In The Palm Of Your Hand

in the palm of your hand

[i was re-reading @habken's incredible scammers to lovers au and wrote this short fic. I really love their work and couldn't help myself lmaoo. anyways i hope you all enjoy!!!]

“Hi! Can I help you with- oh,” says the angel from the IT department, spinny chair swiveling to a stop. “It’s you again.”

The first week Katsuki had come in, Deku had been relatively understanding and chipper- bright and sunny and shit. More personal than the strained smile and forced cheer that most customer service workers spoke with- of course I’ll fix your laptop, no problem, just leave it to me.

Now, about three weeks later he looks at Katsuki like he’s just bitten into a lemon. As in, like Katsuki had come into the IT department, looked Deku in the eye, bit into a lemon, and then made a puckered up face and writhed in discomfort and then showed up with another lemon the next day, rinse and repeat for nearly a month. A complicated mix of intrigue and confusion and mild horror at this endless display of masochism.

Which is fair; there really is no other way to look at a top ten Pro Hero who repeatedly comes in to have his laptop fixed and won’t admit under penalty of death that it was because he clicked a pop-up in hopes of having a proper conversation with a dreamy IT guy. Not that Dreamy IT guy in question knows about all of that, but whatever. If Katsuki was in Deku’s position, he would also be worried about the fact that the safety and integrity of the public was left in the hands of guys who can’t stop getting scammed by obvious pop-up ads.

“Your laptop’s broken again?” Deku says incredulously, as if reading Katsuki’s mind. His voice is really nice, even when he sounds confused as shit. Smooth and soft like- like a satin pillowcase. Or something. Whatever. It’s not like they pay him to be good with words.

Then again, it’s not like they pay him to (unsuccessfully) flirt with the guy he’s normally supposed to see once a month max, but here he was.

“Yeah,” says Katsuki, like he said two days ago, and then three days before that, and for the past month. It’s easier to say than I got a pop-up ad for a BL manga and I am ninety percent sure the twink on the cover was just a recolor of Sasuke Uchiha and I clicked it because I’m a fucking dumbass and I needed an excuse to keep coming in here and gazing into your dreamy-ass eyes. If you even care.

He’s surprised Deku’s even asking. He’s been consistently coming in here for exactly the same reason: his laptop ‘mysteriously’ got a virus and now he needs it fixed. He’ll be back to pick it up soon, no, he’s not getting a new laptop, no, he’s not sure what happened, no, he’s not going to install some fancy-ass ad-blocker because he doesn’t want to (and it would get rid of his excuse), and Deku’s never asked this but yes, he would love to go get dinner sometime, he’s free today and tomorrow and the day after that and the rest of his life, forever, actually-

“...Did you,” Deku begins, like he’s searching for the right words. “Uh. Do you have any idea what could have happened? Any idea at all?”

I gazed into the dead-eyed stare of poorly-recolored Sasuke’s green eyes and thought of you because your eyes are also green, and less unnerving to look at, and the more I thought about that the more my mouse moved away from the ‘x’ button and the next thing I know, I have a virus and my desire to carnally hold your hand has overpowered any other logical thought. That’s what happened.

“No,” Katsuki says belatedly. “Fuck. Look, can you fix it or not?”

“Of course,” says Deku. He’s still got that little furrow in his brow. Katsuki wants to bite at it like taffy- which, is a weird fucking thing to think, scratch that- “Just- give it over, and I’ll be sure to have it ready for you in a little while.”

“Cool.” He holds out his laptop. It’s reminiscent of when he was four and showing off the cool rhinoceros beetle he caught to his mom. He’s internally beaming with pride at his success so far, and Deku’s got that same baffled, borderline horrified expression that his mom did.

Although, that particular interaction ended with the thing flying out of his hands and into his mom’s cardigan and with him getting yelled at, so, maybe it’s not the ideal scenario to compare this to.

But this encounter will end differently. He’s got a grip on the rhinoceros beetle, now. He just has to play his cards right.

“So,” he says, shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks so Deku won’t see how fucking sweaty they are. “You’ll have it ready by lunch tomorrow?”

Deku takes the laptop and tilts his head. “Uh. Yeah, I will. In fact, I can get it to you earlier than that-”

“I’ll be busy for the rest of the day,” Katsuki lies. All his incident reports are done, and he’s got the night shift on patrol tomorrow. “You’re done by 2 tomorrow, right?”

“...Yes?”

“Great. Look, I have to stop at that fucking- crepe place, down the street, right,” he says, praying to every God there is that he looks cool and casual and not like a ‘Deranged Goblin Man’, as the Hero Times described him a few months ago. “So. When you get off work you should meet me there. At the crepe place. Tomorrow. At two pm.”

He doesn’t know what’s worse- the fact that he’s really doing this, being reduced to the same sort of emotional sap he would have made fun of only five years ago; or the fact that Present Mic’s lessons on subtlety and hidden meanings in text were actually good for something.

Look at him, effortlessly weaving together words to create sentences with underlying motives. He’s like a modern-day Shakespeare. He’s golden. He’s killing it. Bakugou Katsuki, master of words. He’s on cloud-fucking-nine. He’s-

…aaaaand Deku isn’t responding.

Deku blinks. He opens his mouth. Closes it. He sets the laptop down, staring up at Katsuki intently, and Katsuki starts to sweat.

You are Bakugou Katsuki, he reminds himself. You might be down bad, but you’re not weak. It will not kill you if he rejects you. Well, it’ll kill you a little. But not that much.

“At the crepe pla- to give you the laptop, right?” says Deku slowly. His face is turning bright red. Katsuki goes a little weak in the knees.

“Sure, yeah,” Katsuki says half-heartedly. “Look, if you want, I could. I dunno. Fucking- buy you a crepe or something. As payment.”

He’s so smooth. Eat your fucking heart out, Dunce Face. ‘Zero game’, his ass.

“Sure,” Deku says, scratching the back of his neck, smile just a tad bit shy. His face is still mildly flushed. Katsuki swoons (and does his best to not let it show on his face). “I- uh. I’d like that. I guess.”

“Cool,” says Katsuki. “Cool. Great. Okay, bye. Be there or else. Bye. See you.”

He turns on his heel and power walks out of the room, not once looking back, even when Pigtails nearly crashes into him or when Deku makes a noise suspiciously like he’s slamming his head against the desk. He walks out of the room, into the hallway, back to his own office.

The door slams shut behind him. He takes a deep breath. Squeezes his eyes shut. A breathlessly excited grin forces his way onto his face, and he pumps his fists, victorious.

He's got a date.

Dark Academia Suggestions For Women

Books that are also movies:

Anne of Green Gables 1-4 by LM Montgomery (BBC’s Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Green Gables: the Sequel)

Orphan Anne Shirley is adopted by bachelor Matthew Cuthbert and his spinster sister Marilla Cuthbert in edwardian Canada and must learn to reconcile her romantic and imaginative nature in this coming of age story

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (Little Women (1994) or Little Women (2019))

A coming of age story following 4 sisters and their mother while their father is off at war. The main protagonist, Jo, is an especially romantic figure

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman (Practical Magic)

Two sister witches must cover up the murder of one of their abusive ex boyfriend while an agent is investigating his disappearance

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Hugo)

Orphan Hugo befriends Isabelle who helps him unravel the mystery of his father’s automaton

Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield (Ballet Shoes)

Three orphan girls are taken in by an eccentric explorer and his niece, but once he’s gone they must take up performing arts careers to fend for themselves

Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day by Winifred Watson (Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day)

Miss Pettigrew, a governess, is accidentally sent to the wrong address by her agency and befriends a night club singer

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice (2005) or BBC’s Pride and Prejudice Mini Series)

Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters attempt to find love in Regency England, but Elizabeth and her love interest Mr Darcy make things more difficult than they need to be

Emma by Jane Austen (Emma (1995) or Emma (2020))

Emma Woodhouse fancies herself a matchmaker in Regency England, but quickly finds she knows little about love.

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (Sense and Sensibility (1995)

A coming of age story for the Dashwood sisters, who have lost their home but find love in Regency England

Other novels by Jane Austen

All of her novels have been adapted to screen. While all of her novels are good, I highlight these three because of their emphasis on female friendship and romanticism

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Jane Eyre has a troubling childhood but grows up to become a governess and fall in love with her benefactor in Regency England

The Help by Kathryn Stockett (The Help)

A white female journalist records the stories of two black women who work in white households during 1960′s America

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke (BBC’s Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell mini series)

A historical fantasy following the last two magicians on earth in Napoleon-era England

Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown (Legally Blonde)

Attempting to impress her ex boyfriend, Elle Woods applies to and gets accepted to Harvard Law School where she tries to prove herself as more than just an airhead blonde.

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett (A Little Princess)

Orphaned Sara finds herself adjusting from a life of wealth to a life of poverty and abuse working at a boarding school and comforts herself by imagining she is a princess.

Matilda by Roald Dahl (Matilda)

Young Matilda is a prodigy in an abusive household, sent to a school with an abusive headmistress. But when she discovers that she has magical abilities, she uses it to seek justice for herself and her friends.

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket (Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events)

In an indeterminate time period, three orphans get moved from guardian to guardian as they are pursued by the villainous Count Olaf who wants their family fortune. Along the way they find themselves wrapped up in a secret society that has split into factions and gone to war with each other.

Movies:

The Mona Lisa Smile

When Katherine Watson takes a job as an art professor in a conservative town in the 1950′s she tries to teach her female students to become more assertive

Whisper of the Heart

Shizuku is a Japanese student at the end of her summer break who befriends an antique shop owner and his grandson after following a cat through the city. Inspired by the events she attempts to write a novel

Shakespeare in Love

A fictional account of a noblewoman who poses as a man in order to perform in a Shakespeare play, only to fall in love with the playwright and inspire future plays

Miss Potter

A hyperbolic account of Beatrix’s Potters life

Becoming Jane

A hyperbolic account of Jane Austen’s life

Ever After

A retelling of Cinderella set in renaissance era France and without magical elements, replacing the fairy godmother with Leonardo Da Vinci instead.

The Bookshop

Widowed Florence Green follows her dreams and opens a bookshop in the 1950s but unexpectedly finds herself at odds with the queen bee of the town who wanted the property for her own project.

Kiki’s Delivery Service

Coming of age story that follows 13 year old Kiki who, according to witch tradition, goes off to live on her own for a year to practice her magic. She sets up a delivery service but learns things will be harder than she anticipated.

Books:

*Some of which have movies that I either haven’t seen or didn’t personally like

The Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

A fictional account of the servant girl who inspired the real life painting by Vermeer

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

A truly bleak tale set in New Orleans at the end of the 19th century following Edna as she begins to have an awakening about feminism which affects her daily life. This is regarding as one of the first novels to primarily focus on the concept of feminism.

Agatha Christie Mysteries

Agatha Christie was so good at what she did that her books are still used today in toxicology classes and she largely helped define the mystery genre

Nancy Drew Mysteries by Carolyn Keene

Though written for children, the Nancy Drew books follow the amateur detective and her female friends as they solve mysteries in mid-20th-century America and the character has become a cultural icon.

Gathering Blue and Son from “The Giver Quartet” by Lois Lowry

Books 2 and 4 in the Giver Quartet. While books 1 and 3 are also good, books 2 and 4 are featured here because they have female protagonists. The books are part of a series, but only loosely connected and can be read as standalone books if desired. Gathering Blue follows Kira in a dystopian future as she makes a place for herself in her village through her ability to dye cloth, a skill which helps prevent her from being cast out for being disabled. Son, meanwhile, follows Claire who is looking for her son after he was taken from her.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

Follows Kit who moves from the Caribbean to Puritan Connecticut where she befriends an elderly spinster woman who is accused of witchcraft

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

A staple of dark academia, it tells the story of Victor Frankenstein who creates artificial life and is immediately horrified by his creation, who swiftly grows angry and vengeful towards his creator.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Another staple of dark academia, follows six students who study the classics. The narrator is an adult version of one of the students reflecting on the events that led to a murder.

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquival

Taking place in Mexico, Tita is being kept from her lover by her traditionalist mother. Tita expresses herself through her cooking which takes on magical properties.

The Inkheart Series by Cornelia Funke (Inkheart, Inkspell, and Inkdeath)

Follows Maggie and her book-worm father after she discovers her father has the ability to bring to life any book that he reads aloud. They are quickly swept off into the narrative of a fantasy novel.

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

Though part of a trilogy, the first novel is the most appropriate for dark academia, following a female protagonist (Lyra) in a historical fantasy setting as she unravels a mystery.

Music:

Florence Welch

Lana Del Rey

Lorde

Hozier

Enya

Alice Merton

Regina Spektor

Lenka

384 notes View Post

princesssarcasm789

9 months ago

alicent hightower & rhaenyra targaryen

sylvia plath / lidia yuknavitch / u.k / sarah ruhl / f. scott fitzgerald / steven espada dawson

160 notes View Post

princesssarcasm789

4 years ago

707 and “You can’t banish me! This is my bed too!” :D?

The argument had been juvenile and entirely one-sided, your level of stubbornness clawing to astronomical heights. Your hands made quick work to flick the crumbs and straggling chips from the sheet, deliberately aiming for the side of the bed where you saw the top of Saeyoung’s head and eyes peeking up from.

“Y-You’re so cruel! How can you just throw me on the floor like this?!” he feigned his sobs, the croak in his voice. “It’s so cold down here. Have mercy on my soul! Let me back on the back, I’ll give you a back massage–no, wait! A foot massage and a head massage! I’ll massage you head-to-toe for the cheap, cheap price of letting me back on the bed.”

“Hell no,” you retorted. “Go sleep on the couch and eat your gross chips. I’m so sick of hearing you crunch, crunch, crunch–just crunching them all night!”

“Baby, I can change!” Saeyoung pleaded, jolting onto his knees before swinging a leg onto the mattress. “Just wait, I’ll show you!”

You promptly grunted and swatted his leg away. “I hope your next bag of chips are stale.”

Saeyoung reeled back, fingers splayed across his chest with a look that suggested he was thoroughly affronted. “I see what kind of person you truly are. Ruthless, unyielding, dominating–it’s super hot, honestly–but you can’t banish me! This is my bed too!”

In return for the resolute glare gouging into the side of your head, you merely cast him an exasperated sidelong look before chucking several pillows at his head. “Just shut up and help me get all of your crumbs off the bed.”

You had just ripped the corners of the sheet from the bed when you noticed Saeyoung slowly rising to his feet, pillows tucked between his arms as he turned, almost mechanically marching towards the door.

“Saeyoung…” you warned.

“I’ll just go sleep on the couch, anyway.”

“Saeyoung!”

137 notes View Post

princesssarcasm789

1 year ago