#we were like this road is 3rd world road

[amerasdreams]

The road work is a block away now...!

How will we get out when it gets here.

#road work #done this fall? #needed to be done #we were like this road is 3rd world road #by college #hard to fix #also narrow #aaaaaaaaaah #i think they have it worked out #at least its not a sinkhole in the intersection neae our yard

[rikigai]

so american ༻¨*:·.

[GUTS series]

pairing: non-idol!ni-ki x fem!reader genre(s): childhood friends to lovers, fluff content/warning: cursing, kissing, skinship, reader is called cutie & pretty, small caps intended, mentions of food.

word count: 2.0k

author's note: hii! welcome to my first work under the GUTS series. i'd recommend listening to the song while reading this hihi. please look forward to future releases! (this is not proofread)

drivin on the right-side road, he says i'm pretty wearin his clothes

you and riki were taking a drive down malibu beach and it had just been the 3rd day of riki's visit to california. his hand was rested on the steering wheel as he gazed upon the sunset with you by his side, snuggled into his black graphic tee which seemed to be a little over 3 sizes too big for you. "cutie" riki said under his breath as he glanced over the sight of you staring at the horizon by the sea. "what was that?" you said with a smile plastered on your face, looking him in the eye. "CUTIE, i said cutie" riki repeated with a tint of bright red on his cheeks. "who's a cutie??" you questioned, knowing he meant you. all you wanted really was for him to say it to your face.

and he's got hands that make hell seem cold

"YOU ARE. okay leave me alonee" responded riki as he poked you on your tickle spot right by your waist. the both of you giggled and laughed.

feet on the dashboard, he's like a poem i wish i wrote

you carefully watched over riki as he made swift turns along the way, driving at just the right pace, and checking the mirrors every once in a while. you didn't really know what had gotten into you. it's not like this was the first time you've seen someone drive, right? it was simply just you and riki killing time together on the road along malibu.

-

looking back at it, riki was always someone you'd love bonding with. ever since you two were in elementary school, you two were inseparable. at every school event, community gathering or function, you'd play around and talk, talk, talk. riki's parents even gave you the nickname "thing 1" and "thing 2" because of how close you two were.

going to elementary school in japan was a memory you cherished. being woken up by the irritating sound of your alarm, sliding into your school uniform, kissing your parents goodbye before heading over to the campus were things you missed when you moved halfway across the world to study uni in the states. but you knew it wasn't any of those things you missed the most, it was riki.

you two made a deal that every year, either one of you would fly all the way to each other. and this year, it was riki's turn to visit you, 10,144 kilometers away.

-

"hey its getting late, do you wanna head back home?" riki asked. you nodded "うん" (un = yes). he takes the next left turn to go back to your apartment. on the way there, you see a flickering sign on top of a truck that read 'ice cream'. "can we stop over for ice cream, pleaaaseee??" you asked riki as the car drove closer to it. "alright kiddo" "WHAT." "I'M KIDDING PLEASE DON'T KILL ME" the two of you bickered as riki pulled over right in front of the ice cream truck.

“good evening, maam, sir! what would you like to get tonight?” asked one of the staff as you and riki approached the counter. “i’ll get two scoops of vanilla aaand she’ll have two scoops of chocolate with a mix-in of cookie dough.” riki replied. you smiled and looked up at riki, snuggling into him as he wrapped his warm arms around you. the night fell and the air started to cool down and you started feeling chilly. “cone or cup?” the staff asked, scooping the chosen ice cream flavors. “cone, please” said riki. they placed riki’s plain vanilla ice cream onto his cone and handed it to him. likewise, they gave you yours but they mixed in the bits of cookie dough beforehand. “we’ll pay by card” riki said, pulling his wallet out of his baggy chrome hearts jeans that hung low around his waist. “no, wait. riki i’ll pay” you said watching him as he took his card out of his wallet. he put his card near the card reader, ignoring what you said. “riki i said i’ll payyy” you repeat, quickly reaching for your card that was slid into the magnetic wallet on the back of your phone. “here take my card” you told the staff. “no y/n, let me pay” riki said. “no, i swear this one’s on me” you insisted, playfully pushing riki away from the card reader. “L/N Y/N I SAID I’LL PAYYY” said riki as he pushed you aside while you took a lick of your ice cream, shoving the scoop onto your nose. he laughed at the sight as he tapped his card, paying for the both of you. the two of you walked back to the car that was parked near. buckled in, riki started the car, looking at the rear-view mirror and at you before heading back onto the road. he caught himself staring at you as you fastened your seatbelt, putting your feet onto his dashboard while you ate your ice cream. "hey, you got some on your-" riki said as he wiped the ice cream off your nose. "笑, とてもきれい" (hehe, totemo kirei = hehe, so pretty). "thank you" you said as you felt your cheeks heating up.

the car drive home was silent, but you both knew you simply enjoyed each others presence. the radio played the week's top songs and you hummed along to them. "why do you always get vanilla? don't you wanna try anything else? you can try mine" you said, placing your cone before riki's mouth while he drove. he ate some ice cream and took a bite out of your cone. "i think i'll stick to my vanilla" riki said. "hey! are you saying my order doesn't taste good- wait, how'd you even know this was my order earlier at the truck?.." you stopped in your tracks. "秘密" (himitsu = secret) he responded with a chuckle and a smirk. "i may or may not have seen your insta stories" he added. "かわいいね" (kawai ne = how cute) you said and hummed in response.

when he laughs at all my jokes

you reach the parking lot of your apartment complex. riki parked the car as the two of you step out. the moment riki had stepped out, he hit his head on the roof of the car. “what was that sound?” you asked after hearing the loud thud riki made. raising his head, riki rubbed the spot on his head that he had hit. “HAHA BIG FOOT HIT HIS HEAD ON THE CAR” you called out, laughing at riki while you hit his shoulder playfully. “SHUT THE FUCK UP MISS FIVE FOOT SEVEN” riki responded, giving you a nudge to push you off of him. he laughs at the joke you made. he couldn’t lie, it was funny, maybe to him.

there was always a height comparison between the two of you ever since you were little. riki was obviously tall, growing up to be around 6'1. you were relatively tall too, constantly being the same height as riki, not until you stopped growing at around eighth grade.

"can't even reach me LMAO" riki said. you looked him in the eye, grabbing him by the hair. "LITERALLY WHAT THE FUCK MAN" he responded as you tugged his hair. you giggled at how offended riki looked.

you unlocked the door to your apartment and went in. you went straight to your bed, plopping onto it. riki quickly followed and tucked in right beside you. he looked around your room, as if he hadn't been sleeping in it for the past two nights. he stared at pictures of yourself you'd hung up on your wall, right by your desk, the pictures you had stuck onto your vanity of you and riki, along with your families. he adored the sight. he felt at home being around the person he knew would bring comfort in a world where things may never go his way, but one thing did go his way, and it was finding you.

time passed as you two stared at the ceiling. you laid on top of riki's chest, hearing his heart beat while you two talked. you found solace in spending time with him, even if you knew it would only last a week or two. talking about how life went for the both of you, how different life was without each other, it brought you to the realization of how much you’ve outgrown your old self, the y/n who’s lived in japan her whole life, the y/n you used to be before being punched by the reality you had to face once you moved to the states, away from everyone you’ve ever known. yet somehow riki still knew who you were deep inside. he unlocked a part of you you never knew still existed.

and he says i’m so american. oh god it’s just not fair of him to make me feel this much

“do you know how much i’ve missed you, riki?” you ask him, tightening your arms around his torso, positioning your body closer to him. “judging by the way you’re cuddling me, yes” he said as he chuckled. “i miss living in japan. i miss going to school in those cute lil uniforms and 祖母の家に焼きそばを食べに行ったのが懐かしい (sobo noie ni yakisoba o tabe ni itta no ga natsukashi = i miss going to grandma’s house to eat yakisoba)” you told riki before he cut you off. “DID YOU REALLY JUST USE JAPANESE AND ENGLISH IN THE SAME SENTENCE?? that’s literally so american of you, y/n. HAHSJAHHS” riki exclaimed in shock, laughing at you. he’s never heard you speak both languages in one sentence, considering the fact that you wouldn’t even need to be doing so in the first place. “oh my days, shut the fuck up, riki. it’s not that deep, i swear” you said with a pout on your face as you began to sulk after riki teased you for the third billionth time just today. you genuinely thought it was funny though, hearing both japanese and english come out of your mouth at once. you rolled out of bed and sat down. “NO NO NO i’m sorry, i’m sorry 戻ってきて” (modotte kite = come back) he said when he saw you sulking. he dragged you onto the bed, making you lie down. he trapped you with his long limbs, clinging onto you and hugging you. you both giggled and laughed. riki had his arms around you as you tickled him, trying to get him off of you.

the two of you were eventually worn off and tired from all the tickling and laughing. you stopped at a position wherein your face was just beside his, looking at him as he tried catching his breath from whatever happened earlier. riki planted a kiss on your soft, bright pink lips before kissing your forehead too. he flipped through his natural black hair, revealing the undercut that laid below his grown hair then plopped back onto his pillow. his eyes shut close, falling asleep beside you. “good night, big foot” you said, caressing his cheek. “hey, i heard that” riki said, eyes closed with a smile. “shhh i thought you were asleep” you replied. “good night, cutie” he drifted off into sleep as you watched him carefully, thinking of how much he actually meant to you. life was just better with him. maybe it wasn’t uni, or the lifestyle here, or being away from japan that made life a lot harder. maybe it was riki’s absence that made everything a challenge for you to overcome alone.

i apologize if it’s a little too much, just a little too soon, but if the conversation were ever to come up, i don’t wanna assume this stuff

but ain’t it love?

you laid there as the silence of your bedroom got louder, with only riki’s breathing finding its way to your ears. soon, you decided to drift off too, snuggled into the comforting warmth of his body next to you, with thoughts of him wandering in that head of yours. he took over your brain and maybe, just maybe, your heart as well.

i think i’m in love.

#Spotify #enhypen #enhypen imagines #enhypen fluff #enhypen au #olivia rodrigo #enhypen ni ki #enhypen niki #enhypen riki #niki x reader #enhypen x reader #nishimura riki #niki fluff #enhypen jungwon #enhypen heeseung #enhypen jay #enhypen jake #enhypen sunghoon #enhypen sunoo #enhypen scenarios #engene #enhypen fanfiction #rikigai #enhypen smut #enhypen hard thoughts

[that-punk-adam]

This is not at all a new take on life here in the US of A however I feel as though I will peel my skin off if I don’t say it;

People are seeing death as a valid option to the current state of the world + the future and now I am fully understanding why.

There is no more ‘village’. There are no reliable social safety nets installed that are realistic or easy to access. You H A V E to drive EVERYWHERE if you’re even able to drive. If your area has a bus it has to fight on the road with every other driver. To get 9 miles away from point A to B takes 2 hour out of your day. No one is hiring or they are paying minimum wages for you to run their whole circus operation damn near by yourself. Average 1 bedroom apartments are $1.1k a month for 500 sqf and if you SOMEHOW get a roommate and get them to agree to split rent and utilities then y’all are going to battle for personal space. A 2 bed is out of the question bc there is no way in hell that you can save anything if you are spending more then half of your wages on rent. You want to go out and have a sense of what it means to be fulfilled as a human? Don’t even dream about it, you have your bills coming up.

Get a second or 3rd job? Wait… you were able to find one? They didn’t ghost? Lucky you; now you are better off & you can now sleep knowing that the 2nd job will be able to pay for the gas ($3+/gal), insurance (3X what it used to be but still making you open up ur wallet before they step in), and your car note! (Wayyy too much for a used).

What is fun? What are get togethers? What is a ‘cheap meal’? What’s a bucket list? What’s a vacation? What’s a hobby? Wait, you can afford to replace items and not get anxiety over it? You can afford more then an arm full of groceries?? Will you be able to retire by the time you’re 60 with enough money in the bank to not just exist, but to do the things you’ve always wanted to do during those working decades? What will elder and death care look like? Will your children be able to not live in poverty?

We as young people are seeing death as a valid option because we know we will NEVER see an adult life like those before us prior to the 90’s. Starting a family or adding on to your family will put you in poverty. Buying a house if you’re fortunate enough will put you in poverty. Renting will put you in poverty. Working more jobs will put you in poverty. Having a car will put you into poverty, not having one will keep you from ever getting one. We will just work and work to never ever have anything to show for it. This is not the lifestyle that I’d doom more life to do for the rest of their lives. Something’s gotta change sooner rather then later and it’s gotta be grass roots. We have to be willing to break some rules to get to where we need to be.

Things. Must. Change.

#tw death #ask to tag #death as an option #cost of living #cost of living crisis #housing crisis #rent crisis #unaffordable housing #US housing crisis #public transportation #jobs #wages #job market

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Would anyone like an off-the-grid mini compound where the main residence is a 2bd, 2ba 1998 earth ship? It's in Guffey, Colorado and they're asking $744K.

We begin with the main house, which is an earth ship.

It has the typical earth ship indoor garden along the side.

The main living area is a fairly spacious living room/dining combo with a wood burning heat stove. There's no dining room, but I'm sure that a larger table would fit somewhere.

Cute blue kitchen is pretty spacious. Two stools would fit at the island counter.

Someone took terrible pictures of the bedrooms. This is bd. #1 and it's nice. Looks like it has a skylight, too, but I didn't realize that this is the primary bedroom.

I don't know what they were thinking with these useless photos of bd. #2. Is this some sort of guest room or a child's room?

In bath #1 the tub is made of the adobe that the house is made of. How in the world do you keep that clean? It looks porous.

Bath #2 has a shower.

It does have a laundry room, which is great.

Next is this cute little house. It has a nice big deck, too. I like this better than the earth ship.

It's nice, right? Cozy main room with a sitting area and a full kitchen.

It has a lovely bedroom with built-in closets and a dresser, plus room for a desk.

And, it has a very nice bath.

The 3rd home on the property is a camper that is still nicer than the earth ship.

It's roomier than a lot of campers I've seen. There's a full-size sofa and I like the way the kitchen curves. It has plenty cabinets.

2 steps up is the bedroom.

This is lovely. A tile bath, bed nook and wall-size closet. This is so cozy and bright, I wouldn't mind living in here.

The dirt road leading to the compound and its crazy amount of land.

There goes the road and you can see a bit of the compound. There are 28.65 acres.

There isn't a soul for miles.

#earth ships #off the grid homes #compounds #houses #house tours #home tour

[taelme]

enchanted

genre: regency!au (with some tweaks ofc), (not so)enemies-to-lovers!au, viscount!Jaehyun (kind of slowburn, hurt/comfort elements?, angst? mutual pining, reader is an oldest daughter guys)  pairing/s: Jaehyun / Reader (ft Yuta, Johnny & other ocs) 

word count: 23k+ (guys. be fr its me we’re talking abt here)  tw: reader and jh both have a tense rs w their parents? brief mentions of a parent’s death (not reader/jh’s), reader doesn’t exactly look after herself very well, lmk if I missed out on anything! summary: in a world where marriage is nothing more than an economic proposition, and where a person is no more than what they can offer, you and Jaehyun rediscover what it means to be with each other, in the very essence of the word

a/n: this is really funny cause... so far the fics i have for my ‘tswift for the neos’ discourse are all johnjae.... life is like that, i guess. anyway. 3rd installment! this was a LONG time coming and i rly hope u guys enjoy it! took me a while to get back into the rhythm of writing so thank u all for bearing w my radio silence HAHHA this is based off of enchanted and gold rush (and any other easter eggs you find hehe- i’d love to hear if it reminds u of other tswift songs), reblogs are VERY appreciated!! happy reading loveys~  read this on ao3

You ached for rest. Not the kind that sleep guaranteed, no. This rest you ached for felt much deeper, much further from reach. Much like a stranger you wished to know. 

“Do you remember what we discussed?” 

Each inhale of yours didn’t seem to satisfy the ache in your chest, feeling as though your ribs were caving in, unsure if it was anxiety or the carriage or your clothing that was making you taste your last meal, and even that seemed like it was ages ago. 

“Your posture,” the whisper of your mother brought some of your awareness back to the question she’d asked.

What did you discuss? 

You tried to dismiss the impending feeling of doom that grew stronger as you noticed your surroundings, the carriage all of a sudden seeming to be moving too quickly, your grip on your gloves tightening as you tried to recall what your mother was trying to remind you of. 

Right.

Be obedient. The carriage rounded the corner, jolting you from the familiar bump in the road. Don’t immediately launch into literary discourses out of panic. Your mother took your gloves out of your weak grip, slipping them onto your hands with an assertiveness that shoved you further into your seat, resisting the urge to shiver at the feeling of her cold hands on your skin. Have good manners. You could now recognise the music echoing from the building, a piece you were sure you’d heard your sister play before. Mind your facial expression. Along with the sound of music, the chatter and giggles intensified. Don’t scribble funny names onto your dance card. You thought about your little sister at home, probably sitting by the window reading a book from your father’s library as she waited for you to return home. You thought about your father who was in his study doing God knows what. As if like a trigger, a wave of clarity washed over you; you’d suddenly felt unfortunately sober. 

Find a marriage partner. 

“There will be many eligible suitors present. After all, it’s the first ball of the season,” she spoke, more for herself than for you. 

You were treating this like a game of sorts, anything to make the process feel more distant from you. You needed to go in, find someone who had status, money and could offer protection to your family, and play your part to see it through for the rest of your life. Sure, it could be seen as a game. A very long, tedious game.  

“Right,” you swallowed, still feeling as though you could hurl at any given moment, though your mother would’ve never sensed your inner turmoil. You’d become somewhat of an expert at masking it. Perhaps it was all the times you heard your parents telling you to ‘use your words’; you’d become all-too-familiar with manipulating them as you pleased. 

The carriage came to an abrupt halt, your mother already preparing to alight as you followed behind her. Taking in a deep breath of (rather fresh smelling) air, you wondered momentarily if that was all you needed, feeling much better than you did in the carriage as you followed your mother up to the entrance of the ball. 

You’d barely paid attention to your name and your mother’s being announced to the room upon your entrance, hyper aware of the attendees and trying your best to suppress your discomfort, hoping you could somehow mentally dissuade them from approaching you for a dance, though you knew you would never let yourself allow that. You had more pressing issues at hand. 

Your relief from the fresh air was short lived. A stocky middle aged man who, according to your mother, owned an extravagant amount of land and had just gotten out of his second marriage, actively looking for a third. 

Masking your discomfort, once again, you’d complied when the man had asked for a dance (though it wasn’t like you had a choice, your dance card bare as ever). Though you didn’t remember what you talked about as you danced, you were too focused on counting your steps to distract from his lack of teeth and the damp warmth that sank into your clothes where his hand was placed. 

“Do you do much sewing?”

“A fair amount,” you grunted, feeling out of breath from supporting his weight with how much he was leaning into you while dancing. Sewing surely didn’t give you enough strength for this. 

“That is good. It would help to dedicate yourself to such productive activities. You could contribute much more to the household with that, compared to all the folly of reading or academic learning. Unnecessary, in my opinion, when I am more than sufficiently equipped in that area.”

You couldn’t help your blank stare, hoping your tired sigh wasn’t obvious as you nodded with a hum. 

“Is that so?” 

The man let out a grunt, seeming to think you were speaking sarcastically, “A woman like you should use your beauty to your advantage. It is your crowning glory.” 

You forced out a smile, telling yourself to take his words as flattery even though you were desperate for this dance to end. 

The truth of the matter was this: you were made to do all sorts of things at the start of your day, things that were considered ‘productive’ and would aid in attracting a husband. Needlework, dancing, singing, drawing… but when the afternoon came around you were free to do your other ‘less productive’ activities. 

You chose reading, naps and the occasional letter writing. These pastimes were the only form of rest you were accustomed to, though you would always end up somewhat unsatisfied, feeling as though these forms of resting didn’t satisfy the desire for rest. Perhaps it was like a writer trying to find the right word for a situation and ending up settling for one with the most similarity—it still wasn’t the right word, but there was always a thought that perhaps you were looking for one with an entirely different meaning. 

Sewing? You found it all too troublesome and required all the patience that you didn’t have, leaving it for those few hours in the morning that were dedicated to building up your ‘accomplishments’. But were you proficient at it? To answer simply, you were proficient to the extent that you felt it was necessary to attract a marriage partner. 

Your promise to your mother not to write random names on your dance card was growing less and less serious with each forced smile you let out to acknowledge the man’s strong beliefs. 

It was by your (you weren’t sure, actually, it seemed as though you’d danced more this night than in your entire lifetime) dance that you were starting to feel lightheaded, stepping aside to find your mother for a drink. It was as your dance partner led you back to your mother that your eyes couldn’t seem to help themselves, constantly glancing at the dance card hanging from your wrist, the empty spaces and the little pencil dangling from it simply calling out to you to put them to good use. 

You only had about four spaces left on your card— thank goodness for that, you didn’t think you’d be able to last any longer. Your fingers fiddled with the little pencil as you walked, careful to keep your fidgeting out of sight, overhearing giggles and murmurs about a certain viscount that was rumoured to be attending tonight’s ball. 

Viscount Jung? You almost scoffed at the way they seemed as if they were talking about the Queen. Whoever he was, it was absolutely tempting you, the offer of his name that was as easily tossed around as it could be written down on your silly card. 

“He’s gorgeous , you’ll have to take my word for it. Beautiful features and physique. I saw him once when he came to my estate for a meeting with my husband. He’s an architect, and a very skilled one at that.” 

You purse your lips, already concocting various images in your head of what he looked like. Tall? Amicable? Perhaps he had a nice smile, you always found that to be rather charming. Perhaps his movements were slow yet precise, his moves carrying the same kind of regal elegance of the buildings he designed.  

“Well, I would think he has potential marriage partners lining up for him if that’s the case, hmm?” you heard, almost nodding in agreement. 

As you scanned the room, you pursed your lips at the mental image you got of how any of these girls would behave if the tall, handsome architect you pictured in your brain were to show any attempt of courting them. Maybe not even to the extent of courting… perhaps just a passing glance, a brush of his hand against yours, to feel his imposing presence just like a Midas touch as he walked past. 

You let yourself wonder, just for a moment, if he would ask to be introduced to you, if you would find his personality charming while you danced, if he would take a liking to you and engage in more than just superficial conversation on your accomplishments, how you would feel to be at the receiving end of attention that was not unwanted for once. 

Though it was short lived, your mind had taken the liberty of playing the rest of the sequence of events—your mother’s meddling, heightened tension between you and her because of said meddling—you cut the daydream-turned-nightmare off before you made yourself bitter for no good reason. 

You were already getting too invested in this conversation, the image and elaborate backstory you’d created for him in your head. But it wasn’t exactly your fault, there was hardly any real entertainment to be found here. You held your dance card open as much as you could without going noticed, beginning to write the usual names you fell-back on when you grew tired of dancing.   

“It’s near impossible to catch his attention, though,” you tuned-in to the conversation between the two mothers from before, “he wouldn’t even spare a glance at anything other than his sketches when he was visiting my home. I’d assume one would have to be nothing short of perfect to even get noticed by someone of his calibre. I can’t imagine he would settle for anything less.” 

“Do you think he's coming tonight?”

“I heard he responded with his attendance, but Lord, have mercy on our daughters… I doubt he’d even cast a passing sigh their way,” you heard one of the chaperones sigh, shaking her head. 

“What’s his name again?” 

You tapped your pencil against the inside of your fingers absently, frustrated at the way your mind was blanking as you tried to recall another name you could use to fill the last empty space in your dance card. 

“Viscount Jung Jaehyun.” 

You hummed. Jung Jaehyun . You figured it was a safe bet, it wasn’t as if he’d actually ask you to dance. 

You worked quickly in scribbling his name, along with many others you usually fell back on, onto the paper. The feeling of pencil against paper had never been as satisfying as it did now as your feet ached, clothes felt uncomfortable against your skin and throat feeling dry as sand. 

Unfortunately for you, that victory didn’t seem to last very long. 

“My dear, where have you been? I’ve been looking for you,” your mother cooed once you’d reached her, her tone making you feel as though you’d just been cued to say your next line. 

You shot her a look, putting on a friendly smile as you greeted the people she was with, a few women you definitely did not recognise and a man with a very charming smile, clothes and jewellery that looked like he definitely lived… comfortably . 

You were introduced to this man, addressed as Mr Nakamoto, a young-looking man who was supposedly from a reputable family from overseas, back from his travels around Europe. All of which was unimportant to your mother, of course, who simply hinted that he had money and was looking for a wife, the only things she claimed you should be caring about. 

Perhaps that was true. Contrary to how it seemed, you were a lot more targeted in your search for a marriage partner. If you sifted through your mental list of men you’d danced with thus far into the night, your best potential marriage partner was either Mr Nakamoto (from what you were hearing), or the widower Baron who told you your silence was pleasing to him. 

“Would you do me the honour of a dance?” He smiled, already extending a hand to reach for your dance card. In your panic, you withdrew your hand just slightly, only having it snatched away again by your mother, whose eyes zeroed in on the newly-added names. 

You didn’t have time to react before the woman standing next to her had peered over as well, practically exclaiming with delight, “Oh! The viscount has asked you to dance? How fortunate! You must not dawdle, then.” 

Your eyes widened, about to protest with some reason you hadn’t quite thought up yet, using that split second to contemplate the repercussions and how willing you were to deal with them if you were to confess that it was a fake name. That is, until your gaze landed on the man currently being led (or pushed) towards you. 

Barely being able to protest before the both of you had been abandoned on the dance floor, the man looking nothing but irritable as he glared at you. You were assuming this was the man who was the centre of all the hushed giggles and gossip of tonight. 

The image you had in your head of the mysterious Viscount Jung was almost instantly shattered and made new again, as if the previous image had never existed and this was the only one that could ever exist. How, for some reason, it made sense . 

“This would all make sense if you let me explain,” you blurted out, seeing him quirk an eyebrow at you. Even his eyebrows were pretty. 

He let out a huff at your expression, wondering how you could still seem so unremorseful after causing him such inconvenience . The last thing Jaehyun wanted here was for people to assume he was actually interested in somebody. 

“You owe me an explanation, regardless,” the man’s voice had shocked you. 

Deep and smooth, capable of lulling you into a trance if you weren’t already so on edge, even if his tone was curt and dripping with annoyance, “You’ve somehow managed to get the whole room staring at us.” 

He let his gaze flicker briefly over the necklace you were wearing, back to your mother who was standing at the side looking on with evident disdain. Delicate looking Amethysts decorating your neck made Jaehyun wonder where you’d gotten them from. He only recalled Rubies to be quite popular among the girls in the other towns, according to his closest friend Johnny. 

As if reminded of where you were, you tried to ignore the stares as you reached a hand up to his shoulder, swallowing the gasp that almost escaped at the feeling of his hand going to your back, tensing up visibly as your brain processed the music playing. 

He let out a sigh as the both of you began to dance. It would’ve been an amusing sight if you were someone else looking on, both of you clearly not wishing to dance yet being whisked along to the upbeat tempo of the music, executing the dizzying choreography with what could only be described as trained movements. 

A hint of a smile graced his features, though it definitely wasn’t directed at you. 

“Anytime before my death, please,” he spoke, seeming to find his little joke amusing from the little huff of laughter he struggled to contain. 

You scoffed, for some reason not feeling as inclined to offer him the same grace you would your other dance partners. Rolling your shoulders back, you kept your stare steady and refused to look down, lest he think he succeeded in making you feel small. 

“That’s not a lot of time,” you quipped back, “Besides, your sour attitude is what will earn you an early death, if anything,” you muttered, audible enough for him to hear. 

“Yours isn’t any better, in case you haven’t realised,” he huffed, eyebrows furrowing slightly in disdain. 

“You don’t know me,” you huffed. 

“And neither do you,” he was quick to reply, earning a sigh from you. 

“Look, I wouldn’t be dancing with you if I had a choice,” you scoffed, figuring he was at least mildly offended from the way his eyes seemed to widen just momentarily. 

“Oh, but you had a choice in writing my name on your dance card, didn’t you?” He bit back with a sarcastic smile, making you suck in a breath. That was definitely caused by your annoyance, not the dimples on his cheeks that you noticed with his smile.  

“Just so we’re clear, I wouldn’t be dancing with someone as ill-mannered and arrogant as you either. Or dancing at all, for that matter. You’ve somehow seemed to spoil both of those outcomes,” he drawled, a wistful sigh that he masked with a soft smile. 

Almost like a child, you’d wanted to mutter something about how you weren’t ill-mannered, but you figured what you’d shown him thus far wouldn’t exactly help your case in proving that. 

You could hear girls swooning as you passed them. 

“And you had the choice to show up to the ball, did you not? What did you think was going to happen here if not dancing? Did you think we’d have a canvas laid out for you to do some drawing?” 

You struggled to maintain your gently pleased expression, finding your words to be quite amusing. Judging from the genuine huff of laughter you’d let out, to anyone else you two would’ve seemed to be really hitting it off. 

“We could spend the entire night airing out our… grievances ,” he sighed, “but you still haven’t explained how we have ended up like this.” 

You closed your eyes just briefly enough to roll them, opening them to see his jaw clenched as he glared at you. 

The sigh he breathed out in annoyance succeeded in drawing your attention to your proximity. Only then noticing how differently you felt dancing with him than you did with your previous dance partners who felt as though they would collapse on you at any given moment. Somehow, the viscount felt steadier, making you unconsciously lean into him as you danced. Almost like your body recognised its ability to be dependent in this moment, no matter how minuscule the moment was. Like muscle memory. 

Lifting your gaze up to his face, you tried not to let it linger for too long on his lips, their colour reminding you of a rose and hinted at the softness of a rose petal. Feeling the tap of his fingers against your back was what nudged your gaze to his eyes, understanding a little better why the gossip about him usually involved the word ‘beautiful’. 

“I might be able to die and resurrect before you start explaining—” 

“If I must explain,” you cut him off, earning a huff from him, “I usually write fake names on my dance card because eighteen dances are simply eighteen-too-many bouts of dancing with strange old men. Your name just happened to grace my ears when I was doing so.” 

Jaehyun huffed, “And what did you think was going to happen here if not dancing?” He repeated your words back to you with an all-too-smug tone. 

You let out a deep sigh, funnily enough, almost stumbling but feeling his hand on your back keep you standing upright. 

He did have a point (as annoying as his execution was) but you weren’t going to admit it, of course. It was much more than just ‘dancing’. What happened in these balls could very well determine the future of yourself, your family and your unborn children, as you’ve been so generously reminded time and time again. 

It was as if your mother was in your head, telepathically communicating these reminders to you whenever you were on the brink of letting yourself enjoy what you were doing. You had a responsibility to fulfil as the oldest daughter of your family. Him, however? To be able to waltz in here and expect to leave without dancing and know no one would bat an eye? 

You huffed, fixing your gaze on the space between his eyebrows just so you could look as though you were deeply attentive. 

“Must be nice not having to worry about your future,” you rolled your eyes. 

That seemed to have struck a nerve with the Viscount, who frowned slightly at your words, an uncomfortable silence falling between the both of you. 

“Was that the real reason you wrote my name down?” he finally spoke. His gaze seemed to truly hold offence now, feeling even more distant from him even though you were standing so close to him. The realisation that he truly was a stranger sinking in deeply, filling you with discomfort. 

You didn’t seem to catch on to his implication at first, only realising after you’d recalled what you said to warrant such a reaction from him.  

“I’m not after your money,” you told him plainly, seeing his frown grow deeper. 

“You expect me to believe you?” 

You glared at him, frowning slightly, his expression only mirroring yours. 

“It seems I would be better off not expecting anything from you,” you huffed, “but you cannot expect anyone in this room not to be after you for your money. You’re surely smart enough to know that when you step into this room...” 

You shook your head, each word seeming more for yourself than for the Viscount, a reminder that even now you were still meant to be playing your long, tedious game. 

“...  you are no longer viewed as yourself, only your eligibility, how well you’re able to act out your role. And if we were to go by that, I would be dancing with Mr Nakamoto there instead.” 

The viscount followed the direction you had gestured in with your head, spotting the man standing next to your mother and chaperone. 

“That’s Mr Nakamoto?” The viscount murmured, something almost akin to recognition in the man’s eyes as they met his own. The name seemed to ring a bell with him, though there was still a sense of unfamiliarity in his thoughtful expression. He didn’t think it was the kind of familiarity he would feel from a recent memory. Perhaps he would ask Johnny. 

“Yes. Do you know him?” 

There was no reply. A part of you was curious, wondering why his silence irked you so much. 

At the viscount’s silence, you had only then realised the song was coming to an end. He let go of you as quickly as the song allowed, bowing out of courtesy and leading you to where your mother and Mr Nakamoto were, a certain discomfort in his expression that you could not seem to place, “By all means.” 

And just as you said, he’d left the ball right after, no one batting an eye (but almost everyone running their mouths). 

Still recovering from your exchange, you fixed your gloves, huffing at no one in particular, seeing Mr Nakamoto direct a rather amused smile towards you. 

“Are you feeling alright? I hope dancing with the viscount wasn’t as dizzying as it looked.” 

Your eyebrows raised, mustering a polite smile as you shook your head, determined to leave thoughts of the Viscount behind. 

“Oh, no. Not at all. Yes, I’m perfectly fine.” Or you hoped to be in a while, at least.  

Mr Nakamoto, you discovered over the rest of the evening, was nothing short of a perfect gentleman (going by your sister’s manuals). You struggled to find a flaw (and trust me, you were searching hard for it). 

Beneath his extravagant clothes, confident demeanour, good dancing and how well-read he was about topics you could definitely see your father being eager to discuss over meals, you found that he was everything your mother was looking for. But other than the boxes he ticked off of her ‘Ideal son-in-law checklist’, there was nothing that compelled you to grow more acquainted with him. There wasn’t that… spark of attraction you would imagine was a non-negotiable aspect of the romance novels you read and plays you watched. The closest you’d gotten to feeling that tonight was in your sheer annoyance towards the viscount. 

Unfortunately for you, there was much longer left for you to endure before you would be able to return home, but Mr Nakamoto’s company proved to be… sufficient. 

Mr Nakamoto (whose first name you later heard from your mother was Yuta), kept you busy for the rest of the ball, occupied and mildly entertained with many stories about his travels (most of which you couldn’t differentiate between truth or lie). You would’ve even considered it a plus with how much he was talking, you were free to eat your supper in peace, undisturbed by other men due to Yuta’s riveting tales. 

“I haven’t travelled much myself, but whatever you described does sound very lovely,” you would comment once in a while, feeling as though you were talking to the little children you would see at the market. You would smile, nod and coo at their stories without much care if they were reality or fiction. It was almost like an escape from reality, one you welcomed with open arms tonight. 

“Do you have any siblings?” he asked suddenly, making you straighten up after a while of quietly enjoying your supper. 

“Yes, a younger sister,” you murmured, “she’s not out yet, though.” 

Yuta hummed over a mouthful of food, swallowing it with a wince before continuing, “Are you two close?” 

You smiled, a small huff leaving you as you shrugged, “Well, yes, I suppose that is one way you could describe it.” 

Yuta huffed, smiling as if recalling something (a story you assumed). 

“Did I say something amusing?” 

Yuta smiled, shaking his head, “No, it just reminded me of these siblings I met while I was in America…” setting off into yet another story about his travels. 

Though you really didn’t mind, he was just giving you more stories to tell your sister once you got home. 

You were at your wits end when it was time for the ball to be over, feeling as though you’d used up all your energy for the season from just dancing and listening to Yuta’s stories. You’d wanted nothing more than to simply curl into bed and sleep the rest of the week away. 

Exchanging greetings as you parted ways, you tried hard to ignore the way your mother was looking at you as you returned to your carriage, head feeling heavy yet still feeling tension in your limbs, unable to fully relax with your mother in the carriage with you. 

“He’s a very pleasant man,” she murmured, gaze trained outside the window as if she could see anything other than trees and empty road. 

“Who?” you frowned. 

“Who else? Mr Nakamoto.” 

You let out a deep sigh, the breath you took in not satisfying the breathlessness you felt, nodding. 

“He is,” your reply was curt, leaving no room for elaboration, though that didn’t seem to stop your mother. 

“I heard from one of the ladies that he’s planning on staying here for a while. Planning to buy the estate near the park. You know, the one with the balcony that overlooks the lake. It’s an expensive property.” 

You hummed. 

You wanted to be interested, you really did. But the movement of the carriage was starting to make your head pound and you didn’t think you had any energy left in you to pretend to be bothered about whether Yuta’s potential estate overlooked anything . 

Deeming your fatigue as a sort of defiance, your mother’s tongue clicked sharply as she shook her head at you.

“How can you be so… “ she scoffed, shaking her head, “need I remind you that you are doing this for the family? You need to start taking ownership of your responsibility in this whole affair.” 

You sighed, shifting in your seat and directing your gaze towards her, “I know.” 

Though you tried your best to remain respectful with your tone, your irritation got the better of you, “I am taking ownership. Am I not allowed to be tired after a whole night of dancing and socialising?” 

“This is not just ‘ dancing and socialising ’. You need to realise the gravity of what just one dance could affect, for your family’s sake.” 

Of course you knew that, but it wasn’t as if you could get her to see things from your perspective. She was your mother, and the last time she’d seen from any perspective other than that was before you were born. 

You huffed, suppressing the many words you’d wished to have her hear, trying to remind yourself that words were unlikely to get you anywhere near an understanding with her. That would suffice for the night until you slept off your anger.

Nodding in hopes that it would appease her, you focused on your breathing, hoping it would somehow ease your headache that was coming on stronger than you’d wished. Unfortunately for you, you’ve come to learn that your mothers worries were only ever vented through such exchanges with you, though they weren't much of an exchange to begin with.  

“Think of your father,” you couldn’t help the wave of discomfort that washed over you at the mention of him, as if you could feel his presence in the carriage at the mere mention of him, domineering and tense. 

“He slaved away for his whole life to ensure his daughters could be viewed as respectable ladies in society. It is a privilege to even attend a ball like you just did. And yet you act as if we’re putting you through torture!” 

Torture was one label for it; your long, tedious game. 

“You are the oldest, you are to set an example for your sister. I do not wish for you to taint her innocence with your… your insolence .” 

You nodded, almost wanting to laugh at the absurdity of the situation. With how much they fed her those manuals on what a respectable man and woman should be, how they kept her in the house as much as possible, allowed not even for her to paint because of how it would dirty her clothing, it was a wonder how they thought anything could possibly ‘ taint’ her at all. 

Though at the same time, you would be lying if you said you didn’t wish to live as quiet and simple a life as she did, out of the loop of all the burdens and worries that seemed to follow your family for generations, growing more complex with each cycle it made. 

“I know,” you stifled your sigh lest she use that as another example of your ‘insolence’, “I’m sorry,” you murmured, a foolproof way of appeasing her you’d come to learn after a lifetime of experience. Whether you meant it was an entirely separate matter.  

Your words seemed to have their intended effect, allowing you to sit in the quiet tension of the carriage ride until you felt it come to a stop, hearing the rustling of the footman moving to open the carriage door, exiting with haste that only came with the feeling of a successful escape. 

Your sister was quick to meet you in your bedroom as you reached your bedroom, timed with a precision you both knew came with too much time spent at home. 

“I didn’t expect you to be awake,” you huffed, earning a shrug from her, a book you recognised to be from your father’s library in her hands, her finger tucked between the pages she stopped at. 

“Couldn’t sleep,” she sighed, a dreamy look in her eyes that you supposed held all sorts of hope to hear stories of love and romance, “I suppose I was too excited for you.” 

You sighed. 

“I hope that was a good sigh,” she inched closer, dog-earing the page she was on and tossing it aside, the book thumping softly on your stool. 

She shifted on your bed, making herself comfortable as you changed out of your clothes leaving just your nightgown, glancing at her through her reflection in your standing mirror. 

“I hope it was too,” you huffed, allowing yourself to be amused at your own joke, even though you didn’t very well feel like making light of your horrible night.

“How was it? Did anybody catch your eye?” 

Your thoughts ran first to the Viscount (and his rosy lips—this wasn’t your fault, really.) It upset you, how he of all people had left a lasting impression on you even though you’d spent hours and hours talking to Mr Nakamoto. It upset you how you just knew that even if you did tell others about his lousy manners or his condescending demeanour, no one would have wanted to believe you, everyone already believed he was what they wanted him to be; a gentleman straight out of one of your sister’s manuals. 

“There were… some , I suppose,” you spoke as vaguely as you could, hoping that would be enough to satisfy her (even though you knew it wouldn’t).

“Handsome?” The lilt in her tone was awfully hopeful.

You sighed, turning to her with a knowing look, “Handsomely rich .” 

Her mouth fell open, features pulling into a frown, “You know for a fact I didn’t mean money. Were they charming? Attractive?” 

“I suppose one of them was… not ugly,” you felt embarrassed saying it, for some reason, as if you could anticipate the viscount’s reaction if he’d heard your words. The way the corner of his lips would curl up in a smirk, tilting his chin up at you with all the arrogance and cockiness in his being. 

For some reason, you were afraid to voice out your thoughts on him. Perhaps it was the fault of the little nagging voice that persisted in your head, telling you that it truly didn’t matter if you thought he was physically attractive, because you didn’t stand a chance to begin with. Voicing it out almost seemed like a jinx, a nail in the coffin that forced you to face this reality instead of living in the hope that he could have harboured good feelings towards you too; simply for the pleasure that came with being perceived by someone like him. 

You figured now wasn’t the time for you to start getting comfortable with hoping. 

Turning to your sister with a shrug, you spoke, “But he had the worst demeanour.” 

“I heard a Viscount asked you to dance. It couldn’t have been him, could it?” 

Perhaps it was those very manuals that led her to this assumption. 

Though it was for her own good, you found yourself not wanting to burst her bubble. She needed to know that it wasn’t about whether they were a Viscount or not, but that the men she would encounter in the marriage market in general weren’t as fairytale-like as they were written out to be. The likelihood of marrying someone you found even mildly attractive was rare. Yet the hope she held was important, precious almost. 

Although the growing desire to find a love match was gaining popularity these days, you didn’t consider yourself to have that luxury. It seemed all too indulgent, saved for people who could afford to worry about things like love. Not a lady like you, the eldest daughter of her family carrying her parents’ burden on her weary shoulders. 

“Do you think all viscounts are handsome and kind?” you laughed, beginning to undo your hair. 

“Don’t know. Never met one before,” she sighed, “which is precisely why I’m asking you. ” 

You hummed, “Well, the other man I spent most of the night with wasn’t exactly better. He spent most of the time talking about himself, but I suppose it was good entertainment.” 

“So he wasn’t the handsome one?” 

“The viscount?” you frowned. 

Your sister’s eyes lit up, her smile growing, “So, you think the viscount’s handsome?” 

Realising your mistake, you narrowed your eyes at her, “I think it’s best you forget about him.” 

Somehow, the words left a bitter taste on your tongue, your sister’s expression of confusion making you feel almost frustrated, “I’m only saying this because I don’t think we’ll be seeing much of him after tonight.” 

You made your way over to your bed, getting into bed and shifting to find a comfortable position, your sister still sitting next to you and looking at you with that same thoughtful expression. 

“Are you that upset about it?” you huffed, trying to read into her emotions, “It’s nothing to worry about, really. Mother seems to have found a man that’s to her liking, you know, finances, property, intelligence and manners all included.” 

She shook her head, mustering a small smile, “No, It’s not that. I was just wondering… how difficult it’s probably going to be for me to find a husband.” 

You frowned. 

“You have loads of accomplishments. You’re going to be fine,” you assured her, choosing gentle words that paved a way for a peaceful conclusion as always, though your words seemed to have weighed heavier on her, a small sigh leaving her as she toyed with your bedsheet under her hand. You would be lying if you said it didn’t spark some sort of competitive urge to prove that you could find better words to dissipate her worry. 

She sighed, briefly glancing at you before looking away, mumbling in a way that was almost reluctant to be heard, “Love is important too, you know.” 

You fell silent at her words, the ache in you growing obvious again. That ache for the kind of rest that went beyond physical things. One that seemed natural for you to forego, for everyone’s sake but yours. 

You nodded, swallowing the dryness in your throat. You sifted through your archive of neutral, concluding words, words that you didn’t necessarily believe for yourself, but words that would suffice for now. 

“I’m sure it will find you,” you murmured. 

There was nothing but silence in the room afterwards. feeling yourself starting to get drowsy as your sister got up, walking over to your bedside stool to retrieve her book. 

“What’s his name?” she murmured. 

At your silence, she continued, “you know, maybe I can keep my ears open for any gossip when I go to the flower market,” she insisted, eager to have a little bit of adventure in her otherwise mundane days, clearly. 

You thought about it just for a moment, wondering if your pride overpowered your curiosity on what kind of gossip she would hear. You figured that in this moment, you couldn’t deny your curiosity. 

“Jung Jaehyun.” 

Only after she left, you realised she hadn’t specified who she was referring to. 

===

The ache did not disappear when you woke up near the afternoon, as much as you wished it did. Frankly, you didn’t manage to get much sleep at all, the sound of your door bursting open being what jolted you awake. 

No words were exchanged, simply your mother rummaging through your drawers she used for storage for something she couldn’t seem to find, returning empty-handed to wherever she came from. 

Figuring you could have something to eat before returning to bed, you got dressed, heading to the dining room. You saw your sister and your mother there eating breakfast, the staff clearing what you assumed to be your father’s used plates and utensils. It was almost strange how you felt yourself relax at the knowledge of not having to sit through a meal with him. 

“Good morning,” your sister’s grin was on full display as you sat next to her, “there’s a surprise for you in the drawing room.” 

“Surprise?” you frowned, taking a bite of your food even though you weren’t all that hungry, knowing it would set your mother off if you weren’t eating. 

As if it were orchestrated by some divine power, you heard the low vibrations of what could only be a man’s voice in your otherwise female-occupied household. 

Men, as in, plural? 

You stared at the doorway of the dining room, a strange feeling in your gut as you heard the voices grow louder, your sister seeming to catch on as she grabbed your hand, forcing you to abandon your breakfast as she led you to the drawing room. 

“A fresh one,” she smiled, her clues not giving you any idea of what awaited you in the drawing room. 

“Living and breathing?” You weren’t sure why you were breathless, but you became sure when you saw the man standing next to your father, whose gaze had met yours with a certain finality and hadn’t bothered tearing itself away. 

Living and breathing, right in front of your eyes. 

“Roses!” your sister chipped in, “pink ones. And white clovers too.”  

Viscount Jung Jaehyun, standing just a few paces away from you and your sister in your drawing room as your father talked his ear off about the renovations he wanted to make to the estate. 

It irked you how your thoughts had almost instantly shifted to the rosy lips of the viscount, allowing yourself to wonder just for a moment if the flowers were from him. It gave you whiplash to think of him gifting you such romantic flowers after the exchange you both shared just hours before. 

Perhaps they were meant as some sort of an apology? Perhaps the viscount had dug deep within himself to find that his behaviour was far from pleasant. Yes , if that was the case, maybe you were right to think he wasn’t as horrible as he seemed, maybe the viscount had some decency in him after all. 

“The name on the card didn’t sound familiar, but I figured you would know once you see it!” 

That seemed to have caught Jaehyun’s attention (as much as he tried to hide it), though he masked his curiosity well as he pretended to be fascinated with the interior of your drawing room. 

Rolling your shoulders back, you fixed your posture, reaching a hand out to the little card that was perched delicately in the midst of the flowers, a simple handwritten card that read: 

- To thank you for the pleasure of your company -  Nakamoto Yuta 

“Are they from the viscount?” your sister asked loudly, earning a sharp nudge from you that sent her stumbling, your gaze darting to the viscount and missing the smirk that had graced his lips. 

You shook your head, murmuring, “The other man.” 

Your sister wasn’t doing a very good job in saving your face in front of the viscount, making no move to hide her dismay as her lips parted with a sigh of disappointment, “The boring one?” 

Grabbing her hand quickly, you led her back to the dining room, making sure your voice was more than audible as you walked past the viscount. 

“The only man from the evening who was worth remembering,” you commented, suppressing your satisfaction when you heard the viscount clear his throat, suggesting to move to your father’s office for a more conducive discussion. 

Just as you’d settled back into your seat at the dining table, feeling more of an appetite to eat now after your little success in irking the viscount, your mother spoke from where she stood by the doorway, glancing out of the window briefly as she fixed her gloves. 

“Get dressed, we should be ready to entertain callers soon.” 

“Callers?” you couldn’t help but frown, hearing your sister grunt from where she was beside you. 

“I’ve invited Mr Nakamoto for some tea, perhaps the two of you could go for a stroll in the late afternoon.”  You inhaled deeply, something about the proposal not seeming to entice you as much as your curiosity as to what was going on in your father’s office with the viscount. It was a shame even boring estate talk could seem more appealing to you than conversation and a stroll with an attractive, eligible suitor. 

“Well that’s my cue to leave, then. Wouldn’t want to be caught in the crossfire of mindless talk,” amusement left your sister in hushed giggles, her chair screeching against the wooden floor loudly as she got up, making you cringe at the sound she was otherwise unaffected by. 

Your mother hadn’t bothered acknowledging her departure, though you heard your sister’s footsteps bounding up the stairs, the sound of her bidding your father goodbye before the same thumping down the stairs echoed till the front door was shut. 

You sighed, looking out of the window at the cloud cover that kept the sun from gracing anything beneath it, choosing once again to push your feelings behind you for the sake of your mother who wanted to ensure security for your future. For the sake of your father who longed to retire. For the sake of your sister who was still trusting that there was love and hope in her world. 

You would receive Mr Nakamoto and you would do so gracefully. Another step towards the end goal in your long, tedious game. 

=== 

The afternoon went perfectly. A little too perfectly, if you were being honest. 

It was almost frustrating, how there was barely anything to complain about when it came to Yuta. He was on his best behaviour today, even managing to start and sustain a very well-developed conversation with your father when he had come down with the viscount briefly while they made their way to the other part of your estate. 

And there you sat, like a jilted lover during the whole exchange, frustrated at the fact that Yuta had somehow managed to have everybody smitten for him, except yourself. A little nagging in your gut had tried to convince you that perhaps that was how Yuta wanted to go about this; winning over your family so he wouldn’t have to try so hard to win you over, as if this was his strategy in his own long, tedious game. 

Even as you went out to promenade by the lake, you struggled to be present to the man next to you. 

“Did you like the flowers?” he asked, earning a blank stare from you till you managed to register his question. 

“Oh, yes I did. They’re lovely flowers.” 

“Do you happen to have a liking for them? I saw many arrangements in your house when your mother was showing me around.” 

You shook your head, the sudden recollection of your sister’s words about mindless small talk coming to mind as you dismissed them with a huff, “Not particularly. I mean, I do like them, but I wouldn’t go as far as making arrangements and whatnot. That is more of my sister’s hobby.” 

Yuta hummed, “Do you have a favourite?” 

Glancing up at Yuta, the way his smile was relaxed, his attention seemed to be solely focused on you. Something about it threw you off guard, wondering why he’d taken a liking to you when you were sure his smile and his charm would have any girl in your neighbourhood begging for his attention (perhaps just not yourself included).

“Lilacs.” 

Yuta’s smile grew, looking somewhat pleased with your answer.

“Is first love something you hold dear to yourself?” 

You let out a huff at that, impressed that he was familiar with the language of flowers, the thought of his pink roses from the morning making you feel somewhat uncomfortable at his pursuit. 

You shook your head, “I’ve never actually… experienced it before.” 

Yuta’s next words had stilled your fingers over your umbrella, wondering if he’d taken the words straight out of one of the romance novels in your bookshelf. 

“I’d like to think it feels like this,” he sighed, a serene expression on his face as you walked together, “being able to share this with you.” 

You were holding your breath, you were sure of it. But why wasn’t this feeling as heart-fluttering as you were expecting? Sure, his words were nice to hear, but was it because you were too distracted at the moment? 

Now, you were frustrated. It wasn’t as if you could go back in time to ask him to repeat himself in the hope that you would feel something. Perhaps you were just tired, you told yourself (even if you knew that really wasn’t the reason behind your apathy). 

“Shall we head back?” 

Even as you were walking back, Yuta didn’t seem to let up as easily. His demeanour was vastly different from how it was at the ball. This time, he was asking you more questions about yourself, as if he were specifically orchestrating dialogue sequences that would allow him to insert romantic one-liners like the one before. Though they were flowery, and by the nature of the word you figured flowery would mean they were pleasant, but you were at a loss with the way they left you feeling well… not exactly pleased . You were hearing him, definitely, but you were stuck feeling like he wasn’t really hearing you. 

As you were walking back, you reached your house just as the viscount’s carriage was leaving, tensing up as you saw your father standing next to the little flower garden behind the gates of your house as he saw the viscount off. 

You avoided his gaze, hoping you would be able to walk past him without being stopped, but it seemed that wasn’t the case with how Yuta greeted your father with much more enthusiasm than you’d seen him bear all day. 

You’d taken that as your queue to enter the house first, the sound of the piano echoing from the walls indicating your sister was home and that made you all the more eager to be in the company of someone you actually wanted to see today. Your father and Yuta followed behind you, not seeming to be affected by your absence as you drew closer to your sister, finally feeling as though you could relax slightly more in her presence. 

“How was it?” she whispered, glancing not-so-subtly at Yuta, earning a small mustered smile from yourself. 

“He was lovely,” you told her, (which in fact, wasn’t a lie). 

She grinned. 

“He’s handsome too, I must say. But even so, he can’t be compared to the man father was talking to this morning. They each have a different… air,” her shoulders lifted as she spoke, arms moving in the way your old piano tutor called ‘with emotion’ as she played, “you know, in the way they carry themselves.” 

You let out a deep sigh, nodding slowly, “You do know that man is the viscount I mentioned the night before, don’t you?” 

Her playing faltered abruptly (though your father and Yuta were too distracted to notice), slowly picking up where she’d left off, “ The viscount? The one named Jung Jaehyun? He was the man father was talking to?” 

Her amazement was obvious, and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t understand why she was so shocked. 

You nodded, “The ill-mannered one.” 

She frowned, “That’s unfortunate, then. He really did live up to what the townspeople were saying about him. Beauty and grace and elegance… a man that looks like everything he touches turns to gold.” 

You rolled your eyes, amusement hinted in your smile, “Not everything gold is worth wanting.” 

“Would you say Mr Nakamoto is the exception, then? More worth wanting than the Midas-touch-viscount himself?” She scoffed.

You didn’t have an answer for that, maybe because you weren’t convinced of the one you were going to offer her.  

“We’ll see. He just might have to be.” 

She giggled, seemingly satisfied with your answer as she resumed playing the piano, the lilting melody carrying you elsewhere for the moment until Yuta was done with the conversation he was having with your father, bidding you goodbye as he left. 

As your father made his way over to you, you forced yourself to meet his gaze, resisting the urge to look away and fidget in your discomfort. “I’m going to be away in the afternoons for business over the next few days, so you’ll be handling the meetings with the viscount on the estate. I trust that you’re already well versed on what needs to be taken care of.” 

“Will mother be joining—” 

“What good will that do?” he huffed, “Do not waste your time with these silly questions. There is no need to get her or your sister involved and cause them unnecessary stress. You are capable enough of handling it on your own.” 

You sighed, watching him leave in the direction of his office, leaving you to slump onto the sofa next to where your sister was, curling into a comfortable position for a nap as the gentle melody worked on lulling you to a place where your worries were far away and rest seemed within reach. 

=== 

If Jaehyun was surprised to see you the next day, he didn’t show it, simply glancing at you as he entered the house, nodding his head as if he’d expected you to be there (even if he really didn’t). 

“I trust my father has briefed you that I'll be handling the estate matters while he’s away?” you were first to break the silence, watching as one of his hands moved to touch the pads of his fingertips, looking somewhat preoccupied. Or perhaps, he was recalling his exchange with your father, looking at you curiously. Though that curiosity had left as soon as it came, replaced with a playful glint in his eyes. 

“My apologies,” his tone was anything but remorseful, punctuated by the little smirk that was playing at his lips, “I figure you’d much rather be… well, handling Mr Nakamoto.” 

You narrowed your eyes at him, “D’you fancy yourself a comedian, my lord?” 

Jaehyun had simply shrugged, showing some modesty in the small shake of his head. 

“Good. Because you’d be a very poor one.” 

You began to lead him to your father’s office, Jaehyun noticing the way your steps had slowed as you grew nearer to the door, the deep breath you’d taken in before your hands had met the doorknob, turning it and pushing only to be met with a smell that was unmistakably like your father. 

Hints of a pipe smoked hours ago, the smell of his library books, ink on his desk, the musk and citrus and alcohol that blended together to form the imposing presence of your father even when he wasn’t here. Your posture had straightened and your steps became quiet and wary almost instinctively. 

You stayed far from his desk, as you had always done, surprising Jaehyun with the way you’d simply taken the documents you needed and sat yourself on one of the chairs in the office, legs crossing uncomfortably as you gripped the papers in your hands.

Eyeing you carefully, Jaehyun made his way to the chair nearest to you, pulling out his own blueprints that he and your father had discussed the day before. 

“Did my…” you began, throat feeling dry all of a sudden at the sight of the documents before you, “did my father tell you what I had to go over on his behalf?” 

Jaehyun simply tilted his head at you. 

“We’ve gone over it actually, he… just told me to ask you for the stamp and to clear the financial documents. He mentioned that you took care of the family’s accounts.” 

You figured you shouldn’t have been surprised that your father didn’t actually want your opinion on his decisions. You’d just let yourself get carried away thinking he wanted to know what you thought about the things he made you responsible for. 

“Oh, so my business here is simply for the seal, am I correct to say that—?”

“No, actually, I would appreciate it if I could go over these plans with you once before you approve them. It’s only sensible if—” 

You shook your head firmly, Jaehyun stopping himself at your gesture, eyebrows furrowing as if the situation was upsetting to him. 

“That won’t be necessary. I would rather not impose on his… plans,” you sighed, averting your gaze from his as you stood up, making your way over to your father’s desk for his seal. 

“Impose?” he quirked an eyebrow, wondering why it was that you seemed to withdraw so easily when it came to your father, “You had no problem imposing on my plans at the ball.” 

Rolling your eyes, you struggled to keep your hands steady as they sifted past the papers on your father’s desk. 

“I would be sorry if your initial plans were any good to begin with,” you murmured distractedly.

It was strange, how you felt as if you were doing something you weren’t supposed to. As if you were secretly rummaging around in his desk while your heart was thrumming wildly at the thought of him walking in and catching you red-handed, feeling the disappointment that would meet you in his gaze, rendering you a little child again who had more familiarity with these belongings than she did her father. 

“If you’re not sorry about that, you could be sorry about the fact that people seem to think I’m courting you now.” 

You debated ignoring his statement, glancing at him only briefly as you arranged the papers in your hand. 

Humming, it seemed your urge to cover up your nerves had shown up in snappy retorts aimed towards Jaehyun, strangely unfiltered with him even though you figured you should’ve been. 

“Of course, because a man like you should be able to show up to a ball simply for the music and drink.” 

Clenching and unclenching your fists, you went about the process as calmly as you could, Jaehyun’s watchful, curious eyes unnerving you even as you made the seal. 

“Are you alright?” he spoke suddenly, earning a sharp inhale and a glare from you in return, your grip tightening around the seal. Whether it was because the question felt out of place, or whether it was the fact that he had caught on to your discomfort, you would rather not admit. 

You shut your father’s desk drawer with a quiet click, habitual movements from many instances of sneaking in here as a child for writing materials. 

“What does it matter to you?” 

“No, just… does my presence here make you uncomfortable?” his eyebrows furrowed, what seemed like genuine curiosity taking over his features once again. 

Trust you to be defensive, though. 

A scoff left you, the thud of the beaten book that you used to keep track of your family’s accounts dropping against your father’s desk echoing through the room as if that were your form of exerting your dominance over the room and everything it represented. 

“Has the thought only crossed your mind now? Besides, don’t flatter yourself,” you scoffed, “your presence doesn't have that much of an effect on me.” 

That would’ve done it , you figured. You could imagine the way his lips would curl into a sarcastic smile, or how he would simply scoff and announce that it was about time for him to leave. Anything but what followed next. 

“Maybe not mine, but your father’s seems to.” 

Somehow, you almost wished your sister was here to defuse the tension in the room, or to crack a joke to save you from having to face such an observation. But she wasn’t, and the truth of the matter was that you were sitting here facing a stranger who seemed confident that they could read you like an open book.

And maybe, his confidence wasn’t completely unfounded. 

A silence fell between the both of you, tense and ridden with an understanding both of you were aware of but neither were willing to put down their pride first to admit. 

You scoffed, waving him off in dismissal as naturally as you could, “You’ve never seen us interact.” 

“I don’t have to,” he huffed, speaking matter-of-factly, “you’ve been… tense ever since I suggested having our meeting in his office.” 

“I just don’t like being in stuffy offices,” you shrugged again, pretending to be busy with your notebook. 

Jaehyun rolled his eyes, confidence in his stare as he leaned back in his seat, crossing his legs, “ Or the person the stuffy office belongs to.” 

Your sharp gaze met his almost instantly, letting out a small huff of air through your nose. You were at a loss of a witty retort, though somehow that didn’t feel as damning as you thought it would; the viscount didn’t seem to be attacking today in the same way he was before at the ball. 

“It’s not a crime, you know,” he murmured, cutting you some slack from the way he averted his gaze to fiddle with his sleeve, “you’re not expected to be amiable with him all the time. At least not in my book.” 

You attempted to swallow in the hopes that it would make the lump in your throat feel less suffocating, to no avail. 

“Amiable,” you echoed, huffing at his choice of words. Even on good days, you don’t think you could use a word like that to describe your interactions with your father. 

Jaehyun searched your expression, reading into your silence, shaking his head dismissively, “Sorry if I overstepped, I don’t usually have the habit of voicing out my observations so… carelessly.” 

You didn’t believe him, strangely. Everything about what had just transpired between the both of you seemed anything but careless. Instead, it came with all the intentionality of trying to understand someone. Somehow, that knowledge made you less inclined to hold back in front of him. 

When you finally felt like your voice wouldn’t give, you spoke, “Are you speaking from experience?” 

His eyebrows raised in question, “My father?” 

You nodded, earning a huff from him. Now it was your turn to watch him shift in his discomfort, averting his gaze and swallowing thickly.  “Never really had much of a relationship with him or my mother… I uh… I lived with my aunt and uncle since I was a child.” 

“Did you have much of a relationship with them, then?” 

Jaehyun shrugged. 

“Not as much as I did with my tutors,” he huffed, perhaps in some attempt to lighten the mood, “they were the ones I spent most of my time with.” 

You hummed, hands stilling around the papers you had yet to hand over to him. 

At your lack of an immediate response, he looked up, continuing, “It’s nothing to pity me for. They raised me as best as they could.” 

“I don’t pity you,” you spoke. 

Sure, it wasn’t exactly pity that you felt, but you weren’t sure what exactly the feeling that stirred in your chest even was. Perhaps it was a desire to be as grateful for your parents as he was? Perhaps it was an understanding of the little insistence that he didn’t want to be pitied. Perhaps it was the breathlessness that came with the way he was looking at you now, expectant for your reply. 

Whatever it was, you found yourself recalling your conversation with your sister, feeling almost embarrassed at how even now, you still thought he was capable of turning things to gold. 

“You don’t?” he questioned, his tone uncharacteristically gentle, unlike anything you’ve heard before. 

“Do you want me to?” you weren’t sure why you were asking, simply curious how he would reply. 

Jaehyun let out a huff through his nose, shaking his head. He wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to elicit from you. Although it was definitely something , he could say certainly that pity definitely wasn’t what it was. 

“No, I don’t.” 

You held his gaze, nodding. “Good, I don’t want you to pity me either.” 

Before he could reply, you straightened up, handing the documents back to him with your father’s seal already in its rightful place. Taking in a deep breath, he stood up, taking you back almost immediately to what it felt like to dance with him at the ball, your proximity to him now allowing you to feel him towering over you, though strangely without the condescension that was present before. 

“A lady like you shouldn’t care for my pity,” he murmured, the faintest of smiles playing at his lips. 

And just like that, it was as if the exchange never happened, as if you both didn’t just bare a part of your souls to each other. Jaehyun straightened out his clothes, averting his gaze to the floor as you both allowed the façade of banter to mask the windedness that came from suddenly feeling all-too exposed. 

“You won’t need to tell me twice.” 

===

“You wouldn’t believe what I heard at the flower market,” your sister barged into your room as you were getting ready to attend a soiree that evening.

Your eyebrows raised, smoothing down your dress before sitting on your bed, giving her an expectant look. 

“It appears Lord Jung is an anti-social man,” she began, “a few of the ladies at the flower market were talking about him, they said he’s rarely seen with people other than those he does business with. I interpreted that as the man having no friends, but that’s quite sad, isn’t it?” 

You shrugged, “I figure something like that is subjective.” 

Your sister didn’t seem convinced, “I think it’s lonely. Not having anyone to talk to about your life, about your struggles, about your joys… only being able to talk about your business wherever you go. I find that an awfully lonely way to live.” 

Huffing, you got up from your bed, “He doesn’t seem keen on finding a marriage partner either so perhaps he’s more comfortable in this loneliness than you think.” 

“I don’t believe it,” she grunted, “but it does make some sense. Maybe that’s why his manners aren’t the best, because he’s used to talking to cunning old businessmen.” 

You let out a huff of laughter, “You sound like you’re defending him.” 

Giving you a shrug, she hummed, “Maybe if you see him at the soirée later you can find out for yourself if he’s worth defending,” she smiled. 

You could only sigh at that, glancing out the door when you heard your mother calling for you. 

“That is, if Mr Nakamoto doesn’t talk my ears off before that.” 

One thing about soirées, or these public events during the season in general, was that they didn’t allow for much privacy at all. It wasn’t like you were in the confines of your father’s study with the viscount’s full attention on you, no. You were in someone else’s house, with many many different eyes on you, at the receiving end of everybody’s attention except the very person who wouldn’t seem to leave your mind. 

It was as if you were being shadowed by Yuta, your mother looking on with delight as your chaperone while the both of you conversed and you nursed your glass of whatever drink he’d handed to you. In such a setting, you couldn’t help but be hyper-aware of your posture, your manners, your tone of voice, the way you held your fan, even the way you would time your glances towards Yuta. All part of your tedious game, you supposed— to win the affections of a man you felt no real desire towards. 

What did you desire, then? You wondered. His attention? His approval? You continued with the knowledge that even if you didn’t desire him, you wanted to feel worthy of his desire. It was messy, and it felt manipulative. But you figured those were things you’d signed up for the moment you started playing this game (however unwillingly). 

You could see Jaehyun standing at the corner of the room next to the grand piano, looking intently at the multitude of sheet music next to the piano. The sight was almost amusing when you recalled your sister’s words, because indeed as you looked at him now, the sheer intent of his glare on the sheet music would be enough to intimidate anyone from initiating a conversation with him. 

“Do you know how to play?” Yuta’s words had caught your attention, and you’d almost grimaced at the realisation that you’d been walking towards the piano. Stopping just a few paces away from the piano, you cast a brief glance at Jaehyun who was still glaring at the sheet music in his hands. 

“No, no. I don’t, actually.” 

Yuta smiled, “I would offer to play something for you, but it seems viscount Jung has beat me to it,” he murmured as you heard the melody start to sound from the piano. You knew this piece, it was the one your sister was playing when Jaehyun had visited your house the other day. 

For some reason, the piece held much more melancholy than you realised, or maybe it was the way he was playing it, holding you (and all the other women in the room, you guessed) captive, unable to look elsewhere. 

You weren’t even paying attention to what you were talking to Yuta about, feeling the words come out of your mouth but paying no attention to what you were actually saying. Little did you know that as focused as Jaehyun seemed on his playing, every word of yours was flitting into his mind and refusing to leave. 

“I was always envious of people who could play the piano,” you sighed almost wistfully, earning a hum from Yuta. 

“Were you not tutored for it?” 

You shook your head, “It wasn’t something I was interested in when I was younger, but I suppose as I grew older, the music started to feel comforting to an extent. Only I was simply a listener, not the one who conveyed such comfort,” you huffed, attempting to make light of your feelings. 

Yuta, as always, replied with his flowery lines, not being able to pick up on how you were really feeling and taking your words at surface level with a smile.

“Well, you certainly are an excellent conversationalist, so I would still consider myself accomplished if I were you.” 

You hummed, brushing off your discomfort and mustering a smile, “Thank you.” 

Jaehyun had to withhold his amusement, wondering again why it was that you were so willing to withdraw to men like Yuta, men who were all-too-familiar with manipulating their words to their advantage. If you’d simply bit back with half the amount of snark that you generously gave him, he was sure Yuta would be at a loss for words. 

How frustrating. Surely, you could tell that Yuta was not a good match for you, couldn’t you? 

Coming to the end of his piano piece, Jaehyun stood up, simply picking up his glass of wine that he had set on top of the piano, acting as if he wasn’t the one at the receiving end of the room’s applause. 

Perhaps it was a stroke of divine timing, but one of the servants had approached Yuta, murmuring into his ear something you couldn’t quite catch. Yuta straightened up in response, casting an apologetic glance your way. 

“Forgive me, I need to excuse myself for a moment,” he muttered, rushing off to somewhere you couldn’t truly be bothered to wonder about. 

Jaehyun did not waste the opportunity presented to him, taking just the tiniest of steps closer to you and murmuring behind his glass, “Evening… are you alright?” 

He noticed the way your shoulders were tense, your fidgety gaze around the room, the way you’d kept bringing your glass to your lips but the level of liquid in your glass was barely going down. 

“Please, spare me. I am in no mood for needless bickering tonight,” you huffed, bringing your glass to your lips again to take a small sip. 

Truthfully enough, the ache was back again as you stood in the room filled with chatter and music. The ache of longing for the ability to rid yourself of the façade of the perfect marriage partner that was growing more tiring to uphold. The ache that grew stronger when you conversed with Yuta, feeling as though if you were to enter a marriage with this man, the ache would only intensify. It was dangerous to entertain him in a place like this, because Jaehyun’s presence always seemed to draw you out of this façade. 

“Bickering?” he scoffed, a faint smirk appearing on his lips. 

“Was that not what you approached me for?” you turned to him with a frown, “I suppose the soirée was getting boring for you if you felt the need to take such a drastic measure as to approach me of all people.” 

There you were , he mused. 

Jaehyun shifted another step closer to you, something about his proximity making the conversation between the both of you more obvious, and you could tell from the way your mother was looking at you that it was indeed obvious that you had his attention.

“Oh, not at all. I was hoping I could be reminded what an excellent conversationalist you were,” he drawled, clearly proud of himself judging from the smile playing on his lips. 

You rolled your eyes. “And you suppose you’re any better?” 

“Of course, I am. Anyway, you didn’t answer my question.” 

“You asked me a question? Must not have been worth remembering,” you sighed. 

As much as you felt he annoyed you, you had to admit that it was somewhat relieving not having to be on your ‘best behaviour’ around him. You were sure any chance of marriage would be tossed out of the window if you were to speak in such a manner to Yuta (or any other suitor). 

Jaehyun’s expression grew more serious, eyebrows lifting slightly in concern, “I asked if you were alright.” 

You narrowed your eyes at him, suddenly feeling as exposed as you did that day in the study. It was strange how easily he managed to read into your feelings. You figured you’d been doing a good job at masking it. 

“What does it matter? It’s not like you to be so concerned,” you huffed. 

“So, you’re not alright?” he prompted, earning a shrug from you, looking into your glass as though it held the answer you were both looking for. 

“It doesn’t matter if I’m feeling alright or not, the soirée is not going to end anytime soon,” you danced around his question, hoping the mention of the soirée would redirect his line of questioning. 

He noticed the Rubies that were draped around your neck, something about it feeling off. He much preferred the look of the Amethysts you were wearing before, the first time he’d met you. 

“New necklace?” he quirked an eyebrow at you, earning a grunt in response. 

“A gift,” you muttered, “from Mr Nakamoto.” 

“I see. You still haven’t answered my question,” his tone remained firm, eyebrows furrowed and gaze intent on you. 

You clenched and unclenched your fist, turning to him with your eyebrows furrowed, throat feeling dry as you tried to wrangle your voice awake when you met his gaze, uncomfortable at the way his attentiveness tempted you to pour out your feelings to him. 

“Is this really the reason you approached me? Look, I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. What does it matter? ” 

Jaehyun was undeterred, meeting you with the same amount of stubbornness and challenge, “It matters because you’re… different. You behaved… differently when you were talking to Mr Nakamoto.” 

“Compared to what? When I’m talking to you?” the words left you quicker than you could process them. 

“Do you not think so?” he retorted just as quickly, tilting his head at you with the confidence that came from knowing the answer without you having to verbalise it. 

You let out a breath you didn’t realise you were holding. 

“Well… there’s no reason for me to act as though I’m trying to impress you.” 

Jaehyun simply huffed in amusement, tilting his glass slightly as he contemplated uttering the thought that came to mind, going for it anyway. 

“Somehow, that impresses me enough.” 

Unsure what to make of his words, you shifted your gaze elsewhere, adjusting your grip on your glass because your palms had started to feel clammy. You remembered wondering what it would’ve been like at the receiving end of his attention, and now that you had it you were finding that even his words seemed capable of sprinkling gold dust on your heart. 

“I didn’t know you could play the piano,” you changed the subject, your body starting to feel warm under your clothes, burning under the intensity of his gaze, wondering if this was how the sheet music must have felt under his gaze. 

“I picked it up when I was younger. Out of all the instruments I've touched, I would say the piano is the one I tend to return to more.” 

“It’s your favourite?” 

He shook his head. 

“What is your favourite, then?” You found yourself asking, genuinely curious this time instead of just a small-talk formality that you usually followed at such events. 

You wouldn’t have known it, but Jaehyun was feeling the same unfamiliarity as you, feeling as though his body was moving before he could process it. He wasn’t used to holding a conversation like this with someone he barely knew, especially when it wasn’t about business or architecture. And for some reason, he couldn’t find it in himself to care about the stares he was receiving as a result of such conversation. 

“The violin,” he admitted almost sheepishly, as if he was embarrassed that he could play an instrument you could only dream of playing. 

Your eyebrows lifted in surprise, gaze wandering to the violin that was perched nearby the piano, after being played by one of the guests when you’d first arrived.

“Why is it your favourite?” 

He hummed, and by now you’d forgotten that Yuta had even promised to return, something in you not being able to find it in yourself to pretend that you were annoyed at Jaehyun’s attention, you truthfully weren’t. For someone as ‘antisocial’ as he was deemed, you found it was comfortable feeling like you didn’t have to present ‘textbook perfect wife’ answers for him. If only your sister could see you now.  

“It was the first instrument I learned as a child… but I moved on to different instruments when I was older because my aunt insisted on me learning other instruments. You know, the more skills, the better. Somehow it’s…” he huffed, amused at his own willingness to share with you, the only person aside from his best friend Johnny that wasn’t keeling over begging to polish the ground he walks on.

It was refreshing, he was realising, to not be treated like he was perfect. 

“It makes me very nostalgic. For that time in my life when there were no worries, you know? When all I had on my mind was the next piece I was eager to ask my tutor to teach me, waiting each day for her to retrieve the sheet music so I could play it until I knew it by heart.” 

Jaehyun continued, “It’s strange, sometimes when I find myself picking up the violin again, it’s like the music just flows out naturally… and I realise I really did know it by heart.” 

You hummed, nodding. 

“Like muscle memory,” you offered, earning a soft smile from him unlike anything you’ve seen before. This one made you feel as though you were catching glimpses of Jaehyun as a child, the little boy whose only worry was for the day the calluses on his fingers would start to disappear.

“Can you play something now?” you weren’t sure what compelled you to ask, but the answer you were met with had surprised you even more. 

“Oh, no no. It’s not… like that,” he huffed, still a hint of sheepishness in the smile that lingered on his features, “I don’t play it that often… rarely. Only when I'm really stressed, if there's too much on my mind.” 

Nodding, you took a fuller sip of your drink, slightly more liberated now that your stomach wasn’t churning like how it was before. 

“Your aunt must’ve really invested a lot of her fortune in your tuition, considering you were tutored for multiple instruments,” you hummed, earning a grunt from him. 

“I suppose she had to, they received too much from my parents each month to not do anything with it,” he sighed, leaning against the bookshelf behind him, turning his head to look at you with tired eyes, “I still remember the way I would look forward to the letters they would send every now and then just to praise me for whatever competition I had won, or whatever certificate I'd achieved.” 

“Do you think it was worth it? All the effort you put in?” you murmured, curious to how he would answer even though you knew you’d be at a loss if the same question was asked to you. Somehow, you felt like his answer would tell you more about him than small talk at balls or promenades would. 

Jaehyun hummed thoughtfully, lips pursing slightly, “That was what love felt like to me back then, the love I felt for music and… their letters, so… do I think it was worth it?” he shrugged, a smile that bordered on bitterness had graced his features, “Do you?” 

Perhaps it was the way you felt like you couldn’t hide under his gaze, or maybe it was the way you felt like he wouldn’t hold your grievances against you. Whatever it was, you found yourself wanting to share with him. And strangely enough, the idea of it had started to scare you less as time went by. 

“My parents were like that too. You know, as the oldest daughter… no news was good news. My duty was to… to not cause worry, to be strong for the family, to take care of my sister, to perform well in all that I did for the family’s sake. For me, it was… like an instruction manual,” you huffed, finding yourself looking to him for affirmation that he understood what you meant, and the knowing smile and nod you received in return made your heart jump in your chest. 

“Do all of this well and you’ll receive your parents’ love. Don’t do it and…” you trailed off, earning a hum from him. 

“Tire yourself out trying and trying again,” he murmured, earning a deep sigh from you. 

Did you think it was worth it? You weren’t sure, but you still found yourself trying nonetheless. 

Jaehyun had succeeded in unlocking a part of you you’d never spoken to anyone about before, and like you said, something about it felt liberating, the solution to your ache starting to feel a little more within reach even if you still weren’t sure what it was. 

“One of my friends, Johnny, has a pretty strong view about this… he says that people are fickle… that we can change based on the slightest of factors…” 

“Your friend sounds a little bitter.” 

The viscount laughed, “Quite the contrary, actually, I think he’s quite the romantic… just overly managing his expectations.” 

“Is that so? What made him have such views, then?” 

The viscount hummed, pressing his lips in a firm line before parting them to speak, “Money, I suppose. How people react to money, how he’s seen it change the way people treat a person. Sometimes, it’s difficult to tell whether a person is enamoured with you or the security your wealth provides. Though, with the way things are, it leaves a woman with no choice but to seek out security first, love being secondary to everything else.” 

You hummed, nodding slowly as you processed his words. 

“Sorry, I interrupted. You were saying?” 

Jaehyun wasn’t sure why that made him smile, choosing to dismiss it and continue anyway, “anyway, his view is that when we’re constantly trying and trying to follow these instruction manuals on ‘How to earn love’... at the end of the day they can hold it over our heads and decide that there are more instructions, more requirements we haven’t met yet… he thinks it isn’t possible.” 

You frowned, “What? To find love?” 

Jaehyun nodded, “Genuine love, I suppose. I guess I understand what he means. Even though more people have been talking about a love match these days, it feels out of reach somehow. People still end up looking at you like a list of instructions, a list of qualifications, weighing who has a list that is easier to meet and going with that.” 

“Do you think yours is difficult to meet?” you found yourself asking, earning a blank look from the viscount. 

“That’s the thing,” he huffed, “People like us… who try and try and are tired of trying… we wish we didn’t have one.” 

Somehow, you felt a certain conviction in your heart, shaking your head at him. 

“Maybe we don’t, and we just haven’t realised that yet.” 

=== 

You hadn’t seen Jaehyun at the next ball, or the next, and he didn’t return to your house for meetings with your father. You figured he was busy, so you tried not to wait. Though the ache persisted, coming and going like waves. With how often you felt it, you assumed you would have grown familiar with it. But in cases like these, the familiarity was unsettling, as if your body was crying out for help that you weren’t able to provide.  

Yuta kept you relatively occupied, sending you flowers regularly, light and bright coloured blooms attached to meanings of affection and purity and fondness, accompanied with letters containing equally flowery words. Though it didn’t keep you occupied enough. 

Time seemed to pass without much of your awareness, the only thing you were aware of being the way the flowers Yuta sent would slowly wither and your sister would replace them with the new bouquets he sent over. You were growing frustrated at Yuta’s perfection, because that demanded perfection from you as well. You would be lying if you said you didn’t miss the liberation that came with your conversations with the viscount. Those were different, demanding honesty instead of perfection, and perhaps, perfection was found in that honesty.  

“I think we can start thinking about discussing marriage with Mr Nakamoto,” your mother turned to murmur as you were having tea with Yuta in the drawing room, the man busy talking to your father about whatever literary piece they found they both enjoyed. 

“Marriage?” you weren’t sure why the prospect seemed so daunting now that your mother had mentioned it, something about her words making you realise that her plans were solidifying and you couldn’t simply continue to play ‘tea party’ with Yuta much longer. 

Your attention was diverted when your sister had entered with a stack of letters in her hand (presumably taken from the staff), her excited gaze meeting yours as she waved a single letter in your direction. 

“Are those my letters?” your mother asked, earning a grunt from your sister. 

“They’re father’s letters,” she informed tersely, making her way over to you and dropping a single letter into your lap, shoving the rest towards your mother in an attempt to distract her. 

The dismayed expression on your mother showed it was somewhat successful, “You know, you really have to fix your manners when it’s your turn to debut,” she began, seeming ready to launch into a tirade of nit-picking towards your sister but you knew nothing could very well escape her watchful eyes when it came to you, eyeing the letter in your hands curiously. 

“What’s that?” 

“Sister’s letter.” 

Your mother’s hand reached out quickly, grasping the letter in your hand and peering over your shoulder to look at it, seeing no indication of a sender other than an elaborate letter ‘J’ imprinted on the seal. 

“J? Do we know anyone with that initial?” 

Your thoughts ran first to Jaehyun, and the look you exchanged with your sister only proved your suspicions correct, though she was quick to cover for you. 

“Johnson, remember? Betty Johnson? Sister’s old friend that moved overseas,” it almost surprised you how smoothly she lied through her teeth when she was never a good liar. You never had a friend with the surname Johnson. 

“Yeah, you wouldn’t have remembered her. I used to play with her and sister outside the church grounds when we were younger,” you added, pleased with how your mother had bought your lie, shrugging as she turned her attention back to her cup of tea. 

“If you’re going to start exchanging letters, don’t expect the money to come from your father and I. We’re already putting more than we can into your dowry,” she muttered, earning a sigh from you as Yuta and your father returned from his study. 

“Shall we promenade?” he offered, and you glanced at your sister before looking back at him, rolled your shoulders back and gave him your sweetest smile. 

Your sister leaned over, pretending to fix your hair so she could lean in to murmur softly, “I’ll put the letter in your notebook.” 

And so you left to promenade with Yuta. 

“Lovely weather, isn’t it?” he smiled, squinting his eyes as he looked up at the sky, with you holding your parasol above your head, simply giving him a small hum. 

“Have any other suitors declared their pursuit of you?” Yuta spoke abruptly, earning a frown from you. 

Shaking your head, you couldn’t find it in yourself to speak, something about your anxiousness swallowing your words. You could almost hear your mother’s voice in your head now, telling you once again to ‘ use your words ’. 

“No, they haven’t,” you managed to force out, earning a solemn nod from Yuta. 

“Really? Not even viscount Jung?” 

Your frown deepened, “What makes you say that?” 

“Nothing in particular… just figured he was the only other person that could have caught your attention this season.” 

You huffed, even Yuta thought of Jaehyun highly. You, on the other hand, couldn’t seem to get the image of the little boy playing the violin out of your mind when you thought of him, something about it was endearing. 

“I hope you don’t mind me asking this, but… do you know the viscount personally by any chance?” 

Somehow your words seemed to have struck a chord with Yuta, his expression turning stoic and his gaze shifting elsewhere. He shook his head, “No, I don’t.” 

“Are you sure? He seemed to find you familiar at the ball—” 

“He must be mistaking me for someone else,” Yuta turned to you with a smile, though the firmness of his tone contrasted the gentleness of his smile. It was enough to deter you from asking any further. With Yuta, you needed to be careful, knowing something as simple as behaving in an ill-mannered way would be enough to make your family’s plans for security and stability fall through. It wasn’t as simple as it seemed with Jaehyun, who was always game for whatever you threw his way.

The mood had turned sour afterwards, the both of you remaining in relative silence (well, other than Yuta’s occasional utterances of praise for your parents) until you were both back at your house, the servant who chaperoned behind the both of you helping to take the parasol from your hands as Yuta got ready to bid you goodbye. 

After he left, it was like your body moved faster than you could process. It was embarrassing , the way you felt like an excited child running up to your room and grabbing the book sitting on your desk, flipping it open and letting Jaehyun’s letter drop out onto your bed. 

Tearing the little envelope open with your finger, you unfolded the letter, catching a whiff of something so unmistakably like Jaehyun that it almost felt like he was in the same room. 

‘Ms Y/N Y/L/N, 

My apologies for disappearing without a word. I needed to leave urgently because of my friend, the one we talked about the other day. His father passed and I’m aiding him with the handover of his father’s business and some of the family property to him, since I was previously closely working with his father for their family’s winery. Perhaps I should be more apologetic for the fact that now social events are sure to be dreadful for you without my presence.’ 

You scoffed, you could almost picture the smirk on his face as he wrote that. 

‘I am unsure when I am to return, but I am sure it will be before the season ends. I suppose now that my friend’s father has passed, he is to be looking for a wife as well, though I doubt it would be easy to convince him to come back with me. With his status now as a Marquess, I suppose many would be eager to coerce him into marrying their daughters if he were to arrive in town. Something he seems very opposed to. 

Again, I hope I have not needlessly worried you with my sudden absence. Though, I suppose my absence would be something that gains rejoicing from you rather than disappointment. Nonetheless, things are rather hectic here. I hoped that in writing to you I could gain some form of entertainment hearing about the progress in the marriage mart that I am unfortunately missing out on. You can write to me, but it will be addressed to my friend’s estate as I am staying here until I leave. I look forward to hearing from you. Do keep safe and in good health. 

-J’ 

“I’d keep that locked up, if I were you,” you jumped at the sound of your sister’s voice behind you, a mischievous smile on her face as she shut the door behind her, crawling onto your bed and making herself comfortable there. 

“So is it official? That he’s courting you seriously?” she asked, and you could see the way her smile fell as you pursed your lips, shaking your head at her. 

Now that you heard her words for yourself, it made you wonder. You expected Jaehyun to be someone meticulous, someone careful, someone who knew exactly what the implications of sending a lady a letter was in this day and age. It made you wonder about the intimacy hidden behind his otherwise mundane updates, and for some reason, it made you long for more. 

“I’m going to write back,” you spoke, more for yourself than for her. 

Her smile grew, “This is a dangerous game you’re playing, sister. I suppose you found he’s worth defending after all?” 

You hummed absently, already pulling out your writing materials to begin writing your response to him. 

“Not quite yet, but something tells me this will be worth it.” 

‘Dear J, 

My condolences for your friend’s father, I can only imagine how overwhelming it is to have all sorts of responsibility thrown at you before you can even process your own grief. Truthfully, I hadn’t noticed your absence’ (you were lying, obviously)

‘Perhaps because things have been hectic here as well. Each day seems to be filled with entertaining Mr Nakamoto and going for promenades. I’m quite tired of all the walking, to be very honest. 

The mention of your friend made me think of what you said that day at the soirée, about finding genuine love in a world where marriage is an economic proposition. I find myself searching sometimes, even though I know my efforts are probably in vain. I know the reason I have been entertaining Mr Nakamoto is not because I’m attracted to him. It is like what you said, I find myself seeing him more as his list of instructions, and what that demands of mine. Then, I find myself drawn back to my duty as the first daughter of my family, drawn back to the need to secure some sort of relief or security for my family. By then, there is no thought of finding love in a marriage partner, only the transaction of it all. Still, there is a part of me that wonders how different the whole process would be if I truly loved my partner, how much less it would feel like a game and more like life. 

I am only asking because I have not seen you dance with anyone at the events so far. I suppose you are either picky or disinterested. But just out of curiosity, do you think it’s possible? For you, I mean, to find genuine love this season? 

I hope this proves as entertaining as you wished for it to be, I won’t apologise even if it ends up disappointing you. 

From, me’ 

=== 

‘Ms Y/N Y/L/N,

Thank you for your concern. My friend is doing much better now, and I hope this means the chances of him returning with me have increased. I would like for you to meet him, something tells me he would get along well with your sister, they both seem to have a penchant for the arts. 

To answer your question, I believe it is possible. Whether it is wise of me to think so, or whether it is wishful thinking… that remains undecided. But I cannot be sure. Personally, I have not come across such love where you are seen for all that you are and still loved, but I would like to believe it exists. Whether I am able to find it this season or not, believing it exists makes it feel more like life, like you said. 

With that being said, I do wish the same for you, as much as you may not believe me. More than just promenades, answers from manuals, accomplishments and duties, but life. Sure, duties are important, family is important. But in my honest opinion, I don’t think fulfilling your duties should mean sacrificing your happiness, especially when it isn’t very well your duty at all, but that of others projected onto you. Perhaps I would get stoned by your mother if I said so, but I mean it.

I have to be going now, but I can guarantee that I will be back soon. Perhaps in less than a month’s time you will find yourself bickering with me at the corner of a rich woman’s house again. Do keep safe and in good health. 

-J’ 

You should’ve trusted the nauseous feeling in your gut when you saw Yuta arrive at your house that morning, having arranged a private meeting with your parents and leaving promptly after. There could have only been one reason behind it, and it worried you. Again, the ache intensified, feeling as though it would only solidify if your suspicions were proved correct. 

It was during teatime when your mother finally addressed the elephant in the room. 

“Your father and I are keen on you proceeding with Mr Nakamoto,” she spoke plainly, your hand halting around the handle of your teacup.

“Huh?” as pathetic as it was, was all you could muster. 

“Weighing your potential suitors, Mr Nakamoto brings the most stability. He has property, he is of a suitable age, he has wealth, he is personable. He seems prudent,” she lifted her gaze from her teacup to glance at you, just the slightest of frowns as she met your wide-eyed expression. 

You knew this, yet you weren’t sure why it shocked you to hear it verbalised so forwardly. 

“I’m sure you have no complaints,” it came more as a warning instead of an assumption, enough to make your throat feel dry and your voice start to retreat, “you can expect him to propose soon, so I expect you to be on your best behaviour. The family’s reputation depends on your response.” 

You thought back to Jaehyun’s words. If you were to reject Yuta’s proposal, would that make you wise or foolish? You knew what was riding on this decision. If you were to reject him, you would retain a little bit of your freedom, but you would damage your reputation. It wasn’t exactly ideal to be regarded as a jilt, much less to a man like Mr Nakamoto, who had many women in your town lining up for him. Weighing your other potential suitors, you weren’t sure if being married to a man older than your father was a better option. 

Almost unconsciously, your thoughts wandered to Jaehyun, the feelings you associated with him— or more accurately, how different these feelings were from the ones you associated with Yuta. 

It was starting to make you anxious, you realised that as you exchanged letters with him for a while now, he had grown on you more than you realised. The way you felt at the receiving end of his attentiveness. The way he seemed to read into your signals and cues and meet you where you were without expecting you to be perfect. The way he made you hopeful that you could find love… and perhaps wishful that you could find it in him. 

You were anxious, because when you thought of Jaehyun, what was coming to mind wasn’t his credentials, his wealth, his family, or his status. But rather, it was him , the blunt yet gentle, aloof yet attentive, hardened yet tender-hearted person that he was. 

You were anxious, because even as you were being told about your perfect prospect of marriage, you found that you only ached for him ; the man who was maybe a stranger to your textbook gentleman, but not a stranger to you. 

You took in a deep breath, setting your teacup down with shaky hands, standing up and letting out the breath you were holding. 

Use your words.

“I’m not feeling too well,” you murmured softly enough that you knew your voice wouldn’t give way, “please, excuse me.” 

You struggled up the stairs, finding it difficult to focus on anything other than the way your heart was pounding and your head was starting to spin. Eventually, you found yourself at your desk, writing materials ready and already finding yourself addressing the only person you could think of at this moment. 

‘Dear J, 

My parents have been talking to me about pursuing a marriage with Mr Nakamoto, and in the position that I am, I am inclined to accept.’ 

=== 

This time, you didn’t receive a reply from Jaehyun. Previous times, you could always be sure that his reply would not take longer than a week. But this time was different, as the flowers Yuta continued to send withered and were replaced, there was no news of any mail for you. Even your sister was starting to grow concerned at the way things were going, starting to display Yuta’s flowers in places you wouldn’t pass as often when you were going about your daily routine. But you noticed, the flowers Yuta gave you were always light, bright colours in delicate blooms; nothing like the bigger blooms your sister tended to get. 

The waiting was the worst this time, and you knew why. It was different this time, knowing you were anticipating his reply for different reasons. You couldn’t hide behind boredom, or curiosity as to how he would respond to your questions and words. This time your anticipation lay in hope, in your ache, and that was the worst kind of anticipation for you. Girls like you couldn’t hope, you had far too many responsibilities. You needed to be pragmatic, realistic, practical. There was no room for hope in your heart, yet you found that it was all you were doing these days. 

Hoping that wherever he was, he was safe. Hoping that wherever he was, there wasn’t a perfect girl who was discovering if his touch could turn her worries into gold. Hoping that wherever he was, he was thinking of you. 

You hoped it wasn’t too late. 

The longer you waited, the more foolish you felt. Pouring your heart out to him in your letters like that when there was no real guarantee that he would feel the same way, when there was no real guarantee that he would take Yuta’s place. 

As conversations about responsibilities, about being a good wife to Yuta had started to intensify, you gave yourself no choice but to bottle up the anxiety you felt, directing it inwards till you felt it start to take a toll on your mind.

There was a knock at your door before the door opened with a soft click, seeing your sister walk in carrying a vase containing new flowers, white lilies that filled your room with a scent that comforted you just slightly in your fatigue.

Setting the vase down carefully, your sister turned, stopping in her tracks when she realised you were awake, the slightest of frowns on her features, “Sorry, I hope I didn’t wake you.” 

You shook your head, a sigh leaving you as you stretched your arms over your head, “I was already awake a long time ago, don’t worry.”  

Padding over to your bed to take a seat next to your legs, her body angled towards you and her hand smoothing over the blanket that covered you, her gaze scanned your appearance. 

“Still nothing?” You asked, earning a small sigh from her. 

“Nothing,” she shook her head. Pausing, she shook her head, “maybe the letters just got lost in the mail?” 

You let out a sigh through your nose, shifting your gaze to the Lilies perched next to your window, the light seeping through the glass making you almost dread the day that was to come. Another day spent waiting. 

“I would like to believe that, but I've sent far too many letters to him to believe that,” you murmured, “perhaps it was foolish of me, you know?” 

Her frown deepened, “What was?” 

“Thinking that I could actually find a love match. Thinking that I could develop an affection for the viscount and remain unscathed,” you huffed, bitterness laced in your words that left an unpleasant aftertaste in your mouth.   

Your sister hummed, “Do you think it is the affection you feel for him that is what is hurting you? Or the absence of this affection for Mr Nakamoto?” 

There it was again, the wave that washed over you and forced you into sobriety, the ache for the rest that went beyond physical things that you were starting to give up trying to satisfy. You supposed when push comes to shove, you would find something to love in Yuta, you would simply have to. 

“It’s been more than a month, sister. I cannot… I cannot afford to wait for him much longer. I cannot afford to keep avoiding Mr Nakamoto.” 

She sighed, “I know. Father has been meeting him to discuss your marriage arrangement for a while now.” 

Somehow, that was enough to solidify your decision for you, as reluctant as you were. Saying yes to Yuta’s proposal… perhaps it would be a wise decision in your trying and trying to earn the affections of your father. It would be wise for you to do what is pleasing to your family. It would be wise for you to be obedient, to continue to be dependable for them. 

You heard the click of the lock, the door opening to reveal your mother, “Mr Nakamoto is here, dear. He has requested a private audience with you.” 

Exchanging a knowing look with your sister, you nodded. 

“Give me a moment to make myself presentable. I shall be down shortly,” you murmured, seeing your sister still wearing that same look of concern as you got out of bed, your mother leaving and shutting the door. 

Getting ready, you stared yourself down in the mirror, glancing between yourself and the sight of your sister behind you on your bed, a now unreadable expression on her face. 

“I’m not going to refuse when he asks,” you murmured, more for yourself than for her. 

Perhaps she knew this, because the nod she gave you was all you needed to give you the little bit of conviction that you would go through with this, for your family’s sake. 

=== 

Perfection was subjective, you knew this now. You knew it for a fact as you lay in bed, your head spinning and your heart feeling heavy, a week since Yuta had left town for business after your engagement. 

The stress of it all was getting to you, the ache in your heart for rest, the ache to not have to be ‘on’ and be present to all the people and things that demanded your attention, the pressure you were putting on yourself to be the person your parents expected you to be, or maybe who you expected yourself to be, the ache to be able to depend on someone other than yourself. 

You couldn’t even shake the fact that you were still wondering about Jaehyun, the last bit of desperation in you used to hope that he would return soon. It was amusing, considering that his return would probably be worse because you were already betrothed to another man. Somehow, you were still eager to write to him, asking your sister to help to pen down your messages because you were too weak to get out of bed. At least when you did this, you could say you still tried at the end of the day, because trying was what you were familiar with. 

You could barely get yourself out of bed, wanting nothing more than to sleep away your days as you waited for Yuta to return, for him to seal your fate with your marriage. Each day, your sister would come in and attempt to get you to eat, but you couldn’t find it in you to have an appetite, simply eating a few bites to appease her before you were allowed to sleep the time away before your next meal. 

Little did you know that your waiting for Yuta was in vain. 

Jaehyun almost thought he was hallucinating when he heard the sound of a familiar laughter echoing a few tables away from him at the bar he was at with Johnny.  “Do you recognise him?” Johnny asked, evident disdain in his tone and the pointedness of his glare, earning a confused look from Jaehyun. 

“Who?” 

“That man over there, the conman, Nakamoto Yuta? was his name if i recall correctly,” Johnny gestured with his head to the source of the laughter, Jaehyun’s eyes narrowing when he realised that the man sitting at that table was very much familiar, and very much Yuta. 

“Conman?” Jaehyun murmured, a sinking feeling in his stomach as he observed the woman next to him, the Rubies she adorned on her neck identical to the ones he saw you wearing at the soirée. 

Johnny nodded, using his finger to trace the mouth of his glass, “I recognise him from my time in Paris. You see the woman next to him? Remember how I told you Rubies were popular among the women there?” Johnny gestured to his neck, “It took me a while, but I realised it was only because that was his trademark. Like a branding for the women he was set on cheating for their money in exchange for his affection.” 

Jaehyun frowned. Did that make you one of Yuta’s targets, then?

“Are you familiar with his methods?” 

“Too familiar, I wish I wasn’t,” Johnny sighed, “He tried the same thing on my cousin. You know, all these young girls looking for the perfect husband. He paints himself out to be little less than a saint, and they eat it up. The prince charming that came to sweep them off their feet when in actual fact his occupation is never revealed, his life is a series of carefully constructed lies that differ depending on who he’s talking to… he strung my cousin along for ages, doing ‘business dealings’ with my uncle that landed him in debt that my father had to pay off.” 

“And your cousin?” 

Johnny knocked back the rest of the alcohol in his glass, “Heartbroken, obviously. Once he had his fill of her and her family’s money he left without a single warning.” 

“Couldn’t you file a suit against him for that?” Jaehyun’s mind was racing with questions, with a growing worry for you, especially since the last letter he’d received from you was talking about your likely marriage to Yuta.

“And what about the women? Wouldn’t they have warned each other by now? Isn’t it obvious when everyone’s receiving the same thing—the Rubies and flowers and all—from him?” Jaehyun continued, earning a deep sigh from Johnny. 

“That’s the thing. She was too in love with him by then, she insisted that we couldn’t go after him. Plus, by the time he was done with them, they didn’t have enough money to file a suit even if they wanted to.”

“I mean, who wouldn’t want to be the centre of attention of a doting, romantic, young , attractive young man?” Johnny let out a bitter laugh, “You of all people should know it’s all business. When someone like Yuta comes along, he brings the fantasy of a desirable love match with him. It was never about what they were receiving, but who they were receiving it from. The perfect prince charming he made himself out to be.” 

Johnny glanced over at Yuta with a sigh before raising his hand to catch the server’s attention to order another drink. 

At Jaehyun’s lack of a response, Johnny noticed his friend’s face paling, his gaze fixed on the table looking deep in thought, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?” 

“The girl,” Jaehyun rasped, clearing his throat and blinking his eyes harshly, “the one I sent the letter to…” 

“Yeah? Didn’t you say she was getting engaged?” Johnny hummed, earning a grim nod from Jaehyun. 

“It was supposed to be to him .” 

Johnny’s lips parted, exchanging a knowing look with Jaehyun. He wasn’t daft, he knew Jaehyun’s affections for this girl ran deep, deeper than he let on. 

“I… I need to go back,” he said finally, “I hope you can understand.” 

At this, Johnny let out a laugh, an incredulous look on his face. 

“Finally! I was wondering when you’d come to your senses.”

“Huh?” Jaehyun’s stare was blank, confusion written all over his face. 

“ I’m not the one keeping you here… I think we both know that,” Johnny spoke slowly, nodding at Jaehyun, the latter who was already trying to form a mental estimate of how long it would take him to get to you. 

“God, I feel so…”

“Foolish?” Johnny offered with a smile, earning a glare from Jaehyun. 

“I can’t believe I was going to sit here and do nothing while she gets cheated by that man,” Jaehyun brought a hand up to wipe his face harshly. 

Taking a sip of his drink, Johnny huffed, “Want me to hit him for you?” 

Jaehyun scoffed, “Not if I get to him first.”

“I’ll tell them to prepare your carriage for tomorrow morning, you’ll be back in three days at most,” Johnny spoke calmly, amusement still lingering in his smile as he observed Jaehyun’s lost expression, the viscount seeming too blinded by the rage he felt towards Yuta to think clearly. 

Johnny grunted, waving his hands in dismissal, “Don’t waste your time with him, go to your girl first.”  

Jaehyun wasn’t sure what he was picturing when he imagined returning to you. He got your letters, every single one of them. He read every word to the point where he was sure he knew them by heart. Your letters told him about the town, about who had gotten engaged, gossip from the flower market, about the weather, the balls you attended. From the letters alone, he would have figured you were doing perfectly fine. 

What he hadn’t expected was to have your sister answer the door and look at him as though he’d grown a second head. 

“My parents aren’t here,” you informed before he could greet you, earning a huff from him. 

“Sorry for uh… for paying such an unexpected visit, but… I was wondering if I could see your sister?” 

Your sister thought to you, lying in bed grieving the loss of a future she dreamed of, wondering if the viscount’s presence here would put an end to that grief. 

“She’s… sick.” 

Jaehyun’s eyebrows furrowed, “Sick? With what?” 

“Heartbreak, I suppose,” your sister replied tersely, giving him a pointed stare, unsure what to make of Jaehyun’s intentions. 

Jaehyun’s eyebrows lifted, his thoughts immediately going to Yuta and feeling himself start to bubble with the same rage and concern that brought him here. Most of all, love. 

“You can stay here, I’ll check if she’s willing to see you,” she spoke, still eyeing him cautiously as she led Jaehyun into the house, stopping him at the stairwell as she made her way to your room. 

“Sister,” she knocked on the door, opening it and peeping her head in, whispering harshly with wild eyes, “The viscount is here!” 

Your head snapped up from your pillow abruptly, only to fall back onto your pillow in immediate regret as it throbbed and pounded. Your headache was torturing you, but for Jaehyun, you supposed you were willing to brave through it. 

“Okay. He can come up, but you have to stay in the room with us,” you said as firmly as you could. 

Your sister hummed, turning to leave the room. 

“Not unless he requests a private audience…” she murmured lowly, earning a glare from you (futile as it was, since she’d already left the room). 

Jaehyun was more than impatient to see you, but the sight of you tucked under the covers of your bed, a cloth and small basin next to your bedside and the cold sweat on your face made his heart ache. 

He wasn’t sure how to place himself as he entered the room, choosing to stand in front of the side of your bed you were facing, his lips curling ever so slightly in amusement when you had turned your body to face away from him. 

“What happened to you?” his voice came out almost breathless, with traces of exasperation. 

You didn’t want to open your eyes and look at him, you didn’t think your resolve would last if you could see the look of concern and frustration on his face he held now. 

“Nothing,” you murmured. So much for ‘using your words’. 

“Stress,” your sister cut in, earning a sigh from Jaehyun. 

“I came because… I wanted to warn you,” Jaehyun almost winced, his words not coming out how he’d planned. 

“ To warn me? ” your tone was strong even in your weakness, “not because you promised you would come back?” 

Jaehyun shook his head, “I… look, you can’t go ahead with the engagement with Mr Nakamoto.” 

You frowned. 

“And what makes you think you can tell me what to do about my future?” 

Jaehyun was growing frustrated now, “I’m not, but even if I was, I wouldn’t be the first one telling you what to do with your future,” he said pointedly. 

“Why are you meddling? I never asked you to get involved,” you felt like a stubborn child, but you were more upset at the fact that it was him of all people, advising you not to marry Yuta. 

You supposed that was what you wanted when you’d sent him that letter, but a very belated form of it, showing up in front of you now. 

“My apologies, I did not ask for your permission,” he scoffed, “that isn’t the issue here, Ms Y/L/N, you cannot proceed with this engagement.” 

“Perhaps your warning would be of more use if you’d sent it sooner in a letter,” you huffed. 

You knew this was the sulky side of you speaking now, but it was the truth. Did he think he could simply waltz into your bedroom after months of silence, tell you not to marry the man you were engaged to and expect you to comply graciously? 

“I don’t need your help with my marriage.” 

“Marriage?” 

Your sister wanted to avert her gaze, the tension in the room growing thicker by the minute, but it was impossible to look away, with the viscount looking unlike she could ever imagine seeing him. Desperate, frustrated, emotional . Nothing like anyone knew him to be. 

“We’re already engaged,” you murmured, as if reluctant to solidify the truth by speaking it into existence. 

“Besides, like I said. If I needed your… interference—”

“Help,” he corrected, earning an eye roll from you (not that he could see it, your eyes still being closed). 

“Fine, help. If I needed it, I would have asked.” 

“Is help only given when it is needed?” 

You huffed, the bubbling of frustration within your chest growing stronger as you called to mind your emotions for the past few months. 

“It definitely seems to be otherwise when it’s coming from you. Needed or not, I’d rather not have your help at all,” you forced your eyes open, immediately regretting it when you turned your head to meet his gaze. 

Desperate, frustrated, emotional. 

“You don’t mean that, I’m trying to warn you. You don’t know what kind of man he truly is.” 

"Consider me warned,” your gaze was as firm as you could muster, not finding any reason to withdraw when it came to Jaehyun. This was yourself, in all that you were feeling. 

“Don't patronise me. You don’t know what he’s capable of.” You almost faltered, almost . A small nagging fear started to creep up on you, telling you that you’ve made a grave mistake with Yuta. 

“And you do?” you asked, slowly shifting yourself so you could see him better, unsure if you were being spiteful or curious now, maybe both. 

“Better than you, it seems,” he huffed, taking a step closer to your bed, your sister pressing herself against the wall as if that would help the tension in the room, shifting her weight from foot to foot as she watched the dynamic between you and Jaehyun unfold. 

It was nothing compared to how she saw you and Yuta interact, but something about this was interesting. It was like the both of you were simply hiding behind your true feelings, masking it with frustration and beating around the bush, focusing on unimportant details because you were both too afraid to be the first one to reveal your heart. 

“And where is this understanding coming from?"

Jaehyun visibly hesitated, sighing before he told you the truth, "Johnny and I saw him when we were travelling." 

“Johnny?” you frowned, “Oh, you mean the marquess that dares not show his face in this town?” 

Again, the focus on unnecessary details to prolong the time before you had to finally face up to what you really wanted to hear and say. 

“His title is not who he is,” was all Jaehyun could muster, feeling the tension in the room as he continued to hold your gaze. 

“And by that same logic, I can say you don’t know my partner any better than I do,” you shrugged, the words sounding unfamiliar even as you said it. 

That seemed to strike a nerve with Jaehyun, his tone rising slightly in his urgency and frustration. 

“Would you stop calling him that? He’s not going to come back! You know why—?” 

“What would you rather me call him then? My husband-to-be ?” 

“—he’s too busy conning and cheating people like your parents in other towns for money now. Your family is going to be left in debt because of that man.” Though Jaehyun wasn’t shouting, his tone was filled with such urgency, such firmness, that he might as well have been. The implication of his words echoed louder than anything, louder than the sound of your heart picking up speed. 

Your silence spoke for you, feeling as though a large wave had just washed over you and pulled you under. Your heart continued to thump quickly as you struggled to regain your bearings, as you struggled to gain control over yourself. Only one thought rang in your head, your mother had already given Yuta your dowry before he disappeared. 

You glanced at your sister, her debut would need to be delayed now. Your family couldn’t afford to muster up another dowry so soon, not when you hadn’t gotten married yet. 

“Now do you understand why I needed to come and warn you?” his tone softened, and without realising he began to make his way closer to you, daring himself to look closely at you in your shock, processing what he was feeling at the sight of it. Which, at the moment, could only be described as wanting to pull you out from under the waves, to dive in and look for you so he could bring you to the surface. 

“I cannot—” he stopped himself, shaking his head, “I will not watch you let yourself be humiliated, waiting for that… that liar ." 

Something in your gaze was hurt, vulnerable as you looked at him, wondering how he could say such words with such confidence when he was the one you were waiting for this whole time. 

“I am not a stranger to waiting, you of all people should know that very well,” you said. 

Jaehyun’s expression softened, still brushing aside what he wanted to say to you, his thoughts focused on how you must be feeling to find out you’ve just been conned by your fiancé. 

“Why do you think I came here?” he asked, and the reminder that his purpose here was to warn you and not for other reasons was a bitter pill to swallow, so this bitterness showed in your response. 

“In hopes to annoy me to death, perhaps.” 

At his lack of a response, you frowned, “…. Why aren’t you saying anything? I expected a witty remark by now.”

What you didn’t expect was for Jaehyun to sigh, something in his expression akin to tenderness, which didn’t make sense to you at the moment. But it was a very tenderness that you always wondered about, what he reserved it for, how it would show, how it would feel. It seems all of those questions were answered now as you looked at him. 

“Where do you think that man is? Right now, while you’re in this condition. Where do you think this man that you’re set on marrying will be after hearing of your sickness?” His tongue peeked out to wet his lips, though even if your attention was momentarily diverted, nothing could tear it away from his gaze. As though he had a million things to say to you, hidden inside of him, and you were only catching glimpses of it through his eyes. Yet they still managed to be gleaming, twinkling, pulling you out from under the waves. 

“Yet here you are… destroying yourself for somebody who is incapable of loving you in the way you deserve,” he spoke almost bitterly, and the (not so) little hope within you had begun to surface again. Courage to make your feelings known, and hope that they would be received. 

Jaehyun let his gaze shift to the way your hand lay on top of your covers, holding the fabric close to yourself for some sense of comfort. It surprised him, the way he wished he could hold you, to embrace you in his own comfort. The thought came naturally to him, as if that was his body’s natural response, to want you to be able to receive that from him and for him to give his love and affection freely to you. 

“I’m sorry, I know it must be a lot to process. He had me believing his act too, I… should’ve asked Johnny sooner, if I did then you would not have to face such grief now—” 

“It’s not about him,” you spoke, hoping your voice wasn’t quivering with how you were on the brink of tears, frustrated that you couldn’t tell what he felt for you even now, but filled with hope that you were sure you couldn’t hold your feelings within you much longer, “it was never about waiting for him, or… grieving for the loss of him .” 

Jaehyun fell silent, lips parted slightly in shock as he held your gaze, your pleading eyes meeting his. 

“Do you really think all these months have been for that man?” 

“I wrote to you endlessly ,” your frown deepened, the ache in your heart worsening when you saw the way Jaehyun’s gaze softened, moving closer to you but stopping himself with evident restraint before he could get too close, “even when I could barely move myself out of my room the only thought on my mind was that I needed my words to reach you somehow, I needed some part of me to reach you… somehow.” 

Your vision blurred, making you blink harshly. The fact that you couldn’t see him clearly behind your tears disconcerted you, “What else was I supposed to think when I didn’t hear back? What other choice did I have?”

Jaehyun paused, remembering your sister’s presence in the room, deciding that now would be the time where he stops dancing around the reason why he truly came back to see you. 

“May I…” he turned to face your sister, “have the honour of a private audience with your sister?” 

Her eyes widened, fighting the smile that threatened to show on her face as she gave you a knowing look, averting her gaze as her hand came up to cover her mouth, nodding. Gesturing a hand to you, she already began leaving the room, “Of course, of course. By all means.” 

“As much as you may think I hate you, or…  am here to meddle in your life or annoy you… I don’t like seeing you like this. I do not wish to see you in pain,” he let out a sigh through his nose, taking another step closer to your bed, daring himself to take a seat next to your legs, his body moving naturally as though this was what it meant to simply allow himself to be. Like muscle memory. 

You huffed, “I’ve always been good at masking it, I suppose.” 

He shook his head, displeased, “Or nobody has bothered asking if you needed to be relieved.” 

“I’m sorry I did not write back to you. I just… in retrospect now I realise it was foolish of me but…  from all your letters I just assumed,” he brought a hand up to run through his hair in frustration, “I assumed you were perfectly fine with Yuta. I had no right coming back and disrupting that, as much as I wanted to.” 

“Believe me, I wanted to,” he huffed, “and it surprised me because, well, it was strange. It felt like you were seeing me for who I was… as if I was known for more than my wealth, my appearance, for everything in myself that was not perfect. But with you, it wasn't a matter of having to try to earn love, but to re-learn what love is, what it feels like.” 

Your throat felt dry, something about his honesty making the ache in your heart grow, feeling as though what you sought to satisfy this ache was within reach, yet still at a loss for what it was that you desired.

"I did not know how to convey that in my letters. No words were enough, nothing... nothing was quite satisfying enough in expressing what I wanted to say to you. The thought of hiding what I felt beneath enquiries about the weather or about Mr Nakamoto made me sick to my stomach. That kind of intimacy that I felt when I was with you... It scared me because it only made me wish for more. I didn't think it was what you wanted."

“I thought that I could just separate myself from the situation, to resolve it that way before it could hurt me, but it was only when I saw that man when I was with Johnny that I realised,” his gaze flickered between your eyes and his hands, returning to your eyes and meeting you with that same hope. 

Hope that gleamed, twinkled, that was not rooted in fear but in love. 

“You deserved more than him, the love that you allowed me to discover was very much possible… the love you deserve. It would hurt me more if I had to watch you forgo that for the sake of others.” 

Use your words. 

“What do you suppose is this love that I deserve?” you dared to ask, somehow the use of your words did not feel as manipulative as it always did, it did not feel like you were trying to hide behind them this time, but to let your heart be known through them. 

Jaehyun remained firm, and this conviction was enough to make you feel like you were slowly being lifted up to the surface of the water, the light seeping through the water making your surroundings feel brighter. 

“... a love that remains forever.” 

You weren’t sure if you were breathing, feeling the water get lighter as you followed the light from his eyes. 

“And you suppose that is within reach for me?” your voice was barely above a murmur. 

Jaehyun nodded, the hint of desperation lingering in his tone, “I promise you, it is within reach.” 

“You cannot promise me a forever and not give it to me.” 

There was a hint of amusement in Jaehyun’s gaze, the slightest of smiles on his face at your response. He wished you would remain this way, unafraid to use your voice with him, unafraid to assert yourself, to allow him to see, know and love you for who you are. 

“I would not have mentioned it if I were not ready to give it to you at this very moment.” 

Your lips parted slightly, “How do you suppose you will do that?” 

Jaehyun wore the tell-tale expression that let you know he thought of something that either pleased or amused him, as if waiting for the right timing to say his smart line with a smug tone. 

“By… asking you to marry me.” 

If you thought his eyes gleamed and twinkled before, the smile that he wore when he saw the sheer relief grace your features. The feeling of being pulled above the surface of the water. 

“It’s not too much to ask, just… be with me. Depend on someone other than yourself for a change.” 

“My Lord, you know—” you began, turning your head abruptly and immediately regretting your sudden movements, your head beginning to throb even more. Jaehyun shocked you with the way he adjusted your pillow, helping you to lower your head back down onto the pillow carefully, smoothing your hair away from where it stuck to your face from your cold sweat. 

“I want you to,” he nodded. 

It was strange, being told that someone wanted you to depend on them when you were always used to being the one who was depended on. Instead of promising you gold, he was promising you the warmth of it, the value of it. Not the ‘Midas touch’ that took life away from things, but one that brought light and hope. 

You wanted this . Not your long, tedious game, but the life he was offering you, a life of love, love even in imperfection, love that brought with it rest, love that was a state and not something to earn. 

You nodded, “I want to…” your body felt warm under his touch, your gaze following his movements as he picked up the cloth draped over the small basin next to your bedside, wringing the cloth after wetting it and using it to dab the sweat from your face and neck. 

You felt as though you weren’t breathing, a wave of emotion rushing through you at the feeling of being under his care. It was as though he was removing the little bandage you used to cover the ache that you felt, replacing it with a bandage that fit, one that wrapped around the ache instead of just trying to suppress it. 

“I want to marry you,” was all you could muster, Jaehyun letting out a huff of amusement as he set the cloth aside, his left hand moving to your face, letting the pads of his fingertips trace the side of your face before letting his thumb smooth over your cheek gently. It was unmistakable, the feel of the calluses on his fingertips from what you assumed was his recent playing of the violin. 

“Does my presence have that much of an effect on you?” he drawled, smugness laced in his tone as he brought you back to your exchange in your father’s study. His gaze flickering to your lips just briefly, making your heart skip in a way you’d never experienced before.  

You rolled your eyes with affection, this time not feeling the need to ‘use your words’ to hide once again. 

“Perhaps it does.” 

=== 

‘My forever only, Time and time again, I am reminded that I was foolish to think I could live the rest of my life without you when a day that passes by when I am not with you is filled with a longing I cannot imagine I could ever grow comfortable with, much less befriend. 

Back then, I was used to being all alone. I found this solitude to be a companion, though loneliness is never a good lover. The sky gets ethereal for the things no longer living in chains. You allowed me to come to know what that truly meant, what it truly felt like. Love given freely is all I have to offer you, so I hope you’ll have me. 

My love, I have not stopped thinking of the way you look at me, and each time I awake I find myself waiting for when I may be under your gaze again. The thought lingers before I am with you, filling me with an inexplicable feeling of love that refuses to leave even when we part. Forever sounds daunting but when I envision a forever of this love that you meet me with in your eyes, your smile, your presence, it becomes a boundless sea I wish to swim in for as long as my spirit exists. 

All I ask of you, all I want is having you in my day. To keep you in safety, health, and love.

- J, your forever only.’ 

“Do you remember what was discussed?” 

You were drawn from your thoughts, your sister handing you the bouquet of dark red roses as you started walking. 

What did you discuss? 

Right. 

Be yourself. You felt the crunch of cobblestone beneath your feet as you made your way with your sister to the church. You are allowed to launch into unrelated discourses out of panic. You fixed your gloves so they fit comfortably around your hands and arms. Have good manners, unless provoked. You could hear your sister humming to the piano piece she’d been practising that morning. You are safe to express yourself. With the sound of her humming, the rustling of the big trees overhead and the wind caressing your face gently comforted you. 

Reaching the doors of the chapel, you spotted your father who awaited you, though you couldn’t focus on anything else once the doors opened, your gaze immediately finding the man who stood at the altar, a smile adorning his face once he met your gaze. A wave of clarity washed over you; you felt peaceful. 

There he was, not a marriage partner, not an economic proposer . 

Jaehyun, your love match. 

#jung jaehyun #jaehyun #nct jaehyun #nct #nct 127 #nct u #nct aus #nct au #nct scenarios #jaehyun au #jaehyun scenarios #jaehyun x reader #enemies-to-lovers au #regency au #jaehyun fanfic #jaehyun x you #jaehyun imagines #jaehyun x y/n #jung yoonoh #nct fluff #nct angst #tswift songs for the neos

[crazyinluvfix]

PROLOGUE

FATAL ATTRACTION - a stiles stilinski story

summary: Sera Salvatore moved to Beacon Hills for a break from the supernatural. But her life was once again turned upside down when she and her two best friends get thrown head first into a world of werewolves and mystery. But it’s hard for her to protect her friends when a single werewolf bite is what could kill her for good…

WARNINGS: mentions of blood

a/n: this is just the intro ! future parts will be longer, that’s where the story really begins ;)

series masterlist

1.8k words

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Beacon Hills was supposed to be a sanctuary from all things supernatural.

After what felt like over a century (because it was), Sera Salvatore needed a break.

Which was admittedly a little hypocritical considering she herself was a vampire, but she was desperate for an escape from all the drama and chaos that her family - namely her brothers - had brought to Mystic Falls. So she decided to start afresh, again.

After only one year of living back in her hometown, she picked up and went to the furthest most point in the continental United States, which just so happened to land her here. From Georgia, all the way to sunny California. It would be a nice change.

She was fortunate enough that she could pass as quite young whenever she settled in a new place. With the help of makeup, clothing, and a healthy amount of dishonesty she managed to blend into freshman year at Beacon Hills High without anyone even batting an eye.

It was now one year ago today that she had started her first day, which turned out to be a breeze.

~

January 3rd, 2010

“You’re humiliating,” I expressed my annoyance flatly as I stood by the door, waiting for my brother to let go of my jacket that he had been straightening before I left the house.

He patted my shoulder with a motherly smile as if he was sending his child off to kindergarten, then took a step back to play the role further.

“Have you got everything?” he asked as he nodded to my bag.

I let out a breathy chuckle. I didn’t hate him as much as I let on… mostly.

“I packed you a blood bag for lunch,” he continued, that smirk of his right at home on his smug face - never a dull moment.

My hand reached for my keys on the side table as I walked backward towards the door, shaking my head to stop my lips from forming a smile of their own. “How thoughtful,” I retorted sarcastically.

But just as I was about to step outside I stopped to say one last thing, “Thanks for helping me move in and all,” my tone was much more genuine than it typically was when speaking to him, but I really was grateful.

Moving across the country would’ve been infinitely harder without his company on the road, and without being able to play the little sister card and sit back while he does the heavy lifting. But… and I would never admit it… but even now, starting a new school was just as scary as it always has been and a part of me liked that I had my big brother there to see me off.

I quickly cut our sappy little chat short with another comment, “But, I expect you to be gone when I get home.” I arched an eyebrow and pointed a finger at him.

He was definitely the fun brother, but with fun comes impulsivity - a trait that must be genetic, and must have skipped my twin - and with impulsivity comes a long string of ‘animal attacks’. And that was exactly the drama in question that I wanted to escape, so I had brought along a surplus of blood bags to hold me until I found a more permanent solution.

He held his hands up in surrender, “I’ll be out within the hour.”

“Okay. I’ll see ya,” I said finally as I stepped outside, hiding from the brisk winter cold in the confines of my leather jacket.

My words were met with another smile and a nod from my brother before he spoke again. “Tell me how it went when you’re home.” The protective mother was back. But this time, it wasn’t just a joke, he was lucky we had no witnesses since he’d hate to ruin his tough-guy persona.

I almost laughed at him again, but I didn’t. As humans me and my brothers were incredibly close, but over time that faded. Me and our other brother never really settled that, but over the past year back in Mystic Falls me and the eldest fell back into old patterns.

“I will,” I gave in with a joking eye-roll. “Bye Damon,” I waved his way.

“Bye Seffie,” he returned, getting a kick out of my suddenly sour face.

Seffie. A nickname he saddled me with at the age of 4 and has stuck with me ever since. But my real name was a mouthful, so I chose to go by Sera - a fact Damon will insist on disregarding for the rest of our eternal lives.

As I walked away my once friendly hand gesture turned into a middle finger as I heard him laugh behind me and shut the door as I made my way to my new school.

~

The moment I stepped foot in the doors I noticed some heads turn, some overheard whispers from passers-by that fuelled my ego just that bit more as I walked up to reception and signed in.

First-period English went smoothly, then it was History which ironically was focused on the confederacy (not me and my siblings' proudest fight). And it was safe to say the teacher was thoroughly impressed with my knowledge on the subject, little did he know I quite literally lived it.

But after class was when my day took a turn.

“1076, 1076,” I repeated under my breath as I went to scour the halls for my new locker, but the break rush made my search all the more difficult with what felt like a million people charging around.

But finally, I seemed to be in luck as I read the numbers to my right; 1080, 1079, 1078, 1077, and…

Crash.

I took a deep breath and a frustrated sigh at the smug-faced, blond jock who had just practically booked it into my side, knocking all of my books out of my hands, and causing me to jump at the deafening sound of them hitting the tile floor. ‘Great,’ I thought satirically. The prick didn’t even bother to look back! Let alone be kind enough to help me pick them back up again.

But someone else did. In fact, two other boys seemed to have played witness and immediately came scrambling up to my side.

“Hey, uh-” the one with darker features and a crooked jawline, giving him a somewhat goofy smile stuttered, stopping after his friend who stood politely next to him not-so-subtly jabbed him in the side with his elbow, causing him to bring a hand to it and shoot his friend a glare.

“What he meant to say was, do you want a hand with that?” The slightly taller friend with the buzzed brown hair asked after his friend's failure to do so.

I could do nothing but laugh slightly at both of their clear excitement and reply with a smile, “I’d love one.”

Picking up books was a simple task that I most definitely could’ve done myself in probably half the time, but nothing compared to watching them both drop to the floor and bat at each other's hands in a frantic competition to ‘help the most.’ My smile grew wider and I brought a hand up to rest on my forehead. This was already a refreshing change since none of the boys back home would have ever done the same.

Soon, they both stood back up in front of me, proud looks on both of their faces as they put the books in my open locker for me.

“Thank you,” I chuckled in response.

“No problem,” the more hyper one added before quickly speaking again at a constant, lightning pace. “I’m Stiles, by the way,” he gestured to himself, “and this is my buddy, Scott,” his hand moved over to pat the other boy on the shoulder.

“Nice to meet you, Stiles and Scott,” I nodded back at them, still trying to bite back an amused grin, “I’m Sera.”

“You’re new here right?” Scott spoke again with an innocent look of pure curiosity.

I put my hands together behind my back and rocked on my heels slightly, “Mhm, started this morning,” a somewhat nervous chuckle left my lips, which the one called Stiles seemed to pick up on because he quickly interjected.

“I mean, we’d be happy to show you ‘round if you wanna hang with us,” he offered, a hopeful shrug on his shoulders and a pout on his lips.

“Wouldn’t we, Scott,” he then batted the back of his hand against his friend’s arm, glaring at him to respond.

Scott quickly blinked and nodded rapidly, “Oh, yeah, of course.”

I bit my lip in contemplation, they did seem awfully nice. “I’d love to, but I’ve gotta go to the office quickly, but maybe I’ll catch up with you guys later,” my counter seemed to be accepted without a second thought as I studied their expressions.

When I stepped backward I noticed how they didn’t leave just yet, so I said, “Bye boys, I’ll see you around,” with a small wiggle of my fingers as a wave.

“See you around, Sera,” Stiles repeated as he and Scott both mimicked my step back, his hand raising up to do a little salute before we turned our backs to each other.

I could not help the quiet giggle that escaped my mouth after I was out of their eyeline, but I also could not help but hear what they were saying to each other down the hall.

“Why the fuck did you salute?” Scott whispered, hitting Stiles back in retaliation for earlier.

“I- I don’t know, okay?” Stiles replied slightly panicked.

My smile grew. What idiots.

As for the conversation with the receptionist, it went smoothly with a little help from my immaculate ‘people skills’.

“I’m sorry but we insist on transcripts. And your immunisation records seem to be missing,” the lady said, peering over her glasses as she looked through my files.

My sigh was followed by me leaning forward, looking into her eyes as I watched her pupils dilate - she just had to make this more difficult.

“Please look again, I’m sure you’ll find everything you’re looking for.” A proud smirk laced my lips as she did exactly that, nodding and sending me on my way. Too easy.

During lunch, I did end up joining the boys at their table, taking a seat next to Stiles and definitely not missing the wide-eyed look he gave to Scott, along with his stuttered breath as I leaned over him to reach my pen that had rolled across the table.

The portrayal of vampires in Twilight had always annoyed me due to its incredible inaccuracy, but it was beyond amusing how easy it was for me to read their minds, even without special powers.

~

That day had ended with new numbers in everyone’s phones and Sera scoring a new ride to school and back every day in her new friend’s beaten-up old Jeep (which she thought had enough charm to distract from the deafening sound it made when running).

And from that moment forward, the three were inseparable.

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hope you enjoyed !

this was basically to just tell you what to expect from the rest of the series. might not post it all on here unless you want me to so check out my ao3 and wattpad ( @crazyinluvfix ) like and comment x

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#stiles stilinski #stiles stilinski x reader #teen wolf #fic #fluff #angst #smut #x oc #crossover au #the vampire diaries #tvd #salvatore #damon salvatore #stefan salvatore #scott mccall #derek hale #derek hale x reader #klaus mikaelson #the originals #vampire #werewolf #supernatural

[venusxsturnio]

✧.* 𝒟𝐸𝒥𝒜 𝒱𝒰 ✧.* - Olivia Rodrigo

EP.1.PILOT

PAIRINGღ matt x ex!black!fem!reader!influencer

SUMMARYღ matt and y/n, were the perfect couple. until everything started to go downhill for them. the secrets, the lies, the gaslighting. It became too much for y/n. 8 1/2 months later...here we are.

FROM VENUSღ i think this is going to be big. it's very SpOnTaNeOuS*+:｡.｡i hope you guys like it. i plan on making it a series (p.s. it's a slow burn so be PATIENT! :)

WARNINGSღ cursing...use of the word babe/baby...soft kisses

proofread!

FLASHBACK...

POV: 3RD PERSON

y/n and matt were standing at y/n's favorite concession stand ordering her favorite snack. y/n shivered as if she was cold, so matt took off his jacket and offered to swap with her just because he loved her. y/n laughed at the sight of matt wearing her sweater that was way to small for him.

trading jackets laughing bout how small it looks on you

REALITY...

matt was awoken from his trance by his girlfriend megan. they were standing at the exact same concession stand, ordering the same food, doing the same things. "Baby...I'm cold" megan said shivering from the cold breeze that was passing by. matt focused his attention onto his girlfriend, as he proceeded to remove his jacket, and offered it to her. they swapped jackets and megan laughed a little at the sight of how small her jacket was on him. matt laughed, but not like megan. instead, he tried to hide it. the fact that he was reminiscing about his ex, and how they were doing the same things. especially about how he missed her these past few weeks but he was quickly snapped out of his thoughts once again by his girlfriend handing him his food.

REALITY...

the couple made their way to the nearest ferris wheel, they paid their ticket to enter the ride. they sat down and the ride started. matt stared out the window until he felt his girlfriends hand being placed on his leg. "Are you okay?" megan asked with a bit of sympathy in her voice and she grabbed his hand to comfort him. "Yeah...I'm fine." he gave her a soft smile before giving her a quick peck on the forehead. "C'mon let's take a picture.." megan suggested to matt. he smiled as they both got into their poses. they took their picture and she posted it of course, showing off matt once again. he hated that. he wanted to keep their relationship private but megan didn't agree. she wanted to let everyone know about their relationship, either she bragged about him to her friends or she bragged about it on social media.

matt looked at megan with a soft face, she brought her hand up to his cheek and caressed it slowly. she started to lean in but matt zoned out once again.

i bet she's bragging to all her friends saying your so unique

FLASHBACK...

matt was in the same spot as before, but with y/n. she brought her hand up to his face and started leaning in. matt leaned in too. their lips smashed together. the kiss was lengthy. matt was soon brought back to reality by them parting from the kiss...

REALITY...

the ride came to a stop as matt and megan exited the ride. "That was fun!" megan claimed. matt just gave her a soft smile as they kept walking towards the exit of the theme park. they eventually made it to the parking lot. they got into the car as matt started it. they pulled out and got on the road. the car ride was silent until megan started yappin about this video she saw on tiktok. "Babe..can I go to vidcon with you guys this weekend. My favorite tiktoker is gonna be there. I really wanna meet her!" matt looked over at her. "yea of course" he smiled as he looked back at the road.

FLASHBACK...

y/n and matt sat in the car vibing to her favorite song when she turned down the music to ask him "Hey are we still up for Vidcon this weekend?" y/n asked. "Of course. Wouldn't miss it for the world. Especially now that your going.." a smirk appeared on the corner of matt's face. y/n playfully rolled her eyes while turning the music back up...

so when you gonna tell her, that we did that too

REALITY...

"matt! where are you going you just passed by the house?!" matt realized he passed right by the house and he hit a hard U-turn. "sorry, i wasn't thinking" he said breathing hard "did you even hear what i said?!" he opened his mouth to say something but nothing came to mind. "so you mean to tell me, you haven't been listening to me this whole time?!" matt slightly rolled his eye at the thought of her complaining. he hated that about her. every chance she got she'd always complain about something he wasn't doing. y/n never did that, y/n appreciated everything he did for her even if he just got her a bottle of water from the fridge or ran her bath water for her.

megan just kept rambling on about how he never listens to her at all. as they pulled into the garage matt took his seat belt off and faced his girlfriend. "look. ill take you to vidcon with us to see your favorite TikToker, ok?" he gave her a reassuring smile, megan looked at him and smiled "okay" they got out of the car and started walking in the house, they went up to their room, took showers and got ready to end the night. they got ready to lay down and megan started singing a song... it was y/ns favorite song. matt looked at her with wide eyes. "what" megan said looking at him confused "it's nothing" he said shaking his head as he turned the lamp off and headed to bed.

do you get deja vu huh?

FROM VENUSღ hey guys! hope you enjoyed this little chapter...i really want to make this a series but should i? anyways...don't forget that my dm's are always open if you guys have any suggestions or ideas!

#chris sturniolo #sturniolo x reader #matt sturniolo #nick sturniolo #sturniolo edit #sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo fluff #sturniolo imagine #sturniolo smut #sturniolo triplets #venusxsturnio #matt sturniolo x reader #x reader #x female reader #sturniolo #black!fem!reader

[fuzzystudios]

yk when I started reading toa I was kinda disappointed at the lack of power that apollo / lester had, bc pjo and hoo had their main characters be basically op, and this is literally a (former) god. apollo in tho made me cringe and reading his perspective was like looking at pills in an orange prescription bottle. but he was the whiny teenager that felt like an out-of-depth teenager more than the actually lived for years-in-teen-numbers, because they were more heroes and soldiers than teens, like they were supposed to be. he is simultaneously whiny child and responsible adult.

the moment I really latched onto him was when he basically dropped everything and tried to dive into the forest to go save his kids. bro wasn’t actually a selfish idiot like he kept making himself look like. bro was an emotionally constipated loving loser (affectionate) and loveable. he would risk the wrath of styx to save these kids. positively skrunkly

oh and his power! look guys the former protagonists always had some power to back them up, some good strength. this guy? first not demigod protagonist and he goes from straight up zero to launching a guy to the clouds with his bare hands. and tfw he uses his voiceTM. BEGONE SNAKE! and he acts so pathetic lol and if you look through whatever sunglasses he’s wearing and you look at the things from 3rd person pov dude what is he doing. he just flew off a road driving a car, and puts himself in front of the gremlin child to face one of those creepy zombie things that scream FOOD!!. bro straight up stabbed himself. bro sings the most heart wrenching song that even giant ants that don’t even understand what he’s saying get the point to the extent that they go catatonic with depression.

and holy cheez-its what kind of pain tolerance does this guy have?? dude??? you fell from the literal sky above the Empire State Building which like literal greek heaven (ouch) straight into a dumpster and then gets beat into unconsciousness by a pair of thugs under Nero like??? and with broken ribs, injured nose, hurt shoulder, etc. he walks up the stairs, runs through the woods insane. dude is literally insane. he gets flayed alive, forgets his other half, trapped in place by molten chains all at once and still trying trying to walk wth like this guy’s pain tolerance is beyond ouranos. idk how he does it I can’t even tolerate a hot summer day.

bro gives advice to a lost gremlin child who betrayed him anyway, helps her defeat her abuser the way he never could. and he grew, like everyone around him, to something better, something hopeful. “you’ve changed” heck yeah!! we love to see it

and humor?? like random mentions of things no one else in pjo would give you like playing the zither at 2am, godly toilet seat, ares roundhouse kick, waking up in Argentina. I love that they’re so offhand but they’re so funny and random

the haiku. they’re hilarious, works of art.

the characters. Chiron. Chiara. Damien. Austin. Kayla. Cecil. will. nico. Rachel. Lavinia. emmie. Josephine. heck even Commodus. lityerses. Abelard. Diana. frank. Jason. piper. the trogs. lu. reyna omg. meg. aaaaaaaaAAAAAAAA I love them so much! just how they fit in with his own journey of self and how they grow with him, like a garden, like an orchestra building its crescendo together, in unity. little things like reading frank’s admiration of apollo first in hoo, and now we get apollo’s side of it, and he’s so cute. Reyna’s whole journey of “finding the one who will heal her heart”. (gods I loved that thank you rick.) and will’s “dad!” and making apollo literally weep and meg: “the beast is dead. I killed it.” and taps her head and I'm just so proud of them.

“YOU ARE NO GOD!” he isn’t the same god who fell to earth in the winter. he likely won’t be ever the same ever again. ‘cause he’s gonna work to being better. he’s saving the world, but he’s also having a journey of his own self, rediscovering himself, building onto himself like everyone else, they’re all gonna be a better version of themselves.

k one problem: not enough content. I am starved for content. please feed pet. ty

#rambles #bad quality posts #essay thing #I think #trials of apollo #lester papadopoulos #apollogists #toa apollo

[yelenasdiary]

Flufftober request! Maybe Nat having trouble finding the right time to propose to femR. She keeps getting interrupted by everyone and everything so she just does it spontaneously maybe during a misson or some where odd..you choose!

The Right Time || Flufftober

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Summary: Natasha tried and tried so many times, but it was never the right time, something always came up and now she was getting impatient waiting for the right time, taking matters into her own hands in the oddest of times. 

Fluff | 1.2K | No Warnings

Translations: dorogoy (darling), moy malen'kiy ubiytsa (my little assassin)

AC:  Picturing Nat getting so pissed when she’s planned the perfect set out, but something comes up every damn time lmao. Enjoy!!

Flufftober Masterlist

She sighed heavily as Tony paged the two of you once again during a date night dinner. “We’ll make up for it, honey, I promise” you kissed her lips softly before the two of you made your way out to the car. It didn’t matter her that a date night was easily made up for, what bothered her was she’d been trying for months now to ask you one question. One question what she once thought was never going to be in her future, a future she thought was torn away from her. Just this once she needed the world to not be attacked by some aliens or some overpowered rich man in an iron pressed suit, just this once. 

“Hey” you spoke softly and placed your left hand gently on her thigh while she drove back to the compound, “What’s going on inside that beautiful head of yours?” you asked her, seeing the annoyed expression on her face. “It’s nothing” she mumbled, “I just” she sighed, “I just want one night with you uninterrupted” 

“I know baby, I want the same. I promise, once this mission is over, we can take some time off for the just the two of us” you lent over and placed a kiss on her cheek. Nat looked at you for a few short seconds and cocked a brow, “you think Tony is going to allow us some time off? Every week there’s something going on, every week we are called away” her eyes turned back to the road in front of her. “I’ll talk to him” you suggested. 

It was the first time you’d ever seen Nat so frustrated about going on a mission before, you wondered if maybe she was getting to the point of retiring from being an Avenger which was something you never thought would happen and it worried you. “No dorogoy, it’s okay. We’ll find the time” she sent you a soft smile, but her words didn’t convince you of her feelings. 

The quinjet to the target location was silent on Natasha’s behalf, a grumble here and there made Clint back you for answers, but you could only give him a shrug back. You hated seeing her so upset but this was also a win for the team because as everybody knows, Natasha’s a better shot when she’s pissed off. 

You followed Nat into the building of men as bullets flew between the two of you as you ducked for cover, Nat already having her pistols out showing her best shots while you did your thing of martial arts. “That seems to be the security taken care of” Nat turned to you and smiled, being out in the field with you something she had a love for, always being able to be by your side no matter what. “I’ll take the next floor; I’ll meet you on the 3rd?” you smirked as she nodded. “See you in a minute” she winked before dashing off.

Fighting your way through the second floor of the building was pretty easy when you’re up against the lazy security guards who believed the guys on the first floor had everything under control, they were so not ready to fight and it felt like an easy win for you as you kicked and punched, threw, and ducked. “Sorry boys, maybe next time” you joked before taking out the last guard. “Too damn easy” you muttered to yourself as you made your way back to Natasha. 

To no surprise she’d completely cleared the 3rd floor leaving a mess of bodies behind. “Took you long enough” she smirked as you walk up to her, “now, now, nobody said it was a contest” you replied before grabbing a steal pipe and throwing it at the guy behind Natasha, “seems you missed one” you walked by her only for her to gently grab your arm. “Wait a minute” she said, pulling you close to her, “Nat” you chuckled lightly, “we’re in the middle of something” you added before she crashed her lips onto yours. You kissed her back as she gently cupped your face, she smiled against your lips as you melted into her touch. “moy malen'kiy ubiytsa” she spoke softly as you wrapped your arms gently being her neck, “we still have another two floors too cover” you pointed out as she brushed a strain of hair behind your ear, “I’m sure it can wait just a moment” she replied. 

“I highly doubt that” you chuckled. 

Natasha reached into her suit and pulled out a silver ring with a red diamond on it. A gasp left your lips when your eyes made contact with it. “I’m so tired of waiting for the right time because never is the right time” she spoke with a light smirk. “You picked now of all times?!” you joked more so you wouldn’t cry. “Now’s a better time than ever” she replied, one hand on your waist while her free handheld the ring, “vykhodi za menya, dorogoy” she spoke in a serious tone, her eyes searching yours for an answer as tears lightly made their way down your cheek, “like you ever had to ask me” you stroked her face gently, “yes my love” you smiled softly as she slipped the ring onto your finger. 

“Wait, maybe I could keep it in my pocket until we’re done here” she looked up into your eyes once more. “Probably a good idea” you chuckled as she slipped it off. “I love you so much baby, I can’t wait to call you my wife” she placed the ring back in her suit and kissed tenderly, “now let’s get this over with so I can take you home” she smirked. With that the two of you rushed off to the next floor clearly them of enemies while the rest of the team took care of the outside. 

Once the mission was completed, a short and easy one to Natasha’s relief, the team and you made your way back to the quinjet with the stolen files in Tony’s hands. You and Natasha sat at the back; you rested your head on her lap as she ran her fingers through your hair. “You seem better now” Clint looked at the two of you, “needed to kick some guy’s ass I bet?” he added with a joking smirk. “Yeah, something like that” Natasha smirked as you looked up at her, slowly you sat up and moved yourself onto her lap, “Can we tell them?” you whispered as you looked into her green eyes, she wanted to much to keep it a secret for a little while but she was too excited deep down and nodded before reaching into her suit and slipping the ring back onto your finger. “I’m going to have to get used to this” you kissed her cheek. 

“Agh, can you two wait until we’re home?” Tony groaned with an eyeroll. 

“Don’t talk to my fiancé like that” Natasha frowned playfully as all eyes widened and looked at the two of you, “did you just say fiancé?” Wanda asked. You both nodded with smiles of your own. “Oh my god! It finally happened!” Scott joked. The whole team congratulated the two of you and for the first time Natasha felt everything was finally perfect for her. She had her family, her bigger family and now a new family, with you. 

Taglist: @red1culous | @sayah13 | @charl-lally | @when-wolves-howl | @bentleywolf29 | @fxckmiup | @natasha-belova | @blackwidow-3 | @lissaaaa145 | @high--power | @parkerdaramitzzzz | @mmmmokdok | @wackymcstupid | @kiwiana145 | @shin-conan-kun | @nattyolw | @ripofflizzie | @goofy-goonie | @makegoodchoices | @apollo2907 | @wandaroman0ff | @dumb-fawkin-bitch | @lovelyy-moonlight |

#natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff x reader #fanfiction #black widow #marvel #flufftober

[fandomtrashhh]

Updated for Episode 12

So I did a thing. I went back to every episode of The Winchesters and I wrote down everything that Dean has said so far, and I realized moreso than before how EVERYTHING he says not only is the lesson/theme of the episode, but it all also applies to himself. Also, I'm not sure if other people realize this because not everyone is into classic rock as I am, (many of the songs are rock songs) but all the songs also match what the episodes are about. Let's start with episode 1.

Sorry if I overlooked something or for any mistakes, I did not rewatch every episode to make this.

I also apologize for how long this is. If I knew how to add the "read more" on this post I totally would.

Major spoilers for all episodes of the Winchesters ahead!!!

Episode 1, "Pilot": March 3rd, 1972. The day Dad came home from the war, and the day he met Mom. Now I know this story might sound familiar, but I'm gonna put the pieces together in a way that just might surprise you. And in order to do that, I have to start all the way at the beginning.

Obviously, Dean is just starting the story. He tells us this is when John and Mary are going to meet, and he's also foreshadowing what's to come. This is why I have high hopes for this show, because Dean says so in the beginning that even though you think you might know everything, there's really more to the story.

Dean also narrated at the very end of the episode:

What they didn't know is that the Akrida weren't just a threat to Earth, but to all of existence. Now, like I told you, there's gonna be some surprises. Hell, I'm still trying to find all the puzzle pieces myself. But I'll explain everything. And until then, I'll keep picking the music.

Also something to note is that this is the only episode that has a non music related title. I'm 100% sure that if it did have a song related title, it would be "I'd Love to Change the World" by Ten Years After. The beginning, when Dean is first narrating and while John is holding the letter that Dean gave him and pretty much up to the point where John and Mary run into each other, that song is playing. Then at the very end of the episode, when we see Dean in the flesh, it's playing again. I find this VERY interesting, especially since the music applies to everything in this show. This leads me to believe that Dean really is trying to change something because the song literally says "I'd love to change the world, but I don't know what to do, so I'll leave it up to you." (The song also mentions bees, which I thought was interesting. That could be nothing, though.)

Episode 2 "Teach Your Children Well": The ties that bind a family together can be complicated. Parents raise you, teach you what's right and wrong, and in some instances, how to kill monsters. But no matter who you are, there comes a time when you have to break from them and make your own way. And if you're not careful, things can get pretty ugly.

“Teach Your Children Well” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Let me show you some of the lyrics:

“You, who are on the road

Must have a code that you can live by

And so, become yourself

Because the past is just a goodbye

Teach your children well

Their father's hell did slowly go by

And feed them on your dreams

The one they pick's the one you'll know by

Don't you ever ask them, "Why?"

If they told you, you would cry

So just look at them and sigh

And know they love you”

A big theme in this episode is parents, the guy who goes missing at the beginning for one, but mostly about John’s parents. John and Millie argue over John hunting and all around the episode is about kids forging their own paths and how it can cause issues which I feel like can definitely apply to Dean and how he discovers his identity away from his father and how the things his father put them through were wrong and how that caused issues.

Episode 3 "You’re Lost Little Girl": There's no map to being a hunter. No playbook. You gotta follow your gut. But that can only take you so far. Truth is, you can't do it all on your own. You need other people to help guide the way-- your friends, your family. Otherwise you just end up lost.

“You’re Lost Little Girl” is by The Doors. Some lyrics:

“You're lost little girl

You're lost little girl

You're lost, tell me who

Are you?

Think that you know what to do

Impossible? Yes, but it's true

I think that you know what to do

Yeah

Sure that you know what to do”

In this episode, Mary gets taken by a monster and everyone is trying to find her. Mary thinks that she doesn’t need anyone to help her because she’s a good hunter, but she ends up needing them to save her. It’s the same with Dean, Dean is an amazing hunter, but he still needs his friends and his family.

Episode 4, "Masters of War": Fighting the battle between good and evil isn't easy, especially when the first monster you have to face is the one inside yourself.

“Masters of War” is by Bob Dylan.

The lyrics for this song are very meaningful and well done. To put it simply, it’s about war and criticism of war.

“You fasten all the triggers

For the others to fire

Then you sit back and watch

When the death count gets higher

You hide in your mansion

While the young people's blood

Flows out of their bodies

And is buried in the mud”

In this episode, John and Carlos talk about their trauma from the Vietnam War and we really get an insight to how much anger John has in him. John is Dean’s parallel in this episode because Dean has a lot of unresolved trauma and deep rooted anger that is mentioned in Supernatural and it also fits because Dean was used as a weapon in a war against the supernatural from a young age.

Episode 5, "Legacy of a Mind": Spending a lifetime of hunting monsters takes its toll. There comes a time when you gotta let out that pain inside you. If you don't, it'll eat you alive.

The song “Legacy of a Mind” is by The Moody Blues

“He'll fly his astral plane

Takes you trips around the bay

Brings you back the same day”

This can be applied to what happens in this episode where Mary is stuck in her own head and has to face her trauma, and this song pretty much talks about trippy things like the lyrics above.

This applies so well to the episode because this episode deals with the complicated relationship that Mary has with her parents and her dealing with the trauma she has with being trained to be a hunter from a very young age and how it was wrong of them to do that to her, but she still loves her parents. This also applies to Dean, since John taught him about hunting from a young age, the same way Samuel and Deanna did to Mary. Mary is once again the Dean parallel, like she often is in this show.

Episode 6 "Art of Dying": Hunting has a way of changing a person. After a while, right, wrong, good, evil, they all start to look the same. And then it makes you start to wonder, "Who's really the monster here -- them or me?"

This is the only other episode where Dean narrated at the end:

Hunting's not for everyone. You have to be strong, stay sharp, make tough decisions, and it's not easy, but then again, the righteous things never are.

The Art of Dying is by George Harrison:

"There'll come a time when all of us must leave here

Then nothing sister Mary can do

Will keep me here with you

As nothing in this life that I've been trying

Could equal or surpass the art of dying

Do you believe me?"

and then the end of the song goes:

"There'll come a time when most of us return here

Brought back by our desire to be

A perfect entity

Living through a million years of crying

Until you've realized the art of dying

Do you believe me?"

This episode the core four finds a case involving an older hunter buddy of Mary's and it turns out that the monster is the ghost of the hunter's friend who the hunter friend and her group killed because he went too dark in magic. That's how the episode applies to Dean's monologue, along with Lata's fear of turning into someone horrible and letting her anger control her. John also (kinda) confronts his anger in this episode. The monologue also talks about how being a hunter is hard, but doing the right thing never is, which also applies to the characters of this episode, especially Lata. This applies to Dean because he really dealt with feelings like that during SPN, and being angry all the time and feeling like he was a monster, and how he always chooses to do the right thing when it comes down to saving the world, even when it's near impossible to.

Episode 7 "Reflections": There comes a time in every hunt when the fightin' starts. And the difference between winning and losing isn't whether you have the holy water, the wooden stake, or the silver bullet. It's whether you've got the grit to get the job done.

Reflections is by the Supremes:

"Through the mirror of my mind

Through all these tears that I'm crying

Reflects a hurt I can't control

Although you're gone

I keep holding on

To those happy times

Oh, girl when you were mine

As I peer through the windows

Of lost time

Keeping looking over my yesterdays

And all the love I gave all in vain

(All the love) All the love

That I've wasted

(All the tears) All the tears

That I've tasted

All in vain

Through the hollow of my tears

I see a dream that's lost

From the hurt baby

That you have caused"

I think this one represents loss, especially the loss of Henry. Dean's monologue ties into this because in this episode there are multiple instances where the characters show real strength and bravery in order to come out the other side with a win. And this can obviously be applied to Dean and everything he has done and hunted and how brave he had to be to be able to actually get the job done.

Episode 8, "Hang on to Your Life”: Being a hunter, it means living a life of sacrifice-- not a lot of room for dreams. But if you open your heart and get a little lucky, you'll find you gain more than you lose.

Hang On To Your Life is by Guess Who:

“Thinking 'bout it's here and it's real

Wondering how I really should feel

Well you can sell your soul

But don't you sell it too cheap

Hang on to your life, oh life, oh life, oh life, oh life

Hang on to your life

Thinking 'bout betraying a friend

Thinking 'bout delaying the end

Well you can ride the wind

But don't you ride it too high”

This episode is about Carlos’ dream of being a musician and how he had to give that up when he became a hunter. The parts about selling his soul and betraying a friend applies to the band member that Carlos used to play with and how he accidentally made a deal and because he “betrayed” Carlos by selling him out to Loki.

Dean’s monologue applies to the theme of found family in this episode. Even though they’re all a part of this life and had to give up their dreams, there is good that came from it in the form of family and friends, the same way that Dean found himself a family in the midst of it all. This is also the episode where John and Mary decided to get together, again proving that they can find something worthwhile, right before they found the picture of Dean. (Insert Miranda Cosgrove meme)

Episode 9 "Cast Your Fate to the Wind": This isn't how I saw things going when I pushed over that first domino. Thing is, I've had more than a few dances with free will and fate, but as my dad used to say, "Fate is what you make it."

The song here is actually a song that I didn’t know. It’s a jazz song by Vince Guaraldi. Honestly, reading the lyrics to this song make me think SO MUCH of John and who he becomes, and I’m actually going to put in the entire lyrics because I can’t chose one section that I feel is most important:

“A month of nights, a year of days

Octobers drifting into Mays

I set my sail when the tide comes in

And I just cast my fate to the wind

I shift my course along the breeze

Won't sail up wind on memories

The empty sky is my best friend

And I just cast my fate to the wind

That time has a way of changing a man throughout the years

And now I’m rearranging my life through all my tears

Alone, alone, alone

There never was, there couldn't be

A place in time for men like me

Who'd drink the dark and laugh at day

And let their wildest dreams blow away

That time has a way of changing a man throughout the years

And now I’m rearranging my life through all my tears

Alone, alone, alone

So now I’m old, I’m wise, I’m smart

I’m just a man with half a heart

I wonder how it might have been

Had I not cast my fate to the wind

To the wind, to the wind”

Like, come on. This is so John coded in who he becomes and what happens to him. In terms of how this song applies to the episode though, it applies to the theme of fate throughout the episode, which ties in with what Dean says at the beginning. “Fate is what you make it.” This speaks true to John in this episode because he uses the knowledge of his death to his advantage and makes his own fate, which Millie uses the “fate is what you make it” line. I find this episode very interesting because they use the theme of fate in an episode that deals with vampires, and has a whole scene that parallels 15x18 AND Carlos gets to kiss his male love interest. Dean’s monologue at the beginning applies to himself because he’s dealt with fate and free will plenty of times in Supernatural.

I also find it interesting that Dean said that this isn't how he saw things going when he pushed over that first domino, which begs the question of what did he expect? What was his goal in doing all of this? It's also worth noting that immediately after he says that he says "fate is what you make it," saying the two apply to each other, go hand in hand. I don't think it's a stretch to say that whatever his intentions were, whatever he did, had to do with controlling his own fate.

So, just to recap: in an episode where the two main characters are dealing with being in a new relationship and whether or not they want to tell people, one of those main characters dies from a vampire in a direct parallel to the 15x18 confession, and two men have an on screen kiss for the first time, and the entire theme of the episode is fate. That's VERY interesting to me.

Episode 10 "Suspicious Minds": Hunting and happy endings don't usually mix, so when you get your chance, you got to ask yourself, "How far will I go to get it?"

This can be read as a direct tie in to his monologue in the last episode! It's along the same lines!!

Something I've noticed is that each episode I feel like the monologues get deeper and more meaningful, the farther we go the more is revealed.

This Dean monologue ends right as John and Mary get interrupted while they're kissing and Mary says "normal will have to wait another day" while there's a close up of Mary's college application as a mirror to SPN 15x20 with Dean's job application. Something I thought was interesting.

Suspicious Minds is an Elvis Presley song, which I know that the trend here is to include 60's and 70's songs, but knowing the intense meaning of Elvis in the Destiel fandom makes me feel a little unwell knowing Elvis actually gets incorporated into the text.

"Oh, let our love survive

I'll dry the tears from your eyes

Let's don't let a good thing die

When honey, you know I've never lied to you

Mmm, yeah, yeah

We're caught in a trap

I can't walk out

Because I love you too much, baby

Why can't you see

What you're doing to me

When you don't believe a word I say?"

So this is very much talking about one of the big plot points of this episode, a man who tries to bring his dead wife back to life in such desperation that he's willing to kill innocents to do it. Now the parallels drawn in this episode are very intentional to both John and Mary, even including the dialogue they speak after they kill said man and how John thinks that's love and Mary thinks it's horrible and she essentially makes him promise that that will never be them (clear foreshadowing) when in reality, even though it's showing that John already had the mindset of "doing it out of love" as he does in the future, they're both guilty of that. Mary brings John back to life when Azazel kills him, and as we all know, after Mary's death John goes on a revenge mission, wasting his life and putting his children through hell in the process. It's also just a running theme throughout SPN of toxic codependency and how almost every major character is also guilty of going to great lengths to bring the ones they love back. The song lyrics also apply to John and Mary as a romantic relationship as well and can show how their relationship is now and foreshadow what will happen in the future.

The thing that is different about this episode though, is that even though the parallels in this episode can apply to Dean, the actual Dean monologue doesn't, and this is what I find really weird and what I think is honestly one of the biggest indications that Jensen really is writing a fix it fanfiction:

This is the only episode where his monologue doesn't directly apply to himself. Every other episode ties in to his own experiences, except for this one. Dean doesn't go to great lengths to get himself a happy ending. Happy endings for other characters? Absolutely. But not for himself. Why would this be the only episode that doesn't directly relate to him? Well me and a lot of other people think because it really does apply to himself. But not as something he experienced in the past or has knowledge on, but as something he is doing right now. He is actively changing his future, possibly even a future with Cas (I do really think that there's a solid possibility that Destiel will become 100% canon in this show because of how everything is being set up, all of the parallels, and the fact that some of the cast, the social media team, and an executive producer has acknowledged some of these said parallels.) So in the end, how far will Dean go to get his happy ending?

Episode 11 "You've Got a Friend": Being a hunter means always being on the move. But no matter how hard you plan, no matter how hard you work, at a certain point, we all run out of road. It's what we do with those crossroads that define us.

"You've Got a Friend" is a song by Carole King from 1971:

"When you're down and troubled

And you need some lovin' care

And nothin', nothin' is goin' right

Close your eyes and think of me

And soon I will be there

To brighten up even your darkest night

You just call out my name

And you know, wherever I am

I'll come runnin'

To see you again

Winter, spring, summer or fall

All you have to do is call

And I'll be there

You've got a friend"

This represents Betty, and how in this episode she goes from being a potential source of trouble for the gang to becoming an ally, or a "friend" and an inside woman for them. This also can be applied to Carlos and Lata because Carlos was there for Lata and helped support her while Lata told Carlos about her childhood trauma.

In this episode, Dean's monologue is about the choices you make before you die. This can be seen in the choices made throughout this episode by multiple characters (Betty, Mary, John, etc) and this ties in with the song because no matter what choices you make, you'll have your friends by your side, which is true to Dean and just Supernatural as whole with their message of family and found family. Admittedly, I feel like the connection to Dean's voiceover and to the title of this episode aren't as strong as a lot of the previous episodes, but they're still there. (Betty, the "friend," makes a choice to work with the rest of the gang.) At the same time, I believe this can also be another instance of foreshadowing because Dean is dead, he's at that metaphorical cross road, and he's making a choice to go into the past.

As I said above, Lata faced her trauma. This is the 4th or 5th instance of someone on this show confronting their past. At this point, it's become a theme. Why would the show reiterate this point over and over? I think this will tie into Dean's reasons for why he's in the 70's. Not to mention this was yet ANOTHER episode where 2 characters are trapped in a room, and this time because of a shadow monster, and the only way to get out is if one confesses a deep secret. What the fuck.

Something to keep in mind is how much this episode emphasized secrets. This seems to foreshadow the fact that Dean is harboring some huge secrets that will soon be discovered. I think the real question now is how will these secrets be revealed to the audience and to our characters?

Episode 12 "The Tears of a Clown": Hunting is a dishonest business. You lie about who you are, and what you do. But the hardest lies aren't what you tell other people, but what you tell yourself."

The song "The Tears of a Clown" was released in 1967 by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles:

"Now if there's a smile on my face

It's only there trying to fool the public

But when it comes down to fooling you

Now honey that's quite a different subject

But don't let my glad expression

Give you the wrong impression

Really I'm sad, oh I'm sadder than sad

You're gone and I'm hurting so bad

Like a clown I appear to be glad (sad, sad, sad, sad)"

Okay, so this episode gave me a lot of brainrot. What the song is expressing is that even if you seem happy, that doesn't mean you are, and that was the big theme of this episode. Just because you seem okay or even think you're okay, that doesn't mean you are. With John, that applies to his anger issues and his unresolved issues with being charged for a murder he didn't commit. For Mary, it's the issues she already has, plus being unhappy in her relationship with John because she thinks he's using their relationship as an escape, and this also applies to her because even though she got accepted into college, she hadn't really taken any steps towards a normal life since then. In general, this episode was about a clown who lures emotionally vulnerable people into his circus tent so he can force them to be "happy" even though they aren't, like we saw with Roger.

This can very much apply to Dean's voice over, because the characters in this episode, including the clown, are actively lying to themselves.

The thing is, like a lot of Dean's voice overs, it's intentionally vague. He could be referring to literally anything. In the context of this episode, it makes the most sense that this is referring to Dean's anger issues and the fact that throughout the entirety of Supernatural, Dean oftentimes told himself and the people around him that he was okay, even though he wasn't. But at the same time, these voice overs and one like this in particular can be interpreted in different ways. What Dean says about facing the lies you tell yourself can apply to sexuality. Dean could be talking about not only his mental and emotional issues, but he could also be referencing being in love with Cas. At this point, Destiel happening feels like genuine build up. Now all we have to do is wait a couple more days to see if it all pays off.

#supernatural #destiel #spn #dean winchester #castiel #the winchesters #spnwin #john winchester #mary campbell #spnwin theory #destiel theory #spnwin meta #destiel meta #this literally took FOREVER #i had to get this out before 1x11 #so here you go #if anyone cares to read this long ass post #dean winchester voice overs #dean winchester vos #dean winchester lives #updated for episode 11

[fullt4nk]

Comfortable (scotty x blk! lesbian! reader)

this is the 3rd fic i’ve written on here… it’s fluff 🤭

ngl ts had me giggling scotty is so soft and lovable

warnings: lol nothin but fluff, reader and scotty are in their early 20s, kinda ooc scotty? idk she’s just not a stalker in this, waking up with scotty 🫶🏾

ya girl turned 20 on the 19th so pls give me birthday wishes in the comments lol🤭

scotty was the most enticing woman you’ve ever seen. long lashes relaxed as her eyes were glued shut from sleep, lips slightly open as her slow, even breathing was the only sound she made as she slept. you wanted nothing more than to attach your lips to her plump ones, but you resisted, too scared that you would startle her awake. slowly, you draped your legs over your bed, trying your best not to wake scotty out of her light sleeping ways. closing your eyes, you took a deep breath, relishing in the new day that has been blessed upon you with your lovely girlfriend.

you stood up and walked to the bright, sharp rays of sunlight coming from your window. with the windows open and the slight autumn breeze blowing your curtains, you could hear the birds chirping, people walking and talking, and the road from below you. you looked outside your shared bedroom window as you saw the liveliness outside of your apartment. a couple struck your attention; two black boys, one with pink dyed hair and the other blond. they looked young, around the age of high school students, and they were laughing heartily as their arms were draped over each other. you wondered in the back of your mind, ‘what are those two laughing about?’ you smiled lightly at the adorable sight and averted your gaze from the two, not wanting to seem like a creep.

just then, you felt a pair of hands behind you wrapped around your waist, caressing the silk of your night top. the body attached to the hands came up closer behind you, and you could feel scotty’s entire body against your back with her head in the crevice of your neck. “why’d you leave?” she asked, mumbling into your neck. she slightly pulled your body connected to hers, a small gesture to come back to bed with her.

“i never left, my love, just wanted to look out the window for a bit,” you reassured her. “it’s cold outside; don’t stand by the windows you might get sick.”

you smiled lightly as she pulled you back into bed with her. you turned around to face her front and wrapped your arms around her torso. she placed her hand on your cheek, an endearing way to comfort you and tell you she was grateful to see you this lovely morning. she leaned in impossibly closer and placed a chaste kiss to your lips. that was enough for you.

“you wanna know what I saw out there?” you asked with your lips slightly turned upwards; you knew she’d say yes. “what’d you see, love?”

“I saw the cutest little couple outside around fifteen, and they had their hair dyed cute colors too. and the way they looked at each other was adorable. like they were the only people in the world,” you stopped for a second to reminisce. you shrugged with a meek smile on your face, “I don’t know. It made me remember when we were that young.”

scotty giggled as she closed her eyes, resting her forehead on yours. “ugh, you make us sound so old,” she joked. but scotty remembered. she remembers it like it was yesterday. kissing in the girls bathroom, holding hands on the bus rides and whispering sweet nothings in each other’s ears, scotty taking you out on little dates after school, all of it. all the moments you shared in high school were the first moments you hung up on your shared fridge the day you moved in together, courtesy of scotty’s old camera. she printed out all the photos you took together on your old dates and hung them up for both of you to see. ”yeah, I remember. of course, I remember. but we’re not that far off you know? I still look at you like you’re the only girl in the world,” and to scotty, you really were.

you leaned into scotty, capturing her lips with yours as you kiss her slowly. your hands come to her face and slowly traveling to her hair, running your fingers gently through her silky hair. scotty pulls away from you breathless as she stares at you silently. she chuckled softly as nothing else needed to be said. you felt her love practically radiating off her body, and you felt it deep in your soul. a love like this was rare, but you could proudly say that scotty was yours. she chose you from the very day she laid eyes on you, and you knew it because you chose her too.

YAYYYYY I LOVE THIS SO MUCH

I added the two lil gay boys, NOT TO BE CREEPY, but I just love seeing black love ESPECIALLY black GAY love, which is why reader is black

I love seeing people in love, and I love being able to experience love

I ❤️ LOVE

lol thanks for reading 🫶🏾🫶🏾

#letitia wright #shuri x reader #letitia wright scotty #shuri #scotty banana #banana #shuri is for the bitches #letitia wright shuri #shuri x y/n #shuri imagine #letitia wright x reader #vivienne scott #vivienne scott x reader

[heartfeltcierra]

Dude where's my submarine? Part 2 of Isekaied Law X Female Reader

Part 1- Here Part 3- Here

Masterlist

AN- I'm working on the 3rd and final part currently, hopefully I'll have it up sometime next weekend!

Word count 3.5K

!!Dressrosa arc spoilers!!

Warnings/Content- Law almost burns your house down, Light cursing, Angst (Abandonment issues), Modern day content and references, Mentions of violence, Driving without a license (Guess who) , Mentions of suggestive music and suggestive content.

Enjoy ʕ •ᴥ•ʔゝ☆

 

The smell of something burning jolted you from your peaceful dreams. Oh no. You jump up from the bed and run to the spare bedroom Law was in.

 “Law get up!” You slam the door open only to see the bed neatly made. He’s not here.

 “ROOM.” You faintly Law’s voice.“SHAMBLES.” In the blink of an eye you were in the smoke filled kitchen standing beside an irritated Law.

 “What happened?” There were a bunch of ingredients out on the countertops and a frying pan that had flames erupting from it. “OH HELL.” You grab the pan and run it over to your kitchen sink. More smoke fills the kitchen as the fire is doused by water. Crisis averted. “Law are you okay?” 

 “Yeah, but I can't say the same about the eggs." You could tell from his tone and flushed cheeks that he was embarrassed beyond belief. “I wanted to return the favor since you cooked for me last night, but…” He points over to your laptop that sat on the kitchen table. “I got carried away, I’m truly sorry Y/N.” 

 “Accidents happen, don’t worry about it. As long as you're okay.” You look at the pan and see no trace of egg, just a inciarated mass stuck to the bottom. “I can’t tell you how many times I’d put a pizza in the oven and forget about it. Needless to say, I've about burnt my house down plenty of times. Don’t sweat it.” Law seems grateful that you're not angry with him. “I’ll go out and get us something to make. I need to grab a few more things anyway since you’ll be here for a while!”

 “Mind if I go with you?”

 “Surel. I’ll go get ready and I’ll be right back down.”

~~~~

 “What’s this?” Law points at your parked car.

 “It’s my ‘ship’ so to say. But it’s actually called a car!” You unlock the doors with the remote, causing the headlights to blink. “In this world there are plenty of things used for transportation.  We have trains that can go across the entire country, metros in the larger cities, and even airplanes that can take you just about anywhere in the world!”

 “Wow.” His lips were slightly parted in awe. “What’s its name?”

 “Umm.. The Honda civic?” Law does a few circles around the car, surveying the unfamiliar vessel. He’s so cute. “Wait until you see the inside!”  You get into the car followed by Law.

 “I won’t lie.” Law watches as you start the engine up.. “This is pretty cool.” 

 “It is. Not to mention it's also really good on gas and in this world that says a lot because gas prices are crazy expensive and-” You look over and see Law paying you zero attention. He was too busy playing with the AC buttons to listen to your economic rant.

~~~~

 You drive down the road as Law plays with every button in the car. It was understandable, because if you ever ended up on his ship you’d explore it top to bottom. I’ve got an idea!

 “Let me show my favorite thing about the car.” You click the button that turns the radio on. The familiar upbeat pop song puts a smile on your face. “I love this song!” Word for word you sung the lyrics not caring one bit about the fact Law was right beside you. When the song ended you glance over at him to see his face was red all the way to the tips of his ears. “Law are you okay?”

 “Are lyrics like that normal?” Reality hit you. You had just sung a very suggestive and raunchy song right in front of him. You join him in blushing. I wonder what kind of face he’d make if I played WAP?

~~~~

 “So this is It.” You lock your car door and point at the blue and beige building. “Walmart~This is where you can get just about anything. Food, clothes, hygiene products, gifts, you name it, they got it.”

 “Wow…” He let out a low whistle. You smile at his bewilderment and continue walking in.

 “If you're surprised now just wait until you see the insi--” Your words get stuck in your throat when a car starts to back up right in front of you. It was pulling out too fast for you to react.

 “Y/N!” It felt like your life flashed before your very eyes. The car was inches away from hitting you, but a pair of strong arms pulled you away before it could.

 “Watch where you're walking dumbasses!” The person in the car reaches a hand out to flip you and Law off before speeding away.

 “I’ll kill that bastard.” Law grits his teeth as he holds your trembling body closer to him. It took you a moment to process that you almost got killed. 

 “It’s okay Law.” You look up at him with watery eyes. “I’m a little shaken up, but I’m not hurt and killing people is very frowned upon here.” His grip on you loosens so you can pull back. You wipe the forming tears out of your eyes. “It would be pretty embarrassing for my death to have been in a Walmart parking lot, so thanks for saving me.” You joke, trying to lighten the mood.

 “I’m glad you're alright. Still…..” 

 “It's alright Law. Let’s go on in.” Trying to change the subject, you take a few steps forward but stop when an arm wraps around your back.

 “Stay close to me in case something like that happens again.” Law must have sensed your nervousness, the angry look was replaced by his signature smirk. “But if it does I can’t make any promises on whether or not I’ll let them live.”

 ~~~~

 “This place really does have everything.” You watch as Law soaks in all of the surroundings.

 “It sure does.” You hum. “Feel free to grab whatever you want.”

 You and Law walk around without any rhyme or reason. From time to time he would stop to look at something. Your favorite thing so far is when he saw a one piece t-shirt. You could tell he was a little salty about him not being on it. 

 “Y/N.” Law leans down to grab your attention. “Why are people staring?” You look around the aisle and see that people were indeed fact staring and you knew why.

 “Your really handsome Law so of course people are going to stare.” Crap I said that outloud?

 “So you think I’m handsome Y/N?"

 “Was the shirtless figure and stories I've written about you not enough proof?” You playfully nudge your hip into his side.

 “Oh it was.” His eyes lock onto your blushing face. “But what makes you think they aren’t staring at you?” 

 “When I say this please know I’m not fishing for compliments. But for this world I’m nothing special.” You open one of the freezer section doors to retrieve a pint of ice cream. “I don't think I've mentioned, but the beauty standards in this world are quite high.”

 “Looks aren’t everything Y/N. But I think you're pretty. And weirdly charming.” The pint of ice cream in your hand almost falls into the floor. Law just called me pretty and (weirdly) charming?  “Plus you're a good person. Although I don’t know much about you yet, that much I can tell.” He grabs the ice cream from your hands and puts it in the cart.

 “Thanks.” You have to turn away to hide the giddy smile plastering your face.

 Little did you know Law could see your wide smile thanks to the reflection of the freezer's glass door. How cute

 ~~~~

 The next morning

 You woke up on the couch with Law sitting on the other end. That’s right, we stayed up watching a medical drama. He was looking at  something on your laptop with an evil smirk. What did he find this time?

 “That’s a pretty sinister look you got going on Law?” You poke his leg with your foot to get his attention. He turns his head before spinning the screen towards you.

 “I could watch this all day.” You squint your eyes to read the video's title. ‘Doflamingo getting his ass kicked to dubstep music- 10 hour loop.’ “I wish it was me in all honesty, but I do enjoy seeing that bastard get his ass handed to him by Strawhat.”

 “I’m sure you do.” You refrain from laughing. It was hilarious seeing how satisfied he looked every time Luffy’s foot kicked the side of Doflamingo’s head. “Want to know something kind of funny Law?” He pauses the video and nods. “So there was an episode in the Dressrosa arc titled "Law Dies - Luffy's Raging Onslaught!”. When I saw the title I started balling my eyes out. I thought you were going to die.” It is funny to you now, but back then you were going through all the stages of grief at once.

 “I thought I was going to die back then too.” Law shuts the laptop and places it back on the coffee table. “But, I’m glad I didn’t. It’s not what he would have wanted.” 

 “You're talking about Cora, aren’t you?” Law nods. 

 “Yeah, I am.” A bittersweet smile forms on Law’s lips. “He was my savior. He got me out of a dark mindset. I owe everything to him.” He turns his head to face you. “Did you ever have anyone like that in your life?”

 “Well if I’m being honest.” Not one real person comes to mind. Everyone in your life has left or abandoned you. But there was still someone who got you through some hard times. “As odd as this may sound, It’s kinda you.” His eyes widened at your declaration. “You are my favorite character for a reason. There’s been many times I’ve had a bad day and seeing you would make me feel better. It's weird to explain but someone told me once that humans in my universe can’t tell the difference between real people and fictional people. Our brains process them as if they were real. So it’s probably the reason why…” 

 “Well I am real.” Law held his hand up. His words remind you that the character you adore is literally a few feet away from you in the flesh. You scooch over to him and bring your hand up to his. “See?” You smile feeling his warm hand against yours. “I may not be from this universe, but I’m still real and I will always be.” 

 “Yeah. You're right.” You pull your hand away and wipe a few tears from your eyes. 

 “Are you crying?” Law asked with concern in his voice.

 “Yeah, but I’m okay.” They weren't sad tears, they were more tears of relief and comfort than anything. “Fun fact about me, I cry easily.” You laugh and dry the rest of the tears off with your sleeve. “I’m sorry I dampened the mood, but I do have an idea to lighten it. And I think you’ll like it.”

 “What do you have in mind?”

 “I say me and you go out.” He shoots you a smirk as if to say ‘go on’. “Have you ever had hibachi?”

~~~~

 Seeing how cute you look in the mirror brought a smile to your face. Since you were going out with Law you got a little dressed up for the occasion .You went with a (F/C) dress that compliments your body's shape and a cute pair of sandals. After one last glance over you walk downstairs to wait on Law.

 You walk to your front door only to see Law already dressed and waiting for you. He turns around to face you and Oh my God.. To say he looked good would be such an understatement. He wore the dark maroon button up you got him with the sleeves rolled up, exposing his arm tattoos. He also had on the jeans you secretly wanted to see him wear. They may look like a simple pair of black jeans, but the silver chains decorating his thighs made them stand out.

 “Are you ready to go?” Law waves his hand in front of your face in an attempt to snap you out of your trance.

 “Oh right.” Judging from the smirk on his face, he knew you were checking him out. It’s not my fault you look like a model. “Let’s go.” You grab your car keys and purse before heading out the door.

~~~~

 “Here we are!” You got out of the car with Law and stood in front of the restaurant. “Are you ready?” 

 “Of course I am.” 

~~~~

A few moments later…

 “Y/N why is the food on fire?!” Law leans back in his chair as if the flames were going to get him. I thought you were ready?

 “It’s okay Law.” You place your hand on his back. “I’ll protect you from the big bad onion volcano.”

 “Is he okay?” The hibachi chef laughs seeing how skittish Law was.

 “Yeah he's fine." You laugh and give Law a few pats on the back. "He acts like he’s not from this world or something.”

 “Here.” The chef held up the bottle filled with sake in front of Law. “A little something to calm your nerves.” He hesitates for a moment but opens, letting the chef send the sake right into his mouth. The chef stops once Law’s mouth is full and goes right back to cooking. His golden eyes stare into your soul as he swallows the liquid in one gulp. That was kinda hot. He wiggles his index finger, motioning you to lean closer to him.

 “I hope teasing me was worth it.” His voice was low in your ear. What does that mean? “And the sake in your world sucks.”

 You spend the rest of your (last) meal thinking just what diabolical thing Law was going to do to you. Is he going to chop my body up? Or maybe he’ll take my voice box? Or…

 “Y/N are you ready to go?” Law’s voice pulled you from your thoughts.

 “Oh yeah.” You stood up with Law. “Thank you for the food, it was delicious!” 

 “You're welcome. I hope you and your boyfriend have a goodnight!” You and Law look at each with wide eyes, but neither you or him corrected the man.

 ~~~~

 “So did you like the food?” You buckle up and turn the engine on. Please don’t kill me.

 “I did, but don’t think for a second that I forgot about you teasing me.” Your body freezes up at his words. I wonder what kind of flowers will be at my funeral?  “ROOM.” Your eyes slam shut. Goodbye cruel world..  “SHAMBLES.” You open your eyes to see you're still alive and intact, but you are now in the passenger seat. 

 “Law! You don’t know how to drive?” You panic seeing him put the car in drive. “That and you don’t have a driver's license? What if we get pulled over?” 

 “Sure I know how, I’ve watched you do it enough to figure it out.” Law gives the car a little gas. “And what’s the big deal of not having a license and getting pulled over?”

 “Umm I don’t know Law, maybe it’s the fact WE'D GET ARRESTED.” Your eyes watch his every move like a hawk. 

 “Have you forgotten I’m a pirate Y/N? Plus I have the advantage over everyone in this world.” He was right. No one could stop Law with his devil fruit power. “So relax. It will be okay.” You roll your eyes at his nonchalant attitude.

 “Fine. Just be careful.” Law smirks triumphantly and continues driving. Despite your initial fear, Law was actually a good driver. His movements were smooth and calculated, very fitting for his character. He was gentle with the brakes, (And unlike most drivers) he used the turn signals. You can’t help but be jealous seeing how he was a true natural.

 “Aren’t you going to sing?” Law gestures towards the radio. 

 “Do you want me to?” You raise your brow suspiciously.

 “Yeah I do. Maybe something different this time though.” He smirks remembering all the dirty words that came from your mouth the other day.

 “Sure, let me hook my phone up.” You plug your phone in and scroll through your playlist. A smile forms on your lips seeing the title of your favorite slow songs. The soft melody comes through the speakers as you sing. 

 In that moment Law didn’t care if you sounded like an angel that had freshly ascended from heaven or if you sounded like two pieces of metal grinding together. He was just happy to hear you doing something you enjoy. 

So she likes to sing?

~~~~

 It had been a few days since you and Law went out. In that time you’ve grown more comfortable with each other. He’s opened up to you about things from his past, even telling you things that the show never went over. He also told you all the stories from his early years of being a pirate and how he met Bepo and the rest of the crew. With that being said you’ve also been spilling more details about yourself. Everything from embarrassing stories from your childhood, the questionable things you did as a teenager and even a few funny stories from your current adult life. 

  Despite all the fun your having, your heart hurts knowing you only have a little time left with Law.  Having him around reminded you how nice it was to have someone to talk to. But when he's gone… I need to live in the moment and quit thinking about what’s to come.

"You seem lost in thought Y/N." You turn your attention to Law who's sitting at the other end of the couch. "What's on your mind?" You.

"It's nothing." You lie and go back to scrolling through your phone.

"You really think I'm going to buy that?" Law made his way over to you and took your phone from your hands."Talk to me."

"Well." Your eyes stray away from his fierce gaze. "I was just thinking about how boring things are going to be when your gone."

"Way to kill the vibes Y/N." You laugh hearing Law copy your lingo. "But I've been thinking about some things myself."

"What's on the surgeon of deaths mind?"

“I do go back to my world in two days...” His tone turns serious. “And you’ll be alone again and the thought of that has been bothering me.” You frown. I know I will. “With that being said. I need you to promise me that you will go out and try to make some friends." His request floors you. The painful memories of people leaving you and abandoning you come flooding in, but a tattooed hand pulls you out before you can drown. "Things may not work out at first but keep trying. I'm sure there are people out there that are just as weird and dorky as you." Law teases to clear the building tension in the room.

 “Is there something wrong with me being weird and dorky?" You give Law a heavy dose of side eye.

"Actually." Law leans in a little closer to you ear. "I like it." You could feel his hot breath against the shell of your ear. "I like it alot." He blows into you ear causing you to jerk away from him.

You retreat to the far end of the couch while nervously watching him. "Are you done teasing me?" The devilish smirk on his face said it all. His tattooed hand grabs a pillow placing it next to him. "Law what are you doing?

"Whatever I want to." "ROOM." Dammit. "SHAMBLES." Your body takes the pillows spot next to Law. "Now." Your heart felt like it was going to leap from your chest as he lazily wraps a arm around your shoulders. "Do you think you can keep that promise?"

"Yeah, I will. But only if you stop teasing me." A satisfied hum comes from Law hearing your answer.

"Good. And in what way am I teasing you?" Law tries to sounds innocent knowing full well the affect he has on you. "Also you might want to breathe before you black out."

"My breathing is just fine. thank you." I need to calm down.

"Your a bad liar Y/N." You were about to defend yourself but every function in your body stopped working as his fingers ghost around to the side of your neck. "But this tells me everything I need to know." Two fingers tap over your pulse point. "Tachycardia is a very dangerous condition if left untreated, luckily for you I'm a Doctor~"

"Well Doctor, what is the cure for it?" You say sarcastically.

"ASMR videos of people cutting soap should do the trick. " He grabs the laptop from the coffee table and pulls up youtube. "Just so you know my medical expertise comes at a high cost and I expect you to pay in full." You roll your eyes and relax against his chest.

"Just bill my insurance."

#law x reader #law one piece #trafalgar law #op law #one piece #one piece x reader #one piece x you #law x you #law x female reader #trafalgar d law x reader #trafalgar one piece #law x y/n #law angst #law fluff

[imagines4thefandoms]

Trapped Apart

word count 10k+

y/n gothel joins the VKs on their mission to get the magic wand from Auradon prep. follows the events of the first movie

Here you were again grounded or more accurately trapped. Mother was having another one of her episodes and she refused to let you leave. And it wasn’t because she was worried about your safety. No, she just didn’t want you to leave her like your “older sister” did. Not that you and Rapunzel were actually sisters that’s just what mother called her.

This was the 3rd night this week where she locked you in your room. And just like that, your plans flew out the window. Now you were about to spend tonight like you had the past three: alone wrapped in your one blanket that wasn’t torn and reading one of the few books on the isle that wasn’t falling apart. It was that book Rapunzel’s boo thang read as a kid “The Tales of Fylnnigan Rider.”

Your attention was pulled from the book when you heard light tapping at the window. Someone was throwing rocks at your window and since they weren’t big enough to brake the window you knew exactly who it was. After putting your book back in its hiding place your raced over to the window. Standing below in his normal red leather clothes holding his hook was your amazing boyfriend, Harry.

“Y/n, come one Uma’s pissed you’re not at work,” he whispered yelled from down below.

Even though he was maybe 10 feet below you, you could hear him. You could also see the smug look on his face that he got every time he came and rescued you from the tower. While the world saw him and everyone else on the isle as villains;Harry Hook would always be you knight in shining armor, your prince and he knew it.

You lifted the cushion of the seat that was right next to your window and pulled the rope from the inside and threw the half that wasn’t attached to the chair out the window. You watched as Harry attached his hook to his waist and held his arms up to catch you if you fell. Holding onto the rope as tight as you can, you climbed out of your window. No matter matter how many times you do this you always seem to lose your grip two feet above your boyfriend. So it’s not a matter of if you fall but when.

“I love it when you fall for me, princess,” Harry said holding you bridal style.

He says that cheesy phrase every time he has to catch you. Harry could help you get stronger so you don’t fall sneaking out but he loves holding you in his arms so he doesn’t mention it. The pirate stood there holding you for a few more minutes til he heard kids run past screaming and laughing.

“Uma, expecting us,” you said getting out of his hold and setting your feet on the ground.

“That she is,” he replied holding you against his body and keeping his hands on your waist.

“We should head over to the restaurant,” you said looking up at him and just staring into his light gray eyes.

“That we should,” he whispered as his lips ghosted over yours.

You closed your eyes expecting to get a loving kiss from him but after a minute of nothing, you opened your eyes and saw him two feet ahead of you.

“Harry Hook,” you exclaimed slapping his bicep.

“What love? I don’t want Uma to have your ass. It’s mine,” he replied slapping it before he continued down the road.

Placing your hand in his the two of you walked to the restaurant Uma’s mother owned. As restaurants go it was awful but for being on the isle it was the nicest one around. As soon as you entered Ursula’s fish and chips Uma started yelling.

“Y/n you’re late again,” she said storming over to you and pushing a tray of food into your arms.

“Sorry my mom was in her mood again,” you explained bringing the food to the correct table after Uma held up 3 fingers to you.

After you dropped the food on the table for some drunken sailers you walked over to the bar and sat down. Harry as usual sat next to you and placed his hand on the small of your back. Uma placed a plate of fries on the bar top for the three of us to munch on.

“Again, this is like the third time this week,” Uma asked worriedly as she munched on some fries.

“Yea, I think it has to do with how on the main land the prince’s coronation is coming up. It’s bringing up memories of when my sister left,” you replied slightly day dreaming about Auradon.

Harry was the only one in the room who notices you slip into another world. He was the only one who knew how much you wanted to leave the isle and go to Auradon Prep. It wasn’t that you hated the isle and your life on it, he knew that. But everyone knew that y/n gothel didn’t belong on the isle. You were too…nice. You stood up for the little people, for those who are being bullied. It’s how you became friends with Uma and met your boyfriend of 4 years.

You weren’t always a park of Uma’s crew. Your mother is friends with Cruella de Vil, Jafar, the evil queen, and Maleficent, so naturally growing up you hung out with them. Until when you were 12 and Mal was bullying Uma when she tried to join the gang. Mal would keep calling her shrimpy. Mal has done it before and you’ve been there but on that day your were tired of it. It could have been because your entire life you were being compared to a literal princess or that it was around that time when your mother’s episodes started getting really bad or you were old enough to realize what she was doing to you. Either way you had enough so you walked over and stood between Mal and Uma and told Mal to stop.

In that moment every one on the street stopped and looked, cause no one stood up to Mal she was the big honcho and everyone was scared of her or more accurately scared of her mother. After that Mal decided if you were going to stick up for a loser you are a loser and were no longer invited to hang out; when our parents were not around.

It was around that time that you started to dream about living in Auradon. Of being somewhere where you don’t have to stick up for the little people or yourself cause everyone is nice. Where you don’t have to worry about sneaking out cause you would be free to do want every you wanted or find somewhere you belong. But after meeting Harry or getting to know him better you didn’t need to leave the isle to find a place where you could be yourself. You had him and the crew.

“How long do you think you have til she checks on you,” Harry asked pulling you out of your day dream.

“Um she’s going to some meeting or what ever old people call hanging out with the rest of them. So I should be good for a couple hours.”

“Good,” Harry said kissing your temple.

“Hey your here, no longer on house arrest,” Gil yelling walking in and sitting on the other side of you.

Uma groaned and threw a few fries at Gil cause she knew how you felt about your living situation. On multiple occasions she offered you a room on her boat and Harry has insisted that you stay with him. But you never accepted their offer in fear of what your mother would do is she knew you were leaving. In your sisters case she almost killed the love of her life. You would rather stay trapped under her thumb than put Harry in danger. And Harry knew how trapped you felt. He also knew how your mother always compared you to your sister. If you were not physically trapped you were mentally trapped.

“Read the room Gil,” Uma said. She then ordered him to clean up the fries and wipe down all the tables, which was usually your job.

“How do you read a place,” Gil asked picking up a towel and wiping the tables.

For the rest of the day you just sat at the table and talking with Uma, Harry, Gil or who ever from the crew was in the restaurant. Uma gave you the day off partially because she gave Gil your duties and partially so you could easily just run back home so your mother doesn’t know you left. Mother usually stayed with the other villains for half the day so you could spend half the day with your friends but that was cut short today.

An hour after you and Harry entered the fish and chip shop Carlos ran in. Harry and Gil met him at the entrance and blocked him from coming in.

“Y/n, your mother is about to go home to get you,” Carlos warned.

While you didn’t talk to Mal, Evie, or Jafar, Carlos and you talked. It was rare but when ever your mother had her episode Carlos would make sure you knew when she was getting home. He was the only one of the Mal gang to know what it was like to be manipulated by their mother.

“What,” you asked getting up from your seat.

“Let me go hook,” Carlos said pushing Harry off him. “Something happened and our parents want to talk to us. You have 8 minutes to get home.”

Fear filled your eyes knowing it would take you 10 minutes to get home. Carlos knew what you were thinking and held up a helmet.

“We can get there in 5 if we leave now.”

“I got to go,” you stated to Harry giving him a kiss. “Ill send work over what this is about.”

Harry hated your relationship with Carlos, it's not that he was jealous. It was how your previous friends treated you. He also didn’t like when you relied on Carlos. He wanted to be the only person you needed. Harry felt better after you gave him one more kiss and how she will get a message out to him after the meeting.

“Thanks Carlos,” you said getting on the back of his motorbike. You put on the helmet and wrapped your arms around him so you wouldn’t fall off. Carlos took off and nearly hit multiple people to get you back to your tower. The rope you used was still hanging out your window so you knew your mother wasn’t home yet.

“I owe you Carlos, guess I'll see you in a few minutes,” you thanked giving him a hug before climbing up the rope to get back in your room. Once you got your feet on the floor you quickly hid the rope under the cushion and jumped on your bed. Grabbing one of the approved books (anything but the Flynn rider book) and pretended to read til mother busted in your room.

“Y/n, we need to go,” she said looking around the room.

“Where,” you asked getting up off the bed and walking over to her.

“The hall, don’t worry your friends will be there.”

The walk to the hall, mother liked to call it, was only a couple minutes but the intense watching from mother was suffocating. What ever this meeting was about it had to be important other wise you wouldn’t be allowed outside. Her hand was wrapped around your upper arm as to keep you close.

“Y/n,” Mal said as soon as the two of you entered the building.

As usual if the parents were around, you and Mal were best friends. Carlos gave you a real smile. Evie and Jay weren’t mean to you but they also didn’t go out of their way to spend time with you.

“Mal,” you replied walking over to her to give her a hug as soon as your mother let you go.

“You smell like rotten fish,” she whispered in your ear.

“You’re still not thinking for yourself,” you whispered back.

She squeezed your tighter making your groan in pain. Mal let you go stating she just got so excited to see you. When she let you go you went to go stand with the rest of the kids and waited for whatever this meeting was about.

“I have great news,” Mal’s mother stated standing up from her seat.

“What is it,” your mother asked clearly agitated.

“I've already told the others but since y/n was detained ill have to announce it again. Our children had been chosen to go to Auradon prep,” Maleficent said with an evil smile.

I get to go to Auradon. I’ve wanted this for years. But by the looks one it the others were not happy.

“You will go. You will find the fairy godmother and you will bring me back her magic wand. Easy peasy,” Maleficent stated in her tall bar green chair as she filed her nails.

“What’s in it for us,” Mal asked. You don’t like siding with Mal but she had a point. Why would we help her when villains don’t really have the best track record of being good parents.

“Matching thrones. Hers and hers crowns,” Maleficent replied thinking about only her daughter and herself.

“I think she meant us,” Carlos replied pointing to the five of us.

Maleficent stood up and walked over to Mal. Stated about how its all about the two of them and her plan to rule the world. You know normal villain talk. And if we didn’t help we were grounded for the rest of our life. Ha like that’s new.

“Y/n is not going. I won’t have my daughter abandon me again,” mother stated grabbing your arm again this time squeezing to tight bruises are sure to appear.

Carlos’s mother also stated how she didn’t want Carlos to go, so did Jafar but of course Malificant was going to have her way. She walked about how good the old days were and how they were robbed of revenge against snow white and the dwarfs, Aladdin and the genie, the dalmatian puppies, Flynn rider who took rapunzel and twisted her mind against mother, and of course sleeping beauty. There was a look in mothers eyes you haven’t seen before. Hope. She was going to let you go but there would be a catch, there is always one with mother.

“Y/n, I don’t like it but you can go. Bring back the wand and that magic flower,” mother insisted.

She finally let go of your arm and sat down at the table next to the evil queen.

“Mother there are no more magic flowers,” you stated. Mother’s garden as her pride and joy and it was always missing one thing. The magic flower that had given rapunzel her magic hair. Mother swore she say one on the tv when snow white was reporting from the magic garden on the main land.

“You will find it and bring it back to mother,” she stated holding your hand a little too tight.

“I understand mother.”

Evie's mother gave her a magic mirror while Malificant grabbed her spell book out of the freezer. Suddenly a car horn went off and we were be pushed out to the street.

“We are leaving now,” you asked mother.

“Yes, the sooner you leave the sooner you return with my flower,” mother said grabbing the bags and putting them in the truck.

She had packed for you even through she objected to the idea at first. This can’t be real. You had to tell Harry. Talk to him about it first. Suddenly a pebble hit your leg and a soft whistle came from the crows. Your quickly found Harry in the crowd and went over to him.

“What’s going on princess,” he asked stroking your arm. He stopped when he noticed the redness on your biceps.

“We are going to Auradon like right now,” you said wrapping your arms around him.

“What why,” he asked holding your tighter not wanting you to leave.

“Something about giving the villain’s kids a chance. Maleficent wants us to use this opportunity to steal fairy godmother’s magic wand and bring it to her.”

“Your mother is ok with this.”

“She wants the magic flower, but ill just not go. They can handle it and I'll just run away.”

“No go. I know you y/n you have always wanted to go to Auradon. This is your chance to leave. Ill be here when you come back. Get the wand and the flower and after we take a ship and just sail away. Together,” he said holding your hands and placing a small kiss on your knuckles.

“No mom,” you asked looking into his eyes.

“No mom, just you and me.”

“What about Uma and the crew.”

“They don’t matter. You are the only thing that matters.”

You heard your mother calling for you. Harry gave you one last kiss and gave you a little push back to the car. ‘Get the wand and flower, not for mother and Malificant but for me and Harry’

“there you are get in,” mother said pushing you hardly towards the car. “Don’t forget, mother loves you.”

In the car you sat next to Carlos, far away from Mal. The car was clean and full of snacks. The boys went crazy and fought over them. Carlos handed you something brown and you gave it a sniff.

“Its good,” he said shoving another three in his mouth.

Trusting him you took a small bight and boy was he right. It was sweet and is has this creamy gooey center. Eve and Mal also took some of the food. Mal was messing with a remote and opened the screen between us and the driver.

“Look,” Evie exclaimed.

We all looked out the front window and it looked like the car was going to drive us off the bridge and drive us into the water.

“Its a trap,” Carlos yelled and we all held on tight to each other.

We waited and waited for the splash to come but it never did. A magic bridge appears. We got through the barrier. Mal asked the driver if the remote she was messing with opened the barrier but the driver explained that is opened his garage, what ever that is, and then closed the wall that separated us from him.

“How’s shrimpy doing, traitor,” Mal asked looking straight at you.

“Her name is Uma and she is fine,” you said glaring back at her grabbing more of the brown sweet.

“You look good,” Evie stated with a small smile.

“Thanks,” you replied returning a smile.

The rest of the ride was quiet. Except for Carlos and jay trying to steal everything out of the van. You tried to stuff some of the sweets into your bag too. On the isle you learn to never know when your next meal is and take things whenever. Suddenly a giant castle came into view and loud music was coming from outside. The vehicle stopped and the driver opened the door. Yo got out of the car followed by Carlos and jay falling out of the vehicle fighting over things than Evie and Mal.

We were greeted by lots of bright colors and smiling faces. A middle-aged lady and two people around our age (one boy and one girl) walked over to us. The older lady told Carlos and jay to put the things back which they did begrudgingly. Jay then proceeded to hit on the younger girl. She was pretty. Dark skin brown curly hair. She was in a gold dress with pink accents and a blue sweater. The other lady was in purple dress suit and the guy was in a nice blue suit jacket and yellow pants.

“The names jay,” jay said stepping closer to the girl.

“Welcome to Auradon prep,” the middle-aged lady said interrupting jays failure at getting the girls attention. “I'm fairy godmother, headmistress.”

“The fairy godmother,” Mal asked. “As in bippity boppity boo.”

Mal tried to get her to pull out the want or at least mention where it was by bringing up cinderella. But all fairy godmother said was it was a long time ago and not to focus on the past or you miss the future.

The boy took a step towards us greeting up. His name is Ben. Or prince soon to be king Ben since the girl in pink in blue insisted on pointing out.

“You had my at prince. My mom’s a queen which makes me a princess,” Evie said bowing to prince ben. She as already trying to find her prince charming as she was instructed by her mother.

“The evil king has no royal status here and neither do you,” the girl said with a fake smile.

Prince Ben gave a little laugh and introduced the girl and princess Audrey, his girlfriend. Fairy godmother said the two would be showing us around and something about the library being closed at 11. The band and her left. Ben walked over to jay to introduce himself but jay punched him in the shoulder. Ben stood in front of Mal for a while and they shook hands. He was going to shake Carlos’s hand but Carlos had what ben called chocolate all over. Evie looked at ben longingly.

“…as the day our two peoples begun to heal,” ben said shaking your hand.

“Or the day you showed 5 people where the bathrooms are,” Mal responded jokingly.

“A little over the top,” ben relied laughing.

Ben laughed about his intense first impression while Audrey talked about how her mother is aurora and Mal and her grandparents history. So mark Audrey as someone I won’t like. Ben offered us a tour and talked about the school. There was a statue of Ben’s father in the middle of these gardens. Ben clapped his hands and the statue shifted into the kinds beast form which scared Carlos bought that he jumped into jays arms. Ben explained how if symbolizes how anything is possible.

“Does he shed much,” Mal asked.

“Yes mother wont let him on the couch,” he responded.

Ben continued towards the castle and Audrey, Mal and Evie followed. Jay dropped Carlos then continued on his way as well. Carlos was staring at the statue until you gave him a small push.

“Lets go Carlos we are losing them,” you said pulling him away from the statue.

The entrance of the castle was beautiful. The ancient building mixed with modern style. The group stopped in the center of the room. But we were not the only ones there. All around us kids were walking up and down the stairs going on with their lives. No one was forcing them to this or that. They were smiling and happy.

Mal asked about magic and if it was around here. Ben told her it exist but they don’t really use it. He said something about how everyone here are normal mortal.

“Who happen to be kings and queens,” you asked.

“Yeah our royal blood goes back generations,” Audrey replied placing Ben’s arm around her.

“Doug,” ben exclaimed taking his arm off Audrey and talking towards a guy who was with the band outside. Doug was going to give us our schedules and who us the dorms. Suddenly you remembered this is an actual School and not like the one on the isle where the teachers never cared to even show up. Ben told us or more specifically Mal to ask him for anything if we needed it, which Audrey replied or ask Doug.

Doug introduced himself as dopey’s son. He started to name the rest of the dwarfs but was interrupted by Evie. Looks like someone has a crush. He gave us our schedule and told us about our classes with included “ remedial goodness 101”. We left to go to our dorms which Doug directed us to the right. Doug explained how normally its two to a room but since no one wanted to room with a villain Mal, Evie and I were sharing a room. And since it was three people instead of 2 we got the biggest room. We opened the door and it was like pink princesses threw-up in the room. The room was very girl and good. I could tell by Evie’s face that she loved it but Mal shut it down by saying the room was gross.

We closed the curtains to make is less bright which helped a bit but it was all still pick. After dark we walked over the the guys rooms. Carlos was playing video game and jay as usual was looking at his stolen treasure.

Mal told him he could steal now or wait til we took over the world. She sounded just like her mother, and unlike you she saw that as a good think when Evie pointed it out. Jay said no and Carlos gave him a turn on the video game. Mal was not happy over how lightly the boys took the situation we were in.

“This is the one change we have to prove ourselves to out parent. To prove we are evil and vicious and ruthless and cool,” Mal stated which brought them back to their senses.

That wasn’t the reason you were there but you weren’t going to tell Mal that. Mal asked for the magic mirror and used it to find the wand which was in the museum. Carlos looked on his new computer and found out is 2 miles away from us.

“Perfect so we go to the museum take the wand and we are home by breakfast,” you stated excitingly.

“What you missed the fish and chips or your salt water baths,” Mal asked in a cruel tone.

“I miss my friends,” you responded with a coarse tone.

Mal ignored your last comment and stated exactly what I said. She opened the door and looked around to see if anyone was near. Since the coast was clear we all followed her out the room. We were about two feet from the room when I heard footsteps.

“Wait,” I said grabbing Mal’s shoulder.

“Let go,” Mal whisper yelled.

I placed a finger over my lip the to my ear and to the direction we were heading. I was letting them know I heard someone coming. Once they heard the person we all pressed up against the wall til the passed going in the other direction.

“That was closed,” Carlos said patting me on the back.

“Have any of your guys spent your entire life sneaking out. No so follow me,” you said going ahead of Mal listening to every crack and feeling every vibration in the walls.

We made it to the stairs without getting caught which was great but stairs bring a whole new problem.

“I'm going first to make sure no one is around. When I give the signal step lightly incase the stairs squeak,” you told them sitting on the hand rail and slowly sliding down until you could safely jump off with out hurting yourself and making a noise.

You went a couple feet a head but found no one in the area. You called to them to come down and for once Mal actually listened to you. They all stepped very lightly and made it down the stair without a single sound.

Once we were out of the building getting to the museum was easy. But once we got there, there was a whole new problem. There was a security guard. In the room there was video surveillance of multiple magical items, like the trident, the genie lamp, Cinderella’s shoe and the spindle Mal’s mother used. Mal used her magic to get the security guard to prick his finger on the spindle. You tried to open the door once the guard went to sleep but it was locked.

“I’ve got this,” jay said backing up.

He was too far to notice but Mal was saying a spell to open the door. You tried to stop jay but you were too late and he fell on the floor. Everyone let out a little chuckle at jay. Carlos went to help him up but jay pushed him away. We walked past the sleeping guard and Evie used her mirror to direct us to where the wand was. While we were running around the museum looking for the wand we passed the hall of villains. There were wax figures of all of our parents. It freaked us all out. We know how mean our parents can be, we know they’re villains but these figures made them look worse, made them look like monsters.

We couldn’t stand to be in the room with the figures any longer, so we left but after a couple seconds you noticed Mal didn’t follow us. She was still looking at her mothers figure.

“Look at you look at me I don’t know who to be mother, is it wrong is it right be a thief in the night mother, tell me what to do,” you heard Mal say.

You decided to leave Mal alone but Evie came back and told her to come along. You caught up with the boys. They were talking and messing around and ignoring everything around them. While you were looking at everything around you and you noticed a blue light. You went towards the light and saw the wand suspended in the air with a force field.

“Guy, I found it,” you whisper yelled to the boys.

Evie came back from getting Mal but the she still was in the wax room. “What,” Evie asked.

“I found the wand, where is Mal,” you asked.

“I thought she was behind me I’ll be right back,” Evie said running to get Mal.

A few minutes later both girls got back. You told them to follow you and led them to the wand. Jay ran to the other side and climbed under the railing.

“Jay wait,” Mal called.

Jay didn’t listen. He went to reach for the wand but the force field sent him flying an a alarm was going off.

“Force field and an alarm. It’s a bit excessive,” Carlos commented as we all went running.

You could hear the guard coming behind us. We made it to the guards spot when the phone started ringing. Carlos answered the phone while the rest of us ran out.

“Carlos come one,” you yelled for him.

“Your welcome,” he called out as he came running after you.

Carlos explained how when the alarm company called he pretended t be the guard and say it was a false alarm. We started running back to the school.

“Thanks a lot jay, now we have to go to school tomorrow,” Mal called out scorning jay.

Once we made it back to the castle, everyone followed my lead so we could get back in our rooms. We made it back to our rooms without being caught. Mal and Evie went straight to their beds while you stood by the window. There was something about sneaking out without worried about getting beat or getting loved ones killed.

“Thanks, I guess your skills were really helpful,” Mall called from her bed.

“Ill tell mother how useful my sneaking out skills are. She would love that,” you joked.

“Has she been easier to live with,” Evie asked walking over to you.

“No, she has her episodes more often. I don’t know why but she really got worse when the talk of the coronation reached the isle,” you explained.

“Well you’re free here,” Evie said as a comfort.

“I was free on the isle with…,” you started but stoped before you mentioned Uma and Harry.

“I’ve notice Hook has been more tolerable when ever your with him,” Mal stated.

“So its true, you and Harry,” Evie asked pulling you to her bed.

“Yeah 4 years,” you explained.

You missed this. Chatting about boys with Evie. It brought you back to the old days. Mal sat up and looked over at the the two of us. You waited for Mal to join the conversation or to change the subject but that would have been the Mal you knew when you were younger.

“We should sleep, we have a long day ahead of us,” she commented before going to bed.

“Yeah, night,” you said getting up and going to your bed.

You turned away from the girls and held on tight to the necklace Harry made you when you first started dating. It was a hook (blunted) on a leather cord. He gave it to you as a way to let people now you where his.

“Night Harry, I miss you,” you whispered and fell asleep hoping to speed this up to get back to him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mal and Evie sat at the table in front of you and Carlos and Jay sat at the table diagonal from you. Fairy godmother stood at the front of the room asked questions for the remedial goodness class.

“If someone hands you a crying baby do you A) curse it B) lock it in a tower c) give it a bottle or d) carve out its heart,” she asked.

Carlos looked back at you in sympathy when she read option two out loud. Evie raised her hand to answer but asked for what the second option was.

“Lock it in a tower,” you whispered to her.

“Oh, sorry y/n,” she responded.

You shook your head telling her its ok and raised your hand to answer the question.

“Yes y/n.”

“C give it a bottle.”

“Correct,” fairy god mother praised.

“Wow y/n you are on fire,” Carlos also praise.

“Just pick the one that doesn’t sound like any fun,” Mal spoke up.

Evie Carlos and jay nodded in understanding of how to answer the questions. Suddenly there was a little squeal and a girl with short black hair and a blue dress scurried in the room.

“You need to sign off on an early dismissal for the coronation,” the girl quickly spoke while she stared at us. She was scare, of course she was, she was in a room full go villain kids.

“Everyone here remembers my daughter Jane,” fairy god mother introduced while signing the paper.

“You might want to use her to get the wand,” you leaned over the table and whispered into Mal’s ear.

Jane protested to her mother introducing her to everyone. Mal gave her a small smile and said hello as Jane creeped back out of the room.

“You may be right,” Mal whispered back to you.

You went back to doodling in you notebook while fairy godmother asked the next questions. Carlos and Jay ended up fighting again. They were told by FGM to save it for the Turney field.

After class was dismissed you Mal and Evie walked to your lockers which happen to be next to each others.

“So how can Jane help me get the wand y/n, you have any idea,” Mal asked putting her book back in the locker.

“I don’t know yet. This might not be something we can plan. Talk to her and see if there is something you can do to make her owe you,” you suggested leaning against your locker.

“Smart,” Mal said almost shockingly.

“Yeah Mal, I'm not stupid,” you said defensively and walked over to the library.

You have quite literally never see so many book in your entire life. Everyone in the room stopped and watched your every movement. Anywhere else it would have freaked you out but here with the books you didn’t mind. When ever mother locked you up all you could do was read. Those books made the confinement easier. You ran your fingers over all the books when a title caught your eye. “Flynnagain rider” they had it. You grabbed the book off the shelf and went to sit at a table. This book wasn’t broken. It had every page even the title cover. There were no stains. It was in perfect condition.

You were so entranced in the condition of the book you didn’t notice two people sitting at your table. You looked up and saw two brown hair twins a boy and a girl. There was something about their eyes that reminded you of something. They sat down but leaned back as to stay away from you.

“Hi I'm Ryder and this is my sister Stella,” the boy said with a giant smile.

“I’m …,” you started but were cut off by Stella.

“Oh we know. Y/n gothel. Our father had a whole conniption when he found out prince ben was letting you come to Auradon,” she said with excitement in her voice.

They confused you. They seemed scared but also intrigued by your presence.

“And who is your father,” you asked hiding behind the book hoping they would leave you alone.

“You're reading his favorite book. So much so he changed his name and named me after it,” the boy said.

Fear or shame-filled you. They were Rapunzel and Eugene’s kids. Your adoptive nieces and nephew. You slowly put the book down and really gave them a look. Now you could really see it. Her eyes he has her eyes and she had her nose. You’ve stared at the damn portrait of your “sister” your entire life. The one that got away.

“Hi,” you said sheepishly.

“Don’t worry, mother talked him down. He wanted to pull us from the school but mother had a feeling your nothing like her,” Stella said.

“She wanted us to make sure you are ok. And let you know she wants to met with you or if you want to talk you can call her,” Ryder said putting a piece of paper on the table.

“Why,” you asked hesitant to pick the paper up.

“Cause your family,” Stella replied walking around the table and giving you a hug. “Family never give up on each other.”

They left you sitting in shock staring at the book and the number on the paper. Rapunzel doesn’t hate you and she thinks you’re family. You thought about calling. Maybe she has a few tips on how to keep mother calm. Or you could warn her that when mother get out she will more likely than not go after her and Eugene. You looked behind you and saw the Stella was still standing at the doorway watching you. She gave you a big smile and waved before her brother grabbed her arm and pulled her away.

You tried to stay and read but suddenly you didn’t feel comfortable in the library. Grabbing 2 more books you went to the lady at the desk by the front door.

“Is it ok if I take these,” you asked her?

“Um yes let me scan them first,” she said hesitantly.

She scanned each book the handed them to you and a paper saying to bring the books back in one week. You were heading back to your room when your ran into Doug. Literally ran into him. The books fell to the floor.

“Sorry y/n,” Doug exclaimed picking the books up.

“It’s ok I promise,” you responded calmly.

Doug handed all the books to you and straightened his shirt. You went to head back to your room when you stopped and called to him.

“Um Doug, what to you know about magical flowers. Mother talked about it so much growing up I wanted to see on for myself,” you asked.

“Um we have some in the green house on the other side of campus,” he said running the back of his head.

“Thanks.”

You headed back to the room and was shocked to see Jane in the room with nicer hair. So Mal found her way in. Mal was on her bed drawing, Evie was sewing and Jane was complaining about her mother. Mal planted a seed of doubt in fairy godmother's love for Jane. Smart. You placed the books on your bed and collapsed on it.

“Mal do you like,” Evie asked holding up a dress she was making.

“Yea, it’s cute brings out your eyes,” Mal responded as she continued drawing.

“I know,” Evie stated looking at the dress. “Y/n what do you think?”

“I love it very Evie,” you said lifting your head up from the bed.

“Ill never get a boyfriend,” Jane sighed sitting on Evie’s bed.

“Boyfriends are overrated,” Mal replied.

“And how would you know Mal you never had one,” Evie asked.

“That’s cause I don’t need one E,” Mal replied, “ they are a waste of time.”

You let out a laugh and sat up on your bed. “You only think that cause you never had one. Jane, you will find someone.”

Evie gasped then explained how she forgot to do chad’s homework. “And that’s exactly what I mean,” Mal said as Evie grabbed some tan bag and pulled out books.

“That not what having a boyfriend means but boys in general can be a waste of time til the right one comes along,” you explain trying to bring Jane some comfort.

Suddenly an Asian girl with very short hair walked into the room. She explained how she is Mulan’s daughter Lonnie. Lonnie wanted Mal to do her hair like she did Jane’s. Mal was against it but did it cause Evie said she needed the money for new fabric. Suddenly Lonnie had long brown curly hair. It was definitely an improvement. Lonnie looked in the mirror and explained how much she loved it then she ripped her skirt stating she was now cool.

“Like ice,” Mal said sarcastically.

Jane then went to the mirror and did the same thing. ‘Wow these princesses are really stuck up if they think ripping their clothes suddenly makes them cool’ you thought. Jane instantly came to her senses and was worried about what her mom would think when she saw the dress. Lonnie and Jane left after a while. Picked up a book and started reading it. Mal was studying her spell book and Evie was still working on chad’s homework when Carlos came in with a dog.

“Carlos that's a dog,” you exclaimed. You weren’t the only one freaked out by his mothers stories of the beasts.

“Don’t worry y/n it’s not vicious like mother said. Dude is actually very sweet,” Carlos said bringing the dog over to you. It jumped on your bed and put its front paws on your legs as it licked your face. “Ben said that means he likes you.

“Ok he can stop liking me. His breath stinks,” you laughed.

Carlos grabbed the dog and sat on the floor by Mal’s bed and was working on his computer. We all sat in silence until jay came in wearing a blue shirt.

“Did the plan work with Jane? Do you know how to get the wand,” he asked leaning on Mal’s bed post.

“Do you think I would be going through this book if I hadn’t completely struck out,” Mal replied in frustration.

“Someone is in a bad mood,” Carlos stated.

“My mom is counting on me I can’t let her down,” Mal replied flicking his head.

“We can do this if we stick together,” you stated putting your book down.

“And we won't go back until we do, cause we are rotten,” Mal stated.

“To the core,” we all replied. Evie looked at you when you said that. It is like the gang’s catch phrase. You hadn’t said it or hear those words in years. It felt both weird and nice to say them again.

“Oh yeah,” Evie exclaimed looking from me to Mal, “ I found out that fairy godmother blesses ben with the wand at coronation and we all get to go. I have nothing to wear of course.”

Mal and I looked up in shock. How could she forget to mention that small detail. Before we could talk about it there was a knock at the door. Mal got up to get it and when she opened it there stood ben. He was asking how our day went and if we needed anything or had any questions.

“Mal,” I whisper and yelled when ben was walking away.

“Oh wait,” she called causing ben to stop and turn back to her, “ is it true that we all get to go to your coronation?”

Ben confirmed what Evie said. Perfect. Mal then asked if we could stand up front to absorb the goodness. Which is a smart move since they think we are all bad. But ben said that only his parents, himself, and his girlfriend get to be upfront.

“I think it's time benny boo got himself a new girlfriend,” Mal said after she closed the door on ben. “And I need a love spell.”

Carlos threw the book and Mal and she began her search. After a few minutes, she found one. The spell would be in a batch of cookies. Which was where the problem lay. None of us knows how to bake. But as a group we can get this done so we all headed down to the kitchen. You were another step close to giving your mother what she wants and getting back to Harry.

In the kitchen, we were able to get most of it done but the last ingredient was a human tear. Carlos thought of cutting up an onion but it had to be a true tear of human sadness.

“A tear is a tear,” jay said in frustration.

“that's not true jay they both have antibodies and enzymes. A hormonal tear has more protein than a reflex tear,” eve said giving Mal the bag of flour.

“Wow Evie,” you said proudly.

“Listen to you,” Mal stated as she put more flour in the mixing bowl.

Carlos and jay were messing around about whether or not jay knew that science mumbo jumbo, then Lonnie walked into the kitchen. You grabbed the towel and threw it over the book to hide it from her.

“There you are Mal, I was looking for you. You know all the girls want you to do their hair,” Lonnie stated walking over to the counter while Mal and Evie were awkwardly standing there and mixing the ingredients. “Midnight snack huh, what are you guys making?”

“Nothing special just cookies,” you stated to say before Lonnie dipped her finger in the batter and ate some.

“What I'm not going to double dip,” Lonnie said defensibly after we all basically yelled no at her.

“Fell anything,” Evie asked leaning towards her.

“Yeah like it might be missing something,” Mal asked.

Jay saw this as his opportunity to hit on Lonnie and see if the spell works. Lonnie blew him off then stated it could use some chip.

“What are chip,” you asked relaxing a but knowing she was under the spell.

Lonnie went to the fridge and grabbed a down of chocolate dots. “Chocolate chips. Just the most important food group,” she said placing the down on the counter. She took a hand full and put them in the bowl. “Didn’t your moms ever make you chocolate chip cookies?”

We all looked at her in confusion.

“Like when your feeling sad and their fresh from the oven with a big old glass of milk and she makes you laugh and puts everything int perspective,” Lonnie asked with this huge smile on her face. She looked up and notice all of our sad faces. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“It's just different where we are from,” Mal explained mixing the chocolate chips in the dough.

“Yeah, I know. I just thought even villains love their kids.”

“No,” you whispered hugging yourself.

Lonnie grabbed Mal’s hand when she notice how none of us agreed with her. A tear was falling from Lonnie's eye and luckily Mal noticed it and grabbed it and put it in the mix. Mal quickly got her out of the kitchen while we finished the spell. Once the cookies were done and cooled down Mal put them in a baggie and we all went to sleep.

The next morning we all woke up early to decide when to give ben the cookie. “Just give it to him first thing it may take a while right,” you suggested.

“No it’s an instantaneous spell,” Mal explained.

“Oh.”

“Ok so we have a plan I’m going to go get ready for the Turney game,” jay said.

“That’s at the end of the day,” Carlos reminded him.

“Yes but I can go parade around and take to girls.”

We all left to start our day. Eventually, we all met by Mal’s locker and waited for ben to show up so she could give him the cookie. He was about to turn it down but Mal did reverse psychology (which I am now aware that I have been victim to multiple times) on him. She played to how we are villains who can not be trusted. Ben snatched the cookie from his hand and took a giant bite. The spell was starting to work cause he was having lovey eyes towards Mal. She grabbed the cookie before he could take another bite. Ben then started to yell her name at the top of his lungs.

“Girl what did you put in those cookies,” you laughed.

Jay and Carlos took him to the Turney field to get ready for the game while Mal Evie and you went to go stand in the stands and cheer for jay and Carlos. The game was going great I think. But everyone for Auradon was cheering. It was the last bit of the game when jay and Carlos got on the field.

“Let's go, Carlos. Let go jay,” you yelled.

Carlos, Jay, and ben use their combined skills to make the winning goal. The crowd was going crazy. Suddenly ben took a microphone and started professing his love to Mal. He then started singing a song about how much he loved her.

“What was in that cookie,” Mal exclaimed.

During his little song, ben took off his jersey and threw it to Mal. Ben made his way to Mal and told her again that he loved her. Then Audrey came up with chad and said they were going out and going to the coronation together. Audrey kissed chad and walked away. Ben and Mal were going to the coronation to gather but you didn’t care that that moment. You saw the hurt in Evie’s eyes. She really likes chad.

“Hey it’s ok, he was a dope anywhere. Plus you are way better than him,” you said giving her a side hug.

Mal noticed Evie’s poor mood and commented hoe she felt bad for Audrey and said how if she was pretty smart and talented at Evie that she wouldn’t need a prince to feel better about herself. And you totally agreed.

After the game, you ran into Stella. She asked if you wanted to hang out with them for a bit. A bit turned into an hour and an hour turned into a sleepover. The only person you spent this much time with was your mother. You haven’t even spent this much time in one sitting with Harry.

“Tell me about yourself,” she asked.

“Um, I don't know what to say,” you replied.

“What do you like to do silly,” she said giving you a slight push.

“Um, I can’t really do anything. When mother locks me away I just read and paint and sew. I cant even do the last 2 cause mother makes me do them. It reminds her of rapunzel. I have to do everything like Rapunzel,” you explained. “I'll sometime climb out my tower to hang out with my boyfriend but that only if mother leaves.”

You noticed the look on Stella’s face. It was shock or pity. She heard the story of what her mother went through but in some messed up way mother gothel loved her but for you, you were just a constant reminder of her failure.

“I'm sorry I should go,” you said getting up off the floor and opening the door.

“Wait, it’s ok to be yourself. You can just be you here not rapunzel not gothel just y/n,” Stella said giving you a hug. “So what here has made you the happiest?”

“The library, and school, and my friends,” you said honestly. “I feel free here, no tower, no barrier.”

“You are, no one can make you do anything you don’t want to,” Stella said holding your hand.

“Thanks, but I should really go,” you said leaving Stella’s room.

When you walked into your dorm room Mal was getting ready for a date with ben. Evie was about to do her makeup.

“Y/n help me do her hair,” Evie asked.

“Sure you know hair is my specialty.”

It was nice. You guy talked like old times. Since Mal’s hair was very much shorter than yours it didn’t take as long to get it just right. Evie was putting the finishing touches when Mal thanked both of us for helping her.

“I've never had a sister,” Mal said as Evie put on her lipstick.

“Well now you have 2 right y/n,” Evie asked you.

You looked at Mal and Evie and gave a small smile. “Yeah, we are going to have to stick togather If this doesn’t work.”

“Are you guys scared of your mother,” Mal asked.

“Sometimes,” Evie replied.

“Yes, not scared of what she will do to me but what she will do to the people I care about if she found out about them,” you said shocked at how honest you were. You never told anyone about how much you really feared your mother.

“Harry,” Mal asked.

“Yeah, he makes me feel sane and less trapped,” you replied smiling and you held your necklace.

“Are you scared of your mother,” Evie asked.

“No, I just want to make her proud. She gets so angry when I disappoint her,” Mal opened up.

There was a knock on the door but before she went to get it Mal looked over at you.

“I'm sorry for how I treated you. You were never weak you were different and now I know its okay,” Mal said holding her arms out to give you a hug.

“I forgive you, Mal. Besides according to Stella and Ryder siblings fight all the time, and they always forgive.”

Mal went to open the door after letting you go and left on her date with Ben. You and Evie just stayed in all day and waited for Mal to return with the details of her date.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In remedial goodness class, fairy godmother was standing in front of a tv and she looked very excited. She was talking about family day at the school and since out parents couldn’t come for obvious reasons she set up a special video call with them. The call didn’t start off to a great start with Carlos’s mother calling fairy godmother old and Mal’s mother antagonizing her about the pumpkin and the curfew. Maleficent was asking about how much longer it would talk til we got the wand. Then Cruella was talking about turning Carlos’s new BFF dude into an accessory. And mother kept saying how much she missed me and that when I return she never wants to let me go, which meant I was going to be trapped in the tower for more than a day. Out parents started fighting and after a few second jay turned the computer off.

“I'm so sorry,” fairy godmother said in a soft tone.

“Thanks anyway,” you responded before going back to your seat.

You all grabbed your bags and went to leave the room.

“Mal what do you think our parents are going to do to use if we don’t pull it off,” Evie asked.

“I think they will be quietly disappointed but ultimately proud of us for doing our best,” Mal lied.

“Really,” Carlos asked not reading between the lines.

“No, I think we are definite goners.”

When the day was over we all went to the boys' room to go over the plan. Mal will be up front while we will be on the balcony. Carlos is going to handle the limo. Mal gave Evie a perfume to knock the driver out. There was this sadness filling the room. I don’t think any of us really wanted to do this, but we were scared of what our parents would do if we didn’t. I noticed Mal looking up a spell to undo the love spell. She said she wanted to undo it cause it would be extra cruel but I know she had feelings for ben and didn’t want to live this lie any longer.

That night you couldn’t sleep. If you guys got the wand and the villains came to Auradon this little piece of freedom would be destroyed. Mother would find her magic flower and she would find another tower to lock you in. And she would go for Rapunzel and Eugene and Stella and Ryder. That dream of sailing the ocean with Harry was never going to happen. You were forever destined to be trapped and locked away. You thought being with Harry and Uma and Gil made you feel free because you were away from your mother but you were still trapped on the isle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was family day. The five of you decide to enjoy the festivities. Mal went over to ben and his parent while you stayed with Evie while the boys played with the chocolate fountain. Mal said that the king and queen wanted to have lunch with us. You enjoyed a nice game of croquet with everyone when Audrey’s grandmother was yelling about how the villains were here. Chad was being very rude. He called out Mal for stealing ben, said jay enjoyed hurting people and said Evie was a gold digger. Evie told her magic mirror to show her the biggest jerk and chad’s face appeared. He then pushed the mirror out of his face and you and jay were about to go after him for pushing Evie but ben stopped jay and Carlos stopped you. Mal then knock chad out with and spell and the five of us left.

The five of us just sat at a table and ate lunch. At the table next to us sat chad Audrey, Jane, Stella, Ryder, Doug and other people we thought were our friends.

“How long did she think that was going to last. It was just a bad girl fascination,” Audrey asked her as Jane walked by making sure we heard.

“Yeah I mean he’s never going to make a villain a queen,” Jane said getting right next to Mal’s ear.

In anger, Mal took out her spell book and undid Jane’s hair. Jane screamed and everyone backed away from her.

“There’s a lot more where that came from,” Mal angrily stated.

“Excuse me, who do you think you are,” Aubrey asked.

“Do you think I’m kidding,” Mal asked as she pulled out her spell book?  Everyone left in fear.

When they left Mal stated how excited she was for tomorrow and how we needed to get the wand a leave.

“It was stupid to think they would see us as something other than our parents,” you stated in a pissed-off tone.

We left to head to our rooms to get ready for the big day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We were all ready for the coronation. Mal was wearing a beautiful purple dress, Evie was in a blue one and I was in a red one. All three dresses were Evie herself. While Mal walked in with ben, you Evie, and the boy went to your spots on the balcony. The coronation was beautiful but you really had a hard time focusing on the details. Any second now Mal was going to grab the wand and this place would be destroyed. Fairy godmother took the wand out to bless ben with it but before she could Jane grabbed it. She was angry at how her mother refused to use magic to make her pretty. Mal wrestled Jane for the wand. Once Mal had it in her hand Jane ran off. The four of us ran into the room to help Mal.

“Ben I said stand back,” Mal yelled as he took a step towards her.

“I told you so,” Audrey exclaimed taking a step forward. Mal turned to her and they back up in fear.

“Mal we got it to let's go,” you said once you got to her.

“You really want to do this,” ben asked standing between Mal and his parents and fairy godmother.

“We have no choice ben,” Mal cried. “Our parents…,”

“Your parents made their choice, no you make yours.”

Mal stood there and looked at everyone in front of her: ben, the king and queen, and fairy godmother

“I think I want to be good,” Mal whispered.

“You are good,” ben told her.

“How do you know that,” Mal yelled.

“Because I’m listening to my heart.”

“I wanna listen to my heart too. And my heart is telling me we are not our parents,” Mal said turning to us. “Stealing things doesn’t make you happy, Turney, and victory pizza with the team makes you happy,” she said looking at jay.

“Scratching dude’s belly makes you happy,” she told Carlos.

“Being her, being far away from that tower, and being yourself makes you happy y/n. And Evie you do not have to play dumb to get a guy. You are so smart. And I don’t want to take over the world for evil. It doesn’t make me happy. I want to go to school and be with ben. Cause ben makes me really happy. Us being friends makes me really happy. Not destroying things. I chose good you guy.”

Mal held out her fist. You were the first to put your fist next to hers. You are choosing good. Then jay then Evie. We all looked at Carlos.

“Just so we are clear we don’t have to worry about how mad our parents are going to be, cause they are going to be really really mad,” Carlos asked making us all laugh.

“Your parents can’t reach you here,” ben reassured Carlos.

“Okay then good,” he said before putting his hand in the circle. We all looked to Ben for him to join in cause he’s a part of our group. For a nice second everything was fine til a loud thunderous sound filled the room. Green smoke was coming in and Maleficent appeared in front of everyone. Mal told her to go away but she didn’t listen. Mal threw the want to the fairy godmother who tried to use it on Malificant but she was too slow. Everyone in the room froze except for the five of us. Maleficent took Ben’s ring off of Mal’s finger and told her love was stupid. Mal told her how she didn’t want to be like her.

“Love is not weak or ridiculous, it's actually really really amazing,” Mal cried.

Mal took the want from her mother and jay tried to take the staff but he was unsuccessful. Maleficent then turned into her dragon form. Evie tried to use her mirror to blind the Beast. Mal pushed us all behind her and started chanting, “ the strength of evil is good as none when stands before five hearts as one.” She kept repeating it and repeating it til her mother turned from a dragon to a lizard. Shrinking to the size of love in her heart. Mal gave fairy godmother her wand and Mal got her ring back. Fairy un froze everyone. Mal went to talk to Jane and fairy to try to lessen the punishment you needed to talk to ben.

“Ben,” you asked him.

“Yes.”

“Is there any way I can get a letter to the isle? I need to explain this to someone. I need him to know why I’m staying,” you asked.

“I'll see what I can do,” he replied.

You wrapped your arm around him and next to him was Evie then Carlos then jay. A guard put a glass container over Malificant to keep her from escaping. Mal came over to you and placed her arm around you.

“You will be okay,” she whispered in your ear knowing how sad you are about leaving a certain someone behind.

“Thanks.”

For the first time in forever, you didn’t have to worry about your mother's anger or her episodes where she locked you up. Never again were you going to lock away. Never again were you going to be trapped. You were free. But with that freedom, you lost the only person who made you feel special, unique.

#harry hook imagine #harry hook x reader #descendants imagine

[freddieraimbow74]

16 April 1978 - Queen performed @ Vorst Nationaal (Forest National), Brussels, Belgium 🇧🇪

‘News Of The World’ Tour

At the beginning of the concert, the crown tilted off to one side, as seen in the last picture. The crown was raised on a four-switch system and two of the switches didn't work. The band left the stage, the crew started the process over, and the show went on as normal. In 2012, Brian May recalled the night:

"We had, at the time, this huge lighting rig in the shape of a crown, because we were Queen, right? At the beginning of the show it was down on the deck. It's down on the stage as a sort of introduction to the show. We played with a sort of intro tape or whatever, and lots of smoke came out and it lifted off like a rocket from the stage. At this point we're underneath it because we're getting ready to play. It's powered by these chain hoist things; it's not actually rocket powered, you know. So on this particular occasion they wired up the chain hoists wrong, and I was on the side that went down and I was like, 'Oh, fuck! Let's get out of here real quick.' Looking back on it, it was amusing, but at the time it was a little scary. It's a definite Spinal Tap moment."

In 2001 he likened its obtuse angle to being like the sinking Titanic, and how they (and the road crew) had to leave the stage. "We went, 'do we preserve our dignity or our lives here?' It turned out to be one of those things, as often happens, which was special and very nice, because when we eventually get back on and do it properly there was this great bond between us and the audience, because they realized that we're human and stuff can go wrong. It was one of the greater nights that I remember. It was a really good night."

(Source: QueenLive .Ca )

Here’s a fabulous fan story:

“I attended the Queen concert in Brussels, Belgium on 16. April 1978 (or 17. April but I think it was the 16th).

I can not explain it very well (my English is not that good) but when the concert started there was a big problem with the crown that was going up. The right side was going up but the left side of the big crown stayed down. The band members were a bit confused and it was clearly they were afraid the the crown was coming (falling) down again so they were not standing under the crown while they were performing the fast version of We Will Rock You. Also the public was a bit confused. Every one saw this was not an normal situation.

After playing the fast version of We Will Rock You Freddie excused himself for the technical problems and he promised to set this right by playing an extra long concert. Which they did!

During the second song of the concert the crown came down again and was immediatly lifted up again and now everthing worked out well and safely! I can remember while I was sitting in my classroom at the Sint Norbertus School in Antwerp a couple of days before the concert that a huge robot which is on the News of the World sleeve came by. The robot was towed by a truck and it was VERY impressive to see. Every one at school talked about that robot.

The two Queen shows in Brussels were sold out immediately and a 3rd show was added a couple of days later. I was at all 3 shows.” 🤩

Written by Geert

Thank you for the wonderful story to QueenConcerts @ Martin Skála. All Rights Reserved © 2002-2020

All pictures with the exception of the last were taken by Philippe Carly

Thanks to Rob Schoorl for the photo of the crown, scanned in from a 1978 fan club magazine.

#freddie mercury #queen band #brian may #roger taylor #jhon deacon #musique #queen #music #original character #j’adore

[staytinyville]

Yunho

PLEASE REFER TO MASTERLIST TO GET FULL TAROT READING EXPERIENCE

↣ Summary: You are invited to Idol Radio with Yunho and Hongjoong to talk about your new album! Yunho tells you that they’ll support you in everything you do. 

↣ Characters/Pairing: Jeong Yunho x gn!reader ; a touch of ot8

↣ Genre: Fluff

↣ AU/Trope info: idol!au

↣ Word Count: 985

↣ Warnings: None

↣ A/N: Honestly I was close to making you part of a group but thought against it. LOL I have like a fictional girl group that’s signed with KQ. I love them so much. Yunho is such a lovely boy and he deserves the world. WHICH IS WHY HE GOT THIS CARD.

THE WORLD

Completion, Integration, Accomplishment, Travel

The world is a card that tells you the journey you have been traveling has come to an end and you now feel accomplished with what you have done. In whatever journey it is you have been going through—college, marriage, pregnancy, partnership—the adventure you have taken has ended and now you are relishing in the results.

This card is meant to tell you now is the time reflect on the journey and know that what you have gotten in the end was due to the hard work you put into it all. And if you are not at the end quite yet this is your sign to say is coming close! 

The world is always spinning to bring about night and day. Because of this the day is completed. Just like that, so is your journey of hard work ( or it’s going to be). This card can also mean travel!

XXI THE WORLD

You waved with both hands to the camera with a smile on your face. You felt at ease knowing that your label mates were sitting next to you to do the interview. You were invited for season three of Idol Radio with Yunho and Hongjoong as the hosts and were so excited to get the chance to talk freely with them and laugh while the fans listened in. 

“You have come out with your 3rd full length album, which is something you are very passionate about.” Hongjoong grinned at you, pulling your attention back to them. 

“Yes, yes!” You beamed. “It has been a project I started on since the very beginning—I wanted to make sure each song was what I was made of rather than creating music with other people where it's a mixture.” You explained. 

“Don't get me wrong, I love working with you, Maddox, and Eden–but this gave me more satisfaction because it's what I enjoy writing about.” You laughed as Hongjoong grinned. 

You were the second person to become a trainee under KQ. While you had debuted as a solo artist, you worked closely with Hongjoong in creating music that you found a passion for. Each song most of you write usually had each other’s names in the production credits. But with your newest work, you spent a good majority working on it alone.

“There are a lot of emotional songs about different things in your album, for sure.” Yunho told you. “You talk about friendships that last a lifetime, your days that aren't the brightest, the idea of breaking out from normal standards, and of course a lot about love.”

“For you, what made you write those things to experience emotions like that?” A blush overtook your face as Yunho kept his eyes on you. 

You could see the proud look behind his eyes and the kind smile he gave you melted your heart. He knew the story behind every one of the songs on the album–especially the loved ones. They were about him, after all. But he wasn’t exactly able to boast about it. 

“I was a trainee alongside you guys, and it was a bit tough because I didn't feel like I was up to standard when you debuted and I was still trying my hardest.” You answered. “But in the end it really paid off because now as a soloist I'm not tied to creating an image for other people as well. It's a lonely road, I won't doubt it, but I had you all, so it wasn't so bad.”

“We love you too, (Y/N).” Hongjoong laughed, a large smile on his face as he thought about his time spent with someone like you. 

“There is a lot I wish I could say about ATEEZ, but all I'll stick to is that they are the most talented group of performers I know and they make me want to become better for not only my fans but for myself.” You spoke into the microphone, looking out the window and to the fans that were watching. “I am where I am today because of them.”

“(Y/N).” A pout was on the tall boy’s lips as he took in your words. 

“Yunho!” You cried out, giggling as he looked close to tears. “Awe, nooo.” You quickly stood up on instinct, pushing your chair back.

“(Y/N)!” Yunho faked cried, standing up as well to meet you halfway. 

“Yunho!” You laughed, pulling him into a hug.

“(Y/NNNN)!” He fake cried even louder, wrapping his arms around your body as he picked you up, so he didn’t have to bend down. 

“Yunhooooo!” You mocked him, sticking your head into his shoulder as the giggles fell from your lips. 

He swayed you for a moment before finally setting you down as laughs seemed to be heard around the studio. You looked up at Yunho, his large body covering you from the prying eyes of the fans. And that was good for the both of you because the look he gave you made you want to actually cry. 

His eyes were so soft as he kept the words in. He wanted to tell you so much in that moment but knew it had to wait. All of you were trained to not do those kinds of things in public. But you knew with the look he gave you just exactly what it was he meant. 

The rest of the show was spent joking and telling stories about your days as trainees. You also talked a bit about ATEEZ comeback and did some of their challenges, while they did yours. You were sure at one point or another the fans would find out that Yunho and you liked each other somehow with how much you both looked at each other. But that was for another day. 

Once you were all out of the studio and from the prying eyes of the fans, on the other side of the window, Yunho was quick to stop you in your tracks from behind as he wrapped his arms around you.  

“Don't make me cry like that in front of the cameras!” He joked, giving your cheek a wet, sloppy kiss. 

“I'm sorry, Yuyu!” You laughed, rubbing your cheek against his to wipe the spit off. “Kith?” You said silly, pouting your lips as you waited for him. 

He grinned widely, leaning down to give you what you wanted. Instead of pulling away, he placed his forehead against yours, smiling. “You worked hard for this. I'm proud of you.” He told you.

There was so much that led you to this moment. Each one of the boys made you feel content in what you were doing. Just like you helped them to reach this point, they helped you reach yours. You loved what you did. And you were very satisfied with the trip there.

“Thank you.”

Tags : @cultofdionysusnet , @wonderlandnet , @pirateeznet , @k-vanity ,

#cultofdionysusnet #k vanity #wonderlandnet #pirateeznet #ateez x reader #ateez #ateez fanfic #ateez fic #ateez imagines #yunho ateez #jeong yunho #ateez yunho #yunho x reader #yunho #jeong yunho x reader #yunho x you #yunho x y/n #tarot

[highladyluck]

13 books tag game, tagged by @amemoryofwot and @asha-mage (incidentally I typoed that as "amemeryofwot" which would be an excellent sideblog concept, maybe snatch that one up?)

1) Last book I read:

Mistress of the Empire by Raymond Feist & Janny Wurts (at the time I started filling this out, anyway… I've been working on this ask for several days) This whole trilogy was a delight, thanks to @sixth-light for telling me I would love Mara!

2) A book I recommend:

The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord. It's a quiet little road trip romance exploring grief & diaspora, in a setting that I can best describe as 'if Madeline L'Engle had been in charge of Star Trek worldbuilding'. (If you squint you can see analogues to humans, Vulcans, Romulans, and Orions, but the tone is reminiscent of L'Engle.) There are sequels that follow different characters but this is the first one and it works as a standalone. I feel like it has a lovely light touch on some intense subjects and I appreciate the way each chapter works as a separate story while still fitting into the whole.

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

I remember staying up past my bedtime for The Monster Baru Cormorant, I think? At the very least, that's where we first get my beloved Tau-Indi, and the pacing on the climax is kinda weird, about 2/3rds in, so I think I would have read through to it without stopping. I don't know if this question is supposed to be about compellingness or pacing? Probably compellingness, I think I'm weirdly fixated on structure when I read things. But sometimes I think books you 'can't put down' are at least partially that way because there's no damn place to breathe, and I don't entirely approve.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more)

I see from literally everyone who has tagged me in this that this is one of the two free spaces for Wheel of Time, but I'll switch it up: Lifeboats by Diane Duane. It's set between Young Wizards 9 & 10 and deals with an emergency response team permanently evacuating an entire alien population from a natural disaster (RIP their moon and also consequently their planet). This novel is a huge comfort read for me and is undoubtedly the Young Wizards work I've read the most. I don't really know how to explain what it means to me… I wish I had had it when I was living and working in a foreign country.

5) A book on my TBR

A friend recommended Cahokia Jazz (in general, not to me specifically) and it sounds SO MUCH like my jam. I suspect if I can't find it at my library soon, I'll end up buying the ebook.

6) A book I’ve put down

Can't think of a recent one, but if I hadn't forced myself to finish reading it because it was a Hugo Award nominee, I would have DNF'd Project Hail Mary.

7) A book on my wish list

I wish for more Baru Cormorant but I also literally cannot imagine how Seth is going to write that next book. So like, I'm girding my loins for Baru #4 either 15 years from now or never.

8) A favourite book from childhood

When I was really little I loved the Berenstain Bear books and my mom HATED that I loved them ("they were so badly written!" - my mom the children's librarian) but she bought them for me anyway. That's love.

9) A book you would give a friend

You all need to read Middlemarch by George Eliot. I don't care what stage of life you're at, you will find something resonant in it. Read it now, and read it again in 20 years. Give it to recent high school grads. Give it as a wedding present. Take it to the beach. BUT I am specifically recommending it to the WoT contingent, because the characters are so good!

10) The most books you own by a single author

It's actually either Diane Duane or Terry Pratchett, and DD's probably winning because I don't have every Pratchett book but I do have almost every DD book including tie-in novels.

11) A nonfiction book you own

Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age by Annalee Newitz. I don't read a ton of nonfiction but the writing is very engaging and I think cities are neat.

12) what are you currently reading

I'm between books but I just finished The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles (as I am writing this part several days after question 1). I didn't like it as much as the first one, The Mimicking of Known Successes, but I think it's just a taste thing. I didn't like being in Pleiti's POV very much, her overthinking is too much like mine and it alternately stresses me out and makes me angry, because I can see the assumptions/unhelpful thought patterns but I can't fix them. Obviously, to draw that reaction from me the characters are well-defined, and I like everything else about the series, I just hope it goes back to Mossa's POV.

13) what are you planning on reading next?

WHEN WILL 'RED SIDE STORY' BY JASPER FFORDE REACH MY HOUSE??? I have been waiting like 15 years for this sequel to Shades of Grey and the entire point of preordering it was so I could have it ASAP. I could have walked into a bookstore on May 9th and walked out with it, and instead I won't get it until tomorrow. >:(

I think I am supposed to add a shelfie? The organizing principles(s) of this shelf in my bedroom are very weird…. Classics/adventure, fantasy, popular science writing? Someday I need to reshelve everything in the house according to size/favoriteness/genre/theme/vibes (in that order) but I haven’t felt like it.

I think pretty much everyone I was going to tag already got tagged, so whoever want to do it, go ahead!

#book meme #tag game