s

“it’s just misdirected anger, babe,” andreina said gently, reaching over to rub imani's leg in comfort.

“but that still doesn’t make it okay,” imani sighed, leaning her head back against the cushions. “it’s just exhausting. like, don’t i deserve to find love too? fuck.”

“i think you should say something,” you said, uncapping your marker. “isn’t that the point of this? to get everything off your chest?”

mari nodded in heavy agreement, leaning forward. “a hundred percent. if you keep letting her throw shade at you in silence, it’s just gonna keep building up until somebody explodes. put it on a card, imani. anonymous or not—get your peace back.”

imani looked between the three of you, a slow spark of determination replacing the anxious look in her eyes. “you know what? you’re right.”

she uncapped her pen and immediately began scratching out a note, while you looked down at your own blank stack.

you knew your dynamic with djed was solid now. he’d made that crystal clear. but in this villa, the quiet whispers and lingering glances, you couldn't help but wonder whose names were about to show up on the cards meant for you two.

the camera zooms in as you settle into the pillows in confessional room.

“i’m not really expecting to get much of anything, honestly,” you say, shaking your head. “because clearly everyone treats me as the in-house therapist around this bitch.”

the crew behind the camera chuckles softly. “are you staying anonymous with your notes? or are you ‘standing on business’?” a producer asks.

“no, i’m signing everything, babe,” you answer instantly, sitting up “if i’ve have something to say to you, my name is gonna be attached to it. we're grown. literally just stand on it or don't write it!”

down by the fire pit, ken and deja sat.

ken tapped her chin, dark curls bouncing softly as she looked up at the villa. "i'm sorry, but some of these people acting like they've been married for ten years after a couple days is absurd," she muttered, rolling her eyes as she began scratching out a card. "it’s love island, not lock-it-down island. how are you going to get mad at us for doing what we came here to do just because you're terrified of a little competition?"

deja didn't even look up, her marker sliding smooth across the heavy paper. "literally. djed and her acting like they’re off-limits is so fake. you've been coupled up for five minutes, sit down. people are closing themselves off way too early and shade everybody else for trying to vibe. it’s annoying."

a few feet away at the daybeds, nikki was writing with enough force to tear right through the postcard. her jaw was set tight as she stared at the back of sam’s head across the garden.

“actions speak louder than words. you’re a liar, and you abandoned what we had the absolute second a new shinier option walked in,” she spoke, “at least have the balls to stand on it instead of playing the sweet guy.”

meanwhile, over by the kitchen island, alex and trey were watching nikki scribble away in tense silence.

"bro, i can't be the only one tired of it," alex whispered, quickly writing his own note. "she treats everybody around here like trash whenever she doesn't get her way, and everybody just walks on eggshells around her."

"nah, it's wild," trey agreed, capping his marker. "she gets a total free pass for being outright rude to imani, but if anyone else spoke to someone like that, they'd be hung out to dry. it's time somebody called this bullshit out out."

all over the villa, nobody was holding back and the tension was rising so fast.

one by one, the producers called everyone to the main entrance, where a mailbox sat like a ticking bomb. the air in the villa was thick with anticipation. the easy, relaxed sunbathing vibe from earlier was completely dead. nobody was making eye contact, and the silence was heavy.

the sun had fully set behind the villa walls, leaving the villa glowing in bright neon colors and warm yellow lights.

the girls had spent the last hour upstairs in the dressing room curling hair, spraying endless clouds of setting spray, and slipping into their dresses, while the boys had been sent to the bedroom to get ready. when you all finally walked back out, the setup was waiting for you.

right in the center of the fire pit stood a podium. resting right beside it was a shiny white mailbox. the tension in the air was so thick you could practically taste it. each islander was going to step up, read their postcards out loud—anonymous or signed—and then get their chance to respond right there in front of everybody.

you sat squeezed tight into djed’s side on the main couch, his arm draped heavy and protective around your shoulders as his fingers idly stroked your neck.

a text chimed, breaking the silence. sam’s name was called first.

he let out a heavy sigh, smoothed down his shirt, and walked slowly over to the mailbox. he pulled out his stack, stepped up to the podium, and unsealed the first card.

he cleared his throat, reading out loud:

“to sam, from anonymous. i don’t know how you can act like things are all good between you and imani when nikki has been crying her eyes out these past few days.”

sam took a slow, deep breath, resting his hands flat on the edges of the podium before looking up at the group.

“first of all, i don’t owe nikki anything,” he stated, his voice firm and tired. “i’ve tried to be respectful of her feelings. when imani came into the villa, i reassured nikki so many times before she decided to blow up on me. this isn’t only her experience. it’s mine as well.”

“i agree,” amari said. “there’s only so much a person can take, and your name has been dragged through the mud in this villa so many times.”

you nodded your head in strong agreement, watching nikki roll her eyes and cross her arms tightly from across the fire pit.

sam took another steadying breath before sliding the next card out of its envelope. he paused, his eyes widening slightly as he read the signature at the top.

“to sam, from... imani?”

he ran a hand over his face, shaking his head slightly before continuing to read:

“i don’t like how you haven’t stood up for me in regards to nikki. it’s almost as if you’re protecting her feelings and not giving a fuck about mine. if you say you want to explore me, explore me. don’t walk on eggshells because you’re scared of what she might say.”

“damn,” you and djed both blurted out at the exact same time.

you instantly snapped your hands over your mouths, as a few low oohs echoed around the fire pit.

sam stood at the podium for a long beat, staring at the card before looking up and locking eyes with imani.

“is this how you really feel, imani?” sam asked, his voice low and dead serious.

"yes," imani said, not flinching for a single second. she sat up straight, crossing her legs, her tone cool and calm. "i’m not gonna keep sitting around pretending everything is fine. every time she throws a slick remark or makes a scene, you go completely silent. if you want to get to know me, then act like it. stop letting her make you feel guilty for just having a conversation with me."

sam swallowed hard, nodding slowly at the podium. "fair enough. i hear you, imani. i really do. moving forward, i’m gonna make sure i step up and handle it better."

nikki let out a loud, dramatic scoff from the other side of the fire pit, but sam just shook his head and walked back to his seat. not wanting to give her any more of his energy,

the next text alert chimed, and it was djed’s turn.

djed gave your waist a firm squeeze before standing up, smoothing down his dark jacket, and walking over to the mailbox. he pulled out his stack and stepped up to the podium, a smirk on his face.

he unsealed the first card and read it out loud:

“to djed, from anonymous. it’s pretty wild how fast you closed yourself off to the new bombshells. feels like you’re just playing it safe to survive the game instead of actually giving other people a chance.”

djed pulled the card down, looking directly over at ken and deja, who were suddenly very interested in looking down at their nails.

a lazy, dangerous little smile spread across his face.

"first of all," djed began, his voice smooth and dripping with confidence, "i'm not 'playing it safe.' when you know what you want, you don't keep looking around just to satisfy everybody else's curiosity. my feelings arent game to me. if you came in here hoping i'd fold the second a new face walked through the door, i'm sorry to disappoint you."

you couldn’t help the massive grin that spread across your face.

the rest of the islanders let out a loud burst of “i know that’s right,” and clapping, while mari leaned over to high-five you. djed caught your eye from the podium, giving you a quick, subtle wink before pulling out his second card.

“to djed, from anonymous,” he read, his brow furrowing slightly. “you treat her like a princess, but we all know you’re holding back. just wait until casa amor.”

djed let out a low, deep chuckle, shaking his head as he tossed the card onto the wooden podium.

"whoever wrote this clearly doesn't know me," he said firmly, locking eyes with the entire group. "i stand on what i say. i don't need a test in casa amor to figure out what i've got right in front of me."

andreina raised her eyebrows, looking around the fire pit circle. “anybody wanna say who wrote it?”

the fire pit went dead silent for a split second. ken quickly cleared her throat, suddenly leaning down to fix the strap on her heel, while deja kept her gaze firmly locked on her drink, neither of them opening their mouths to claim the notes.

you just leaned back into djed’s chest, a smooth, unbothered smirk on your face.

“girl, you know who wrote it,” you said with a light laugh, shaking your head. “if they wanna hide behind games, they can. i’m not losing sleep at night.”

“facts,” he said and stepped down from the podium. walking straight back to you, pulling you into his side and pressing a heavy, proud kiss right to the side of your head. “who’s next?”

next up was selah, who only had one postcard waiting for her in the box. she pulled it out, smiling softly as she read a sweet note from jayden wishing that she’d open up to him a little bit more and let her guard down. she spoke to him, in total agreement before taking her seat.

then came trey, who stepped up to the podium looking like he was just waiting to get back to his bed. he read through a couple of vague notes, shrugged, and muttered a quick response that proved he could literally care less what anyone in the villa had to say about him, sending a quick wave of giggles through the group.

after that, it was andreina's turn.

she walked up with a big smile, unsealing her single card and bursting into a grin as she read out loud:

“to andreina, from anonymous... you swear you don’t snore, but we can all hear you, love.”

the entire fire pit completely busted out laughing.

“that is a complete lie!” andreina shouted, holding her card up in fake outrage while laughing through her words. “i sleep like an angel! who wrote this?!”

mari was practically doubled over, wheezing into her hands, while djed shook his head, burying his face into your shoulder as he chuckled. the hilarious little break in tension was a breath of fresh air.

once the laughter finally died down, the next text alert chimed stating it was imani’s turn.

the energy instantly shifted right back to high tension. imani smoothed down her bandage dress, took a deep breath, and walked up to the mailbox. she pulled out a couple of cards, stepping right up to the podium.

she opened the first envelope, her eyes quickly scanning the messy handwriting before she read it out loud for the entire villa to hear.

“to imani, from nikki.”

nikki sat back on the couch, crossing her legs and staring at imani with a completely cold, deadpan expression.

imani took a slow, steady breath before reading:

“you came in here trying your hardest to break sam and i up, knowing we were together. the victim act is getting old.”

imani giggled softly, shaking her head as if she couldn't even believe what she had just read.

“you’re saying i tried my hardest to break you two up?” she asked, gesturing smoothly between sam and nikki. she paused for a split second, tilting her head with a tight, sweet smile.

“it obviously didn’t take much, babe. you’re insufferable.”

the entire fire pit went dead silent for a microsecond before absolute chaos erupted. jaw drops, sharp gasps, and frantic coughs filled the air.

you immediately spun around, burying your face straight into mari’s shoulder to stifle your uncontrollable laughter. mari’s entire body was shaking next to you as she folded her lips completely into her mouth, fighting for her life trying to bite back a huge smile. djed was right behind you, throwing his head back with a low, disbelieving laugh, his arm tightening around your waist as he tried to keep his composure.

nikki sat frozen, her jaw practically on the decking as imani calmly placed the card down on the podium, reading and answering her next cards. clearly unbothered by nikki’s antics.

ironically, nikki was up next, and her stack was ridiculously thick.

she slid the first card out, her eyes scanning the text before she read it:

“to nikki, from anonymous. you demand total loyalty from everyone in this villa, but you give absolutely none in return. your constant outbursts aren't cute—they’re exhausting.”

nikki let out a loud, mocking laugh, tossing the card onto the podium like it was trash. "exhausting? if standing up for myself and not letting people play in my face makes me exhausting, then i'll happily take that label! next!"

mari spoke up from beside you, not holding back for a second. “you keep saying somebody is playing in your face—nobody is playing you! you did all this shit to yourself! if you want to speak on somebody playing victim, look in the mirror!”

“oh, so now you’ve got something to say, mari?” nikki snapped back, spinning toward her.

the two of them instantly began to bicker across the fire pit, the tension boiling over until producers stepped in: “nikki, please finish reading your postcards.”

nikki rolled her eyes, scoffing deeply as she read the second card.

“to nikki, from trey.”

trey sat back on the couch, completely unbothered, resting his arms over the back of the cushions as he waited for her to read it.

“you drag everybody into your drama and then expect the whole villa to take your side when you’re completely in the wrong. i’m tired of walking on eggshells. grow up.”

"grow up?" nikki spat, glaring directly at trey. "i don't drag anyone into shit, trey. if you're walking on eggshells, that's a you problem!"

nikki aggressively yanked the next card out, her eyes landing on your name at the bottom. she glared right at you before reading it out loud:

“everyone in here gives you entirely too much grace when you’ve been nothing but rude towards imani. i’m done enabling the toxic behavior. sam moved on, you do the same. it’s not the end of the world.”

the whole fire pit went dead silent as nikki stared you down, her chest heaving.

"so after everything i told you upstairs this morning, this is what you go and write?" she sneered, her voice dripping with anger.

djed’s arm immediately tightened around you, his shoulders squaring as he looked over at her. but you didn't even flinch.

“i care about you," you said calmly, meeting her gaze head-on. "thats why being real with you. sitting upstairs comforting you while you cry is one thing, but watching you constantly tear imani down every single day for doing the exact same thing we all came here to do? i'm not gonna pretend that's okay. that’s lame as hell actually. yes, you got your feelings hurt. haven’t we all? move the fuck on.”

nikki opened her mouth to shoot back, but she was completely speechless, unable to spin her way out of it as a few low nods of agreement swept through the rest of the villa.

alex was up next, walking over to the podium and he cleared his throat and read his card out loud:

“to alex, from anonymous. i really hate the way ole girl did you. i’d treat you so much better.”

a subtle wave of murmurings rippled through the fire pit. everybody in that circle knew damn well “ole girl” was a direct jab at you for ditching your initial coupling with alex the second djed walked through those doors.

djed’s posture instantly shifted, his chest puffing out as he let out a low, cold scoff against your ear. but you? you really couldn’t give a fuck.

you slowly leaned forward, resting your elbows on your knees, a cool, dangerous little smirk dancing on your lips as your eyes swept across the couches.

“anybody care to put a name on it?” you asked, your voice ringing out crystal clear over the quiet yard.

silence. complete and utter crickets. not a single soul speaking up to claim it.

you let out a soft, amused laugh, shaking your head as you sat right back into djed’s chest.

“i thought not.”

djed’s arm slammed firmly back around your waist, pulling you flush against him as he let out a dark, satisfied chuckle. pressing a sweet kiss to your temple while alex quietly cleared his throat, tossed the card down.

jayden, dave, and amari breezed through their cards next, keeping things mostly light before the focus finally shifted to you.

you walked up to the podium, picking up your small stack from the mailbox. you unsealed the first envelope, immediately cracking a smirk as you read it out loud:

“from, anonymous. i really dislike how you, andreina, and amari walk around like you’re hot shit. it’s giving mean girls.”

“mean girls because we don’t kiss ass? okay,” you laughed, tossing the card aside with zero hesitation before reaching for the second one. your eyes scanned the text, landing straight on the signature at the bottom.

“from, deja. i don’t like how possessive you act over djed. he isn’t only yours. this is love island.”

you rolled your eyes before responding, looking right across the fire pit at her. “right, love island. not explore island. i’ve never acted ‘possessive’ over djed. i encouraged him to explore the both of you. he’s a grown man, he makes his own choices.”

ken immediately spoke up from the end couch, sitting up to side with deja. “i mean, be real though! anytime anyone even tries to pull him for a chat, the energy completely changes. it does feel like you guys made an unwritten rule that no one else is allowed to talk to him!”

djed didn't even wait for you to answer—he leaned forward from his seat, cutting in. "nobody made a rule. i told both of you straight to your faces where my head was at so i didn't waste your time. don't get mad at her because i picked her."

you couldn't help the dry, amused laugh that bubbled up as you held the card up. looking around the fire pit, you added, “anybody else feel some type of way over djed? i don’t know, you might have to cry about it or something. i’m not coming up off that.”

the entire fire pit erupted into cheers and laughter. djed immediately threw his head back, a huge, proud grin spreading across his face as he shook his head.

you picked up your final postcard from the podium and quickly read the text out loud:

“from, anonymous. don’t you think the way you acted with alex was harsh? you completely discarded him for djed.”

a small, exasperated sigh escaped your lips, but you kept your composure, looking directly across the circle at alex before speaking.

“well, alex, if you feel this way, i want to apologize. i picked djed because i have a stronger connection with him. it doesn’t mean that i didn’t care for you or your feelings.” you paused, shifting your gaze from alex to sweep across the rest of the fire pit—specifically locked on the peanut gallery. “as far as everyone else goes, i’ve had this conversation with alex, so at this point, y’all are just being messy as fuck.”

a chorus of oohs and hushed giggles rippled through the couches as you casually tossed the card back onto the podium.

“alex, you’re a great guy. i just wasn’t your person. i hope you find yours in here.”

alex cleared his throat, nodding subtly in acknowledgment. "thank you. we already squashed it, there’s no hard feelings. that’s what we’re all here for right?" effectively shutting down whoever wrote the note.

“anyone else have something they want to get off their chest? . . . . perfect.” you said, satisfied that you’d thoroughly cleared the air and set the record straight, you stepped down from the podium and strolled back to your seat blowing kisses at mari and andreina.

the moment you sat down, djed swung his arm around you, pulling you straight into his lap and tucking your head under his chin.

"you're crazy, you know that?" he whispered, his deep voice vibrating against your shoulder as his hand rested warm and firm on your hip. pressing a lingering kiss to the top of your head as the producers finally called an end to the game.

“just a little,” you say, a smirk playing on your lips.

the two of you escaped down to the dock. djed’s oversized, heavy jacket was draped warmth over your shoulders, smelling distinctly of his cologne.

“how are you feeling, love?” he asked softly, sliding his arm around your waist to keep you pulled against his side just as you’d been all night.”

“i’m not gonna lie, i do feel a way about certain people coming at us for being together,” you admitted, shaking your head as you looked out at the lights reflecting off the water. “like, why are you so bothered?”

djed shifted slightly, turning his body toward you. he reached up, his warm hand gently cupping the side of your jaw to turn your face back to his.

“it doesn’t matter,” he answered, his thumb brushing lightly across your cheekbone. “they’re not in this couple. it’s just us.”

he leaned down, trailing a slow line of lingering, soft kisses right along the sensitive spot under your jaw down to your neck, making a quiet shiver run straight down your spine.

“let ‘em talk,” he murmured against your skin, his voice sending a rumble straight through your chest. “you and i both know this is real. what did you say at the fire pit? i’m not coming up off you, not anytime soon.”

he pulled back just enough to look at you, a slow, gorgeous smile spreading across his face, his dark eyes crinkling at the corners with pure affection.

you let out a soft laugh, shaking your head at how satisfied he looked with himself. "you’re insane."

you reached up, softly cupping both sides of his jaw, and pulled him down into a warm, lingering kiss. he melted into it instantly, his fingers tangling into your hair as he deepened the kiss, drowning out every bit of noise and drama until it was just the quiet hum of the water and the two of you.

jermajesty arrived at your apartment letting himself in with his key, “love, have you seen this?” he asked, pointing to his phone.

“yes, baby. i just seen.”

“we’ve never exactly talked about what we wanted to do in this situation.”

“honestly, i don’t really care maj. i’m with you, and im happy. i don’t care about the publicity and your crazy fans.”

and with that, he kissed you on your forehead and the relationship carried on the same way it’d always had—pure bliss.

weeks went by and neither of addressed the dating rumors, because well , the rumors were true. one night you were on tiktok live while jermajesty was out getting food for the both of you. the comments were flooded with “where’s jermajesty?”

“first of all, this is my page.” you laughed, rolling your eyes playfully.

the comments persisted. “can we get a day in the life?” “can we get a vlog?”

“yall keep saying vlog because you bitches are nosy! y’all don’t wanna see me, you just want wanna see my man. he has his own page!”

the comments were moving so fast you could barely read half of them, but it was always the same: people digging for crumbs.

the front door unlocked and the sweet, savory scent of takeout filled the apartment. jermajesty walked in, holding two heavy brown paper bags and balancing a tray of drinks. you joke with them one last time before finally getting off live for the night.

“i could hear you laughing all the way down the hall,” he said, setting the bags on the kitchen island and pulling you into a quick, warm hug. he kissed the side of your neck, his lips soft against your skin. “who were you fussing at?”

“my live,” you said, leaning back against the counter as he started unboxing the food. “they’re so nosy, maj. they were literally begging for vlogs and more dumps as if i don’t post enough already.”

jermajesty laughed, shaking his head as he handed you your container. “i mean, you do make good content, baby.”

“oh, absolutely but they don’t want to see my study routines, they want to see if your shoes are by the front door,” you said, opening your food and taking a bite.

the rest of the night was quiet and comfortable. the two of you sat on the couch with a movie playing low in the background, talking about everything and nothing. his arm was wrapped around your shoulders, your feet resting in his lap while he absently traced patterns on your ankle—right where the gold "j" pendant rested.

a few days later, you decided to record a video. not a response to the drama, not an address to the rumors, just a regular video for your og audience.

you set your phone up on your desk, sat down in your oversized hoodie, and hit record.

“hey guys. so today was absolute hell in class, but we made it,” you started, adjusting the frame.

as you talked through your makeup routine, jermajesty walked into the background, completely oblivious to the camera. he was wearing a simple grey hoodie, hair a bit messy, holding a bottle of water. he walked up behind your chair, leaned down, and kissed the top of your head before walking straight out of the frame toward the kitchen.

it was so casual, so quick, that you almost edited it out. but then you stopped yourself. you were in your own apartment, living your real life. you weren't hiding, but you weren't putting on a show for anyone either.

you uploaded the clip with a simple caption: monday errands.

within an hour, your notifications were completely frozen. but this time, when you opened the comment section, you just smiled, locked your phone, and walked into the living room to sit next to your man.

You were always an affectionate person. It came from the household you grew up in! Your mom showered you with love everyday and your dad gave you forehead kisses every time he saw you.

So, of course, you showed your love with kisses.

Laid up in michael’s bedroom, your head on his chest as his hand absentmindedly rubbed circles on your waist.

The TV was playing Lady & The Tramp, one of Michael’s favorites movies. Michael was focused on the movie, but you were focused on him.

His eyes.

His jawline.

His lips.

You loved everything about your man.

It was like your lips had a mind of their own when they made their way to his jawline, as your hand move to hold the other side of his face.

You pressed soft, light kisses, not wanting to distract him from the movie.

But everything you do distracted Michael.

You felt him smile as you pressed another loving kiss to his face, not caring that the movie was still playing, all his attention was now on you.

“Tink..what you doin girl?”

“mm, nothing…” peck.

You loved every part of your man, but you wanted more.

You moved yourself on top of him, straddling his lap. Michael placed his hands on your thighs, feeling them up until they rested on your hips.

You stared at him for a few moments, admiring his features.

Michael felt his face heating up, removing his hand from your hips and putting them on his face. “Tink stop staring at me…”

You remove his hands from his face as you lean down to press a kiss on his nose.

“I’m sorry mikey..”

Then you kiss him again, this time on his forehead.

Then his right cheek.

Then his left.

His chin.

His eyelids.

The corners of his mouth.

“c’mon mama..”

“hm? what’s wrong mikey?”

“You teasin’ me…kiss me f’real.”

You let out a little laugh, placing your hands on michael’s face and giving him a sweet kiss on his lips.

Michael’s hands find your waist again, resting there for a bit until he starts to move them up your back.

You move your hands from his face to his chest, pulling away from the kiss, but michael chases after your lips, whining because of the sudden emptiness he felt.

“why’d you stop tink?”

Oh he was so cute.

You smile, ignoring his question and lean down to connect your lips with his again, to which he instantly melts in to.

a/n: a little something for yall while i work on my series

When you were hired to be starring alongside Jaafar Jackson in the movie, Michael, you would’ve never thought your relationship would end up being more than co-stars.

More than co-stars meaning you would’ve never thought you’d end up in his trailer between every break you had or after rehearsals with him standing between your legs as you sit on the vanity, him pressing soft kisses against your neck as your fingers tangled in his long curls.

You knew Jaafar had a girlfriend at home. He knew he had a girlfriend at home, but that never stopped the two of you, did it? You couldn’t stay away from him and he surely couldn’t stay away from you. You both knew it was wrong, but whenever he got his hands on you again, you both would forget the consequences.

None of those mattered as long as you got to have Jaafar alone, in that trailer, his mouth against yours as you both tried to keep quiet to prevent anyone from hearing the terrible things you were doing.

The first time this happened, a manager had asked you to bring some coffee to Jaafar, per his request. Being the good co-star you are, you accepted, nothing harmless in bringing your co-worker coffee, right? wrong.

Arriving to Jaafar’s trailer, you stepped up to the door, preparing to knock but once you got close enough you could hear some muffled sounds. They sounded like he was…yelling? You couldn’t clearly understand what he was saying or who he was talking to but it sounded bad. This went on for a few minutes, the coffee in your hand going from steaming to lukewarm.

You finally knocked when you heard the yelling stop, assuming it was over. The door swung open with a clear anger, a scowl across Jaafar’s face that softened once he made eye contact with you.

“Hey! I have your coffee you wanted..”

Jaafar looked over at the coffee then back towards you, wondering how long you’ve been out here. How much did you hear between him and girlfriend? He took the coffee out your hand, mumbling a soft thanks.

“Come in.”

You watched Jaafar step aside, letting you walk into his trailer. You sat on the couch in the corner, you hadn’t been in his trailer before, you had no reason to be.

You watched Jaafar take a sip of the coffee, hoping he couldn’t tell it went warm ages ago, indicating you’d been out there for a while.

“How much did you hear?”

shit.

“W-what are you talking about?” You asked, trying to fake being clueless.

“The coffee? It’s warm. I know you’ve been out there for awhile.”

You stayed silent, trying to think of an excuse.

You got distracted? No.

It was already warm? No.

“I promise I didn’t mean to snoop,” you say after a few minutes of silence, deciding to go with the truth. “I just didn’t want to intrude. You were yelling and it sounded serious, If I knocked in the middle of it, it would’ve been weird..”

Jaafar didn’t say anything, just placed the coffee on a nearby table before walking over and taking a seat next to you. You could feel his thing against yours once he sat, personal space not existing between you. You don’t move away, in all honesty you’ve dreamed of being this close to him before, but he didn’t need to know that.

You looked up to his face and could tell he was exhausted. You wanted to ask what happened, why he was yelling and if everything was okay, but it truly wasn’t any of your business. Your eyes trailed down his body, he was still in the practicing outfit for the Bad rehearsal. He looked incredible, the pants being a little too tight on him, his thighs straining against the fabric.

“It was my girlfriend.”

Oh.

“Pardon?” You looked back up to his face and he was already staring at you.

“The yelling. I was on the phone with my girlfriend.”

Girlfriend? You couldn’t help to feel a little sting in your chest, you knew your chances with him were limited, but now you were sure they were at zero.

“Jaafar, you don’t have to tell me this..I don’t want to intrude on your guy’s relationship.”

As soon as you said that, you could feel his hand rest on your thigh. You tried to ignore it, but then he started to move it, caressing you as he continued to talk about his girlfriend..maddie, was it? You could barely focus with what he was doing to you right now.

One thing then lead to another and somehow his lips were on yours and he was immediately shifting you into his lap, causing you to make small noises into the kiss. Your brain was telling you to get off him, stop kissing him, but you couldn’t. His hands felt too good on you.

This little incident would then continue for months. You going to his trailer, convincing your co-workers you were bring him a snack or some coffee, or just needed to talk to him.

These moments would only happen in his trailer. As soon as you both had to go back on set, Jaafar treated you like a respected co-star again. You understood why, I mean how would people react to Jaafar Jackson cheating on his girlfriend? That doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt. You knew everyday after rehearsal, after you guys would have a little quick makeout, he would go home and do everything he did with you to Maddie.

You hated it.

You wanted to be his girlfriend, to take Maddie’s place. But instead, you were just a girl he would have moments with in his trailer, moments that he would also share with his girlfriend—who he claimed he loved.

You wanted him to break up with her. You wanted him to start dating you instead. So, one afternoon, in his trailer, you decided to ask him.

He had you on top the vanity desk, his mouth moving against yours as he whispers sweet nothings against your lips.

You’re nothing like her.

You’re so much better.

She could never take care of me the way you do.

Everything he was saying was making your brain go fuzzy, forgetting why you came to his trailer in the first place.

“J…wait,” You tried to pull away from the kiss, but he wouldn’t let up. “Hm?” He moved from your lips to towards your neck, going to that sweet spot that made you lose it every time. “What’s wrong, pretty?”

“When—mm..when are you going to leave her?”

You could feel Jaafar freeze, the kisses to your neck stopping abruptly. He removed his face from your neck to look you directly in the eyes, his hands still gripping your waist with your arms still wrapped around his neck.

“J..?”

He stayed quiet. The truth is, he hadn’t even thought about leaving Maddie, but he couldn’t tell you that. He knew you were waiting for him to breakup with her, but he still needs time to calculate how he was going to do it. Maddie had been his girlfriend for 4 years, he couldn’t just randomly break up with her, not yet at least.

“I’ll..I’ll break up with her today, baby.”

Why did he say that?

“you f’real J?”

“mhm. promise.”

You smiled, pulling him back into a kiss that he deepened quickly, you would finally have Jaafar all to yourself.

Ი︵𐑼

You walked into work the next day smiling from ear to ear, Jaafar was finally single, or he should be. He promised you. You knew he would never lie to you. Everyone you passed by asked why you were so smiley that day, you just gave them a shrug and said, “just happy!”

Truthfully, you couldn’t wait for the first break to be called.

After about 2 hours of straight rehearsal, you waited a few minutes before making your way over to Jaafar’s trailer. You stepped up to the door, happy as ever, knocking with a certain impatience to you.

The door opened, revealing Jaafar, and you swore you could see the color run from his face when he saw you, but you ignored it. You quickly stepped in and wasted no time pushing him back onto the couch, climbing on top of him.

“B-baby..wait,” You ignored Jaafar’s words, pressing your lips against his desperately, he was finally yours, even if he hadn’t officially asked you yet.

Your hips started moving, wanting to feel more of him. He threw his head back against the couch with a low groan and you took that opportunity to start attacking his neck, kissing and sucking, causing dark purple spots to appear on his brown skin.

You and Jaafar were both lost in your own world, you didn’t even hear the handle of his trailer starting to rattle, and the door swinging open.

“Honey—what the fuck!!?”

You and Jaafar both jumped, turning your heads to look at who just walked in.

“Maddie!”

Jaafar quickly shoved you off his lap and tried to wipe away any of your gloss that was around his lips, getting up and walking over to Maddie.

You were overly confused.

What was Maddie doing here? Didn’t Jaafar break up with her?

“Jaafar, what the fuck! Why are you in here letting some girl grind and kiss up against you! Are you fucking cheating on me!?”

But they broke up..right?

“No, Maddie I promise it’s nothing like that!”

Nothing like that?

“J? I thought you broke up with her?”

Maddie’s head quickly turned to you, anger written all over her face. “Broke up? Jaafar, what the hell is she talking about?”

Jaafar didn’t know what the fuck to do. His girlfriend of 4 years had just caught him cheating, the hickeys on his neck being clear as day.

“I..um..fuck, I’m so sorry Maddie. It never meant to get this far and (name) I’m so sorry I lied to you, I just..I couldn’t break up with her..”

You couldn’t believe what you were hearing right now. Jaafar had lied to you? He had let you believe that he was going to break up with her and be with you. And now, you’re hearing that they’re still together? You could feel your eyes stinging, tears threatening to spill.

“Jaafar I can’t believe this. If this is what you want then go ahead, throw 4 years away for what, a few months?”

Now Jaafar being forced to make a choice? He was fucked. He loved Maddie, she was his childhood friend turned girlfriend. But, he..loved you as well? You gave him the release he was craving, but that isn’t love.

It’s lust.

Was Jaafar going to choose you? The girl he met on set who was there for him when he and girlfriend argued and you helped him release his anger?

Or was he going to choose Maddie? His loving girlfriend, who’s been there for him through thick and thin, never leaving his side even when times got rough between them.

“No, Maddie..I want you. I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean for any of this to happen..”

The tears were threatening to spill earlier were definitely coming down now. You should’ve known he would’ve never gave up his long-term relationship for something that was solely sexual release. You knew this, whatever you had, wasn’t going to go anywhere. You sat there, watching Maddie hug Jaafar, forgiving him.

You knew it was never going to be you, you don’t know why you even bothered.

a/n: ouuu shittt