How It Feels Scrolling Through The “x Reader” Tags During October As Someone Who Doesn’t Read Smut

𓇼 invisible string ; lo'ak.

synopsis. a simple conversation makes a full one-eighty as lo'ak airs out his true feelings towards hometree and the clan.

info. angst. lo'ak sully x gn!omaticayan reader. 1,822 words.

warnings. misunderstanding trope! crying, a barely there description of a panic attack, a common neytiri W, stupid lo'ak... like so so so dumb. barely proof read this bro... ignore all the errors :P

"if you could go to any place, where would you be?" you ask softly, the wind carry your voice into lo'ak's pinched back ears.

"easy. anywhere but here," he says with a sigh. and as he lies on his back, lo'ak's eyes close with a huff puffing past his lips. before you could even utter another question of 'why?', he cuts you off with his own train of thought. "dad's always on my ass about something. if i had the chance, i would hop on my ikran and fly as far away as i could."

your brows furrow confusedly, an uneasy smile forcing it's way to your lips as you glance over at his figure, almost ticked-off with how calm his demeanor is whilst laying on the soft grass.

you hum quietly, attempting to sound like you're agreeing but failing miserably. but it's not like lo'ak noticed, no, he was too busy wallowing in his own self pity to hear such a tiny lilt to your voice. too busy to feel the uncomfortable shift within the air that consumes you both.

"so... there's nothing convincing you to stay?" you inquire, busying yourself by looking plucking at random patches of grass. the slight scoff that flutters past his lips is almost gut-wrenching, and you can feel the cracks grow in size as your heart breaks into a billion pieces.

slowly sitting up, he aimlessly glances around the foliage surrounding you both. bringing his hand up, his palm towards the sky as he blocks the sunlight from his eyes. a disgruntled noise vibrates against his lips as he acknowledges your question.

the next sentence that leaves his lips could only be described in one word; heartbreaking.

"when it comes to the hometree... the clan, no. there's absolutely nothing worth staying stuck here for."

you feel the sharp tip of the metaphorical arrow pierce it's way into your heart, the poor thing far from bits and pieces as his harsh words struck deep within your bones. the way your heart rattles in your ribcage is overwhelming to say the least, the continuous thumping of the muscle growing slower and slower as silence blankets itself over two. the sentence leaving his lips so nonchalantly that it almost makes you dizzy, nauseous even. you watch him shrug as he drops his hand into his lap, allowing the sun's rays to illuminate every single one of his features that you've grown to love.

lo'ak misses the way your features fall into one of pure sorrow, frown deepening, and lips twitching uncontrollably as flits of silence yet again fill the tense air.

"sorry for mentioning it, lo'ak."

your voice is low, barely above a whisper as you swallow a thick lump stuck in your throat. the action does little to soothe the scorching hot pain that his words had burnt into your brain. the way his name rumbles in your chest has him confused and left in a daze, unsure of how to respond. you rarely call him by his full name, the fact that you even said it makes his brain short circuit.

"y/n..." he calls out your name, fidgeting slightly as he begins to notice how tense you are. the boy sighs deeply upon seeing your head hung low, bead-clad braids falling off your shoulders and curtaining your face away from his worry filled eyes.

"no, it is fine. i will see you later," you mutter with a shake of your head. standing up from your spot, you don't bother dusting the specks of dirt on your legs, opting to scurry towards the village in a hurry.

lo'ak watches you slip away, physically and metaphorically. the way you try to get away from him etches itself into the deepest parts of his brain, guilt consuming him whole as he is forced to replay the pained look written across your face as you got up to leave.

-

you avoided lo'ak like the plague.

it was like the wind had swept you away, never to be seen again, and it pained him to his very core. the hurt he felt was something he could not shake, heart feeling heavy as days, weeks passed by without a single word from you.

he attempts to remind himself that he has other things to worry about, which means your lack of presence is nowhere near the top of his priority list. but that last glimpse of you before running off, your face twisted in pure misery... well it does nothing but fan the growing flames of desire to make things right.

the desire to hold you, to take back the stupidest thing he's ever said begins to outweigh his duties. and at one point, it fully does. but by the time he musters up the courage to talk to you, it had already been a month since you last spoke.

he tried his best to find you, whether at your hut, the place you hug out in, he even checks all your favorite spots, but you're nowhere to be seen. you are just — gone.

you were like that of a ghost, he even questioned if you were ever real, just a figment of his imagination. but alas, his anxieties are temporarily relieved as his parents and siblings begin questioning him of your sudden disappearance.

lo'ak can never give them a straight answer, tongue laying uncomfortably in his mouth as he swallows the truth of what he has done, how he ruined your friendship.

how he messed up the one good thing in his life.

his thoughts overwhelm quickly, suffocating him. visions of you crying, the angsty look gracing your beautiful features, it's all too much. his heart cannot take seeing you in pain and as he closes his eyes, he attempts to calm his fluttering heartbeat. focusing on breathing in and out, he almost misses the soft calling of his name.

"lo'ak, are you okay?" he hears his mother's voice call out, tone soft as silk as she saunters over to the boy. she sits upon the grassy floor, nimble fingers grazing his shoulders as a silent way to remind him that she is here for him.

"i messed up, ma. i really messed up," he chokes out, voice getting caught in his throat as he hangs his head low. neytiri's eyes widen at her son, she's never seeing him so vulnerable, but nonetheless scoots closer to him. she wraps her slim arms around his shoulders, wanting to protect her little boy from the harshness of the world as he falls apart in her arms.

she pursues her lips, trying to figure out what to say, but as his sobs grow in volume, she pushes away the fact that he does not need advice right now.

no, he just needs his mom.

so, she remains silent, arms engulfing him as he rests his head in the crook of her neck. he latches on tight as if he she would run away, his fingers leaving indents on her biceps as he wails. she shushes him, rubbing circles on his back soothingly as he lets all his bottled up emotions free and into the air that surrounds them both.

-

the sun is barely setting once neytiri gets lo'ak to calm down. her back pressed against a tree as he lays his head in her lap like he used to do when he was little. she hums his favorite lullaby, the same tune on his songchord to be exact. they both remain quiet as she redoes a couple of braids in her son's hair, fixing his flyaways as he eases into her gentle touch.

she doesn't want to force him to speak about the things that plague his mind, wanting for him to come to her when he's ready. so, they both focus on the soft gusts of wind that ripple through the tree leaves, the sweet whooshing sound like music to their ears.

"i think i'm ready," he states, not moving from his mother's lap. neytiri simply hums. "they had asked me if there was any place i wanted to go to, y'know if i had the chance," he begins.

"i-i basically told them that i would rather be anywhere but here, even if that meant being away from them..." he mutters, ashamed. neytiri's eyes soften upon seeing her son shrink into himself, but with a soft squeeze to his shoulder, she reminds him that there is no reason to hide how he truly feels, no need to mask his emotions when he's in her presence.

"i'm so stupid!" he cuts himself off, anger present within his voice as he gets up from his comfy position. he turns around to look at his mother, a sort of understanding gracing her features as she urges him to calm down.

she motions her hands downwards, a sort of up and down movement to emphasize her words, "mawey (calm), my son."

lo'ak nods, inhaling before asking, "what do i do, ma?" his eyes are puffy from crying, streaks of dry tears remaining on his cheeks as he fully sits in front of her. the older woman hums, lips formed into a straight line as she places her hands into his.

"ever since you two were little, y/n was the only child that was allowed to play with your toys." his brows furrow in confusion, head tilting sideways as he opens his mouth to question her words, but she wags her finger 'no' to stop him from doing so.

neytiri tries her best to point out the obvious, but knowing her son, she became all too familiar with having to take it step-by-step for him to understand the depth of an important situation, such as the one he is in now. it was like teaching a baby how to walk, she smirks at the thought as it reminds her of jake. the two were more alike than they let on.

"you care for them, deeply, that much is true. but are you willing to deny that there is not something more between you and them?" she asks, tone calm as to not scare him. lo'ak is taken aback, brows knitting in confusion as he trips over his words.

"mom, there's no way."

him... liking you? no, you're only his friend, nothing less, nothing more. he swallows the lump forming in his throat as he shies away from his her heavy gaze.

"let me put it this way, 'itan (son), they have always been there. you have grown up with them, you both know each other like the back of your hand. no matter how much time puts a wedge between your relationship, you cannot help but be reeled back into them." he squints his eyes, orbs swirling with realization as he begins to slot the pieces together. he urges her to finish, already knowing what she's going to say.

"lo'ak... you are in love with them."

⋆ ˚｡ ୨୧ reblogs / feedback are highly appreciated. thank you so much for reading. we hope you enjoy your stay at diwatopia !

★ diwata's thoughts . . . this,,,, kinda sucks,,, saurry idk if i'll make a pt 2, there probs will be one if this does well so manifesting that it does bc i'll make lo'ak pay lol 😜 n sorry the beginning does lowkey suck... like js talk it out?? bc ig that's the literal fucking meaning of misunderstanding 😐

© ilupearls 2023.

BETA SQUAD FANS UNITE AND GET TO WORK. I NEED MORE STORIES. 🙏

𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝑩𝒆𝒅, 𝑻𝒘𝒐 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔‧₊˚✧ . ˚

𝐒𝐮-𝐇𝐲𝐞𝐨𝐤 𝐱 𝐅𝐞𝐦!𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 | 𝟑𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 | 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐱𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐰𝐤𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥…𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭?

𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞: 𝐋𝐞𝐭'𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲. 𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡. 𝐍𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐬, 𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞? ♡

“Students?” A gruff voice calls repeatedly as the first few forms of address remain unanswered. 

Su-Hyeok’s eyes flutter open and he raises his head, fully aware of the neck cramp sure to bother him later on. Another thing he realizes, is that you had fallen asleep leaning on his shoulder, and he had drifted off with his head on yours. He smiles to himself momentarily, seeing you still dead to the world. 

“Kids, this is the last stop.” 

Finally turning his attention to the bus driver, Su-Hyeok looks up sheepishly. “I’m pretty sure we missed our destination.”

The bus driver chuckles as Su-Hyeok scratches his head in confusion. “Where were you and your girlfriend supposed to disembark at?” 

Seeing it unnecessary to deny the nature of your supposed relationship that everyone unanimously agreed on, and especially with the crush he has been harboring for years, Su-Hyeok lets himself have at least this—no matter how untrue—if not your reciprocated feelings.  

“Our history class planned a field trip for an overnight hanok stay, and the informational tour was supposed to begin hours ago. Saying we missed half of it already is probably a sore understatement.” 

“Sky Guesthouse?”

Before Su-Hyeok can confirm, you stir, confused at the darkened sky outside of the windows. The last time you were awake, it was still bright out. “Have we arrived?”

“Uh…you see…about that—"

“We missed it didn’t we?” You turn to your best friend, arms crossed. 

“The guesthouse should only be a few blocks away,” the bus driver intervenes. “Both of you fell asleep for the entirety of the route, so don’t be too hard on your boyfriend here,” he jokes. 

Before you get a chance to refute, Su-Hyeok elbows you playfully. “See? This kind gisanim is vouching for me.” 

You roll your eyes and begin to stand up, thankful you were in the aisle seat, and quickly grab your things. As you bow to the driver in gratitude and head towards the front of the bus, you can hear Su-Hyeok scrambling for his own belongings as he chases after you. “Thank you for putting up with him, Ahjussi!” You throw over your shoulder with a wave. 

“I’ll have you know it’s fun to be around me!” Su-Hyeok defends, mock offended. 

You ignore him trailing behind you and check your phone, just to see it blown up with multiple missed calls and unread messages from your friends, mainly On-Jo. “I need to stop complying to your every whim, Su-Hyeok,” you state in exasperation, hurriedly jumping off the bus. “Why did I agree to go with you on this roundabout trip when Cheong-San’s mom offered to drop us off? You know how much she adores her son’s childhood friends.” 

Su-Hyeok matches your steps, knocking his shoulder into yours repeatedly, until you can’t help but smile. “Oh, I don’t know,” he begins to answer your question. “Maybe you just adore me more.” 

“Do not!” You disagree half-heartedly as Su-Hyeok flashes you a crooked smile, and you have to shut your heart down. Curse good-looking people. 

The tiled roof of the guesthouse slowly come into view, the buildings appearing grander as you draw nearer. Just as you reach the wooden gate, your phone dings with another text. Su-Hyeok peers over your shoulder as you read the text out loud. “So apparently the tour ended long ago, as we expected and everyone already has their assigned rooms. I-Sak, On-Jo, and Nam-Ra are in one room, Cheong-San and Gyeong-Su in another, Wu-Jin, Dae-Su, and Joon-Yeong in the third, Ji-Min and Hyo-Ryung in a smaller room since it’s just the two of them…and Na-Yeon is by herself because she despises everyone.” 

Su-Hyeok laughs. “Sounds about right.”

You smile to yourself at the way On-Jo was giving you a rundown of everything that happened during the few hours you had missed. It was quite easy to sense her fond annoyance when she talked about Cheong-San messing with her all day through the rows of animated emojis she sent you. 

“Do you think there are still empty rooms left for us?” Su-Hyeok questions.

“With a place this huge, I’m sure they’ll find lodging for us one way or another.” 

As the two of you are about to open the door, Ms. Park beats you to it from the other side. “Y/N, Su-Hyeok!” Her eyes widen in surprise. “I wasn’t expecting your presence but I’m so glad you guys finally made it.” Ms. Park looks over the two of you, relief washing over her features after confirming nothing was out of the ordinary. 

“We’re so sorry, seonsaengnim,” you apologize. “You must’ve been worried, especially since you’re only a replacement teacher chaperone. I’d rather you have enjoyed this field trip too instead of looking for missing students.” 

Ms. Park shakes her head, smiling. “No need for all that, Y/N. We planned this just so you kids can relax after exams. Don’t feel guilty for running a little late; it’s supposed to be a fun, enjoyable day after all. I won’t hold it against you.”

“It’s not ‘we’ is it, Ms. Park?” You grin knowingly. “You’re the one who suggested this to the board of teachers, right?” 

“Maybe, maybe not.” She winks at you and you laugh. If only the other teachers genuinely cared for their students like Ms. Park did, perhaps you’d be more inclined to put them in higher regards. 

“We didn’t miss anything too fun, right? Just the tour?” Su-Hyeok asks. 

“Of course, you would care more about the fun and less on the educational purpose, Bare-Su,” Ms. Park teases. 

“That’s why we didn’t missed our stop,” you add fuel to the fire. 

“You’re being a bad influence on one of my top students?” Ms. Park stands akimbo, and you join in, happy to put Su-Hyeok on the spot. 

“My favorite teacher and my best friend are tag-teaming to make fun of me? I’m hurt.” Su-Hyeok puts a hand on his chest dramatically. 

“You deserve it.” You stick your tongue out at him before Ms. Park quickly ushers you both inside.

“It’s much too late for us to stand out here in the cold. We’ll catch a draft at this rate.”

Despite the dark, as you look around, the authentically photogenic architecture captures your attention, even more so under the faint lighting from traditional lanterns hanging from the 14th century style curved roofs.

“Since everyone’s already gone to their respective quarters and we don’t want to disturb the other occupants, you two can share that room over there.” Ms. Park points to one located in the corner. “Even though it gives you a humble living experience of the Joseon Dynasty, I don’t think you will mind sleeping on the timber floors as there’s enough cozy quilts to go around, but I’ll go grab a few more for you just like I did for the others, in case you get cold at night. There should also be simple beds in there as well, no different from all the rooms here, if that makes you more comfortable and easier to sleep in.”

“I’ll help you Ms. Park. We’ve already kept you waiting, it’s the least I can do.” Su-Hyeok offers to go get extra blankets from the hosts, gesturing for you to go ahead and check out the room first.

As you approach the timber frame of the wooden doors, your silhouette casts a shadow on the rice paper lining, and for a split second, you feel as if you were transported back centuries into the reminiscent past. Smoothly, you slide the doors open, and step over the little ledge with your sock-clad feet into the abode. The room is slightly smaller than how it looked from the outside, but the accommodation is adorned with various fragments from the ancient era, and you appreciate the privileged glimpse into a world unknown to you, lost in the passing of time.

Curious, you pull aside the folding screen ink-stained with paintings of orchids, only to realize that Ms. Park was sorely mistaken about all the rooms being the same. You hear the doors sliding open again, and in walks Su-Hyeok, balancing a stack of bedding in his arms so high you could barely see his head behind it. He sets everything down near the now-closed again entrance, only to see you standing there in the middle of the room.

Su-Hyeok tilts his head to the side, looking at you. “What is it? Is the room not what you expected?”

“Well, I’ve got good news and bad news.”

“Bad news first, then.”

“There’s actually only one bed in this room, not two.”

“…And the good news is?” Su-Hyeok trails off.

“I looked earlier and it seems large enough. We can share!”

Su-Hyeok’s eyes widen almost comically. “No, absolutely not.”

Confused and oblivious, your eyebrows scrunch together. “Why on earth not? We’ve had sleepovers so often when we were little, in the same bed every time no less. You didn’t mind then.”

Incredulous, Su-Hyeok flushes furiously. “That was before I—” he halts mid-sentence.

“Before you..?” You lean forward, straining your ears, thinking you had missed his last words.

“Never mind. I’ll make use of the blankets I brought and you can take the bed.”

“But—”

“Nope.”

“Su-Hyeok, your back is going to kill you in the morning if you sleep on the floor all night,” you try to convince, feeling guilty he’s offering you the much-more comfortable bed without hesitation.

“I’ll be fine,” he reassures you. 

“Come on, it’s only weird if you make it weird. This is literally just a room with a bed.”

“One bed,” Su-Hyeok emphasizes. “Not to mention, also just one pillow.” 

“I’ll give you the pillow, then.” 

He looks at you pointedly. “What about you?” 

“Give me your arm,” you tease, smiling, trying to hold in your laughter at the scandalized look on his face. 

“Are you crazy? You’re not getting anywhere even remotely close to persuading me to share that bed with you,” he splutters. 

You plop down on the bed and kick your feet back and forth. “Things could be much worse than this situation you know.”

“Debatable.” 

You throw the pillow at him and he catches it before it hits his face, looking much too happy when you scoff. 

“Keep it. You need it more than me.” You fall backwards onto the bed. “Right or left?”

“Right or left?”

“Just choose one.”

Regardless of his confusion, Su-Hyeok ultimately chooses right. “Alright then, I’ll leave that side open if you change your mind.”

“I won’t.”

“Whatever you say.” 

⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ.: ⋆*･ﾟ

You blindly reach for your phone, unable to sleep. The bright light hits you, causing you to squint at the time. 1:31 am. You roll over and peer down the side of the bed, seeing Su-Hyeok with his eyes closed, wrapped in blankets all the way up to his neck, more likely than not freezing in his thin white t-shirt. 

“Su-Hyeok,” you whisper, not expecting an answer. 

“Yeah?” He opens one eye to look at you. 

“I can’t sleep.”

“Neither can I. I’m cold.”

“Come up here.” 

“…But not that cold.” 

“You’ve layered six blankets on top of you and you’re still shivering.”

He stares at you for a long moment in the dark until finally, he sighs, giving in. Su-Hyeok pads toward the side of the bed you left empty all night, dragging his multiple blankets and the single pillow with him. If you had to be honest, it was an endearing sight; he looked like a giant baby bundled from head to toe in the thick silks. 

Before he even gets on the bed, he takes off one and wraps you up in it, the blanket already warm from body heat. The rest he rolls up and aligns vertically, creating a makeshift mini wall between the two of you. You snort at the absurdity of it, but decide not to say anything against it, lest Su-Hyeok insists on going back to the ground. He eventually crawls into bed, though his legs are too long, feet ending up hanging off the bottom edge. 

“Isn’t this better?” You turn to face him, seeing him already looking at you. In the dark, you can barely make out his eyes, but the proximity can’t take away from how your heart feels under his gaze. 

Su-Hyeok slides a hand under your face and lifts your head slightly to slide the pillow below you. Now both of you were sharing a bed, a blanket, and even a pillow. With your head on half and his on the other, the only way to be comfortable was for the two of you to lay face-to-face, almost touching noses if it weren’t for the centerline of blankets. “Much better.” 

He pushes more of the blanket to your side and when he draws back, your fingers brush accidentally, though he doesn’t move them away, and you don’t have the intention to do so either. “Sweet dreams, Y/N,” he says softly, before closing his eyes. Just by those small gestures alone, you were touched more than that acceptable of a friendly nature. 

“Sleep well, Su-Hyeok.” You lay there in the darkness, your eyes lingering on him for a bit longer until you can’t keep them open anymore. This time around, sleep comes easily. 

⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ.: ⋆*･ﾟ

When harsh morning sunlight streams into the room, you wake up to the feeling of warm air fanning across your face. Squinting against the light before being able to open your eyes entirely, you become aware of just how close you were to Su-Hyeok—so close that you could hear his steady heartbeat, loud enough to count. You have no clue as to how you ended up enveloped completely in his arms, your head tucked tightly into the crook of his neck. The pillow wall from last night is now nonexistent, unknown to you how long it actually served a purpose, yet, you can’t find it in you to move away.

But, as your luck would have it, Su-Hyeok's eyes slowly flutter open, and he begins to stir, immediately looking down. Flustered at the current position, the only thing you could think in the moment is to kick him off the bed.The thud as he hits the floor has you scrambling, worriedly peeking your head over the edge to see that thankfully, he wasn’t hurt; annoyed, but otherwise unharmed.

“Yah! You were worried about my back last night when I decided to take the floor, but instead kicking me onto it is better?” 

“Sorry, sorry! It was on reflex!” You reach down and pull him up back onto the bed, trying not to laugh as he glares at you.

Silence ensues as the two of you are at a loss for words about what happened overnight, avoiding eye contact and leaving space as wide as an ocean in between, the bed growing colder by the minute.

“Did I snore?” Su-Hyeok suddenly asks you.

You shake your head. “Did I say weird things in my sleep?”

[ 3:26 am]

“On-Jo,” you mumble.

“Y/N, this is Su-Hyeok,” he tries to reason with your still-sleeping form. “You’re dreaming, aren’t you?”

“No, we’re having a serious conversation. Of course, you’re On-Jo. I can only tell you important things. Are you even listening to me?”

“Yes, I am,” Su-Hyeok sniggers as you punch his shoulder in your sleep, feeling apologetic toward On-Jo, who was most likely on the receiving end of lot of them in the course of your friendship over the years. He could relate wholeheartedly.

“There’s someone I really like and I keep thinking about them but I don’t know if they think about me too.”

Su-Hyeok holds his breath so tightly in his chest that it could burst, only releasing the tension in his lungs on an exhale when he finally hears your next words.

“On-Jo, I like Su-Hyeok…a lot. Do you think he feels the same?”

“Why wouldn’t he when it’s you?”

“No, I think you only had sweet dreams like I wished for you to.”

┈┈┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈┈┈

𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐒𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝟏

On-Jo stands next to Su-Hyeok in the breakfast line when a familiar scent wafts across her nose. She sniffs slightly, trying to decipher what it is when it dawns on her that it was emanating from Su-Hyeok. Her eyes widen at the nuance of it.

“Su-Hyeok…don’t tell me…” she places a hand across her mouth in shock. “Did you and Y/N share a bed?!”

“No,” he deadpans, but the blush on his face can’t hide the truth.

“Really, are you sure about that?” On-Jo smirks slightly. “Your shirt…it smells like the perfume I gave Y/N as a birthday gift.”

“There can’t be similar fragrances?”

“I had it personalized.”

𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐒𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝟐

Su-Hyeok is the first to wake up, but as he turns to get out of bed discreetly, you grab onto his wrist lightly. “Can you stay with me?” Just the way you said that sleepily to him was enough to convince him not to go.

"You should get some more rest. I won't leave. I promise."

He gets back into bed and you immediately huddle close to him, eyes still closed, the expression on your face much more relaxed than before. Su-Hyeok’s heart flutters in his chest as he pulls you closer, not letting go.

Maybe one day he’ll tell you about what you said in your sleep.

Maybe one day he’ll tell you about the kiss he pressed against your forehead and how you smiled afterwards.

Maybe on the day when he confesses.

┈┈┈┈┈𖥸┈┈┈┈┈

© 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐱’𝐬 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐔𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐛𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞. 𝐈 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨, 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐮𝐞, 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫-𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐭. 𝐀𝐥𝐬𝐨, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐞, 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐞, 𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦 𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞.

jude and trent post match pics please🤞🥹

upbraid — ethan landry

Description: Upbraid—To upbraid someone is to speak to them in an angry or critical way in response to something they have done wrong—in other words, to scold them.

Or: You hate that Ethan has been careless while wearing the mask.

Pairing: Spider-Man!Ethan Landry x GN!Reader

Warnings/Tags: descriptions of wounds/bruises, some angst

Word Count: 1.9k

Author’s Note: a little writing exercise for me, i took merriam webster’s september 3rd word of the day (upbraid) and built a plot out of it :] finished it about a month later LMAO

It was after a night out with some friends that you discovered that your best friend since high-school, Ethan, was the same man dressing up in red and blue and patrolling the streets every night. You came home slightly drunk, and the vigilante was passed out on your fire escape, battered and bruised. You hadn’t known it was him yet. It was when you had to stitch him up—while he was unconscious—and you saw a birthmark on his side that you got suspicious. When he took off the mask right in front of you was the confirmation.

You’d been taking care of him since then. He insisted that you didn’t have to, but sometimes you figured that patching him up was more for you than him.

Things didn’t change much after that incident except for that Ethan comes to you every night for his wounds. Outside of that secret shared between you two, there was no change in your relationship whatsoever.

Working regular shifts at a local coffee shop ensured you heard whatever the news stations were saying about Spider-Man that week due to the television always playing, albeit at a low volume. Over the last few months, you learned how yo tune it out in fear that you’ll one day hear that Ethan was dead.

But your coworkers couldn’t seem to get enough of him. Which, at first, you didn’t care, but now that you knew it Ethan, you shut down any words about Spider-Man.

All it took was one day, on your break.

There were no customers, so you lounged in the main sitting area scrolling through your phone.

“Holy shit,” Mindy, the only coworker you considered a friend, grabbed the nearby remote and turned up the TV volume. “Look.”

Seeing as she wasn’t usually the type to care about Spider-Man, your instincts trusted that whatever was on the screen wasn’t about him. But you were so, so wrong.

It happened quickly.

The headline caught your eye first:

LIVE: SPIDER-MAN FIGHTS GREEN GOBLIN

The green goblin. That’s what the media had been calling the bad guy of the week. Well, more like two weeks. Ethan assured you that he had it under control.

It was clear as day that he, in fact, did not have it under control.

Your spine went rigid.

The camera zoomed in on Spider-Man, a large gash on his calf and holding his arm close to his chest, assessing the situation while civilians ran for their lives.

You grabbed the remote from Mindy’s hand, turning off the TV and earning you an irked ‘Hey!’; however you didn’t hear much more than that because you were bolting out the door in the next second.

You waited about an hour in anticipation at your apartment, med kit on the counter, sitting there blankly and watching if your phone got any texts from Ethan. You repeatedly ignored the texts from Mindy or your manager asking where you had gone—none of that was important now—Ethan had to be your priority.

The loud bang on your window finally signalled his arrival, and you hated that you were relieved. The pit in your chest grew deeper every time, and yet every time, it meant he was alive.

The room was eerily quiet.

Ethan winced as you wrapped up his arm. Whenever you patched him up like this, it was always quiet. But this time—this time was different, somehow. It was tense. Something hung in the room and it left a tense note, an unfinished symphony; he was in the dark.

It hit him that it was the look on your face which made him fill with dread.

Your furrowed brows accompanied a seemingly permanent frown on your face, and your eyes were everywhere but his own.

He knew how much he worried you. You said so on the first day he landed on that fire escape, but you always started every visit with an, ‘I’m glad you’re okay,’ or at least some variation of it.

This wasn’t that. At all.

“Can you at least talk to me?” He broke the silence, a glass shattered.

You looked up at him, “No.”

The air left his lungs. “What?” Maybe it was the end. “What—what do you mean?”

“You wanna talk?” You haphazardly shoved things in the med kit, zipping it up and walking away with it to put it back where it belonged.

Ethan only nodded hesitantly.

“I’ll talk.” When you came back to face him, you looked down. “You’re fucking careless.”

He could only part his lips in hopes that words will come. Maybe they will. But nothing did, he didn’t know if he truly could’ve spoken at that moment because you were elaborating what you meant soon enough.

“You just—you come in here and expect me to fix you every single time,” he heard your heart beat faster with every word. “And then you go out there and do it again.”

“I told—“

“No!” his jaw shut tight when you raised your voice. “I’m tired, Ethan. I really am. I see you getting hurt every day—I have to see that, Ethan, because you’re everywhere! Then you come to me and I have to pretend like thinking about you dying doesn’t keep me up at night.”

Ethan’s heart plummeted into the abyss. He wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow him whole along with it, as the shame and disgust at himself hit him all at once. He had nothing else to say. There were no words for you, because you were right. And that’s what hurt the most.

He had nothing else to say except, “I didn’t know I hurt you like that.”

“Ethan—”

“I told you that you didn’t have to do that for me.”

“If I don’t do it, nobody else will,” you sighed.

“I’m sorry.” Ethan had been so lost in protecting others that he lost sight of protecting you. In turn, he hurt you—used you. “I’ll go.”

He stood up in haste, shuffling past you with his eyes glued to the ground.

“Ethan,” God, even the way you say his name wounded him. So much that he’d already forgotten about his physical state. He winced as he put his mask back on and opened up the window. “Don’t.”

But that was a good sign. Don’t meant you wanted him to stay. Nonetheless, he still had to protect you. Protecting you was his priority.

“I can’t—” he coughed. “This isn’t…good. I’ll go.”

There was a beat of silence when he looked back before leaving.

“You know what?” You added. “You’re right. Just leave.”

And so he left.

Days passed.

You ignored the screens, though it always made its way back to you.

SPIDER-MAN: ABANDONED NEW YORK?

Spider-Man was gone. For three days, at least. Yet the world felt his absence. Your world, however, was at a complete standstill. Waiting with bated breath in anticipation of either hearing about the death of your Ethan or his resurfacing. You hoped it was the former.

Your mutual friends even sensed your unease, but because of college and finals, it was really only Tara who took note of the blankness in your eyes when someone brought up Ethan.

Thankfully, Spider-Man showed up. The city rejoiced in being protected once again. But you were still missing Ethan in your life. Through Chad, you checked on his state, who always responded that his roommate rarely spoke to him these days. It seemed that Ethan was letting you have your pick of friends, almost as if it were a divorce and you got what he had. Even if the idea of you and Ethan getting ‘divorced’ made you laugh at its absurdity, in some ways it did feel like that.

Weeks passed. It was days before finals. You had dealt somewhat well with Ethan’s absence by losing yourself in your day-to-day life. You studied harder, even picked up extra shifts which made Mindy question your motive. You hated work.

Unfortunately, it seemed as though the all-nighters finally caught up to you.

It was dawn. You hadn’t slept in almost twenty-four hours, and you knew Ethan would be out patrolling at this moment. You banged on the door of his dorm, waking up an angry Chad, but you couldn’t think about that now as you headed straight for Ethan’s room and sat on his bed.

You figured it was too long. Weeks too long. You should have talked to him the day after, but his insistence on leaving your apartment that day made your heart constrict in ways you didn’t think possible. Maybe you hurt him too much with what you said.

The sleep came easily.

A light touch of your arm woke you up.

Upon rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, you were faced with Ethan. Your Ethan. His mask was off.

The instinct to stand up to wrap your arms around him was as easy as the sleep that came to you hours before. It was long overdue.

It took a few seconds for him to reciprocate, and you sighed when you finally felt him release his breath.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered. “I shouldn’t have talked to you like that.”

He pulled back to your dismay, keeping you at arms length.

“You—you shouldn’t be here.”

You almost flinched. “What?”

“No,” he shook his head incessantly. “I’m supposed to be protecting you.”

That was not what you expected. “Ethan, what—”

“Please, just—just leave.”

“Is that what you really want?”

Same like that day, his eyes didn’t leave the ground. Anywhere but your eyes.

“Answer me, at least.” You sounded desperate.

“I can’t hurt you like that again. So, leave.” His voice tapered off, shaken.

“Look me in the eyes when you say that.” You mustered up all the strength you could despite having woke up mere minutes ago. “Tell me that I’m safer without you.”

He shook his head instinctively, “You’re not without me.”

“What?” You whispered, lungs out of air.

“Nothing.”

“You’ve been watching me, aren’t you?”

His silence said everything.

You reached to brush his messy curls out of his eyes. His mask had messed them up. He finally turned his head to you, curious.

Yet, you couldn’t look him in his eyes as you said it.

“You hurt me when you’re careless,” you declared. “But it hurts more when you—you…think I don’t want you to be around me. I feel safe with you, Ethan. If you really don’t want to hurt me then…then just—please stay in my life. As Ethan.”

He pulled you closer, and you rested your head against his shoulder.

“What you’re doing as Spider-Man is good. You have to protect people. But you’re Ethan. I fell in love with him first and—and I don’t want anything to happen to him.”

“You’re in love with me?”

He lifted your chin up to face him, the contact surging through your being.

You nodded wordlessly.

He finally smiled, “I think I’ve been in love with you for longer.”

“Nuh uh,” you flashed him a grin back. “I knew when I met you.”

“Then we’re even.”

He kept his hands on your chin, subconsciously pulling you closer. He desperately searched your eyes for unease, but found something he’d always known was there: love.

“Prove it.”

And so he kissed you like his life depended on it.

Would u be able to write a Peeta Mellark x reader where it takes place during Catching fire and the reader has been wanting to protect Peeta and they took her instead of Peeta after and she's the one who got high jacked by the capitol to hate Peeta?

TYSMSM FOR THE REQUEST HERE IT IS AND THERE WILL BE A PARTT TWO 🎀🎀

Chad meeks-Martin needs more fics

˗ˏˋ chad meeks martin ´ˎ˗

“i'm like... 99% sure that you're not the killer.”

fics/one shots

before it’s too late

in which you and your best friend share secret feelings for each other. but you being attacked makes him realise how quickly life can come to an end.

whenever

in which chad notices that you have been avoiding to eat and that you show signs of insecurity. so he tries to comfort you the best he can.

remedie

in which chad is the only one who can make you feel better no matter how you’re feeling.

blurbs

headcannons

hi :)) i LOOOOOOVE your writing, you do all the boys so much justice. i was reading the intimacy one and saw you wanted requests for gotak 👀👀

this ideas been festering in my head so walk with me (or don't, that's also fine.)

new student!reader who comes to class and has a small run in with juntae (similar to how he bumped into sieun) and thinks he's adorable so they kinda just naturally becomes really close friends with him. gotak heard news about the new student and also started to hear juntae talk about them so he lowkey tries to swindle juntae into introducing all of them. juntae being the cutie (but also not naive!) he is decided to introduce them and gotak is taken back by how close they are and gets mildly jealous (for what reason 🤔😏).

sorry for the ramble and also that went no where but it's been in my head for sooooo long 😭😭😭

pairing — go hyuntak (gotak) x gn!reader (ft. bff!juntae) genre — fluff, comedy, f2l warnings — mild language, injury (minor sprain), sieun being an instigator, baku being a headass word count — ~2.1k

note: omg this took soooo long to post because of my break !! i finished this actually a week ago lol i just had lots of prior requests to get to so i never got around to posting it. alas, let us all welcome gotak’s debut on my blog !! the people have been waitinggggg and asking for this one !! and finally... !!

masterlist | join the taglist | request a fic

to put it simply, if you hadn’t turned the corner right at that moment, you don’t know how the rest of this school year would've turned out.

new school, new people, new everything. you had a map in your hand and maybe two brain cells left when someone rounded the hallway a little too fast and bumped straight into you. papers went flying. both of you froze.

“oh no—wait, i’m sorry, that was me,” he said, already crouched down to gather the mess like it was his life that had been scattered across the floor.

you blinked, surprised. he had soft eyes and glasses sliding halfway down his nose and this slightly panicked look like he thought you might cry.

“it’s okay,” you told him. “honestly, you might’ve saved my life. i was about to walk straight into a locked door.”

he smiled, awkward and kind. “my name is juntae. seo juntae. you’re new, right?”

you nodded. and just like that, he offered to walk you to class—it was the easiest decision you’d made all day.

juntae was the type of person who made space for you without ever making you feel like a burden. he brought you snacks during lunch and showed you where to hide out when the hallways got too loud. he also talked a lot about his friends, and one afternoon—like it was the most natural thing in the world—he said, “oh, you should meet sieun. you’d like him.”

you did. he was quiet and careful with his words, but funny in a dry way that caught you off guard. he’d glance at juntae like you really brought them here? but still offered you a spot at the table. he even let you steal a fry. so you counted that as a win.

after that came baku—loud, sunny, fast-talking. he practically tackled you into a high five and said, “juntae’s new bestie? you’re in good hands,” before dragging you into some debate about what counts as a sandwich.

somehow, you ended up kind of... just around. like a ghost that turned real. people knew your name before you introduced yourself. baku waved whenever he saw you. sieun always made room for you on the bench. and juntae, sweet as he was, forgot to formally introduce you to one person.

“yo,” gotak called, wiping sweat from his neck as he tossed the basketball to baku. “who’s that?”

baku looked up from tying his shoelace. “huh?”

“over there,” gotak nodded toward the sidelines, where you were doubled over laughing next to sieun and juntae. “they’ve been hanging around a lot.”

baku blinked, “that’s y/n.” as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

gotak simply stared, as baku tilted his head. “you know them. don’t you?”

gotak looked back at you. you were teasing juntae about something, eyes crinkled, whole face lit up. juntae said something back that made you shove his arm, half-laughing, half-gasping.

gotak frowned, “i’ve never met them.”

baku paused. “wait. what? i thought juntae introduced you already—he told everyone else. dude. even sieun knows her.”

gotak narrowed his eyes. “so why didn’t he tell me?”

“damn,” baku grinned. “someone’s feeling left out.” as he threw the ball to his chest, a little too roughly to snap his friend out of it.

“shitty pass,” gotak muttered under his breath, passing the ball back to him.

baku snorted. “you sure you’re mad about the ball and not the fact that your bestie got a new bestie?”

gotak didn’t answer. but later that day, when he caught you waiting for juntae outside the gym, he slowed down.

you waved, and he waved back. maybe a little delayed, a little thoughtful.

maybe a little curious.

he hesitated like he was deciding something, then crossed the space between you with that awkward confidence some people carry when they’re not used to starting conversations but do it anyway.

he scratched the back of his neck, eyes flicking down before landing on yours. “hey. uh... y/n,”

you smiled. “hi.”

he nodded, like that helped him keep going. “i’m also juntae’s friend, in the basketball team. with baku.” you tilted your head. “oh yeah—go hyuntak, right?”

he blinked.

you shrugged. “baku mentioned you once. and you were on the court earlier.”

gotak looked a little caught off guard, like he hadn’t expected you to know his name. then his mouth twitched, the smallest upward curve. “...right. that’s me. call me gotak.”

you stood there for a beat, quiet.

“it’s nice to meet you,” you said.

he glanced up, then back down, like he was working through a million thoughts at once. “yeah. you too.”

just then, the gym doors creaked open behind you.

“y/n!” jun-tae called, jogging out with his bag slung over one shoulder. “sorry—got caught up helping the coach—oh, hey gotak!”

gotak stepped back half a pace, nodding. “hey.”

juntae looked between you, confused for half a second. “wait—did i never introduce you guys?”

you and gotak both said, “no.”

juntae blinked. “...oops.”

you laughed. gotak didn’t, but his shoulders relaxed a little as he looked over at you again.

after that, he finally had an excuse.

or maybe it was just that now you were officially introduced—he started showing up more. like how he always just happened to walk by your classroom when it let out. or how he’d offer to carry your stuff from your locker even if it wasn’t heavy. he’d still act casual about it—mumbling something about "heading that way anyway"—but the look in his eyes always lingered a little longer than it used to.

you started showing up to practices more too. usually with a water bottle in hand. eventually, two.

then four.

baku started calling you their "hydration manager" and gotak rolled his eyes every time, but he’d take the bottle from your hands like it meant something, every time you handed him his bottle, your fingers would brush. lightly. deliberately. like a habit you weren’t in a rush to break.

he wasn’t loud about it, but as the days passed, he found himself looking for you more often than he meant to—your voice across the court, your laugh when juntae said something stupid, and the way you stuck around even when no one asked you to.

he didn’t say it out loud, but your presence became something he... liked. something that made the world feel a little softer when you were around.

and sometimes, when you laughed a little too hard at juntae’s jokes, gotak would glance over without meaning to. once, he got so distracted that baku shot the ball clean over his head and it smacked him right in the back.

“yo!” baku shouted, rushing over. “you good?!”

gotak muttered, rubbing the side of his head, “i wasn’t looking.”

“clearly,” baku huffed. “what were you looking at?”

gotak didn’t answer. just glanced back toward the sidelines, where you were sitting, completely unaware.

you weren’t exactly subtle either.

at first, it was just a glance. maybe two. maybe three, if you were feeling brave and he was too focused on the court to notice. there was something about the way he moved—steady, grounded, all quiet strength and furrowed brows. you’d never really watched basketball before, but suddenly it was your favorite part of the afternoon.

whenever he scored, you clapped a little louder. a little quicker. maybe even stood up once, under the excuse of stretching.

juntae caught you once. leaned over and whispered, “you cheer louder for him than for baku.”

you blinked. “no i don’t.”

he grinned. “yes you do.”

you smacked his arm. “shut up.”

but the next time gotak glanced toward the benches after a point, your hands were already mid-clap, eyes already on him.

he met your gaze.

just for a second.

you looked away first.

the more you saw of gotak, the more you saw him. it started with the little things—running into him by the vending machine after class, both of you reaching for the same pack of chips at the same time. you laughed, unsure of who should take it first.

“you can have it,” gotak said, smiling, though you could swear there was a flicker of something in his eyes. something that felt... not exactly like embarrassment, but not entirely casual either.

"no, it’s fine, you take it," you said, holding your hand out. "you reached first."

he paused, just staring for a second, before he gave a small shrug and grabbed it. “you sure?”

“yeah.”

you both took your snacks and stepped aside, awkwardly aware of how close you’d been. as you tried to avoid eye contact, you were almost certain your heart was racing. had he been looking at you like that... or was it just your imagination?

the awkward encounters started happening more often, though. a lot more often.

you’d bump into him in the hallway. near the library. at the school gates. suddenly, you felt like you were always in his orbit—and not just you. everyone noticed.

“you two are weirdly always in the same place at the same time,” juntae pointed out one day while you were grabbing lunch. “it’s like you’re following him around.”

you choked on your drink. “what? no. no, i’m not. i—he just happens to be there. i’m—just minding my business.”

juntae fixes his glasses, shrugging it off with a playful grin, though you could tell he wasn’t completely convinced. “alright, y/n. totally.”

and of course, baku caught on too. one day, while you were standing at the sidelines during practice, watching gotak and baku scrimmage, he glanced over at you, then at gotak, then back at you. then gotak. then you. he raised an eyebrow, clearly suspicious.

“hey,” baku said casually, tossing the ball to gotak. “you two are like, besties now, huh?”

gotak froze, looking at him, and then glancing over at gotak to avoid meeting baku’s gaze. “what? no. we’re not—”

“uh-huh,” baku grinned, spinning the ball on his finger. “sure, and i’m top of the class.”

during practice one afternoon, it happened.

gotak went up for a dunk, but his foot slipped awkwardly when he landed, and he crumpled to the ground with a loud thud. your heart dropped as you watched him clutch his ankle, wincing in pain.

“gotak!” you shouted, rushing to his side.

he grimaced, leaning against the floor, clearly in pain.

“dude, what happened?” baku called out, rushing over too. “you good?”

“i’m fine,” gotak muttered, trying to push himself up, but his face twisted in discomfort. “just sprained it, probably.”

sieun was quick to appear by your side, his usually calm demeanor shifting slightly as he assessed the situation. without missing a beat, he turned to you, a rare glint of something in his eyes. “maybe y/n can take him to the infirmary? we still have to clean up here.”

you blinked, unsure how to respond. “huh?”

sieun shot a pointed look toward baku, who was still oblivious to what was going on. his lips curved in the smallest, lopsided smirk. “baku doesn’t need your help right now,” he said, almost too casually, before giving a side glance at you.

you noticed baku didn’t catch the hint, just furrowing his brows at the situation. “wait, what? you seriously want y/n to drag him to the infirmary? you do realize that guy’s gonna crush ‘em under his weight, right? y’know gotak’s been having too much chicken—”

sieun’s eyes flickered with something that might’ve been amusement, though his expression stayed neutral. “go on,” sieun said, motioning to gotak, tone soft but firm. “help him out.”

you looked down at gotak, who was still struggling to stand, and it dawned on you that he was huge—much bigger than you. and the thought of dragging him all the way to the infirmary alone? absurd. awkward.

but you couldn’t exactly say no, not when everyone was watching and not when he was looking at you like he needed your help.

“you okay to walk?” you asked, kneeling down next to him.

“i think i’ll survive,” he grumbled, clearly embarrassed by the situation.

you offered him your hand. “come on, let’s get you there.”

he took your hand, and you tried not to notice how big his hand felt wrapped around yours. you both started walking, and although you tried to make it seem like a casual walk, every step felt like you were carrying the weight of his entire body.

sieun watched you both for a second, his gaze unreadable. the smallest of smirks tugged at the corners of his mouth.

the walk to the infirmary wasn’t as bad as you thought it would be, though you were still struggling to act normal when you finally helped gotak sit down on the clinic bed. his ankle was already wrapped up, but he kept fiddling with his fingers, looking down at his feet, clearly uncomfortable with the situation.

you sat across from him, the silence stretching for a moment as you both just sat there, waiting.

“uh, thanks for this, y/n,” gotak mumbled, his voice quiet in a way that was almost unlike him. he kept glancing at you, then back at his hands.

you tilted your head, a smile tugging at your lips. “no problem, seriously. i told you, i’m happy to help. anything for you,” you said, maybe a little more casually than you intended, your heart racing just a little.

he met your gaze then, eyes wide and slightly soft, a subtle smile playing at his lips. “anything?” he asked, teasing, but there was a hint of something more in his tone.

“well, yeah,” you replied, trying to sound more confident than you felt. “you’re my friend. i’ve got your back.”

there was a beat of silence as you both just looked at each other. gotak’s gaze lingered on you, his fingers still fidgeting, though a little more nervously now.

“you’re…you’re a really good person, y/n,” he said softly, his eyes lowering to his hands again, as if he was unsure of how to put his feelings into words.

you couldn’t help but feel your cheeks warm at the sincerity in his voice. “thanks, gotak. that means a lot coming from you.”

the moment stretched longer than it probably should have, but neither of you seemed to want to break it.

finally, he cleared his throat, looking up at you with that familiar mischievous glint in his eyes. “so, uh…if you’re willing to do anything for me…”

you raised an eyebrow. “yeah?”

he shifted a little, suddenly a little more serious, though his usual playful grin still tugged at the corners of his lips. “you think you could—i don’t know—not make me fall for you?”

your heart skipped a beat, and for a moment, you swore you didn’t breathe. his words hung in the air, the playful edge still there, but there was something different about the way he said it. something that made your heart flutter in that puppy-love way that only people in the early stages of affection could understand.

“w-what?” you stammered, unable to hide the rush of warmth that spread across your cheeks. “you’re—you’re falling for me?”

he raised both eyebrows now, the teasing gone from his voice, replaced with something more earnest. “maybe,” he said with a small, sheepish grin, his gaze never leaving you. “maybe it’s too late for that. i think i’m already halfway there.”

you blinked at him, unsure how to respond, and for a moment, neither of you said anything. the air between you was suddenly thick with something you didn’t quite know how to define.

you broke the silence with a nervous laugh, the words tumbling out before you could stop them. “well, i guess it’s not so bad to meet you in the middle if you’re already halfway there.”

gotak chuckled, his lips curving into that genuine smile you’d come to look forward to. “yeah, i guess it’s not, huh?”

if u liked this, a reblog would be greatly appreciated to help my work reach other people as well >><< !! thank u thank u

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Reading so many tumblr fics has completely ruined me from ever reading a Wattpad story that ain’t in 2nd person POV😭😭