Dragon! Sylus with a deaf S/O who met him when she was foraging deep in the forest, too focused on gathering herbs that her other senses did not pick up the warning clicks a dragon makes when a stranger is trespassing.
So, your nonchalance initially confused him when you did not run with your tail between your legs and continued to go about your day.
Hissing.
Growling.
Snarling.
All of it, he did from the shadows every time you end up here in his side of the forest and it is only when he stepped out from the darkness to finally confront you that he realized you arenât ignoring him but rather-
-You arenât able to hear him all this time.
âPathetic,â thatâs the first word that came to his mind when he saw you frozen in your place as he stood in front of you, tall, looming, the mythical monster the hunters had asked you about when they passed by your lone hut.
Maybe thatâs why he let you go, because why would he eat a small mouse such as you?
(A small mouse who did not even point the knife she was carrying at him but instead laid the herbs she picked up on his feet, apologizing in that garbled voice.)
Maybe thatâs also why he ended up following you from a distance after that as you return home empty-handed, wondering why the humans at the town nearby lets you venture out alone when they oh-so-love going in groups.
So, he had decided.
Someone has to look after a pathetic, little mouse such as you from actual predators of the forest.
That someone is no other than him.
(Or maybe, the young and lonely dragon is still hopeful he will finally find his place among the humans, even if if is just beside you.)
Author's Notes: Tagging you again here @blessdunrest đ My mind is running with ideas between Sylus and Dragon! Sylus and how would they react with a deaf S/O this week.
More Dragon! Sylus x Deaf Reader drabbles (+ my other works) here: Bork's Works
content warning: partially deaf reader; soft smut; yunho is an EATER
Masterlist
Minors DNIđ
word count: 2328
You were so eager to see Ateez on tour and felt so lucky to have gotten front-row seats. You were seat number 45âŠso quite a ways away from the action and performances, but there was a little strip of stage that extended farther out that you hoped they'd walk down.
It was searing hot outside, so much so that you felt even luckier that you had the barricade to lean on. You ran your handheld fan, blowing back your hair from your face while cheering them on when the first soundcheck song began.
You'd never seen a man hotter than any of the Ateez members. They smiled with so much charisma and had their own clothes on that told you a lot about their personalities. San, for example, was dressed in black pants and a black button-down shirt. He was dressed to be eye candy but also for work. Mingi was dressed in khakis and a ripped-up hoodie because, to him, the stage was his playground. And then Yunho, who you felt drawn to more than the others, was running around with so much energy that he felt like a literal puppy. He had on loose grey sweatpants and a white tank top that flowed as he danced. To protect him from the sun, he also wore a denim button-up jacket (though it kept slipping farther and farther down his arms with every move).
You couldn't stop staring at him...not even when Hongjoong came down the strip of stage towards you to dance and greet everyone. Not when the speaker blared Bouncy and the crowd grew more intense. And definitely not when he hopped off the stage to high-five everyone at barricade. You held your hand out with the biggest smile, and the split second he glided his fingers against yours lasted an eternity.
He set his mic on the stage to hop back up, and you watched in surprise at how easy he made a 5 foot ascend seem. He grazed his eyes across the stage, seemingly seeking out his mic that had rolled away from him. You tried to point it out, but you were too late. It hit the speaker.
The pop from the speaker's feedback sent you to the ground right away. You clutched your hands over your ears and cried out in pain. It felt like you were being stabbed straight down your ear canal. To add to it, there was an annoying ringing buzz that persistently tried to overshadow the echo of the mic and speaker recreating the popping sound back and forth.
You felt something warm in your ear and pulled your hand away briefly to find blood. Tears bit your eyes so you pinched them shut until everything went quiet...except the ringing. It wouldn't fucking stop.
You could feel the people closest to you rush the barricade, their chaotic stomps shaking the floor. Then, as if commanded, they parted, leaving you alone by your chair.
The ringing began to fade, so you opened your eyes to see if you needed to move, too, only to find Yunho crouched in front of you on the other side of the barricade, mouthing something you couldn't hear.
Fuck, you couldn't hear.
He looked so worried and guilty. His eyes were red as if he was about to cry, and he pointed at his ears and then shrugged as if trying to mime a question. "Can you hear?" he seemed to ask.
Your lip quivered nervously as you shook your head... "No."
He turned back to a few paramedics that had been called over and said something you couldn't make out before standing and reaching over the barricade to guide you up. You stood and leveraged yourself up as much as you could before swinging one leg over and then another.
Yunho put his hands on his waist to help you land safely, and though it sounded like he was underwater, in your left ear you could make out his croaked voice say, "I'm so fucking sorry."
Yunho walked you backstage and through some weird concrete tunnel until you reached an ambulance. The paramedics cleaned up the smear of blood on your cheek and looked inside your ear for any concerns.
"What's your name?" they asked, though it was muffled.
"(Y/N)," you answered. Your own voice seemed to hum in your head. It was strange and not necessarily unpleasant.
"How old are you (Y/N)?"
Yunho stood behind them with one hand on his hip and another on his chin as a tear fell down his cheek. Hongjoong walked up behind him and patted his back while speaking quietly to the EMTs. You couldn't make out what they were saying, but suddenly you were being guided into the ambulance with Yunho who was trying to join.
He and Hongjoong fought about it, something about letting down Atiny was said, but Yunho hopped in anyway and went with you to the hospital.
Your hearing had returned to normal in your left ear. It never came back in your right. Even so, Yunho liked to practice as if he could somehow reignite the little hairs in your ear that let you hear sound.
He placed an earbud in your good ear and turned on a bit of white noise while setting it to noise cancellation. He then placed his hand over your working ear and leaned in to the other side to whisper.
I bought a ring today.
You could feel his breath on your skin and the soft kiss on your cheek that he always gave you to let you know it was time to guess what was said. You had no idea, though, and sighed as you shook your head.
He took out the earbud to put it back in the case as you frowned. "I hate disappointing you," you told him, your heart heavy at the sight of him looking so unhappy.
Yunho turned with a pitiful look as he pulled you into his lap. You straddled him while wearing his boxers and the very same tank top he'd had on when you first saw him.
"You could never disappoint me, (Y/N)," he promised. "You should hate me for taking away half of your hearing, though. I usually pocket my mic for that exact reason, but I was being stupid and careless, and I just..."
You cut him off with a kiss. There was no sense in Yunho beating himself up about something you weren't even angry about. He kissed you back with soft, patient lips, and little hums that vibrated your mouth. He squeezed your hips and held you closer, pressing your chests together. When you pulled back, his eyes were still closed. His lips were a deeper red and even a little swollen and his cheeks were slightly flushed.
He looked so adorable like this.
"I am mad about one thing," you teased with shining eyes.
"Mmm, what's that?" he asked knowingly, already standing to carry you to bed.
"It's been a week since we've had sex," you frowned.
"I'm sorry I've been coming home so late, baby. My recordings for pretty much every song on the new album got deleted. It was a lot to redo."
You looped your arms around his neck just as he laid you down, forcing him to crawl over you. "I suppose I could forgive you for that, too, if you make up for it."
Yunho smirked and pulled off the boxers you were wearing. "I will."
You were pretty sure Yunho's favorite place in the entire world was between your legs. He could eat you out for hours and was often even louder than you. He would groan until you were shaking and suck your clit as you begged him to stop. He'd press your legs open and use his exceptionally long fingers to work you up from the inside.
You had a safe word, of course, but never used it. The pleasure he gave was insurmountable, and he never fucked you without feeling you cum on his tongue first.
His fingers dug into your thighs while his mouth worked. His nose teased your clit, sending your waist into the air. Each time he hummed in approval and dug himself deeper until you were backed against the headboard with nothing left to do but give in.
"Y-Yunho," you whimpered as you pinched the sheets and pillows around you. "T-Too good!"
"Mhm," Yunho moaned in approval looking deliciously drunk on the taste of your pussy.
Your body was at war with itself. Half of it never wanted the high to stop and the other half was so completely overstimulated that it wanted to put an end to it immediately. You whined again and slipped nearer to his mouth as you latched onto the back of his head and came on his tongue.
Your eyes fluttered as you finished and Yunho raised your hips to his mouth, letting your head fall back to the pillows. The tank top slid over your chest and he palmed your tits with one hand while holding your ass with the other. You couldn't stop shaking and panting.
He set you down gently before crawling over you and dragging your shirt up with his teeth. You removed it, since it was clear he wanted you to, and laid back down where he began sucking your tits.
"How come you're not naked too?" you asked breathlessly. He was so good at making you feel everything.
He pulled away with a smirk and pushed his pants and boxers down before kissing your neck and jaw. "You're so beautiful," he praised before kissing your good ear and then your lips. You smiled and pulled him closer, happy to be with someone so attentive.
I'm going to marry you one day, he said quietly against your bad ear...you didn't hear that, though, and just thought he'd left another kiss.
"Yunho," you complained. You were getting impatient with his perfect cock sitting against your thigh.
He looked down at you with a knowing grin. "I wish we'd met some other way," he murmured as he pecked your cheeks. "But I'm so lucky to have you," he breathed before sinking in.
He filled you in one thrust. Yunho stayed buried deep, but rolled his hips back and forth, letting you feel all of him. As usual, you couldnât stop the shaky moans that left your lips.
He pressed his forehead to yours and pulled out before diving back inâŠalways slow, and always deep. You gazed helplessly into his eyes, completely at his will whenever he made you feel so owned and limp. Your body was weakened by his kisses and cockâŠnot that you minded.
Yunho bit his lip and traced his finger up your side and back down again, determined to touch you everywhere in any way he could. Suddenly, he paused his savory pace to kiss your collarbone.
âYou have a new freckle,â he explained in a low voice. âAnd another. And another.â He pressed kisses to each one, rolling his hips as he did so to ensure you never went without friction. Your cunt was dripping from how worked up you were, but Yunho was content to be patient.
âAnd another,â he groaned against your neck. âI love all of you,â he moaned, thrusting in harder this time. âIncluding this freckle, too,â he hummed as he moved to kiss your right cheek. Iâve heard freckles mean youâve been kissed by the sun. Iâm sure Iâll end up with a thousand, because youâre my sun, pretty girl. Youâre the light of my entire life.
He began rolling his thumb over your clit.
You gasped and held his shoulders while burying your face in his neck. He moved faster until the bed squeaked beneath you, until you were sure there was no better feeling in the entire world than making love with Yunho.
He held your hand when he felt your pussy begin to pulse, and he kissed your temple when the cries of his name became louder.
âCatch me,â you whimpered, voice shaking through every word.
âYou can fall,â he breathed just as you fell apart beneath him. Yunho always came when you did as if he was purposefully holding out to make sure you came. He stroked your hair and held you against his chest as you pressed your free hand against his chest. The other was still being held down by him, and you squeezed your fingers around his.
Yunho kissed you once you were able to and laid down on the bed beside you to cup your cheek and pull your warm body against his.
âI love being in love with you,â you grinned. Everything about Yunho was so easy to fall for. His charm and witâŠhis genuine care for othersâŠhis empathy and sillinessâŠyou could list a million things and still end up with an infinite amount left to be named.
âI love being in love with you too,â he reciprocated through loving eyes that melted your heart. He was gliding his touch up and down your back, and you found your eyes beginning to close.
You yawned and felt a kiss press to your forehead as he tucked you beneath his chin. âI need to get clean,â you pouted while scooting closer. Your hands were pressed to his chest where you could feel the steady thudding of his heart.
âIâve set an alarm for 30 minutes from now,â he assured you. âIâm not ready to let go of you yet,â he added.
âThen letâs make it an hour,â you suggested while pressing your lips to his heart.
May I please request the Huntrix girls (separate) with a deaf s/o?
Scenario: S/O is a regular person, not an idol. They met in public when they tried getting their attention and got mad when they thought s/o was ignoring them lol.
Huntrix x Deaf!GN!Reader Headcanons
gonna be a 100 words drabble for each of them!
â đȘ»
Rumi
She is the sweetest thing ever. Rumi grows a smile upon seeing you and makes it her life goal to let her presence be known immediately.
Depending on the circumstances, she will give you a gentle tap on the shoulder, show her face fully (she's almost always covered up in public, so), or however you'd personally prefer to be informed.
Once she catches your attention, she waves hello and excitedly signs a greeting. She's so proud of herself; you can tell by her goofy smile. (She is always looking to improve ASL, learning fast and steadyâyou give her great advice!)
â đ·
Mira
She'd like to tease you, I think. Mira enjoys your clueless face when you're looking around for her!
Because she is right next to you. She's standing by your side, staring at your face. Patiently waiting for you to finally notice. A smile can't help but creep into her lips while watching.
And when you do notice, you always have a variety of fun reactions: a squeak, or a full-body jolt, or her favoriteâa full 'why-do-i-even-bother' defeated look and sigh.
She chuckles, letting you know she won't do it again. Spoiler alert: she will; she knows that you know it.
â đ
Zoey
Oh my God! You're deaf, not blind!
She's on the other side of the street, just across from the cafe you're sitting at. Zoey's waving, but you're not noticing; her smile's turning strained. She's right in front of you!!
The pedestrian countdown is testing her patience. You're right thereâshe's on the verge of just parkouring her way over to you.
She waves again. Aggressively. Widely. Both hands.
You look up, and that gives her plenty hope. But you don't glance her way and turn in a different direction instead.
There is no way you are not doing this on purpose.
So you gotta hear me out on this one well all love sub men ofc but I love sub caretaker type men okay so stay with me here
Maybe a deaf or blind reader being taken care off by a caretaker or nurse Yandere.
Hiiii!!!
Sub caretakers are actually a good idea!!
Like they're subby, super adorable and caring at the same time!
For deaf! Reader, you've been deaf your whole life. But when your parents gifted you a "caretaker" when you're 20, you're very puzzled as to why. You've lived for two decades safely already, but appreciated the effort since the guy is fairly enthusiastic. You can read his lips though he always used sign language for you too, you appreciated the effort. But he tends to be very protective if anyone comments on your disability without your knowledge. Your neighbour who trash talks you for no reason? Now she's always smiling nervously and greeting you every morning. Yan! Caretaker on the other hand, is just smiling back and helping you do house chores. He'd like to think you two are getting closer and more domestic than ever. He could only wait until you're more comfortable before asking you on a date. He'll be the best boyfriend/hubby ever.
Now with blind! Reader, you just got into a car accident that leaves you broken and wrecked physically and mentally. Having your sight stripped away does a lot to your mental health, so your therapist suggested the hospital to look for a caretaker for you. Thankfully this caretaker is also very determined in his job (and his favourite patient). He's just a licensed nurse who's always been looking out for you, even when he's not your caretaker. Once you're healed and allowed to leave the hospital, he's the one accompanying you 24/7. You may feel sad, disgusted and useless, but yan! Caretaker will always be by your side listening to your sadness. He'll help you, no matter what. He'll cook, clean while helping you walk again (like leading you to the kitchen, bed or bathroom). He'll baby you like hell at first, but will trust you the more you feel confident on yourself. He'll be moving your furnitures a lot to make it safer though (he'll tell you everything about it).
And they wouldn't do anything weird to you, ofc! No noncons here, we love an obsessive yet healthy relationship hehe.
Pretty please with a cherry on top could you write omni-mark and viltrumite mark (separate) x blind or deaf reader (your choice because I cant decide)
Of course! I decided to do both, Omni Mark x blind! Reader and Viltrumite Mark x deaf! Reader, I hope you like my headcanons!
Genre: Romantic relationship headcanons (x gn! reader) đ, NSFW (only bonus, the rest is kinda SFW) đ¶
Warnings: mention of sex, second person pov
Request rules here
How would Omni Mark and Viltrumite Mark behave with a blind! / deaf! Reader?
Omni Mark (x blind! Reader)
Omni Mark would always be willing to help you whenever you need to go somewhere or fetch something. He knows how dangerous it can be for you to walk outside on your own, so he prefers not to take any risks.
Thanks to his powers, youâre practically never in danger: up in the sky there are no obstacles or traffic, which makes traveling with him the safest and easiest option.
Even at home, however, he wouldnât lower his guard. Omni Mark would keep an eye on you wherever you go, even though youâre perfectly capable of navigating the place you literally live in.
Heâd take care of almost all the house chores, like cleaning or cooking.
Sometimes youâd offer to help him with simple tasks, and he wouldnât refuse, but heâd still prefer that you donât take unnecessary risks (like cutting vegetables or handling anything sharp), so he might ask you to pass him ingredients instead while he cooks.
Omni Mark is very physically affectionate. He feels a strong duty to make you feel his presence, so he constantly stays close to you cuddling, massaging you, kissing you, or simply holding you.
BONUS: Heâd be very into sensation play. Since your sight is limited, he would use objects with different textures and temperatures to heighten your other four senses. He might use candles both for wax play and to fill the room with pleasant scents. Heâd also frequently use his own body to stimulate you (licking, touching, or nibbling at you) though heâd be careful not to hurt you too much.
Viltrumite Mark (x deaf! Reader)
The fact that Viltrumite Mark already knew sign language would surprise you a lot (clearly, he wasted no time learning it just to be able to communicate with you).
Even if he sometimes messes up a sign, itâs never a problem. You correct him gently without making him feel inadequate.
If you ever need information in a particular place, Viltrumite Mark would gladly act as your intermediary since not everyone knows sign language. Basically, heâd be your personal translator.
The two of you would develop special signals that only you understand, your own original way of communicating instantly. For example, if Viltrumite Mark needed your attention at home, heâd flick the lights on and off repeatedly until you noticed.
Since Viltrumite Mark canât rely on tone of voice to convey emotion, heâd use facial expressions to make his meaning clear.
Youâd never expect someone like him to be so expressive, but it turns out heâs full of surprises.
He would also rely heavily on physical affection: kisses, hugs, caresses, and cuddles would be a daily routine with him.
BONUS: Normally, Viltrumite Mark would love whispering certain things to his partner in bed, but since that isnât possible, youâd both come up with a creative replacement. Heâd use his fingers to trace words across your body, writing out what he wants to say. Besides stimulating you, youâd also find it thrilling, and a little embarrassing, when you finally decipher the meaning of what heâs âwhisperingâ through touch.
In Short: both Omni Mark and Viltrumite Mark would take care of you and would find unique ways to make you feel loved and appreciated!
note: slightly inspired by the kdrama twinkling watermelon. deaf!reader x band!jaeyun. word count: 6989
YOU NEVER REALLY ENJOYED THE SILENCE.
It was not like the romanticized kind of peace and quiet that people post to social media aboutâthe kind that makes mornings sacred, the bookstore magical, and so on. Yours was a silence of absence. Of being out of the conversation. Out of the laughter. And perhaps out of safety, too.
You wore your wired earphones all the time, plugged in or not, as if to pretend you were wearing headphones. A barrier. A disguise. If they don't know, maybe they won't treat you differently. Maybe they won't feel sorry for youâor even worse, take advantage.
Like today.
The station buzzed with the evening rush hour, people moving in concert. You dropped your Mofusand keychain without noticing it, your little plush figure falling silently to the ground behind you while you swept away to the exit. You didn't hear the boy calling your name behind you.
Jake Sim bent down to pick up the keychain, only halfway smiling. He always noticed youâyour neat little bun, the way your bangs framed your face, somehow, as always, looking calm. But when you didn't turn around, and he kept calling, his smile dropped entirely.
You were already gone.
He got off at the same stop. He always did. His house was near yours, and he'd long memorized the timing of your routineânot in a creepy way, but in that soft, teenage "I-like-you-so-I-notice-everything" kind of way.
But today was different. You weren't just walking ahead of him like usual. You'd vanished.
Then he heard itâlaughter, too loud and too cruelâcoming from an alley just a little ways off the main road. Jake's steps slowed. Something twisted in his stomach.
And then he saw you.
Your tote bag lay discarded on the pavement. Your damaged earphones dangled from it, useless. One girl held your arms back while a few boys circled, sneering and taunting. One of them reached for your skirt.
You screamed, but no one heard. Or at least, they pretended not to.
Jake did.
He didn't think twice. He was screaming before he even landed on the ground. "Hey! Get away from her!"
The group jumped at his voice, turning to see him shove the guy who was closest to you. He didn't look intimidating, but he had fire in his eyesârage, protective and desperate.
"You think this is funny?!" he yelled, fists clenched. "She can't hear you, you assholes."
The girl was startled and released her hold on you. You stumbled forward, unconsciously falling into Jake's arms before even registering who he was. "It's okay, I got you," he said softly, wrapping his arms around you. "You're safe now."
You blinked up at him feeling a little disoriented, as tears streamed down your face. He made sure you were looking at his face, looking at the way his mouth moved. You're safe. Over and over, he said it, huge exaggerated mouth movements for you to see.
You nodded your head.
He pulled off his jacket and put it around your shoulders, very gingerly picked up your bag, and then the keychain he never got the chance to give back to you.
He saw it all: the way you scrunched your shoulders inward; how your other hand trembled just enough for your fingers to twitch as if they were still recalling someone else's grip. He felt his heart ache.
"She's here," Jake said, quietly addressing the owner, an older, kind-faced man who had been washing mugs at the counter, who quickly emerged looking worried. "Something happened."
Jake described what he had seen, in low but steady tones, noting how he saw everything happen at once, but wanting to reassure you that you hadn't done anything wrong. The man's jaw clenched, briefly, and without a moment of thought he encircled you into a fathering hug. You didn't cry (perhaps because you were numb, or maybe you didn't want to collapse toward the ground in public), but you did keep your hand at the back of the owner's apron a touch longer than you might normally.
"She's off the clock today," the owner said with a determined nod.
"Noâhold on," Jake interrupted, gently laying your backpack down. "Let her rest. I'll do her job today. I know how she makes the drinksâI've watched her for weeks." He smiled faintly, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just until she's feeling okay. She can still get paid, right?"
The owner of the shop blinked, and then slowly broke into a chuckle. "You're her boyfriend?"
Jake's ears turned bright pink. "N-Noâ! I meanânot yet. I just... I like her. A lot."
The owner smiled and slapped him on the back. "You should be. She could really use someone like you. Her parents... they try. They're overseas, doing everything they can to try to get her hearing or at least set her up for a future. But, it's hard. She has always been alone."
That truth settled hard in Jake's chest like lead.
You were now sitting quietly at one of the tables near the window, an iced tea in front of you. Your fingers were twisted around the straw, and you were biting gently at the endânot even drinking it, just grounding yourself. Jake could not take his eyes off you.
"Can you help me talk to her?" He asked the owner.
The owner nodded, walking over and motioning to you in sign. You looked up slowly.
He wants to talk to you, the owner signed. He wants to ask if you're sure you're okay.
Jake stepped forward, gingerly placing your keychain on the table in front of you. "You dropped this," he said softly, hoping his eyes said what his words might not yet.
Your gaze fell to the little Mofusand plush, and for a moment, your lip trembled. You reached out, brushing your fingers over it before finally looking up at him, your eyes glassy with unspoken emotion.
Jake knelt down a little so he was at your level, then he looked at the owner to assist him. The owner translated again when Jake spoke:
"I'm sorry. I didn't understand what you were going through. But I understand now. And it won't ever happen again. Ever."
You stared at him for a moment, taken aback by the sincerity in his tone. And then you nodded slowly. Just once. A small, trembling movementâbut Jake saw it. And that meant everything.
He smiled, a little sheepishly. "Teach me?" he said. "Sign language."
You blinked. And for the first time all day, the corners of your lips turned up into a tiny smile.
That was the day Jake Sim became your safe place.
The next day, the air was cool but soft, and the sun bathed the quiet streets in gold patch after gold patch. You had your tote bag slung across your shoulder again, earbuds tucked inânot that they worked anymore, but they were still your shield from the world.
Then you felt a tap on your shoulder that was gentle. You turned to find Jake there, smiling like he'd been waiting for you. He offered up a small notepad filled with floating letters and words, neatly written: "Can I walk with you to school and the train? My school is nearby too."
You blinked with a warm heart at his kind day one open act of friendship. You nodded, one of those slow nods. He smiled like you had just agreed to jump out of an airplane. Â
As the two of you strolled toward the train station, your steps side by side, students passing by whispered. Most of them were from his school, and they gawked quietly, muttering things like:
"Isn't that Jake Sim? The golden retriever from photography club?"
"He is walking her to school!"
"She's...the deaf girl, right?"
"She's really pretty though...I've never seen him with anyone before."
Jake didn't flinch. He didn't even glance their way. He was too focused on walking at your pace, occasionally scribbling things in his notepad to make you laugh or smile. You didn't need to hear itâhis energy alone made you feel it. Safe. Seen.
That afternoon Jake went back to his school, completed some light club duties, but mostly just carried around his camera for no real reason. Something felt off. Maybe it was you. He realized you hadn't yet shown up to the station.
Curiousâand maybe a tiny bit worriedâhe decided he would check up on you. It wasn't as if he hadn't done it before. The front desk lady at your school blinked at him when he said: "I'm her friend. I came to take her home. I think she has after school activities?"
She nodded, "Art club today. Top floor."
So he went up the stairs, camera bouncing against his chest as he went, to peek into the art room. The door creaked gently as he walked inâand there you were. The room was filled with the smells of acrylic paint and pencil shavings, and late sunlight poured in across rows of stools and canvases.
You were at your usual spot, back to the door, anxiously brushing color onto a canvas.
And then he saw it. Jake almost gasped.Â
It was him. Your paintingâthere was no doubt about itâyou had painted him. His hair, his smile, even the soft blur of light behind him as if caught in one of his own photos. You were painting him from memory.
Although a voice next to him startled him. "She only draws real people when they make her feel safe," your art teacher said, smiling knowingly. "Or when they have made contact with her heart."
Jake couldn't move for a second, his eyes glued on your concentrated state, brow slightly scrunched as you made soft strokes of light across the painting's cheek bones. You hadn't noticed him yet. But his heart was already full.
Jake's cheeks burned the split second your teacher asked, "Are you her boyfriend?"
He blinked, eyes wide, mouth slightly ajar as he clearly had not processed the question. His ears turned a deep pink, then red. He looked every bit the golden retriever boy everyone called himâloyal, soft-hearted, but now flustered beyond belief.
Your teacher beamed with understanding, as if she already seen through him. "You're someone she needs in her life" she said gently, watching the way his eyes never left your body. "A puppy always following her trail. I'm sure she'll accept you as her boyfriend if she decides to give in. It's hard for a deaf person to open upâthey often think they're a burden."Â
The words echoed in Jake's mind.
Is that why... she always keeps to herself? Is that why she hides so much of her pain?
Suddenly, everything clicked. The reason why your earphones were always in. The reason why you trembled a little whenever they got torn. The reason why you looked away whenever people stared too long. And maybe the reason why he felt the urge to protect you.
Your teacher smiled at him one last time before walking toward you, softly signing that Jake was here to pick you up. You blinked, surprised, instinctively turning aroundâand immediately tried to cover your painting with a cloth. Jake's heart leaped when your eyes met his, so wide with embarrassment.
The painting was covered, but the color in your cheeks said enough.
Across the room, a couple of girls not in the deaf program whispered just loud enough for Jake to hear as he approached. "She probably blackmailed him or something. No way Jake Sim's into her."
"Yeah, she can't even talk to him. Poor guy's probably just being nice."
Jake stopped in his tracks, turning to them. The smile faded from his face. His usual soft features sharpened, eyes narrowing, jaw tight. "Do you talk about everyone like this, or just girls who are better than you?"
The girls flinched, going quiet immediately.
He didn't say anything more, just turned his back to them and walked towards you, softly touching your arm. You looked up, blinked several times, and still holding the bag with shy fingers.
And then Jake smiled, and all the warmth came back to his smile. He pulled out his notepad and wrote, "You don't need to hide the painting. I'm really honored, you know."
You flushed deeper and looked away, biting your lip before grabbing your bag and following him out. You didn't sign anything, but he didn't mind. Your presence was enough.
The train ride to the coffee shop was quiet but not uncomfortable. Jake stood beside you, and every time the train shifted, his fingers brushed against yours. You seemed far away, a little off, fidgeting with your mad respectâtwisting your sleeves, adjusting the strap of your tote, nibbling at your bottom lip.
Jake could tell your head was spinning; probably about the painting and probably about him. So, he wrote on his notepad again, folding the edge of the page and tearing it off; then, when you both were standing, waiting for the train at the platform, he slowly slipped the note into your palm.
You opened it slowly. Â
"I like you. I really, really like you. You're not a burden. You're the most peaceful part of my day."
You stared at the words, unmoving.
And when you looked upâhe was already smiling at you, waiting patiently.
Jake wasn't in a hurry. He let you lower your walls slowly inch by inchâin the right way, and never pushed and always patient.
The first time you took his pen and wrote:"But I only met you two days ago."
He just smiled and ruffled your hair a bit, and then wrote,"I've been watching you for months. I just never had the guts."
Your cheeks were hot and you just nodded, speechless and your words gotten stuck somewhere in your throat. But Jake could see from your eyes that you were curious, maybe even hopeful.
But you were scared too. Â
Jake understood. Maybe you wanted him to court you. Maybe you just needed more time. Maybe both.
At the coffee shop, and on your break, you sat across from him and taught him one word at a time in sign languageâyour fingers moving slow and patient, your lips formed the words even though sounds did not come out. You wrote each of these on to his note pad, carefully.
He continued to clap along and began to nod his head, with his golden retriever grin.You handed him your personal sign language bookâits pages creased and full of your tiny notes. It was your most treasured learning tool, and you were giving it to him. His heart soared.
He kept it close, even brought it to school.
The next day, he was surrounded by his rowdy friend group.
"Why're you reading that?" Heeseung asked, eyes wide.
Jay snatched the book before Jake could answer, flipping through. "Is this sign language?"
Sunghoon raised a brow. "Waitâyou're learning for her?"
Jake just nodded. Calm and proud, "Yeah. I'm learning for her."
The teasing came immediately, all of it lighthearted.
"Jake's whipped."
"Our golden retriever's got a muse!"
"Is this why you skipped violin club?"
He only smiled, never denying it. He was smitten.
So when people said rude stuff about youâhe would not stand for it. His regular soft energy evaporated in minutes, mass cold stares, tight jaws, eyes sharp. Even when girls tried to flirt with him, he just waved them off and said coolly, "I'm busy studying."
Â
Outside of that, Jake's world exploded with new creative energy.He was in a band with Heeseung, Jay, Sunghoon, Jungwon, Sunoo, and their junior, Nishimura Rikiâa dreamy transfer prodigy guy from Japan with the softest smile and killer dance skills.
Jake played bass, rapped, dancedâand was now writing a song.
About you.Â
A soft acoustic ballad done with warmth and tenderness. He practiced alone in his room, kind of singing quietly and strumming, he practiced the sign language version in front of him mirror.He had some day to play it for you, in your language.
Meanwhile in your world, you also seemed to be sketching Jake in your notebook more often than not. His profile face, his smile, and the way he tucked his hair behind his ears when he really concentrated. You wrote about him tooâhis gentleness, his presence.
You would wander the city on your walks, peering into hole-in-the-wall shops, hunting for something that would make you think of him. Something like a keychain. Or a pin that looked like a camera. It could be anything smallâbut meaningful.
You wanted to give him something. Not because he was your boyfriendâbut because he was your safe place. Your one person who made you feel seen.
One day, while you were both taking your break, he started to sign. Not perfectlyâbut enough to get it. You were stunned.
He signed, "I want to learn more. From you."
You smiled. Softly. Slowly. It was shy. And when he lifted his camera to take a picture of you sipping your iced tea, you did not look away this time. You let him take that picture. He already knew how you despised coffeeâit upset your stomach.
You loved tea. It calmed you down.
He knew you loved hotteok and cherries. Especially cherries. The way the red stained your lips made him feel like he was losing his mindâbut he behaved himself every time he came over to your house. It was so big and emptyâbut your room? It was cozy, warm, and you. Hello Kitty plushies, small pop mart figurines, your favorite pieces of art and prints.Â
He belonged there, in your quiet world. He just didn't know yetâyou were slowly, silently drawing him into it.
ââââàšà§ââââ
Jake was down bad. Whipped. Head over heels. The whole damn fairy-tale-boyfriend-package without the title. He found out about the talent showâbasically an annual spring festival for his school, where everyone else can come too including students from other campuses.
Perfect timing.
Time to make a move.
He would ask you to come the day before the concert. Right after exams. Right when you needed a break, and when he was finally ready to show you the song that he had put his entire heart into, in your language.
But in the meantime?Jake was going through it.He brought you iced tea every morning, sliding it across your desk without a word with a shy grin and a wink, and it still felt cold from the little cooler bag he would carry it in.
He literally walked into your school to do this, even when people would stare. Even when whispers would start.His friends, of course, never let him forget it.
"You're joking."
"I cannot believe you are rejecting girls who are literally goddess tier, for a girl that hasn't even kissed you yet."
"Jake. You're gone. So gone."
"She didn't even look at you today and you are still simping."
Jake? Unfazed. Loyal. Whipped. "She's worth it." was all he said.Â
There were times during the midterms that you hardly glanced at him, eyes glued to the drowning darkness of your books with highlighters smudged across your fingers, your sketchpad nowhere near you. Jake sat beside you, bravely not taking it personally.
You were stressed out. You needed your space, he got it.
But he couldn't help but wonderâ Did you even like him back, or was he just your sweet loyal friend?
He didn't know that you sketched him. That your journal had pages and pages all about him. That you were just too shyâtoo much of a jumble of feelings and everything you wanted to say but couldn't find the words if you tried.
Sometimes he'd talk to you softly next to you while you worked, knowing you would never hear it, but needed to say it anyway.
"I like you so much, it hurts."
"I want to kiss you but I know you're not ready."
"You make me want to be soft forever."
You never noticed. But it was okay, because it made him feel better. Like saying it out loud, meant it wasn't just sitting there bottled up inside him.
One day, you were outside and saw a cat on the street, and you got all sparkly-eyed, and you crouched down and reached your hand out.Â
Jake panicked.
"Noâno no noâdon't touch it! It's probably dirty, babyâlike...not safe!"
He was awkward with cats, being a dog lover instead but he wanted to see your cute little smile when you cradle the cat close to your chest as if it was your own child.
But now? During midterms? You barely had time to breathe. Jake didn't blame you. But the distance... it scared him. Had he moved too fast? Were you pulling away?
He had no idea.
You were just trying to get through the weekâexams, art deadlines, pressure. What you did know, though, was that Jake still showed up with iced tea. That he still waited outside your school gate after your last class. That he still sat beside you, head tilted, watching you with soft eyes even when you didn't say much.
And that meant everything.
ââââàšà§ââââ
Jake was losing it. Exams were finally over.
The festival was days away. He had been looking forward to asking you to come and see him perform his songâa song about you, for you.
Now? You were fawning all over Woo Do-hwan on the screen. Jake was standing behind the couch, arms crossed but one arm inconveniently draping over your shoulder as if he were laying claim to it (not that he would ever say that).
You, on the other hand, were way too busy staring at the TV, all curled up in an oversized shirt that, in Jake's opinion, practically slid off your shoulder leaving just enough for your bra strap to be visible that was slowly driving him crazy.
You were eating cherries. The juice had once again stained your lips and Jake was sweating his pants off, he knew he was going to lose his mind.Then it got worse.
A scene came onâthe sceneâwhere the male lead pulled the girl into his lap and kissed her like the world was ending.(His world was in-fact ending.)Â You were biting your lip, staring with your big, dreamy eyes, and Jake? Jake couldn't move. He was going back and forth between the screen and you.
Your shirt falling off. Your lips bright red. Your eyes sparkling. Your soft little sigh. That lip nibble.
With every breath in his chest, Jake leaned just a little, the front of his t-shirt brushed softly over the back of your head. He whispered, "Do you want that too?"
You didn't respond because you clearly couldn't hear him. You were still watching, unaware of how tense he'd gone behind you, his jaw clenched, his breath shaky. He looked like he was thinkingâdeeply. The kind of thinking that could make or break everything.
You turned your head a little, craning your neck to look at him, lips parted in curiosity. He immediately collected himself and smiled, signing something with his free hand as the other rested on your shoulder. "You really like him that much?"
You grinned, shy but excited, and nodded.
He rolled his eyes and gave you an incredulous look before signing: "He's not real. I am."
You blinked. A little caught off guard.
And then he signed again.
"Come to the festival."
You tilted your head, confused.
He picked up the pen and notepad from the coffee tableâthankfully still nearbyâand scribbled it down.
Come to my school's festival next weekend. Please? I want to show you something. Something just for you.
You read it. Looked at him. Then nodded slowly, chewing on a cherry while giving him that small, sweet smile that made him feel like his ribs might crack open from the pressure of loving you so much.
He smiled back and signed softly: "Good. It's a date."
Your eyes widened. He winked. Then he went to finish folding your laundryâlike the golden retriever boyfriend-in-waiting he wasâwhile trying very hard not to think about you in that oversized shirt... or Woo Do-hwan stealing your attention.
It was supposed to be the perfect day. Jake had left early that morning, and kissed your forehead with the softest kiss, and quickly signed to you with that big goofy grin of his.
"Wear something pretty. I'll be waiting."
He was so excited. The band was excited. All his friends, hyping him up to no end, joking about how happy he looked.
Jake, the cool, charming, calm one who never looked sad, couldn't stop smiling. He had practiced and practiced the song.
He had perfected every single chord. He had memorized every single sign. But more importantly, he had practiced how he was going to express that.
This song was for you. You were the girl he adored. The one who changed his outlook on the world. But you never showed up.
Your outfit was ready. Hair brushed, makeup done with care, your fingers trembling slightly in excitement. You clutched the cherry blossom pin he gave you onceânervous but happy.
Until it came.
A folded note slipped into your bag, probably by one of those girls. Written in harsh, angry ink.
"Isn't it a shame that he's basically using you for pity points? Everybody's going to crack up when they see you sitting there and watching him put on a fake show about being sad over some love song just to get attention. You're deaf, sweetie. He doesn't want you. He only wants the applause."
You looked at it for what felt like hours, then reread it. The lights inside your chest went out. You flickered the last little bit of hope away. You stood alone in your hallway with a promise you dressed up as a dream and felt like the biggest idiot on the planet.
Jake walked out onto the stage, guitar in hand, the other boys were setting up beside him. His heart rate was out of controlânot from nerves, but from hope. He looked at your seat.
Front row. Reserved with your name written in pink cursive and a little cat sticker.
Empty.
And the spotlight was focused right there. Still empty.
He blinked once. Hard. Maybe you were just late? He cleared his throat and lifted the microphone to his mouth. "I... um," he started, letting out an nervous chuckle. "This song is really personal. I wrote it... for someone really special to me."
The crowd cooed. A few phones went up.Â
"She's not here yet, but I really hope she shows up. She's the reason I learned to hear.... even if it's silence."
He stopped. Then added, softly, hands shaking just a bitâ "And if you are watching this later... well, I want you to know that I meant every part of this. This is for you."
Then, the music started, and he sang and signedâat once.
You didn't see it.
You were standing out in the rain, your cute outfit wet and clinging to your body, cuddled up in front of that little flower shop you both went to once.
The shop with the baby's breath and the soft pink carnations he helped you pick. You stood blankly looking at the window, tears pouring and blending in nicely with the rain rolling off your cheeks.
From inside, the florist, who could easily recognize your face gave you a concerned look but didn't interrupt you. It was clear you looked heartbroken, lost, and distressing.
Back at the school, Jake finally came off stage, fingers shaking, took his guitar off his well-worn shoulders, and his heart sank deep into his chest.
Then he heard it.
The girls. Laughing behind the bleachers.
"She really believed it, huh? Like he would actually be into her."
"Oh my god, did you see how serious he was? That's so embarrassing-"
"Do you think she's crying right now?"
Jake turned immediately, eyes dark, jaw set. "What did you say?" His voice was low. Dangerous.
They blinked. "It's just a joke-"
"No," he said, stepping forward. "You think humiliating someone is funny?"
The rage in his chest ignited. "You're the reason she's not here?"
They tried to brush it offâbut he was already pulling out his phone. Texting his friends. Telling them to help pack up. He was going to find you.
Rain or not.
Jake had been running through about half of the city. The rain had been falling, drenched through his hoodie though he didn't care.
His heart pounded like it was going to snap a rib. Then, he turned around the corner past the florist shopâthe place where you both argued over whether it was daisies or carnations that looked better in the kitchen window, and...well, there you were.
There you were. Standing in front of the window with your head down, that pretty outfit emerging from the downpour, make up smeared, mascara swirling down your cheeks, fingers clenching that cherry blossom pin.
You looked like you were sitting there waiting. For something. For someone.
His stomach curled up. You got all dressed up for him.He called your name. Once. Wobbly and breathless. You didn't even flinch. He stepped a bit closer.
Forward, careful, in front of you. You finally looked up, eyes wide open red and furious. The florist inside noticed him immediately, clutching her mug like she was watching the climax of a drama unfold right outside her store window.
Your hands moved fast. Angry. Sharp. Your pout was trembling, but your signs were loud. "Don't talk to me. Don't look at me."
You signed again, more forcefully. "You think it's funny? Did they dare you? Was it some kind of game?" He couldn't keep up with how fast your fingers were going, but he saw the pain. The betrayal.
His heart ached.
Jake shook his head immediately, rain pooling in the bottom of his lashes, and signed, "No. No. That's not what happened." You scoffed and turned away, but he stepped in front of you again, desperate. "Please, just watch this."
He struggled to pull out his phone, his fingers fumbling with the cold, and there it was; his friend had sent him the video linkâa recording of the performance, uploaded to the school's blog. It was shaky; it was the whole thing. He tapped play and turned the screen toward you.
Not the sound. Only the subtitles. The image.
It was him. On stage. Nervous. Eyes filled with hope.
You watched with your arms crossed and jaw clenched, unsure.Then, you saw him sign it. Each word."This is for her. The girl I love. She taught me to listen, even when there is silence. She's strong, and funny, and smart, and beautiful."
Your eyes widened. The way he gazed at the empty chair. Your chair. The way he bent his neck to gaze and search for you in the audience. The footage showed him signing the lyrics of his song, each movement full of heart, no hesitation. Not a trace of mockery. He meant every word, and he meant them for you.
Your fingers trembled as you put down the phone.Jake stepped closer, covering your hands with his own.
"I didn't know," he signed slowly. "I swear. I didn't know what they told you." His jaw was clenched in a way that made it seem like he was holding back tears of his own.
"I wrote that song for you," he continued. "Not anyone else. Just you."
You blinked, stunned, your lips parted but no signs were coming out yet. The weight of your misunderstanding and the pain you had been carrying all day cracked just a little under that look.
Then finally your hands moved, more slowly this time. Hesitantly. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Jake gave you a sad, almost helpless smile as he stepped closer, gently tucking your wet hair behind your ear. His hands moved with purpose, signing carefully but with a tremble in his fingers.
"I wanted to see your smile when I signed the song live. That was all I could think about."Â He paused, brows furrowed as his hands hovered midair. "I'm sorry I didn't explain sooner. I'm sorry I wasn't there when they hurt you."
Your bottom lip quivered again, more tears slipping silently down your cheeks. You didn't move, didn't sign back right away. Just stood thereâheart heavy, soaking wet, eyes searching his.
Jake didn't wait for a reply. He reached for you, pulling you gently into a tight, rain-soaked hug, holding you like he'd never let go again.Â
Then came the kiss.
Jake looked at youârain dripping from his lashes, eyes filled with something warm and intense. He cupped your cheeks with both hands, gentle but certain, thumbs brushing over your skin as if anchoring himself.
You barely had time to process before his lips met yoursâsoft, careful, like a question he was too afraid to speak aloud. Your eyes widened at first, startled, but slowly fluttered shut as you kissed him back.
You tasted like your cherry lip gloss.
Sweet. Familiar. All his.
Behind the glass, the florist gasped audibly, scrambling to put together a bouquet with ribbon and free stems, already deciding she'd gift it to Jake to give to you. Romance deserved flowersâand this was the kind that made her believe in love again.
The next morning, the sun was back out. The sun had dried the streets, but for Jake it did nothing to cool him down.He strolled beside you holding your hand, with his backpack over one shoulder and yours hanging from your arm.
But he couldn't keep his lips off your face: your temple, your cheek, the corner of your mouth. Jake was just rambling about how much he loved you, how you were his future wife (he repeated this part over and over, loud enough for anyone walking behind you or to the side of you to hear).
It didn't matter that you didn't hear what he was saying. He wanted the world to know. Specifically, he wanted those who were trying to belittle you to see it.
Jake's friends standing across the street saw you together and immediately got rowdy, cheering out loud things like:
"Jake's plotting plan is working!"
"She's got him whipped!"
"He is so down bad it's embarrassing!"
Jake only beamed, shamelessly proud.
When you got to the gates of the school, and there were a bunch of girls from the other school walking by, Jake caught a glimpse of them.
You don't even know what happened, so fast he turned to you and said goodbye with the most extended goodbye kiss âright on the lips, long and intended.Â
Your eyes went wide, and you swatted at him, trying to pry him off with flustered hands.
He giggled and quickly signed, "I'll pick you up after school. Don't miss me too much, darling."
Your ears were burning.
He noticed.
And loved it.
ââââàšà§ââââ
You had graduated, and Jake had finally debuted. Three long months apart, during which he fought his way through the rigorous survival show, I-LAND.
It had been three months of hell for both of youâtoo many nights of loneliness and longing, missing each other. But through all the trials, he made it!
He was finally here, taking his first steps as a member of the idol group Enhypen, the moment he had been waiting for. But the second he could, he ran right to you; he didn't even greet his fans at first.
The instant he laid eyes on you, he pulled your body into his arms; didn't care that the cameras and the fans were around, he just needed to feel you close to him again.
He buried his face in the hoody, holding you like he had never planned on letting go and whispering repeatedly in shaky signs and soft words how he missed you. He had been away from you for too long, but he was never letting you go again.Â
Though Jake adored his fans, he couldn't shake the feeling that none of them could ever compare to you.
No one knew and understood him like you did, no one supported him like you did, no one made him feel so so seen like you did.
He had such gratitude for his fans despite there not being a proper quarterback, but they would never take your place, you were the one who he thought about every day when he was away.
He wanted to show them there was someone who had always stuck by him, someone who saw him for him. He had been through so much, but it was worthwhile because he did it all for you.
You were his grounding point, his thought process, he wanted everyone to know that.
Several months later, Jake asked you to come and see Enhypen for their first big concert. You hesitated, thinking about if you wanted to go or not, especially since you could not hear any music.
Jake didn't care. He remained positive, looking right at you with a bright smile, "I hired a sign language translator. They are going to be on stage, right in front of you."
He would find a way to bring you as close as possible to this concert experience he wanted you to experience.
You were important to him, and he figured no one would understand music better than you, even if you couldn't hear it. He's not asking you to be a fan, he needed you to be the person who always believed in him. Â
The night of the concert arrived, and the venue was filled with energy and excitement.
The lights flashed brightly across the stage as Enhypen began their performance. You were in the front row, your seat specially reserved for you, and the translator stood beside you, making sure you understood every single moment.
Despite the loud crowd, your attention was entirely on Jake. You couldn't hear the music, but you could feel itâfeel the passion and energy that radiated off him.
Every time he glanced your way, a soft smile would tug at your lips. And then, in the midst of the performance, Jake did something just for you: he pointed directly at you during one of his fanservice moments.
You blushed, feeling the heat in your cheeks as you realized that, even in front of thousands, he was teasing you with a wink. He was having fun, but he was making sure that you knew he was thinking about you.
But it wasn't just the fan service. When Jake lifted up his shirt during the concert to flash his absâthey were a sight, very sculpted work of art, all glisteningâyou knew it was not for the fans.
It wasn't meant for the camera at all. You knew he was teasing you and wanted you to stop looking at Woo Do-hwan, and instead wanted you to look directly back at him.
It felt like a special moment just between the two of you, but still, you had to look away, embarrassed covering your face but your heart racing. The way Jake would cheekily tease you was what he loved to do, always eager to make you flustered.Â
A year passed since our last interaction, and things had changed in a drastic way. Jake was continuing to work hard and be a member of Enhypen, but he was holding a secret deep within for one long year.
Jake had been practically begging his company for an entire year to allow him to tell all of you about me at a live concert.
He couldn't hide me anymore. He wanted everyone to know who I was to him and why he had a translator on stage with him at every single concert.
And finally, his company said yes.
Jake stood on that stage, illuminated by that bright light, with all those fans watching him, and breathed out deeply before he spoke.
He signed for the translator to share with the audience, but you could still feel the weight of his feelings in his signs. Â
"Why do you see a translator at every show? I bet you've all wondered that." Jake said with a steady voice full of meaning.
"It's not just because accessibility is important. While that is a very important reason, it's because there is a person very special to me, who is always here supporting me, even when she can't hear the music."
The crowd went quiet because they seemed to understand the depth of his statement. Jake looked directly at you without wavering in his gaze.
"Even when she can't hear the music, she can feel the music. She feels the love, the passion, everything I put into it. She understands me more deeply and better than anyone else." He paused again and his gaze softened looking at you.Â
"She is my muse, my reason for writing, my reason for singing, my reason for standing here today." It was so quiet in the room you could hear a pin drop. "Her name is Y/n. She's the most important person in my life."Â Â
The fans were in shock, some even crying, while others cheered loudly. The translator was smiling as they relayed Jake's words, and you felt your heart swell.
Jake wasn't just sharing his story with the crowd; he was sharing youâthe person who meant everything to him. As the crowd erupted in applause, you stood there, overwhelmed by the love Jake had just poured out for you. You didn't even have words to express it.
(Yandere!) True form! Sukuna x Deaf! Fem! Reader x Former! Lover
wc: 6.2k
warnings: religious themes, mention of made-up god(esses), cannibalism, Sukuna (as a warning in itself haha), murder, mass-murder, mutilation, loss of body part(s), blood, graphic descriptions of gore, mistreatment, drugging, hallucinations, symptoms of mental unrest/psychosis, themes of doomed yuri, lesbian themes, reader is bisexual, hints of depression, suicidal thoughts, kidnapping, ambiguous reader(as in morally grey), not proofread (excuse my horrid spelling mistakes), non-con kissing, dead dove do not read
the image, however, does not belong to me; When My World Burns, by artist Leoncio Harmr
note: I reworked my original fic after finishing reading 'A Certain Hunger' from Chelsea G. Summers, a great read, one which heavily influenced my writing for this, so it strayed quite far from the rather innocent pov reader into.. let's say something else, I'll probably write more about reader and sukuna because this does not completely encompass their relationship to its fullest and provide more information on their world, anyways.. enjoy! :)
Torn from the overripened flesh of the same appleâborn from one and the same seedling; was a love so great that it would ruin the world for centuries to come with its weight. It crushed the old foundations of mother earth, rearranged the spirit realm to its delight and wrecked havoc upon the universeâs delicate tapestry. And the gods, watching aghast destruction unfold and lay its heavy paw on their creations were forced to spin new rulesâto create a new testatement to build upon a structure that could uphold the force of a love so acidic that it disinegrated all former bounds.
Now one might question, what kind of love could be so vicious as so leave even the Gods at their wits endâWell, it is a tale birthed from the warm rays of sunshine gracing hillsides, the tender whispers of forest moss and the pecks left by the sea foam on wet, glistening rocks. Isolde and Samuel were their namesâtwo strangersâ, different as one can only be, tongues twisting funny and with hearts already set out for others. And yet those same set of hearts felt the call to lands beyond the horizon, beyond the reachable. Both turned their world upside down, claimed to hear the others whispers, âA strangerâs voice, but a lovers words.â they said in union.
So they travelled both far and wide, left hearts broken in their wakeâmothers in tears and fathers seething with anger, for Isolde was a kingâs child and Samuel a priester in the making. They abandoned all for their love. Searched all their lifetime for their missing halfâonly to find each other at their very last breath. Reunited only in death. With their corpses embracing the other, as their souls descended down the lain to the underworld hand in hand.
And so to prevent the same tragedy from ever reoccurring, the gods created bonds. Golden threads of destiny connecting a pairâor multiple, creating pairs and circles of love. Bands which were made visible to each and all when reached a certain ageâmaturity. When the first buddling sprouted into a delicate bundle of blossoms and nectar in the first year of adulthoodâthen your bonds were bared, sight granted to the breathtaking view of gold jutting out of your vein and into anotherâs. Into your other half.
It was the first warm day of the year.
When dew would glisten atop the overgrown fields, when birds would sing of their adventures in the winter times (or so youâre told) and when you finally could walk barefoot across the gardens of the templeâfree from the chilling frost of winterâs breath.
Someone taps you on the shoulder, your book nearly drops onto the wet grass. You look up.
âWhat are you doing?â and there she standsâyour friend, your childhood crush, your bestfriend, your lover.
âIâll be damned if I donât.â she laughs, her lips moving as beautifully as always and you think youâve fallen a little more.
Staring down at you with her sun-kissed skin, freckles placed delicately around her round cheeks by the goddess herselfâand eyes that always seemed to see far beyond what everyone else could decipher.
âReading. You should join, Seâ. Itâs nice.â your voice mirrors the smile spreading across your lips.
And yet you know how wrong this isâharbouring impurities, when you were picked up as unrefined pieces of rough diamonds, shaped by years of scripture, of learning the goddessâs rules by heartâflourishing into her diligent servants, seeing beyond the mortal realm and its banal temptations.
Still. âCome sit.â you move aside, let her take her place on the bench next to you. Its wood is chiping, itâs a dreary little thing, hiding in the far corner of the rather lush gardensâall taken care of by your temple, in honour of your goddess.
She says something. You donât quite catch it. Then you feel her fingers intertwine with yours and your chin gently nudged until youâre staring right at her full two-coloured lips.
âAre you excited for the cermony?â her face is relaxed, brows slightly pinched up, holding her breath, âI am. I know that we were made for eachother.â and then she kisses you. Hidden behind the oak tree, your secret lies in the air like the egde of a suspended dagger. For you could only hope, that your bosom friendâs intution was right, that the temple once your orphange, once a home after tradegy for you and so many others, would be the place you departed as adults in union.
And on that day that you could kiss your goddessâ cheek and lay your heart bare in a show of utter devotionâthank her for blessing you with a second chance at life after abandonment, of finding your soulmate so early and so tenderly and for allowing you to grasp at the chance of unchaining yourself from restrictions.
Only, the supsended dagger had fallen and torn your bond apart, for there was no other explanation as you both breathed in full bursts of air after being dunked in milky water in the ceremony with dozens others, for your threads to point to different directions.
âItâs fine.â Se mouthed, smiling a tender tight-lipped smile that never reached her eyes. âYou can become a priestess now, how you always wanted.â and the corner of her lips dropped into a thin line. The truth laid bareâyou were never meant to be, never meant to embrace, which left only one other option; abstinence, of walking the holy path of priestesshood, of severing your ties with the stranger on the other side.
It was customary. At the end all the girls could decideâif they as women would choose love over duty, or scripture over family; if they chose selfishness and base desire or would become devotees to spread the word of their beloved goddess. And no matter how much your heart ached to admit it, guilt so pugnant in your gut as you stepped forward as the first, white robes soaked from the cool cowâs milkâyou were glad you could be the former. You felt it only right to give back to a goddess that had granted you everything you had becomeâif not hearing, but that was fine, for who needed hearing when you had alphabets arranged on paper into words, sentences and entire stories.
You wanted this life.
You outstretched your arm, one of the younger priestesses took ahold of your pulsing vein, felt for the little dent in skin, glanced at the sprouting proud (oddly vibrant) golden thread winding through the air and brought the blade down on it. Mechanical, clean, swiftâguilty as you were, feeling as if you betrayed your former lover, you squinted.
Thenâeverything collapsed.
Suddenly vibrations rung through the earth as if the titans had reawoken from their deathbeds, and the building shook menacingly, ancient pillars trembling like whipsy leaves in a breeze and you fell.
Fell back in your friendâs chest. Her ashen face pressed against your side as chaos unfolded in the ceremonial room, with the candles, the only sources of light, shortly blowing off as if by imaginary beings, and the milky waters lapping at the tiles as if they were a part of the hungry oceans, thirsty for fresh blood. Everything that occured after the light disappeared was hard to decipher, you felt vibrationsâa lot of them, of the hurried, panicked steps of the others, of the menacing screams of mother earth and of the running you had fallen into, as Se dragged you along. You had followed without questions, her skin against yours so naturalâeven through the narrow underground tracks, separating yourself from the rest, from potential safety, you still followed her, the guilt of relief and the disappointment in her brown gaze still a fresh wound.
You managed to round a corner before you slipped on your own wet robes and topple her over with you. The crash hurt, the stone walls and floors merciless and threateningly reeking of decaying long-forgotten secrets. The pillars shook againâand on your right was a piece of stone hollow, a tight space to find refuge under. Se tried to write in your palm, but you were too distractedâyour ankle throbbed in pain, your shoulder buzzed and something, something was approaching you two with the wrath of a titan.
Before you could even blink, think through what it could be, you were pushed into the split in the wall, squeezed inside of it as if you were moldable and soft, and not made of bones.
âStay her.â she drew in your palm, pressing her forehead against yours. She hesitated for a momentâyou felt her nail prick the fold of your palm. âI love you.â she whispered across your palm, then she was gone. Off in the direction of whatever was approaching. Before you could decipher her intentions, crawl out of your hiding and run after her in desperationâeverything silenced.
Suddenly all vibrations died down.
The earth was calm. Unsettlingly so.
You tried to listen, anxiety raking up your throat, making you taste acid fresh on your tongue as you desperately tried to feel for any sort of movement in the crevices, in the splits, in the little broken lines all over the floorsâto feel for any sort of life, anythingâfor the temple was never silent, even if you could not hear.
Blinding light put a stop to your frenzy, your breath caught in the back of your throat. That must have been it. All the terror must be over nowâSe would now stand over you with a lamp, smiling at your siliness, telling you everyone was safe, it was nothing really, the mildest of earthquakes really, a ploy of mother nature, a little trick to lighten the mood.
Then your eyes focused.
âFound you.â
You screamed.
A hulking monster, a creature oozing with pure, unadultured darkness stood in front of you. Tall, broad, crushing with too many limbs, too many eyes. Distortion must've been its second name, for it was dizzyingly appalling, with a grin that stretched too far, with fangs too sharpâyet its form was humanoid, its rippled muscles resembled a man, and the source of light, to your absoloute terror, wasnât from a lamp or a fire, but from the winding thread of gold, having doubled in size, pulsating with life that lead from your vein right into this thing.
âYouâre small.â its eyesâso many of themâmoved frantically around, as if excited, gawking at you in the same manner the red fox would at the chickens tucked behind the gardens of your temple.
It leaned forward. You squeeled.
Immediately you pushed away, feeling how you quiveredâdown to your bones. This couldnât be it. This must be a nightmare, a trick, a ploy, a joke! Your goddess couldnât be this curel, she wouldnât bind you to a demon, she couldnât, sheâ
âAre you mute? And weak.â you hated how clearly you could understand this repulsing monster, âLike all the others. At least they tried.â it licked over its teeth, grinning. Then you saw it, the glinting, incriminating drops of sinâand the faint smell of death.
A sob raked through you, so that must have been it. The uncanny silence of the earth, the stagnation in the air and the floors that wouldnât whisper back to you, when you had learned to read them ages ago.
âMurder!â you cried out, your hands already on its throat before you could decide otherwise, its neck so thick, your fingertips didnât touch, yet the pain that bloomed in your chest was far greater than everything you had ever experiencedâhad your goddess abandoned you all? Where was she? Was she not to protect you? Was she not to care and love you all? And Seâ
âSo you can talk.â it squinted, âGood.â and before you knew it, your lungs were tar-filled and heavy, your neck fell back as if commaned to and reality slipped from your grasp as it did.
Waking up was the second most painful thing you had ever experienced.
It was damning, a sense of disillusionment, earth-shattering to awake in something you could only describe as wrath smoldering your insides, scortching you with pain and guilt and all the nasty feelings of a human.
So the very first thing you did, before even blinking away the unwelcomed sleep wasâpuking. Everywhere.
On a bed twice your size, with covers like the red sea, making you feel all the more smallerâall the more claustrophobic in a room illuminated only by strange red lights. After your third disposal of stomach acid and water, footsteps shook you where you sat crumbled up, clawing at the sheets, attempting escapeâatempting control over a situation beyond your mere mortal fingers.
Someone clutched you by the scruff, holding you away from the sheets like a kitten, pushing smooth porcelain into your fingers and under your chin. Your blood ran cold, what if this was the creature what ifâYet all worries were quietend down as strands of white and red swept over your cheek and something soft like a womenâs chest hovered next to your arm, faintly brushing against you, as she seemed to begrudgingly hold you as you keeled over, as one would hold an unruly child told not to eat that last puff pastry.
The moment you finished the bowl was immediately removed from you and nails bit into your scalp as you were forced to lay back down onto rich velvet cushions, made to look up at what you initially had assumed to be a womanâonly to stare back at a demon. Evil hung from her like maggots off a corpse.
âDemonââ your pulse raced as you breathlessly whispered the forbidden word, body stiff, laying flatly as if paralyzed. She snarled back at you, visibly finding your mere existence repelling. âFor master toââ her lips stopped moving, her gaze darkened and she scoffed.
âA bottom feeder.â was all she said after.
Infact, it was the only thing that she said to you for the rest of the excrutiating hours spent.
She stripped you promptly after the spectacle you made of your white gownâthe only piece of home you had with youâand the rest of violent red of the bed, like all the blood that must have been spilt, like their blood, like the priestessâ, like SeâYou werenât granted much time to grief in those grueling hours as you tried to fight off her cold hands, screaming for her to stop as she wrangled you out of your robes, out of your dignity with it as cloth fell to the pitch black floors, the drop of white laying in a pool of darkness.
In a similiar pool of darkness that your demon aid pushed you in, after dragging you away, granted with inhumane strength, such strength no man or woman should ever possess, letting flowers of purple bloom on your unmarred skin before she finally pushed you inside the icy cold waters. The room was similar to the joined bathhouse of your temple, yet it was nothing alike, with a ceiling too high, a room too wide and tiles polished blackâand with the must of blood and all it entails hanging thickly off the air. And then before you could even squeal in protest, a bucket of soapy water was poured over your head, rough nails poked at your scalp as your neck ached in the abuse of the hairwash this strange being was giving you, so different to when you would bathe with the others, tenderly lather simple oils into eachotherâs hair and then braid it tenderly, while you and Se would exchange whispers, promises of love when no one would look.
âDisappoinment.â she muttered somewhere faintly between the iron-clad grip on your mortal bones, the rough wash, if you could call it that and the scrubbing of your skin away as her hands descended further down and down until you screamed your throat raw in protest and she scoffed, âIgnorant,â she then mumbled before ignoring your protest, carving the last bit of impurities out of your throbbing skin, leaving nothing untouchedâgrounding you in a new terrible reality.
She must have whispered more insults, but thankfullyâthe soapy water and her shaking granted you relief of seeing what she declared so ignorantly.
After the bath finally ended and she dried you off as if you were a wet dog, other maids were summoned, you were dressed in clothes that itched your skin, branded you as traitor. Through the whole process, your eyes burned with unshed tearsâand with the uncertainty of every little moment, for you were still not in that little crevice of the wall in your temple, head split, passed out and hidden from the world, as your body slowly decomposed admist the others fallen from nothing more than a simple earthquake.
You think it must have been dinner time now, or you at least assumed soâit felt like it. Since the skies here were blackness that consumed everything but the induglently large-scaled moon, hanging in the air like a drop of blood.
You had been summoned, âhe requests you.â was all you were informed of before you were yet again led away like a dog on a leash, the incriminating gold dancing more widely the more you neared the heavy doors out of heavy oak and skulls you didnât want to know the origins ofâyou had tried to ignore it since you had awoken to this terrible lie of a reality, and now it was dancing in your face. Why had the goddess allowed things to turn out this way? For revenge? To spite you? Was she enraged that you had dared to love? But the scripctures praised loveâthey praised love between women the most(outside of the temple), and yet, she had shunned you the most. By the Ira, you did not understand whyâwhy had she abandoned you?
And before you knew it you were thrown in front of the houndsâa slab of meat for a monster with too many limbs and eyes.
âSo thatâs my soulmate.â it mused, sitting on a throneâyou thinkâmade out of skeletons. âWeak. Fragile. Mortal. What a fine soulmate this is.â the pink-haired creature mused, snarling at you, as it leaned back on its seat, its manifold gazes piercing through you like a knife through butter. âBut I must admit..â it grinned that devious grin, its voice a blend of smoke and death, âA pretty one. You did a good job, Uraume.â and Uraume, your tormenter of the day, straighted up even more, spine pin-straight receiving its praise like a dog lapping up at a bone.
Perhaps your golden thread shining as innocently as a star in the nightsky made everything worse. Or perhaps it was the way as you made your way up the steps, almost on autopilot and your fingers once again were bloodthirsthy without a conscious thought behind your glossy eyes.
âOh?â itâno he, under further inspectionâdidnât look amused, âThis is the second time. Arogant pest.â and suddenly your skull was crushed against black marble and his hand raked around your throat, toying with a claw over your jungular, threatening to extinguish your life in mere seconds, prodding at how long you could withstand the taste of death when suffocating. But before you could even gasp and fail around like a fish on landâ
he let you go, staggering back, as if burned.
There was movement behind your weary consciousness, heavy steps taken before you were flipped around. âYou.â it narrowed itâs multiple eyes, inching close enough for you to make out itâs hideous features. âYouââ
âA murderer! Thatâs what you are demonâyou killed them! You killed them all, you vile creature. Iâll rid this world of you, Iâll avenge, Iâllââ
One of his many claws silenced you as you felt the ground under you cease and your body lifted up in a bone-crushing clutch. âYou have proven you can talk, mortal.â his fangs shone menacingly under the golden light that you were both bathed in, âNow, never do it again.â he snarled. âI will cut off anyoneâs ear that can listen.â his hand was shaking, and you could only watch in silent confusion as you were dismissed, the pieces of you picked up and hushed away back to the same odd room with no less thirst for spilling evil blood.
The next few months were spent on your knees, praying, isolated, refusing food as much as you could.
âIra,â you pleaded, âmy goddess, have you abandoned meâus? How could you let this tradegy unfold? How could you leave me behind? Se? The others, my motherâmy goddess. Please, answer me, please tell me that I am mistaken, that theyâre all well, that this creature didnât-didnât do what I think it did. Please, tell me that I will flee, that this will be a thing of the past thatââ
it seemed you were too careless.
âYou dare take your pruny little fake-deity in your mouth? Here? In my realm? As my soulmate?â he had barged in, the demon lord, as you unfortunately came to know, you hadnât faced ever since the last encounter in throne room was now squishing your skull in one of his claws, the fire in his eyes so smoldering, you would have melted if you were more meek-minded. âI come for mercy. To allow you to kiss my feet and you prayâto hah, a goddess?â his laugh rung deep in your lungs, as he sprawled out atop of you like a dense blanket. âYouâre mine. I could paint the ground with your guts.â agony exploded across your scalpâhe was lifting you up, again, this time only by the strength of your hair.
You wiggled around like a worm, face scrunched up in pain, protesting in silence as you squinted and his words faded out of your line of sight. He assumed he continued his lecture, his angry manifest of a lord made out of nothing but darkness of mortal souls, and yet you felt yourself thrown over a shoulder, scenary changing so rapidly that you pounding you fist on a wall of muscle did nothing, to even irk him as he strided through his castle and sprawled you out across his bed as if you were fine silky satin.
âYou will listenââhe snarled, âto me, mortal. I havenât sliced up your throat alreadyâbecause weâre bound. Maybe itâs a joke from the universe. For me to be connected to the lowest in the food chainââ he inhaled the scent of your hair, shuddering, âStill. I canât deny that even your weakness cannot appall me. I want to eat you. I want to fuck youâyouâre disgustingly confusing.â he drew circles on the robes Uraume made you wear, more frost than woman, and laid claim to your hips, pressing into the little dent under the jutting of your hip bones.
âI want you. And youâll want me too.â
You spat in his faceâhe hissed, then opened his maw and bit.
Right into your breast.
Blood sprung free from your veins, soaking half of his faceâwhile fire spread across your lungs. A moan escaped you, withering in blinding pain, as you could feel his fangs anchor deep in your flesh, so far in fact, he hit your sternum, scraped against bones. You twitched, back arching, toes curlingâeyes rolling back as you attempted to raise your hand to push him off, but your arms wouldnât move, legs wouldnât move, nothing would move. Your attempt at commanding your lead-heavy limbs to move failed you along with your voice catching in your throat, your cries of terror nothing but actually wheezing and occasional whines as you could do nothing but stare at the monster devouring you.
All his eyes were set on you, drinking you in, as he slowly, with a horrible squelch, was ripping off flesh from boneâhe was eating you. With cloth, with skin, with boneâ
âPlease,â you mouthed, tears obscuring your vision, as cotton filled your head and black spots started to form in the corners, âdonât.â
He stopped. As if commanded toâyou couldnât make out the rest as you promptly lost consciousness the moment you heard a âpopâ and red flooded the rest of your remaining vision.
The next time you awoke, you had only one breast. Your right one.
In place were bandages that wrapped around your entire torso, the smell of incest and some sort of calming tea sitting besides a bed that wasnât familiar and quarters you never recalled being place in.
Something sharp touched your shoulder and then a tight-lipped smile appeared next to you. Uraume. Her gaze was lingering and threatening, staring you down in both disdain and barely concealed sadism.
âIf you werenât a part of him, he would have finished his meal.â she muttered, lips moving swiftly, yet careful to be slow enough for you to be able to read them. âDonât think anything of it, pest.â she finally cracked a grin, a lone finger tracing the part of you missing. âIt wonât be long till you cease and I can stop playing baby-sitter.â
Upon that heavy doors were pushed back, and the familiar shadow of your tormenter fell upon both of you.
There must have been some sort of conversationâyou couldnât tellâbecause you refused to look at him. At this thing that had robbed you of so much, and now left you mutildated. Was this punishment? Ira, where are you, have you truly abandoned me?
âLook at me when I talk.â his claws sunk into your cheek, forcing your sight on him, so close, so deeply unsettingly intimate in the setting of what you could only assume in horror was his bedroom. The door behind him had shut. And once again you were alone with a light so brightâthat it hurt your tender eyes, skull still softly throbbing with the sedatives that you were now convinced of having, judging by the ice-cold numbness of your left side.
âYouâre up.â he muttered, eyes still quivering like little bugs, all fixated on you, hungry for youâyet he looked not as self-satisfied as the last time, he seemed almost upset?
âYouâre stronger than you look, little bug.â was thisâwas this a pet name? You blinked in utter confusion. Before you could react to his oddly tender tone, the same maw that had torn away a piece of you was on your mouth, kissing as if eating, feeding you his tongue, scraping his fangs against your teeth as his claws sliced your cheek.
You choked on him. One handâyour right, the one that felt as if it still belonged to youâwas pushing at him, frantically and desperately, tears clumping at your lashline, whining into his mouth. But to your white-faced terror and his absoloute delight, did your whines sound more like moans of encouragement and your skin prickled with incredolous desire for somethingâyou didnât even know what. Your skin felt hotâyour nipple stiffened, your breath hitched.
He broke it off before you could do more than just reciprocate (and thus shatter your own identity at his hands).
âYouââ he grinned, yet chose to stay silent on your flushed face. âYouâre in my domain, mortal. All the lands here are mine. The people are mine. The demons are mine. I am the lord. And youâre the thing the gods did to spite me. Butââ did his breath hitch?
His other set of arms gently caressed your sides, as the other pair remained tightly clinging to you, âI seem to enjoy you. More and more so. Every moment youâre not with me, every moment you didnât wake upâyouâre making me weird, little bug. Yet, after centuries indugling in expanding my empire, I donât seem to want to reject this weird humanity.â your jaw fell slack, âYouâll be by my sideâat all times, starting from tomorrow.â he grinned, licked a strip up your throat and then left you right there; on the brink of insanity.
That night you were haunted by nightmares that bled into the waking world and then disappeared again.
Faces of the other girls, of the templeâs priestess, of women like aunts to you, of SeâSe eating, laughing, you two plucking weed together, her teaching you how to live after the high fever that took your hearing, Se pushing you, helping you, protecting and Se in your room.
âYou did this.â she hissed; the shadowy figure flimsy, yet you could understood what she was saying as clear as dayâ
âYou cursed us. You brought this over us. You betrayed us. Evil. Youâre evil! His loverâthe demonâs lover, our murderâs lover! His bitch! You want him, donât you? Want him to further wreak havoc! You are guilty with sinâyou abandoned our goddess, betrayed our scriptures, betrayed me! Didnât you love me? We promised that it wouldnât matter. The bond. All because your soul is evilâall because you were split from the wicked you damned us all! Whore, bitch, traitor. I hate you!â and suddenly her screeching was so loud, even you could her it as she inched closer without stepsâfloating over the smooth marble floors, upon you as if she weighted nothing more than a breeze.
âDieâdie, die!â a chanting started, but it wasnât her that chanted, it was all the other eyesâhis eyes littered across the room, all yowling, crying, screaming as Seâs discoloured lips parted, her beautiful vibrant skin ashen grey, âDie.â she mouthed, while the screeching intensified into incohensible gibberish and from her mouthâthat perfect mouth of herâmaggots fell. A horde of maggots.
Yet you couldnât move, stuck in place, eyes blown wide, lips slightly parted as a stream of them splashed over youâseemingly never-ending, never stopping. They went everywhere, into the crevices of your robes, under your bandages, wriggling into you mouth, your nostrils, your ears and finally your eyes, their little bodies trying to bury themselves into your skin and eat you up alive. All, while you could do nothing but stare.
There was a sharp sting on your left cheek and icy-cold fingers shaking you with fevor.
It took a while of the same aggressive force to the point you almost assumed you were going to pass out again, when it did finally stopâyour wet hair was brushed from your heated skin and the demonâs most trusted aid was revealed when you blinked away tears that you werenât aware that you had shed.
âPathetic.â clipped as ever with her words, she looked disdainful, âYou opened up your stitches. What? Canât handle a few nightmares?â she breathed, cold fingers traveling down to where your breast has once beenâwhere it felt as if your breast still was, as if itâs weight had never disappearedâstill you werenât in the state to fight off her uncomfortable touch.
Uraume brushed over the crimson blossoming across the white, smilling. Tender at first, then she pressed her nail into it.
You bit down a pained moan, immediately muscles constricting and twitching in protest. âStop. Demon, I beg of youââyour swollen eyes looked at her pitifully and as much as she seemed to enjoy it, she retreated her hand, face falling back into its mask of coldness. âNot for you.â she hissed and you could guess the rest of the words as she turned on her heels, breached the heavy doors and left.
Later, in feverish delirium, a woman-man-doctor, you couldnât tell what or who, but someone peeeled the sheets off of you heated skin, and stitched you up againâthe pain faint admist the narcosis you were in.
Although, you did feel a pair of lips on your cheek and the tickle of someoneâs hair against your jaw.
After your sedative-induced stage of healing that lasted, a week, few weeks,âyou couldnât tell, because sleep was your constant friend, which left you brittle and weak at the end of your reproach. The day you were deemed healed enough had been the first where you were first forced to stay glued by his sideâand then it turned into many and now it was an everyday occurance, and while you attempted to regain your strength he was handling you as his personal doll. Pulling you on his lap while he sat on his throne, claws using your fattening hips (a result of meagre movement, yet scarfing down any food they offered youâin an almost pathetic attempt to feel power return to your limbs, funnily enouh, you even had started eating meat, a sin which you would have been exiled from the temple for) as stress relief, he even made you sit and watch him scarf down his âmealsââthe first time you saw him eat a thigh you keeled over, the second time you just gagged and now after dozens of times you simply chose not to look.
âAddress me as your lord.â he demanded one day, as he kept you anchored on his thigh, claws on your sides as always, greedy eyes soaking you in with the strange sort of tenderness that had escalated ever since he had robbed you of a breast. It was night. You were made to stay by his sideâhe never touched you, not yet, you assumed. âI hate you.â you murmered, teeth grit. But wasnât it more a meek show of animonisity rather than actual burning hostility. After all, it had been months, perhaps even a yearâtime was slipping between your fingers like hot sand, it was intangible, fleeeting you and if it wasnât for the occasional nightmare you feared your memories would fail you altogether. Perhaps, it was the feeling of betrayal from Ira that you still havenât continued your attempts of riding this world from this monsterâno, Sukuna. Or perhaps, which was such an atrocious thought, you didnât even want to entertain it. Maybe, just maybe, you were starting to be affected by your bond, by the looming thread of goldâmaybe this would be your doom.
You didnât know anymore, in fact, thanks to the drugs, you realized, were in all your meals, you didnât know much anymore. Still, somewhere deep down in you Seâs voice screamed that she hated youâand that was motivation enough to still eat, to still sin, to still be, so that maybe one day when clarity split your head into a headache you could take a dagger into your hands and severe the bond of gold, before decipating your soulmate.
For now however, you were kept by his side as a placitated little pet.
âLittle bug,âSukuna grinned, âeat up.â he breathed across your lips, pushing a single, mortal, finger down your throat, watching you chewâand swallow. âGood job.â he cooed, and from the corner of your eyes, you could see Uraumeâwith a smile on her face.
âGood jobâ she mouthed too.
While Seâs lips pressed into your earâwhispering, chanting, encouraging you to eat, grow and festerâto anhiliate all evil, starting, from you. And now you fully believed that Ira, your long-lost goddess had not just abandoned you, but had shunned you, had you used you as a instrument for revenge, and you were ready to accept and step into such a sacred role, especially with Se by your side, her sweet face may have been ashen and lips blue, but she looked as vibrant as everâas sweet as the flesh you were being fed. And as sweet as Sukunaâs kisses were with your eyes closed. As sweet as his touch was, his body against yoursâmaybe deathâs kiss would be just as syrupy sweet, and would not just free your withering soul, decaying with evil, but also himâmaybe you, him, Se you all could finally be reunited in eternal sleep. At least you hoped so, every time he ate your mouth with his, and every time you felt your connection grow and fester like a disease, spreading until now, you even shared a corpse with him, you hoped you could abide from sin and maybe drag him with you.
When you had started to love himâyou didnât know. It had been a few years, had it not been? Or a few months? Maybe decadesâyou didnât think. All you breathed was his name, all you worshipped was his blood and all you wanted was his heartâ
Alexia Putellas x Y/N (80% deaf reader)
best friends to lover story
This is a story ofâŠ.
- how Alexia found her way back to Y/N after breaking her heart and almost losing her.
- a story of love, healing, forgiveness, and redemption
Author's Note:
- English and Spanish are both not my first language...I'm trying so please be kind :))
- Comments/suggestions are welcome!
Masterlist
Part 1 - Before the Storm â Chapter 1
The first time Alexia Putellas held my hand, we were six years old, and I was crying in the middle of the schoolyard.
I donât remember exactly what the boy had called meâsomething cruel about how I never answered fast enough when people spokeâbut I do remember the heat in my cheeks, the blur of mouths moving too quickly for me to catch. I hated how laughter always seemed louder than words, like it pressed against my skin, even when I couldnât hear every sound.
Then, out of nowhere, Alexia was there. Tiny for her age, but standing like a shield, chin tilted up, brown eyes blazing at the three boys who thought mocking the âdeaf girlâ was entertainment.
âSay it again,â she dared them, her voice steady in a way most kids couldnât manage. âAnd Iâll make sure you never touch a football again.â
The boys scattered. They always did when Alexia got that look in her eye.
I looked up at her, bracing for pity, but she only shrugged and offered me her hand.
âCome on,â she said. âTheyâre not worth it.â
That was the beginning.
From that day on, Alexia and I were inseparable. She was the wild oneâscabby knees, ponytail flying as she chased a ball across the dusty playground, never afraid to take up space. I was the quiet shadow with notebooks full of doodles and equations, perfectly happy under a tree with a book until Alexia dragged me out to the pitch.
âJust stand here,â she would say, thrusting me into goal.
âI donât like sports.â
âItâs not sports,â she grinned, eyes sparkling. âItâs me winning.â
Her family treated me like I belonged from the very start. Every time I walked into the Putellas house, her mother pressed a plate of food into my hands before I could sit down, and her little sister tugged at my sleeve to show off her toys. I think they understood, without words, that my grandad was all I had. He loved me fiercely, but his silence filled our apartment in a different wayâsteady, dependable, but lonely too.
So when I sat at Alexiaâs kitchen table, listening to her chatter about football practice while her mother teased her about muddy socks, I let myself believe, just for a moment, that I could have two families.
Alexia hated homework as much as I hated running laps, so we traded. Sheâd frown over math problems, tongue poking out in concentration, while I whispered hints until her face lit up in triumph. In return, I let her drag me outside to âpracticeâ penalty kicks, which usually ended with me sprawled in the dirt while she celebrated like sheâd won the World Cup.
Looking back, maybe we were always teaching each other. She taught me how to stand tall when the world felt cruel, how to laugh even when my chest was heavy. And I taught her that sometimes strength meant letting someone help you.
At six, at ten, at fifteenâwe were halves of the same whole.
And maybe, even then, I loved her for it.
I just didnât know how much that love would cost me one day.
Holidays were always the hardest.
Grandad tried, he really did. Heâd scrape together a few coins from his pension for a slightly stale cake from the bakery, or wrap a secondhand trinket in yesterdayâs newspaper and beam like it was treasure. And I loved him for it.
But when December came, with lights twinkling in every window, loneliness pressed closer.
The Putellas family never let it last.
âCome, cariño,â Mrs. Putellas said one Christmas Eve, waving us into their warm living room. The smell of roasted lamb filled the air, laughter spilling from every corner. âYouâre family. Sit, eat.â
Grandad tried to protest, said he didnât want to impose. But Alexia was already tugging me toward the table, hair neatly combed for once, a mischievous grin on her face. âSit next to me,â she whispered.
It was the first time Iâd seen a Christmas tree that tall, glittering with ornaments like stars. My grandadâs eyes softened, and I knew he was grateful even if he didnât say it.
That was the moment I realized: Alexiaâs family wasnât just kind. They were home.
School was its own battlefield.
Teachers didnât always know what to do with me. Some spoke too quickly, backs turned as their voices bounced off the chalkboard. Others tried too hard, their pity sharper than cruelty.
Alexia had her own method.
She planted herself in the seat next to mine every year without failâfront row, alwaysâand made it her mission to make sure I caught everything. If the teacher wrote something important, she nudged my elbow and tilted her notebook just enough for me to copy. If I got lost, sheâd lean in, lips brushing my ear as she repeated the words slowly, carefully.
It should have embarrassed me. It didnât.
I liked itâtoo much. The warmth of her breath, the patience in her tone, the way the chaos of the classroom dimmed when her voice filled my world. If she noticed how I lingered sometimes, how my shoulders loosened when she leaned in, she never said a word.
And I never asked for a hearing aid. Not because Grandad couldnât afford oneâthough he couldnâtâbut because I didnât feel like I needed one. Not when Alexia was there.
Alexia, of course, lived for the playground.
âFĂștbol,â she declared at recess, as if it were the only possible choice.
I groaned every time. âWhy canât we just sit under the tree? I have a new book.â
âBooks are boring.â
âTheyâre not boring.â
âThey donât score goals.â
So Iâd stand in goal, awkward and stiff, while Alexia fired shot after shot with her scuffed sneakers. Half the time I dodged instead of blocking, flinching when the ball flew at my head. Sheâd laugh, collapsing on the grass, hair sticking to her forehead with sweat.
âYouâre hopeless,â she teased once.
âI told you I donât like sports.â
âYou like me, though,â she grinned, nudging my shoulder.
I rolled my eyes. But I didnât deny it.
By middle school, things shifted.
The boys who used to tease me now teased Alexia insteadâsaying football was for men, saying she was too serious, too bossy. She ignored them, but I saw the way her jaw clenched, the way her knuckles tightened on her backpack straps.
One afternoon, I found her sitting alone on the bleachers, soccer ball resting against her shin.
âYouâre going to let them win if you stop playing,â I said, sitting beside her.
Her eyes flicked to me, searching. âYou really think Iâm good?â
âI know you are.â
She leaned back, staring at the sky, then turned toward me, studying my face so intently it made me squirm.
âWhat?â I asked.
âNothing,â she muttered quickly, looking away. But I noticed the faint flush creeping up her neck.
I didnât realize it then, but that was when Alexia started seeing me differently. Maybe she didnât understand it yetâmaybe neither of us didâbut something shifted between us that day.
And if Iâm honest, I felt it too.
The Putellasâ house always smelled like home.
It was so different from our apartmentâsmall, drafty in winter, full of secondhand furniture that creaked when you sat down. Grandad did his best, kept it tidy, whistled while he cooked so the rooms didnât feel too quiet. But stepping into Alexiaâs house was like entering another world.
Her momâs sing-song Catalan filled every corner. Alba giggled down the hall, always in motion. There was always food, always laughter, always someone tugging you into the warmth.
Grandad and Mr. Putellas would talk for hours over glasses of wine, their laughter growing louder with each pour. And me? I sat with Alexia, shoulder to shoulder, as she leaned close to translate jokes Iâd missed.
âYou hear that?â she whispered.
I nodded, smiling. But it wasnât the jokes that made me happiestâit was her closeness.
I remember one Easter when her mom insisted Grandad and I join their trip to the coast.
âCome,â she said. âYou canât sit in that apartment when the sea is waiting.â
So we went. Alexia and I spent the afternoon building a crooked sandcastle, Alba gleefully stomping it flat over and over. Alexia chased her down the beach, hair flying, while I traced patterns in the sand with a stick.
When the sun dipped low, we sat on a blanket eating bocadillos as the waves crashed. Grandad leaned back against the sand, eyes closed, more at peace than Iâd ever seen him.
âYou okay?â Alexia asked softly, bumping her knee against mine.
I looked at her freckles, her sunburnt nose, her restless energy that belonged to the pitch.
âYeah,â I said. âIâm okay.â
And I meant it. Because when Alexia was there, I always was.
The truth is, I knew Alexia had a crush on me before she did.
It was in the little things: how she hovered close when other kids talked to me, how she always seemed too eager to walk me home, how her gaze lingered longer than friendsâ usually did.
I never teased her. Maybe because I secretly liked the attention. Maybe because I wasnât ready to admit I felt something too.
Middle school was when I started to notice: the flutter in my chest when she leaned in during class, the tingling in my hand after hers brushed mine, the way âfriendâ suddenly felt too small for us.
I didnât have the words for it then. But I had the feeling. And it was enough.
The first time I saw Alexia on a real pitch, under the glow of stadium lights, I understoodâfootball wasnât just a game for her. It was destiny.
She had begged me for weeks to come.
âYou have to be there,â she insisted, bouncing on her toes.
âI donât even like football.â
âYou like me, though.â
So that Friday night, Grandad walked me to the youth ground with a thermos of tea. The air was chilly, the stands half-full, but when Alexiaâs team ran onto the field in red-and-blue kits, my heart swelled. She looked so small compared to the othersâskinny legs, messy ponytailâbut her eyes burned like the floodlights themselves.
From the whistle, she was everywhere. Running, tackling, passing, shouting orders like sheâd been born to command the game. And when the ball landed at her feet near the edge of the box, I held my breath.
One touch. A swing of her left boot.
The net rippled.
The crowd eruptedâparents clapping, kids cheeringâbut Alexiaâs eyes went straight to me. And when she found me in the stands, bundled in Grandadâs oversized scarf, clapping like a fool, her smile split the night open.
Iâd never been so proud.
Grandad leaned over. âSheâs going to be someone, that one.â
I nodded, throat tight. âShe already is.â
After the match, she came running over, sweat dripping, cheeks flushed with victory. She grabbed my hand and pressed it to her chest, right over her racing heart.
âDid you see?â she asked breathlessly.
âI saw everything,â I whispered.
And maybe I wasnât talking about the goal.
That night, walking home under the streetlamps, her fingers brushed mine again and again. Neither of us said anything. But both of us felt itâthe unspoken something buzzing in the space between us.
Long before the storm, there was this: two girls on the cusp of everything, dreaming under the same sky.
And though I didnât know it yet, my heart had already chosen her.