“He hates me, Mia!” I told my best friend’s girlfriend, who technically was one of the 10 closest people to me, but right now, her best friend, Min Yoongi, the IDOL Min Yoongi, the literal man I have had a crush on since I was 20 does not like me, and maybe even, hate me. “What did you tell him about me?” I cried.
“Omg, don’t be dramatic, Y/n. He does not hate you,” She laughed it off busy picking cupcakes for the evening party tonight.
“No, no. Listen to me. I have seen every interview, every behind the stage video, every live, to know his expression when he does not like something. It’s embarrassing for me to realise this for myself. But, the fact he does not like me is very transparent,” I presented my case, with my solid arguments in a little bakery in Seoul like a world class lawyer.
“You’re insane. What happened to who he is as a person will stand different from his media personality bit that you went on about the other day.” She argued.
“That doesn’t change his literal expression. His expression of ‘oh, I don’t like this or I don’t like HER! Has he said anything about me?” I asked.
“No...no, he hasn’t,” She was lying.
“What did he say?” I asked, my lips in pout so she can’t avoid me.
“Okay, he was concerned. You live with Do-hwan, and he thought there is a chance of something going on between you too, and I need to be careful. I think, he must have seen you two fight,” She laughed.
“What? Did you tell him that given the opportunity i would rather date you?” I asked, appalled.
“Yes! I did! Do you also, want the red velvet ones?” I nodded, and she kept them in her basket. “I also, told him that you’re my baby so, he is being an idiot. We will have this in the big box, please,” Mia handed the huge basket to the cashier.
“This sucks. My favourite idol hates me and I haven’t even done anything.” No one could understand this, but I could cry.
---
I’m thinking tons and tons of SMUT. And maybe 2 or 3 parts.
The Murderbot Diaries writing prompt #02: Are We Really Doing This Again?
It all started with some crazed human shouting some weird technobabble gibberish that Murderbot didn't bother to look up the definitions for, waving around in a panic some sort of large weapon-looking thing that was connected by some tubing to a giant machine bolted to the floor of the dead spaceship and sparking dangerously with electricity in a way that was absolutely not safe for anyone.
Before Murderbot could react -- (yes, it happened that fast) -- the main part of the machine let out a shrieking sound, and a beam of energy that only Murderbot could see shot out of the end of the nozzle the panicked human was still waving around, and slammed directly into the side of Murderbot's head.
(Archived read-more link)
The next thing it knew, it was jumping forward in a delayed, reflexive attempt to dodge the beam that had already hit it, and found itself suddenly with no ground beneath its feet, and then it was falling, tumbling head over heels, down what seemed like a cliff, unable to get any bearings at all and unable to slow its fall as its mind scrambled to catch up with the suddenly changed situation. There wasn't enough time to try digging its hands into the dirt it was falling past, and none of its frantic, disoriented attempts to slow its fall did anything.
Going from inside a cramped, dark dead ship to falling full speed down a cliff with a nauseatingly bright purple visible every other moment when its head spun to face upward was bewildering, to say the least.
Over the sound of every part of its body slamming repeatedly into dirt and rocks, it could hear the sounds of familiar human voices shouting over eachother in clear alarm, along with dozens of warnings from various sources, but it shut them all out, trying to focus on slowing its uncontrolled fall to no avail.
When it finally slammed to a halt, it fortunately managed to land squarely on its stomach, instead of its head or legs. Its armour supposedly would have stopped bones from being broken, but you never could be too sure it'd actually live up to that promise. Several of the times Murderbot had been dismembered while in the Company's hands had been because its armour wasn't actually up to the standard it claimed it was.
The force with which it had finally slammed to the ground would have been enough to kill an unarmored human instantly, but fortunately, its armour this time seemed up to the test, because it didn't even get the wind knocked out of its lungs like it'd been fearing. That had only happened to it a few times, because its lungs were sturdier than a human's but it was a sickeningly unpleasant experience that it never wanted to experience again if it could help it.
It wanted to sit up, but when it tried, its armour zapped it and then starting pinging it with alarms, warning it that the structural integrity was at risk and it should be placed in a repair cabinet before being trusted to protect the wearer.
It shut off the armour's alarm and sat up stubbornly, trying to figure out what was happening. This was the kind of armour the Company rented, not like anything they had on Preservation, not like anything it'd worn for years.
The first thing it saw when it sat up and got its eyes to focus was the bottom of a crater stretching out before it, with steep, black walls of loose soil rising in the distance, with the purple sky overhead streaming bright with sunlight, with brown and gold planetary rings stretching across the vaulted ceiling of the sky, and...
...wait a minute.
It was only then that Drs. Bharadwaj and Volescu came into view, both of them running full tilt and skidding to a stop in front of Murderbot, assisted by the extremely and unpleasantly familiar, color-coded exploration suits they were wearing.
It was after Murderbot realized that Dr. Bharadwaj wasn't using her cane, and that this type of exploration suit wasn't fit to support an injured leg to, that the improbable, ridiculous, absurd idea of what might be happening started to dawn on it, despite all its logic trying to push the idea away. Time travel wasn't actually real, it was only something that happened in fiction.
It was probably hallucinating. Or dreaming. Because it was definitely Drs. Bharadwaj and Volescu in front of it, rushing forward to –
Oh fuck!
It realized what they were about to do an instant too late to stop them, and then it was too late to pull away as violently as it wanted to without severely injuring them.
Dr. Bharadwaj grabbed one of its arms, and Dr. Volescu grabbed the other, and they attemped to pull it to its feet, and all the while their concerned voices were overlapping along with the conflicting and progressively overwhelming messages and commands it was receiving from its governer module, the med system, and the other humans who were still on the comm.
Fortunately, it was wearing its armour, so they weren't touching it directly, but even so, it could feel the pressure, and it promised worse.
It was bewildered and disoriented, unable to figure out what was going on with all the chaotic inputs it suddenly found it couldn't handle. It found itself pulling away from the humans more roughly than it should have and leaping to its feet and landing several feet away from their reaching hands, snapping, without thinking, too confused and overwhelmed to do anything else at the moment, “My contract forbids you from touching me without my permission!”
It felt its governer module try and fail to fry its brain as Drs. Volescu and Bharadwaj fell backwards to the ground, shock plain on both of their faces through their transparent visors.
And it was only at that exact moment that Murderbot remembered the danger they were all in, remembered why the Dr. Bharadwaj it knew in what was undeniably the future never went anywhere without one of her canes.
The world seemed to move in slow motion as it started running forward to grab its friends to get them out of the crater and out of danger, every sense in its body, both mechanical and organic, suddenly, dreadfully certain that it was too late.
It was too late.
The giant, predatory tunneler exploded up out of the ground below the two humans, teeth whirling, and the comm units were filled with screams.
Murderbot didn't bother reaching for the gun on its back. After that fall down the hill, it was unlikely to be functioning. Instead, it launched itself straight for the animal's mouth, just like the last time Dr. Bharadwaj had been caught, pulled the two unconcious humans out and leapt clear, then opened the gun ports in its arms, and fired as rapidly as it could into the creature's throat on full power, aiming for the teeth, the soft inside of the mouth, and the back of the throat. It knew not to waste its time trying to hit the brain above the mouth, it wouldn't stop it.
But pain was pain, and maybe, if it hurt it badly enough, it wouldn't want to come back for seconds. The animal reared back violently away from the assault, and a few of the bursts hit its underside, cracking and charring the flesh in large circles of black before it plunged backwards back down the tunnel out of reach.
The roar of the hopper was suddenly audible overhead, and Murderbot knew that Dr. Mensah and Ratthi had arrived, flying to the rescue just half a minute too late.
Murderbot dropped down and clamped its hands over the horrible injuries the two scientists had sustained, feeling like it was also going into some sort of shock.
Dr. Volescu's left foot was gone, and so was Dr. Bharadwaj's entire right leg. It wasn't just chunks missing this time, the whole thing was gone.
Murderbot had miraculously managed to get them both out of the animal's mouth without getting debilitatingly injured itself this time, but even so, it knew it wouldn't be able to carry both of them up the steep wall of the crater by itself. All of the medical supplies had been left over in the center of the crater where they'd been standing before Murderbot fell down the hill.
The only thing it could do was crouch over them, its armoured hands covered in their blood, and wait for the hopper to get close enough that they could be pulled inside to safety, desperately hoping that they would survive, not knowing what it would do if they didn't.
Murderbot could feel an involuntary shutdown coming on.
::Please hurry.:: It sent to Dr. Mensah, as the roar of the hopper grew so loud that it was barely even aware when its cognitive systems finally shut down from the stress.
Set in an AU where Thor is Theo, the wealthy son of a university president and Jane is a struggling scholarship student. The weather is nasty, and Jane is sick. Theo offers her some comfort.
Jane wrapped her arms tightly around herself as the freezing February wind did its best to pierce through her old jacket. The sharp inhale that the wind had forced out of her caused her to cough for the hundredth time that day. She had been coughing all weekend too, and her symptoms seemed to be getting worse, not better.
Her next class was in the building furthest from her dorm and it had been a long, miserable walk. When she at last arrived and stepped inside, she breathed a sigh of relief to be out of the wind, but of course sighing made her cough. Grimacing from the pain in her throat, she shuffled the rest of the way to chem lab.
Her lab partner Theo was already seated at their table, looking cool and put-together as always. They exchanged their customary wordless nod of greeting, then she slumped into her seat with another little cough.
Theo fidgeted around, looking bored. He had always strongly reminded her of a golden retriever-- pretty and friendly, but mostly a big, dumb blonde. He also happened to be the son of the school's long-standing president, which only added to the pampered pet analogy. He had been raised eating from the silver doggy bowl, if you will.
"Gross weather today, huh? I hate this month. Everything is miserable in February," Theo finally blurted out. Jane had learned early on that he was the type of person that couldn't tolerate silence for long. He was charismatic to the point of being almost electric, and constantly needed stimulation.
She grunted noncommittally. Usually she was happy to chat with him, but today talking was painful and would just make her cough again. Not that the coughing needed any encouragement, because she coughed again anyway a few moments later, pulling her turtleneck sweater over her mouth to muffle it somewhat. God, this sucked.
Theo was looking at her now. Actually studying her was probably more accurate. She felt herself redden and tried to ignore him. Just then the bell rang. Because she was so distracted, it startled her, and she gasped, which of course led to yet another coughing fit. This one was the worst yet, and it took a moment for her to catch her breath.
Theo scrutinized her with concern. "That cough sounds very… persistent," he whispered as the teacher began the lecture.
"I guess," she mumbled to the table as she tried and failed to suppress a harsh shiver, pulling her jacket closer around her. The heat hadn't been working well in the dorms, and the hot water had never been good. She couldn't remember when she'd last been really warm. Not since before the cough started.
"You look pretty sick. Are you sure you should be here right now?"
"This class is totally attendance based," she mumbled hoarsely. "Don't have much choice."
"Yeah, I guess… But you clearly have a fever, so you have a valid excuse. You shouldn't have come."
He wouldn't turn his dumb blue eyes away from her and it was getting annoying. If she could stop shivering maybe she could think straight and listen to the lecture.
After a moment Jane turned back to him, glaring. "Stop looking at me so weird, ok? Yeah, so I'm sick. Big deal. That's life when you live in a freezing dorm. I promise to keep my germs away from you. Just mind your own business, please?"
Theo's brow furrowed now. "Your teeth are chattering because you're shivering so hard."
Before she could open her mouth to reply, in one motion Theo had taken off his coat and placed it around her shoulders. She actually sank down with the weight of it, it was so heavy. It was made of soft camel suede and lined with sherpa, not to mention warm from his body heat and lightly scented with male fragrances. She had eyed it enviously more than once. She tried to shrug it off right away, a protest on her lips.
He touched his hands to her shoulders, preventing her from moving. "Please take it. You need it more than I do right now. You're freezing."
"But I'll cough all over it," she mumbled. Amazingly, she already felt significantly warmer.
"So what? It's just a coat. I want you to use it."
"...thank you. I guess," she mumbled, speaking to the table again, her face bright red. She hesitantly pulled it closer around herself. She had never worn something so plush and warm.
Neither of them heard much of the lecture that day. Jane was careful to only cough into her turtleneck the rest of the hour, wanting to keep the coat as perfect as possible. Theo glanced at her worriedly every time her "persistent" cough got the better of her, and every time she felt his eyes, she flushed.
When they were dismissed, Theo hung back and waited for her, when usually he was one of the first to leave. He shuffled his feet, looking awkward as she packed up, the air crackling with tension. When she finally met his eyes, he started speaking in a rush:
"Hey, so I was wondering… would you… maybe want to come back to my apartment?… instead of going to the dorms I mean. This probably sounds super weird, but I know the dorms are freezing and you just… you seem really sick and I want to help. My girlfriend Steph is there, and my brother Luke if that makes you more comfortable."
Her eyebrows shot up. In any other circumstance, she would've assumed this to be a weird pick-up tactic or a ploy for a threesome. However, she had a strong hunch he was being genuine. "Uh… thanks but no. I don't really know you that well? So I don't think it's a good idea. But I really… I really appreciate the offer."
"Yeah, yeah I get it but I guess I just… wanted to let you know it was an option. Can I at least like… drive you back to your dorm?"
She bit the inside of her cheek. Even with his coat, it would be a long, miserable walk. "Yeah, I guess. Thanks."
"Yeah, of course!" When she was ready, he practically jogged out to the parking lot, as if he didn't even feel the cold, powered by his own current. He led the way to his car, a pristine Jeep that had to be less than three years old. He opened the passenger door for her and closed her in before getting in himself, turning the heat on full blast as they pulled out.
The walk that would have taken her almost twenty minutes in the ice and wind took less than five minutes to drive. The car was already warm by the time they arrived though, so she was loath to get out. She tried to shrug his coat off yet again, and yet again he stopped her.
"I'm serious, keep it for now. Give it back to me when you're feeling better, or when it's less cold. I don't need it that much. And if you change your mind about coming over, message me through the portal. It's a standing offer."
"Well… ok. Thanks for… everything, Theo. You've been very… very sweet."
"No problem."
It seemed there was nothing else to do but get out, so that's what she did, pulling the coat close around her. When she was a few feet away from the car, she turned and waved, and he waved back. She smiled to herself as she made her way inside, reveling in the sensation of being warm.
The Green Atomic V-8 rolled up to the ticket window.
"Two, please." Staff Sergeant Vincent 'Nate' Hudson handed over several twenty dollar bills and received a key to the speaker stand.
A skinny young man with a smile that looked like he'd worn it so long it hurt waved usher flags at them as he directed them to their spot. Nora leaned forward to say a cheery 'thankyou' past her husband.
It had been over a year since they'd had a chance to get to the movies. Nate had been kept busy with military duties and during the last furlough, had been on a long biker's weekend with the MIDknights.
Vincent's mood recently had been low. He was struggling with quitting Buffout and every time he made some progress, the army had tried to force him back onto it. He kept refusing but couldn't be certain that they weren't still putting it in the soldier's food, though he wasn't about to worry his wife with that detail.
So date-night at the drive-in had been his idea, one that Nora resisted a couple of times because the movies had all had names like 'The Invasion from the Stars' or 'RALPHIE the Robot's Incredible Odyssey!'
She had hoped to catch 'Love Sets Sail' but it had just finished its run. She finally gave in when her husband pointed out that "Night of the Fishmen's Revenge!" was showing next. His face lit up and Nora glimpsed the twelve-year old he must have been, bright green eyes shining and cheeks rounded out with his wide grin - an expression she hadn't seen in far too long. Her Nate did love those silly Grognak comics and his ridiculous monster movies.
* * *
Engines were turned off; candy, popcorn and Nuka Colas were purchased from the usherettes. The sun set in perfect timing as the projector flickered to life, showcasing the usual guidelines for 'everyone's movie enjoyment', several commercials, a Vault-Tec cartoon and then finally, the main feature.
Nate put a relaxed arm around Nora's shoulders and she snuggled into the touch.
The announcer's deep, theatrical voice began poetically:
"Out of the mist and slime,
Of a time before the history of man,
Birthed from the deep of Earth's unexplored oceans,
Comes an abomination science cannot comprehend…
To menace the Earth!
And attack!"
Music swelled and Nora pecked her husband's cheek. His eyes were glued to the screen, hers caught a glimpse in the rear view mirror as she resumed her recline.
"Oh! Jenny's here, darling. You know the friend I made at the coffee shop?"
"Mm hmm."
Credits were rolling now:
Carl Dickson as - Captain Buchanan
Synthia Marsh as - Sandy FitzGerald
Kit Denning as - Doug Flanagan
Anton Collins as - the Old Fisherman
Introducing Mae Whitley as - Dottie
"Oh!" Exclaimed Nora." That's Jenny's friend from the theatre! She mentioned that Mae got into movies last year."
"Good for her," mumbled Nate around a mouthful of popcorn.
With Nikolai Barsuvian as "The Fish Man.
In "Terrorvision!"
"Looks like she's here with her fiancé, too. Quite a dapper chap…"
Nate looked over, a tiny frown on his brow. "Hon, hush wouldya please? Movie's startin'."
She giggled and made a mock zipper motion over her mouth. He leaned over and whispered (as on screen a boat was tossed about in a stormy sea and the camera zoomed in), "Well that's no good, how'm I gonna kiss ya, knockout?" and 'unzipped' it again.
They smiled warmly at each other, kissed briefly and returned their attention to the screen where the Captain of the boat - a dashing hero with a short, dark moustache and eyebrows, one preferring a high perch and one low - shouted orders to his skipper.
The music sank, dark and ominous as the hero's words reverberated through the in-car speaker:
"Like the Red Menace we face by day, these creatures of the deep dark will never give us mercy, Doug, you better believe that!"
Nora squeezed his hand. She had joked about the movie being cheesy but here she was, getting thoroughly carried along with it. Nate's gaze flicked to her illuminated face, a warm smile spreading between the arms of his bikers' moustache.
* * *
The snacks were low, the storyline at a climax. Nora was pressing into Nate's side, squeezing his hand. The heroine was in deadly peril but Vincent Nathaniel Hudson hadn't felt this safe for a long time.
I can't stand here, Doug! Not while they have Sandy! Who knows what un-American filth they could be doing to her!"
That sparked a mischievous thought from Nate of what he could get up to when they got home.
Nora's friend-of-a-friend showed up as 'Dottie', leading the Captain to the secret underwater entrance. The love-interest was rescued, the terrible monster defeated in a nail-biting tussle, the music came to a crescendo and animated curtains fell, the legend 'THE END' appearing in majestic script.
Nora turned to Nate. "Did you enjoy that, hon?"
"Not nearly as much as I'm going to enjoy repeating that rescue when I get you home!"
Nora laughed. "Vincent?" she began, quietly.
He knew she was about to say something serious when she used his first name. He silently caressed her cheek in response, waiting.
"How about we try for a baby again?"
He kissed her quickly before she could see the joyful tears well in his eyes, though she felt them on her own cheek. Pulling away, she wiped her face and smiled.
"My hero," she said.
~The End~
Notes: Carl Summers, stage name Carl Dickson, is the OC of my Real Life Romanced Companion, who also wrote the snippets of movie script for this chapter.
Rin hissed as Opal pulled back on his hair. The rest of his team, Anisha, Laurance, Kiera, and young Souka, were unconscious and bound, laying in front of him in a neat row.
“Let’s play a game,” Opal said cheerfully, causing Rin to groan loudly. Opal’s games were anything but fun.
“It’s a game I’m sure you’ve heard of,” Opal continued, ignoring Rin and his vague wiggling as he tried to slide out of the rough rope that bound his wrists in front of him. “Pick who dies.”
Rin glared up at her through a swollen eye. “What makes you think I’m going to do that.”
“Because, if you don’t, I’ll kill all of you. And, no, you can’t choose yourself. That takes some of the fun out of it. I like watching Adventurers weigh the pros and cons of their teammates. I might even have you walk through your decision out loud.”
Rin glared at her, picking apart this mental puzzle. His raw wrists pounded with each of his heartbeats and his tail hurt from where it had been bent the wrong way earlier. He grinned, blood dripping from a cut on his lip. “Anisha.”
Opal stared at him for a moment, completely still. She swore and kicked Rin in the side, dropping him to the ground. She turned and left the room as Rin wheezed, holding his side as best he could. His gamble had paid off. Just as he suspected, Opal refused to kill Anisha. Not yet, anyways.
