the kpop simp

@the-cereal-simp 's alt kpop only blog

[sainns]

ex boyfriend texts

lee heeseung ㅤx ㅤfemreader ㆍ genre smau fluff crack warnings suicide jokes, heeseung is Not standing on business but you are

note THIS WAS SO HARD ..... anyways this is for @leeheevs and @wvnkoi enjoy please please

[0x1lovebot]

— random bf! seungmin texts —

genre — smau, crack

warnings — unserious behavior ofc, blonde seungmin, a little suggestive in some parts

a/n — blonde seungmin >>>!! blonde skz >>>>>

© 2024 copyright. all rights reserved. @0x1lovebot.

[97-liners]

manager!jeonghan x fem!celebrity!reader

genres & themes: fake dating but subverted, celebrity au, fluff, rom com, romance

words: 9.5k

warnings: nothing really explicitly described or overly angsty, but mc is a celebrity and was a child star, and several other characters are also celebrities. because of that, there’s mentions of media pressure, paparazzi stalking, questionable managers/parents while she was a child star, body image concerns, dieting, and a generally unhealthy hollywood lifestyle. but i keep everything relatively light! this is definitely not angst!

in which your manager, jeonghan, thinks it’ll be good publicity for you to date hollywood actor and notable heartthrob, joshua hong. of course, everything would be nice and easy if you ended up falling in love with your fake boyfriend joshua, but life is complicated, and your heart ends up pulling you in another direction completely.

feat: hot actor with a heart of gold joshua, eccentric soundcloud rapper vernon, long-suffering personal trainer seungcheol, and angry producer jihoon

title and soundtrack: down to earth - umi 

Keep reading

[i-luvsang]

the perfect muse — kang yeosang

for : 1.5k milestone event ➖⟢ pairing : design student!yeosang x art student!gn!reader ➖⟢ genres : fluff ➖⟢ cw : not proofread/edited, bit of kissing ➖⟢ wc : 0.6K ➖⟢ rating : pg-13

moodboard : art student!au + k.ys

yeosang is the perfect muse. and he doesn’t even know it. maybe, you ponder, that’s part of the charm and allure. in your design class you used to get distracted by the slope of his nose and pretty birthmark by his eye. you’ve always thought it looks a bit like a heart. you’d sketch his gorgeous form, your pen working faster and more passionately than it would for any class assignment.

now, he’s sitting in your bedroom, his laptop propped up on your desk and headphones covering his ears as he chips away at his homework. he looks even prettier like this than he did in that classroom and you think it’s because you’ve felt his lips on yours.

this time, your drawing is careful, unrushed compared to the way they used to be. you’ve got all the time in the world to look at him, to drink him in, and to make it clear to anyone who looks at this sturdy piece of paper that you’re in love with him. in your lovestruck eyes, he’s so pretty, so sweet, so endearing, and so completely glorious in the way he does everything. 

a glance at him hard at work, with that look of concentration in his eyes, has you abandoning your actual drawing assignments in favor of capturing his beauty once more. the subtle flex of his bare arms, graciously revealed to you by his favorite black tank top, has you feeling like michelangelo; overly-passionate and dedicated to capturing the glory of the body through defined and detailed musculature to parallel the beauty of the soul.

you’re so enraptured by him, so determinted to commit his grace and domesticity to the page, that you don’t register his gaze on you until you look up to extend the lines that etch out his left forearm. but your eyes land on his own, which now take in your form rather than the carefully constructed shapes and colors on his computer. you break into a grin, taking in his body, twisting to see you, and the way he’s pulled off one side of his headphones to hear you over his music. his head is quirked to the side, as if he’s wondering about something you can give him the answer to.

“are you drawing me?” his rich voice makes you wish you could depict sounds on a piece of paper the way you could with his pretty lips.

the question pulls a slightly startled laugh from your lips. of course you’re drawing him. when are you not? you think it would be impossible for him not to know this.

“yes,” you confirm aloud, almost at a loss for what else to say. it’s not as if you try to hide it.

he blushes hard. “why?”

“because you look pretty like that. you always look pretty.”

he blushes harder. he really walked into that one.

“oh,” he breathes out. “thanks, angel.” he fights a grin and you fight the urge to kiss him harder than ever. how could he call you “angel” when he looks like that and when his ears are burning red and you’ve flustered him speachless? gods above, what is there not to utterly adore about him?

and now that he has his answer, he turns back to his work, the blush barely fading from his

cheeks as he readjusts his headphones. he doesn’t even ask to see the drawing, like anyone else might. he just sits there, hardly able to concentrate on his own work anymore, but sitting there, periodically glancing back at you with a shy smile until you’re satisfied or can’t keep yourself from abandoning your drawing for something you love even more; the way he’ll press a kiss to your jawline when you wrap your arms around him from behind and tell him aloud that he’s your perfect muse.

[cromernet]

→ NEW RELEASE: the perfect muse - kang yeosang by @i-luvsang

Feedback: Oh how i whished to actually get to be in that situation! He truly is a sight to behold and you captured it so perfectly and effortlessly! I can absolutely understand why he is the perfect muse!

[athforskz]

Random Texts with bf!Seungmin

Warnings: Language, fluff, a little suggestive

Screenshots: 6

MDNI 18+

[edenesth]

[12:58 PM]

"Well, how does it taste?"

Peering through the doorway, you tried not to make a sound as your boyfriend's mother asked, her eyes gleaming with affection, watching as her son, who was finally back home after a lengthy absence, enthusiastically savoured the homemade delicacies before him.

"It's good, as always!" San answered between bites, "Though, I must admit, it's got a slightly different flavour today. Not bad, just different," His mother bit back a grin as she sent a wink in your direction before he continued, "It's got that strong taste of the herb my girlfriend always adds to her dishes."

With a light chuckle, Mrs. Choi inquired, "So, whose version do you prefer then? Mine or your girlfriend's?" He glanced up at her with a puzzled expression, "What do you mean? Didn't you prepare this?"

She shook her head, a cheeky smile on her lips, "Nope, I was lucky to have a very helpful apprentice who volunteered to cook today while your lazy ass slept in."

His chewing halted momentarily as he blinked, straightening up in his seat, "W-wait, you mean—"

Before he could finish, you interpreted his mother's nod as your cue to make your entrance, "Surprise!" You exclaimed, swinging open the door to his parents' room and skipping toward them.

Mrs. Choi cooed as she enveloped you in a hug, "This is my lovely assistant for the day. How did you enjoy her cooking?"

As he took in your presence and processed the fact that you were really here, he crossed his arms over his chest and pouted, "Babe, did you lie to me? I thought you said you were too busy to come to Namhae with me."

"You ungrateful brat!" He yelped when his mother smacked him on the shoulder, "Is that all you have to say to your girlfriend after she took an emergency leave from work just to rush over here so she could surprise you and spend some time with us?"

His eyes widened in realisation, guilt flooding over him for immediately accusing you of lying to him. Jumping up from his seat, he hurried over to you, ready to beg for forgiveness if necessary, "Oh my gosh, you did? I'm so sorry, babe!"

While he tried to embrace you, Mrs. Choi shot him a stern glare, "You better be! Otherwise, I'll take her with me today to meet my friends, and you can spend the rest of the day alone at home!"

You snickered as he cowered behind you, attempting to use you as a shield, "I was wrong, eomma! I'll treat her well, please don't take her away from me!"

With a scoff, she nodded at the food, signalling for him to finish his meal, "You can start by polishing off what she made." Seeing her preparing to leave home, intending to grant you two some alone time before the family dinner scheduled for later in the evening, you moved to help her gather her belongings.

"Bye, eomma! Have fun with your friends! We'll see you, appa, and noona tonight!" He called out from the dining table, bowing his head in shame when she responded with a hand gesture indicating she would be keeping an eye on him.

"Don't worry about us, aunty. I'll keep him in line," You whispered to her as she slipped on her shoes. She giggled, giving your arm a squeeze, "Good, let me know if he does anything to upset you. I'll straighten him out."

You couldn't contain your laughter when you came back to find him sulking while doing the dishes. Snaking your arms around his waist from behind, you nestled your cheek against his broad shoulder, "What's wrong, Sannie? Aren't you glad I'm here?"

He pouted as he set the clean utensils aside to dry, "Seems like you've already had my mother wrapped around your little finger, huh? I swear, she loves you more than she loves me now."

"If you want her undivided attention, I can leave." You teased.

Before you could pull away, he panicked and spun around to hold you tightly, "N-no, please don't go!" He pleaded, burying his face in your neck, "I was just playing with you, babe. I missed you like crazy. I'm so glad you're here, and seeing you bond with my family means the world to me."

You melted at his words, tightening your embrace, "I know, Sannie. I was just playing with you too."

He couldn't resist moving in to capture your lips in a deep kiss. Your eyes fluttered shut as you kissed him back just as fervently. Pulling back slightly, he murmured against your lips, "Well, instead of playing with my feelings, why don't you play with something else?"

Gasping loudly, your cheeks flushed red at the implication, "Wh-what are you suggesting, Choi San?! This is your family's house, it wouldn't be appropriate—"

He burst into laughter, pecking you on the head, "What were you thinking, babe? I was just talking about Byeol. We haven't been here in so long, I'm sure she misses us. Don't you want to play with her?"

Only then did you recall the presence of his cat, and you turned over your shoulder to find her staring curiously at you and her owner, "R-right, of course. I missed her too."

He cupped your face, urging you to meet his gaze, and grinned slyly, "But you know, if you have other ideas, I'm sure we can—"

"No, stop it, we won't!" You squealed, flustered, pushing him away and rushing over to cover the cat's innocent ears from whatever suggestive remark your boyfriend was about to make.

Gently stroking Byeol's black fur, you cooed down at her, "Don't pay attention to your oppa and his filthy mouth, hm? Unnie will shield you from him," When the adorable creature affectionately mewed and nestled into your hands, you turned to playfully tease him, "See, she already loves me more than she loves you."

Rather than feeling envious, your boyfriend's heart swelled with warmth and love at the sight. It was at this moment that he realised you were the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

ATEEZ Masterlist | My Pookie's Version

Y'all, the way my hand itched the second I saw San's IG update asdfghjkl I just had to write this! My bestie and I both decided to write our own versions of scenarios inspired by these photos. Do check out her version!

As always, thank you for reading and let me know your thoughts! <3

Tag list: @aurasblue @marievllr-abg @itsvxlentine @minghaoslatina @huachengsbestie01 @evidive @weedforthoughtz @minkiflwr @cheolliehugs @ho3-for-yunho @cereal-simp @itstheghostofmypast @vantediary @green-agent @sharksandminhos @writingwieny @heyitsmetonid

All Rights Reserved © edenesth // DO NOT REPOST, TRANSLATE, PLAGIARISE OR REPURPOSE.

[itstheghostofmypast]

DEAD- DECEASED- I PASSED AWAY WITH ALL THE SQUEALING AND FANGIRLING. MY BLOOD PRESSURE, HEART RATE - IS ABOVE THE ROOF THAT AND MY DELULU SELF- I- @edenesth I HOPE YOU ENJOYED TOYING WITH MY FEELINGS

[itstheghostofmypast]

01.53

Kim Hongjoong x (f)Reader

Summary: She was his feisty kitten, his Princess, his girl who followed the three G's- gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss- but most importantly she was his princess with a severe migraine issue.

Genre: Fluff

Warnings: None

Word count : 1k

Est. Read Time: 5 min

Networks: @cromernet @k-labels

Rating: SFW

A/N: @edenesth this one's for you (I really need to finish my due work)

Banner by: @cafekitsune

She sat up swiftly, almost falling off in the process, blinking at the sight of the unfamiliar yet familiar wall in front of her. Taking a bit longer to buffer as she looked around, squinting at the darkness until her eyes landed on the black tuft of an idiot she called hers. The light of the computer created a silhouette of his figure- why were all the lights off?

"Joong?" her voice hoarse and scratchy making her wince, though it was enough to catch his attention. Swirling around to her he smiled at her, 'Baby, did I wake you up?' he whispered, trying not to be too loud, making sure his princess wasn't hurting because of him.

Shaking her head she slowly moved, her feet meeting the carpeted ground as her back pressed against the cool leather, eying her boyfriend lazily, "Why am I here- why are the lights off?"

"Because you were having migraines...did you forget, my feisty kitten?" raising an eyebrow he smirked, " I turned them off so you could sleep." sitting there he eyed her form, dressed in one of his shirts, the blanket pooling around her waist, her hair a mess, though he regretted it wasn't his doing that had turned her hair wild like that.

"Stop it."

"Stop what?"

"Manspreading. You're gross Hongjoong"

"I love you too, baby."

"You're disgusting," she whined, kicking the blanket off as she got up, deciding to go home. The sudden mood swing had confused him, he thought they were only joking, though his body went on auto mode when she stood up, knowing fully well she was not well enough to do so, jumping off his seat to grab her when she tripped.

She didn't know if it was because of the migraines or the fatigue, but as soon as she took the first step towards the door her world blurred, tilting in slow motion, shit. Before she could hit the ground she collided with a warmer, softer surface, a more familiar one. Sighing she inhaled his scent, his cologne and the mists of the aftershave he'd use. Resting her pulsating head against his chest she whined, as if asking him to do something about it.

Shaking his head in disbelief he let out a chuckle, "Princess, don't go scaring me like that." Slowly leading her back to the couch he helped her up, placing a pillow behind her head, after fluffy it up, "Sit up straight, I'll get you some aspirin." tucking her in, even though she was sitting he pecked her cheek, trying to not glance at her pouting lips, inviting him for something more intimate, but her health was what was more important right now.

"Are you...done with your work?' she asked, watching him walk around the small studio, opening a few drawers, her eyes flickering to the bright computer screen, squinting at it, the brightness annoying her.

Turning around with the bottle of pill he looked at her, watching her clear her throat and put up a brave face, as if nothing was wrong. Shaking his head he went over to press the power button of his monitor, turning it off, "You realise pretending it doesn't hurt will only make it worse?" handing her the bottle he grabbed a bottle of water, unscrewing it for her, wanting to help her drink it, though his 'independent ', 'strong', 'immortal' lover took it from him, swallowing the pills and chugging down most of the water.

"Thirsty kitty." smiling at her he sat at the edge of the table in front of her, looking at her, "And to answer your question, I finished my work as soon as you came in, but when you dozed off I let you sleep because I knew waking you up would just worsen your condition."

"Oh." was all she said before putting the bottle aside and tossing off the blanket, "Time to go home them, shorty." throwing in the nickname she glanced at him, earning a glare from him, "I don't think someone who can't take care of themselves should have the right to be mean"

With that he got up, leaning closer, tilting his head, and stopping mere centimetres away from her. Her breath hitched at the proximity, waiting for him, fingers gripping the fluffy blanket in anticipation. His breath fanning across her face, he glanced at her through his long pretty lashes, watching her move her face, trying to make sure there was some form of physical exchange, "Too bad, I don't kiss mean girls." His face was smug and so smackable as he pulled back, smirking down at her as he stood their arms crossed over his chest, watching her shocked features morph into disgust, "So, sorry, princess. I need to pack up so we can go home," making his way to his spread out things, humming to himself like nothing had happened.

He was almost done clearing his desk when something smacked against his head, his hand instinctively pressing against the back of his head as he whipped around to glare at her.

"YAH! DID YOU JUST THROW THE BOTTLE AT ME?"

She sat there all doe-eyed and innocent, pulling the blanket higher to cover her torso as well, resting it on her shoulders, smirking at him- sure her head was still killing her, but who was he to tease her and deny her of the affection she oh so greatly deserved. Even if he had been showing nothing but small gestures filled to the brim with his enormous amount of love for her, perhaps she was needy tonight, perhaps she wanted more than just the usual Hongjoong' non-physical ways of affection, which reminded her of why she had stumbled into the studio at the first place. As soon as she was done with work her headaches had worsened, which is why she had come here, demanding to cuddle to which he had asked her to wait for just an hour- must have dozed off during the waiting session. What a manipulative bastard- he's lucky she loves him, otherwise she would've...well she would've whined and complained louder and harder.

"EXPLAIN YOURSELF?!"

"Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss."

Taglist: @edenesth @mlysalt @spooo00oky @cereal-simp @yessa-vie

[seonghwaddict-deactivated202603]

falling and sleeping — choi jongho

synopsis. falling in love with you felt like falling asleep; natural and unnoticed. pairing. best friend!choi jongho x fem!reader. genre. fluff, crack, friends to lovers. warnings. cursing, none he's just a little nervous. wc. 1.5k. rating. pg-13

lilo’s notes. hiii here's a fluffy little jongho fic because i love him. this isn’t proofread btw i’m sorry for any errors! also, my upload schedule is now on saturday's :3

[ listening to . . . ] from the start by laufey

　　　　　　　　　masterlist.

“hyung!”

jongho burst into the living room of his shared dorm with wooyoung and hongjoong. hongjoong was nowhere to be found, likely at the studio or something, and wooyoung sprawled on the couch, watching a drama on the tv, scrolling through his phone, and taking occasional sips of his comically large coffee cup simultaneously. at the sound and sudden appearance of jongho, he looked away from the screen.

“something wrong?” he yawned, turning his phone off and dropping it on his chest.

“yes. i figured out my problem-“

wooyoung snorted, eyes drifting back to the television screen. “yeah? which one?”

“shut the fuck up, i’ll strangle you,” jongho paused what was supposed to be his dramatic monologue to glare at the dark haired fox-resembling man on the couch. he waited a second before sighing. “my y/n problem. i figured it out. so-“

“you have a problem with her?” at the mention of jongho’s best friend’s name, wooyoung’s attention was captured. if he had a problem with you, that meant something terrible must have happened. truthfully, wooyoung would hate that. he’d been rooting for the two of you for years, even if neither of you were aware of how perfect you were for each other.

“hey! stop interrupting me,” jongho kicked his shin lightly before continuing, “well, no, we don’t have a problem but things felt weird for some reason and i have come to a conclusion.”

“okay… and…?” wooyoung gestured for him to continue, his dramatic pause putting him on edge.

“i’m allergic to her.”

“… excuse me?” it was then that he decided to turn off the tv, giving his full attention to his younger friend.

“i’m allergic to her.”

“oh, for the love of-“ wooyoung groaned and threw himself back on the couch, screaming into a pillow, “CHOI JONGHO YOU’RE IN LOVE WITH HER!”

a confused expression crossed his face as he watched his friend’s dramatic antics and jongho sat down, forcefully pulling the pillow from wooyoung’s face. he should’ve found hongjoong instead, maybe he would’ve been more helpful.

“no, no, don’t be silly,” he tossed the pillow aside and spoke, hands flailing around to emphasise his point. wooyoung was on he verge of banging his head against a wall, “lately when i go near her my stomach itches and i feel all warm and sometimes it gets hard to breath and…”

the realisation that spread across his face was a picture wooyoung wanted to take and print out, plastering it on his wall and also adding it to his resume with the caption ‘i’m literally cupid.’

“… and oh my god i’m in love with her.”

a loud cheer left wooyoung as he sprang up from the couch, going on a five minute rant about how long he’d been waiting for this and how he always knew there was something. “you should go tell her right now.”

“w-what- no! i just figured out i’m in love with my best friend and you expect me to just… go and tell her?”

“that’s exactly what i expect,” he nodded, crossing his arms and leaning his weight on one leg, “didn’t she tell you about how she overheard someone say some guy from her workplace wanted to ask her out for valentines?”

“well, yeah… but-”

“no buts!” he held his palm up, silencing jongho. “you can’t let that home-wrecker ask her out before you. so, get your ass off that couch, change into something nice and go tell her you love her. and buy some flowers in the way.”

“it’s not home-wrecking if we aren’t even toge-“

“that’s besides the point, now do as i say if you ever want a relationship with her.” wooyoung rolled his eyes and turned on his heels, walking to where his jacket hung on the coat rack. he pulled out his wallet and, surprisingly, fished out his credit card to give to jongho. “this is for flowers and some chocolates only.”

and so half an hour later he was walking down the hallway of your floor of your apartment building, wearing an all-black ensemble of slacks a shirt and a trench coat, holding a bouquet of various flowers he didn’t know the names of in one hand and a small box of your favourite chocolate ms in the other. he could still abort and leave without you ever knowing he was there in the first place. you’d given him a key to the building a while ago, trusting him with it since your apartment was practically his second home.

he considered doing just that again, but the bought of you going out with another man who wasn’t him had his heart aching, giving him some courage to finally step in front of your door. he practiced what he wanted to say to you under his breath as he stared at the familiar dark grey door. when he thought he was ready, he reached out to ring the doorbell.

only to pull away at the last second and begging pacing back and forth nervously. eventually, he stopped, clenching his eyes shut and forcing himself to ring your doorbell. there was no going back now.

when you opened the door and you looked at him with your bright eyes and enchanting smile, he felt the nervousness in his stomach melt away and get replaced by butterflies and a soft pink tint on his cheeks. “oh, hey, jjong-“

“i love you.”

you blinked at him, not noticing the very obvious items in his hands, eyes fixed in his face. not quite understanding, you chuckled lightly, “you know i love you too.”

“no, you don’t get it. i mean, i in love with you. i fucking love you and i’m not sure if i’ve ever felt so strongly about someone in my life. i smile when someone mentions you, my heart flutters when i’m around you, fuck, when i see your smile it feels like all my problems have been solved and… your presence, god, it just fucks me up in the best way possible. i can’t believe i didn’t realise this sooner, but i’ve fallen for you, y/n. though, i suppose i didn’t realise it because falling felt like sleeping and sleeping feels so natural and easy that i never realised it until now.”

you stared at each other. he stared with all the admiration he could muster and you stared with mild shock and, under that, relief. “you… you love me?”

“oh my god, i… i’m sorry, i shouldn’t have- i’ve made things awkward, haven’t i? just- just forget that-“

you soft palm covering his lips drove him to silence, looking at you with wide eyes as you pulled him into your apartment, closing the door with your unoccupied hand. his heart skipped a beat as you grinned and whispered your next words.

“jongho, i love you—in that way—too.” you dropped your hand from his mouth slowly, looking down at the flowers and the chocolates, giggling, “you really didn’t have to get all this.”

you took them out of his hands slowly, avoiding his gaze, flustered as you placed his gifts on the marble counter of the kitchen behind you. he hadn’t said anything since your confession, cheeks burning and jaw dropped slightly. he couldn’t believe it. he couldn’t believe you liked loved him back.

he drew your attention to him, breathing out your name. “you… you love me too?”

“yes, you dense cabbage, i love you,” your laugh was melodic as you took both his hands in yours, nodding, “now shut up and kiss me.”

jongho’s expression finally changed into a giddy grin as he pulled his hands out of your grasp to hold your waist, leaning forward and brushing his lips against yours. when you didn’t protest, not that he expected you to, he deepened it into a proper kiss that he hoped conveyed his need for you. he felt like his knees would go weak as your delicate hands trailed up his torso to his head, brushing his hair absentmindedly as you kissed him back with equal intensity.

eventually, you had to separate to catch your breaths and jongho mentally cursed the human need for oxygen. he liked kissing you, your lips slotting together like puzzle pieces. when he felt like the tension had gone completely, he leaned forward to press repeated pecks to your lips, basking in the way you giggle and tried to meet each one of his quick kisses.

“i think i have a tiny crush on you,” you muttered once he decided he kissed you enough (it was never enough, really, but he wanted to let you breathe), fighting back a stupid grin.

“you think?” he snorted, one hand coming up to cup your cheek, thumb tracing your jawline and eyes full of affection.

“yeah, a teeny tiny one.”

he laughed heartily, giving you one more peck “i paid with wooyoung’s card, by the way.”

“in that case you should’ve gotten at least five more bouquets.”

　　[ network ... ] @cromernet

　　[ perm taglist — open ... ] @ad0rechuu @sankatchu @mlink64 @yeosangsbb @seonghwasbbgirl @likexaxdaydream @dreamingofyeo

[cromernet]

→ NEW RELEASE: falling and sleeping — choi jongho by @seonghwaddict

Feedback: This had me kicking my feet so much!!! "i'm allergic to her." HEKSÖVDV HUH? WHAT? I almost spit out my water right then and there!!!! And that confession? It's just so Jongho! And Reader lovingly calling him a dense cabbage- I am WHEEZING

[jinhyun]

↬you autocorrect "love" to "hate" on his phone.

pairings: ot8 x reader

genre: i'd say only humor this time lol, maybe fluff idk

a/n: hello, everyone! i haven't posted in a while bc of writer's block but i finally felt like writing something and came up with this. idek what it is but i hope you guys enjoy lol. please let me know your thoughts, you know i love reading them<3

[nicole-c-ish]

The "I FUCKING WORSHIP THE GROUND YOU WALK ON" from Lix is so him HAHAHAH. They're all so cute, lino and bin beating the system then gave up HAHA 🥹😭

[thelargefrye]

ATEEZ AS MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHERS ... bullet - point fic ( 17+ )

pairing : teacher!ateez x teacher!f!reader (separately)

genre : teacher au, fluff, comedy, workplace romance, bulletpoint headcanons, implied co-workers to lovers (for all of them), secret relationships (for a lot of them)

word count : 4.1k

warnings : middle schoolers (yes this is needed), mentions of students shipping their teachers, mentions of a past make-out from college (mingi's section)

note : inspired by these prompts and my own job lol

honorary tag : @sanjoongie

what i think it would be like working with ateez in a middle school and perhaps being something more than co-workers with them.

KIM HONGJOONG

he's a math teacher – seventh grade and also head of the math department at the school

when he's teaching, he's in his element and he's very passionate about teaching his student and the content

he was terrible at math when he was a student and often tells his own students in order to motivate them...

sometimes it works but most times it doesn't

he's definitely one of the more stricter teachers at the beginning of the year, but lets up near the end of the year

students love him, like there's not one kid who hates him

some students do wonder how he manages to get away with his funky hair colors, but no one really questions it anymore

he's also very stylish and is known for his fashionable looks that make him look like he just came off the runway

the two of you met when you started teaching at the same school, he's been teaching for two years longer than you have

you also teach seventh grade and immediately clicked as friends on your first day

he answers any questions you have that isn't content related and is kind of seen as the head of the seventh grade as well

he gets along well with the older teachers who have been doing this for 20+ years, those teachers either go to you or him when they need help with the new programs that admin is making them use in class

a lot of the students ask him if you two are dating because you're the younger teachers in the grade-level and are always hanging out

"dating? why are you worried about who i'm dating? we have equations to worry about," he would say and always brush them off

most of the students drop, not really wanting to make hongjoong upset but that doesn't mean the question won't come up again later on

your students will also ask you the same question and like hongjoong, you brush them off and not really answering them

the students would often go back and forth on if you two were dating or not with some even trying to provide "evidence" that you were dating

and some students gave up on thinking that their literature and math teacher were dating

until one day you showed up to school wearing a cardigan

and not just any cardigan

a cardigan that hongjoong wore a month ago, one that students knew was custom made by their teacher himself

and the whole seventh grade lost their minds because holy cow, their literature teacher and math teacher WERE in fact dating

the evidence of you wearing hongjoong's cardigan was enough to convince all the students it was true

so then some of them decided to confront you both

"teacher kim, teacher l/n we know your secret."

you and hongjoong were of course confused because of course your students had to be cryptic about everything... seventh graders 😒

"we know you guys are dating! teacher l/n, you're wearing teacher kim's custom cardigan!"

hongjoong had never turned his head so fast in his life and he immediately looked at the cardigan and sure enough

it was his

and you two were busted because now all your students knew you both were at least something, if not more than friends

PARK SEONGHWA

seonghwa teaches eighth grade reading / literature, he also has his masters in special education and administration

he is also the teacher that heads student council – like he built it from the ground up after the teacher before him let it crash and burn allowed it to be ruined

but seonghwa rebuilt the student council club and now its flourishes thanks to his leadership skills and teaching the students those same leadership skills

being a teacher is like a family job, his mother was a teacher and taught at the same school that he now teaches at

he wanted to become one to continue her legacy

students think he's way too handsome to be a teacher

he's also way too nice to be a teacher but like... none of the students ever give him issues

like even the behavior students don't disrespect him like they would other teachers – its kind of crazy

you had always admired seonghwa because of how good he was at his job and honestly... you were kind of jealous of him too

but you wouldn't dare tell him

you can't help but be amazed when you watch him speak at department meetings and how he always voices his thoughts so elegantly

seonghwa is also never afraid to help you if he sees you struggling or to ask for your opinion during meetings when he notices you haven't spoken

and he'll always back you up which surprises you because you aren't friends or even in the same grade

you kind of developed a crush on him but again you would never tell him or anybody for that matter

which to be honest, your crush and admiration is probably what lead you to volunteering to help out with the student council overnight trip to a student council convention

it was you, seonghwa, plus the ten student council students that qualified to go

you really never knew who exhausting planning a field trip was and seonghwa amazed you once again with how well-planned out the trip was

it kind of made you feel guilty because of how little you did to help out with the planning

"don't feel bad y/n! i'm glad you volunteered to come, i usually struggle with finding someone to come with me to help chaperone."

"really?"

"yeah."

well... that did make you feel a little better

and of course since you two were the only chaperones, that meant the two of you got to room together

the students were pretty sure they almost saw you pass out in the hotel lobby when seonghwa told you that

"teacher l/n, are you okay! you don't look so good!"

"i'm fine..."

"you're fine with sharing a room together right?" seonghwa asks once the two of you are alone in the hotel room

the students were also in their own hotel rooms and winding down after the long trip, you could feel yourself sink into the bed once you got into the room

"its fine, i don't mind," you tell him and seonghwa gives you a warm smile as he settles down on the bed next to yours "are field trips always this exhausting?"

"only the overnight ones"

"great"

JEONG YUNHO

eighth grade history teacher but he's also taught sixth grade history in the past as well

yunho is very serious about teaching and strict when it comes to listening, doing work, being respectful, etc.

especially in the beginning of the year, but does let up a little bit near the end and after exams and stuff

he has a strict schedule that he follows when teaching his content and knows his content like the back of his hand

he has a routine and the students are quick to learn it and make sure the others are at least doing what they are suppose to be doing when the bell rings

but despite how strict and stuff he is, yunho loves teaching and the kids love his class

even if they don't like it at the beginning, the class and yunho will grow on them before the year is over

even the other teachers respect yunho and will ask him on how he teaches certain events and whatnot, always going to him for tips on where to find good materials

yunho is like the jack-of-all-materials

even has his own tpt page because of how much stuff he has made for his own class and co-workers

you will also always find him and san hanging out together in each other's room during their planning time

usually gossiping about students or other teachers

students have learned that when san walks into yunho's room, then its serious because san never leaves his room during class time

also no one ever really bothers yunho because of how strict he is with teaching and getting everything he needs done, to get done

however, students are shocked when you walk into yunho's room one day WHILE he's teaching to ask him a question

like their jaws drop when yunho stops teaching in order to help you with something and laughing with you as he brushes your apology off

it was like they just watched a mean dog turned into the friendliest puppy when you walked in

some of them questioned if they were transported to a different reality because there is no way this is happening

you and yunho are like night and day, yunho with dark button-ups and you with your funky colored pants

"you're seeing this to right?" one of them would whisper to the other students around them

the students were too stunned to speak

"hey! get to work, i expect you to have these notes written down by the time i'm done," yunho would say and immediately the students would get to work

"thank you teacher jeong, i appreciate the help with this new program"

"sure, its no problem," he says as he walks you to the door. "choi came to me during planning asking about it plus some other teachers as well"

"ah, well glad i'm not the only one struggling!" you let out a laugh and yunho returns it and laughs with you, "i'll see you after school, yeah?"

"of course"

you wave as you close the door behind you and yunho immediately goes back into his teaching mode

once again leaving his students shocked and with whiplash from how fast his attitude changed

"we really were in just another reality"

KANG YEOSANG

seventh grade history but wants to one day be a librarian

yeosang loves history but is also certified to teach reading/literature

a lot of the students and teachers love him for how nice he is to everyone

he really connects well with the behavior students, like a lot of them will always say he's there favorite teacher

even the ones who never come to class, go to yeosang's class because who in their right mind who skip teacher kang's class?

no one that's who

students will always go to him when there's an issue because they know he will help them

that's why a lot of them are surprised when they find out him and wooyoung are best friends since high school

"you and teacher jung are best friends!?"

"yep! have been for years!" and yeosang is proud to say that him and wooyoung are best friends and can teach together at the same school

none of the students can get over how handsome he is as well and a lot of sixth graders can only hope to get him in seventh grade

"teacher kang, you're so handsome you could be an actor!"

yeosang can only smile at the comments, not really saying anything as he's use to those comments by now

well coming from his students or other adults that is

however, hearing those comments (or reading them) from you is a different story

he doesn't know how you manage to time it whenever his students are doing independent work but you do

he'll be at his desk or walking around, when you come in and some the students will immediately greet you

you simply smile and wave at them before walking over to hand yeosang something

"i got the stuff from your mailbox while i was at mine," you told him

yeosang thanks you and you smile at him before turning and leaving

you usually go to the mailbox when you need a break from your class and there's already someone in there to help

yeosang looks at the stuff in his hands, and notices the folded piece of paper that had his name written nicely in your handwriting

he opens it as he walks to his desk and immediately feels a warmth overtake his face

'you look really pretty today, yeo ;) can't wait to hangout after school in our usual place! miss you already!'

yeosang quickly stored the note in his desk, before quickly going back to teaching and trying to hide the excitement of seeing you later to the back of his mind

CHOI SAN

eighth grade reading/literature teacher along with seonghwa and school's volleyball coach

he played volleyball when he was in school and so he's very passionate about the sport and his athletes

a tough coach and an even tougher teacher, but only because he knows all his students can do better than what they showing him

like seonghwa with student council, san managed to help the volleyball team go to nationals thanks to his coaching and the his girls' effort and teamwork

a lot of students are scared of him because of how he coaches, especially his athletes – like even just the mention of san gets them scared

but really san just wants the best for all his students and just like volleyball, he's also passionate about his teaching

very writing focused versus seonghwa who is more reading based, but they work really well together to make sure all their students are getting the same knowledge and material

san's not afraid to speak his mind during department meetings and the other teachers know this – like he will straight up call something out if he knows it won't work

seonghwa usually has to cut him off because of this, they are a very funny duo and students love watching them interact

"teacher choi is like a dark cloud and teacher park is like a sunny day"

like the kids, you are also intimidated by him because of how much just pure authority he gives off

like you would think he's a principal from how students act around him

he actually does step up as an admin when the actual principals are out of the building because he does have his masters in administration, so he could very well one day become a principal

but going back to you being intimidated by him 💀

you never really dared to approach him, always sitting on the opposite side of the room during department meetings

mainly because you didn't want to get on his bad side

"please teacher l/n, can you help us start this club?"

"sure, girls!" you were more than happy to help sponsor their club "who's the other teacher?"

you watched as the girls' faces deflated at the question, of course you don't blame them for not knowing that clubs needed two teachers to become official, not just one

"i have a teacher in mind!"

"who?" "tell us!"

"coach choi, can help! especially since volleyball is over!"

you felt the color drain from your face at the thought of san and you running a club together

"teacher l/n will you ask coach choi if he can help us?"

"sure... i'll ask."

"a club?"

"yeah, some of your volleyball girls recommended you and wanted to see if you could be the second teacher sponsor."

"ah, that's right. the school has that stupid two teacher club sponsor rule. always did think that was dumb."

san thought for a minute which felt like a lifetime the longer you stood in his classroom

"sure, why not. i'm sure it'll be fun to run a club together."

"i'm sure the girls will also appreciate it. i'll send you the information when i hear back from the principal about the club."

"of course, if you have any issues let me know."

"will do, thanks!"

that was definitely a lot less nerve-racking then you thought it would be...

maybe running a club san won't be so bad after all

SONG MINGI

mingi is THE ms. frizzle aka the best science teacher you will ever have

he teaches sixth grade science and is always having some sort of fun with testing experiments and theories with the students

science class will forever be ruined after you have him as a teacher because no one is doing it like mingi

literally older students will come by to see either him or wooyoung and they will always ask mingi what he is currently doing in that class

and while he's an amazing teacher – he's also hella clumsy

like students learn fast not to leave their things in the floor if they don't want this 6ft tall man tripping over and possible destroying their things

someone save this man from all those decorative pencil pouches and metal water bottles pls 💀

anyways, a lot of students love mingi because of his fun personality and not because he almost below up the science lab because a experiment gone wrong

very much into team building and having all the students work together towards a goal because he knows how important teamwork is in life and wants students to have it

a lot of students are actually intimidated by him when they first see him because of his tall stature and harsh look

but he's really cool once him and the students build that rapport

so a lot of students were surprised when they found out that you and mingi were best friends

it never really clicked for most of them since you both taught different grades AND subjects

but then during school assemblies and such, you and mingi would always be sitting next to each other

whispering and laughing to each other and it would leave students bewildered when they saw the two of you

like "what in the world are they laughing about?"

"you know... the kiddos asked me the other day about us," you said, leaning over and whispering into his ear

"yeah?"

"they asked me how long we've been friends"

"w-what did you tell them?"

"since college, i left out the part where you made out with my best friend before tripping over her bag and landed into my lap."

you could tell mingi was blushing, his ears turning red at your words

"i-it wasn't like that!"

"i know, no need to feel embarrassed. i agreed to go out with you didn't i?"

you couldn't help the smirk on your face while mingi had a pout on his own, completely forgetting that the two of you were suppose to be watching the talent show and not flirting

JUNG WOOYOUNG

teaches sixth grade math and is an on-going menace to his students

you either love or hate him because of how he teaches and runs his classroom

always changing the seating desk arrangement in his room which keeps students on their toes

he's always a complete 180 from hongjoong who is the head of the math department

like students get whiplash when they go from wooyoung to hongjoong because of how different they are

but that's not to say wooyoung is bad at his job, on the contrary wooyoung is fantastic at his job

always has a math pun ready to whip out when needed and is always dishing out savage remarks to his students when they try to be a smart-ass to him

they learn quick that they won't be able make smart comments with him around

wooyoung is just very blunt with how he's feeling – like if a student makes him mad you'll know he's mad

does a lot of bootcamp punishments (i.e makes them do exercises when they don't listen to him like: jumping jacks, squats, nothing too extreme) this makes kids not want to disrespect him because they know what will happen if they do

some parents have thought it was "extreme" but he simply told them "well it got your child to listen for once in their life" – that shut the parent up real quick

but wooyoung rarely gets serious because he has the respect from students and so those bootcamp punishments are rare and few in-between

most of the time he's fun and playful which also travels over to how he acts with his fellow teachers

including you

wooyoung always visits you when he's on his planning period

like your class can always expect him to stop by at least once during their class

which none of them mind cause that means they can see their favorite math teacher again but don't tell hongjoong that

however with his constant visits, it makes students question if you guys are dating

especially when wooyoung is always complimenting you when you're at your desk and you both think that the students can't hear you

"you look very lovely today, teacher l/n."

"watch yourself, jung."

you eventually have to run wooyoung off so you can get back to teaching

"oh they are totally dating" students would whisper to each other watching the two of you interact

students really really ship you guys together and are always questioning you about your ideal type and stuff

but you always brush off their questions and comments about how you and teacher jung would look great together

and eventually the students had moved on to something else and you were thankfully left alone about your love life by your students

until one day when you and wooyoung were spotted by some students outside of school

you and him had went to the store together, not really thinking about school as you both spent time together

however that peace between the two of you was set ablaze when heard a familiar "teacher l/n! teacher jung!" and snapping the two of you out of your daze

wooyoung was quick to greet the students who approached you both, a smile on his face and arm around his shoulder

and you knew your secret was out because of how the students' zoned in on wooyoung's arm around your shoulder

you couldn't help but dread what would happen when you arrive at school tomorrow

"i didn't like keeping it a secret anyways," he would making you smack the back of his head in response before pushing the shopping cart and walking away from your boyfriend

CHOI JONGHO

eighth grade math who got roped into teaching seventh grade science as well

jongho is really in his element when it comes to math

and is really hanging by a thread when it comes to science

like he's the opposite of mingi and HATES science – like who thought it was a good idea to have this man teach it?

oh, they did a budget cut and so they were down a science teacher? makes sense.

the kids either love or hate him because of how he teaches

his eighth graders and seventh graders are like night and day when it comes to literally everything

it might also have something to do with the content but just let him complain about his seventh graders

you actually found him one day in the workroom stressing over his science while eating his ramen

you remember some of your kids talking about jongho and you've seen him at faculty meetings

but never had a one-on-one conversation with him mainly because he was in a totally different content and grade from you (he was still an eighth grade teacher at the end of the day)

you know hongjoong really likes him and praises him for learning how to adapt so well to a new content era that he never studied in

you think that for a first-year teacher he's doing a lot better than you had when you were in his shoes

and you figure what's the harm in talking to him and seeing how he's doing

"everything going okay, teacher choi?"

he's caught off guard by your voice, jumping and looking up at you as you walk over to get your copies from the copier

"oh, um, i'm fine. just thinking about what i'm gonna do for my science class"

"ahh, that's fair, i still can't believe they have you teaching science and math for your first year"

jongho lets out a laugh which is followed by a small "yeah... i can't either"

"but hongjoong says that you're doing a good job for your first year, so you should be proud! hongjoong never compliments anyone"

"really?"

"really. and just know that if you ever need help just reach out. i know you're not a seventh grade teacher but us who teach seventh grade needs to stick together. its a tough group."

"oh my god, i'm so glad you think that as well! i thought it was just me!"

"oh no, everyone knows seventh grade is always the worse year, we all struggle with them at some point"

"that really makes me feel better about doing my job"

"jongho, you're doing a great job. the kids love you and there will always be those kids that make you feel like you are terrible at your job. but all you have to do is teach to the ones who want to be there, and worry about them."

you tell him the exact same words you were told when you were a first year and thinking the same thing

"thank you, y/n"

you can't help but smile as you nod your head, taking your copies and heading back to your room while jongho finishes his ramen

tag list : @frankenstein852 @watamotee33 @kawennote09 @mixling-blog @marahleiwhen @kpopnightingale @harry-the-pottypus @pyeonghongrie @sanniesbum @marvelahsobx @khjcoo @mysticfire0435 @exfolitae @dementedaly @simeonswhore @moonm1st @nvmbheart @spooo00oky @frgogh @sookacc @seongwin @burnsmepls @ad0rechuu @tunaasan @northerngalxy @silverpixiedust23 @cheesekimchi @confusedmoonchild777 @mjyungi @innieontop @iweirdthingsblog @s0obinluvr @worcesheshestershiresauce @moonlightgrleric @wineyoungie @jeongwangjessmina @lemineso

network : @cultofdionysusnet @cromernet

[cromernet]

→ NEW RELEASE: Ateez As Middle School Teachers by @thelargefrye

Feedback: PLEASE THIS WAS LITERALLY SO CUTE?! Firstly, the subjects you chose for them are SO SPOT ON? Also, i was literally smiling so widely while reading these hcs. Please the kids wanting to know and then finally figuring out mc and hj are dating was hilarious to read!! “students think he's way too handsome to be a teacher” real af. The way i’d tell sh to start modelling if he was a fellow teacher. Yh straight up changing from scary to sunshine when yn came in and the kids losing their minds lmaoooooooo. WY’s had me rofl-ing please. 

[itstheghostofmypast]

A Quiet Woo

WooYoung x (f)Reader ft. Choi San

Summary: The five times Choi San had been blessed by the grace of a silenced Wooyoung.

Genre: Fluff (a tinge of angst)

Warnings: None

Networks: @cromernet

A/N: Black-haired Wooyoung got me dead.🫶 remember to show some love by 💗 and reblogs

If there was anyone who could claim to know Wooyoung better than he knew himself, it had to be Choi San. Choi San, his best friend, the sweet little giant who had seen more sides that Wooyoung than perhaps his parents had. Thus, when everyone around the group had been dotting on the second youngest for never shutting up, he watched the scene unfold. All of them sitting together after a long day, drinking together - though this time San had opted out of doing so- waiting for their Uber, so they could go back to their dorm. And what better way of waiting and making use of time than to tease Wooyoung?

"Not once, " Mingi placed down his shot glass, "Sober or drunk does he ever shut up, Wooyoung needs to talk."

"What! no~" He whined, resting his head on Hongjoong's shoulder, "I do not."

"It's like his mouth is an automatic machine." Jongho chuckled, earning an eager nod from Yunho, who was as tipsy as the rest of them.

"Sannie~" the subject of the matter whined, throwing a glare at him as if asking him to back him up. Perhaps he would have, would've narrated the five times his best friend had been left speechless or had chosen silence over words, for just as much as he was his best friend he also happened to be the only witness to the scene, more unintentionally than intentionally. But as much as he wanted to tell everyone, the drunk atmosphere would not have done justice to those heartfelt, innocent moments of Wooyoung's silence. So, smiling to himself he shook his head, eyes turned into little crescents as he mouthed, "Sorry Woo", thinking of the five times Wooyoung had spoken with his heart rather than his mouth;

1) The first time San had noticed Wooyoung go completely silent was when Y/N was introduced to the group. A new staff member, an intern at best, a makeup artist. He noticed how Wooyoung was eying her up and down, the way his Adam's apple bobbed as he gulped when she giggled at the way their manager had introduced her, claiming that she'd be rotated as per her training, so she wouldn't have any favourites. He could see how Wooyoung's brows creased at that statement, and somehow he just knew the younger one had wished to become her favourite. This was the most tamed he had seen his friend, which is why he had assumed when it came down to introductions, he would've been civil, but he was wrong for when it was his turn he shamelessly boasted, "Wooyoung, you can also call me your favourite. "earning a groan from everyone but her.

2) The second time San stumbled upon a silenced Wooyoung was in the middle of the night, after a late-night practice session with Yunho he had decided to head home, only to realise he had left his phone in the make-up room. Mumbling to himself he made his way to the room, hand about to twist the doorknob, only to stop when he heard a whine,

"Wooyoung, please, I said an honest opinion."

He really shouldn't have, but he did anyway, slowly creaking the door open to peek in, smiling to himself as he saw Wooyoung sitting on a leather chair in front of the mirror, the makeup lights casting a graceful glow on his smiling face. In front of him stood Y/N, her hair pushed back with a hair band, frowning at him with a makeup brush in hand. He watched her lean down, closer to his face and from the mirror he looked at Wooyoung's reflection, noticing how he instantly closed his eyes, letting her go about her business, stroking each eyelid with a tint.

"My internship is almost over and so is my probation and if it doesn't work out I can't continue anymore, I don't want to do that, I really like it here and-" she stopped mid-sentence when he grabbed her wrist gently, opening his eyes to look at her with a gentle, assuring smile. The two stared at each for for a solid minute, before she sighed, and nodded. No words were exchanged, but it felt like an entire conversation had taken place, one that starts on a topic as simple as your favourite colour and ends after a reached consensus about the meaning of life. Either way, he let go of her wrist as she placed down the brush, turning back around to pull off the clips out of his hair, fluffing it a bit and moving out of the way, gesturing to his reflection, asking him to critique her work. For a split second, he saw an unfamiliar expression flash across his best friend's face, one resembling the joy of a little boy, until it turned neutral, it was then that he realised that he was now staring at him, a brow quirked in irritants, the corners of his lips turned down.

"What's wrong? Is it bad?" her voice broke their stare off as Wooyoung instantly shook his head and San burst in, not wanting a misunderstanding to seep its way in.

"Hey" he smiled weakly, "I left my phone here" he explained himself, more to Wooyoung than her, who had begun to look for it, with a small I'll help you find it. But Wooyoung's glare didn't falter causing the older one to clear his throat, tipping his head in shame, a small apology before letting out a sweet, "Woah, Y/N were you practicing on Wooyoung?"

"Here it is- huh? Oh yes," she mumbled, turning around with the phone and handing it to him with a small smile as he smiled back gratefully before going over to his friend who seemed most displeased and confused, having not uttered a single word for a while now.

"It's really nice- I like how you made his eyes look soft." He gestured at the eye makeup, Wooyoung's eyes widened for a moment at the compliment, only to soften his gaze and avert it from the menacing, stupid, annoying intruder when he noticed her smile, noting San's effort to fix the situation.

"His eyes make him look like a bastard, it's really nice how you made him look like he isn't one." he chuckled before scurrying out of the room that was booming with her laughter. Wooyoung just rolled his eyes in return, frowning at the door San had made sure to close behind himself.

"How about we try another look, what do you say Woo?" his head snapped up at her, a small smile gracing his lips as he nodded, eyes meeting hers that swirled with a sense of determination that made his heart flutter and forced the words in his throat to clog up, only leaving him to nod up at her like a lost pup.

3) The third time San came across his best friend sitting in silence was initiated by him. It was on a tour, in the late hours of the night, where he was snuggled up against soft pillows, drifting off to wonderland until he was rudely awoken by the spawn of satan.

"What?" he hissed turning from the pillow that he had somewhat drooled over, squinting at the idiot he was to share his room with.

"Y/N's sad." the man whose glasses were at the tip of his nose, almost about to slip off stated as a matter of fact. Earning a groan, Wooyoung huffed and shoved him again, "What do I do? We were texting and she said something about her friends leaving her out of a get-together and she sounded sad" he exhaled in one breath.

San stared at him for two seconds and nodded, "And you want me to do what?"

"Advise obviously."

"Just talk to her."

"About?"

Sighing he sat up and rubbed his face groaning to himself, "No, scratch that, just listen to her, don't speak, just listen."

"Great, I'll call her here."

"Wait, Wooyoung no-"

That's exactly how San heard her talk in hushed whispers almost all night about how she felt left out, with her and the idiot sitting outside on the small balcony, their coffees forgotten and cold. Fortunately, her hushed tone helped him fall asleep and he applauded himself for telling Wooyoung to stay quiet because God forbid if that ass was speaking and voicing out his opinion then the whole district would've been awake. The last thing he remembers is wincing at the screeching of what he presumed was Wooyoung's chair closer to hers, and then he dozed off completely.

The next morning San had woken up to an ecstatic Wooyoung, one who slammed his hands on his shoulders and gleefully cheered, "If I wasn't into someone, I would've smooched ya." before waddling off, leaving him baffled much like the others around him.

4) The fourth time San had been blessed with a silenced or quiet Wooyoung was not when he was in the best of moods. In fact, he was ready to fight Wooyoung, which is why he barged in by slamming the younger one's bedroom door open, "YAH you ass-"

"Shhh!"

Frowning at the rude interruption, he noticed the presence of someone else, pausing to take in the scene before him. Wooyoung sitting on the bed with his legs stretched out, laptop on his blanketed thighs, the low buzz of the film acting as background noise. With his back pressed against the headboard, next to him was none other than Y/N, snuggled into his side, her cheek smushed against his chest, arms wrapped around him, fingers gripping onto the material of his cotton hoodie, as she laid half on top of him. Wooyoung lifted the arm that was wrapped around her waist, pressing his pointer finger to his lips, whispering, "She's asleep, get lost."

Huffing at the scene sat mumbled a "Lock the door next time" and walked out, somewhat glad that he hadn't woken her up and ruined their little moment.

5) The fifth time he had heard or witnessed Wooyoung go completely silent was not the most comfortable moment of his life. In fact, Choi San had to hide inside a cupboard in all his naked glory and pray to God Almighty that no one could hear him outside. This had happened almost two weeks after the fourth time, and since he had been unable to yell at Woo because the sweet giant had forgotten, he had decided to raid Wooyoung's closet, which he had and all he had to do was put on the clothes, knowing no one was at the dorm meant he hadn't locked the door- a major problem, for the moment he heard the door slam open he had hopped into the cupboard and closed it, hoping no one had seen him. He couldn't see anyone but he could hear someone, Y/N and from the way she was yelling at the top of her lungs, he could tell that Wooyoung was very much present there and had somehow managed to f*** up.

"Can you please let me explain!" she yelled, trying to grab onto him but he slipped away into his room not waiting for her at all. He really was in no mood to listen to anyone right now, even her, no- he wanted to yell at her, say some really terrible things to her, not because he meant them but because it would have made him feel a bit better, but then he would end up destroying the efforts he had put in for the past whole year into all this.

Closing the door behind her she watched him flop down on his gaming chair, eying her as he put on his headphones and turned to face the computer. The look he had just given her made her shiver, she didn't want him to find out the way he had, she wanted to sit with him in a quiet little corner, preferably with something sweet so she could tell him in peace and patiently.

She didn't think the manager would tell him before she could, that she was going to Hongjoong's designated make-up artist and stylist, which is why he had walked out of the practice room after the announcement of her permanence as their newest staff member, not even waiting to congratulate her like everyone else. Not even waiting for her to explain herself.

"Wooyoung, please listen to me" Sighing in defeat she moved closer to him, pulling his chair back as the wheels rolled onto the tiled floor, "Please, talk to me, say something, anything I can take it, I swear." gripping onto both arm rests she looked at him with pleading eyes, knowing that even with the headphones on he could hear her since he wasn't listening to anything. What scared her more than his silence was his hard stare, his glare filled with emotions she couldn't decipher and it scared her, made her think of the worst, so she had to get him to say something at least.

Contrary to her wishes, San who could only hear them, wished with his whole heart that his best friend wouldn't open his mouth. Keep his anger contained and his sharp tongue at bay, whatever this was, it would have been best for him to listen to her, rather than react without doing so.

Sitting on her knees in front of him she looked up at him with guilt-ridden eyes, placing a hand on either knee, his eyes widening at the position, only for him to sigh as he realised only someone as innocent-minded and desperate as her wouldn't even consider what kind of thoughts anyone walking in on them would have at the sight of them.

"Please Woo." her shaky voice did not match the way the pads of her fingers dug into his knees, firm and determined, "I- then just listen to me, please? I know this isn't what we discussed but please just hear me out. Take off the headphones, please."

Tilting his head back against the chair he took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, counting till ten, something Yeosang had once told him to do when he was too overstimulated by his own emotions.

"Woo i-" she paused when he exhaled reaching to remove his headpiece and placing his larger hands on hers, his palms warm and sweaty against the back of her hands, a sweet gesture compared to the frown that was accompanied by his glare, gesturing for her to continue.

Clearing her throat she nodded, grateful that he was willing to listen to her, "I know, I told you they were going to assign you to me and I said if I was offered I'd take your name but today, before my final interview session, the makeup artist before me had managed to say stuff about how close you and I were- like she didn't have any real proof and when Hongjoong was asked he refused any allegation but I- look, I told you this is my first ever job, a big step to my dream and your career is still relatively new and even though I cleared the interview, before it Hongjoong had texted me about this and had told me to be careful and," she paused to stand up, his eyes following her every move as she sat down on the edge of his bed, wanting him to turn to her, just to make sure he wad still listening and thank God he was, because as soon as she looked up from her lap she met with his soft gaze, one that made it seem like he almost looked guilty.

"So, when they did finally, officially hire me," she gave him a small bitter-sweet smile, "They asked me who I'd opt for and...I chose the person who chose to protect our relationship." Gripping the hem of her shirt she dipped her head in shame, clenching her eyes shut to avoid any tears, unsure if he would assume she was crying only to gain his pity, "I swear...Woo, I had no other option and I wanted to be the first person to tell you but I- I don't know I- and when you- I mean when they told you guys before I could and you" her entire frame shook in fear as her emotions finally got the best of her, alarming the male, a choked sob finally breaking past her lips in a pathetic cry, "I didn't know what else to do but then I saw you walked out." he reached forward for her hand only for her to raise it to quickly wipe away the tears, "I was so scared- I- I thought you would leave me- but I didn't want to lose my job either I'm sorry I sound so selfish, Im sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so-" her words coming out as a muffled cry when he slammed her against him, wrapping his arms around her, rubbing her back with one hand while the other pressed the back of her head onto his shoulder, letting her soak his hoodie with her tears and broken sobs, trying to calm her down as he placed a soft kiss on the crown of her head, whispering something even San couldn't hear through the cupboard but whatever it was, it was enough for her sobs to die down, turning into small whines.

San stared at Wooyoung argue with Mingi, it had been five years since then, and three since he had officially told the manager about his relationship with Y/N, though she willingly had refused to be moved on as her boyfriend's makeup artist, claiming that Hongjoong just had a better future in fashion and she was going to be his top makeup artist once he made it big- that and Wooyoung would distract her more than allowing her to work.

"Yah! Choi San!"

Luckily, after encounter number five, San had steered clear of Wooyoung's room and tried to avoid any situation that would lead him to be naked in another man's cupboard.

"San?"

"Hm?" jerked out of his thoughts he looked up to see Y/N, smiling down at him, "Your Uber is here, though you don't look very drunk." she gestured to everyone else as he nodded in return, motioning towards Wooyoung, "Please take him with you, I can take the rest in the Uber."

Nodding in return she placed her hand on Wooyoung's shoulder who was resting his forehead against the cool table, only to sit up frowning, wanting to yell at who interrupted his nap time.

"Wanna go home, big boy?" giggling she sat down on the stool, next to his, "Want help standing up?" she asked rubbing his back, raising an eyebrow at the way he was just smiling at her with a flushed face, his bang covering his eyes, only for them to flutter close at the feeling of her fingers ghosting over them to move them out of his face, styling his hair out of pure reflex.

"Aww, you really are too tired, no words at all?" pouting she pinched his nose, earning a giggle from him as he grabbed her wrists and placed her hands on both of his cheeks, using her hands to squish his face, looking at her expectantly.

Choi San who had managed to put everyone in the Uber, returned to grab Yunho's forgotten phone to find the two in yet again a very private moment. Groaning to himself he snatched the wallet, startling Y/N who looked up at him, hands still pressed against her lover's warm face.

"You two should really leave me out of this," muttering he stomped away, somewhat irritated and somewhat happy about the thought of knowing he had now seen 6 moments where his best friend was simping and making a fool out of himself in silence.

"What's wrong with him?" she turned back to Wooyoung, squishing his face and laughing at the way he puckered his lips at her, quickly giving him a peck before standing up and pulling him up with her, leading him out of the dining hall, as he followed her like a love-struck puppy.

[halaqueen-deactivated20250123]

i- why is this so freaking CUTE?! I need more soft cuddly wooyo! this was one of the cutest things i've ever seen?????? D you are a FREAKING GENIUS FOR THIS! this is perfect on so many levels!

[itstheghostofmypast]

@yessa-vie

[atzupdates]

[231024] Inkigayo 🎉𝟱 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗘𝗭🎉 Unreleased Photos

[paradiqms]

(7) to you, 2000 years from now.

hongjoong x fem!reader.

tags: angst, captain!hongjoong, royalty!reader, betrayals, misunderstandings, mentions of death, cruelty, fluff here n there, fantasy setting, strangers to lovers to enemies to..?

summary: after the death of your parents and near fall of your kingdom, you have no choice but to leave your first love in order to keep the kingdom in balance with you as the new ruler. years later, you see a familiar face - but instead of being in your arms, he's kneeling in front of the guillotine.

word count: 5.2k

currently, seven out of ?

authors note: wow i am surprisingly alive just to offer this piece.... i'm so sorry for the disappearance! i'll do my best to try and go back to my normal posting schedule which is every sunday TT love you guys!!

previous.

juyeon remembers the first day he met you as if it were yesterday.

back when he wasn’t even half of the man he is today, still a young prince who was so eager to please those around him. he had heard of you first before seeing you in the flesh, stories about the beautiful princess from the neighboring kingdom had spread its way along the vast greenwood that stood in between the two lands.

“she’s as radiant as the legends foretold,” juyeon would hear the maids within the castle gossip amongst themselves. “it would be such a pleasure if the crown prince were to marry her in the future.”

the young royal had scoffed at the mere idea. marrying someone he doesn’t know? that’s not something he’d thoroughly enjoy, he believes that a king is always capable of ruling a kingdom without anyone by his side. a wife would only get in his way.

time would pass, and juyeon finally had the chance to meet you in person – if person was even the correct phrase to call you. he recalls the way you had looked on that day after he stepped into the royal palace of your kingdom alongside his father, the echoes of his footsteps eerily bouncing off the empty walls. the prince spotted your figure by the throne, standing straight with your hands politely folded in front of you as the light colored dress you were wearing flowed with the fresh air that entered by the windows.

although, the way you presented yourself wasn’t enough to hide the way you truly felt.

juyeon was able to see the dark discoloration underneath your eyes from the spot he stood several steps in front of you, the whites of your eyes tinted light red as if you had been crying prior to the meeting. your skin was as pale as the light dress you wore, and at that moment, juyeon felt something akin to pity growing from the bottom of his chest. it hasn’t been a full month after pyxis’ king and queen, your parents, were mysteriously killed one night within the safety of their own abode, leaving their only child to rule a kingdom bigger than what she could ever fit in the palm of her trembling hands.

“this,” juyeon’s father gestures to him. “is my son, crown prince of our kingdom – as well as your betrothed.”

even when your emotionless eyes met his, juyeon didn’t falter. he wouldn’t allow himself to.

“it’s a pleasure to meet you,” he had said, reaching out and pressing his lips onto the cold skin on the back of your hand. “my future wife.”

“likewise.” you merely uttered, not a single spark of interest sticking onto the tone of your voice.

“you shall be wed in a week’s time,” the king clasps his hands together, the sound resonating throughout the throne room. “take these few days to be acquainted with each other.”

juyeon had done his best in hopes of getting to know you, trying to sneak his way past your cold eyes and into your heart that he hopes would accept him wholly. the prince tried everything and anything he could think of, starting off a bit softer with subtle touches to your skin whenever the two of you are alone, allowing himself to smile a bit more to show off his charm around you. you didn’t return the gestures, but you didn’t act displeasured either – instead, you would ignore the other royal entirely, letting him do whatever he pleases with you while you went on with your own work.

juyeon had felt slightly frustrated when you didn’t respond to any of his advances in the way he wanted you to. in a last attempt to win you over, he decided to go all out – he prepared a bouquet with the most beautiful and fragrant flowers that any other princess would die for, a specially commissioned dress along with matching jewelry as well as a handwritten letter. the prince, as eager as ever, presented everything to you under the shine of moonlight that casted itself over the palace gardens.

to his surprise, you had shed tears – but only when he read his handwritten letter to you.

you had kept all the presents he gave to you, placing the flowers by your window for them to get their daily shine of sunlight and wearing the dress whenever juyeon would take you somewhere for some quality time.

the prince had thought you would keep the handwritten letter somewhere on your work table, or maybe even your bedside, but instead you pasted it on the wall of your shared bedroom. it was a peculiar thing to do, so naturally, juyeon asked you about where you had learnt such a way of ‘displaying’ a letter.

“someone i knew used to do this.” you answered his question, and for the first time since he met you, juyeon could feel a sliver of emotion in your words.

“used to?” the young man couldn’t help his growing curiosity. “an old friend of yours, i presume?”

he remembers the way you had offered him a smile following his question, but the curve of your lips didn’t emit any spark of happiness.

“you could say that,” you muttered. “we… unfortunately grew apart.”

it was one of the very few times you had opened up, albeit barely, to the newly crowned king, and juyeon could finally tell what kind of person you are.

so naïve, he thought as he watched the emotions and years’ worth of bittersweet memories pooling in your eyes in the form of salty tears. so emotional. she’s incapable of ruling a kingdom.

for six years, juyeon had kept pyxis under great control with his own hands. you were by his side, as how you had vowed to during your wedding day, but you didn’t do as much as he did, the king thinks. to juyeon, you merely acted as a nice little escape for him during the after hours of ruling the kingdom, a solace for him to unwind – you weren’t fit to rule the kingdom, he had that much figured out as soon as he met you.

then why, juyeon grips onto the edge of his table under his knuckles turn white. why can’t i function properly without her?

it’s been close to a week ever since you’ve gone missing, and the king is in absolute tatters. he hasn’t taken a step out of his study to bury himself in work as he waits anxiously for any news the royal navy could get ahold regarding your whereabouts – as well as the whereabouts of the filthy pirate captain that you’re weirdly fond of.

“who is he?” juyeon rasps, calloused fingers gripping harshly onto the ends of his messy hair. his study table is littered with an array of books, official and unofficial letters alike, and absolutely anything which was once yours that the young king could get his desperate hands on in a search for a single clue regarding your relationship with the pirate.

but he finds nothing. every letter, sent to you or by you, every book that once felt the soft touch of your hands on its rough parchment, nothing is helping. it’s like you’ve gotten rid of every physical evidence that could even trace back to your past with the pirate, turning them into your own little secrets and memories within your closed heart instead.

a heart that, juyeon finally realizes, was never his to even claim.

someone knocks on the door thrice, and juyeon doesn’t bother to answer. the person behind the door decides to enter anyway, revealing a tall stature clad in armor with a tuft of brown hair that seems just as messy as the king’s.

“your majesty,” the guard that once served for you spoke, his boyish voice solemn. “i’ve received news from the captain of the royal navy. they still can’t track the queen down, nor the pirate and his crew.”

from the spot where he stands behind his work table, juyeon lifts his head to look at the royal guard, and he feels his chest tighten with annoyance.

“incompetent as always.” the young king grumbles under his breath, breathing out a harsh sigh as he turns back to reading through one of your letters again. “tell them to try harder, search every single kingdom and land they come across. i will allow none of them to return home until they find my wife.”

yeonjun feels a muscle above his eye twitch at the other man’s words. try harder? the knight feels as if he’s about to throw up every single insult laced with pent-up rage at the king for his mere audacity to even say such things about the fleet of navy men who haven’t had a single wink of sleep while in search for their queen.

“i beg your pardon, your highness,” yeonjun lets the title slip off his tongue like poison, watching with satisfaction when he notices the frown on juyeon’s lips. “but the last time any of the royal navy ever stepped foot home was the day before your orders to find the queen. none of them have rested, or even ate proper meals, meanwhile you–”

“meanwhile i what?” juyeon grits his teeth, straightening his previously slouched posture to stand up tall as he stalks over to the other man, dark eyes as cold as the words that fall from his dry lips. “meanwhile i lose my mind over the safety of my wife? while i try my best to keep myself from going mad with anxiety and sorrow because i still have to rule a damn kingdom? you have no idea how hardit is to have her taken away from me–”

“i have no idea?” yeonjun interrupts with disbelief dripping from his voice, daring himself to take a bold step forward towards the fuming king. “i’ve known her longer than you have, far before you came into this kingdom. i’ve seen her at her worst, her best, and everything in between – everything that you’ve only dreamt of seeing from her.”

“watch your damn mouth, guard.” the young king’s eyes bore straight into the other man’s, a weeks’ worth of anger and exasperation pooling inside his irises. “if you’re as close to my wife as you claim to be, then why haven’t you figured out where she is? why is she still missing? why isn’t she back where she’s supposed to be?”

every word that falls from juyeon’s mouth becomes increasingly agitated as he staggers closer to yeonjun, rough hands grabbing onto his armor that feels just as cold as the stare that the guard is giving him. under more normal circumstances, yeonjun would’ve pushed the king away with disgust, but the latter’s words make him freeze in his spot.

as much as he despises the royal, yeonjun can’t help but feel like his words ring true.

why hasn’t he figured out where you’ve went to, he wonders? if he truly knew you as much as he thought, he would’ve figured everything out by now. yet here he is, dark circles decorating the pale skin underneath his eyes that can merely stare back at the young king in front of him, unable to come up with any excuses for himself.

at the other man’s silence, juyeon shoves him backwards roughly with a scoff.

“as expected,” he scowls. “you’re worthless. i ought to assign a new personal guard for my wife once she returns. now get out of my sight.”

with heavy steps and an even heavier heart, yeonjun complies, making his way out of the king’s study and quietly closing the wooden door behind him. he continues to walk along the deathly quiet hallways of the palace, the pristine walls that once echoed with your light laughter making his chest squeeze with ache.

he’s not sure whether it’s the severe deprivation of sleep that’s messing with his head, but yeonjun can still feel your presence as he drags himself along the carpeted hallway. he remembers the way he would follow you around like a lost puppy during his earlier days as your guard, escorting you back and forth through the very same hallway even when you told him not to. his ears ring with your playful giggles whenever he would come and greet you during the evenings after his stable duties, the smell of manure sticking onto his sweaty body making your nose scrunch up.

somehow, yeonjun’s mindless walking had somehow ended up with him coming face to face with a framed portrait of you during your youth. the portrait hangs neatly on the wall, right next to the portraits of your late parents. the sunlight that filters through the windows opposite to the portraits shines against the painted pictures, as if trying to give your eyes back their young sparkle that was forcefully taken from you far too early.

yeonjun knows it’s a bad idea, but he ignores the rational part of his thoughts as he tilts his head up just enough to properly look at your portrait. in the span of a single beat of his broken heart, as if someone had just turned on a faucet in his eyes, the young guard cries.

he cries and cries, for how could he not? it must be his fault that you were taken away to god knows where, being surrounded by people who might have the worse intentions in their heads. if only he didn’t ask you to visit the dungeon that night, you wouldn’t have been kidnapped. if only he was stronger, quicker, and smarter, he would have stopped the masked assassin from even thinking of taking you away from him.

the hallway echoes with yeonjun’s pitiful cries as he leans his forehead against the bottom of your portrait, as if he’s wishing for you to tell him that it’s okay, that you’re okay.

“i’m sorry,” the young knight bawls. “juyeon is right, i– i’m worthless. i couldn’t protect you.”

the cold feeling of your painting’s material only tears yeonjun’s heart even further, because you wouldn’t have been this cold. you were never cold, not to him. he knows it’s stupid to compare you to a mere portrait that was made years ago, but it’s the only place where yeonjun can see your face again. the painting is still, yet the sobbing knight wants to feel your hands in his hair, to hear you comfort him and to dry the tears he's spilling for you.

“please,” yeonjun cries out a broken whisper. “please, come back soon.”

from all the six long years that seonghwa has worked beside hongjoong, the amount of times where his captain has called for a meeting with all the crew members can be counted with one hand. the pirate king has long established his preference for simply relaying his orders to his trusty second-in-command and letting him pass everything on to the rest of the crew while he remains in his quarters, carefully planning their next move.

“big meetings are only for big matters,” hongjoong had once said to his close friend. “and big matters are only for obstacles that are hard to conquer – which is rarely the case for us.”

seonghwa remembers agreeing to his words, as he is completely confident in the crews as well as his own abilities to overcome whatever bumps in the journey they may encounter.

with that being said, if anyone were to tell seonghwa that hongjoong would call for a meeting with the crew over not being able to convince someone to decipher a single map, he would have laughed.

this time, however, as he stands with the rest of the crew while they gather around the round table within the captain’s quarters, seonghwa doesn’t feel even a tickle of laughter in him.

“if she doesn’t read the map,” san speaks up from his spot beside wooyoung, his arms crossed over his broad chest. “why are we still keeping her here? isn’t she basically useless to us now?”

“we can’t just chuck her into the sea, genius.” wooyoung responds, lifting a hand up to smack san’s abdomen. the latter isn’t fazed by his friends’ actions, merely turning his head to squint at him questioningly.

“then what do you suggest we do?” san asks.

wooyoung blinks when the attention of the entire room shifts to him, the stares of the other members as heavy and tense as the atmosphere within the room.

“can’t we just give her some time?” he says after a moment. “she’s probably still a little shocked and confused. i’m sure she’ll give in after a while.”

“you’re sure?” hongjoong is quick to interject, a frown on his lips. “you sound pretty confident, don’t you?”

before wooyoung could bite back, seonghwa places a hand on his shoulder, effectively shutting down the younger pirate.

“we shouldn’t argue,” the oldest among the crew says, a sense of authority in his tone. “but i do agree with wooyoung. i think giving her some time to process things is all we can do now.”

the room turns quiet after seonghwa voiced out his opinion. uniform silence seems to indicate their agreement with the right-hand-mans suggestion, and everyone’s attention shifts to hongjoong to see if he feels similarly to the rest of them.

with their eyes on him, hongjoong does his best to keep his face from expressing the true thoughts that run wild in the confines of his head. he gives the crew a positive nod, and he swears he can hear some of them let out the quietest breaths of relief that they had probably held during the several moments before his decision.

“we’ll give her some time,” the captain declares from his seat. “but the most i’ll give her is two days. once that’s over, there will be no more mercy.”

the crew respond with a unison ‘aye, captain’ before exiting the captain’s quarters after he dismisses them, the sound of their heavy boots clicking against the floorboards filling up the spacious room. soon, there are only two left.

“any business you’d like to discuss any further?” hongjoong sighs out when he notices seonghwa still standing at his spot since the start of the meeting.

“no.” the older pirate mutters out quickly, but he retracts his word just as fast when hongjoong raises a doubtful eyebrow at him.

“uh, yes. a bit. it’s nothing too serious.” seonghwa lifts a hand to timidly rub the back of his neck, avoiding the other man’s gaze.

hongjoong scoffs and lazily gestures for his old friend to voice out whatever that’s on his mind, resting his elbow on the armrest of the chair that he’s currently sitting on.

seonghwa clears his throat once he gets the permission to speak, and the nervousness (if that’s even what he’s currently feeling) that creeps up his spine feels odd, like an emotion that he shouldn’t even be feeling in the presence of a friend that he’s had and cherished for so long.

“about the… disagreement we had earlier,” the second-in-command finally speaks, and he catches the way hongjoong tenses up ever so slightly. “i’d just like to apologize. if you think there’s anything between her and i, then you’re mistaken.”

hongjoong is quick to let out another scoff once seonghwa is done talking, the anger that flashed through his head during the quarrel he had with seonghwa still fresh in his brain, and he lifts himself up from the wooden chair he was previously sitting on to walk closer to the other pirate. seonghwa straightens his posture, eyebrows furrowing as he’s expecting for his captain to spark up another petty argument due to his short temper, but to his surprise, hongjoong walks right pass him.

“that’s lovely to hear,” hongjoong’s voice drips with sarcasm from behind seonghwa, accompanied by the sound of his boots on the floor. “i was beginning to think you had the hots for the woman that could possibly have us all killed one day.”

“i would never.” seonghwa turns around to scowl at the other man, but he can only see his back that’s currently facing towards him. “especially when it’s far too obvious that you’re not over her like how you think you are.”

“oh, there you again,” a tired groan leaves hongjoong’s mouth as he runs his hands over his face, his palms cold. “i’ve said this to you once and i will say it again – don’t speak on topics you know nothing of, park seonghwa.”

the blond haired pirate feels a dull sting right in his chest, one that’s similar to the sting on his lower lip that he’s been chewing on throughout the entire conversation. he can see the way hongjoong’s posture basically shrinks from the way his shoulders drop as if his words had such an effect on him, and whether or not it’s a good idea, seonghwa decides to keep pushing his luck and continues speaking.

“what if i don’t want to keep knowing nothing about it?” seonghwa keeps his voice leveled, despite the urge to shout them right in hongjoong’s face. “why is it such a secret? you’re acting as if the past you shared with her is a taboo topic, that anyone who dares to question you should be treated in the worse way possible and kept in the dark with no answers.”

his steps are heavy with aggravation as seonghwa moves closer to hongjoong’s spot in front of him, stopping only when he’s several more steps away.

“you’re treating me as if i don’t deserve to know what happened, even after i’ve been by your side for all these years.” the words that fall from seonghwa’s mouth feel as light as feather, unable to stop their flow after they’ve been causing his heart to feel heavier than stone.

“you’re not doing yourself a favor like this, hongjoong. you keep acting as if it doesn’t bother you, but everyone on board can see how the way you’re handling everything is almost torture. you’ve been easier to irritate lately, you’re defensive every time someone even mentions her name, you barely even go out of your quarters to see the rest of the crew anymore! it’s like you’re killing yourself!”

nothing follows after the onslaught of seonghwa’s rant. hongjoong remains still, not a single twitch of muscle, or even an angry grumble – just silence. it’s as if seonghwa’s rant was a storm, a truly natural disaster that was just waiting to happen due to hongjoong’s own ignorance. his thunderous words leaves the captain’s heart shaking, opening up the scars that never truly healed.

if seonghwa’s rant was a storm, then hongjoong’s silence is the aftermath. the devastation that comes after the destruction that he unknowingly contributed to, and he doesn’t know what to do other than stand still and let himself fall victim to and be buried underneath the rubble of seonghwa’s anger.

“what’s the point,” hongjoong finally rasps out. “if i’m already dying anyway?”

the devastation that storms cause are usually followed with the acceptance of everything that you’ve lived for has been destroyed, an acceptance that will come to you no matter how long you try to deny it. hongjoong had lived half of his life in denial, and now that’s left is to accept.

“you, out of all people,” seonghwa notices the way hongjoong turns his head to glance back at him ever so slightly, and he’s beginning to wish he never spoke. “should understand that i am not destined to stay alive longer than any of you, than her.”

“hongjoong–” seonghwa feels the storm in him die out faster than he expected, and he isn’t given the chance to apologize before his captain continues speaking.

“you’re right,” the dark haired pirate says. “it is torture, it certainly feels like it. to say and act like i don’t feel anything for her anymore even when i would venture into the deepest depths of the sea for her is torture.”

hongjoong straightens his posture with a small sigh from his lips, and he begins to slowly move towards the wooden bookshelf that stands tall against the wall of his private quarters. he can feel seonghwa’s eyes following him, but he doesn’t address it.

“but i would put up with all the torture myself rather than let her feel any pain once i’m gone.”

hongjoong lets his fingertips run along the spines of the many books aligned on the bookshelf, a trail forming behind due to his fingers collecting the dust that managed to accumulate over the period of time he left the books untouched. he stops once he touches the book he was searching for, and he pulls it out, little speckles of dust flying in the tense air.

“don’t you think it’s a bit odd,” hongjoong begins once more as he opens the book, casually flipping over the pages. “that you’ve known me for six years, yet you don’t know anything of my past?”

a muscle in seonghwa’s face twitches.

“… of course,” the brighter haired pirate responds. “but every time i’d ask you, you wouldn’t give me any clear answers.”

hongjoong merely hums. he continues to flip the pages of the book in his hands until he reaches the spot where there’s a crumpled piece of paper sitting neatly in between the pages, one that was once as white as the innocence he had before, but now it’s colored with the pigments of ageing and stained with tears that drained him from all the emotions he possessed, once upon a time. the handwriting of his younger self taunts him, and he looks away from he could lose himself in the memory.

“there's a reason why i do so, but i’ll give you one thing about my past just this once.” hongjoong says as he picks up the piece of paper from the pages, closing the book afterwards and placing it back to where he plucked it from. he turns around to face the other man, but he keeps his head hanging low as if to avoid whatever kind of stare that seonghwa’s giving him. he doesn’t trust himself to stay composed if he were to see any kind of empathy or pity coming from the eyes of his old friend.

“i used to write about her,” hongjoong confesses, and the ghost of a dead smile appears on his lips. “every day, without fail. i would read them to her before pasting them on the wall of my old bedroom.”

as hongjoong steps closer to seonghwa’s spot, the older pirate could feel his heart thumping harder with each sound of the other man’s shoes against the floor. the captain ceases once he’s standing next to his right-hand-man, and he offers the sheet of discolored paper to him.

seonghwa hesitates, eyes as shaky as his hands when he takes the paper into his own hold. his fingers clutch at the edges gently, as if he’s scared that a grip any harder would shatter the piece of parchment like a broken heart.

“keep it if you want,” hongjoong’s voice is small as he walks pass the other pirate. “or throw it away, i don’t care. just take it as an explanation on why i chose to do what i’m doing.”

seonghwa dares himself to look down at the paper, and the familiar writing of his old friend pierces into his chest, an ache that only deepens the more he reads. it’s only a short poem, one that’s merely a few stanzas long which don’t even fill up half of the paper, but seonghwa could feel the emotions clinging onto every letter that’s scribbled in the fading black ink. he could just imagine a younger version of hongjoong working on the poem, eyes sparkling with hope and love that seonghwa has never personally seen during the entire six years of working alongside him – it almost makes him sick.

seonghwa can’t bring himself to look at the poem anymore, so he folds it neatly before pocketing it. he thinks he’s seen enough.

“…hongjoong,” the blond pirate voices, and despite not receiving any answer from the latter, he continues. “i’m sorry. i’m so, so sorry.”

what is he apologizing for? seonghwa isn’t sure – not in the sense that he doesn’t have a reason on why he’s apologizing, but more in the sense that he’s not sure for which reason he’s apologizing for. is he apologizing for bursting out his frustration on a dear friend that has went through far much more than he initially knew? is he apologizing for events that took place before he knew hongjoong, the ones that caused him to become a shell of the young man he used to be? or is he apologizing for the love that got away, the love that once completed him only to leave him as empty as his eyes that no longer sparkle?

seonghwa doesn’t know. all he does know is that hongjoong deserved an apology, and he’ll be the one to offer it to him even if the heavens and the earth don't see him fit as someone who should be offered any kind of sympathy.

“… you’re dismissed, park seonghwa.” hongjoong simply responds after what felt like an eternity of tense silence.

the older pirate doesn’t disobey. he merely nods and makes his way out of the captain’s private quarters, the squeaking of the door opening and closing being the last sound hongjoong hears before he’s alone with the silence within the room.

as hongjoong sits quietly on the edge of his unmade bed, the ache in his chest that’s been haunting him ever since your reappearance in his life broadens over his whole chest, radiating all over his body until he feels like he’s crushed under the intensity of it all. he lets himself fall down onto the softness of his mattress when the energy to even sit up is taken from him, and he stares at the dark ceiling above him.

the tips of hongjoong’s fingers tingle, the rough feeling of aged parchment grazing his skin leaving an uneasiness in its wake. was it truly a wise decision to give seonghwa the poem he wrote for you on the night of his confession? he’s unsure, but what he said was true – if seonghwa wanted to know so desperately about his past with you, then the poem would be a great storyteller, even when it feels like a chunk of his heart was taken when he gave the poem away.

hongjoong thinks that it’s better that way, perhaps, if he were to give away his heart that once belonged to you little by little, until there’s nothing left to break once he has to depart from you again in the future. but for some reason, he feels that even if his chest were to be void of a heart, then the other aspects of him would break if he were to part from you. he thinks his soul would crumble, his legs would fail to bring him anywhere, his head be full of nothing but you for all of his remaining time – for not only his heart belongs to you, but his entire being.

a fact that once built him during his younger days, but now it only serves to destroy his already dying body.

as hongjoong continues to stare at the ceiling above him, he can’t help but foolishly wish he could go back to six years ago.

next.

taglist: @atinytinaa @crimson-mia @catwhisk @lelaleleb @realrya @layzfeelit @atinyreads @revehosh @fourthirtyone-am @jexizia @xxluckydreamsxx @sankatchu @mythicalamphitrite @isntw0nwoo

[paradiqms]

(6) to you, 2000 years from now.

hongjoong x fem!reader.

tags: angst, captain!hongjoong, royalty!reader, betrayals, misunderstandings, mentions of death, cruelty, fluff here n there, fantasy setting, strangers to lovers to enemies to..?

summary: after the death of your parents and near fall of your kingdom, you have no choice but to leave your first love in order to keep the kingdom in balance with you as the new ruler. years later, you see a familiar face - but instead of being in your arms, he's kneeling in front of the guillotine.

word count: 5k

currently, six out of ?

previous.

out of all the times he worked with seonghwa, hyunjin thinks this might be the riskiest mission ever.

the assassin doesn’t doubt his abilities whatsoever. if anything, he thinks he’s more than capable of handling the job, especially since it involved stealing something from the royal family of cygnus. sneaking into the castle and breaking into the underground cellars was mere child’s play to the long-haired man – the only thing that took some enjoyment out of his task was the fact that seonghwa specifically told him not to cause any harm to the royal family.

“it’ll cause unnecessary trouble,” the pirate said during one of their meetups. “we’re already hunted down by pyxis, so just steal the map piece and get out as soon as you can.”

hyunjin had groaned after being denied the pleasure of spilling the blood of royals that he considered dirty, earning himself a light smack over the head by seonghwa. the assassin didn’t understand why the latter would request such a thing back then, but after tonight’s exchange, he finally understands.

the golden ring slides across the tip of his fingers smoothly as hyunjin rolls the accessory with ease, an obvious look of distress on his features. the tavern’s liveliness doesn’t die out even after what felt like an hour or two after seonghwa left with the girl – or should he say the royal.

seriously, hyunjin groans to himself. does he think i’m stupid?

it didn’t take the young man a full minute to connect the dots and figure out who the woman really was. seonghwa’s cloak draped over her shoulders with the hood over her head, the angered look on her face when the pirate gave hyunjin the ring that looked far too extravagant, even her entire aura and overall presence just screamed royal right in hyunjin’s face. his fingers twitched underneath the table, itching to grab the knife sheathed on his belt, but he resisted.

if it weren’t for the fact that he trusted seonghwa and his decisions greatly, he would’ve stabbed the royal right in her chest as soon as he found out.

with a frustrated sigh, the assassin stands up from his seat, the legs of his wooden chair screeching against the floorboards. he stomps his way out of the tavern through the back door, and to his surprise, he catches the lone silhouette of the person he wanted to talk to more than anything at this very moment.

“well well well,” hyunjin hums, pocketing the golden ring that he was previously playing with. “if it isn’t the pirate king himself. what are you doing out here all alone?”

“to remind you of your place.” hongjoong shrugs his shoulders as he leans against the wall behind him. “you know, don’t you?”

“you’re gonna have to be more specific, captain.” hyunjin strides forward slowly, the title falling from his lips with a tone that’s bound to set the other male off. he catches the way hongjoong’s eye twitches, and it makes a satisfied smirk creep onto his face.

“oh, i’ll be specific.” the pirate pushes himself off from the wall to move closer to the assassin, rough hands grabbing onto his collar.

“my second in command was foolish enough to bring her along to your little meetup,” hongjoong scowls. “but if you even think about harming a single hair on her head, the things i’ll do to you will make even the devil turn away with fear. do i make myself clear?”

even within the cold night air, hyunjin feels hongjoong’s eyes burn into him with a fire that might as well have been dragged from the pits of hell by his own hands. he returns the hard stare, the mischief in the assassin’s eyes only fanning the flame in hongjoong’s and making him almost feel dizzy with anger.

“look at you,” hyunjin taunts, voice barely above a whisper. “going all soft for a royal. have you forgotten why you snatched her up on your ship in the first place?”

the fire in hongjoong’s eyes flicker for a moment following the assassin’s words, and hyunjin knows he pressed on the right buttons.

“thought so.” he scoffs before pushing the other male away from him, watching the latter stumble on his feet. “don’t waste your precious time on a pathetic royal, pirate king. we both know she’ll have you and your entire crew hanging from the gallows as soon as her royal guard dogs catch up to you.”

the fire entirely dies out soon enough. hongjoong’s eyes go back to their cold, hard stare, not a glimpse of emotion seeping from the dark irises as they stare into a pair just as empty.

“whether or not she’ll have me hanged,” hongjoong says as he turns to walk away. “is entirely her decision, just as it is mine to have your head on my wall if you disregard my warning.”

without another word, the pirate leaves hyunjin alone in the dark back alley, uncaring of the way he can still feel the assassin’s stare following his every move.

the moment you wake up, you feel like you’re still dreaming.

the song of the early morning birds gently bring you out of your drowsiness, soft sunlight peeking from the curtains next to the soft bed you’re currently resting on. the covers are wrapped around your body comfortably as if someone had tucked you in, and it takes you absolutely everything you’ve got to force yourself to sit up.

you can’t remember the last time you’ve properly rested on a bed after spending days swaying back and forth on a hammock with your wrist cuffed to a pillar. as you take in the new surroundings of the bedroom, your eyes catch a single piece of paper by the nightstand on top of a pile of clothes. you reach out for it, and you squint your eyes at the unfamiliar handwriting.

dear sleeping beauty,

by the time you’re awake and reading this, i’ve already left. don’t worry, i won’t be gone for long, i’m only out to grab some breakfast in bed for you. i have left some clothes for you to use after you freshen up. they are all mine, so i apologize if they don’t fit you properly. please stay put and don’t leave the bedroom until i come back.

from,

seonghwa.

a small smile twitches on your dry lips once you finish reading the note. you remember, albeit very fuzzy and probably missing a lot of detail, how the blond pirate held you last night while you were bawling your eyes out and hyperventilating. you come to the conclusion that he must’ve carried you to the building you’re currently in and tucked you in bed after you passed out.

without wasting another minute, you place the note back down on the nightstand before picking up the clothes seonghwa had chosen for you, making your way towards the bathroom provided within the room. once you enter, there’s a mirror hanging on the wall by the sink, and you make the wrong decision to look into your own reflection.

the circles under your eyes are as dark as the ink you used to dip your quilt in, the skin of your lips pale and most probably on the verge of peeling off – and good lord, is that a pimple? you turn away from the mirror with a small cringe on your face. it seems that your days of being borderline neglected on the ship has finally caught up to you.

you begin to shed yourself from your old clothes, starting with the dark cloak that remains hugging your frame ever since last night. your nose catches the slightly familiar scent of a certain bright haired pirate as you peel the cloak off, a scent that had washed over you as he held you in his arms as if you were as fragile as the porcelain cups you used to drink from. you shake your head to get rid of the sudden mental image of seonghwa’s face in your mind, quickly placing his cloak somewhere so it won’t get wet along with your old clothes.

by the time you’ve finished scrubbing off all the grime that stuck on your skin and patting your skin dry, you hear someone knock on the bedroom door. you stiffen up at the unexpected visit, but the sound of seonghwa’s muffled voice calling out for you makes you soften up.

“i’m still changing!” you respond. “i’ll be out in a minute.”

with slightly clumsy hands grasping at the unfamiliar set of clothes, you start to slip the garments on one by one, the layers providing you the perfect amount of warmth and comfort. the fabrics fit you better than you had expected, save for the length of the trousers and sleeves that reach further than your own limbs could go. after grabbing seonghwa’s cloak, you push the bathroom door open, and you’re met with the very same pirate standing rather awkwardly in the middle of the room, his hands carrying two small boxes.

“good morn – oh.” seonghwa’s eyes widen slightly as he takes in your appearance, covered entirely in his clothes that were a bit too long you. he can feel a warmth creeping onto his cheeks and slithering its way up to the tip of his ears, attempting to cover it up by coughing into his fist before placing down the boxes he was previously holding.

“here,” seonghwa mumbles, making his way towards the spot you’re standing in before kneeling down. “let me help.”

you watch with bewilderment as the pirate starts to fold the cuffs of the trousers as to not make them pool around your feet, hands skillfully rolling them upwards until they reach your ankles. from the way you’re looking down at him with your current positions, you can see the tinge of red decorating the edges of his ears.

“i’m sorry if they’re uncomfortable,” he says. “they’re the only pieces of clothing i had that i thought would fit you.”

you shake your head at the man’s words, although he’s unable to even see you from the way he’s still kneeling in front of you.

“no,” you respond, a small smile gracing your lips. “they’re nice and warm. thank you.”

seonghwa swears he could feel the temperate of the room spike up as he listens to how your smooth voice thanks him. he’s quick to clear his throat and stand back straight once he’s satisfied with the way the cuffs of your trousers are neatly rolled up.

“that’s good to know.” he mumbles. “ahem, anyway– i bought some breakfast. you should eat before we board the ship.”

your eyes light up as seonghwa nudges you along with him to sit on the bed, pulling out a chair for himself to settle down across from you. he places one of the small boxes on your lap, and you open it with excited hands.

within the cardboard box sits a neat, cleanly cut piece of cake, the layers in between colored with the flavors that you’ve loved ever since your younger days. there’s a thin coating of cream on the top tinged in your favorite color paired with bite-sized bits of the fruit that your personal maids would bring to you every morning without fail, which also happens to be your favorite.

sitting quietly and observing your reaction, seonghwa wears a knowing smile on his lips.

“this is…” you breathe out, slowly lifting the box from your lap as if to inspect the piece of pastry placed inside closer. “this… i used to eat this a lot when i was younger.”

“is that so?” seonghwa feigns mild astonishment, opening up his own little box. “i randomly picked that out. seems like i have quite the luck.”

a wistful, weak smile curves on your lips as you continue to merely stare at the piece of pastry. you remember, with a heavy heart, the last time you had a slice of this specific cake.

you could still hear the drops of heavy rainfall against the roof of the small attic space turned bedroom that you used to visit every night, the familiar scent of your loved one clinging onto the bedsheets that were wrapped around your frame making you feel warm and fuzzy inside as you watch the young man sitting next to you take a bite of your favorite cake.

you remember the way his eyes had twinkled with delight once the sweet, rich flavor of the pastry melted on his tongue, and you remember smiling so widely to the point your cheeks began aching as you watched your first love enjoy something that you decided to share with him. you had spent another night in his arms, comfortable beneath the warm sheets to avoid the cold that the midnight rain came with, promising one another to share each other’s favorite things every now and then.

the first time you shared something that brought you comfort with him became the last time you ever tasted the piece of pastry – because, several days and nights would pass, and you couldn’t bear the sickeningly sweet taste of it anymore once you lost sight of the boy with hair that shined like the stars.

seonghwa seems to have noticed the way you’re spacing out, and he gently taps his finger on your shoulder to bring you back. you jolt a little, snapping your head back up to look at the man in front of you. his lips are still curving upwards with a smile that reflects the same gentleness his eyes hold.

“no time to frown now, your highness.” seonghwa offers you the plastic fork that came with the packaging, gesturing for you to take it. “eat up, we have a long day ahead of us.”

the pirate sits back as he watches you take the small utensil from him with a sniffle, a feeling akin to satisfaction growing in the confines of his chest as he watches you enjoy the pastry hongjoong had asked him to get for you.

“she likes the one with fruit toppings,” his captain had mumbled earlier this morning, avoiding his gaze as he stares at the bustling streets of cygnus from the window. “and thin cream. she doesn’t like too much of it, it makes her sick. ask for a bigger slice too; i’m assuming it’s been a while since she’s had cygnus pastries.”

seonghwa blinked at hongjoong’s words, frozen in place as he was making his way down the stairs of the inn that the other male had rented out completely for his crew to rest in during the night.

“what?” hongjoong turned to face the other pirate. seonghwa can make out the dark circles under his eyes even from the poor flickering lights of the lobby. “you’re going to get her breakfast, aren’t you? that fool hasn’t eaten anything proper for days. the least you could do while we’re here is to get her something she can actually digest. i’m not looking forward to having a spoiled royal starve to death on my ship.”

the words fell from hongjoong’s lips faster than his brain can tell him to stop, immediately regretting his decision to even utter a single sentence out once he feels seonghwa’s eyes burning into the back of his head. but he remained still, arms crossed over his chest that’s aching and thumping from the wild beats of his heart due to the memories of sharing that godforsaken cake with you under the sheets of his bed on a rainy night.

“… got it, captain.” he heard seonghwa say after what felt like an eternity.

just as his right-hand-man turned to open the door of the inn, hongjoong hears him call out once more.

“you should just be honest with yourself,” the blond spoke, and the ache in hongjoong’s chest worsens. “we both know you don’t have much time left. you shouldn’t waste it on hating someone who still loves you.”

“don’t speak on topics you know nothing of, park seonghwa.” hongjoong had clenched his jaw, digging his nails into the palm of his cold hands. another beat of silence follows the captain’s words, but before long, the sound of the door creaking open and closing right afterwards reached his ears.

hongjoong was alone, once again. the words that came out of his second in command’s mouth echoes in his throbbing head, making his vision blur.

someone who still loves me, he solemnly thinks to himself. is that right?

silence answers in it’s own words, leaving hongjoong dissatisfied, as how he always is whenever it comes to anything related to you and your nature.

before you know it, you’re back on the ship, surprisingly on your own terms this time and not carried over the shoulders of a certain red haired pirate after being drugged.

you and seonghwa were the last ones to arrive, the other members of the crew already gathered in the main deck facing a familiar statured man who stands at the front. from your position behind seonghwa’s broad shoulders, you manage to catch a glimpse of the captain’s armband, and the mere sight of it makes you frown.

“look who’s finally here.” hongjoong claps his hands mockingly once he notices you and seonghwa, the clicks of his heavy boots against the deck’s wooden floorboards scratching your brain in all the wrong ways. “we were just about to set sail without you.”

you hear seonghwa scoff at his captain’s words.

“bold of you to think that you’d reach absolutely anywhere without this,” the taller male reaches into his pocket to fish out the scroll that’s still neatly tied with a red thread. “and her.”

a confused noise gets caught in the back of your throat when seonghwa mentions you. you feel several pairs of eyes turn to look at you, and you feel yourself shrink behind the blond pirate’s back, but he’s quick to wrap his slender fingers around your wrist to pull you out and make you stand next to him properly.

hongjoong spares you a quick glance, eyes narrowing and the edges of his mouth arching downwards once he’s done scanning you from head to toe.

the clothes you’re wearing look familiar, the captain thinks.

“… seonghwa,” you whisper, tugging on the man’s sleeve. “what do you mean, me?”

“did you think we brought you aboard for shits and giggles?” hongjoong interrupts, and you send him a heated glare that he merely mirrors with just as much fire. the dark-haired man treads closer towards you and seonghwa only to snatch the scroll out of his right-hand-man’s grip.

“this,” hongjoong waves the piece of rolled parchment in front of your face as if he were talking to a child. “is the last piece of the map that we’ve been compiling for god knows how long. apparently, legends say that only one person is able to decipher it once all the pieces have been reunited.”

with another heavy step closer into your personal space, hongjoong nudges you with the scroll as if to put some emphasis on his next sentence, making you stumble on your feet.

“and that’s where you come in, dear pureblood royal of pyxis.”

the cogs in your head come whirring with realization.

pyxis, a kingdom named after the constellation of a compass within the dark night sky. you remember vaguely how your late mother would tell you stories of each and every one of the constellations that twinkled with wonder during your childhood, your eyes following the movement of her finger as she traced the outlines that connected the stars together.

“and that’s pyxis,” she had told you, her voice as gentle as the night breeze. “it’s a compass, do you see it? it’s said that the very first rulers of our kingdom were blessed by the heavens, to have the pure life essence of the stars running in their veins that would allow them to see what others cannot, and to be the north star that will guide every lost ship back home.”

your little brain didn’t quite understand the words your mother had explained to you back then, but a big smile grew on your face nonetheless.

“do we have that gift, mama?” you had asked the former queen. “does that mean we’re stars, too?”

“of course,” your mother smiled, embracing your small frame in her arms. “you’ll always be mama’s brightest star.”

a small breath escapes from your trembling lips, previously unfocused eyes now narrowed as they stare at the impassive look on the captain’s face as he waits for your answer.

“you…” your voice falters. “if you think for one second that i’ll help you, then you’ve gone completely mad.”

everything happened faster than you could register. one second hongjoong had the map in front of your face, the darkened piece of old parchment’s texture giving a weird feeling against your skin, and the next second he’s pointing his gun at you. you can see the way seonghwa immediately stiffens in his spot next to you, and behind hongjoong, san is holding onto wooyoung who looks like he’s about to pounce at the captain.

“i’m not giving you a choice here.” hongjoong hisses out, pressing the cold and hard material of his weapon against your forehead. “you will decipher the map for us or else i’ll–”

i’ll blow your brains out and toss your body overboard, is what hongjoong would usually promise when his patience runs thin in the presence of a difficult situation. but for reasons that he would rather die than admit out loud, the captain suddenly finds himself  speechless in your presence. your eyes shake anxiously, a slight tremble to your lips that you’re desperately trying to stop by chewing on them. with a quick glance downwards, hongjoong notices the way you’re picking at the skin around your nails, and his own knuckles turn white as his grip tightens on his weapon.

she’s still doing that, hongjoong somberly thinks. he remembers the way he would hold onto your hands whenever he caught you picking at your skin, lacing his fingers with yours to stop you from giving in to the bad habit.

seonghwa catches up on the captain’s reluctance, and he’s quick to shove hongjoong’s weapon out of your face before sliding himself in between you and the other pirate.

“captain, calm down.” the blond pirate’s voice goes deep as he voices out the warning. “threatening her won’t get you anywhere.”

as hongjoong’s eyes go back and forth between the taller pirate and you, something clicks in his head.

the familiar set of clothes you’re wearing, the way you had arrived on board at the same time as seonghwa, how you were sticking yourself onto his side earlier, the sight of seonghwa’s dark cloak that hongjoong would recognize anywhere being draped over your figure last night, the whole fact that his second in command went out of his way to buy breakfast for you mere hours before?

“oh.” hongjoong breathes out, an amused and sick smile twisting onto his lips that makes a shiver go down seonghwa’s spine. “i see. seems like i’m not the only one ignoring my duties for a mere girl.”

at the way hongjoong quoted his own words, seonghwa grits his teeth and lifts his hands to roughly shove the other pirate backwards, the single action causing the other crew members to quite literally explode into chaos as they do their best to hold the two fuming pirates back from gouging each other’s eyes out.

wooyoung is quick to go over to your side and hide you behind his back while another pirate who you’re not acquainted with yet settles himself in between the quarreling pair, long arms placed onto both of their chests to keep them at a safe distance from one another.

“break it up, you two!” he scolds, eyebrows arched with annoyance. “you’re acting like children, seriously.”

“piss off, jeong yunho.” hongjoong hisses, eyes not breaking their heated glare with the blond pirate who looks like there might as well be steam coming out of his ears.

“that’s cute, capt.” yunho scoffs. “calm down, please. we’re not getting any closer to our next stop like this.”

wooyoung’s hand finds yours as he slowly brings you away from the scene, slender fingers wrapping around your wrist. you follow him closely, keeping your steps light as if one wrong move could set things off once again. just as you set foot on the top stair that leads down towards the crew’s quarters, you make the decision to turn around, and you catch hongjoong’s gaze.

it must’ve been a trick under the light of the early cygnus morning, because to you, it seemed like the captain’s eyes softened up for a moment, the tightened muscles around his well-sculpted face relaxing for the briefest minute before resuming to their stone cold expression. you watch quietly as he roughly shoves yunho’s hand away from his chest before stomping his way to his personal quarters, slamming the door behind him so hard, you swear you felt the entire ship shake for a second.

“they can be so fussy sometimes.” wooyoung’s words bring you out of your bubble, and you swivel your head forward to face the red haired pirate. “sorry you had to see that, your highness. captain has a temper.”

“i can tell.” you mumble. the crew’s quarters remain the same, dark and quiet, save for the sound of creaking floorboards and sloshing water. wooyoung settles you down on the hammock that you’ve missed during your one night stay in cygnus before running a hand through his hair with a loud sigh.

“they’re not always like that,” the pirate says as he leans against one of the pillars that your hammock is tied to. “they’re really close, actually. but captain has been a little… different, ever since.. you know.”

ever since i came, you finished wooyoung’s sentence by yourself inside your head.

the commotion on the main deck dies out soon enough, and another figure comes descending from the small flight of stairs. you quickly make the new visitor out as yunho.

“hi.” the freakishly tall pirate breathes out as if he’s out of breath. you nod at his way as a greeting of your own. “i know you might need some time to cool down after what happened, but i really need you to work with me right now.”

yunho pulls out several pieces of aged paper, all rolled neatly into similar sized scrolls and secured with a red thread. you realize that he’s here to convince you to decipher the goddamn map again, and without a second thought, you turn away.

“like i said,” you grumble. “if you think i’m going to help you read that stupid map, then you’re insane. i’m not helping any of you.”

“your majesty,” yunho says, as if the flattering title would make you listen to any of the words that came out of his mouth. “with all due respect, i’m not giving you a chance either. as the ships navigator, i need you to decipher this map for me.”

you dare yourself to look at the tall pirate standing next to your hammock, and there’s not a single hint on his face that makes him look like he’ll even allow you to turn him down another time. but you’re not one to easily give in yourself.

“no.” you respond. “i’d rather you feed me to the sharks.”

“hey,” you hear wooyoung butt in from his spot near the pillar. “don’t say that. they might actually consider it.”

“we already are.” yunho deadpans before heaving out a heavy sigh, putting away the map pieces. “please, before captain loses his shit again, consider helping us.”

when you don’t even turn to look at his way, yunho frowns.

“… let’s go, wooyoung.” you notice how the taller pirate’s tone seems to change, his voice dropping lower as if it wasn’t already booming against your eardrums the first time you heard it, and it sends shivers down your spine. you hear wooyoung’s shoes against the floor as he follows yunho, albeit rather slowly, away from the crew’s quarters, leaving you alone once again.

you rest atop the hammock, staring up at the empty ceiling before closing your eyes, an ache in your chest when you can practically see pyxis’ constellation on the back of your eyelids.

the north star that will guide every lost ship back home.

your mother’s words echo in your head, and only now do you realize that it sounds a bit familiar. you’re suddenly back in pyxis, sitting on top of a small bed within an attic space turned bedroom where the walls are decorated with all sorts of poems with you as the muse.

so bright and beautiful, the north star that leads me home.

home. to you, he was your home. a home that was burnt to the ground by his own hands that used to hold you so dearly, the same hands that pointed a gun to your head. your heart aches all over again, but you shake your head to try and get rid of the voice of the gentle poet who died long ago, only to be replaced with a heartless pirate.

you press the palm of your hands against your closed eyes with a frustrated groan as if to stop the onslaught of fresh tears that threatened to spill out.

you can’t keep crying over someone who’s already gone, you remind yourself. it’s pointless. pathetic, even.

home. oh, how you wish you could go back home, as well. not to your personal chambers in the palace, or anywhere at all within the place you had lived in for most of your life. you wish you could go back to six years ago, where everything was nothing short of perfect.

unbeknownst to you, within the captain’s quarters, a certain pirate shares the same exact thoughts.

next.

taglist: @atinytinaa @crimson-mia @catwhisk @lelaleleb@realrya @layzfeelit @atinyreads @revehosh @fourthirtyone-am

[paradiqms]

(5) to you, 2000 years from now.

hongjoong x fem!reader.

tags: angst, captain!hongjoong, royalty!reader, betrayals, misunderstandings, mentions of death, cruelty, fluff here n there, fantasy setting, strangers to lovers to enemies to..?

summary: after the death of your parents and near fall of your kingdom, you have no choice but to leave your first love in order to keep the kingdom in balance with you as the new ruler. years later, you see a familiar face - but instead of being in your arms, he's kneeling in front of the guillotine.

word count: 4,4k

currently, five out of ?

tw: probably very inaccurate description of a panic attack near the end, i apologize in advance &lt;;/3

previous.

you had fallen asleep by the time seonghwa came to bother you again.

the several days you’ve spent on the ship had made you grow rather perceptive of your surroundings, especially towards the sounds of approaching footsteps from the main deck above the quarters you currently reside in. even while you sleep, the sound of heavy boots against wooden stairs would always startle you awake. this, however, doesn’t apply to a certain blond pirate.

seonghwa’s steps are so light against the creaking stairs and floorboards of the crew’s quarters, barely making any noise at all, much less wake you up from your comfortable slumber. you managed to jolt awake only when said pirate shook your shoulders, almost making you fall off your hammock in the process.

“rise and shine, your highness.” seonghwa’s voice reaches your ears as you slowly drag yourself out of sleepiness, stretching your arms over your head. you blink at your dark surroundings, several soft gleams of moonlight leaking from the small gaps between the sides of the ship. it finally clicks to you that you’ve slept the whole afternoon away.

“you’ve had enough beauty sleep,” seonghwa voices once more as he leans against the wall right next to the hammock you’re resting on. “now let’s go get some fresh air.”

you feel yourself question the man’s words. before you had fallen asleep, you remember how he had freed you from your chains and told you to follow him once the ship arrives to its next destination – where ever that may be. however, you initially thought he was bluffing. a pirate’s words can never be trusted, and yet here he is, offering you to go out and get some fresh air with not a hint of deceit written on his well-sculptured face.

“… tell me where we are first.” you breathe out, unable to allow yourself to even get off the hammock without knowing where you’re about to venture. heaven knows where the pirates decided to berth, you could be dragged into a land where outlaws gather and do terrible things, for all you know. or worse – the damn captain of the ship finally grew tired of you and ordered his crew to leave you at a lone island to starve to death.

seonghwa seems to have caught up to your wariness, and he has the audacity to let an amused chortle out.

“follow me and find out for yourself.” the pirate says, gently kicking himself off the wall he was previously leaning against before walking towards the stairs that lead towards the main deck. you remain still, jaw slack as your eyes stick to the movement of the pirate as he simply leaves you alone in the darkness of the crew’s quarters.

damn these filthy pirates, you mentally curse, huffing as you drag yourself out of the hammock you’ve grown attached to after several days to tail after seonghwa.

as soon as you reach the main deck, you’re met with an unfamiliar landscape. the ship seems to have anchored by a coast that stretches far and wide, the sand that sparkles like glitter under the shine of the moon making your chest squeeze, weirdly enough. you’ve been stuck on a pirate ship for days without even a glimpse of land, and now that it’s right in front of you, it almost feels unreal.

“never seen shore before?” seonghwa’s voice pulls you out of your trance, and you swivel your head around to see him already looking at you with a teasing, small quirk on his lips. before you could spit out any snide reply to the pirate’s words, he reaches out to grab onto your hand before dragging you along with him down the wooden ramp, ignoring your protests.

only now does the fact that the beach is connected to a dense jungle of tall trees bother you, because seonghwa is walking right into it and bringing you along with him. to be in a land you haven’t been to before, in the dead of night with a man, a pirate to be exact? the realization comes shooting into your brain and gives you a fright that makes you tug yourself away from the man’s hold harder.

“where are you taking me?!” you yell, using your other hand to try and pry the pirate’s hand off your own, but he doesn’t budge. “let me go this instant!”

“pipe down.” seonghwa hisses. “you’re going to wake up the whole kingdom if you keep screaming.”

“good,” you bite back. “that’s exactly what i want so they can throw you and your pirate friends in the dungeons before hanging you.”

“you sure about that?” the man decides to turn around and face you, his eyebrow lifted. “you’re not gonna stop the execution for our captain this time?”

seonghwa’s lips turn into a cheeky smile as he watches your expressions change – going from fuming at him, to being surprised and taken aback, before instantly going back to looking like you’re about to pounce at him and wring his neck.

“oh, fuck you.” you grit your teeth, glaring at the back of the pirate’s head as he continues to drag you through the tall trees. “i don’t know how you managed to get ahold of that information, but i’ll have you know that i wouldn’t hesitate to personally escort your captain to the gallows once you’re all captured.”

“i’m very sure you will.” seonghwa merely hums, earning a frustrated groan from you.

you’re unsure whether it’s the fact that he sounds extremely sarcastic or you’re just wary of everything that comes out of his mouth, but something tells you that, deep down, he knows you’re lying just as much as you do.

several moments of silence go by once you’ve given up on freeing yourself from the pirate’s grasp, allowing yourself to be dragged along. soon enough, you finally find yourselves at the end of the forest, and to your surprise, you spot something familiar.

a flag that flutters gently with the night breeze atop a pole, the light background giving a nice contrast to the darker illustration of a swan in the middle. you’d recognize the flag anywhere – especially after seeing it multiple times throughout your life, particularly on the official papers and letters sent to your own kingdom.

“cygnus..?” you breathe out, almost in disbelief. the way the kingdom’s name that’s been in a close relationship to your own homeland slips out of your mouth is just as easy as the way you instantly feel a sense of longing seeping into your chest.

“the one and only.” seonghwa says. if you weren’t so distracted, you would’ve noticed the way the man’s hand softens up its grip around yours.

“why…” your words are barely above a whisper, eyes focused on the small town that’s several meters ahead. “why here? what are we doing here?”

the blond pirate doesn’t answer you instantly. instead, he shrugs off the cloak he’s wearing only to turn towards you and wrap the dark fabric around your shorter stature, pulling the hood over your head.

“since you’re familiar with cygnus,” seonghwa says. “then i’m sure you know what it’s famous for.”

your eyebrows furrow in confusion at the man’s words. cygnus is widely popular for the food, specifically the pastries. memories of your younger self getting excited whenever your parents would inform you that they’ve ordered for the delivery of special homemade pastries from cygnus flood your brain as if it all happened yesterday, and a ghost of a wistful smile appears on your lips.

“of course,” you respond. “i had them for almost every dessert.”

beside you, seonghwa smiles knowingly.

“let’s get going, then.” the man gives a lighthearted shove to your shoulder as he walks past you and towards the town. forgetting the fact that you had the urge to choke the life out of him just a few minutes ago, you break into a light jog to catch up with the pirate.

cygnus’ town is quite smaller than the one of your homeland, but it is just as beautiful during night when the streets are bathed in the moon’s shine. most shops are closed, as expected for them to be when it’s currently the dead of night. aside from the sound of rusty metal signs swinging along with the breeze, you hear glasses clinking against each other as well as muffled, wild laughter.

a tavern, you come to realize as seonghwa leads you closer to the shop, yellow lighting coming from inside and illuminating the empty streets outside. you can make out the dark silhouettes of people from within the tavern, watching with amusement as you watch the shadows lift their mugs for a cheers before bringing the rims to their mouths, chugging down their drinks.

“you’re coming inside with me,” seonghwa’s husky voice brings you out of your trance, and you tilt your head up to look at him. “if questioned, play along and say you’re my wife. got it?”

“what?” you frown, moving away from the tall man as if recoiling with surprise at his sudden request. “no– why would i do that?”

“trust me.” he responds, sparing you a sharp look as he places his hand on the small of your back. you’re not given the chance to protest before the pirate pushes open the doors to the tavern, and you’re hit with the strongest smell of alcohol in the air. you swear you felt yourself get slightly dizzy when you stepped in.

as if the crowd of drunken people in your every direction wasn’t enough to make you feel suffocated, seonghwa decides to slip his arm around your waist as he guides you further into the mess, and you grimace under the hood he previously pulled over your head. his steps are fast, almost hasty as he skillfully makes his way through the mob, and you have no choice but try to match with his pace even when you almost trip over your own feet multiple times.

soon enough, thank the heavens, seonghwa reaches a space at the back of the tavern where a significant less amount of people are gathered. the arm he has around your waist is quickly removed as he reaches to hold onto your hand instead, bringing you over to sit at an empty table, a single oil-lamp placed in the middle of the round wooden surface.

“for someone who had a lot of bite earlier,” the pirate speaks as he takes a seat beside you. “you’re surprisingly obedient right now.”

“oh please,” you cringe, scooting away from the man. “you wouldn’t let me run away even if i tried like my life depended on it.”

“glad to know you’re aware.” seonghwa flashes you another one of his cheeky smiles that makes your blood boil.

“you’re horrible.” you curse at the pirate, placing an elbow atop the table in front of you before resting your chin on the palm of your hand. “why are we here anyway?”

if you were being honest, you had initially thought that seonghwa brought you into town to enjoy some well-made fluffy pastries, judging by the way he talked about them earlier. you can’t deny the disappointment in your chest, but you try your best to hide it. seonghwa notices the slight pout of your lips though, even under the poor tavern lighting, and he thinks it’s rather adorable.

“you’ll know in a bit.” the man responds easily with a shrug of his broad shoulders. he catches the way you mumble underneath your breath – something about questioning why ‘pirates have to be so difficult.’

“why can’t you just be– mmf!”

“shh,” seonghwa shushes you by placing a hand over your mouth, much to your annoyance. “do you see that man who just came in?”

despite the growing urge to bite his hand off, you squint your eyes a bit at the direction of the tavern’s entrance to see the person he’s referring to.

your eyes catch the sight of a tall, well-toned man clad in dark clothes with similarly dark hair that reaches his shoulders, framing the sharp features of his face almost perfectly. his expression seems rather serious as he pushes his way through the sea of drunkards, his steps giving the same amount of haste that seonghwa had several moments ago.

“whatever you do,” seonghwa whispers as he removes his hand from your mouth. “don’t say anything to him. i’ll do the talking for you.”

there’s a change in the atmosphere around you as you notice how the tone in seonghwa’s voice shifts, going from rather lighthearted to something heavier. despite the worried hammering of your heart in your chest, you give him a nod.

the mysterious man comes closer to your table, and his dark eyes meet yours briefly before they move towards seonghwa.

“the moon is bright tonight.” the stranger says, his deep voice resonating into your brain and making shivers go down your spine. underneath your hood, your eyebrows are furrowed in confusion, but seonghwa is quick to answer.

“it is,” the blond pirate says. “but mars is brighter.”

a beat of silence hangs in the air for a moment. the stranger, who was previously wearing a solemn frown on his face, visibly relaxes after some time before pulling out the chair across the table to sit himself down on, the screech of wood against the floor making you grimace.

“glad to see you made it, hwaseong.” the dark-haired man wears a mischievous grin as he leans back on the chair. “i heard that your captain got himself in trouble back in pyxis. hah, who knew he’d get caught there of all places?”

at the sudden mention and blatant backhanded comment of your kingdom, you tense up. seonghwa seems to have noticed the sudden change in your posture and he easily slides a hand underneath the table to place it on your thigh, squeezing gently as if he’s telling you to stay composed. you, on the other hand, jolt at his touch as if you were electrocuted, feeling repulsed by the sudden touch and you grab onto his wrist to pry it away from your thigh, but he doesn’t budge. instead, he squeezes harder, the previously reassuring gesture now turned into something akin to a warning, and it takes everything you have at the moment to not pinch him.

“nothing our crew can’t handle.” the pirate offers the other man a tight-lipped smile, one that you force yourself to copy once you lift your head up to face the latter. his eyes dart back to you, and for the first time since you saw him just mere minutes ago, you catch a glint of interest.

“you even got yourself a girl, huh?” the stranger raises an eyebrow at seonghwa, the edges of his lips quirking up into a teasing smirk. “man, it’s only been a few months since we’ve seen each other, and you already beat me to it.”

“haha.” seonghwa forces out a chuckle. “anyway, let’s cut to the chase. do you have what i want?”

and then it clicks. ah, you realize. so that’s what this is.

“always do.” the stranger reaches a hand into the bag that’s strapped around his waist, briefly rummaging through it before pulling something out. you quickly make it out as a piece of paper that’s been rolled neatly into a scroll and secured with a red thread. you also notice how seonghwa’s grip on your thigh immediately loosens up once his eyes land on the scroll, and you can’t help the growing curiosity in your head.

“pay up first, though.” the stranger puts out his other hand in front of him as he waves the scroll in the air teasingly. beside you, seonghwa grumbles underneath his breath, but he’s quick to fish something out of his own pocket. the glimmer of something shiny in the pirate’s hand catches your eye, and you almost jump out of your seat as you watch seonghwa dismissively toss an uncomfortably familiar golden ring towards the man across him, who catches the accessory easily.

“seong–!”

“don’t worry,” the blond man turns to you with a warm smile on his face, but his eyes say something else. “i’ll get you a better one next time.”

say something and i’ll make you regret it, his eyes warn you under the poor yellow lighting of the tavern. the hand on your thigh returns to its tight grip, which only tightens even further when you dig your nails into seonghwa’s wrist as if you’re trying to fracture the joint.

i’ll kill you the moment we’re alone, you silently challenge him with a strained smile and clenched jaw.

“whew,” the stranger inspects the ring from across the table, blissfully unaware of the way you and seonghwa are seconds away from tearing each other’s throats out. “this looks mighty expensive, hwaseong. looks like something a queen would wear.”

“actually,” you speak up, ignoring how seonghwa’s grip on your leg is starting to hurt. “it’s funny of you to say that! because–”

“because,” seonghwa cuts you off, eye twitching with annoyance. “i only get the best for my girl. isn’t that right, darling?”

“you little shi–” you are, once again, cut off by the blond pirate sitting next to you. but instead of using his words, seonghwa pulls you towards him by the hood over your head and smashes his lips against yours, effectively rendering you frozen in place.

“please,” seonghwa breathes out quietly once he barely pulls away from your lips, his face still mere inches away from yours. “for the love of god, shut up. please.”

taking your silence as obedience, the blond finally leans away from you and goes back to giving his attention to the stranger, who’s fortunately still too busy distracted by the golden ring to notice what just happened.

“you outdid yourself this time, man.” the stranger says once he’s done inspecting his newly acquired ring, quickly pocketing it afterwards before sliding the paper scroll across the table. “twas a pleasure working with you.”

“likewise.” seonghwa offers the man a nod, grabbing the scroll from the table. “if that’s everything, we’ll be taking our leave now.”

“what, you’re not gonna stay for a few drinks?” the dark haired man’s lips frown, but they quickly turn into a brazen smirk as his eyes go over to you once again. “we could always get drunk and spend the night together. i’m afraid your girl is far too pretty for me to miss out on.”

“no.” seonghwa’s reply flies out of his mouth faster than you expected for it to be, and he’s just as quick to grab your hand and pull you up from your seat with him. “it’s getting late, so we’ll pass.”

“boring.” the stranger scoffs, shrugging his shoulders afterwards. “whatever man, just make sure not to wake the whole kingdom up when you’re f–”

“goodnight!” seonghwa offers a quick wave to the dark haired man, dragging you along with him away from the table. you quietly follow the blond, and once you’ve reached far enough from the previous location, seonghwa lets go of your hand only to shove you up against the wall, eliciting a surprised gasp from your lips.

“what you did back there,” the pirate groans, arms caging you on either side and leaving you with no space to escape. “was a stupid, deadly game. do you have any damn idea who that was?”

“i would have known if you had just told me, you imbecile!” you glare up at the man who’s currently pinning you against the wall. “but noooo, you decided to be mysterious and merely kept telling me to trust you. who the hell was that creep, anyway?!”

“that creep,” seonghwa leans closer to whisper, but he’s still fuming judging by the way he’s gritting his teeth and clenching his sharp jaw. “is one of the best assassins in the entire kingdom. hell, maybe even in several kingdoms! and do you know what kind of people he loves to murder in cold blood more than anything?”

under the pirate’s heavy gaze and even heavier words, you falter. seonghwa takes the chance to continue nevertheless.

“royals.” he spits out. “that man has killed kings, queens, princes and princesses alike more often than i’d like to acknowledge. if he found out who you are, he would’ve slit your throat faster than i can stop him.”

you blink. seonghwa’s words ring in your head, over and over again like a broken record that won’t stop until it makes your ears bleed.

killed kings, queens, princes and princesses alike.

killed king, queens.

all of the sudden, you can’t breathe. you feel as if you’re suffocating as the faces of your parents come crashing into your brain like waves of sorrow and regret. the floors are no longer clean, for all you can see now are drops of dark red spluttering everywhere. your ears don’t register the sound of seonghwa’s worried calls – instead, you hear the collective sound of townspeople screaming, crying, mourning for the loss that broke their hearts; a loss that tore yours out of your chest, and you haven’t had the strength to even beg for it back since then.

without a second thought, you push yourself away from seonghwa to rush your way out of the tavern via the back door, needing to get away from all the noise and the atmosphere that almost had you choking. seonghwa’s yells for you fall on deaf ears.

you stagger along the empty back alleys with a hand over your chest. are you trying to calm the fast-paced beating or are you trying to keep your heart from falling out? you have no idea yourself as you fall on your knees onto the dirty grounds, crying out into the night as if to ask for its mercy.

you don’t even bother when you feel someone’s big, warm hands place themselves on your wet cheeks, gently tilting your head upwards to look at them. through your blurred sight due to the tears that keep falling, you’re only able to make out the tuft of blond hair.

“hey,” seonghwa’s gentle voice reaches your ears. “hey, it’s okay, i’m right here. i’m so sorry, i’ve got you.”

as the pirate slowly wraps his arms around your trembling frame, he curses at himself. his intention had only been to warn you about the assassin and the absolute threat he could be to you, but the fact that your parents were killed in a similar way had slipped from his mind. seonghwa is sure that the person responsible for the murder of your parents wasn’t the same person who showed up tonight, but that doesn’t mean that he's allowed to even mention such a thing in your presence – especially since you haven’t entirely healed yet even after several years. honestly, seonghwa doesn’t think it's something that can be healed from.

seonghwa runs a soothing hand along your back as he gently rocks you back and forth in attempt to calm you down, making sure he keeps his voice as soft as possible. he can feel the fabric of his shirt get damp from your tears as you weep against his chest, but he pays it no mind. he keeps his hold around you until he hears the way your cries are beginning to slow down, and he notices how your previously trembling figure has turned rather pliant in his arms.

soon enough, you manage to pass out against the pirate, who doesn’t loosen his hold around you. instead, he repositions his arms so that he’s able to carry you up, but he’s not given the chance to properly stand before the cold feeling of iron against his forehead disrupts him.

“park seonghwa,” a familiar voice reaches the pirate’s ears. “what the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

“… captain.” seonghwa mumbles out. “i went to receive the last piece of the map as assigned–”

“uh huh,” hongjoong cuts his right-hand man off. “but what the hell is she doing here, out of the crew’s quarters? i swear to god, seonghwa, if you were the one who brought her here and made her meet the fucking assassin, i will blow your brains out this instant.”

at the other man’s words, seonghwa can’t suppress the scoff that escapes his dry lips.

“don’t tell me,” the blond tilts his head almost teasingly, making hongjoong grit his teeth. “that you still care for her? i thought all she does is waste your time.”

the dark haired captain presses the muzzle of his gun harder against seonghwa’s forehead, only to receive another scoff from the other pirate.

“don’t test my patience.” hongjoong hisses out, glowering down at the other pirate who’s currently kneeling in front of him. “unless you’ve grown stupid, i’m sure you’re aware that cygnus is one of the kingdoms that are in close relations with pyxis. if she were any smarter, she would’ve ran to the nearest guard behind your back to say the little password and ordered for our immediate execution.”

“but she didn’t,” seonghwa says as if it’s the most expected outcome and raises his eyebrow. “besides, we both know she wouldn’t execute us – or should i say you.”

“god fucking damn it, seonghwa!” hongjoong groans loudly into the night, begrudgingly tucking away his gun back into the leather holster on his hip. “i don’t know what you’re planning, but if you’re trying to play matchmaker then i’ll kill you in your sleep.”

the latter merely shrugs before standing up straight with you still passed out in his arms. despite the only source of light being the dim glow of the moon, his eyes still catch the way hongjoong’s gaze momentarily flickered towards you.

“…get her out of my sight, both of you.” the shorter male mumbles. “we’ll leave first thing in the morning. i’m not waiting for a single second if you’re late.”

“aye aye, captain heart eyes.” seonghwa chortles as he skillfully dodges the kick that hongjoong aimed at him, making his way out of the back alleys afterwards.

“oh, and by the way,” the blond looks back at the captain from over his shoulder, a smile on his lips that leaves the latter scowling. “i got rid of her wedding ring for you. you’re welcome.”

hongjoong blinks at seonghwa’s words, the sound of his friend’s teasing chuckles echoing through the empty alleys. he doesn’t like the way he feels his chest squeeze at the mention of your damned wedding ring finally being gone – but for the first time in a long, long while, the edges of his lips curve upwards ever so slightly.

next.

taglist: @atinytinaa @crimson-mia @catwhisk @lelaleleb @realrya @layzfeelit

[paradiqms]

to you, 2000 years from now.

hongjoong x fem!reader.

tags: angst, captain!hongjoong, royalty!reader, betrayals, misunderstandings, mentions of death, cruelty, fluff here n there, fantasy setting, strangers to lovers to enemies to..?

summary: after the death of your parents and near fall of your kingdom, you have no choice but to leave your first love in order to keep the kingdom in balance with you as the new ruler. years later, you see a familiar face - but instead of being in your arms, he's kneeling in front of the guillotine.

word count: 4,9k

currently, one out of ?

“must you follow me wherever i go?” the words intended for the young man tailing behind you fall much harsher than you wished from your lips, but you make no effort to show the growing guilt in your chest.

“of course, your highness.” the one who has been sticking to your side the whole morning answers. his voice cracks as he speaks, and you chuckle underneath your breath as your companion attempts to save his pride by coughing into his fist. “i am your guard, after all. so i –”

“have to protect me just in case anything goes wrong. i know, i know.” you cut the boy off, sighing tiredly afterwards. you’re met with silence instead of a reply, and for the nth time this morning, you feel bad.

“i apologize.” you mumble, opting to turn around and face the young man behind you. he’s taller than you despite being the same age. “i wished not to be so… impatient with you. i know this is simply your job as guard.”

a gentle smile grows on the boy’s pale lips – one that you have grown rather fond of during your several months with him as your personal guard. as much as you enjoy the act of understanding that his smile shows, you wish that he would be more stern with you. which is, unfortunately for you, a rather impossible thing to wish for.

“there’s no need to apologize, your highness.” your guard responds with the words that you expected him to say, and you feel your eye twitch ever so slightly.

“did i not tell you to stop calling me that when we’re alone, my dear yeonjun?” you frown, spitefully adding the name of your guard at the end of your sentence as if you emphasize your own words. yeonjun’s smile merely widens at the sight of your annoyance, which in return annoys you even further.

“i guess it’s my turn to apologize then, your high – ouch!” before he could finish his sentence, you reach up to smack the taller boy atop his head, the sound of his armor rattling as he attempts to soothe the growing ache you caused diminishing as you quickly walk away from your guard.

“silly boy.” you laugh quietly underneath your breath, turning around to see that you’ve lost sight of the brown haired boy clad in strong armor that didn’t suit his youthful look. once you’re sure that you’ve created enough distance from yeonjun, you slow down, coming to a leisure walk amongst the people within the town.

the sea of townsfolk seem not to recognize you, and for that you’re immensely grateful.

the last time you sneaked out of the palace and into town, a crowd of people had decided to follow you and give their greetings – some children even wanted to drag you home with them, insisting that you partake in their little ‘acting gig’ where they pretend to be knights in shining armor protecting the princess from pirates.

your role as the princess made it more realistic and fun, as the children had reasoned. yeonjun had to personally drag you away from the children to take you back to the palace.

this time, however, you decided to borrow an old dress from one of the servants instead of using one form your own closet to blend in with the townsfolk and avoid any attention, as well as a piece of cloth covering the lower half of your face. pretty common choice of ‘disguise’ for royals, but you didn’t have much to work with.

your ears catch the tune of an old folksong played on the familiar sound of a lyre amidst the constant chatter of people around you. several townsfolk seemed to have noticed the melody as well, their faces lighting up as they make their way further into the town square and nearer to the music. you tag along, smiling with excitement.

a crowd of people have gathered around the town square, surrounding a long-haired bard who’s reciting a story (or poem? you’re not quite sure) alongside the soothing melody that he plays on his lyre.

having always a deep interest in song and music despite your title, you find yourself lost within the tale that the bard sings.

oh, the ocean that carries the suffering of he,

who wanders the world to find the stars.

but oh, how he finds himself lost in she,

who has one too many scars.

the moon ties their destinies together,

so cruel, evil and unworthy to forgive.

for how can the cursed and the saint care for each other,

when the heavens have decided only one of them shall live.

with a final strum of his lyre, the bard ends his performance, relishing in the cheers of the crowd that surrounds him. his long hair falls from his shoulders as he bows to his audience.

you, however, aren’t so enthusiastic as you clap for the bard.

‘such a sad story.’ your mind speaks, an unfamiliar ache in your chest as the song repeats itself several times within the confines of your head.

you were far too engrossed with your own thoughts to notice someone quickly pushing their way through the audience, shoving away the townspeople left and right without seemingly a care in the world and leaving the crowd mumbling curses. the person shoves you aside as well, making you loose your balance and causing you to fall backwards onto the muddied ground.

just before you had the chance to curse at the stranger for their audacity, they cut you off.

“i’m so sorry – here, let me help you.” the person says, their words falling from their lips in such a rush to the point you probably wouldn’t have understood if they weren’t leaning down closely to you. you look up at the culprit who dared to shove you and your people away, and you notice how young he looks. he has an arm outstretched in hopes to help you stand back up, but before you could accept the offer, a loud voice shouts from amidst the sea of townsfolk around you.

“there he is, the thieving bastard! get him!”

the young man curses underneath his breath. he gives you a quick glance, his eyes conveying the apology he owes you before he runs off. you watch silently as a small group of other men make their way through the crowd in a way that’s rougher than how the boy earlier had done, sending more people toppling over their feet as they yell for the boy to stop running.

your eyes narrow. the boy was a thief, no doubt about it – and yet, he was kind enough to help you after accidentally causing your fall.

‘he’s a thief.’ you scold yourself, shaking your head in attempt to get rid of the way his hair shined under the sun and how soft his voice sounded when he apologized.

thieving is a crime. thieves are criminals, and the boy is a thief.  a criminal.why should you help him, right? right. you should keep yourself out of trouble and go back to your leisure stroll around the kingdom. don’t think about how young the thief looked like, and how he must have been stealing only to fend for himself – or maybe even his family. don’t think about it, damn it!

the crowd around you begins to scatter, the townspeople returning to their own work once the commotion died down, and you still haven’t gotten up. you turn around to look at the direction the boy ran off to.

you wonder what’s happening to him. has he escaped? have the other men caught up to him? what are they doing to him, if they have..?

“… ugh, fine.” you groan, forcing yourself onto your feet and running in the same way the thief headed off to. you pass several stalls and enter a dark alleyway, the messy prints on the mud underneath you serving as a guide to where the boy must have ran. without another thought, you follow the leads deeper into the alleyway.

you’re unsure of your own direction, head spinning from the amount of turns you’ve made, but judging from the sound of yelling that’s increasing in volume with every turn you make, you think you’re getting closer.

you slow yourself down from running once the loud shouts sound like they’re right around the corner. your heart beats furiously against your chest, and it nearly stops when you hear pained groans after the yelling stops.

“damn thief,” you hear the rough voice of a man in the alleyway to your right, and you slowly creep your way closer to peek by the wall. “think you could steal our hard earned gold coins just like that? fucking amateur.”

the man crouches down, and you cover your mouth to muffle a surprised gasp as the sight of the boy from earlier enters your sight.

he’s been beaten, badly so – his left eye is swollen and colored an ugly dark purple, blood oozing from several cuts on his youthful face and dripping from his nose. the man is lifting him up from his collar, and the boy doesn’t even try to fight back.

you wonder if he’s even able to, at this point.

“too bad the royal guards didn’t catch you first,” the man snarls at the boy, who doesn’t respond. “they would’ve given you a faster and less painful death than what i’m about to do.”

another man reaches for something on his belt, and even from the distance you’re standing at, you can catch the menacing glint of a dagger.

seconds before the man is about to stab the thief right in the chest, he feels something hard hit him at the back of his head.

“ow, what the hell?” the man curses before turning around with a scowl, and he’s met with the sight of you – standing a few feet away, arm trembling as you hold up a pebble above your head, threatening to throw it at the men in front of you.

“unhand him at once!” you shout, ignoring the fact that your voice is shaking. “i will – i will give you more gold coins than what he has stolen. just let him go.”

‘what are you saying?!’ your mind screams at you, knowing well enough that you didn’t bring a single gold coin or anything valuable with you on your stroll. since, y’know, this was just supposed to be a calming and nice stroll around the kingdom – not some rescue mission, damn it.

if the men don’t kill you, then yeonjun definitely will once he finds out what you’ve been up to.

you’re met with nothing but the sound of silence and your own heartbeat in your ears, until one man decides to break it by roughly dropping the thief onto the ground. you wince as you watch how his head thuds on the floor.

“he stole my entire life savings worth of gold coins, girl.” the man says, grabbing the dagger from the other man into his own clenched fist as he slowly approaches you. “you’ve gotta be one of the royals if you’re gonna give me more than that.”

how ironic, you muse to yourself. you take in a deep breath to calm yourself down as you wait in silence for the man to come closer, and you let it go in the form of a scared whimper as you feel the sharp end of the dagger against your stomach.

“so?” the man growls. “where’s the coins, stupid little girl?”

oh, damn it all to hell.

you meet the mans glare with one of your own as you straighten yourself up, tossing away the pebble you were previously holding to take off the cloth covering the lower half of your face.

“in the palace, you ruffian. want me to send it to you by carriage tomorrow?” you spit out, and you feel the dagger move away from your stomach as the man’s eye widen.

“princess?” he staggers back. you notice how the other men behind him tense up as well.

“i – we – i apologize, your highness. i had no idea–”

“save it.” you interrupt, and the man quickly presses his lips into a thin line. “leave, before i report you to the guards and make you spend your entire life in the dungeons for threatening the princess.”

the man mumbles out something under his breath as he scurries off with his head hung low, the other men tailing after him and muttering apologies to you as they pass. once they’re all out of sight, you let out a heavy breath that you’ve been holding.

your knees are shaking and your heart feels like it’s about to fall out of your chest, but you bear it no mind as you hurriedly make your way to the boy who’s still laying down on the dirty ground at the end of the alleyway, his pained groans reaching your ears.

“hey,” you crouch down to him once you’ve fixed back the cloth over your face. “can you hear me? hello?”

the boy merely groans again.

“alright, let’s get you somewhere else.” you mumble, reaching over to lift one of the boys arm to wrap them around your shoulder as your own arm supports him, slowly lifting him up from the ground. fortunately for you, he’s not that heavy.

the thief lets out another pained groan as you drag him along with you out of the alleyway, his head falling forward and swaying around with every shaky step you take. soon enough, you’re out of the dirty alleyways and you arrive at a small, isolated building that stands alone at the edge of the town.

a small sign swings and squeaks from the wind above your head as you stand atop the three steps of stairs leading to the front door. you knock twice.

a moment passes before the door creaks open ever so slightly, and you can barely make out the eyes that stare at you from behind the door due to the darkness from inside the building.

“state your business.” a croaky, low voice comes from the person behind the door. you clear your throat before speaking.

“apologies for the sudden intrusion,” you mumble. “but the stars need your help to shine again.”

the eyes within the darkness widen, and the door slams shut in your face. you wait patiently as the sound of multiple locks being opened from within the building reaches your ears. the door swings open again, and you’re met with a familiar hunched figure of an old lady clad in a black clothing and white hair that grows pass her torso.

“the stars will shine brighter for you,” the old woman steps aside for you to step in, bowing her head as you make your way inside. “your highness.”

“and they will remain so, for eternity.” you mutter out the last part of the secret phrase your parents taught you when you were younger, offering a gentle smile to the lady before she locks up the door again.

the phrase was created by the royals before your generation, serving as a secret code between the royal family and a select few when they are in need of some dire help. back when your kingdom was caught in terrible war, the royal family couldn’t afford to be vulnerable out in the open where enemies and spies could be anywhere, waiting for the moment to take them down.

despite the kingdom has been in wonderful peace for the last 70 years, the royal family still teaches their young regarding the phrase. this is the first time you’ve used it yourself, even though you thought it would be useless when your mother had introduced it to you during your younger years.

“it’s quite a surprise to see you here, dear princess.” the old lady gestures to you once she’s done with all the locks and bolts on the front door. you blink your eyes a few times to adjust your sight in the darkness of the room, the only source of light present being the fireplace that crackles behind you.

“i know,” you admit, earning a fond chuckle from the lady. “but i didn’t know where else to go. i, uh, need some help.” you adjust the boy that’s leaning against you as if to emphasize on your words, and he lets out a low whine in response.

“i can see that.” the lady smiles knowingly before ushering you to come closer. you do so, and she places a gently hand on your back.

“place the lad on one of the beds upstairs, i will prepare some medicine for him and a cup of tea for you.” before you could protest to her last few words, she pushes you towards the flight of spiral stairs that leads to the second floor and quickly walks off to the kitchen.

‘same creepy old lady even after all these years.’ you think to yourself, remembering the first time you encountered her alongside your father when you were a mere little girl. your father wished to introduce you to her – isolde, if you remember her name correctly – as one of the royal family’s trusted few. apparently, during her youth, she had helped the former kings and queens seek refuge within her home at times of war or simple hardship, and she remains true to her duties till this day.

you carry the thief up the stairs with much effort, the wooden steps creaking loudly to the point you wince at the noise, afraid the steps might break in half at any moment. the fact that the dim lighting from the dusty windows on the wall is the only thing keeping you from tripping and falling on the stairs does not help, either.

once you arrive at the top of the stairs and into the second floor, you’re met with a bit more adequate lighting thanks to the lamps on the wall. you push open one of the doors leading to a spacious bedroom, the creaking noises making you shudder. does isolde never oil her doors?

carefully, you place the thief onto the queen sized bed in the middle of the room, watching him lay down on the soft mattress as you stretch your back with a loud groan. you swear you can hear your bones cracking.

“hah, this is the first and last time i’m carrying someone so far.” you complain. obviously, the thief doesn’t respond, and you’re starting to worry. all this while he’s been really quiet other than the occasional groans he makes. can he even speak anymore, you wonder? is he too weak to speak? did the ruffians break with voice box?

“…hey.” you reach out to the boy, gently shaking him by the shoulder. “how are you feeling? are you okay?”

you receive no response. your heart sinks.

“hey, don’t you dare die on me after i carried you here!” you shake the boy harder, this time with your hands on both of his shoulders as you lean over his body from the side of the bed. “c’mon, please say something, anything at all.”

a moment passes by. you notice how the boy’s lips are parting, as if he’s trying to finally say something, and you wait in anticipation.

“thank… you.” he croaks out. you blink, leaning back in mild surprise before smiling down at him from behind the cloth that covers the lower half of your face.

“don’t mention it,” you respond. “i’m glad you’re alive. i have to take my leave now, please rest well.”

before you could remove your hands from the boy’s shoulders, he catches one of your wrists in his hold, surprising you.

“come… visit,” he speaks, gently squeezing onto your wrist. “next time… please.”

and so you do.

you visit the boy during his stay at isolde’s house, time after time. you come to learn that his name is hongjoong – a young man who comes from a poor family consisting of his parents, his older brother, and himself. he resorted to thieving when his family couldn’t afford to buy food to support themselves anymore. he admitted that he hated stealing during one of your talks with him during a rainy night, and that he could’ve easily fought back against the ruffians who beat him that day, but decided not to.

“i deserved it,” hongjoong had said that night, teeth sinking into the apple isolde gave him. “i’d be lying if i said i don’t feel bad for stealing.”

you didn’t respond to him as you sat next to each other on the queen sized bed, but your heart broke.

frankly, you didn’t know how to respond. how could you, when you’ve been born into a lineage of royalty? how could you say anything to the young man who has betrayed his own morals to fend for his family, when you had feast upon feast each day within the castle walls?

“joong,” you spoke up after a moment, the nickname you made for the boy falling easily from your lips as if you had known him for years. “do you know who i am?”

hongjoong had looked at you weirdly, raising his eyebrow in question as he took another bite into his apple.

“uh, obviously?” he replied as he chewed. you had smiled at how adorable he looked. “you’re byeol, the dumb girl who could’ve gotten herself killed while trying to save me.”

byeol. you feel a muscle in your face twitch. you had given him a fake, random name that first came to your mind when he asked during one of your first talks together. you were already quite suspicious as he didn’t recognize who you are when you didn’t cover your face one day, but you initially brushed it off as some kind of short-term memory loss due to the beating he got.

but weeks passed, and he still doesn’t have a clue on who you are. that’s when you knew he was lying about one thing to you.

hongjoong is not from your kingdom, despite him telling stories of how he is.

it bothered you a bit at the start, but then you came to realize it’s quite refreshing to have someone be clueless on your identity – to have someone be naturally them, with no titles and no courtesies.

so you decided to lie to him too.

“yeah,” you flashed him a smile. “that’s me, i’m byeol.”

weeks turned into months, and you’re beginning to see hongjoong every day now ever since he recovered entirely from his injuries. since you’re adamant on keeping your identity a secret to him, you’ve convinced your parents to leave you out from anything that involved showing your face to the public as princess. they questioned you once, and you responded with a simple shrug, leaving the conversation afterwards. your parents didn’t question you again during the following days.

you’ve also started sneaking out of the palace every night to meet up with hongjoong, with the guards (including yeonjun, thankfully) either asleep in their own homes or asleep whilst they’re on duty, making your job so much easier.

“glad i’m out of that haunted house,” the light haired boy shivers as he sits beside you, the soft candlelight offering its shine to illuminate his features before your eyes. “did you know she peeks into my room in the middle of the night sometimes? creepy old lady, i swear –”

“isolde’s just making sure you’re okay, idiot.” you nudge against him roughly, making him almost fall off the small bed the two of you are currently sitting on.

“okay, but that doesn’t make it any less creepier!” hongjoong protests, and you throw your head back with a loud laugh at how genuinely scared he seems to be around isolde.

hongjoong smiles ever so fondly as he watches you laugh on his small bed inside his cramped room. well, it’s not quite a room, honestly – it’s more of an attic that sits on top of one of the taller buildings within the kingdom that he turned into his own little space, filling it up with numerous books and papers scribbled with poems that express his feelings.

most of them were made for you, but he won’t tell you that. at least not now.

in his hands is another piece of parchment, already crumpled from the way he’s practically gripping onto it nervously.

“she’s a sweet lady if you get to know her more, really.” you wipe away a stray tear that fell from your eye from laughing so hard before leaning backwards against the wall behind you, the funny feeling of prickly wood against your back.

“uh, right,” you giggle at the way hongjoong scrunches his nose when he speaks. “but enough of her – let’s talk about something else.”

you straighten yourself up at hongjoong’s words, a smile on your lips as you’re eager to hear what he has in store for you. you know he enjoys writing in his free time, judging by his works that he has pasted on the walls of his room as well as the ones stacked on his small work table, and it makes you admire him more.

you wish, oh how you wish, that you could live as free as him. a part of you envies the young man and his freedom, all while you’re tied to responsibility ever since your birth. as the first and only child of the king and queen, you’re expected to rule over the kingdom once you’re of age, and it’s the only thing you’ve ever known.

until you met hongjoong. dear, dear hongjoong who doesn’t have a single clue on who you are and expects absolutely nothing from you - except for you to laugh at his lame dad jokes, dance with him in the rain until the both of you are sneezing away the next day, and cheer for him once he’s done reciting another one of his poems.

“what do you have this time, oh dear poet?” you look at the light haired boy expectantly. hongjoong is grateful that the only source of light in his room is the little candle next to his bed, so you won’t be able to see how red his face is right now.

with a dramatic clear of his throat that makes you chuckle, hongjoong straightens out the paper in his hands before reading the words that contain his whole heart within the letters.

my dear starlight, oh how you’ve shined your way into my life,

so bright and beautiful, the north star that leads me home.

one day, i wish to call you my wife,

and to be together for the longest of eternities that the universe has ever known.

“joong, oh my god–”

“i’m not done yet, dearest.”

“okay!”

hongjoong’s laughter sounds like bells in your ears. you gesture him to keep going despite the fact that you feel like you’re about to explode, and he continues.

may our love last, past the final breaths of the immortals,

until even the sun and moon have met their dues.

for with you by my side, not a moment feels dull,

and i will say the words that i have only said to very few…

“i love you.” hongjoong breathes out the last words quietly, eyes leaving the paper in his hands to look at you with hope in his eyes; he’s surprised to see tears in yours.

“hey, oh my god, please don’t–”

the young man is unable to finish his sentence when you lean in to catch his lips in a kiss, uncaring towards the slightly salty taste from the tears that fall from your eyes as he wraps his arms around your figure to pull you closer.

you lean against him, fingers gently carding through the tangles in his light hair as you pour your whole heart into the kiss, where hongjoong gladly accepts it all, feeling as if he’s drowning from your affection. his hands wander around to slip underneath the thin material of your top, cold fingers meeting your warm sides and making you shiver in his arms.

you’re the first to pull away and catch your breath. hongjoong keeps his attention on your lips for a moment before gazing into your eyes, and he can’t grasp how beautiful you look even with the simple fire that blazes on the wick of the candle beside his bed.

“… does this mean you love me too?” hongjoong breathes out, earning himself a slap on his shoulder from you.

“of course, idiot.” you grin, heart softening impossibly so as you watch how hongjoong smiles back at you, seemingly satisfied with your answer.

“then i wish you’d really stay with me for the longest of eternities, starlight.”

you hum, allowing yourself to lay down against hongjoong’s chest as he caresses your hair, the feeling of his gentle hands playing with your locks lulling you to sleep.

“anything for you, joong.” you mumble, falling into slumber with a smile on your lips. “anything for you.”

for the first time in your life, you fall asleep outside the palace walls and in the arms of your love.

as you listen to the sound of hongjoong’s beating heart, you fail to hear the sobs of the heavens.

next.

[mazeinthemiroh]

k.

hongjoong x reader, long distance relationship

genre: romance, suggestive

word count: 1k

song rec: k. by cigarettes after sex

warnings: suggestive (nothing explicit), lowercase intentional

a/n: i was inspired to write this for different reasons. one being the pic of hongjoong you can see above. and another, evidently, being this beautiful song. i especially encourage you to listen to k. by cigarettes after sex while you read this fic, because that's the song it's based on. you'll understand when you read the lyrics <3 but even the vibe of it is... yeah, beautiful. i just hope i captured that here. hope you all enjoy.

the needle threaded through the grooves of the vinyl as it spun, delicately. elegantly. the soft tones of the music whispered through the apartment like wind tickling the branches.

hongjoong looked over at the figure laying next to him. you, in all your perfectness. lying beside him, with nothing but a white sheet covering your bare skin, he being in the same condition.

he recalled yesterday's events...

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

fizzy feelings, high on memories spent with you, he remembered all these things as he waited for you at the airport. the anticipation became unbearable, and yet he stood perfectly still, his heart in his throat. eyes fixated on the landing planes, praying one of them was finally yours, he wondered if you were just as excited to see him. and when your plane landed, you bounded through the airport to come face-to-face with him.

you collided and embraced each other.

"i missed you," you whispered sensually as you grabbed onto each other for dear life. that was all you felt you could do. the closeness of your bodies alone was enough to make hongjoong desperate. leaning back, he must've looked you in the eyes, getting you to stare back into his. and oh, those eyes. you knew them so well. after all the time you've spent apart, you could still read him like a book. the longing that sparkled in his warm, passionate eyes. you knew that look all too well.

so back to his apartment you went.

it was different this time. desperate kisses and gripping and grabbing and longing and passion and fire. all done in style. all done the way it was supposed to be done. this is how making love is supposed to be. this is how the poets had written it to be. this is how the movies tried to capture it, although they never quite encapsulated the intoxicating essence of love that was so real to you both.

no strings attached, you both said. too far away from each other to develop feelings, but too attracted to each other not to act on them. that was a promise you both declared to each other. then why was it all so perfect?

and as you sat opposite each other, sitting in the restaurant like nothing insanely perfect had just occurred not an hour ago, there was something different. something had changed. he could see it in your eyes. the way they kept avoiding his, shyly, perhaps coyly. where had your previous sensual confidence gone? perhaps there was something more between you that made you second guess yourself. and when you did dare to look at him, your gaze meeting his, there was some sort of electric magic that neither of you could describe. hongjoong grinned gently to himself at this thought. perhaps he was right, after all.

"i missed you," you whispered under your breath. you said that previously that day, but it was different now. so different. the flirtatious spike from your voice had gone. it was replaced with a yearning tenderness that made his heart feel light.

"let's go back to my place" hongjoong suggested, eyes full of intense fondness. "i need to hold you again."

you felt a blush flutter on your cheeks, looking back down at your hands as you fiddled with your rings. it felt good to be wanted. but the tone in his voice made you weaker than before. he was much gentler now.

"if i do that, i might not ever leave," you breathed out a laugh, but there was a sadness that welled up in your eyes immediately. you tried to blink away the tears that started to glaze over. if you looked at him in the eyes again, you knew you would break down again.

"is that such a bad thing?"

and after promising yourself that you wouldn't look into his eyes again, your head lifted at his comment. he was serious. you could see his jaw clench; he held himself back from revealing all of his feelings. such a complicated man could never put into words what he was feeling. how could he? how could he tell you why he wanted you to stay?

"stay with me, i don't want you to leave."

it was an offer hard to say no to. and as you closed the door of hongjoong's apartment, he reached for a record. you watched his fingers gently place it on the player, lifting up the needle and sinking it down. the needle settled onto the vinyl perfectly and began to play.

as you stared at him, he came closer once again. closer, closer, and closer still. until your lips were brushing over each others, gently. eyes fixated onto his, there was a giddy smile that spread across your face.

your black clothes hung elegantly off your body as hongjoong's fingers gently worked at removing them. his lips scarcely grazed the skin of your neck, bringing forth soft sighs from your lips.

laying you tenderly on his bed, his lips caught yours once more. the song was nothing but background noise now...

~ kristen, come right back. i've been waiting for you to slip back in bed when you light the candle ~

・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・

now, he looks at you fondly, a smile gracing his features.

could he use the word love, now? arm over your waist, he brought your body ever so slightly closer to his. his smile deepened as he watched you sink into his arms once more.

~ and i'm kissing you lying in my room. holding you until you fall asleep...~

yes. love was the exact word. he wouldn't want to admit it before, but now he knows. you were where you should be. anywhere else other than his arms would be wrong.

~ and it's just as good as i knew it would be... ~

he just hoped you could see that too.

~ stay with me, i don't want you to leave ~

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