me, so I blended into the people with my hoodie on and made my way. I climbed the tree in panic that they'll find me and hid there. It took me hours to notice that your house is just next to it, so I decided to climb to your window. However, the window was locked, and I was stuck."

Tsukishima sighed in relief. "It was a miracle that a klutz like you didn't fell off the tree and surprisingly, no one found you."

"I was high in adrenaline when I climbed the tree. My blending and hiding skills are in ninja-tier now, I beat you."

"Whatever. What did you have for breakfast?"

"...a melon bread."

"Just that?"

"Just that."

Tsukishima kissed her forehead before lifting her up with him. "Go change. Borrow any of my clothes. I'll reheat the food."

(Y/N) kissed his cheek, slowly got off him and went upstairs. Tsukishima opened his phone to text Yamaguchi about her situation and proceeded to reheat the spicy curry.

"Wait, Kei! Is it okay for me to eat?" She shouted from upstairs.

"What kind of question is that? Of course you can." He shouted back.

"Your mom left that for you, for your dad and for your brother. I'd feel bad."

"My brother and dad will come home late and I'm sure they've eaten already. So is mom."

"Are you sure? I can replace the food." She said while going down the stairs.

"Oh, you can cook? I'm afraid you'll burn the whole kitchen." He mocked.

"At least not the whole house." (Y/N) laughed, "Just kidding, I have a tiny knowledge in cooking."

"You don't have to, I told you they already ate. I'll bring out the sushi mom made if you still want to eat."

"Alright. Thank you for the food."

Few hours later, Tsukishima's mom came home and took off her shoes. "I'm home."

As she was about to enter the living room, Akiteru greeted her and placed his finger in front of his lips, indicating her to keep quiet. She wondered what was going on and saw her youngest son and his girlfriend leaning on his shoulder, asleep on the couch in front of the TV. He signaled her to read the note Kei left on the table.

To mom, dad, and brother,

Earlier in the morning, (Y/N) went missing and her parents and town authorities were looking for her. I found her on the way home, but it turns out that she ran away from her home because of an intense argument between her parents, and doesn't want to be found yet. Please let her stay here for a while. I'll do most of the household chores or any favor you ask me in return.

Mom, I shared the curry and sushi rolls with her. I left for some for dad and brother. (Y/N) said it was very delicious.

Love,

Kei.

She smiled after reading the note and looked at the sleeping kids. She took notice of (Y/N)'s eyes and quickly understood the situation. Before she left to rest in her room, she looked for a spare blanket and laid it atop them to keep them warm.

(Y/N) snuggled further to Tsukishima's arms, satisfied on how this night will end well, unlike yesterday's.

251 notes · View notes