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finelinefae · 3 months

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the aviator [pilot!harry x teacher!yn]

synopsis: It’s the 1950s. Harry is the best pilot on the Air Force base and y/n is a teacher at a nursery.

word count: 8.5k

contains: fluff, flirting, opposites attract, bad boy/good girl dynamic, Harry has a southern accent, alcohol, smoking, allusions to childhood trauma

This is part 1 of a new series that will probably have 3-ish parts !!

. . .

Offutt Air Force Base, situated in Omaha, Nebraska, housed thousands of civilians working in or connected to the military. People living in the nearby town would often hear the loud plane engines as they take off and land on the runway. They’d look out the windows of their home and see spitfires piloted by men undergoing training, executing missions, or just having a good time, even when they technically weren’t given permission.

“Wah Hooo!” The spitfire trembled as it finally landed on solid ground. Harry braced himself for the landing, pushing himself back against his seat to stop himself from jolting around. He did his best to hide his smile and remain nonchalant as he heard the familiar voices yelp in excitement as he landed the aircraft.

He removed his helmet and pushed the canopy of the cockpit open, leaping down and getting familiar with feeling the solid ground beneath his feet after being in the air. Two figures ran up to him, flailing their arms and screeching in excitement, “Tha’s what I’m talking about!” Harry opened his arms, unable to stop himself from laughing the two men almost knocked him over as they joined in a group hug.

“You flew her like a champ, H. Never seen anything like that in my life.” Harry looked into two sets of eyes an identical colour to his own.

Standing in front of him were his two brothers, Sonny and George. All three of them were pilots in the military and had been since they left school to sign up after the War. There wasn’t too much age difference between them which was probably one of the reasons the brothers were so close. Harry was the oldest, just over a year senior to George, who happened to be taller despite being the middle child, and Sonny was the youngest.

“Yeah well, she still needs some work. One of her engine cylinders is faulty.” The three of them walked side by side towards the maintenance shed. Despite their differences in height, anyone would assume the three brothers were triplets from how similar they looked. Most people on base knew them for their signature sea-glass green eyes and their brown hair.

“Oh I’ll go and tell Ruddy, he might still be here.” Sonny ran ahead

“Oh and Sonny,” Harry called for his younger brother, “Good job.” Harry winked at his younger brother, referring to his work on the plane he had just flown. In response, Sonny straightened his shoulders and smiled feeling proud after receiving a compliment from his older brother.

Harry and George both lit a cigarette each, pausing outside the door to the warehouse to smoke together. “I opened up a letter this morning from Ma.” George exhaled, smoke escaping past his lips.

Harry tried not to show his annoyance, “Wha’d she say?” He grumbled.

“She misses us… All of us and she wants us to stop by, come visit for dinner one day maybe.” George explained.

“Is she still with that old bastard?” Harry looked up at his younger brother.

George nodded, “Last time I heard.”

“Then we’re not going, none of us are.” Harry thought back to the last time he had allowed himself and his siblings to visit his mother. It was going well in the beginning, she’d cooked them up a roast pork and engaged in conversation, until their Father came home. It wasn’t long into their visit before they left the house and Sonny had gone home with a black eye whilst Harry had to get his hand stitched up at a hospital on the journey back.

Harry had grown up in Dallas, Texas, in a tacky old house that barely stood upright just on the outside of town. Whilst his Father was out working on a ranch somewhere and getting pissed up every night, Harry would spend most of his days keeping the house together whilst tending to his younger siblings. His mother was often somewhere in the house - nobody knew exactly what she was doing, since she wasn’t exactly all there half the time - but she was there.

Every visit they made back home was a reminder as to why they had entered the military in the first place. Whenever their mother would send them a letter, it was either because she wanted something or wanted them to come home so she could ask for that same something in person. The last time Harry had bought his siblings home was the first time in years. He thought his mother would be different yet he had no idea why - she was still letting that old man walk around as if he was the one who kept the house from falling.

“Sonny and I agreed you’re picking up Elise from nursery by the way,” George smirked, chucking his cigarette on the ground and putting it out with his foot.

“You and Sonny agreed that?” Harry frowned, receiving a nod from his brother, “I’ve been flying all day and y’ still want me to go pick up the baby?”

George clapped his older brother on the shoulder, “We’ve both got to help out in the warehouse this evening and besides, you’re Offutt's best pilot, I think you can handle picking up a two-year-old on the way home.”

Harry didn’t have time to argue with his brother as he stepped into the warehouse. He let out a deep sigh and took one puff of his cigarette before throwing it to the ground. He put his flight cap on his head to cover his messy hair and straightened his aviator jacket, walking towards the nursery.

. . .

“How have you found your first day Y/N?” Midge, one of the other nursery workers asked as they stood at the sink together to wash up some of the paint pots a few of the kids had been playing with in the afternoon.

“It’s been wonderful, Midge.” Y/N grinned. Although she was tired, she also felt ecstatic to finally be working again after months of searching for a new job. She had always been good with children thanks to her older sister having a kid of her own for her to babysit now and then. So when the opportunity arose to work a well-paying job at a nursery on the military base, she couldn’t pass it up. They’d even offer her free accommodation and discounted food for groceries which was perfect considering she didn’t have much of any of those things when she was living alone.

“I expect most of the kids will be getting picked up soon,” Midge glanced at the clock, “Everyone will be returning from work.”

Y/N hadn’t expected pick up time at the nursery to be so busy but fathers and mothers bustled in to pick up their children to take them home all at once. Once the majority of the kids had been picked up, Y/N glanced around to see the mess that had been left from the day that she’d have to clean up by herself. Her shoulders dropped as she landed on a small figure, realising she wasn’t completely alone yet.

“Elise, what are you doing?” Y/N smiled at the tiny girl playing in the corner, she was picking up picture books and flicking through them as if she were actually reading them. Y/N crouched down in front of the small toddler, “Are you enjoying those?”

Elise just grinned, picking something up with her small fingers and trying to put it in her mouth. Her brown, curly ringlets were no longer in uneven bunches like they had been this morning and her overalls were covered in food and paint stains. Y/N picked up the two-year-old to place in her lap, “Shall we read something before your dad comes to get you?” Elise babbled a reply.

Halfway through their fifth book, Elise was near enough asleep on Y/N’s lap. It had already been an hour since all of the other children went home and it wouldn’t be long before the sun would set. Y/N carefully picked Elise up so her head was on her shoulder and it was comfy enough to sleep as she stepped towards the telephone to see if Elise’s father was coming to pick her up.

As her hand went to pick up the telephone, a voice stopped her, “Hello?” It was deep and southern and husky like he had just smoked a cigarette or two, “I’m here to pick up Elise.”

Y/N turned around, and her breath caught in her throat as she spotted a tall figure leaning casually against the door frame. He wore a brown leather aviator jacket and grey trousers, with his flight cap tucked under his arm. His piercing green eyes, similar to Elise's, met hers, framed by brown curly hair. An unlit cigarette dangled from his lips.

Y/N had never seen anyone like him in her entire life.

“Y-yes,” She cleared her throat and forced her eyes to look away from his intense gaze. She stood and walked over to where he stood by the door with Elise in his arms, “You must be Elise’s father.”

“M her brother,” He corrected.

“Excuse me?” Y/N wasn’t sure if she heard him correctly, too busy gawking at him to actually pay attention.

“M Elise’s brother, one out of three of her brothers to be exact.” He repeated, his eyes glancing at the sleeping girl Y/N was holding.

“O-oh,” She blushed, “My bad, you look so similar I thought you were her father.”

“Easy mistake,” Harry smirked, “Would you like me to take her from you?”

“Yes, of course,” Y/N gently removed Elise from her and passed her to Harry.

“There we go,” He cooed as Elise whimpered at the sudden movement, “There’s m’ little Elise.”

Y/N thought her ovaries might explode as she watched the pilot interact with the small girl in his arms, making sure she was comfortable enough so she could remain asleep. “Are you new here ma’am?” Harry spoke his focus now back on Y/N.

“Yes actually, today’s my first day here,” She explained.

“No wonder, I ain’t ever seen y’ around the place. How’re you liking it so far?”

“I’ve only been here a couple of days but it’s been nice. Working here at the nursery has been lovely too,”

“Yeah?” Harry’s lips curled, “I hope this one hasn’t been giving y’ much trouble. She can be a little devil with my younger brothers.”

Y/N immediately shook her head, “No, she’s been lovely honestly. Think I spent most of the day with Elise out of all the other children.”

Y/N noticed how Harry focused on her face as she spoke to him, every now and then his eyes would dart to her lips and then back up to meet her eyes, “Y got any friends here?”

She paused, “Any friends?”

“Yeah, you know,” He half smiled, it felt almost flirty but maybe Y/N was just imagining it, “People y’ like to hang out with.”

“Uh yeah, I share a house with a few of the girls who work in various places around the base. I get along with most of them and the ladies who work here at the nursery too.” Y/N explained, cringing at how awkward she was and how she’d probably be replaying this conversation back later only to die of embarrassment of all the things she said.

“Y’ know there’s a dance down at the community centre this Friday, y’ should come, oh and invite some of those friends of yours too.”

“Oh I don’t know, I think I’m working this Friday and-”

“A lot of my buddies who I fly with go there sometimes - a good time they said. It might be a good chance to meet some of the people here,” He shrugged, “Could offer y’ a dance or two if you’d like.”

Y/N wondered if all this was really happening right now or if she was just so tired that she was hallucinating, “O-okay,”

Harry grinned, a dimple carving into his cheek, “Well alright then,”

“Alright then,” Y/N tried to keep her smile at bay as she took it as his queue to leave. She kept the door open so he could easily step out as he walked backwards with Elise in his arms and his eyes still on Y/N even as he said nothing.

“So I’ll see y’ at the dance?”

“Maybe,” Y/N shrugged, even though she had already decided she was most definitely going to the dance.

“Alright, maybe I’ll see y’ at the dance then,” Harry responded with a light, amused chuckle.

Y/N watched as he turned his back and began to walk down the dirt road until he stopped briefly and spun around, “I didn’t catch y’name by the way,” He called out to her.

Y/N cupped her mouth, “It’s Y/N,”

“Y/N,” He said the name like he was testing how it sounded, “M Harry. Hey, I better see y’ at that dance Y/N, I don’t handle rejection all that well.” Y/N couldn’t help but giggle.

“I can believe that,” She yelled back.

“I’d say goodbye but I wanna see y’ at that dance so I’ll say goodnight instead.” Harry said with a casual salute before turning and continuing down the road.

Y/N shut the door and leaned against it, clutching her hands over her chest in complete disbelief. Her sister had warned her the pilots on the base would be young men near enough her own age and that she ought to be careful hanging around them. However, her sister hadn’t warned her that a man like Harry would stumble over to her workplace to pick up his sister and invite her to a dance on Friday night.

Y/N quickly cleaned up the nursery, shoving things into boxes and wiping down the tables, before grabbing her coat and running down the road to her house.

On every street on the housing estate, there was a row of houses that all looked the same but were owned by different types of people. Some had big families all living under one roof, others were men who lived alone. Y/N’s house was the first house on the street. It was a traditionally designed home with a pitched roof, a small front porch and symmetrical windows. She shared it with three other girls who all worked different jobs across the Air Force base.

The sun had already set by the time she entered the house. All the lights were turned on and the gentle music of Buddy Holly sounded from the living room. Y/N kicked off her heels and hung up her coat, walking to the living room where Patsy and Molly were lounging on the couch. Molly had Patsy’s foot in her lap as she painted her toenails a wine red.

Y/N collapsed on the couch next to Molly, “What’s wrong? Work not go so well?” Molly inquired.

“No,” Y/N huffed, resting her head on Molly’s shoulder, “It was wonderful.”

“Well, what’s got you so blue Peggy Sue,” Patsy questioned, her tone playful. She was reading a magazine and smoking a cigarette.

“A man came into work after everybody left to pick up one of the girls, Elise.” Y/N clarified.

“You mean Elise Styles?” Molly asked.

Y/N sat up, “Yes, you know her?”

“Just about every woman on this base knows her. She’s the Styles’ little sister.” Molly explained, “We’ve all had to babysit her at least once for those brothers.”

“Yeah and neither of us will be doing it again,” Patsy piped up, as if reminding Molly.

“Oh, you must know Harry then,” Molly paused, shoving Patsy’s foot off of her lap and turning to face Y/N.

“Is he the man you’re sighing over?” Patsy’s magazine fell to the floor as she too stopped to listen.

Y/N furrowed her brows, confused by their reaction, “Y-yes, what about him?”

“What about him?” Molly stood, grabbing a cigarette from the packet on the coffee table and lighting it up, “Y/N you oughta be careful around all three of those brothers but especially Harry.”

“What do you mean?” Y/N glanced at Patsy who nodded in agreement with Molly.

“That boy is not good news. He’s Offutt’s best pilot and he thinks that gives him the right to go around sniffing out every woman that steps foot onto this base.” Y/N frowns, watching as Molly begins to pace back and forth, “He didn’t ask you to go out with him did he?”

“Well he asked me to the dance on Friday. The one at the community centre.”

“Oh, I bet he did!’ Molly exclaimed, “Listen Y/N, I’m telling you this because I don’t want any trouble for you. That boy is no good, he’s slept with half the ladies residing here and even the wives too I bet! He asked Patsy to go out to dinner with him one night and stood her up to go see another woman.”

Y/N glanced at Patsy, “He was flirting with two different women inbetween the moment he asked and our date a week later.” She added.

“That’s right. Y/N darlin’, we shoulda warned y’ before y’ stepped foot out of this house this morning. Those Styles brothers will mess you around and leave y’ lonely for sport. You’re too nice to deserve all of that.”

Y/N's shoulders slumped, “But he seemed so… nice.” Y/N pictured Harry with Elise and how gentle he was with her.

“He’s not a bad person Y/N but when it comes to women, there’s no guessing what that man turns into.”

“Everyone’s heard plenty of things about why they came here too. If you ask me, his home wasn’t exactly a perfect example to him.” Patsy said.

“Well, whatever reason, best stay away from him.” Molly finished.

Y/N heaved a sigh, “So I shouldn’t go to the dance on Friday?”

“Oh no, we’ll go to the dance. Harry’s not the only fine, young pilot on base I’ll tell you that.” Molly smirked and Patsy cheered with excitement at the thought of going out Friday night.

Y/N attempted to smile, but she couldn't shake off the sadness upon realising that the man she had met earlier in the evening wasn't as kind as she had initially believed. Molly fell back onto the couch next to her and put an arm around her shoulders, “Cheer up sweet cheeks. I’m sure plenty of men will want to take you out after this dance.”

Y/N managed a weak smile, grateful for Molly's comforting presence. "Thanks, Molly," she murmured, leaning into her friend's embrace.

"Yeah, plenty of fish in the sea, darlin'. You'll find one that's worth your time." Patsy chimed in.

Feeling a bit more reassured by her friends' words, Y/N nodded. "You're right. I can’t let one bad apple ruin my night."

Molly squeezed her shoulder affectionately. "That's the spirit! Now let's focus on having a great time at the dance. We can tell you about some of the other fellas who live here too."

With her friends' support, Y/N felt an inkling of hope return. She might have been disappointed by one man, but she wasn't about to let it dampen her spirits for the rest of the evening. She was glad she told her friends about her interaction with Harry and now she was left with one rule stitched into the back of her mind.

Keep away from Harry Styles.

. . .

The night sky was clear enough to see the stars glittering against the pitch-black backdrop. A soft, gentle breeze flowed through the air as Harry lay back on the swinging chair on the front porch of the house he shared with his three brothers.

This was his favourite time of day when it was completely silent and the air was cool and crisp. He didn’t like the nights so much when he was living with his parents. After midnight, or sometimes just before, his father would come in through the backdoor stinking the place up with alcohol and waking everyone up with his nightly rampages.

Nowadays, the nighttime was the most relaxing part of the day and Harry savoured every second of it. He often finds himself sat out on the porch after putting Elise to bed. He’d smoke a cigarette or two, and maybe play his guitar a little bit.

Tonight felt a little different though. Whilst his brothers were upstairs trying to put a fussy Elise to bed after she’d napped when he brought her home from nursery, he came outside and could think of nothing but the woman he found holding his little sister in her arms.

Harry knew everyone on base the same way they knew him. He recognised faces easily and had at least one brief encounter with everyone he met in passing. However, the face he had met for the first time this evening was unfamiliar and new.

Her features were delicate and angelic, with large doe eyes that held a hint of shyness to them. A soft, rosy blush adorned her cheeks and her lips were full and plush that he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of them. Her movements were gentle and her voice was airy and sweet, Harry thought of her stuttering and the way she’d blush whenever she spoke. He hadn’t seen anything like her in his life - he wasn’t a religious or spiritual person but, at that moment, he was pretty sure an angel had landed right in front of his very eyes.

Even her name sounded as though it came from some kind of mythical text - one full of beauty and purity, love and light.

Harry wasn’t the purist of men, far from it. He had slept in the beds of women he couldn’t remember the name of and indulged in his fair share of reckless behaviour. But in the presence of Y/N, he felt an unfamiliar stirring within him, a sense of longing tugging at his heartstrings. He didn’t know what it was and he wasn’t so sure he was ready to find out yet.

He lit a cigarette with a matchstick and exhaled into the air, tendrils of smoke dancing above him. The sound of footsteps thudding inside of the house as someone walked downstairs, broke the silence he had been basking in.

The door swung open and George stepped out, “Finally managed to get Elise to settle down though it took a whole round of nursery rhymes. Sonny’s still up there now, he’s afraid she’ll wake up again if he stops singing.” George took a cigarette from the pack Harry had in his pocket, “I thought you told those ladies at the nursery not to let her nap before she comes home.”

“I did,” Harry spoke, his voice husky.

“What? They didn’t listen to y’?” George chuckled.

“There’s a new worker. I’ll let her know next time I see her.” Harry hadn’t wanted to tell Y/N that Elise wasn’t allowed to sleep so late in the afternoon because it was harder to get her to go to bed at night. He didn’t seem to have the heart to as he watched her hold the small girl in her arms.

George scoffed, “A new worker? Is she a knockout at least?”

Harry didn’t reply, instead asking, “What do y’ think about the three of us going to the dance at the Community Centre on Friday?”

George laughed until he realised his brother wasn’t laughing with him, “You’re serious?”

The door swung open again and out stepped Sonny, “I swear if that baby wakes up, you two can sit in there and dance circles around her singing Miss Muffet for all I care. I ain’t doing that again.” He wiped his brow with the back of his hand, “Can y’ pass me a cigarette, George?”

George handed the cigarette to Sonny, “Hey Sonny, Harry wants to know if we’ll go to the dance at the Community Centre this Friday.”

Sonny chuckled but that quickly went away, “Oh shit really?”

“Yeah tha’s what I thought,” George said.

“You got your eye on someone Harry?” Sonny spoke, “Is it that girl from the med centre? She sure is something.”

Harry sat up and turned to face his two brothers, “No, it’s not that,” He lied, “Jus’ thought we could go do something other than sit around and drink at the bar.”

“But the dance?” Sonny quirked a brow, “You hate dances.”

“I never said that,” Harry said, even though he always made it known how much he hated the dances they held every Friday night.

“No, I definitely think I remember y’ saying dances were for people who wanted to get laid but couldn’t,” George spoke, backing up his younger brother who nodded in agreement.

“Alright,” Harry held his hands up, “Alright maybe I did say that. C’mon, what are you, Gunther and Francis? Sit down the pair of you.” They followed their older brother's orders, sitting on the seats opposite him. “Maybe there is a girl.” He sighed.

“Oh yeah?” Sonny smirked.

“Yeah, little shit,” Harry chuckled, “So if you could both do me a favour and get yourselves cleaned up Friday night because we’re going to a shitty dance and I won’t be having either of y’ covered in grease and soot.”

“Okay, alright, H.” George took a puff of his cigarette, “But you’re paying for drinks after.” Harry shook his head, unable to suppress a chuckle.

. . .

Y/N stood in front of her bedroom mirror when Friday night rolled around. She had left the nursery in a hurry, needing as much time as possible to get ready for the dance at the Community Centre. She had been wracked with nerves all week, knowing there was a high chance she would see Harry there and she’d have to do her best to ignore him like Molly had told her to.

She had picked out her outfit the night before. It was one of her best dresses- a lovely duck egg blue, satin fabric with a fitted bodice and a sweetheart neckline that showed off her decolletage. From the waist, the skirt flowed down in a full, flared A-line silhouette, gently swaying with every step. She wore white low heels on her feet and decided to carry a small purse with her too.

Most of her time in the evening was spent on her hair and makeup. Y/N had almost used an entire can of hairspray to ensure her hair would stay intact the whole night. Molly had even given her a French manicure the night before and she spent the whole day at the nursery trying her best not to ruin her perfectly shaped nails.

It had been a long time since she had put this much effort into going somewhere and it was all for a measly dance. There would be many other pretty girls who had spent more or less time on dressing up who probably had a better chance of catching the eye of a man than Y/N did. Yet she wasn’t hoping for the attention of just any man.

Even though Molly and Patsy had warned her of Harry’s nature, she couldn’t stop thinking about Harry. The way his eyes sparkled when he smiled and the sound of his voice as he spoke in that deep, southern drawl. Every time she thought of going to the dance, he would appear in her mind. Maybe she didn’t necessarily want anything from him but she wanted to at least catch his eye enough to make a lasting impression on him.

Y/N applied a little more powder to her nose and did one final check in the mirror. She straightened her shoulders, “This will have to do,” She muttered, grabbing her purse.

Patsy and Molly were already downstairs drinking margaritas and listening to Frank Sinatra on the record player. “Oh and another one comes to join us,” Molly grinned, wearing a navy, spotty dress with a red belt wrapped around her small waist.

“What took you so long?” Patsy grinned, pouring a drink in a martini glass and handing it to Y/N.

“O-oh no thank you, I don’t drink.” Y/N shook her head and forced a smile out of politeness.

“What? You don’t?” Patsy replied like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Oh c’mon! Just one little sip - liquid courage and all that.” Molly took the glass from Patsy to give to Y/N who forced herself to take it from her. She held the glass to her lips, taking one small sip and feeling a tiny burn from the alcohol.

“Good right?” Molly smirked, lighting a cigarette and holding the packet open to Y/N.

“No thank you, I don’t smoke either.” Y/N laughs nervously.

“Fair enough,” Molly shrugs, passing the pack over to Patsy who happily takes one for herself.

Y/N places her drink on the table, knowing she won’t be touching it again. “We’ll be heading out in a moment, we’re just waiting on one more.” As if she could hear them talking about her, footsteps thumped down the stairs and into the living room.

Y/N’s eyes widened when her eyes landed on the tall, blonde standing in the doorway. She was wearing a black dress with a neckline that showed off her bust and a tight waistline that accentuated her curves. The strands of her golden, blonde hair were tied back into a high ponytail with her fringe perfectly curled. She wore red lipstick on her plump lips which made the blue in her eyes even brighter than they already were.

“You’ve been in your room for hours, Nancy,” Patsy whined.

“Yes well, I don’t just plan on getting wasted tonight Patsy.” Nancy retorted.

Nancy was Y/N's other housemate, but Y/N didn't know her as well as she knew Patsy and Molly. Even though they lived together, Nancy seemed a bit distant compared to the latter two, who were friendly and nice. Nancy would smile politely, but she didn't say much else. Oftentimes, Y/N would get a strange feeling about Nancy like how she would make little comments that seemed to be jabs masked by forced politeness or how sometimes it felt like Nancy enjoyed pointing out Y/N's mistakes, like how she did her laundry or what groceries she bought. She wasn’t sure what she had done to upset Nancy but Y/N hoped it was just her over-thinking that made her believe she was this way and that tonight would allow them to get to know each other a little better.

Nancy’s eyes fell on Y/N and looked her up and down, “Nice dress,” She said, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness.

“Thank you,” Y/N offered her a smile but received nothing in return.

“Alright ladies,” Molly stubbed her cigarette in the ashtray, “Let’s go catch us a few good men.”

“A few?” Patsy giggled.

“You’re right, I think a few is a little too much for this place.” Molly huffed and led the way out of the house and towards the community centre.

Y/N could hear the live music coming from the centre as they walked down the street. Patsy and Molly were stumbling ahead, arms linked together as they laughed side by side. Y/N tried not to laugh at her friends as she walked alongside Nancy.

“You planning on hooking up with anybody tonight?” Nancy’s voice broke the silence between them.

“No I don’t think so,” Y/N replies.

Nancy scoffs, “These dances are mostly for that you know, better prepare yourself when a fella tries to talk to you.”

“You think they’ll want to?” Y/N asked, hopeful.

Nancy glanced at her, “I’m sure they’ll snatch you right up those pilot boys.”

Y/N blushes, “Is there anyone you’ve got your eyes on tonight Nancy?” She liked this, conversing with Nancy. She hoped this would be the start of breaking the ice between them and maybe they could become friends eventually, or at least build acquaintances.

Nancy smirks, “Only one.” She said nothing after that.

The girls walked into the community centre which was already full of people from all over the airbase. A live band was playing Elvis Presley songs, the music blaring into Y/N’s ears once they stepped inside. “Any of you girls want a drink-”

“Molly is that Everett?” Patsy pointed to a man in the corner, talking to a woman.

Molly’s face scrunched up, “I guess he’s back from Italy.”

Nancy interrupted the conversation, her eyes darting across the room like she was searching for somebody, “You girls grab something to drink, I’m just going to use the bathroom.”

“Who’s Everett?” Y/N asked Patsy as they walked towards the drinks table.

“A guy Molly had a thing with last year,” Patsy explained.

“Yeah until he told me he was going to Italy for a year and wanted to break things off so he could get laid by an Italian woman.” Molly ranted, leading the girls to the drinks table.

A bowl of punch resided in the centre of the table, Molly grabbed the ladle and poured them all a drink. Y/N took a sip and allowed her eyes to scan the room. Couples were dancing in the centre whilst others spoke in groups off to the side.

Eventually, her eyes caught sight of a group of men walking through the door. Each one of them was dressed in a similar uniform, a navy blue tailored jacket and matching, fitted trousers. She watched as an entire group of them continued to flood in through the doors until the last man stepped through.

He was wearing the same uniform as the others and his hair was gelled back with one curl falling in front of his forehead, unlike the messy curls she had seen when they first met. Y/N couldn’t help but stare as he weaved through the crowd and interacted with people as he walked past them. Everyone seemed to know him from the looks of it. He exuded confidence and bravado, people’s faces lighting up whenever he stopped to talk to them.

“Patsy?” One of the boys spoke.

“Here we go,” Molly muttered, forcing a smile.

A man with features that looked similar to the man Y/N had been eyeing, walked up to them with a taller man following him. “Hi Sonny,” Patsy greeted.

“Y’ sure know how to make yourself look good when you want to,” He winked, eyeing her up and down.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Patsy put both her hands on her waist.

“You know what I mean,” Sonny argued, realising he might have said something to offend her even though he had no idea what that might be.

“Hi,” The taller man behind him spoke. Y/N looked up and was met with familiar green eyes except they were a little bit lighter than the ones she had seen.

“Hi,” Y/N blushed.

“I’m George. Are you new here? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around.” He wondered, pointing his thumb over his shoulder to the crowd as he spoke.

“Y-Yes, I arrived recently actually. I just started working at the nursery.” She clarified.

“Oh, the nursery! You must know my little sister Elise.” Y/N’s lips turned upwards thinking of the little girl she had been spending so much time with over the last few days. Since her first day, Elise had constantly been wanting her attention whether it was to nap or play with things or read books. “You must have met my older brother then.”

“Older brother?” Y/N didn’t have enough time to register as George glanced around the room and called out his brother’s name.

“Harry, c’mere!” He called.

Harry’s head turned towards them in the middle of his conversation. His eyes landed on his brother until they found hers. He offered a small smile and began to walk towards them with a drink already in his hand, “This is one of the new workers at Elise’s nursery.” George introduced even though he didn’t really need to.

“Yes, we’ve already met,” Harry said and Y/N thought she might melt into a puddle on the floor at the sound of his voice. “Hi there,”

“Hello,” Y/N smiled, shyly.

“So you came?” He teased.

“I did.” She laughed, lightly.

“And these are y’ friends?” He looked to Patsy and Molly who were bickering with Sonny who seemed to have said something else to offend them, George now joining in on the argument as he let Harry and Y/N talk.

“Yeah, they’re my friends,” Y/N said, feeling nervous under his gaze. But despite her nerves, she couldn't deny the thrill of being the focus of his attention.

“Good to know,” He murmured, “Y come here with anyone else?”

"Um, no, just the girls from my house," Y/N stuttered, feeling a rush of nerves as Harry's gaze lingered on her. "I don't know that many people. Other than the girls I live with and the ones from the nursery, who are all lovely, by the way," she added, her words tumbling out in a nervous ramble.

Harry grinned, his eyes twinkling with amusement at her flustered state. "You know me too," he stated, his tone playful as he leaned in closer.

Y/N gulped the air she breathed just as the lights in the centre dimmed. The fast-paced music began to slow down and couples gathered to the dance floor to slow dance together. “Y wanna dance with me Y/N?” Harry asked.

“I-I’m not very good at it,” Y/N smiled sheepishly, her cheeks tinged with a delicate blush. It was impossible to resist the charm that radiated from him.

He held out the palm of his hand and Y/N’s lips parted as she glanced down at it, “S just swaying tha’s all. Think y’ can do that?”

Y/N hesitantly nodded, her pulse quickening as Harry's long fingers gently wrapped around her wrist. A tingling sensation danced across her skin, sending shivers down her spine and causing goosebumps to rise in response to his touch. He led her to the centre of the dancefloor and turned around so they were face to face. Harry took both of Y/N's hands in his own, his touch sending electric currents coursing through her veins. With a tender yet confident touch, he trailed his fingers down her arms, causing her breath to hitch in her throat. As his hands settled at her waist, Y/N's breath turned shallow, her heart racing as the music floated through the air.

She was stiff at first, unable to relax until he leant forward and whispered, “Relax birdy,” She felt his breath against her neck as he spoke. He squeezed her waist a little and she dropped her shoulders, trying her best to loosen up under the circumstances.

“Birdy?” Y/N spoke, questioning the new nickname.

“I spotted y’ as soon as I stepped through the door. Your dress is blue ‘n it reminded me of the bluebirds I used to see back home whenever I’d go up in the mountains with my grandpa.” He explained.

“I didn’t know you’d seen me.”

“I searched for y’ as soon as I walked in. I only came because of you, if I couldn’t find y’ I’d probably just turn back and go to a bar or something.” He chuckled and Y/N laughed with him.

“No Elise?” She questioned, unable to stop herself from asking about the little girl she had become fond of.

“Elise is staying with the family next door. Little rascal tried to get ketchup on my uniform,” He rolled his eyes, “I got a free house if that’s what you’re implying though.”

Y/N’s face turned beat red, “N-No that’s not what I’m implying at all.”

“M just messin’” Harry grinned, cheekily.

Y/N relaxed, composing herself and trying to pull herself together, “I’ve heard things about you, you know.”

“Oh yeah?” Harry smirked, “What things?”

“Just things.” Y/N felt his fingertips press her skin for a moment.

“And do you believe these things?” Harry murmured, leaning in a little closer.

Y/N looked him in the eye, trying to see if she could read him without having to ask him a thousand questions, “I don’t know yet.”

Harry opened his mouth to reply but was stopped by the sudden change in music and the lights turning on above them. People cheered as they gathered back into big groups and began dancing again. Harry bit back a grin, shaking his head, “Y wanna come outside with me?” He asked, shouting over the loud music. Y/N bit her lip and nodded, taking his outstretched hand and allowing him to pull her through the crowd of people.

The air was cold once they stepped outside. Harry led her over to a small bench nearby where fewer people were gathered. He pulled out a cigarette and offered her the pack, “Oh no thank you, I don’t smoke.” She declined, politely.

Harry smiled around his cigarette, his gaze lingering on Y/N for a beat or two as he casually slipped the pack into the pocket of his trousers. The air between them was filled with a comfortable silence, broken only by the soft sound of music drifting from inside the centre. Sensing Y/N's slight shiver, Harry swiftly removed his jacket and draped it over her shoulders without saying a word.

"But you'll get cold," Y/N protested, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Don't y’ worry about me. I don't get cold," Harry quipped, a mischievous twinkle in his eye as he shrugged off her concern. His white t-shirt revealed toned arms adorned with a few tattoos littering his tanned skin.

As Harry tilted his head back to blow smoke into the night air, Y/N couldn't help but admire the way he carried himself with effortless confidence. Gathering her courage, she decided to strike up a conversation.

"Were those your brothers back there?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

"Yeah, Sonny and George," Harry confirmed with a hint of pride in his voice.

"They look so much like you," Y/N remarked, her curiosity piqued.

"Strong genes, I suppose," Harry shrugged, his tone becoming more serious as he opened up about his family background.

"What about you? Do you have any siblings?" He inquired.

"Just an older sister and my little niece, Rosie Jean," Y/N replied, a fond smile tugging at her lips as she thought of her family.

"And your parents?" Harry pressed, his gaze intense as he studied her reaction.

"My parents are doctors, they work at a surgery in town," Y/N explained, feeling a pang of homesickness as she reminisced about her upbringing.

"And yours?" She prompted, turning the conversation back to Harry.

"M parents are nobodies," Harry's voice took on a sombre tone, clearly his family life was a sensitive topic. Sensing his discomfort, Y/N chose her next words carefully.

"What about Elise?" she asked, hoping to lighten the mood with talk of his sister.

"Elise is better off being raised by us three than being left alone in a house with batshit crazy," Harry scoffed, his protective instincts kicking in.

Feeling the weight of their conversation, Y/N searched for a way to lift Harry's spirits. "What made you want to be a pilot?" she asked, genuinely interested.

“Sonny came home wanting to sign up for cadet training after they visited his school. He came home running through the doors with a flyer in his hand and told everybody he was going into the army. I told him ‘No brother of mine is going anywhere that requires trench foot and guns.’ He didn’t talk to me for a week after that. It wasn’t until I found an advertisement where y’ could train to fly planes when I decided I was gonna make a better life for myself and my siblings. It just so happened Sonny and George wouldn’t let me go at it alone.” He inhaled his cigarette before tossing it to the ground.

As Harry shared the story of how he and his brothers found their way to Offutt, Y/N couldn't help but admire his determination. She found herself drawn to him even more, captivated by his strength and the way he always included his brother’s in everything he spoke about.

A comfortable silence settled between them. Y/N's heart skipped a beat as Harry smoothly slid his hand next to hers, their fingers intertwining effortlessly. His touch sent a jolt of electricity through her.

"Have I told y’ how beautiful y’look tonight?" Harry's voice was soft, his gaze locking with hers in a way that made her heart race.

Y/N blushed at his compliment, unable to tear her eyes away from his. "You're lying," she protested, feeling a surge of warmth spread through her cheeks.

"I swear it," Harry insisted, his hand reaching up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Swear on m’ life, birdy."

Y/N's heart fluttered at the nickname, a secret thrill running through her as she turned to face him. His eyes held a tenderness that melted her defences, and she found herself smiling back at him.

"Hi, birdy," Harry murmured, a dimple appearing on his cheek as he leaned in closer.

"Hi, Harry," Y/N whispered, her voice barely above a breath as she savoured the moment.

Harry's shoulders dropped and a soft smile tugged at the corners of his lips, though he seemed to be fighting to contain it. “I can’t lie to y’ birdy, I can’t stop thinking about kissing you,” Y/N's breath caught in her throat, her heart racing at his words. “I was gonna lie and tell y’ I’d been thinking about it since I saw you tonight but… quite honestly, I think I've been dreaming of y’ since I met y’ the other day.”

Y/N didn’t know what to say, she felt as though someone had put a zipper straight across her mouth and she couldn’t get it to open. All she could feel was every muscle in her body beating against her skin as though they were trying to force her to surge forward and kiss him herself. “Y-You can if you want,” She stuttered, cheeks pink.

Harry laughed, “What about if you want? Can’t go kissin’ y’ if y’ don’t want it birdy.”

“I do want it,” Y/N nodded.

“Yeah?” He spoke but it came out more like a whisper.

“Yeah.” Y/N gulped, feeling nervous.

Harry didn’t hesitate once the word had left her mouth. He leaned forward, closing the distance between them. Their lips met in a gentle, tentative kiss, soft and exploratory. Y/N's heart fluttered as she melted into the warmth of Harry's embrace, her senses flooded with the taste of his lips and the scent of his cedarwood cologne.

Time seemed to stand still as they lost themselves in the sweetness of the moment, their kisses deepening with each passing second. Harry's arms wrapped around Y/N, pulling her as close to him as possible.

In that instant, everything else faded away—the noise of the party, the chill of the night air—leaving only the two of them, lost in the heat of their first kiss.

They were both breathless as they pulled apart. Y/N’s eyes fluttered open to find Harry already looking at her, his eyes filled with emotion and intense desire. She noticed his tongue poke out to lick his bottom lip and she couldn’t help but giggle when she noticed the red lipstick stain she had left on his mouth from her kiss.

“Where abouts do you live?” Harry murmured.

“Clemon Street,” Y/N spoke, her voice coming out a whisper.

“Yeah? That’s on my way home,” He grinned.

“Oh really?” Y/N bit back a laugh, “I thought y’ lived on Newark Street - it said so in Elise’s file.”

Harry shrugged, “I like to go the long way round.” Y/N didn’t bother pulling him up on the fact that the two streets were on opposite ends of the housing estate.

“Can I walk y’ home?” He asked, his fingers fiddling with the fabric of her dress.

Y/N nodded, biting her bottom lip, “Yeah I’d like that.”

Harry grinned, “Well alright then.”

They stood up, Y/N keeping his jacket around her shoulders since it was still cold out, “I’ve just got to go to the bathroom,” She motioned towards the community centre.

“I’ll wait for y’ at the door,” He said, following her as they walked to the community centre side by side. Y/N walked up to the steps and opened the door, she looked over her shoulder to make sure Harry was still there- that he was real and not just someone she dreamt up.

Harry caught her eye, “M not going anywhere birdy,” he winked, “hurry up so I can walk y’ home and kiss y’ again.”

Y/N laughed and hurried straight to the bathroom. Once inside, she closed the cubicle door behind her and sank down onto the lid of the toilet seat, a wide grin spreading across her face. Unable to contain her excitement, she let out a delighted squeal, her mind buzzing with thoughts of the moment she had just shared.

She pulled out the pocket mirror from her bag and quickly reapplied the lipstick that had been smeared off. She fluffed up her hair with her hands and rubbed her aching cheeks from where had been smiling so much. She stood up and held Harry’s coat in her arms. As Y/N stepped outside the community centre, she scanned the area in search of Harry, hoping to catch a glimpse of him waiting for her. Her anticipation turned to disappointment when she couldn't spot him anywhere, and her shoulders slumped slightly in resignation. Just as she was about to turn away, a figure caught her eye—a silhouette that had a striking resemblance to Harry—standing in a shadowy corner illuminated by the lights from the community centre.

Heart fluttering with excitement, Y/N smiled and took a step forward, eager to walk home with him. However, her joy quickly turned to dismay when she realised he wasn't alone.

A sudden giggle pierced the air, causing Y/N's heart to sink. Molly's warning appeared typed out in big letters at the forefront of her mind, filling her with regret and dread as she hesitated, frozen in place. With each step she took closer, the scene before her unfolded—it was Nancy, her housemate, clinging to the man she had just kissed.

I imagine George to be Callum Turner and Sonny to be Timothee Chalamet specifically from ms stevens but you can imagine whoever you’d like ! <;33

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saberlight1 · 5 months

Text

exit music (for a film) — coriolanus snow

pairing: coriolanus snow x fem!reader

warnings: slight tbosas spoilers, mentions of past abuse, trauma, violence, ptsd, established relationship, reader almost gets assaulted, Y/N usage, possessive!snow, a toxic ex attacks you, hints towards past sexual assault, standard ballad of songbirds and snakes warnings.

authors note: soo i was needing some comfort, and i realized there are not a lot of hurt & comfort fics for coryo!! this is a big injustice so i decided to write this. just a fair warning: this fic contains themes that can be hard for some people to read; including sexual assault and domestic violence. if you aren’t comfortable with these topics, feel free to go read some of my other coryo stories here! i hope you all enjoy this, much love<3.

masterlist

When you first laid eyes upon the white-haired boy, you didn’t think he’d become as important to you as he is now. He was assigned to be your mentor in the Hunger Games, and you were slightly relieved when you saw him standing at the train station, waiting for you.

Although you were both cautious of the other, coming from different, yet similar lands. But once you warmed up to him, you never wanted to part.

After the arena got bombed with you all in it, Coriolanus getting injured aand trapped, you stayed behind even if there was a clear opening for you to run— because you found yourself caring for him.

He had protected you so far, treating you with kindness and respect as he guided you through this hellish period in your life. So you had to do the same. Anyways, that was what told yourself when you risked everything to stay back and attempt to help him.

You brushed your hair behind your ears, ignoring the stinging pain in your side from being burnt as you started off into a sprint towards the boy who was crying out in pain, the pole he was trapped under catching fire.

“Coriolanus!” You called out as you neared him. “I’m here, I’m here.” You tried to soothe him as you tried to push the pole off of him.

He let out a sigh of relief at the sight of your face, and almost looked confused at your act to help him.

After a moment of struggle, you finally got the pole away from him, but it had got him badly. You immediately bent down to his level, your hands going to cradle his face softly, he leaned into it.

“Oh, are you alright?” You whispered, his shaky hands coming out to grip your wrists, rubbing softly in thanks. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner, I—” You did your best to explain, but you were cut off by a sharp grip on your arm, dragging you away from him. The boy reached out for you as you were taken away, only making your heart sink further into your stomach.

“No!” You thrashed in their hold, but to no avail. You watched your mentor lose consciousness from the pain as you could do nothing to help him.

And even though you only met him a couple days prior, you realized in that very moment how much you truly did care for him.

That was one of your earliest memories of Coriolanus, the next time you saw him after that was the first time your lips touched. From that night on, you became much more to each other than you ever would’ve guessed.

You sighed, moving from your spot in your window as reality set in. You hadn’t seen the boy in question in over month. He had promised to protect you, and he kept it surely. He cheated to get you out the games, and it ended with him locked up, as you liked to believe. People around twelve said that the Capitol had him killed.

You wished he had left you to die if it meant he’d be free and you the one in the grave. You were in misery in your district, missing your lover deeply. But, alas, you had no choice. And with all the fighting you did in that arena, you refused to give up now.

Even if it meant living without the one you craved most.

You grabbed your bag, another hard breath leaving your lips as you walked out the comfort of your small home that was in the outskirts of District 12. You liked it better that way, being away from it all. When you were younger you used to live down by the Hob, which was located right next to the Hanging Tree.

After years of hearing the grueling sounds of somebody loosing their life, the jabberjays in the wind repeating their loved ones cries, sometimes even their last words, you simply couldn’t bare it anymore.

So you left, opting to live out by the forest and the lake, giving you pockets of peace where you could forget it all. Or, at least the things you tried to forget. Some things seemed to haunt you forever.

You quietly walked into town to go get some food from the Mellark Bakery, your head down and gaze low the whole way. You could feel eyes on you— you always did when you came out of your home. You hated their stares, their judgement, that was the one thing that seemed to haunt you the most.

You finally looked up, meeting eyes with your ex boyfriend who was stood with his friends, a sly smirk being worn on his face. You internally shrank, your steps picking up as you tried to get closer to your destination.

Anxiety flooded your bloodstream as you heard loud, hard footsteps pick up behind you, sounding as if they were only inching closer and closer. Your eyes screwed shut as you felt like you were back in the arena again, your flight or fight instincts kicking in.

You tried to calm yourself down, repeating the words ‘It’s all in your head’ like a mantra under your breath. You had recently been plagued with the worst paranoia and anxiety, and the only reason of why you could think of was because of the time you spent in that godforsaken arena. Most of the time you felt as if you being hunted, all of the horror you felt when you were in that arena never leaving your nervous system.

Most days you had to talk yourself out of a panic attack, little things setting you off and sending you into a 20 minute state of panic. It was normal to you by now, and that is what you thought was happening.

Until a harsh grip yanked you out of your head, dragging you into an alley and pinning you to a wall. A loud yelp left your lips as you hit the wall, taking you a moment to process what was happening.

When you looked up, the pit in your stomach only grew further as an overwhelming sense of dread came over you. Your ex-boyfriend, Jay, was standing over you with that same soulless smile that used to haunt your dreams.

“My, Y/N. It’s been a mighty long time since I done seen you around here.” He taunted, his hot breath hitting your face, causing your eyes to screw shut as the past memories of him doing this very same thing to you swirled around your brain. “Thought after you got a taste of the Capitol.. of that Coriolanus Snow,” he said with disgust on his tone. “That you thought you were too good f’me. For Twelve.” He spat, harshly.

It was funny how with a few words he could turn you right back into that naive girl he manipulated all those years ago. You cowered in fear, refusing to look him the eye.

“Jay, please..” You whispered, your head turned away from him in an attempt to get as far away as possible. “Just let me go, please. I won’t come back around here, I swear.” You begged, tears filling your closed eyes as you fought for your composure.

“Nah, girl.” He whispered back, getting so close to you that you could feel his breath on your cheek. “I’m gon’ do what I want with you, like old times.”

Your eyes shot open his words. “No, God, please, no.” The tears fell from your eyes as you continued to plea with him.

“Oh, c’mon, Y/N.” He coldly smiled. “You used to be fun,”You felt his grip on your forearms travel back down to your hips, squeezing. The act left a bad taste in your mouth, making you want to throw up. You sobbed as you prepared yourself for what was coming, wishing you had just stayed cooped up in your home.

Your wails from the alley only increased in volume as his touch began to move downward. “Shut the fuck up,” He hissed, his hand slapping over your mouth. You prayed to whatever God was above, wishing he would just kill you now.

And just as his hand ghosted over the waistband of your skirt, the man’s touch disappeared all together, being replaced with the sound of someone hitting the floor.

You opened your tear-stained eyes slowly to find your attacker on the ground, and in a flash of throwing punches you saw that white hair adorned by the boy you adored so much.

You stood there in shock as you watched Coriolanus, who now wore a Peacekeeper’s uniform with a shaved head, beat Jay into a pulp. Tears still left your eyes as you slid down the wall, your knees coming up to your chest as you began to process what almost just happened to you.

Anxiety took your breath from your lungs as the panic finally began to set in once you realized you were safe. Your vision started to go blurry with tears as the will to breathe got harder.

“Hey, hey.” Coriolanus appeared in your line of vision, his hands wiping the tears from your face. “I’m here, you’re alright, baby.” He sighed before sitting down next to you and bringing you into his arms. You dug your head into the crook of his neck, hugging him close.

“Did he hurt you?” He asked, his hand on the back of your head, rubbing softly. He tried his best to comfort you, and tried to calm the fiery rage he felt when he saw that man on top of you.

“N—No,” You shakily got out. “He.. he tried to—”

Coriolanus’ head fell to your shoulder, hugging you just as tight as a sigh of relief left his lips. He had been walking by when he first heard your pleas with that man, and he dropped everything and ran at the sound of your voice. When he saw that man on top of you, the muffled sobs leaving your lips, your eyes screwed shut— God, he saw red. He would be lying if he didn’t say he didn’t miss you in the time you were apart.

Your body shook with your sobs, the boy’s heart hurting of the sight of you this upset. “Shh, you’re safe. I’m here,” He repeated, leaving kisses on your face, neck, and shoulders whilst he whispered sweet nothings in your ear in an attempt to calm you.

Once you somewhat calmed down you pulled back slightly, just to make sure he was real.

“Oh, Coryo,” You cried, your forehead resting on his. “Thank you, thank you.”

He swallowed the lump in his throat as he took in your state. He had never seen you like this, so scared, so vulnerable. The sight of it only made him bring you back into his arms, holding you impossibly closer.

“I’ve got you, my love.” He hushed your cries, leaving another kiss on your head. “No one’s gonna hurt you if I’m with you, it’s okay now.” You wrapped your legs around his waist as he stood up, you still in his arms. He placed you down slightly, his hands angling your jaw up so you’d look at him. “C’mon, let’s go to your house. Get you away from this piece of shit,” he pointed to the bloodied face of Jay who was unconscious on the ground. You nodded, trying to pull yourself together, your eyes flickering back to Jay to make sure he was still knocked out.

Sensing your anxieties, he pulled you back into his arms for once last hug. “Shh,” He rubbed your back. “You’re alright. He won’t hurt you, I won’t let him.” He comforted, leaning down to kiss your tears away. His movements made you smile as you sucked in a breath before you lead him out the alley and to your home.

Once you arrived and walked through the doors, it felt as if a weight was lifted off your shoulders. You were finally home, and you had Coryo with you.

Your heart felt full as it sank in that you were finally reunited with him, with Coryo. You got him back. A smile was on your face, despite your previous cries as you turned back towards the man who shared a similar smile to yours as he looked around at your home, and launched yourself into his arms.

He chuckled slightly, hugging you back like a delicate flower in his palm. After a moment of holding each other, you pulled back again, your hands cupping his cheeks. “I thought you were dead, Coryo. I thought.. oh, I thought they took you from me.” You sighed, leaning forward to connect your lips with his for the first time in months. You poured all of the longing, all of the tears, and emotion into that kiss, trying to show all your love with just an action.

He smiled against your lips, his hands on your hips being comforting as he leaned forward, tilting his head to deepen it. When the pair of you pulled apart for air, the smiles stayed.

“You should know by now that I’ll always find you, Y/N.” He joked, tucking hair behind your ear.

“Good,” You left one last peck to his lips, before going grabbing his hand and leading him to your bed. After all of the crying you had done in the past hour, all you wanted to do was lay with him.

He instantly knew what you were trying to do, a love-sick smile on his face as he laid down next to you, pulling you into his chest. You giggle as you settled in, your hand tracing patterns into his undershirt.

“I missed you,” He whispered after a while of quiet, looking down at you.

Blush dusted your cheeks as you rolled on your stomach to give him your full attention, your chin on his chest. “I missed you, too. Probably more.”

He smiled at your words, his hand coming up to grip yours lovingly, rubbing his thumb across the back of your hand. “You’re beautiful,” He said after a beat of silence, admiring you in the candlelight.

You smiled at his words. “You’re prettier, Snow.” Your gaze flickered down to your laced fingers, noticing his cut and bruised knuckles.

“Oh, Coryo,” You sat up slightly, bringing his hand with you to get a closer look. “I’m sorry—”

“Don’t apologize. That wasn’t your fault. I’m alright, baby, doesn’t even hurt that bad.” He tried to talk you down, a soft smile still on his face.

“Thank you, I mean it.” You met his eye. “I don’t know what would’ve happened if you didn’t save me.” You swallowed the growing lump in your throat. “You always save me.”

It was his turn to blush now, as you bent down to kiss his injured knuckles softly. When you finished he grabbed your jaw softly, bringing your lips to his. He kissed you hard, just like he always did. It seemed like he tried to show how much he loved you with just one simple action, and trust, he accomplished that goal.

You hummed happily against his lips, letting him pull you down on top of him, your lips still connected. When you pulled back for air, he continued to cradle your face, peppering kisses along your jaw.

“You don’t have to thank me.” He whispered, his lips still leaving kisses. “I’ll always be here to protect you.”

You smiled, giggling as you snuggled closer to him. The pair of you had quieted down once again, sleep and comfort taking over your minds.

But you cracked your eyes open one last time, leaning up to leave kisses on his jaw. “I love you, Coryo.”

His eyes opened immediately as he stared down at you in shock, before a soft smile took over his face. “I love you, too.”

And just like that, all you had been longing for was under your fingertips, and you now thanked whatever God was looking down on you for bringing this man into your life.

#coriolanus my bae #coryo #coryo x reader #coriolanus angst #coriolanus x you #coriolanus x reader #coriolanus snow x reader #corio snow #coriolanus fanfiction #coriolanus snow #coriolanus snow fluff #coryo snow #tbsoas #the ballad of songbirds and snakes

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multifandomimagin3s · 1 year

Text

Mercenary! Reader - 141, Los Vaqueros + Konig

So I recently rewatched Deadpool, and I was thinking about what the boys reactions would be to finding out that (r/n) is a mercenary - gave them a little bit of Wade's personality too~

Mentions of violence, strong language, little bit of angst if you squint.

Simon "Ghost" Riley

Oh, he definitely doesn't trust you.

He's impressed by your skills on the battlefield, and knows that you're very good at what you do - otherwise you wouldn't be a mercenary - but he absolutely wouldn't turn his back on you.

Price would have probably already told 141 about you, but even if he hadn't he probably would have put two and two together on his own.

Doesn't judge you...much - he's done some pretty fucked up things, it comes with his line of work, but being a mercenary is on another level.

Your sense of humour piques his interest, his humour is dark at the best of times so the fact that you can match his dark comments with some of your own is fine by him.

Don't get it twisted though, if he thinks that you're trying to double-cross his team, he wouldn't hesitate to kill you.

If you were recruited to help 141 on a mission, it would probably mean that the mission was going to be hell on Earth; I can see Shepard hiring you - his intentions were probably never disclosed to you, which makes you trust him less and less.

Given that you're not part of the British Army, your clothing and gear probably wouldn't be similar at all; picture the suits from Black Widow, because Yelena is a goddess~

He definitely hasn't secretly admired your arse when you're not looking - Soap definitely caught him once and was given a glare as a warning to keep his mouth shut.

You'd have to prove yourself to him before he lets himself feel any of the feelings of attraction he has for you - mans has a lot of past trauma that he doesn't want repeated, so until he knows that you're trustworthy, he's going to be cold and calculative as always.

Johnny "Soap" MacTavish

While he may be a generally friendly guy, Johnny is far from stupid; he'll make small-talk with you in the beginning, but knows not to let his guard down - no matter how much your sense of humour makes him chuckle.

Watches you take down 4 soldiers almost twice your size with ease, and almost pops a boner.

If you're anything like Wade, he's a bit of an over-sharer; when you tell him about parts of your past that led to you becoming a mercenary - some parts which may have been slightly traumatic and concerning to hear - with a smile on your face, he's a bit worried for you.

Definitely flirts with you on the regular - Ghost just gives him a blank stare, wondering why Soap likes to gamble with his life since the team barely even know you.

Once you prove that you're trustworthy, he opens up to you more; we've seen how he acts with Ghost, undeterred by the big guy's cold exterior.

He asks to train with you - doesn't mind being thrown to the mats a hundred times over, "I don't mind the view from doon here, like ;D" [doon = down], "Aye, I knew you'd look great on top a' me"

Asks to try out your weapons - some are not too different from his own, while some are quite clearly black-market issue.

All in all, Soap's an easy-going guy - so as long as you don't try to kill him or anyone he cares about, you're golden.

Captain John Price

Another one who doesn't trust you at all.

He's been in the military for a long time, and he's encountered mercenaries from across the globe - most of them weren't the friendly type, especially when they were after the same target.

He's definitely angry when Shepard tells him that you'll be accompanying his team on the next mission; he's offended, for one, as it makes it seem as if his team are incompetent or not skilled enough to go it alone.

Doesn't take his eyes off you for a second - in his eyes, you're not a soldier, you don't abide by legalities and you essentially kill for money so you might as well be a fully-fledged assassin.

Doesn't bat an eyelid at your humour either, and doesn't let his guard down.

Your fighting skills are undeniable - you're very good at what you do, and you're clearly very intelligent, but don't mistake this for respect.

You probably don't show your face at all - revealing your identity would probably incriminate yourself and put yourself and anyone around you in danger; this doesn't phase him, but it makes it harder for him to trust you.

For Price to trust you would take a hell of a lot of work; you'd have to prove yourself, not just in the field but from a moral standpoint too.

If you do manage to prove yourself to him, then he might gradually start to see you in a different light.

Soap may or may not have caught him eyeing you up appreciatively - but a stern look from his Captain shut him up immediately.

Kyle "Gaz" Garrick

I can see Gaz keeping out of your way as much as possible.

Out of everyone in 141, he's the youngest and hasn't been in the military for very long either, so he hasn't encountered mercenaries before.

That being said, he knows what a mercenary is and knows that Price doesn't trust you at all - the fact you were hired by Shepard is questionable in itself, so he keeps his interactions with you to a minimum.

Doesn't know what to make of your humour - sometimes your comedic timing and the things you come out with are quite funny, he can't deny that. But other times, you come out with some twisted shit that makes him wonder about your mental state.

He's naturally curious at to how you went from being a soldier to a mercenary - he doesn't have to ponder for long, sometimes you'd just openly remark about things that happened in your past and he was able to figure it out on his own.

He'd never admit it out loud but watching you rile up Ghost with your sarcastic comments and dark humour was entertaining - even if he did fear for your safety when the hulking soldier was due to blow a gasket.

If you showed him your face, he would be pleasantly surprised - Price definitely gives him the disapproving Dad face whenever he catches Kyle oggling you after that.

Alejandro Vargas

*I used google translate for both Alej, Rudy and Konig so if the translations are wrong I apologise*

Oof, he is angry.

We saw how he reacted with Valeria, he doesn't like soldiers who turn their back on morality for money.

He doesn't even attempt to hide his distaste for you.

"Eres un maldito traidor y un asesino." ["You are a fucking traitor and a murderer."]

Finds out you're working with 141 and he's just >:(

"¡¿Por qué diablos están aquí?!" ["Why the fuck are they here?!"]

Warns you that if you betray the team - his friends - that he'd be coming for you, and he would kill you without hesitation.

Your dark humour would probably rub him the wrong way, further solidifying his perception that you were a soldier who walked down a path that you couldn't come back from, "No tienes verguenza?" ["Do you have no shame?"]

I think that even if you did prove yourself, he still wouldn't fully trust you - it would take years for him to look you in the eye with a modicum of respect.

If he sees you getting along well with 141, it might slightly make him think differently of you - especially if Ghost seems to be okay with you being around them.

But it would take him a while to see you as anything other than a killer; "No eres malo, pero recuerda, traicionarnos y estarás muerto antes de que puedas correr." ["You're not bad but remember, betray us and you'll be dead before you can run."

Rudy Parra

Rudy's naturally quite a quiet guy, so I doubt he'd say much to you anyway.

However, this silence doesn't mean acceptance.

He keeps a close eye on you, analysing every move you make.

Would probably ask for your opinion on things when you're on a mission; it's partially out of curiosity, a way to see how your mind works, and other parts to air on the edge of caution because your sense of humour consisted of coming out with some crazy shit.

I reckon if he did trust you, he'd still be very cautious and aware of what you were and what you were capable of; after seeing you take down soldiers like it was nothing, he's inwardly grateful that you were fighting on the same side...for now.

If you let your guard down and told him about aspects of your personal life, it might change his mind a bit - it shows that you're human, you have a life outside all of this...but that being said, he's never seen your face, so you could walk past him in the grocery store and he would never know. It's unnerving.

If you do trust him enough to show your face, he's conflicted; "No te ves como esperaba que te vieras." ["You don't look how I expected you to look.] You look perfectly normal, minus the black paint around your eyes - pretty, even.

Alejandro doesn't like you one bit from the jump, and is constantly hovering around you both like >:(

It'll take a while for Rudy to trust you, but rest assured if you were to break his trust, it wouldn't end well at all - he's a Sergeant Major, and don't let his quiet nature fool you, he too is capable of doing damage.

König

The big guy is unphased - he's a mercenary too, so if he were to judge you then that would make him the biggest hypocrite of all.

Nonetheless, he doesn't trust you either - if you're not from KorTac, and he doesn't know who you are, then he's not letting his guard down at all.

Your sense of humour could go one of two ways with him:

If he's out on the field, and you're making dark jokes and sarcastic comments, then he'll probably laugh and join in; he's a completely different man when he's working, it's what makes him so good at what he does.

But if he's back on base...he's probably going to be a little awkward - the adrenaline's worn off and he's back to being his normal, shy self.

Wants to train with you but is hyperaware of his size and strength - he's seen you take down soldiers his size, but he's still concerned that he'd seriously hurt you.

Pin him to the mat and watch as his eyes widen and he averts his gaze, cheeks heating up under his mask; "Du kämpfst gut." ["You fight well."

There's a slim possibility that he would show you his face - you made the mistake of teasing him and he almost backed out, "Show me yours' and I'll show you mine~"

If you show him your face, he won't be able to look at you the same; how is he supposed to focus now when he knows you're attractive?!

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skygemspeaks · 9 months

Text

okay let's do this again, for the last time this season, and what a way to end it!

i like that nami got to be included in the walk to arlong park, it was really nice!

the banter between zoro and sanji is already quite funny. i like that sanji is just earnestly trying to be part of the crew, but zoro's being a little bit bitchy because he feels like his place as the first mate is being threatened. later on in the episode when sanji starts calling out his move names, and zoro makes fun of him for it...how much do you wanna bet that the reason zoro starts calling out his attack names because his thought process is like "oh no, the shitty cook is also calling out his attack names what if luffy starts liking him better than me because i don't do it?"

as someone with dental trauma, seeing arlong's teeth fall out one by one was horrifying, thank you very much. it was well done

the fights in this arc were well choreographed, and i'm actually really happy that they all finished by around halfway through the episode because then we got a good amount of time to wrap everything up

it was really sweet when nami went running up to tackle usopp and zoro in a hug. i did feel a bit bad for sanji, but ehh it's understandable. she's been sailing with usopp and zoro for a while now! those are her boys!!!! and she didn't think she'd ever be able to sail with them again! she barely even knows sanji at this point

the scene after the tower comes crashing down and the straw hats are all waiting to see if luffy made it is great. nami looks like her whole world is ending again, because first she lost her mother, and now she might have lost her captain. and then everyone's relief when they see luffy come out is palpable! sanji doesn't even try to hide his relief! he's become so emotionally invested in this crew already and he's known them for just a few days

sanji's smugness when zoro comes back for seconds was cute, and i love their banter afterwards!

koby and helmeppo standing up to garp when they disagree with his orders was a good scene, and i liked their conversation about it afterwards at the end of the episode. each marine's personal code of justice is a big theme in the anime, and i like that they establish it here, and that it's what impresses garp enough to make him want to train them personally

we finally got the luffy vs garp confrontation! it was a good way to see just how small luffy is in the grand scheme of things, that he wasn't able to hurt garp at all. when luffy starts laughing and garp drops him and starts laughing as well, it was a good tension break. i really really wish that we got at least one grandpa hug before garp left...i know it never happened in the manga, but i crave that grandfatherly affection for luffy. but i know neither of these two idiots are like that. ace better fucking hug luffy at least once next season i s2g.

when nami is talking to bellemere's grave, and nojiko shows up wearing bellemere's shirt.....🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

the final conversation with luffy and koby was adorable! i loved the hug! also, i really like that koby was the first one to show luffy his bounty. a great way of coming full circle to the beginning of the season when he's standing next to luffy, looking at the notice board in shells town and luffy asks where his face is

the scenes where people see luffy's bounty!!!! makino grinning in pride!! kaya already looking healthier without kuro's poison! Zeff posting luffy's poster on the employee of the month board!!!!!!!! alvida and buggy meeting!!!! (if they make alvida lose weight or recast her next season i'm gonna kill someone)

helmeppo finally admitted that koby was his friend!!!! their little fistbump!! i've really come to like koby over the course of this season, and it's been great seeing his character arc

the mihawk and shanks conversation was great! shanks making jokes about his missing arm was hilarious, i love how irreverent he is

the redhair pirates are all SO proud when they see luffy's poster!!! and shanks' big, goofy, proud grin when as he stares at the poster just made my heart melt.

merry finally gets to fly the straw hat jolly roger again, i'm so happy for her!! luffy's absolute uncontainable joy at the sight of it, like he can't believe his eyes, was absolutely perfect!

the cast-off ceremony was fantastic! i really like the effect they did where their younger selves spoke in the voices of their older selves.

i could be wrong, but i think i heard we are in that last scene as they sailed off? which, amazing!

FUCK YEAH THAT LAST SHOT OF SMOKER!!! i can't wait to see more of him next season!!!

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slayfics · 1 year

Note

Hello! Hello! I saw you recent oneshot and the other chapters and I clearly LOVED IT!

And I was wondering if I could request a oneshot or a head cannon any will do just fine, It's like this...The reader has been trying to befriend Muichiro ever since the final selection, but Muichiro actually finds her annoying and bothersome because they never leave him alone most of the time, Then after the swordsmith village arc the part where he regains his memories, Muichiro found out that The reader who has been with him this entire time was his childhood friend, he was of course shocked and worried because all he did to her was decline her offer for lunch and saying rude things to her without ever knowing that they were the person they were with the most in his childhood.

And the ending is up to you! And ofcourse this can be read as platonic or romantic

And please take your time you don't have to rush! And thank you for your hard work!

You were Muichiro’s childhood friend.

You thought you were seeing things the firs time you saw Muichiro pass by you in his corps uniform. You recognized your childhood friend instantly, you couldn't misplace that long hair anywhere. It broke your heart when he passed by you so casually without even a hello. It didn't take you long to figure out something had changed.

"Muichiro!!" You yelled and caught up with him.

"Hello, do you need something? Also please call me Tokito." He responded.

"Oh..." You knew something bad must have happened for him to have joined the demon slayer corps... and not seeing his brother with him was rare... you wondered if the same demon that past through your house and destroyed your family had done the same to his. After all your families didn't live that far away. Usually you would meet at the lake when the season was right for fishing.

It was hard to believe the Muichiro splashing around in the water with you and his brother catching fish was the same boy standing in front of you now.

"It's been so long, how have you been?" You managed to ask gathering your thoughts.

"We have met before? I don't remember..." He said and seemed to zone off.

"Umm... don't worry abut it." You said. It worried you seeing your friend disassociate like this. It was clear to you some awful trauma must have happened to him to have caused this... and not seeing his bother with him must mean... You decided not to finish that thought.

"Would you like to get food with me?" You offered, hoping to spend more time with your friend.

"No. I don't have time." He responded and turned to leave.

He was definitely not the same.

You tried again and again to offer to eat or train with Muichiro. His answer was always the same. No. He didn't have time. He didn't care to train with you... In fact his answers became shorter and meaner every time, but you never gave up on him. You hoped that maybe he would remember who you were if you stayed around.

All you wanted was some reembrace of your past life... those nice summer days when your families met at the river to fish and swim. Just the memory of being a kid with no knowledge of demons made your throat feel tight and eyes watery. You also didn't want to pressure him or make him feel awful for not remembering you though. You wondered how much he didn't remember. Did he not even know he had a twin? What did happen to Yuichiro....

Yuichiro was never your favorite but coming to terms with the likely fact hat he was dead brought tears to your eyes.

You managed to corner Muichiro one day at the swordsmith village when he happened to be getting a new sword the same time as you. You were both staying in the same building and were invited to eat in the common area by the swordsmith housing you.

"Muichiro! Hi! What are you doling here?” You asked cheerfully.

"Retrieving a new sword, and please call me Tokito." He responded and went back to eating.

"Ok ok Tokito." You said trying to laugh off his formalness. You went to eat and realized the fish they had cooked today was Muichiro's favorite fish to catch and eat when you were children. "Wow how lucky are you! It's your favorite!" You said without thinking.

"Hm?" Muichiro looked up at you with confused eyes. "How did you know that..." He said and zoned off again staring at you as if he was trying to hard to remember something.

"Oh you must have told me in passing sometime. Please don't worry too much about it ok." You said trying hard to bring your friend back. It pained you to see him dissociate so easily. Muichiro just started at you with wide eyes for a moment then stood up and started to leave.

"Ok bye!" You said jokily at his silent exit.

"Goodbye..." He turned around one last time before leaving "What was your name again..." He said but almost to him self and left.

You retrieved your sword the next day and headed back out on a mission. The news traveled fast to you of the demon attack on swordsmith village that happened the day after you left. You were sick to your stomach thinking of Muichiro but you knew you'd have to wait a few days before visiting him. Shinobu and Aoi were no joke about giving Hashiras space to heal.

In the meantime you tried to keep yourself busy with missions and tasks. You were in the middle of making yourself some dinner when you heard a knock at your door. You opened it and felt instantly paralyzed by the sight of Muichiro at your front door.

"What are you doing here Tokito?? You should be resting! Are you ok!??" You exclaimed looking at the bandages on his face. Muichiro swiftly wrapped his arms around you and brought you into a tight embrace.

"I remember. I remember everything. We grew up by the river together. We would meet in the summer's to fish and to swim. You played with me and Yuichiro... Then... I didn't see you for a long while... Then a demon came and attacked me and Yuichiro... and I'm so very regretful of how I have treated you recently..." He said into your shoulder as he kept you in a tight hug. You could hear tears in his voice and feel him shake as he spoke.

"Come in Tokito, we can talk more." You said squeezing him back wishing you could take away the pain he was reliving all over again. He finally released you from the hug and looked up at you.

"Please call me Muichiro." He said causing a smile to grow across your face. Muichiro took in your smile, a smile that he now remembered fondly. He couldn't wait to reminisce in the memories you two shared by the river, and hopefully make more memories in the time to come.

Thank you! It makes me so happy you enjoy my writing. I hope you enjoy this fic as well and thank you for the request~

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ruiniel · 3 months

Text

What You Choose

Fandom: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Pairing: Rengoku Kyojuro x f!reader

Count: 2K

Rating: T (M later)

Part I

Summary: Rengoku survives the fight with Akaza, but some battles are not so straightforward.

Tags & Warnings: Rengoku lives AU, blood, injury, death, pining, angst, second person POV, demon slayer!reader, tsuguko!reader, Rengoku POV, eventual smut

Author Note: I am not OK and will never be OK about *waves hands* all that, so this is now a multichapter story.

II.

“Once again, you’re a guest in my healing ward.”

Kocho Shinobu speaks softly, as is her manner. She's seated by his bed with the afternoon sun shining gently on her features, highlighting the amethyst in her hair and eyes.

“I seem to be the only one,” Rengoku replies, looking at the empty infirmary. He’s still bedbound and can barely move his limbs. It hurts to breathe more often than not, and there’s a dull ache where his left eye used to be.

Her kind smile never falters as Kocho looks at the liquid in the syringe she’s preparing. Rengoku always admired her decision to honor her late sister this way, by holding on to that smile Kanae loved so much. After all, everyone has a keepsake of their loved ones in their heart, driving them forward. Memories, moments, words that hone one’s spirit and meld with determination, acting as a guiding light in the darkest places. He knows this all too well.

“At least you won’t be lonely during your convalescence, those three have been coming here every day, even before you’d awoken.” She giggles, seeking a vein in his arm.

Oh, of course… young Kamado… the boar lad, the yellow-haired boy. All of them gifted, resilient, and unwavering. He’d promised to train them, but…

That was… before.

Another image appears before his mind’s eye, drenched in fog—you, running towards him. He, ordering you not to interfere. “Kocho. Tell me, please. How long before I can leave this bed? What is lost, what can I regain?”

She sets the used syringe aside on a tray, then places her hands on her knees. “My, my, impatient already?”

Rengoku tries a smile of his own, though it hurts the muscles in his face. If not for the strong sedatives and painkillers administered to him since he regained consciousness, he imagines he’d be squirming in pain. “I want to self-assess myself. Besides…I have promises to keep.”

She understands. He knows she does. The Insect Hashira gazes out the window, and a small sigh leaves her chest. “Your fatal injuries have been healed by the peculiar blood demon art of young Kamado’s sister.”

He nods. Remarkable. He thought that would be his last battle, and he’d have passed without regret into the land of Yomi. Nevertheless, his gratitude is boundless.

“... your muscle and organ tissue has regenerated and there was no internal bleeding. However, there is still some damage to several vertebrae in your spine, severe trauma to your head I’ve not fully assessed yet, and you have eight fractured ribs.”

“Hah, I can feel them, too! I miscalculated by one, I thought there were seven.”

She looks his way, with that odd expression people sometimes have when he sounds unreasonably high-spirited. He supposes not everyone shares the same outlook, and that’s all well. But what use is there to bow down in dismay and accept the worst life throws my way?

“Your left eye was smashed, and irrecoverable,” Kocho goes on. “We removed it with surgery and placed an implant inside to fill the empty eye socket. The recovery period in these cases is typically a year, as now you must adapt to your monocular status. But this also depends on the individual, and… this might mean alterations to your fighting style, of course.” She rises and picks up the tray. “I’m convinced that with time, you can return to a state allowing you to perform your duties. For now, please rest, that is a foremost priority.”

My friend, you know all too well that time is never on a demon slayer’s side. ��Thank you, Kocho.” She is right, though: he does feel exhausted, as though he’d climbed a mountain without rest or ever reaching the summit. Expected, though bothersome.

“We’ll do our best to help your recovery. Aoi will return later to change your bandages,” Kocho adds.

Rengoku turns his head as Kocho greets someone on her way out, and sees you, standing in the doorway. “Hello.”

“Hello.”

“You heard?”

You nod, nearing the bed. “Ms. Kocho told me of it all while you were asleep.”

“I’m sorry.”

You tilt your head in bemusement. “What ever for?”

“Because, I won’t be able to help with your training for a while.”

You’ve been at his side often. While in a coma, even if he couldn’t react, even if his body wouldn’t listen, he knew you were there. The thought is a warm one, a foreign sensation: different from the heat bursting in his body during a fight. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t look forward to your visits even now, to see how you’re faring, to hear the latest news on the Corps.

“No,” your voice brings him out of his thoughts, “but that does mean I can help you. When you’re ready, that is,” you add quickly. “With rehabilitation training.”

“Of course!” The fatigue in his body is stubborn, clinging to him like heavy wet wool. “And… I don’t believe I’ve told you this yet: I’m happy you returned safely.”

You look away, appearing utterly miserable. It confuses him. Rengoku’s seen that shadow in his father’s eyes countless times, so often he can’t stand it: self-loathing.

“Forgive me, Master. I should have been able to do more, after all you strived to teach me. I… I could barely be of any use.”

But you were there, you helped protect all those people. You did your part. “You were unflinching, fast, and aided those who needed it precisely like I taught you. You are rank Kinoe, and what's your demon kill count?”

“Thirty-two.”

“There… now that I think about it, even without further guidance from me or anyone else, you’ll make Hashira soon! Our numbers are dwindling while demon activity increases. You’ve seen it. This is a struggle that needs all of us.” Rengoku pauses. The word ‘need’ felt odd coming from his mouth. But the statement is true. Why does it feel incomplete when he says it to your face?

You look down at your hands. “How can you do it?”

He blinks, frowning. “Do what?”

“Be so supportive and encouraging even when you’re lying broken in an infirmary bed. Sometimes… sometimes you are so very strange, Master.”

You do say that to him often, though less so than before. A smile trembles on your lips—it took you a long time to smile again, he recalls.

“I merely speak the truth…” He can barely stay awake. The slow drip of liquid in the IV infusion is magnified, drowning out all other sounds, and your face becomes hazy as he drifts away.

Three years prior

The path of blood leads straight into the farmhouse, looking as though someone had been dragged inside by force.

His eyes narrow, and he centers his breaths as he walks forward with his blade drawn. The silence of the glade is eerie, the reek of decay nauseating in the heat of this humid summer.

Soon, he stands on the threshold. Two, there might be two of them. Near the farmhouse is a toolshed, he’ll look there next. Rengoku covers his mouth with his sleeve, eyes closing in pain.

The bodies lie there, some with scattered limbs. This was a family, no doubt about it. The brutality of the mutilation makes his stomach turn, but Rengoku steels his resolve, extending his senses for any hint of the entity’s presence: there is none. He sheathes his katana and enters the space proper. Three hours until dawn.

He descends to one knee, finding the fireplace in the middle is out, but the ashes are still warm. The tatami mats are sticky and stained dark. This all transpired recently. He reaches out a hand, touches an inert arm: not yet cold. Too late, I am too late. But I’ll find you, wherever you are, you damn beasts.

It’s only due to his reflexes, honed with endless hours of training, that he turns around fast enough, leaping backward before the descending attack.

At first, he thinks it’s the demon, his katana at the ready.

“Don’t you dare touch them!”

He pauses, nearly too late in avoiding the second strike. A girl’s voice, a human’s heartbeat. His arm shoots out, catching the wooden staff in a strong grip.

You’re panting, eyes wild and glimmering in the moonlit night. “Let—go!”

“Wait, I’m not an enemy!” he says, taking a better look at you, still holding your makeshift weapon even as you try to wrest it from his hand.

“How do I know that! Demon!” Your voice is hoarse. Half your face is caked in drying blood, and there must be multiple injuries on your body judging by the torn clothing and the widening dark stains.

“I’m not a demon,” he speaks calmly but urgently. “I hunt them. Please, they may still be close.”

You jerk your chin towards a corner of the room. “I had him… I don’t need you. Get out of my home!” you yell, more desperate with each word. “Get out, get out, get out!”

Another body lies there in the dark, slitted pupils dark against its milky eyes. The head had been nearly completely crushed. Rengoku freezes in disbelief. You did this? Alone? “Wait, you don’t understand, there’s another—”

A loud crash severs his words as the ceiling collapses, and he barely has time to leap forward, catch you in his arms, and throw himself outside. He rolls onto the ground, pain erupting in his left shoulder with the impact. When he opens his eyes you’re there, safely held against him, face tearstained and body rigid with shock.

But there’s no time to explain further—he feels it. The gurgle of inhuman hunger as a figure emerges from the wreckage of the farmhouse, eyes fixed on them. It does not speak, but growls in hunger; it must be of the feral kind, no reasoning left as the transformation rotted its memories.

Rengoku rises, changing his stance. “Stand back,” he urges, looking over his shoulder at you as you struggle with your own body. He looks back ahead, grinds his teeth, his breathing attuned to his thought.

First Form: Unknowing Fire.

It doesn’t last long. He’s been running from mission to mission, dispensing with different kinds of fiends, and this was yet another run in a long chain that will only end with his own life.

Once the head is removed, the battle is over. Sometimes there is someone left to check on after the fact; often, there isn’t. But now, Rengoku hurries towards you, descending and slipping a hand under your back, aiding you to sit. “Where are you hurt?”

“Thank you,” you say instead, eyes glazing over. He hopes the Kakushi will get here soon. You point towards your ruined home. “Set it ablaze… please.”

“Hey, hey, stay awake!” Rengoku urges even as your body turns heavier and your eyes roll back.

He expected this to come. Kneeling and with his forehead pressed to the ground he sits still, prostrated before the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps.

A voice like the lull of spring reaches him, setting his worries aside. In his heart, he thinks he’s done what is right.

“Rank Kinoe Rengoku Kyojuro, you are summoned to explain why you have brought a non-combatant to headquarters, instead of having the Kakushi transport them to a civilian hospital.”

“Master, the girl shows extraordinary potential. Her family has been murdered by demons, and yet she managed to fell one before I arrived, alone, despite grievous wounds and bloodloss. Forgive me if I overstepped, but I believe…”

“Go on.”

“I believe once her body heals and her focus returns, she will join the fight. I believe she will want to. If I'm wrong, I accept all consequences.”

“You sound fairly convinced of this, young Rengoku,” says Ubuyashiki Kagaya. “Though there is no reason to know for certain one way or the other.”

He stays quiet, his heart raging in his chest. It will all depend on you, of course. You may want to have nothing to do with this.

“But… you’ve not failed us thus far. I will allow it.”

“Gratitude, Master.” And then, almost in the same breath, “If she chooses this, I will guide her myself.”

TBC

#demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer x reader #rengoku kyojuro #rengoku x reader #kny #kyojuro rengoku #kny fanfic #ruiniel:fanfiction #x reader

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jaeyunverse · 2 years

Text

skater boy

pairing: sim jake x fem!reader

genres: fluff, angst, crack, strangers to lovers, high school au

warnings: profanity, mentions of injuries, trauma and death, heavy angst towards the end, all my knowledge about skateboarding has come from google so this is not going to be very accurate LOL lmk if you think i missed anything!

wc: 9372

summary: jake hadn’t expected to see anyone at the skatepark in the middle of the night. he sure as hell hadn’t expected to fall in love the moment your gazes met either.

playlist: click here!

note: omg i wrote this on such a whim LMAOO i hope y’all enjoy it though!! i had a lot of fun w this fic and i’d love to hear your thoughts :”)

masterlist

Save for himself, Jake Sim was not used to seeing anyone use the skatepark at four in the morning.

It was like an unspoken rule: early evenings were reserved for kids and middle-schoolers, late evenings for teenagers, nights for smokers and stoners, and the time right before the crack of dawn for him.

Jake didn’t like skating in front of people. He liked it when he had the entire place to himself. He liked it when amateurs didn’t ask to be taught by him. He liked it when he wasn’t requested to perform stunts on his skateboard.

He liked it when he was left alone.

Which was why the sight of you trying to balance yourself on your board in his safe space ticked him off.

Jake knew he wasn’t being fair. The skatepark was public property, and anyone who wanted to use it could do so without being answerable to him. He couldn’t just tell you to leave. It wasn’t your problem he wanted to skate in solitude.

Jake contemplated skipping for one night and going back home. Surely, you wouldn’t be here tomorrow as well. Based on how you handled yourself, it looked like you had never skated before.

Heck, you couldn’t even get on without having to clutch on to the safety railings. This was probably just a one-time thing, and Jake hoped you’d realise skating was not for you, give up and never return again. At least not when he came to the park.

Right as he was about to leave, your gaze met his and you lost control of the skateboard. It slipped from under your feet, and you landed on your backside with a sharp hiss.

Excruciating pain shot up your ankle as you tried to pull yourself up again, tears springing from the corners of your eyes.

Jake watched you struggle warily. A voice at the back of his mind urged him to help you out, but he silenced it. He wasn’t an asshole on a regular basis, but he was still pissed you were occupying the skate park.

“Fuck,” you breathed, biting down on your lip to stop a whimper from escaping. You limped to where your skateboard had rolled and picked it up. Approaching Jake, you said to him with your gaze trained on the ground, “You can skate if you want. I was going to leave anyway.”

He raised an eyebrow, not having expected you to leave immediately. Maybe his expression had been colder than he had thought it was. Or maybe you were just unwilling to skate while he was present—you did embarrass yourself in front of him after all.

You made to move past Jake when he caught sight of your scratched arms. His eyes moved to your ankle immediately, assessing it.

“Hey,” he called, causing you to stop in your tracks. “How are you going home?”

You hesitated. Gulped. Looked around. Then answered, “My brother’s going to pick me up.”

Jake didn’t need to be a genius to know you had lied. But he understood. It was the dead of the night, and no one was around except a strange boy who was asking you weird questions. Obviously, you were on your guard.

“Your ankle’s sprained. I can tell from the way you’re limping.” He had no idea why he was still speaking to you instead of just saying okay and moving on. Maybe it was the guilt blossoming in him for being the reason behind your pain that made him offer, “There’s a 24/7 open supermarket around the corner. You should ice the injury before it swells. I can help if you want.”

“Oh.”

A beat of silence passed. Then two. Jake opened his mouth. “Or not,” he said and chuckled awkwardly. This was exactly why he never bothered to engage with people. “Sorry if I made you uncomfortable—”

“I think I’d appreciate your assistance,” you interrupted and gave him a tight-lipped yet grateful smile.

Jake blinked. He hadn’t expected you to take him up on his offer.

“Sure,” he said. “My car’s parked right here. We can walk too, if you’d prefer that,” he added upon watching your expression turn cautious.

“I’d rather walk,” you admitted. “It doesn’t hurt a lot and the distance is not much so I think I can manage.”

“Oh, yeah, definitely,” Jake agreed without missing a beat. “Yeah. I’ll just—just hold on to your skateboard for you.”

God, this was so awkward. Jake was starting to regret ever offering to help you out. You clearly didn’t trust him, and he didn’t know how to convince you he had no ill intentions.

“I’m Jake, by the way,” he said in an attempt to make conversation. “Are you from around here?”

You nodded, hissing a little as you walked beside him. “Yeah. I’m Y/N. I go to Grapevine High.”

“Grapevine?” Jake laughed, fisting his free hand at his side to keep it from snaking around your waist for support. He didn’t want to touch you without your consent—even though it was just to help. “That’s crazy. I go to Blue Valley High.”

You gasped. “No way! You guys are such cheaters! The Championship Cup is rightfully ours.”

“Sore losers call winners cheaters,” he teased.

“You should be lucky I have a sprained ankle, or you’d be eating the ground right now.”

“You should be lucky Choi Yeonjun is graduating, or your school would be making a complete fool out of itself next year too.”

You snorted. “Everyone knows your team paid the—Fuck!”

Jake grabbed your arm the moment you lost your balance and pulled you towards him. You clutched his hoodie for support, involuntarily tugging him towards you as well. Jake almost tripped over his feet too but held his ground.

“Do you need my help walking the rest of the way?” he asked, concern evident in his tone.

Biting your lip in contemplation, you tried putting weight on your sprained ankle. You could feel the pain in your bones, so you glanced at Jake, your faces but a few inches away, and mumbled, “I’m sorry for being a bother.”

Jake shook his head and wrapped an arm around your waist so he could assist you better. “Don’t apologise. I wouldn’t have offered to help if I thought of you as a bother.”

The smile you gave him was a mixture of both grateful and relieved, and Jake couldn’t help the slight increase in the pace of his heart. Answering your unspoken gratitude with a reassuring upward curl of his lips, he waited for you to move your arm and sling it around his neck.

“Do you always come to skate at the park?” Jake asked as the two of you slowly continued to the supermarket. “I’ve never seen you before.”

You shook your head. “No. It’s a new hobby I’m trying to pick up.”

“I can teach you if you want.” The words were out of Jake’s mouth before he could think of a reply. He paused for a second, waiting for the regret to settle in. Surprisingly, it didn’t, so he continued, “I’ve been skating since I was five.”

You raised your eyebrows. “Really? That’s so cool! You must be really good.”

“I guess.” Jake laughed sheepishly and ducked his head, trying to hide the blush that was creeping on his cheeks. God, what was wrong with him? Not only had he offered to teach you how to skate (something he would have never done if it were someone else) but was also feeling shy at the hint of awe in your tone.

“I—I don’t know,” you answered hesitantly. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.”

“You won’t.”

“Are you sure? You looked pretty annoyed when you saw me at the skatepark.”

Jake’s eyes widened. “No! I wasn’t annoyed,” he lied. “I was just surprised.”

You stared at him for a moment before smiling knowingly. “Whatever you say, skater boy.”

He opened his mouth to reply, but you beat him to it. “Oh, thank God, we’re here.”

Indeed, when Jake averted his gaze from you, he saw the supermarket in all its glory. It looked empty, save for the half-asleep cashier slumped in his seat at the billing counter.

You let go of Jake and limped on one leg through the automatic doors. Slamming your hand on the counter, you yelled, “Get up and do your fucking job, Sunoo!”

Jake watched in slight confusion and shock as the cashier jumped in his seat, almost falling off. “What the hell, Y/N?! Do you want to give me a heart attack?” he demanded in a shrill voice, his hand on his chest.

“Oh, shut up, I did you a favour. You know there are cameras in here, right?” you pointed out.

“You know the owner is an old lady who doesn’t even know the T of technology, right?” Sunoo replied snarkily, and then asked as realization dawned on him, “Why the fuck are you out so late?”

Jake saw you tense. “I wanted to go for a walk.”

Sunoo frowned. “Alone? Does your mom know?”

“I’m not alone. I’m with my new friend.”

Sunoo followed your gaze and finally noticed Jake awkwardly standing at the door. Scoffing, he asked, “Sim Jake’s your new friend?”

You narrowed your eyes and scrutinised both boys. “You two know each other?”

“I don’t know him,” Jake replied, looking just as lost as you were. “Do you know me?”

“I know of you,” Sunoo corrected. “You’re pretty popular. Y/N, on the other hand, is not. Hence my disbelief.”

“Hey, asshole!” you exclaimed and glared at Sunoo. “I just don’t talk to a lot of people!”

“Neither does Jake,” Sunoo pointed out. “But he’s known as the hot, mysterious skateboarder who keeps to himself while you’re known as the friendless girl. Or not known as,” he amended. “Because you’re not, you know, popular.”

“You half-witted son of a cunt—”

Jake stepped between the two of you before things could escalate. “Okay, let’s all calm down.”

“Tell him to shut the fuck up first!” you whined. “He’s being such a jerk to me!”

The corners of Jake’s lips quirked at the sight of your bottom lip sticking out in a pout. He promptly ignored the way his heart rate picked up.

“What’s your problem, Sunoo?” he demanded from the cashier.

“My problem is that Y/N woke me up!” Sunoo burst out. “I was having an amazing dream and now I can’t remember any of it!”

“Deserved,” you commented under your breath before saying out loud, “Whatever. Sleep during your shift or don’t; I don’t care.”

“Good!” Sunoo snapped.

Sticking your tongue out at him, you grabbed Jake’s arm and tugged him deeper into the store. “Let’s go.”

Snaking his arm around your waist again, he let you direct him towards the refrigerators at the rear end of the supermarket. “Who is he?”

“My neighbour.” You rolled your eyes. “We’ve known each other since we were toddlers and he’s been a huge pain in my ass the entire time. I want to punch him every time he opens his fucking mouth.”

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Hatred isn’t a very sexy look on you, Y/N.”

“As long as it’s a little sexy.” You wiggled your eyebrows. “I trashed his car because he spread rumours about me at school. He’s working night shifts to pay for the repairs but all I had to do was throw the best rager of the year to nullify what he had done.”

“Wow.” Jake laughed. “I would not want to get on your bad side.”

You grinned cheekily. “I don’t think you can.”

Once the two of you had reached the refrigerators, Jake helped you sit down on the floor and fetched an ice pack.

You carefully removed your sneakers and socks and rolled your ripped baggy jeans up a few times. There was some swelling on the outer side of your ankle, but the injury thankfully didn’t seem to be severe.

“Oh, good, there’s no bruising,” Jake also noticed. Sitting cross-legged in front of you, he gently stretched your leg and placed it on his lap. “You’ll heal in no time.”

“Do you hurt yourself a lot while skating?” you asked as he pressed the ice pack to your wound. You had a low pain tolerance and distracting yourself by talking always proved effective.

Jake shrugged. “Kind of. This month I tried to skate down the railing that divides the staircase in the children’s park and fell off. Fucked up my entire body and couldn’t move for a few days.”

Mentally cringing at the image forming in your mind, you questioned, “Why do you perform risky stunts if they’re so dangerous?”

“It’s fun,” he answered and moved your ankle in all directions slowly. “Skating makes me feel alive. It’s something I’ve been doing since I was a kid, and I can’t imagine quitting just because of a few injuries here and there.”

“Don’t people break bones and tear ligaments because of failed skateboarding stunts?”

Jake grinned. “Then I guess it’s a good thing I don’t fail a lot. Besides, I usually wear full-sleeved clothes to avoid scraping myself. There’s a physical risk factor no matter what sport you pursue.”

You pondered over his words for a moment. “What made you start skateboarding?”

“This is starting to feel a lot like an interrogation.” He raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile playing on his face. Your face heated in embarrassment, and you were about to apologise for asking so many questions when he continued, “I used to always see the skatepark while coming home from day care. My parents must have noticed me pressing my face against the car window each time we drove past because I was given a board on my fifth birthday. I’ve been skating ever since.”

“Woah. Isn’t that almost twelve years?”

“A little over, actually. I turn eighteen this year.”

Your lips parted in wonder. You’d met very few people who talked about skateboarding the way Jake did. His eyes were shining with barely contained excitement and his lips adorned a wide smile that sent your heart fluttering.

You’d been uncertain before, but now you knew for sure you wanted to get to know this boy who had such love and passion for skating.

“Does your offer to teach me how to skateboard still stand?”

Jake beamed. “Always.”

Jake hadn’t seen you for two weeks. While it hadn’t been that long, he strangely found himself missing you.

It was as if something had clicked between the two of you when you’d been sitting on the supermarket floor. No one had ever bothered to ask Jake how he started skating, and he’d never seen anyone be genuinely so interested in his hobby.

Jake never initiated conversations or even made a conscious effort to keep them going. Yet, the two of you had talked till the sun came up and only left when Sunoo kicked you out.

He’d driven you home after and you’d exchanged phone numbers. He even made you promise him to see a doctor as he helped you up the porch stairs.

“I’ll message you when my ankle heals,” you had told him. “We can decide when to meet up then.”

Jake had agreed, but as the days passed, he found himself itching to send you a check-up text. He’d never been one to overthink, so a few days later, you saw your phone screen lighting up with his name.

For the next few weeks, the two of you texted constantly. From discussing which pasta sauce was superior to what your dreams were—you never seemed to run out of things to talk about. Jake couldn’t stop sparks of hope from igniting in him whenever he received a notification alert.

He’d never felt this way for anyone. While it was scary for him to realise you were starting to become the reason he smiled so often now, he embraced the wave of affection that washed over him each time he thought of you.

Texting every day turned to calling every day and calling every day turned to FaceTiming every day. Jake had become so comfortable around you that he wasn’t shy anymore to answer your video calls even though he was half-asleep and still in bed.

Unfortunately, the two of you weren’t able to meet again because of your heavy schedules. You were in a bunch of extracurriculars, and Jake had basketball practice after school. He missed you more than he would have liked to admit.

AirPods in both ears, he was casually skating to the skatepark at 4 in the morning like usual when he caught sight of a figure leaning on the support railings.

“No way,” Jake mumbled to himself and plucked his AirPods out of his ears. Getting off his skateboard, he hit its tail and began sprinting.

The thud of his footsteps alerted you and you pocketed your phone. Pushing yourself off the railing, you turned around to greet him.

Only to be thrown off your balance as he collided with you and engulfed you in a warm embrace. It took you a moment to react, but you laughed softly and wrapped your arms around him too.

“Miss me so much, skater boy?”

Jake pulled back and smirked at you. “Do you always call me skater boy because you don’t know my name?”

“Of course not!” You grinned. “You’re just so memorable, Jack. I couldn’t forget about you if I wanted to.”

Amused, Jake raised an eyebrow. “Really? You’re just going to go ahead and call me the whitest name to ever exist?”

“Jack’s not too far from Jake,” you pointed out. “And you do have an accent.”

“It’s Australian!”

“Mhm.”

Rolling his eyes playfully, he glanced at your leg. “How’s your ankle holding up?”

“Completely healed,” you chirped and moved it in all directions, going as far as jumping in place to prove yourself. Jake fondly smiled at your actions, his eyes turning into smile crescent moons. “Don’t you think you should have asked me this question before you crashed into me with the force of a truck?”

Laughing sheepishly, he rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, sorry. I just got excited.”

“Nah, I missed you too.” You gave his shoulder a light-hearted punch. At your words, a seed of happiness sprouted in Jake’s chest. “Do you still want to teach me how to skate?”

He grinned and set his board on the ground. “Get on. Without support.”

“Wait, what?” you asked and glanced at the piece of wood nervously. “Just like that?”

“You’re wearing the right kind of shoes so you’re already halfway there. Besides, it’s not that hard.”

You shot him a dirty look. “Easy for you to say. I have zero balance, and this isn’t even a longboard.”

“I’m surprised you know the terminology,” Jake commented.

You looked a little taken aback for a moment, but you caught your bearings so fast he thought he’d imagined your expression. “I read up a little before coming.”

“Oh.” Jake wasn’t completely satisfied with your answer, however, he let it slide without any further poking. “Well, you’re right; this isn’t a longboard. You have me to catch you if you fall off, though.”

You stared at him for a moment. And then, “My ankle better not get fucked up again, skater boy.”

“No promises.”

Glaring at him playfully, you kept a foot on the skateboard tentatively. Your hand instinctively reached out to grab Jake’s sleeve, but you fisted it and forced it back to your side.

This was turning out to be even harder than you’d expected. You were scared to put your other foot on the board in fear of it slipping under you like last time.

However, your unwillingness to appear as a coward to Jake overpowered your anxiety. You were about to bite the bullet and just step on the board when Jake said,

“Angle your feet sideways. Place your right foot in front of the left one.”

Nodding without looking at him, you did as you were told.

The skateboard moved a little as you stepped on it, a yelp leaving your mouth. Jake’s arms caged your figure from a distance, and you grabbed them immediately to stabilise yourself.

“Not that hard, was it?”

You breathed a laugh and tried shifting the board a little from side to side using Jake’s support. “Apparently not.”

He let go of your elbows as you got off the piece of wood. “You’re doing better than my first time on the skateboard already.”

“Weren’t you, like, five?”

“I’m really trying to be supportive here.”

You snorted. “Why, thank you.”

“My pleasure,” Jake popped and bowed dramatically. “You wanna go again?”

The two of you must have practised and goofed around in the skatepark for hours—you could tell because of the sun rays that had begun to peek over the horizon. It didn’t feel that way at all, though.

The concept of time never seemed to exist whenever you were with Jake both physically and virtually. No matter how long you spent with him, it never felt enough.

Skating was a sort of therapy for Jake. He couldn’t go a day without cruising on the streets or performing stunts in the park when there was no one to watch. For you, though, he was ready to give it up.

Being one of the reasons you smiled was of much more value to him. He loved the way your eyes sparkled as if they held the entire galaxy in them. He loved hearing you ramble about the most random things ever. He loved having someone he could be completely honest to.

Jake hated being cheesy, but he had to admit that his black-and-white life had suddenly turned vibrant and colourful when you entered it.

He knew what this feeling was. Watching you confidently ride the skateboard with a huge smile on your face got rid of any fear he had.

He wasn’t afraid to acknowledge his heart anymore.

He was in love with you.

Never had you imagined someone you’d only met a month ago would become so important to you.

Jake had come into your life when you needed him the most. Even though you couldn’t bring yourself to completely open up to him, his presence was enough. He made things easier for you. With him by your side, nothing felt impossible.

But the weight of your guilt became a little too heavy to bear sometimes. So much so that you couldn’t help but think you didn’t deserve him. That you were moving on faster than people in mourning should.

Were you even in mourning anymore?

Your dead brother would have wanted you to escape the past and live your life. He would have wanted you to stop blaming yourself. He would have wanted you to find your safe space and heal.

You were tired of the sympathy. You were tired of the it wasn’t your fault and there was no way you could have known. You were done with people telling you to stop torturing yourself.

You deserved the emotional turmoil you experienced every single day. You didn’t deserve to get your pain taken away by Jake.

It wasn’t hard to pretend in front of him. He wasn’t in your school and didn’t stay in your neighbourhood. The two of you had no mutual friends. He didn’t know you when you went through the biggest loss of your life.

You felt guilty for putting up a happy facade and hiding the darkness in you when he was nothing but honest with you. Part of you wanted to tell him about your brother’s death, but underlying that urge was the fear of being thought of as someone who needed to be fixed.

You didn’t know if you could survive another don’t blame yourself.

Jake was your escape from reality. When you were together, it was just you, him, and your skateboards. Being with him gave you a sense of normalcy. As much as you wanted to lay yourself bare in front of him, you didn’t want him to walk on eggshells around you.

“What are you thinking about?” you heard him ask.

Averting your gaze from the car window, you glanced at him and shook your head with a smile on your face. “Nothing.”

“I can tell when you’re lying.”

“I swear it’s nothing,” you promised, your heart constricting as the lie effortlessly left your mouth. “I’m just stressed about school. I have a lot of stuff due this week and a debate tomorrow. I’ve never been good with deadlines so I can’t help but be anxious.”

He studied you for a moment, as if mulling over your words. You could tell he wasn’t convinced, but he didn’t push you further. Maybe that was why you were so comfortable around him. He never forced you to talk about something and always let you open up at your own pace.

All he did was offer comfort and let you know he would be there for you no matter what. It was more than you could have ever asked for.

“Do you want me to drop you back home?” he suggested, concern evident in his tone. “We can hang out once you’re done with your submissions and have a lesser workload.”

You shook your head. “No, it’s fine. I’ll just lie in bed and think about all the things I haven’t done yet. I’d rather not be alone with my thoughts.”

“Fair enough,” Jake said and turned his attention to the road again.

There was silence for the next few minutes. You turned in your seat and reached for the back of the car to fetch your skateboards when Jake turned the corner of the park.

“Don’t,” he said, making you pause. “We’re not going to skate today.”

You blinked. “What?”

“I have something else in mind.” Jake glanced at you out of the corner of his eye and gave you an excited grin. “I think you’ll love it.”

“Really?” you asked, chuckling a little. “Where are we going?”

“Surprise” was all he said.

Jake’s ‘surprise’ would have been pretty good if you hadn’t identified where you were headed the minute he took the turn that led you out of the town and towards the beach.

For his sake, you pretended to be oblivious to your surroundings. He was right about the other thing, though. You were loving the direction this night had taken.

Besides, now that you thought about it again, it technically was a surprise to you that Jake remembered the one time you’d mentioned your liking for late-night walks on sandy shores.

“No way.” You feigned a gasp and looked at him. “The beach!”

He gave you a pointed stare. “Shut up. I know you knew we were coming here.”

“Yeah, okay,” you said and shrunk in your seat. He laughed softly. “But I really do appreciate you bringing me here.”

Putting his arm on the headrest behind you, Jake put his car in reverse so he could park it. “And I appreciate you not bursting my bubble and embarrassing me. At least until I deduced how dumb I was to not expect you to know we were going to the biggest attraction of our town.”

You grinned. “Ten out of ten for effort.”

Looking at you, Jake rolled his eyes, and that was when you noticed your proximity. Your faces were so close you could count his eyelashes and see the brown flecks in his irises.

The smile on your face dropped and your gaze flitted to his lips for half a second. Then went back up to find that his eyes were on your lips now.

Your gazes met before you could look away and pretend whatever sparks you’d just felt had been nothing but a result of your wild imagination.

He sucked in a breath. You braced yourself, your heart beating so fast you were sure it was going to leap out of your chest.

Anticipation paralysing you in place, you could only watch Jake as he leaned in for a kiss. However, the seatbelt prevented him from closing the distance between your lips and a string of curses left his mouth instead.

“Motherfucker,” he mumbled under his breath and fumbled with the buckle. You snapped out of your reverie and ducked your head, letting your hair fall over your face to hide your fluster.

Jake struggled with the buckle, his hands shaking due to his embarrassment at not having thought things through and frustration at being cockblocked by a fucking strap around his torso.

You bit down on your lip to keep yourself from smiling. Deciding to take a leap of courage, you cupped his face in both hands, causing him to stop his actions and look at you.

You glanced at his mouth again and closed your eyes, finally placing your lips on top of his.

At that exact moment, Jake’s belt buckle snapped open. Grabbing the back of your neck with a hand, he pulled you closer and kissed you harder. His other hand went to your buckle, unfastening it with the kind of expertise he hadn’t been able to showcase while he was undoing his own.

You let your arm travel to his shoulder for support. Pushing yourself up, you climbed on him and straddled his lap.

Jake’s seat jerked back as he adjusted it to accommodate you comfortably. His hand rested on your waist, the other one still wrapped around your nape. His thumb caressed your cheekbone gently—a total contrast to the passion with which he was kissing you.

Running your tongue over his lip, you wove your fingers through his silky strands and tugged at them. He opened his mouth in response to your glaringly obvious request and tilted his head to the side, allowing you to deepen the kiss further.

Jake knew he’d wanted this for a while now, he just hadn’t realised how much he’d wanted it. Pure, undiluted euphoria was coursing through his veins.

Part of him wanted to pinch himself to confirm that no, this wasn’t a dream, but he reckoned that wasn’t sexy and would ruin the mood.

Out of breath, you detached your mouth from his. Jake’s lips chased after yours, unwilling to be separated from them just yet. He kissed you a few last times before burying his face in the crook of your neck.

You rested your forehead on his shoulder, idly scratching the hair at his nape as you tried coming down from the high of the kiss.

The two of you sat in a comfortable silence for the next few minutes. Jake rubbed soothing circles on the curve of your waist with his thumb, puckering his lips to leave a trail of butterfly kisses on your neck that caused goosebumps to erupt across your skin.

You wanted him to say something—anything. What were the two of you now? This wasn’t a situation that was caused because you went with the flow and got a little too lost in the moment. The moment was over, and you were still nestled in his lap. His arms were still around you and holding you close, as if he never wanted to let you go.

This wasn’t a mistake. This clearly meant something to him.

Whatever this was, it was real. Real and genuine and infinite—

“I love you,” Jake mumbled against your neck. Your breath hitched in your throat, and you froze for a moment. This was the last thing you’d expected to hear.

He shifted so that the two of you were facing each other and gazed at you with wide, vulnerable, honest eyes. “I love you, Y/N,” he repeated. “More than I’ve ever loved anyone.”

You were at a loss for words. “Jake…”

“I know it was selfish of me to drop something so heavy on you without a warning, but I had to get it out,” he continued, a tremble evident in his voice. “I just wanted you to know what I felt for you. I couldn’t pretend any longer—”

“Jake,” you stopped him before he could go on, tears pooling in your eyes. “Don’t. Please.” The expression on his face tore your heart to shreds. “I’m sorry.”

He remained frozen for a moment, as if waiting for you to take your words back. But you didn’t. You didn’t and Jake thought he was dying and his soul was being ripped apart.

He had thought he would be able to handle your rejection, but then you had kissed him as if your life depended on it and his hopes had skyrocketed. Now, his heart was shattered, and he didn’t think he’d ever be able to pick up the pieces.

The wound you’d inflicted on Jake was one that would never stop bleeding.

Tears escaped your eyes as you opened the door of his car and climbed off him. Jake vacantly kept staring at where you’d been sitting in his lap, and you were about to shut the door when he said, “Wait.”

He turned to look at you, pain and heartbreak colouring the whites of his eyes red. The sight only made your anguish increase tenfold.

“I’ll drop you back home,” he said.

You opened your mouth and closed it again, unable to form a reply. Jake noticed your hesitation and clarified, “It’s not safe for you to go back alone. Please, let me drive you home. I promise this won’t mean anything.”

You never thought you’d hated yourself so much. You’d stomped on his heart and here he was, begging you to let him do something nice for you.

Gulping, you nodded once and walked to the passenger’s seat on the other side. Jake had closed his door and strapped his seatbelt again by the time you opened the door of your seat.

Wordlessly, he started the car and began driving. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw his knuckles turn white with how hard he was gripping the steering wheel. You swallowed the urge to apologise again and fisted your hands in your lap, averting your gaze to the window instead.

The next thirty minutes were absolutely torturous. The air was thick with tension, and you didn’t know how to approach Jake. You didn’t think he even wanted to be approached by you.

Hell, he probably never wanted to see you again. You were a complete monster for being so cruel to him right after you kissed him and gave him hope. There had been better ways to deal with the situation.

The car came to a stop in front of your house. You glanced at him, but Jake was staring at the road silently, his grip on the wheel not having loosened even a bit.

Your heart sank. Biting down on your lower lip, you tried keeping your whimper inside. Wordlessly, you unfastened your seatbelt and threw the door open.

It was an effort to not glance back at Jake as you walked to the porch of your house. The moment you were inside, you heard him rev his car and drive away.

Forever.

Jake was a mess.

He had been cooped up in his room and wallowing in self-pity the entire week. Technically he did leave for school because his parents kicked him out and he did attend basketball practice because his coach was on his ass.

But other than that, he was at home, not even sneaking out to skate. He couldn’t be bothered to play the sport anymore.

It was crazy how you had essentially ruined the only thing he was passionate about. Every time he looked at his skateboard, he was reminded of the times you had shared and the memories you had made.

He was reminded of how you’d made him fall in love with you.

You had forgotten your board in his car the night everything went to hell. Jake had brought it up to his room and propped it right next to his, noticing that the two pieces of wood looked really good next to each other.

He had slapped himself hard when he came back to his senses. He was being so pathetic.

However, he reckoned he did have a good reason to brood and play Valorant, cussing out his teammates for faults that were clearly his.

You had kissed him and then rejected him in the worst way possible. Begging him to stop pouring his heart to you? That hurt.

And Jake was going to make it the problem of four people he had never met before.

“I will boil your fucking balls if you die again, HoonVader6969,” Jake growled into the mic of his headphones. “You have contributed nothing to this game.”

“Hey!” HoonVader6969 protested from the other side. “I have 2 kills!”

“2 kills in 8 rounds is pathetic, you son of a bitch!”

“What the hell, LegendJake404?” HeeKing1510 exclaimed as Ddeonu8809 used his ability and killed an enemy. “Hop off HoonVader6969’s dick! You didn’t land any kills and were the first to die in almost all matches!”

Jake snorted. “I’d hop off HoonVader6969’s wiener if he had one.”

JongDong111 laughed. “Can confirm from experience that LegendJake404 is right.”

“Shut the fuck up, Jay!” HoonVader6969 yelled in a strained voice. “We had a deal!”

“The deal was to not mention the size of your dick to people we know,” JongDong111—Jay—countered smoothly. “I don’t think we’d associate ourselves with someone who calls themself a fucking legend.”

“You’re one to talk,” Ddeonu8809 came to Jake’s defence. “You literally have a dong in your name.”

Jake froze, identifying his teammate immediately. The reaction cost him, and he died. Now watching the game through JongDong111’s perspective, he exclaimed, “Sunoo?!”

“Yeah,” he replied, unamused. “It’s me. You got yourself killed again, by the way, asshole.”

“Damn,” HeeKing1510 muttered. “You all knowing each other is making me feel left out.”

“Woah,” Jake interrupted. “Why am I an asshole?”

“Y/N’s been depressed all week because of you! It’s no fun being mean to her when she isn’t willing to fight back!”

Jay whistled lowly. “Valorant player breaking a girl’s heart? That’s gotta make headlines. Some of us can’t even talk to the opposite gender.”

“I’m gonna fuck you up, Jay,” HoonVader6969 threatened. “Stop indirecting me.”

“Sure, Sunghoon,” Jay mocked. “We’ll see how good your fucking skills are.”

“Get back in the closet, fucker. June’s over,” Jake snapped. “Sunoo, what do you mean Y/N is depressed because of me? She rejected me!”

Jay hummed. “Oh, yeah, this version makes more sense.”

“You think she doesn’t feel anything for you? Did you even ever ask why she turned you down?” Sunoo questioned as another round began. Jake chose his ammunition, thousands of thoughts racing through his mind at the speed of light. He was utterly confused; what was Sunoo implying? “Or have you been screening her calls and leaving her texts on delivered all week?”

“Not cool, dude,” HeeKing1510 said in a disappointed voice. “Also, I’m Heeseung.”

“Nobody cares.”

“I see why Jay bullies you, Sunghoon.”

Jake ignored them. “I needed some space to get my shit together. She begged me to stop confessing right after she kissed me, Sunoo. And now she’s trying to get back in touch with me? What am I supposed to think?!”

It was incredibly stupid of Jake to talk about his shitty love life in front of a bunch of strangers who had probably never felt the warmth of another person, but he didn’t care. He needed answers. What the hell was Sunoo talking about?

“Look.” Sunoo sighed. “I don’t wanna say anything on Y/N’s behalf, but I’ll suggest you to not ghost her and respond. You guys need to talk. She knows that which is why she’s trying to get hold of you.”

“Why do you know so much about this Y/N person?” Sunghoon asked suspiciously.

“She’s my neighbour slash best friend slash mortal enemy slash parasite on my Netflix account.”

Jake frowned. “Your best friend trashed your car?”

“Wait, she was the one who trashed my car?!”

Jake pulled his computer’s plug.

Your jaw was quite literally on the floor.

Jake had finally texted you back and agreed to meet you the same night. However, instead of feeling relieved that you’d be able to explain yourself to him, you felt on edge and jittery.

No matter how much you tried, you couldn’t stop being nervous about what his reaction would be.

After several sleepless nights and a lot of overthinking, you’d at long last deduced why his opinion of you mattered so much.

You were in love with him. And you were scared that once you revealed your past to him, he wouldn’t accept it and love you for all your faults.

You knew Jake deserved more credit than you were giving him—he understood you like no one else did, for God’s sake—but your fear of opening up to someone and laying yourself bare in front of them was tearing you apart.

Maybe part of you hoped he would feel overwhelmed. Maybe part of you thought it would be better if he didn’t want to deal with your issues. Maybe part of you felt that you didn’t deserve Jake because you still hadn’t forgiven yourself for your brother’s death.

Maybe that was why you had pushed him away and were sabotaging your relationship. Maybe it was all to punish yourself and hurting Jake in the process had only been the collateral.

God, you were a terrible person for keeping your feelings bottled up and not dealing with them. You never should have left him in the dark.

Sighing, you turned on your stomach and screamed into your pillow. You’d been lying in bed all day, not even bothering to go downstairs to drink water when you felt thirsty.

Your parents had knocked on your door, concerned, but you’d waved them away and said you were on your period and had cramps.

They didn’t believe you, but you were too distracted by Jake to tell them you weren’t thinking about your brother. You didn’t stop them when they booked an appointment with your therapist the next day.

Feeling a little better after having screamed your lungs out, you dragged yourself out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom.

You looked absolutely horrible. The person staring back at you from the mirror reminded you of the initial few weeks after your brother’s death. You had huge dark circles under your bloodshot eyes, and your lips were chapped and colourless.

Your hair was a bird’s nest. Your head was pounding, and you had to grip the sink to keep yourself steady.

You had to clean up. You couldn’t let Jake see you like this. There was nothing you could do to get rid of the exhaustion visible in your eyes, but you could have a bath and put on some makeup to cover your awful physical state at least.

Taking a deep breath, you nodded to yourself.

I can do this.

Jake thought you had told him to meet you at the town park near your house instead of the skatepark that was slightly farther for a reason. Given what had happened the last time you were in his car, he suspected you didn’t want to enter it again.

Or maybe the place reminded you of your ruined friendship. It certainly did to him. He hadn’t visited the skatepark at all the past week.

Jake had no way to confirm what your intentions were, so all he did was drive anxiously to your decided meeting place.

You weren’t meeting in the dead of the night this time. It was early—around 6 p.m—and he couldn’t help but think you had suggested that hour because the town park was filled with people.

Did you not want to be alone with him either?

Shaking his head to get rid of the intrusive thoughts, Jake parked his car in the parking space and shut the door behind him.

As he walked to the benches near the pond you had agreed to meet at, his phone lit up.

y/n: i’m here

jake: omw

He frowned at his reply. Was he being too informal? Should he have said something along the lines of almost there?

Before he could overthink anymore, a voice broke him out of his reverie. He jumped a bit, not expecting to have already reached the benches.

“Hey,” you mumbled and attempted a smile. Upon failing miserably, you cleared your throat and averted your gaze away from him.

Jake’s heart clenched. He was relieved to see you again after a week of zero contact, but he hated the sight of you looking so exhausted. You’d covered up your dark circles with concealer and tried to put some colour to your face using a rosy blush, but he saw right through it all.

Maybe he should have not ignored you. It seemed that while he was busy getting over your rejection, he hadn’t given much thought to how his confession had affected you.

“How are you?” Jake asked as he took a seat beside you on the other end of the bench. He realised what a stupid question it was the moment the words left his mouth. You looked miserable.

You shrugged and wrapped your hands around yourself. He could barely see your face because of your hoodie. “Surviving. You?”

“Surviving.”

Silence followed your short-lived conversation. Jake racked his brain to search for things to say, but you beat him to it.

“Are you wearing concealer?”

His eyes widened. “W—what?”

“It’s not blended well.” You pointed at his swollen eyes half-heartedly. “You did a sloppy job.”

Embarrassment crept up Jake’s neck and tinted the tips of his ears red. “Yeah? So did you.”

You closed your mouth at that. Personally, you thought you’d done a good job at covering how pathetic you felt. You’d gone as far as watching a few episodes of Modern Family to uplift your spirits. Your parents had even said that you looked better when you were leaving the house.

But then again, it had never been hard for Jake to read you.

Sighing, you dropped your gaze to your lap and fumbled with your fingers. “Thanks for coming.”

“I’m sorry for ignoring you.”

Swallowing thickly, you nodded once. “I’m sorry too.”

“Y/N,” Jake begged. “Look at me. Please.”

Eyes burning, you hesitantly faced him. There were tears welling in his bloodshot eyes too but he didn’t bother wiping them away. It broke your heart to see how much your actions had hurt him.

You knew him well enough to know he hadn’t put makeup on to protect his pride but to protect you from feeling even more terrible about what you had done.

You needed to tell him the truth. Right now. He deserved to know all of it.

Wiping your tears, you asked him, “Do you remember the night we met? I told you my brother was going to come to pick me up but then you dropped me home after we finished icing my ankle in the supermarket?”

Slowly, Jake nodded. “I do.”

“I lied to you that day,” you continued, bracing yourself for what you were about to say next. “My brother was never going to come to pick me up. He’s dead. He has been for a little over a year now.”

You couldn’t bear to see the shock on his face. You couldn’t bring yourself to wait for the sympathy to replace it instead. So, you looked away again and kept talking before he could speak,

“He was a skater too. A really good one. He loved me and cared a lot for me. I used to be so surprised when my friends talked shit about their brothers. Mine used to tease me a lot but he never got me into trouble. We were tight, and always had each other’s backs.

“I sneaked out to a party one day and my brother caught me. Usually, he drove me wherever I needed to go because I have overprotective parents, but he’d donated blood that day and he wasn’t supposed to drive. I buttered him up and got him to let me borrow his car keys on the condition that I wouldn’t drink and would come back home before dawn. I was desperate to leave so I brushed him off and promised him that I would stay sober.”

Laughing humourlessly, you shook your head. Your lower lip wobbled as you resumed, “Spoiler alert: I didn’t keep the fucking promise. I got absolutely wasted. Somehow, my brother got to know and left to pick me up. I think it was through someone’s snap because I remember drinking from a beer bong and people recording it. He didn’t want me staying at my friend’s place overnight because that would have gotten both of us in trouble.”

You sniffled and swallowed a sob. Jake and you were in a fairly secluded place but there were still a few other people, and you didn’t want any unwanted attention.

“He got in my mom’s car to come to get me—he thought he’d given enough time for the side effects of the donation to fade. The police said he must have fainted while driving. The doctors performed surgery on him the entire night, but they couldn’t save him.”

Finally looking at Jake, you said, “And you know what the worst part is? I didn’t know he’d been in a car crash till he was dead. Amidst all the panic, my parents didn’t think about waking me up when they got the call, so they never knew I wasn’t at home. I had passed out at my friend’s house from partying too much while my brother died on his way to pick me up.”

Jake’s lips parted. “Y/N…”

“Everyone keeps saying it wasn’t my fault and my brother should have known better because he was an adult. I hate that my parents don’t hate me for killing their firstborn. I hate that they’re paying one of the best therapists in town to get me through this. I hate that nobody blames me even though I’m responsible for his death. I’m supposed to face the consequences of what I’ve done. I’m supposed to be suffering and I hate that you make things easier for me. I hate that I’ve made you fall in love with a killer—”

“You’re not a killer, Y/N—”

“Then what else am I!” you burst, tears freely falling down your face now. “I’m a horrible person, Jake! I don’t deserve you and your goodness. I don’t deserve love!”

“Don’t say that—”

“Do you know why I was at the skatepark the other day?” you asked angrily. “I wanted to learn how to skateboard so I could feel closer to my brother. He always wanted to teach me. He thought it would be a good way for us to bond, but I always had an excuse. Extracurriculars, academics, exams—I never made time for him and his passion. I wanted to learn how to skateboard because it was my way of keeping him in my heart.

“But then you came along, and you made me so happy. You knew nothing about my past, and I craved the normalcy I felt when I was with you. It was so easy to befriend you because I didn’t have to take your sympathy and be treated as someone who needed to be fixed. It was so easy to fall in love with you because you were able to offer me comfort despite having no idea about the most traumatic experience of my life!

“I thought I could push you away. I thought I could punish myself by not allowing myself to move on, but I only broke your heart in the process. I don’t know what to do. I don’t wanna be hurting anymore, but it feels wrong and selfish to wish for happiness when I’ve done such a monstrous thing.”

The floodgates were released, and you were sobbing openly now. Your throat was closing up and its insides felt like sandpaper. Your head was throbbing, and your vision was completely foggy. You felt dizzy.

Jake scooted closer and wrapped his arms around you, tears falling from his eyes as well. He pulled you against him and let you bury your face in his chest. He hated seeing you in so much agony, but he had no words to offer.

So, he let you cry for as long as you wanted, rubbing soothing circles on your back and caressing your hair.

Jake couldn’t even begin to imagine going through such a loss. He admired you for pushing through for so long. He was proud of you for being brave enough to open up to him.

He still loved you just as much and he was going to make sure to never leave your side as you navigated through your pain.

Never.

“Jake, we’re late!”

“Hold on, I’m trying to find my hoodie!”

Grimacing, you yelled back, “I was wearing it yesterday and spilt mustard sauce on it.”

There was silence for a moment. Then heavy footsteps that sounded a lot like stomping. Then—

“You did what?!”

“I’m sorry!” you whined. “I’ve dropped it at the dry cleaners already!”

Jake gave you a dirty look and shrugged on the denim jacket lying on his sofa. “Don’t bother returning it.”

“I can’t do that,” you said and slipped your hand through his, tugging him along. “You have to wear it for a few weeks so it starts smelling like you again and I can steal it once more.”

“I’d offer you another hoodie, but I don’t know how I feel about something else being spilt on it.”

“Bold of you to assume you have any hoodies left, skater boy.”

Despite himself, Jake laughed and pulled you close, pressing a kiss to your temple. “You cheeky motherfucker.”

“What are you going to do about it?” you challenged as the two of you reached his car and strapped yourselves.

He hummed. “Leave early?”

“C’mon, threaten me with something realistic.”

“You don’t think I’d do it?”

“You love me too much and haven’t seen me in over two weeks. I know you wouldn’t do it. I’m actually surprised you even thought of it.”

“You got me.”

Snorting, you relaxed and looked outside the window. It was a pleasant day outside. The sky was clear, and the sun was shining. Everyone had huge smiles, thanks to the beginning of summer break.

Jake and you had been dating for a little less than two years now. You were both in college now and pursuing your dreams. Unfortunately, you couldn’t get into the same university, but were thankfully in the same state, living just an hour away from each other.

You didn’t know if you could call your relationship long-distance since traffic was the main reason your travel time crossed the sixty minutes mark.

Nonetheless, you were happy and were making it work. You were in a much better place than you were two years ago. You had an amazing boyfriend who loved you more than you thought was possible and stood by your side no matter what, and a therapist who actually understood you and helped you come to terms.

Right now, the two of you were on your way to the local skatepark. You hadn’t been able to find much time to keep practising, but Jake had kept his skills polished and made it a point to visit the park at least three to four times a week.

You were probably going to hurt yourself and make a huge fool of yourself in front of the kids who skated there—he had told you they were extremely talented for their age and had taught him some new stuff too—but it was okay.

You weren’t afraid to fall anymore; you knew Jake would always be there to catch you.

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normal-internet-user · 1 year

Note

Since tumblr ate my request ill send it again

May I request 2012 boys with a reader who uses the same weapon as them?

Have a lovely day<3

-🌻

Of course my dear 🌻 anon!

2012 BOYS WHEN READER USES THE SAME WEAPON

Leo:

He is soooo excited, to learn you use katanas too.

Definitly asks you to train with him so he can study your technuiques, while also teaching you the Hamato way.

Sparring matches are a regular event amongst you two as a way to hone your abilitlies and perfect your stances.

You'll come up with different styles of dual fighting as a way to determine maximum compatability during battle.

You guys make an amazing team, and your constantly finding ways to better your techniques.

Raph:

Oh, it is on.

The second he knows you fight with sais as well, he challenges you to a sparring match to see who's the best.

Honestly, you guys are pretty well matched, he's just a little bit better, but all the same.

He's not really interested in learning how you were taught and your way of fighting other than to know how to counter your strikes.

When you two fight together it is terrifiying.

I mean come on,

Two overly aggressive, well trained, teenage ninjas? One was enough...

Mikey:

What? No way, him too!

Super excited and wants to see how good at it you are.

He's super insistant on learning how you were taught and teaching how he was taught.

Nunchuku take alot of focus and practice so he's suoer impressed at your skill.

He's definitly quite a bit more skilled than you are, but he just uses that as an excuse to practise with you more often.

Donnie:

He is incredibly impressed at how skilled you are.

Wether you've activily trained with a bō staff or learned from other means, he still insists on teaching you anything and everything he knows.

He's really excited about it since he knows a bō staff isn't the most flashy or impressive weapon, so the fact that it's your weapon of choice is super exciting to him.

When you two fight together it's like one big graceful dance of blunt force trauma.

.........................................

Here you go, 🌻 Anon! Sorry for the long wait, school kinda sucks rn. 💕💕

#tmnt #tmnt x reader #x reader #leonardo x reader #raphael x reader #donnie x reader #leonardo x reader tmnt #mikey x reader #tmnt 2k12 #tmnt 2012

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rachetmath · 3 months

Text

Robyn: So Arc-

Jaune: You can call me “Jaune”. I’ve been here for five months.

Robyn: Well okay. Jaune um… what’s your day like with Fiona.

Jaune: Normal.

Robyn: Really? Nothing’s going on with you two?

Jaune: No. I just help her out. That’s it.

Robyn: Really?

Jaune: Yes.

Somewhere else

Nora: So Fiona. How long have you and Jaune been a couple?

Fiona: We’re not couple. What makes you think that?

Nora: You see him everyday. More than me.

Fiona: He helps me with the orphanage.

Nora: Nothing else?

Fiona: No!

Jaune and Fiona were in the Orphanage.

???: Mr. Arc? Mr. Thyme?

Jaune: What is it Rex?

Rex: Are you and Ms. Thyme a couple?

Fiona: Oh my- Robyn!

Robyn appears only to have May and Nora with her.

Jaune: Nora, you too?!

Nora: Look d-

Jaune: Nora.

Nora: *forgot the kid* Oh.

Jaune: Rex go to your room.

Rex: Okay. *leaves*

Jaune: Now what the hell wrong with you two?

Fiona: Why are you so obsessed with this?

Robyn: Because you two-

May: Look Fiona I been watching you two a lot and I have to admit it’s hard not to believe you’re not dating. In fact, I wouldn’t be surpise to call you both a married couple.

Fiona: Ugh you too May. Seriously wat-

May: You and Jaune do Laundry together.

May: Spend time with kids together.

May: In fact, when Jaune’s training leads him to get hurt, you are the first to drag him to the nursery and patch him up. Even when he tells us “Don’t worry about it.”

May: In fact you two are always in the kitchen together making dinner.

May: And Jaune, boy what Nora told me about you was damn lie. I saw what you did. Slow dancing in the night.

Nora: He was that smooth?

May: Smooth as Micheal Jackson.

Nora: Oh no.

Fiona: Um.

Jaune: Damn.

Nora: Oh yes. Finally. Fuck you Pyrrha! He go get right. *pulls scroll out her pocket and makes a call*

???: Hello.

Nora: Fuck you Weiss. You lose. He found someone better. He found the princess and gone make her his queen.

Jaune: Nora, calm down.

Nora: Fuck off Jaune. This is my victory.

In the twilight.

Pyrrha: Okay bitch, what did I do?

Adam: I mean you left the guy and died a meaningless death like Summer.

Summer: I gave birth to another silver eyed warrior. That has to count.

Hazel: Does she know how to use her eyes though?

Summer: Shut up.

Ironwood: And she destroyed Atlas and got Penny, Vine, Clover and myself killed so she’s kind a misfortune upon us.

Summer: Okay ya’ll need to stop disrespecting my daughter. Ya’ll made mistake.

Ironwood: Or so you say.

Summer: We can fight. We can fight right now James.

Pyrrha: I don’t understand.

Penny: Friend Pyrrha you are the main source of his trauma and pain.

Pyrrha: B-you know what… fuck all you.

Roman: Whoa Invincible Champion, it’s not our fault your ‘boyfriend’ decided to break that little curse you placed on him.

Pyrrha: Oh come on- I’m leaving. I don’t need this.

Summer: My death had meaning. My daughter has a mystery to solve.

Adam: So finally one of your daughters is actually trying to know what happened to you. It’s too bad they have to find the same woman that took one of them many years to find.

Summer: Oh my god.

Roman: Not to mention at least Penny’s death served a purpose. Winter’s alive. She kept thousands of people alive. While your death, Pyrrha, caused more suffering than good.

Pyrrha: You know what who wants to fight first? Who? Cause I’ll show you why they written me off. Name one. Who can body me? Who?! Step up. STEP UP!

Adam: Oh I never run from no challenge. Especially no One-V-One, come on bitch.

#rwby #jaune arc #nora valkyrie #may marigold #robyn hill #fiona thyme #jaune x fiona #weiss schnee #shepards knight #pyrrha nikos #adam taurus #roman torchwick #james ironwood #penny polendina #summer rose #jaune x pyrrha #rwby arkos

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ellaa-writes · 7 months

Text

Good Dog

author note: Part 1, part 2 here. First time ever writing for Simon. In the same universe as my The Beast Within series. Enjoy! :)

summary: His favourite words include; down boy, good dog, heel, fetch and his most favourite, get 'em. Well trained, and listens good. Loyal through and through. Always striving to be the absolute best. Ready to attack at all times, always on guard. Loves discipline, either giving or receiving. Working for a criminal mastermind, lurking in the shadows. You both trying not to be seen or noticed but after one unlucky night, all you both can see are the ghosts. He invades your life, if you both like it or not.

tags: Alternative Universe. Female reader. Violence, blood, death. Gun and Knife. Mentions of sexual assault but not by Simon. Trauma for both Simon and Reader. A/b/o dynamics. Simon is an Alpha and reader is a Beta. Not proofread

You find yourself in a bit of a pickle, the classic wrong place and wrong time. Feeling the cold steel pressing into your neck, just under your jugular. You just wanted your cookies and juice, stopping off at a corner store on your way home. You hated the night shifts but put up with them. Not much people awake this late at night, the only reason you felt ok taking in the extra shifts - plus the overtime.

You didn't get to make it to the till before you felt the rough hands grabbing you for behind, the blade of a dirty rusty knife aginast your throat. A horrible smelling Alpha ringing in your ears. The poor cashier looking between you, the blade and your attacker.

"Empty it, all of it." he barked, shoving you further into his chest. His hand was shaking and breath smelled off. A mixutre of alcohol, cigarettes and something else. "Now, damn it!" the knife sinking into your neck a little, enough to draw a small amount of blood. The cashier, who was only a Beta, smashing the buttons on the register until it popped open. Grabbing fists full of cash and pushing it over the counter.

"You too hot stuff." his hot breath in your ear, making you cringe. You yourself only a Beta, trying to grab for your backpack which was slung over your shoulders, struggling as this idiot was blocking it. "It's in the bag, just take it." you told him while shimming the thing off of you. His grip loosened, yanking the bag down your arms and pushing you to the side. He ran to the counter, shoving the cash inside.

You didn't notice it at first, him pulling something out of his back pocket. You didn't notice until you heard the loud bang, leaving a ringing in your ears. And the feeling of the hot liquid on your face. You were still on the ground, where you landed after being shoved to the side.

"Pretty little thing aren't ya, I'm gonna have fun with ya." the attacker said while looking at you. He slung the backpack over his shoulders, and began stalking to you. You tried scrambling back, but you limbs were heavy and numb. Your mind screaming at you to do anything but sit in the same spot." Come 'ere won't ya." you felt his hands in your once again. The Alphas scent was rotted, like spoiled food left out in the sun. It made your ears burn and nose sting.

"Let 'er go mate." the voice was deep, too deep you thought. Your attacker stopping in his tracks, holding his gun out while he turned around to see what bloke decided to play hero. But he wasn't fast enough, the gun was knocked out of his hands. And he was thrown to the floor, a boot coming down on his chest.

And you, oh stupid you. Still sitting in that same spot, with the cashier's blood on your face. Eyes wide and lips dry, finally taking in a deep breath. Your lungs stinging, causing you to cough and finally let out a cry. "Oh my God, oh my God." you just kept on screaming. Frantically trying to get the bits of blood and who the hell knows what else off of you.

Scrambling to your knees, crawling away from both men and towards the back of the store. There had to be another exit, your knees ached as you crawled across the cold, hard tiles. Only making it to the storage room before you heard him. His footsteps not far behind you.

"Wait a minute." he spoke, trying to stop you. But it only made you panic more, "Oh God, please, please! Don't kill me! " you sobbed, your tears were flowing, obstructing your view from the man now crouching in front of you. "I ain't gonna hurt ya, ok." it was gentle, almost sympathetic the way he spoke to you. "Just tryna make sure ya alrite." his hands tilted your neck back, his eyes staring intentively at the small trickle of blood coming from the wound. "Looks like ya live." he turned your face again, giving you a full check out.

"Police been called." he stopped to clear his throat "Should be 'ere soon. They might wanna talk to ya." he removed his hands from you. Leaning back on his feet, tucking them into his pockets. "Ya think ya ok to stand?" he asked. But you kept staring, not making a sound or movement. "Ok, ya in shock." he didn't know what to do.

He got up from his spot, leaving you in the hallway against the storage door. Walking to the front of the store and picking up the bag of cookies and the bottle of apple juice. Making his way back to you, "ere, might be good." he handed you the items, but after you didn't bother grabbing them he set them down in front of you.

Fuck, he wasn't even supposed to be here. Deciding to go for a walk to clear his mind. That was until he heard the gun ring out, racing into the shitty corner store. Finding that asshole over you, his gun at his side. The fucker is now knocked out cold, but this won't look good. Not one bit.

He's gonna get dragged down to the station, along with you. But you would get treated better, at least he hoped. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't have a good reputation. He literally just got out of the slammer last week.

His attention drifted from you to the sound of the front door opening, the little bell jingling. "Police! Identify yourselves." shit he thought, too late to ditch. "Look sweetheart, the police are 'ere now." he tried looking into your eyes but you were too far gone. "Back' ere!" he yelled. Standing up and back against the wall. Two officers came down the hallway, "Is 'at you Riley." one of them spoke. "What the hell ya get yaself into now." the taller officer stopped in front of him, eyeing him up and down. "She's in shock, the other is probably dead behind the counter." he spoke up, knowing fuy well the poor clerk was dead his brains splattered all over the wall.

"Can't keep yaself outta trouble now." the same officer said. "Wasn't me, the guy out on the floor is your man." he stood straight has a board, chin held high. He always did, habit he guessed. A mixutre of his Alpha and the years of training. "Right, like I should believe ya." the officers chuckled together.

You didn't know when or how you got here. In this fluorescently lit room, the cold metal desk under your forearms. Your neck bandaged and most of the blood gone from your face. You told the officers everything, about your horrible job, your juice and cookies, the horrible smelling man that attacked you and killed the clerk, and lastly the one that saved you. Blue, you thought, his eyes were blue. His eye lashes blonde, probably like the rest of him. His scent lingered on your skin, you could still feel the warmth of his touch.

The officers leaving you alone, it's been at least 10 minutes. What could they possibly be doing, you just wanted to be home, to take boiling hot shower and scrub yourseld clean. Trying to remember if you had any more scouring pads left and if that would even do the trick.

In the next room over, Simon just got done answering the same questions over and over again. Finally getting frustrated, "Don't ya have access to the damn security cameras." he asked, rolling his neck trying to relieve the stress that started to build up in him. At least they didn't cuff him, he thought. They finly left him alone, alone to his thoughts. Thoughts that kept going back to you. You.

His mind raced with scenarios, ones where he never went for that walk. And ones were he arrived to late. He couosnt stop thinking about your dead body, he's seen so many that they were all the same. The same lifeless corpse, their dead eyes staring up at him. Suddenly the door slammed open, "Well if it ain't ya lucky day, Riley." the first officer from before said. Holding it open for Simon to exit through. His skin was itching, the throbbing in his neck still adamant. He needed a cigarette, he needed it real bad.

You stood outside the station, far from your apartment. You didn't have your phone, keys or wallet on you. All being taken as evidence, not having a place to stay unless you were able to break into your own apartment.

The night was getting more chilly, you instinctively wrapped your arms around yourself. Hugging then to your body, you didn't notice him walking up next to you. But you did notice the overwhelming scent, swirling around you and dancing with the his cigarette smoke. "You finally ok?" he asked, he knew it was a stupid question. You scoffed, what kind of question was that. "No. No I'm not and I don't think I ever will be." your mind kept flooding with thoughts, thoughts about what could have happened if he didn't show up. Would you be dead on the dirty floor of that corner shop. Or would you be dead in the alley next to it, clothes ripped and body violated. You kept thinking about his words and the way his eyes drank you in.

"Shit, I know. I'm sorry." Simon was silently bearing himself up. "It's ok." you told him back, but was it? Was it ok? "Got anywhere to be?" he asked. Noticing that you were still standing in front of the station, if he was you he'd be home by now. "Not really, do you know how to pick a lock?" turning to finally face him. You sucked back a breath, damn he was attractive you thought. A blush reaping up your cheeks, making you turn back to fscing forward. "It's just, they took my keys and shit. And I don't have another way to get into my building." you tried explaining. "I can try." Simon offered, knowing damn well he could, easily. "Need a ride?" he asked, also guessing they took your phone and wallet. Luckily he had both, and he knew exactly who to call at this hour. "That would be great, thank you." you said to him. Turning back around to watch him walk away, his phone pressed to his ears. It only took a few minutes before an unmarked car showed up. Simon opened the back door for you, getting in first and him after. You told the driver your address, the car pulling in front of your run down apartment building a few minutes after.

Simon got out behind you, saying a few hushed words to he driver before he sped off. "Good neighborhood." he joked, he only lived a block down. "It's not all that bad." you told him. "Hey what's your name, if you don't mind." it completely slipped your mind. "Simon." it was short, and slight uncomfortable. You felt it the moment you asked the question. Simon worked on getting the front door to the building open, taking longer than he needed to just to show that he wasn't an expert in this, even though he was. "Well, um, thank you." it came out distorted, coughing a bit to clear your throat. "Thank you Simon, really. I was just sitting there, I could do anything and... and." you stopped yourself from rambling. "Don't worry about." he wasn't good with these interactions. He motioned to the now opened door. "Right, sorry." you began the climb up to your floor and to your door. Simon got to work right away, taking no time in opening this one. Turning the knob a bit to make sure it was unlocked. "There ya go." he said. Stepping back and letting you push it open. "Again, thank you so much." you turned back around to find him half way down the hall.

He's odd you thought, but you didn't care. You were home and the shower was calling you name.

Simon had to leave, he needed to get out of there and away from you. He knew the way you were feeling, that guilt sitting in your stomach. The feeling of unsurness and doom. He felt it everyday. All this for a walk, taking another cigarette out and making his way home. No more night walks for him.

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