Coquettish Coercion
Dec. 23rd, 2019 08:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nyanderenekoWord Count: 1,072
Summary: After being confronted with a simple request, Nova finds herself keen on not falling for whatever ulterior motives said requester may have in mind.
Author’s Note: This is a prompt I’ve had in my drafts for months, I wrote it so long ago…it was based on a couple dialogue prompts from a prompt list I also lost a long time ago, but I just know they were really good ones. And that’s why this fic is good, and also playful and flirty, I think I was working on it when I was feeling especially sappy about Dazai…and his stupid handsome face lol. I think it still holds up and I’m happy to have finally gotten around to editing it so I can share it!
“Can you help me with my tie?”
Nova couldn’t really believe what he was asking her. The simple bauble he wore around his collar could hardly be classified as such an accessory, and he’d never expressed that he had any kind of trouble adjusting it before. Honestly, it looked like it would be simpler for him to just figure out how to fix it himself; a quick adjustment in the mirror would be all it took. If there was even anything wrong with it in the first place—which wasn’t overtly apparent to her. All signs were pointing to something more sinister lurking in his intentions, and she was experienced enough to know that was just par for the course for him.
He was casually propped up against his desk, leaning at an angle that made him just short enough for her to fulfill his request with ease if she felt so inclined. With a seemingly innocent smile on his face, arms nonchalantly crossed like he’d just wished her a simple good morning or something along those lines, she could still read an undeniable hint of mischief in his eyes. There was also something concerningly tempting about the way he’d asked, and as much as she wanted to maintain her rationality, his attitude muddled her brain just enough to encourage her to take the bait.
She wasn’t going to go down without any resistance, though. She was feeling just a bit too proud and suspicious for that. “Why?”
“Why? Well, I thought that’d be obvious…” He dramatically feigned ignorance, eyes shifting contemplatively as he placed a finger to his cheek.
“Not with you it’s not,” she protested, approaching him against her better judgment.
“You make it sound like I’m scheming something,” he teased, lips curving into an irritatingly self-satisfied smirk. “All I asked was for some help adjusting my tie. But if you’re that opposed, I’ll just ask someone else—”
“Whatever. I’ll do it,” she huffed, submitting to his whim despite her complaining. Getting it over with was better than doing nothing, right? And it was such a simple request…she knew she was playing right into his hands, but for some reason she couldn’t bring herself to stop. It was like he exuded an influence over her that was always interfering, something he couldn’t shut off and that she couldn’t ignore. If she didn’t already know the ins and outs of his ability, she would have argued that this was just another part of it.
Positioning herself directly in front of him, she reached out and started fiddling with the pendant hanging limply from his neck. Legs slightly parted so she didn’t trip on his annoyingly long limbs where they rested between hers, she didn’t really have a choice if she wanted to be at a distance that didn’t make this whole thing look too silly. Would it really matter if it did, if she got the point across that she knew he had some sort of ulterior motive?
She still didn’t understand why he wore something like this, considering it didn’t seem to do anything practical for him or his outfit. Then again, this was the man that never left the house without being covered neck to ankle in sturdy medical gauze, so honestly nothing about his fashion sense could be trusted. Despite his minor eccentricities, he also always happened to have that aggravatingly handsome face on display. Pretty eyes, pretty hair, pretty hands…now she was getting distracted for all the wrong reasons, mind wandering to subjects she certainly didn’t need to be entertaining at the moment. And deep down, she knew that’d been his ploy all along, but she couldn’t let him win, at least not that easily.
“Alright, it looks even now.” She didn’t give her eyes the opportunity to linger too long on any part of him; she didn’t want to mess up on that front more than she already had.
“Are you sure?”
Now he was just toying with her, but the lines of her rebellion were starting to blur. “Uh, yeah, I’m pretty sure I’d know if it looked right or not. If you’re that skeptical you can just check it yourself—”
“Hm…?”
That simple noise was so smug, and if she’d been thinking more clearly, she probably would have smacked him. She still should have, but he was doing his damndest to unsettle her to the point of inaction. As she retracted her hands just slightly, he shifted forward as if she was pulling him, and that was all it took for him to be invasively close. Everything about his demeanor still calm and seemingly indifferent, he watched as the red bled into every inch of her face like spilled ink.
“Your heart’s beating so fast…” His words weren’t extraordinary, but the tone with which he delivered them was almost enough to send that very heart bursting out of her chest. The way he murmured them was intoxicating, gaze half lidded and lips curled into a distractingly impish smile. As much as she wanted to hate it, or him, she knew both were fruitless endeavors. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” It was the only response she could manage to supply.
Hands pinned to her sides and balled into fists, she finally gained the strength to take a proper step back. He watched her with a composed expression, and she kept her eyes cast to the floor. It was stupid, everything about this situation was—her reaction, her now flustered panic, even after she’d tried so hard to convince herself not to play into his hands…but, again, she also hadn’t bothered to do anything to prevent it. Maybe there was even a part of her that liked feeling this way, that liked knowing he could work her up like this. Instead of being mad at him for doing it, perhaps her real issue was with her own childish appreciation of it.
“Just get back to work.”
Communicating the exasperation she felt towards both herself and him in a huff, Nova moved to resume her own duties. She noticed the unmistakable sound of his snicker as she walked away, and her hands wouldn’t seem to release their death grip. Part of her wanted to go back and hit him. Part of her wanted to go back and kiss him. Inevitably she refused to cave to the enticement of either side, and for today, she supposed that was for the best.
Summary: After being confronted with a simple request, Nova finds herself keen on not falling for whatever ulterior motives said requester may have in mind.
Author’s Note: This is a prompt I’ve had in my drafts for months, I wrote it so long ago…it was based on a couple dialogue prompts from a prompt list I also lost a long time ago, but I just know they were really good ones. And that’s why this fic is good, and also playful and flirty, I think I was working on it when I was feeling especially sappy about Dazai…and his stupid handsome face lol. I think it still holds up and I’m happy to have finally gotten around to editing it so I can share it!
_____
“Can you help me with my tie?”
Nova couldn’t really believe what he was asking her. The simple bauble he wore around his collar could hardly be classified as such an accessory, and he’d never expressed that he had any kind of trouble adjusting it before. Honestly, it looked like it would be simpler for him to just figure out how to fix it himself; a quick adjustment in the mirror would be all it took. If there was even anything wrong with it in the first place—which wasn’t overtly apparent to her. All signs were pointing to something more sinister lurking in his intentions, and she was experienced enough to know that was just par for the course for him.
He was casually propped up against his desk, leaning at an angle that made him just short enough for her to fulfill his request with ease if she felt so inclined. With a seemingly innocent smile on his face, arms nonchalantly crossed like he’d just wished her a simple good morning or something along those lines, she could still read an undeniable hint of mischief in his eyes. There was also something concerningly tempting about the way he’d asked, and as much as she wanted to maintain her rationality, his attitude muddled her brain just enough to encourage her to take the bait.
She wasn’t going to go down without any resistance, though. She was feeling just a bit too proud and suspicious for that. “Why?”
“Why? Well, I thought that’d be obvious…” He dramatically feigned ignorance, eyes shifting contemplatively as he placed a finger to his cheek.
“Not with you it’s not,” she protested, approaching him against her better judgment.
“You make it sound like I’m scheming something,” he teased, lips curving into an irritatingly self-satisfied smirk. “All I asked was for some help adjusting my tie. But if you’re that opposed, I’ll just ask someone else—”
“Whatever. I’ll do it,” she huffed, submitting to his whim despite her complaining. Getting it over with was better than doing nothing, right? And it was such a simple request…she knew she was playing right into his hands, but for some reason she couldn’t bring herself to stop. It was like he exuded an influence over her that was always interfering, something he couldn’t shut off and that she couldn’t ignore. If she didn’t already know the ins and outs of his ability, she would have argued that this was just another part of it.
Positioning herself directly in front of him, she reached out and started fiddling with the pendant hanging limply from his neck. Legs slightly parted so she didn’t trip on his annoyingly long limbs where they rested between hers, she didn’t really have a choice if she wanted to be at a distance that didn’t make this whole thing look too silly. Would it really matter if it did, if she got the point across that she knew he had some sort of ulterior motive?
She still didn’t understand why he wore something like this, considering it didn’t seem to do anything practical for him or his outfit. Then again, this was the man that never left the house without being covered neck to ankle in sturdy medical gauze, so honestly nothing about his fashion sense could be trusted. Despite his minor eccentricities, he also always happened to have that aggravatingly handsome face on display. Pretty eyes, pretty hair, pretty hands…now she was getting distracted for all the wrong reasons, mind wandering to subjects she certainly didn’t need to be entertaining at the moment. And deep down, she knew that’d been his ploy all along, but she couldn’t let him win, at least not that easily.
“Alright, it looks even now.” She didn’t give her eyes the opportunity to linger too long on any part of him; she didn’t want to mess up on that front more than she already had.
“Are you sure?”
Now he was just toying with her, but the lines of her rebellion were starting to blur. “Uh, yeah, I’m pretty sure I’d know if it looked right or not. If you’re that skeptical you can just check it yourself—”
“Hm…?”
That simple noise was so smug, and if she’d been thinking more clearly, she probably would have smacked him. She still should have, but he was doing his damndest to unsettle her to the point of inaction. As she retracted her hands just slightly, he shifted forward as if she was pulling him, and that was all it took for him to be invasively close. Everything about his demeanor still calm and seemingly indifferent, he watched as the red bled into every inch of her face like spilled ink.
“Your heart’s beating so fast…” His words weren’t extraordinary, but the tone with which he delivered them was almost enough to send that very heart bursting out of her chest. The way he murmured them was intoxicating, gaze half lidded and lips curled into a distractingly impish smile. As much as she wanted to hate it, or him, she knew both were fruitless endeavors. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” It was the only response she could manage to supply.
Hands pinned to her sides and balled into fists, she finally gained the strength to take a proper step back. He watched her with a composed expression, and she kept her eyes cast to the floor. It was stupid, everything about this situation was—her reaction, her now flustered panic, even after she’d tried so hard to convince herself not to play into his hands…but, again, she also hadn’t bothered to do anything to prevent it. Maybe there was even a part of her that liked feeling this way, that liked knowing he could work her up like this. Instead of being mad at him for doing it, perhaps her real issue was with her own childish appreciation of it.
“Just get back to work.”
Communicating the exasperation she felt towards both herself and him in a huff, Nova moved to resume her own duties. She noticed the unmistakable sound of his snicker as she walked away, and her hands wouldn’t seem to release their death grip. Part of her wanted to go back and hit him. Part of her wanted to go back and kiss him. Inevitably she refused to cave to the enticement of either side, and for today, she supposed that was for the best.