Desu~

I used to write stuff. Band fanfics for MCR, FOB, P!ATD, etc. or anime fanfics.Then I stopped when I got into college until I started working. I'm only starting to write fics again after watching and being captivated by TUA and excessive convos with my bestie about the show reignited my love of writing. I might be a bit rusty but hope you'll enjoy what I write! :)

[eternal-peace-is-so-overrated]

Allison: There are 7 chairs and 10 kids, what do you do?

Diego: Have everyone stand.

Vanya: Bring 3 more chairs.

Luther: The most important ones can sit down.

Five, sipping his coffee: Kill three.

[umbureraakademi]

Oh, Five.

[youmisstua]

Allison: What do you think?

Five: I wasn’t listening, but I strongly disagree with Luther.

[umbureraakademi]

I mean, who does?? Asides from Allison, of course.

[lustwithoutlore]

Attention Umrbella Academy & MCR Fans

They have the same smile

[umbureraakademi]

The resemblance is uncanny.

[umbureraakademi]

Introductory Note About the AU & Other Chapters & Face Claims

-a/n start-

[Potential spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen or finished TUA Netflix series but seriously how could you stop yourself from watching such a captivating show.]

Word Count: 1423

Whew that was one hell of a writer’s block.

-a/n end-

Chapter 24

3 Months After

Diego and Monica sat in his car as they have been for the last 15 minutes, parked by the Hargreeves mansion debating whether or not being there was a good idea. 

“Look, I know it’s your birthday but I’m really not sure about this.” Monica protested for the nth time as Diego’s patience was waning thin.

“Whatever happened to birthday privileges?” Diego said, trying to make light of the situation although he was this close to angrily driving Monica home and not speaking to her.

“Didn’t I give it to you this morning?” Monica responded with a teasing wink, and when Diego let out a frustrated sigh, started the engine, and placed his hand on the stick shift she panicked a bit. “Whoawhoahoa, Diego. Just hear me out before you start your angry driving okay?” she said and internally sighed a sigh of relief when he stopped. “It’s just that Klaus is organizing this party seemingly from out of nowhere since you said so yourself you guys haven’t even seen each other since your dad’s funeral. I get the feeling this party is more about him than some joint birthday celebration for all you guys. And let’s not forget the fact that he hates my guts.”

“Well if he wanted a party all for himself he should have said so.” Diego said matter-of-factly. “If he says it’s a birthday party for all of us, and that includes me, then of course I’d bring my girlfriend to my own party.” 

“Honestly, it’s kind of unnatural for you to actually be interested in this.”

“Klaus wouldn’t shut up about it. He literally called me everyday. Every. Fucking. Day. I get the feeling if I didn’t show up he’d never let me hear the end of it.” Diego said, a thoughtful pause following before he continued, “Besides, this would be a good time to introduce you to Mom.” he said softly.

Monica’s heartbeat picked up significantly when he said that. Of course, they had talked about it the moment Diego finally decided he would go after he denied Klaus five times and his brother just wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. But every time he mentioned wanting Monica to meet the only other woman he cared for the most about asides from her and Eudora she couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Days before Diego had begun briefing her on Mom and his family since, although Klaus had talked about it with her before, he was always so vague since his family wasn’t exactly his most favorite topic in the world. 

Luther was Diego’s least favorite sibling since every word that came out of his mouth always managed to make his blood boil. He almost never stops talking about his 4 years on the moon, and he’s inhumanely big and greatly insecure about it.

Monica knew Allison for the movie star she is as she had watched a few of her movies, and she was hyped up about meeting this particular famous sibling. Although, Diego mentioned he wasn’t sure about Allison actually being there due to her busy schedule or the added fact that she’d probably rather spend her birthday with her daughter if her ex-husband allowed it, instead of in a house full of bad childhood memories and her estranged siblings. 

Five was a strange case because after disappearing when they were younger he had reappeared all of the sudden the time their dad died in their ever so rare occasions of being gathered together. The thing is when Five reappeared, he was still 15. Diego told her Five had disobeyed their dad’s orders not to time travel way back and he jumped into a future where everyone was already 30. Unfortunately, no matter how Five tried to go back, he just couldn’t. Eventually he had given up and decided to make do with living in the future with his now older siblings. It had been two years since that mess and now he’s turning 17 with everyone turning 32.

Vanya was the sister Diego didn’t pay much attention to mainly because he didn’t appreciate the book she wrote exposing their family secrets. She was the only one without special abilities like them and had always been left out. When Monica asked if they were sure she didn’t have any abilities that were just latent even until now, Diego looked at her like she was crazy.

Pogo was their dad’s right hand man, or more appropriately, his right hand chimp. He had assisted their dad in monitoring and training them as kids and Diego found him to be annoying, though he was better at paying attention to them than their father ever was.

Then last but not the least, sweet and caring Mom. When Diego had showed Monica a picture of her in his phone her initial thought was how could she look so young when her “kids” were in their 30s? Then he mentioned she was a robot created by their father to raise and nurture them, which made sense and Monica thought if they had a talking chimpanzee in the family then of course they had a robot Mom. Another important detail Diego mentioned was because she was, in fact, a machine that had been running ever since they were kids, like other machines she started showing signs that she wasn’t in peak condition anymore. 

The way his eyes grew dark when he told her that and how difficult it was to call her a “machine” for lack of a better term was a tell-tale sign that Diego thought Mom was more than just a robot who took care of them.

“Well, you at least told Klaus I was coming right?” Monica asked. There was a silence as Diego just stared at her blankly, and Monica didn’t like that. “Diego?” she said warningly.

“C’mon, let’s go.” Diego responded, hastily removing his seatbelt and stepping out of the car.

“Diego Hargreeves!” Monica protested, as if saying his full name would stop him from making a run for the front door. She quickly undid her own seatbelt and got out of the car to catch up to Diego, tugging him by the arm so he was forced to look at her. “Diego did you or did you not tell your brother I was coming to your party?” she demanded.

“What’s he going to do about it when you’re already here?” was Diego’s response.

“You’re not answering the question but I could take a hint.” Monica said as she folded her arms in front of her, glaring at Diego.

“Just relax, okay? I’m sure everyone else is going to like you.” Diego said reassuringly as he rang the doorbell. “If Klaus hasn’t already told them how his ex is now dating one of his brothers.” he added jokingly, earning a punch on his shoulder from Monica. Suddenly the door swung open and there stood Klaus in his usual black tank top and tight leather pants, only this time he was bringing around a bright pink feather boa.

“Bro--oh great, you brought her.” the way Klaus’ expression had quickly changed from excited to unhappy was laudable, but all Monica was feeling at the moment was uncomfortable and wanting to be anywhere but near this man.

“Of course I brought my girlfriend Klaus, it’s my birthday.” Diego defended.

“Our birthday.” Klaus corrected, folding his arms as he eyed Monica. “Will it be too late if I asked you to leave?”

“Klaus.” Diego warned and Klaus gave off a defeated sigh as he opened the door wider and motioned for them to come inside with much less enthusiasm.

“Fine. Get inside, everyone else is already here. I’m going to need a smoke.” he said, not waiting for Diego and Monica to step inside the big mansion themselves as he walked off, heading for the common room.

“That started off swimmingly.” Monica commented sarcastically as she looked at Diego, who already took a few steps inside. He turned to look back at her and held out his hand, offering it to her as if to guide her into the house.

“It’s just Klaus being Klaus. C’mon.” he said, urging Monica to take his hand.

“Well, I guess there’s no turning back.” Moncia sighed, taking the offer and stepping inside, and as Diego entwined his fingers with hers she still couldn’t help her heart fluttering at the gesture even if they had already been dating for a few months.

“Don’t be so dramatic. What’s the worst that could happen?”

[umbureraakademi]

[Potential spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen or finished TUA Netflix series but seriously how could you stop yourself from watching such a captivating show.]

HELLO~ okay so before I start posting any chapters I thought I should make a separate post on the AU setting for this fic to hopefully get any “so what happened to…” questions out of the way. I may also use this as a menu for hyperlinking any new chapters I post. Situation: 

Alternate universe where Diego pushed through with the Police Academy and became a detective working with Chuck Beeman and Eudora Patch. The apocalypse is non-existent but they still have their abilities. Police cases are heavily based on another one of my favorite shows Brooklyn Nine Nine because seriously who has the time to do actual research on police work in America when you’re not even American.

Pairing: 

Diego x Female OC

Face Claims

What happens to the other characters:

Luther & Allison: somewhere being weirdly incestuous together (sorry not really my faves so I’m not planning on involving them too much here)

Klaus: still on drugs and in and out of rehab

Five: after jumping into the future with no apocalypse he’s just simply stuck there with everyone grown up and him still a kid, still tries to act weirdly mature although he’s technically still younger than everyone

Ben: still dead and stuck to Klaus

Vanya: still unaware of her powers because shit she’s too motherfucking OP

Pogo & Grace: still alive and in the Umbrella Academy mansion, Grace is still slowly malfunctioning due to mechanically growing older as a robot

Reginald Hargreeves: still dead though instead of suicide he did have a heartattack and Grace malfunctioned at the time of his death.

Hazel, Cha-Cha, and the Handler biz: non-existent 

*There may also be cameos from some of my fave actors and I may or may not change their names depending on how lazy I am.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Stay tuned~

[umbureraakademi]

Should probably start reblogging this whenever there’s an update since it’s getting harder and harder to find. 

[unhingedbot-deactivated20211210]

okay moon and stars have aligned and i have a Thought,, 

so 7 siblings. the kids are seperated by reginald carefully to prevent unity right? but friendship-like relations form anyway and unless they somehow bother reginald theyre allowed. we got:

Klaus-Ben: 

they both find it difficult to cope with their powers,

dont like using their powers, afraid of them really

Reginald forces them to. 

so they find comfort in each others company

Allison-Luther: 

they both take pride in their rank, 

care for reputation in reginalds eye, 

they also both look down on the “Failure ranks” 4 and lower. 

They hang together. nothing else no thank you thats all

Five-Vanya:

This one is very difficult because we are given a difficult child, Five. His reasons for company arent based on Reginald influence, the rank fight or familial pressure. He copes with Reginalds pressure by trying to make as much room for himself as possible, as in freedom to run away at times, experimenting and taking risks. He takes out rank related stress by embracing 5 as his name. Escapes the “familial” pressure by, well, by condescending. If theyre not a threat to his position,freedom,studies, theyre below him, if they do something that damages him? theyre against him. So the person who couldnt even cross his way even if she wanted to is the best choice. Vanya doesnt even get a say, other kids dont play with her. He and vanya stick together. 

(i know i made it too cold i swear they become a good bro-sis after but the reasons seem like these)

so the person left? 

DIEGO. 

The only person who after leaving the academy, was able to obtain a normal-like social life. HE GOT A GIRLFRIEND. (THE NORMAL WAY!!no rumors here) The relationship ended but they remained close friends. How many normal people can do that?? Not that many. He apparently told Eudora about his past, his mom, and made friends in the office too,,, ofc his rep made them distrust him but, he was really good at it. idk

[umbureraakademi]

Hmmmmm. 

[speaklavenderthoughts-deactivat]

Graphic design is my passion

Shitty edit aside... am I wrong???

[umbureraakademi]

Why is this so accurate??

[vaguewindnoises]

okay, there are a lot of weird-ass moments in the first episode of the umbrella academy that I will accept at face value. forty-three women spontaneously giving birth? iconic origin story. some dude is living solo on the moon? dream job. Diego actually thinks that little itty bitty mask that doesn’t even cover his cheekbones will protect his Super Secret Identity? new dumbass son spotted and adopted. But the one thing. the one thing that throws me for a loop every damn time is Pogo’s line about stepping in the sandwiches Vanya left out for Five. like, was she leaving them out on the floor??? does he walk on the table. I don’t know the answer but I have been left haunted by the question.

[umbureraakademi]

HOLY SHIT I HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN WONDERING THE SAME THING HAHAHAHA

[umbureraakademi]

Introductory Note About the AU & Other Chapters & Face Claims

-a/n start-

[Potential spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen or finished TUA Netflix series but seriously how could you stop yourself from watching such a captivating show.]

Word Count: 1471

Diego’s promise.

-a/n end-

Chapter 23

Monica decided she wanted to stay over at Diego’s that night, seeing as the next day was a weekend anyway. But also mainly because she received several miscalls and texts from Jessica she didn’t answer even after their talk, knowing full well that she was going to get an earful and that talk with Diego drained all her energy to try and explain things to her overprotective best friend.

The moment they stepped into Diego’s apartment Monica hid her phone in one of his bedside drawers, still intent on not answering Jessica. When Diego asked if it was the best thing to do, she just shrugged and started rummaging through his closet for some clothes she could get herself comfortable in. 

Diego had to leave again for a while to take out some food for dinner, getting Monica some chicken soup so as not to accidentally trigger her upset stomach again. On the bright side, if she started feeling sick she didn’t have to fight two other people for rights to throw up or shit in the bathroom. Diego chose not to further imagine the hell that unleashed that morning when their stomachs decided it didn’t like Alice’s self-made milk tea. By the time he got back Monica was already in one of his old shirts and a pair of his boxers for shorts. 

He had to remind himself she hadn’t been feeling well.

They spent the rest of their night like an ordinary couple, they had their dinner, talked, snuggled up on the couch to watch some TV until Monica’s eyes started to droop. She kissed Diego on the cheek before saying she was going to bed first, seeing as he was more invested in this sitcom about detectives in a fictional 99th precinct than she was. 

About three more episodes later when Monica was already sleeping soundly under the covers of his bed did Diego also start yawning. He switched the TV off and made his way towards his bed, slowly getting under the sheets beside Monica, careful not to stir her from her sleep. 

He looked over at the sleeping figure beside him, watching as her body rose and fell slowly from her steady breathing. He thought about what had just happened in the course of 24 hours since last night. His brother barging in, revealing a part of her past he didn’t know about that hurt him. Trying to get to work like nothing happened only to be dismissed. Finally finding out just who Monica was before he met the snappy assistant with an attitude not too long ago. Learning that after being with her for a while, maybe he was still capable of opening his heart up to someone else, despite everything that happened with Eudora.

Eudora…

While they had taken respite and resolved their most recent ordeal, there was no denying the fact that somewhere at the back of his mind he kept asking himself if it really was okay to move on and feel the same things he did with Eudora with another girl. He kept thinking if he was disrespecting Eudora’s memory by trying to move on. He wasn’t even sure if he had even completely moved on since he still kept thinking about Eudora even when he started dating Monica.

He never showed it, of course, or told anyone about it. But whenever Monica fell asleep first next to him and he would just stare at her, the same thoughts kept running through his head. He was sure he loved Monica, but he just could not stop thinking about what Eudora would say about all this as well. 

Diego was interrupted from his deep thoughts when he heard something vibrating in the bedside drawer on his side. Then he remembered Monica had placed her phone there to ignore Jessica, and was wise enough to sleep on the side farthest from the drawer she placed her phone in so she wouldn’t be interrupted.

As Diego opened the drawer, sure enough it was Jessica’s caller ID that was flashing on the phone’s screen. He knew Jessica wasn’t going to give up until someone answered, so he knew that if this persistent best friend wasn’t sated he’s going to be hearing it vibrate in his drawer the whole night. 

Taking a quick look at Monica to make sure she still wasn’t disturbed, he picked up Monica’s phone and silently made his way outside of his apartment before answering it. It took Jessica no time at all to start blasting through from the other side.

“MONICA RENEE LEE DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY TIMES I’VE BEEN TRYING TO CALL YOU WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU GIVE ME ANSWERS RIGHT NOW BITCH!” Jessica yelled in a mouthful, and Diego had to resist the urge to ask about that second name he just knew about.

“Hey, Jessica. It’s me.” he answered calmly, hoping his tone would turn down Jessica’s loud and angry rampage.

“OH MY GOD! DIEGO?! WHAT THE FUCK WHY ARE YOU ANSWERING THE PHONE WHERE THE FUCK IS MAICA?! I CAN’T BELIEVE SHE RAN OFF WITH YOU AFTER WHAT YOU DID LAST NIGHT YOU FUCKING BASTARD WHY I OUGHTA FORCE ALICE’S MILK TEA OF POISON DOWN YOUR THROAT YOU MOTHER--”

Diego sighed internally as he let Jessica go on her verbal rampage for a bit before saying, “Hey Jessica, thank you.”

That had obviously caught Jessica off-guard as she was suddenly quiet, presumably confused as to why Diego would thank her in a situation like this where she was bad mouthing his ear off. Unable to pinpoint what Diego meant, she couldn’t help but respond with a, “What?”

Diego chuckled seeing as he’d managed to stun Jessica with such a simple show of appreciation for what she’s done for Monica throughout the years. “Thank you.” he said again. “For looking after her for all these years.” 

There was silence on the other line as Jessica took a moment to take in what Diego just said. Obviously, Monica had a tell all session with him not too long ago. 

“Hello?” Diego said, making sure Jessica was still on the line.

Another short pause, and Diego finally heard Jessica scoff as she said, “Well, someone had to look after her ass.” echoing what Diego told Klaus when they were at the café. 

“I’m sorry too, for just leaving her like that.” Diego said, biting his lower lip in anticipation for Jessica’s reaction.

“You damn right better be sorry. But… I guess I would be hella confused too if I were in your shoes. On behalf of my poorly misguided friend, I’m sorry you had to find out that way.” Jessica responded.

“Well, in that case, on behalf of my poorly misguided brother, I’m sorry he couldn’t be a better influence to Monica at that time.” as Diego said this he leaned on the wall next to his apartment door, finally relaxing seeing as Jessica was not so vicious anymore.

“That’s all in the past now, I guess.” 

“Yeah… all in the past…” Diego mused softly, his thoughts wandering again on Eudora because for him, he definitely couldn’t say she was just ‘all in the past’. 

“Diego, can you just promise me one thing?” Jessica asked, breaking Diego away from his thoughts.

“What?” he asked.

“Take care of her too.” 

Diego paused for a moment as a sense of doubt crept up on him, not because he didn’t want to take care of Monica, but because he wasn’t sure anymore if he actually did a good job at taking care of the people he loved. 

He left Klaus to put whatever poison wanted in his body. He watched Eudora die. He potentially put Monica in danger by leaving her alone that night. Even the sole fact that he was in law enforcement was also a dangerous thing both for him and for Monica.

But Monica wasn’t a detective who went out on the field with him, she was an assistant who was mostly stuck to her desk and occasionally went out on meetings with the Captain. Surely, that puts her out of danger, right?

Was admitting his feelings for Monica really the right thing to do? Was he really capable of not hurting the people he loved? Honestly, as he thought about it, he couldn’t guarantee an answer. But he could guarantee that his feelings for Monica were real and that Monica felt the same. It wouldn’t be fair to her if he chose to ignore his feelings and keep himself away from her just because he thought it was a safer idea. 

So he hoped against hope that this time, he wouldn’t have the blood of someone he loved in his hands. 

Thus, with a firm and certain tone, he told Jessica,

“Of course I will.” 

[miss-galaxy-turtle]

No one:

Literally no one:

Not a soul:

Me: KLAVE SIMS

[umbureraakademi]

There is no way but the Klave way <3

[supersoftklaus]

klaus: *taps table*

diego: *taps back*

five: what are you idiots doing?

diego: *rapidly hits table*

klaus: *slamming the table* yOU BITCH TAKE THAT BACK

[umbureraakademi]

LOL THE REAL BROS.

[sinisterfilth]

The Umbrella Academy

[umbureraakademi]

This is too cool.

[umbureraakademi]

Introductory Note About the AU & Other Chapters & Face Claims

-a/n start-

[Potential spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen or finished TUA Netflix series but seriously how could you stop yourself from watching such a captivating show.]

Word Count: 4439

A little heart to heart.

-a/n end-

Chapter 22

Diego drove out to a nearby bay area, which was still pretty busy considering it was the middle of the day. People were walking their dogs, taking selfies with the water and the tall buildings as their backdrop, taking a stroll by the water, basically minding their own business as the two sat inside the car in total silence, one that had lasted the entire drive there.

Monica was fidgeting with her fingers as Diego stared out into the bay’s view, his hands resting on the wheel as if he couldn’t get them off while he anxiously anticipated who was going to start talking first. For some reason he couldn’t muster up the same nerve he had when he was talking to Klaus earlier, but then again talking with your brother is a whole lot different from talking with the girl you just left all alone in a parking lot last night.

“No! No, no, no, no bad dog!” they heard the muffled sounds of a stranger outside the car at the left side of the backseat. Diego looked at his side view mirror and Monica craned her neck to see what the commotion was about only to see the stranger’s beagle had just peed on one of the tires. Upon noticing that the two were checking out what was going on, the owner panicked, picking up his dog and making a run for it. 

Monica couldn’t help but laugh a bit but stopped abruptly when Diego turned to look at her, as it was the first sound she made since she got in the car. The two looked away from each other again and fell into another silence, and it was starting to kill them both.

“I’m sorry.” Monica said, finally breaking the silence though Diego wasn’t sure how he was going to respond to that. 

“It wasn’t your dog who peed on the car.” Diego joked, feeling slightly better when he managed to make Monica chuckle. There was another brief silence as Diego sighed, sliding his hands off the wheel so they now rested on his lap as he lay back in the driver’s seat, his gaze still fixated forward. “Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked softly.

The smile had completely wiped off of Monica’s face as he asked that, she looked downwards at her fidgeting fingers as she scrambled for a response to his nerve wracking question. “I’m sorry…” she said again, “I meant to tell you…” 

“That’s not what I asked.” Diego responded, his tone tight. “I’m asking why you never told me about your thing with Klaus, or your thing with… drugs…” he said that last word with difficulty, though he managed not to stutter. It wasn’t like the word never escaped his mouth before, he was a cop after all, but it was like every time he said that word it was like he could still feel the stickiness of Eudora’s blood on his hands. When Monica didn’t respond immediately, he added, “Was that story about your parents true?”

“Yes, of course it was.” Monica snapped, clearly offended he would even ask that question as she looked at him with hurt and anger in her eyes. “Who lies about their mom dying?” she said, fighting back angry tears. She knew she was in the wrong, but that didn’t give Diego the right to question her about her mother’s death.

Diego regretted having blurted that out but he kept his jaw set and his expression as hard as steel. He didn’t mean to hurt Monica, but all he wanted was the unfiltered truth about who she was, because right now he wasn’t sure he knew her as well as he thought he did. “Tell me everything then. I already talked to Klaus. He shared his part of the story. It’s your turn.” he said through gritted teeth.

Monica took a deep breath to calm herself down, thinking she did agree that Diego deserved to know about a part of her past she thought she had buried way down into the depths of nowhere. She realized she was a fool to have been thinking like that all this time, of course Diego was bound to find out anyway if she didn’t tell him, Klaus was his fucking brother. 

“What did Klaus tell you?” she asked. 

“Does it matter?”

“Yes, Diego. It does.” 

“Well I’m pretty sure it’s nothing you do not know.” Diego said impatiently. “You met because Klaus convinced your dealer to sell your drugs to him and you marched up to his apartment to get them back, you two hit it off for some strange reason and were together for a while until you wanted to go to rehab and he didn’t, you guys had a big fight and then you just disappeared. Leaving my poor little brother alone and heartbroken.” he narrated with a hint of sarcasm towards the end. 

Monica heaved a heavy sigh before saying, “There was a reason why I ‘disappeared’ and why I never told Klaus where I went.”

“You sure have a thing for keeping secrets from the people you care about.” Diego muttered under his breath.

“Are you going to let me talk or what?” Monica said, not sure if she can stand Diego’s sharp attitude any longer. Diego gave Monica a pensive look before he turned back to the bay’s view, not saying anything. Monica took this as a sign for her to start talking, thus she took another deep breath.  

“You know how they say ‘time heals’? Well, it never really did for me when my mom died.” she started. “I thought moving away from my home and my dad in Michigan would help me… forget. But the pain, it never really went away. Everyday I was missing her more and more and everyday I regretted not being by her side the moment she passed. I kept thinking that… I let her die alone. At least if I was there with her instead of trying to get my asshole dad to come to the hospital more often, even if I had to watch her die… at least I would’ve had the peace of knowing she wasn’t alone when she died.” 

“I told you when I left I didn’t leave any note or shit for my dad but like I said, he was a good cop and he eventually knew I made it to New York. I lived at a dump of an apartment similar to where Klaus used to live since I was living on the money I saved while I was still living in Michigan. When my dad found out where I was living, he asked Uncle Gwim to drop by since he sent over some money to help me get to college and find a better place to live, and to say he promised he would leave me alone for the most part since he knew I needed space. So fast forward, I went to college, met Jessie, graduated, got an apartment with Jessie, blah, blah, blah…” 

“So when did it start?” Diego asked suddenly, nearly catching Monica off-guard as she was quiet for a few seconds.

“College, a while after I met Jessie.” she answered quietly. “It’s just… no matter what I did, bury myself in my studies, hang out with friends, date some cute guys, even when I met such an amazing best friend like Jessie… I couldn’t shake my mom off my mind. The hurt and the pain of losing her, everyday it felt like it just happened yesterday. The only time I couldn’t feel any more pain was when I was high. It was my roommate who introduced me. Jessie and I didn’t live in the same dorms but she found out eventually when I forgot to meet her at a party and when she went to my room to check up on me I was in the middle of popping some pills into my mouth.” 

“She was livid. Of course, she was against it as she was raised by parents who were there for her all the time. She tried to stop me and I went crazy. I was on my knees just pathetically begging for her to let me have my moments of numbness. To let me at least have a few hours a day in a high that would help me forget the pain of my mom’s death. Honestly, at that time, it was the only thing keeping me sane.” 

At hearing this Diego looked over at Monica and suddenly it was like he was seeing Klaus sitting right next to him. He realized how eerily similar they were. The way they couldn’t cope with death. The way they escaped into drugs to feel numb, to feel at peace. The way they both begged the people who cared for them to just let them be lest they break into tiny pieces. The way he cared so deeply for the both of them it made his heart ache.

“So Jessie she… she just let me. You know I love that girl so much. She had such a shitty, drug-abusing best friend but she stuck around just to make sure I didn’t get high enough to kill myself.” Monica continued, and Diego felt a huge sense of appreciation and understanding for Jessica, how she went through making the same decision he made with Klaus. "She helped me stay functional, she's practically the reason why I was still able to graduate and get my first job. But even when we started living together I just… wasn't getting any better."

"There was always one particular day where I would get absolutely ravenous if I wasn't high enough… and that day was my mom's death anniversary. Out of all the days for Klaus to buy drugs meant for me he had to choose that day. So naturally I went nuts. I found the shitty apartment he was staying at and to be honest I nearly punched him just to get my drugs back. You know how he is."

Diego just nodded silently as he imagined Klaus being his usual sassy self at an angry Monica as she continued, "But then despite Klaus being Klaus I did end up finding him… well… attractive. I had to tell him it was my mom's death anniversary and how I couldn't deal with it so I needed to get high. I don't know if it was because he felt sorry for me or if it was because he also kind of understood how I needed to block the pain for a few hours. Funny thing we ended up sharing and getting high together that night."

When Monica looked over at Diego and saw the less than favorable reaction on his face she cleared her throat. “Of course… maybe… you don’t need the full details of my relationship with Klaus and our illegal pastime. But I really did care for Klaus, you know, and I know he felt the same way back then. I knew because he told me things about your family, what you guys can do, what he can do. He told me how his dad locked him up in a mausoleum as a way to enhance his ability to talk to the dead only it traumatized him, and as a result he turned to drugs to block all the dead people out.”

“At first I understood why he would want to get so high everyday just so he could stop hearing those haunting voices. But then one day it just hit me. Klaus can talk to the dead…” Monica trailed off for a bit as she paused, swallowing as if a lump had formed in her throat making it hard for her to say what she was about to confess. “I thought… if he could talk to the dead, maybe he could talk to my mom.” she said, and Diego didn’t need to be a genius or use his detective instincts to figure out what happened next.

“Is that why you wanted him to go to rehab?” he asked, and Monica confirmed by nodding.

“The first time I brought up rehab with him he looked at me like I was crazy. I didn’t tell him it was because I wanted him to contact my mom so I could… in a way… talk to her through him. Of course, he didn’t want to go because he wasn’t ready to go back to seeing and talking to dead people. I was hurt but I tried to understand him, since I know it couldn’t be easy having gone what he went through as a kid. So I didn’t bring it up for a while, but I was getting impatient… I kept thinking, when is he ever going to be ready? Eventually I kept bringing it up and one day he just… snapped.”

“It escalated into a big argument and we were yelling at each other. When he kept pressuring me by asking why I suddenly wanted to go to rehab I let slip that it was because I wanted him to talk to my mom. I thought if he knew, maybe he would understand. That he would relent. But instead he just… got angrier. He said I was just using him, that I was no better than your dad… that… that maybe all I cared about was his powers and that I never actually cared about him.” Monica took a shaky breath as her voice started to break and tears started to well in her eyes.

“And hearing all that it just… it just broke me, you know? Is it really so wrong that I wanted a chance to talk to my mom? That I thought if Klaus did love me, he would put his fears aside so I can get the closure I’ve always wanted? I couldn’t take anymore of the words he was saying so we broke up right then and there and I left his apartment. I wish I could say that was it but this part… Klaus does not know… and for a good reason.”

Monica found it even more difficult to tell Diego what happened next as she bit her lower lip and the fidgeting with her fingers had gone haywire, as if she was close to pulling off her own fingernails. At that point Diego was torn between holding her hand to help her stay calm as she continued or to maintain his own silent rule of “no physical contact until I know the whole truth”. 

Despite fighting to stick to his rule, seeing her so anxious it looked like she was literally choking on what she was going to say next made him give in to his feelings. Slowly he reached out and placed a hand on Monica’s, only then did he feel they were trembling and cold, and he was sure the latter was not because it was actually cold. 

Monica looked at Diego, her expression a bit shocked, confused, and unsure where he was going with this. As their gazes locked in silence, Diego entwined his fingers with Monica’s in a firm grip, his thumb caressing her skin in as a way to comfort her. Her shaking lessened, but it was like she could hear her heart thumping twice as hard. She had to look away, as if she stared into Diego’s brown eyes any longer she may just forget how to speak altogether.

“That night I… um…” she started, her voice as soft as a whisper. “This… is going to be hard to say…” she said, as she gently squeezed Diego’s hand as if to find support in this minor form of physical contact. Taking a deep breath, she continued, “When I got home to mine and Jessica’s apartment she wasn’t home, so was Ben. At that point she and Ben had already been dating for a while and he was already living with us, possibly because I was barely there while I was dating Klaus. I was devastated and my best friend wasn’t there so I… turned to my other ‘best friend’. In my hurry of getting away from Klaus I didn’t just stash my own drugs I may have accidentally gotten some of his as well. I didn’t even bother getting into my own room I just fumbled my way into a corner at the apartment and started taking pill after pill after pill until… until I…” 

Even when Monica was unable to say it Diego already knew where she was going as an awful sickening feeling started to brew in his stomach. He almost couldn’t say it either, but he managed to get that one word out of his mouth, “O-overdosed?” he stuttered.

Monica’s hands had started shaking again and she started blinking rapidly, a futile attempt to stop her tears from falling. “Yeah… yes.” she said shakily. “I uhh… overdosed. The more pills I took I got more and more numb… and then I started feeling… cold… but I just couldn’t stop myself. Eventually I felt like I couldn’t breathe until I blacked out. I woke up at the hospital and I couldn’t even describe how I felt the moment I did because saying I ‘felt like shit’ would be the understatement of the year. Surprisingly, at least for me, the first person I saw was my dad.” 

“He told me Jessie and Ben found me, I looked blue, I was unresponsive, in short it was a complete nightmare for them. Thankfully, because Jessie likes sleeping early it means they don’t always stay out too late on their dates, so they found me on time and got me to the hospital. Now when I told you the last time I saw my dad was because Jessie called him to attend my graduation, that was a lie, he didn’t even go and I could’ve cared less about that. But him being the first person I saw after that ordeal… honestly, it was almost unbelievable. I mean he barely visited my mom when she was sick. It was only when he started crying did I realize… I was the only person he had left who mattered as much as my mom did.”

“I realized I had been pushing the only other person who understood the pain of losing my mom away all these years. I realized that instead of helping each other cope with the loss, I left him all alone to deal with it, in a way we both left each other alone. I realized that if I did manage to get Klaus to talk to my mom, would she even have wanted to see me like that? To see that I just left my dad and started putting all that shit in my body? I was so ashamed of myself and for the first time in a long while I told my dad I was sorry, for everything…” 

“When we had both calmed down my dad said he wanted to bring me back home to Michigan for rehab and I agreed. When Jessie and Ben visited me shortly after the talk with my dad I made Jessie promise she would never tell Klaus what happened or where I was going… that’s why he thinks I just up and left without a trace. I didn’t want Klaus to know because… you know… he’s sensitive. He may act all sarcastic and apathetic but I’m sure you know, since he’s your brother after all, how finding out he may have indirectly caused my near-death experience would just… break him.” 

Diego had thought about Klaus being lost and confused, just wanting to know Monica’s whereabouts and if she was okay after she had run off. He felt a similar feeling when he drove away from her, and imagining how Klaus felt that for so long he understood his anger and frustration. However, after hearing this he also imagined a different scenario if Klaus ever did discover how their argument led to Monica overdosing and almost dying. He imagined how the guilt would eat his brother up. How he may also use his usual methods to drown his feelings away. How he may have also thought that if Monica died he would think it was his fault. How he may think that he couldn’t live with such guilt. How he may have taken just as much pills Monica did that night or maybe even more. 

“Yeah I… guess it would…” Diego agreed.

“I didn’t want that for Klaus. At that time I did still love him, and despite that horrible argument I didn’t want him to live with that guilt. It was no problem for Jessie to keep her mouth shut or keep Klaus away, since she never liked him. As soon as I was discharged I went back home to Michigan, went to rehab, spent a little more time there before I went back because… well… Michigan just didn’t feel like home anymore. My dad didn’t agree with me at first but when he heard Uncle Gwim had an opening for an assistant at his precinct he gave in as long as I got that job, thinking putting me in the middle of all those cops would be a good example for me.” Monica paused a bit as she scoffed at the thought. “I knew that going back to New York I would risk running into Klaus again… and I knew that he won’t exactly be all warm and welcoming if we did meet again. I just didn’t think I’d meet his brother first and…” she stopped as she slowly turned to look at Diego, gauging his reaction. 

“And what? Diego asked softly.

“I think you know… what happens after that.” she said, and a brief silence followed.

“So why didn’t you tell me… all of this?”

“It’s just as I told you when we were at the parking lot.” Monica said, sighing before she continued, looking straight at Diego’s eyes, “I didn’t expect to fall for another Hargreeves.” 

Diego felt his chest tighten at hearing that, though he knew about his own feelings for Monica he wasn’t sure how to respond, or if this was the best time for him to make such a commitment. Monica found his lack of response disappointing as she looked away and untwined her hand from Diego’s. 

“I thought if I told you the truth it would ruin my chances with you, not just because you were Klaus’ brother, but also because the last person you loved died during a drug bust. I was stupid to think that Klaus wouldn’t pop up one day and spill everything. I should’ve listened to Jessie. I’d understand if you… don’t want to be with me anymore.” she said and again there was just silence, which triggered tears welling up in Monica’s eyes again. She knew it would come to this. Maybe the next time she starts liking a guy she’ll have them screened by Jessica first. As she motioned to open the car door she said, “Guess I’ll see you around then…”

“When Klaus and I talked, he said he knew about what happened to Eudora just a few days after it happened since it was on the news.” Diego started, which made Monica stop as she turned to listen to him. “As my brother you’d think he’d come looking for me to support me through everything, but he didn’t. Because he thought I would push him away for being involved in drugs. I told him I wouldn’t push him away but he doubted me because he literally saw me pushing you away…” he continued, not looking at Monica who was just staring at him and listening intently. “I told him he was different because he’s my brother… but now that I know everything I needed to know… I’ve realized a few things.” 

Looking at Monica he continued, “I realized that it was a criminal who killed Eudora, not Klaus, especially not you. I realized that you and Klaus found comfort in how the both of you found death to be a difficult thing to handle. I realized how much you cared about my brother, so much that you kept yourself away from him. I realized that while you may have made him bitter about you, it was a small price to pay for possibly preventing him from having a meltdown and… well… you know…” 

Diego once again took Monica’s hand in his, the two now staring intently at each other’s eyes before he started again, “I realized how much I cared about you when finding out the truth from Klaus and not from you was what really broke my heart. I realized how I really felt about you when I couldn’t sleep thinking that I left you alone at that parking lot. I realized I never should have pushed you away, because you don’t do that to the people you love.”

Monica felt her cheeks flush and her heart do somersaults, almost not believing what she was hearing. She found it difficult to keep her breathing normal as she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Diego’s. It was as if her brain had just shut down too, as all she could say in response was, “What?”

Diego scoffed as a small smile crept up on his face and he leaned in closer, giving her a sweet and innocent peck on the lips. A small gesture that made Monica’s heart explode. 

“Let me say it slowly then. I. Love. You. Why is that so hard to register when you literally said that first?” Diego teased. Monica’s silence made Diego uneasy, though she didn’t let go of his hand or turn away from him, which was probably a good sign. “Did you forget how to talk or something?” he said with a raised eyebrow.

“No it’s just… I don’t… understand…” Monica finally said, which only confused Diego.

“Don’t understand what?”

“Maybe if you said that again… in Mexican.” Monica said as she couldn’t help but grin at Diego who was rolling his eyes.

“Why do you always ruin these moments I don’t bel--” Diego was interrupted as this time it was Monica who leaned in and kissed him, a little more passionately than his innocent peck. 

When she broke from the kiss she kept her face inches away from Diego’s as she whispered, “Thank you… for giving me another chance.”

“Still not the response I expected.” Diego whispered back and Monica chuckled.

“I love you too…” she said, pausing for a brief moment before adding with a cheeky smile, 

“Papi.”

“Goddamnit, Monica…” 

[teen-klaus-hargreeves]

"I have two moods, cuddle or annihilate."

- Diego (or Five)

[umbureraakademi]

Yup, accurate.

[five-and-klaus]

Diego: if someone offers you drugs, you just say...?

Klaus: thank you for this opportunity

Diego: No! If someone offers you ecstasy pills, you...?

Five: tell them no, you only smoke crack

Diego: No! If you come in contact with drugs, what do you do?

Vanya: I know this! You use them responsibly and only on occasion! Like the Fourth of July or Halloween

Diego: no

[umbureraakademi]

You tried, Diego. You tried.

[i-like-to-think-that-im-cool]

Allison: Listen Klaus, this is gonna be dangerous ok? Which means you need to stay behind all of us and be as careful as possible, do you underst-

Klaus, running directly towards the danger with his bare fists raised: GET!!!! FUCKED!!!!!

[umbureraakademi]

KLAUS HONEY!!!

[umbureraakademi]

Introductory Note About the AU & Other Chapters & Face Claims

-a/n start-

[Potential spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen or finished TUA Netflix series but seriously how could you stop yourself from watching such a captivating show.]

Word Count: 1644

Milk tea isn’t for everybody

-a/n end-

Chapter 21

Diego didn’t make Klaus any promises when they parted at the café, explaining how extremely difficult it was to find a person with just a first name. Klaus said it was hopeless for him to try and remember his last name since he was too high, and instead offered to describe him in detail if Diego took him to their sketch artist.

How Diego was going to ask their sketch artist to draw his brother’s crush so they could identify him though was another problem.

For the moment he had to push thoughts of Klaus’ romantic search out of his head as he found himself at the door to Monica’s apartment. At first he just stood there, trying to think up a plan depending on who opened the door.

If it was Alice it would be easy to get past her since she was new and not so involved yet. She’d probably try and ask him to exchange his soul for a step inside but he could probably take it.

Ben he wasn’t so sure, as he pretty much acted more like a father to Monica rather than the boyfriend of her best friend. He didn’t seem the type to rough house him at the moment he sees him though, but at the very least he would call Jessica.

Now Jessica would be a real problem, they say heartbroken women are to be feared but Diego believed it’s always the best friend who is ten folds more ferocious. It was like he could already feel the icy glare or the harsh lashing at his ears on how he hurt Monica, finishing with a threat that if he ever set foot there again that would be the end of him.

However, the person he was most afraid to face was Monica.

How did she take the way he left her last night? Or what he said to her before he left? Will she even be in a state to talk to him? What happens when she starts crying again?

Will he be able to forgive himself from hurting her like this?

He honestly didn’t know what he would do if it was Monica who opened the door. He though at least if it was Alice, Ben, or Jessica he could still stall for time on what he wanted to say. 

“Oh, it’s the Mexican beef.” 

Startled but keeping his composure, Diego looked to the side to see Alice standing before him. She was holding a small paper bag and seemed to have just gotten back from running an errand. 

Wait, what did she just call him?

“Alice.” Diego greeted, deciding to ignore her earlier greeting. 

“You remember my name!” she said excitedly.

“Kinda hard to forget considering how we met…”

“Right… well I know why you’re here, so I’ll tell you right away that now is not exactly a good time.”

“I know it isn’t a good time, but I need to talk to Monica.”

“No, you don’t understand.”

“Okay…” starting to get a little irked that Alice wasn’t being straight with him he said, “Then help me understand.”

He watched as Alice reached inside the small paper she was holding, shortly pulling out what seemed like a box of pills. She held it out in front of her so Diego could take a better look at what kind of pills she was holding.

“Imodium?” he said, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Alice who nodded her head. “Who?”

“All of them.” Alice answered nonchalantly.

“What the hell did you do?”

“Oh sure, blame the Asian when something happens to the white people.” Alice said, trying to sound offended but when Diego shot her a look that said he wasn’t being fooled she chuckled nervously before saying, “I made them milk tea last night and their Westerner stomachs couldn’t handle it.”

“You gave them what?”

“Do you want to try it?”

The door to the apartment creaked open as someone else stepped outside murmuring to herself, “What the hell is holding her up I swear if she stopped to pet a kitten I’m going to--” 

“Monicathemexicanbeefishere.” Alice said rapidly as a way of warning the disgruntled woman that the person she never expected to see so soon was standing right outside of their apartment.

“Oh good you’re here, give me that.” Monica said, unable to catch what Alice was trying to tell her as she was dead set on the imodium for her aching stomach. She walked right past Diego and made her way to Alice, grabbing the imodium and only then noticing the other woman’s eyes being wide in shock. “The hell is wrong with you?” she said before following the direction of Alice’s gaze, stunned to the core at seeing Diego standing right there, the shock making her mouth gape open and her grip on the imodium loosen as the box fell on the floor.

Diego stood there awkwardly as he stared right back at Monica, her hair up in a messy bun and in an old faded shirt and shorts. Her eyes looked tired and swollen and she looked paler than usual. If he thought he looked like shit earlier this morning then he didn’t know how he would describe Monica.

“Guess you weren’t lying about the upset stomach.” Diego commented.

“Diego? What… I… uhh…” Monica was clearly at a loss for words as Alice slowly bent down to pick up the box of pills that had fallen to the floor. “You’re not at work. Obviously. Why else would you be standing here. Did you skip work? That’s obvious too why did I ask that… I don’t know… what to say.” she mumbled, unable to make eye contact with Diego.

“I wanted to talk about last night. When the Captain said you weren’t coming in to work today because you were sick of course I didn’t expect you to actually be sick.” Diego said.

“Yeah, well… you can say it’s probably the last time I’m taking drinks from a crazy Asian lady.” Monica said.

“You’re all just weaklings.” Alice commented.

“Shut up and give me that.” Monica retorted, snatching the imodium from Alice’s hands. 

“Okay look uhh… this is obviously a bad time so maybe I’ll just go.” as Diego motioned to move past Monica and Alice to leave he was stopped by Monica herself as she placed her arms on his chest.

“No, Diego wait.” she said, and upon noticing she was touching him she let go and looked away, not sure if she still had the right to do that anymore. Diego felt the awkward tension as well as Monica cleared her throat. “This is actually the best time for you to come. If Jessie or Ben saw you right now it’d definitely be the apocalypse in this apartment. But they also had Alice’s milk tea from Hell and are moaning and groaning in bed right now for a completely different reason.”

“Why else would they be moaning and groaning in bed?” Alice asked, and when Monica and Diego both gave her a look of disbelief she realized the answer herself and said, “Oh…”

“Alice just get inside, okay?” Monica said exasperatedly. Alice pouted but obeyed Monica as she went inside the apartment to leave the two of them alone. However, now that it was just the two of them in the middle of the hallway, Monica wished she hadn’t let Alice leave. 

“Are you… okay?” Diego asked slowly, breaking their silence.

“Um…” Monica started, not sure if he was referring to her upset stomach or her feelings from the events of the previous night. “Well I could’ve sworn I shit or puked out my soul very early this morning so I guess the worst part is over.” she said, choosing to pretend Diego was asking about the latter.

“Right.” was all Diego said in response, followed by another awkward silence.

“You know what the hallway is probably not the best place to talk about this.”

“Was wondering when you were going to invite me inside.”

“Oh no, we’re not going in there. I’m not going to risk Jessie or Ben seeing you, I want you to live.” 

“Bold of them to assume they can actually kill me.” 

“Hargreeves, there is nothing scarier than a heartbroken woman’s best friends.” Monica said as a joke, but upon realizing she said the word ‘heartbroken’ she saw a look of guilt in Diego’s eyes and cursed herself for not filtering her words. “Also, I don’t think it’s going to be fair giving me or any one of us home court advantage.” she said in an effort to make Diego forget she even said that word.

“So if not your apartment or mine, then where? Are you even sure you’re supposed to be going out right now?” Diego asked.

“I’m fine. Like I said I went through the worst part earlier. I feel like there’s nothing left to puke or shit. I just need to fix myself up a bit.”

“You’re not dehydrated?”

“We still had some rehydration salts lying around. Don’t worry I’m not going to die, Diego. I just need to pop these pills in and I’ll feel even better.” Monica insisted. When Diego didn’t look at her straight after saying that Monica felt she might as well have just shot herself in the head for being tactless again. “I… probably shouldn’t have said it… like that…” she said softly. It startled her a bit when Diego started walking towards the direction of the elevator and her heart sank when she thought he was walking away from her again. 

“I’ll wait for you in the car.” he said, not looking back at her. That was all the confirmation she needed for her to hurry inside to get some decent clothes on, feeling relieved that he was giving her a second chance.