#Coach Keats

[jhsharman]

Playbook

And now the rest is just -- six of one versus half a dozen of the other

To land on --

[pitchsidestories]

cheerleader II Grace Clinton x Reader

masterlist I word count: 1882

a/n: inspired by the request if we write for Grace Clinton, enjoy. 🤍

“Hurry up, Celin, I don’t want to be too late for the match.”, Grace Clinton told the fellow football player impatiently, the arms crossed over her chest. The rest of the friend’s group had already been ready to leave fifteen minutes ago.

The Norwegian meanwhile took a final glance at her bathroom mirror, checking if the curls she just made fell right, before announcing:” I’m coming.”

“Finally.”, Grace sighed relived.

Eyerolling Celin padded the shoulder of her friend: “Don’t be annoying. We’ll be on time.”

“Someone can’t wait to be the personal cheerleader of her girlfriend today.”, Khiara Keating teased the fellow Lionesses teammate with a huge grin on her face.  

When the goalkeeper mentioned you Grace cheeks turned immediately red which Charli Grant couldn’t help but to point out in a swooning voice:” I think it’s adorable. Look at how much she’s blushing!”

“Oh, shut up!”, your girlfriend begged annoyed who felt her face becoming even hotter than before.

Amused Celin commented: “Disgustingly cute.”

“Celin!”, she yelled at her.

The Norwegian looked innocently at her teammate:” What?”

“Stop it. No one said it was disgustingly cute when you got engaged.”, Grace reminded the woman who was only two years older than her.

Smiling at the memory Celin admitted: “ No, that’s true. Bethany was really annoying about it though like a mum. She asked me if I was sure about it? And that we’re still in the puppy love phase, blab la bla.”

“She just doesn’t want you to make a mistake.”, your girlfriend replied softly.

Dramatically the midfielder groaned:” Yes, and that’s sweet of her but she really needs to stop using dog metaphors all the time.”

The smile on Grace’s lips grew even bigger as she thought of Beth Englands golden retrievers who were adorable in her eyes and made her wish that you both would eventually get a puppy together, maybe the summer would be the perfect time for it:”  Everyone loves dogs though.”

“And her golden retrievers are so cute.”, Charli added in a tone she usually reserved for Harper.

The youngest of the four, Khiara was looking alarmed at the time on her phone:” Girls now we really got to hurry up!”

“Tell that to Celin.”, Grace scoffed.

She pouted: “It wasn’t my fault!”

“Yes, it was.”, your girlfriend laughed.

As they stepped out Charli was putting an arm on each of the best friends, while reminding them why they were heading out today: “Come on, girls. It’s time to watch some grassroots football, now.”

Your teammate Ava bumped her shoulder against yours as you walked out on the pitch together. With a smirk she commented: “Y/n, havd you spotted your cheerleader already?”

“Not yet. I fear they run a little late. She's bringing some friends with her today.”, you replied, your gaze wandering towards the entrance of the football pitch. But there was still no sign of Grace.

Avas eyes widened: “There's even more of them coming?!”

You nodded patiently: “Yeah, Celin, Charli and Khiara are coming as well.”

“Holy F-…”, Ava replied, stopping herself before your coach could hear her.

Your goalkeeper, Max, joined your conversation, lifting their eyebrow at you; “But you warned them that we do this just for fun and that we are not really good in our league, right?!”

Grimacing, you looked at your two teammates; “Uhm…”

“What the hell, y/n? We're totally going to embarrass ourselves in front of them!”, Ava yelled out, her voice rising with anxiety. She exchanged a panicked look with Max.

“Girls, calm down…”, you started, fighting back a smile.

The defender shook her head, her blonde ponytail swinging: “How?!”

You rolled your eyes with fondness: “You guys know Grace already and you never had a problem playing in front of her.”

“That’s different!”, Max interrupted you but the corners of their mouth curved into slight grin.

“Yeah, she’s only there to look at you with heart eyes during the match.”, Ava agreed, giggling.

You could feel your cheeks heat up: “Oh come on…”

Max shrugged nonchalantly: “She’s got a point.”

“Her friends are very nice, you’ll see.”, you promised them while you caught yourself looking for your girlfriend again.

Ava raised her eyebrows: “Let's hope so.”

“I guess we should start warming up.”, Max changed the topic and started to jog across the grass.

Ava clapped her hands: “Yes, let’s go.”

Max looked back over their shoulder towards you: “Come on!”

Laughing, you followed them: “I’m coming, children!”

“Children? You’re the child here!”, the goalkeeper laughed.

“Since she got into uni she thinks she’s an adult.”, Ava continued to tease.

“Hey!”, you protested. You were not even the youngest player on your team.

Max deliberately ignored you: “She wishes.”

Before you could reply, you were almost knocked off balance by someone jumping on your back and wrapping their hands around your shoulders.

“She’s still our baby!”, Rileys voice shouted right next to your ear.

You shook the redheaded midfielder off: “Ugh, stop it. I’m not.”

“Yeah, you are.”, Max countered smugly.

“At least I’m faster than you!”, you grinned and increased your pace, switching from a fast jog into a sprint.

The goalkeepers jaw dropped: “Without stretching! If we’d do that, we could go home right now.”

“Honestly, some things you can only do when you’re young.”, Ava shook her head.

Riley laughed: “My knees hurt from only watching her.”

“You sound like Lucy Bronze, Riley.”, you chuckled, remembering the phone call you had with Grace when she was away with the lionesses in Spain. Your girlfriend was happy about the fact that the English defender put her under her wings.

Even though the knee of the Barcelona player was hurting after she ran against Grace in training the older woman was still joking around with her like the pain was nothing.

Dropping the name of the famous lionesses Riley’s mouth dropped wide open: “Excuse me?!”  

“Yeah, it’s true but Luce wouldn’t just sat by and chat when she has to warm up.”, Khiara joined the conversation with a teasing smile on her lips.

Your teammate pouted, begging not all too serious: “Never ever bring your girlfriend and her friends again.”

“Riley, you got compared to Lucy Bronze that’s a compliment., you tried to cheer the older woman up before you turned around to kiss your girlfriend who was standing next to the Mancity goalkeeper, hi babe, glad you could make it.”

You were willing to ignore Celins fake gagging noises unlike Grace. She scolded the Norwegian for her reaction:” Celin!”

“Ignore her, Grace. Have fun watching the game, girls.”, you told her softly.

“We’ll.”

“Good luck.”, Khiara shouted after you, widely grinning.

Grateful for her support you mouthed: “Thank you, Khi.”

“You’re welcome.”, she replied.

During the match, Celin bit her lip, looking worried at what was happening in front of them:” Oh god, their team is bad.”

“Don’t be mean.”, Grace immediately defended you and your team.

With a mischievous grin Khiara reminded the Tottenham players:” You guys were bad too when we won against you 7:0.”

“You said you wouldn’t remind us anymore.”, your girlfriend whined.

The mancity goalkeeper countered: “At least it stopped Celin from being mean.”

“Grace, your girl scored!”, Celin excitedly interrupted them.

Proudly Grace said:” Not too bad, right?”

“It was a really nice goal.”, Charli admitted.

When Max celebrated your goal with you, she pulled you close to hum into your ear:” Little one tell your girlfriend she needs to come more often if her presence makes you score such bangers.”

“Oh, but you know she’s a busy girl.”, you answered grinning.

Confidently she shook her head:” Doesn’t matter. We need some wins.”

After the match, Ava announced to your girlfriend:” Grace, we need you to attend more games it works wonders on y/n’s performance.”

“I’ll try to come more often. But my weekends are pretty booked.”, Grace promised.

 In a reassuring tone you responded:” You don’t have too.”

“No, I want to come more often. I really enjoyed watching.”, your girlfriend looked at you lovingly.

“To be fair I enjoy watching you play too.”, you confessed sweetly.

She smirked while suggesting:” I think we could make a deal out of it.”

“Yes, we’ll try to see each other’s games as often as we can.”, you nodded eagerly.

The promise was sealed with a kiss from her on your lips:” That sounds fair.”

Two weeks later, the roles were reversed and you watched Grace and her team play against Manchester City in the FA Women’s Cup.

It was a suspenseful game that eventually went into a penalty shootout. You held your breath as Amy Turner converted the final penalty for Tottenham. You could not hide your joy for your girlfriends team while you watched them run towards each other and celebrate their win.

“Becky, you were amazing!“, Grace yelled at their goalkeeper who was able to save two of Manchester penalties.

Beth England pulled her two teammates into a hug: “I’m so proud of you, girls!“

“You really saved us with your goal in the last minute of stoppage time!“, Grace yelled happily at the striker. Her cheeks were still red from the game as her gaze drifted over the crowd of people applauding the win.

Beth shrugged with one shoulder: “They had to make a mistake at some point. She’s over there by the way if you’re looking for her.“

A new bright red flashed across Graces face: “Yes, I was searching for her.“

“Come on. Go to her, get your winners kiss and then we can celebrate together.“, Becky laughed and pushed the younger player in your direction.

Beth called after her: “Hurry up!“

“Trust me, I’m running as fast as I can.“, Grace laughed back at her as she made her way across the pitch.

She stopped right in front of you, a huge grin on her face.

“Hi, love. I’m so proud of you and your team.“, you greeted her and pulled her into a tight hug.

“Thanks. I’m glad you could be here.“, she replied.

As you pulled out of the hug, you held up your phone and presented your girlfriend your text messages: “Ava, Max and the whole team congratulate you and forgive me for missing training today.“

“That’s so sweet of them.“, Grace smiled, visibly moved by the thoughtfulness of your football team.

You nodded: “Yes, they are the best.“

“They are.“

“Go and celebrate with your team, babe, you deserve it.“, you laughed and gave her gentle push.

Grace held out her hand for you: “Join us.“

“Are you sure?“

“Absolutely.“

“Okay, I’m coming with you.“, you finally agreed and followed your girlfriend onto the grass.

Grace carefully took your hand in hers: “Good. The girls will be happy to see you.“

As soon as you reached the celebrating football players, you smiled: “Hi, girls.“

Charli beamed at you: “You’re here!“

“Gracies' lucky charm!“, Celin yelled with a slight tease in her voice.

“So that’s why we won.“, Charli concluded with a grin.

Grace pressed a kiss to your cheek: “Oh yes.“

Celin shot her a sceptical look: “Sure. It was probably her.“

Grace turned towards you, searching for your eyes: “Ignore the sceptic Celin. Love you, y/n.“

“I love you too.“, you replied and kissed her passionately.

[morfitties]

Dead Poets Society really is THE movie for anyone who has thought “I will never be like them when I’m an adult” because all the adults in the movie, bar Mr Keating, do is push unrealistic expectations onto kids like their rent is due. NONE of those kids have empathetic adults in their lives, but when Keating becomes their teacher, something changes. Even if they don’t like the class, they love Keating. He was the only adult they ever knew who respected them, treated them like real people, like what they wanted mattered.

My point is DPS is a gift to everyone who has ever been crushed under the weight of their families egos and rules and I hope we all had a teacher or a coach or any adult who treat us like we were real.

(The English teacher I had for 4 years was mine and he still keeps in touch with a few of us, when I saw him on the bud a month or so ago he looked at what I was reading and talked to me about it and my life and he’s the only teacher that looked at my art portfolio for university)

[cecekeating]

My 608 Jordayla thoughts/breakdowns pt.2

We are back at the therapist with Layla. She is about to start the treatment. She is again very nervous. The therapist wants them to talk about her mother. Just as an aside, if you are wondering how the therapist was able to pick topics off the bat to talk to Layla about, it was mentioned in the first scene with them that she has notes on previous sessions. So the therapist has enough info about Layla and her previous history and is making decisions about the sessions about them. Again, Layla is reluctant and at this point, the therapist makes it clear that she can’t help if Layla is not willing to co operate. Layla agrees. 

This is where we get to to the meat of the issue. When I was watching, I had concluded that the session was going to be about Layla just missing her mother or Layla just  confronting her abandonment issues as it related to her impending marriage to Jordan. I was not ready for the angle the writers took with this arc at all. 

We get the first flashback with baby Layla ( absolutely adorable actress playing Layla and perfectly casted). She is at the old house. Remember the house that Layla trashes in season 1? I want to pause here and have us reflect on the end of season 1. Maybe Layla trashing the house can be indicative of trying to destroy the traumatic memories she had in that house as a child. Just a food for thought for you. 

So we see baby Layla hearing her mother and father in a room. Remember this is an actual memory from Layla’s childhood. She is recalling the memory to the therapist. Because she is going deep into a buried memory, Layla becomes overwhelmed in the present and session is paused. 

We start the session again and Layla is able to continue relaying the memory to the therapist. We now see baby Layla open the door to reveal her parents. This was when my mind was blown away. I was GAGGED when I saw that the writers had Mike and Greta play JP and Monica Keating. I did not expect this at all and I need to give the writers their props for this brilliant writing. I also feel I need to pause to explain what was going on in this scene because I feel it was lost on some of the audience.

What we are seeing is an actual memory of Layla from when she was 6 years old. We see that at that time, her mother is deep in depression and her father is struggling to help her mother. Monica Keating is lost as to her identity, JP needs her and he tries to let her know that Layla needs her too. Monica also feels that JP lost his spark from having to deal with her. Do you see where the second question Layla asks Jordan at the beach house comes in? 

 Again, this is an actual memory from Layla’s childhood. Having Mike and Greta play JP and Monica is to show that specific memory from Layla’s childhood has now manifested as a fear in Layla’s head about her relationship/ impending marriage to Jordan Baker. 

We go back to the present and it all makes sense now for Layla. She is afraid her marriage will be like her parents’ marriage. 

We are now at the final part of this brilliant story. Jordan and Layla talking about the session. This was my favourite part of the entire episode. And so much was said in this scene without it being said explicitly. First of all, I want to call back to the light moment about breaking up with coach Mac. Jordan having his own podcast episode to say FU to coach Mac and “end things” with him is the right level of pettiness and dramatics that I expect from him and I love him so much for it!

Back to the conversation! So Layla explains to Jordan that she was able to figure out why the meds stopped working. The engagement. The next thing Jordan says is “The thought of marrying me made you unhappy?” In his head, his worst fear is about to come to pass. Call back to earlier in the episode. Layla asking those questions triggered him too and threw him off balance. This scene showed us the extent to which those questions threw him off. Layla says no but she continues to explain honestly. Again, she feels safe enough to tell Jordan everything - including the uncomfortable aspects of her parents’ marriage. As she speaks, you can see the hurt form on Jordan’s face. It now makes sense to him. Why she was dragging her feet and questioning his love for her. But also he understands. In this moment, Jordan shows so much compassion for the situation Layla is in. He understands that the engagement was sprung on her without notice and he takes responsibility for that. Before going further, I want to once again applaud the writers for their attention to detail. I did not think they would ever bring up how quick their engagement went but here we are. Because when you look at things panaromically, Jordayla got engaged really young and quickly and it is super realistic that there are implications of doing that. In this case, it triggered an unresolved trauma in Layla’s life. 

Jordan with all the love and compassion in his heart, offers Layla an out to end the engagement. Lets go back to episode 607 shall we? In this episode, we saw how Jordan was so worried about Layla and her well being. He was so worried that he nearly lost a very important game as a footballer. We saw him fight to make sure Layla was okay. Layla was his top priority in that episode. In that same episode he said “none of it matters until my fiancee is whole”. This episode showed us that Jordan meant every word he said in episode 607. He meant it so much so that he was willing to lose this same fiancee if it meant she would be whole again. Jordan chose Layla above the engagement, his feelings and his hurt. You could see him hurting but like he said in episode 607 “Your best is my best” If the best thing for Layla was to end the engagement so she could be whole, then it was the best thing for him too. He gave her an out because he will give anything to make her happy because he loves her.

On Layla’s end, she explains her fear of marrying him but she also comes to the realise that she and Jordan are not her parents. She also realises that in spite of all she has been through, Jordan has stuck with her and he has always looked at her with love. She realises in this moment, on her own, how unwavering and unconditional Jordan’s love is for her. If you recall in earlier episodes, she has had people talk and convince her to realise how much Jordan loves her - Ryan in ep 2 with the moving in, Patience in ep 6 and Olivia in ep 7. This time around she realised by herself that Jordan loves her by remembering that he has stayed with her in her lowest and through it all, he never gave up on her or stopped loving her. 

This realisation gives Layla the courage to choose Jordan, just like he chose her. Remember, love is a choice. She chose Jordan over her current circumstances and was willing to face her fears with him by her side. If she has to face her fears so she doesn’t lose Jordan, she would. If you notice the breakthrough happens when she assures him that she meant it when she said Yes to his proposal and when she confesses her love for him. You can see her struggle to get the words out but she fights to say it out. This was the moment, she chose Jordan regardless of what was going on in her life. In the difficult moment, Jordan and Layla chose each other and decided to remain committed till the end. She asks for more time and Jordan tells her to take all the time she needs. Of course he will say that. He has always been patient with her. From their first kiss to waiting for her before having sex with her to becoming a couple and agreeing to the secret dating, Jordan has consistently let Layla take her time to figure things out. I think its one of the reasons why she loves him. Again she is safe enough with Jordan to ask for some more time to heal so she doesn’t bring any baggage into their marriage because she knows he will accept her request. And he did!

I have enjoyed the writing for Jordayla this season so much and this episode really brought it all together. The writers have been A* with this mental health arc and how it relates to Jordayla as a couple. I am excited to see what is in store for them as the season progresses and I am confident that they will continue to grow stronger. I loved writing this piece and I really hope you enjoyed it. Apologies if it is too long or if I rambled. This is my first ever Jordayla breakdown. I have loved being part of the Jordayla fandom so I thought I’d make my own small contribution.

For everyone struggling with any kind of mental health issues, know that you are loved. Keep talking, find your tribe and get all the love and support available. I promise it gets easier.

For anyone helping or supporting a friend or loved one through mental health issues, thank you for showing up and being there. Know that you are loved and appreciated. 

If you want to yap about Jordayla, my DMs are open! Feel free to reach out. 

[notexactlyrocketscience]

favourite adhd creators masterpost!

(especially for gender minorities, people of colour, and lgbtq+ community!) in no particular order:

adhdinos (ryan keats): just compassion and wholesome vibes.

the mini adhd coach by alice: incredible resource that highlights diverse experiences, presentations, and comorbidities of adhd outside the stereotypes.

adhd nutritionist (becca king): if you have trouble eating because of adhd, she’s going to save your life every day with compassionate advice that actually works.

how to adhd (jessica mccabe): her ted talk was one of the things that made me realise i may have adhd. her content covers a lot of breadth and is very resourceful.

adhd couple by ingri: the perfect resource when your partner (or friends!) also have adhd.

adhd superwoman (ingrid heyerdahl): more of the inspirational type, often featuring accounts of women with adhd.

izzie and adhd by izzie: incredible candid and heartwarming blog of her own experiences, with both celebratory and difficult moments.

authentically adhd by jak: here for the adhd positivity, staying for the gorgeous queer energy.

adhd alien (pina varnel): an incredible individual and artist who needs no introduction, they were the first adhd creator the majority of us stumbled across. <3

female adhd: great resource to learn about how adhd works in afab bodies, how symptoms interact with hormones, and the distinct impact of adhd on women's experiences in our society.

elyse myers: need i say more? her #theadhdway posts remind me of the untethered joy that can come with being neurodivergent. laughter is medicine and that’s what elyse is here to remind us.

this is a working list, so come back for more. <3 I am an instagram girlie so all of these link to instagram, but most (if not all!) of these creators are on twitter, tiktok, and tumblr (!!) as well! as someone with little to no access to mental health support for adhd, they have been imperative to my survival. I hope you find some comfort in them too!

[wosobronze]

To be fair, the whole of last season Hampton was in much better form than Roebuck and is now also training with one of the best goalkeeping coaches in women's football.

Sarina had to drop one of them. Keating has been incredible so far this season so it had to be either Hampton or Roebuck

i think hannah fully deserves it and despite ellie not being played i think sarina dropping her still understandably came as a big shock to everyone. i do just hope she leaves city tbh.

[dont-take-me-home]

Thoughts about the very lovely and satisfying Ted Lasso 3x06:

Rebecca

I remembered Rebecca falling into a canal in Amsterdam from leaked shooting photos and I’m very happy it’s not Ted who saved her like some fans wanted it to be. Actually, no one needed to save her, she just swam out like a grown-up. Good shit.

Houseboat Daddy can GET IT. What a hot dilf. And the complex, grown-up chemistry between them. Damn.

This man obviously represents everything Rebecca wants right now – authentic, reliable affection, warm homeyness and a family. I understand that they wanted to create a vibe of Rebecca taking a break from her real life to be this girly girl in a floral dress flirting on a houseboat, and then the break is over and she has to go back to her real life. But it’s a bit too romcommy for me that she just left without getting the guy’s phone number or even his name for no reason. The distance between London and Amsterdam is negligible if you have Rebecca’s money, they’re both single and into each other, what’s the deal? This is totally something she can pursue.

Keeley

It’s funny that we all had these fic ideas where Keeley dates Rebecca and gets to live the private jet, private yacht life, and the writers were like “nope” but then “wait, actually yes to the sugar mummy thing”. ❤️

Ted

Look, I don’t like him, but his scenes were great. Pining for the home he left, stuck so hard in his head he can’t even bother to learn anything about the sport he is allegedly coaching for two years now, and then finding himself in this unsettling parody of America where the portions are mountain-sized and nobody knows what Chicago is. POIGNANT

(I actually thought the script was going to go to a bad-trip place where the restaurant becomes really clownish and creepy and I’m glad they didn’t do that, it was much fresher and more interesting this way.)

(The thing where the drugs were a dud so it’s like Ted didn’t really take drugs was not fresh at all. We get it, he’s still pure. Whatever. It's a good story, so I’m forgiving them for the cop-out.)

Am I proud of Ted for reinventing Total Football? Heck no. He should have known about it. He is in Amsterdam playing against Ajax. The fact that he got the idea for the triangles from an ancient Chicago Bulls game instead of the wealth of football knowledge that is always in front of his eyes and at his fingertips is insane. But. It’s the right way to go, even if he got there through the most stupid route imaginable. And he is sitting in this amusement-park version of America, watching stuff that reminds him of his dad, but thinking about his team and how to improve them. Finally. So that’s something.

“My phone is at the bottom of a canal.” “Is that Keats?” – ok, I laughed 😤

Roy

Loved his speech to the interviewer about not pretending to give a fuck about the pretend game. Vintage Kent. And LOL at how even Jan is impressed by Roy’s brutal honesty.

Roy’s bitterness and anger being defeated by Jamie’s determined cheerfulness until he is forced to (1) enjoy himself on a fucking bicycle and (2) apologise to Jamie is the most adorable thing I can think about. HUG HIM JAMIE. HUG THE GROUCH. CONQUER THE GROUCH

Jamie

I love him. 

First, we are reminded that he can be smart and capable and know a shitload of things about Amsterdam. This has a double purpose: in the long term, he’s on an arc of becoming even more of a team player and maybe a leader? Someone who can pull them out of the slump? But in the context of this episode, they want us to remember that Jamie has a brain. So if he glosses over things in his head, namely, Keeley having a girlfriend, or the disturbing way he lost his virginity at age 14, it’s intentional. He doesn’t want to think about these things because he wants to be happy.

Also, he’s not surprised Keeley’s into girls. She has talked about it openly, so. Yeah. Why would he be? (Well written.)

Notice how Jamie’s not intimidated by Roy anymore? Nor does he take the shit that Roy says to him personally. He is mature/secure enough by now to know that Roy is just taking unrelated shit out on him. He doesn’t even let it ruin his mood: he knows Roy is still doing the best for him as a coach, so he enjoys that. Our boy has grown up so much 🥲

I loved the complexity of Jamie’s little added backstory here with his two Amsterdam vacations. Short scene but so rich.

1. Vacation with his dad, age 14: Jamie knows his dad was being a dick and faking interest in him in that vacation. But he stops short of defining it as a bad memory. He was basically ordered to lose his virginity to a sex worker while he was still a child, and that must have affected him in a bunch of ways, and he doesn’t argue when Roy says it’s a fucked up experience. But he also “doesn’t remember it”. 

2. Vacation with his mum two years later: she acted like a real parent and showed him the city and the museums. He doesn’t come right out and say it was important to him, but we know by the way he still remembers every little detail about Amsterdam by heart. 

Jamie says it was like his dad was there with them. Does it mean his abusive dick of a dad was a shadow hanging over Jamie’s nice vacation with his nice mum? Or is it a good thing in that Jamie felt, for a while, like he had two parents? Or both?

Colin

Is now an actual character with a personality and not just comic relief. I will no longer give you side-eye if you like him and pair him with Jamie and will not wonder if you were just looking for the whitest face in the dressing room regardless of the fact that other guys had much more of a connection to Jamie.

I’m amused by the adventures of vanilla vodka. Back in season 1, when Jamie drank vanilla vodka, it was obvious the show didn’t want to make Roy call him gay/girly for it, because they didn’t want to make Roy homophobic or sexist. So Roy called Jamie a child, which also tracks, because fruit-flavoured drink (like Jamie’s vanilla vodka and alcopops) is associated with young kids who want to get hammered on nights out without having to endure the taste of actual alcohol. But right now Ted Lasso is carefully admitting that homophobia exists even in Ted-Lasso-world. So vanilla vodka gets to come out of the closet and be defined as a gay drink. Anyway.

The Himbos

Epic. I especially liked the way the pillow fight ended with an orgy. Always good for team building. Gangbangs also work, but then you have to single out one guy to get gangbanged and the others get jealous, and then you have to make a gangbang schedule so nobody gets left out, and it’s a hassle.

[consoledacup]

going off of the idea that jordan and layla would’ve found each other eventually, what do you think it would look like if all american ever did a “what if” episode in which spencer never transferred to beverly?

OMG, such a different story. Because Spencer's arrival to Beverly unravels so much.

Like, this is a earth-shattering, mind-bending event. It would splinter me in pieces to go down all the different avenues how this would affect all characters, all relationships, all situations... This is gonna be a vague overview of one possible pathway.

Oh boy, okay. So let's say it played out where all the characters are the same age they are. Spencer might've met Jordan in college???? Like at GAU?? And maybe when Billy is visiting Jordan after a game, he runs into Spencer who's like, I know you? Because Billy tried to get Spencer to transfer to Beverly, but he never took the bait.

And Jordan and Spencer bond and start to hang, which will inevitably result in Spencer's introduction to the Beverly Crew, including Olivia Baker, Asher Adams, and Layla Keating.

And where would we find these characters? Would Asher and Layla still be complacently dating? I doubt it. In a What If? ep, they could go that route, but that would take some serious suspension of disbelief. Yes, Layla broke up with Asher for Spencer. But they also just needed to break up and eventually realized they were never right for each other.

Asher cheating with Olivia would've still come out. Asher would've still fallen in love with Olivia. Asher most likely would've still taken steroids and messed with his health. And Asher and Olivia would've still broken up because she didn't need to keep saving him. So he's killing it as a coach hopeful at Coastal and probably met Jaymee still.

Okay, but Olivia would still be pursuing journalism, but I'm not sure if she'd be at GAU or not. But the initial sparks she'll share with Spencer will be so interesting because a college athlete and a journalist??? Spencer would feel dubious of her wanting to spend time with him because did she just want a quote? And she'd feel dubious and wonder if he really likes her or is he just interested in a sports feature?

And Olivia probably still would've relapsed and would've still pursued activism as an outlet. Because she's always gonna be a change maker.

Layla would've still dealt with her depression in full force. She didn't have Spencer to help her like he did in s2, whether she wanted the help or not. But she would've had Olivia. And she wouldn't have met Coop, so she wouldn't have anyone to inspire her enough to experiment with producing. So she'd most likely be in college.

She would've still gone to Running Springs. She would've met Carrie. She would've gone through what she did. Jordan would've been affected like he was, after casually dating and moving from girl to girl. And they would've fallen in love because he refused to give up on her.

But it would not have lasted. She didn't trust him to really take them seriously, and he would've been upset far more and not known how to maturely handle conflict.

Because Jordan had tried relationships before Layla, but they never lasted more than a few months. He and Asher were football kings at Beverly, and he loved loved loved the attention. But he had not undergone training from Billy or Spencer, so he doubted himself constantly and coasted on bravado.

But with Spencer popping up in Beverly?? He and Jordan train together. Jordan learns to push himself to become a great athlete. Spencer's constant presence around Jordan, and then Olivia finally finally finally convinces Billy to come clean to Laura about his affair. Because Corey had popped up a couple years prior to offer his forgiveness. And it stuck with Billy, but also it was in the past, right? Spencer was happy at South Crenshaw, and he never sees Grace, so none of it needed to be addressed.

So the affair is out. Olivia and Spencer have no idea how to handle their feelings along with the knowledge of the affair, so that tears them apart. Jordan flies off the handle and has fling after fling until Layla confronts him about it. And then you got two separated ships trying to find their way back to each other.

In the show, Spencer's arrival in Beverly set off truth bombs and connection shifts and breakups and a real dichotomy of two worlds crashing together.

Whether that would've happened sooner or later is irrelevant. Because the truth always comes out, right?

[bazpitchs-violin]

todd speech kid headcanons part… five???

his senior year he ends up putting up every single event (di, hi, poi, po, pr, duo, oo, info)

so he goes to tournaments and in final rounds he’s like 6xe

neil is so proud of him because guys. he is SWEEPING

there is no reason for him to be doing this well except that he’s crazy /hj

when neil’s applying to colleges, todd gives him the lucky penny from his shoe

keating is definitely the speech coach at welton idk about you guys

when todd tries to take all of his events to the harvard invitational keating is like um todd are you sure and he’s like yeah. i’m sure. please. i know it’ll be a lot, but i can do it.

so he does

when it gets to awards, he finals/wins everything and it gets to the point where the person announcing it is like okay todd just stay up here haha

keating lovingly gives him shit after because they had to move so much shit around in the car for all his fucking awards

keating always works his pieces with him and it’s like the scene with the improv poem half of the time

todd’s blocking is always so fucking clean it’s wild

when todd graduates, keating gives him a notebook

[luluwquidprocrow]

good things come in threes

harry, hawk, ed, margaret (mentions of frank and hank)

gen

5,874 words

One slow autumn afternoon in the fall of Harry and Hawk and Ed’s senior year.

for @countdowntotwinpeaks ’ wonderfulxstrange 2022, i got @doesnt-own-a-sportscoat, who asked for og bookhouse boys doing good deeds and having some hijinks! (margaret and frank wound up sneaking their way in, too.)

Hank had detention, so it was just Harry and Hawk and Ed that afternoon, walking through the school parking lot.

(Hawk frowned when Harry told him during lunch. “Again? What for?”

Harry shrugged. “You know,” he said. He hadn’t been there when it happened, but he could guess; some smart comment Hank’s trig teacher hadn’t liked. Mr. Simmons didn’t stand for any backtalk, and especially not for Hank’s. Senior year probably wasn’t going to make Hank any less of the good-looking troublemaker he’d always been, but Harry was holding out hope. Hank was one of his best friends, after all. Still time for him to turn around. And at least it wasn’t on a day with football practice. Coach had stood on the field for morning practice and looked at the sky and said, “Not today, men,” and walked off.)

“What’d you get on the English test?” Ed asked.

“90,” Hawk said. “Mrs. Garson didn’t like what I said about Keats. What about you?”

“I don’t know what you said about Keats.”

Hawk went in to push his shoulder up into Ed’s; Ed, one of the best defenses on the football team, dodged away from him, chuckling.

“Too much red pen,” he said, falling into step with Hawk again. “I couldn’t read a single thing she wrote. There might be an eight in there, somewhere?”

“Let me see it later,” Hawk said. “I’ve got pretty good at reading her handwriting.”

Harry lagged behind Hawk and Ed for a moment, and glanced over his shoulder at the long side window where the detention classroom was. He couldn’t see anything, not from this distance. He pulled the strap of his bag up higher on his shoulder and turned to Hawk and Ed.

“Hey Ed,” Harry said, coming up on Ed’s other side, “you see that new show the other night? Mod Squad?”

“Nah,” Ed said. “Been out with Norma a lot, must’ve missed it.”

“You sure she was with you?” Harry grinned. “Cause there was this girl on it that looked exactly like Norma—”

Ed raised both eyebrows. “No fooling?”

“Oh yeah, I saw that!” Hawk said. “Ed, you’ve gotta watch it next week. She’s the spitting image of Norma.”

“Huh,” Ed said. “That oughta be something.”

Harry and Hawk and Ed wove their way through the parking lot, coming to a stop a few feet away from Ed’s car. It was a deep blue 1960 Chevy Impala, and they stood there and took it in. It really was a honey of a car, Harry thought. She was, he amended. Ed never named the car, but he called every car she, like a true mechanic. The outside shone in the sun like the sea itself, the white hood and stripe down the side like hints of foam. It was like riding inside a wave, one that could carry the three of them away one day, riding across town and out down Highway 21. (Harry hoped it wouldn’t. At least, not all that far. He didn’t know for sure about Hawk and Ed, or Hank, but Harry had plans in Twin Peaks.)

Ed sighed. “Well, let’s get on to it,” he said. Harry and Hawk gave him neat salutes and got into position.

It went like this—Harry and Hawk and Ed took off their bags and piled them in a corner of the backseat. Ed got in the driver’s side, tried to start the Chevy, and the Chevy refused to start. There was one weekend, legend had it, in junior year, that Ed swore the car started completely on its own, but Harry and Hawk hadn’t been there and both doubted whether or not it happened. Harry and Hawk got around back, and Ed lowered all the windows, and the three of them steered and pushed the car off the slope Ed parked it on and down through the parking lot until it got enough of what Ed called umph that the engine stuttered to life and the Chevy started to pick up speed. Harry dove into the backseat, and Hawk leapt in the passenger side, and they were off, driving out of the lot and down the road.

(Hank—of course it was Hank—gave Ed a lot of grief about the Chevy, saying it didn’t make sense for a such a good mechanic to own a lemon. Actually, “lemon” was the most polite thing he said about the Chevy. Ed insisted it wasn’t that bad, it just needed an extra touch here and there, and Ed was willing to do it. Harry understood that.)

Ed always took the long way, whenever he drove. He cruised around through town, left arm leaning along the edge of the car door, right hand splayed over the edge of the steering wheel, and went at it with his usual casual confidence. Harry liked Ed driving around. It gave Harry a chance to see everything, make sure there wasn’t anything in town he’d forgotten about. Not that he ever could, but he had to keep an eye on it.

Hawk bent over the back of the passenger seat, motioning with his hand. “Hey Harry, could you—”

“Sure thing.” Harry dug around in Hawk’s bag until he found the little notebook with the pen stuck in the spiral and handed it over to Hawk. It was a word scramble book Hawk brought with him everywhere, with a puzzle on each page, blank on the other side. Hawk did a puzzle every day on the ride home, and on the other side, he wrote poems, in smooth, perfectly straight lines of blue ink. Hawk was never self-conscious about it, and even showed them to Harry and Ed sometimes, when he was real proud of them. Harry didn’t always get them—Hawk had a great way with words that Harry sure didn’t—but Hawk was his friend, and Harry was proud of his talent.

The Chevy slowed up. Harry didn’t have to look up to know where they were now—Ed went there practically every day. The shadow of the diner sign passed over the car, and Hawk and Harry grinned at each other where their reflections met in the passenger side rearview mirror.

“Be just a minute,” Ed said, and left the car idling while he got out and half-jogged into the diner. Harry could see him through the big glass window in the front, going up to the counter and leaning over it to kiss Norma on the cheek, like they hadn’t seen each other a whole half hour ago when school let out.

“He could just drive Norma here after school,” Harry said, sitting up and leaning his arms on the headrest of Hawk’s seat. He wouldn’t mind Norma crammed into the car with them on the way home. (Hank might mind, but—Hank wasn’t here today, anyway. Was it bad manners to ask a girl to push a Chevy? But they’d gone on enough dates, Ed and Norma, she knew how the Chevy worked. She probably wouldn’t mind.)

“He could just ask Norma to homecoming instead of just hinting at it, too,” Hawk said. He turned in his seat, putting his back against the dash. “You know, if I have to hear him talk to Norma about the homecoming decorations one more time, or how neat the theme is—”

“He thinks ‘under the sea’ is neat? Wasn’t that last homecoming too?” Harry would swear on anything that all of Frank’s homecomings were “under the sea” too.

“—I’m going to ask her to homecoming myself.”

Harry laughed against the headrest. “Yeah? How’s old Diane gonna feel about that?”

The previous summer, Hawk’s dad took him on a road trip, and somewhere along the way he’d met Diane Shapiro, on her own family vacation coming from the east coast. They sent each other letters regularly; Hawk wrote her real long ones.

(Once, Harry’d tried to write—something—for, well, someone. He didn’t think anyone would have given him a hard time for it, not really, but Harry had been so embarrassed at the thought of it all that he threw the paper away with only a doodle of a fir tree in the corner. He wasn’t that kind of person.)

���Old Diane has heard enough about Ed and Norma dancing around each other,” Hawk said. “She’d be glad to hear the end of it.”

“They’re not gonna do much dancing if Ed doesn’t ask her.”

Ed emerged from the diner a moment later with a big grin on his face and ducked into the car. “Norma says hi,” he said, a little breathlessly.

Harry leaned across the seat to the open window on the other side. “Hi, Norma,” he shouted, waving at the diner window. Norma couldn’t hear him, but she was definitely still watching the car, and she waved in return.

“Hey Norma,” Hawk called, stretching across Ed and towards his window, “about homecoming—”

“Aww, come on,” Ed said. This time he was the one trying to get Hawk in the shoulder, but Hawk, the best defense on the football team, dodged even better than Ed and dropped into the passenger seat. “I’m getting around to it—”

“Ed,” Hawk said, “I’m saying this because you’re my friend, and I care about you. You gotta just ask her.”

“I’ve got it covered,” Ed said. He reversed out of the parking lot and pulled onto the road, leaving the diner behind them. “I got it all planned out. Got a Tammy Wynette tape and everything.” He fished in the joint of the seat and the backrest and pulled out the cassette, jiggling it in its case, then put it back.

Harry saw Hawk roll his eyes in the mirror. He decided to spare Ed the commentary on whether or not a Tammy Wynette cassette tape was the right way to ask your girlfriend to homecoming. For all his and Hawk’s teasing, Ed must’ve been doing something right with Norma. They’d been together for four years, and asking her was just about the principle of asking your girl. It could be worse, Harry thought. There was this short red-haired girl with big eyes, whose name Harry could never remember, who he saw in the hallway sometimes and seemed to disappear whenever anybody walked by her. Whatever romance she wanted, it didn’t seem like it was going well.

(Harry wasn’t jealous. Not all that much, not really. He wasn’t the only senior without a girlfriend. He talked to plenty of girls, he—and Norma was a real sport to hang out with Harry and Hawk and Ed and Hank altogether sometimes, but it wasn’t—Harry had other things to think about.)

Ed drove on. Past the cleared lot the town wound up not building a house in, grass growing up out of the piles of dirt left behind. Past that tiny store that had had six different owners in Harry’s lifetime. What was it now? He squinted at it. An antique shop, with a bunch of porcelain in the window. Over to the busier parts of town and past the half-done foundation of the new department store, past Calhoun Memorial, down a short side street with houses lined with orange and yellow mums. Around to the residential streets again.

Harry saw a moving van sitting parked by the curb below a big white house with a sloping yard and concrete steps. All the doors and windows were open, and the front porch piled up with cardboard boxes. The Palmers, Harry guessed. Leland and Sarah Palmer got married earlier in the year up at Pearl Lakes, in a big lavish wedding. Dad had gone, because Dad went to every wedding in the area. They’d heard tell the Palmers were searching for a house in the area after. He watched the house even after Ed passed by, turning his head to see the hint of a curtain flutter in one of the windows. It was the strangest thing, all of a sudden. Harry couldn’t think if anyone had ever lived there before them.

The Chevy turned the corner, and Harry sank into his seat. They were in the last cluster of quiet streets before the road would take a sharp curve and cut through the nearby section of woods. Smoke stung in Harry’s nose, a surprising and sharp tang. He rubbed at his nose with the side of his hand and looked around again. White smoke wisped its way out of some of the chimneys along the road, fireplaces working away as the weather started to get chilly.

It wasn’t the same, but it always made Harry think about it again.

They’d been freshman, he and Hawk and Ed and Hank, and the school year had just started when the fire broke out. It only burned that night, one too-hot evening in the middle of September, when the four of them were sitting on the floor of Harry’s living room, pretending to do English homework but really watching The Fugitive and talking about how football tryouts went during the commercials. Frank was home for the weekend and supposed to be supervising while Dad was out, but he was as interested in The Fugitive as the rest of them, and gave pointers from his own football career. It was one of those good and slow nights, Dad liked to call them, spent with people you liked.

Hawk and Hank did their long-standing thumb wrestle for the last piece of dessert in Harry’s kitchen, and Hawk won, like he always did. Hank hovered behind him, trying to snag a bite of the danish from Wagon Wheel Bakery, and Hawk was fending off Hank and his fork with his elbows when they heard it. The fire siren, wailing out across town.

Frank opened the front door, and the four of them crowded behind him to see what it was. But there was no way they could miss it—a thick, black plume of smoke was billowing over the woods like a stain, spilling up into the clouds.

The smoke choked Harry then, too, the smell of burning wood filling up the whole house, even after Frank herded them inside and left to see what he could do. He looked back at Harry before he left their house, and they nodded at each other. Their unspoken agreement, what they’d always been taught.

Harry and Hawk and Ed and Hank got themselves ready. They checked the street for excess debris that might catch if the fire came their way, made sure the radios had working batteries, got the food and water ready, enough for them and enough to hand out to people who might need them. Harry even made Hawk and Ed and Hank call their parents. They already knew where they were, but it was worth it to double check and be safe, in the event of a fire.

(He hoped it might be like the last big fire, when he was nine. That was a night to remember. The Elk’s Club caught fire, and everything had been so dry that the blaze managed to spread and jump the river before it could even get close to contained; the Martell dogs got loose; a transformer blew and knocked out half the electricity in town; Mr. Packard broke his ankle trying to get to his car. He said he tripped over one of the hounds, and the Martells said Mr. Packard was a—Harry never exactly heard what it was they’d said, because Dad hadn’t wanted to repeat it, but he got the gist of it.

And the whole entire town came together to help in the aftermath. Mr. Packard commandeered rebuilding the foundation of the Elk’s Club with his own lumber straightaway from his hospital bed, and coordinated an effort to recapture the hounds, and people from out of town came to help restore the electric. School was canceled for a couple days, and Harry and Hawk and Ed and Hank had biked meals to the firefighters still cleaning up the ash.)

But it was like the fire was gone as soon as it started. Hours later, it was over, and Dad and Frank came back home, and Hawk and Ed and Hank went home. Dad said the fire was contained quickly, and just a few acres of wood had been scorched. None of the trees were even felled. But there was one casualty.

Harry didn’t know Mr. Lanterman very well, but Harry thought it was awful, that he’d died right after getting married. All the Trumans went to the funeral. Harry didn’t know Margaret Lanterman all that well, since she was older than him, and that was one of the first times he really saw her. She stood tall in her grief, wrapped up in black, her eyes red but her face dry. He hadn’t remembered her ever carrying a log before, though.

Dad had gone up to her, Frank and Harry beside him. He put a hand on Margaret’s shoulder and said something to her in his slow, deep voice. But Margaret’s eyes found Harry instead, staring straight at him. Almost like she could see right through him. Harry stood up a little straighter, because that was polite. Then Margaret shook off Dad’s hand and leaned down to Harry.

“Good things come in threes,” she said. Then she nodded at Dad and Frank and walked away.

He turned it over in his head a lot after she’d said it. Four years later, Harry still didn’t know what she’d meant. He thought about it sometimes when he was with his friends—they were three good things to Harry. But then Harry wondered where that left him. Harry wanted to be one of those good things too. All his life, that was the only thing he wanted, especially in a town like Twin Peaks. You took care of a town like Twin Peaks, because it was the kind of town that needed you to take care of it. And Harry wanted to do it with people he liked. That’s why he always roped in Hawk and Ed, and Hank. (And he could take care of them, too.)

But it was pointless to think about it, probably. Margaret said a lot of stuff like that, stuff that didn’t make sense, especially after the funeral. Some of the people in town called her the Log Lady now, and he’d heard the other things they said about her too. (The other things Hank said, too.) That she was crazy, that she deserved to live alone in the woods. Harry’s face scrunched up thinking of the way Dad would reprimand him if Harry repeated the things he’d heard. Harry didn’t agree with them, but he didn’t think Margaret was someone he was going to go out of his way to see, either.

Something flickered in front of him; Hawk, waving a hand in front of Harry’s face again.

“Where’d you go there, Harry?” Hawk asked.

“Hm? Oh, uh—just thinking,” Harry said.

They’d passed the curve while he was daydreaming. The trees bent over the road here, making giant patches of shadow, the afternoon sun only showing in the occasional gap. Ed hadn’t taken this road in some time, and it was like a split between two worlds—on the right side, remains of the controlled burn Hawk’s father had overseen back in the spring. The town had started doing a while ago to try and limit the amount caught up in forest fires. The bottom edges of the trunks were burnt black, but the brightest, most lush and green fledgling trees burst up out of the soil. On the left, though, was a pocket of the remains of a fire that had never grown back right. The leaves that were left weren’t like the changing autumn orange a lot of the town was now, but a burnt, cold orange, with thin branches hanging limp and broken along the ground. The bark wasn’t as dark, but the trees were withered and brittle, like any moment they could fall apart. Harry couldn’t take his eyes off it.

Then the road opened up again, the branches stretching away from the road, turning into strong, towering Douglas Firs, untouched by anything and spaced farther apart. It was like taking a deep breath. (Harry even took one himself.) Harry knew all of Twin Peaks, but this part in particular was familiar like the back of his hand. He and Hawk and Ed and Hank had gone through there a lot as kids. It seemed like a whole age since they’d done it, now.

“Hey,” Ed said suddenly, “you see that?”

Harry turned. “See what?”

Ed slowed the Chevy down to an idle again and stuck his head out the window, staring at the woods. “I don’t know,” he said. “Thought there was something in there.”

Harry and Hawk and Ed sat there, watching. Harry didn’t see anything suspicious, but, it wouldn’t do to let something like that go, now would it? Ed even turned the Chevy off completely, pulled the keys out, spun the keyring around his finger once and pocketed it. They looked at each other, one by one—and then the three of them jumped out of the car and ran together into the trees, laughing in turn as they each leapt over an old fallen tree trunk, dark and rotted out with time.

Autumn was really coming on fast now, wasn’t it? Red and yellow maple leaves crunched under their shoes as Harry and Hawk and Ed tromped along, and the chill Harry noticed earlier was more present in the shade there. The cool breeze kicked up, lifting sections of Harry’s hair, and he tried to smooth the curls back down. Maybe he should get a hat to wear, one of these days. A nice, big hat.

“You think I should get a hat?” he asked.

“Have to be a pretty big hat for all that head,” Ed commented.

Harry rolled his eyes. “What about, like a, like a cowboy hat,” he said. “How’d I look with a cowboy hat?”

“Like a cowboy,” Hawk said, shooting Harry a grin over his shoulder.

Ed started whistling that these from The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Harry had begged Frank to drive them to Newport two years ago to see it, since it likely wouldn’t make its way to the town drive-in. Harry and Hawk joined in, whistling along until a high, warbling birdsong swelled out of the trees around them, louder than their whistling.

“Guess we’ve got some competition,” Hawk said. “Look at that—look!” He pointed up at one of the tree branches. Harry and Ed stood on either side of him and looked, just like he said. “I forgot my binoculars, but—”

Harry and Hawk and Ed could still see it. Picking along a tree branch was a small orange smudge of a bird, one of the varied thrushes Hawk was always trying to see when he went out birding with his family. It whistled down at them, once, and then twice, and then took to the air around them. Harry and Hawk and Ed turned in a half-circle to watch it go.

There was more to see. Harry and Hawk and Ed tracked a garter snake for a little while, walking alongside it a few feet away as it slithered through the underbrush, a weaving stripe of brown with white down either side. Eventually, they lost sight of it when Ed pointed out a nearby cabin. There were lots of them spaced out in the woods, not along any of the half-made paths, just wherever they wound up being. Harry swore, in fact, that some of them moved. He felt like he never saw the same cabin in the same spot twice. As Harry and Hawk and Ed wound their way around a cluster of firs, Harry felt sure there had been a squat, long cabin with a brick fence and thick red curtains drawn over the windows the last time they’d been through there. It couldn’t have gotten up and walked away, he knew, but it sure wasn’t there now.

But there was another one, up over a small hill. A dark wood cabin in the shade of a close ring of trees, with an empty clothesline strung out back. The windows were open, and a good-sized pile of wood sat by the far side of the house, but other than that, it seemed completely isolated and undisturbed, like nobody lived there at all.

Somebody could live there, though, Harry thought.

“Let’s go check it out,” he said, and Hawk and Ed followed behind him on either side.

They crept up slowly to the cabin, taking their time. It was probably the angle of all the trees, but it was even more shadowy up close, and the wood even darker. The front porch was stacked with possessions—an old butter churner, a dresser that had seen better days, a bench with a fringed blanket on it. Harry and Hawk and Ed peeked through one of the open windows at the front as they passed. It didn’t look all that scary on the inside. He could see big shelves in the walls with books tucked neatly on them and cozy blankets draped over the backs of chairs. In the center of the room was a circular wooden table with a scalloped teapot, white with a ring of orange butterflies.

With a loud, quick creak, the front door opened. Harry and Hawk and Ed jumped back, stumbling into each other, scrambling for balance.

Margaret Lanterman stood in the doorway, gazing at them without surprise or reproach, but with careful consideration. She still held that log in her arms. Harry felt Ed shuffle beside him, jamming his hands in his pockets. Ed didn’t care much for anyone he didn’t already know his whole entire life. Hawk looked curious, because Hawk liked and respected most people, unless he had cause not to. Harry was curious, too. This was the first time he’d seen Margaret since the funeral for her husband. He didn’t know why he thought she’d be the same, but she was a little older, like anyone would be four years later. She wasn’t wearing black, and her glasses had different frames, and she looked more stern than Harry had seen her before, but the corners of her mouth were soft. He could picture Dad again and the reprimand he’d imagined for thinking bad of Margaret earlier. Harry wondered what she’d say to him this time, if she’d say anything.

“You can come in,” Margaret said. “I’m having tea.” Without waiting for a response, she turned around and walked into the cabin.

“D’we have to?” Ed asked.

“It’s not gonna hurt to have some tea,” Harry said.

“I hope it’s chamomile,” Hawk said.

“It’s chamomile,” Margaret called back. “And I have cookies.”

That got Ed’s interest. Harry’s too—school lunch was some time ago now. The three of them filed in, Ed shutting the door. Margaret was already sitting at her circular table, fixing her skirt and setting her log in her lap. She’d brought out plates and cups for them, the same style as her teapot, and put a bigger plate near her piled with the largest chocolate chip cookies Harry had ever seen.

Harry and Hawk and Ed sat down in the wooden chairs around the table. Margaret poured them all tea, and then offered the plate of cookies to them in turn. Ed even took one with a “thank you, ma’am.” It was almost like eating with a grandmother, although Harry didn’t think Margaret was going to ask how they were doing in school.

“I heard you in the woods,” Margaret said.

Harry choked on the tea in his mouth. He and Hawk and Ed exchanged sheepish glances.

But Margaret took a sip of her tea. “You should be careful. But I think you know that. Did you see anything you liked?”

There was a great pause. Ed took an enormous bite of his chocolate chip cookie.

“We saw a garter snake,” Hawk said.

So they told her about the garter snake, and the cabins in the woods, and the burned trees by the road, and the varied thrush. Margaret didn’t smile a lot, and she didn’t laugh at all, but she seemed pleased to listen to them and tell them in return about a few of the things she saw in the woods too. It was nicer than Harry thought it would be, really talking to her. He still thought she was strange, and most of what she said still sounded odd, but it was better than Harry imagined. And the cookies were great, too.

As they talked, Harry got the strangest feeling. Something about Margaret’s house seemed so familiar, he thought. He and Hawk and Margaret, sitting in her cabin, drinking tea, the plate of cookies by her elbow. An afternoon in the woods, coming upon Margaret out of the blue. Everything felt like he’d done it before, even if that wasn’t possible at all. He’d dome some of those things regularly, though, without Margaret. Maybe that’s all it was. Harry did a lot of the same things all the time in Twin Peaks.

Margaret hadn’t expected them to drop by, so it was only fair that Harry and Hawk and Ed offer to do her dishes for her. They took the dishes into the small kitchen in turns, first the plates and the cups, and then Harry with the teapot last. But when he went to join Hawk and Ed in the kitchen, Margaret stood from her chair and stopped him. Harry was a lot taller than four years ago, but he still found himself staring up at her, suddenly apprehensive.

“Do you remember what I told you?” Margaret asked.

Harry straightened up again, like he had before. He shifted the still-warm teapot in his hands. “Uh—you said, good things come in threes.”

Margaret sighed. “I asked if you remembered, not what I said,” she said. “I remember what I said.”

“Well—I remembered,” Harry said. He balanced the teapot in one hand and scrubbed at the back of his head. “I did.”

“Good.” Margaret put a hand on her shoulders and steadied him, just like when Dad had put his hand on her shoulder before. Then she said, quietly—“Keep it close to you, when you go looking for the truth.”

“Uh—” Harry swallowed. “Thanks, Margaret.”

She dropped her hand from his shoulder and then pointed at the kitchen. “The dishes are waiting for you.”

The dishes weren’t the only thing waiting. It turned out there was a loose bulb in Margaret’s kitchen, one that flickered over the sink, and Harry and Hawk and Ed set about fixing it for her before they left. It was really the least they could do.

Margaret stood at the door and watched them go after. They all waved, even Ed, but Margaret didn’t wave back. Harry saw her nod at them. Just once, just like Frank always did. He smiled a little and waved again, and then turned away.

Ed’s Chevy was still right where they’d left it, by the side of the road where they’d entered the woods. Harry and Hawk and Ed stood there and looked at it again, and then got into positions once more.

Getting the Chevy up and running a second time proved more of a challenge than it had at school. Rolling it along didn’t help it to start, and Ed wound up with Harry and Hawk at the trunk, walking on Hawk’s other side, helping the Chevy coast into town, the sun on their backs as it kept slipping down through the sky.

“You two can go on home, if you want,” Ed said, somewhere around Sparkwood. “I can get her to my dad’s shop.”

“Nah,” Harry said, “I don’t mind.”

“Good exercise,” Hawk added.

“Gives you what you don’t got, and all that,” Harry said, because Ed’s dad had always said that when they were younger, and Harry and Hawk would go over Ed’s house and no one felt like eating his mom’s brussel sprouts.

“Better than the brussel sprouts,” Hawk commented.

Ed hid his face in his arm, but Harry knew he was smiling.

They got the Chevy back to Ed’s dad’s garage, and his dad gave Harry and Hawk a ride home in his own car. There was barely enough light by that time, and Harry saw his way up the front steps of his house by the porch light Dad always kept it. There were things he had to do now. Figure out something for dinner, for one. Homework, for another. He unlocked the door and stepped inside.

“Dad?” Harry called out. He waited a couple seconds, but there was no response. He hadn’t figured on one, but he always checked, just in case Dad came home early. He stayed real late at the station these days, and sometimes he was more tired than Harry ever remembered him being before. It meant Harry was usually alone in the house, unless Frank visited for the weekend, but it wasn’t all that bad, not always.

Hank should be home from detention by now, anyway. Harry dropped his bag by the front door and went to the hallway by the kitchen, where they had a small wooden shelf with the phone on it, and dialed Hank’s number.

The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Harry let it ring on for longer than he should’ve before he dropped the receiver onto the hook. He sat down on the floor next to the shelf, scrubbing a hand through his hair again.

(He didn’t want to think about it, but—sometimes that’s all Harry had the time to do.)

There was something Dad said a lot lately, when he was home, and it was the one thing Harry didn’t agree with him on. Dad said—sometimes you could care about something a whole lot, but that didn’t mean it cared about you back. But Harry didn’t know how to stop caring. He was going to make it matter, all that care, he had to. Because you had to take care of things, especially the things that might not always care about you. This whole town, with the new things and old things, with the fresh leaves and the burnt trees, with Margaret, with Hawk and Ed and Dad and Frank, with Hank. What else could he do? And somebody had to care. Somebody had to hold on.

Somebody had to do his math homework, too. Harry went and got his notebooks out of his bag, switched on the small light above the phone to see better, and sat down again with his back against the wall.

A while later, it rang. Harry scrambled to his feet and grabbed for it. “Yeah?”

“Okay,” Hawk said, sounding pleased. “Get ready—new poem, fresh from the notebook. I wrote it about pushing the Chevy home. Do you want to hear it?”

Harry smiled. “Lay it on me, Hawk.”

[jhsharman]

Healthy-ish

Chuck is not doing so well in the high school boxing circuit, and Archie uncovers the reason why. Depending on which version you read, you can just call Chuck "Kid Candy". " Kid Energy Bar" doesn't have the same pejorative.

Easy enough to fix. But alas --!

Just what is Rudy Wrotten's game plan here?

Dude. It's just a high school boxing match. What, exactly, is the prize at the end of all these trained carrier pigeons, dog delivery services, and skulking outside the gym room on your rival school?

And here we see the reason that the premise of the story shifted from Chuck's addiction to candy bars to his addiction to energy bars.

It is a throwback to the doctors of old and their endorsements of one cigarette brand over another. But then, how does the new version play out health conscious-wise?

I guess it depends on what it is, these Chewy Dewys. But even supposing they aren't the brands that really aren't anything but candy bars -- dipped in chocolate! -- and maneuer away from sugar, it can't be good to eat as many as we're Chuck eat here -- and out of the mouths of birds! -- if the concern is his four full meals a day. Though, strictly speaking, I don't know what level of athlete one has to get to before the dietary requirements become unreal.

[ghostlykimiboo]

Twisted Metal: Dropout

Lore/Plot: As a new Twisted Metal contest was about to occur around 2020 by the infamous Calypso, he was tracked down and was captured by the FBI. Now one knows what has ever happened to Calypso, with some believing he’s still alive out there or is possibly dead. Society went back to its usual routine; especially in the small town of Hell, Michigan. That was until an unruly student named Kendric at a university was finally expelled after he was let go from jail for grand theft auto and selling stolen vehicle parts. He moves to an underground tunnel that lead to an open area that had some kind of large man-made home. Surprised that it had running water and energy, he decided to live in it. As days went on, Kendric was wondering around to see what else he could find in the underground. He stumbles upon “Roadkill”, one of the vehicles that were once used for the infamous Twisted Metal tournament. He takes it for a test drive and surprisingly it still has power in it, but he notices some damage to it as if something was removed roughly. Just as Kendric parks “Roadkill” near his home, he notices that the door was open and he pulls out his pocket knife in case of a conflict. Turns out it was another college student he recognizes, the student was Jay. Jay was once a successful student from the university, until he family became homeless and broke after a violent robbery. This event lead to Jay having no other choice but to dropout. Kendric decides to let him stay, but only if Jay doesn’t gossip about the area the two are living in. As the new year arrives, Kendric decides to secretly bring some girls down for a party he threw; which brought the attention of two rival jocks, Zale and Braylon. The two charge down and they challenged Kendric to a couple of games, which Kendric had an idea and who introduced the two newly discovered vehicles for a drift race. “Spectre” for Zale and “Crimson Fury” for Braylon. Kendric decides to use “Roadkill” for the race, to which the begin the drift race throughout the underground and Kendric took the victory. The two were astonished by Kendric slick personality, especially towards those that “follow” him. The more “dropouts” came along, they were assigned newly discovered vehicles that were used, but Kendric came to the realization that the reason why all of the vehicles had some kind of damage was that all of them had their weapons removed due to safety precautions to the public. Since Kendric and the small growing club don’t have access to such weaponry, Kendric would mainly due car bashing and drift race events and give the winner their desired prize of their choice. Twelve “dropouts” live with Kendric, usually have their own shenanigans that would lead to small rivalries and them using there vehicles for rival battles or in some cases, take them out in the open for a ride across the small town. This of course would get Kendric annoyed since he has been trying to keep these hidden or else he would get caught once again and end up in jail again or worse, entering prison.

The Dropouts/“Drivers”

Kendric Granger (Age: 23/Male)

Nicolas Rider (Age: 21/Male): Sweet Tooth

Naenia Ellis (Age: 19/Female): Shadow

Thiago Colton (Age: 20/Male): Outlaw

Michelle Sutton (Age: 22/Female): Warthog

Zale Rhodes (Age: 23/Male): Crimson Fury

Lena Finley (Age: 19/Female): Hammerhead

Raiden Kahlo (Age: 23/Male): Mr. Grimm

Orson Baker (Age: 22/Male): Mr. Slam

Braylon Watts (Age: 23/Male): Spectre

Clover Monroe (Age: 21/Female): Thumper

Jay Keats (Age: 23/Male): Roadkill

Taylin Emery (Age: 18/Female): Twister

Vehicle Types

Sweet Tooth: 1996 Chevrolet Step-Van

Shadow: 1960 Cadillac Funeral Coach

Outlaw: 1992 Land Rover Defender 110

Warthog: 1987 AM General HMMWV

Crimson Fury: 1996 Lamborghini Diablo

Hammerhead: Ford F-150 (Seventh Generation)

Mr. Grimm: 2006 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200

Mr. Slam: 1972 International Hough H60B Wheel Loader

Spectre: 1970 Plymouth Superbird

Thumper: 1963 Chevrolet Impala

Roadkill: 1970 Dodge Charger (B Body)

Twister: 2020 Formula 1 Race Car

[sportofusalacrosse]

Top lacrosse video today: I Kicked At The Super Bowl And This Happened

Top lacrosse news

„Keating named assistant coach at Ursinus College” – phillylacrosse

„Opening act: Delaware downs Lehigh, 11-7; St. Joe’s bows” – phillylacrosse

„Holy Family men make amazing comeback, but falls to Bethany in programs debut” – phillylacrosse

„Traynor (Malvern Prep), Malone (Haverford School), Lehman (Wissahickon) pace Penn State to first win, spoiling Villanova opener” – phillylacrosse

„Robinson leads Delaware to rout of Lafayette; Lehigh evens mark at 1-1” – phillylacrosse

Best tweets – 2024. 02. 11.

[theladwhoisweird]

Salutations, my acquaintances!

I just want to inform you that yesterday, around 10:00 am, some terrible accident happened.

My former teacher together with his wife are the ones who were caught in that accident and were confirmed died twelve hours later.

I want you to know that he's a very good teacher. Shame, I only had one year under his tutelage. He's the first one who believe that I could be a journalist, that I could write. Though I don't practice journalism now, I promise him that I would still spread some truths and I would continue to just write, like he once said to me, "Just write".

He's an amazing kinda intimidating teacher. He's full of wisdom and all. Mr. Pagangpang is an effective coach and an remarkable mentor. He's one of the best teachers out there.

I've been telling myself that I never had a teacher that is like Mr. John Keating but I realized I have him. Though, he's not as charismatic or as loud as Captain Keating but he's the closest one I got.

We're not even that close but he already engraved to me ever since and I could say, I'm an unforgettable student to him too (hope so).

We should have meet again but now... it's impossible. I can't say these things to him while he's alive but I'll just say it now anyway.

This isn't the plot twist of 2023 that I expected.

The couple were just less than a kilometer away from home. They have three children waiting for them!

Your family don't deserve this. If bad things must happen, why's it has to be the on good ones?

O Captain, My Captain, you will be missed.

May you rest in eternal peace, Sir. Both you and your wife.

Folks, can I get a "O captain, my captain" as a condolences for him and his family?

[flashlivede]

The Voice of Germany: Emely Myles rührt Ronan Keating mit "I'll Never Love Again" zu Tränen

The Voice of Germany: Emely Myles rührt Ronan Keating mit "I'll Never Love Again" zu Tränen | #TVOG #TheVoice #EmelyMyles #IllNeverLoveAgain

Emely Myles singt “I’ll Never Love Again” von Lady Gaga und berührt das Publikum mit ihrer gefühlvollen Performance. Die 33-Jährige wird nach dem Auftritt von ihren Emotionen überwältigt und fällt ihrem Coach Ronan mit Tränen in den Augen in die Arme.

[nbgblatt]

The Voice of Germany: Emely Myles rührt Ronan Keating mit "I'll Never Love Again" zu Tränen

The Voice of Germany: Emely Myles rührt Ronan Keating mit "I'll Never Love Again" zu Tränen | #TVOG #TheVoice #EmelyMyles #IllNeverLoveAgain

Emely Myles singt “I’ll Never Love Again” von Lady Gaga und berührt das Publikum mit ihrer gefühlvollen Performance. Die 33-Jährige wird nach dem Auftritt von ihren Emotionen überwältigt und fällt ihrem Coach Ronan mit Tränen in den Augen in die Arme.