a/n: happy birthday to my lovely friend across the pond @foolish-sparrow!!! hope you have the loveliest day ever because you deserve your love. also, happy pride month everyone! I have a special fic that's been rotting in my brain that I want to release for pride month, but I also want to work on requests this month, so we'll just have to see what happens :)
tw: 'madre' is used once because it's my nickname for Sparrow but the fic is gender-neutral otherwise, Paladin! Reader that reads like a self-insert character, reader gets wasted as do the love interests, hangover symptoms including nausea, this author hates love triangles so your love interests are love interests and we all live happily ever after in a poly relationship <3
related fics: gimme all your lovin' (all your hugs and kisses too!), look at me! look at me!, sorry for party rockin'!, we're never getting back together (like ever?)
summary: You wake up in a random hotel room with no idea where Yunjin or Kazuha are. Last night's memories are blurry, but with the help of those two girls, you manage to put the pieces back together of what exactly happened at that party.
♡ Masterlist ♡
On a scale from “crystal-clear” to “holy fuck how much did I drink”, you’d rate your memory of last night as a slightly blurry highlight reel of the best parts.
This, of course, couldn’t explain why you woke up in a strange hotel room with little to your name beside your phone and the clothes on your body.
Your phone. You should check that, maybe someone’s searching for you?
Not a single phone call. Were your friends not even slightly concerned about you?
A single text pops up on your phone.
Katie: Text me when you’re headed home! I’ll save some breakfast for you. <3
Well, at least the youngest Paladin cares for you. Considering that she’s sweet to anything that breathes, maybe you shouldn’t take it as too much of a compliment.
Your phone pings again.
Katie: Love you lots, mi madre! Hope you had fun with Yunjin and Kazuha last night after you left the party.
You certainly weren’t in the apartment that Yunjin and Kazuha shared with three other girls, and hell, you weren’t sure if you were in the same city that you started the night in.
Your phone has a mapping system of sorts, right? Maybe you can turn on the WiFi and get a signal to your phone.
You’re thoroughly disappointed, albeit not surprised at this point, that this hotel doesn’t have WiFi or any signal for your phone. It’s almost as if the world doesn’t want you to figure out where you’re going…
The only tool you have is your memory at this point. It can’t hurt to go over everything, right?
~
“Yunjin, we have a guest!” Kazuha loudly announces as you knock on the door. “Can you get it? I’m busy putting on make-up.”
“Why do I always have to get the door?” Yunjin whines before opening the door. “Hey, you came over! Glad to see you here.”
Yunjin lets you in before closing the door.
“None of the other girls are in right now. Sakura and Chaewon are having a girl’s night, and Eunchae mentioned something about a study date.” Yunjin laughs to herself. “Kids, they grow up so fast.”
“Tell me about it,” You laugh along with Yunjin, “Katie’s the one organizing the party. Luckily, since Ryujin invited everyone and their mother, I slipped an invitation in for you and Kazuha.”
“Katie won’t be mad?”
“Not at all, since the party is a cover to get a few of her friends together with their crushes.” You roll your eyes at Katie’s schemes, which will unfortunately work because it’s Katie.
“Sounds like Katie, alright.” Yunjin lightly grabs your arm before leading you to the kitchen. “C’mon, I made some drinks for us.”
“Already? We’re not even at the party yet-” You try to protest, but Kazuha gasps when she spots the three red solo cups.
“I’m down for a couple drinks if you are.” Kazuha enters the room and slides to your left as Yunjin expectantly stares at you.
So much for your whole lecture towards Katie about avoiding peer pressure when it came to alcohol and other substances.
“As long as we get an Uber to the party, we can have a couple of drinks.” You say as the two girls happily cheer.
~
You didn’t get too drunk at their apartment, but you definitely weren’t comfortable driving. After calling a ride, nothing of note happened - except for the fact that you were squished between Yunjin and Kazuha in the backseat of the car. You were trying to hide your nervousness from the both of them, but neither of them could resist the urge to tease you a bit.
“Do we both make you nervous, or is it just one of us?” Yunjin smiles before scooting closer to you. “Come on, you can tell me~”
“Yunjin, knock it off, you’re making them nervous!” Kazuha reaches over and lightly slaps Yunjin.
Yunjin rubs her arm in pain as Kazuha’s hand returns to her, but not before lightly grazing your knee.
When you look at Kazuha, she winks at you before softly laughing.
You’re sure that your nerves are more apart than ever - maybe spontaneous combustion wasn’t such a bad fate, after all?
Speaking of, Kazuha enters the hotel room, causing you to sigh in relief.
“Kazuha, you have no idea how happy I am to see you-”
“-Where are we?” Kazuha looks at you in confusion. “I thought you’d know, but apparently you don’t.”
“What gave it away? The fact that I reek of booze?” You joke as she walks over and peeks out of the other side of the room. “Have you seen Yunjin?”
“That’s what I was going to ask you.” Kazuha slides into the single office chair in the middle of the room as you lay on the single king bed in the room. “What happened last night?”
“I’ve got bits and pieces from last night - maybe we can compare and see what we remember?”
~
Getting to the party was eventful, but the party itself was nothing to scoff at. You had arrived a bit late, something that Katie would normally scold you for, but the party seemed to be roaring out of control.
To your left was the kitchen, where you see a nervous Katie running around with dishes and ingredients in her hands. Dami dutifully stands to the side, occasionally holding a dish and stirring something, while watching Katie work her magic.
You can hear King and Neon talking with a group of friends in the living room - perhaps it was time for a Boomer reunion? Yet again, you’d probably start an argument with one of the boomers, which would probably put Katie more on edge than before.
You couldn’t chat with Mala, who was currently studying at home with Tzuyu. Katie had invited them over, but you weren’t sure that they would make an appearance tonight.
“Hey, I’m going to grab something to eat. Are you guys hungry?” Yunjin asks as the three of you head towards the kitchen.
“I could eat.” You shrug as Kazuha nods.
“Hey, Katie-” You call out as Katie rushes past you.
“Everything you can eat is on the kitchen island. Grab a plate and feel free to eat.” Katie says before mumbling to herself, “Chili powder, lemon juice, tomatoes, avocados-”
“Is she going to be okay?” Kazuha asks as Dami hands the three of you plates, silverware, and glasses.
“I think so, but this may be her breaking point.” Dami looks over to the counter that is stacked with half-full and empty liquor bottles. “I still haven’t told her that Ryujin and her friends have finished off most of the bottled and canned drinks.”
“Have Neon and Siyeon find the drinks. I’m too stressed to do any sort of matchmaking, so that’ll work for now.” Katie rushes back towards the sink to grab a spoon. “Oh, and I’m not ignoring you three, I promise. I’m just a little bit out of it, and I hope you can understand why.”
“At least she’s honest about it.” Yunjin mutters as Kazuha rolls her eyes.
“Be nice to the girl, she’s obviously trying her best. Thank you for the food, Katie, I appreciate your efforts.” Kazuha compliments Katie, who instantly lights up.
“Really? Thank you!” She quickly side-hugs Kazuha before continuing to organize the kitchen and mix dishes together.
“You’re welcome.” She smiles before looking over to you and Yunjin, who look ready to devour her if she doesn’t move out of the way. “We should grab some food and get to the party.”
~
“Katie’s really something, huh?” Kazuha laughs to herself for a moment. “She’s a sweetheart - no wonder everyone gets along with her.”
“Yeah, she’s something, alright.” You smile softly. “But after that, we sat down and had food until Neon and Siyeon came back with drinks.”
“I’m surprised you remember that. You and King got into a bit of a drinking competition, and well… both of you were losers in the end.” Kazuha explains.
“I wasn’t that drunk.”
“You couldn’t answer a basic multiplication question.”
“Okay, maybe I was that drunk. What happened next? My memory’s kind of blurry-”
“We played a few party games, in which you got mad at King and then chased him outside. He fell into SuA’s flower garden, and you claimed your victory over him. Then there was the whole Spin the Bottle incident-”
“Spin the Bottle incident?” You tilt your head at Kazuha.
“-I think Mala’s the person to talk to about that.” Kazuha scoots her chair closer to you. “Your friends all had a pretty good night when it came to romance.”
You groan as a wave of nausea hits you - damn hangovers and their horrible timing!
“What about me?” You ask out of plain curiosity.
“What about you…” Kazuha trails off with a playful look on her face.
~
You were chased outside by Katie… well, some of you were. Others were too drunk to function, so rides had to be arranged, and some were growing tired as the moon continued to rise into the sky.
Yunjin and Kazuha were still there… among others, but none were as notable as them.
In the moonlight, Kazuha’s skin glistened as someone set up a speaker in the backyard. Like a moon to its planet, you’re pulled into her orbit as you dance together to a song you can’t quite name. Your bodies flow together as if the cosmos deemed for you two to be together.
And, of course, nothing ends a perfect first dance like a perfect first kiss. Your lips move against hers in perfect harmony as you stop swaying to the music.
You part from her, with both you and her shyly looking away from each other, when Yunjin pulls you close to her.
“You two can’t have all of the fun~” She teases before lightly kissing your cheek.
You don’t have time to process what happened with Kazuha when Yunjin dances with you to a much faster-paced song. You find time to tease each other, to carefully expose your feelings without being too over-the-top. It’s a delicate dance, a high-intensity card game where you both wait to play your aces.
You play yours first - pulling her flush to you as the song comes to a close.
She plays her ace after yours - her hands pull your face close to hers, and her lips devour yours with a hunger that you’ve never known before.
Another partygoer has to pull the two of you away from each other, wanting you to “not cause a scene”. As if you haven’t done enough of that tonight.
You’re stuck between two worlds, a fork in the road that leads to two different good endings.
What do you do now?
~
“Then Yunjin and I ended up kissing, and we tried to call a ride back to the apartment. I don’t think the driver knew where we were going, since we ended up here.” Kazuha shows you a flier that she found on the desk - the hotel has a similar name to their apartment building, so the mix-up suddenly makes a lot more sense.
“I think we all drank too much,” You groan as you lay down on the bed. “But I don’t regret kissing you or Yunjin, not one bit.”
“So you remembered?” A hopeful glint appears in Kazuha’s eyes.
“I told you that I remembered bits and pieces, but as you were telling me what happened, it all started to click and my memories… sorted themselves out, I guess.” You place a hand over your eyes to prevent any sunlight or artificial light from entering your eyes. “Still doesn’t explain where Yunjin is though.”
The hotel door room is slammed open as someone stumbles into the room.
“Yunjin!” Kazuha explains as you carefully sit up and remove your hand from your eyes.
Yunjin’s hair is an absolute mess, sticking up in all sorts of directions and curling in places that it didn’t curl before.
“My head is killing me.” She grumbles before face planting on the bed. “The breakfast here sucks, by the way. Why don’t we go back home?”
“Do you remember much from last night?” You look over at Yunjin, who lifts her head and smirks at you.
“Which part - the party, the kissing, or the hotel room shenanigans?”
Your eyes widen as you look over at Kazuha - she’s just as flabbergasted as you.
“I’ll tell you all when we’re not hungover, preferably over coffee.” She says before laying her head back on the bed.
“It sounds like you’re asking us on a date, Yunjin.” You tease as Yunjin sighs.
“I wanna sleep, can we talk about this later?”
“We’ll talk later. Goodnight, Yunjin-” Kazuha says before she hears soft snoring from the other bed. “That was fast.”
“Do you want to rest, or would you rather clean up and get ready?” You ask.
“I could use a nap. Once I was semi-sober, I was looking up and down the hotel for Yunjin. I wonder where she went…” Kazuha shrugs as you slide off of the bed. “You aren’t tired?”
“I have to let the other Paladins know where I’m at.” You check the clock - 8:35 a.m.
Neon and King are probably still hungover, so Katie and Mala are the only people you should call right now. You don’t really want anyone to call you since you’re hungover, so you’ll offer the other boomers that basic respect.
“Kazuha, is it okay if I-” You pause as you watch Kazuha’s chest rise and fall - she’s dead asleep, too.
You look over to Yunjin, then back to Kazuha, and then to your phone.
You’d figure everything out, over coffee and other hangover cures. And you had one hell of a story to tell the other Paladins when you got home.
Hello Sparrow! How are you doing? I wanted to tell you that I love your writing, especially the Dreamcatcher stories because they are my ult. I also wanted to ask, I’m not sure if you’ve talked about this before and I just missed it, do you plan on continuing the Dreamcatcher Pirate AU? It’s been a few years now so probably not, but I thought that I’d check anyway. Have a nice day!
Hello friend! I'm certainly... doing.
But I do see we have someone with exquisite taste in gg, I certainly commend you.
As for your question uuuuh well I do have the beginnings of the next chapter written out, I have for a while now. But while my interest hasn't completely gone it has moved on to other things if you get me?
However you simply bringing it back into the spotlight has already made me wanna open word up and have another go at it, so I truly appreciate you even asking.
Wishing you nothing but happiness and love friend!
a/n: I recently watched the one piece live action while suffering from red-haired winter brain rot... thus this fic was created. @foolish-sparrow, my pirate queen and favorite mother figure, this one's for you. ❤️ also last fic of 2023, so I hope the new year treats you all well!
tw: possible ooc aespa girlies (I have never written for them before), violence (guns, swords, and death, oh my!), alcohol mentions, one suggestive mention
word count ~ 2.9k
summary: as a first mate to the captain of the Red-Haired Pirates, your job is simple. 1.) keep everyone in line, 2.) keep the ship running above water, and most importantly, 3.) remind your captain and lover that she needs to take a break every once in a while (after you plunder some enemy pirates, of course!)
♡ Masterlist ♡
"Come here, my love." Winter's voice rings out over the hustle and bustle of her crew as you slip past a few of them to head up the stairs, towards the helm of the ship.
Every great captain needed a reliable first mate. Someone they could trust when shit went sideways - as it often did as a pirate sailing the seas.
As luck would have it, you were the first mate to Winter's adventures as a captain, but your relationship quickly grew beyond what was conventional for a captain and a crew mate.
It's not like anyone's opinions mattered - if someone was out of line, a few days strung to the front of the ship set them straight. Winter was less harsh on her crew then most pirates, and had a semi-stable moral compass, but she couldn't let everything slide.
"I'm here, Minjeong, do you need something?" You ask as she backs away from the wheel to fish something out of her pocket.
"If I didn't know you better, I'd take that as a form of disrespect," She teases before tossing you a small necklace, "You should respect your captain, especially if they're pickpocketing necklaces off of dead rival pirates."
"I'm sorry, Captain Winter," You catch the necklace before mockingly bowing, "should I kiss your feet next time as a form of respect?"
"I'd prefer you started with my mouth-"
You scoff before admiring the necklace.
The rubies hanging along the necklace shine right in comparison to the gold chain it hangs on. There's a bit of rust on the necklace - from old money, you assume - but you know Winter means well. She often doesn't have much left over to spend on the two of you - she likes to reward her crew for a job well done when she's not fixing cannonball-sized holes in her ship.
You don't hesitate to put it on before answering her.
"Darling, if you want to kiss me, you don't have to grandstand. I'd do it for you anyways."
You lean in to kiss her, as she does the same, before a cannonball hits the left side of the ship. Winter grabs the nearest bolted-down object before catching you in her arms.
"You good?" She asks as you nod in response. "Way to ruin a moment."
"You'll really earn a kiss after this one, Captain." You look back to see a massive ship coming from the distance as your crew scrambles to be on the offensive.
Winter quickly goes to her feet before unsheathing her cutlass from her side.
"I've got this side covered. Go find Karina, Giselle, and Ningning. They're on strict orders to fire whatever they can find until we get close enough to invade their ship."
You're quick to your feet as well as you scan the crew members below you for the three girls you're looking for.
"I'm on it, Captain," You smile before backing away and blowing her a kiss, "but don't kick their asses too hard, alright?"
"If everything goes to plan, they'll regret setting sights on our ship." Winter swings her sword in the air as fellow pirates rally to her side and prepare for the incoming battle.
You scurry away on your mission with a sickeningly sweet smile on your face.
It's never a dull day on the seas with you, is it, Minjeong?
~
You catch Ningning on your way below deck, and you toss her your extra knife - she'll need it, given that hers find their way into the enemy's neck.
Below deck, Giselle is giving strict instructions to a few new recruits on how to fire the cannons. She spots you and waves as your eyes scan around the room.
"We're guns ablazing down here. How are we upstairs?" Giselle asks before tossing a cannonball into a nearby cannon.
"Everyone's ready, but I'm on the captain's orders to find Karina. Where's our head marksman?"
"Check the gunroom. I think she snuck off with a girl - another marksman, perhaps?"
"Damn you, Karina." You grumble before placing a hand on Giselle's back. "We're still up for drinks?"
"As long as I kick your ass at poker afterwards, then yes."
"You got lucky," You scowl for a moment as Giselle lights a match to set off the cannon, "but keep things running smoothly down here. I have a lovesick puppy to chase."
Giselle softly laughs as you plug your ears and move past the cannons. A few cannons fire off before you make your way to the gunroom. You try to open the door, but it's locked.
"Karina!" You loudly pound on the door before you hear two women squeal.
"Don't come in!" Karina yells.
"Wasn't planning on it, but we need you upstairs in the crow's nest. We're under attack from another ship." You announce before pounding on the door. "You can answer to me, or answer to your Captain. Either way-"
The door quickly unlocks and reveals a disheveled Karina along with another girl behind her in a similar state.
"Don't tell Winter about this, please-"
"Get moving and I won't say another word." You step out of her way, and Karina scurries to above deck after grabbing her gun. "You too, c'mon!"
The other girl makes a noise resembling a cross between a shriek and a squeal before hurrying out of the room. You quickly close the door, but not before grabbing your favorite toy - a musket you lovingly called Killjoy.
With your specialists ready for battle, it was time to head back upstairs and see how much closer the other ship had gotten.
~
"Nice of you to join us, Karina," Winter jests as you join her at the side of the ship, "get up in that crow's nest and start shooting!"
"Got it." She nods before giving you a pleading look.
You wink at Karina, who deeply sighs before heading off.
"Which girl was she caught with this time?" Winter pinches the bridge of her nose in annoyance as you eye the rapidly approaching sea vessel.
"One of her marksmen. A new recruit, if I'm not mistaken." You ready Killjoy in your arms as the two ships are nearly about to collide.
Although Winter's ship has taken some damage, the other ship is about two more cannon blasts from going under. It makes sense that they'd try to get close, but they didn't know the talent of her crew.
With a skilled marksman, a masterful assassin, a crafty navigator who likes to play with fire, and the best swordsman to sail the coast, you had little to fear with your crew. You could hold your own, as could the rest of the crew, but you did like to let them show off - it gave you a clear reputation in the seas.
The two ships collide, causing you to grab the railing along with Winter.
"Charge!" She yells as a few members of your crew, including Ningning, swing across to jump aboard the other ship.
Karina quickly shoots down most of the pirates who swing towards your ship. In your arms, Killjoy is a deadly weapon, so you're able to down the last two pirates on your left.
Before you can check your other side, Winter slices through a pirate that was headed your direction.
"Check both sides next time." She teases as you aim behind her shoulder and shoot down another enemy pirate.
"You watch the front, I've got your back." You say with a smile as Winter charges in front of you to take down another set of pirates who have just swung in.
You aim your musket at a pirate who swings in towards you, but you miss the shot due to a large explosion on the enemy ship that kicks up smoke and debris.
"Giselle, can you aim the grenades a little farther next time?" You scold the girl who appears next to you before she hands you a nearby trident.
"Accounting for distance and smoke, throw this ten degrees portside." Giselle, albeit a little too willing for your liking, takes Killjoy from your hands as you follow her instructions.
"I can't see anything-"
"-just trust me!" She yells as you throw the trident.
Sure enough, a pirate comes charging your way out of the smoke, but your trident pierces through his heart and lungs before he can reach you.
"How did you do that?" You're in shock as you grab the trident from the dead pirate.
"I'm the navigator. I'm supposed to know where everything is," Giselle aims your musket at the sky and shoots a pirate that neither of you could see, "but I did guess that they would charge you head on instead of moving to the side."
"Remind me to fish you out of the captain's cabin more often, mapmaker. You've got some serious talent." You compliment Giselle as the smoke finally clears and you can see who is coming your way.
"I like to make myself useful." She shrugs before easily downing another pirate that tries and fails to swing across to your boat. "I'll return her back to you in one piece."
"You better, or so help me God-" You grumble as Giselle heads to the quarterdeck to fend off more enemy pirates.
On the other ship, Ningning stabs two pirates at once before they both fall to the ground. Another tries to charge her, but a casual knife throw backwards ends their pursuit before it has a chance to start.
You've made enough of a dent in their crew that most fights are two versus one, and your trident stabs two pirates like a kabob before hitting the mainmast.
You grab a sword from a long-deceased pirate as you jump into the fray. You parry an oncoming blow before pushing the other pirate back. Another tries to swing at your feet, but you're quick to jump out of the way and land a blow to their side.
Winter jumps in and kicks one of the pirates to the ground before stabbing her cutlass through their neck. The pirate you injured tries to move away from you while holding their side, but you rush forward and send them overboard with one push.
A gentle hand grabs yours as a sword comes right in front of your eyes. With two swords in their hands and a flamboyant hat on their head, you're certain that the foe in front of you is the enemy Captain.
Winter pulls you into one of her arms before pointing her cutlass directly at the other captain's chest.
"Surrender now, and we may let you live." She raises an eyebrow at the other captain, who takes a defensive posture.
"My crew and I will rip you to shreds."
"You might want to take a look around, then." Winter lets go of you before gesturing around her with her free hand.
The other captain looks around, panicked, as they notice that most of their crew is dead, overboard, or badly hurt.
Ningning waves her hand from the other ship, along with her remaining frontline fighters.
Karina jumps down from the last rung leading up to the crow's nest as she joins the rest of her marksman on the main deck.
Giselle stands to your left with a single grenade that she menacingly tosses up and down every few seconds.
You and Winter stand side-by-side with both of your swords pointed towards the nervous captain who immediately drops their swords.
"I surrender! Drop your weapons!" The captain barks as the rest of their crew raises their hands and drops their weapons.
With guns and swords drawn, you corral their crew into the corner as Ningning steers the enemy ship close enough that everyone can cross safely to plunder their treasures.
You cross your arms as two of your pirates lower the planks on both ships.
"You first, my dear Captain." You bow to Winter, who scoffs before sheathing her cutlass and offering you her hand.
"The captain and her first mate go together, you know." She smirks as you set aside your sword and take her hand. "Let's hope we find enough treasure to fix the ship."
~
The ship you plundered was full of treasures, including a fully stocked wine cellar that you and Giselle called dibs on. You found a pearl bracelet that you could probably pawn off for a pretty penny, but it'd look much better on your dearest than a stack of coins.
You're able to slip it into your pocket before anyone notices, and you help the crew members take some ammunition and supplies for yourself as Ningning counts up all of the gold, rubies, and other assorted treasures.
"How much are we looking at?" You ask before sitting next to her.
"More than enough to fix the ship, if that's what you're asking. We might even be able to afford the top-shelf rum." She jokes as you fish a small leather bag from your pocket.
You fill it full of gold coins before tossing it at Ningning.
"What is this for?"
"I know Winter hasn't been able to pay you for a while, so consider our debt settled. You're free to leave when you make it to the next island, if you want." You tell Ningning, who stares at the bag of money for a moment before emptying it back out.
"Months ago, I would've taken this money and ran off. I don't tend to like pirate crews, as a bounty hunter, but your crew is different."
"Good different or bad different?" You ask.
"Depends on the day." She shrugs as you lightly push her aside.
"C'mon, we're not that bad-"
"I've watched you and Giselle drink a barrel of wine by yourselves-"
"That was one time, and Karina still owes us money for that." You scoff at the thought as Ningning laughs to herself.
"I think I belong here, at least for now." She softly says after a moment of silence.
"Well, we're always glad to have you aboard." You rub her shoulders before standing up. "We've done enough talking. Let's get this treasure to our ship so we can make it to land before nightfall, which means Giselle and I can get wasted at the first land bar we see."
~
You roll your shoulders back after taking your second round of shots.
"Ningning's right, the top shelf rum really is the good shit!" Giselle yells over the live band that's playing to entertain the bar guests tonight.
"Who cares if it's top shelf or from the bottom of the barrel, if it'll get me drunk, it's good enough for me." You yell back as Giselle grabs her goblet of wine.
"I'll cheers to that." She says as your goblets smack together before you take a drink of wine.
"Excuse me," A tap on your shoulder causes you to turn around as a smaller member of your crew lightly taps your shoulder, "the captain's looking for you."
"Heading in for an early night?" Giselle teases before you casually flip her off.
"You know how Winter gets, it's all business all the time with her. I'll see if I can get her to relax for a bit." You stand up off of your barstool before nodding to the crew member. "Lead the way."
"If you're not back before the next song ends, I'm finishing your wine!" Giselle yells over the crowd as you roll your eyes.
"You better not!" You loudly respond before you weave through the crowd while watching the crew member in front of you.
Before you know it, you've made it to the back of the bar. Winter lightly traces the rim of her goblet with her pointer finger before her eyes meet yours.
"Thank you, Hana." Winter dismisses the girl with a wave as you slide right next to her in the private booth.
"How's the ship faring?"
"The contractor won't be able to fix all of the damages in a day, so we're stuck on land today and tomorrow." She wistfully says before taking a sip of wine. "Are you keeping an eye on everyone?"
"Love, you need to let everyone relax." You softly say while gently grabbing her arm. "They worked their asses off today, so they deserve a night off."
"The ship-"
"-will be fine. We paid a couple of locals good money to keep thieves off of it. Now, can the captain go off duty so I can speak to my lover?" You pleadingly ask as Winter sighs and removes her captain's hat.
Her beautiful red hair falls down past her shoulder as she hangs her hat on a nearby coat hook.
"Better?" She asks as you admire her hair.
"Better." You say before carefully brushing her hair with your hand. "You should put your hair down more often. It makes you look absolutely divine."
Her hand quickly grabs yours as you're halfway through combing her hair. Careful eyes meet yours as she tilts her head at you.
"Do you really mean that?" Vulnerability slips into her words as you watch her cringe at how child-like she sounds.
"I do," You smile before placing her hand in yours, "but I think I owe my captain a very special reward."
"You do, my first mate." Winter leans in to kiss you, and without the threat of pirate ships, certain death, or nosy crew members, you passionately kiss her back.
I'd spend everyday fighting off enemy pirates if I knew my day would end like this with you.
Winter pulls you into one of her arms before pointing her cutlass directly at the other captain's chest.
The mental image of this has done things to me I hope you're willing to take responsibility
Pirate Winter was something I didn't know I needed until one of the best writers I know posted it and now I need like 50 more chapters jk jk (unless 👀)
It may have persuaded me to finish my own pirate series, but we'll have to see if the stars have aligned for that one
A/N: Got an early finish from work and my brain said do the thing.
Warnings: None
Word Count: 1k
The shadow to her light, standing back as she lights up for all to see.
You weren't a secret, not quite, and yet you thrived under the hidden smiles and knowing touches.
Idol!Karina x Back-upDancer!Reader
Your lungs burn with a familiar fire; adrenaline guiding your stamina through the motions.
Lasers danced up your body with sporadic bursts of energy, the stage beneath your feet vibrating with a unified excitement that was shared by the crowd.
Sweat was slightly coating your skin, strands of hair beginning to stick around the expanse of your forehead.
You were exhausted, and yet you've never felt so alive.
The roar from the fans that had come tonight had only gotten more hyped with each hour that passed, hoarse throats doing little to squander the primal need to encourage and adore.
There have been a few times where you've had to squish down an exhilarated smile, to undo the curve of your lips and place professionalism back in control.
You couldn't help it, especially during parts of certain choreography a certain someone would face you and make such unhinged expressions to test your control.
Damn Yu Jimin and her Master's Degree for making you laugh.
The one time you did slip, you couldn't even find it in yourself to be mad, not with the pure delight that sparkled in her eyes for the brief second she had before needing to turn around again.
Sometimes -- perhaps in your delusional mind -- it was like the two of you were dancing together. That each light surrounding the space was but a star in the void of space.
It was a thought that didn't play often, kind of hard to with Spicy being belted out by the four idols in front of you, but it was one that occurred enough to make it stick out within your mind.
It was easy for you to love your job to begin with, but those little moments, when she makes it feel like it's just the pair of you -- it just makes you truly appreciate what you had.
Karina made it so easy to love her, and despite the moments of shared banter, you always made sure to let her know just how much she's truly appreciated.
And even now, with the last song coming to an end, you watch as she continues to give it her all for every single person who had come out to see them that night.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Sometimes, depending on how the night went, the sizzle and spark stays strong even as you're all changing back into normal attire.
Well, for most people, Winter looks more than ready to crash on a soft bed for the next 5 years.
There's a part of you that feels for her, after all your own mucles feel like they're only moments away from liquefying.
But then the idea of drinks and food are brought up to celebrate a night well done, and the chorus of cheers from all members of staff easily drown out a singular tired whine.
You catch Karina's eyes on you from the other end of the room, her smile one of silent adoration that never fails to awaken the slumbering butterflies lying dormant in your chest.
You will never deny the urge to be closer, and so before you know it the distance has decreased within nothing but a flurry of rapid movements.
"You did well today," you say upon approach, loving the way she reaches out to intertwine a pinky with your own.
"So did you."
A grin tugs at your lips, and you tilt your head in a way that lets her know she's about to be enticed into a battle of bants. "How do you know? I'm behind you for maybe... 90% of the time."
She attempts to mimic the expression on your face, but one side of her mouth extends way too far, "because it's you, so I know you did well."
Bullseye. There was no winning when she's so genuine.
You try to brush away the heat rising against your cheeks, but at this proximity there's no denying it.
"Flatterer."
A hum, now all of your fingers are interlaced. "No, just honest."
A stuttered breathe breaks free from your nose, love poured into every particle that filters within the space between you.
You really, really wanted to kiss her when she says things like that.
And if the look on her face is anything to go by, she's fully aware of the fact.
Her smile turns wry and she settles with a squeeze of your hand before their manager is calling for her attention.
Well you think, willing away the frantic beat of your heart, she's going to pay for that.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
A surprised gasp almost forces its way passed your lips when a hand settles over your own.
Too engrossed in a conversation with one of your fellow dancers, you hadn't even noticed when Giselle had decided to switch places with a certain someone.
"Hi," Karina smiles when you jolt in her direction, and you're left floundering for but a second before you regain yourself.
"Damn, and here I was thinking it was Giselle that wanted to hold my hand."
She raises a teasing eyebrow in your direction, the grip on your fingers tightening very slightly.
"Nuh-uh," she shakes your head, but the way the words slur only slightly lets you know that not too much alcohol was in her system... you think.
"No, you're right," you once again concede, making sure to lower your voice since it was only made for her to hear, "I prefer you holding my hand anyway."
She looks deep into your eyes upon your words, and you can see the quick spark of desire, the same one you had only a couple of hours prior.
Kiss her, go on.
But you hold steady, after all there will be a time and place when Karina will be able to freely call you hers, a day when the thumb caressing your skin won't be a secret under the table.
Until then, you'll make the most of the dances you share in the dark.
A/N: A little something because I have severely ruined my sleep schedule
Warnings: Memory loss (?), Alcohol, Swearing
Word Count: 1.8k
She tells you with the softest voice that it was fate that brought you together, that the red strings had your hearts connected no matter the distance.
An old flame somehow finds herself in the very town you're staying in, but she's there to catch you from the fall.
The first time her name was mentioned, you had scrunched your nose in confusion.
Kazuha?
“Yeah,” Sakura shrugs, too engrossed with her Switch to take notice of your slowly building turmoil. “She’s the reason why we took cooking classes, because she really wanted to make you chocolates for Valentines.”
Your frown deepens, and you don’t quite understand why there is a deep ache holding strong in your chest.
Make me chocolates? Why?
The echoes of memories long since lost filter past your eyes for the briefest of moments, happiness and contentment blanketing your soul just as the tender feeling of ghostly fingers intertwine with your own.
But you blink once and it’s gone.
“Do you know where she hangs out?” You find yourself asking, forcing away the incessant need to smirk when Sakura drops her Switch onto the table in annoyance; the bright red flashing letters letting you know her game wasn’t going well.
She turns to you, the boredom clouding her eyes heading south as it coils around her words, “she is literally friends with your roommate, why don’t you go ask them?”
Her tone strikes a nerve slightly, but you just manage to keep it from showing on your face, “well I would have asked them if I knew that.”
She doesn’t bat an eye at your sarcasm, simply tilting her head in her palm. “Well, maybe if you were a good roommate you’d know that they hang out at the Throne Library, so perhaps go and check there.”
“Thank you,” you huff out, and you can at least inject some gratitude into your words.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Apprehension takes siege on your body during the entire drive to the Throne Library, and no matter how hard you dig and search you can’t find the reason why.
And once you do get there, well, then comes the problem of actually finding her.
Thankfully, after getting lost after the 5th row of bookshelves, you do accidentally bump into your roommate. Their soft eyes light up when they notice it's you.
"Hey," you smile, and you don't even bother denying the tenderness caressing your lips; they just had that effect on you.
"Hi," they excitedly reply, the usual caress of their subdued tone being replaced with the genuine happiness of seeing you here.
This was why you told people that they were your baby.
Conversation falls easily between the two of you, and you watch with pure fondness when they end up on an eager rant on something that happened to them today; only stopping to apologize when the timidness they are known for kicks in.
Not that they ever needed to apologize to you, least of all for that, but you were no less quick to encourage out the stored reassurances that were reserved specifically for them.
"That being said though," you begin, unconsciously fiddling with the sleeves of your jacket when the previous trepidation once again begins filtering in, "do you know where Kazuha is?"
You're not sure what to make of the knowing smile that pulls at their lips. "She's by the poetry section, right by the windows."
A thank you is expressed, and after offering them a ride home once they've finished you venture on.
It might just be your imagination being manipulated by your nerves, but you could almost swear that the closer you get to your destination, the fewer people seem to be around.
Which would have been fine, but walking past the threshold of low murmurs, turned pages, and clicking laptops meant the prominent beat of your own heart seemed to envelop the space.
And then one corner later; time stops.
Late evening sun rays filter in through the windows; blanketing everything they touched with an orange glow of warmth and brilliance.
But that wasn't the reason as to why you felt like the oxygen had just been forced from your lungs, nor was it the reason behind the sudden case of tunnel vision.
Because as beautiful as they were, they were no match to the woman sitting comfortably under their embrace.
Her very essence seemed to dare you to look away; teasing and alluring your senses to the point of euphoria.
And then something unexpected happens, like your own body was in on a secret that your mind wasn't privy to.
"Zuha?"
The woman's head snaps up at the sound of your voice, eyes widening as she stares at you with pure unfiltered shock.
"You're... here."
You blink once, finally managing to swallow down the butterflies back into your stomach before forcing your legs to get you closer.
You don't even want to think about how and why the nickname felt right on your tongue; not when everything seems to be short-circuiting under her gaze.
And once you're standing right before her, joining her under the faithful watch of the descending sun, she smiles tenderly at you.
Something clicks in your mind, settles in your chest, and for the first time in a long time you feel like you can breathe.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Talking to Kazuha comes easily, naturally, and you quickly come to adore how the two of you just seem to... fit.
She brings up your shared past, tells you all the shenanigans you used to get up to before having to move away.
Dates, arguments, kisses under the moonlight.
Each memory comes to you suddenly, abruptly, and you begin to question how you could forget such things in the first place. Especially when little pieces fall from your lips just like the nickname had, because it was once again like your mind had no idea what the fuck you were on about.
You just knew; instinctively, subconsciously.
Each time it happens her eyes light up, the stars hidden within sparkling against the orange hues.
You don't know how long the two of you talk for, but when you turn to the sight of your roommate looking guilty at having to interrupt, you know it's time to leave.
You turn back to Kazuha, and one look at her downturned expression has your jaw moving without your consent.
"Did you need a ride back?"
Your heart stutters when she gratefully accepts.
The three of you can't help but to share gossip on the way back to the campus dorms, laughter pulling air from your lungs when you share the story about the one time you started sprouting Shakespeare when you were caught cutting class.
In hindsight, you probably shouldn't have sprouted the line "Villain, I have done thy mother." But the hangover meant you gave a total of zero fucks during that moment.
The conversation has filed down into a content buzz by the time you get back, the moon having already been in the sky before you had even left the Library.
Your roommate turns to you with a tired but happy expression, wishing both you and Kazuha a tender goodnight before they sluggishly get out of the car and make their way inside.
She turns to look at you from her position in the passenger seat, and your eyes unconsciously flicker down when her lip gets trapped under a fang for a moment.
"You know... we can continue catching up if you want? I may or may not have tequila in my room."
A single brow curves alongside a surprised smirk, "how the fuck have you managed to hide that?"
Her smile is teasing, mysterious, "I have my ways. Can't be sharing all of my secrets in one night now, can I?"
God it's only been a few hours of being reacquainted and you're already so enraptured.
"Alright," you nod, "we can see if you've gotten any better at holding your alcohol."
Laughter springs from your lips at her feigned gasp, your heart dancing with the butterflies that still haven't left.
You both make you towards her dorm room, curiosity leading you to take in the place she currently calls home. Eyes zeroing in when they catch a framed photo placed on a bookshelf.
Gentle fingers reach out to take it, and you can't stop the wonder from entering your expression when you're met with a slightly younger version of yourself smiling brightly back.
It was taken at the beach, the very day the two of you had shared your first kiss.
A fluttering in your chest brings forth a glossiness in your eyes; the mind replaying that day and all the emotions that came with it.
Putting the photo back where you found it, you turn around just as Kazuha is returning with a whole bottle of tequila and 2 shot glasses.
Actually, maybe this wasn't a good idea, but there was no way you were backing out of it now.
The two of you smile in challenge before downing the first shot, and despite the insistent burn scorching your throat you feel completely fine.
"You know," she begins after a moment, fiddling with her glass, "that situation with Jung-eun? I can talk to Saerom if you want."
You had completely forgot about that.
You had mentioned that your friend needed help during your conversation at the library, but it had completely slipped your mind to ask.
"You would actually be a lifesaver."
Kazuha smiles, but there's a slight hint of wickedness to it, "I only ask for one thing in return."
You tilt your head, intrigued, "and what is that?"
"A date," comes back instantaneously, and your own smile widens at the offered trade.
"A date huh?" You mumble, downing another shot in an attempt to hide the excitement that the idea brings to you. "Alright, deal."
Her eyes soften at your answer, her fingers reaching out until they begin grazing your own. Slightly roughened pads glide over each knuckle, every crease, until they ultimately interlock with your own.
For a brief moment that ghostly feeling returns, the one that had enveloped you when talking to Sakura, and even with the alcohol in your system you understand why.
Taking hold of her fingers, you raise her hand towards your lips, placing a single kiss upon her skin before letting your lips lie there for a moment longer.
And when you flicker your gaze back up to meet her own, you're left stricken by just how in love she looks as watches you.
"I missed you, so much."
Her voice falters, breaks, and there is only a single thought in your mind as you spring forward, meeting her halfway for a kiss that felt like it was years in the making.
Her hands are desperate as the reach out for you, like she's terrified that if she doesn't hold on tight enough she will lose you again.
You try to reassure her in any way you can, attempt to let her know through touch that she had found you again, that you were here with her.
Memories might be fleeting for you, but as you once again admire the sparkle in her eyes, you vow to engrave every second of her into your brain.
A/N: I'm a day early for Halloween my end but I can't go to sleep and this has been sitting in my drafts for a while
Warnings: Major Character death, blood, weapons, gore, zombies
Word Count: 1.6k
Fear was a raw, pungent thing. It twisted and pulled, both uncaring and all-encompassing when it took siege upon your
heart and refused surrender.
Your love was missing, please let her be okay.
Fear was a raw, pungent thing. It twisted and pulled, both uncaring and all-encompassing when it took siege upon your heart and refused surrender.
You had thought fear to be a thing of the past; a foggy, almost indistinguishable dream that would leave with a faint echo as soon as you awoke.
Oh, how wrong you were.
Fear and its many forms still wreaked havoc on your mind and soul. Its sharp fangs are embedded deep into your chest, waiting for the moment in which it can tear it to shreds.
And today it would seem, is the moment it finally breaks.
Search and recovery, while not uncommon, was certainly something that had decreased throughout the years. Time meant people adapted, and adjusted to the way the world now was.
On this day, however, the person you were looking for was the sole occupant who held your heart in their hands. And so the fear you felt held you captive and you were helpless but to fall under its onslaught.
Yoohyeon was only supposed to be gone for but a few hours; a simple surveillance mission around the outskirts of your camp to take care of any problems that have or could potentially arise.
That was 3 days ago, and you have not known peace since.
The gun in your hands felt almost as heavy as your eyelids. Its cold metallic surface seems to be the only thing grounding you to the earth.
You can remember how hesitant you had been the first time one was thrust into your hold; eyes wide and fingers shaking as you stared into the lifeless grey eyes of the thing you were about to end.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
“W-what?”
The pistol, while smaller than you had expected, felt heavy in your shaking grip.
You looked at the object, its surface like the endless faces of death itself. A black hole in which no light could escape.
You quickly cast your eyes back at the person who had given you the weapon, but they were too busy using their own to give you any mind.
Walkers had you surrounded, and more seemed to be arriving with each passing second.
Had you not seen with your very eyes the way they hungered for flesh with little regard or remorse; perhaps this would have been a very disturbing game. One where the prize for winning would be your own life.
“Y/N!”
You have no time to scream when cold, rotting flesh seizes your wrist and begins pulling with inhuman strength. Your chest seized up as if in preparation for what was to come.
You stared into its eyes; lifeless and hungry, searching for something, anything that would indicate the life once held within still had some semblance of control. Before waiting for the ending bite where there would be no turning back.
No such thing is to happen. Not today, at least. The deafening ring of gunpowder and fire leaves you disorientated as you watch, unblinking, how a well-aimed bullet allows you to see the intricacies of a human brain.
There is no immediate reaction to what you just witnessed. You don’t blink, you don’t cry, and you're not even sure if you are breathing. Your mind seems to be unable to comprehend the images your eyes are sending to it.
“Y/N?”
The frosty grip of the Walker is only slightly banished when a warm, tender, albeit hesitant hand takes you by the cheek and silently guides you until the bright worried gaze of your lover fills your whole world. Yoohyeon’s presence alone acts like the light at the end of the tunnel.
She was your only solace, your safe haven.
You lean into her touch, eyes clamping shut when you feel the dribble of blood and sweat begin to fall down the side of your face.
“You’re okay,” she whispers, her voice sounding both terrified and relieved as it glided along your skin and encouraged your fear to release its tight hold. Firm in the way it entered your muscles and guided them until they relaxed.
“I’m here.”
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
The chilled winter air was biting; cutting deep into your body like a thousand needle tips.
You were beyond the point of exhaustion. Sleep only came and went with sporadic, fleeting spurts filled with Yoohyeon; her eyes dull and grey.
Even now it haunted you.
With a tired sigh, you once again reach for the radio fixed to your belt, waiting to hear the faint static before repeating the same words that never received their answer.
“Yoohyeon, come in Yoohyeon.”
Silence.
Despite feeling exhausted herself, Sua still held a determination in her eyes that bolstered you somewhat. Her resilience mixed in with your desperation being the detrimental concoction that allowed your legs to keep marching forward.
“Come on, Y/N, we still have a few hours left of daylight.”
Those in charge of your camp had pretty much given up on sending more groups out to search for those who had gotten lost alongside your girlfriend. The unspoken agreement that they weren’t going to return left you feeling hollow, empty, and enraged at how easily they have given up.
You were only thankful that they still allowed you and Sua to continue, but perhaps that was more to do with them not wanting to face her wrath rather than the kindness of their own hearts. A wise move on their part either way.
“I’ll try once more.”
By your side, Sua watches as you again hold the button and repeat the words. Your voice cracked and groaned with each word being forced passed your lips. Grip tightening with emotion when nothing but static taunts you even further.
The fading light of the evening sun alights the trees surrounding you, the visual something you used to treasure because of her.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Spring used to be your favorite season before the world was turned into a living hellish landscape.
You loved how vibrant and colorful it was, how the sun above you bathed you in a gentle warmth that only the woman beside you could outmatch.
Your camp, (something resembling a village more by the day,) had a patch of land that was often used for training. A small locked building to your side hid all of the equipment you had familiarised yourself with as the years continued to pass.
There was no training to be done today though, not when the warmth of the evening sun felt so mesmerizing against your skin. Content hums of pleasure leave your body as you closed your eyes and let the gentle breeze take you far away to better times.
“Yah! Really? This is where you have been the whole time?”
You smile at the voice, deciding to tease her by keeping your eyes closed and pretending to be asleep.
“Y/N!”
Not that your acting skills were anywhere near the level of being believable, but you still give yourself away when laughter springs forth as you feel a push against your shoulder; Yoohyeon using the chance to run her fingers up your side as retaliation.
When it was like this, it was easy to forget.
“Okay! Okay! Mercy!”
You can feel the small pout pressed against your neck as she settles against your side, arms and legs draped loosely over your body. “You’re so mean to me,” she huffs, but you know there is no bite to it.
“I believe you’re getting me mixed up with Sua,” you chuckle, turning to place a kiss on her forehead and silently adoring the fact such a small piece of affection still renders her embarrassed.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Had the circumstances been different, perhaps you would have found the chance to appreciate how peaceful everything was.
However you knew that nothing would rest until Yoohyeon and the others were found and brought home. The two of you forcing the last reserves of your energy to hold on for a little while longer.
“Wait; come here.”
Your eyes darted to Sua’s crouched form, the tips of her fingers twisting a piece of cloth that had been caught against a stem of a plant you had no idea of, the light color could be easily overlooked against the bright greenery.
Sua looked at the piece of cloth, then at you; a question in her eyes that you refused to answer aloud, instead saying, “She couldn’t have gone too far.”
Suddenly she freezes, eyes going wide and unblinking as her fingers twitch towards her gun.
Confusion blankets your exhaustion for a brief moment, and you hate how she quickly she shoots you down when you go to open your mouth.
And that’s when you hear it.
Low, and very faint. Something was making noise towards your left, and it was getting closer with each passing second.
Your hand instinctively darts to your weapon as Sua does the same; the two of you garnering any lasting reserves of energy you might have and forcing it through your muscles.
You begin counting in your head, a futile attempt to keep the nerves at bay.
But one snap of a lone twig and you panic, arms thrusting out to take down whatever it is that might wish to bring you both harm.
But then your eyes meet ones so strikingly familiar, and you watch helplessly as they stagger towards you, the hole in your chest coming alight when it recognizes the owner of your stolen heart.
Yoohyeon.
Her clothes are torn and bloody; her skin so deathly pale.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
"I didn't know you could play guitar."
You watch in amusement as her head snaps back to you in fright, embarrassment coating her laugh.
"It was supposed to be a surprise!"
Your head tilts in fond wonder, "a surprise?"
"Yeah, it was how I was going to propose to you."
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Shaking fingers get lost behind the blur of your own tears, the white band sitting comfortably on your finger seeming to burn into your very flesh.
Your internal counting manages to get to 16, and when the next beat comes along you pull the trigger.
A/N: Happy early Halloween, folks! For those who are unaware, I post a light-hearted, sweet fluffy fic and then something more on the horror, gore side of things. This fic is my horror one, so I'd skip this if you're more of a fluff person! I hope the haunted season has gone well for you, and I look forward to bringing more Halloween joy next week. :)
TW: Vampires, horror-esque descriptions, blood, violence against Reader/SuA, home invasion, biting, major character death, mentions of cheating and being a bad partner, OOC SuA, friendship break-ups, the best kind of angst, magic but I bend it to the plot's will, partying, alcohol mentions (everyone mentioned is old enough to partake)
Acknowledgments: Inspired by Vampire (Olivia Rodrigo) and Control (Halsey), and the lovely @sanccharine mishaps gone right series. 🫶 ty for reading this fic ahead of time, and I apologize for any future transgressions in relation to a sequel. ;)
Summary: You're stuck in a rut a few months after your break-up with Bora, but a friendly date helps you feel ready to jump back into dating. Your ex, however, decides that she has to stick her fangs into you one last time to show who's really over who.
♡ Masterlist ♡
“Vampires suck.”
“Yeah, well, no shit,” Yoohyeon sighs before throwing her flashcards against the table, “how am I supposed to pass this exam with basic information like that?”
You sit across from the table in a private study booth on the second floor of the campus library. Yoohyeon, your best friend since high school, is studying for her first Vampiric History exam as you are trying, and horribly failing, to focus on your homework for Applied Mathematics For Sorcery.
Your focus falls back to the screen as your phone displays a bright collection of images from someone you followed. Her smile is bright and immortal, given the sharp front teeth that are proudly bared, but that’s not what you’re focused on.
The fourth picture, since you had dared to scroll that far, was the same vampire locking lips with another vampire from a different coven.
The problem was that you had forgotten to block all of your ex-girlfriend’s friends on all social media, and you were currently staring at a picture of SuA kissing someone else two months after you broke up.
You carelessly toss your phone on the table, forgetting to lock the screen, as Yoohyeon curiously eyes your phone.
“Don’t tell me you’re-“
“-She cheated on me, Yooh. How am I supposed to forgive her?”
“You didn’t, and you walked away from her,” She digs in her backpack, presumably for a snack, “as you should have.”
“Is it okay to not be over her?”
“Hey, don’t beat yourself up,” Yoohyeon tosses a granola bar across the table for you before opening hers, “it’s her loss. You’re the coolest person I know.”
A light smile rests on her face - Yoohyeon always knew how to make you feel better.
“Thanks, Yooh,” You say as you grab the granola bar on the table, “do you have any clue how to solve geometry in relation to spell casting?”
“No, so we’re going to go ask Dami for help.”
You shrug before closing your computer and beginning to pack your stuff up.
“Works for me.”
~
“Dami-ah!” Yoohyeon pounds on the dormitory door as you pull your backpack over your shoulder.
Your mind wanders back to the photos you saw earlier as Minji, SuA, and Siyeon partied together as if you all weren’t close a few months ago.
As if it wasn’t your fault that your friend group was split in two.
“Dami, answer the damn door before Yoohyeon breaks it down!” Handong calls from the inside as Yoohyeon continues to rap her knuckles against the door.
“I got it!” Gahyeon yells before the door opens. “You guys could have called-“
“I know, but we wanted to surprise you-“
“-You need help with your homework?”
“We do.” You mumble in defeat as Gahyeon gives you a quick hug.
“It’s good to see you, y’know?” She rubs your shoulder before giving you a reassuring look. “You’re more than welcome here at any time, okay?”
“Thank, Gahyeon,” You pause as you let out a deep breath, “I needed a distraction.”
“You saw Bora’s post, didn’t you?” Gahyeon rolls her eyes before closing the door behind you and
Yoohyeon. “We should throw a party, or like a mixer! It would be so much better than what she did.”
“As long as it’s not in this dorm room, I’m down with the idea.” Handong adds in as she is perched on the top bunk of the bunk bed.
Gahyeon crashes on the bunk below Handong as Yoohyeon hops on the bed on the other side of the room.
“Dongie, have you started studying for that exam yet?” Yoohyeon asks as she pulls out her notecards.
“A bit. Do you want to study together?”
“Please help me.” Yoohyeon sets her backpack on the bed as you set your stuff on the bed next to hers.
Your eyes turn to the desk next to the bunk bed where Dami is studying for one of her more advanced classes.
“Do you need help with math?” She asks while doing a computation on her phone.
“I could use help for Applied Mathematics in Sorcery from my favorite sorceress.” You teasingly say as you grab some materials from your backpack.
Dami raises one hand up, and without breaking attention from her studies, she pulls another chair up to the desk.
“Thanks for that,” You set down your notebook, pencil, and computer, “and I apologize in advance because you’re going to need to re-explain this entire chapter to me.”
~
“Why does everything you say make more sense than whatever the professor was going on in class?” You sigh in relief as you submit a perfect homework assignment online.
“You’re welcome. I’m happy to help with anything.” Dami takes care to emphasize the last word as your phone buzzes.
“I’m sorry,” You pause for a moment to grab your phone from the table, “let me look at this before we change subjects.”
You open up the notification that takes you straight to your text messages.
Unknown Number: Jagi, I’m sorry that I hurt you so much.
Babe, why won’t you answer my texts? I know you blocked me but I missed up.
*Messed ypu.
Fuck, I just miss you, and I’m not sorry about it.
“Who is it?” Yoohyeon peeks over the top of the bunk bed as you toss your phone to her.
Dongie manages to catch it before Yoohyeon’s face does, and they gasp in sync with one another.
“She did not-“
“Oh, she did,” Yoohyeon looks at the alarm clock with a chuckle, “and she’s already drunk before nine o’clock.”
A hand on your right arm pulls you back to Dami, who looks at you with confusion and concern mixed together in her gaze.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m just tired of the constant reminders that I wasn’t enough for her. It makes me wonder if I’ll ever truly be over her, or if I’m just going to miss her for the rest of my life.” You quietly admit as Gahyeon snatches your phone out of Dongie’s grasp.
“What are you-“
“-That’s it! I’ve had enough of them,” Gahyeon spits out before grabbing her phone, “and we’re going to do something about it. Everyone, clear your schedules on October 30th. We’re throwing the best party that this campus has ever seen!”
Gahyeon hands you back your phone, and you quickly shove it in your pocket as she starts typing on her phone.
“This is great and all, Gahyeon,” Handong climbs down the bunkbed to grab something from the mini fridge, “but I’m only okay with this plan if they are.”
Dongie’s eyes meet yours as she quickly places a reassuring hand on your shoulder before bending to grab a drink from the mini fridge next to you.
“I think it’ll be fun, especially with Gahyeon planning it.” You gently move Handong’s hand from your shoulder as you nod at Gahyeon. “Just let me know what I need to bring, okay?”
Gahyeon cheerfully pumps her free hand in the air as the other girls laugh at her antics.
“Okay, Yooh and Dongie, since you’ve got the most experience with party planning, I’ll need you to-“
Your eyes go back to Dami, who wistfully stares at the girls in front of her.
“You don’t have to go, y’know?” You take her hand on your arm and interlace your fingers with hers as you set your hands on the table, “I wouldn’t want you to feel uncomfortable just for my sake.”
“I don’t mind, I promise. I just don’t like going to parties that-“ She pauses until you nod at her for permission, “Bora and Siyeon used to drag me to.”
“If Gahyeon gets too out of hand, Dongie will reel her back in. I want this to be something fun for all of us, a moment to stop worrying about school for a night.”
“Are you sure that school is all that’s on your mind?” Her eyes dare to read within your mind, and despite the turbulence within your heart, you find yourself at peace when discussing such matters with Dami.
“I don’t know if I miss SuA anymore, or if I just miss having someone to tell every silly little thing to.” You confess.
“You know I’m always available to talk to you, no matter the hour or day, right?” She asks as you nod, “As for the other matter, why not put yourself out there again? Just go on a less formal date, something low-commitment, to see if you want to go back into the realm of dating.”
There’s a spark of expectation and hopefulness in her as her eyes linger on your intertwined hands for a moment, but her gaze quickly returns back to you as you open your mouth.
I wonder what that was about…
“For someone who doesn’t do a lot of dating, you have awfully good dating advice,” You tease as a small blush crosses her face, “and that’s not a bad idea. I think it would be good to put myself out there again, just
as a test.”
~
Dates were something of a new area for you, as most of your dates with SuA included staying home and studying or going out with friends and partying. You were also around a group, so you had the comfort of a friend to look at for.
Here, in the coffee shop, it was just you, the coffee cup you were holding on to for dear life, and a cute elven girl named Chou Tzuyu.
“How are you finding your studies?” She asks before tucking a small piece of hair behind her ear.
You were, to say the least, mesmerized by her beauty, so you cough and shyly look away when you notice that she is speaking to you.
“They’re going well, but having an individualized major instead of a set path of study can be stressful at times.” You admit as you recall your struggles with math earlier in the week. “Math has been a struggle for me, but I have a friend who is bright like you.”
“I’m not the only one you get answers from?” She raises an eyebrow at you as you scoff.
“I can do the homework for my humanity-focused classes, but these sorcery classes are kicking my ass.”
You roll your eyes as you think of the pile of math homework awaiting you. “I’m thankful for your help with the history classes, you are a lifesaver.”
“You’re helping me practice teaching when I go for advanced studies at the university, so I am thankful for you as well.”
You take a small sip from your cup as your thoughts wander again.
This is going okay, and she’s really pretty, but I’m not feeling anything special like I did with-
“Why did you ask me on a date?” Tzuyu directly asks as your heart sinks in your chest.
Oh no, she’s going to think this is a rebound and I’m going to lose another friend after everything-
“You don’t have to tell me, though,” She gently grabs your hand before you squeeze your coffee cup past its
breaking point, “but I think there’s someone else you’d rather be here with, no?”
“Huh?” Your eyebrows jump to the top of your forehead as an amused smile dances across her features.
“Oh, you didn’t know that she…” Tzuyu trails off before shaking her head. “It’s not my business, though. You’ve got a great group of friends behind you.”
“Does that still include you?”
“Of course, who else will help you with your history classes?”
You smile before taking another sip from your coffee cup.
Maybe this ‘date’ wasn’t a total failure.
~
You slip through the large crowd of people who have collected in the living room of Gahyeon’s friend’s house. She was out of town for a couple of weeks, right around Halloween, so Gahyeon got permission to do so. The only caveat was that the five of you had to clean up and stay the night to make sure the house was taken care of, but Gahyeon roped everyone into it without much worry.
Without a red solo cup in your hand, you do stand out, but Gahyeon committed to having a dry party that could still be fun without excessive drinking. You had to hand it to her - the set up of the party and the house allowed for all sorts of activities for all sorts of people.
You were in charge of food, so after grabbing another food tray for the spare bedroom, you were trying to make it through the crowd in one piece. While batting stray hands and partiers away, you offer a quick wave to Tzuyu, who stands in the corner by herself.
She joins your side once you break from the crowd, and you make a sharp left as she follows your pace.
“The party’s great.” She says as you knock on the bedroom door.
“You should be thanking Gahyeon. This is all her idea, I just showed up with a few food trays.” You push any praise to Gahyeon, who opens the door with a large smile.
“Thank you!” She snatches the tray from your hands as Tzuyu leans on the doorframe. “You both are welcome to come in - we’ve got plenty of board games to spare!”
“I thought you would’ve been out with the music and partiers, Gahyeon.” You step inside the room before looking back at Tzuyu. “You want in?”
“I think I’ll head back to the living room. Dahyun said she’s challenging someone to a dance-off, and I have money riding on her winning it, so I need to make sure my investment was worth it.”
You laugh to yourself before waving her off.
“Have fun with that, Tzuyu.”
She nods before disappearing back into the hallway.
You turn to look at Gahyeon, who admires you with wide eyes.
“So…?”
“There’s nothing between us, I promise,” You grab a piece of cheese from the tray and toss it in your mouth,
“but it was nice to try to go on a date. I’ve been missing that sort of connection in my life.”
“That’s good-“
“Ah, Yoohyeon, the point of the game is to avoid my property-“ Dongie teases Yoohyeon from the left side of the bed as Yoohyeon folds her arms and huffs.
“Yah, you’re so mean to me!”
“Pay up,” Handong holds out her hand for money, and Yoohyeon reluctantly places the cash in her hand, “now, was that so hard?”
“I don’t like this game,” Yooh pouts before her eyes land on you, “c’mon, we should play a new game so all of us can play together.”
“The five of us can play Monopoly-“ Dami chimes in as Gahyeon sets the tray down on the nightstand.
“-Let’s just play Mario Kart before Yoohyeon owes Handong real money.” You settle the argument by turning
on the Switch as Yoohyeon cheers.
“See, I knew you’d have my back!”
~
Gahyeon and Handong are perched on the bed as you and Yoohyeon sit against the front of the bed. Dami moved her chair closer to the TV so the five of you can play together.
Most of the freeloading partiers have gone home, so there’s no need for the five of you to take shifts to manage the crowd. The only people left are friends of friends who are raiding the last of the snacks and drinks before heading out of the door.
“That was a really successful party, Gahyeon,” You say as the winning animation plays on the screen, “and it looks like everyone who came had a great time.”
Gahyeon smiles brightly before excitedly pulling out her phone.
“I bet the whole party is all over everyone’s socials,” She taps her screen a few times before her eyes widen, “oh shit!”
Your head snaps back, along with Yoohyeon’s, at her exclamation.
Dongie leans over to look at Gahyeon’s phone, and she has a remorseful look on her face.
“Minji was here.”
“Minji was here?” You and Dami say at the same time as Yoohyeon immediately stands up.
“I’m going to go out and chase everyone else off… just in case we have any lurkers.” Malice slips into the last word she speaks as Yoohyeon quickly exits the room.
You want to offer to help, but you don’t think you can face her after everything that has happened with Bora.
“It’s not your fault, you know,” Dami slides off her chair before sitting next to you, “we chose to stand by you when everything happened.”
“You all were friends long before Bora and I got together, and I-“ You pause as tears threaten to fall from your face, “I ruined everything.”
“You ruined nothing,” Dongie reaches towards you and rubs your back for a moment before looking at the phone again, “but I learned that some of my friends weren’t who I thought they were.”
“If I had known…” Gahyeon wistfully says before putting her phone aside, “If I had known that SuA had cheated on you, I would’ve told you right away. The worst part about everything wasn’t hearing it from you - no, we heard it directly from her, and she was proud of what she did.”
Gahyeon sniffles before the waterworks come out, and you find yourself wiping away tears as Handong wraps an arm around her.
“It’s not your fault,” Dami repeats as you lay your head on her shoulder, “I would choose you a thousand times over. I think about how everything played out, sometimes, when I go to sleep, but I don’t regret anything. I met one of the best people in my life after everything that happened, and I couldn’t be more thankful.”
“Minji and Siyeon chose their sides, as we chose ours,” Handong reassures you while holding on to Gahyeon, “and I don’t miss the drama, the fights, and the black-out parties.”
You laugh as you wipe away more tears.
“Those parties were awful,” You reminisce as a memory comes to mind, “I remember having to nearly carry SuA home because she was drunk past the point of walking straight.”
“Forget walking - Siyeon tried to kiss me!” Handong exclaims as you laugh alongside her.
“I do miss them, sometimes,” You softly admit while playing with your shirt sleeve, “and I wonder if things had played out differently, if we’d still be friends.”
“I think those ‘what-ifs’ are better left alone, at least for tonight,” Dami gently wraps her arm around your shoulder as you lean into her body more, “we’ve got plenty of work ahead of us.”
~
“Babe, c’mon! Pictures are fun.” SuA tugged on your sleeve as you fixed your hair in the reflection of your phone screen.
“I don’t look my best, and you always look so much better than I do.” You pull your sleeve away from her before putting your phone away.
“At least you can see what you look like!” SuA yells before stomping off to go meet with the campus photographer.
Confusion mixed with anxiety makes an unholy cocktail, one that’s worse than whatever is in the red solo cup in your hand. You toss the drink to the side of the yard before throwing the cup away as the thought of SuA’s recent uptick in outbursts gnaws at your mind.
Was it you? Did you say something wrong? Your hair and outfit really was a mess from dancing at a crowded party, and you weren’t in the mood to get photographed. Was that such a grievance in your mind?
You probably struck a bad nerve by looking at your phone, considering her lack of reflection, so it would be best if you apologized so you could move on. You wonder how many more times she’ll run off before you stop chasing her.
You shake off the thought, she’s probably just stressed from midterm exams. You push through the crowd of people in the backyard as you head inside the frat house. Before you lost sight of her, she had been heading to the living room to see the photographer that wanted to take a picture of “the happy couple”.
Only if they knew.
You break through the crowd once you’re inside, and a quick glance to the left tells you that you’re not getting through the line of people waiting to use the restroom. You turn to the right, and are met with a frightening display in the living room.
Your girlfriend, the girl you adored from the moment you met her, had her hands and lips all over someone else.
Part of your heart, part of your innocence, and part of your joy shriveled up and died in that moment, but not just because of SuA.
It was watching two of your older friends, the two people you trusted most, watch the scene in front of them unfold as if nothing was wrong. You didn’t scream or cry, not right away. You simply turned back around, pushed through the crowd of people with more force than before, and got a ride home.
A simple text saying “We’re done” and a few blocked phone numbers and social media accounts were enough justice for you, but the world is a karmic bitch who likes to have the last laugh. Before you blocked SuA, she had posted a video of the scene you had just witnessed, with one simple caption:
“For you, my dear.”
~
In a sweat, you pull the blanket off of you and sit up on the air mattress. Gahyeon sleeps peacefully to your left (the girls played rock-paper-scissors for the spot and she won), and Yoohyeon and Handong are fighting over the covers on the bed in their sleep.
After rubbing your eyes and grabbing your phone, you glance over to the cot where Dami was sleeping, only to notice that she was no longer there.
Weird.
Turning on your phone, you blind yourself with the power of a thousand suns before looking at the time.
2:33 a.m., and I went to bed at 1:00 a.m. It’s going to be a long night.
Nightmares came and gone, but they were always supposed to be based in fantasy or fear, not reality.
Having the same scenario play out, over and over again, as if you can change anything that had happened, was maddening.
You would usually call one of your friends when you felt like this, but they were all sleeping peacefully, so you decided to look for the other person who would be awake at this hour. Dami was one of the first asleep most nights, so your calls and texts would go unanswered, but she was always the first to text or call you back if she missed your call.
She had always been a pillar of calm confidence, of self-assured belief in oneself, and you question what had brought you two together during orientation to the university. Perhaps you looked like a duckling who had lost sight of its mother, or perhaps she was just as lost as you. Either way, you had found one another and had been inseparable since.
Dami had been the one to introduce you to her friends, and you had gotten along especially well with SuA. Push comes to shove, one night’s confession turns to love, and the two of you were dating. If you were to be technical, everything that had happened so far was Dami’s fault, in a way.
Guilt buries itself in your consciousness as you shift blame from Dami to yourself. It wasn’t her fault that SuA had acted in such a way. The two of you were fundamentally different people - she liked parties and darkness and temporary pleasure, and you liked quiet afternoons and board game nights with friends and working towards a goal greater than yourself. What had drawn you to each other was tearing your relationship apart - you had nothing in common, but yet again, you had nothing in common.
You’re careful to not blind yourself as you check the time on your phone.
2:34 a.m.
You get out of bed, as quietly as possible, before gently opening the bedroom door. You notice that a light
has been left on towards the direction of the kitchen, so you head that way.
A creak in the floorboards underneath you causes you to pause, as if you’re some sort of horror protagonist. You can imagine how they’d jump and scream, but you were simply worried about waking your friends… right?
You walk much slower as the kitchen starts to come into view. A figure stands by the kitchen island while wringing off their hands with a towel.
“Dami?”
Their head snaps in your direction, and you sigh before slipping your phone in your pocket.
“I’m happy to see you because I can’t seem t-“
When you go into the kitchen, their face is revealed in the light, and a scream threatens to break from your lips.
A disheveled SuA stands in front of you, and she’s covered head-to-toe in blood splatters. When she smiles at you, blood leaks from her lips and drips onto the tile flooring.
As your mouth opens, SuA makes a quick maneuver towards you and pins you to the nearest wall.
“You know,” She gasps for air as she eyes your neck, “we could’ve done this the easy way while you were sleeping.”
“Fuck y-“
Her hand covers your mouth as she bares her teeth and plunges them into your neck. You scream into her mouth, but her strength is no match for yours. You’re sure a dagger in the neck would be more comfortable as she carelessly drinks from you.
You had imagined your death before, but it was nothing like this. You had to fight back, one way or another.
As your vision starts to soften due to blood loss, you scan your surroundings for something to help you. On a table within your grasp, you notice that a wooden spoon used for punch had been haphazardly left there without being cleaned up.
I hope no one can tell the difference between two red liquids…
You manage to grab the spoon before the strength in your body starts to give out. Color and brightness and darkness and nothingness swirl in your vision as you attempt to plunge the dagger into her heart.
The coldness of the floor meets your check, and survival instincts kick in as you slowly crawl away. Your vision dances with the cold lighting as you pull yourself towards the light. A strangled cry escapes you as something grabs onto your leg with crawls tearing into the flesh of your thigh.
You’ve lost your weapon, so you can only assume that it has made contact with SuA or did enough to scare her off. Your eyes adjust to the surroundings as your neck burns with the pain of a hundred bee stings. The grip on your leg loosens as you crawl towards what looks to be a phone.
You hope you can get to the phone before you pass out as a wave of nausea causes you to place your head on the floor.
“Did you hear that scream? I think someone next door had too much to drink-“ Gahyeon’s voice is the last thing you remember before your eyes shut permanently.
~
Heat soaks your body as your eyes open to a light being projected right into your eyes.
“I don’t know how much more I can do… the puncture wounds are too deep.”
A soft hand is placed against your neck as the light is pulled from directly above you to the side.
“You’re awake...” Dongie sits to your side as your head turns the opposite way to look at the rest of your surroundings.
“SuA… she-“
“Don’t worry about SuA, she’s dead.”
Your head snaps towards Handong as your breathing quickens.
“Dead-“
“Why would you say that? You’re going to kill them before they have a chance to make a proper recovery.”
Yoohyeon leans on Handong as you start to see more of what surrounds you.
You’ve been moved from the kitchen to the living room, but time has barely passed. The darkness outside starts to creep in as your vision slowly fades to black.
“We’re losing them-“ Handong cries out as someone else walks toward you.
“Dami!”
You push away the darkness as you immediately prop yourself up on your elbows. Handong supports your back with both of her hands as Yoohyeon places a washcloth against your neck.
“Don’t do that-“ Handong begins to scold you before
“It’s okay,” Dami raises her hand before sitting beside you, “we need them awake.”
“Is this going to work?” Yoohyeon softly asks as your eyes dance around, looking for another person.
“Gahyeon is out looking for Minji, Siyeon, and Tzuyu,” Dami calmly answers as you look back at her, “and I just need you to focus on staying awake. We’ll be okay as long as you’re okay.”
Dami reaches for a book as you focus on your breaths.
Do this one thing for them - it’s easy enough.
You fight against the numbness, the pain inside of you as Dami flips through the book with ease until her hand finds the right page.
“Are binding spells safe?” Yoohyeon asks as Handong scoffs.
“Not in the slightest, but they’re better than resurrection spells.” Handong rubs your back before looking back at Yoohyeon.
“Are you serious? We’re using untamed magic-“
“-Resurrection spells are untamed magic, binding spells are unreliable-“ Dami corrects as Yoohyeon raises her eyebrows in disbelief.
“-you have to be kidding me!”
Your head falls back as your resistance starts to fail.
“Dami, hurry up-“
“-I’ve got it.” Dami takes your spare hand and intertwines it with hers. “Do you trust me?”
“I always have,” You mutter as your eyelids flutter rapidly, “and I always will.”
She glances away for a moment before closing the book and tossing it aside.
Dami mutters something in a tongue unknown to you as a soft purple smoke surrounds the both of you.
“Get away-“ Handong backs off from you as you support yourself with your arms.
“They can’t-“ Yoohyeon argues for a moment before Handong drags her away from you.
The purple smoke grows closer and closer around the two of you until it disappears just as quickly as it
came.
Your resolve cracks and crumbles until nothing inside of you is left to fight.
I should have never introduced the two of you, this wouldn’t have happened if I was more careful-
Dami’s voice rings through your mind as her eyes pierce your soul.
It was never your fault, you answer her with your thoughts, and I’d do it all over again if it means I got to be close with you.
You’re out before your head hits the pillow, but not before a small tear runs down Dami’s cheek.
A/N: Due to the fact that I don't have YT premium I keep getting flash-banged by Jennie's CK ad so here we are ;-;
Warnings: Alcohol
Word Count: 0.5
The heavy bass coursed through your veins, synchronizing with the wild pace of your own heart. A concoction that left the mind flirting with a heavy fog while a sheen glossed your skin.
Even as your limbs moved with the music, your gaze remained captured, stolen by the hypnotizing woman who was dancing her way over to you.
Sometimes you absolutely hate the fact that you're head over heels for your best friend.
A free weekend was something to be enjoyed, that was something you both could agree on, but that is where the merged lines diverge.
Because while you would love nothing more than a night in, a takeaway on your lap and a favorite movie on the screen; Jennie had other ideas.
You need to be in the right mood for these things, and it takes quite a lot of effort for it to be forced upon you. But Jennie, with her big dumb smile and fluffed-up cheeks just had to look into your eyes once and you'd lost the war before the message of an oncoming attack had even been delivered.
You didn't want to kill her fun. nor did you want to ruin the shared time you had managed to align, so you tried your best to manipulate your muscles into something that was actually genuine when you smiled.
And when that didn't work, the alcohol certainly did.
You were absolutely terrible at pacing yourself, so it did not take long for that certain buzz to hit and pull you away from 'I don't want to be here' to 'This isn't so bad.'
The power of the fruity mixture felt almost liberating, to the point you didn't even notice how sagged muscles sprang back to life.
It didn't help that Jennie was so distracting.
She had taken to the dancefloor halfway through her first drink, sending you a flirtatious wink whenever your gazes would clash under the florescent lights.
There was a part of you that itched to follow, to let her siren call embrace any lasting sanity you have and break it until you're left fully submerged.
3 drinks in and you finally let go.
Her smile is equal parts excited as it is knowing; you never could deny her of anything.
The bass synchronizes with your heart upon approach, and you let its frantic pace guide your limbs until you're doing something you hope resembles dancing.
You don't actually care though, not when Jennie quickly discards any lasting distance between you, takes your hands and brings them around her frame before she's throwing her own around your shoulders.
Way more intimate than what you would usually go for, but the taste of mango on your tongue reminds you that tonight was to let go.
And so you do.
Jennie's laugh is high-pitched and so in love and it's almost as intoxicating as the alcohol in your system -- although just as addicting.
Sweat glosses your skin before long, but you're way too absorbed to focus on anything but Jennie; her glimmering eyes and blinding smile.
At some point she brings you even closer, an adventurous hand getting lost in your hair before your lips meet for a single kiss that gets disrupted by more laughter.
You can't help but to follow her lead, even when the familiarity of Lady Gaga hits your ears in the background.
Not the night you initially wanted, but God you would not have it any other way.
Alternative Title: Forgotten Moments Between Two Liars.
It's Complicated AU - It really is.
Warnings/Tags: misfit reader, Jungeun is student council president and popular, but they're both liars(?)
Underage clubbing, drinking and smoking (though it would be legal where I'm from). Injuries and mentions of fights, implied driving under the influence, brief mentions of supernatural elements, everything is a mess and reader might not be a good friend.
Premise: What should've been a night out with your friends treads on to some interesting ground when miss student president needs a ride home.
Wordcount: 5.1K
Genre: Fluff(?), Angst (?) it's a mixed bag.
Vibes/Songs: Les (Childish Gambino), Right Here (Chase Atlantic), After Dark (Mr. Kitty), What You Need (The Weeknd), Call Out My Name (The Weeknd) and Friends (Chase Atlantic)*
*I prefer slowed + reverb for that song in particular.
"Come on, I'll take you back to the dorm."
You hadn't planned to drive, hell you even offered to sober drive instead of Karina…
"You're not taking Karina instead?"
Everything is a mess– Swept in the hailing afterthought of a night out with your friends.
You lost Mingi, found him with Miyeon, a drunken smile plastered on his lips.
Tried hanging out with Seungcheol before he was all over Karina's sister.
That's without even thinking about Ryujin and Hyunji–Your fingers ghost over your brow pinching the bridge of your nose.
"Because I don't want Karina to find out about my bike and I know you can keep a secret."
It's the beleaguered sigh that slowly pulls its way from your lips with a creaking crawl that reminds you, despite it all, that you do trust her.
It's hard to miss the flare of her perfect white teeth as they paint her smirk— or the slight wince that twitches across her busted lip.
It's fresh, vibrant compared to the darkened flecks that orbit her eye and dust against her cheek.
Barely noticeable, hidden against waves of practised skill and brush to everyone except you.
It isn't her usual style, and you can't help but wonder why you know that.
Instinct.
Anger simmers in her eyes and her nostrils flare, "you don't want to check me over and make sure I'm really me like Mateo?"
You've had the distinct luxury (or misfortune?) of clashing blades with sword masters and other entities.
Yet, nothing quite matches the restrained fury or venom that licks at her voice like a barbed knife.
Your best friend's paranoia wasn't entirely unfounded, after all he'd gotten to know the imposter rather… intimately.
Still, now wasn't the time to linger on the past, not underneath the whining hum of fluorescent tube lights awash in a seedy medical clinic.
You throw your hands up, your eyes catching against familiar shoes, "I know it’s you since you still have my shoes."
She’d taken to them like a fish to water compared to her usual heels, that clacked against the ground with the echo of her mother— Who wears heels to a ghost investigation?—
There's an exaggerated flare to the roll of her eyes, a flicker of a tender, cool, cocky smile. “You’re not getting them back you know?"
It's nice to see the sizzle behind her eyes, the unsnuffable flame despite tonight's best efforts.
Sheis getting awfully comfortable though, a familiarity that you can't quite understand, but maybe, just maybe it's because it's been a long night.
Still, you hadn't expected to run into her tonight. Thursday and Friday had been tough days for her - auditioning on next to no sleep and nearly turning into a monster during the attack at the school.
… Man, it's only been a week since you've started this gig.
Your eyes roll like flecks of sand between your fingers, a tired sigh trembles across your lips.
“I know.”
She's eager, that's the only thing you can note as she pounds back drink after drink like the thumping bass line that hangs thick in Zorro's.
Making up for lost time like Karina before her.
You shouldn’t point out how similar they can be, the flash of Crash's eyes kills the idea before it can even leave your tongue.
They mix like oil and water.
It's weird the way you can pick out the notes of alcohol on her breath– even from this distance. The fruity tang of a Wumpa Shake to the smooth glide of a Super Slide.
Again, she's getting way too comfortable knowing that you're the one who has to drive her back to the dorm.
Is this how Karina feels whenever you call her at some god forsaken hour?
… You should be nicer to her.
Though part of you loathes the idea of being alone with her especially in your current state.
Caesar would give you no mercy if something were to transpire between you and his girlfriend.
"You know I could talk to her about it," there's a softness to her otherwise beady eyes, as liquor flows through her lips. There's a dainty elegance to the way her lips purse, her fingers dance across her straw eliciting a soft mixing stir of her drink.
All it was missing was a small umbrella really, though as you notice the collecting pile on the bar… Crash probably gave up on the decorative element.
Still, part of you winces at the way she's able to peek past the curtain of your mind for but the briefest moments.
It was probably best she didn't look too deep.
"Huh?" is all you can manage, a whispered echo despite your best intentions.
She clings tight to your words, able to parse them with a gentle ease even in the eves of overstimulating neon lights and alcohol-induced haze.
Maybe that was just you?
She smiles, the kind that feels reserved just for you, the real you. It's odd to feel vulnerable underneath layers of lies, jokes, countless personas and more lies.
An innumerable legion at this point– It's the only way to keep up with your father.
"She's into you B" That's the real sticking point isn't it? The way your middle initial peels off tongue, the way it scintillates with a knowing edge.
A reminder that she knows you more than you remember.
But you know her too, somehow.
The flicker flames of a smirk is but smoke and mirrors against the solemn glint in her eyes.
"We should get you home, Yeji's probably worried about you."
It doesn't quite click right… At least not straight away, though you could, should blame the poison in your own veins for that one.
Her hazel warmth nestled against your back, her arms wrapped around your waist with an almost desperate tightness.
Though you're probably making that last part up, too much media does rot the brain after all. Still the student council president being into the weird kid is an interesting bit of brain rot.
Yet as you peer down at the familiar leather jacket keeping her warm, it's easy to admit that the delinquent, president trope is a lot better.
If only your best friend was smoother.
Yet it's that very poison that slushes through your skin, dampening the cold edge of the night air that bites against your skin.
You're drunk driving.
Your bike obeys you as you pull over, there’s a steadiness unlike the darkened edges of your vision, as your brain basically stumbles against itself as you park.
Kickstand, that's your first thought held underneath the amber glow of a street light, the only other witness to the crime that is the two of you.
Your feet grit against loose specks of gravel and asphalt.
"What's wrong with you?"
So many, many things. Your fingers fight through your own unfamiliar jacket snatching at an equally unfamiliar vice.
Cigarettes.
It'd be weird to cross that line in front of her– Part of you wants to assume she's a goody two-shoes like her title implies but you know better unlike Mateo.
It's not his fault, he's the new kid.
Even if you didn't, liquor still clings to her breath as she peers up at you with a clocked eyebrow.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Somehow… impossibly so, your voice is softer than you expect, the expletive a mere garnish on top of the sentence.
"What do you mean?" Her head tilts to the side, her eyes soft and glassy against the amber hue of the street light and the soft glow of the moon that barely peeks through it all.
Your finger bounces against your brow as your cigarette rests against your lips. "I'm drunk, Jungeun… Like really drunk-"
And you're worried. Worried for her of all people, worried what her mother would think, it clings and trembles against your breath and down your fingers.
Maybe that was the first crack in your porcelain mask, a persona you don't even remember adopting.
You pull at your lighter and ignite, maybe the smoke can fill the gaps in it all?
It's a disgruntled huff that leaves your lips first, quickly replaced with an intake of cigarette smoke and nicotine, it buzzes and dances against the alcohol in your veins, bouncing with a vibrant easing joy.
A slow release as smoke drifts and sails through the air, you can see why Mateo enjoys it.
Her hands are soft against yours, looping two fingers around your pinky.
"I trust you."
There's something unspoken in the slow drift in her voice, something you can't quite pluck out. It's firm and resolute, familiar like the crest of sunshine against your skin, yet foreign like memories from another life.
It's warm, the fluttering feeling in your chest. She doesn't know better, doesn't know the things you know.
Pure blind faith in you.
After all, how could she know about your bike being some freak science project from one of the sci fi movies your mother loves so much?
There's that glint in her eye, the kind that cuts through the softness with an analytical edge.
"Your driving does seem a bit mechanical though."
Another flared smirk, cocky and daring, pleased with another peak behind the curtains.
You scoff, painting the crisp night air with plumes of smoke.
The moment is gone, if it was ever there.
Forget anything that lingers in your chest, any nestled embers that threaten to ignite against even just a spark, just the idea she has a soft spot for you.
Why would she hangout with you of all people anyway?
You shelter yourself with a cocky smirk, the weapon of choice for your persona of the night, a facsimile of when you used to be popular with some inspiration from how Mateo can seem.
At least on first glance.
"How are you and Mateo?"
There's a flicker in her eye, that's a loaded question and part of you can't help but feel a ripple of joy. Still, you of all people can pick apart the evidence, the slight click of her tongue, the briefest tug of a frown at the corner of her lips.
Yet, you still lie, like you don't know the twisting corridors of her brain intimately.
"I figured he was doing well since you guys looked like you had a decent conversation at Zorro's…” You gesture at the jacket with your stick of cancer. “Hell, you're even wearing his jacket."
It's odd though, the instinctual way you can peel back her persona and all her would be lies.
Even if you don't have proof.
Though, that's what lends credence to the word instinct after all.
There's a roll of her eyes and a pointed swivel.
You fight back the chuckle that buckles against your lips as she almost shrinks into his leather jacket.
"He's… got a lot to make up for."
It's hard to keep up with all the whispering ghosts, the strained emotions that dance through her eyes under the amber flicker of the street light.
But there's one that sticks out the most, as it dances to and fro.
Hurt, it glimmers as moonlight pierces through amber hues. A lake forgotten with time.
"There's only so long before he gives up… Like everyone else." There's a deep breath, it racks against stressed pain like the sharp edge of a knife. "Plus, I told him I have feelings for someone else."
There's a look of recognition as she looks up at you, nestled in layered warmth. It's another crack in your veneer as you fight so desperately to hold the mask tight.
It's a weird dance, to hold a mask as a shield, as your instincts bleed against your mind.
You have no proof, but you know who.
"Surely, he's still willing to put in the effort… Even if the cards are stacked against him."
Still the mask crumbles slowly against the ebb and flow of empathy. He wouldn't be the first to give up at the first sign of difficulty after all, that much even you remember.
Despite everything between the two of you… She deserves the effort.
But he wouldn't, you're sure of it. After all, he still fights tooth and nail against Caesar whenever he's in a mood.
Only the soft after midnight breeze crests the silence between the two of you, liquor clings tights against you with a warm embrace, a magnanimous shield.
It's easy to catch the question on the edge of her lips, still it's hard to tell if it's a sharpened blade or a humble gift.
It's the soft click of her tongue that pulls it back, it's a flared brow that spurs it forward like a rampant beast.
"Figured out who made you chocolate for Valentine's day?"
It's an afterthought compared to your newfound responsibility.
"Nope."
Not definitively at least, more just gut feelings and wishful thinking.
"Not even just a little bit curious?"
It's hard to pick apart her expression as it's dyed under amber hues, a raised eyebrow and a glint of curiosity. Her lips tighten ever so slightly, rolling to one side in a roiling wave.
"Miss Esperanza gave me a list of suspects," there's a flash of intrigue, drawn to the pulse of your gossip.
It's hard to ignore the way you feel the air practically sizzle when she strays close to you, hanging on to your silence, hungry and eager.
If there was one thing that kept Angelview High going it was gossip. Still you couldn't deny the feeling of joy that plucked at the edge of your brain, to coax her with gossip… just to snip it away.
"...But I haven't had the time to look into it, not with the attack that happened yesterday."
There's a flare of annoyance, as her eyebrow twitches, calculating if you were even worth hanging out with before her mind trails off, lost in thought.
There's an odd vacancy in her eyes, like trying to peer through a fog during a stormy night.
"... Yesterday?" Her eyebrows tighten, her voice nothing but a troubled, shivering whisper.
It's cold you realise, you're not drunk enough to ignore that even in the whispering dark as instinct takes hold. It makes it all the much harder to ignore the warmth you feel cresting up your hand and into your chest as you hold her hand in yours.
You take another drag of your cigarette, placing a trinket in her palm; small, in the shape of a bat. It's edgy, vampiric even, a complete tonal clash against the student council, drama club queen you'd grown to know or remember in your case.
But it is hers nonetheless, it's soft, the way the fog dissipates from her eyes, replaced with a soft tender bloom.
Her shoulders loosen, melting away waves of tight tension as she releases a soft sigh.
She's… different in that moment, your mind clings to the word iridescent as if that could truly describe even a semblance of it all.
But it doesn't, it can't after all.
How can one word even articulate the way her smile drifts between the soft moonlight glow and the warmth of nestled amber streetlight.
Her eyes shift from the trinket to you, it's a soft invisible pull as laughter trickles from her lips.
It's weird, but in a good way. The kind of way that makes you smile unconsciously in her presence and part of you wants to hate it.
But it feels natural.
Instinctual.
Real.
Her laughter fades, slumbering into a soft smile - wistful and melancholic as her eyes linger once again on the trinket.
"Man, this is either gonna be really sad or really funny." Her grip tightens against it as if it would turn to sand if she didn't.
It's easy to get lost in her eyes as she returns her gaze to you, gone is the frenetic tension, enveloped in a patient warmth.
A bonfire on a cold night.
"What do you mean?" It's a stupid question, you can feel that. It's a familiar pluck at the back of your brain, still the words leave all the same.
She smiles softly, a tender hug to hold the moment, her eyes linger even as her head tilts to the side.
You don't know why, but it reminds you of sunflowers and yesteryears, crested with the dew of forgotten, child-like promises.
"You know the rules of the game, I…" Her eyebrows knit together. "She won't remember what we talk about, not when you take the trinket back."
And you have to, those are the rules.
There's an unexplainable smoothness to the way she shuffles next to you using your bike as a makeshift bench.
You hate the way you trace every movement, every moment as her eyes drift up towards the moon.
A joke comes to mind, Karina said it best.
"Is this where you tell me, the moon is beautiful isn't it?"
It's warm in those moments, the way she turns back to you a smile, so deep and sincere you can see it in her eyes.
Still it does nothing against the turmoil in your chest, the warmth of the sun suffocating against thick storm clouds.
It's wrong, you remind yourself.
It's wrong to share these intimate quiet moments, to feel the bloom of something more in your chest.
To feel so effortlessly yourself…
To feel safe.
After all, Mateo has expressed his interest in her and you could see it, you really could.
You stoked the flames in his chest, pushed him towards her… Because you believed in him.
Even in spite of those brief moments at the observatory–You gave him the right nudges here and there, your best attempts to keep him on the best track.
Your grip tightens against your cigarette, against the worn leather seat of your bike.
The delinquent and the student council president is a better story. You could imagine the drift of cigarette smoke past his lips slowly twisting through hers.
"Why?" It cuts like a knife through it all, you fight against the bile that threatens your throat.
You take a drag, feign ignorance against the thoughts that cloud your mind, cock an eyebrow.
"Why, what?"
There's a softened, slightly folded frown pressed into the corner of her lips.
"Why would he think it's actually me?"
It's a hard fight, fought tooth and nail, to not join up in arms, to denounce him as another stupid hopefu-
"I think…" Your lips purse, tightening against the little knot of anxiety caught in your throat, finger bouncing against your brow as plumes of smoke drift slowly through the cold crisp air.
"It's not about thinking she was you, but wanting her to be."
You hate the way she gazes at you, takes in every word with those soft moonlit eyes. The way it tightens that knot in your throat with every passing glance.
Still, she scoffs, rolls her eyes at the idea.
"So you're saying you don't like the idea of the bad boy and the goody two shoes?"
It's that glimmer in her eyes that tells you it's all for show, an exaggerated performance just for you, as her arms cross and her eyes roll, a huff at the edge of her lips.
"What makes it so good huh?" Her voice whines like the crinkling of foil, still it plucks the right notes to write the beginnings of a smile on your face.
Try as you might to hide it with another drag of a cigarette. You nearly choke on fumes embattled on the edge of laughter.
"Well," it's hard to articulate against the bubbling bloom in your veins held under her gaze.
Corruption isn't the word you want to use, but it's close enough, the right fuel to ignite a fire.
"It's about rubbing off on each other, really." You offer a scuffed smirk, scraped by the huff of a thought against plumes of smoke. "It's the peak of opposites attract isn't it?"
You hold the cigarette aloft between two fingers, smoke drifts and flows through the night air, hot orange burns against the ashy tip.
A torch by any other name.
"I guess the cigarette signifies the point of no return."
Her head lists to the side peering past the cigarette, it's hard to fight the focus she pulls from you; her soft eyes, entrancing and safe.
Maybe that's what scares you, more than the unknown, more than being wrong.
It's being right.
Again, it's just instinctual.
She holds her hand out, a smile playing against her teeth.
"Pass it here."
It's odd, really it is. The confident ease in which her grip ghosts over your own, the way she plucks the vice away against her own lips.
It's hard to ignore the way your jaw slackens ever so slightly, surprised at her sheer audacity, too used to a dance of lies and shielded personas.
It's irresistible and you hate it—for arguably the millionth time—the way she smiles so genuinely that it reaches her eyes. It's oddly endearing the way she shifts under your gaze, akin to trying different poses in a photo booth.
It's natural the way a smile creeps slowly on to your lips.
There's a cheeky, calculated glint in her eye.
She flashes a smile, taking a slow drag of the cigarette. Plumes of smoke drift past her lips before buffeting you in the face with a focused assault… Or at least it would've been.
She's nothing but sputtering coughs as smoke parts her lips in choked spurts. Her face contorts and twists ever so slightly.
It takes everything in you not to laugh. You're thankful for the diversion, a shield against the lingering glow in your chest or even worse the sinking disgust.
You really shouldn't be entertaining this moment, not with the object of his affection. It takes everything to reel it back, to take back the line cast on it's own whims.
Still it's hard to ignore the devilish spark in your own chest, the one that revels in all the illicit secrecy.
To feel special.
Your palm caresses her back, rubbing against his leather jacket, coaxing out equals waves of sputtering coughs and gut wrenching guilt.
She turns back to you, face scrunched in the disgust you can only feel for yourself, the torch of betrayal lingers in her hands offered back to you.
"That shit is so fucking gross," her beautiful eyes still catch the edges of a disgusted wince.
It shatters guilt like glass, she can't be into you.
Not after that.
Your mask slowly crawls back together, cocky smirk and all.
"It's an acquired taste."
It really isn't; anything to burn the stress and guilt away from your brain. You cock an eyebrow, tilt your head to the side as you take another drag.
You feel the ghost of her lips, the tang of intoxication mixed with sunflowers and the sweetness of… Ring Pops?
Childlike promises.
Plumes of smoke, hover and whisper through the air; a moment to spare.
"You know she's gonna question why she smells like smoke."
There's a glint of teeth, enamoured and fun. Carefree and expeditious, it is certainly welcome compared to her usual tense and stressed nature.
But you're the one who has to pick the pieces.
She tugs at the collar of her jacket, his jacket—blood seeps from your chest at another twist of the knife—she sniffs at it but you already have the answer.
"Right, right."
You can't help the slight frown that presses into your lips, your eyes trace the moon and the stars.
Anything besides the ethereal sight next to you or the bloody twisted crime scene in your chest.
Her thumb runs over the top of your hand, pressed against the seat of your bike.
"Come on, I gotta have some fun in her stead," she smiles that soft gentle smile, the one that articulates the swell of lips with a preening touch.
You relish in her soft touch, you do… Part of you thinks you always have, no matter how foreign and distant the concept.
Equal measures warmth and disgust.
You roll your eyes, play up your role.
"Alright then," another drag, the final one before it's discarded, forgotten into the night. "Make things interesting."
It's that subtle almost knowing click, the kind that registers on an instinctual level.
She smiles with a knowing caress against your hand.
It stings when she pulls away, finger bouncing against her bottom lip as she paces, eyes adrift in thoughts against the moon.
There's a subtle dance to it all.
"What if I told you, you survive in a zombie apocalypse?" Mirth dances in her eyes, as you can't help but latch on to the thought.
Because duh, of you would.
So of course you don't notice the small cursive joy that bounces on her lips when you smile, when pride echoes into your posture.
Nor do you notice the flecks of sadness.
You're too caught in it all, you don't even notice how bone cold your hands are in the fleeting echoes of laughter.
"I'm sure you don't want to spend these moments talking about work of all things."
It's the swell of her cheeks caught at the mercy of her smile that tells you, convinces you of sickly delusions.
She enjoys it, the way you see through her.
She's confident in spite of it, that's what you li—don't entertain the thought, the knife is in your hand after all.
"She's gonna hate this." There's a pause, echoed only by the stir of cars through distant empty streets.
It's a devious hook with only the most intoxicating of bait.
You fall, hook, line and sinker as you push off your bike, caught in her orbit under amber hues.
There's no cigarette smoke to keep you safe, to obfuscate it all.
"She's gonna deny it, she'll lie until she dies but…" She smiles, pure and wholesomely real. The truth, a secret for just the two of you caught in this moment.
After the dust settles.
A secret just for you.
"She's the one who made the chocolates."
The knife in your chest twists and snaps at the behest of your own lies and propaganda,This is all for her, all for some sick joke that she won't even remember come dawn. To give her what she so desperately wants and craves.
Her lips quiver, caught idle in your silence as her words struggle to form.
"Like I said, it'll either be really sad or really funny."
There's crisp sobering solemness to her words, even as you taste the alcohol on her breath.
Still you can pluck out the embers in her eyes, through the gloss of shimmering glass. The nestled warmth of something else.
She smirks, it's barely passable in the waves of turbulent emotion that washes through the air.
A memory comes to mind, firm and sturdy. It's weird to be so close to her, to have her soft gaze focused on you.
It's unlike the moment at the observatory; an earthquake and broken heels cast in dim tunnel lights.
You thought nothing of the subsequent fall or her trapped bated breath underneath you.
It sparks at your brain, threatening to ignite it all. The way her hair fell in lusciously decadent waves against the floor, bathed in ivory light. You still remember those precious moments held locked against her gaze, the flare of surprise that burned across her eyes.
You remember the way her face twisted away from you, spurred by your comment.
After all, who wears heels to an investigation?
Only now do you realise it, the nervous cherry dusting across her cheek in those painted fleeting moments, only now can you trace the beauty—
Don't think about it.
“You know she’s gonna push you towards Karina.”
But it's hard not to, not when you can pick out each individual eyelash that flutters with every blink or the way her breath hitches ever so slightly when you pull away.
For your own sanity… But it's already too late for you, the devilish whispers in your brain echo to and fro with an egotistic cockiness that's intoxicating.
You nearly fish out another cigarette under the stress of it all, but you know the role you have to play… for her sake.
"Is that what you want?"
There's a soft glower to her caught against frayed streetlights. She cocks an eyebrow in spite of it all, "Me?"
Her voice saunters softly through the air, your last chance. To be a good friend, to continue to be a good friend.
No amount of twisted reasoning or lies would amount to anything less than betrayal of the most sickening kind.
Betrayal of the heart.
"Be honest and you might get a prize."
It's hard to ignore the way the power gets to your head, the illicit betrayal, the taboo of it all as you stray close to her. Your fingers play against the pockets of Mateo's jacket.
It's made all the more intoxicating in the bristling cold, the way she shrinks underneath the weight of it all even with all of her confidence she is still just a girl in love.
She feigns it all the same.
"It would be funny."
Still she isn't strong enough, eyes shifting away from yours under suffocating silence.
"Look me in the eye."
A deep breath, a quiver of her lips and a snap of focus. There’s something inherently soft and vulnerable held in the cloisters of her eyes, a shimmering crystalline prison.
"I…" the undeniable shake to her voice makes your heart sink past the bile that builds in your throat.
Your hands pluck at hers, pulling them from their nestled warm burrows, guiding them towards the skin just above the hem of your shirt.
It's instinctual, a gut reaction to her hesitance.
Her touch is warm, yearningly hungry, yearningly desperate. It's a blessing against the cold grip of the night, you almost lean in unconsciously.
Despite the way her breath paints the air with an alcoholic brush, despite the way nicotine buzzes through the caverns in your mind. There's nothing inherently Sensual about the way her grip tightens ever so slightly, the way she bites her lips caught in the throes of the thought.
It's a quiet, reassuring comfort.
There's a resolute strength as she looks up at you, her voice still an uneven shaky quiver.
"You have my heart, always have," she laughs, the brief short kind, where it's almost just an exhale almost like recollecting a forgotten joke. "Ever since we were kids and…"
Her hands twist and scrunch against the cloth of your shirt, peering defiantly up at you, the smallest smile etched into her lips.
"You always will."
You can't help but smile despite the pit in your stomach.
"It's too bad you hate the taste of cigarette smoke."
Her smile blooms deeper, fervently so, plucking at the fragments of confidence forgotten at the wayside.
As I've already had the delightful pleasure of reading this before it was posted to tumblr, there isn't many more comments to add on the glorious-ness of this masterpiece, so I'll let the writing speak for itself.
Gotta say my guy to think a good portion of this was based off of memory it still holds such beautifully put feelings that it truly feels like the scene only happened yesterday, and I wasn't even there for it.
Great work as always loser (affectionate) let's hope things get easier but let's be real... they won't
A/N: Okay so I know that I've been neglecting my requests for a while now, but the problem I have is that I can't pick and choose what I want to write, otherwise I will get nothing done.
I will get to them... eventually, but there is a reason as to why I never schedule things ;-;
Warnings: None
Word Count: 1k
Even with the sweat dripping from your skin, strands of hair clinging to your forehead, she would look at you like you were the most beautiful thing on this world.
You were never meant to fall in love, especially not this hard or fast, but all it took was for Yoo Karina to catch your eye and it all came crumbling down.
Idol!Karina x Backup-Dancer!Reader
One, two, three, four.
Each clap felt like a tug at your muscles -- limbs flexing, extending, and twirling with such ease.
Hours spent grueling over each movement, every maneuver, meant that you didn’t even have to think about it anymore. Your body simply knew what was to come next, twisting into the correct position without a second thought.
It felt exhilarating when everything came together, when all of the hard work everyone had put in brought forth the fruits of their labor.
You hadn’t expected to enjoy this job so much when you first signed up, but now you can’t imagine doing anything else.
And it helps that you got along with everyone, at least to some degree.
Some more than others.
Once the signal for a break had been called you rushed over to your water bottle -- thankfully still somewhat chilled, and took a few large gulps before placing the side of it against your neck.
You couldn’t stop the relieved sigh as you did so, leaning your back against the wall and sliding down until your butt makes a painful thud against the hard flooring.
Giggles resonate within the room, and you hum in amusement when Winter’s high-pitched whine echoes shortly after.
You flicker your eyes toward the commotion, watching as the four idols in the room fill the space with playful jabs and inside jokes; some of which you know the context of.
The smile that flickers against your features is innate, eyes curving alongside your lips as you observe the scene laid out before you. Laughter pulling at your chest when some of the other backup dancers join in with the intent to drag more reactions out of the short-haired woman.
She pulls another face, and it is almost enough to hold your focus before your attention is caught and held by another.
Karina eyes you from her position beside her friend, and you’re left swallowing the butterflies back into your stomach when her smile filters into something softer, something only you are privy to even in a room filled with others.
Even with the ache in your limbs and the tiredness in your mind, if Karina had asked you to join her you would have. The desire to be close will always outweigh everything else.
She goes to open her mouth, and you wait patiently for her words, but someone is clapping their hands before anything more can be done.
Time to get back to work.
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
Hours come and go, and by the end you can’t even hide the shake in your legs as you pack your things back into your bag.
Usually, you would have already taken a shower, washing away both the sweat and the ache, but the late hour against the clock has you wanting to go home and collapse onto the softness of your bed.
It doesn’t help that you are the last one to leave, every movement you make echoing within the empty room.
“You’re still here?”
The sudden voice has the muscles in your back jolting, unsteady legs causing you to fall backward as you snap your wide eyes to the door.
Karina’s eyes are filled with mirth at your blunder, and the hand she shoots to her mouth isn’t enough to muffle the laughs that erupt from her lips.
With a stuttered breath you place a hand against your chest, shooting her a look that held no malice, “you almost gave me a heart attack.”
She removes her hand away from her mouth at your words, but the smile on her face does little to calm your over-excited heart.
Her footsteps seem muffled as she approaches, reaching a hand out for you once she’s close enough. “Are you saying that I don’t make your heart race anyway?”
A scoff tears itself past your lips in a futile attempt to diverge attention from the blush on your cheeks, but the knowing look in her eyes calls out your bluff with relative ease.
Still, you’re glad that she is here, because having a comeback means time together away from work are few and fleeting.
You allow her to get you up from the floor, but the moment you’re back standing your hands are on her shoulders to help you stabilize – it would seem the muscles in your legs have already fallen into slumber when you had fallen over.
Her grip falls to your sides when she notices your struggle, and you fail to notice the concern in her eyes since your gaze has dropped to the floor.
“You okay?”
Her words are comforting when they wash over you, and you give yourself another moment until answering.
“Yeah,” you whisper out, only just remembering how tired you actually were, “yeah I’m good. Just need some rest.”
A shiver slithers up your spine when her thumbs unconsciously rub along your ribcage, and even though you no longer need her to keep you from falling you pull yourself closer to her warmth.
Her arms encircle your frame as you approach, and you groan out your fatigue into her shoulder.
The chuckle she presses against the side of your head is decisively wicked, her lips stretched into a smile before she places a tender kiss against your skin.
You don’t even consider it an overreaction when the thought of falling asleep right now flickers through your mind, but you know you’ll never get her on board with such a ludicrous idea.
“Come on,” she breathes out, and it’s almost as if she’s reading your mind when she adds, “you can’t fall asleep here, especially since there is a nice soft bed with your name on it.”
Another groan forces itself from somewhere deep, but you otherwise do as asked when you hesitantly pull away.
The smile on her lips is very reminiscent of the one she shot you earlier, but it is quickly robbed from your sight when she leans in, placing a delicate kiss against your forehead, both of your eyelids, your nose, before covering your own.
The kiss is short, but as with any you shared it still held enough impact over your heart and mind to be engraved into your memory for safekeeping.
“Now,” she grins, pulling away so she can take one of your hands instead, “let’s get you home.”
A/N: Guess who got into Aespa in the space of 2 days
Warnings: Violence, blood, deaths, threats, injury and cursing
Word Count: 2.1k
Her eyes pierce through your defenses, everything that you are laid bare for her to view for her own pleasure and amusement.
The demon sits upon her throne, and somehow you find yourself at her side.
Mafia-Boss!Winter
Frigid air forces white puffs to exit passed your lips, their existence lasting but a few seconds before they evade your vision.
The scar on your arm itches.
The cathedral was empty upon your arrival - the stone walls doing very little to contain any heat from the carefully placed candles. All in rows of three.
This was by no means new to you, because while the building was used for its intended purpose, it was all a farce. A cover-up.
Sin and debauchery lay just below the surface, away from watchful eyes and curious ears.
The first time you had timidly stepped through the threshold, you had almost expected God himself to smite you down, and force you to repent for any and all sins that you have committed in the short amount of time you had been on this world.
You wore sin like a silk scarf, greeted it like the long-time friend it has always been.
After all, it was the reason you had forced tensed limbs passed the sturdy wooden doors that belonged to this particular place of worship, arms clutching a package with some very questionable words written upon its surface.
You had entered with nothing but a goal and a name.
Kim Winter.
Back then she had been a means to an end; you needed something she could provide, and in turn you would place your life and loyalty in her hands.
A desperate cry, perhaps, but in a city such as this one each sunrise you got to witness was nothing but pure luck.
Gangs ravaged each corner, deals of all kinds conducted with hushed whispers and stacks of green.
Never in your wildest dreams would you have expected things to turn out the way they did.
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Your grip on the package tightens once you enter the main space, eyes taking in the rows of pews.
It was cold, uncomfortably so.
A shuffle has your wired muscles bouncing; fight and flight response activated as you turn to whatever made the noise.
Jihyo raises an amused eyebrow at your response, the corner of her lips twitching for the briefest moment before she continues her approach.
“So, you took my advice?”
A strained breath causes a dull ache to shoot up your sides, shoulders very much still tense. “I can’t afford to take my time.”
She nods her head once in understanding, “Winter is in her office. To the left,” she points at a single wooden door hidden away. Your heart seems to pick up with the knowledge.
Strange.
Jihyo turns back to you, then, and you can feel any blood exit your face at the expression she dominates you with. “If, at any point, you become a threat to her, your death will be slow and torturous. You will be begging me to end you, do you understand?”
Threatened promises cause your tongue to fall limp where it lies in your mouth; a nod is all you can give.
Your relationship with Jihyo had been nothing but friendly banter till now, but even you know that means little if you make one wrong move.
Once at the door, you juggle the package into one hand, shaky fingers raising until timid knuckles can tap against the frame.
“Enter.”
With one last breath, you take hold of the handle and twist, wincing with the slight creek once you begin to push.
Before you even have the chance to see the inside of the office, the temperature makes a sudden and heavy drop. Bumps immediately erupt along your arms and invoke a full-body shiver.
You say nothing as you slip your way in, the natural habit of not wanting to get in the way making you appear small as you all but cower once inside.
Your gaze is slow to pull itself from the floor, but once you manage the difficult feat you are left stranded alone and enraptured.
Sitting hunched on a large leather seat, Winter regards you for a tense moment, hands neatly folded for her chin to be placed upon.
Her eyes meet your own, daring you to make a move before they drop for the briefest of moments. So quickly, in fact, that you are pretty certain that it was all in your head, especially as she takes a stand.
Her expression gives away nothing as she makes her way closer, each step calm and calculated. This was her domain, her territory, and she was making that very clear during this moment.
You fail to hold in the stuttered breath when her eyebrow twitches in what you can only assume to be amusement, her eyes continuing to force their way passed your already diminished defenses and look deep into your soul.
“It would seem you need something from me,” she says, nonchalance dripping from her fangs.
“You better not be wasting my time.”
- - - - - - - - - - ☆ - - - - - - - - - -
It was safe to say your first impression of Winter Kim was as memorable as it was terrifying. Something she holds over you even to this day.
She loves holding the power, thrives from it. Authority practically drips from each syllable whenever she speaks.
You had gotten used to it after joining her operation, to the point where you sometimes find it difficult to reach the same level of terror you held after the first day.
Winter was as enigmatic as she was contradictive, and it makes you wonder why you find yourself paying such rapt attention to every little thing she does.
There was a need, deep and primal, to prove your worth for her eyes to feast on. To have you be someone she could rely on for tasks she wouldn’t be able to entrust with just anyone.
Ryujin says you’re like a lost puppy.
You purposely ignore her.
It doesn’t help that you have already made mistakes, stupid little things that could have very easily been avoided if you had just thought about it.
And then there are those moments, little cracks in time and space where her smile is genuine in nature, her words holding just a tinge of softness.
They leave you weak and obsessed, always craving for more.
She’s become an expert on giving you just enough to catch your attention, to gain your interest before the mask of indifference is placed firmly back on and she’s telling you to get back to work.
You fail to notice Jihyo’s Chesire grin whenever you stumble out of Winter's office, confusion clear on your face, before you straighten out your blazer and head back to your post.
It continues like that, weeks coming and going, before an attack on the cathedral changes everything.
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Business has been running slow all day, the yawns forcing open your jaw becoming more and more frequent with each hour that passes.
You would have loved nothing more than to track down Jihyo or Ryujin, to tease and banter, anything to pass the time. But both of them had jobs outside of the cathedral for the night, which meant you were left to suffer the prospect of boredom all alone.
There is a small tug within your chest, working together alongside the scar on your arm, reminding you that Winter was in her office.
You lift up the white sleeve of your dress shirt to look at the discolored skin.
A sign of your loyalty.
Everyone that works for her had one, brought forth due to a burn.
Unconventional perhaps, after all the other gangs had tattoos and the like to discern them from others, but there’s a part of you that prefers this.
Growing up without a home, the scar made you feel like you belonged in some dark, twisted way.
Pushing your sleeve back down, you were just about to go and find something to hold your attention when an explosion rocks the stone walls, some of the stained windows smashing in the process.
Confusion forces your brain to close up shop, but your capacity to work in sync with your instinct means you’ve already begun to move.
Bullets come raining through the doors as you begin passing the rows of pews, and tight muscles propel you behind one before sharp metal can imbed itself into soft flesh.
Reaching into your blazer, you automatically reach for the set of knives, your preferred weapon, before taking out the pistol instead.
You sigh, listening, waiting for a break before you’re once again on the move.
A bullet from you strikes true into one of the assailants, leaving no time for yourself to gloat as you’ve crossed the walkway to the pews on the other side, crouching for cover as you go.
The need for your own life and safety is non-existent during that moment, everything, every desire coursing through your body urges you to get to her, to Winter, and make sure no harm comes her way.
The hinges of the door almost snap with the force you use to open it, the darkened end of your demise greeting you once you turn.
Winter’s hardened eyes widen when she realizes it’s you, and she quickly lowers the gun she had pointed to your face.
“Hello to you too,” you grin, quickly regretting your choice of words when it looks like she’s going to raise the gun again. “Sorry! I can’t help it. Stress brings out my inner comedian.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” she huffs. “But how about we leave that for when we get out.”
You salute despite yourself, “Aye, aye boss.”
Even when staring death in the face, you could never take things seriously.
With a tighter grip on your own weapon, you instinctively reach out with your free hand, fingers greeted with Winter’s unnaturally cold touch as you bring her hand into your own.
A deep breath in, and on the count of 3, you charge.
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“Fuc- ow!”
You flinch away more due to the unimpressed glare Winter shoots you rather than the stinging pain in your abdomen.
Situated in her home, on her couch, you were stripped of your blazer and shirt so she could tend to the only would you had managed to obtain from your escape.
“Shut up before I give you something to whine over,” she threatens, but her words are empty, even you and your lack of social skills could tell.
However, when she leans in once again, you pull back, heat coursing through your veins. This was doing little to calm your already overworked heart.
With the slightest hint of a growl she reaches out, forcing you close with one arm as the other continues to tend to your injury.
While still embarrassed from the proximity, you comply with her orders, watching intently as her furrowed brow seems to deepen as she works. The way the hardened line of her lips seems to be fighting off a… pout?
Perhaps you hit your head without even knowing?
Too enraptured, you don’t even process when she moves, bringing both hands up to your face and daring your gaze to pull away from the fire raging deep within her own.
“You’re an idiot.”
“H-huh?”
Lips meet your own, and you’re left floundering for even a shred of sanity you know you don’t have.
She pulls back, hands still on your cheeks, “What am I supposed to do if you die?”
You blink once, twice, eyes fluttering in confusion when you see the hint of tears laying just against her eyes.
“I’m… sorry?”
Your mind is a whirlwind, so many things raging havoc at once that you don’t even know where to begin.
She pulls you in again, and this time your body reacts before your mind short circuits once more. Your heart at odds with so many different emotions trying to take control of the strained muscle.
She places her forehead against your own, and with one puff of cold air from her lips, you feel yourself take control for the first time that night.
“You were never subtle about things, you know,” she whispers, and you can feel your face flush with the knowledge that she had been aware of your feelings for the entire time.
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
A smirk is slow to spread against her lips, and you attempt to push down the shiver it evokes. “Because I wanted to see if you actually ask me.”
“Well,” you clear your throat when your words come out strained, “would it be weird if I asked now?”
She pulls back, and you watch as the demon before you teases and beckons, “I don’t know.” She says, looking away in an attempt to appear as if she was pondering. Her eyes alight like wildfire when she turns back to you.
hiya sparrow! i saw that you said y/n in wrath of the sun god was based off a character? what character is that?
Hello friendo!
It's a character I created myself for a ttrpg @kingmaker-a made for us nerds. The character herself is called Florence, and like the Reader in "Wrath of the Sun God" and "Of Lyre's and Theives" she's got powers based off of the Greek God Apollo.
