mango

[littletourmango]

꧁ ༺ ╰───┄ °❀ ༻ ꧂

✩࿐࿔ about me ჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻

i go by mango, prns: she/her, i love vinyl collecting, january capricorn, i love to create art amongst several mediums, been trying to expand my literary recognition hence this acc

𓊈blah blah blah i’ll put more here later lol𓊉

A. ➤ B. ➤ C.

𝄞 𝄃𝄃𝄂𝄂𝄀𝄁𝄃𝄂𝄂𝄃

[littletourmango]

been pondering on sum cute trope ideas lmk how u guys feel about a miscommunication slow burn or a trope where they both can’t sleep and they stumble into each other in the kitchen

[littletourmango]

Five Minutes Out

Pairing: Jermajesty x Fem!Reader

Content/Warnings: scheming!Reader, fluff, slight use of y/n, flirty friendship, long-term relationship (friendship)

➢ wc: 1.6k .𖥔 ݁ ˖ »

Synopsis: Jermajesty invites you over to help install starlights on his car roof. You agree, considering the fact that he offered to treat you in return. You both don't show it, but you realize that you've turned an ordinary afternoon into a memory worth looking back on in the future.

✦•┈๑⋅⋯ ⋯⋅๑┈•✦•┈┈•✦ ✦•┈๑⋅⋯ ⋯⋅๑┈•✦

A/N: this is kinda corny towards the end, but it's so worth it lol i feel like we deserve more Jermajesty fluff fics/oneshots so here u all goooooo mwah ily all <3

2:00 PM

J: “U almost here? I just had my brother help take the roof off. Everything’s all set n ready 2 go!” 

Y/N: “5 mins out.”

J: “Whaatt, texting and driving? I should report such behavior”

—After leaning over to read his text, you decide to call Jermajesty, lowering the music volume so that he can hear your next words clearly—

“Yk I never say anything when you take a million snaps while driving, so don’t criticize my actions!” 

You playfully yell over the phone. 

“Regardless, we’re equally in the wrong, but since you wanna bring up bad habits, guess who just brought another speaker.. It’s really neat, look I got this matte red color, man, you’re gonna be so jealo-“

—You hung up the phone before he could finish his sentence, scoffing at the road—

After about a minute or two later, you pull into his driveway, greeting him from afar before walking up the pavement and seeing what looked like a pigsty of strings and tools in the garage.

“This looks so confusing. I'd better be benefiting really well off of this, not sure why you expected me to be up for a task like this.”

“Well, for starters, you’re great with precision, plus you’d never turn down a free Netflix subscription.” Jermajesty sarcastically added.

You set aside your purse and plug your phone into a nearby charging port. Jermajesty puts his playlist on shuffle whilst simultaneously showing off his new speaker in the process. He let out a subtle chuckle, knowing you get agitated whenever he buys a million of the same item just in a different color. You go and settle down across from him, both of you being on different sides of the exposed roof. Maj shows you how to install each lighting bud individually, and after paying close attention to what he’s been doing, you follow along not long after.

4:15 PM

After a few hours of careful placement and repetitive work, Jermajesty decides to head inside to scavenge some snacks so that you guys could take a well-earned break. 

“I’ll bring out some waters and a few bags of chips, you want anything specific?” He looks over his shoulder whilst standing in the doorframe leading into the house.

“Nahhh, I’m not craving anything specific right now. Just be quick, please; this heat is melting my last brain cells.” You respond, pushing your headband further up your head as if letting your face breathe.

Few minutes go by until Jermajesty walks out with arms full of ice cold water bottles and a variety of snacks like hot cheetos, gummy worms, and skittles, just to name a few. He sits down beside you, offering you a bottle. 

You guys chat it up for a good 15-20 mins before getting back to work.

“Eugh! You’re so sweaty it sickens me, wipe your face, PLEASE!” You tiredly express, chucking a nearby towel at his face.

Moving the towel off his head, he says, “Dare I say a wise man once said to me, ‘What you sweat is what you earn,’ meaning I’m earning this for myself regardless.” He dramatically rolls his eyes at you, in hopes of recognizing his sarcastic tone.

“Whatever, and this playlist is horrible by the way, you’d be better off listening to cricket sounds on a loop”

He looks over at you like you were speaking a foreign language.

“MY music taste is bad?! Me!? The Goat??? Yeah, right, like yours is any good at all, let alone above mine. Matter of fact, you connect to the speaker, since you’re so confident in your statement.” He turns around, grabs the speaker and swings out his hand,  offering it to you.

“You know what, I’m already doing you much of a favor, I’ll let you have your fun but just know that I’m all-knowing when it comes to music..”

You subtly turn down his offer.

“Whateverrrrrr!!” He grins, satisfied that you didn’t steal aux privileges when offered.

He insists on inserting his initials into the design, right above the driver’s seat. 

“J.J., it’s so perfect, fits like a glove.” He proudly hovers over the side of the roof.

“Moreso, it’s so egocentric.” You combat his pride, waving him off from admiring it too much.

6:25 PM

You both finished installing the last of the lighting buds. After clearing the area, you both put the roof back in its set place in the car. You head to sit in the passenger seat. Jermajesty switches the garage light on, since it’d been getting dark out, and he brings over two sets of nail clippers. He climbs into the backseat of the car.

Turning over your shoulder, you ask him confusedly, “Um, did you grab the wrong tools? Why are we using nail clippers to cut the excess strings?”

“Relaaaaxx, I know what I’m doing. That apparently, when cutting excess string with these, it’ll give the roof a smoother finish, as opposed to if we were to use anything else like scissors or wire cutters. You know another thing is we can’t cut them too short or els—“

You cut him off mid-sentence, “I don’t need you to mansplain cutting strings to me, pretty sure I get the gist.”

He throws a few skittles at the back of your head in rebellion. 

“Hey! You know this is your car, so you’ll be the one cleaning all this up, NOT me.” You jolt your head in annoyance.

After what seemed like only 10 minutes of small talk and constant snipping, you both effortlessly finish the project, and excited for the final result, you turn your whole torso around to face Jermajesty.

“So, Maj, what are you waiting for!! Turn them on!!!” You squealed.

“Alright, alright, calm down. If anything, you seem more excited than I am about this.” he laughs and hits the power button from what looked like a light app on his phone. 

And BOOM, just like that, the roof of the car looked so colorful and beautiful, it twinkled just right with a slow-changing strobe. You smiled at all your hard work.

“HOLYYYY THIS LOOKS SO AMAZING!!!” he yells like it’s his last words.

“Wowwww, I’m impressed, now we’ve gotta do this to my car as well.” You glance out onto the driveway, where your vehicle was parked.

You take out your phone and start taking selfies because, after all this work, you’d be damned if you didn’t have some sort of memory captured from this demanding day.

“Wait wait, wait, that’s not fair, take some pictures of me too, I wanna be seen in this masterpiece!” Maj exited the back of the car and rushed to sit in the driver’s seat, opening the camera app on his phone immediately.

“I didn’t sign up for this. I want extra.” You didn’t hesitate to set a clear notion.

“Fine, how about free favors for a week straight, no questions asked. Just take my photos!!” He shoved his phone into your hands.

You reluctantly agree to his offer, satisfied. He made you sit there for an extra 30 mins taking photos and video of him lip syncing to music he had playing in the car, and after you both were done with your little media craze, you decided it was time to take your leave, after all the sun was setting, meaning that it’d get dark out soon anyway.

7:05 PM

“It’s late, and I’m hungry, so ima grab my belongings and  head out now” you tell him as you step out of the car.

“I’ve got some leftovers if you don’t feel like ordering takeout or cooking tonight, one sec.” He exits the car as well, entering the house to fix you a plate before you leave. 

While he’s gone, you sneak his phone to share his playlist on your phone. “Gosh, what a hypocrite I am,” you thought to yourself, laughing. You head towards your car and start the engine.

A few minutes go by and Maj returns with a container of spaghetti and a side of garlic bread. He approaches the driver’s side of the car, signaling you to roll down your window. 

“Here, almost forgot your plate, huh?” He smiled, handing you the container. 

You set it in the passenger seat, alongside your purse. 

“Yeah, well, thanks for the job offer, and that new speaker? Ditch it immediately, it’s so unnecessary!” You laugh in his face, shifting your right hand towards the volume button to turn up your music. 

-‘Don’t Get Too High by Bryson Tiller starts playing over the radio.’-

“Wait—is that?! IS THAT MY PLAYLIST?” Maj teasingly yells. “IT IS, ISN’T IT?! Wowwww, all you had to do was ask but instead you’d rather sneak around and steal my playlist than admit it’s good.” He looks to you for some sort of agreement.

You mischievously roll your eyes and start pulling out of the driveway. You wave goodbye to Jermajesty, who’s now standing in the driveway smiling big as ever, dumbfounded yet endeared by your actions.

Before you pull off, you yell over the music just enough so that he can hear you: “IT IS, AND I’M HOLDING YOU TO THAT WEEK OF FREE FAVORS!” Your face shapes a satisfied smile as you drive off down his street.

You get a text just before leaving his neighborhood, leaning over the console to pick up your phone.

J: “Just so we’re clear, you’re in no position to ever insult my taste in music again 🙄”

You didn’t respond, but you both knew he was right. 

Your lips cracked a smile as you set the navigation to your address.

꧁ ༺ ╰───┄ °❀ ༻ ꧂

taglist: @cooluser242677

[littletourmango]

how would U guys feel if i wrote a fluffy oneshot abt helping jermajesty install starlights in his car..

this seemed like a cute idea but i gotta know if it’s worthy of writing so pls lmkk 👀👀

[littletourmango]

up @ 2 in the morning lol this is how i feel after finishing a 2.8k wc fic 4 u all.

just posted it go check it outtt. hope u guys njoy!🩷

[littletourmango]

When The Lights Go Out

Pairing: Jermajesty x Fem!Reader

Content/Warnings: emotional vulnerability, flirty!Jermajesty, scheming!Jaafar, est relationship, banter, domestic!chaos, light suspense, fluff, established plot, slow!burn, tension, flirting, heavy plot

➢ wc: 2.8k .𖥔 ݁ ˖ »

Synopsis: It’s a stormy night, and a power outage turns a quiet evening into something unexpectedly tense and intimate. However, you two aren’t alone inside this house..

✦•┈๑⋅⋯ ⋯⋅๑┈•✦•┈┈•✦ ✦•┈๑⋅⋯ ⋯⋅๑┈•✦

Old dynamics, hidden timing, and familiar chaos begin to surface, slowly blurring the line between a harmless situation and a threat entirely more unsettling; as time passes, nothing is feeling quite as stable as it did when you first settled down for movie night.

A/N: contemplating if i should make a pt.2 with a little more smut and in the plot. i’m brainstorming hard rnn hope u all enjoy :))

The rain had been coming down for hours.

Not the gentle kind that tapped politely against the windows, either. This storm sounded personal.

Wind whipped through the trees surrounding the Hayvenhurst estate, making old branches scrape across the siding with a noise that was almost human. Every few minutes lightning flashed, washing the living room in brilliant white before plunging it back into the warm glow of lamps and candlelight.

You and Maj had a nice dinner planned at 71Above, one of your favorite go-to dinner spots downtown. However, he’d never been good at event planning, and as you knew it, a storm watch had been sent out, and you both would have to improvise a way to kill all the spare time you'd freed up for this weekend.

About a few hours before the storm heightened, you both came to an agreement to have a classic movie night in, just like how it was when the both of you first got together. Jermajesty insisted on binging horror movies, and as picky as he is about watching not only a good horror film, but also a "Hollywood-grade" film, you reluctantly agreed.

It's not like you cared what movie you both ended up watching; you were just glad that you both finally had made time in your busy schedules to spend time with each other.

You curled further beneath the oversized blanket draped across the couch.

"I don't know why you insisted on ordering takeout instead of cooking."

Across from you, Jermajesty looked deeply offended.

"I offered to cook."

"You offered cereal."

"It would've been gourmet cereal."

"You said you'd cut strawberries into little hearts."

"Presentation matters."

You laughed despite how ridiculous he was.

"You're impossible."

"So I've been told."

Jermajesty leaned farther across the coffee table under the guise of reaching for his drink. You recognized the look immediately, that barely-there twitch at the corner of his mouth, the one that always appeared right before he did something deliberately annoying.

Before you could pull your cup closer, two of your fries disappeared between his fingers.

He settled back against the couch with an expression of complete innocence, crunching thoughtfully as though the theft had been a perfectly ordinary part of the evening.

You stared at him.

"..Did you just steal my fries and think I wouldn't notice?"

He swallowed, then looked into his own cup as if conducting a serious investigation.

"You weren't eating them."

"I was most definitely eating them."

"I observed a period of inactivity."

"A period of inactivity!?" You let out a slight annoyed chuckle.

"Mhm." He nodded once, entirely too pleased with himself. "After thirty seconds, they're legally abandoned."

A laugh escaped before you could stop it.

"That is NOT how food works."

"Well, it is now."

Rolling your eyes, you reached over and flicked him lightly on the forehead. He recoiled with theatrical offense, rubbing the spot as though you'd actually injured him.

"Violence?"

Jermajesty playfully side-eyed you.

"You started it."

"I liberated two fries."

"You committed robbery."

"They wanted a better home."

"They were already home."

"Agree to disagree."

"For retirement?"

"They're seasoned."

"They're soggy."

"They're my soggy fries."

He shrugged, already chewing.

"Sooo, finders keepers."

You crumpled up a napkin and tossed it at him.

It bounced harmlessly off his forehead.

"Oh. Violence."

"You deserved that."

"You missed."

"I was aiming for your ego."

"My ego can't be harmed."

"You sure about that?"

"Absolutely."

Thunder cracked overhead with enough force to rattle the windows.

Both of you instinctively glanced toward them.

"...That one was loud," you admitted.

Jermajesty nodded.

"Little bit."

Another gust of wind bent the trees nearly sideways.

The lights flickered.

Once.

Twice.

"...Don't," Jermajesty slowly looked up, as if he was warning the ceiling.

The electricity held.

For exactly three more seconds.

And then.....

Darkness.

Complete and immediate darkness.

"...You jinxed it," you said flatly.

"I absolutely did not."

For a moment neither of you moved.

Then you both started laughing.

"Great," he sighed dramatically. "Our romantic date night has evolved into cave simulator."

Your phone flashlight clicked on.

"So dramatic."

"I have standards."

"You invited me over to watch bad horror movies."

"They're classics."

"The monster was literally a guy in a carpet."

"He had emotional depth."

"He had shag."

Lightning flashed again outside.

Without power, the house suddenly felt...

Different.

Larger.

Obtrusive.

The silence between thunder seemed almost too still.

Jermajesty stood first, pressing his palms against the couch as he pushed himself up. The room felt noticeably colder without the lamps, shadows collecting in the corners where warm light had been only moments ago. He glanced toward the hallway, squinting as though mentally searching every cabinet in the house.

"I've got candles somewhere." He said.

"You had lamps."

"I also prepare for disasters."

"You?"

"I contain multitudes."

"Yeah,whatever!"

You responded to him, having zero faith in the fact that he prepares for weather disasters.

He disappeared toward the kitchen, his footsteps fading into the darkness.

For a moment, you stayed curled beneath the blanket, listening.

Cabinet doors opened.

Something clattered onto the counter.

"...Ow."

"...You okay?"

"I'm being attacked by my own kitchen."

You kneeled on the edge of the couch, now turned in the direction of the kitchen.

"I found birthday candles."

"...That's somehow exactly what I expected." You chucked.

"They're striped and festive, and smell like vanilla too. So I hope you don't mind the house smelling like birthday cakes for a minute."

A minute later he reappeared, carefully cupping one hand around a cluster of tiny flames to shield them from the draft. Five birthday candles stood proudly in an upside-down mug, each one burning with stubborn determination despite their size.

You stared.

"...That's adorable."

You playfully rolled your eyes at his attempt to regain control over this undetermined weather dynamic.

"It's practical."

"They're an inch tall."

"They're doing their best." 

He laughed under his breath, shaking his head.

"you keep looking at me.."

"Can you blame me?"

His smile faltered, just enough for you to notice.

"Oh?"

You took a small step closer, drawn in more by curiosity than intention. The tiny birthday candles flickered between you, their warm glow catching in his eyes every time the flames danced.

"The candlelight's making you look..."

Your gaze wandered over his face for a second longer than necessary.

"..Really pretty."

His eyebrows lifted.

"..Pretty?"

"Mhm."

"Well, I was aiming for a nonchalant and mysterious look."

He jokes sarcastically.

"You missed."

"I missed?"

"You landed somewhere between pretty and unfair."

A quiet laugh escaped him, the sound softer than it had been all evening. He ducked his head for a moment before looking back at you, almost like he didn't know what to do with the compliment.

"...Unfair?"

"Matter of fact, it's actually kind of annoying."

"Why?"

"'Cause now I can't stop looking at you."

For a second, neither of you spoke.

The storm carried on outside, rain pattering steadily against the windows, but it felt strangely far away. All that seemed to exist was the tiny circle of candlelight separating you by only a few inches.

"...Wow."

"What?"

"I don't think you've ever flirted with me this aggressively."

Heat crept into your cheeks despite yourself.

"I wasn't trying to."

"Liar."

"I wasn't."

"You absolutely were."

"..Maybe a little."

His grin softened into something quieter.

"I like this version of you."

"Oh?"

"The one that forgets she's staring."

You huffed out a laugh, reaching up to smooth an imaginary wrinkle from the front of his hoodie. Your fingers lingered for only a second before falling away.

"...Maybe I'm staring for a reason."

His eyes followed your hand before finding yours again.

The teasing smile he'd been wearing all night disappeared, replaced by something infinitely more dangerous.

"...You're making it really hard to remember why I got up."

"The candles?"

"The breaker."

"The breaker."

Neither of you moved.

A tiny flame crackled between you, bending sideways as another gust of wind rattled the windows.

"...We should probably go."

"We should."

But still..

You couldn't help smiling. The little flames painted soft gold across his face, making the room feel unexpectedly cozy despite the storm still raging outside. Every flicker sent shadows dancing lazily across the walls, replacing the harsh flashes of lightning with something gentler.

Outside, another crack of thunder rolled over the house, rattling the windows just enough to remind you it hadn't let up.

He glanced toward the hallway.

"If the whole neighborhood lost power, it'll probably come back."

"And if it's just us?"

"Then the breaker probably tripped."

"...In the middle of a thunderstorm."

"...Yeah."

You gave him a look.

He sighed, already knowing he'd lost the argument.

"I'll check."

"We'll check."

"You don't have to."

"I absolutely do."

His smile softened, somewhere between amused and grateful.

"Okay."

The breaker box sat inside the garage, tucked behind a storage shelf.

The farther you walked from the living room, the more the warmth of the house seemed to fade. The scent of takeout and vanilla candles gave way to cool concrete and damp air creeping beneath the garage door.

The five candles barely pushed back the darkness. Their beams skimmed over stacked storage bins, forgotten holiday decorations, and the outlines of old bicycles before disappearing into black again.

Rain hammered relentlessly against the garage door, each heavy burst echoing through the cavernous space.

"Remind me," you muttered, drawing your sweatshirt a little tighter around yourself, "why giant houses always put the breaker in horror movie locations."

"Building code."

"I don't think that's true."

"It feels true."

He slid the storage shelf aside with a grunt, the rubber feet scraping across the concrete.

"There."

The metal breaker panel reflected both flashlight beams, throwing pale streaks of light across the garage walls.

Jermajesty crouched in front of it, leaning in to inspect the switches.

"Huh."

"What?"

"It's already tripped."

"So flip it?"

"Yep, here hold these."

He handed you the mug with the candles, guiding you to hold it close to the beaker to that he has a area visible enough to see what he's doing.

He reached towards a row of switches-

But before his fingers could touch the switch, something exploded out of the darkness.

"AAH!"

A body slammed into him hard enough to send both of them stumbling sideways across the cold, hard concrete.

You shrieked, the candles' beams whipping wildly (nearly going out) around the garage before finally landing on two figures wrestling on the floor.

"What the-!??"

The stranger locked an arm around Jermajesty's shoulders.

"I HAVE YOU NOW!"

"WAIT A MINUTE!! ...gahhh I should've known."

Jermajesty groaned, already recognizing the voice.

"Oh, my god"

The hood slipped back.

A grin stretched across the man's face.

"Took you long enough."

"You absolute menace!"

The brothers froze for exactly one second before both doubled over laughing.

Your heartbeat hadn't quite gotten the memo that everything was fine.

"...What!?"

Jermajesty pointed accusingly, still trying to catch his breath.

"You."

"You."

"You cut the power."

Jaafar spread his arms proudly.

"Actually...I disconnected one wire."

"You nearly gave us heart attacks!"

"Worth it."

"You tackled me!"

"You screamed."

"I did not scream."

"You absolutely screamed."

"I made a tactical noise."

Jaafar turned toward you, wearing the expression of someone seeking a witness in court.

"He screamed."

You looked at Jermajesty, who was still rubbing the back of his own neck, then back at Jaafar.

"...He screamed."

Jermajesty gasped dramatically.

"Traitor."

"I thought someone was murdering you!"

"You weren't entirely wrong."

Jaafar laughed so hard he had to brace himself against the wall.

"You should've seen your face."

"I hate you."

"No you don't."

Watching them was almost surreal.

The mock outrage, the perfectly timed interruptions, the way neither of them ever seemed genuinely offended. It had the rhythm of an argument they'd been rehearsing for years.

"...You mean to tell me this was planned?"

"In fairness," Jaafar said, "I've been planning it for like...three weeks."

"I changed the garage camera angle specifically so you wouldn't notice."

Jermajesty rubbed his forehead.

"You're unbelievable."

"You left your spare key under the fake rock."

"I moved it."

"I watched you move it."

"...Right."

"You've gotten predictable."

"You once filled my car with inflatable flamingos."

"You deserved it."

"You replaced my ringtone with goat noises."

"You started it back in '06."

"You glued every spoon in my apartment together!"

"You froze my toothbrush."

"You replaced my shampoo with green food coloring."

"It looked good."

"It absolutely did not."

You laughed, shaking your head.

"So this is just..."

"Lifelong psychological warfare," Jaafar supplied.

"With occasional ceasefires," Jermajesty added.

"They usually last about twenty-four hours."

"Then he remembers something I did when we were kids."

"I never forget."

"I know."

Despite the complaints, they were both smiling.

It suddenly made perfect sense. This wasn't one prank.

It was decades of scorekeeping.

You looked between them.

"I'm sorry, but when did you have this bright idea to weaponize the time of your exceedingly late arrival?"

You curiously asked.

"I mean..." He scratched the back of his neck. "Maj invited me over tonight a few days ago."

"Uh yeah, but strictly for dinner."

"I was coming for dinner."

Jermajesty butts in.

"You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

"I know."

Jermajesty folded his arms.

"...So where were you?"

Jaafar shrugged, completely unbothered.

"Watching the weather."

"The weather."

"Mhm."

"I saw the storm rolling in and thought..." A grin spread across his face. "...this is exactly the kind of thing we would've done when we were kids."

Jermajesty blinked.

"So you intentionally waited."

"I figured if I came before it got dark, you'd just open the front door."

"And instead?"

"I got to sneak in, kill the power, hide in the garage, and scare the life out of you."

"You are unbelievable."

"It felt authentic."

"Authentic?"

"You remember how we'd wait for the perfect moment?"

Jermajesty's expression shifted despite his previously panicked state.

"...Yeah."

"We never rushed it."

"If we were gonna scare each other, we committed."

Jermajesty huffed out a reluctant laugh.

"...Mom hated those summers."

"Mom hated us those summers."

"Fair."

Jaafar smiled, softer now.

"I don't know."

He glanced around the garage for a second.

"The rain, the power going out... it just reminded me of being kids again."

"You couldn't have just texted me that?"

"And ruin the surprise?"

Jermajesty shook his head.

"I swear you've been mentally twelve years old for the last thirteen years."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"...It usually is."

"It got you, didn't it?"

Jermajesty sighed.

"...Yeah."

"It got you good."

"...Yeah, whatever, just wait 'til I catch you off guard."

Jermajesty grunted childishly.

"Worth the wait."

Jaafar grinned.

You looked between the two of them, one arm tucked tightly against the cold, the other holding the mug.

"This has been fun 'nd all but are you two done reminiscing?.."

Neither brother answered.

"...Hello!!? It's cold out here!!"

You responded, relieved, but irritated.

Jaafar looked over first.

"Hm?"

"You've somehow managed to turn a near heart attack into a nostalgia trip."

Jermajesty glanced around the garage as if he'd only just remembered where the three of you were.

"Oh."

You gestured toward the still-open breaker panel.

"We're standing in a freezing garage."

Neither had yet to respond.

"In the middle of a thunderstorm."

"...Can we continue unpacking memory lane somewhere with central heating?"

Jaafar snorted.

Jermajesty laughed.

"Fairs."

"You make a compelling argument."

"I usually do."

Jaafar nudged his brother with an elbow. Bending down to fix the power switch.

--And just like that, the power was fully back on. Thank goodness.--

"C'mon."

"You can tell her about the inflatable flamingos inside."

Jermajesty shot him a look.

"Oh best believeeee I'm telling her all of it."

"You say that like I won't defend every single prank."

"I'd expect nothing less."

The brothers exchanged one last grin before following you back inside the house.

The warm air wrapped around you the moment the garage door shut behind the three of you.

Almost immediately, the house felt inviting again. The birthday candles still flickered in the living room, their tiny flames somehow holding their own against the storm outside. Wet shoes squeaked faintly across the hardwood as laughter echoed down the hallway.

All three of you stopped.

For the first time all evening, the storm didn't seem quite so intimidating.

The house felt warm again.

Safe.

Conversation settled into an easy rhythm as you reached the foot of the stairs, the kind that comes after a good scare and an even better laugh.

Then---

BEEP.

The sharp electronic chirp sliced cleanly through the conversation.

The house suddenly felt much larger than it had a second ago.

A second beep followed, it was even louder.

Then a calm electronic voice drifted from the security panel in the foyer.

"Alert. First-floor motion detected."

You smiled weakly.

"..Okay..?"

Your eyes moved between the brothers.

"So...which one of you set that up?"

Neither answered.

Jermajesty's grin disappeared so quickly it was almost unsettling.

Across from him, the expression slowly drained from Jaafar's face.

The silence stretched, broken only by rain striking the windows somewhere deeper in the house.

"...Guys?"

Jermajesty spoke first.

Quietly.

"...I didn't."

Jaafar slowly shook his head in a worry.

"I thought it was you."

Another chime echoed through the house.

"Rear entrance opened."

The brothers locked eyes.

Then, in the exact same instant

Both whispered the same two words.

-"...Head upstairs."-

…

To be continued…?

[littletourmango]

in the midst of writing my 1st fanfic it’s gna be SO good i hope u guys r as excited as i am..