“ Oh, uh. It’s okay. I think it’s more practical that I can just steal the same one from my father’s stash. I practically grew up listening to ABBA so, yeah. You can have it. ” Keith offered the record once more to him politely, nodding along as he reasoned. Although it would have been nice to have one to himself, it might be more so like decor after the countless days he has spent listening with his father; grown tired hearing the same songs all day, everyday. With the manner at how the other had stare at him, features expressed a puzzled look which caused him to back away for a bit. “ W-Why are you looking at ahh. yes, that’s me. And you’re Blair from Biology. I knew you looked familiar. ”
bio 201 was a pretty big class, held inside a lecture hall that could easily fit about eighty to a hundred people, so he’s surprised keith recognised him. then again... “i’ve seen you sitting behind me a couple of times,” he adds, tucking the abba record under his arm. if he truly didn’t want it, then blair wasn’t going to waste both his and keith’s time passing the record to each other. until now, blair would categorise the few times they’ve spoken under those short, casual, three-second long interactions: keith asking him for an eraser, blair apologising for accidentally knocking his head against keith’s laptop... “how long have you been collecting records?”
river nodded in response, hand clutching the ceramic cup while he sips his beverage quietly. “and i’m not ridiculous—i’m giving you a free ride home rather than you having to spend a couple bucks on some fifteen… ten-minute bus ride.” he says with a tiny sigh, putting the cup down on the table, face still stuck on that deadpan expression. “what are you studying so hard for?” he asked out of curiosity. back now leaning comfortably against the worn down leathered upholstered bench. “if you have questions, feel free to ask.” he adds as he looks at blair directly. river had always been naturally smart and despite barely studying, he was top of his class.
that was true. blair would rather spend his money on food; river’s kind enough to offer to drive him home. he’d be an idiot to pass on it. “i have a couple of papers i need to finish by the end of the year,” he expels a sigh, heavy and sad, shoulders sagging with the weight of coursework and deadlines and grades. “i think it’ll be good to, y’know... have a head start.” he cannot procrastinate this time—the professors were much more lenient with attendance and punctuality when he was a freshman, but now? blair felt utter guilt for even flirting with the thought of skipping a class. “i might ask you to look through it soon?” he smiles, hopeful. “like a little peer review, if that’s okay. you know i always trust you with school stuff.” blair downs the rest of his now-lukewarm coffee, sets it aside. “we should get going soon. i still need to put all of this on.”
“you’re not taking the bus home.” river firmly says as he took another bite out of the éclair, swallowing it right after as he took a quick sip of his cold brew. the rich and sweet liquid filling his throat. “i’m dropping you off home.” he wasn’t going to let blair take the bus. he would be worried—although he wouldn’t say that out loud. “and my shift starts at 6:30 tonight.” he finally answers, glancing at the wall clock situated on the wall of the café. they had ten more minutes before they get ready to head to school. “i can drop you off… i don’t want you going home alone.” a genuine concern flashes in his eyes before it disappeared as he sighed and looked at his half-eaten éclair. he then remembered his mother being harassed on her way home. she just got back from korea and well… bad things happened, but mama shaw had it covered. river just wished he was there to personally beat them up.
it’s winter—stupid, stupid winter; days were much shorter and everything was already dark by five in the afternoon. even so, blair didn’t mind commuting home by bus. there were still people around, the lights from the shops and lamp posts scattered around the city centre were enough to make blair feel... safe, somewhat. no matter how much he insists he’s perfectly capable of defending himself, however, he knows river wasn’t going to take no for an answer. so, he’ll have to concede. for river’s own peace of mind. blair finishes the rest of his muffin and takes a long, overdue sip of his coffee. it was hot, but not scalding. “you’re absolutely ridiculous.” blair says, shaking his head, “then... we can leave the library at—hm, around quarter past four? that way you’ll have enough time to get ready.” he supposes he can continue studying at home.
the corners of river’s mouth threaten to tug as he watched blair wrapped his hands around the mug in an attempt to warm himself. admittedly, it was kind of cute. “be careful.” river reminded again, the corners of his mouth dropping as his face relaxed to its deadpan expression. river barely smiled, but when he did—well let’s just say it tends to take people’s breath away. “and after school…” he mumbled, carefully unwrapping the éclair he bought. “i suppose i can spare some time in the library with you. i do have work today, though.” he added as he brought the éclair to his mouth, taking a small bite out of it as he looked at blair. river worked part-time at jinxed for some extra cash, he liked it there… surprisingly.
“i am careful.” he says, and although his eyebrows were all scrunched up, he likes when river fusses over him. and he’s right! the coffee was hot, still a bit too hot for blair to take a sip, so he lets his hands linger on the ceramic mug. maybe it’ll temper the heat eventually. he almost forgets he still had a muffin on his plate too, all chopped up in tiny pieces. “what time do you work today?” he asks after eating at least half of it—and swallowing, of course. he has manners. he hates when people talked while eating. “it’s okay if you, like, leave halfway. i’ll take the bus home.”
hyeon arches back, stretching their cat limbs out. they shake out their fur before hopping down from the windowsill of the diner. despite not always wanting to partake in the socialization, they liked the ambience of the diner, and it got good sunlight. they brush up against the usual server who chuckles, leaning down to hand them a small paper bag. hyeon grasps it between their teeth and disappears in a wisp of shadow.
the familiar lands on their paws, of course, right outside the mage’s window. although what day hyeon visits might differ, it’s become somewhat habitual visiting blair. what once started out at hyeon checking up on the other person after a rough night turned into weekly visits. they drop the paper sack, letting out a meow, and taps a paw at the glass.
@dreamsfate
at the sound, blair swirls around on his spinny chair and grins at the black cat behind the glass. he can’t exactly remember when the unexpected visits from the familiar had begun, but by now? it’s routine how blair reaches for the sash lock, flicks it up and pushes the pane open. the gust of cold wind hits him—he couldn’t even brace himself for it. winter is terrible.
“come in, come in,” he says, and once they slip inside, he hastily tugs the windows and curtains shut. at first, it had been a little awkward speaking to a familiar he’s never seen as a human, but he’d grown to appreciate the company. especially on stressful nights where he’s chasing deadlines. “what have you got in there? i was just about to have a quick snack. we can eat together.”
Thankful for the kind stranger that lent the record for him to look into it whilst ocean-hued eyes perusing the lists of songs. “ This one, I’ve been trying to find for ages… ” He uttered, half and half if he’d take it upon himself or stick to his former already tucked between his side. When he was done looking, Keith politely return the record from the other with a smile, “ But thank you. You should get it. It’s a really good one. One of the best, actually. ”
blair’s eyebrows quirk up. it seemed like the man deserved this record more than he did. he’s a merfolk, too, blair had noticed, what with his stunningly smooth complexion and pretty eyes—but that was beside the point. his grandfather certainly wouldn’t mind receiving a different album, would he? “really? you can have it, then. i can look for another one.” blair insists, pushing the record back towards the other. and when he gets a proper look of his face, he tilts his head an angle. “hold on,” he says with a smile, “i’ve seen you in class! keith, right? you take biology 201?”
“what good is magic if it isn’t a permanent solution…” river mumbles quietly to himself, a less than amused expression sketched across his face as he took a small sip of his cold brew. although magic, spells, and the lot of it are a perplexing and enthralling conversation, river never really got around it. magic every so often breaks the laws of rationality. when he was a young boy, his father took him to a carnival, and he saw a mage turn a snail into a venomous viper. it was absurd!
“sounds like a ‘you’ problem.” he then took a big bite out of the remaining muffin he had in possession before standing up and patting blair’s head gently. “and stay here.” he says, hand digging inside his pocket for his worn-out wallet. “i’ll get it for you.” he added. walking up to the counter to purchase blair’s usual drink. he also added a éclair for himself and with that, he headed back to their seat and placed blair’s drink on the table.
“careful… it’s really hot.”
blair doesn’t have the time to protest at all—river was up and away before he can offer to buy him a pastry in return. he can only scowl helplessly at the till from his seat. the banana nut muffin, he can overlook. hot coffee wasn’t really expensive, either, but with how often river treats him to meals and drinks without any hesitation at all, the prideful part of blair’s brain took a note to buy him lunch today. or dinner tonight. or whatever. or maybe he could go a little over the budget they’d agreed on for christmas presents.
“ah,” blair tuts, “you didn’t have to.” but river always did—always looked out for him, always went the extra mile for him, always made him feel protected. “thanks. i’ll try not to burn myself. or cry.” he chuckles, warms his hands (that were still freezing!) on the mug. “do you have any plans after school? i was thinking about staying at the library for a while.”
It’s been Keith’s ritual to go in and out of the record store every 2 weeks, built himself a collection for him to listen to. Perhaps they call it an obsession these days, and it sure did made him the happiest. He’d already have The Smiths in his hand, while something caught his eye. An ABBA one, particularly an album he doesn’t have yet. While he still stuck to his previous choice, he still made his way to check the latter one until the other had their hands on it. “ Hey. That’s a really good one though. Can I… take a closer look ? ” ( @crescentcovestart )
this was the first time blair went to mystica records. while he loved music, he wasn’t the kind of person who collected records or laser discs or anything vintage; he much preferred the faster, more practical choice of music streaming apps. after all, he can’t really whip out a record player in the bus if he wanted to listen to songs in public. but he wanted to buy his grandfather a birthday present, and... there was something magical, almost, about walking through the rows of records and taking in that distinctive smell of cardboard; it kind of felt like he was stuck in time. it’s oddly comforting. “huh? this?” blair blinks as he’s approached, looking a bit hesitant. then again, it’s stupid to get possessive over a record he hasn’t even decided to buy yet, so he passes the album to the other. “... here.”
“well—” with his slender fingers, river tugged the blinds down. watching the light dissipate from their view. “if i could, i would.” he bemoaned weakly before averting his attention to blair, pleased that the sun’s glare did not bleach his eyes further. they were unlikely friends, him and blair—river certainly did not expect to grow fond by blair’s presence. he was a lone wolf… or so he thought, really. “and i am not your personal heat pack.” he stated with a firm tone, but his past actions betray him. he let blair cling onto him and would sometimes encourage the behaviour. he really didn’t mind being a personal heat pack.
“i’d assume that you would have a spell for thermoregulation by now.” he looked at blair with a slightly raised brow as he took a small bite out of the muffin he split earlier. “considering that, you always get cold.” he was acting like it was blair’s fault for not withstanding the brisk and cold. he did not understand how someone could need so much layers of clothes—well, he could thermoregulate, so he really had no opinion on this.
blair would have complained about river shutting the blinds close, but he sees little streams of sunlight filter through it—it’s not bright. not overwhelmingly blinding. but it’s enough for blair to still feel the warmth on his back. “there is one, yeah.” a centuries-old spell, as the harsh temperatures of winter has always been there to torment his kind since the dawn of time. “but it’s not really permanent, like yours. i’d say it’s kind of, like, being wrapped up in a warm blanket? rather than your body doing the work.” he sometimes envies how river can easily withstand the cold, but he’s more than contented sneaking in some snuggles from his friend... no matter how much he denies being blair’s heat pack. he was—he totally was.
he pops a little muffin cube in his mouth, humming in delight.
“mmm. this is good. i should get some coffee too.”
river merely nodded in response, silently happy that it was blair, his expression never altering as he glanced at the mountain of garbs on the metallic table. “bring a heat pack next time.” he suggested with a meager sigh, quietly splitting the muffin into two unequal parts as he noticed the mage eying it several seconds ago. river was always keen and attentive to blair’s needs and wants - and schedule. he knew blair had a seminar to attend in an hour but he also knew that he could get them there pretty quickly. he had it calculated. they had enough time to spare.
“you get cold way too easily.” he reminded while he placed the greater half of the muffin on a plate before pushing it towards blair as he kept the smaller half. then sunlight pouring through the window as it hits him, decorating his skin and curls. it painted him beautifully but river only glared at the window.
“I really really hate mornings.”
“hmm, what are you talking about? i have my heat pack right in front of me.” the blond comments, pointedly raising his eyebrows. he did have a box of heat packs at home, surprisingly untouched and unused. he should make it a habit to bring one every day, since river can’t be by his side 24/7. it’s a lovely thought, having river around all the time, considering the guy was practically a walking radiator. a nice—albeit a little stoic—and comfortable radiator.
blair’s eyes visibly light up at the muffin. he wonders if river was secretly a clairvoyant, or if he just knew him well enough to read his mind without pulling any tricks. “you’re acting like it’s my fault! and the cafe’s toasty enough! it’s going to be a pain putting them all back on, though,” he’s huffing, but the pout on his face is quickly replaced with a grateful smile as he takes the muffin. he plucks off a knife from the wooden cutlery rack, cuts up the muffin into smaller pieces.
“you look like you’re about to punch the sun, river.”
open starter
the daily grind ( café )
The sweet and saccharine aroma of fresh baked pastries mixed with todays morning brew saturates the air.
River took a small whiff, enjoying the comforting and welcoming smell that never failed to ease him. He hated mornings but he always looked forward to going to the local café. This was his favourite place in town, third only to his humble home and the forest.
He then promptly bought his usual purchase. A cold brew and a banana nut muffin. This order hasn’t changed for the last five years. River liked to be consistent with things. He has a routine. He walked over to his usual place, a small booth nook with a metallic table that reflects the morning sun. It almost blinded him for a second.
“I hate mornings…” He thought with a deadpan look on his face as he took a seat, taking a small sip of his drink before staring through the glass pane. The window framing the quaint beauty of crescent cove as the town began to awake. The birds have began singing, a gentle cool breeze fills the atmosphere, the shops slowly preparing for opening, and the sun embracing this beautiful and magical town.
“I still hate mornings…”
His thoughts were then cut short. His attention diverting to the door as he heard the familiar ring of the entrance door chimes. Curious to know who it was.
it wasn’t really hard to distinguish river from the other residents getting their caffeine fix—not just because he was his best friend, but also because the werewolf’s tall build and (seemingly permanent) blank expression was difficult to ignore. briefly, he considers tapping on the glass, maybe even knock on it to snatch his attention through the windows, but the longer he stays out, the more likely he’ll freeze to death. so he decides to walk inside and let the warmth of the coffee shop embrace him instead.
“river! there you are. i was texting you,” blair chirps, smile a little too wide, disposition a little too peppy for someone who had a seminar in an hour. the university wasn’t too far from here—it probably would take him ten minutes, at the most, to get to his classroom. river was sitting at his—their—usual spot, and blair makes himself comfortable across from him. he awkwardly sheds the extra layers off: his scarf, coat, his oversized jacket, then the gloves. he folds them up, arranges them in a neat pile on the table. it would’ve been easier to do that standing, but eh. blair rubs his cold hands together, glances at the muffin that was yet to be consumed. “you just got here?”
( boo seungkwan, cis man, he/him ) — there goes BLAIR KIM who appears to be a 24 year old MAGE. i think they’re headed towards THE DAILY GRIND. word is the STUDENT has been in town for SIX YEARS. you might know them as + ZEALOUS and - SKITTISH. the last time i talked to them, they told me their favourite song was VINCENT by DON MCLEAN.
HEY IM MIKI AND I JUST WHIPPED UP A SHORT INTRO UNDER TH CUT TO MAKE PLOTTING EASIER <3 excited to write with you all!
ㅤೀ ֹ ∗ ㅤ STATISTICS⠀ .ᐟ ⟡
name: blair kim
age: 24
gender: cis man
pronouns: he/him
orientation: bisexual, biromantic
birthday: june 13th
hometown: pohang-si, south korea
species: human ( mage, specialises in healing magic & potion-making )
jewelry item: a ring his grandfather forged for him <3
occupation: graduate student ( majors in physiotherapy and minors in chemistry! )
hobbies: collecting seashells, reading, tending to his plants
likes: meeting new people, staying up late, gazing at the night sky, walks, plants
dislikes: ignorance, coldness, judgmental people, feeling confined/tied down
ㅤೀ ֹ ∗ ㅤ TIDBITS⠀ .ᐟ ⟡
ꕤ ₊ ˚ — #SHORT BACKGROUND.
01. to sum it up, blair’s childhood was pretty tame, nothing angsty or traumatising about it at all. like it’s just... normal. the only thing is that he doesn’t know who his true parents r </3 he grew up in pohang-si, a little coastal town in south korea with his grandparents. his grandmother is a well-known healer and midwife and his grandfather is the town’s blacksmith <3 he was a v inquisitive and adventurous kid, would often run off and get chased down by his grandparents...
02. he was v gifted! had a knack for makin potions & magic. had a lot of potential. and he loved his grandparents, he rly did, but the older blair became, the more he felt like a big fish in a small pond. so with his grandparents’ blessing, he decided to leave home in an attempt to seek whatever it was that he should seek!!
03. eventually landed an apprenticeship w/ a mage ( omg wc <3 ) ! went 2 crescent cove for it ( as well as university ) after agreeing with a friend who had an apartment there and offered to split rent with him... however the entire thing fell apart before he could truly get his feet on the ground. the roommate split for somewhere else, the relationship got sour, and now blair’s living alone... MNXBMNBVMNBNMC
ꕤ ₊ ˚ — #PERSONALITY.
friendly. warm. ambitious. capricious. critical. indecisive. perfectionist. has an inferiority complex. tends to compare himself to people, tends to be a little harsh on himself, especially when it comes to academics. blair’s moods control him more than he controls them? he knows that it’s unwise to always follow his heart, but he finds listening to his head even harder. his brain simply Does Not Know what it wants. has a tendency to make careless mistakes especially when he’s emotional. he’s a very loyal friend though! definitely the type to take a bullet for them? which honestly gets him into really difficult situations but </3 that’s just how he is... REGARDLESS... he Tries to be careful. he’s Trying to be better. tries to think first before he acts. it’s definitely better to have him on your good side rather than bad, because he holds grudges soooo easily
ꕤ ₊ ˚ — #IMPORTANT HEADCANONS.
01. owns a bunch of plants. like his apartment is just Filled with plants and little trinkets full of ingredients he'd foraged for potion-making <3 named all of his plants too and he's going 2 hex u if u forget ..
02. though it takes him a bit of time to collect materials and brew potions (things like potions to relieve anxiety or truth-telling serums like in h*rry p*tter or antidotes... stuff like tht), he’s Extremely talented at potion-making! has a Lot of Potential. he somehow managed to absorb gummi candy in potions to make it tastier and more fun to consume <3 probably has a side hustle where he offers stress-relieving gummy bears to people during exam week at uni...
03. you’ll often see him walkin around th beach... collecting seashells because it reminds him of home <3
04. hums. hums sooo much. hums random songs. i don’t think he’s even conscious of it. like he could hum some random song from the 80s and wouldn’t even know what he’s humming if you asked 😭
05. is suuuper organized and he’s the type of person who you can rely on for help!!! he prioritizes his friends & family ovr anything else. need someone 2 drive u home? blair can’t drive but he’ll book a taxi for u. suffering from a bad hangover? he’ll make u the perfect hangover soup. lost ur house keys and need a place 2 stay @? blair will welcome u w/ open arms.
