Cry Me A River | Masterpost

day 179

Title: Protectorate.

Pairing: Yandere!Scaramouche x Reader (Genshin Impact).

Word Count: 2.2k.

TW: Unhealthy Relationships, Implied Kidnapping, Implied Death/Violence, Blood, Controlling Behavior.

The first time you met Kunikuzushi, there was an arrow embedded in his left shoulder, and he was covered in his own blood.

It took you most of the day to carry him home, his small form draped across your back, his eyes open, but glazed over, too unfocused to be any sign of meaningful consciousness. The sun had set, by the time you reached your little farmhouse, and you deposited him in the decrypt barn before approaching the door. You didn’t reach for the knob, or knock, just pressing your ear to the wood, holding your breath as you listened. You head footsteps, the muffled sound of someone idly strumming a shamisen, and you sighed, giving yourself another moment of quiet reprieve before slipping inside, grabbing the cloth sack you kept in your bedroom and making your escape.

You’d rather spend the night listening to your father’s music, or sitting in front of the hearth as your brother read out the ancient legends and poems he’d always been so sickeningly fond of, but that was for another time. You had to be thankful that no one would bother you, tonight.

By the time you returned to the barn, Kunikuzushi was wake, sitting up and struggling with the shaft of the arrow. Without thinking, you rushed to his side, prying his hands away from the weapon and forcing them against the sheet he was lying on. “Please,” You started, before he could think to struggle against you. “If the head breaks off, I might not be able to get it out. I won’t be able to help you.”

You expected him to argue, to glare, but he only stared up at you, his dark eyes still wide, still bleary. Like a child, being scolded for the first time. “I don’t…” His voice was shaking, unsteady. He probably needed water, and a decent meal. You couldn't be sure how long it'd been since he last had something to drink. “It hurts. I want to get it out.”

“I can help with that.” He was bleeding, again, but you tried not to show your concern, smiling and squeezing his hands. “If you’re willing to let me.”

It took a few seconds, a few nervous glances towards his tattered robes, but eventually, he nodded, just starting to relax. You let go of him, hesitantly, and started to work.

“Do you know who did this to you?” You asked, tearing away the fabric that surrounded the injury. The arrowhead was completely embedded, more so than any self-inflicted wound or stray shot could’ve been, and his breath hitched as you took the arrow by the shaft, breaking it into two pieces as carefully as you could and discarding the second half. You felt him shift, trying to see what you were doing, but you caught his chin before he could, forcing him to stare straight ahead. You should’ve done this earlier, in the woods, while he was still unconscious. “I’ve treated a few hunters, but I’ve never seen anything this… thorough. Go and get yourself into trouble with the wrong people, stranger?”

You fished your scalpel out of your bag, wrapped in its own piece of burlap. He must’ve tried to remove it before you found him, judging by the amount of torn skin around the injury, how difficult it was to decipher where the arrow had first made contact. You tried to be precise, to only cut away what you were sure you had to cut away, but your incision could only be so small, so shallow, and Kunikuzushi still winced, dropping his gaze to his lap, hesitating before he answered. “I think it was one of my friends.”

You paused. “Your friends?”

“I mean, they weren’t trying to hurt me.” At least he was distracted, too preoccupied with himself and what he was saying to notice you putting down your scalpel. The pliers were next, crude but accurate, just barely small enough to latch onto the base of the arrowhead, where iron met the wood. “They were trying to help me. They said it would make me stronger, and if I’m stronger I can—”

You pulled, and Kunikuzushi’s words died into a low, terrible groan. You fished out your bandages, taking up what you could and pressing against his injury to stop the now-steady bleeding. You should’ve left to fetch fresh water, at that point, or gotten something to clean him up with, but his hand clasped over yours, keeping you in place with a grip stronger than you’d expected it to be. “They were trying to make me stronger. They said this would make me stronger.”

You brought your free hand to his other shoulder, rubbing gently. “I believe you,” You said, slowly, trying not to startle him. “I’m just trying to make sure they don’t kill you, in the process.”

He hadn’t been smiling, but his frown deepened. His grip loosened, though, his hand eventually sliding under yours, taking the clump of bandage, and you were allowed to stand up. You moved to brush yourself off, but thought better of it, curling your fingers into your palms as you turned away from him, starting towards the barn’s entrance. “I’ll get you some water, and something to eat. We don’t have much, but it’ll fill your stomach. My brother should have something you can wear, too.” You glanced over your shoulder, watching as he settled into place, pulling his knees into his chest and attempting to lift his left arm, only to drop it back to his side almost immediately. “You’re going to have to rest for a few days. It’s not a shallow wound, and it looks like you lost a lot of blood. It’s going to take some time before you’re able to use that arm, again.”

“I heal quickly,” He said, quickly, but he sounded unsure. “I don’t need anything, either. I’ll be fine on my own.”

“Let me be selfish, then. I brought you here, so you’re my responsibility, which means taking care of you is also my responsibility.” You’d never closed the heavy, sliding door, but you lingered in the doorway, giving him time to relax. Giving him time to start to trust that you were coming back. “And that means I have to see it through, right?”

He didn’t answer, not immediately, not until the tension in his shoulders began to fade, a fraction of his rigidity breaking into something else, something softer.

His response came a second later, breathy and mumbled, but no less gratifying for its delay.

“Right.”

~

The tenth time Kunikuzushi visited, he brought a man you didn’t know and tea imported from Liyue. He let himself into your farmhouse, and his friend waited outside.

His robes, thin and formless and dully colored, were gone, by now, replaced with rich silks, golden ornaments, veils made with such a fine material, you were forced to occasionally wonder how much you would be able to get for a length of it at the marketplace. He held himself differently, with more confidence than you’d ever thought him capable of, and while you wanted to be happy for him, you couldn’t help but miss the Kunikuzushi who used to follow after you for hours on end, staring up at you with those big, dark eyes and offering to lend you another pair of hands despite the fact that you both knew he had no talent for housekeeping. Despite the fact that you would've been just as happy with his company as you were with his help.

He didn’t follow you, anymore, and his pride was no longer such a small thing as to accommodate household chores. He watched you from your small table, instead, as you boiled water and brewed his newest gift, placing a clay mug in front of him when you were done. You held your own as you sat down, eager to keep your hands on its warm surface. The days were growing cold, and there was only so much wood you could justify wasting on yourself. You’d have to wait until the rest of your family returned before you could light the hearth.

Kunikuzushi waited for you to start. His pride was no small thing, and his patience had grown to adjust to it. “You cut your hair.”

“It was the only practical decision.” As eager to talk as ever, despite his hesitation. “Electo if volatile. If there’s anything flammable nearby, it’s bound to—”

“No, I mean you cut your hair. Without a mirror, from what I can see.” You bent over the tabletop, idly toying with a portion of his fringe, nearly an inch shorter than its twin on the opposite side. “What happened? It looks like someone took a pair of shears to your head, and you let them.”

He batted your hand away, but it was a half-hearted dismissal. He was smiling, and he made no attempt to hide it. “I’m leaving for Snezhnaya, soon. By the time I visit again, it should be long enough for you to cut yourself, to your satisfaction.”

You tried to smile back, but it faltered quickly, and you but your mug to your lips, instead. “You might have to come and find me on the mainland, by then.”

His expression dropped. “What do you mean?”

“It’s really nothing,” You assured, forcing yourself to let out an airy laugh before you went on. “He’s a merchant, and he just starting doing business on our island, and he’s… You have to understand, Kuni’, he’s so wealthy, and when he offered to marry me, I couldn't—”

“You’re betrothed.”

You pushed your shoulders forward, shrinking into yourself. “I am.”

“Why?” He slammed his palms against the table, rattling the mugs. You managed to steady your own, but his toppled over, spilling tea over the wood and onto the floor. He didn’t seem to notice, but you cringed, knowing you’d have to clean it up later on. “I can give you mora, gold, whatever you need. You don’t have to run off with some bastard behind my back and—”

“I need more than mora. There are healers on the mainland, real healers. People who can do more than gather herbs and… I don’t know, carve out arrowheads.” Another laugh, this one sardonic, exhausted. “You know my father needs care. His sight is getting worse, and his health is failing, but he keeps taking work, and neither I nor my brother can convince him to stop. He needs more care than I can give him. My brother will finally be able to attend an actual academy, too. This isn’t something I can walk away from.”

He was standing, now, lording over you. “And that’s worth whoring yourself out to a man you don’t even know?”

“I do know him. He introduced himself while he was on our island, and we’ve been exchanging letters.” Anxiously, you began to play with the hem of your sleeve, but stopped yourself quickly, pulling your hands into your lap, instead. “He’s a kind man. I don’t love him, but he’s prepared to take my family in, and—”

“Damn your family, this isn’t about them. I want to know why you think you can just leave me—”

“Get out.”

Kunikuzushi blinked. “What makes you think—”

“I’m getting married, Kuni, by my own volition. I have no interest in listening to you question my choices or insult my family. We don't have enough food. We don't have enough wood. If I turn down this offer, I'll be responsible when my family finally freezes to—” You looked away. “Just get out. I don't want to have to ask you again.”

He looked like he was going to say something, for a second.

Then, he turned on his heel, and left your farmhouse entirely. You could hear him say something to his friend, but you couldn’t make out the words. You didn’t really try to.

You allowed yourself one deep, long breath, forced yourself to stand, and went back to your chores, praying your wedding day would come soon.

~

On his next and final visit, Kunikuzushi arrived while you were at the marketplace, while your father was at home and your brother was tending to him. By the time you returned, smoke was heavy in the air, and there was no sound save for the crackle of the fire and the idle chatter of the friends he’d brought to light it.

The farmhouse was already engulfed, by the time you reached the clearing, smoke already billowing from the windows, the ramshackle roof already burnt-through and buckled in. You should’ve hidden, or ran, or done anything but drop your belongings at the edge of the forest and make a desperate sprint for the charred door, but you couldn’t think, and you couldn’t stop trying, even after he caught you, even after your frantic struggling drew the attention of his guards, his soldiers, soon leaving their makeshift posts to gather around Kunikuzushi, to watch as you clawed at the arms around your waist and shoved at his chest and screamed, cursing his name and calling out for your brother and sobbing until your voice grew too hoarse to do even that.

After your sobs had died down into pathetic cries and your cries had faded into whimpers – only then did one of his soldiers speak, the words stifled by their silver mask. “Is this the commoner, Lord Scaramouche? Should we get the restraints?”

“No. In fact, you and the others can return to the estate. Your help is no longer needed.” He paused, and you felt his hold on you tighten, his lips brush against your shin as he buried his face in the crook of your neck. “This is my errand. It’s my responsibility.”

You felt his smile, wider than you could ever remember it being, before.

“And that means I have to see it through, right?”

There’s no other way to describe it other than “fate”. Maybe it’s how the universe balances itself, by binding such impossible creatures to mortal masters to keep them under control. 

Either way, it has always been for the best. Don’t underestimate the world’s matchmaking services!

(under the cut: a long, long scenario of meeting your familiars + some world-building!)

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sub rosa | jjk

👻 part of the ghouls just wanna have fun collab 👻

➛pairing/member: jungkook x reader (e x t r e m e l y loose, questionable/unhealthy); slight yoongi/tae x reader ➛genre: the thing ! au, alien au (sort of), horror, thriller, angst ➛word count: 18.6k ➛rating: nsfw (gore) ➛warnings: major character death, themes of horror, gore, graphic descriptions of blood and gore, major character death— please do not read if any of these things upset you! ➛notes: happy halloween!!! I hope you enjoy my contribution to the collab,, loosely inspired by The Thing (1982)!! Please let me know what you think! Also, Afraid by No Wyld is a good mood-setter when things start to shift!

A long-awaited camping trip with your friends takes a turn you couldn’t have ever expected, and you find yourself wishing you’d never left your house in the first place. What are you to do when you let a wolf so unknowingly into your herd of sheep?

— posted; 30.10.2018

— masterlist | collab masterlist | ao3

“y/n, stop moving! You’re going to make the tent fall over!”

You rolled your eyes at the dramatic way Taehyung had called that out, hands remaining in the steady grip on the tent they’d maintained the whole time you’d been helping him.

“You’re the one moving the tent, idiot,” you snorted, grinning when he sent you an affronted look. “Also I know we’re a good few miles from the town at the bottom of this mountain but that doesn’t mean you can be so loud, jesus.”

Taehyung beamed at you, nimble fingers making quick work of straightening the pole he had to slip inside the tent to keep it upright. “On the contrary,” he said, chocolate hair sticking to his forehead slightly from the light sweat he’d managed to work up while setting up tents. “I pitched this whole idea just so I could have somewhere to be as loud as I want for a week.”

His words made you laugh, since that very much sounded like something he’d actually do. In the apartment building you’d both managed to nab a unit in, you with another girl who attended your university and him with Yoongi, he wasn’t allowed to be very loud at all— and even then he struggled to keep quiet, if the numerous noise complaints he’d received were anything to go by. You wondered if there was anyone on his floor or the one above and below that hadn’t complained about his yelling when he played online games with his friends.

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remote working ! (twothau w/ gn!reader)

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ YOU HAVE RECEIVED A LETTER, LET’S SEE WHAT’S INSIDE! ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

salutations. remote working (requested by anon)

addressed. diluc, kaeya, tartaglia, zhongli, thoma, xiao, scaramouche, and arataki itto

content. mentions of covid-19, fluff/no-angst, mild swearing, wholesomeness, modern!au, yakuza!au, this fic is based on the way of the househusband

sypnosis. how househusbands are like with you remote working (work at home) during the pandemic.

penpals. @scaraslover @saving-for-xiao @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @chiruru @aqualesha @renamichii

links. the way of the househusband au | teyvat's penpal service | requests info

post-script. shoutout to my bestie irl who helped me out with her big brain on xiao, kaeya, and scaramouche's parts <<3

DOESN’T GO TO YOUR OFFICE — diluc

when you first told DILUC that you'll start working at home from now on, he was relieved. ever since the announcement of a certain virus that's been infecting everyone like wildfire, the man could only worry about your safety – especially since your workplace has so much people – so now that you're officially working at home, he can now rest peacefully.

as someone who respects privacy and silence, diluc makes sure to not be noisy outside, including not vacuuming in front of your office and wouldn't put the volume on the tv to the max (im sorry but hes honestly the type to make his tv loud just to have a bg noise), which you appreciate a lot. though you wonder if he forgot the fact that your office is sound-proof.

he also doesn't want to go to your office, mainly because he doesn't want to be seen by your nosy colleagues and because he simply doesn't want to disturb your meetings with his presence. it's like the tables have been turned around the both of you since back then, you're the one who didn't want to interrupt with his work.

sometimes when he feels like it, diluc would send you a text message and ask if you'd like him to bring a drink or snack to your office. if you said yes, expect yourself to hear a few knocks one second after you sent your message. turns out, he was actually supposed to come in to your office unannounced with your drink and snacks but decided to text you first because of his conscience bothering him. it'll take months before he'll actually start visiting your office without having to text you that's a lie, he'll never do it.

LOVES YOUR BOSS MOMENTS — childe, kaeya

the moment you informed CHILDE that you’ll be working at home, he was honestly curious to see how you work. are you the type to scold many of your coworkers in a scary manner? are you the fun and chill type that made your coworkers love you? ah, so many questions !!

eventually his curiosity was lifted when he overheard you while he was cleaning outside your office, causing him to stop cleaning for a moment to hear what you're saying to your colleagues, listening to you destroying your coworker for something they’re trying to bring you down from.

it only increased his love for you because wow, who knew you would be such a boss at your job? don’t get him wrong, he very much knows how great you are — it just astounds him since you’re so closed off about your work ! childe could only smile from just imagining how scared his old subordinates would be if you were a part of his organization.

expect him to try and convince you to start telling many of your work stories — doesn’t matter if they’re all embarrassing in your eyes — as long as you tell him the ones where you prove yourself that you’re a boss (as you should !!)

KAEYA would be happy that you no longer have to go out to your crowded workplace and risk your health anymore when you told him. he feels even more unease when it comes to your safety since there’s been a virus that’s been causing so much trouble for everyone, so now that you’ll stay home until it’s considered safe to go out, kaeya can live happily.

unlike childe, kaeya only gets to see your angry side when your coworkers didn’t do their job and would think wow, you're so cute when you're angry as if he hasn't seen you being mad at him at all. he doesn’t even have to go near your office to hear your angry voice because he can simply hear it from where he is (given that unlike diluc’s, your office isn't sound-proof).

during those times when you're mad, kaeya will make sure to help you calm down after the meeting. he'll either stop by your office to give you a snack and drink or cuddle with you until your next meeting starts. if you're into sweet-talk, then kaeya's the right person for you, expect him to start telling you sweet-nothings in your ear and do everything he can to make you smile or make your cheeks feel warmer than a stove.

as much as kaeya adores your boss moments, he doesn't like how you're too busy with your work because of your piled up works to do. whenever you sometimes overwork yourself from the amount of work you've been given, your lover will make sure to make you take breaks every now and then by dragging you out from your office and spend time with him even if it takes a few minutes. you may be cute but not when you're stressed and overworked >:00 !!

VISITS YOUR OFFICE TO GIVE YOU FOOD — thoma, zhongli

when THOMA finds out that you'll start doing your work at home, he beams. mainly because you don't have to get out from your home and risk your health and definitely not because he misses you a lot.

he would often find himself at the kitchen daily even more than before, trying out snack recipes that he thinks you’d like as taroumaru watches from afar, eating his dog treat happily as always. if he deems the said snack worthy, then thoma will immediately take it away to your office and give it to you with taroumaru following.

however, unlike the rest of the househusbands besides diluc and scaramouche, thoma wouldn't be seen by your colleagues since he makes sure that he's not seen in your screen – whether it'd be going behind your laptop and place the food beside your things, or stay a few steps away from you and just give you a thumbs up before rushing off outside to not disturb you anymore.

whenever you're done with your meetings, you always have your favorite choice of drink waiting outside with your lover and dog watching a movie or resting while waiting for you to finish. expect him to try and help you clean up your desk so that you can have a tidy spot for once.

sweet-sweet ZHONGLI, who smiles so wide when he realizes that he won’t have to feel lonely anymore because of the fact that you’ll be staying home without going out to work. expect him to take you to your workplace to get your things and will help you start rearranging your office to make it more comfortable and suitable for your online meetings.

sweet-sweet zhongli, who makes sure to be quiet whenever he’s outside of your office and always prepares snacks for you. it’s scary how he always knows when you’re craving for something to eat, something that he excuse it as a coincidence and chuckles about it. he likes to think that it’s an instinct of his to know when you’re starving and/or know what you want.

sweet-sweet zhongli, who always makes sure to knock on your door before entering with foods that’ll surely make your mouth water at the aroma alone. at this point, it’s normal for your colleagues to see his lower body coming to view in your screen and putting down the tray that has your meal. they actually find it endearing and a bit jealous.

sweet zhongli, who listens to what you did for work as he massages your shoulders happily after your tiring meetings, adding a few comments here and there so that you’ll know that he’s listening to your rants. he's that good of a househusband <<3

SOMETIMES IN THE BACKGROUND — itto, xiao

ITTO felt excited when you said you'll start working at home, thinking that you meant that you’re willing to help him with the farm – only to find out that you meant you're actually still working in your career but at home, much to his sadness. nevertheless though, he was still happy because hey, at least you're now staying with him 24/7 :DD !!

like diluc, itto wouldn't dare to enter your office during your meetings in fear of disturbing you as well. despite that though, your colleagues know him already because of your choice of.. background.

you see, your office has a window that shows the beautiful view of the farm and field, something that you thought would look great as your background since the window is behind you and is visibly seen to your colleagues. what you don't think about is the fact that your husband could be seen by your many colleagues – leading many occasions where they can see itto talking with his farm- animals and/or getting chased by chickens and hens.

it only took you a long time before you realized that itto can be seen thanks to one of your friends who pointed it out, causing you to feel your cheeks warming when you realized your mistake. how could you face your lover knowing that almost all of your colleagues have seen the things he did outside?!

XIAO felt like the gods have smiled upon him when he found out about the new changes in your work. he’s been anxiously waiting for the announcement of what will happen to your and your company, so now that it's official that you'll be staying at home, he won't have to worry about anything regarding you catching the virus.

now, unlike most househusbands, your office is an open-door room that leads to the kitchen and dining area, causing xiao to be often seen by your colleagues doing random things. whether it'd be cleaning up some items in the background, walking by but accidentally tripped, cooking a meal, or even eat almond tofu nearby, not knowing that he can be seen. you didn't bother telling him since you assumed he knew.

sometimes, you'd feel like a boomer. especially during the first month of remote working since you had never used zoom or any online meeting apps, so you often come up to xiao when it comes to encountering technical difficulties. thankfully, xiao's been with zhongli for a long time to know how to fix your problems and/or answer your questions. he's basically a technician to you now.

NOISY AS FU— — scaramouche

“so? i’m still your alarm either way.” is SCARAMOUCHE’s response when you first told him that you’ll start working at home. in reality, he was lowkey relieved since he didn't want you to risk yourself to go to work.

just like diluc, scaramouche respects boundaries and silence, so he makes sure to not interrupt any of your meetings. he'll only enter if he wants to let you know that he'll be going out to buy some groceries or if he brings you a drink after you texted him.

now, despite not being able to enter your office, he's often... loud outside without realizing it.

it's not that he's intentionally loud to disturb you – no, no – he just gets a bit clumsy whenever he cleans. whenever scaramouche cleans, he sometimes gets too deep in his thoughts that he doesn't pay attention to his surroundings besides the one he's cleaning in, leaving him accidentally stumping his toe on one of the table legs and speak in colorful language, much to your embarrassment and shock when you’re in your office hearing it. thankfully it only happens when you're not talking (so far, at least).

besides that, on occasions when you're taking a "short" break while waiting for your next meeting, scaramouche will make sure to keep an eye on the time to let you know when you need to go back in case you ended up procrastinating. if you ever say “just a few minutes”, you can say goodbye to your sweet bed because your husband will literally drag you away towards your office. it's honestly scary how strong he is 🧍‍♀️🧍‍♀️

Can I get yandere scaramouche with gn reader? So, can I get where scaramouche try to find reader only to find them with their lover kissed under sakura blossom tree.

"y/n, I love so much hehe"

Reader : "haha try to flirt mmh?"

And they both basically kissed again and scaramouche saw all of that thing.

Poor reader's lover

Thanks for your request! I got an exciting idea when I read the last sentence of it >:3

»»————-———— ♡ ————————-««

"Poor, poor thing," a male voice sighed in fake pity. Somehow the voice was very familiar to you, even though you could hear the sick smile of evil playing on his lips as he stalked around you. It gave you the feeling of talking to an old friend, and at the same time, a psychopath as well. Letting his hand fall to your shoulder, you flinched as he grabbed onto it tightly, not having expected this kind of closeness. Blindfolded and gagged, you couldn't help feeling even more scared than this situation already prompted in you.

"Did that evil man misguide you? Aren't you glad I came to your rescue?"

Struggling against the ropes that tied your wrists behind your back and to the chair you were sitting on, all sympathy for him was forgotten. What you really wanted was to leave an impact on the person that kidnapped you and your partner. Kick him, bite him, punch him so you could make a run for it, saving what was left to save. But robbed of your ability to move, speak, or even just see, you were at his mercy as he leaned forward to whisper into your ear.

"I'm usually not this nice, but for you, I'll get my hands dirty. No need to worry about him anymore."

As a cold shower ran down your spine, you felt his free hand creep up your neck and to the knot keeping the blindfold around your face. With a swift motion, it was pulled away, and you squinted at the sudden light before suddenly widening your eyes.

Before you, on a long table was your partner; just as miserably gagged and tied to the wood as you were. He looked at you with immense panic, his limbs flailing unsuccessfully as he struggled against the restraints. Unable to listen to his muffled words, you stretched and tried to focus on him when a jarring sound caught you off-guard.

Alarmed, you looked over to where the noise came from, a masked, tall man in white clothes and an apron approaching the table where your partner laid. If anxiety hadn't raged in you before, it was now spiking as you noticed the long cleaver in the man's hand, currently being sharpened as it kept producing the same metal scream over and over.

It set off a mix of fright and despair in both of you, the shining metal too close to your lover for comfort. Who were these people? What did they want? Why were they doing this to the two of you? Tears dripped from your lover's eyes, and you tried once more to free yourself. What did you two do to deserve this, you wondered as you had to watch your partner being circled, a few more men coming into view as they seemed to prepare a cruel ritual.

All of this almost made you forget about the person still standing behind you, his hands falling back on your shoulders as he let out a satisfied breath. "Do you like what I prepared for you? Front row seats as we dissect him. No need to thank me!"

A laugh followed those gruesome words as you felt your eyes brimming with tears after hearing them. Scared, muffled screams echoed through the room, and your own soon followed. "Oh? Want to do the honors? Be my guest, [Name]."

Just as quickly as the blindfold, the guy behind you pulled open the gag, the piece of wood falling from your lips followed by spit and tears. "NO!" you screamed, as loud as you could before sobs erupted from your throat, clogging your mouth and nose. "Please no! What did we do to you?!"

"Well..." was the elongated response from behind you before you felt the body shift, suddenly moving to the side before a head popped into your view.

"You--" you muttered in disbelief as you finally gave the voice a face, recognizing it after initially hesitating. You simply couldn't believe who was standing right in front of you.

"Remember me?" the young man grinned, flouncing forward with seemingly no care in the world. However, he never left you, only rounding you and blocking your view. Smiling, he cupped your cheek, letting his thumb wipe away the tears staining it. You could hardly believe it, remembering him as an experiment your parents had been conducting secretly on the Shogun's orders. Admittedly, you had been still a child back then, so when they told you they had a special task that only you could do, you were thrilled!

Naively, you felt proud of being a caretaker for the boy they were experimenting on. You'd serve him his food and have meals with him, as well as tell him about every-day-happenings. You two made up stories and played together with your toys until the fateful day you left him behind in that facility, only learning years later what this was all about.

"If... If it's revenge you seek, then do it to me! He has nothing to do with it!" you pleaded, nodding towards your partner, who was still franticly trying to escape his predicament. Back then, your parents had used you to help this puppet become more human. They wanted to teach him how to interact with others, so they searched for someone who had approximately the same age of mind as him after he was created. You were just another tool, but you did like him as a friend back then and were sad to leave. The Shogun declared him as failed, and so did everyone else. Only when your parents confronted you with all this much later in life did you realize how cruel it had been. If he survived all this time and was now extracting his vendetta against the people that abandoned him, then it shouldn't be your partner suffering over there.

"Please!" you added remorsefully, realizing the mistake that had been made even though you could hardly be faulted for it if you were honest. The research team created something and then left it to die. Maybe they did deserve this. But you and your partner were wholly unrelated, and yet, you thought better you than him. A small drop of guilt festered inside of you as well as you recalled the story. However, Kunikuzushi - as his name was - only frowned, wiping away the tears from your eyes over and over until you felt the sting or irritated skin under his fingers. "I didn't... We just... There were orders--"

"Orders?" he mocked, brows raising unbelievingly. "Oh, you mean when you just left me and never came back? You were just following orders, yeah?"

Nodding slowly, a knot formed in your stomach as his voice kept jumping from happy-go-lucky to accusatory. "We'll talk about this, don't worry, but that's not why you two are here. Are you sure you don't know what you were doing? I'll give you a hint:"

Puckering his lips, his hands squeezed your face together. Leaning forward, Kunikuzushi pressed his mouth to yours, residing there for a while as he enjoyed the warm sensation of yours. His body inched closer, yearning for the very same warmth and climbing on your lap, his fingers digging into you painfully as he tried to keep his balance.

Was this his way of making you remember the time you spent with your partner? Kuni was clumsy in his attempts to replicate this intimate gesture. Desperate, greedy—you could feel all these emotions coming through as well as the jealousy, and you began wondering how long he had been watching you. After you left, did he go out of his way to find you? Why you? Why now?

Even though he caught you off-guard with this gesture, you got a grip on yourself, eventually nudging and pulling away from him, turning your face away, ashamed and disgusted. You still saw him as the friend you once had, and your love was just across the room watching. Kuni had been insecure but curious, crying every now and then. But he certainly had changed from the sweet being he once was. It showed in the way he was treating you, how he spoke and acted. Giving him free will had been the Shogun's blessing, and you agreed with the Shogun's choice as you learned the story. Then again, by that time, you already believed him to be dead. You couldn't imagine an artificial being that acted like he did back then, to survive alone out in the world you were living in. Maybe if you could have stuck around back then and continued to be by his side, he would have turned out differently?

"What do you want?" you whispered, desperate for answers, as he pouted on your lap after your rejection.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" he sulked, making him almost seem like an ordinary boy again. Oh, how wrong you were.

His eyes snapping back to you, he gave you a big grin, leaning in close again with his arms wrapping around your neck. "I want you."

"I... We..." you sputtered. The uncomfortableness and awkwardness must have shown in your expression as you tried to avoid his gaze, turning your head side to side. However, the puppet caught you, forcing you to look ahead again with a firm grip. "Do you really think you have the choice to argue with me here?"

For a moment, you could only stare at him. Your thoughts were racing as you tried to think of a way to turn this scenario around, the situation only growing in madness by the second. But then, his lips curled into a smile again, and he let go, happily sighing into your shoulder.

"You're good with orders, right? Would you follow my orders, too?"

Even though your gut told you not to answer this lightly, you caved in. If those were Kunikuzushi's demands, and it would give you a chance to save your lover, then there was no thinking needed at all. "I will. So, please--"

"Really?" he piped up, jumping on your lap excitedly and interrupting your attempt to reason with him, shutting you down. "So if I tell you to love me, you will? Love me, love me, love me! Show me! Tell me! Only me!"

Gulping, you blinked a few times, hesitantly leaning forward to kiss his cheek. Kunikuzushi melted into your affection, fingers dancing over your shoulders excitedly as you faked returning his feelings. Whatever you had to do to satisfy him, you would, and perhaps, deep down, you'd remind him of the kind nature he was created with.

"I told you to say it," he reminded you nicely but impatiently.

"I-I love you. I always thought about you after I left."

The last part wasn't as much of a lie as it might have should been. It wasn't easy to move on after spending day after day by his side, and in your childish nativity, you had gotten way too attached to him for the good of either of you. It had been your task to feed and talk to Kuni, keep him engaged and entertained and you might have brought him candy here or read a book to him there on top of your routine. You really thought you did something nice for him, but how grave your mistake was only revealed itself now.

Chuckling, he at least appeared satisfied, his expression almost as gentle as you remembered again. But it immediately snapped back to a mocking grin as he looked down on you, drawing with his fingers over your lips and down your chin. "You'll have to say it a lot more times if you want me to actually believe it. Think you can do it before my workers cut open your dearest stomach and take out what's inside one by one?"

"I can!" you immediately yelled in panic. You thought yourself to be save by just complying, but it was the bitter truth you had to learn that you weren't dealing with a clueless doll anymore. "I can! I-I will! I'll tell you as many times as you like, just... please..."

Glancing past him, you looked into the horrified eyes of your partner, who had to witness all of this first hand. He was silent now, but you felt his pain as if it was your own. "Spare him, and I'll do whatever you want," you whispered, feeling the crushing weight of selling yourself out to this person who treated you and the man who meant the most to you, like dirt under his shoes, playing with you and stomping you into the ground inch by inch as he flaunted his power over you.

"You'll obey me...?" he questioned once more, and you focused back on him, nodding. With the last bit of strength, you could collect inside of you, you tried to look confident, hoping he'd buy that at least. Anything, you kept telling yourself. Anything to save both of you.

"Then you're mine now," he mused, gripping your throat and squeezing as if you were a toy. "Don't forget that. You can't even look at anyone else, or I'll take your eyes out, understand?"

"Yes," you whimpered, desperate to keep looking at him now, barely allowing yourself to blink even.

"Yes, what?"

Your whole body was revolting as you pushed out the words you assumed he wanted to hear. It felt wrong and like you were shoveling your own grave, but he had been right: You didn't have a choice.

"Yes... Sir?"

Humming amused, Kunikuzushi gave you a knowing smile before climbing off your lap. Two of his henchman turned away from the table and walked over to you as he ordered them, "To my room."

Unceremoniously, you were picked up and carried backwards out of the room, unable to keep yourself from glancing at your partner for one last time. The hallway was dark and cramped, dusty as if the building wasn't occupied until recently. Part of you began to feel relief that your negotiations worked out, even though you didn't know yet what it really meant for you.

"We're finally together again," Kuni sighed, walking behind you so he could face you with an almost gentle smile. "I couldn't stand that other guy leeching off of you for another second, you know? And you'll forget him soon enough as well."

As if they timed it, a scream rang out through the building as Kuni finished his sentence, a wide grin creeping over his face, and a cold shudder ran down your spine.

"I'll make sure you never leave me again."

Strangers (Chapter One)

Strangers from Hell AU

Series Masterlist

pairing: ot7 x reader

genre: yandere, horror/thriller

warnings: murder, mature themes, obsessive/possessive behavior, emotional manipulation, stalking, violence (will update as needed)

word count: 5k words

summary: You are finally moving out of your hometown and following your dreams of living in the big city. With an internship at a successful company and your friends living close by, you feel like things are finally working out. 

Sure, your apartment might not be the most glamorous and your new neighbors are a bit strange but that’s normal for a first time living away from home, right? Everyone had warned you about how evil the world could be but it wasn’t until you moved there that you started to understand how strangers could be a real hell.

You were finally doing it. Getting out of your hometown. It had been a long time coming as you were ready to move out as soon as you graduated but when your father fell ill shortly after, you couldn’t just abandon your mother to take care of him and your little brother all by herself, not to mention the family business that needed a new manager. So you stayed. You stayed until eventually death came for your father and then you stayed for when the depression hit your mother so hard she couldn’t get out of bed for days at a time. When you weren’t working, you were the one to make sure your kid brother finished his homework and ate all his meals. It was you that took care of your zombie-like mother until she came back to herself.

And now everyone was back on their feet and you felt like it was the right time to leave, especially because you had been accepted for an internship program in at a successful company that matched well with your college degree. Throughout your college years, you decided to stay living at home to help your family as well as save money. Your longtime boyfriend, Jihoon, had moved to the city a year ago after he graduated and you had been dating long distance ever since. But, you couldn’t waste any more time in your small hometown. This was your big chance and you weren’t going to miss it.

The sound of your mother’s voice calling your name could barely be heard over your suitcase rumbling down your driveway. You curse inwardly, scrunching your face up in annoyance at yet another obstacle stopping you from leaving. You were so close to freedom you could taste it.

Looking over your shoulder, you saw your mom carrying a bag of prepared meals that you surely couldn’t finish by yourself. You knew this was coming which was why you had tried to book it out of there. So much for that plan.

“Mom, I can’t carry all that,” you eye the large bag warily. You appreciate the sentiment but you were trying to be independent now and this wasn’t helping.

She ignored you and began making quick work to tie the bag to the handlebars of your suitcase so that you wouldn’t even need to hold it. Once finished, she stood back up and made a satisfied huff, “There!”

“What? I have to make sure my baby eats! You expect me to let you go hungry?” She exclaims in response to your deadpanned look.

“You have to let me find my own way now.”

Keep reading

BTS Reaction || You Get Into An Accident After A Fight [Mafia Edition]

⤜Copyright: © DreamEscapesWriting - February 2024

⤜MASTERLIST

SEOKJIN:

Jin knew that letting you walk out of that door was a mistake this morning, he should have forced you to stay in even though you were mad at him and then none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have found himself rushing to the hospital to make sure his girlfriend was okay and he wouldn't find himself asking some of his men to kill the bastard that had slammed into your car.

"Where is she? Is she okay!?" The colour was completely drained from Jin's face as he stared at Yoongi, one of the most trusted men in his whole family.

"Hyung, she's okay. She's in here," Yoongi pointed to the room behind him but Jin only looked through the small window of the door to look at you and he swallowed the lump in his throat. If it wasn't for him you wouldn't be in this mess right now, instead, you'd be at home where it was safe and you wouldn't look like you'd done about ten rounds with Mike Tyson.

"She's just a little sore from the impact," Yoongi explained, there'd been no broken bones or cracked heads but it still hurt you a lot to get hit by a car. Luckily for you, Yoongi had been following close behind to make sure you were okay after the fight you'd gotten into with Jin. Jin turned around ready to walk away, he wasn't going to be able to face you when he thought all of his was your fault, for now he was going to go home and prep the house for you,

"Okay...Good, I'll go home and make sure-" He was cut short by the sound of a door creaking and padded footsteps on the floor,

"Jin?" Your voice came out frail and shaky making him spin around instantly. You were standing there in a hospital gown shivering a little, he grabbed his jacket and wrapped it around your shoulders not wanting you to get cold.

"What are you doing? You should be in bed." He lightly scolded trying to urge you back into the room but you didn't budge. After your accident all you could think about was Jin and how you didn't want to fight with him anymore, you couldn't even remember what the two of you had fought for,

"I heard you and I wanted t-to see you." You smiled weakly and it looked so wrong, you were supposed to beam with a smile when you saw one another,

"Go back to bed, I'm going home to make sure-"

"Stay...Please," You begged, reaching for his hands and pulling him into the room as he nodded at you, if you wanted the moon Jin would somehow obtain the rights to it and give it to you. You got whatever you wanted when it came to him,

"Sure baby, whatever you want." He whispered, wrapping an arm around your waist and carefully leading you back into the hospital room and helping you into the bed.

YOONGI:

You couldn't remember what happened, all you could remember was getting into an argument with Yoongi and now you were waking up to the smell of bleach and a really annoying beeping sound to the right side of your head making you groan a little.

"I don't care who he is or who his father is, I said kill. him." Yoongi's voice seethed and you squeezed your eyes a little, opening them and looking over in the direction of where his voice had come from. Yoongi sat there in the chair looking as though he hadn't slept in days, his hair was a mess and he was still in the suit he'd worn when you got into a fight.

"Who are you killing?" You coughed out, making him jump a little.

"The doctor said you'd be out a little longer, I need to call-" He went to reach for the nurse button but you stopped him and shook your head.

"Don't, I wanna sit with you a little longer. No doctors." You whined, attempting to sit up but hissing when your left hand caused you pain. 

"It's broken," Yoongi explained, as he hooked his hands under your armpits and carefully helped you sit up in the bed, you stared at him and smiled sadly.

"You want to sit in bed with me?" You made room on the bed but Yoongi shook his head at you, 

"I shouldn't, they said you need to rest." You were a little taken aback by it, Yoongi never listened to anyone when they told him what to do and why should he? He was one of the most powerful men in Seoul,

"Since when did the great Min Yoongi ever listen to anyone else?" You teased a little but Yoongi shook his head at you,

"Since he saw how broken you looked when he got here,"

"I'm fine. Please? I just...I need you to hold me." You pleaded with him and you could see the cogs working inside of his brain before he nodded and carefully got onto the bed with you.

"I hired the best of the best, I also found the scumbag that jumped you," Yoongi explained as you rested your head on his shoulder, half listening to him and half trying not to fall asleep on him.

"His dad is some politician but I don't care. It doesn't give him the right to just-" Yoongi's voice trailed off when he heard soft snoring coming from you and he chuckled a little, kissing the top of your head.

"Goodnight, angel." He whispered before reaching for his phone to make sure everything was being taken care of.

HOSEOK:

"I don't care who you think you are, that's my girlfriend and if you try and stop me again, I'll have you killed!" Hoseok yelled at the police officer who was stopping him from coming onto the scene, your heart thumped as you looked at him. When Hoseok had gotten your call he dropped everything and came speeding to where you said you'd been,

"Hobi!" You yelled before rushing away from the paramedic who'd been making sure you were okay for what felt like an hour now. As soon as the accident happened you called Hoseok, you didn't tell him anything you just told him where you were before hanging up the phone. You'd been so scared and he was the only person you thought about after the car had crashed, it didn't matter that the two of you were fighting all you cared about was seeing him again.

"Where did you go? You said you were going to your sisters but she said you never showed up and then I called around and-" He stopped when he saw the cut above your eye and that your lip was busted up pretty badly.

"I was on my way when the taxi I was in-" You didn't even know what happened, one second you were on the road and the next you were on your side and the car was smashed to bits.

"Was it the driver's fault?" He was seething with anger, ready to kill anyone that had somehow been the cause of the accident but you whimpered,

"No, someone ran a red." You explained, grabbing onto your boyfriend's shirt to stop him from going after the old man who had been driving the taxi. Hoseok's eyes softened as he looked down at you, his anger melting away once he saw that you were okay for the most part,

"I'm clear, can you take me home?" You questioned, looking over at the ambulance team who had cleared you a while ago now,

"Home? Our Home or-"

"Our Home, I don't care about our fight anymore." You whispered, linking your hand with his and pulling him toward the direction of the crowd of people that had gathered after the accident had happened.

NAMJOON:

"She's got two broken ribs, and a broken leg and she'll be in and out of sleep for a while," Someone explained as you groaned a little, opening your eyes and looking over the room you were in. Everything was white and smelt of bleach and you sighed a little, you knew you must have been in a hospital and after the way you'd flown down the staircase you knew whoever the doctor was talking about was you.

"How long until I can take her home?" Namjoon? Namjoon was here? You thought for sure he would have left you to rot after the way you'd been screaming at him during your fight.

The two of you had gotten into a huge argument about god knows what now, it didn't matter anymore, but you'd just started a screaming match with him letting all of your anger out on him and he just stood there and took it.

"I'd say after tonight, we want to monitor her a little while longer and then she's all yours Mr Kim. I'll have a nurse bring by a cot for you," The door shut and you stared at Namjoon who was making his way back over to you with a small smile on his face.

"Hey, I ordered food but if you're not hungry I can get you something warm to drink." He whispered as he sat on the chair beside your bed and carefully took your hand in his.

"You're staying?" You whispered in shock, you thought for sure he would have left after the doctor did.

"Where else would I go, baby?" There was a small chuckle behind his voice and tears welled up in your eyes at the thought of him staying after everything that had happened.

"But I was awful...I-I screamed at you, and I yelled and I just-"

"Baby, I almost lost you after you walked off. You think one silly little fight is going to push me away?" He scoffed at you, he wouldn't have gotten where he was in life now if he walked away at the first sign of trouble.

"I don't know." You whispered as he squeezed your hand a little,

"You'll have to do a lot more than scream at me to make me walk away, love. I love you." He whispered, placing a small and gentle kiss on our hand.

"I love you too," You whispered back, your eyes getting heavier the longer you kept them open before you finally fell back to sleep holding Namjoon's hand.

JIMIN:

When Jimin got a call from your personal bodyguard saying you'd been in an accident he flew to the scene. He didn't care that the two of you were in a fight and that you hadn't spoken to him in a few days he was coming to see that you were okay since your guard - Koyla - hadn't given him much information on what happened.

  "Jimin," You shivered, your teeth chattering as you sat inside of the ambulance. They'd wrapped you in a silver blanket and were trying to naturally bring your temperature back up to normal before they took you into the hospital.

"What happened? Did you fall into the lake?" He questioned as he stared down at you, his hands resting on your cheeks and you cuddled into his touch missing the way he held you. 

"Someone pushed me, I wasn't looking and all of a sudden I was in the water." Which wasn't good since it was the middle of winter and below-freezing outside, Jimin instantly began spouting out orders to his men who were with him to find out who had done this and to bring them directly to him and the paramedics looked worried as they added another blanket to you.

"How did you find me?" Your phone was trashed after being thrown into the water and you hadn't told the paramedics your name yet so you doubt they'd been the ones to call you.

"Your guard told me you'd gotten into an accident," You both turned to face Koyla who stared at anything but the two of you, he'd been wanting the two of you to make up for a while now and now it was finally happening but you had no idea he was with you since he'd been the reason for your fight with Jimin in the first place. You'd told him you didn't need a guard to babysit you all of the time but it turned out you might have been wrong since if it wasn't for Koyla you probably would have been freezing at the side of the road.

"You were right...I-I do need him," You shivered before Jimin wrapped himself around you, he didn't care about that right now all he cared about was making sure you were okay.

"Let's go to the hospital and get you sorted," He whispered as the paramedics rushed to the front of the ambulance putting on the siren despite there being no emergency rush.

TAEHYUNG:

After Taehyung had stood you up on yet another date you'd walked home in the dark, declining the need for his chauffeured car that had been sent for you and heading to your friend's place. Only that had proven to be a massive mistake when you'd gotten hit by a car that had swerved onto the road.

"Where is she?!" Taehyung's voice carried over the mass of reporters and police that were on the scene and you cringed a little, you knew if Taehyung found out about the driver he'd end up having him killed which was why you'd neglected to call him.

"Yn? What happened?" You ignored him and turned to look down at your arm which was covered in tiny cuts and scrapes from where you'd hit the floor.

"Nothing, I'm fine," You grumbled at him, still pissed he'd stood you up on your date and started a fight with you over the phone about it.

"What happened?" Taehyung turned his attention to the paramedic who was cleaning up the cuts on your arms,

"A car hit her on the path, but he's been arrested already but another ambulance has taken him to the hospital." The paramedic's voice shook meaning he knew who Taehyung was and who didn't? He was huge in Seoul which meant everyone who was watching the scene was waiting for Taehyung to do something out of pocket which was what he was known for.

"I'll take care of him my own way." He grumbled but you grabbed onto his wrist before he could move away from you and you glared up at him.

"He's old, you won't touch him. It was an accident, he had a fucking heart attack at the wheel." You explained watching as Taehyung's mood changed and he slowly nodded his head.

"You'll take me home, you'll make it up to me for standing me up and yelling at me over the phone and we will go to bed." You told him plainly as he nodded once again, there was only one person in the world who told him what to do and it was you. No one else had the right or they'd more than likely get shot in the face for trying.

"Okay baby, I'll get the car." He whispered before kissing you softly and rushing off to grab his car.

JUNGKOOK:

It had been a week of radio silence from you, a week of Jungkook having no idea where you were or if you were okay and he'd finally found you in a hospital in a completely different city. The hospital had no idea who you were, only that you were a mugging victim who had been badly injured after a stabbing.

"She'll be okay, she's been in and out of it lately but not enough to tell us who she is." The doctor explained as Jungkook took in the sight of you, his heart breaking as he made his way closer to you. If it wasn't for him you wouldn't be in this mess right now but the two of you had gotten into an argument over him working too much and you'd walked out. You'd not taken your phone and you just went without explanation.

"Thanks, I'll sit with her if you don't mind." He told the doctor before sitting own and taking your hand in his softly.

"Fuck, this is my fault. If I'd just listened instead of yelling," He groaned to you, mumbling away to himself as he continued to beat himself up for letting this happen to you.

"You know, I dreamt this was going to happen, only you were dressed in a hot dog costume," Your voice was like music to his ears as he lifted his head to see you staring at him.

"Should I go and buy a costume? I'm sure I can make the dream happen." He teased as he rang for the nurse to come in.

"Nah, this is way better." Your voice was groggy from being out for so long but you squeezed Jungkook's hand and stared at him, tears rushing to your eyes.

"Please don't leave me...I'm sorry we fought,"

"Don't, it's my fault. I'm sorry," He whined out before kissing away the tears that were now free-falling down your face.

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sir, i am both

hiii. if it's okay, may i request for oh joon young x reader headcanons wherein they both have feelings for each other and the reader is like his study buddy or smthn. btw, i love your works! it gives me life 🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️

— study me

joon-young x gn!reader | 1.1k words

genre: fluff

warnings: mentions of throwing yourself off a cliff, that’s it i think. and reader and joonyoung being awkward /hj lmfao

synopsis: you and joonyoung are used to having study sessions. you’re both used to eventually losing focus on your work and taking turns at “sneakily” staring at each other. one day, you confess your crush.

author’s note: dude. anon thank you So much for requesting for him i love him so much i lowkey squealed when i got ur request. thank you for requesting, and i hope you like it! edit: i only now realized you asked for headcanons. i’m sorry anon i’m a dumbass😭

Page three-hundred-and-thirteen. You sighed deeply, running a hand over your face as an attempt to get the tiredness off of it, before turning the page of your textbook.

Your eyebrows raised, unimpressed.

“Pi.” you and Joonyoung both said in sync. That earned a chuckle from you, in the midst of your slight despair. You looked up at your study partner to see he looked just as exhausted. Joonyoung was a good student. He studied properly, and put studying above many things other students wouldn’t. He kept going on about how “even if it’s annoying, I can’t get anywhere in life without good grades— not in this world”. He was right, unfortunately, but that was more reason to study with him.

It wasn’t some sort of official agreement to become study buddies. You’d just been meeting at the library more and more often, and given you were both in the same class, you’d decided to approach him at some point to ask if you could study besides him. You vividly remembered how frozen he looked as he stared at you that day— It was almost funny how caught-off-guard he looked. But he agreed, eventually. And so now, you always studied together.

But it was still tiring.

Your cheek landed on your hand and you stared. He readjusted his glasses, and took a deep breath, eyes scanning over the pages. You couldn’t say you’d only now noticed how pretty his eyes looked, especially during the times you’d spend studying, under the afternoon sun. You couldn’t say you’d only now noticed how attractive his facial features in general were, how nice his lips looked… Ah.

Yes, you had a crush on him. You didn’t do much to hide it, but didn’t do much to show it either. You just… Were pretty obvious in the way you looked at him each time you’d see each other. Daesu had hit the back of your chair in class one day to tell you to stop staring at him like that or “he might think you have a crush on him”. But well, that was true. And almost everyone close to you was aware of it by now.

Joonyoung pretended not to notice your gaze on him, hoped his face wasn’t overly red, and acted as if his mind was actually registering any words his eyes looked over. He couldn’t focus. How could anyone expect him to focus when you were staring at him so intently? It wasn’t the first time he’d noticed it; not that you were very subtle with it, but oh well.

He glanced up at you, and suddenly your eyes were back on your textbook. He sighed quietly and licked his lips nervously. You looked awfully attractive when you were focused. Or at least, when you pretended to be focused. You were always attractive, if he was honest. Joonyoung was honest, but he wasn’t lying to anyone— Since no one had asked him if he liked you, he had no one to lie to. He was honest. And you were honestly the most beautiful person in the entire school.

“Do you like me?”

He gulped, blinked, and froze. The words repeated at least five times in his mind for him to register what you were asking. You’d asked in such a casual way, not even bothering to look up when you did that he… Had a hard time believing he’d heard it right. So he cleared his throat. “What?”

You looked up this time. You looked nervous.

“I asked; do you like me?”

He repeated the same cycle. Gulp, blink, freeze. Then rethink over the question. He didn’t feel the need to lie, but there was a very high possibility that despite your very obvious staring at him, you could not like him back and therefore he’d only keep this moment in his box of embarrassing memories. The type that keeps you wanting to throw yourself off a cliff for several days afterwards and comes back to bother you months later, making you want to throw yourself off a cliff just as much as when it happened, if not even more.

Nevertheless.

“Why do you ask?”

That was not a lie. That was a question. He was avoiding answering, sure. But it wasn’t a lie. His teeth dug into the inside of his lip in nervousness.

“Because.” you said. “I want to know.”

You were making things complicated. The look on your face didn’t help him know wether or not you were aware of that.

“Well,” he chuckled nervously, looking down and moving his pen between his fingers in rapid motions. He was quiet for a moment, thinking about how to reply, before he finally looked up at you. “I could ask you the same thing.”

You visibly shivered, then shook your head and looked away. He followed your gaze. You were staring at a paper on the table, your fingers fiddling with its edge. “Why?”

Now that was mean. But he had a counter argument prepared for this one.

“Because it kind of looks like you’re studying me more than the textbook?” he said, and it came off as a question more than a statement. Nevertheless, he sounded confident enough. He was not. But he sounded like it, which was good. If you were to make fun of him for some reason he could play it off as a joke more easily, this way.

“Well, you have a pretty face.” you said casually, nodding to yourself with a slight pout, before looking up at him. He had to cough so he wouldn’t choke on his own saliva. Your own statement made you more flustered than you’d like to admit. It seemed like he felt the same.

He scratched the side of his face, the tapping of his pen against his open textbook filling the silence around the two of you. He nodded in acknowledgement, at last, and pursed his lips. “Thanks. Uh, you too. You look nice.”

You cracked a smile. “Thanks.”

Quiet. You opened your mouth to speak, but Jooyeon beat you to it.”

“I do like you.”

The silence was overwhelming. Your heart was beating so fast— You couldn’t look him in the eye again for now. It was too hard. You staggered a bit, hand moving to scratch your head, and all you could get out for a few seconds was a nervous chuckle. Then you composed yourself to the best of your ability. “Good. Because I like you too.” and this time you said it while looking him in the eye. You had the pleasure of watching his expression go through 5 different emotions before he looked away and covered the lower half of his face.

“That’s good.”

“It is.”

You both shared a look, and nodded, then cleared your throats and went back to studying. You went five minutes in silence before it was broken again.

“Do you wanna date?”

“Yeah.”

You both looked at each other and nodded, before going back to work, hearts pounding and smiles pulling at your lips. This was nice.