The King of Curses sat upon his throne, and yet you had no issue glaring up at him. As if it were your stare that could cleave. Your hands that could ignite his shrine into blitz and ember.
Bundled in a silk blanket and babbling up at you with eyes as ruby as her father's, your daughter chewed on her thumb. Blissfully oblivious to the tyrant from which she came.
Sukuna refused to hold her.
It was subtle, at first. When she was born, he claimed that it was vital for a baby to stay close to its mother. For warmth, food and comfort.
It had been four weeks, and your husband hadn't so much as grazed her tiny pinkie.
"Why?" You asked, anger blooming in your throat like the flowers he had planted in the gardens for you. He would sully his knees in the soil and his hands in the mud for your benefit, but couldn't bear to hold the life that he had created?
Sukuna's face was hard in a scowl. Each maroon eye glaring into your soul.
A beat of silence.
"I do not want to."
You flared, clinging your baby closer. "Are you ashamed? Ashamed of the life we created?"
"No, damnit womanâ"
"Then why!?"
"Because I will mar her!"
The shrine shook as he shoved himself out of his throne. Standing now. It was at his full height that you recognised the being thousands feared. Four arms, two faces, and a stature that rose from hell.
His glare burned, but it wasn't anger. Face twisted in an emotion you hadn't seen enough from him.
"I willâ hurt her. Is that what you want?"
Vulnerability.
Your daughter startled. Sniffling at the booming voice that rattled the floors. You watched her face squish and her lip quiver, before a broken, hiccuped sob filled the air.
His shoulders sunk. The fight seeping out of him. You watched his eyes swell with many things you'd never seen before.
Guilt, sadness.
Fear.
Rocking your startled baby, you held her close with soft shushes, but her sniffles soon turned into wails. Sukuna's stood frozen, sullen.
You understood, now.
Cradling the small girl, you stepped forward. Up the stairs to the platform of his throne. Even as he took a step back, you persisted.
"Sukuna. . ." You called to him. Soft in the way that only you were capable of being with him.
He almost flinched.
"This child, she's ours. Our daughter, made with love."
You stood right in front of him now. Taking in his wound up muscles and squared shoulders. Looking more like a deer ready to sprint than a father.
A father who feared that his hands were too rough, too evil, to nurture his own child.
"You won't hurt her. Because she's ours." Reaching forward, you held out the sobbing bundle. Watching his face and the several shades of uncertainty it turned.
You had never seen him so. . . frightened.
You pushed past his hesitancy, carefully placing your daughter into a set of his hulking arms. She was tiny compared to him. Seemed he was processing that too.
Aiding his position, you slipped one of your hands to tenderly hold him by the bicep as he, for the first time ever, held his daughter.
His breath was hitched. All of his eyes gaping at the small bundle in his arms. Watching her as if she were the most delicate piece of porcelain.
Your daughter's sobs stirred into sniffles, then hiccups, until. . . silence.
As big, ruby eyes stared up at her father. Taking him in. His face, his warmth.
And then, she beamed a toothless smile.
Sukuna tensed. A shaky breath hitching.
"She'sâ she's smiling. Why is she smiling?"
He quickly looked to you. Brows pinched. Looking lost, looking scared.
You offered him a smile, leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. "Because she knows that her father loves her." Tickling her neck, you hummed as she squirmed a bit and giggled, pressing more into him.
He instinctively held her closer. Eyes unblinking.
You watched as Ryomen Sukuna, The King of Curses, melted. His heart swelling as he stared at his daughter. Even bringing one of his fingers closer to her, so that she could grab at it. Hugging around it with that big, bring smile.
His mouth quirked at the corner. Faint, but tender.
"Yeah. . ." He whispered, voice thick with emotion. Centuries worth of affection for his child, his daughter.
"Your father loves you. More than anything. More than life."
Š đđđđđđđđđđđđđđđ. no plagiarism or ai training authorised. divider: @/cheriisoda. art cred: @/lacquerheadd
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towel-drying his hair ! â
⤡ L lawliet x fem!reader
syn. L has trouble taking care of himself when he prioritises his work. it drives you up the wall.
-> 554 words
a soft sigh passes your lips as you crouch down beside L, setting a plate of freshly baked cookies down beside him with a soft clink.
heâs hunched over on the floor in that awful posture of his, knees drawn to his chest, thumb pressed absently to his mouth while grainy surveillance footage flickers across the tv screen. papers litter the floor around him in uneven piles, some half-crumpled, some covered in frantic scribbles only he can decipher.
he looks at the offering on the plate and simply nods in gratitude.
normally, youâd insist he sit at the table with you. eat something more substantial.
a vegetable, perhaps.
but after enough nights spent with L, youâve learned compromise is the closest thing to victory. this was the only way to get him to eat at all when he became hyperfocused on cases like these.
"eat." you whisper. you lean down to kiss his temple, and the moment your lips brush his skin, damp strands of black hair cling to your mouth.
your expression flattens from that adoring, concerned look to a death glare almost immediately.
L turns his head to you slowly with a wide-eyed look of a man who's well aware of his crimes.
âyou said you were going to dry your hair,â your eyes narrow.
âi will,â he replies.
âone hour ago.â
he looks down at the screen again with a tiny huff, picking up a cookie delicately between his thumb and index finger with his typical pinching motion, letting it dangle there before taking a bite.
âare you ignoring me?â you ask, poking the top of his wet head.
âyouâll scold me if i answer,â he says around the mouthful, completely unbothered.
you stare at him for a second in disbelief before exhaling through your nose, pushing his head. âdonât complain to me when you get a headache later.â
then you turn and walk away.
years of detective work have made L exceptionally good at predicting human behavior.
so ten minutes later, you return holding a towel, and it's exactly as he expected.
âwas this your plan all along?â you grumble.
you settle onto the couch behind him, and without hesitation, he shifts until heâs comfortably seated between your legs, cheek pressed against your inner thigh while you begin rubbing the towel against his damp hair.
he nods once. completely shameless.
you clamp your knees around his head in punishment.
"ow." he mutters. but doesn't fight back.
âunbelievable.â
L only hums softly, eyes still fixed on the footage playing onscreen as your fingers work through the dark strands. then he tilts his chin backwards far enough to look up at you.
his lips form that natural pout of his that always makes your heart ache unbeknownst to him. big dark eyes. heavy shadows beneath them. round and empty-looking in the way that fools almost everyone into believing thereâs nothing behind them at all â you know better.
unfortunately, that doesnât stop him from looking unbearably adorable.
for a moment, you want to put the towel down, squish his cheeks between your hands and kiss every inch of his stupid face.
instead, still annoyed, you pinch his nose.
his brows twitch.
âdo your work,â you grumble, pushing his head forward again.
he doesn't need to respond for you to know he's smiling.
You can't say you were dragged here. The plan was eating at home as always, but the sweet girl next door offered taking you to her friend's thriving restaurant, one of the few places out there you can trust, so you gladly accepted.
Almost as soon as you placed your orders, the main cook in the kitchen pokes his head, scowl present as usual. Your neighbor and you wave at him excitedly, as he walks to your tiny table.
"Of course it was you." He sighs. "Yes, my hands are clean, the hands of my workers are clean, the ingredients are clean. No, they're no expired. Everything is well cooked, nothing's raw. Am I missing something?"
"No, chef!" He scoffs at the way you address him. "I appreciate it."
"Yeah, whatever."
"It's so cool how you can tell when we've arrived." The girl comments.
"'Cause your friend here orders the same thing all the damn time." He doesn't leave without side-eyeing you first. "Be right back with your stuff."
With him gone, you two resume your conversation, until you get distracted by a white haired cutie practically breathing on your neck. Or so you wish. He still keeps his distance.
"I'm about to make you and grumpy chef fall in love this instant." Gojo whispers as if the other person could hear him. "Blink for yes. Kick my butt for no."
"Him?!" You whisper back in disbelief.
"Mhm! He's great. He sure needs to learn to use better words to express himself, but other than that he's good. Understanding, wouldn't you say?"
True. He acts like meeting your hygiene standards is a burden, but he does it anyway. He even goes out of his way to let you know. Plus, he's good looking and an amazing cook. It probably doesn't get better thant this.
"I suggest you go for it." Gojo continues. "I think he kinda likes you."
It doesn't matter if he's lying. The decision has been made. You nod.
"Yes? You said yes? Good! This time, I'm starting with you." He concentrates hard. He must feel it, the release of energy. There it is, maybe. Once more. "You should be thankful for my generosity. I'm doing this for you even though you didn't blink for yes."
Obedient as you are, you look at him and clumsily bat your eyelashes.
"Uh..." He feels it, then. There's 'something'. It's working. "You're ready, princess. I'll go get your beast. I mean, prince."
Gojo goes to the kitchen at the back of the restaurant. Not much later, grumpy chef appears with your orders and behind him is handsome cupid sporting a toothy grin.The cook now in the role of waiter sets the table and lingers. He opens his mouth to speak but no words come out. His eyes meet yours for a mere second, enough to turn his cheeks pink. It's endearing, actually. You find him endearing. Gojo really made it work this time. You must do your part.
"Want a sip of my tea?" You push your mug in his direction. Wonderful. What a line. Gojo would consider it worthy of a facepalm. Wait, where is he?
"No. That's alright." Your new love returns your tea to where it was. "Listen... if you trust my food so much, let me... cook for you."
"Huh?" You're honestly confused. "But you already do that. Often."
"Yes. I meant... I can cook for you. Outside of work."
Your friend whistles and that confirms it. It's a romantic offer. Your chest feels warm suddenly. This is happening. You bashfully look at the side, only to spot Gojo at the entrance, waiting for a chance to bid you goodbye. You smile at him as a way to show him your gratitude. Is this it between you two? So bittersweet. You hope you still can see him around, you hope he's soon free and happy...
He blows you a goofy kiss... Oh. Perhaps he shouldn't have, he realizes too late. You're starting at him, motionless, with big shiny eyes, mouth agape. The calm before the storm. Next thing he knows, you're squealing, hugging yourself, and struggling to stay put in your chair. Obviously, you blow a kiss back.
"Didn't know you'd like the idea this much. Should've said it before." Chef is very much pleased by your response.
Gojo is soon at your table. He goes to your friend and does his magic. Gasp. He made them a couple.
"Aw, I'm a little bit jealous." She playfully complains.
"Wait, wait, why?" The man scrambles. "You'll be there as well, right? If not, what's the point?"
What's the point? Are you allowed to feel insulted?
"Frankly, I've been super busy." You inform while getting up. "I guess it'll have to be just the two of you."
You grab bowl of classic ramen, put it on a another table at the corner, go to the counter, ask for another pair of chopsticks and settle on your new spot with your back to the world. Gojo follows you the whole time like a puppy.
"Are you mad?"
"Gojo..." you mumble, eyes trained on your food, "can you help me finish this? I want to go home as soon as possible and take a nap."
"Really?"
"Yes. Or would it look weird? Like noodles mysteriously floating."
He shrugs, already taking a seat in front of you. "Not to my knowledge."
"Alright then. Go ahead."
Gojo swiftly digs in and it's not weird at all. At least not to you. This a normal man enjoying a normal meal in a normal way. Cute. You can tell he likes it, too.
"Wow, big chef is not playing." He points out, about to take another mouthful. "It's a shame he will no longer cook for... " he catches himself before he completes that sentence, but he can sense it, your glower; might as well finish what he was saying, "for you... Too soon for jokes, right?"
No answer.
"Eat, it's gonna get cold."
Nothing.
He pouts. "You're no upset for real, are you? It's... you were not into it and he was. I had to pair him with the other girl! You know that-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah I know." Your features soften again. "They make more sense together. What you didn't have to do, though, was blow me a kiss."
"Why not?" He's so nonchalant about it. "It's friendly, very common in many countries. And! You loved it."
You smirk at the memory. "I did. But I'm still single and loveless because of that. Next time, you won't react."
"You shouldn't repress your emotions, that's bad." His index finger is up, as if he were telling you something important. "Also, thanks to all that we can now use our plan D!"
"Plan D?! We're there?"
"D for definitely this one will work out."
âââ
You can't help noticing the guy who's been anxiously pacing around near the reception desk for the past 20 minutes. He stops, scrolls through his phone, sighs, and starts pacing again.
"Excuse me," he finally talks to you, "what time do you close?"
"In half an hour." You offer an apologetic smile. It's late to visit a museum.
The man brings both hands to his head. The poor thing is stressed. At that moment, he receives a phone call.
"Hey! Bad news the museum is closing soon but we can still go to -, really? Oh no. We could reschedule. What? No, it's not fun without you. It's fine, see you later."
He hangs up and scrolls a bit more. He then pulls two tickets out of his pocket to study them carefully.
"Excuse me, again," he presents the tickets to you, "would you like to have these? I won't use them and I don't want them to go to waste. They're only valid for today."
Amusement park? It's not exactly your thing. Does Gojo like them? He wouldn't need a ticket, right? What are you even thinking?
"Hmm... how much?" Perhaps you could resell them to your neighbor and her new chef boyfriend.
"No, it's nothing. Just have them."
He's sweet for this but he must feel disappointed.
"Are you absolutely, a hundred percent certain you don't want to use these and you want to give them to me for free?"
"... Well. I did want to go but my brother just canceled."
"You could go by yourself. I'm sure you'll have a great time. Or why don't you try inviting someone else."
"I don't know... Who?" He takes another peek at his phone and lets out a short nervous laugh. "Unless... wouldn't it be strange if I asked you to come with me?"
What does one reply to that? It would indeed be strange since you don't know each other. How unusual. Or is Gojo behind all this? He has to be, that's the perfect explanation.
"I wasn't serious, of course!" The guy scratches his forehead out of embarrassment. "Don't worry about it. I'll leave the tickets here. Thank you." He turns on his heels, eager to leave.
"I'd like that!" Your abrupt response puts his focus back on you. Hopefully this is the right thing to do. "I'm almost done here. If it's not bother waiting a little more, I can go with you."
His face lights up at that.
â
This guy is an odd one in the positive sense of the word. He was quiet at first, but when you found a topic of interest, he became a chatter box. He's slightly awkward, unintentionally funny, and a bit innocent. You can easily get use to him.
The place is crowded, as anticipated. You trust you can manage. The view is pretty, people are having a great time, and you're with good company. Everything is going nicely until he chooses a ride. How high up there it is and how many times it spins, you don't know. More than you can handle, probably. You tell him that it's better to start easy but it's useless. He knows what he came here for; he must have this whole visit planned out, and you're not going to ruin that.
You get in line. The closer you get to the ride, the more frightening it seems. As minutes pass by, you come up with more scenarios of how things could go wrong. It's not that you're afraid of everything, it's just that you need to mentally prepare for situations like this. Some warm up would've been helpful, too.
"Are you scared?" The man asks. "Nothing bad is gonna happen. Hold onto me if you want."
That's kind of him. Too bad it doesn't calm you down. You simply don't like this ride, you wouldn't ride it even on your best day. You'd accept other attractions but not this one. And now you're shaking. Great.
Despite your current state, you don't miss the distinctive mop of white hair at the front of the line with this girl. Later, Gojo comes to stand next to your new friend and does... his cupid work? Did he get them together?
"That girl over there..." the guy observes, "she's alone and looks as scared as you. Should we call her over?"
"Yeah..."
He grabs the girl's attention and she rushes to where you are. After the man proposes she joins you, she gladly agrees.
"I think it's better if it's only the two of you." You suggests. "I want to check other rides."
"You don't mind?"
Not at all. And neither do they.
You lost track of Gojo, he might've left and you should too. You hurry your steps, it's going to be a long way back home.
"Who would've thought you'd get yourself a date behind my back." There is Gojo, matching your pace, as he's done before.
You smile at his teasing, but the joy doesn't fully reach your eyes.
"You okay?"
Nod.
"Wanna call?" He puts his hand on his ear pretending it is a phone. You do the same with your actual cellphone.
"I... why am I like this?" Exhaustion show in your tone. "There are too many things I can't do. I can't shake hands, I can't eat out without bothering whoever is cooking, I can't come to places like this and have a normal date... It must be so difficult being with me."
Gojo considers that comforting is not his strong suit, however, he's good at telling it like it is.
"Everybody is difficult. Sharing your life with others requires constant effort and patience. But someone like you is worth all that and more..." He rubs the back of his head. "I mean you, and lots of people. People in general. Maybe not all people but you get it..."
"I see..."
He wants to be offended by your lack of enthusiasm but there's a chance he messed up the last part. He's going to have to be more straightforward "It's true! Someone shows you the slightest bit of understanding and you give them so much more in return. In fact, it's frustrating."
You look at him after a while. "Wasn't aware you could say such kind words."
"I know what I'm talking about. You've gone through plan a, b, and c for my sake. Don't deny it."
"...You're worth all that and more."
"Oh you!" He crosses his arms defensively. "Are you making fun of me or are you flirting."
"I'm not making fun of you." You state with a genuine smile this time. The one he wanted to get out of you.
There's a short pause before Gojo decides to express his thought.
"We don't have to keep doing this, you know. Looking for your soulmate or whatever. If you're done with that, we can leave it here. It's fine by me."
It's been tiring for you, yet you need to give it another shot. In your condition, Gojo may be the only one who can help with your romantic life. And most importantly, in his present condition, you may be the only one who can help him with whatever issue he's facing.
"Have we run out of options? Because I'm willing to try once more."
"There is one... if it weren't for this small, insignificant problem, this would've been the number one option. But fear not!" His sudden loud voice startles you. "Since I'm so benevolent, I've have chosen to provide my assistance for as long as needed."
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You match the quick pace of the people around you on the street, everybody eager to go home after another day at work. Going through the mental list of things you have left to do for the evening puts a scowl on your face.
"Why so angry?"
Nevermind. The sound of that voice that it's so fresh in your memory was all it took to brighten you up. Gojo flashes you a wide grin as he walks beside you, feeling too proud of his newfound ability to improve your mood. Also, he's just glad you still can see him but you don't need to know that.
"Hi!"
"Careful." He warns. "Remember nobody else can see me. They're going to think you're crazy if you start talking to the air."
"Oh."
"I have something to ask you. Just answer 'yes' or 'no' with your head, okay?"
"Okay."
He chuckles. "Let's try with the head."
"Right!" Triumphant, you nod.
"There you go. So, the questions is..." a pause for suspense, "are you ready to meet your sweetheart?"
You weren't expecting it to happen this soon. You thought he'd gather some data first, your likes and dislikes, etcetera. Though he did say he's been doing his research on you. He probably has all the necessary details.
You check the time on your watch. There's some stuff you have to do at home... and none of that is as fun as being introduced to the future love of your life.
You nod again.
"Yay!" Gojo moves in front of you to lead the way, walking backwards the whole time in order to keep facing you. He tells you all he knows about the candidate: was in a serious relationship long ago, very soft on the inside despite his rough appearance, dog lover, has a stable job and will likely spoil you rotten (Gojo thinks). "And right now he's at the gym, so we're heading there."
"Boo.. "
"Heh you just have to pretend you're interested in a membership or something like that. I know for a fact you prefer working out at hom-"
"Excuse me?!"
Gojo brings his index finger to his lips, seemingly to remind you you shouldn't talk to him in public, but you can tell he does it to dissimulate a self-satisfied smile. The implication of him having seen you working out at home has you glaring at him with your cheeks burning, and of course he finds it very comical.
"Anyway, you're gonna thank me later when you see that bro is seriously buff." Gojo flexes for demonstration, strong forearms becoming evident under his sleeves.
"Wow." You whisper. The embarrassment from before is suddenly forgotten. You fan yourself now that your cheeks are burning for an entirely different reason. Too bad you can't make any comments yet.
°
One foot inside the gym and you're already regretting it. It's packed at this time of the day, and more people arrive by the second. But you must try.
The receptionist greets you with kindness, you do the same and then proceed to awkwardly ask for information.
"There he is." Gojo announces.
That's a huge man, even his gym bag looks like a kid's lunchbox on him. You can no longer hear a word from the receptionist.
"What should I do?" You murmur.
"Pardon?" The woman answers instead. You shake your head.
"Nothing. Leave it to me." Gojo assures.
As soon as he says that, you feel a looming presence settling next to you.
"Hey." He addresses the woman at the front desk. His voice is so deep. "You're new?"
That was directed at you. You have no option but to look up at the man. What a face. Gojo knows how to do his job.
"Not... yet. I'm still weighing my options."
"I could help you around if you decide to stay here."
A group of men abruptly step into the reception, each one of them high-fiving your love interest before exiting the place. Once they're gone, he gives you his full attention and his name. He expects to hear yours as he extends his hand for a handshake. Unfortunately, your mouth remains closed, your arms stiff at your sides, and your eyes fixed on his empty hand. You dread handshakes. They're not easy, you never know where people's hands have been. And now that you recently saw him grabbing a bunch of dudes' hands, it's ten times worse.
"You don't have to do it." Gojo calls, quickly picking up on the situation. "Just tell him your name, it'll be fine."
"... Uh-"
The man tsks. "Alright then." As he's about to lower his arm, the receptionist comes to the rescue and gives him his deserved handshake, grinning brightly. "I appreciate it, sweet one." He thanks the woman.
Although it's not his intention to make you feel guilty, you do anyway. Guilty and uncomfortable. You turn toward Gojo, concerned he might be upset with you for ruining this, however, he's busy staring at the pair, his expression unreadable.
"Well?" The receptionist queries, still cheerful. "Would you like to sign up? You'll get lots of benefits."
"Sure thing." The man chimes in. "We'll even teach you some manners over here. We can't have a pretty lady like you being rude."
Gojo, like a misbehaved cat, knocks over a half-emptied bottle of water that was sitting on the desk, spilling the rest of content on the floor. "Now that is rude."
"Gojo-"
"I'm changing my mind about this guy. Why don't we leave?"
He doesn't need to tell you twice. You apologize to the other two people and get out of there. You're finally free to use your hand wipes with nobody to tell you it's impolite.
Where Gojo is going, you don't know, yet you follow. You don't want to part ways when he's looking this disappointed. You get an idea.
"Gojo, are you mad? Wanna hear a joke?"
"Only if you don't mind others thinking you're a weird-" he notices you holding your phone to your ear, "oh."
"Please, talk to me. You're too quiet and it's making me nervous."
He takes a moment to organize his brain. "It's... I don't understand what happened. I could've sworn he was a good one. Sure, he's rough around the edges, blunt and whatnot but why would he speak to you like that? To YOU of all people. One looks at you and softens up on the spot. And I promise you he's a clean guy overall, I made sure to get that right." The faster he talks the faster he walks. "How come he felt like high-fiving the whole gym today and then ask you for a handshake like it was nothing? Have some common sense, dude."
"Gojo."
"And on top of that, he dares to suggests you have no manners. That you're 'rude'" He mocks the man's voice on the last word.
"I was rude."
"And- what?!" The rambling ceases. "No, you weren't."
"Yes, I was. If I wasn't going to shake his hand, I should've at least said something. Maybe he would've... uh... soften up."
"Mhm. And say something like what? Take that nasty hand away from me? Shove it up your-"
You snort. "Very classy, mister. I'm ending this fake call."
"No! Wait! My point is that you weren't disrespectful. You got anxious. That was it, right? It would've been nice if he had considered that."
Simple as they are, those words mean a lot to you. "...Thank you." You clear your throat. "Misunderstanding aside, I didn't dislike your pick. He has potential."
"You're kidding."
"No. I'm being positive and I believe he was just trying to be funny."
Gojo contemplates your supposition. To his knowledge, the man is not a bad person, so you might actually be onto something.
"In that case, he needs better jokes because he wasn't funny, he was an idiot. It worried me you would think of me as an irresponsible cupid." He tuts. "How frustrating."
You laugh at that. "Is that why you pushed the bottle of water off the desk?"
"And I'd do it again!... or was it too childish?"
"I'm kind of fascinated by everything you do, so my answer is no. Though," you try to recall that moment, "how did you do it? Did you just touch the bottle? Can you do that?"
"Correct." He beams. "I can interact with every single thing in this world, except people. Pretty cool, huh?"
More like lonesome, considering he doesn't give the impression of enjoying being on his own for too long.
"Is it cool interacting with me? You're allowed to lie and say yes."
"Hmmmmm..." he strokes his chin while the humming continues forever.
"Aw, please, I can't be that lame."
His face breaks into a smile. "Pretty pretty cool. But! Let's not get sidetracked. How do we feel about gym bro? Do we forget about him or do we want to give him another chance? I'll reserve my comments."
Tough decision. If you choose this guy, Gojo will be done with his job sooner. If it doesn't work, however, you'll be dragging things out. It's probably safer to choose someone with whom you click immediately.
"Honestly," you begin, "he seemed quite happy holdings his friends' hands and I wouldn't like to interfere with that. I will let gym bro go.
He claps and wipes a non-existent tear. "Very thoughtful, very wise-"
"Besides, his massive biceps were impressive but yours are much much better."
The confession leaves him astonished, speechless for half a second. "You mean these bad boys?" He strikes a pose like he did earlier, showing off his well defined muscles. Your excited squeak only encourages him to keep doing it.
You're a giggling mess by now. "Why were you hiding them from me? You're so silly."
Gojo lets out a heartfelt laughter and right there and then you declare it the best sound you've ever heard.
ă"cupid" satoru x fem reader. inspired by newjeans' cool with you.ă
cw: minor scalding burn. Gojo referred to as Gojo.
One.
Gojo has never worked this hard trying to find the perfect match for someone. But he's been observing you for a while, he's become well acquainted with that sweet heart of yours, and he is sure you deserve nothing but the best.
Today is the day. He knows of a nice guy; the problem is that said guy is your co-worker, and workplace romance is always awkward, right? That's why he's been hesitating. Regardless, he's decided to give him a chance.
It's your lunch break when Gojo appears in the little employee's kitchen inside the local museum you work at. He casually leans on the wall, watching you making your way to the coffee machine, where the co-worker is. Time to act. He places his right hand near the man's upper back and his fingers tingle, that's perfect. Then, he does the same to you... Weird. Not many tingles. No need to worry though, because it seems to be working.
The man turns to you."The coffee machine is broken."
"Really?." You go and press buttons anyway, but it doesn't do anything.
"How about we get coffee somewhere else? My treat." Co-worker smiles brightly at you.
You narrow your eyes and point at the full mug his holding. "Why? You already have yours."
"Yeah, but..." the man scratches the back of his head and Gojo chuckles. You're not making it easy. "I'd like to have coffee with you."
Your cross your arms as you pretend to ponder over it. "Sure, let's go."
You and the man walk to the coffee shop down the street, with Gojo following closely. As the guy opens the door for you, a woman comes out of the place in a hurry. Gojo knows she's going to bump into you and, even though he can't do much with his intangible body, he still gets in the middle. Terrible decision. First, the collision wasn't avoided at all and the coffee is spilled everywhere. Second, there goes the rest of the tingling sensation he didn't feel before. That only means one thing: co-worker has been successfully matched with coffee woman and you're third-wheeling.
"Are you okay?" The man asks the stranger.
"Ugh, yeah. I'm so sorry."
"It's okay, it was an accident. Let's go inside, I'll buy you a new coffee."
As the scene unfolds, you begin walking away, teary eyes evident to Gojo. He screwed up badly. Your co-worker calls you but you ignore it. You walk fast, sprint almost, and Gojo is right behind you.
"I am so so so sorry!" He needs to say it even if you can't hear him. "I'll fix it!"
You arrive at your workplace and head straight to the small infirmary at the back, desperately turning on the faucet. You relax a bit when your hand is under the flow of cool water. During the eventful bump, your hand received some of the spilled hot coffee, thankfully it was just a little.
Gojo can barely stand the guilt as he examines your skin from afar.
"It's not too bad, is it?" He freezes. You must be talking to yourself, but for a second there it sounded like it was directed at him.
"Bad or not, that shouldn't have happened to you." He sighs. "I messed up, huh?"
"Don't blame yourself. You didn't know it was going to turn out like this, did you?"
Gojo freezes again. Who the hell are you talking to? You suck in your cheeks while your eyes slowly set on him. It's then when you lose it and burst out laughing at his dumbfounded expression. You can't see his eyes under the blindfold but his mouth is hanging open and that's enough to make up the rest. It's only brief, because the next second he adopts a smug stance.
"Nah. She can't see me."
"I can."
"Get it together, Gojo-"
"Gojo?" You repeat pleasantly surprised. "Aw, now I can put a name to that cute face of yours."
There's no doubt that you're talking about him. No, that you are talking to him. It never occurred to him something like this could happen. What he needs to do now is remain calm and ask the most important question.
"Cute? Don't you mean handsome?" He lifts his blindfold just enough to reveal one beautiful blue eye.
You squeal, covering your huge grin with both hands as you nod. The running water is momentarily forgotten. "Yes, I meant handsome."
It was an important question to him. In all honesty, Gojo doesn't know what to do, he was not prepared.
"You can really see me, then... How?"
You just shrug. "If you don't have the answer, neither do I."
"Are you not, like... scared?"
"I don't know." You step away from the sink and take the liberty to rummage through the first aid kit, considering the nurse is not around. "I don't think so. It's been months since I first noticed you. I've had some time to come to terms with it. And I've seen what you do so..." you read the instructions on the ointment you found and apply a thin layer.
"Does it hurt?" There's a bit of concern in his voice.
"This?" You show him your hand. His own twitches, like he wants to reach and hold it to take a proper look, although he is aware he can't. "Not so much. It was nothing serious, still I thought I was going to cry back there."
"Yeah..." he pauses. "Wait, you weren't sad because that guy left you for that other woman?"
"Excuse me! He can't leave me if I'm not with him to begin with. And no, I'm not sad. I don't like him like that."
"But I..." he brings his palm in front of him. "You... and... I made you a match."
"It didn't work, handsome cupid."
"Why?" He frowns. It's not a question for you but you answer anyway.
"Maybe because I like you instead?"
Gojo takes a deep breath. "It could be. I'm just too good looking. This must be the reason why I should stay invisible." He pinches the bridge of his nose for dramatic effect. "Seriously though, what am I doing wrong?"
"I doubt it's you. I'm sort of resistant to the idea of falling in love. Don't know if that's relevant."
Gojo has encountered people with similar feelings as yours and he's still been able to find them a partner, so he's not entirely sure that's the cause. He needs to get to the bottom of this.
"And why is that?" He clasps his hands behind his back and leans forwards as he offers you a smile. "Love is such a wonderful thing and you deseve it."
"Sounds like an advertisement."
"What?" He stands straight. "No, it doesn't-"
"How about you? Are you in love?" Your eyes are shining with curiosity. "Do you have someone over there? Wherever you're from?"
"I literally live here. I'm more normal than you think. Well, not really. But I'm not actually cupid. I'm just a victim of the circumstances."
"What circumstances?"
"It's a long story." He gives you a dismissive hand wave. "So? Why don't you give love a chance?"
"With you?"
"No-"
"Then no."
Gojo clicks his tongue and takes the serious demeanor of a love therapist. "Listen, we don't have to do this if you don't want to, but I think it would be good if you had someone by your side who looks out for you and loves you, and brings you happiness."
You shake your head.
"Please!" He drops to his knees and pouts for good measure. The professional love therapist attitud didn't last. "You don't understand! I've worked so hard, I've done my research, I've dedicated a lot of time to observing you. Was it all in vain?"
"Yes." Your lack of hesitation earns you an offended gasp from him. "I'm sorry, I just don't feel ready."
"Oh... " Gojo stops his begging and goes back to a standing position. "Well, that's fair..."
There's a short pause before Gojo speaks again.
"To be honest, I'm not exactly comfortable leaving you on your own, but you can take good care of yourself, yes?"
You nod.
"Great. Also, I apologize if I seemed too insistent for a moment there. I've been so focused on using this ability to make sure people don't feel lonely at the same time I get closer to freeing myself from my own loneliness the more I do this, that I didn't take your sentiments into account."
"Hm?" Your eyesbrows raise in astonishment. "Your own loneliness?"
Gojo tenses. How did he let that slip? Although he can't be blamed. It's been so long since he last talked to someone. It's only natural he opens up a little. There's nothing embarrassing about sharing things one's been keeping locked away. He should not be ashamed.
His sudden loud laugh fills your ears. "Got you!" He slaps his thigh like he just pulled the best prank ever. "No, I said that to make my apology more convincing. A bit manipulative, eh?"
"Ah." You join him with a half-hearted laugh. "Yeah, you got me."
He meant what he said before, that's clear to you. For the past few months, you've been almost certain he was having fun doing his thing: studying people, assisting them in finding love, perceiving rewarding results. You've even imagined him returning home to his kind and all of them gathering to talk about their day . Of course, you didn't think that way at the beginning, the whole situation was rather terrifying back then . You didn't know who he was or what he was, what he wanted, why others weren't aware of his presence, why you were. All you knew is that he followed people around and that was scary. Until one rainy morning you caught him in action, when you were on your way to work. His hand went to someone's back, then he walked away and did the same to another person. In a hearbeat, those two stranger were engaged in conversation, exchanging phone numbers, and sharing an umbrella. It was adorable, but not as adorable as the satisfied smile on the matchmaker's lips. After that, you've occasionally had the opportunity to witness some his deeds. Today, however, you've learned that he doesn't live on another realm and that he's lonely. 'I get closer to freeing myself from my own loneliness the more I do this.' What does that mean? The more couples he makes the better for him? If you let him get you a partner... would that be of help?
Someone calling for you outside the infirmary snaps you out of your thoughts. "Why's the ticket office empty?"
True. The clock on the wall marks that your lunch break is over.
"Coming!" You answer while moving towards the door but, before you exit, you take another glance a the figure behind you. "Gojo?"
"Yes?" His lips quirk up and his head tilts to the side. He likes the sound of his name in your voice.
"I'll accept your services. Find me... uh... my significant other."
"For real?" He squares his shoulders at that.
"For real. I'll be requesting someone like you, please."
Gojo hums. "I'm afraid there's nobody else with this lethal face, but I'll do what I can for you."
"I know that. I meant someone who worries about my poor fragile heart and well-being as much as you do." You wink. He scoffs. There's no way to defend himself when you're already walking away.
Even though he didn't show it to you, he's ecstatic to finally be seen after so long that he could cry a few tears of joy.
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He cradles you like something precious salvaged from the end of the world, one arm firm at your back, and the other carding through your hair with almost reverent care.
His voice is low, approving, threaded with that dangerous calm as he tells you how beautifully you carried out his will: how even Meteor itself would have hesitated where you did not. You are praised not for kindness, but for resolve, and the pride in his tone is far more intoxicating than love ever was.
It's been a tough day for Toji. This morning, he was preparing his coffee as usual when the mug slipped off his hand. He took an exasperated breath and clicked his tongue. Nothing a broom couldn't fix. Later, he had to rummage through the cabinets to find another mug. And he did. The one you gifted him a few years back, the one he had hidden too well in hopes it would disappear on its own. Or at least just stay away from his sight for as long as possible. He scoffed. "Six more months." That was his calculation. "Six more months and I'll be over you." Toji allowed himself to have his coffee on your mug, a way of demonstrating himself how unaffected he was.
That was that, but this? If only he hadn't been too distracted scrolling through his phone the moment he chose to take a seat on that particular bench, at that particular park... because, across from him, there's your pretty self, eyes and mouth wide open as you admire the ring that the man sitting by your side is showing you.
"Really?" You said in disbelief. The other person nods excitedly.
This can't be happening to him. What a cruel joke, Toji thinks. It's true he always wanted you to find happiness. He wondered many times if he could give it to you, and if not, it was only fair you searched somewhere else. That was his sincere wish. Until now. Turns out it doesn't sit right with him seeing you all jolly with someone else, especially when he's been miserable since you left. He'll be fine in six months, anyway, the remaining time to get over you, according to him.
"You think she'll like it?" The man asks
"Of course she will! Ugh," you bring both hands to your chest and squeeze your eyes shut for a second, "I can't believe you're finally doing it."
"Me neither." He scratches his head. "Since you're quite close to her, I'd like to ask for your help. I have a couple of ideas..."
So you're not the one getting married, it seems. Toji is suddenly aware of his selfishness, there's a sense of guilt even; still, he can't help chuckling to himself in relief. Or maybe it wasn't to himself at all, considering that you're now looking at him, expression puzzled.
Oh. What now? Should he go over there and greet you? Pretend he doesn't remember you? Ignore you? Fortunately, you react first, briefly waving your hand and giving him a sheepish smile. Cute. Toji acknowledges you with an upward nod, casual. But your attention returns to your companion rather quickly.
You're grateful Toji can't see the ongoing chaos in your head. You change your position, trying to avoid seeing him from your peripheral, and do your very best to concentrate on what your friend's soon-to-be-fiancĂŠ is saying. It's not use, though, you're no listening, so you resort to humming in agreement during the whole conversation.
"Let's discuss the details later, yeah?" the man suggests. "I've got other stuff to do, but really thank you for lending me a hand."
You're left alone after finally saying your goodbyes. Is he still there? It takes you a few seconds to actually turn to look at where Toji was. It's empty. You sigh.
"Looking for someone?" His all too familiar voice startles you.
"Uh... sort of." You admit. Toji, nonchalant as ever, sits on the vacant spot next to you. "It's been a while."
"Yeah. All good?"
"Mhm, all good. Same old. You?"
"Same old."
Awkward pause.
"Not gonna lie," Toji breaks the silence, "I thought you were getting proposed, right now."
"Me?! How?!" Your eyebrows shoot up as you shake your head and hands. "Oh no! No, no. Of course not. That's impossible."
"Why?" A hint of a smirk appears on his lips. He entertained by your energetic response. "It's not impossible. "
"It'd be too soon."
"... After a year? Since we..."
"A year may be enough time for you but no for me." Your tone is lighthearted.
"Ah, so you're still hung up on me."
"I... What?!" There go your eyebrows again. Toji snickers. "I didn't say that." Here comes the nervous laughter. "I meant... one needs time to be over a relationship, no? And some more to meet someone new. And so much more time to decide to get married..."
"I know. I'm just messing with you." Toji is tempted to pat your head for reassurance. He used to take pride in his ability to make you this flustered. "And a year is not enough for me either, if you were curious."
"Ah... so... you're still hung up on me." You attempt to keep a straight face while repeating his joke.
"Wouldn't you like that?" He sees what you're doing and is amused.
You answer with a hesitant shrug. "Could be good for my ego."
"You don't have one of those."
"I do."
"The size of a pea."
You exchange smiles, and shortly after, the silence comes back. It's your turn to come up with something to say.
"It's Hina. She's getting proposed. Maybe you remember her?"
Toji frowns in thought. "Has like fifty cats?"
"Seven. Yes."
"Aw, of course. Good for her."
"Yeah..."
It seems like none of you have anything to talk about. It's alright, though. It was a cordial chat, and you made sure you're both doing alright. You don't dare to ask for more.
"I should get going now. It was nice seeing you." Toji doesn't reply right away, so you rise to your feet.
"I was..." he speaks before you can take a single step, "planning to get something to eat. There's a place nearby. Why don't you join me?"
That takes you by surprise. It's a simple question; yet you're unable to determine if it's a good idea to accept his invitation. On one hand, sharing a meal sounds harmless. On the other hand, you haven't healed completely, what if being around him, even just for a moment, reopens a wound? No. What if this your chance to get your closure?
Toji can practically picture the gears in your brain working hard.
"I would appreciate the company, that's all." He adds, hoping to be of help.
"Ummm..."
"I've got coupons."
"Ummm..."
"They serve a pretty decent amazake."
"They do?"
He doesn't need to convince you any further. Here's the thing, Toji would never push you to do something you don't want to do, but the fact that you didn't reject his suggestion from the beginning, was proof that part of you was eager to say yes.
"Okay. Just so you don't feel lonely."
"How considerate of you." Toji stands up and uses his hand to indicate the way. It's a pitty he lost the right to place it on your back to guide you. "I don't have coupons, by the way. Who do you take me for?"
ââââ
Inside the establishment, you study the menu with utmost care; brows are furrowed, pout is present. Anyone would think you're having trouble deciding what to get, but Toji knows better.
"Want me to order for you?"
You glance at him and scrunch your nose. "Yes, please."
He got to learn during your first dates that talking to strangers without becoming a nervous wreck was a challenge for you. Ordering at restaurants was an example. You would usually stutter and speak quietly, then the waitstaff would ask you to repeat yourself. A nightmare. When Toji picked up on this, he made it his job to aid as much as possible, either by encouraging you or doing it for you, depending on the mood. He doesn't understand how he managed to gain your trust, he only knows he took more pride in that than in making you flustered.
The waitress comes, Toji asks for both of your dishes, and she's gone in an instant. Easy.
"Thanks. I'm sorry." Your voice carries a dash of embarrassment.
"No worries, love."
...
You freeze the moment you hear the term. Love. He tsks.
"It slipped..."
Of course it slipped. It means nothing.
"I suppose this is brings back some funny memories." You provide as an explanation.
"I'd say." He leans back in his chair.
"All we're missing is Shiu pestering us for the memory to be complete.
"Please, he wasn't around that often."
You're thankful for the Shiu mention since Toji and you have a lot to say about him. At some point, you start relaxing in his presence, you speak more and so does he. You're glad the initial tension is gone. Several minutes pass by so fast and when you're done with your food, the pair of you step out of the restaurant. It was an enjoyable reunion.
"Where would you like to go now?" Yoji inquiries like it's the most normal thing to ask under these circumstances.
"Pardon?"
"Aquarium? Museum? Mini golf?
You squint. "You're joking."
"The zoo?"
"Toji, the zoo?!"
"You name it, I'll take you."
"What's going on?"
"Let's hang out. For the good old times. You love doing this kind of stuff, right?"
"Yes. You don't, though."
"I don't hate it."
"You just hated doing them with me?"
He grows quiet, staring elsewhere. "It wasn't like that."
What's with that face? Why does he appear to be hurt? Shouldn't it be the other way around? More importantly, why on earth are you actually pitying him?
"The movies?" You offer before you can regret it. "I believe the zoo is about to close."
"You want to watch a movie."
"If you're okay with that."
Toji is definitely okay with that. Although he doesn't use words to express it, he values your willingness to spend some extra time with him.
At the movie theater, Toji and you agree you're are too full to eat anything else. He gets you a pack of candies, regardless. Once in your seats, you're ready to give in to sleepniess and he notices on the spot.
"Aren't you smart?" He murmurs. "You chose to come here to have a little snooze?"
The lazy upward curl of your lip paired with droopy eyes confirms his accusation. He finds you charming for some reason.
"Hey," he calls while patting his shoulder, "won't you be more comfortable here?"
You don't have the energy to think of excuses to refuse, so you comply. Let's blame it on your drowsiness. How upsetting it is realizing that you are, indeed, awfully comfortable with this proximity. Meanwhile, Toji wonders if he can somehow bring you closer.
Halfway through the movie, you're wide awake and engaged. Toji whispers pieces of information you missed while dozing off. The pack of candies you're sharing is about to be emptied. Your head remains on his shoulder, according to his request.
Outside, the street lights are already illumating the roads as you two stroll aimlessly.
"There's a night market a few blocks down."
It's not a bad idea, you do consider going. The problem is that you can't comprehend Toji's intent.
"We should wrap it up."
He sighs. "I guess we should. You're tired?"
"Yeah."
"Would you like to go another day?"
It takes you a hot minute to gather your thoughts and, mainly, the courage to ask him something that's been bugging you since you broke up.
"Why do you want to... 'hang out'... with me now?" That's not the right question. "Why did you stop doing it when we were together?"
His jaw clenches. "It's... hard to explain. It's stupid more than anything."
"I'd like to know, anyway."
For a moment, the sound of the passing cars is what fills the air.
"Were you fed up?"
"No." He denies hastily. "Nothing like that."
"Did you... your feelings for me... were they gone?"
"No. Not at all."
"Did I scare you? When I told you I loved you?"
Toji swallows. "Yeah."
You figured that had something to do. During your time together, you and Toji were used to convey your feelings with actions rather than with words. It wasn't planned. It just happened like that and it worked for you. However, your affection for him kept growing and growing until,one day, you said it. I love you. He didn't say it back, instead he hugged you tightly. The rapid beating of his heart was evident to you, and that was enough. After that, there was a gradual shift in his attitude. He became colder, he would busy himself with stuff that didn't include you. And, honestly, that was offending. You would try to talk things out, but your attempts would always end up in arguments. You gave up. You concluded he was scared of commitment and he only realized it when you said the big words.
"Not in the way you may be thinking, though." He runs a hand through his hair, readying himself to give you an explanation, even if that turns him into a loser in your eyes. "When you told me you loved, I couldn't have been happier, I wanted to say it too. But, that made me aware of how much you meant to me, how much I needed you in my life. And that was damn scary. It occurred to me that one day you were going to see that you deserved so much better than what I could give you, and then you were going to leave me." He lets out a dry chuckle. "I thought the longer I was with you, the harder it'd be to let you go. And not just that, I also thought about the possibility of you sticking by my side and how I could bring you down with me if you did. No matter how I looked at it, I believed I wasn't the right person for you." Toji takes a quick peek at you. "It doesn't make much sense, does it? But it's true."
Your attention stay fixed on the ground you're walking on as your brain registers everything. Your heart aches the more you mull over this new information.
"I had no idea." You mumble. "I'm so sorry, I should've been more observant- "
"No, no. You're not gonna do that. You're not gonna blame yourself for my messed up thinking process."
" Toji..." How you wish you knew what to tell him.
He halts his steps and crouch down, a bit comically if you may add.
"Hop on my back, I'm carrying you."
"N-no... grandpa."
He stands straight to narrow his eyes at you, then goes back to the previous position.
"Come on, I made you walk a lot."
He's convinced you to do many things in just one day. You recognize that's the case because, deep down, you were eager to do them. You settle on his back and his warmth greets you instantly, a big contrast to the cold night air. It hits you harder with the physical contact: you've missed this, you've missed him so much.
During the ride, your head finds its place in the crook of his neck.
"Hoji" you call softly.
"Hm?"
"When you decide to star a relationship, you need to know," you pause, unsure of how to phrase your thoughts, "you're easy to love. I mean, whoever gets to know you like I do won't leave you, so don't worry about stuff like that. And you won't bring anybody down. If I talk about my own experience, I'd say it's quite the opposite. I'd say you lifted me up." You beg you're tripping over your words. "I... let others love you, yes? It's fair, you deserve it."
His hold on you is firmer now, a sign that he was listening earnestly, you hope.
"I'll keep that in mind." The truth is that Toji can't imagine being with someone who isn't you.
Finally, you arrive at your house where he is met with a few flowerpots. He remembers you telling him your plans to grow small garden on your porch. He also remembers thinking he'd be around to help you like he did in your backyard. Looking at it, you probably intend to add more plants; he could still give you a hand if you required it. It'd be a healthy activity for ex-partners who are in good terms.
Gardening is completely forgotten when your lips touch his cheek, tenderly and lingering. Toji faces you, your gazes lock for as long as your hearts desire. You're so close that his lips could reach yours without much effort. But then you smile at him, genuinely. And he does too.
He puts you down when you begin squirming on his back.
"I... good night, Toji, and thank you. Get home safely."
He doesn't leave until you get inside.
"Night, love." He he says when no one is there to hear him.
It is going to take much more than six months to get over you.
pretends he doesn't need you, he waits until youâre almost asleep to move closer. itâs subtle at firstâhis arm brushing yours, his shoulder pressing in like itâs accidental. when you shift away, he stiffens, jaw tightening, before quietly murmuring, ââŚdonât.â not commanding. not angry. just small. vulnerable. his fingers curl into your sleeve like heâs afraid youâll disappear if he doesnât anchor himself. he wonât look at you, but he wonât let go either.
gets into a fight and thereâs blood on his hands, dried and dark, but he doesnât care about that. he cares that youâre standing in front of him, unharmed. the moment heâs sure, his composure cracks. he pulls you in hard, forehead pressed to your shoulder, breathing uneven. âi thoughtââ he stops himself. swallows. ââŚstay with me. just for a moment.â his grip lingers longer than necessary, like heâs memorizing the fact that youâre here.
gets overwhelmed and sits beside you in silence, knees drawn up, gaze unfocused. you donât realize how bad it is until he quietly asks, âcan you⌠touch me?â not even in a specific way. just proof. your hand on his arm is enough to make him exhale shakily. he leans into it, resting his head against you, tension melting like heâs been holding himself together by force alone.
gets jealous easily so he watches from across the room, eyes narrowing when someone laughs with you too easily. later, when youâre alone, he asks, âyou like them?â too fast. too careful. when you reassure him, his shoulders drop, relief flooding his expression before he can hide it. ââŚgood,â he murmurs, stepping closer. his hand finds yours like it belongs there. like it always has.
at midnight, he wakes up before you do, every time. when you stir, you find him already watching you, eyes soft, unguarded. if you ask whatâs wrong, he shakes his head. ânothing.â then, quieter, ââŚjust donât go yet.â he presses his forehead to yours, breath syncing with yours, like the closeness is the only thing keeping him grounded.
loves deeply and silently, he doesnât say it often. when he does, itâs low and serious, like a vow. more often, he shows it in the way he always positions himself between you and danger, the way his hand never leaves your back in crowded places, the way his voice softens only when he says your name.
with choso, need isnât loud.
itâs constant.
a/n : thank you all for all the love i received on my previous post, im really grateful!! đĽšđĽš
Levi blames himself for taking the love of your life away. But did he really?
* The reader is the same height as Levi. (Sorry to my long legged baddies đŠˇđŤŁ)
*story looks familiar? This is my one-shot, I did not steal it. It's from my old profile yoke9494. This is my new profile since the other got hacked and deleted.
"Well shit.." Nile tilted his head and sighed.
"Yeah! Eat dirt, Zacharias! Eat. It..!!"
A crowd of cadets watched you rub Miche's face into the soft dirt. Someone had bet that Miche was too much of a pussy to slap your ass during training. He wasn't one to back down from a dare.. He probably should have passed on this one though.
Erwin shut his eyes and looked the other way. Nanaba was right beside him, cheering you on.
Hange chuckled. "She's wild. Even the Commidan is scared of her."
A group of guys you hung with all crowded around you and dragged you off the giants back. You were too fast for Miche and brought him down fast, and for having such a little body, you were heavy as shit..
Such a wildcard...
That was Edwin's first impression of you. And it wasn't the last.
------------
You were a part of a rowdy bunch. You never really said much to him. You'd mostly talk to Nanaba or Hange, and if he was around, you usually just gave him a smile.. Nile tried to get your attention, but you always avoided him and his horrible pick-up lines. And Miche? Well, he was just plain scared of you.
You'd never give a bunch of losers like them the light of day..
Until one faithful afternoon.
Erwin sat by himself as he pushed around his sloppy lunch on his plate. A light tap got his attention-- he froze when he realized it was you.
You nodded at him. "Hey, beautiful. Are you using that?"
It took him a second to realize you were motioning to his tray.
"N-No. You can take it."
He hadn't noticed how pretty you were up close. Or how nice your smile was..
"Thanks!"
Suddenly, a large hand yanked his face down to the table. It was Miche-- "Hey!"
A fast *swoosh* unfurled his hair as you swung the tray over him, hitting another cadet in the face. It started a huge fight and by the end of the day you and a couple others were running laps til sundown.
(Miche) "I heard the guy had it coming."
They watched the few of you stagger along the running track. You bent over to vomit and continued running..
Nanaba hummed. " He did. The guy was trying to peek into the girls showers. She did us all a favor."
Nile nudge Erwin. "Too bad that little spit fire is aiming for the Garrison Regimen. What a waste of energy huh? She'd be perfect for that weird humanity dream you have."
The Garrison?! That was a horrible fit for you!
He waited for everyone to leave and gulped down his nervousness to approach you. Like a creep he followed behind you clutching his water canteen. You stumbled and laughed at yourself like a crazy drunk. Until your legs finally gave out and you fell to the ground. But you were still going? Dragging yourself to the nearest sleeping barracks and propping yourself against the side wall.
He could hear your heavy breathing, your lungs rattling with every exhale. When he approached you, your eyes were closed and your head thrown back. He watched your chest heave up and down as your hair stuck to your sweaty skin.
He has to shake his head to rid himself of silent thoughts. He was a teenager but he didn't have many of those hormonal teenage thoughts. Nile and Miche called him weird for it.. He didn't flirt, his eyes didn't wonder. He did as he was told and on his free time he kept his nose in a book or strategized about one thing or another.
"What's up Smith? That for me?"
He didn't mean for his mind to wonder! He looked down at his canteen and nodded. You gave him the softest thanks as he handed it to you. Watching the way the water ran down your neck as you drank for dear life.
He was surprised you even knew his name--
"You okay? You look constipated sweetheart?"
Oh right!!He was staring and getting off track!
He straightened his posture and put on his serious tone, "I heard you were aiming to join the Garrison? Is that tru--"
You cut him off with a snort. "Are you here to convince me to kill myself in the Scout Regiment? Your whole save humanity from the Titans and all that?"
He furrowed his bushy brows. "I--" he was speechless for once. How did you know?!
You smiled. "I hear Nile and his big mouth talking about it all the time. Sometimes I can hear him calling you crazy from across the training field."
Fucking Nile! He was about to give his whole speech he thought of just for you. But his words were stuck--
"I'm in."
His mouth hung open and closed like a fish. It made you giggle so hard that you almost choked on air.
"Are you-- Really? I had a whole rant for you.."
You gave him a little aww before handing him back his now empty canteen. "Save it. Honestly it's crazy but it makes sense. There has to be more outside of these damn walls. It would be nice to see what it is and to understand the mystery of where the man eating giants come from."
He scratched his head. "I didn't think you'd agree so fast. Wouldn't you want to notify your family-- They'll want to change your mind-"
You slowly tried to slide yourself up with the help of the wall. You fell back down and this time Erwin was by your side trying to help you up. He had you halfway up as he held you by the waist. Hopefully this was okay with you.. He was aiming to hold you by your underarms but panicked..
You laughed at how stupid you both must look. "No need. My family was tired of me always causing trouble for them. The second I turned the age limit my shit was packed and I was sent here. They don't care where I end up."
He wasn't going to pry, he wanted to but not yet it was too early to ask such personal questions.
"Y'know... You're kinda cute Erwin' Smith."
His eyes widened. "--- Thank you?" That's not what he wanted to say. He wanted to say you were cute also. That's what you're supposed to do.. right?
You snorted. "If I'm joining the Scouts then you need to do me a favor."
He looked at you. "What is the favor?"
Your smile made him feel a little dizzy. "You're my boyfriend now. Deal?"
He nearly dropped you. "Wha--? But--... okay?"
A breathless laugh from you made him smile. You were messing with him, right?
"Okay boyfriend. Carry me to my bed please. I'm not gonna make it on these legs."
Oh... He guessed you weren't kidding after all..
-----------------------------------
*Years later*
Erwin looked up from his desk and Levi over his shoulder. You stopped in your tracks. "Oop. Am I interrupting something?"
Levi answered for Erwin' as he got up from his seat. "Nope. But obviously I'm about to interrupt something."
You smiled at the grumpy Caption. "That's okay Levi. You can stay and watch if you want."
"Y/n. You know he doesn't like when you talk to him in such a manner."
You ignored the love of your life and felt accomplished at the way Levi's ears turned pink as he passed you. " You're a weird woman."
You didn't miss the way his voice shook just a little bit. You'd do anything just to see any other look one Levi's face. His grumpy one was soo boring..
You laughed and called over your shoulder as he walked out. "You can't look down on me Captain Levi! We're the same height!"
Erwin watched you walk over to the back of his chair. His eyes closing when you pressed down on his stressed muscles on his shoulders. The warmth of your lips on his neck as you loved on him like you always did.
"You look tired. Have you been sleeping?"
He hummed. "I've noticed it's hard to sleep when you aren't in bed with me."
You've noticed too.. You had been away with Levi watching after Eren. You missed Erwin' so much..
Even though you were now back at headquarters you still didn't get to see him much. It was chaos the second you came back. Intense training, planning, the works.. You found yourself falling asleep in Hange's office most nights as she ran experiments with Eren.
The expedition to reclaim Wall Maria was just a week away. You looked down at Erwin as your eyes traveled to his now missing arm. You cried like a baby when he was brought to you in that condition. But of course the devil himself could never stop Erwin' Smith..
"I'm guessing Levi was here trying to convince you to stay behind?"
Erwin opened his eyes. "And you're here to do the same? I'm assuming you know my answer is set in stone."
You hummed and leaned against him. "As much as I wish you would consider it.. I know better. And I don't want to fight. Especially on what could be our last week together.."
It was a truth you both talked about. And as much as Erwin pushed for you to love but not miss him if anything were to ever happen... He knew you hated the thought.
The room became silent and he hated it. A sharp pain always grew in his chest when you were quiet. That wasn't you and he didn't like it at all.
"Come here."
Even with a missing arm he was still able to pull you around and handle you the way he always did. Over the years he had gotten brave when it came to touching you, he had a map of your body burned into his mind. Every dip, curve, and mark. The places you loved the most when he bit or licked at your skin.
He'd grown addicted to the way you moaned his name as he was inching himself into your cunt, the way your walls squeezed around his cock and tried to milk him for everything he's got.
How when you were close your lips smashed against his. Muffled moans and groans filled his office and seeped into the stone walls. His arm wrapped around your small waist keeping you tight against him as you both chase your highs.
Desk quickies were normal these days, but you both tried to savor every minute. And during this week he was racking his brain on how to fit as many of them as he could into his and your busy schedule.
Because.. Just in case.. this may be your last week together...
-----------------------
Levi watched you with a heavy heart as you ran to Erwin's side. Floch had just brought his broken body back and you were already a mess.
"Erwin.. What have you done to yourself."
Your uninjured eye traveled up and down his body, hands trying to stop the bleeding. He was slipping away fast and you were frantic. You didn't care about your own broken body when the love of your life was falling through your fingers like sand. You didn't care that half your body had gotten second degree burns from one of Bertholts blasts. The pain of seeing Erwin like this hurts you more.
"I'm so sorry, Y/n. But you understand.. I'm doing the right thing.... Right?"
You watched him with a blank stare as he gave the injection that was meant for Erwin to Armin. You just stared and cradled Erwin's head against your chest, listening to his short shallow breathing becoming silent. Not knowing that your heartbeat made his forever sleep come quicker... Easier... Painless.
You didn't say a word to him or anyone for weeks. It worried many, so much that it even brought a letter from your parents your way. You never opened it.. and eventually you had to start speaking again.. But it wasn't the same, everyone could feel it.
But everyone needed to move on. The truth was known and Erwin's dream was still carried out. There was another world behind the walls and it was everyone's right to see it.
But Levi still held on.. You were somewhere in that husk of a body you had now. And he missed it..
He didn't admit it to anyone but he missed you. The woman who got under his skin, the woman who made him flustered and tried to make him smile with her shitty jokes.. He missed his annoying friend..
Though could he really call you that? He was the reason you were broken. He loves you.. He didn't mean for it to happen, he knew you were off limits..
But he'll admit, he was a little disappointed when he, Furlan, and Isabel were first brought into the Scouts and he found out you belonged to Erwin. He swore love at first sight was bullshit-- just made up crap meant for fairytales. It took you yelling in his face for giving Erwin an attitude to prove him wrong.
He was going to fix this. He had to..
---------------------
It was a quiet night out in the forest and only a few soldiers roamed around and talked amongst themselves. Then there was you..
You sat in front of a low campfire while using a lantern to light the pages of the book you were reading. Hange had tasked you both with keeping guard of the beast Titans holder, Zeke Yeager. You took turns watching him as the bastard slept. Levi could imagine the old you wanting to smother him with a pillow as he slept. But when you met the man who killed your beloved... All you did was walk past him and continued on with your day.
"Y/n?"
You hummed but didn't bother to look up at him, "This book is something else. Wanna read it when I'm done?"
He didn't.. "Can we talk for a minute?"
You looked up and furrowed your brows. The light making your old burn scars visible. They had slightly faded with time but still left their mark. Your entire left side was covered. And even though you tried to hide your face more often with your hair.. Everyone could still see them, a reminder of that day. But to Levi? You were still beautiful as ever, they were a reminder that you were strong, that you survived..
"Something wrong?" You looked back at the tent. "I swear this son of a bitch is still sleeping inside.."
Levi shook his head. "No. This is something.. Personal."
You set your book down and called a few men over to keep watch. For a while now Levi has tried everything he could think of to bring you back. He even went as far as traveling back to Shiganshina to bring Erwin's bones back to be properly buried for you. Of course you were grateful but you still haven't fully returned.
He led you deeper into the forest and watched you wrap your cloak around you a little tighter. A cloak that was two sizes too big for you.
"Levi? Are you going to kill me out here? With how stiff the mats that we're sleeping on are.. I welcome it."
He could hear the playfulness in your voice but it wasn't loud enough. The moon was bright and found its way through the thick leaves of the giant trees. He stopped further away from camp. Far enough for privacy but close enough to see if anything were to happen.
He finally stopped and turned to you.. with the most serious voice you ever heard. "Fuck me up."
You blinked. "Huh?"
He tapped his cheek. "Give me all you got. As hard as you can.. No slapping. I want your hardest hit."
Has he fucking lost it. You put your hands on your hip. "Now Levi... Did you sneak a drink when I wasn't looking? For shame."
He scoffed. "I'm serious Y/n. Kick my stomach in till I puke blood, pull out my hair out till I'm bald, break my bones, anything. Please."
You tilted your head. "Why would I want to do that? Are you okay?"
He was getting pissed. "Are you okay? You act like you are but I can tell-- I can tell you blame me! You blame me for not saving him. You blame me and torture me by walking around with this bullshit mask. You aren't the same anymore. You don't smile like you used to, you don't joke around like you used to, you don't bother me like you used to. The woman I can't stand to be around or to be apart from is gone and I miss her!-- What-- What the fuck are you smiling at?"
You snorted and folded your arms. "Oh? Are you done Princess? Geez and I thought Eren was the cry baby."
Levi gritted his teeth. "Fuck you."
You threw your head back and laughed.. a genuine laugh finally left your mouth. But he was too pissed to appreciate it--
You took off your cloak and set it on a low hanging branch. You sighed and cracked your knuckles. "Put your fist up Levi. Get in the correct stance."
His anger fizzled. "Huh?"
You got into your fighting stance and held up your fist. "You want me to beat your ass black and blue while you stand there and take it? Nah. We're doing this the right way. Fight back you little bitch."
You were smiling the entire time, but he could feel the sting in your words. He shook his head. "I'm not going to hit you,"
You stuck out your bottom lip. "Aww." Fake sympathy melted away as your smile dropped. "Tough shit. You want me to forgive you so bad? Then put up your fucking fist. If not, then tuck in your balls and deal with me the way I am rat."
You weren't going to let this go. This was a mistake on his part..But maybe you needed this? Plus that mouth of yours was making his skin burn with irritation... Almost like old times.
He got into his stance. " Fine. I don't want to hear you bitching because I hit you too har--"
His eyes widened when you swung his way. You caught him off guard and he was expecting a hit to the jaw. Only it wasn't until a sharp pain ran up his left leg that he realized what you had done.
You had knock him on his ass but made sure to kick under his jaw on his way down. He's never fought you before, but he's heard stories.. He didn't think they were actually true?
You straddled his chest and reached for his throat. "Y'know Levi.. I've loved that bushy eyebrowed freak since I was fifteen." You began to squeeze tighter and tighter. "He was my first everything.." Your hands began to shake and his vision doubled. "My first boyfriend, my first kiss, the first person to care about me! I even gave him my damn virginity the night we graduated from the cadet corp!"
He couldn't stay like this for long.. You wanted him to fight back right? Using a bit of his strength his body shot up and his head slammed into your face. He could hear the crack of your nose and the pop of your now busted lip.
Blood dripped down your face as you flew back. You tried to kick him but he caught your ankle and twisted it. Not enough to break it but enough to sent a hit pain up your leg. The force made you half roll onto your stomach.
But that didn't mean he had won. You pulled a fast one and used your upper body strength to jerk yourself up and use your free ankle to send the tip of your boot into his eyebrow.
He could feel the fat of his eyebrow split, warmth rolled down his face and smeared on the front of your boot..
No words were said as the fight went on. He got a few hits in and so did you. Eventually your hits became sluggish and he quit fighting back. He let you punch and kick him to your heart desired. You needed this.. You've been holding on for too long, and her was here--
"Fuck, Levi-- time out!-- I'm going to puke!"
He caught his breath and waved you off from his place on the dirty ground. He was going to need a long bath after this.. The things he'd do for you were sickening.
He listened to you empty your stomach. And once you were done he heard you. "Why couldn't he just love me enough to stay Levi?"
He sat up from his spot.. You were leaning against a tree, eyes closed, head thrown back, chest heaving.
You swallowed the lump in your throat and chuckled to yourself. "Oh, this is bringing back memories... Is this your idea of a sick joke Erwin?"
You could hear footsteps stop beside you. Only this time when you opened your eyes it wasn't a nerdy blond with bushy eyebrows and the bluest eyes. It was a grumpy faced ravenette with cold grey eyes.
Levi crouched down and brought your head to face him. He had pulled some fabric from his pocket and began to clean up your face. His poor eye was swelling shut..
"Just so you know.. I was never mad at you Levi. And I never blamed you."
He looked at you and continued to clean you up. Now was his time to just listen.
You winced when he pressed on your nose a little too hard. Fucker got you good.
He gave you a small sorry as you hummed.
"I was really mad at myself. He always told me I can still love him in some way but I'm not allowed to miss him and hold myself back.-- I started to let go.. slowly. Until one day I didn't miss him anymore. That's when I began to hate myself.. I kept my promise but I didn't want to. I'm a bad person.. I wanted him to forget his dream and want me instead. I'm stupid to think he would.."
Levi sat next to you and sighed. "No. You're not a bad person. And no, you aren't stupid.. He did love you a lot. The man was just crazy for a dream he couldn't let go of-- if you ask me.. He was the stupid one."
You snorted then made a pained face as a slow pain ran up your head. "Ow... But yeah... Dumbass left all this." You motioned to yourself and smiled before slumping back against the tree.
Levi copied your movements. "I wouldn't leave you."
You turned to him. "....... Is this a love confession? Cause if it is... You have horrible taste in women. I just kicked your ass pipsqueak..--- Horrible timing."
He chuckled.... (He fucking chuckled?!?!) Damn you probably had a concussion--
Levi's voice was the softest you've ever heard it be. "I let you.-- and you can't look down on me Y/n.. We're the same height."
--------
The soldiers who were keeping watch over Zeke all stood up and gasped when you and Levi returned. His eye was swollen shut, he was hunched over a little from a hard kick you sent to his back at one point. Your lip was busted and you were limping so bad that Levi had to help you walk.
Jensen, a new bright eyed recruit, gasped. "Captain! Squad leader! What happened?!"
You smiled and pointed behind you. "There's some big ass mosquitoes in the forest tonight. You all better stay out of there.."
A few older soldiers chuckled and stood up so you and Levi could get comfortable in your spots again. He poured you some tea as you sent your soldiers to bed.
"You looked back at the tent. "Do we really need to keep this waste of oxygen alive? I still have a itch to strangle someone.."
Zeke's voice came from the tent. "I'm still awake you know."
You threw a rock at the tents entrance. "Go to sleep bitch!"
Levi sipped his tea. "I can't wait to kill him either."
-------------------------
Though you never agreed to officially be his.. yet.
Levi kept his promise. He was always by your side and never left. He patiently waited, even after the war was over and he was sure you didn't want anything to do with his broken body and a face that belonged in a horror story.
But like he did for you... You stayed by his side.
Eventually you both married and built a home together. You both opened a small tea shop and spent endless nights repainting the damn walls. Eventually you both settled on a familiar shade of blue..
There was still a love for Erwin, the first loves are hard to forget. But it didn't compare to the love you and Levi shared.
He sat outside of your shared home and let the warmth of the sun take over. He just wanted to heard the sounds of his life surround him. A life he'd never imagined he'd be able to have.
He could hear you cooing at yours and his new grandchild. A baby girl that was born only three weeks ago. He could hear his oldest son tell you the story of his daughters birth. You making sure that your daughter in law was well taken care of and was getting plenty of sleep.
He couldn't believe it... Levi Ackerman was not only married to the woman he couldn't imagine his life without, but he was a father to not only one. Not only two, but a father to 8 kids (all who had the audacity to tower over himself and you.) and grandfather to 3 beautiful grandkids.
"Dad? What are you doing out here?"
"Crazy old man. Did mom throw you out?"
He looked up to see his second oldest daughter and third oldest son. By now his hair has grayed and he had crows feet around his eyes.. But one thing that was new.. that he was proud.. were the deep smile lines that sat beside his mouth.
"She hasn't yet. I'm just waiting for you all to show up. The new baby is already inside."
His daughter squealed and ran straight in. His son chuckled and sat next to him on the bench. Knocking on his leg braces that helped him walk after being wheelchair bound for almost 5 years..
"I'll wait with you pops. I don't want to hear mom bug me and ask when I'm having a baby with my new wife yet. I just got married a month ago!"
Levi huffed out a laugh. "We made your brother after the " I do." kiss..The wheels on my chair almost fell off."
His son gagged. "Gross dad.. gross."
When the last of his children showed up he got up to follow them into the house. It was full of life once again..
He wasn't sure where to look.. Up at the sky or at the ground. He settled for the middle. "You really were the stupid one Erwin..." He closed his eyes when he heard you laugh. "When I meet you again.. we're going to have to fight for her.. because I'm not giving her up so easily."
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If somebody asked you what kind of relationship you have with Sukuna, you wouldn't know what to answer. Companions, maybe? Some time ago, he accepted you in his life because he found you useful. You, on your part, were content with what he had offered you. Eventually, you grew used to each other. Sukuna started taking you with him almost everywhere, "to teach you surviving skills" as he claims; that's why you're here today.
The sky is lilac with a hint of orange, the waxing crescent moon is currently visible, the cold wind makes the grass dance, and you take in the view, sitting on the open field.
"We will wait a bit more." Sukuna anounces as he walks towards you. He stops when he's a few steps away from reaching you, and that's where he settles.
He said you would be hunting. It's a fact that you don't posses the abilities nor the strength he does, but he has trained you well enough to be able to follow him closely. Regardless of your performance, you know it's going to be fun.
You turn to look at him. Sukuna is gracefully laying on the grass, arms behind his head, and eyes closed. He looks so peaceful right now, a big contrast to the usual menace with a wicked smile that he is. You very much like both sides of him, anyway.
You use this chance to admire his beautiful features (it wouldn't be the first time, but still). Everything about him is so mesmerizing, his strong cheekbones, the slope of his nose, the markings. You lift your index finger, tempted to trace them... when did you crawl your way next to him? He hasn't shown any signs of discomfort so it should be fine. You opt to place your whole hand on his cheek, your thumb strokes his skin with tenderness. He doesn't flinch.
Now, you direct your attention to his lips. They're so inviting. You lean forward, slowly, carefully, until your breath mingles with his. The fluttery feeling in your stomach increases at the thought of closing the remaining distance. But you stay still. You don't know if it's right, so you just continue caressing his cheek while you move your face away from his. Not too much, though.
Sukuna opens his eyes with no rush and stares at you for a moment. It's hard to decipher what's going through his mind.
"If you wish to do it, do it." He states simply before shutting his eyes again.
His words register in your brain but you don't react right off. He agrees? Is it really that easy? He did make it easy for you. All that is required is that you wish to kiss him, and, by all means, you do.
There's no need to hesitate this time. You steadily begin narrowing the space between you two. Your eyes close as well and... finally. You only touch the corner of his lips with yours but that's enough to excite you, enough to send tingles down your spine, to quicken your pulse until you can feel it in your fingertips, to rise the temperature of you body without allowing the evening air to cool it down.
If you weren't so caught up trying to assimilate all these sensations, you would notice the slight shift in Sukuna's breathing.
After a while, you pull away. Who knows how long you lingered there. Your hand leaves his face and lands on his hair, you run your fingers through it, once, twice, then let go, satisfied. You return to your initial sitting position, facing away from Sukuna. You could kick your feet, take fistfuls of grass, giggle like a happy child, but that might disrupt the comfortable quietness of the moment.
However, Sukuna is already watching you. It's impossible to hide your giddiness from him. He takes notice of the way you hug your knees to your chest and the way your cheek goes up as you smile to yourself. He can picture your expression perfectly, even when your back is to him. How amusing you are, he thinks.
A warm hand presses to your shoulder. You see Sukuna now standing beside you.
ŕ°ď¸. Imagine being one of the women who got kidnapped by aliens wanting to experiment on you, staging a revolt, and crash-landing on a prehistoric hellscape. Now imagine a bunch of hot, feral men whoâve never seen a human woman before declaring you guys as their respective, fated mates. Yeah. Itâs that kind of story. Is it too late to go back to the alien scientists?
ŕ°ď¸. Chapter ONE - first meeting
Synopsis: in which you were taken to the alien settlement and finally meet the residents. but not everyone was... happy about the situation.
Warnings: swear words, threat of violence, some talks of/allusions to physical harm/cannibalism/SA/parasites/food poisoning, one reader is wounded and gets first aid, predatory/barbaric behaviour, not proofread
Word Count: 9k - long but can be broken down based on each JJK man's section, and from there, it's less than 1.5k each
ŕ°ď¸. MASTERLIST
The women woke up, for the second time in just over a day, bound and observed.Â
Leaning on one another, they suddenly became painfully aware that they wore nothing but the hospital gowns the Blobs changed them into. Perhaps it was the tickling of grass on their bare skin, the way it itched but they couldnât scratch, that reminded them. Or perhaps it was because they felt the heated weight of eyes on their bodies.
Being dragged in a net together, elbows shoved in each otherâs face and knees brought to someoneâs stomach as hair practically curled down throats, wasnât a fun experience. In fact, none of what had happened in the last 24 hours had been very fun at all. A nightmare within a nightmare within a nightmare, that was what it felt like.Â
A ridiculously long dream sequence that didnât seem to have an escape: kidnapped â or should one say, probed â by ugly-looking aliens, experimented on, fighting said ugly aliens, landing not-so gently in a new planet, and now captured once more.Â
It was as if, every time they thought things couldnât get worse, the universe colluded to prove them wrong. Like Murphyâs Law came to life just to spite them.
This time, however, they were taken by a four-armed behemoth of a man, not shapeless figures with scalpels.Â
âManâ wouldnât even be the right word; he looked closer to a demon or the literal devil, what with his red skin, redder eyes and black markings. Regardless of their personal beliefs, they knew that did not bode well for any of them. They writhed and thrashed, hoping to slow him down or, better yet, snatch themselves from his firm grip.
No cigar.
It went on for hours.Â
On and on, he advanced, marching through the jungle, climbing up hills and weaving through thick trees with five women in tow. One of them considered it impressive, another fell asleep, someone chewed on the net for escape, one hoped she wasnât too heavy, and the last could only groan in pain from their wound.Â
There was no point asking her if she was okay, they realised. The answer was clear: if she didnât get help soon, she would be their first casualty.
âWhy the hell are they looking at us like that?â
Right.Â
Five aliens were staring them down at the present moment.Â
Sun descended, they found themselves in a clearing with huts and fire and poles and life. It looked like a small village, a paradise in the middle of a carnivorous terrain, like something from a set of a movie set in the prehistoric or ancient times.
There was no denying that those things that watched them were actually aliens. They looked different to each other but clearly much more similar to themselves than they were to any one of the girls â varying heights, multi-coloured, muscular. It was impossible to pretend that they had simply wandered into the wrong part of the neighbourhood and even more impossible to pretend that those things didnât look like they could kill with a snap of their wrists.
âMaybe theyâre hungry and think weâre their next meal,â one girl joked.
No one laughed.Â
Behind the five figures stood a large fire with five spit roasts of what looked like boars or a small cow. The smell was wafting under their noses and it made their mouths water; they hadnât eaten at all and it was beyond distracting. How they even had the energy to wander as far as they did, who could say?
With a nudge to the girl beside her, a woman asked, âDo you think theyâll feed us?â
âIâm more worried about them killing us,â she responded, never taking her eyes off the foreign scene.
And beside her, someone responded, darkly and pulling at her restraints, âTheyâre men. Thatâs not the worst of what they could do.â
That shut all of them up.
Each bound by a pink vine by their ankles and with their arms strapped to their sides, they knew they couldnât run, couldnât even really hop away. They no longer knew where they were and there existed no place for them to run to. Things looked bleak. Mockingly so.
âThey look weird,â one of the aliens said.Â
âI think mine is cute. Like a beetbeet,â another said. He was off-putting in the way he was smiling at them â they didnât even know if it really was a smile, only that his mouth was curved into sharp points, revealing sharper rows of teeth. There was amusement lacing his words, his dramatic movements, and that only set them further on edge.
Strolling over to one of the women, tail swishing behind him â yes, he had a tail â he squatted down. His loincloth dragged on the floor as he cocked his head to scan her features.Â
A hand, three fingered with a long thumb, reached out and patted her head. She stayed very still, except for the subtlest scoot to the left, closer to the girls and away from him. He was playing with her hair, lifting locks and feeling for the textures of the strands when he said, âI canât wait to show you around.â
She was holding her breath, paralysed with fear and resisting the urge to throw up. âW-why the hell is he so focused on me?â
âDonât move, oh my god,â someone said.
One of the girls muttered, just as terrified, âDoes no one care that we can understand them?â
The girls began whispering amongst themselves.Â
âExcuse me, kind sirs?â
ââKind sirs?ââ
âShush. Iâm trying to be polite.â Facing the aliens with a wide smile, she tried to negotiate. âCan you let us go please? Weâre not dangerous, we promise. We donât belong here, you see. Weâre from another planet. So if we could get back on our way, that would be much appreciated.â
They blinked, unresponsive.
One girl realised, âThey canât understand us.â
It was taking everything in them not to panic, to not freak out over what the hell was going on, any more than they already were. It was one thing for them to be on another planet and it was another for the inhabitants of the other planet to interact and breach that boundary that kept the plausible deniability of their reality alive and well.Â
âWhy are they so scared?â The big one wondered. He turned to the humans and said, âWe are not going to hurt you.â He huffed, a sound of amusement, they thought. âNot unless you like that, anyways.â
The women gasped.
Dryly, a girl mumbled, âItâs like we never left Earth.â
âAre they gonna fuck us?!â
âIâll bite their dicks off if they try.â
âWhat if they donât have dicks?! What if they have weird tentacle penises?â
âIâll bite those off too.â
âThatâd actually be kinda hot.â
âEwâŚsame.â
âShut up, all of you. Letâs not jump to conclusions. They could be friendly.â
Hysterical, a girl jerked her head to the four-armed alien. âThat guy looks like the literal devil! How could he possibly be friendly?â
âItâs called wishful thinking, I donât know.â
âNo, itâs stupid thinking.â
âYouâre stupid.â
âAre you guys actually arguing right now? Like right now?â Someone groaned, exasperated and in disbelief. âIf we die because you dumb bitches annoyed them to death with your bickering, Iâm going to kill you.â
âHow can you kill us if weâre already dead?â
âOh. My. God.â
An alien stepped up. They quieted down.Â
He had horns, unlike the others, and a stern expression. This one didnât scan the women, didnât laugh nor approach too close. He kept his distance and noted, âThey seem to understand us, but we cannot understand them. That will pose a problem.â
Alien With A Tail added, âThey are really loud. It is nice. What do you think, wombling?â
âWomblingâ â the quiet alien minding his own business â begrudgingly answered, âI think they are very annoying. Can we get rid of them?â
âI told you.â
That started up the bickering again.
The four-armed one grunted, red eyes flashing. âEnough talking. I want her now.â
Laboured breathing filled the air. One of the girls knew he meant her; heâd been staring at her enough to make the point very clear. They all knew. If it hadnât been for the whole staring her down as he growled âmineâ, it would have certainly been because he was the most gentle in tying her than he was with the rest of them.Â
âMine smells bad. She needs to bathe,â Tails said.Â
Grumbling, she brushed his touch away, thoroughly offended. Of course she smelled bad. That tended to happen to people who have been through hell and back. Not that Mr. Jungle Alien should have said anything to her at all. How great could his hygiene possibly be for someone who only wore a loincloth, she snarked to herself.
âFine. Do as you need but treat them gently. They might be in shock,â Horns said. âWhen they sleep, we will talk about what to do with them.â
The aliens descended.Â
And once again, they were taken away.Â
That was seriously beginning to get old.
Sa-To-Ru
You were held bridal style in the arms of a Naâvi-cousin-looking alien â he strolled away from the clearing and entered the jungle with a wide smile. The alien that had taken you was white. Albino, if you had to put an accurate word to it.Â
He looked down at you with eyes the colour of electric flame. Then, without warning, he tossed you upward, just enough to make your stomach plunge, catching you again as easily as someone snatching fruit from a branch. Your yelp delighted him, you thought. A deep, resonant clicking vibrated from his chest, the sound both amused andâŚpleased.
At the base of a massive tree, he threw you over his shoulders and began to climb.Â
Panic spiked so fast your vision blurred. You didnât dare thrash. One wrong twitch, one slip of his clawed toes, and you would plummet through the leaves, bones cracking all the way down. All you could do was cling to consciousness and hope he didnât tire of carrying you.
Night had transformed the jungle into another realm entirely. Everything glowed. Flowers exhaled soft light. Vines shimmered in strands of green and gold. Small creatures darted across branches, leaving trails of phosphorescent dust in their wake. Even the moss pulsed faintly like a heartbeat.
During the day the jungle looked prehistoric, the kind of place where a sabretooth could lunge from behind a fern. At night, it resembled a fever-dream of the future â neon, otherworldly, drenched in colours you didnât even have names for.
If this were a movie, youâd be the idiot protagonist the audience screamed at: Donât go with him! Donât let him take you up that tree!
But you didnât have a choice. Not bound. Not dangling over a hundred-foot drop.
He swung from branch to branch, using his long limbs to maneuver himself, and you, higher and higher until he finally stopped just below the canopy.Â
CLAP! CLAP!
A hidden structure stirred to life around you â a treehouse. You blinked, disoriented. Curtains woven from kelp-like strands parted in the breeze, glowing faintly. Windows appeared between thick boughs, shutters carved with swirling patterns. A nest of furs sat in one corner, piled high enough to swallow you whole. A table, sanded smooth despite looking hand-carved, rested atop a platform of planks tied expertly with vine-cord. And another doorway, blocked with a thick slab of bark, too deliberate to be accidental.
Someone had built a home here.
He had built a home here.
And now you were inside it. Alone. Bound. And very, very far from the ground.Â
It was actually rather impressive. Especially once you figured out that what illuminated the treehouse were blue and white lines in the wood of the walls that pulsed. They must have reacted to the sudden noise. Pretty cool, you thought.
Taking you through the other doorway, he stepped out onto a branch big enough to serve as a balcony. The thing was wide, as thick as a car laid sideways; technically, you could lie across it, but the idea alone made your stomach lurch. That far up, even breathing felt like asking for trouble.
Oh no.
You were dropped down, staring up at him.Â
âI wash you,â he said, hands on his hips. âWash. You understand? Clean. Body dirty. You. Water. Clean.â
Why did he suddenly sound like someone reading language off a broken cave tablet?
Earlier heâd insulted you with full sentences. Annoyingly articulate ones.
You eyed him, heart racing. How were you to show you understood? Nod? Shake your head?
What if nodding meant something horrific here â an invitation to fight to the death, or consenting to be sacrificed to whatever glowing creature chirped in the leaves behind you?
It was very weird. You heard his alien language but it registered in your language. You couldnât even copy the sounds he made; they werenât ones youâd ever heard another human make. The girls were right to be freaked out by the revelation. Something about your bodies had changed.
âFuck,â you whispered. âYeah, Iâll wash myself. I get it, I stink.â
The albino alien wearing a loincloth dyed to blue frowned. He didnât understand you. But you werenât squirming anymore so, you assumed, he thought that was a good enough sign. âNo moving. You move, you fall and die.â
Yeah. Thanks, genius. Already figured that one out.
A single claw slid down and sliced the vines binding you. For a heartbeat you luxuriated in the looseness of your limbs, the ache easing, circulation singing back into your skin. The bliss lasted until that same claw hooked into your gown and dragged downward. Fabric split like wet paper. Night air slapped your naked body.
You shrieked, arms flying to shield yourself.
Another clicking sound â amused this time.
âYou are funny-looking,â he decided aloud. âKinda ugly, actually. But you will grow on me.â
Your brain flatlined. âI am not ugly, thank you very much! Youâ you look like Neytiriâs unfinished sketch, you bioluminescent freaâAH!â
Using a wooden bowl, he dumped another round, then crushed something green between his palms. Whatever plant he had turned into froth released a strange smell, mint and peach and dusty old library pages. He rubbed the suds into your hair with broad, thorough strokes. His strength was massive, but the pressure stayed gentle, almost methodical. Your futile swats bounced off him. Complaints rolled off him too; he didnât understand the words, didnât need to.
When his hands travelled lower, they didnât wander where they shouldnât, didnât linger. They simply lifted your arm, scrubbed your armpit, slid across your back, your chest, your stomach, your legs. Rinsed and repeated.
A creature who could break you in half was washing you like you were a porcelain bowl he didnât want to shatter. Calm. Practical. WeirdlyâŚtender.
He was actually cleaning you.
Although, he did poke your nipple and tilted his head at your gasp. âFemales from other species have breast ducts too, huh? Does that mean you have children already?â
What?
You shook your head. He copied it with a goofy smile, like he didnât understand what that act meant but thought it was fun to mimic you. Great. Now he thought head-bobbing was a fun new game. Ah, whatever, you thought. What did it matter that he believed you had children?
Suds washed away with another wave of cold water, he quickly wrapped you up in fur and led you inside. He patted your head once more, tail swishing behind him. âI got a good one; you are very well-behaved.â
That felt insulting too.Â
Like you were being praised for being the perfect prey.Â
What else could you do?
The alien wasnât hurting you and you couldnât exactly run away, since you were so far from the ground and couldnât climb down. You were trapped up there, in the treehouse, with a tall alien, who had sharp claws, agile speed, and venom probably dripping from his razor-like teeth. Maybe you were also tired. Too tired to fight and too hungry to argue.
âFood? You want?â He asked. That perked you up. You nodded furiously. Oh, god, you were starving. Basically near death. Your desperation must have humoured him because clicking noises made their rounds again. âI understand, I understand. I will get you food, my little beetbeet. Lots of food!â
What the fuck was a beetbeet?
Placing you to the bed of fur, another cloth wrapped around your hair and scrunched up to gather the excess moisture, he dried you off. Then, when he was satisfied and you were bundled up enough, he gestured to the doorway you entered through.
âI go. I get food. Come back. You eat,â he enunciated, like that would bridge the language barrier. The aliens were aware that you could understand them, yet this one wasnât quite getting it. âStay. Wait. I come back.â
He muttered a farewell and jumped down, leaving you running after him in shock and letting out a breath when you saw him swing from branch to branch, like a monkey. âOh, good,â you said to yourself, then paused.Â
âWait, what? Am I actually relieved?â
What the fuck, you thought for the hundredth time in over 24 hours.Â
There was a tinkling feeling in your spine that warned you were going to be thinking that at least a hundred times more.
Cho-So
All the girls were taken away by one of the aliens, you included. Except you were taken with much less gusto as everyone else.
In fact, you could have sworn he sighed and dragged his feet before hoisting you over his broad shoulders. Every step felt heavy. He made noises that you could tell, even with the language and cultural barriers, were displeasured. That was really quite rude. He didnât hoist you like a prized possession or even a necessary burden â more like an overly large sack of rice that someone had forced him to fetch. The sigh rattled through his chest and straight into your ribs.
Was there something wrong with you?
Your stomach twisted with a peculiar mix of offence and insecurity. The ugly aliens had wanted to prod you; why didnât this one want toâŚwhatever this was?
Did you smell bad too?
Probably. Definitely.Â
You all smelled like sweat, panic, and interstellar dirt at this point, but still. He didnât need to act put off. Surely, under the grime, you smelt sweet and womanly, with your pheromones and shit.
That was how all those fantasy eroticas youâd read went â a sexy, human girl vulnerable to biology and the instincts that called her beastman to her. And you were a hot piece of ass, even for alien standards, right?
Apparently not.Â
Apparently you were the charity case of the group, the one handed to the guy who didnât want to participate in Alien Lady Grabbing Day.
Plopped down inside a cave, a little away from their small settlement, you could do nothing but watch as he paced back and forth three times before sitting criss-crossed by the entrance, and away from you. There was something petulant about him, something pouty and resistant.
Huffing and puffing, he played with his long-ish hair, raven-black and scruffy and ignored you. It was a constant fidget, fingers combing through the strands, claws snagging slightly each time.Â
He was pretending you didnât exist earlier too.Â
A cursory glance was all you were given before he crossed his arms and watched a bird take flight somewhere in the distance. Whilst the others couldnât stop staring at you five, your alien clearly could not care less.Â
Completely uninvested in the situation, he stood by, as if out of duty â not curiosity, just actively uninterested, like someone determined to fail a group project on principle. A stark contrast to the other aliens.Â
You suspected they were brothers, of sorts â they didnât look like copy-pastes of each other, with key physical differences such as height and build.Â
The one who stalked you in the jungle and hoisted you here had red skin, was almost 8 feet tall, and had four arms. Whereas, this alien had only two upper limbs, was probably about 7 feet tall, and had facial marking. No horns, no extra limbs, no menacing stance. For an alien species, he was the closest thing to ânormal-looking,â though that wasnât saying much, since his skin was dark purple, like a grungy Barney.
At first glance, one really might think he was a human male. Upon further inspection, however, theyâd notice the three finger hands, long claws, reptilian-like eyes, and forked tongue that darted out to taste the temperature outside the cave. You should have been disgusted, should have been afraid and panicked by his appearance or his intentions.Â
Instead you were intrigued.Â
He was bizarre in the way a stray cat was bizarre â standoffish, skittish, and unaware of how transparent his reactions were.
Endearing in a youthful, clumsy way, your alien seemed earnest. There was no hiding how he felt, not the apprehension about the nightfall, the skepticism of the new guests, nor the discomfort arising from your unblinking eyes. His emotions might as well have been painted on him in neon â every twitch, every shuffle, every sideways glance betrayed something he clearly didnât intend to communicate.
âStop looking at me,â he hissed, shuffling further away from you with furrowed brows.
Oh, he was so rude.Â
Absolutely, unequivocally rude. Alien or not, he had zero bedside manner.
Inching forward by your butt, you came close enough to poke his leg with your toe. The alien flinched and snapped his jaws in warning. A smile crept onto your face. What a funny guy, you thought.
His whole body jerked like youâd shocked him, claws flexing, shoulders tensing, eyes widening before narrowing with unsettled irritation.
âStop touching,â he growled. âI do not want to share my home with you.â
So that was what was going on. Their leader, the blond one, must have ordered for them to house you. But why in pairs? Why not keep the five strange women in a cell or somewhere where they could easily observe you?Â
Something wasnât adding up.
And as your alien scooted another inch away â closer to the mouth of the cave as if considering escape â you felt the undeniable certainty that whatever was happening here, you were only seeing the surface of it.
Ah, but that was tomorrowâs problem. For now, you needed food and the brooding alien was going to feed you. Nudging him once more, you said, âFood. Give me food.â
His face scrunched up like youâd offended him on a spiritual level. He shuffled even further away, practically climbing out of the cave as if your presence was toxic and downright repulsive. âI cannot understand you,â he snapped, tone clipped and sulky.Â
âFood,â you insisted, louder this time. If your arms werenât tied down like some deranged Earthian burrito, you wouldâve rubbed your stomach, mimed chewing, maybe even barked like a dog if that helped the message land. Instead, all you could do was wiggle like a crazy worm and hope he had even two brain cells to rub together.
He did not. He only huffed â a dramatic, exhausted sound.
What the hell was that guyâs problem?
With a defeated grunt, you rolled onto your front. If Alien Broods-Too-Much wasnât going to help, then fine. Youâd simply crawl your pathetic, starving body back to that clearing and face-plant directly into a spit roast. Better to die choking on alien barbecue than starving in a cave because some hot monster-man was allergic to responsibility.
You began your slow, determined shuffle toward the entrance. When you passed him, you made sure to give him the smuggest, cheekiest little smile your face could manage. A silent âLook who doesnât need you, bitch.â
He returned it with a scowl so offended you almost snorted.
God, what a drama queen.
âYeah, fuck you tooâAH!â
Your world inverted.
Something clamped around your ankle â his clawed hand â and with humiliating ease, he yanked you back across the dirt like a misbehaving toddler. You flopped onto your back, staring up at him in outrage as he loomed over you with a low, disapproving growl. âStay. Do not move. If I lose you, they are going to get mad at me.â
âThen feed me, idiot,â you snapped. âNyom nyom, ET. Feed me. Me want food. Are you getting any of that?â
The alienâs forced tongue flits out, frustrated and angry. âI do not know what you are saying. Stop talking. Go to sleep already.â
Near tears, you bang your forehead on the ground and hoped the other girls were having a better time than you. Because at this rate, you were going to waste away from hunger, or find your head bashed in by the impatient asshole you were stuck with.
âI want food,â you whined. âI need to bathe too. God, I miss my bed. And my family.â
He plugged his elven-shaped ears, cutting you a scathing glare.Â
âOh?â You scoffed. âFuck you!â
Yeah, you two were not going to get along well at all.
To-Ji
âLET ME GO!â You screamed.Â
Hanging upside down by your ankle, you swung helplessly as the mammoth-sized alien stomped along, each stride jostling your entire skeleton. Blood rushed to your head, vision throbbing at the edges. He carried you like a sack of grain.Â
No, like something worse, something that didnât even merit caution, slung over a massive shoulder and dragged down into a dark, carved-out hole in the ground.
It was a den of sorts: damp-packed earth, the sharp mineral scent of stone, a crude pile of furs large enough to drown in, and weapons scattered around like heâd tossed them aside after some long, grisly day. Heavy clubs, hooked blades, barbed spears â things you pretended you didnât see, because acknowledging them made your chest tighten with the threat of panic, because it reawakened a fear of dying, a fear of being maimed.
Before that, however, vines were yanked off of you as he hauled you to a freezing lake and dunked you without warning.Â
Water hit you like knives, stealing your breath. His rough hands scrubbed you with something that stung like soap but smelled like crushed leaves and iron. It got in your eyes, your nose, your mouth. Your soaked hospital gown clung obscenely to your skin, to every contour you didnât want a stranger, let alone a gigantic alien stranger, to see.
For a second, you feared he would see the outlines of your breasts, stomach and more through the thin, wet material. That he would pounce and youâd experience a new kind of horror, but he simply grunted and went about his way with you over his shoulders.
Deep clicking sounds bounced off the walls, absorbed and dulled. You almost mistook it for amusement. He watched your unbound arms flail around, trying to smack him into letting go.Â
âTiny,â he snickered to himself. âI take bigger shits than you in the morning.â
Oh, classy.
Of course, males on all planets were just as crass and vulgar as each other. Some things never changed indeed. And god, why were you with the biggest ones? Why couldnât the lanky alien with the tail take you? Or the spiky haired one?
Poking your stomach, he brought you up higher and inspected you, as if assessing ripeness. âSo small,â he muttered. âHow are you going to take my cock? Or bear my children?â
âWHAT?!â
Rage and terror collided; you thrashed violently, nails raking across his bare chest. He drew a sharp breath and instinctively loosened his grip. For a horrifying half-second you dropped, but he snatched you mid-fall with a disgruntled snarl.
âBad,â he scolded. âYou almost made me drop you.â
In a blink, you were thrown onto the fur pile, landing with a slight bounce. They cushioned the impact, springy and warm, smelling faintly of smoke and animal musk.Â
Embedded with glowing green crystals, the walls were lit up enough to see underground. There was enough room for his bed, weapons and another pile of furs in the corner. It actually seemed rather homely. On any other day, in any other context, you might have been wowed. Today, however, you were beyond shaken by the reality that you were alone in a hole, surrounded by weapons, by a male who was obviously thinking about mating with you.Â
It was the stuff of nightmares.Â
Ever since you laid eyes on his monstrous form, the biggest one of them all, even bigger than the four-armed, red-skinned demon-looking alien that took you all from the jungle, you knew he was trouble. He grinned too much, far too relaxed about the whole ordeal whereas the others, besides the one with a tail, were serious and concerned.Â
It spoke of confidence. To not fear the newcomers, with their different features and language, would mean that he was confident he could take on any threat you posed. That, at any moment, he could strike and cut you down from where you stood.Â
He had scars along his body, marked with green ink or blood. Certainly more scarred than the others. A scar even on his lips. You couldnât bring yourself to imagine what bigger, badder things he had once faced to get them.Â
How helpless you felt.
Sure, you were free from the rope they bound you with, but you couldnât just make a run for it up the man-made mud stairs; he was far too big to get past. And you didnât want to think about what he would do if you made him upset. Those weapons were obviously not for decorations. The blood they spilled, the flesh they cut through, bones they sliced â you didnât want to feel them on yours.
Huddled in the corner, you kept your distance as he folded himself into a sitting position by the wall in front of you.Â
Earlier, he stopped by the fire on the way to his hole, carrying you like you weighed nothing and hoisting one of the roasts. Now, he was tearing it apart, biting shreds off and greedily swallowing, barely chewing.Â
He looked up mid-bite. âWant?â
You shook your head.
Your stomach growled.Â
He raised an eyebrow.
You shouldnât.Â
Were you even allowed to eat their food? What if you got food poisoning? What if their meat was infected with tapeworms, or their versions of it?Â
The smart thing to do would be to reject his offer. But you were starving. The Blobs hadnât fed you, hadnât done anything but shove needles in you; you hadnât eaten in longer than 24 hours. Youâd been running on fumes.Â
No, the smart thing would be to eat, to recuperate, whilst they were offering. You would be no good to anyone dead. Sheepishly, you nodded and stretched a hand out.Â
One corner of his mouth curled â almost a smile, almost a smirk â and crooked a finger for you to come closer. You blanched. Every instinct screamed no. Every logical thought shouted no. This was how horror movies started: approaching the monster across the floor.
ButâŚif that was his condition for free food, then who were you to argue?
Crawling forward, hesitantly and cautiously, your knees sank into soft fur, the ground cool beneath your palms. You reached for the roast.
âOpen,â he said.
Oh god, he wanted to feed you.Â
Long, thick legs spread, furry cloth just about obscuring something you shouldnât look at, he waited with an eerie patience. Eyes on the rise and fall of your chest, the tremor of hesitation in your jaw, he appeared almost amused, as if the whole ordeal was hilarious to him. There was something more to it.Â
He was daring you, pushing you, wanting to test your character. Were you brave or shy? Were you a go-getter or reserved?Â
You didn't want to fail; your mouth opened.Â
A warm piece of meat slid inside, his thumb lingering. He brought it to his mouth and sucked on where it had brushed your bottom lip, then continued gobbling on the meat, no cutlery in sight.Â
Heat bloomed through you. Embarrassment, hunger, confusion, humiliation â all tangled. Where he touched it tingled. Not metaphorically, like actually. Some kind of innate approval. You should have withdrawn, retreated. But the meatâŚit was good.Â
Shockingly good.Â
Savoury, smoky, tender enough to melt. You couldnât help the sound that slipped out, a satisfied moan. You found yourself crawling closer on instinct, pulled by the scent and the promise of more. Between his feet now, you pointed at the roast. âMay I have more?â
He tilted his head at you, following your arm, to your finger and landed on the meat he had in his large paw. âMore?â
âYes!â Ecstatic, you nodded. âYes, more. I want more. Please.â
His calloused digits touched your lips, tracing its curvature. âSmile.â
You forced one out.
As if to reward you, he tore off another piece of the meat and almost shoved it into your mouth in his haste. Clicking sounds vibrated in the space between you whilst you chewed. Soon, for every large bite he took, he fed you the equivalent of a nibble for himself.Â
The alien man wasnât stingy with the meat, like one might have thought with his insistence on feeding you, might have mistaken it for portion control. On the contrary, he was feeding you more than you could manage.Â
It seemed like he simply didnât want you to dirty yourself after bathing.Â
A real smile came to your lips. His chest thrummed.Â
That evening you shared a meal with a strange creature and fell asleep with a full belly.
Ken-To
âDo not move.â
Pain curled, hot and sharp, beneath your ribs the moment you tried to sit up. The attempt left you breathless, hunched over yourself, a weak attempt at caging the agony with nothing more than your own arms.Â
All the running and fighting had taken its toll on you. If it hadnât been for the girls, you wouldnât have gotten very far at all. They carried most of your weight and never complained. Sitting inside a tarp, on a hand-carved table, your injury addressed by an alien man, you thought about the four of them.Â
You hoped they were okay.Â
The alien had seemed more refined than the others, more controlled. He stood in the clearing, thoughtful and considering his words and the situation clearly. Once in a while, his gaze would land on you. It was hard to tell what he was thinking.Â
When he approached, he didnât throw you over his shoulders, didnât carry you like a duffelbag, he simply cut the vines that kept you unable to move and allowed you to get up on your feet at your own pace.Â
âYou can understand me,â he said. It wasnât a question, it was just a statement. You nodded. âThat must mean yes, in your custom. Hmm.â
So, nodding wasnât a thing they did. That didnât bode well for you â how were you going to communicate with them if language and body language were too big a gap? What if you accidentally made the wrong move and did something offensive? What gesture meant thank you? What gesture meant donât eat me?
Everyone else quickly disappeared from view and you bit your lip in worry. Where did they take your friends? What were they going to do?
âThey will not hurt them.â
You glanced up at him.Â
Horned and really tall, he moved with an agility and elegance that didnât match the loincloth and fur cape he wore, nor the bare feet and claws. In a way, he behaved the most human out of them all, despite his appearance.Â
It would be easy, you thought, to pretend he was just a man. One that abided by the laws of Earth, that wouldnât act upon base instincts and wouldnât hurt you. One that meant what he said and knew the implications of promising that you and your friends would be safe.Â
âYou are injured.â Again, not a question. âI can help.â
He led you to a tarp a little away from the fire and at the edge of the clearing. It was big enough for one or two people to live in, and you soon figured out it was his home. There was a mass of fur that might have been a bed, a bundle of glowing flowers hanging at the centre of the tent.
The intimacy struck you but you didnât think too much about it.
Patting a wooden table, he gestured for you to sit.Â
A quiet rumble vibrated through the small shelter as the alien circled the table.Â
Not quite impatient, not quite gentle, but something in between, he moved, like a man accustomed to handling fragile things that insisted on breaking anyway. His pale-gold skin caught the firelight strangely, turning almost opalescent along the curves of muscle, which disappeared under his fur covering.
He was also the most dressed. A loincloth wasnât cutting it for him, you supposed. Back covered and warm, his torso was uncovered. He had no nipples, none of them did. Though, what was most interesting to you was the defined ridges of his abdomen and the trail of coarse, blond hair that led downwards under his loincloth.
âStay still,â he said again, softer. The words were clipped, measured. Everything about him was.Â
Leather pouches clinked as he sorted through unfamiliar tools: tools made out of bones of a variety of colours and shapes, stone blades polished to a surgical gleam, coils of sinewy thread that shifted faintly as though once alive. A smell like crushed herbs and iron filled the air when he unstoppered a jar.
You swallowed hard. âItâs fine. Iâm going to be fine,â you whispered to yourself, hoping it would be believable, that it would be true.Â
The alien didnât understand, but his eyes did flick toward your mouth when you spoke. A subtle, sharp attention.Â
He touched your side. Only with two fingers, but warmth flooded the point of contact. His hands ran hotter than a humanâs, heat rising through his skin in steady pulses, almost like a second heartbeat. The sensation spread to your ribs, then deeper, until the ache blurred into something nearly bearable.
A low sound rolled out of him as he examined the shard embedded beneath your skin. âThis should not be in you,â he murmured, more to himself than to you. âForeign. Wrong.â
You tried to laugh, and the movement nearly knocked you unconscious.Â
âYeah, itâs been a massive pain,â you hissed, but the words meant nothing to him.
His brow knit at your tone anyway. Strange eyes â pale, ringed with a faint golden glow â searched your face as though trying to decipher shape instead of language. After a moment, he reached for your wrist, guiding your hand to grip the edge of the table.
Calloused and firm, the feeling of his skin against yours pulled a gasp from you.Â
âHold,â he instructed with a raspy voice, rolling his shoulders. âThis will hurt.â
Rippling with yellow light, his horns caught your attention. You wondered what it meant. If it showed his fear, his displeasure, or his happiness. What texture were they? How dense? How would it feel under your hands? Were they sensitive?
The shard came free in one swift movement.
âFuck!â
Pain burst white behind your eyes. Your cry cracked in the space between you, small and helpless, and his head snapped up at the sound. Muscles across his shoulders tensed. Something flashed through his expression. Fangs bared, claws flexing. Then, âQuiet,â he murmured, voice drawn low with concern. âYou are safe.â
You didnât know whether he intended comfort or command. Maybe both.
It hurt like hell. For a while, the pain as you trudged through the jungle was numbed, and you hadnât realised. Now, you were feeling the pain as it really was, raw and true. You panted, desperate to breathe it all out.
Heat radiated from him as he worked quickly, sealing the wound with a salve that glowed faintly against your skin. You saw him grind some beetles in a mortar and the paste was on your skin, cooling the skin, before you could process it too much.
âI do not truly know if this will work on yours as it does on ours,â he admitted. âWe must believe.â
Faith, you thought, might have been what he wanted to say. And if he understood you, you would have replied, that was all you had now. Boy, you sure did hope it would work. Dying on an alien planet, surrounded by strangers, would not be a great ending.
Each touch carried a strange gentleness, at odds with the raw strength beneath his hands. His breath grazed your cheek. The fur of his mantle brushed your arm. Every subtle graze, every accidental sweep of warmth, left your pulse stumbling.
If he noticed, he didnât say. He only kept working, kept touching you with that stern concentration that bordered on reverence.
Eventually, the sting, the soreness, faded into something much more tolerable. You felt lighter and so much better already. Whatever he had rubbed onto the wound, or whatever he wrapped on it, worked. And here you thought you were going to die from an infection or be a feast-tease for an alien beast, your dripping blood leading them to you.
âThank you,â you told him, a little sad he couldnât understand the sincerity and deep appreciation in your words. Somehow, youâd find a way to show it.Â
Now what, you pondered. Where were you going to sleep? What were you going to eat? What was happening to the girls? Were they also being taken care of?Â
Cleaning up, he strolled through the place, washing things in a basin and hanging things back up. You felt awkward, just sat there doing nothing. Not that you could ask him if you could help. Although, maybe it was best that you left him to it, lest you broke something or did things wrong.Â
He placed a bucket of water and cloth near you. âWash yourself. Avoid getting the bandage wet.â
And then he left.
Only stopping by to place a thatched bowl outside. He served you slices of the roast, with some vegetables, it looked like. They were in odd colours and patterns â purple and green stripes on a long chunk, and diced, spiky cubes â so it was hard to tell. You didnât even know if your body could process those things, if they were poisonous.Â
âWe must believe,â he said earlier.Â
Faithful, then, you ate, savouring the new yet familiar tastes as you waited.
He didnât come back.
Su-Ku-Na
âMine.â
âYouâve already said that.â
You were going nowhere with the neanderthal who grabbed you by your ankle and dragged you to the fire as you kicked and screamed, and watched everyone be taken away too. Gasping and shrieking, you fought, scared that he was going to cook you over the fire.Â
He didnât.
Instead, he just dropped your ass on the grass and grabbed the cooking meat, grunting as the biggest of the bunch grabbed his own whole animal whilst hauling your friend. You wriggled and moved towards her, but your alien pressed a heavy hand on your back.Â
âLet me go!â
Carving through the roasted flesh with unsettling ease, his two upper hands held the animal steady as the other pair worked the blade, tore strips free and kept you pinned down. Oil slicked, he caught the orange light from the in a way that made him look even more predatory. Shadows danced on his face, highlighting the ferocity of his features.
The warmth of the fire was nice, especially as you were only in a thin piece of cloth and the night had fallen cold with speed.
Every so often, his gaze flicked toward you, checking that you hadnât wriggled out from under his palm.Â
As if you could.Â
His hand alone covered most of your spine, pinning you with bored efficiency.
Hot breath hissed through his teeth when you tried to crawl toward the direction your friend was taken in. âStay.âÂ
Where did he take her? What was he going to do?Â
âI hate you, you hideous beastâ you muttered, knowing he couldnât understand a word. Maybe that was a blessing. You were in no mood to be diplomatic. Honestly, you just wanted to release all your anger and irritation on the world, the universe, on fate, on him. Youâd been made into the butt of a very cruel joke and him holding you down so easily without even needing to flex his muscles was just the cherry on top. Â
The red-skinned brute paused, eyes narrowing in confusion. He repeated the word he seemed so proud of, the only one he insisted on. âMine.â
Your sigh felt like it scraped your lungs. âYeah. Congratulations. Youâve got me.â
A deep rumble rolled through his chest, almost pleased. He clearly thought you had agreed. You wanted to bash your head into something just to make a point.
He sliced off a smaller piece of meat and placed it on the ground near your hands. The offering sat there steaming, smelling unbelievably good. Your stomach twisted painfully at the scent. Hunger did strange things to logic, stripping away caution one rumble at a time.
The alien watched you with a focus that bordered on unnerving. Not hostile, not exactly gentle, something raw and instinctive instead. A creature evaluating an injured animal that belonged to him. One of his upper arms rested across his knee, the other draped over it lazily, as if each limb had a personality of its own. The tattoos etched across his skin pulsed faintly in the firelight, patterns almost alive when he breathed.
You pushed the meat away with your wrist. It rolled a few inches before he growled, fetched it back with one clawed fingertip, and shoved it even closer.
âI said no,â you snapped. âI donât want anything from you. I want home. I want safety. I want out.â
Lack of understanding softened his expression. He leaned in, the heat of his body prickling your skin. His nose hovered above your hair as if scent told him the truth words never could. One of his hands â one you hadnât even seen move â brushed your ankle in what felt awkwardly like reassurance. Another hand reached out to tilt your chin up, curious and gentle enough that you froze.
âMine,â he repeated quietly.
The word didnât come out triumphant this time. It almost sounded troubled. As if he sensed the shape of your fear even if he didn't understand the language behind it.
Your pulse hammered at the closeness. He wasnât rough now. Not violent. Just watching you with a strange, primal tenderness that felt wildly misplaced on a creature who had dragged you screaming across dirt minutes ago.
He nudged the meat toward you again. A slow, insistent push.
âEat,â he said. âYou will die.â
âIâm not some pet you can fix with scraps,â you muttered weakly.
Four Arms made a low, frustrated noise deep in his throat. Two arms folded across his broad chest, whilst the other pair reached for the carcass again. He carved another piece, larger this time, as if the size might convince you. The new offering settled beside your thigh with a heavy thud.
There was no malice in the gesture. Only stubbornness. And maybe something else, too. Something you didnât have the luxury to examine.
Fire crackled between you. The night air wrapped around your shivering body. Hunger gnawed at you with steady, miserable teeth.
The alien waited.
Sharp fangs. Red skin tattooed like ritual scars. Huge and hulking. Terrifying in every possible way. A creature that, in any story book, would have feasted on your flesh and wore your bones as a crown. He would be the villain in every story, the ones mothers warned their children about, the kind that would have women looking behind them in the streets, that would make men piss themselves.
And yetâŚhe wanted to feed you.
That alone unsettled you more than anything else.
Irritated beyond belief, you signalled for him to remove the vines so you may eat, putting on a show of how you couldnât lift your arms up. His dark eyes squinted, and with the knife, he sliced through the vines in one swipe.Â
As soon as the vines fell, you ran.
Legs pumping, you sprinted as far as you could, hospital gown flapping in the wind. You didnât know where you were going. If you were heading towards one of the girls or if you wanted to find the spaceship. You just knew you couldnât stay there.Â
Whatever those alien freaks wanted, you didnât want any part of it.
You werenât going to stick around and get killed by them, or forced into some alien marriage, or bear their alien babies. Hell be damned, you were going home. Back to Earth, to your bed, to your friends and family, and to your normal, boring futurâ
âAH FUCK!â
Tackled to the floor and rolled over on the grass, you hadnât even made it back to the forest before he reached you. Your ten metres must have taken him five steps at most. Whereas you were panting and heaving, he was simply growling in warning. âMine.â
âYes, yes, Iâm yours. Okay, I get it,â you sighed. âThat doesnât mean shit to me, yâknow.â
Up and in his arms, he marched back to the fire, back to his meat. He was huffing in barely restrained anger, perhaps resisting the urge to snap your spine in half over his knee. Sat criss-crossed with you caged in his lap, you were treated like a teddy bear, squeezed for comfort.
Something hard pressed to your ass. You held your breath.Â
His thick nose grazed the curve of your neck before he muttered to your ear, âEat or die.â
The meat was rubbed against your lips, smearing the grease, and wafting the delectable barbeque scent right up your nostrils. Suddenly dizzy, you felt the gravity of your starvation and lethargy setting in like cement in your limbs. You didnât fight anymore, didnât thrash away. You just opened your mouth and ate.Â
âOh god, thatâs good,â you moaned. The tenderness, the smoke, the burnt bits, the slight taste of sugar and salt. You had forgotten how good food was. What a tragedy. âGive me more.â
Reaching for the roast yourself, you tried to tear off a shred. His teeth snapped by your ear. Your hand drew back.
âMine.â
Oh, so that was just something he liked to say.Â
Fan-fucking-tastic.
âNo, give me some,â you insisted. He growled when you reached for it again. âStop growling and feed me.â
The man was clearly possessive about everything â newcomers, spot by the fire, and his meat. There was so much of it; he had his own spit roast! And yet he was barking at little olâ you as if he would be forced to go hungry the rest of the night if you had even just one more bite. What a greedy bastard.
He lifted a chunk to his mouth. You snagged a bite. He growled again, red eyes flashing. âMine.â
âNo, itâs ours.â
Nudging you with his jaw, he grumbled, but hovered a shred to your lips. You ate heartily, still bound, and yet no longer feeling restrained. Together, you watched the fire and shared meat, albeit reluctantly.
Dirt caked on your feet and hands, stained gown, and a birdsâ nest for a hair, you must have looked a real mess. Possibly just as barbaric as he. The thought created a bittersweet feeling.Â
You didnât know why you had been chosen by this particular alien, nor why you had been chosen at all. Truthfully, if they had been angry, threatening to kill you or gut you, then you would have felt more at ease. Anger was a simple emotion, after all. Survival an easy concept. This, whatever this was, confused you.Â
It felt like a trap.
Like they wanted you to like them, to think they were safe, that they could be trusted. But why? What could you, a whole different race or species from a different planet, a different solar system even, offer these natives?
If it was simple biology, surely their reproductive instincts wouldnât have brought them to you; animals mated with their own. Where were the women? Where were the others of their kind? The children?Â
Why did they look different to each other, despite being clearly of the same type?
Was it necessity that prompted the questions, a need to know for survival, or was it merely curiosity? Would the answer shake your resolve?
âDrink,â he ordered, lifting a canister made out of leather to your mouth.Â
You drank the liquid without much choice, most of it dripping down your front. It was water, thankfully. Though, it felt ever so slightly thinner than Earthâs. âThanks.â
He grunted.
Were you going to get worms from the food and water? Were there parasites burrowing in your brain right this second? Were you already pregnant through some freaky, alien science bullshit?
There were so many questions swirling in your mind, and no means to ask and gain answers. Not that that was your priority.
No, you needed to get the girls and form a plan to get the fuck out. They may have shown hospitality tonight but it didnât change the fact that they were your captors and this wasnât your home. You needed to escape.
