Can You Hear Me - Tumblr Posts

Day 1, 2, 3, 7 13, 15-Bakugou "doesn't get sick"

Trying another whumptober whoo hoo! I got a new job, a great one for the first time in my life lol, and I've got a lot of time to be able to sit down and just write. So I'm gonna try my hardest to finish this whumptober, I've been writing as much as I physically can haha

prompts- swooning, thermometer/delurium, "make it stop", "can you hear me", cold compress, "I'm fine"- fever, passing out, sick Katsuki, todobaku pre, shower scene ;)

Feel free to find this on AO3- https://archiveofourown.org/works/50196034/chapters/126773227

This is a long one, so I'm gonna put it under a cut.

Katsuki had been hot and sweaty all day, which is normally something he encouraged for his quirk to work at its highest potential, but today it just felt wrong. He wasn’t sure why, he always took very good care of his body, but something just wasn’t adding up. It was spring, and the weather was supposed to be very nice, but it felt like he couldn’t cool off no matter what he did. He felt like the sun was projecting pure heat through the window as he sat uncomfortably in class, trying his best to pay attention through one of the worst headaches he’d ever had in his life.

To make matters worse, Katsuki had been assigned fucking Todoroki as a partner for an upcoming hero research paper. He hated group work in the first place, but assigning him goddamn Todoroki (even if Aizawa claimed it was random, he never believed that bullshit, Aizawa lied to them all the time) was just adding insult to injury at this point. But he never shirked from his academic responsibilities, he was going to graduate top of his class, so he still had to actually try on this stupid assignment even though he didn’t want to work with the half-n-half bastard. His headache would just have to wait. The sooner they were done, the less he had to talk to IcyHot.

“We’re finishing this as fast as we fucking can,” Katsuki had hissed at Todoroki, who only stared back blankly. Bastard. “I don’t care if you have plans tonight, I’m coming over to your fucking room and we’re finishing this tonight.”

“Aizawa distinctly said we should not do this in one night.” God, even his voice irritated Katsuki. Everything about the bastard irritated Katsuki, from his stupid hair to his stupid muscles to his stupid blank face that never showed any thought Katsuki could pick up on. Kaminari had teased him over ‘how obsessed you are over Todoroki’ and how it ‘sounds like you liiiike him’ but he shut up when Katsuki pushed him off his chair.

Katsuki rolled his eyes. “He was talking to the idiots who wait until the last minute to do the work.”

Like the idiots he couldn’t help but call friends because… well, he didn’t know what else to call them. They wouldn’t leave him alone, always forced him to participate in their activities, and every time he tried to leave the group chat they’d set up, he’d just be added right back in and chastised lightly as if he’d just made a small mistake. It had been hard to admit, but sometimes, only sometimes, Katsuki enjoyed their company, and even had fun once or twice. He would never admit to it, especially since he didn’t know how to feel about it, and he refused to be laughed at because he was unsure of these new feelings.

“I suppose we’ll find out when we attempt the assignment.” Todoroki said, which only infuriated Katsuki more, which caused his headache to spike. He wanted to argue some more, but having done it in the past proved its inefficiency. Todoroki never fucking reacted to anything he did, even when he was purposefully antagonizing the bastard just to see him make some kind of facial expression.

“Whatever. I’m coming over right after dinner,” and didn’t that sound disgusting, “so be ready.”

Todoroki nodded, and Katsuki almost felt cheated since Todoroki never reacted to anything he said. He’d seen Todoroki make facial expressions for fucking pathetic Deku, Katsuki was way better than him, why didn’t he get those reactions? Katsuki was ridiculously past good enough to get one of those stupid ass smiles or little puffs of laughter. Katsuki deserved that more than Deku ever would.

Getting through the rest of the day had been difficult, but nothing he couldn’t handle. He just had a headache from dealing with everyone’s bullshit, and the day was a fluke of being too hot, and he just had to get through it. Katsuki was the strongest person in this entire class, he could handle anything. It got easier after school when he took off his uniform and could put on a simple tank and shorts. At dinner, he forced himself to have some congee rather than his normal, nutritionally balanced meal, but the thought of food was so unappealing that forcing himself to cook and eat his routine foods almost outweighed his knowledge that he had to eat dinner in the first place.

When he went to put the half he couldn’t finish in the fridge, Kirishima was in the kitchen, burning whatever he was trying to make. Usually Katsuki could tell by smell alone, but this time he couldn’t smell anything but it was obviously burning. Even worse, Katsuki knew how to salvage his dinner and he didn’t have a reason not to tell him.

“Your heat is too high. Take it out now and it’ll only be slightly burnt.” Katsuki grumbled, rolling his eyes both at himself and his idiot best friend. He couldn’t believe he was best friends with someone who could barely function like an independent human being.

“Thanks, bro!” Katsuki had given up on Kirishima calling him ‘bro’, it seemed to be a core aspect of the redhead’s personality. The chipper smile directed at him as Kirishima did as he said kinda made up for it. Making his friends happy wasn’t the worst thing he’s ever done. “Are you done already? Usually you’re in here cooking up a storm, I was surprised not to see you.”

Kirishima then saw the congee in his hands as he put it in his tupperware, and he frowned. “Dude, is that all you had? Aren’t you the one always yelling at us to ‘make better dinners’? Are you okay?”

Katsuki bristled at the question, his pride flaring up in defense. “I have to work with fucking IcyHot on a dumb fucking project I don’t need a partner for, and apparently I can’t have a simple dinner for once without everyone jumping down my throat! The fuck do you think?”

“Okay, okay, sorry, bro.” Kirishima held up his hands in defense. “Just wanted to check in. You haven’t seemed yourself today.”

Katsuki glared at him. “I don’t need you to ‘check in’. Leave me the fuck alone.”

“If you say so, bro.” Kirishima shrugged. “We’re gonna have a smash brothers tournament at Denki’s tonight, you wanna join in?”

“You shits are lucky I can’t destroy you tonight.” Katsuki rolled his eyes. “I’m doing my fucking report, which is what you should be doing. When it’s two nights before it’s due, and you still haven’t done it, don’t come crying to me. I won’t help you.”

He would help them. His friends struggled with schoolwork, and if he was going to be seen with them then they had to live up to his reputation. Unfortunately, they couldn’t do that without his help, and he didn’t like watching his friends struggle and seeing them upset over their grades. That stupid feeling he hated outweighed his annoyance at helping them, so, he didn’t really have a choice if he didn’t want that stupid feeling he got when he saw his friends get upset. He didn’t know how, but somehow his idiots had figured that out, and they still came to him every time, and every time, despite him telling himself that he wouldn’t help them this time, he helped them regardless. They were all the worst and he hated them.

But for now, Katsuki was too busy hating the elevator’s stupidly bright lights to hate his friends anymore. Katsuki leaned against the metal, the coolness of the metal a balm on his overly hot skin. He’d never been so glad that the entirety of Heights Alliance had air conditioning. The day had been way too hot today, Katsuki had always been sensitive to hotter temperatures since he couldn’t cool his body through his sweat like other people did, which is probably why he hadn’t heard anyone else complain about it. But he could take anything, any temperature, any obstacle, because no hero worth their salt would let a thing like a hot day stop them so he refused to let it stop him.

Even though he really didn’t want to be doing this, he’d much prefer to just take a cold shower and go to bed early so the day would finally be over, he still pushed forward and went to Todoroki’s room. He went to just walk in, not like the bastard didn’t know he was coming, but the door was locked. He jiggled the door handle a little violently, clearly seeing the light was on under the door, but it still didn’t open. Katsuki’s eye twitched.

knock. knock.

It was the stiffest knock of his life, but apparently that was enough for Todoroki, who finally opened the door. “You knew I was coming, that was a dick move.”

“So is barging in unannounced.” Todoroki replied, raising an eyebrow. Katsuki’s eye twitched again.

“We should get started since you want to finish tonight.” Todoroki said, and Katsuki just growled, and then just set his stuff down on the tiny ass table Todoroki had. Sometimes, Katsuki had to choose his battles. Most of the time, he chose all battles, but this one he had to let go since he didn’t want his grade to suffer.

“I’m taking this pathetic excuse for a chair since you’re apparently so fine with being on the floor.” Katsuki said, referring to the mat Todoroki slept on. Todoroki didn’t protest, he merely just set the mat next to the thing that couldn’t even be called a desk really since it was too damn small. The room didn’t seem to have much in terms of temperature control, as the elevator had been much cooler. It was probably because Todoroki could regulate his own temperature, so he didn’t need the ac unit to do it for him. That was annoying as fuck.

The headache that Katsuki had been working very hard to ignore was becoming more and more of a problem as they worked. Katsuki could at least appreciate the monotone right now since it was quiet, and he spoke slowly enough that Katsuki could hear him despite the pounding in his head. A hammer was slamming into his head with every beat of his heart, and it just got worse as they kept going, the material not interesting enough to get past the pain. He would’ve given up and gone to sleep if he didn’t have to do this damn paper with Todoroki. The bastard couldn’t keep a secret for his life so in order to keep his reputation, he had to keep going, even through the worst headache he’d had in a long time. But with every beat of the hammer, he was losing his resolve. It was only his drive not to be weak that kept him going.

“Bakugou? Did you hear what I said?” Todoroki said, startling Katsuki a little.

“Of course I did. I was just thinking.” Katsuki snapped, trying to brush it off, ignoring the fact that he actually hadn’t heard what Todoroki had said. He hoped it wasn’t important.

“Thinking.” Todoroki echoed, but it wasn’t a question or a challenge. It was just a statement.

“That’s what I fucking said.”

“Are you alright, Bakugou?” Todoroki asked, and Katsuki could almost hear a touch of concern in the monotone. It pissed him off, though he wasn’t sure exactly why. “You’ve been strangely quiet today.”

“I’m fine.” Katsuki sneered, a violent threat in his voice.

Todoroki pursed his lips at him, but only continued on with what he was saying. Katsuki struggled to keep focusing on it, Todoroki’s voice was soothing in its quiet volume, but he couldn’t process the words the bastard was actually saying.

Dammit. He couldn’t keep doing this. If he actually turned in the report they were working on now, Katsuki would get the worst grade he’d ever gotten in his life, even though he very much understood the topic. His headache was just too bad, and the room had only gotten steadily hotter as they’d worked, and Katsuki couldn’t take it anymore, his reputation be damned. He’d just blame it on Todoroki not properly cooling his room and sweating him out of it.

“I’m done, I’m going to bed.” Katsuki said, gathering up his stuff as quickly as he could. He was a little uncoordinated in his haste, but he blamed it on the heat. “We’ll just do this tomorrow.”

Todoroki didn’t even show his surprise beyond a raised eyebrow. “I thought you wanted to do this in one night.”

“It’s not my fault your room is like a sauna and your voice is like a fucking icepick in my head!” Katsuki snapped, absolutely done with today. The room was so hot he was starting to get a little dizzy, and standing just made his vision swim for a moment. “How the fuck am I supposed to focus on court cases and legalities when the room is a million degrees and you won’t fucking shut up?”

That seemed to actually surprise Shouto, though it still only showed in his eyes. “Bakugou, my room isn’t hot. And I was only talking since you wouldn’t. You’ve barely said anything tonight.”

Katsuki rolled his eyes, and then had to pinch his nose and shut his eyes when the room blurred, playing it off as annoyance. Dammit, he was so fucking hot. “You wouldn’t notice, you have that stupid temperature thing because of your quirk.”

“I turn on the ac when I have guests, Bakugou.” Todoroki said, and Katsuki scoffed. He was sweating far too much for that to be true. He didn’t doubt that Todoroki was lying, but there was no way the ac was actually on right now. The bastard must’ve just set it to the wrong setting, he wouldn’t be the first in their class to struggle with the thermostat, to his perpetual annoyance.

“Bakugou, I may not be an expert, but you do not look well.” Todoroki said, which only infuriated him more. If he was suddenly going to care about Katsuki, the least he could do was fucking show it. Katsuki knew not everyone wore their emotions on their sleeve, but Todoroki never seemed to have any emotion at all, not even when dealing with Katsuki.

“I’m fine.” Katsuki hissed, parroting what he said earlier, with the same vitriol.

“You clearly are not.” Todoroki said firmly. “I can regulate my own temperature, you’re correct, but I can still feel the temperature around me. My room isn’t hot, and you’re sweating like it’s summer. I think you should see Recovery Girl.”

Katsuki growled an incoherent shout. “I don’t need that old bat, there’s nothing wrong with me beyond suffering from dealing with all you idiots. Fuck off!”

Katsuki turned to leave, but his vision swam so quickly that he had to stop mid-step. His hand came to his eyes, trying to steady himself, forcing himself to push through the heat. But before he could get his body to work, his backpack slipped through his fingers as his vision went black.

“-ugou. Bakugou. Bakugou.” Someone was shaking him, insistence in their voice. He groaned lightly, his eyes fluttering, his head pounding even harder than before. He squinted, and Todoroki then came into focus. He was wearing a look Katsuki had never seen before. It looked almost like worry, but Katsuki couldn’t tell.

He groaned again, and then he felt something blissfully cool against his forehead, easing his headache and the unbearable heat he was trapped in. He sighed, his eyes managing to stay open now. He was in Todoroki’s arms, with Todoroki’s right hand pressed against his forehead. He remembered that Todoroki’s right side was cool, and Katsuki wanted to just sink into him.

“Wha- happen?” Katsuki said, the act of speaking a struggle it had never been before.

“You passed out.” Todoroki said, a frown tugging at his lips. “You have a fever. I’m going to take you to Recovery Girl.”

Todoroki began to push them both upwards, but Katsuki shook his head. “No! No. ‘M fine. Just… just need to sleep it off. ‘M fine.”

“You are not fine, Bakugou.” Todoroki groaned, and Katsuki could’ve sworn he heard concern and frustration in Todoroki’s voice. But that was impossible, Katsuki never got emotion from Todoroki, no matter how hard he tried. “You literally just passed out. You’re sick, Bakugou.”

“I don’t get sick.” Katsuki said, and that was completely true. Katsuki got sick so rarely that he couldn’t even remember the last time. “Be fine. Just need sleep. Don’t need help.”

“You can’t stand on your own.” Todoroki said, deadpan. Katsuki frowned at that, and he opened his mouth again, but Todoroki cut him off. “If you say you’re fine one more time, I’m going to throw you over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes and drag you to Recovery Girl.”

Katsuki pouted at that, and stayed silent for a moment, knowing Todoroki was just as serious with his threats as he was.

“I don’t get sick.” He repeated. “Just need to sleep this off.”

Todoroki pursed his lips again, clearly torn between what to do, before he sighed, obviously coming to a decision. “Fine. I’ll take you to your room, but only for now. I can’t tell if this is just your pride or if this is actually how your body works. If you get worse, I’m taking you to Recovery Girl no matter what you say.”

Katsuki nodded, and went to get up, pushing himself up on noodly arms. He immediately fell back into Todoroki. Thankfully, Todoroki didn’t comment on his weakness, he just wrapped Katsuki’s arm around his shoulder and pushed them both up. With Todoroki’s support, Katsuki could mostly walk, his feet dragging a little as he couldn’t raise his feet off the ground very high.

The elevator ride down to the fourth floor was silent, almost awkward. Katsuki couldn’t find the strength to say anything, but Todoroki didn’t seem to mind the silence. Right now, he just wanted his bed more than anything in the world.

Their next obstacle was Katsuki’s door, as he always locked it when he wasn’t in his room. He couldn’t remember where he put his keys at first, patting down his pockets. Suddenly a hand reached into his back pocket and he yelped a little at the surprise, his reaction was too slow, but he still hated being startled with touch. Had for a long time. Todoroki then handed him his keys, with a sheepish look on his face. “I saw them in your pocket. Thought I’d save you the trouble.”

Katsuki took the keys and opened his door, using the door handle to keep himself up, trying to keep himself upright on his own. Todoroki went to follow him in and Katsuki growled again.

“No one goes in my room.”

“There’s a first time for everything.” Todoroki said, a little snippy, uncaring that he was stepping into Katsuki’s space.

Todoroki turned on the lights, and Katsuki hissed as his headache spiked, unconsciously pressing himself into the nape of Todoroki’s neck. Todoroki immediately turned the light off with a quiet “sorry.” before he started walking again.

Katsuki flopped into bed with all the grace of a newborn giraffe, but his bed was cool (he had special sheets so he wouldn’t overheat as he slept, his parents had designed them for him) and that was all that mattered to him. He rolled onto his side, felt something lift his legs into the bed, and he was out as soon as his head hit the pillow, just barely feeling a cool hand brush his sweaty bangs out of his face.

“- been asleep for a little while… nothing’s changed…”

“- not sure, Todoroki. He really doesn’t get sick that often. I think the last time was over five years ago. Even I don’t really remember.”

He knew that voice. Goddammit, he knew that voice and he went to glare at fucking useless Deku, but he was still squinting in the darkness he’d woken up in, lessening its effect. Todoroki had left the door open a little, the hall lights shining in his room far too brightly for his headache. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been asleep, but his mind wasn’t as fuzzy as before. Still way too fucking hot though.

“You got fucking Deku?” Katsuki growled, refusing to admit that it sounded more like a whine.

“I didn’t know anyone else who would know how your body works when it’s sick.” Todoroki said matter-of-factly, coming back over to Katsuki’s bed. He was mostly forgiven when he put his cool hand back on Katsuki’s burning forehead, getting a soft noise Katsuki didn’t even know he made.

“Well, his parents will know, for sure.” Deku said to Todoroki. Katsuki glared harder. “I can call them, figure out where to go from here.”

Todoroki nodded.

Deku then handed Todoroki a rather big box that Katsuki surprisingly recognized. Auntie Inko knew how injured they got in training, especially since Deku wouldn’t fucking stop constantly breaking all of his bones, and had gifted him the same first aid kit that Deku held in his hands. Actually, it really wasn’t a first aid kit but a mini hospital, with so many things Katsuki didn’t know when he’d ever use some of them. (Seriously, Auntie, when was he gonna need a goddamn stethoscope?) He’d only taken it because his mother would’ve been mad if he made Auntie cry, not that he could handle her tears anyways, and, well… secretly he could appreciate the gesture. He never understood why Auntie continued to try and take care of him even though he really wanted nothing to do with her son, but he supposed that’s just how she was. Deku too, but he was way more annoying about it.

“You should take his temperature, if he’ll let you.” Deku said, still talking to Todoroki and not him. “You’ll have a way better chance with him than I will.”

“Don’t talk about me like I’m not here!” Katsuki shouted, immediately regretting the loudness when he made his own headache worse.

“Sorry, Kacchan.” Katsuki just glared at him, fighting off the wince he’d just given himself. “I- I’ll just go call Uncle Masaru now.”

Deku stepped out of the room, and Todoroki set the kit down onto his nightstand, digging through it with one hand, keeping his right hand on Katsuki’s forehead.

“There are three thermometers in here.” Todoroki stated, seemingly a little overwhelmed by Auntie’s overprotective nature. “And they’re all different.”

Katsuki made a noncommittal noise. Something then pushed gently at his mouth, and he turned his glare to Todoroki.

“I can’t use the other ones, I’ve been cooling you off too much.” Todoroki said, poking him again. “They won’t give accurate results. This is the only one left.”

“I can do it myself.” Katsuki said, trying to move his mouth as little as possible.

Todoroki sighed, definitely sounding frustrated. “Bakugou, will you please just put your damn pride aside for two minutes? I just want to help you. You’re my friend. Let me help you.”

This was the first he’d heard about them being friends, though he supposed he had started paying more attention to Todoroki after their supplemental classes. He hadn’t thought it had been reciprocated though. But even if they were friends now, this was something he couldn’t allow. He wasn’t weak, he didn’t need help, not even Todoroki’s.

Not even if a dark part of him wanted to accept it.

Moving his body was like trying to move through molasses, but he did eventually get his arm out from under the blanket (when did he get a blanket?) and he reached for the thermometer. Todoroki sighed, but gave it to him. This time, the silence was awkward as they waited for the thermometer to beep. He wasn’t sure why this time was so different.

Deku was the one who broke it when he came back in. He still didn’t like anyone in his room, but he didn’t have the strength to blast the fucker out, even if he did have the sweat.

“Uncle said that there’s not much we can do except keep him cool, the illness just has to run its course.” Deku frowned, trying not to talk directly to Todoroki and failing. “And. um. Auntie Mitsuki said, um, not to take any of his, uh, ‘bullshit’. Her words, not mine.”

Todoroki just nodded. Katsuki didn’t know what that meant.

Once the thermometer finally beeped, Todoroki withdrew it without asking permission. Oh, that’s what that meant. Damn hag, and damn Deku. Todoroki took everything too literally, Deku should’ve fucking translated his mother’s stupid words.

“39.27 (102.7)” The monotone was back. Katsuki felt an emotion he didn’t know how to describe, but it wasn’t pleasant. “That’s higher than I was expecting, though unsurprising.”

“Yeah, Uncle said when Kacchan gets sick, he really gets sick.”

Katsuki growled at him again, wanting to yell and blow him up but trying not to be stupid and repeat past mistakes. His head was still throbbing from the earlier shout.

“I-I-I should go, Todoroki.” Deku said, shrinking away from him. “I think I’m just making it worse. He doesn’t want me here.” No. No he didn’t. Especially since he wouldn’t stop talking about him like he wasn’t there in his own fucking room. “Do you want to come with me? I’m sure Kirishima wouldn’t mind looking after him.”

The beat in between Deku’s question and Todoroki’s answer made the emotion he had worse.

“No. I’ll keep him cool for now. It’s no trouble.” Katsuki didn’t know whether that made him happy or annoyed. God, he hated emotions, they were literally the worst. It was so much easier to just be angry all the time.

“Don’t forget to not overuse your quirk, Todoroki. Just let one of us know if you get too cold. We’ll figure something out.”

Todoroki just nodded and Deku very quickly left the room. If Katsuki was more childish like his friends, he would’ve flipped him off as he left. But Deku didn’t deserve what little energy he had, and closing the door until very little light was left was at least the decent thing to do.

“You can leave, IcyHot.” Katsuki grumbled. “I’m-mmph.” Suddenly Todoroki’s cool hand was over his mouth. Katsuki did not like that, he didn’t like anyone touching his face and it had only gotten worse since the-incident-that-shall-not-be-named. He nipped at Todoroki’s hand, and it quickly returned to his forehead, but the message to shut up was loud and clear.

“Stop saying you’re fine.” Todoroki snapped, and Katsuki thought he almost sounded angry. Katsuki didn’t know that Todoroki could even get angry. “Stop lying to me. I don’t care about your stupid pride, and I cannot understand why you won’t let it go for two seconds for your friends. I want to help you but I can’t if you won’t let me. Why won’t you let me? Do you… do you hate me?”

Grand displays of emotion were hard for him. Grand displays of emotion coming from Todoroki were another beast entirely. Katsuki had no idea how to respond to this, and if he wasn’t sick, he wouldn’t have responded to it beyond anger. But right now, with a fever he could no longer deny, his mind didn’t immediately go to the rage he used to shield him from emotions he didn’t like. It just took much energy that he didn’t have, and he hated himself for his weakness.

“No.” Was Katsuki’s response, and it was a lot more awkward than he’d wanted it to be.

“Then why won’t you stop lying to me?” Todoroki said, looking just as uncomfortable as Katsuki was. But apparently, not uncomfortable enough to shut up and let this go. “I thought you respected me, at least a little.”

Shit. Katsuki did not like letting people know when he respected them. They never responded in  a way that Katsuki liked or could handle, either acting all smug about it or like it was obvious that they deserved it. Both reactions drove Katsuki up the wall.

Thinking about this was too hard, even with the soothing coolness Todoroki was projecting. He didn’t do emotions, and everything he was feeling right now just made him even uncomfortable in his skin. He’d take the fever and headache over this any day.

“I didn’t lie to you, I’m fine by myself.” Katsuki said. “I can take care of myself.”

“Except you won’t.” Todoroki snapped again and Katsuki internally cursed at his mother for putting this idea into Todoroki’s stupid head. “Taking care of yourself would’ve been canceling our plans, or going to see Recovery Girl. You refused to do either. That’s not taking care of yourself. You couldn’t even admit to me that you weren’t feeling well after you literally passed out in my arms. You’re lucky I was there to catch you, what if you weren’t with me? What if it happened when you’d stepped into the hall and I hadn’t followed you? You might’ve gotten a concussion or worse. If you don’t hate me, then why can’t you let me care about you?”

Katsuki unconsciously curled a little into himself, his quills puffing up, ready to lash out at any moment. His head hurt, and even with the frosty air Todoroki was creating he was on fire, he just couldn’t deal with this right now. Being sick for the first time in years was already way too much for him, he’d never felt so shitty in his life, and having fucking Todoroki of all people see him this weak made him so uncomfortable he didn’t have a word for it. Katsuki didn’t understand why Todoroki was so upset, and thinking about it hurt his head too much. He didn’t even have an answer for Todoroki. He didn’t have an answer when his friends asked him the same question after they were fed up with his insistence on independence and refusing to accept their help. He’d learned the hard way that sometimes he had to depend on other people, but that hadn’t made it any easier to deal with. So he’d rather just not deal with it at all.

After a fair amount of silence, Todoroki just sighed, sounding resigned. This was the most emotion Katsuki had seen out of Todoroki since he’d met the bastard. Katsuki thought that was very rude, and he should’ve gotten this a lot earlier. Though, he could do without the annoyance and anger. “You should get some sleep, Bakugou.”

Well, now he was purposefully not gonna do that, even though he was exhausted. Once spite was activated there was no stopping it. “Don’t tell me what to do.”

“Then stop being an idiot.” Todoroki hissed.

Katsuki glared at Todoroki but it didn’t matter since Todoroki still wasn’t looking at him, only straight ahead.

“Don’t fucking insult me.”

“I’ll do whatever I want, thanks.” Todoroki said, matching his energy. “Since that’s all you do, I get to do it too.”

“Oh fuck you!” Katsuki snapped, absolutely done with this stupid bastard, throwing his own words in his face was the last straw. “Get the fuck out of my room! Leave me the fuck alone!”

It was quiet for a minute.

“Fine.”

Todoroki ripped his hand away from Katsuki’s forehead and stood sharply. He walked out without another word, and Katsuki expected the door to slam and prepared himself for it. But Todoroki caught it just before it did, and he closed the door quietly behind him.

Katsuki stared at the door for a moment, almost in disbelief. Todoroki never got angry, let alone to this extreme. He thought even Deku hadn’t seen that before, the damn nerd would’ve said something. Even though Katsuki liked antagonizing Todoroki, liked seeing if he could get the bastard to show emotion, even if it was negative emotions, this didn’t… this didn’t make him feel good. The emotion he hadn’t been able to describe twisted in his gut, making his chest hurt in a way that it never had before. He wanted to get Todoroki riled up, it’s why he talked to him the way he did, the way he purposely tried to push the bastard’s buttons, that was his end goal. He wanted to see Todoroki show some sort of emotion, any sort of emotion.

So why did that make him feel so shitty?

Getting what he wanted never made him feel bad in the past. It was a point of pride for him that he basically always got what he wanted, that he’d earned what he’d wanted. Katsuki was always so sure of himself, he always knew what he wanted, and he did everything he could to get it.

Was this… actually what he wanted? Somehow, he didn’t think so. Which never happened, Katsuki always knew what he wanted, and he never regretted anything. (Well, he regretted a few things but he never let himself think about them so that was basically the same thing.) But the more the silence of the room echoed in his ears, the more he regretted saying any of those things, and not just because he’d lost the hand that had been keeping his headache at a somewhat manageable level. The icepick in his head only seemed to make his actions seem worse, and Katsuki did not like that. Even though he knew he was an asshole with no filter, and no intent on getting one, this felt like he’d gone too far. He’d gone too far a couple of times in his life, and this felt worse than all of them.

With the door closed, heat was starting to build up in his room, and the blanket that he still didn’t know how he got was kicked around to his legs. His hand flopped around to his nightstand, opening the drawer and grabbing the remote for his ac unit. He turned it down several degrees, and didn’t have the energy to put it back. His hand just fell to his bed, and his eyes closed on their own accord. Even though he’d wanted to stay up to spite Todoroki, despite the fact that he couldn’t remember why anymore, his body just started to shut down on its own. At least sleep would be a reprieve from the overwhelming pain in his chest and his head, so he surrendered to the thick haze of sleep and hoped he’d wake up without this agony.

Blood. Blood and screams and death and fear. Katsuki spun around, lost and scared, wanting to run but unsure of where he could run to. Screams rang in his ears from all directions, each one different yet full of the same agony. Each one echoed their pain into his heart, overwhelming him with emotions he couldn’t handle. Unable to take anymore, his legs took off running without thinking, his chest heaving as the torturous screams pierced his chest.

He skidded to a stop as an image flashed in his mind, his own scream blending into the background. Deku’s body was still crackling with energy, his green lightning dying as Deku lay still. His arms and legs were both black, bent in horrific ways, and Katsuki’s stomach lurched as his gaze finally landed on Deku’s chest. His ribs had pierced through his skin, his chest cavity a mess of blood and bone, surprise still written on Deku’s lax face, his green eyes dull and lifeless. Again, Katsuki’s legs took off without his consent, tears streaming down Katsuki’s face as nausea built in his stomach.

His arms flailed as he slipped on something wet and sticky, crashing into some sort of small building. Looking up, Katsuki screamed again, seeing Kirishima spread eagle across the top, his head hanging down, his neck brutally slit open, dripping blood into the fiery red hair he was so famous for. Katsuki slipped again in his haste to get up, realizing with a sickening jolt that he was slipping on Kirishima’s blood.

“Make it stop.” Katsuki sobbed. “Make it stop.”

He finally got up again, only to freeze in place. In front of him was Ashido, lying in a heap, her neck bone protruding from her skin as her head twisted the other way. As more and more tears spilled down his cheeks, he turned and turned and turned. Jirou, her own earphones wrapped around her red, raw neck. Sero hanging from his own tape, his limp hands still stuck from trying to free himself. Kaminari’s head soaked, water still dripping from his motionless mouth. His world began to spin, and he crashed to the ground, curling into a ball.

“Make it stop.” Katsuki covered his ears and shut his eyes, trying to block it all out. “Please, make it stop.”

The world went silent.

Katsuki warily opened his eyes. Vast ground filled only with empty space. He was too scared to try and speak, terrified that the death and screams and blood would come back. No matter where he looked, all he found was emptiness until he came across Todoroki, laying on the ground too, facing away from him.

He crawled over hesitantly, his mouth moving to speak Todoroki’s name but his vocal cords refused to make any noise. Katsuki’s hand hovered over Todoroki’s body for a moment, not seeing anything on his red side. Maybe he was just unconscious? His hand finally landed on Todoroki’s arm, frowning as it was cool. No, no, his red was his fire side, he should’ve been warm. His hand jerked as he pulled it back, causing Todoroki to roll over.

Katsuki screamed again, his voice laden with agony as Todoroki’s head lolled to the side. His white side had completely disappeared, charred to ash, his skin covered in burns matching the scar on his face. He cowered away, his hands dragging him away from Todoroki’s dead body. He slipped again, curling back into a ball, sobbing.

Everyone he had ever cared about was gone, and Katsuki was alone. Emptiness beat in his ears, the silence louder than any of the screams had been. His sobs echoed across the vastness, his breath the only other sound. He longed for his friends, wanted someone to still be with him, to tell him that everything was going to be okay. That he would have more than himself to keep him company, to make him smile just a little, to make him let out a breathy laugh. To watch with amusement as they did something stupid, being far too noticeable when he was socially awkward with his stupid confused face, silently sitting with him when they knew he wanted company but couldn’t take any more noise. Grabbing him in one arm hugs, ruffling his hair and dodging when he swatted at them, squishing him when they were all crammed together in too small of a space to fit all of them. He wanted that back, he wanted them back so badly, he’d do anything.

“Anything, huh?” The back of his neck burned, and he was lifted off the ground. He writhed in the grip, sludge rising from the ground to latch onto his body, forcing him into submission.

“No, no, please, stop!” Katsuki wailed, the sludge only growing stronger, binding his body in muck. The heat on the back of his neck increased, and another hand forced his head forward, his eyes only able to focus on Todoroki’s lifeless body. “Not like this, not like this!”

“Aw, I thought you said ‘anything’.” The voice taunted. “Don’t you love them? Wouldn’t you do anything for them? You know we have an offer for you, you remember our last one.”

“Can’t.” Katsuki wanted to shake his head, but the grip was too strong. “Won’t betray them.”

“Then die with them.”

Katsuki couldn’t move, his entire body now encased in the sludge, could barely talk as the goo began to tease at going in his mouth and down his throat. 

“Not again.” Katsuki gasped, feeling the horrid taste of the sludge as it crept slowly, maliciously, into his mouth. “Please not again.”

A mocking laugh, and then the sludge forced itself down his throat, cutting off his air. Katsuki panicked, writhing with great strength, but useless, so uselessly. The world spun one last time as he grew dizzy from hypoxia, and he fell into darkness with taunting laughter echoing around him.

Katsuki jolted up in bed, a silent scream on his lips. His eyes rolled at the heat of his room, just as dizzy as he was in his fever induced nightmare, practically seeing the waves of heat energy radiating from his furniture, his walls. He had to cool down. If he didn’t cool down, he thought he was going to die, his body melting into his bed.

His room had a shower. The door was right there. He just had to get there, the water could cool him down. He pushed himself up, his arms too shaky to hold him for long. Maneuvering his body was like trying to walk straight in a gyroscope. He stepped forward with his left foot, shaking as he stood, desperately trying to go forward. His right foot was next, but it was still tangled up in the blanket of unknown origin. He tried to pull it free, but another strong bout of dizziness sent him tumbling to the floor.

The world faded in and out as he lay on the floor, his arms trying to push himself up, but he crashed back down every time. He just didn’t have the strength to get up, the attempts draining what little he had until he just gave up. His vision flickered in and out, his sweat soaking into his carpet, his heart carrying agony all over his body, igniting each nerve with a bonfire, his head pounding like a thunderstorm’s rage.

“Sorry to disturb you…”

“Eh, no worries, Todoroki. If Bakubro needs me, then I’m there, no matter what.”

Even though the door was closed, Katsuki could still hear the voices through it. The dorm walls carried sound better than any speaker.

His door quietly creaked open, driving another spike of pain into his head. “Bakugou? Hey man, are you- oh shit!”

Light blinded him for a moment, before he felt a cold arm heave him up, cradling him in iciness. He whimpered, the sudden shock of frigidity making him wince. A warmer hand came to his forehead before jerking back with a hiss.

“He’s burning up.” Kirishima gasped, cursing again.

“Kirishima, get Recovery Girl.” Todoroki ordered, taking charge of the situation. “I’m gonna try to cool him down.”

Kirishima nodded, his face set in his ‘serious mode’. His best friend should’ve been a comfort, but seeing Kirishima’s frown and furrowed brow just made him a little scared. Kirishima was one of the smiliest people he’d ever met, and Katsuki always told him that his face would get stuck like that. It was always laughed off, bringing out that same smile, which always made Katsuki roll his eyes. But he still liked seeing it, and when it was missing, Katsuki didn’t like it, not one bit.

“Don’t use your quirk, use his shower.” Kirishima said, standing. “Anything lower than room temperature is too cold, you’ll send him into shock.”

Todoroki just nodded, and Katsuki wondered if he’d already known that, or if his temperature regulation thing kept him from getting fevers. Kirishima bolted out the door, his steps thudding down the hall then the stairs.

Another arm came to his knees, and he was lifted into the air. His vision swirled again, able to tell he was moving but unable to process anything else. His legs were gently placed on the ground, but then the sound of a massive waterfall assaulted him and he turned back into the soft, wintry physique. But then he was pulled away from it, and he didn’t know whether that felt good or bad. The waterfall then disappeared, and he saw that Todoroki had switched the tap to shower.

The arm came back to his knees, and another dizzying bit of motion finished with water pelting at him, as he was pressed against something that didn’t feel hot or cold. Even though the water droplets were needle-sharp, they were cool, and Katsuki sank into it, feeling the water soothe the bonfire under his skin. He wasn’t sure how long he was under the spray before his mind finally cleared enough to focus on his surroundings. Katsuki was laying against Todoroki, who was holding him up by his waist, in Katsuki’s shower. Katsuki decided to be embarrassed about this later, when he didn’t feel so shitty and when Todoroki wasn’t keeping him from drowning in his own shower.

“‘roki?” Katsuki groaned, his voice weak and quiet. But thankfully Todoroki still heard him.

“Yes, Bakugou?”

“I don’ feel so good.” Katsuki said, looking up at Todoroki. He must’ve looked like a drowned cat, his hair soaked and stuck to his forehead, his clothes soaked to the skin, his skin showing through his white tank top, Katsuki didn’t think he’d ever looked so pathetic in his life.

“No shit.” Todoroki muttered grumpily. “You couldn’t have said that a few hours ago?”

Katsuki ducked his head a little, his cheeks were already flushed but the pink got a little stronger. “Couldn’t. Can’t be weak. Specially not in front of you.”

That made Todoroki pause, and then meet his eye again. “Me?”

Katsuki nodded shakily.

“Why?” Todoroki breathed, the shower louder than both of their voices.

“Because… you’re so strong.” Katsuki mumbled, the fever that still raged within him loosening his tongue. If he were coherent, he’d rather be caught dead than saying shit like this, but he was still so hot and the water felt so good and his mind felt so worn thin that he just kept talking. “Noticed the first day I saw you. Never met anyone like you. Stronger than me. Pissed me off.”

Todoroki scoffed. “Of course it would.” a sigh. “But why would that mean you can’t be ‘weak’ around me?”

“Weakness doesn’t get notice. ‘N like that. Wanted notice.”

There was another beat of silence. Katsuki turned his head into Todoroki’s cooler side, using him as an ice pack for his still aching head.

“Are you saying that you thought I wouldn’t notice you if I thought you were weak?” Todoroki murmured, his voice low and uncertain.

His body was starting to get wracked with tremors, but he managed a nod through it. He couldn’t tell if he was shivering or shaking, just feeling his body vibrate, and the bonfire inside him was starting to win the battle against the water. His body went limp as the fire began to consume him, his eyes rolling around in his head.

“I, I… Bakugou? Bakugou, what’s wrong? Bakugou!” Todoroki’s voice jumped in emotion, in worry, but Katsuki could no longer differentiate the emotions. Todoroki was little more than a red and white blur now, Katsuki’s world spinning faster than a top, black spots dotting his vision, growing larger with each rotation. His mind lost all sense of reality, darkness swirling around him like a maelstrom. Voices again rang in his ears, but he couldn’t distinguish one from another.

“-hear me? Bakugou, can you hear me?”

“He was talking a minute ago, but…”

“-unresponsive -get him to the infirmary- covery girl can- hurry…”

Someone grabbed his arms, hauling him into the air, and the sudden movement had him blacking out entirely, falling into the black hole the maelstrom had created.

~~

Consciousness was murky, muddying his perception into something unintelligible as he slipped in and out of the darkness always on the edge of his mind. He wasn’t sure how long it took for his mind to clear, but the longer time went on, he sluggishly began to become more aware of his surroundings. He discovered new pain in his hand, but the agony in his head had subsided a great deal, though it wasn’t entirely gone. He was laying on something familiar but uncomfortable, his body propped up against it. To his immense relief, he found that he wasn’t on fire for the first time in what felt like days. 

Dazedly, he opened his eyes, immediately squinting at the bright overhead lights. It took him a minute to adjust, but the light didn’t increase his headache much, so he managed easily enough. White walls came into focus, along with cool, white sheets on the bed he couldn’t remember getting in, with a light blue canvas on his chest. He pulled lightly at it, confused, and pulled his hand up to his vision. No wonder it hurt, there was an IV stabbed through his hand, drawing out a noise of discomfort. He felt like he hadn’t slept in years, his mind struggling to keep up with the world around him.

Footsteps had his head immediately turning, his instincts sharper than any discombobulation, and he made another discovery, movement didn’t make him dizzy anymore. But that didn’t answer the question of what had happened, but the old woman walking towards him at least contributed to it. He knew this room, this was the infirmary, but he couldn’t remember how he got here.

“Ah, young Bakugou, I was wondering when you’d come back to us.” The old bat said, sounding far too cheerful.

He frowned at her, trying and failing to process her words in time as Recovery Girl walked up to his bed. His head still swam in uncertainty, cognizance lagging out like one of his friends’ video games. She stood on one of her little step-stools, coming up to his level, patting his hand gently before putting something uncomfortable in his ear. He groaned, attempting to turn away, but she cupped his cheek, gently but firmly keeping him in place.

“Keep still, it’s alright.” Her voice was as gentle as her hand, but that didn’t soothe him much. “Just a few seconds more.”

A quiet beeping and she kept her word. “38.44 (101.2). Much better, considering you came in at 40.5 (104.9). Any higher and you might’ve had permanent brain damage.”

Oh shit. That was bad. That was very bad. A brief flash of fear ran up his spine, a spike of anxiety panging in his stomach.

“Wha’ happ’n?” Katsuki asked, his voice hoarse from disuse.

“A stress fever.” She replied, handing him a little paper cup of water. His hand was shaking a little as he took it, but he kept her help to a minimum. “Unsurprising, considering the amount of stress you all are under, you especially. Normally, they’re not an issue, and they fade rather quickly, but you’re a special case. As you know, your sweat can’t cool you down like most people so you’re easily affected by fevers. Since you didn’t come to me, or do anything to reduce it, your fever just worsened and worsened until your body couldn’t take it anymore. You’re very lucky that Todoroki and Kirishima found you when they did.”

Jumbled memories came to the forefront of his mind, of Kirishima’s voice in his room, a hand on his forehead, of Todoroki carrying him, holding him as they lay in the shower. Fuck, that was embarrassing, and the chastising Recovery Girl was giving just made him feel even worse.

“Didn’t notice.” He said, needing to defend himself, his pride leaving him unable to do anything less. After all, it wasn’t like he’d done this on purpose. He may hate being in this damn room, but he wasn’t stupid enough to not seek medical help when he was seriously sick. He just honestly hadn’t noticed something was wrong until it was too late. He’d dealt with plenty of hot and uncomfortable days before so he thought yesterday had been no different. “Not til af’r dinner. Don’t get sick.”

“Yes, young Midoriya said that.” Recovery Girl sighed. “As did your parents when I called them. They said since they’re currently in Madrid, they’d do their best, but the flight home is rather long, even without layovers. Hopefully, by the time they do get here, you’ll be fever free.”

Well, his day just got a lot worse. Katsuki hated it when his parents had to pick him up from school. He didn’t need his parents to come and fuss over him, he wasn’t a baby.

His unhappiness must’ve shown on his face, since Recovery Girl just tutted at him. “Give them a break, you gave them quite a scare. You’ve gotten very good at that.”

Katsuki huffed, definitely not pouting.

“Really, I should’ve expected something like this to happen.” She muttered. He cocked his head in confusion. “It’s been a week since I’ve had one of you in here, and if someone from 1A isn’t in here, something is very wrong.”

He had to admit, that seemed like solid logic. He was classmates with the biggest dumbasses he’d ever met, and they were all klutzy and accident prone, and that was off the battlefield.

“Speaking of your classmates,” ah hell, what do those idiots want now? “when you’re feeling up to it, you’ll have plenty of visitors.”

Oh fuck no, he was not doing that. His classmates were so emotional, crying and pitying and all sorts of terrible shit he hated being around. He got uncomfortable when one of his friends was upset, he couldn’t take the whole class. Leaving before Recovery Girl said he could sounded like a much better option. He’d rather get yelled at than deal with all of his dumbasses.

“Try to get out of this bed and I’ll sedate you.” Recovery Girl said bluntly. Katsuki deflated, miserably becoming resigned to his fate. Obviously, this was just going to be one of the shittiest days of his life and he couldn’t do anything about it.

“I’ll keep them from overwhelming you.” She said sympathetically, patting his hand again, and that was at least something. Normally, he would’ve snapped that he didn’t need her pity, but he could tell it wasn’t pity. He didn’t quite know what it was, but anything was better than pity. “But for right now, you should get some sleep. Let your body’s natural processes heal you. I’d much rather have your body heal itself, I don’t like how high a dosage of fever reducer I have to give you to help you fight this. I want to take you off that as soon as I can.”

Ah, that explained the IV, and why his mind wasn’t working right. He’d seen his idiot friends on too much cold medicine before, he’d just never experienced it himself until now. It was a lot more disconcerting than he would’ve thought. Next time, he’d have to watch more closely when one of his idiots got sick, this fucking sucked.

Sleep did sound like a fantastic idea, though. Keeping up with this conversation was taking far too much energy than it should’ve, and Katsuki was just fucking done. Even better, if he slept the rest of the day away, he could avoid all of the extras and idiots who wanted to ‘visit’ him and annoy him with their presence. The medication was no doubt keeping his spite under control, as when Recovery Girl stepped down to do other shit he didn’t give a fuck about, he could just close his eyes and let the exhaustion that been on the edge of his mind since he woke up take him without much resistance.

Febuwhump Day 12: "Can you hear me?"

Fandom: Star Wars

Timeline: The Clone Wars/The Bad Batch

War zones were always loud. Explosions drowned out orders and screams. No matter what Hunter heard it all. His enhanced senses made sure if that. Even if it was Echo's job to repeat orders, Hunter found himself relaying the messages others could not hear.

    Wrecker hadn't seen Hunter when he set the explosives. The Demolitionist pushed his thumb down and set the explosives off.

    Hunter was pushed back by the pressure. He fell to the ground. Echo had seen what happened and rushed to his brother's side. He dropped to his his knees beside him. "Hunter, you okay?" There was no answer. "Hunter?" Echo yelled. Now he was panicking. "Hunter can you hear me?" Fear struck into his heart as he gently removed the mans helmet. Franticly the cyborg removed his glove and checked for a pulse. It was there.

    Hunter's head was spinning. He snapped back to reality when Echo removed his helmet Echo's mouth moved but no words came out. Come to think of it the world was quite, to quite.

    "We gotta go! Can you move?" Hunter looked confused. "Can you hear me? We gotta go!" Hunter shifted and carefully sat up.

    With Echo helping him Hunter stood. Neither had noted the blood trickling from the man's ears. Wrecker however saw it. He put the pieces together and his heart sank. He injured his squad leader, his brother.

    Hunter and Echo moved behind a nearby rock. Only then did Echo see the blood. "Hunter, can you hear me?" With his brother's highest senses he had to right?

    Hunter stared at his brother, unaware of what he said.

    Echo drew a question mark with his scomp in the sand and pointed to his ear. The other reached up to his own ear. When he pulled it away the crimson liquid stared him. He'd seen lots of blood but never from his ear. The clones brain attempted to process what was going on.

     The reg was able to find the answer on his own.

    The shock was prominent on Hunter's face. He slowly shook his head no.

    Echo called over the medic and Hunter would be checked out. The medic didn't let him

    Back on the Marauder Tech would give Hunter a more thorough check up. Other than large bruises from the fall he was fine. The man would be very sore. Then there was his ears.

    "He's lost his hearing. No worries as it would be temporary." Tech found no point in telling Hunter as he wouldn't hear him, so he just told the rest of his brothers.

    "Should be?" Wrecker stood nervously. He caused Hunter to lose his hearing in the first place. The clone wasn't sure what he'd do if it was permanent.

    Echo grabbed a pen and a sheet of paper. 'Tech said you should be able to hear again.' he scribbled.

    Hunter nodded. Even when he could hear his volume control was out of sorts. Wrecker snatched the pen and quickly wrote his apology. Hunter smiled softly and spoke, "it's okay, you didn't mean to."

    Wrecker gave him a soft hug. The five began doing there own things until. They were back on Kamino.

    Around a day and a half into Hunter's hearing loss he stared to notice just how peaceful the quiet could be. The man never knew a life without his hearing. It was arguably his most valuable trait. After so long of hearing everything, hearing nothing was a change. It was calming. There were no over hearing death threats; often targeted towards him and his brother's, no suicide plans, no dirty conversations, and no classified information he was unknowingly interested him with.

    The batch walked to the mess hall. They greeted Hunter who had left a little earlier than he normally would. Afterwards the others would go to join their 'brothers' in line.

    A reg walked behind Hunter and started to talk. His rant went on until he noticed that Hunter wasn't paying a bit of attention to him. He had no idea the reg was even there to begin with.

    Roughly, the reg slammed his hand into Hunter's back. Annoyed he tried around. "Can you not hear me idiot." The reg just about yelled. "Or do you know that I'm right about you and your pathetic little squad?"

    Hunter just sort of stared, unsure of how to handle the situation. If he knew what the clone was saying he could at least answer but now he had no real way to verbally defend himself.

    Echo would enter the situation, informing the reg that Hunter indeed could not hear him. Once the reg finally backed off the brothers enjoyed their lunch.

    A few days later Hunter began hearing his brother's voices faintly. He was glad to have his hearing back but part of him would miss the silence. Even if most all the clones sounded the same he was able to pick out his brothers.

    Echo walked up to Hunter and asked if he could be heard. For the first time in a week he'd answer with "faintly". Everything would go back to normal soon.

Whumptober Day 7: Rodio Silent/"Can You Hear Me?"

Fandom: Spider-verse

Warning: In the tags for story reasons

Summary: Jefferson gave Spider-Man a radio in case he might need to reach out, hoping he never had to. Miles was glad he had it.

  When Jefferson learned that Spiderman was a young teenager he decided to give him a radio. He wanted to make sure that he was safe. If he needed nothing or god forbid the boy ended up injured while fighting a villain, it seemed to bring both of them comfort that knowing he could reach out.

    It was a beautiful day. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. The sun shined over the city. It was reality calm until a villain decided to break that fragile peace.

    Miles had been taking a science test when his teacher got a phone call. He stealthy took his phone out and looked at the news. It was time for him to go.

    He walked up to his teacher's desk and asked to use the bathroom. She nodded. As he got close to the window in the boy's bathroom he heard the announcement that the school was going into lockdown due to a villain attack.

    Spider-Man jumped from the window and headed to the scene. He webbed his radio to his leg. It was smaller than average policy radios, maybe the size of a child's walky talky. It helped Miles to know that if he really needed it he could reach out to someone.

    The villain of the week called himself 'Pit Viper'. He was dressed in a green suit that had a scale pattern everywhere. His hair was black and his eyes seemed to be some shade of blue. He wore a black face mask that went down to his neck. He had a sword and a holster for a dagger.

    "Plan to get stabby?" Spiderman asked when he arrived .

    When the fight started, everything seemed fine. Every fight had its dangers. That was something Miles had expected already. As soon as he pulled the sword out of Viper's hand he felt that he had made a mistake.

    As the clouds started to take over the sky, it started to seem like Spiderman would lose. But every time he got knocked down, he got back up.

    Pit Viper unsheathed his dagger. He pulled a small vile from his pocket and slid the bottom of the knife open. He put the mystery vile in the handle. He closed it and smiled.

    "Whatcha got there?" Miles said as he went to attack once again.

    "You'll find out soon enough." Not long after, Miles got struck by the knife. It wasn't a large wound, just a small gash on his arm. Sure it hurt but it wasn't anything that would stop him.

    Then he started to feel nauseous. As he webbed down the villain, the man started to laugh violently. "You might have taken me down, but it seems that you will fall tonight."

    Spiderman grabbed his radio and informed the police that he had caught the villain. He stumbled off towards school. He didn't make it that far before he landed in an alley.

    Miles fought to get his mask off before he threw up. He put one hand on the brick wall in front of him and the other on his stomach. His breathing sped up as he walked a little further in the alley, away from the sight of the city. He threw up again and slid down the wall, tearing his suit and skin.

    The world felt like it was spinning. Miles fought through the fog and grabbed for his radio. His body felt like it was on fire and his head was heavy. He pulled the radio to his mouth and spoke into it. "Mr. Morales, are you there?" He asked.

    "What can I do for you Spiderman?" He asked.

    "I think-" Miles rested his head on the wall behind him. "I think I'm dying."

    Jefferson looked over at his partner. "Where are you son?" Concern laced his words.

    The hero stuttered out the street number.

    "We're nearby" his partner said. "He's young, maybe you can keep him calm?"

    Jefferson called for an ambulance over the radio then spoke to Spiderman again. "Help is on the way. I'm on the way. Just hold."

     "I'll try" Miles said, shacking. He listened to his father talk to him and answered the best he could.

    "What happened?"

    "Viper." He shuttered and tried to pull his legs to his chest.

    "How are you feeling? What's happening?"

    "Like shit."

    "Language."

    "Sorry." Miles's voice shook and it sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

    "It's okay. Just hang in there." Jefferson sighed. He put his head in his hand.

    "I'm scared" he whispered. He leaned over to his side and threw up again. Tears started to fall from his eyes. He was in pain.

    "It's going to be okay."

    The world started to get blurry. "I'm sorry" he choked out. He threw up again. Miles tried to stand. He moved slightly to the side. His knees fell and he couldn't support his hands anymore.

    "You don't need to apologize. Do you know what Viper did?" There was no response. "Spiderman?"

    Fear struck into Jefferson's heart. He couldn't shake the feeling that everything was going to change. "Spiderman are you there?"

    The radio rested in Miles's lap. He listened to his father talk but couldn't do anything to respond.

    "Can you hear me?" Panic slipped into his voice like hot tea slides down your throat. "Son, can you hear me?"

    Miles fought to answer. Yet the radio remained silent. He couldn't force himself to get up this time.

    "Spiderman, we'll be there soon. Just hang on." The silents made the air thick and time slow down. It felt like he was moving though quicksand. Jefferson wasn't sure why he felt the way he did. He worked closely with the hero but it almost felt like his own family was in danger.

    Silence fell over the car.

    Miles thought he could hear sirens. He felt like he couldn't breathe. The sounds of the city started to disappear, the wall in front of him looked foggy, and his body felt strange.

    As soon as the car stopped Jefferson was out on the sidewalk. The ambulance hadn't arrived yet. "Wait here" he yelled to his partner.

    As the man entered the alley he could smell the horrible smell of vomit. He walked passed it and found the hero leaned against the wall. He ran over to him.

    "Can you hear me?" Jefferson looked at the hero's face. "Miles" he said breathlessly.

    Miles tried to give him a smile.

    "It's going to be okay Miles."

    The teen started to fade in and out of consciousness. He thought about his life for a moment.

    "Stay with me Miles!" He felt his father's hand cuff his face gently. "Miles? Can you hear me? Please say something!" He felt the hand move and an arm around his body. He listened to his father cry. "Please."

    "You did good kid. Come on, your uncle wants to see you." Miles looked up to see Peter Parker looking at him. Not Peter B Parker but Peter Parker.

    "Wait but-"

    "They'll be okay."

    "Okay."

I fall in love with people little by little. And not because of what they show to the world, but because of all that they don’t.

i) My father’s words are knives.

They vary in their sharpness. You will never know what is going to hit you until it does. Every word he speaks tells me a story.

“Look,” it screams, banging at the walls that cage them in, “I have never known love that doesn’t break one’s skin into a million pieces. I love you. I’m so sorry.”

Some days, he uses him with his clumsy hands to slice the hearts of his beloveds before falling to his knees. Blade as dark as night, sharp enough to cut through one. “A present from my mother,” he says.

But most days, he uses them to cut apples for us. We sit in front of the TV and his hands still shake and his love is still clumsy but the fruit is sweet and with his hand in yours, you are invincible. You look at him and smile. He smiles back. It says,

“I love you. I love you. Can you hear me?”

ii) My grandfather was the wind.

Not the kind that assaults your senses with dust and the poison we sowed, no. He was the kind of wind that caressed your skin as you played hide & seek with your childhood best friend, desperately trying to hold back your giggles. It was the kind that kissed away the tears your first heartbreak bestowed on you.

He never asked to be heard, but I wanted to hear him anyway. For he was spring and flowers and a lullaby you’ve heard your whole life, but can never seem to get tired of.

So I ask him about his life (won’t you let me hear you?)

And he tells me all about it (I love you. I love you. Can you hear me?)

iii)My best friend’s words remind me of Schrodinger’s cat. Strange, isn’t it?

He is not an open book. He does not speak in riddles and his words don’t hold untold stories and yet, he cannot be known at one glance. He asks me, “You seek answers, but are you sure they won’t burn your palms when you get hold of them?”

I will never know until I open the box, will I? But I do know this:

I have loved him for all the things he never told me since we met. I have loved him for his stilted replies and walls and smudged eyeliner. I have loved him for his distrust, his hurt, his hate. I have loved him ever since we met.

He is not an open book, but I dare to read him anyway. He says he hides nothing and yet I spend hours bringing down his walls. Schrodinger’s cat is alive when I open the box and he tells me what I’ve known all along.

“I love you. I love you. Can you hear me?”

iv) I like to talk as much as I like to listen. I listen and when I hear them all ask, “Can you hear me?”, I answer.

I answer with my hands, my words, my warmth. I say, “I hear you.”

I say, “And I love you, I love you.”

I say,

“Can you hear me?”

"Can you hear me?" whispered the voice from the old telephone. The receiver had been unplugged for years, yet the voice continued. [pic from Pinterest]

Turn Up Trumps | Office!Seokjin

Summary line: Christmas prompt #1 - Character A and Character B, sworn enemies, are chosen to prepare the company Christmas party.

Namjoon | Seokjin | Yoongi | Hoseok | Jimin | Taehyung | Jungkook

~

“It’s an absolute nightmare!” You protest over the phone to your friend.

Namjoon chuckles at you, “You can always say no, you know?”

“No, I can’t.” You groan and slouch over your office desk, “He says if I do this, he’ll let me do the pitch.”

“That’s not fair.” Namjoon frowns.

“Tell me about it. But this is my first possible opportunity to show my work to the client and prove my worth. I’ve been here for two years. I’m even training new recruits!” You whine into the mouthpiece as quiet as you possibly can, “If I can build a good portfolio with my own projects that gets recognized, I can get out of here with a good name to use for myself.”

“Yeah. I know. It’s about time you leave this hell-hole. You’re wasted here.”

“You’re telling me.” You snort.

“But hey, while you’re looking at opportunities, use it as your strength to get through working with him.” You wrinkle your nose and sit up at Namjoon’s suggestion.

“You’d think that’s a good enough motivation. But it really, really isn’t.” You shake your head. You see him bobbing down towards you quickly.

“I got to go. The hellhound has arrived.” You end the call just as you hear Namjoon’s laugh.

“Tell me it isn’t true.” Seokjin arrives to your desk with eyes widened with disbelief.

“You better believe it, buster. We’re partners.” You fake a smile. He rolls his eyes and puts a hand on his hip.

“No. Nope. I can’t work with you. You have the worst ideas on this entire floor!”

“You’re controlling, nit-picky, and close-minded.” You shoot back.

He sighs and leans against your cubicle wall, “I don’t know how we’re going to get along long enough to prepare the Christmas party.”

~•~

You sigh and you’re about ready to flush, but you hear people opening doors and giggling.

“So I heard the pot has over ten thousand now.” You’re at the very last stall and there are six. For the two women, they enter two and three, so they don’t realize there’s anyone there.

“Yeah? What are the options?”

“So 1) Seokjin controls the plans, 2) Y/N controls the plans,” You perk up at both your names. What plans?

“3) it ends in a ball of flames, or 4) they actually work together for once and make the best damn Christmas party we’ve ever had.” Your eyes widen and your head whips to the direction of the voices.

“Who was the idiot to suggest option 4, much less bet on it?”

“No one,” the other giggles, “it’s just there for shits and giggles; just to see if there are any takers on it. I think someone is trying to open another option to bet any of the first three to happen instead of that.”

“Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of having options 1-3?”

“It’s still just going to be there for shits and giggles.” They finish their business and leave the stalls.

“So what do you say, you want in?” One asks the other.

“What are the odds?”

“First option is +150. Second is +900. Third is +100.” The girl giggles before she continues, “No one’s bet on the fourth.” You clench your fists.

“So basically order of chances to win are ball in flames, Seokjin, dead last Y/N, and basically the fourth is practically off the table.”  The other laughs.

“Yeah. Basically.”

“Alright I’ll bite. I’m going with Seokjin.”

“I’m on ball of flames.” The other laughs and they leave the bathroom.

You lean against the wall and exhale loudly. You don’t know what you should be mad at more: barely anyone believes that you can overpower Seokjin’s ruling, no one believes you can pull it off, or the whole damn bet in the first place. $10,000 in the pool. That’s absolutely ridiculous. You think of how many employees are on this floor. Not even 100. That’s an average of $100 put into the bets.

You stand up straight with determination. You’re not going to let this happen.

~•~

“Seokjin!” You yell down the hallway. Half of the people look up from their desk. You’ve never noticed until now, but people are already exchanging glances. Well then a show you will give them.

“I need to speak to you. Now.” You turn to your right to strut into an empty meeting room with as much authority as you can muster, but your forehead hits the glass door. You stumble back and you hear snickering. Tears prickle in your eyes but you swallow the tightness in your throat. You push in and later on Seokjin follows in. You tell him to close the door.

“What?” You hear his obnoxious voice. You swallow and clench your teeth again. You close your eyes and hold your breath so your tears will disappear. You don’t face him as you continue to rub your forehead and you breathe when you trust your voice again.

“They’re betting against us.”

“What are you talking about?”

“This whole floor. Everyone’s betting that we can’t work together to make this Christmas party a success. There’s $10,000 in the fucking pot, Seokjin. On this floor.” You stop rubbing your forehead but your hand is still supporting it as you lean back onto the table.

“Fuck.” You hear his hands slam down on the table. Good, he’s just as mad as you. Actually, that’s impossible, since you haven’t explained the whole bet in detail. You bet if he knows that he’s the second best option, it might shine up his ego more than it should, so you’re going to leave that out for now. You need his alliance. You turn around to face him.

“Seokjin, I propose this. We put away all our resentment towards each other to make this work. We’ll give Namjoon $100 each to place a bet on us. We make it a success and we split the money threesies.”

“Threesies?”

“I’m not going to argue with you now. I need your help.” You show the determination on your face to prove to him you’re for real. Forget the fact that he’s got an ego the size of the world. Forget the fact that he always goes against your suggestions and all opportunities you get in making decisions that matter. This is war.

He studies you for a bit and he finally agrees.

“But we have to plan in secret. We need to act like we can’t agree on anything so people continue to bet against us.”

“Like that’s difficult.” He interrupts. You exhale in exasperation with a pointed look.

“Sorry. Okay. Yeah, I agree. But since we’re calling truce right now, we have to not let our arguments in front of everyone get to our heads, okay? I’m all about showing them up just as seriously as you do. And if we’re too busy holding resentment for our act, then we’ll get nowhere and play right into their hands.” Seokjin explains. You agree with him. You don’t nod your head because you can see people attempting spy as they pass by. You cross your arms to act like you’re still trying to argue.

“We’ll work offline. We can’t plan in this building. Walls are thin and corners have eyes. We need to meet outside.”

“We can go to my place. I’m actually one of the people who live furthest from the company.”

“Okay. Text me your address.”

“I don’t have your number.”

“It’s on my business card.”

“I don’t have your business card.”

“Then find one, damn it. I can’t openly give you one.” He sighs and rubs his face.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m still willing to work with you. As much as I’m frustrated with you, this is just for show to the outside.” You resist raising your eyebrows. He’s not kidding when he’s trying to put away his resentment.

“Alright. I’ll find a way. I’m going to leave now, and I’m going to make fun of you for hitting your head.” He turns to open the glass door, making people scurry away so they don’t act like they’re spying.

“You know, if you want to somehow intimidate me to go your way, you got to at least know how to use your eyes before opening a damn door.” He makes his last remark and leaves. You pout and lean against the table, rubbing your forehead again.

~•~

As according to plan, Seokjin is able to text you his address. You’ve explained to Namjoon how the bet works and tells him the deal. Of course he’ll agree; he’s just as much as Seokjin’s friend as yours. With this newfound determination he sees in both of you, he’ll not only bet on it, he actually believes it. He’s the only person here that believes in you, it just sucks he’s not on your team. Given his friendship with both of you, it will be no surprise for people to see him bet on you two out of loyalty.

At 7pm, you show up to Seokjin’s building with hot Italian food in your hands. He asked you to bring dinner because he doesn’t have enough for two.

You ring him through the lobby and he tells the doorman you’re okay to come in.

Jeez. No wonder he lives so far away. If I had a place like this, I’d never move either. You think to yourself as you walk through the lobby towards the elevator.

When you get up there, you hear him shout that the door is open and you let yourself in. You smell amazing food. You’re hungry and your Italian food on the cab ride here was enough to make you salivate and stomach growl, much to your embarrassment to the cab driver, but this…wow. You’re ready to drop everything right now and start digging in to your food, container and all, anything just to get something in you to satiate your hunger. But your smell senses tell you that your Italian food won’t satisfy you anymore.

“Let’s eat in here.” He calls out from the kitchen. You walk in to see a whole meal placed before him as he unties his apron.

“You said you didn’t have enough food for two! This is enough for three!” You set your bags down on the counter.

“Have you seen me eat? This is my serving size.” You tilt your head to look at him up and down, “Where do you put it all?”

He doesn’t answer you and starts digging in. You sigh and take out your food that now looks measly and unappetizing compared to what he’s cooked for himself.

“Okay. So theme. Let’s start brainstorming.” You say as you take your first bite. He groans.

“Can we do this after we’re done eating?” He pleads with his mouth full and wide eyes. You twitch a grin, “Fine.” He doesn’t think much of your expression and continues to eat.

“You should have told me to come later.” You express.

“It’s fine. We’re going to have to get used each other right? What’s an extra thirty minutes for dinner?”

“Thirty minutes? That’s how long it takes to scarf all that down?” You widen your eyes.

“Yeah. Wanna bet that I can finish in 20?” He grins.

“No thanks. I’ve heard enough about bets for the rest of this year. And the next.” You continue your food.

Despite not betting on it, he still finishes it in 20 and he washes his stuff as you finish yours.

“Jeez, you eat so slowly.” He wipes his hands dry when you finish your last bite.

“You’re just insanely fast, especially for your portion.” You wrap up your trash and dump it, “Okay, theme…”

~•~

In three days’ time, you two have planned out the contents of the party. Now you have four days for its logistics and execution. What used to be the clash of the titans to the both of you turns into an inside joke as you two act out your arguments. You two go in circles and get nowhere. When you get to Seokjin’s home, you guys actually laugh over what you two argue. It’s sad to admit, but if you were anyone other than yourself or Seokjin on your floor, you’d find the two of your arguing just as entertaining; but you’ll be damned before you stoop to their level and bet on it. According to Namjoon, ball of flames is increasing its odds and the pool increased by $500.

“Look, a luau inside this building is stupid. We have no space for it, it’s a fire hazard, and really, during Christmas?” Seokjin raises his voice at you.

“So many people go tropical during the season so they can avoid the cold, it happens! And who said luaus have to include a fire show or tiki torches? You were the one who told me to think bigger last time. Is this not thinking big?”

“This is called thinking poorly. And if you have no fire show or tiki torches, you’re being even less inauthentic; and that’s bad enough. What kind of half-assed theme is that?” Seokjin’s phone dings and he ends this conversation with you.

You drop back down to your seat and blow away the bangs in your hair. You get a text message.

Seokjin: That was really good!

You smile and reply: Thanks. Not bad yourself.

~•~

Once again, conversations in the bathroom are the best ways to receive intel.

“Oh, you should have heard it. It’s like actually witnessing them light up a roll of toilet paper and getting ready to throw it in the middle of the party.” Someone laughs as they talk over the phone. You roll your eyes. We’ll see who’s laughing when you guys see how great it is. Even if everyone’s bummed out at the party, they won’t be able to deny, it’s going to be fantastic.

“Oh, and Y/N’s arguments. They’re terrible! She suggested a luau. Can you believe that? As if we have space for that crap…Yeah I know. I don’t understand why she’s even still here.” Your limbs grow cold and your breath stills.

“Yeah, I don’t know what the boss is thinking, letting her train new recruits. We’re just going to have to unravel all that training and start all over. I’ve already got two under my wings asking for some real advice under-the-table…Yeah, well, he started the bet. If he didn’t dangle the chance for her to pitch, she wouldn’t work with Seokjin. Not like she’s going to get the chance anyway…” The conversation leaves the bathroom.

You close your eyes and lean your head back against the wall. You try to take a deep breath, but it’s slowly turns into quiet sobs.

~•~

Tonight, you’re quieter than normal, letting Seokjin lead the conversation and make the final decision.

“What’s going on, Y/N? We’re halfway through. We’ll show them up, get our money, and go for a shopping spree! I’m already thinking about an extravagant dinner. Yum.” He sees that you make no expression, comeback, or share his enthusiasm. You don’t even look at him and stare straight between your knees. 

His voice turns soft.

“Y/N? It’s obvious that you’re not okay. There’s no use in not telling me anymore. Come on, we’re partners on this.” In the light, he sees tears form in the corners of your eyes. Before he can think “uh oh”, they already begin to fall.

“What’s the use? No one here believes in me. Everyone is just going to think you were the one who planned it all and then decided to split the credit, all in the ‘spirit of Christmas!’ I-I didn’t tell you at first because I need you to work with me. There are two more options to the bet. One option bets that you are the one who makes all the decisions and pulls it off; the other is me. Every day, both our chances decrease because more people are starting to bet on ball of flames, but mine are now zero to none. Everyone here thinks I’m a fucking joke. Do they think I want to be here? I don’t want to be here. If I get a chance to pitch and let clients even know I exist, it’s my ticket out. I know that if people give me a chance, they will see that I can do really good. I can’t express my ideas well every time but I’m getting there. What I say and what I’m really thinking of are vastly different.” You’re choking your sobs and but continue.

“You know, our boss is the one who started the bet and he dangled the pitch to me just so I’ll bite. He still thinks I’m going to lose. W-what kind of lousy jerk is he? If he doesn’t believe in me, he should’ve just let me live and have you plan the whole thing. Why does he have to humiliate me like this? Better yet, just fire me. It’s better than this.” You put your head down into your arms that rest on your knees and let yourself go.

You feel Seokjin lightly put his hand on your shoulder to try to soothe you. Then he sighs and decides that you need more than just a hand on your shoulder. He reaches further to grab your other shoulder to pull you into his embrace. You two sit on the floor against his couch as you sob into his chest. He rubs your back and run his fingers through your hair as he watches his shirt dampen.

“First of all, I found out about the other options a long time ago. After you told me, I heard more about it in passing from other people. To be honest, I wasn’t mad at you. In fact, I got a mad for you too.” You’re a little shocked by his confession.

“You’ve been here longer than anyone else on our team; where’s that credit? I know you’re not planner as much as executioner. I have nothing to say against your case whenever the planning is over and you’ve been given responsibility. You’re reliable there, do you understand? I’m sorry in the past when I always seemed like I was against your ideas. Maybe they just weren’t fully formed verbally. But I should have paid more attention, give more patience, and try to find out exactly what you thought so. Working together with you on this shows me that you can do the job. It just depends on the communication, or how many people you need to communicate with to get the idea through.” He almost forgets why he started to talk or what his point is, but man, he’s got the ball rolling.

“And not only are you an executioner, but you have experience in this field, in this company, and on our team. You know every old trick in the book that others try to recycle over and over, and I agree with you when you say it’s not innovative enough. You do hold value. Our boss is an asshole. It doesn’t take this bet to realize that. If you think people don’t like you, you should listen to what people say about him. But you don’t. You don’t get into such office politics, I mean, other than when it’s against me. But it’s only arguing; you’ve never gotten in my way, or anyone’s way, for your own gain. You do everything for the good of the project. You stay away from gossip and you work diligently.” You don’t realize it, but he tightens his hold on you as he lists all your values.

“So, screw the bet. Screw the boss. Screw the party. Screw everyone who’s against you. You don’t answer to any of them for anything. You know you’re better than this. I know you’re better than this.” Your sobs subside and you just listen to his words and his heartbeat.

He takes a deep breath when he’s finally done. He repeats in his mind what he just said. He never consciously realized how much he can actually say about you. He never thought that he actually notices so many things about you.

You two sit there for a while. Tonight, planning is obviously shot. Forget that. But it’s okay, ‘cause you’re ahead of the schedule anyway.

“Thank you.” You croak. He takes a deep breath and runs his hand through your hair again, “No need to thank me.”

Your silent tears fall again, but this time out of appreciation.

~•~

For the next few days, it’s quiet in the office. You don’t want to be their entertainment feed like a circus animal. You no longer have the energy and patience to come up with false arguments with Seokjin, and he gets it; it’s actually his idea to stop the in-office arguments. Now everyone just thinks you two had the biggest fight ever which ends up to have to you two not speaking to each other. It still makes people talk, but they’re itching for an answer like they have lice. No one dares to ask though. Everyone tiptoes around you two like you’re a lioness taking a light nap. Latest news from Namjoon is that the pool is now a little under $16,000.

~•~

On the day of the party, you send a mass email reminder about the party invite. All guests have already RSVP’d in excitement to see the party results. Maybe at the party, you two will have a final showdown. You ignore all whispers as you quietly make your way through the office. Everyone gets a half-day off and come back in the evening in their best evening wear.

~•~

You look at yourself in the mirror at your party get-up. Even though you find solace in Seokjin’s words, you’re not excited to see everyone’s disappointment that they bet on the wrong horse. You sigh and make your way downstairs to see Seokjin waiting outside for you with a bouquet of red roses.

“What are you doing here? What’s this?” You laugh and take the bouquet from his hands. Your cheeks redden like the roses.

“Well obviously these are for you. And, we’re not going to the party.” You look up at him in shock.

“What? Why not?”

“Why should we? Just because we planned the best damn party doesn’t mean we have to show up. We don’t owe anyone. If anything, I believe the entire 16th floor owes us $16,000 in total. I already have Namjoon to host for us. You don’t need everyone going up to you saying, ‘Wow, I can’t believe you actually did this.’ Not tonight. Tonight, you’re going to be with someone who actually appreciates you.” He points at his own nose and you smile.

“So what are we doing instead?”

“We,” He leads you to his car and opens the door for you, “are going to celebrate early from that extravagant dinner I was gushing about. We are going to celebrate Christmas ourselves. Namjoon will reimburse tonight from my share. We,“ He closes your door when you’re safely tucked in and walks to the other side to get in, “are going on a date.”

You crack a smile and he looks over. He smiles and stretches out a hand to cup your cheek.

He leans really close and his forehead touches yours, “You have a really beautiful smile, you know that?”

“I do now.” You say quietly.

alleyway / radio silence / can you hear me? (I paced around for hours on empty, I jumped at the slightest of sounds)

part one of three (second part is prompt 10, third part is an alternate prompt set as chapter 32)

Spike paced the alleyway like a cat stalking angrily along the fence that edged its territory. He felt as skittish as a nervous feline as well. Pacing around for hours, jumping at the slightest of sounds. He never did well with this part of bounty hunts - or, well, he used to be better… more chill, more aloof… but since hooking up with Faye he now worried when her life was on the line. 

Granted, he'd always been concerned before when his partners were in the picture, but he'd been able to play it off so much easier. Having admitted to feelings, having revealed his hand… it made the reality of the danger of their job so much more present. 

Radio silence was such a shit way to play things. It had been Jet's idea of course, he was always keen to do things by the book and as carefully as possible. Spike would have preferred being in constant communication and able to storm in at a moment's notice, not wait for word from Faye that the situation was ripe. What if things spiraled beyond her control before he could get there? What if Jet wasn't able to reach her in time either? 

It made sense for Faye to be the one handling the contact with the suspect. The company wasn't entirely certain who the mole was and, suit aside, Spike himself didn't exactly blend into the business world. Meanwhile, Faye had the benefit of having regained all the memories of her former life, which included countless boring business meetings she'd sat through beside her father, and endless hobnobbing at social events at her mother's side. She knew how to talk the talk and walk the walk so the company had decided to use her as an embassy of a rival company to set up a blind meeting, piggybacking on a suspicious email they'd discovered.  It seemed far too suspicious to Spike but he wasn't a high level business man constantly dabbling his fingers into other ways to make even more money. Perhaps it just seemed like opportunity had landed in his lap. Or perhaps he realized he'd been found out and wanted the chance to eliminate the envoy in the hope of dissuading further investigation. 

He had to get control of himself, this was ridiculous. The anxiety in his belly was making it difficult to think. It wasn't even that tricky of a bounty really… just a well-off executive wanted for corporate espionage by people even higher up than himself. People who had wanted this assignment handled quietly and with care.  Spike had scoffed at that. Neither of those words were how he or Faye operated. What had Jet been thinking by agreeing to those terms? 

But the payout would be sweet. And they'd been broke for a while now - since Big Shot was off the air, bounty work was getting harder and harder to find.  Irritably, Spike turned as he reached the end of the alley and made his way back towards the opposite end where the skyscraper Faye was in rose up ominously from the streets of the town.  A gut intuition told him he should be trying to reach her, Jet's orders be damned. 

Flicking his comm on, ignoring the half dozen missed calls from Jet, he dialed in Faye's line, hearing it make a strange click instead of the ringing or her voice answering that he expected.  "Faye? Can you hear me?"