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elysianslove · 3 years

Note

Hi! <3 I'm the roomate hc anon again (lol) and can I request best friends to lovers hc for iwaizumi, kuroo and oikawa? Also this blog is gonna blow up soon so remember me when you're famous bro 😌✊️❤️

OMG HI AGAIN! i’m so sorry this is late :( but oh my the excitement that flooded through me when i saw this request hsvhjsd. i really hope you enjoy this!! also vshdks i luv u bb THANK YOU.

iwaizumi hajime

im making these as detailed as fuck so i apologize in advance <3

becoming best friends with hajime was a very out of the blue thing

the two of you shared a lot of classes together, and since you were always seeing each other, you’d choose each other as partners a lot

you’d sit next to him in all the classes that you could

you’d meet up a lot during school breaks and just hang out

you two clicked very well honestly, like you found that it was so easy to talk to him, and it was so easy to lose yourself in the conversation

most of your convos are v mature and sophisticated too like

it’s nice when you can talk to someone on the same brain wavelength as you yk 😼

anyways overtime you’d come to his practice sessions, and even if they were long you’d just stay and watch bc why not

if you had hw to do and he noticed you were a lil stressed about it, he’d tell u to come study while he practiced as a change of scenery and all

he’d walk you home almost every night at this point

oikawa noticing and being jealous <3

“they’re stealing you from me!” “they’re not— what is wrong with you oikawa.”

okay so this best friend stuff has been going on for a long time

long enough for you to realize you wanted more from him

but this is iwaizumi hajime and it’s almost impossible to know what he’s thinking

ever

so you just keep it to yourself, thinking it’s just a small crush and it’s not worth ruining what the two of you have at this rate

so all this had happened first year, and when you’re nearing the end of your second year

that’s when you realize that

shit

it’s not just a crush

and when you have feelings for someone, every little thing they do expands a million times in your head

so a hug from him that you’d once never go over twice has you thinking about it as you go to sleep

the hoodies he’d lend you during practice while you stayed in the gym bc it was ungodly cold in there now send tingles down your spine at the lingering scent of him

the way he’d grab your hand to drag you somewhere now leave a heavy effect on your palm, forcing you to trace it once he’s gone

his texts give you butterflies

every time his name pops up on your phone screen you have a mini heart attack

and yeah

those are all symptoms of a crush

but is a crush meant to last this long?

at the start of your third year, you greet him outside of the school gates after not seeing you all summer

he smiles so bright and hugs you so, so tightly

you already are so hyperaware of how strong iwa is

but the feelings you have for him that won’t go away are so not helping your fixation on the feel of his biceps

anyways before this becomes v nsfw

you two catch up like u had met yesterday

and then at the end of the day, after practice, which you stay for bc u missed ur vbc boys 🥺

he walks you home

like always

and as he stands by your front door, in a burst of courage, he takes your hand in his and pulls you harshly towards him, pushing his body against yours and capturing your lips in a heated kiss

it’s so messy and harsh and you pretty much collided

but holy shit

you were pretty sure fireworks erupted when you two kissed

years of pining and what had felt like unrequited love finally being resolved

it’s the most satisfying feeling ever

you never want to stop kissing him

but alas </3

when he pulls back, you’re both breathing so heavily

you’re not sure if it’s the adrenaline or the kiss itself

and he just looks at you and goes “did u tan while you’re away ur eyes look brighter”

no sir i am in love with you

when you two officiate things

he’s actually way shyer than he was as best friends???

like as best friends he wouldn’t feel slightly weird about hugging you in public or grabbing at your hand randomly or being seen alone with you

but now like

people know ??? and somehow that scares iwa

or makes him uncomfortable

idk he just feels iffy

but ur so understanding bless ur heart <3

ur so careful with him and take it at his own pace

zero pda at the start of the relationship

like he won’t even wanna hug u in front of the seijoh team

but slowly he warms up

and he starts getting more comfortable with things like hand holding and occasional pecks on the cheek/lips

your traditions as best friends don’t die as lovers

if anything you believe in them even more

now you watch more diligently during practice

you proudly attend his games in his jersey, cheering the loudest for him (and for the rest of the boys bc they: best)

walks home with you are so much more serene

always gives you a kiss before he parts ways

idk it’s like some sort of commemoration for your first kiss/confession

unless you invite him inside 😏

this is so fucking long im so sorry i just love iwa

anyways anybody want boyfriend!iwa headcanons i got a lot hehe

to conclude, it was so gradual and inevitable with the two of you, and you’re forever glad it happened when it did and you hadn’t rushed anything <3333

oikawa tōru

unlike hajime, this wasn’t something that took one or two years

this bitch couldn’t admit he was in love with you for like 10 years okay

you’ve known him for the majority of your life, because you’d always lived in close proximity to each other

but you were never best friends yk? just acquaintances

it was around the end of middle school when you two got close

cause you saw he was applying to aoba johsai for high school

and you were like !!! i’m going there too

at first he was like stop copying me 😾

you guys had a staring contest bc y’all are idiots and there were legit tears streaming down ur face but u were not about to lose to a pissbaby like him

he blinked 😁👍🏼

and he lost

and then he decided “you’re my best friend now ”

anyways aside iwa, he now had someone else he was going into high school with

like it’s a completely new environment but he had two people he very much liked going with him !!!

when the time came around to like apply for/join clubs, you had been so clueless

but toru stuck by you !! and he was so adamant on helping you !!

he would sit with you after school as he practiced tossing with hajime and just brainstorm with you what you liked to do

it’s what brought you two closer together

cause you realized just how many things in common you had with him

for a full week he tried to help you come up with something

for the sake of this hc let’s say u decide to join the newsletter club

you’re very wary at first but then he’s like when ur part of it you’ll visit the vbc regularly so u can take pictures/observe to write essays

the fact that toru would be there kinda set you at ease

now you’ve never seen toru play properly

he’s practiced in front of you before

plenty of times

but a proper match? or a practice one?

never

so it’s safe to say u were in awe when you got assigned to go watch a practice match against (idk pick a school)

it’s embarrassing to admit but your eyes were on him the entire time

thank god he became the captain later on else it’d be so sus

you really tried to pay attention to anybody else lmfao

it’s kinda what drew you to him more

you still didn’t really have feelings

you only realized just how passionate he is about everything

at some point you had an essay to write for your newsletter about the volleyball club

but you were having a hard time like really getting into it

so you immediately just called toru and were like “help 😃”

he came over and you asked him a bunch of questions, and he would go on deadass 20 min rants for each of them

you were just

so amazed

like how could someone have so much passion for something like this?

you realize how but that’s for later

overtime you two got closer bc of how much your work was associated with him

he’s incredible as a best friend

he’s the first one with the school’s weekly newsletter as soon as it’s out

granted it’s to read the section about him but yk, the sentiment’s there

also love, love, loves lazy days with you

he doesnt even care if the boys know that he worships the chick flicks you two watch

i feel like oikawa would be an avid anime watcher

idk why i just do

so he’d be blasting anime theme songs on a speaker as you’re in the shower and he’s in your room waiting for you and you’re both just singing w the sound of water rushing down

actually it’s not just anime songs it’s all songs

a l l songs

anyways

so you two get really close, and then he has a super important match coming up

let’s say it’s the spring interhigh one against karasuno

the one they won

idk im just choosing at random

and the night before he’s like begging you on text to wear his jersey

he’s like PLEASE NO ONE’S EVER DONE THAT FOR ME

you’re like bruh u have a cult following ?????

but eventually u say yes

ur not really sure where it’s coming from but this is oikawa he’s an unpredictable as can be

when you show up in a jersey he so conveniently left at your house once

he’s so genuinely shocked even though he was the one that asked for this???

gives you the biggest hug like spins you around and just

“you’re my lucky charm”

when he wins

after celebrating with his team

he runs over to you

and just

he kisses you

full on the mouth

it’s probably the rush and excitement of winning that gave him the courage to finally spill all his feelings out into this kiss

you’re in his jersey, in the stands and you genuinely feel like it’s only just the two of you

despite how sudden it was the kiss is so gentle, like he’d been planning it since forever

“i told you you’re my lucky charm” he says as he rests his forehead against yours and kisses you gently again

oikawa had already been affectionate as your best friend

always displaying his love outwardly with like always calling out your name so loud whenever he sees you and giving you bone crushing hugs

deadass his 6’0 self will just jump on you

but now it’s extra

makki always gags around the two of you but you just stick ur tongue out at him and go “ur just mad ur best friend’s getting some pussy/dick and ur not”

makki then proceeds to shriek at you like a fucking banshee <3

anyways

yes

oikawa best friends to lovers excellence is so cute eeeekkk

and now u always wear his jersey at games

(u couldnt make it to the game against karasuno where they lost for whatever reason and he held it against u for the longest time)

(“maybe if a certain someone were there we wouldn’t have lost”)

what a big baby you love him

kuroo tetsurō

AH SEXY CHEMISTRY NERD 👅👅👅

kuroo as ur best friend

im frothing

i feel like you’d grow close after meeting at an event or something

like you’re a friend of a friend of a friend

i see kuroo as someone who’s so suave and cool and flirty with people he doesn’t have feelings for

but put the crush factor in and he’s a mess

like his brain just stops working

so when he first met you

he thought u were so fucking hot

but that’s it

his lower body was doing all the thinking <3

so he was so flirty

and that’s essentially what your friendship is built off of

and when friends are so flirty with each other, they generally grow close and trust each other really quickly

ur not a nekoma student but ur in tokyo so you meet up often

you just

it’s so nice to be around him

you find it so easy to just be yourself around him

going out with him is super fun

and a lot of the times you guys have study dates and you literally don’t talk except during the 10 min breaks you two take

it’s just hyper focus for the two of you which is great

he really channels the best student in you what a man !

i think during your third year of high school you two got insanely close

because you were highly unsure if you were gonna leave japan or stay

so you wanted to make the most out of everything

so you’d go out with him more often

he’d stay during the weekends and you two would like bake christmas goods all night even if it’s literally september lmfao

cuddling is so natural

like you’re both so touchy with each other but not in a weird way just a super comfortable kind of way

like if you’re shorter than him, he’s always leaning his arm on you like you’re his arm rest

it’s a win win bc he gets to touch you and tease you

wow the horny really jumped out in that one

anyways

you go to every single one of his games !!

cheer him on so!! fucking!! loud!!

you probably make a provocative sign and stand a chair and just wave it around and kuroo’s so heart eyes lmfao

the climb up to becoming lovers is so

natural?

i think kuroo first realizes that maybe, yk, he wants those flirtatious comments to mean something and those random touches to hold more romantic value to them, when you two are out together

it’s a completely chill day and it’s not really warm not really chilly. you’re just comfortable

he takes you to a park after buying the both of you ice cream from the stand across the street and sits down at a bench with you

just people watching

and then it kinda goes really silent

but

it’s not awkward??? like at all???

he’s not looking to fill the silence with any random words

he’s just

enjoying simply being with you

and he glances at you momentarily and it hits him like so hard just how pretty you are

his eyes slightly widen like

holy fuck

what the f u ck

remember when i said he’s all cool until feelings come into play

yeah 😼

he literally freezes up and blurts out, without even meaning to, “i think i have feelings for you.”

he really didnt even process he said that

you kinda

pause for a second

and then you realize what you said and you just smile and lean over towards him, lifting your thumb up to the corner of his lips and brushing away some ice cream

“you think?” you tease, and then at the spot where the ice cream was misplaced, you placed a gentle kiss

he kinda relaxes and then eyes you as he says, “i know.”

it is just. heaven after that

i think the two of you would be less flirty around each other once becoming official

like yeah he definitely comments once or twice every now and then and don’t get me wrong, so do you

but it’s just less frequent

like a blanket has been lifted to uncover the true, hidden meanings behind the comments and you can now just breathe easier

you two end up in the same uni on accident hevejsk

like you had a long ass talk about how it’s okay if you didn’t end up in the same uni you’d still make it work

and it would’ve worked tbh

fate just ships you two too much

when you told each other you were literally that spiderman meme of the two spidermen pointing at each other lmao

power couple of the uni

power couple of tokyo

power couple of japan

you’re literally so happy with him you wouldn’t trade him for the world

and maybe you saw it coming

but it still remains a shock whenever you wake up and he’s there laying next to you, smiling lazily at you before reaching over to give you a gentle kiss

anyways happy early birthday king i love you kuroo hehe

end note; i really had a lotta fun w this one omg!! thank you again for requesting, anon, and i hope everybody else enjoyed!! feel free to request, mwah <3

#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu headcanons #oikawa x reader #oikawa toru headcanons #oikawa headcanons #iwaizumi x reader #iwaizumi headcanons #iwaizumi hajime x reader #kuroo tetsuro x reader #kuroo x reader #kuroo headcanons #oikawa x you #iwaizumi x you #kuroo x you

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lordeasriel · 4 years

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Hi! I saw that you read Alice Network and I was hoping you wouldn't mind if I asked you a question about it, cause I don't know many others who've read it. I was wondering what you thought of René's depiction. Quinn writes him so slimy and despicable, but then she really emphasizes his suaveness and idk sexiness - the way Eve remembers her nights with him, it's much more than Quinn gives to the actual VIABLE romantic interests in the book. Why is that? Or does this just say a lot about me haha

To get this first out of the way, I did some research on Kate Quinn before I read and a little after, to see if I could find her process while writing TAN, or anything like it, and I didn't find much, other than plenty of history fiction books. So, she's an author that does A LOT of research and she thinks her stories through - so mind you, I could be very wrong - but the vibes I get from Rene is that of a character who wasn't entirely planned the way he came out, from the start.

When we meet him, he's put right off the bat as the enemy, the antagonist, someone who sees past Eve's doe eyes and stutter, he doesn't underestimate her based on these things. Not that we can forget he's a devious, wicked man, but the narrator, going through Eve's perspective, shows us Rene as someone to loathe and fear, Eve is constantly terrified that he might see through her façade. However, Rene is also reasonable, logical, understanding even, he portions scraps of good food between his employees (mind, this is horrible yes, but considering he DIDN'T HAVE TO do that, it's quite something that he does so), he is even I daresay thoughtful in some ways He's very complex, as one expect from normal human characters, but we are introduced to him as someone terrible, slimy, loathsome. This is because it's how Eve shows us her first impressions of him, again he is The Enemy, so the text focus on showing us a stern man, sitting in a room full of luxury, purely ostentatious, after we see (through Eve) a city starving, sieged by the Germans who kill, steal and violate them at will. We're supposed to see the contrast of starvation and gluttony, luxury and poverty, and we're supposed to understand that man is someone who enables that.

As the story moves on, Eve began to add new layers to Rene: at first we have a scene where he is shown to appreciate art and poetry, he shows off by quoting Baudelaire (then he never stops LMAO); then we have him confronting her lie because he can tell different French accents apart, which is both a nod to him being a snob and petty, as well as a very well-travelled and educated man. This adds to him elegance, makes him appealing to the target audience as well as Eve, because the closer the story gets to the point where they engage in a sexual relationship, the more Eve perceives him as someone who would be desirable to the right people. She doesn't feel attracted to him because she sees him as a traitor, she's a spy in enemy territory, she's under stress a lot and he is living the easiest life on Earth by throwing everyone else under the bus. All of this conflicts with her personality, she's headstrong and righteous, so he's unappealing, but cut her disfavored perspective and you can see he's appealing from the start, she just doesn't let us see it because of course she hates him. But even Eve slowly began to notice these details, for example, when Violette suggests he might be interested in her, Eve says she's "not sophisticated enough" which shows us she considered that possibility, even if it was just for a moment. And after Violette suggests that, Eve began to avoid Rene at all costs, and when she talks to her she tries her best to keep the conversation as respectable as she can because she notices now his flirting/courting and it makes her uncomfortable, because suddenly he's very shave and cult (she even starts to remark on his scent). She of course, always end up in an obscene Baudelaire quote because that's Rene's game, so she's always trying to avoid that at all costs.

As he makes a move, Eve begins to notice him as someone appealing, and she's a wee prude so she's embarrassed, mortified with his presence. It's not that I don't think Quinn couldn't have planned this transition from the start, if she did, good for her, great storytelling, but this feels more like she realised the potential a sexual relationship between Eve and Rene, but she realised how he wasn't initially an attractive or suitable "partner", so she slowly begins to make him more palatable. As a first time reader, I didn't think him appealing at all, because like Eve, all I saw was the layer of luxury and lack of morals, that hindered the rest. He's a cultured man, educated, an art lover, there's a lot of appeal in him, that we take a long time to see because Eve resents him at first (righteously of course). Suave is the tip of the iceberg concerning Rene.

And it's easier to sexualise a relationship between a woman and a man if the man is appealing and handsome. Most female authors do that, because women already experience complicated sexual lives; we like the idea that a female character engages in a relationship with someone attractive, appealing. Eve having sex with an ugly, slimy, hideous man who is selfish and who collaborates with the enemy, just so she can have information to report? Distasteful, and this is why Rene checks all the boxes for an appropriate suitor. He's even described as "not un-handsome" which is English for "he's handsome but let us pretend he isn't too handsome cause otherwise I'm pushing my luck", and there's a whole section of the story that deals with Eve feeling horrible for taking pleasure in her time with Rene. Not only because she's a lil biased due to her upbringing, but also because he is a horrible man supporting the Germans while people die and starve. She doesn't understand how can she have any pleasure with someone like that, because she's very tormented by conservatives views as well as the conflict caused by the knowledge Rene is her Enemy.

So all of this contributes to Rene being, not likable, but perceived as attractive and sexy. Their relationship makes it hard not to perceive him like that; it's consented, and he's very thoughtful towards Eve and while she hates his guts, she enjoys the situation even though she feels guilty about it. We're just so used to associating villainy and evil with ugliness and disgust, that when we're presented evil characters we have to be explicitly told they're attractive cause otherwise we just imagine them as ugly and disgusting as possible. Such examples are Mrs. Coulter, who is beautiful and we know that from the start, while she does horrible things; or even Cersei Lannister; (there is also Count Olaf in ASOUE, who we are constantly reminded that he is unattractive, dirty, with poor hygiene habits and in contrast to him, we have Esme Squalor, who is described as attractive and fashionable, while she's just as cruel as Olaf).

Rene goes very easily from slimy to smooth as the story progresses. To us, compared to Eve, it's easier to feel lust for him (even if we question the morality of it) because we are not living that situation closely. We don't experience the same things as Eve does, we're merely observers, while Eve has to deal with starvation, poverty, fear and lack of freedom, and those are things she sees when she looks at Rene, which is why she feels such a shame. But personally I think there's nothing wrong in thinking he is a sexy character; I've seen much worse situations, and as long as you don't brush off the bad things he does to make him more likable, I suppose there's nothing wrong to feel attracted to him. (as I am, guilty as charged, Anon lmao)

I usually tend to stay away from sexualised female protagonists, but in this case I enjoy the whole dynamic because it's a powerful and very rare dynamic. They don't fall in love, or at least Eve doesn't, he fulfill his role as a "villain" by torturing her, but their dynamic is good because it puts under perspective lots of things. Especially considering it's a history fiction, so at that time women had very different views on sex, especially pre-marital sex, and we see Eve struggle with the idea of "how can I have pleasure with someone I don't love?", And it's interesting because, at least from my experience, sex and love are two very different points of relationship. And Eve spends a lot more time with Rene, especially because I think with her viable romantic options, there are no conflicts and that's fuel to the story. Her time with Rene doesn't change her experience someone else, but it changes a lot of her concepts and connects them through something frivolous, which is refreshing. Most situations like this end up with the woman falling in love, so this twist on the trope is very yummy.

#the alice network #literature #books #my*stuff #would bang rene I'm sorry friends i have no morals #but yall know that cause i love marcel delamare

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denimwrites-archive · 7 years

Text

J’s Ideas

A/N: So this is the original story I had to write for my high school English class. It’s written in the second person, but it isn’t a reader insert. It’s a mystery (kind of? idk how mysterious it really is). I am going to try and write more fanfiction during the fall semester since I don’t have any English classes, but I don’t really know how much time I’ll have with as a full time college student. I will try though. In the meantime have this thing that is months old.

Word Count: 4,720

~~~

It had been a hard night. Damn you, General What and your glorious adventures, you silently cursed. You just had to rewatch the whole series in anticipation for the new season that was premiering in two weeks. You trudged your way up the library stairs in muted excitement, not awake enough to start the day, but needing to anyway. Getting less than four hours sleep before your first day of volunteering for the summer wasn't the best idea, but you really wanted to finish the first season. The three books you were carrying didn't make it any easier, and you concentrated on not dropping them in your sleepy state.

Thankfully you made it up the steps with only a little wobbling, and as you stepped through the front door the hushed atmosphere greeted you. You took a deep breath, relishing the smell of the old books, new books, and the slight lavender scent of the long faded floor polish. You walked up to the return desk and set your books down, quickly greeting the librarian at the front desk, before moving towards the conference room where you were to have a brief orientation. You doubted there was going to be anything new, but it was mandatory whether you were a volunteer veteran, like yourself, or new to the library.

You walked in to see quite a few new faces. You didn't expect to see people you knew, but you also didn't think there would be so many. When you had volunteered in the past there was really only you and your friend, Thumper, but four faces greeted you as you made your way into the room. They looked at you expectantly and you hesitantly took a seat in the chair closest to you. They seemed surprised that you weren't telling them what to do and where to go, but you were used to being mistaken for someone who worked at the library. Your thick glasses and grown-up style gave others the impression that you were older than your seventeen years, and carrying books everywhere didn't help the stereotype of your appearance. Nor the fact that you were quite the regular at the library during the school year as well.

You twiddled your thumbs as you looked around and waited for Mary to come and give the tour of the library and explain your schedules. You saw two of the kids on the other side of the table whispering and every once and awhile they would exclaim something and laugh. Just as you were about to get up and look for her, Mary appeared and apologized for being late, with a signature mug in hand. "That coffee machine needs a serious tune up," she joked holding up the mug with the saying Coffee!!! Because crack isn't allowed at work.

"Okay, so let's get started! I see we have quite a few new faces this year, don't we Bambie?" Mary said turning to you with a big smile, you nodded and glanced at the other kids with an awkward smile. "Yes, well the more the merrier! So let's introduce ourselves, shall we? I'm Mary Mendoza, the head of the Young Adult section, which is my favorite genre to read. And my favorite color is red. Bambie, you next."

You took a deep breath before saying, "My name is Bambie Watts. Yes, like the Disney movie. I've volunteered at the library over the summer for the past 3 years, and I love science-fiction and fantasy books. Purple is my favorite color."

"Okay, next?" Mary asked, and so the introductions went.

"My name is Angela Moritz, this is for my community service hours. Um, I'm not really a book person, but I like manga, which I guess qualifies for a graphic novel? And my favorite color is green."

"Hi, I'm June Lark. I love poetry, especially Emily Dickinson and Katheryn Nicolas, and my favorite color is pink." It really must be, you thought as you noticed her entire outfit was different shades of the pigment. She was covered in frilly bows and had a sweater tied around her shoulders with her long golden hair pulled up in a tight ponytail.

"James Scott. I'm here because I have nowhere else to be. I like sci-fi and magical stuff. I guess my favorite color is blue? I don't really think about it that much," the boy shrugged. He looked slightly bored, but that was justified given the situation. He had shaggy hair and the chair seemed too big for his wiry frame.

"The name's Jones, Ash Jones," the last person began their introduction. Your interest was piqued and you studied the freckled person. "I'll read pretty much anything, but I like fiction and poetry best. And all colors are pretty cool, so I'll say my favorite is the rainbow," they said with a wink and ruffle of their short red hair. "Oh, and I use they/them pronouns."

"Well, it's lovely to meet you all. I hope you all will get to know each other better over the course of the next several weeks and that you all have fun! Now, I'll take you all on a brief little tour and explain a few of the things you may be assigned to do. If you'll follow me, please?" Mary walked out of the room and the ragtag group followed her lead. You hung towards the back, already knowing the library like the back of your hand. You trailed after the party as they moved through the first floor and its movie section and children's area, and as they made their way upstairs you couldn't help but notice their reactions to the decorations in the YA section.

You had helped make them last year with Thumper. That wasn't really her name, but it stuck when you two became inseparable. You had worked for weeks on the swarms of butterflies that hung from the ceiling and the literal bird nests of your favorite series and authors. You tuned back into the tour when you heard Mary say your name, "Bambie and Thumper did a tremendous job, didn't they? I hope we can add to their project this year with quote posters and more."

"'Thumper'? Is she your sister?" you heard June ask.

"No," you responded, "my best friend. She moved to the other side of the country at the end of the summer last year. She was energetic, excitable, and we always hung out, like the bunny, and so the nickname stuck," you shrugged.

"That's cool. Maybe I could help you make a fake tree for there to be like a beehive or something about what 'the buzz' is at the library," June said with a smile. You smiled back and nodded enthusiastically, the thoughts of the new project already filling your mind. Mary beckoned the others to follow her to the reference section, but you hung back, looking over your work from the previous year. You remembered getting covered in paint, and coming in on Saturdays to make sure everything was ready before Thump moved.

You wandered the stacks of books, eventually finding yourself in front of your favorite series. You pulled out the first book and flipped through it, reminiscing the first time you read it when you happened upon a folded slip of paper. Confused, you grabbed it and opened it to reveal a block of text. Quickly scanning the page you notice a large "J" signed at the bottom. You notice Mary waving at you and motions that they're heading back downstairs. Nodding, you place the paper in your pocket and follow the group back to the first floor.

"Well, I hope you all enjoyed the tour. I'm sure you all are going to be a big help this summer. Now, I want you all to follow me behind the front desk. You can choose from sorting books into their sections and putting them on a cart, or taking the carts with books already sorted and returning them to the shelves. I'll let you all decide amongst yourselves, and if you need me I'll be in my office upstairs." And then Mary was gone. You looked at the others, standing in awkward silence, until you decided to speak up.

"I'll sort the returned books, I've gotten pretty good at it over the last couple years. You guys can choose who goes to which section to reshelve them yourselves. But I recommend you don't pick a section you like if you're a big reader, cause you can get lost in the titles." You said, in a slightly teasing manner. You weren't really kidding though, the first day you reshelved books it took you over two hours to get through a cart because you kept finding interesting stories and taking "breaks" to read them. Soon enough you were ready to check out half the cart.

You turned away from the group and got started putting books into different piles by genre, and when you turned around to grab a cart you found yourself alone. Taking a breath, you started with the genre with the most books and started placing them in the cart alphabetically by author. June and James came back for their next stacks soon enough and you were pretty much done with the current pile by lunch. Ash still hadn't come back for more books, so you wandered around the library until you found them in the YA section leant against the back of a bookcase, their cart forgotten, with books strewn about the carpet around them.

You couldn't help but smile at the engrossed look their face held. You glanced at the title of the book to see that it was one of your favorites. You were unsure if you should say something, so you tried to take the cart without disturbing their reading, but Ash's head snapped up the second your hand touched the dolly, You flushed slightly under their gaze, but retracted your hand nonetheless.

"I didn't want to interrupt your reading. That's one of my favorites," you pointed to the book in their hands,"so I know how hard it is to put down. The author didn't continue the series due to lack of feedback, so they moved on to other, more cliché ideas just so they could pay the bills. It's a shame."

"No way! This book is awesome, the characters are so unique and the fact that it has so much representation is really refreshing. The action is equally balanced with the romance, and the fact that the romance isn't even the main point and can be taken as a platonic thing is really cool. Plus the way it puts you in all of the characters' shoes and really lets you see how hard it is to be that minority is so interesting," Ash gushed. You smiled even more upon hearing their excited review. "How did this not get attention?"

"I think it was just too ahead of its time." You glanced at how far they'd gotten and realized that they were close to the best part of the book. "I'm glad you're liking it, but the best part is coming up, so I'll leave you to it. I can finish your stack, and then we can go get lunch with the others. It's tradition to go to the McDonwalds down the street for your first day."

Ash thanked you and quickly stuffed their nose back into the book. You grabbed their cart and was able to return the titles in no time, knowing the YA section like the back of your hand. When you returned you saw that Ash had made a pile of the previously strewn about books, with your favorite on top. "Is there somewhere I can put these so no one takes them?" Ash asked as you approached.

"Yeah. Mary would be okay if you kept them in her office, just make sure to put a sticky note on them to let her know you're the one who wants to check them out." You helped Ash carry their books to Mary's office and waited as they filled out a note and placed it on top. Then you two walked downstairs to see the others in your group waiting with Mary.

She looked at you excitedly and exclaimed, "Time for McDonwalds!" before bouncing out of the library. You chuckled at Mary's actions and followed as the others traipsed after her. You all ordered and ate lunch, discussing how your first day had gone so far. Mary talked about her days of volunteering and how it had led her to get her Master's in library science and put you into the position of explaining how that was your plan as well.

Soon enough, it was time to get back to work and you couldn't wait to get back to the ritualistic returns. You decided to show Angela your process of sorting books, and the most efficient way you'd found to do book returns was taking the extra step of sorting the authors on the cart rather than having the reshelver run throughout a section looking for the right place. She took to it quickly and so you moved upstairs and helped one of the other librarians put reference books away.

The day soon ends and you return to the first floor for the end of the day meeting. It's nothing special, the conference is pretty much a runthrough of what happened that day and what needs to be done in the morning before the official opening. You had to go in early a couple times last summer, but you don't think you'll have to come in early with all the extra help this year. You nod to Mary on your way out. She has her regular end of the day coffee in hand, with another funny mug with the saying Dear Naps I'm Sorry I was A Jerk to You As a Kid. As you make your way home, you remember the note you stuffed into your pocket.

You take it out and read the slanting script. The ink is smudged to the left and as you scan the lines you can tell that whoever wrote it was good. Even though it was barely two paragraphs, the characters seemed to come to life. It left you wanting more. You saw the 'J' at the bottom of the page again and you could tell you wouldn't let this go until you found this mysterious 'J' character.

The rest of the week wasn't very eventful, the books came and went, the note still on your mind. But Friday brought an unexpected surprise. You went to return books in the YA section and had gotten one of your favorite sections, science-fiction. You got to work and couldn't help but remark to yourself about the selections. They were all good choices, some you had even been meaning to read yourself. You flipped through one of the newer releases and were surprised to see a slip of paper. You quickly read it and realized that it was the same 'J' as in the last note. You glanced at the cart suspiciously. Could it hold more of these intriguing pieces?

You found your answer as you quickly made your way through the books, flipping through their many pages, hoping to find more of the secret author. Your quest was rewarded as you found six more notes. You decided to put the books aside to look at further when you took your break.

Twenty minutes later you were at the front desk's computer looking up the titles of the stories that the papers were found in. You saw that the last person to check out each of the books were different. You slumped in your seat, puzzled by this new development. You furrowed your brow and bit your thumb, lost in thought, until Angela came up behind you to ask what you were doing. You were unsure of how much to tell her, but you decided to just come out with what you had discovered.

"I found these notes in a few different books and I wanted to see if there was a connection in the people who last checked the books out. Unfortunately, no dice."

"Wait, were they signed with a 'J'?" Angela asked.

"Yeah. How did you know?" you asked curiously.

"When I was reshelving the poetry section I found a whole bunch in the classic collection book when I had to move it to make room for the other books," Angela shrugged slightly, "I left them up on the shelf just in case someone just forgot they put them there."

You got up and made your way up to the poetry section and quickly found the stack of notes Angela had discovered. You scanned them and noticed that these weren't original ideas, but quoted passages, with the author's name where the 'J' would usually be. You could tell it was the same person by the familiar handwriting style and smudges.

You collected the notes and put them in your pocket, intending to look at them further over lunch. But a school trip visit to the library prevented you from doing so, and you had to wait until you got home that night. You read over the passages and saw that they were all from the same author. You looked up a few of their books and vowed to take a closer look at their poetry on Monday when you returned to the library.

A 'ping' drew you from your thoughts as you realized that Thumper sent you a message. You hadn't had found time to message her this week, and were happy to hear from her.

ThumperIsNotMyName: How'd your first week go? Any new people?

BambieWattsIsMine: Good. Four new helpers. What have you been up to?

ThumperIsNotMyName: Not much. The library out here doesn't have a volunteer program :(

BambieWattsIsMine: Why not?

ThumperIsNotMyName: Cause a few people ended up stealing some expensive reference books so now it's ruined for everyone.

BambieWattsIsMine: That sucks! :/

ThumperIsNotMyName: Yeah. They won't even let me design some decorations for the YA section. It looks like a prison library it's so drab!

BambieWattsIsMine: Well what about volunteering at the park like you wanted to do last year?

ThumperIsNotMyName: I thought about that, but they don't take volunteers either. Too many people were just hanging out and not doing anything.

BambieWattsIsMine: Well it looks like your summer's a bust lol

ThumperIsNotMyName: Thanks. Tell me about what's happening there. Let me live vicariously through you.

BambieWattsIsMine: Well one of the new people wants to build off of your nature themed YA section. She wants to add a tree and a beehive of what's "buzzing" at the library.

ThumperIsNotMyName: That sounds cool! I wish I was there to help.

BambieWattsIsMine: That's not the best part though! I found these notes in the sci-fi section, and then more popped up in the poetry section. The writing is awesome, and they keep quoting Katheryn Nicolas.

ThumperIsNotMyName: WHAT? I LEAVE FOR ONE YEAR AND YOU GET A MYSTERY? NOT FAIR!!! >:(

BambieWattsIsMine: Chill Thumps! It's not that cool, especially since I've kind of hit a brick wall. I looked at the books' checkout history and there was no connection, plus no one had checked them out in the past two weeks.

ThumperIsNotMyName: Well... one of the volunteers could have borrowed them for the night. You know how lax Mary is when it comes to booklovers who help out at the library and checkout policy.

BambieWattsIsMine: Hmmm. You've got a point.

ThumperIsNotMyName: You know I do. What are the notes about?

BambieWattsIsMine: Mostly just drabbles of fiction which are all signed with a 'J' and poetry.

ThumperIsNotMyName: Any of the volunteers have an initial starting with 'J'?

BambieWattsIsMine: OMG THREE OF THEM DO

ThumperIsNotMyName: Elementary, my dear Watts-on. ;)

BambieWattsIsMine: Thump, you're the best! (Nice pun btw)

ThumperIsNotMyName: Thank you. Any other information that my genius brain could connect?

BambieWattsIsMine: Um, they're left handed? And their writing can get kind of graphic? But not in like a violent way, like in a theoretical sense. One character they like to write about continuously goes 'too far' with their ideas which makes it funny, you know? I don't know how any of that helps, but what do you make of it Detective Thumper?

ThumperIsNotMyName: Well... Lots of recent sci-fi is like post-apocalyptic. What if they're reading all of those stories to plan the end of the world? Like they're seeing the common ways the world ends in literature so that they can have any kind of plan. And that character you keep seeing is the voice that's telling them to prepare? That would be messed up O.O

BambieWattsIsMine: I kind of doubt that because the passages they quote from Katheryn Nicolas are all about romance and love, and the books I found the notes in are all pretty romantic as well. Plus it's fiction, so I doubt they'd believe the books are a guide.

ThumperIsNotMyName: You never know! Aliens are also a pretty common sci-fi trope. Maybe they want to be abducted and so they're looking for the best way to 'woo' an alien 👽

BambieWattsIsMine: THUMP! Take this seriously!

ThumperIsNotMyName: Well, you're supposed to be the detective in this story! I already gave you a hint, so figure the rest out yourself. I have to go eat dinner. I want an update by Tuesday!

BambieWattsIsMine: Will do, Thump. And thanks for the help.

Monday comes and you are ready to find this elusive 'J'. The first thing you do when you enter the library is go to the poetry section and find Katheryn Nicolas. You grab the single book left on the shelf and make your way back to the sorting room to grab a cart. Every spare minute of the day is spent with your nose in the book. You were even reading during lunch, which isn't that special, but James decided to sit with you so you felt compelled to converse with him.

It was then that you remembered that James' favorite genre was sci-fi. Maybe he was lonely and liked the space romances where the guy always got the girl? He was geeky enough that he probably didn't have a girlfriend. He didn't seem the type to read poetry, but you didn't know for sure and you weren't one to judge a book by its cover. You tried to turn the discussion towards books, but he did it for you, commenting on your author choice.

"So you like Nicolas, huh? I'm more of a Rothenberg guy myself. I always thought that Nicolas' style was a little too mushy for me," James said. "I like the action and deep messages Rothenberg has. Nicolas seems to only be obsessed with romance and 'wooing the girl'." He scoffs, and upon seeing my blank face backtracks saying, "There's nothing wrong with that kind of story, I mean, to each their own, it's just not the type of stuff I like." He flushes, embarrassed that he was rambling.

You had your reason that James wasn't the 'J' you were looking for. He could be lying about how he felt about Nicolas, but you don't think so. "To each their own. I'll have to try Rothenberg sometime," you said with a smile, realizing you were slowly narrowing down your suspects. You excused yourself and got up, deciding to put back the book after determining there were no real clues in its pages.

You spent the rest of the day sorting books for carts and talking to Mary who was trying to come up with a list of new choices for the YA section. You gave her the few you were looking forward to, but also said that she should ask the other volunteers to get better options. She nodded before taking a sip of her coffee, this mug saying Yeah? Well maybe coffee is addicted to me. Ever think of that??

At the end of the day meeting Mary brought up the list of new books and asked for others to give at least two titles that they were also looking forward to. She made notes while sipping coffee from yet another mug, this one stating I drink coffee for your protection. The volunteers' choices were especially paid attention to since the library was trying to make more teenagers interested in reading. Everyone gave at least two different genres, except for June. She only mentioned a new volume of poetry that was set to come out in July.

You decided to ask her about it tomorrow, and found your opportunity when she was reshelving in the poetry section the next morning. After pleasantries about how she liked volunteering and how her summer was going, you got to the reason why you wanted to talk to her.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you, why didn't you recommend any fiction books? I know you like poetry," you said while gesturing to the section, "but do you not read any other genre?"

"I've just never been able to really relate to fiction," June responded. "It just seems so out of the realm of possibility that it makes it hard for me to immerse myself in the story. Even realistic fiction is hard for me because life isn't a book. It doesn't have extraordinary coincidences or black and white heroes and villains like most stories do. I know that books are entertainment, but I like poetry because it entertains and opens a window to the past. You can see the world from a hundred years ago through someone else's eyes. And the language makes it even better. The authors choose the words with such care to create a rhythm that transcends boundaries."

From the way June described it, you could understand the appeal of prose, and you had your answer as to why she only talked about one book. "I never thought of it that way. I grew up with fantasy and it really inspired my imagination, so I guess I was closed off to more realistic forms of literature. I'll have to take a closer look at it sometime."

"My dad got me into poetry. He would read it to me every night, starting with Sheldon Bronze. Such a classic," she was smiling at the memory. You remembered hating Bronze due to his scary portrait that was on the back of all of his books. You just nodded before saying you should get back to work and that you would see her at lunch. She waved goodbye before going back to the task at hand.

It was then that you realized that you only had one suspect left. You looked around the library, looking for Ash, but could not find them anywhere. Eventually you found them where the book return counter connected to the sorting room.

You made your way to the counter and noticed that they were scribbling in a notebook with their left-hand. The side of their hand smeared with ink, smudges covering the page. You took in their furrowed brow as they wrote and couldn't help but realize how absorbed they were with what they were doing, pausing every so often to think of the right word to use.

Carefully approaching the counter you say, "What's up 'J'?"

Ash looks up at you with a surprised face, which quickly transforms into a smile. They set down their pen and close the notebook before giving their full attention to you. "I was wondering who had been finding my notes. When I heard Angela say she found the notes and just left them on the shelf I was kind of disappointed. But I'm glad someone appreciated them enough to find out who they were from."

"Are you kidding me? Your writing is amazing! The only reason I didn't find you sooner was because I had other stories to deal with," you joked.

"Thanks. Well, I should probably get back to the books," Ash jested back with a smirk.

"I'd love to read more of your writing if you'd let me, it was better than quite a few of the books we have."

"I don't think I'm that good, but I'd definitely let you read them. Are you any good at editing?"

#original writing #original work #no fandom #nonfandom #mystery #mystery writing #thing #idek #I literally focused on fixing up this blog than school work oh well #have this #my writing

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