sly like a f o x

◜ character name ◞ nicholas wilde

◜nicknames◞ nick, nicky, nickel (from his a-hole friends and because of what he’d do for money aka anything)

◜species◞ human

◜age◞ 25

◜faceclaim◞ kim taehyung

◜sexual orientation◞ pansexual

◜marital status◞ single

◜occupation◞ entrepreneur  

◜moral alignment◞ chaotic neutral

◜fandom◞ zootopia

◜overview & history◞

tw: bullying, physical violence

➴ nick always wanted to fit in. it wasn’t always easy growing up in a wealthy area and being considered the “poor” one from a “struggling” family, let alone being korean and looking different than most kids in his school. still, he was always thankful for what he had, and what his parents could do for him, and the history and how hard they and his elders had worked to give him the life he had. he may not have had the nicest things, but it never bothered him much, and as he got older and the difference of his cheap clothes and shoes compared to everyone else became more apparent, and the bullying and teasing started and got worse, he dealt with it himself, and never told his parents. nick wouldn’t want them to worry, faking nice and happy for them, and deal with it alone. 

he was always smaller than the other kids and would get pushed around, and up until middle school he sort of just let it happen, knowing if he fought back and they called home he would never hear the end of it, so he rolled with the punches, literally and figuratively. 

as he entered high school he knew his parents wouldn’t let him get a job, saying school and grades were more important, so he turned to less conventional ways to get money, starting off innocently by selling games and snacks at school for a profit, enough to buy himself one nice thing, giving his parents the rest when he was done. 

he knew college was never going to be his forte, much to his parents dismay when he tried to tell them he didn’t want to go, something he knew was “entirely out of the question.” the idea of trying to fit in at yet another school, with a whole new set of peers was too much, lying about school when in reality he had dropped out to start his own side hustles, whatever was cheap enough to support him and easy to turn over. the one that stuck the best was go wilde ! popsicles, easy when he was on the boardwalk and a cart with a broken wheel that he promised to fix but hot summer days they’d sell easy, the ingredients all sugar and basically nothing else. 

it’s a cold world and he knew it early on, and sooner than most, sticking to himself and working on making a better, financially beneficial life for himself, even if it means he has to use illegal methods to get there. if you don’t get caught, e v e r y t h i n g ‘ s legal, right?

◜connections◞

           WHEN NICK REMINDED her that he was a man of travels and experiences, penny nodded her head slowly, jaw dropping ever so slightly as if to say ‘ ah yes, of course ‘ – though both of them knew nick probably hadn’t left rome pines, much like she hadn’t either. “ what is the most impressive thing you’ve seen then, mr. well traveled ? “, the girl asked playfully, one of her eyebrows arching up though she was unable to keep the grin from tugging at her lips. his dramatic reaction to her calling him cheesy made her laugh, hand covering her stomach at his hilarious outburst. “ my fault ?! no way – if you’re being cheesy, it’s because you are cheesy deep, deep down. just admit it. “, penny challenged, eyes narrowing the smallest bit, teasingly. she shook her head when he wondered whether he should have brought another bottle, offering him the champagne. both of them were probably already a bit tipsy ( she sure had a couple of glasses already – though she was far from drunk ) so she did not necessarily desire to finish a whole bottle by herself. after getting comfortable next to him on the tablecloth, penny rested her head against his shoulder, grinning at his warning. “ fine, fine. heights are reserved for you and you alone. “, she reassured, smiling up at him. in all fairness, nick was the only one managed to get her to push her limits, take the leap into some crazy adventure. it was one of the many reasons she appreciated him for. and at his suggestion to join him when he would be visiting his parents in the new year, an eyebrow arched up. “ me ? i mean… sure. of course. i would like that. i’m sure your parents are wonderful people. “, the girl spoke, getting excited by the idea. “ if you promise you’ll come have dinner with my family sometime then too. “, penny added, her smile bright as she looked up at him, expectantly. 

              penny nodded along to his words – she had the same feeling. and she wasn’t sure whether it was because of the alcohol, or the atmosphere, but she truly felt that this next year was going to be a great one – and she was excited about it. and as the first firework went off unexpectedly, penny let out a soft squeal only to start laughing at herself right after. “ god that surprised me. “, she sighed, head shaking as she looked up at the dark night sky which was momentarily lit by the bright fireworks. “ it really is – this is beautiful. look how it lights the entire city. “, or at least, so it looked from their perspective. as he leaned in closer to say something in her ear, a chill involuntary ran down her spine and she couldn’t help but giggle as his breath tickled her ear. the new year had snuck up on them – of course she knew it wasn’t long anymore, but she hadn’t expected it to turn midnight so quickly. sure time flew whenever nick wilde was around… looking up at him, their eyes met and the girl couldn’t help the tickling feeling in her stomach as his fingers brushed her cheek. “ we sure did. “, penny replied, her voice gentle, eyes wandering down to his lips as well… without thinking too much about it ( or rather, after putting a lot of thought into it, earlier ) the girl closed the gap in between them, her lips meeting his as her hand moved up to grab a hold of his shirt.

“the most impressive? penny... don’t you know. that can’t be described with words... has to be viewed with the eyes. the senses...” he held his hands out, painting a picture for her, laughing at the load of utter crap he was spilling. she knew it, too. “f i n e. i haven’t been anywhere cool in a while, i’m stuck in this place.” but as he looked at who he was stuck with, maybe it wasn’t so bad to be stuck. maybe not stuck at all. “never admitting i’m cheesy. not going to spread a lie like that! let it get around, people might start to believe it.” he leaned in, “only you can think so. it’s our secret.”  he couldn’t let people know he was soft, weak! cheesy, even! and he would stand on that hill. at the offer to come to her parents house, he smiled, eyes looking off. he’d heard about her family before, and an offer like that seemed casual, but he knew to her, it was important, because her family was important to her. “anytime,” he said, focusing his gaze back to her. “i’ll be there. need to meet this grandma of yours i’ve heard so much about. she sounds like the person i’d get along with the most.”

nick had been feeling... off for a few days. he couldn’t shake why, and at first he thought maybe he was coming down with something. a cold, it was that time of year, but no sniffles or cough came. no fever. he just felt... peculiar. he wasn’t unhappy, quite the opposite, so he knew it couldn’t be that either. but whatever it was, he couldn’t place it, so he figured maybe some physical exercise (aside from running away from the fuzz) would do him so good, heading down to meet helia for some taekwondo practice. nick, to put it plain, sucked at it, but maybe trying it again would help shake whatever weirdness he was currently experiencing. plus, helia’s annoyingly positive attitude and dumb handsome face always made him feel like he was in a better mood. it would be a good enough distraction.

                                       noticing the man’s discomfort makes anna blush – she forgets not everyone is as comfortable as her with physical contact and hugs. she smiles to him and holds her own hands around her back to avoid touches or anything that could startle him “ sorry about the hug, i just thought— you know. a quick way to hide your face. ” she shrugs her shoulders and smiles at him. the red-haired girl turns her face to the menu, but quickly turns back to him. “ oh, i don’t need anything big. i’m fine with a small mocha. as long as you sit with me ! ” she pauses. “ if you want, of course, i just love company. and i must admit i’m a little curious to know what trouble you got yourself into ! ”

“s’okay, don’t worry about it,” nick replied evenly, even though his face was turned up looking back at the menu with great focus, as if he wasn’t going to get his regular order. “small mocha, sure,” he said, giving the smaller girl a quick look when she said he had to sit with her, a small smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. “sure. grab a table,” he pointed, stepping up to order for them, throwing in two muffins just because. he was hungry and what was he going to do, eat in front of her while she sat there? “figured everyone likes chocolate chip,” he said as he presented it to her, sitting down across from her, taking a sip of his iced coffee. “so... you said something about being curious. you sure you want to know?”

Jessie scoffed again and again as Nick said she might, in fact, relate to Miss Bridget’s struggles. She might not have known her own strength though, as attacking Nick’s shoulder only made more popcorn tumble from it’s bowl and fall between the couch cushions, “You’re fixin’ to get yourself thrown out in the snow there, mister,” she shook a finger at him before pressing play on the movie, “Oh please, you’ve got the chickadees throwin’ themselves at you. All you gotta to is fly to London and you’ll find yourself a Colin Firth in no time flat,” Jessie scoffed once more, this time feigning offense, “This cowpoke’s gonna stay single for life.”

“making a mess, here!” nick said through his laughter, not really caring since it was her couch and her popcorn, eating whatever fell onto his lap. “you wouldn’t dare throw me out, can’t watch this movie by yourself, without my commentary.” nick tossed her a sarcastic look, raising a brow. “single for life? and why’s that? like you don’t have people throwing themselves at you too? i find that hard to believe. unless it’s a choice... then i support it. if that’s the life you want.” he paused, nudging her arm “unless you’re being a sad-sack. then i’m going to tell you to stop feeling sorry for yourself, babe.”

There had been so much time that had passed in their friendship, and so much history. The idea of thinking of it all made Hoon dizzy, but he was nevertheless grateful his absent mind wandering in the direction of his old friend. Blushing slightly at being called hot shot and the compliment of his hair, he smiled back at the man. “Today I spent the day in the library working on my thesis, which isn’t much different than all the other days. I still take some shifts at the museum to help out my god father.” Shrugging, there wasn’t much to tell about what was going on in his life. For the last several years not a lot had changed. Studying, working, hanging out with old men day in and day out. It was a nice change of pace to be out and about talking to someone his own age. “Glad to see you’re still the best business man I know, I don’t think I know anyone else who could sell popsicles on a cold day like this,” Hoon smirked teasing the boy a little.

          PENNY COULDN’T HELP but laugh at his words, head shaking. sure she was a well-mannered and polite girl – but she could have her bite if she wanted to. “ i blame it on the champagne. “, she explained, still smiling even though she had not had all that much to drink. no, everything she said was mostly just her. when he said he found her anger hot, wondering what else there was he could do to fire her up, penny’s eyebrow arched up. she stared right back into his eyes which were close, lips curled up into a small smile as her head was tilted ever so slightly upwards. “ i guess we’ll see when it ever comes to that point. “, was the girl’s simple reply – frankly, with his face so close to hers there were hardly any things penny could think of that he could say to her, and piss her off with. and she wasn’t sure whether that was her slight buzz speaking, or just herself as well.

             when he said it was okay, penny’s jaw dropped again, turning on her heels to face the young man with her on the roof. “ okay ? you’ve seen more impressive things than this ? “, she wondered, pointing over her shoulder to the beautifully lit city-by-night. and as he explained how he’d probably been on one too many rooftops, but that this one seemed particularly nice tonight, the girl’s lips curled up as she turned to face the city again. “ maybe i should do that too. it’s quite peaceful, so high up on here. even with the party going on. “, she reasoned, nodding slowly. “ yeah… it is new year’s eve after all. i’m sure the city never looks as beautiful as it does during the holidays. “, penny continued with a smile, not giving the question as to why it looked nicer tonight any more thought. “ hmm… that’s cheesy. but i’ll believe you, just because it’s a holiday, and the view’s making me mellow. “, penny chuckled at his confession. it did make her feel kind of special that he had thought this up for her… watching him pop the bottle, the girl clapped her hands as soon as it was open, only to reach for the bottle so she could take a sip. “ who needs glasses ? “, she sighed, offering him a playful smile before putting the bottle at her lips and taking a sip. in the meantime, nick had already taken a seat on the tablecloth he’d laid out, and as he invited her to join him, the proud girl offered him the bottle before sitting down beside him, close enough to feel his warmth and enjoy it on her bare skin. when asked about her hopes and new years resolutions, penny puckered her lips as she thought it over… “ i hope to leap off more cliffs – maybe even with you, who knows. “, she teased, nudging him with her shoulder as she smiled. nick was the one who made her do these crazy things that reminded her she was alive. she didn’t necessarily want to leap off cliffs. but she did hope to seize the day some more, do things that make her feel alive and to take any opportunity given, no matter how crazy it may sound. and she knew there was only one person she could or even would want to do that with… and he was sitting right new to her. “ now you. “.

nick couldn’t help but smile at her accusation, nodding his head. “i’ve seen some impressive things in my life, pen. i’m a man of travels and experiences,” he hummed, and it wasn’t very true, not lately anyway, giving the town another look. it did look nice, but nick found he couldn’t be impressed by it anymore, maybe feeling a little stuck and not able to see much of it’s beauty. something he wouldn’t admit to penny, of course, so he turned back to her, nudging her and tickling her side when she called him cheesy. “cheesy?! CHEESY?! how dare you. i’m no such thing. and if i am, it’s your fault.” he watched with an amused look as she took a sip from the bottle, raising a brow. “woah there... should i have grabbed another one for me?” he was content, a much different mood than he had been in when he first got to the party, her warmth as she sat down next to him washing over him, pressing the side of his body against hers, taking the bottle from her so he could take a sip himself. “i’m sorry... maybe even with me?! you better not be going with anyone else! that one would hurt. no heights, reserve that for me and me only.” he smirked, taking another sip, swallowing as he thought for his turn. “me? let’s see... i want to... work hard, and play harder. reward myself. travel... go visit the folks.” he gave her a look, nudging her gently. “you should come.” it may have been the alcohol talking with the invitation, but he wouldn’t have minded her accompanying him home to see his parents. “and, of course, get you to do some more crazy things with me. push the limit of what you and me can do.” nick didn’t really mind what kind of crazy things they did in the new year, as long as he had her by his side, keeping that to himself.

The day had been long and Hoon’s eyes were very tired having stared at textbooks for most of the day. He was in the middle of working on his thesis and kept pulling very long hours at the library. Today was no exception and his brain and kind of turned to mush, which had become very evident to the pink haired boy as he noticed he was walking a very different way home. It wasn’t like he was lost or anything, he knew all the ways to walk around the city and he wasn’t far off his normal path home. His mind had just wandered or died or both for the beginning of his journey and he found himself on autopilot when he started to hear shouting. 

Looking up he noticed the man behind the voice was Nicholas standing at his popsicle truck. Hoon’s whole body woke from its trance in that moment and smiled the biggest smile before laughing. There was a way that Hoon laughed like this, when it took over his whole body, and he was squatting on the ground, hand covering his mouth starring up at the distant friend in front of him. Finally getting a grip of himself, he stood back up and walked over to him. “I feel like a ghost these days, so you aren’t too far off. I’m not surprised to see you here though, always hustling.” The boy stopped and observed the cart and the man behind it, “How’s business?”

Joy moved with ease as Nick pulled her along, latching onto him like a spider monkey once onto the dance floor - could it really be called dancing if she was hugging his arm like her life depended on it? “Aww, you’re letting me off the hook?” Joy did not have any ‘killer moves’ as it were, but she ended up taking Nick’s hand in hers, swinging out and in from him in the only vaguely dance-esque move she could remember. Though, if it looked a tad similar to Hannah Montana’s hoedown dance, she hoped he wouldn’t notice, “ Pop it, lock it, polka dot it, country fivin’, hip hop hip…“

maximus rolled his eyes at nick’s suggestion.  he’d heard it all before, all the deals and excuses.  the man truly thought he was slick but maximus had dealt with his type many times before.  “i will never turn a blind eye when someone is breaking or bending the law, mr. wilde,” maximus replied, his voice growing stern.  it seemed to be a theme, others telling maximus to learn to have fun.  in his opinion, he was having plenty of fun.  catching bad guys was fun, following rules was fun, and he would make time for a few dances in between.  “not purposely.  it’s just easy to smell a rat.”

          WHEN THE GUY said that it was sick that she made her own fireworks, zarina smiled proudly, nodding excitedly at the same time. tipsy zarina was clearly a whole lot more outgoing than regular zarina… “ where ? no where. everything i know about that kind of stuff is self-taught. though i have to be honest, i saw a video of someone making their own firework… i just… made it a little more interesting. “, she smiled, lifting her shoulders as if it were no big deal. it actually wasn’t all that hard – merely a fun side project to her usual experiments. “ exactly – i cannot wait to watch people’s reactions. “, zarina expected them to be both excited and shocked. the latter probably by those who organised this nice get together and carefully picked the right fireworks for the occasion. “ all i have to do is make sure it gets lit without anyone seeing. any ideas on how to do that ? “, she wondered, eyebrow raising.

it was an oddly warm day for january, and nick had sold his last popsicle for the day, closing up shop and starting to count the bills in his cash drawer, the very full metal box making him grin wickedly. he had done good today, suffering for a few weeks due to the weather and holidays, not so good for business, but he finally made it past the slump, knowing only good things were to come. “soon enough, it’ll be spring time, and i’ll be back, baby!” he muttered to himself, popsicle stick hanging from his mouth and he sorted through the cash, wondering what he should treat himself to for dinner, when a familiar sight caught his attention, briefly pulling him from his loot. a familiar pink head of hair, eyes scanning the subject. couldn’t be anyone else. ‘hoon?’ nick muttered the name as a question to himself, wondering when the boy had gotten to town. 

“HEY,” nick called out, pulling the popsicle stick from his lips and using it to gesture to the man in question. “well well, look what the cat dragged in.” he was in slight disbelief, but recovered quickly, hands flat on the top of his cart as he gestured with his head to call over to the other. “feel like i’m seeing a ghost.”

               “ YOUR DRAMATICS MUST have rubbed off on me. “, the girl chuckled, shaking her head as she lowered her gaze for a second to fix it on his pink shirt. when the word ‘ nosy ‘ tumbled from his lips, penny’s jaw dropped and she looked back up at him, hand moving to hit his chest. though she calmly placed her head back on his shoulder as they continued their dance. “ right – blur lines. you’re so full of shit sometimes, nick. i cannot believe you think i’m nosy ! i’m probably… the least nosy person ever. “, the girl teased, smile still present on her features, finger poking his side repetitively. she probably was lying a bit, though… penny could be nosy. and right now, she was not necessarily trying to be nosy – she was simply curious for his plans. because she knew nick… she knew it was worth being curious about. when he confirmed that he was going to do something that wasn’t allowed, penny rolled her eyes but still couldn’t help but chuckle. “ good – i can handle crazy… but i’m not sure how well i vibe with insane. “, the young woman replied, a short laugh escaping her throat as she locked her fingers with his whilst being guided out of the room and towards the staircase that leads to the rooftop. “ i like the rooftop party excuse – lets go with that one. “, penny replied with a nod, smile still present on her features. the girl as pretty sure no one would find them though. it was nearing midnight – surely people would be too busy counting down to go check the rooftops for lost party-goers ? as he warned her to be careful in her shoes, she nodded, eyes fixed on the stairs as they climbed them. 

                 as soon as they reached the rooftop, penny did not even think about the evening temperatures – the moment the caught a glimpse of the view, her jaw dropped. “ oh god – can you believe i never really saw rome pines at night before ? this is beautiful. i never realised how pretty this city really is. “, she reasoned, beginning to walk towards the edge, pulling nick with her. after taking in the sight, and nick’s explanations, penny turned to face the young man, bright smile on her lips. “ i love it. “, and she meant it. she let her gaze move towards the tablecloth he had laid out, only to smile. “ were you so confident you’d get me up here, then ? or were you planning to bring just anyone here for the fireworks ? “, the girl teased, eyebrow arching up as a grin tugged at her plump lips. “ i didn’t… you really are a sly fox, huh ? you’re good. “, penny laughed as she reached for the bottle. “ should we wait for midnight… or open it already ? “.

nick’s mouth opened making an ‘o’ shape in shock at her language, but he couldn’t help but start to laugh, squeezing her hip. “wow, unbelievable... on new years eve you’re picking fights with me AND cursing?! making some harsh judgements here!” in reality he loved it, which was obvious in his reaction and the look on his face. “love it when you get mad. it’s hot. what else can i say to get you fired up, hm?” he teased with a raised brow, leaning in close to her face as he challenged her. he wasn’t going to disagree with her conclusion, meaning it from a well-intentioned place. if she was nosy, then he didn’t even want to know what that made him! most likely a lot of not-so-nice things.

“yeah.. it’s okay?” he couldn’t help but second guess, wondering if she truly did like the idea, eyes scanning her face for signs of anything out of the ordinary. so far so good. “never?” he pursed his lips, tearing his eyes from her to give another glance to the town. “maybe i frequent one too many rooftops... but it does look extra nice tonight.” but maybe that could be due to the company and the occasion, nick wasn’t quite sure yet. he looked back at the tablecloth when she mentioned it, running a hand through his hair. “wellllll, y’know. either i was getting you up here, or i was coming up... alone. so lucky for me, i didn’t have to do that second one.” he squeezed her hand that she had grabbed, “wouldn’t have come up here with just a n y o n e. i’m not easy, penny proud!” wasn’t entirely true, but he did only want to be up there with her. “oh we’re opening this bad boy now,” he replied easily, teeth ripping off the paper wrapping, twisting the cork and popping it open, the sound echoing into the night. “now it’s a party.” he handed her the bottle first, shrugging a shoulder. “no glasses. gonna have to be classy and share the bottle.” he sat down on the tablecloth getting comfortable, patting the spot next to him. “only a few minutes left. and i don’t even know what your resolutions or hopes are for next year. need to tell me at least one before midnight.” 

              when he mentioned where the guy he didn’t want to talk to was, odette took a discreet look in the direction he indicated, then nodded once.    “    lovely. i’m sure i can manage,    ”    she said. right before she gave him her purse ( because she obviously couldn’t have it with her while she claimed it was stolen ), she squinted, then she decided to try out her luck a little bit more. he did seem pretty desperate after all.    “    how about coffee and you buy a ticket to my next show this weekend ? do we have a deal ?    ”

nick took her purse, surprised that she would trust a stranger with it at all, and if he was a worse man maybe he would start rifling through it to see what he could find, but his mother had told him that a woman’s purse wasn’t something you went through, and he had learned the hard way many years ago. so against better judgement, he stood there and waited, casting her a look when she stopped in her trail. “what?! ugh, fine yes whatever. please just ... go,” he pleaded with a wave of his hand, ducking out of sight until the coast was clear. “we have a deal!” he mumbled, purse blocking his face.