#{SAVED}「Another Forgettable Experience」

[afelldemon]

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[arscorpii]

the way utena held onto wakaba and anthy's hands, trying her best to not let go (even though utena was barely holding onto anthy's hand, i'm sure she never wished to let anthy slip away from her grasp). both shots were lit with soft lighting ⟶ to highlight the importance of the person utena was holding onto and their bonds to utena.

the fact that she reached out to them with her left hand, the hand on which she wore her rose crest ring (the ring being clearly visible in both shots) ⟶ utena believed that she could only save wakaba and anthy by being a prince/playing the role of a prince.

utena caught wakaba's right hand with her left hand; wakaba wasn't holding back. meanwhile, anthy reached out to utena's left hand with her left hand as well. i think the difference in how each pair held hands may lie within the ideals between the pairs in their respective circumstances. with regard to wakaba, she harboured lots of pent-up emotions and thoughts about how unfairly the (ohtori) world treated the people it regarded as "special" and "ordinary," such as utena and herself. wakaba was clouded with feelings of inferiority and wanted to be special, to put it simply. utena didn't understand/wasn't aware of these dichotomous mechanisms/systems at play, at this point at least. these conflicting ideals, as in, awareness versus ignorance, were represented in the way they held hands; the hero/chosen one with her firm grasp on the motionless hand of the underdog/forgettable one.

with regard to anthy, the moment utena cracked open her coffin was the first time the both of them saw each other as they truly were. utena believed in a world beyond eternal pain and suffering anthy had to endure and wanted to share that view with her, wanted anthy to see and experience such a world, to save her from this needless perdition for good. eventually, anthy took the chance on the possibility, given how unyielding utena was in trying to reach her despite being stabbed by anthy herself; anthy hesitantly reached out to utena. both utena and anthy wanted to believe in a world where suffering is transient when they reached out to one another through the coffin opening, and not an eternally all-consuming pain as their fates in ohtori. they shared similar hopes in that moment.

utena reached out to both wakaba and anthy with kindness and love:

in the duel with wakaba, she never drew out the sword of dios or fought her. utena de-escalated the duel carefully by taking hold of wakaba's sword (the sword pulled out of saionji) and cutting off the black rose. despite not understanding the sequence of events that had them facing each other off in the dueling arena, wakaba was one of utena's closest friends and utena would save her. it's a little interesting to note that the audience (and utena, too i believe) didn't get a glimpse of wakaba's face during utena's speech as above. in addition, the focus on their interlocked hands when utena mentioned about not understanding the situation and saving wakaba is also interesting (even though the interlocked hands were due to them struggling against each other). it's possible what utena said at that moment may have reached her heart even while being under the control of the black rose. perhaps the speech may have made wakaba realise that she was indeed special. this "specialness" was emphasised by utena not letting wakaba fall into the outline of one of the bodies like the other black rose duelists; because she mattered to utena. "to not be chosen is to die" but in a way, she was chosen by utena here beyond the presented choice between her or anthy. utena chose wakaba and anthy.

in episode 39, akio used the sword pulled out of utena to break through the rose gate. utena was injured and incapacitated by anthy's stab, while anthy was relentlessly impaled with millions of swords embodying humanity's hatred. akio's futile attempts eventually broke the sword and he gave up on the pursuit. so long as he had anthy, he could try again, as in, try again to gain the power to "revolutionise the world" instead of freeing his little sister. utena tried opening the rose gate with her bare hands; dragging her injured body there, clinging onto the thorny vines of the roses on the gate, pushing through the large stone doors. she only wanted to stop the swords from hurting anthy, to help her. utena's love and care for anthy finally unlocked the rose gate into anthy's coffin. utena steadfastly held out her hand to anthy despite anthy's protests. utena's efforts moved anthy to tears, and she reached out to her. in episode 38, utena chose anthy over akio, and all the way back to episode 11, utena chose anthy over the power to revolutionise the world. utena had always chosen anthy against all odds and choices.

the aftermath:

wakaba wasn't holding back possibly due to being under the control of the black rose while anthy's hand eventually slipped away from utena's hold.

nevertheless, utena's efforts matter, very much so, because wakaba will always be on utena's side no matter what happens and anthy will find utena no matter where she is.

[writerpeach]

Overindulgent

IVE Jang Wonyoung x m!reader

14k+ words

---

Read on AFF

Read on AO3

“Chocolate or strawberry?”

It should have been a simple question to answer.

As simple as naming a favorite color, most people would have no trouble answering without hesitation, based on preference or what one was in the mood for. Milkshakes were the perfect treat, universally loved and the best thing to have on a hot summer day, especially after a grueling two-hour, forgettable class.

But most people weren’t Jang Wonyoung. “Two flavors? That’s all?”

Around her, nothing would ever be simple. If you asked her to name two numbers, she would find some justification to add a third.

“Sorry, princess,” you said with obvious mockery in your tone. “That’s all there is. But you can add toppings.”

“If one of those toppings isn’t mint, then I don’t---ugh, fine. Strawberry.”

Wonyoung audibly sighed when she grabbed her pink milkshake, sitting down at one of the white leather booths in the farthest possible corner from everything as could be.

She looked unsatisfied even before her first sip, and lifelessly stirred the creamy concoction, hoping to somehow conjure up something more appealing. Wonyoung had very specific tastes, and didn’t particularly care for stepping out of her comfort zone.

Watching for her reaction, Wonyoung made a loud slurp through her long red straw set amidst a sea of sugar. “How is it?”

“It’s too sweet.”

Of all the possibilities in the world, nothing prepared you for that one.

“It’s a milkshake…” you said with a furrowed brow.

Yujin introduced you to this particular place. Two straws, one big chocolate milkshake, and an elated look of bliss on her face later, and she was slurping it down until nothing but air filled her straw. So it was only natural that you’d invite Wonyoung here with the same expectations. That was your first mistake.

“Well, it’s too sweet.”

Incredible.

Being seated across the booth from Wonyoung felt like you were part of a failed science experiment, because every sip taken came with a different reaction, like she expected her opinion to change. When she wiped bits of whipped cream from her glossy lips, the growing disdain on her face didn’t disappear with it.

Who knew you'd located the sole person in the entire universe who disliked milkshakes? That alone was an achievement worthy of a medal or plaque to proudly display on the fireplace for all to see.

“Here, you finish it,” Wonyoung said, verging on demand as she slid it across the table next to your half-finished chocolate shake.

“But I already have one. And this is plenty,” you replied, taking a long sip, and savoring the sugary bliss to help ease the pain of your astonishment.

“Ugh, fine. Just throw it away. I paid for them both, but I don’t even want to look at it anymore.”

“No---wait. I’ll save it for Yujin. She loves sweet things.”

“Fine. It’s a good thing I brought my car then. Wouldn’t want it to melt. I’ve seen how much she enjoys swallowing creamy thick liquids down her throat…”

Something so uncharacteristic caught you off-guard. Jang Wonyoung was many things: bossy, spoiled, infuriating more times than you could count, but lewd jokes that sprang from nowhere without so much as a smirk? Not what you expected today.

Wonyoung slid out of the booth and made for the exit. You followed behind, both milkshakes in hand, and took turns sipping from each one, enjoying the unique flavors each brought.

“I can’t believe anyone likes those things. They’re just sugar.”

“That’s why everyone likes them. But that would assume our little princess actually knew how to enjoy anything.” That remark caught you in her deadly gaze, but you didn’t hold back the smile on your face, perhaps to your detriment.

“Keep that up and you’re walking home.”

“Oh, come on, princess. We both know you enjoy my company too much. It’s not my fault you can’t take a little joke.”

“Is that so?” Wonyoung entered her black, two-door sports car and closed the door with yet another icy glare. Seconds after, you grabbed the cold metal handle and opened it, to no avail. Without success, you tried again---but the door didn’t budge an inch. Tapping on the window proved as pointless as offering Wonyoung another sip of milkshake.

“Wonyoung---“ Ignoring any attempt you made to grab her attention, she instead revved the engine in succession and avoided your gaze with every stomp on the pedal.

Surely, she wouldn’t---

“Come on, this isn’t funny. Just open the door.” The door handle might as well have been fashioned out of paper and glued on, for as useless as it now was. After trying one last time, Wonyoung cracked open the window just enough to speak.

“It’s not my fault you can’t take a little joke.” That was the last thing you heard before her tires squealed and she sped off without looking back.

…she would.

Guess you were walking off all that ice cream.

You still couldn’t believe it. Wonyoung wasn’t a stranger to your teasing, but never took it so seriously before. On the plus side, at least the ice cream shop wasn’t more than a twenty-minute walk from your place. Well, it wasn’t exactly your place, and you just had the privilege of living in a luxurious high-rise apartment that had Wonyoung and Yujin’s names on the dotted line.

Ten minutes from campus, the loft came fully furnished with an always stocked fridge, a gorgeous pool, spacious bedrooms, and one of the best views you could ask for, while also saving you from the nightmares of dorm life.

Quite contrary to your first year of college spent in a shoe-box sized room, an uncomfortable bed, and a quiet, messy roommate, always there when you needed just a minute to yourself. It taught you a valuable lesson to never underestimate the value of privacy.

Maybe a stroke of luck that at the end of that semester from hell came your first encounter with Yujin. Tucked away in a secluded corner at the library, she recognized you from class and offered to help study. One study session grew into two, which turned into three, then led into several sessions over coffee every week, until you were seeing each other virtually every day.

Over time, the two of you got closer, meeting without the pretense of studying. Then one day, the books got tossed aside, and the only thing being studied was how far Yujin could ram her tongue down your mouth.

You learned early on how difficult it was to say no to Yujin. Whether you were in the middle of the library, taking up spots on the packed couches, the always crowded student center, or right by the administration office, no place was off-limits for an impromptu make-out session. Eventually, those steamy make-out sessions migrated to Yujin’s place, where your first encounter with her younger roommate Wonyoung took place with your pants and underwear around your ankles.

You didn’t know what was more awkward, the act of being caught in the middle of Yujin blowing you on the couch, or that Wonyoung stayed for the entire show. And that was your first lesson about Wonyoung and her voyeuristic tendencies.

The two of them were the best of friends and never strayed far from one another outside of class. But Wonyoung loved to watch your sex-crazed moments with Yujin, insisting that she wouldn’t get in the way or be noticeable. Which, true or not, could never be something you grew used to---the younger of the two sitting silently inches away, lurking like a cat in the shadows when you ate her out on the kitchen counter, while Yujin rode you on the couch, or whatever other outcome that ended with the both of you covered in sweat and panting heavily.

Months later, you were moving in at their behest, which made sense when you spent most of your time there. Any offerings to pay your fair share of rent were denied, as both of your new roommates were very well off with no financial concerns. Nevertheless, your infinite methods of pleasuring Yujin more than made up for it.

So after settling in, (which took some time for you to grow accustomed to waking up surrounded by luxury), you couldn’t be more thankful, not only being freed from the burdens of rent but also from the tortures of dorm living, and the three of you grew inseparable.

Mostly. Because when Wonyoung was in a bad mood, the whole universe knew about it. Making her the butt of jokes was your way of chipping away at that stuck up attitude, but it had never backfired quite spectacularly like this.

As you neared your shared loft, a tremendous sense of relief filled your body, but did little to dissipate the anger that pumped through your veins. Overheated, sweaty, and stuck holding a milkshake that no longer met that definition, the only thing that cooled your temper (quite literally), was the frigid blasts of air-conditioning that hit you when you stepped through the front door.

“Oh, look who it is. Enjoy the sun?” asked Wonyoung when you stepped inside, lying at the end of the L-shaped gray couch. Sporting a smug smile on her face, she folded her arms, and leaned back into the cushions, completely oblivious to the daggers you stared in her direction.

“Daddy, you’re home. Where were you?” Yujin asked as she approached closer, embracing you in her arms, and planted a kiss on your cheek. “You’re all sweaty. And you’re burning up, too.”

“Maybe you should ask her.” With gritted teeth, you stared a hole into the petite woman sprawled out on the couch cushions, face buried in her phone without a single care in the world.

“Wonyoung?”

“Yes, unnie?” she asked, reluctant to look up for even a moment. Too obsessed with her phone, Wonyoung wouldn’t even notice if the house was on fire.

“Weren’t you two together? Why did you make it home first by yourself? And why does daddy look like he just ran a marathon?”

“Hold on, I almost have enough jades for another pull.”

“Jang Wonyoung! Answer me. You’ve already spent enough money on that stupid game.”

“It’s not stupid, you’re just bad at it. Don’t be jealous because I have better characters than you.”

Yujin let out a heavy sigh while a frown formed on her face, torn between scolding Wonyoung or ensuring you were alright.

Meanwhile, you hurried to the refrigerator out of fear of passing out and downed a bottle of water, but left just enough liquid to pour over your head, running your fingers through wet hair to cool yourself off more.

“Daddy, what happened? Why are you so tired?” Yujin asked, entering the kitchen as she turned her attention away from Wonyoung.

“Because this fucking brat ditched me.”

“Listen here, asshole---“ Wonyoung finally sat up from her phone, tossed it aside and clenched her fists, the swelling rage in her eyes overtaking her body.

“Hey, stop that. Both of you,” Yujin said, rapidly losing control of the situation. That sweet voice of hers could soothe an entire forest fire, but here, it held zero sway when your bickering became like two rams butting heads.

“What’s the matter, princess? Your servants haven’t arrived to cook your five star meal and clean your throne?”

“Daddy, that’s enough,” Yujin warned, trying to tug at your arm while making herself a barrier between the two of you.

“I don’t get what you’re upset about. Don’t you love the outdoors? Like when you made me walk in the woods for hours? I told you, I hate bugs.”

“What a shocker, you hate everything! Rain, milkshakes, anything that isn’t you being pampered---“

“Enough!” Yujin said as she slammed her fists on the kitchen counter, making the cabinets shake. “You’re both in university, aren’t you? Or did you suddenly enroll in preschool? Because you’re both acting like children.”

The house grew eerily silent. After getting a second bottle of water, you leaned against the refrigerator and sipped it silently as your body tensed up.

“Wonyoung, I want you to apologize,” Yujin said, lowering her voice as she tried to control the chaos.

“What?” she scoffed, sinking back into the couch as she squeezed her phone tight. “Why? I didn’t do anything.”

Yujin clenched her jaw as she took a deep breath. “Apologize. Now.”

“Of course, you always take sides with him. Just because daddy has a nice cock doesn’t mean you have to agree with everything he says.”

“This isn’t about sides. This is about resolving a situation that I wasn’t there to handle. I want both of you to apologize. You’ve both been living together far too long to have childish arguments like this.”

“Absolutely not. I won’t apologize when I haven’t done anything wrong,” Wonyoung murmured as she stormed towards her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

Yujin rubbed her temple in frustration. “I can’t deal with this right now. I have class in thirty minutes and I haven’t even eaten lunch yet.”

Gathering her things up, Yujin stuffed them into her bag before slinging it over her shoulder. After giving you one last kiss on the forehead, she turned towards the door. “Sorry, daddy. I know it wasn’t your fault. She’s just like this sometimes. She’s still so young, it’s been one of her traits I thought she’d grow out of…”

“It’s fine, Yujin. I’ll let her calm down, then try to talk things out with her. I shouldn’t have pushed so many buttons.”

“Thanks, daddy. Just try not to kill each other while I’m gone, okay?”

“I’ll do my best.”

“That’s all I can ask.” Yujin’s radiating smile put out any last remnants of anger you had, with the door closing a signal of her departure. Seeking refuge on the couch, you plopped down, kicked your shoes off, and relaxed into the pillows, the first chance of relaxation since your alarm went off. If it wasn’t early afternoon and you didn't have any studying to do, you would open one of the more fancy bottles of wine that was calling your name from the kitchen cabinet.

Instead, you opted for something more mundane and grabbed the remote, accepting whatever suggestion the TV app doled out, even if you settled with background noise to help relax.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” Wonyoung repeated louder and shook your shoulder, waking you up from an unexpected, unplanned nap that left you in a haze, unable to even discern what hour it was.

“What?” you sleepily asked, rubbing your eyes while you returned back to consciousness. The lack of proper sleep caught up with you, and the past hour didn’t help one bit.

“Can you turn it down a little? I’m trying to study, and you’re making that difficult.”

Not even fully awake, the last thing you wanted to hear was Wonyoung’s voice, let alone more complaints. It would be effortless to indulge what she asked, but you had no intentions to do anything about the noise. It was the last thing she deserved.

“And your loud voice is making it difficult for me to sleep,” you blurted out, unable to hide your annoyance. “I didn’t know you studied. I thought you just complained and bossed people around.”

Wonyoung maintained her steely gaze, tone calm and collected, a vast difference from before. “You have a bedroom, you know. Upstairs? Ugh, I’m not here to argue. I have a test on Friday that’s twenty percent, which is bullshit. I can’t fail it.”

“Then maybe you should go back to studying,” you said, disregarding her attempts to make eye contact.

“What do you think I’ve been trying to do?” Wonyoung asked, rolling her eyes. “How am I supposed to get any studying done if you keep interrupting with your---whatever the hell this is you’re watching…”

Ignoring her was the only suitable option. You shifted your body sideways with hopes to elude her, only allowing furtive glances while focused on the screen. No matter what, you could still feel her presence looming while doing everything to avoid another heated argument.

Unable to stand still for a moment, Wonyoung interrupted the silence with a huff, a sign of surrender as she joined you on the couch and tucked her long legs underneath her. Grabbing a pillow from behind, she squeezed it, using it as stress relief when pressed against her chest. “You know, sometimes you can be a bit of an ass.”

You found it impossible not to laugh and eventually gave her the attention she didn’t deserve. “I know I didn’t just hear a spoiled little brat tell me what type of person I am.”

“I’m not always the nicest person, I’ll admit that,” Wonyoung muttered, sinking her head back into the pillows. Finally, something you could both agree on. But it still didn’t excuse her earlier actions.

“Is this your way of apologizing?“ you asked, and the way she looked at you resembled like you had just asked her to strip naked in front of you.

“You think I’m going to apologize?”

“No, because I know you’re not capable of ever admitting you were wrong.”

“That’s because I’m never wrong.” Wonyoung took a deep breath and let it out slowly to bring her composure under control. “If you thought I was going to get on my knees and beg for forgiveness, that’s not happening.”

Wonyoung might have had all the money in the world, but it couldn’t buy an apology. “But I’m sure you’re used to getting on your knees.”

Her mouth dropped open, and you almost had an immediate regret for delivering such a low blow---almost. Fueled by anger, Wonyoung flung a pillow at your head, but you dodged it with ease, laughing at what a pathetic throw it was.

“You really are an asshole sometimes.”

Who needed an apology when you could see such a pissed off look on Wonyoung’s pretty face? It was the most irate you had ever seen her, a pure ball of fury; trembling fists, clenched jaw, and a death stare that could cut through diamonds.

“Oh, did I upset the princess again?”

“Stop calling me th---you know what, you’re not worth my time,” Wonyoung breathed out, narrowing her eyes before rising to her feet.

“And that’s your problem, princess.”

“What?” she asked, taking a step forward and balled her fists as she pivoted to confront you, letting you see the rage up close on her features.

“Nobody is worth your time. You don’t care about anything or anyone but yourself, unless it benefits you some shape or fashion.”

“That’s not true, how the fuck would you know what I care about? Just because we’ve lived together for months doesn’t mean you know anything about me.”

“You’ve got a mouth on you princess. That’s not like you.”

“I said don’t call me that!”

“Or what?” Following suit, you stood up, matching her height and then some. “You’ll cry about it? Complain some more?”

Wonyoung didn’t utter a word. Her anger boiled over, and without warning, she smacked you across the face, leaving both a sting and a smile across your face.

“That’s it, princess, let it all out.” Without retaliation, you let her inch forward, backing you up until you were pressed up against the living room wall. Wonyoung was hardly a threat. Her tall, but petite figure wasn’t remotely intimidating, and the closer she got, the more anger you could see in her eyes. Your smile widened as she delivered a harsher slap to your face, but you seized her delicate wrist to prevent a third, until eventually you let go, which provoked her to strike your cheek once again.

Those slaps only had as much power as her anger, with no remorse behind them, and the only reason you didn’t stop her was the see the explosive wrath in her pretty round eyes. The option to defuse the situation existed whenever you deemed it necessary, as simple as either picking her slender body up to toss her on the couch, or escorting her back to her room, whatever made her stop acting like such a pedantic little brat.

But testing Wonyoung’s limited patience became a game to you, until it snapped like the flimsiest of threads, letting her pretend she had the upper hand. The sting on your cheek only encouraged you to toy with her, adding fuel to the fires of rage.

Her little chest heaved as she recovered from the barrage of slaps, heart beating loud enough for you to hear. “Feel better?”

“Not even close.”

“Then hit me again. Come on, princess, Yujin isn’t here to save you. Why don’t you give it your all and make them hurt?”

Upping the agitation by repeatedly pointing at your cheek, you could do this all day. Because, god she made things far too easy.

“No. Like I said, you’re not---worth---it.”

The more she repeated that, the more you doubted it. Because Wonyoung could have backed away, retreated to her bedroom, the kitchen, the pool, literally anywhere else. Yet, she kept her feet planted firmly where she was, face to face so close that you could see your own reflection in her eyes.

And while you were so near, you could map out her perfect features, from her pink glossy lips to her typically bright eyes filled with fury, and everything in between. “You know, you’re pretty when you’re angry.”

The corners of her mouth twitched. Contrary to what you expected, Wonyoung’s intense gaze softened, and her fists relaxed until her breathing began to stabilize. You knew how to strike her weakness, that a simple compliment would douse her red hot rage and stroke her ego, even if she wouldn’t admit it.

“D-don’t even start,” she said, but you could hear how flustered she became, how shaky her voice sounded. Another step and your foreheads would have touched, close enough already that you could smell the berries from her shampoo.

Wonyoung froze as a wave of emotions ran through her. You easily got lost in her lingering gaze, wondering what exactly went on behind those beautiful dark eyes. “That’s what you love, right? Being told how pretty you are?”

“Shut up. I don’t need compliments.”

Oh, but she did. Jang Wonyoung was a terrible liar and loved being showered in compliments almost as much as she loved arguing. You knew that vanity was her weak spot, and you planned to exploit that vulnerability.

“Answer me, princess. Do you like being called pretty?”

“I thought I told you to shut up, didn’t I?”

“What are you going to do if I---“

Before you could finish speaking, Wonyoung shoved you up against the wall and pressed her luscious lips against yours with surprising force. All that rage and resentment transformed into pure, unadulterated lust, which made you forget what you were even mad about in the first place.

The sweet taste of Wonyoung’s soft lips became the only thing that preoccupied your mind, alongside how your tongues danced in each other’s mouth, and how badly you wanted one thing---her.

With all rational thoughts and logic thrown out, you lifted Wonyoung’s petite frame up off the ground, snaked your arms around her tiny little waist and reclaimed control by press-ing her up against the wall. As the kiss kept going, Wonyoung tugged at your hair, trying to get any little advantage she could, but you didn’t let it distract you from exploring the soft curves of her tight body, and moved down to grab her ass, squeezing firmly as the both of you fought to deepen the kiss.

Breaking apart for air, you could see the rosy hues visible on her cheeks, those round eyes no longer filled with fury, but deep desire. And then you dove right back in for round two, lips parted once more, while hands roamed bodies and lips smacked, eager to keep her taste lingering in your mouth. When you kneaded Wonyoung’s ass harder, she moaned in your mouth, and you could feel every little touch making her tight body tremble.

She leaned forward to rest her forehead against yours, breath warm against your face. “God, you’re so annoying. I hate how good of a kisser you are.”

“And you’re such a brat.”

“But you like brats. Isn’t that right, daddy?”

“You don’t get to call me that.”

“Aw, is daddy getting mad again? Wait, where’s Yujin?” Wonyoung had been so caught up in the moment that she hadn’t even realized her closest friend and roommate hadn’t been there in hours.

“She went to class. Should probably be back soon.”

“Class? Yujin doesn’t have classes today.” Wonyoung raised her eyebrow, tilting her head in suspicion. “So that means…”

“She won’t be back for a while,” you said, putting the pieces together. Wonyoung giggled before leaning in once more to steal another kiss. You let her lead for a moment, and ran fingertips up the small of her back, tracing the hot skin while keeping her weight against the wall. Then, while those tiny gasps continued, you moved down her neck, kissing all the exposed skin you could find.

“Ah, that’s good, but---put me down.”

“Why?” Unfazed by the tone of voice, you continued to pepper her skin with kisses, motivated by the breathless moans she kept letting out.

“You really have to ask? Because I’m going to suck your dick, dummy.”

That sudden shift of mood could only make you grin from ear to ear. Clearly, Yujin must have been rubbing off on her, because something so blatant wasn’t like Wonyoung.

“You’re so demanding,” you said, taking one more chance to kiss and suck at her delicate neck. Biting lightly, that elicited another moan from her as her head fell back against the wall, long raven locks flowing down her shoulders.

“Do you want my mouth on your cock or not?”

“Did I say no, you fucking brat?” Pulling Wonyoung away from the wall, you set her back down in what wouldn’t fit any definition of gentle. Before you knew it, she dropped to her knees in front of you, and her hands began sliding up and down the legs of your pants.

Wonyoung looked nothing but eager on her knees as she bit on her bottom lip, and stared up through bright eyes that held lust, with her fluffy cheeks turning a lighter shade of pink. Before she did anything else, you tugged one strap of her dress as her eyes stayed stubbornly locked on yours. “Take this off first, princess.”

You weren’t so sure how compliant Wonyoung would be. The expectation would be not at all, but then she passed that first test, lowered each strap down her bare shoulders, and furled her dress down to her waist without breaking eye contact, which left her cute chest adorned by nothing but a candy pink bra.

In all of your time living together, you never saw that much of her creamy skin, usually covered up. That flat tummy, slender waist, and those small, perky tits only made you crave more, but you couldn’t let greed dictate your actions---at least not yet.

“Cute bra.”

“Thanks. But that’s all you get for now. Daddy.” The more Wonyoung used that word to annoy you, the more it seemed to fit, like it rolled off her tongue involuntarily and became less and less mocking with each usage.

Things moved too fast to comprehend. Moments ago, you were at each other’s throats, with your relationship being threatened. And now, Wonyoung proudly stayed on her knees, fingers playing with your zipper with a look of submission that promised something unforgettable. While she tugged your pants down, you saved time by discarding your shirt, smiling at how Wonyoung couldn’t take her eyes off your freshly exposed chest, palming your crotch while practically drooling over your body.

“You’re staring, princess.”

"Oh, I know," she replied, grazing your abdomen with her fingertips before kissing where she had been studying your torso, the softness of her lips on bare skin making your breath hitch. Her mouth left a trail of hot kisses along your stomach, and then licked a stripe up the crotch of your boxers just to make you twitch, building up more anticipation.

“You have such a nice body. I see why Yujin likes you so much.”

“Dashing good looks, charming personality, a high GPA, about two dozen other reasons…”

Wonyoung rolled her eyes and slipped her fingers into the waistband of your underwear, testing your patience, and didn’t dare let her eye contact drop. “Your dick is really hard, daddy. It looks so big, I can’t wait to see what Yujin has been keeping to herself.”

A quick tug later, and you were the first one naked in the open, standing in a heap of discarded clothes while your cock ached for attention. Wonyoung’s pretty eyes widened at the reveal of your cock, and she felt your erection spring to life the instant she grabbed it, forming a tight fist with all of her long, veiny fingers.

“Your dick feels so nice, daddy. You’re like, really hard. It’s like a fucking rock,” Wonyoung giggled when she stroked your length, running her icy hands across your swelling shaft, which instantly caused a bundle of soft moans at her touch. With her watching the spiraling pleasure in your eyes, every little stroke made you twitch between her nimble fingers, distracting you from anything else while she both pumped your shaft and gently caressed your balls.

“Fuck, you’re so huge. Look how small my hands look when I stroke your cock…” The way she said almost sounded like a whine, which given the source, wasn’t unexpected. As Wonyoung spent more time introducing herself to your cock, she planted a chaste kiss on your cockhead, earning herself another groan at your expense.

“I can’t believe you’ve both been hiding this dick from me.”

Wonyoung admired every aspect of your throbbing shaft, cupping your balls with her free hand while she kept a firm grip on whatever could fit in between her fingers. She tightened that grip and began to explore your length with her hungry tongue, mapping out your erection from base to tip just enough to get your cock wet, then took needy little licks against your swollen tip, claiming any drops that leaked from your slit.

“Such a beautiful cock. And now it’s all mine.’’ Then, without warning, Wonyoung parted her sultry, inviting lips, bringing your shaft into the warmth of her awaiting mouth and sealed them tight around your aching cock.

“Princess---“ you managed to groan out, toes curling into the rug underneath. The biggest spike of pleasure came when those glossy lips sealed around your cockhead, making your head tilt back in ecstasy as her warm, impatient mouth went to work. That lust-filled gaze kept you trapped as she sucked you off with her impossibly soft lips, slowly at first, drawing out every groan before bobbing her head faster, and focused on every reaction you made while her cheeks hollowed.

When Wonyoung felt your hips beginning to buck, she pulled you even further inside her throat, and her tongue began to playfully tease the underside of your shaft, driving you further down the edge of insanity. “Princess, my god---that feels incredible.”

“Of course it does. You’d think I’d ever be bad at something?” Wonyoung chuckled, flashing a confident smile as she painted your length with her tongue, then traced the veins of your shaft while enjoying the way you let out short gasps when she found your favorite spot. She flicked against it several times until returning you to her mouth, and you desperately tried to stop yourself from pushing into her throat---a losing battle before it started.

“You look so pretty sucking my dick, princess. That mouth feels---so---fucking---good,“ you groaned, and praise only had its benefits as Wonyoung reached for your balls once more, fondling them with the gentlest of touches and teased them with her slender fingers. Within moments, she found that sweet spot that you thought only Yujin knew about, which made every throb that much more overwhelming in its intensity.

“Your balls feel so heavy, daddy. Isn’t Yujin draining them enough?” Wonyoung asked, letting her enveloping lips slide with ease over your shaft, almost to the end of your base.

Quite the opposite, because while Wonyoung showered first thing in the morning, Yujin milked a massive load out of you, counting out every single time she edged you until you exploded in her hands. And then another one right before her first class, emptying you into her mouth while you ate her out.

“Do you really think that?”

“No, of course not,” Wonyoung said, shaking her head. “Pretty sure I could hear you moaning her name when I was in the shower. You’re cute when you beg.”

“I wasn’t beg---“ The warm mouth back on your cock shut you up when you hit the back of Wonyoung’s tightening throat for the first time, nearly toppling you over with pleasure. Your legs trembled as she worked her mouth with more fervor, keeping you buried down her throat just long enough to give you the satisfaction desired before coming up for air.

This girl knew just how to earn that praise. Her wet little tongue darted out from between her lips to swirl around the tip of your cock, flicking around in perfect circles around the delicate underside of your shaft, then combined it with tender kisses, soft licks, and hot breath to target that ultra-sensitive spot you knew she didn’t learn on her own. But fuck, it felt so good that you didn’t care how she found it. Not when Wonyoung kept you on edge and shifted her concentration to your balls that hadn’t been given nearly enough attention. She eagerly teased them with sloppy licks until she slipped them one at a time into her mouth, and kept a hand pumping your rock-hard cock, only to lick back up your length to swallow you up once more.

“Oh my god, princess. That pretty mouth does more than just complain,” you said, pushing your luck further than you had any right to, and you wouldn’t be surprised if Wonyoung left you in the middle of the living room with your pants around your ankles. Thankfully, she didn’t, and kept the train of bliss moving, determined to coat your cock with all of her spit and lip gloss.

“What do you think Yujin would say if she saw me on my knees blowing her daddy?”

“I think she’d say you should do a better job.”

“Asshole. You really want me to stop, don’t you?”

“No, but I can tell you’re not going to with how much you’re also enjoying this.” Wonyoung really couldn’t argue with that no matter how much she wanted to, and put that energy into keeping her lips down your cock, ensuring a constant, messy trail of saliva.

“I’ll enjoy it all day if it means you stay quiet.”

If that’s all it took, then she should have offered that from the very start. Because more than you liked to admit, her mouth drove you fucking crazy, like in a way you’d drop out of university and commit crimes to get a blowjob like this. Not quite like Yujin, who had a several page long resume of blowjob techniques that involved more than just her tongue and lips, but everything Wonyoung did was more than enough to keep you from thinking straight.

Your entire body jolted after every slurp and lick, and Wonyoung took advantage of how easy it was to tease you. Her magical hands explored your body, caressing your thighs, your ass, and anywhere else she could without losing her focus.

“Hmph. You really don’t think I’m as good as Yujin?”

That jealous trait of hers always liked to creep up, because Wonyoung couldn’t stand being second best at anything. You couldn’t lie to her either, because as good as she was at devouring your cock---Yujin would always be next level.

“No. Sorry, princess, but it’s not even close.”

You could see the disappointment in Wonyoung’s face, but she instead turned that discouragement into eagerness, moving her mouth down your length to swallow every last inch up. It only proved your point when she gagged after holding your cock down her throat for far longer than she was used to.

“For starters, you’re nowhere near sloppy enough.”

Wonyoung sighed through gritted teeth as she stroked you, placing wet kisses alongside your throbbing cock. “Then help me out. Make me sloppier.”

Letting out a devilish grin that plastered your face, you leaned closer and slid your hand through her raven black hair, yanking with enough force to tilt her head back, which gave easier access to that perfect mouth.

“It would be my pleasure, princess,” you said as you leisurely stroked your cock in front of Wonyoung’s angelic face, while her big doe eyes stared longingly up at you. It was enough to make you explode just by looking at those gorgeous features.

“Daddy---“ she whined as you relieved yourself by rubbing your swollen cockhead on those full red lips, using your pre-cum as a replacement lip gloss.

“Didn’t I say you don’t get to use that?”

“But daddy likes it when I call you that, don’t you? Daddy…” Always trying to get under your skin, even in a moment like this. But unexpectedly, that one word caused more damage than you thought, and Wonyoung had grown addicted to using it already, with no any pretense or hesitation.

“Want daddy to fuck my mouth. Come on, I know you wanna shove it down my throat and shut me up. I’ve been such a naughty little brat, won’t you do something about that?”

Wonyoung leaning into her brat persona was not something you predicted, but when she put it that way, what were brats if not something to be punished? It wouldn’t hurt to oblige her, given that she wouldn’t give up until she got her way regardless, but you at least needed something in return.

“I’ll make you gag on this dick, but let me see those cute tits, princess.”

An innocent smile overtook her face as she reached behind her back to comply, tugging on the clasp of her bra, heightening your expectations. “Okay, daddy.”

This iteration of Wonyoung, in this submissive and obedient state was far superior, and you’d expect her to do what you asked at this stage, devoid of any backtalk or snarky comments.

“Daddy, your cock,” Wonyoung pleaded, eyes narrowing while she gave the full reveal of her chest, letting her breasts free as you reached forward to touch them and squeezed each, flicking both pretty nipples as they hardened underneath your fingertips.

“This was what you wanted. Now give me what I want. Give me that cock, want it to fill my little mouth.“

“I didn’t hear a please. That’s what good girls use.”

“But I’m not a good girl. So give me what I want, daddy.“

Even if you wanted to, you couldn’t resist Wonyoung anymore as she licked her lips in anticipation---how could you resist a beautiful girl on her knees, begging for your cock? When her pouty lips parted, ready to take in your cock again, you wasted no time and plunged deep down her throat, easily hitting the back of it in one swift motion.

Wonyoung immediately gagged on your length, but you didn’t allow her to adjust as you repeatedly bottomed out her throat before you pulled out, watching how her lips desperately chased your cock. “Daddy, no. Don’t hold back, I can take it. Use my mouth like a toy---please."

A request you would easily oblige, but first, you used your cock to slap her pretty face numerous times before turning her mouth into a helpless vessel for your pleasure. Indulging both of your desires, you began to slam your hips into her face with a harsh grip on her head, tangling your fingers up in her pretty locks.

“That’s it, princess, keep that fucking mouth open. You wanted daddy to fuck your throat like this, right? You wanted me to make you choke on this cock?”

She nodded best as she could, and you loved hearing her gag and struggle on your shaft, especially when her eyes begged for more as you kept the weight of your cock stuffed down Wonyoung’s throat, defiling such a pretty piece of artwork, a spoiled, rotten, defiant brat.

The entire day’s worth of frustrations channeled into your hips as you carried out your merciless facefuck, with every punishing thrust leaving your cock dripping wet with Wonyoung’s slippery drool. For once, you had peace---no complaining, no more whining, just loud gags and messy slurps filling the room.

If only Yujin could see you now---(she’d probably say you weren’t being rough enough).

Wonyoung’s divine mouth felt amazing before, but nowhere like this. It was as if her mouth was made to be used, a pretty plaything for your disposal, a sloppy wet hole designed for your pleasure that struggled to breathe. Her innocent, modelesque visuals that won the genetic lottery became sullied with saliva, ruining her perfectly applied makeup, and made its way down to her expensive necklace before sliding down her enticing cleavage.

You weren’t sure how you were ever intimidated by such a tall, leggy goddess, when all it took was a little praise and an offering between your legs for her to fold like a deck of cards. Even comical, you could call it, and you couldn’t imagine how needy she would get once you had your fingers in her cunt.

“My fucking god, Wonyoung,” you growled, palming her head tight, fucking her mouth into a frenzy of gags and spit that sent you deeper into an uncontained spiral of lust. “Your bratty fucking mouth feels too good.”

With her jaw overworked and tears streaming down her pale, flushed cheeks, Wonyoung could only respond by squeezing your thighs she held onto as you pounded into her throat relentlessly. No longer did she resemble the beautiful, innocent doll she presented herself to be, but instead a beautiful drooling mess of spit trying to fight through her gag reflex that kept your cock wet and warm.

After one more strong thrust from your hips, you held her gorgeous face down at your base, ensuring not a single inch of cock wasn’t held down her struggling throat balls deep. Your fingers dug into her scalp as her cute nose pressed against your abdomen, and you watched intently how her eyes watered more and more the longer you held her there, refusing to give a single ounce of mercy.

Wonyoung let out a gag so loud with her throat consuming your cock that you almost exploded then and there, but forced yourself to hold on. As much as you wanted, you couldn’t blow a load in her mouth without at least getting a chance to see that tight, impeccable body bare naked. Despite that, you pushed her firmly into your crotch just a little longer, making her mouth fill up with spit and her eyes water even more so until you pulled away.

When you withdrew your cock away from her wet, swollen lips, Wonyoung gasped for air as thin strings of saliva kept your shaft connected to her satisfied smile, tongue flicking at your cock with a whimper.

“Don’t stop on my account. I can take much more,” she said, those tear-filled eyes looking on with determination.

“Yeah, but---I can’t.” Wonyoung let out a giggle before grabbing your cock drenched with her saliva, and jerked you off, every pump threatening to send you past release.

“Are you going to paint my face then, daddy?” she asked, tempting fate by planting several kisses on the top of your cockhead.

“Not a chance, princess. My load belongs inside your cunt.”

Needing a moment, you stepped out of the pile of clothes underneath you and helped Wonyoung rise to her feet, taking her by the wrist to guide her towards the couch. Nothing about her resembled elegance any longer---disheveled hair, ruined makeup, and a face covered in saliva was the ideal formula to put her in her place. And all it took was a cock jammed down her throat.

“Are you going to fuck me now?” Wonyoung asked, still recuperating from having her throat fucked raw. She tried to find some comfort in your eyes, but all she saw was your stern expression, leaving her to wonder whether you would make her feel even more desperate than she already did.

“That all depends on you, princess. How about you finish taking that dress off for me?”

“Yes, daddy.” Again, Wonyoung was just concerned about following instructions at this point, and tugged that expensive dress down off her hips around her ankles, kicking it away. Your eyes watched every move she made with bated breath as she laid down on the couch, and every last inch of those slender legs that went on for days stretched across the cushions, leaving one final barricade between your desires.

“Your body is fucking perfect, princess,” you said, joining her on the couch with your eyes roaming a path of creamy skin from head to toe, and you took in the beauty of her flawless physique, unsure where was most deserving of your attention.

“Thank you, daddy. Do you want these off too?” Wonyoung asked as she slipped fingers into the waistband of her skimpy panties that matched her discarded bra.

“No, princess. That’s my job.”

Only that tiny piece of fabric separated you from seeing that tight naked body in its full splendor, but you were going to take your time savoring that reveal. Such an impeccable body like Wonyoung’s deserved to be worshiped from head to toe, so no better place to start than that as you grabbed one of her pristine feet and planted a kiss at the ball of it.

Spending as much time as you could without going overboard, you massaged her soft soles, then peppered them in kisses before you moved on to kiss her perfectly pedicured toes, each one painted with a black polish that contrasted the paleness of her skin.

“You’re kissing my feet?” Wonyoung asked, almost incredulous in her tone, but showed no signs of discomfort.

“Why wouldn’t I be? They’re very pretty. Just like the rest of you.”

“I…just didn’t know that was your thing. You know, I’ve had guys pay me to do this before. You’re much better at it.”

“Every part of you is my thing. I just wanna touch and taste your entire body.”

With a flushed glow returning back to her cheeks, you continued pressing kisses all over Wonyoung’s feet, and slid your lips into her delicate arches, not missing a spot. As you slowly worked your way up, you ran your hands up her creamy legs that could be considered a work of art on their own, and gave them the proper attention they deserved, kissing in between gentle caresses until you stopped just shy of her clothed center.

Wonyoung drew in a heavy breath as your fingers grazed over her panties, and whenever you pressed into her core, you could feel hints of wetness that she couldn’t hide. The gratification she craved wouldn’t be given easily however, and you planned on making her earn it as you gave her milky thighs a series of slow, deliberate kisses, making good on your word to taste all of her until they began to part like the gates of heaven, awaiting your touch.

You dragged out every moment, every chance to heighten Wonyoung’s arousal, which gave you all the time in the world to continue worshiping her body. One lick against the prominent damp spot at the center of her panties and she melted, begging for more when you licked a second and third time, the fabric darkening with every teasing lick.

“D-daddy,” Wonyoung gasped, but you ignored her and focused on tasting more sweet arousal through those thin panties, coming up with new ways to tease her while keeping a hand firmly stroking her soft thighs,

“Quiet, princess. Can’t you see I’m busy?”

“But I want you to taste me. Need your mouth on me, daddy. Don’t tease me, I hate it.”

Wonyoung bit onto her bottom lip, knowing she made a mistake by showing too much vulnerability, which meant you would prolong her pleasure even further. Still, she didn’t seem to care, even while the wetter her pretty panties became, the more inclined you were to build up that frustration more and more.

“Needy fucking brat.”

You would tease her all day if you had to.

“Shut up, just---please.” Who could have imagined that Wonyoung would ever plead this much, and all it took was teasing your fingers dangerously close to her pussy. As much as you enjoyed encouraging the needy look on her face, you much preferred to get rid of those useless panties, so after giving them a quick tug down the never-ending runaway that made up her legs, you rewarded yourself with the priceless treasure of Wonyoung’s gorgeous, wet little pussy.

Never had you seen something so beautiful, almost as much Wonyoung herself. The exposure of her clean shaven cunt transcended your expectations, well worth every second of waiting. Her thighs led a path to nirvana that your fingertips traveled up to her wet, glistening slit, daring to slip in but backing out at the last moment.

“Your pussy is so fucking pretty, princess.”

The flustered blush on her face had never looked so vivid when you traced her folds, collecting her slick on your fingertips and kept her under your control. Wonyoung still tried to chase your fingers, displaying her desperation with her hips, while her body begged for more attention.

“Daddy, please,” she murmured, but you ignored her pleas, continuing to torment, bringing her already escalated arousal levels sky high. “Need your fingers in me. Need you to touch me, need you to taste me.”

“What’s wrong, princess?” you asked in a mocking tone. “You don’t like when daddy teases you like this?”

Wonyoung shook her head furiously at your question, but all you did was stall further to create more anticipation, letting the quiet linger, which worked wonders to turn her into a mess of frustrated desire.

“Daddy. Daddy---daddy, please.” That was all you needed to finally succumb, and slid two fingers deep inside of her hot, wet depths. Wonyoung let out a loud gasp of ecstasy, digging her nails into the fabric of the couch cushions beneath her.

With just enough room for two fingers, you pumped into her enticing wet heat and wondered how you'd ever be able to fit your cock inside of her. A good problem to have.

“Daddy!” she cried out, arching her back higher than expected, and clenched around your hilted fingers.

“Look at you, princess. So fucking wet, and all it takes is a couple fingers inside your pretty cunt for you to stop being a brat?”

You weren’t putting in the full effort to stretch her out, but you could hear how wet Wonyoung was, your fingers doused in slick within seconds as you steadily pumped inside.

“Sh-shut up, I’m not that needy.”

“Oh, really? I guess I’ll stop then.” You couldn’t help but laugh when you withdrew your fingers from her wetness, hearing cries of desperation from at the loss of your fingers that you sucked clean. “Fuck, you taste good.”

“D-daddy, no---” she said, as you made a show of slurping her juices off your fingers. “Please put your fingers back inside me. It feels good. N-need more.”

“But I thought you weren’t needy?”

“Shut up, just---please, do what you were doing.”

You should have made Wonyoung beg more given she was so adept at it before you shoved your fingers back inside her warm cunt, but it was hard to waste time on that when all you wanted was that delicious taste of hers, straight from the tap.

In no time flat, you plunged back in knuckle-deep, but didn’t dare dream of adding a third, when two fingers became a struggle as is. She groaned as her slick folds swallowed you up and emitted those sweet sounds of bliss when your fingers curled after the apex of every thrust. You couldn’t wait any longer, and made your first lick up Wonyoung's wet slit while you kept two fingers buried in her, looking up every so often to see the pure ecstasy written across her face, as you inhaled her unforgettable aroma.

“Fuck, eat me, daddy, please eat my pussy. I need that tongue, just---” Wonyoung’s pleas bordered on demand at this point, yet you were happy to oblige her, and licked long stripes up and down her pussy, savoring the unforgettable sweet taste of her cunt as you cleaned up her wet folds,

Your mouth on her wet cunt acted like a pendulum that kept her back and forth between needy and domineering, whining with one series of licks, then grabbing the back of your head with the next. Either way, you didn’t really care which side she landed on, as long as you could keep the sweet, decadent taste on your lips and you didn’t let a single part of her pussy remain unexplored.

“God, you’re so fucking delicious,” you said as you grabbed hold of her thighs to draw her lithe body closer, then flicked against her clit before sealing your lips around it just long enough to build up pleasure, until you were right back where you started, making her eager hips frantically chase your tongue.

Wonyoung tasted like the most intoxicating mix of tangy sweetness you ever had, and just a single drop of her nectar was enough to bring out the ravenous animal inside you. Insatiable for more, your tongue drowned in her sweet juices, and you drank it all up while you wandered through her drenched folds, and made sure to not let a single spot go to waste.

Once more, you aimed for her swollen clit and latched your lips around it, using as much suction as your mouth would allow, with no plans on stopping until your appetite was appeased. While you devoured Wonyoung’s juicy pussy, her long fingers tugged at your hair, returning the favor from earlier, and urged your mouth to stay on her, to maintain such harsh suction that ignited more of her cute, unceasing moans.

“Fuck, you’re good at that, keep eating my pussy,” she said, with unending demand in her voice, and you welcomed the pain that came from fingers pulling at your hair, keeping you buried between her legs. Her hips began to gyrate on your face as you kept her taste lingering on your tongue, and every lick and slurp against her needy clit brought a new set of noises, while the satisfaction multiplied on her face.

Still, you couldn’t believe how good she tasted, and how cute she sounded when you ate her out. Wonyoung’s cries became louder, much sharper, but you refused to relent, suckling on her clit with such harshness that made her thighs quiver around your head as she desperately yearned for release. You swore Wonyoung might pull out strands of your hair, though you wouldn’t care when all you could hear was her ragged breathing and needy whines from her mouth as you did everything to bring her over that edge, making her squirm underneath you, hips bucking in a pattern that followed your tongue.

“D-daddy, fuck, daddy,” Wonyoung moaned out, and when you looked up with your lips secured around her clit, you could see her pant harder and harder as you tried to expedite the inevitable.

Nothing compared to how Wonyoung looked moments before climax. Your tongue swirled and flicked over the sensitive nub, then sealed around it one more time, harshly sucking on it to bring her to that sweet, sweet nirvana.

“Gonna cum, fuck, daddy, gonna cum on your face. I’m close, so close, please don’t stop, please…“

With another deep, satisfying slurp, you had Wonyoung right where you wanted, on a road to bliss, as her hips moved like she had lost all semblance of control. Her tight frame writhed in ecstasy, and you took advantage to plunge your fingers into her slick wetness once more, giving an extra dose of bliss that fanned the unquenchable flames in her core.

“I’m gonna---”

And with that, Wonyoung would get what she wanted, what she deserved, as you helped release all that built-up tension, a giant knot untangling. Her thighs squeezed your head in an almost suffocating manner, and her pretty hands yanked at bundles of hair, making sure she had never looked so unprincess-like than in that moment. You kept your lips wrapped around Wonyoung’s clit, watching her fall apart as her delectable juices spilled into your mouth, toes curling as she came hard, eyes shutting tight with your only focus giving her the best orgasm of her life.

Wonyoung rode out her high and then some, yet even when the intensity of her trembling thighs around your head died down, you had no inclination to stop, nor could you calm your insatiable need to keep your mouth on her pretty pussy for as long as you pleased.

You’d make a mental note to get the couch deep cleaned after this.

“Daddy, please, fuck---“

Making Wonyoung cum only once wouldn’t be sufficient, so you doubled down your efforts and suckled on her clit with more ferocity, putting your all into it so much that you didn’t even hear a door being opened, or the footsteps heading towards your way.

“I’m back home, oh.”

Neither of you gave the friendly figure that entered the living room a passing glance, too caught up in the moment of bliss, too involved with feasting on Wonyoung, drawing out more of that delicious nectar that already stained your lips and chin.

“Well, well, well. Looks like you two made up.” Yujin didn’t even flinch at the sight of clothes sprawled on the floor, or her two roommates naked on the couch with your tongue buried inside Wonyoung’s cunt.

“How was class?” you asked, your tone dripping with sarcasm. You weren’t actually seeking an answer, annoyed at having your focus broken before you returned your attention back to overstimulating Wonyoung, thrusting your fingers inside at the same rough pace that matched your tongue.

“Class? Oh right, my class. I really learned a lot,” Yujin said, still keeping up her facade. Now wasn’t the time to question her motives, and if anything, you’d thank her later for giving you a chance to rectify things. If not for her, you wouldn’t have your face covered in Wonyoung.

“You two look busy, so I’ll be in my room if you need me.” Yujin scurried off with that puppy-like smile, nothing but a momentary distraction while you got back to work.

That blissful state didn't take long to return to when Wonyoung squirmed underneath your face, moaning incoherently as you brought her to a second devastating orgasm with ease. Like previously, when your mouth locked on her clit, her toes curled once again, and you lapped up her delicious juices as your mouth filled back up with her rich taste. You refused to stop devouring Wonyoung’s pussy, not until she rode out her second high, and only then did you give your lips a break,

instead giving your fingers a workout, a routine of unyielding pleasure that there wasn’t any escape from.

“T-too much, daddy! P-please, fuck, fuck---I'm so sensitive, I can't," Wonyoung begged you to stop, but you disregarded every word she said, concentrating solely on getting her to cum on your fingers this time.

“I don’t care. You can, cum again on my fingers and then I’ll fuck you.” A rare silence from Wonyoung that you’d savor, listening to only her whimpering moans and the sounds of her drenched cunt as you kept her filled with your fingers. Finding her sweet spot with such precision, it took only a matter of moments until she fell apart again, shuddering even more uncontrollably.

“C-cumming again, daddy, fuck!”

Looking on with pride, you brought Wonyoung to orgasm a third time, with her back arched high, head thrown back, and a different picture painted every time she came that you’d never be able to get it out of your head. You loved hearing the cries of pleasure she made as your fingers pumped into her wetness, taking advantage of all that sensitivity that made her pussy ache, unable to handle the overstimulation, but still dripped in a way that absolutely ruined the couch cushions.

“Oh god, daddy, no more. Please, no more, I c-can’t, I-I,” she whimpered with tears in her eyes, body shaking as your fingers kept pounding into her wet walls. You pulled away once you were satisfied, licking her folds clean and fluttered over her clit for one extra moment. As tempting as it would be to finger her to a fourth orgasm, it was time for your cock to get some much needed attention.

Pulling yourself up into the cushions for a more comfortable position, you didn’t even bother cleaning your slick covered fingers, admiring the breathtaking view that was her wet entrance, ready to claim your ultimate prize.

Wonyoung looked like a doll with her legs spread wide, so vulnerable and exposed as her small chest heaved while she recovered from her relentless orgasms. Her gorgeous bare pussy glistened, every bit of supple, warm flesh more than ready for your cock, and the notion of stretching her out set off every little twitch in your shaft.

When you lined up with her inviting entrance, there was a much needed moment of hesitation as you let the anticipation build much more than necessary. But when you rubbed your cockhead between her wet pussy lips, any urge to tease disappeared, heightening your arousal to unbearable levels.

“Put it inside me. Need it, want you to fuck me so bad,” Wonyoung begged once more, and you didn’t even make her wait any longer. One look into her eyes later, and you eased inside her slick pussy, letting out a guttural groan that wasn’t even recognizable. Despite all your expectations, the initial thrusts into her warm cunt squeezed your cock harder than you were prepared for, nearly making you double over.

Your hands gripped her tiny little waist, watching for every reaction while you plunged into her suffocating cunt that felt unlike anything else before. Wonyoung was a popular girl for sure, so this wouldn’t be her first time, as evidenced by how many times you heard her getting railed in her bedroom that you lost track, but god, it certainly felt like it.

After a considerable amount of thrusts inside that dripping heat that enveloped your cock, Wonyoung stayed unbearably tight. Your efforts did little to stretch her little pussy, and it seemed impossible to pull your shaft from her cunt whenever you pumped inside her clinging walls. You took it as a challenge to bottom her out, though it resulted in an almost instant failure, met with a harsh resistance gripping your cock that only added to your determination.

“Princess, I can barely fit inside you,” you said, making more lustful moans escape Wonyoung’s lips while you tried your hardest to fill her with your whole length. You had her stunning face cupped like you were holding onto some type of rare artifact one might be scared to drop, staring at those pretty eyes, and her pretty plump lips that let out a constant flurry of moans and gasps whenever you pulled out and sank back inside her incredible warmth.

“More, daddy.”

“More what, princess?”

“Want more of you. You feel so good inside me already, want more of that cock,” she said, and it put a smile on your features to turn Wonyoung into such a needy, insatiable girl, no longer capable of being coy with her words. With every dip inside her smothering heat, you could sense more desperation, how much she yearned to be stretched to the maximum and feel your entire length in her.

“Fuck me, daddy. You know I’m not a good girl, so don’t fuck me like one.”

Your hips sped up with that request, and Wonyoung adjusted to your pace as her wet, warm walls became easier and easier to fill up, further opening her up. “You really are spoiled, aren’t you? A spoiled little brat that takes this cock so well.”

“Spoiled for your cock. So just shut up and fuck me. Make me feel you in my guts.”

While you kept her sparkling eyes in line of sight, you pressed your forehead against hers, seeing the lust building that raced through her body as you pumped into her hard and fast, giving the intense gratification she craved.

“Daddy---“ she gasped out, one little word from that pretty voice held so much power, so much weight. “Deeper, daddy. Fuck me, deeper. You feel so big, stretch my tight little pussy. Need you to fill me with every inch.”

And if that wasn’t encouragement enough, Wonyoung started to wrap her absurdly long legs around your waist to draw you in deeper, clutching onto one of your biceps, and her skin felt so utterly hot against yours. “Ruin me, daddy. Come on, I can take it. Fuck the brat out of me.”

Even at her most desperate moments, she still had some dominance left in her words, but you had no qualms not to listen. Because while Wonyoung might have looked like something precious and priceless, you certainly wouldn’t treat her as such. So little by little, your hips snapped back, until you were fucking her like you should have done from the start.

Making every thrust count, you were finally able to fuck Wonyoung balls deep, and took advantage of the slickness from every orgasm as your cock slid inside her effortlessly.

“Fuck, daddy, yes!“ Wonyoung cried out, her walls trembling whenever you bottomed her out, which only added to the urges to seize complete control of her body. You dove into her neck, and could hear her breathing deepen as you tasted the hot skin found there, before tracing the outline of her jaw, which made her even more consumed by your lustful touches.

Now that you could comfortably bury your cock to the hilt inside her warmth without struggle, Wonyoung felt so utterly wet and unimaginably tight, while all that built up arousal drowning your cock really paid off, because now you were fucking her as deep as you wanted, rearranging her guts like no tomorrow.

“You’re so fucking deep, keep that up. Want you to keep fucking me like this, please---don’t stop, don’t stop, please don’t stop,” Wonyoung repeated, becoming more desperate by the syllable while you continued to feast on her body, eager to lick up all that porcelain skin. You couldn’t ignore your cravings and dragged your tongue across her sensitive neck, enjoying the way she moaned when you sucked on the delicate flesh before you moved to trace her earlobe, then nibbled on it, working her more into a frenzy.

“I need to taste all of you, princess," you said as you licked down her collarbone and down to the curve of her breasts, then climbed back up, lifted her slender arms, and buried your tongue in her armpit. You savored the taste as you greedily licked her up, tracing the surface to gather up Wonyoung’s delectable sweat, only rewarded with deeper moans while your tongue went wild. The salty taste of her skin tasted even better there, and to no surprise, it only added more to her arousal as you cleaned her up throughly, licking long stripes up one of your new favorite spots of her goddess-like body to devour.

“You’re so delicious, princess. I could just taste every inch of you for hours.”

Her cheeks reddened once more, and you were careful not to miss a solitary inch. Wonyoung kept her arms stretched up over her head, distracting you from the intense wetness and tightness of her cunt while you licked and sucked away at her flawless armpit, slobbering over it without respite.

Wonyoung gave no signs of anything but enjoyment of your tongue bath, even more so when you switched sides to devour her other smooth, milky underarm, as you peppered the flesh with little ticklish kisses, then gave an equal amount of wet, hungry licks. Truly a feast on their own, you lapped up the soft skin of her pits, nuzzling your nose in them to breathe in the unforgettable aroma. Your devotion to her body only made her squirm and whimper more, which only urged you to keep feasting on her delicious armpits, swapping your attention between the two, as you wanted as many different regions of her body on your tongue as possible.

Only after you thoroughly slathered both in saliva did you have your fill, and gave both one last lick while watching the aroused reaction in her eyes.

“D-daddy,” Wonyoung murmured, shaky and subdued, like she could barely pull the word out of her throat while your hips kept her pressed into the couch.

“Yes, princess?” you asked, planting rough kisses all over the untouched side of her neck that made her blush even deeper.

“Bedroom. Take me there.”

“Which one?”

“Don’t care.”

There was only one actual option, given that your bedroom involved a set of stairs and Wonyoung’s was just down the hall, so the choice was obvious. Although you’d love to see the look on Yujin’s face when you barged into her room, wanting to use her luxurious bed to plow her roommate on. Most likely, you’d be met with encouragement rather than being told to get out, but even then, you didn’t want to take the chance of disturbing her.

So down the hallway it was, catching Wonyoung off guard as you lifted her petite figure off the couch and into your arms as your cock remained buried inside. With her legs already locked around you tightly, her arms followed, wrapping around the back of your neck as you brought her towards the bedroom. Not wasting any chance to keep her bouncing on your shaft, you squeezed that tight little ass with every step, until you made it past the open bedroom door that neither of you bothered to fully close.

When you entered Wonyoung’s spacious bedroom, you had only one thing on your mind---the tight grip her slick pussy held around your cock. Now that all concerns had been set aside, you came close to knocking a framed poster off the wall with the force generated when you pinned her against it. But outside of moaning daddy uninterrupted, she became unable to concentrate on anything else but clinging to your body as you drilled her without zero intentions of slowing down.

Being careful wasn’t an option anymore. Wonyoung had you all wrapped up, with those long limbs coiled around you like a snake, but yet she was the prey. You kept her pinned up against the bedroom wall like a museum painting, and each thrust nailed her harder, keeping her begging for more, keeping her creaming on your cock as you rammed your length into the deepest parts of her cunt in succession, showing no mercy.

“Your pussy just feels incredible, princess,” you growled, as your fingers kneaded her asscheeks between each thrust, using the wall as a partner to help pound away and put this needy little princess in her place, fucking her harder than imaginable, knowing she could take it. Her back arched higher while every stroke intensified, and she used her moans to voice the insatiable hunger you could see in her eyes while you gave it your all.

“God, your cock---makes me feel so good, stretches me so well, it’s fucking perfect,” she said, as you shoved your hard cock into her without a care. You knew Wonyoung could take it, she could take every rough thrust, and she’d complain if you did anything less.

So your battering cock continued its assault on her warm little hole, pumping inside her while being squeezed so goddamn tight it drove you absolutely crazy, all part of the plan to ruin her perfect cunt the way she begged and begged for it.

"Daddy, fuck me, fuck me!" Wonyoung begged, but did nothing to silence herself, the repeated thuds her sweaty back made against the wall surely moving its way up the entire house. Without saying another word, you had her cumming on your cock, that slick honey dripping between her legs adding more fuel to your hips as you fucked her into a second, then a third orgasm, arms tightening while she held on for dear life, legs trembling underneath your fingers. “Oh my god, daddy.”

Like a delicate flower no more, Wonyoung endured your rough treatment with pride, and embraced the way you manhandled her body. With every pump of your cock into that engulfing wet heat, her cries of satisfaction grew deafeningly loud, and she became almost delirious from bliss, unable to keep her eyes open much longer. Not a single ounce of smugness remained left on her face, just pure desire and barrels of lust that increased the harder you fucked your aggression out, letting her ride through climax after climax until the harsh clenches became borderline unbearable to handle.

And you couldn’t help but be selfish, turning Wonyoung into an absolute mess, with no genuine need to use words anymore or anything but hot, needy kisses that did all the talking necessary as you absorbed yourself in the vigorous use of her body.

After every vigorous thrust, you could feel her hot breath in your ear, along with every whiny moan and desperate plea for you to fuck her even beyond your own limits. You poured your attention into how your cock felt whenever you speared her warm little cunt, and dug fingers deeper into the creamy flesh of her ass. But that wasn’t enough, as you spread her legs wider to take every inch of your cock deeper than you thought possible, all while every little gasp, moan, and repetitive thump of her back crashing against the wall became an intricate melody in your ears.

“Princess---“ you said, your voice lowering into nothing but a growl and drew another deep moan from Wonyoung’s lips following one more strong impale, then pulled her away from the wall as you held her up in the air, fucking her relentlessly while you enjoyed the overpowering smack of flesh on flesh by pounding into her desperate cunt.

“Need to fucking cum in you soon. Gonna fill your pretty little pussy all the way up.”

Waiting for a response wasn’t something you bothered with when you approached the side of Wonyoung’s enormous canopy bed with its pulled back curtains and abundant pillows, only fucking her petite body harder on your thick cock to elicit out more cries of nonstop pleasure.

From the start, the plan was always to defile her doll-like body, and while the idea of pounding her on the carpet with a fistful of hair crossed your mind---you’d have to tear your cock away for just a moment---an impossible task.

Overindulgent was the only thing that could describe how you were fucking Wonyoung, and even more overindulgent was how much she kept creaming on your cock. But you had no trouble keeping the motions uninterrupted, nor did you have any trouble supporting her weight, remaining face to face to kiss her lips as many times as you chose to until you laid her down onto the soft mattress in a not-so-gentle manner.

“W-wait,” Wonyoung said, before words turned back into moans once more. “You can cum inside me, but not here. Don’t ruin the sheets.”

You could barely mutter out a chuckle. “You can buy more, princess.”

“But I like thes---“

You didn’t allow any further objections. Instead, with your knees locked into the mattress, you drove Wonyoung’s legs up into the air until they neared both shoulders, feet left dangling, and folded her up like a chair, eager to sink in at a completely new intense angle. “You’re gonna need a whole new bed when I’m done with you.”

Now that you achieved the deepest penetration possible, you were testing the springs of her mattress without even giving a chance for her heart to beat, bottoming Wonyoung out into new depths never felt before. All that elegance shattered, left with nothing but the obscene view of those beautiful legs spread open so fucking wide you couldn’t believe this was the same proper girl you shared a roof with for months. Restraint lost every ounce of meaning when you kept up the relentless plunges into Wonyoung’s tight, tight cunt, pounding her into the mattress hard enough to make the creaking bed frame think twice about its existence.

“Daddy!” Wonyoung cried out, loud enough to echo throughout the entire house, no longer giving a damn about the soon-to-be-ruined sheets, just like that wet hot pussy that your cock pistoned into and demanded more unearthed pleasure from.

Taking full advantage of putting Wonyoung into this new position, you made a slight adjustment, lifted yourself into a squat in order to gain more leverage, then planted both feet on her silk sheets, holding her little waist with a bruising grip while fucking her so deep you were liable to explode at any second.

“God, princess, you take daddy’s cock so well. Such a good little fuckdoll, letting me use you, letting me destroy your warm little hole like this. Gonna fill you up so much, fuck!” You couldn’t help but let out loud, guttural groans at how good Wonyoung’s dripping pussy felt, throbbing wildly at how goddamn tight she clenched around your cock that ached for release.

“You feel so good inside me, so, so good, daddy. Can’t wait for you to cum in me. It’s going to feel so good, so warm. Just pump that hot load into my wet little pussy. Give me all your cum, give it all to me. Please, daddy---I need it right fucking now.”

Your heavy balls slapped against her puckered hole as you brutally impaled her pussy, and you could feel every little tremble in her legs, every last wet squelch as you kept Wonyoung pinned to the creaking mattress, making her desperate for one more greedy orgasm even before you even achieved your first.

“Fuck, fuck, princess, your pussy is just too good. You’re gonna make me cum so hard. Need to fucking breed you, need to just fuck my thick load into your womb and you’re gonna take it all, princess.”

“Yes, daddy, please! Fuck me, use me until you cum. Need your balls drained inside me, need you to explode.”

Scrambling for anything within reach, Wonyoung frantically dug her nails into her sheets, but you just kept plowing her into the mattress for as long as your body would allow, hitting her guts every single time with surgical precision. Her slick pussy lips gripped with violent, almost painful clenches, and the lewd expression etched on her face helped the inevitable arrive faster than expected.

Only a matter of time before you filled that perfect, warm little hole you mercilessly slammed your cock into, letting out more ragged breaths by the second. You kept your weight shifted to easily balance on the balls of your feet, and just stared at the deep pools of lust in Wonyoung’s eyes while she took it all, legs spread perfectly for breeding, anticipating your load with endless amounts of lust, begging, and cries for more.

“Daddy, breed me. Breed me like you breed Yujin. Empty those balls in me, fill me up. Daddy, please---just use me to dump your cum in, wanna feel it all in my pussy, please.”

The coils of her mattress screamed for relief, and the smack of your thrusts became deafening, mirroring the cries that escaped Wonyoung's mouth. No longer did you even bother to look forward, and instead guided your focus on how your cock pulverized Wonyoung’s insides, every strong clench a shove towards the finish line that she already had a rolling start towards. Your worn out hips were on fire, but it paled in comparison to the flames in your core, only able to be doused in one matter---and Wonyoung did just that when her wrecked cunt squeezed your cock in just the right way.

You throbbed inside Wonyoung like you hadn’t been drained in a month. With your entire length buried to the hilt and your balls firmly flush against her ass, you shared that final moment of relief, spilling cum into her pussy like you never had anyone else. Thick, hot spurts overflowed her cunt, setting off violent twitches, satisfied groans, and gasps of relief from your lips when you emptied every last drop into Wonyoung.

“Daddy, it feels so good. Empty it all, daddy, empty that cum inside me. It’s so warm, so thick, I can feel it dripping out of me, don’t stop…”

The tired demands from Wonyoung’s lips had you throbbing even more as you drove your creamy load deeper inside her, thrusting with your heavy hips with whatever energy left while you rode out the best orgasm of your life.

Nothing could compare to such bliss in its sweetest, purest, rawest form. Nor could anything compare to the satisfied smile Wonyoung gave when you pulled out, and your seed spilled down her sweaty thighs, making one more final attempt to ruin her sheets.

“No, daddy,” she whispered, making exhausted gasps while you took her small face in your hands, without enough energy to do anything but stare at the blissed out look in her eyes. When you collapsed, Wonyoung pivoted her body to the side, then grabbed your cock and guided it back inside her intense heat. “Keep it in me. Isn’t this what Yujin likes?”

You twitched the moment you felt that warmth wrapped around your shaft again, but embraced her naked body, resting your head against her bare shoulder. Trying not to make any sudden movements proved difficult.

“There we go, daddy. Stay inside me, just like this.”

“Didn’t you have to study?” you asked, remembering the thread that unraveled and started all this.

“What did I say? Stay inside me.”

“Fine, but don’t move too much. It’s still sensitive.”

Without even looking, you could see the smirk on Wonyoung’s lips as she did the opposite and rolled her hips, clenching around your cock to keep you from softening.

“Wonyoung---“ you hissed, and harshly dug your fingers into her hips to keep her from moving. “Stay. Still.”

“Or what? You’ll fuck my brains out again? Pump another thick load in me?”

“You think this is going to happen more than once? Not a chance, princess. I’m only staying here to stop that bratty mouth from talking.”

“You’re a bad liar, daddy. I know you love how my pussy keeps your cock all nice and warm. You’re addicted to it already. I bet you won’t even go back to Yujin anymore.”

“I think I fucked you a little too hard. Maybe knocked a few brain cells out.”

“Don’t worry, daddy. I won’t say a word. I’ll keep it our little secret that you like my pussy better.”

“Shut---up. Next time I fuck you it’s going up your ass.”

“Is that a promise? I’ve never done that before. But your cock is so big, I don’t even think it’ll fit there…”

“Then I’ll make it fit.”

And with that, Wonyoung grabbed your arm to swing it around her waist, finally letting you enjoy the sweet sounds of silence.

At least for a little bit.

---------------------------

A/N: I dedicate my first Wonyoung fic to the great, amazing, wonderful @friskyriskywhisky . Didn't plan on taking so long to put out a new fic, nor did I plan on it being absurdly long. My longest fic to date, but I put a lot of heart into this and hopefully it shows.

During the course of these few months I've reached 12k followers which is still wild to me after all this time, so thanks to everyone who follows and reads, especially if you've been there since the beginning 💞💞

This was supposed to be out on the 31st for Wony day but I'm impatient, so enjoy this early gift. I've really enjoyed writing this version of Wonyoung and plan to do more with her.

[vaguesxrrow]

edwin x alive reader where the reader is like the opposite of edwin sort of? they’re very outgoing and pretty naive and very nice to everyone? they also don’t really have a filter. (established relationship pls) and like edwin is constantly like about to have a ghost heart attack from keeping them out of trouble but he loves them anyway

again, thanks for your patience and thanks for the request !!

edwin / alive!reader - polar opposites

a/n: i hope this is what you had in mind! it was definitely a challenge writing this type of character but i hope i did your idea justice :))

wc: 802

tags: gender neutral reader, alive reader

"aww, a dog!" you cooed, moving to go pet the dog you saw laying on the floor. its eyes shone as it looked up at you, practically begging to be pet.

wordlessly, edwin yanked you by the arm back into his side. at this point, it was second nature to him to tighten his hold on you whenever you drifted from his side for even a second.

"hey!" you protested, pouting.

"do not tell me you do not remember the last time you tried to pet a stray,” he said. “because it was not exactly a forgettable experience.”

you smiled guiltily as you recalled the event.

⌦ --

you and edwin had been in the woods on an investigation for a case - the ghost of a very talkative squirrel had brought it to your attention that there was something, or someone, stealing away the inhabitants of the forest.

suddenly, there was a 'meow', and you immediately looked around trying to find the source of the noise. edwin was nose-deep in his notebook, furiously scribbling away. you had no doubt he was conjuring up some brilliant idea or solution - edwin was just a genius like that.

your face split into a grin when you located the cat. "pspsps," you called. "here, kitty kitty."

it meandered towards you, eyes glowing with innocence.

"edwin!" you called. "come here, there's a kitty cat!"

his head whipped in your direction and his eyes widened. "[name], do not pet that thing-"

"but why not?" you said, reaching out to scritch it behind the ear. "it's so cute- OH MY GOD-"

the cat yawned adorably - or at least that wad what it looked like at first. it's jaw kept expanding, revealing rows and rows of sharp teeth and allowing a foul smell to waft out. you scrambled backwards, falling into edwin. from his pocket, he pulled out another volume you recognised as the spell book. in quick successesion, he muttered a spell at the cat and reduced it to ashes. panting, you tried to catch your breath and calm your speeding heart (which had sped up much quicker at observing edwin's efficiency as he protected you).

edwin looked at you accusingly, a wordless reprimand in the way his eyebrows were raised.

you grimaced. "it was a kitty cat?" you tried.

he snapped the spellbook shut. "after the fiasco with the cat king, i thought you'd be more wary."

"well, i'm sorry that the cats i've encountered aren't usually magical!" you exclaimed. “and besides, we solved the mystery - go team!” you cheered and lifted a hand for a high five.

he rolled his eyes, tugging you along by your raised hand. leaning in to his side, you smiled at him. "thanks for saving me, edwin."

"yes, yes," he said nonchalantly, even as he bit back a smile.

you kissed him. "my knight in shining armour," you cooed.

⌦ --

"it's not my fault i don't have as much experience with the spooky industry as you do," you pointed out, shrugging. "and besides, it's hot when you protect me."

a blush rose to edwin's face as he spluttered. "you cannot just say things like that!"

oblivious to edwin's state of embarrassment, you diverted your attention to a baby passing by in a stroller and waved at it excitedmy. "you two made such a cute kid!" you told the parents. if they looked at you a bit strangely at your choice of wording, you didn't notice.

edwin put his arm around your shoulder, guiding you forward again, before you found another animal to pet or another infant to befriend.

⌦ --

the bell to the butcher shop jingled as you burst through the door, edwin trailing after you. you were balancing a cardboard tray of four coffee cups in your hand, having generously offered to go on a drink run for jenny, crystal, and niko.

"hi, jenny!" you called. "i'm back with my ghost boyfriend!"

jenny slammed her cleaver down on the chopping board, an exasperated expression on her face, as the customer at the counter turned to you questioningly.

"oops." you winced apologetically. "uhh. no ghost boyfriend here! he's, uh definitely not real.. and not hissing at me about subtlety..." you inched closer to the counter, setting down jenny's black coffee cup. "okay, it was nice meeting you, stranger! i like your jacket, and i totally don't have a ghost boyfriend! bye!" you waved to the stranger as you disappeared up the stairs. "see you later jenny!"

edwin followed you into your room, looking at you in half bemusement, half disbelief. "while i am a ghost and cannot suffer from such conditions," he began. "it does feel like i go into cardiac arrest every time i have to keep you out of trouble."

"yeahh, but you looove me," you sing-songed.

he smiled. "i do.”

[novelmonger]

Finally got around to watching Wish (mainly so I could form my own opinions about it), so I want to lock in my own opinions before I go look at all the criticisms of it I've been saving up since it came out :P

Overall, it was...fine? Not spectacularly good, not spectacularly bad. Kinda forgettable and pathetic for what was supposed to be Disney's "look at us we've been making animated movies for 100 years," but I've certainly seen worse from this studio.

As always, no matter what else I think of the movie, Disney always delivers on quality animation. Nothing groundbreaking, but I did like how it kind of looked 2D sometimes even though it was clearly all 3D though Klaus did it way better.

That being said, why did it look so much like Tangled? I don't just mean the palette-swap Disney seems to be using for every "princess"-like character these days, with the big eyes and the same basic facial structure. I mean that even the color scheme of purple and gold was the same. I loved Asha's hair, but the way it fell looked an awful lot like Rapunzel's sometimes (though obviously much shorter). Even some of her movements just looked like they recycled the animation from Tangled.

The songs were actually kinda catchy, though I didn't like the "You're a Star" song or whatever it's called. Best song by far was the duet with Asha and the villain. Also, I was expecting there to be more songs.

I'm sure everyone and their brother has already talked about this, but the villain felt lazily handled. His sudden descent into evil was too abrupt and too...all-encompassing? I could kind of see where they could have gone with him, someone with genuinely good intentions who takes it too far and decides the ends justify the means. But they made him too selfish and "mwahaha power!" so he just ended up boring.

The message that "if you dabble in forbidden magic even once, you're giving yourself to it for all eternity" was a surprisingly dark one for Disney, and not one I agree with at all. I would have much preferred to see even the tiniest smidge of a redemption for him. He can still get thrown in the dungeon at the end! But they had this whole scene about another character being forgiven for his actions in the movie, so why is the villain beyond redemption?

I get that this is a kids' movie, and I don't exactly expect a hard magic system from Disney, but how on earth does the star magic even work?! If everybody's a star, why does wishing on the stars in the sky work differently than just making a wish to yourself? Clearly the star has significant magic power, but if everybody has that power within them already, why does Asha need a magic wand to do things with it? How does everybody still have star power inside them if their wishes have been taken away or destroyed? I don't need everything about magic in any given story explained to me in scientific detail, but everything about the magic in this movie felt so arbitrary and convenient.

I'm sure I'm not the first person to point out that each one of Asha's friends corresponds to one of the seven Dwarves. I was patting myself on the back for figuring that out for myself, because I usually don't notice Easter eggs like that without someone pointing them out, but then they made it totally obvious at the end anyway -_-

I really wish the animals didn't start talking. Normally, I don't mind that in Disney movies; I kind of expect it, even. But every word that passed through Valentino's lips made me want to kick a baby goat. Not a pleasant experience.

You know, I just realized I think the only time I laughed in the whole movie was that moment when they open the door and see the chickens having a dance party. I usually have more fun with Disney movies, but there were too many times in this movie where it felt like they were trying too hard to be funny, and just ended up being kind of cringe. (Contrast that to Tangled, which still leaves me splitting my sides every time I watch it!)

What was Asha's mother's wish?! I kept waiting for them to show it, and started to think it was going to be something super important to the plot or something...but no. Just left a mystery forever.

The star was very cute.

I liked the pictures of all the animated movies in the credits. That was a nice glance back through the past hundred years. But did I blink and miss it, or did they leave off Meet the Robinsons and The Wild? I don't like either of those movies, but...weren't they Disney?!

[zalrb]

boundaries {elena/stefan/katherine fic pt. 5}

Link to part 1: https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/707929608286240768/toxic-elenastefankatherine-fic

Link to part 2: https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/709460774203064320/valentines-day-elenastefankatherine-fic-pt-2

Link to part 3: https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/709838031967879168/choices-elenastefankatherine-fic-pt-3

Link to part 4: https://zalrb.tumblr.com/post/710274615200628736/blood-elenastefankatherine-fic-pt-4

I overhyped the darkness so y’all could be chill ;)

Damon was already considerably drunk when he stumbled into The Grill.

“Four scotches, barkeep.”

Matt looked at him. “I can’t serve anyone who comes into the bar drunk.”

Damon shrugged, his words slurring. “Then make an exception.”

“No,” said Matt flatly.

“Look, me and Elena are taking a,” he made a gesture with his hand, “a little bit of a break, you do not want to fuck with me right now, Donovan.”

Matt continued to look at him. Damon rolled his eyes.

“Don’t confuse the fact that I asked you nicely with an inability to force you to do what I want.”

Matt sighed. “I’m on vervain, Damon. You can’t compel me.”

“Who said anything about compel?”

Quickly, Damon reached forward and grabbed Matt’s wrist, wringing it and making Matt twist in an impossible direction.

“You know I could break this right off?”

Matt gritted his teeth to keep from crying out in pain.

Damon laughed. “It’s a good thing you didn’t actually end up having sex with Katherine because she’d fucking … destroy you.”

Matt was wincing in pain. “Yeah, Stefan filled me in.”

Damon scoffed. “Stefan.” He shook his head. “No, he meant emotionally, which, yeah, she twists men up, completely fucks with their heads and then just pfft, discards them, like … old chicken bones until you’re drinking and feeding and fucking away your pain with barely legal college girls.”

“But I mean physically. You couldn’t handle her. You may’ve bagged Rebekah and believe you me, you didn’t get the full Mikaelson experience. Come to think of it, you didn’t get the full Gilbert experience either. Elena … she … oof, she’s got muscles now that you couldn’t even dream of…” Matt grimaced. “But Katherine…” Damon shook his head. “She would’ve been so bored with your white bread humanness.”  

“You were with her when you were human.”

“Yeah, but you’re not just a human, Matt, you’re basically cardboard. I, at least, had a personality.” He reached over the bar to grab a bottle. “You, oh bus-boy-slash-bartender extraordinaire, are nothing but a stepping stool, the guy a girl forgets to put on her list of exes because you’re so fucking forgettable.”

“Not what she said,” said Matt, his breathing shallow.

Damon paused and then smiled maniacally. “Come on, you’ve gotta know she was just getting in your head because that’s what she does, she doesn’t actually mean any of it, you’re stupid but you’re not dumb. In fact, you know Katherine only went to you because she tried to get to me first and couldn’t.”

“Who are you trying to convince, Damon, me or yourself?”

He twisted Matt’s arm even further. Matt groaned in pain. “She probably would’ve compelled you to do it the way she likes.”

Suddenly, Damon was pushed to the side, falling onto the floor.

“Goddammit, Stefan,” said Damon.

Matt held onto his wrist.

Stefan looked at Matt. “You OK?”

“I don’t think he broke my wrist.”

Stefan turned to Damon. “What the hell is the matter with you?”

“Oh relax, a bit of a blood and he’ll be as good as new,” he said as he got off the floor.

“Fuck your blood, I’ll go to the hospital.”

Damon looked drunkenly at Stefan. “He has to be one of their most frequent patients, they should give out miles for valued customers.

Stefan glared at him. “Shut up, Damon.”

“Thank God Elena came to her senses and dumped his ass.” He headed into the back room.

“Don’t look so fucking surprised,” said Damon, looking at Stefan’s face. “I mean, you’re the one who caused it! Katherine, Stefan? Really? You just had to go and fuck Katherine?” He pushed Stefan who staggered a bit.

“It’s just so typical too, isn’t it? You sent the bitch to hell and she still wants you, she’ll still blow up everything for you.”

“What are you mad about, Damon? Are you mad that I’m sleeping with Katherine or are you mad that Elena has a problem with it?”

“You knew it would mess with her head! You knew she would get jealous!”

Stefan shook his head. “Go home, sober up, talk to me when you’re thinking straight.”

“You could’ve been with anyone and you chose the woman who tried to steal her life, who tried to steal you, like you have no boundaries.”

Stefan reacted instinctively, grabbing Damon by the front of his shirt.

“Boundaries?” he said. “Boundaries? Like when I saved you from a burning building and you kissed Elena right after?”

“Well, Katherine, technically.”

“Like when I practically sold my soul to save you from Klaus and you used every opportunity I was gone to get closer to her?”

“I never made a move.”

“No, you waited until I got back.”

“Seemed less sleazy.”

Stefan actively did his best to calm himself down. “You say anything about boundaries to me ever again, I will kill you.”

Damon looked at him blearily. “You did this to get back at us. You knew this would destroy us.”

“I didn’t realize your relationship was so shaky that its survival was dependent on my continued abstinence.”

“Fuck off, you knew,” said Damon. “If I knew, then you knew.”

“This has nothing to do with Elena and it sure as hell has nothing to do with you, Damon. You put yourself in my relationships, I’ve never asked you to be there.”  

Stefan roughly let go of Damon, pushing him away so that he collapsed onto the bar.

*

 Stefan made it to Whitmore in record time, cutting through the campus with a dedicated focus, his sense of purpose making his stride brisk. When he made it to Elena’s dorm, he didn’t bother knocking and wrenched open the door, storming into the room.

“Why?”

Elena was one the phone. She glanced at him and then continued her message.

 “Look, I already left a message for Bonnie, so Caroline, when you get this, call me back. I’m sorry, OK?”

She hung up, tossing her cell phone on the desk, and then looked up to Stefan, not even slightly surprised. “Stefan...”

“Why did you break up with him?” he insisted.

Elena got up from the desk. “I did it for him. How I’m acting, how I’m feeling, it’s not fair.”

           “But it was fair to me? You couldn’t walk away from me? I had to be the one to end it?”

Elena put her hand to her face. “Stefan, I was never going to break up with you—”

Stefan suddenly looked brittle. “What?”

“I—” she paused, collecting her thoughts, trying to speak clearly. “Everything was heightened, you know that. The attraction with him was intense, you know that too, but—” she pressed her lips together, “that never made me want to leave you for him.”

He stared at her, unable to form any coherent thoughts. “No,” he said finally. “No, that’s not true.”

“You said you couldn’t do it anymore and I understood that. Who asks their boyfriend to stay when they’re having … intense feelings about someone else? But I wasn’t choosing him over you, I was telling you what was going on with me.”

He couldn’t be hearing this; he was not hearing this. “But you did choose him! I sat in the other room and listened to you choose him! I could repeat what you said to him right now, word for word!”

“Stefan—”

“‘In death you were the one who made me feel the most alive’—”

“And it felt that way! I’m not— I can’t—” she sighed.

“It’s complicated, OK? I had to find out if what me and him had was real or else I would’ve always wondered—”

“And now? What do you expect to happen now?”

Elena opened and closed her mouth and Stefan looked at her dejectedly. It wasn’t an easy question, he knew that, especially not thrown to her in such a way, but giving her the benefit of the doubt would only breed confusion and more pain, it would send him and Damon and everyone spiralling. He was going to be decisive.

“Get back together with Damon.”

Elena blinked at him. “It’s not really up to you.”

“This is about how you react when you see me with Katherine,” he said. “But what you’re feeling is just territorial. Phantom feelings. It’ll pass.”

She looked at him, wounded and horrified. “Why are you saying this?”

“You don’t want me, Elena,” he said.

“Stop it,” she said.

“You just don’t want me with anybody else.”

“Stop. This isn’t you.”

“I’m your safety net, your sure thing, and you think it’s being taken away from—”

She slapped him. The action surprised her as much as it did him. Her hand stung. The sound of the impact still ringing in the air.

“If that’s how you really feel, you can go to hell.”

Stefan sighed heavily, committed to his cause.

“We met. We fell in love. It was epic. And now it’s done. This,” he gestured between him and Elena. “Whatever this lingering … this …” He breathed heavily. “It’s done. We’re done.”

Elena nodded angrily. “Done.”

“Yeah,” he said.

“Yeah,” she agreed. “Finally.”

He looked at her. “Finally.”

And then he left.

*

The lights were off in the apartment when Katherine walked in with shopping bags hanging from both arms. She walked into the living room, past the armchair and put them down on the couch.

“Hope you’re not trying to sneak up on me, Stefan,” she said.

He was sitting in the armchair, a stake on his lap. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

She turned to look at the serious expression on his face. After Elena’s, he didn’t go back to the Boarding House to mull things over or the woods to channel his turmoil into physical exertion, like he’d thought he would, he found himself outside of Katherine’s apartment wanting to kill her and wanting to lose himself in her.

“So, why are you here sitting in the dark by your lonesome?”

He ran his thumb over his lower lip. “In one day, you caused friction between Elena, Caroline and Bonnie, made Matt your boytoy, broke up Elena and Damon’s relationship, got Damon quasi-obsessed with you again, caused a fight with me and Damon, caused a fight with me and Elena, and you barely lifted a finger.”

Katherine raised her eyebrows as he got up and walked over to her, twirling the stake in his hand.

“Can’t say you’ve lost your touch,” he continued.

“Really, it was nothing,” she said.

“I should’ve let Elena beat the shit out of you.”

“She was never going to win that fight.”

“I should’ve helped her then.”

He was only a few feet away from her now. Katherine could see the fury in the way he clenched his jaw, the hardness of his eyes, the way it was like he marbleized into a statue.

And it was so, deliciously, hot.

“You seem a tad angry, Stefan.”

“I don’t like threats to the people I care about,” he said slowly.

“Except for when I make them,” said Katherine, twirling her hair. “Expect for when it’s me tearing apart everything you love to get to you.”

He was only inches away from her now and could feel the current between them, the charge that sucked him in and brought forth the thoughts he battled back, not the indulgence, not the excess, just the spite and the hatred and the hunger and the desire. And he was in the right frame of mind to plunge into it all.

“So, I’m curious,” he said, his eyes searching hers. “What wouldn’t you do for me? Where is your line?”

Katherine grinned. “Lines aren’t particularly fun, Stefan, now are they?”

He raised his eyebrows. “So, you’re saying you’d do anything.”

She looked up at him through her eyelashes, the sultriness of her expression his confirmation.

“You’d let me kill you?” He lifted the stake, putting it to her throat. She didn’t answer right away and just looked from it back up to him.

“You always say you’re going to kill me.”

“No, not like that.” He lowered the stake, put the tip against Katherine’s chest. “If I told you the one thing you could do that would make my feelings real, even for a moment, is die,” he pressed the tip into her skin. Her breath hitched. “Would you do it?”

He applied a bit more pressure. “Katherine, the survivor…”

He grazed the tip of the stake across her chest closer to heart, pressing it even harder into her. She winced in pain but gasped in an excitement she hadn’t felt before, refusing to look away from his gaze. Incrementally, he increased the pressure, slowly pushing it deeper into her.

She spoke through gritted teeth. “I’d beg you to spare me.”

“What if…” He removed the stake from her chest, making her sigh in relief now that the sharpness had stopped, and he slipped his free hand beneath her waistband, between her thighs, and she felt herself tighten and coil, arcing her hips, pressing her pulsing ache against his circling finger.

He rubbed faster and faster and she grinded against the movement as her muscles clenched and a pressure started to build, making her quake — her legs were starting to feel like jelly —

Stefan stopped. She made an urgent noise, a wordless plea to keep going, as her eyes widened in furious arousal. He didn’t speak until she was relaxed, her heated excitement ebbed.

“What if I’d only keep going if you asked for this?”

           He lowered his eyes back toward the stake and Katherine felt a dangerous thrill, an eagerness to bind her to him in a way Elena never could or would and that urged her to give a slight nod.

He pressed the stake into her again and she hissed at the soreness of it, and then he continued to stroke her, slowly this time, so that her hiss became a moan,

 and he watched in a kind of awe, as pain and pleasure battled across Katherine’s face, gasping as she gasped, his mouth dropping open as hers did, his own heated excitement throbbing.  

It wasn’t about causing her harm, it was that she allowed him to cause it, she relinquished herself to him, enduring pain for the pleasure she only wanted him to give her. Truthfully, he’d known the effect he had since she’d allowed herself to be chained and tortured for information for a half a day simply to spend time with him, but he’d never allowed himself to feel anything other than exasperation and a certain kind of fear toward having such control. Now, he found himself wanting more and more of it, wanting to test the limits and boundaries, wanting to see if and when she’d enforce any.

Katherine could see his readiness straining against the confines of his pants and reached to undo his fly but he pressed the stake harder and she yelped.

“I never said you could touch me.”

She made a noise of frustration, moving her hands away. She wanted him, he knew that, but he wanted her to ache for him, he wanted her desperate and wretched. He stopped touching her and guided her hand so she could touch herself instead.

“I prefer when it’s your hand.”

“I didn’t ask what you preferred.”

The command in his voice caused a reaction in her body that just made her want him more.

More than anything, Katherine wanted to push him to the floor and envelop him, ride him to submission, own him, but she did what he told her to and imagined his hand while she pleasured herself, as he slipped his fingers into her mouth, letting her taste herself on his skin, as he pressed the stake even deeper into her and she was helpless and wanting against the wall, torn between pain and pleasure, indulging in his new enthusiasm for their game. When the blood dripped from the wound, he withdrew the stake once again and lapped the blood, making her squeal and bite down on the pad of his fingers.

And then he directed her to take off her clothes, and when she did, they were suddenly on the floor, his clothes still on, his pants unzipped. Facing forward, she’d lowered herself on him with a moan and started to sway, he grunted, about to fall away to wanton bliss, and then ---

“Who said you could move?” His voice was hoarse but still retained that command.

           She stopped and steadied herself on him. The fullness of him ignited this need, this wriggling, squirming, desperate need to move but she stayed still, clenching around him with the goal to make him mad with lust and while she could feel his desire intensify within her, he made no sound of struggle. Stefan wondered if he would pierce a hole through his own lip with how hard he bit down to keep from groaning. He was desperate to move, but he wanted her to wait more, glad he wasn’t on top since he didn’t know if he’d be able to stop himself from thrusting if he were.

Each time she couldn’t help but move her hips, he would pull on her hair, her curls wrapped around his hand, and her head would shoot up toward the ceiling, yanked further and further back until finally it was raised up in a sharp, awkward position. Her desire, ripe and aching, radiated into Stefan and the knowledge that she was denying herself for his benefit almost set him over the edge. He watched as her toes curled in an effort to keep herself from swaying and flexed slightly, giving just enough stimulation to cry out but not enough to satisfy her, and did it just enough times to drive her mad with lust until she was a panting mess.

The switch was quick.

He had her beneath him, his hands pinning both of her wrists, thrusting into her, deep and hard, his rhythm relentless and untiring until she was dripping sweat, her legs trembling and shaking around him, squeezing him, trapping him, and she moaned, her voice breathless and raw, over and over ‘just don’t stop’ like a mantra that then started to sound like one continuous word that then started to sound like no language at all, just sounds as she jumped and clenched and around him. He knew she was close —

“Not until I say so.”

           She whined loudly, almost cried, in a plea that only made him push her further and further with each stroke, and she fought to keep herself just at the brink and not over it, her body taut and wired and screaming for a release he wouldn’t give her, until she was begging unintelligibly, sobbing with unadulterated need. Stefan’s eyes were alight with a victorious kind of swagger

as her sounds, her thoughts were now only responses to his movements.

He held her gaze. “Now.”

She shuddered violently, releasing with a scream he was sure the entire floor could hear, tremors rolling through her body in crashing waves of gratification that caused her to rake his back with her nails, slam holes into her living room floor, and he rolled off to the side, watching her breathe and laugh and hazily crest the aftershocks.

Katherine turned to hold him but he was already standing up, buckling his belt.

She sat up, annoyed.

“You have to have your turn.”

“No.”

The pains of his unfulfilled desire were only outmatched by the triumph of his prowess. Leaving like this would drive her crazy and that was all the satisfaction he needed tonight. He walked to the door but then she had him in the foyer, positioning him in front of the mirror so he was unable to escape the visual proof of his own enjoyment as she claimed him,

arcing him forward until he was ready to burst, milking him of all of his lust, making him throw out his hand and shatter the glass of the mirror, his knees buckling as he called out for a higher power that Katherine was sure to make her own name soon.

She looked at him, satisfied and smug, the scales tipped back toward her, and then walked away, heading to the bathroom to put on a robe.

 A part of him wanted to get back at her immediately but he wouldn’t say the night. He’d refuse her that at least. It would piss her off — his resistance to keep going, to please her and have her please him for hours on end after what she’d just made him experience. She’d wonder about it. It was his turn to smirk. He gathered himself and then left without a word but stopped in the hallway just outside the door.

Elena.

She was leaning against the wall across from the apartment, her eyes lowered, her expression raw.

Stefan felt the ground shift beneath his feet.

“Please don’t tell me you’ve been out here the entire time.”

She only looked up at him, teary-eyed, but the devastation in that simple motion was all the answer he needed,

the confirmation a lance through his chest.

He could only exhale, anguished and overwhelmed. “Elena—”

“It’s not going to work,” she cut him off, her voice thick.

He swallowed hard. “What isn’t?”

“You can’t make me hate you.”

“I’m not trying—”

“You are, that’s why you said what you said at my dorm, and it’s not going to work,” she repeated. “It’s not possible.” She looked him in the eye, daring him to look away from her.

“You left me crying on a bridge in the middle of the night—" Stefan’s face crumpled slightly at the memory “— and I couldn’t hate you then.”

“I couldn’t hate you when I saw those lists of names in that closet. I couldn’t hate you after everything that happened with Klaus. Because I know you. Like how you know me. I know who you are, who you’ve always been, who you’ll always be.”

 “Damon never changed that, and” — she nearly choked on the name— “Katherine doesn’t get to change that either. You don’t get to change that. It’s us.”

Stefan could barely breathe. “Why are you here?”

“Everyone always thought it was Damon,” she muttered. “I even thought it was Damon.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The one I couldn’t help but love, couldn’t help but want, because he got under my skin, because he’d consume me every time I was with him, right? Couldn’t shake him even after everything he’d done, just this nagging curiosity that became something else, something more than I ever thought it would become.”

Stefan’s voice was barely a whisper. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because it’s you. It’s actually you,” said Elena, nodding. “who I can’t get rid of. Who I can’t help but turn to, who I can’t help but trust, who I can’t help but think about during the summer of dreams, who I can’t help but compare every relationship I have to, who I can’t help but fight for, who I always keep with me. It’s you.”

“You are a part of me and I’m realizing that in a whole new way now.”

“Elena, why are you he---”

“I don’t know why I’m here, I’m just here. That’s my point, Stefan. I had to be here because you were here. With her. You had to see me here.”

Stefan stared at her, at a loss. “I never did this to you.”

“Yeah, Caroline said the same thing.”

“I left my house. I left my town—”

“I know,” said Elena.

“So then why are you doing this to me?”

“Because throwing tables wasn’t enough. I’m not as stoic as you.”

“I know that you’re not doing this to hurt me—”

“Good.”

“But this is what you want? Really?”

Stefan didn’t say anything right away. “Right now, yes.”

Elena’s lips trembled. “This is what makes you happy?”

“I never said that.”

“Then why—”

“You don’t get to ask me that. You can’t ask me that.”

She walked up to him, holding his face in her hands, pressing her forehead against his, and he exhaled like he’d just remembered how to breathe, just remembered what respite felt like.

They stayed like that, drinking each other in, and then the door flew open, Katherine appearing.

           For a second, no one said or did anything and then Katherine had Stefan slammed against the opposite wall, her face contorted in rage.

“All she has to do is show up with tears and regret and that’s all it takes? She’s redeemed?”

“Katherine, it’s—”

           Elena pushed her away. “Don’t touch him!”

           “Elena, don’t—”

           But it was too late. They charged at each other. Katherine threw her against the wall, the impact leaving a dent. The collision left Elena disoriented for a second but her anger focused her into getting up, speeding toward her and snapping her hand back, eliciting a shriek.

Katherine used her other hand to grab Elena by the back of the neck and ram her face first into the floor, flipped her over, then crushed Elena’s windpipe with her foot.

Stefan rushed forward and grabbed a hold of Katherine, moving her away from Elena. He had her in his grip, shaking her.

“STOP.”

They glared at each other, breathing heavily. Elena saw how angry he was because of how scared he was for her, but she also saw the heat between them, a heat that could and would have easily turned to passion if their argument was about anything other than Katherine nearly hurting her,

and before she knew what she was doing, she launched herself at Katherine again.

Stefan found his way between them and stood there, trying to keep them apart but they both clawed at him, trying to get to each other. Katherine had Elena’s hair and pulled at it like it could detach from her scalp, making her yell. And then suddenly a shriek. Elena was on the floor, a wooden stake in her leg.

Quickly, Stefan pulled the stake out of and she screamed in momentary pain. He looked around frantically for the threat to find a shell-shocked Damon at the end of the hall, holding a crossbow, looking from Elena to Katherine and back again. “I thought — I thought—”

Katherine started cackling and Stefan gestured in both exasperation and anger. “DAMON. WHAT THE HELL?”

[musicjam10]

Rubber Soul, The Beatles, 3. December 1965.

Before I say anything, this album was the first album that I ever purchased. It had been my favourite for many years, and it began my years-long obsession with The Beatles. So no matter what my opinion is on it, it has a special place in my heart, and without it, there wouldn't be MJ.10 today.

That said, looking at it today, I couldn't disagree more with my younger self. I don't enjoy it that much and find myself skipping its songs whenever I'm trying to listen to The Beatles.

It's a bit forgettable. I don't consider it the big influence as many people would give it; for me, it's just another eraly Beatles album that just replaces suited-up 60s pop with sitare singing clean hippys. Use any Beatles song before this album; give it a late 1970s-type beat, and you'll get a Rubber Soul song.

That said, they wouldn't be The Beatles if they hadn't had a pearl or two in this sea of seaweed.

The song I find that saves this album (at least for me, now) is Girl. The song is dark and hard-hitting, in a way that is serious but emotional. With every word sung, you feel charmed. It's like the singer is singing straight to you, but the things he's saying are painful. The airy breaths and hard guitar beats only enhance the experience. I can wholeheartedly call this the best Beatles ballad.

In My Life and Looking Through You,  are songs that had the most potential but ended up failing because of their upbeat instrumentals. Thankfully, In My Life has a gorgeous cover from Johnny Cash that I think gives the song the justice that it deserves.

Other mentionable songs like Norwegen Wood, Drive My Car or Nowhere Men even though important peaces of Rubber Soul fall flat and souless. They are trying to tackle meaningful topics, but with a clean filter that gets rid of the ugly parts and a sound reminiscent of their teenage years.

At the end I will say this is the transition period where The Beatles are experimenting more, especially with the sound. I'm not the biggest fan of their more experimental projects. They're just all over the place, and I don't know what to even say about them.

I would give it a: It's complicated. I would go and try a song or two from it just because of it, but don't expect much. The whole middle era of the Beatles is easily skippable, but at the end of the day, it mostly depends on the person listening to it.

If you found my review worth discussing in any way, I'm happy to do so.

Yours trully,

MJ.10.

[ifuckinglovedinosaurssomuchjesus]

GODZILLA MOVIE MARATHON: Godzilla vs Gigan (1972)

We're really in the thick of it now, neck deep in the Champion series where budgets barely covered the catering bill, and god can you feel it.

The human element is laughably bad, another Goji movie to throw to the pile of forgettable plots meant just to be fast forwarded through. It's another alien invasion, directly meant to just rip off Invasion of Astro Monster, but this time the aliens don't even have cool costumes or flying saucers. It's like a sitcom, the entire movie takes place on, like, four sets. There's half a dozen aliens here attempting to take over the world, it's really not all that threatening or engaging. The whole movie has the energy of one of those cheap Hanna-Barbera cartoon episodes stretched to an hour. It's remarkably boring.

At least we get some good Kaiju scenes, right? Only if you like most of their runtime being stock footage with this horrible tint put over the top to try and make it look like night to match the original scenes. It's painful, genuinely.

The saving grace is our good man Gigan, though I argue most people know and love him from the next movie after this. Not only does he have a striking and unique design, but he has some great characterization, sadistically beating and taunting Godzilla and brutally slashing the good Kaiju to bits with bright red cartoon blood and everything.

It's also nice to see Anguirus again, this is the movie that turned him into "Godzilla's best buddy" that's a common characterization in the fandom. He even gets some good moments, like backwards slamming into Ghidorah with his spikes.

Speaking of Ghidorah, poor guy does not want to be here. If you cut out all the reused stock footage, Ghidorah literally does nothing but stand there. Mainly because the suit was so old and required so many people to move it that the budget didn't allow it to do much. Still, him just standing in the sidelines, refusing to help Gigan is hilarious. I love when Gigan tries to do a little claw slap but Ghidorah just ignores him and when they start arguing right in the middle of the fight. It all comes across as Gigan thinking they're closer friends than they actually are, it's genuinely funny.

So, this movie should sit around the same score as the others of its type right? Bad human plot but fun monster action usually comes out as mid, but I genuinely can't even give it that. The monster scenes in this movie are mostly boring too, they're so full of stock footage and awkwardly shot that I just ended up zoning out. The most fun I had while watching this movie was when my recliner fell over.

It's just bad, there's some good moments here and there but it's a tiny fraction of what's mainly a boring as tar experience. It gets a 3/10 from me, but luckily I don't think the series will reach a low this bad for at least a couple decades, so it's uphill from here.

[adamwatchesmovies]

Happily N'Ever After 2: Snow White—Another Bite @ the Apple (2009)

While I didn't enjoy this film, that doesn't mean you won't. No matter what I say, the people involved in this project did it: they actually made a movie. That's something to be applauded. With that established...

I never thought I’d see a movie that would have me looking back fondly at Happily N’Ever After but here I am, wondering if the original really was THAT bad. Yes, it was but this direct-to-DVD follow-up is even worse.

After her mother dies, Snow White (voiced by Helen Niedwick) grows up spoiled, caring only for the fame and fortune of royalty. The kingdom’s chances of a “happily ever after” ending is in danger when Mambo (Jim Sullivan) and Munk (Kirk Thornton) accidentally tip the scales of good and evil and give Lady Vain (Cindy Robinson) - who hates Snow White - the means to seduce now-widowed King Cole (Kelly Brewster) and become queen herself. Banished from the kingdom through Vain’s machinations, Snow White must learn kindness to save her home and people.

This is one of the worst-looking movies I’ve ever seen. People sometimes joke about first-generation computer imagery looking like something out of a video game but this time, no one is exaggerating. Every character is stiff, lifeless, and moves around like a cloud. The backgrounds are missing textures, objects seem misaligned, and everything is generally ugly. When characters speak, their mouths are stretched in any which direction. - You’ve seen better lip-synch from one of those rubber talking fishes hanging on the wall. It’s an eye-sore to watch and the experience is made worse by the garbage story.

You’ll notice none of the voice actors from the original film return. It's the same for the characters. Only the dwarves, the fairy godmother and both Mumbo & Munk make an appearance. Those last two add so little to the story they should’ve been cut. They weren't because this would’ve made this sequel even more tenuously tied to the 2006 Shrek wannabe and it would’ve also slashed precious minutes from the 70-minute running time. Even at barely over an hour, this feels like an eternity.

The jokes are never, ever funny, the dialogue inane and the plot lazy. The songs are so bland and forgettable you’re likely to fall asleep (if only you could). There isn’t an ounce of inspiration to be found anywhere. Happily N'Ever After 2 is inexcusably lazy and takes every shortcut possible. I can’t imagine anyone was clamoring for this sequel considering what the first one was like so this can’t even be something that was green-lit by some misguided fans. Happily N’Ever After 2 was spawned by an accountant; a bean counter who figured out the company could make X profits if they made a sequel that cost less than Y. It’s a disgrace.

If Happily N’Ever After was to Shrek what vegan spaghetti and meatballs is to regular spaghetti and meatballs, then Happily N'Ever After 2: Snow White—Another Bite @ the Apple is a collection of dog turds squeezed through some Play-Doh moulds to look like food. I can’t imagine anyone enjoying it. The ones who worked on this should be ashamed of themselves. (On DVD, March 22, 2019)

[anotherescsite]

Eurovision 2024. Hmmm

I usually take my time to contemplate the contest. This year, I'm took longer than usual. I wrote the below document months ago, but never had the will to send it into the Tumblr world.

Things have happened, people have said things, people aged and I got Covid for the first time. But the lingering thought of Eurovision 2024 is still there. While it feels very real and very raw now, that booing, Bambie, Joost and the Martin thing etc will most likely be forgotten by viewer and except for Eurovision tragic like myself. I'm not going to focus on that stuff.

Let's start from the beginning. The Eurovision of 2024 was held in Malmo Sweden for the second time following Loreen's win. Sweden have said that they have won the Eurovision seven times numerous times and while there was a shine and a sparkle, there were disappointments and corners cut which annoyed me.

Postcards recorded on mobile phones. How is that a good experience for a viewer? Some were fine, others were posing, others may have never seen a mobile telephone in their life. People spend too much time taking selfies and filming themselves being dumb and this encourages it (until they walk into the traffic and are placed in traction).

The stage. Clever and interesting stage which had great screens everywhere. Conspiracy theorists would have said that the stage design told us the winner would be Switzerland (a big cross) from the beginning and saved us 9 hours. Most of it was highly under-utilised and some acts went everywhere and made their stage look messy.

The interval acts. I feel a bit annoyed by the return of former artists singing the same songs. Kudos to Benjamin Ingrosso for singing new material. Otherwise, repeat performances from Eleni Foureira, Eric Saade, Chanel, Charlotte Nielson, Helena Paparizou, and Sertab Ererer. The performance from Loreen in a convoluted chair was the worst. I didn't even realise she had moved from her new song to Tattoo because she was mumbling so much. We got another humorous song from Petra, but how many versions of the same song can you have? Which brings us to...

The Hosts. They were an interesting choice and for me it was like watching newsreaders from Korea. Malin presenting the South Korean manner of calm and Petra somewhat aggressive, louder and shrieking of the North. Petra proved she can speak in an appropriate manner, but when the soft spoken Malin was there, Petra seemed a bit passive aggressive. The show went well with their guidance though.

Camerawork I'm not sure about this one. Either the artists/people in charge of songs were not taking advantage of the camerawork or the SVT people were all over the place. I want to put it down to inexperience of the participants, because others were very precise. I don't understand why they (the host broadcaster) do not make suggestions for a better television show.

Which brings us to the songs. A mix of diverse, buoyant, gritty, hard, soft, silly, fun, forgettable, strange, wicked and sensible which combined to create an interesting journey of music. I cannot say that all of them are to my taste. It is rare you will locate a person who would enjoy every entry in a year, and if you do, you deserve a prize.

It is officially award season on my site. Let the extensive crap shoot begin.

[zomberellaarts]

One last time….

There are so many stories I could tell and have told but really does anyone truly listen?

No….

It falls on deaf ears and to those that don't have a bit of humanity in them.

In my experience no one cares until you're dead,

Such a sad truth isn't it?

You try to reach out,

But are met with hostility or you're told, “you need to see through others they may not be doing well either so stop whining!”

There is only so much of that to be true,

But in time you know who cares and who pushes you under the rug so they don't have to deal with you.

My anxiety emotional brain wants to feel relief like i matter or mean something,

That my existence isn't a burden to the world but something people love and care about.

My soul is so broken by the people I trusted so much and cared for so dearly,

But yet I'm the forgotten soul the one no one speaks of or admits they know. 

I'm that embarrassment that no one is willing to admit they like or know. 

I wish I could be the normal people want but Im not,

I'm just that loser 

That failure

That mouth breather that shouldn't even exist.

I give so much,

I care so greatly,

I love so deeply,

And yet….

I'm still at the bottom of that food chain of sociability,

I'm that person people only take from,

I'm not worthy of peoples socialite status,

Like the fountain of youth,

I'm like the fountain of harmony,

But now that fountain is dry and no longer flowing. 

My soul dies each day,

I reach out,

But no one is there.

I post all the ‘signs’

But people ‘walk away’ from them,

My cries for help

All the signs

All ignored.

I want to die but no one cares

No one wants to admit that there is

Something wrong,

I've watched others in my place 

Who are ‘drowning’ just like me

Get saved so quickly.

I don't understand why am I so different?

Is that how it's going to be?

Am I just going to end up just being another

Statistic?

Am i going to really be that person so forgettable,

So unwanted so unloved?

Seems to be so.

Time to prepare for the dark lonely abyss im 

Going to be sucke into.

Getting ready to succumb to my thoughts eating me 

Alive inside and out,

In that cold icy air of loneliness and broken hearted light.

-7/6/2020-

[m92-fmp]

Games research

OneShot

One shot is a top own puzzle game with an amazing story and many characters whom you interact with thorough your adventure. The game has a very rare game play aspect where the game acknowledges its a game and even at points addresses the player directly. At many key intervals of the game you have to go into the game files and either discover clues or alter something to proceed the story . An interesting mechanic that breaks the 4th wall which is something the games does repeatedly. The games story has tricks the player again and again which helps me think of how to have the story of my game not be boring and make it a more interesting story.

Undertale

Undertale is a top down RPG and bullet hell where a lost child must find their way out of the world of monsters known as the Underground. The game stood out for the fact that it took into considerations that monsters had their own society too rather than being mindless and violent. It was an unique experience that lead to the game quickly rising to popularity which scared the creator so much he considered asking people to take their videos of the game down. Your actions have rewards and consequences the affect them game. Some have little effect, some give you a slightly different ending while other give you a brand new one. I want to have it so the game can have more different paths to completion that differ based on how the player reacts to certain task and actions.

Deltarune

Deltarune is a top down RPG bullet hell game just like Undertale but with a spin of new additions. The game has a neat art style and art direction compared to the visuals of its predecessor. It also has a an extremely captivating story that get the player emotionally interested in the world and characters of the game. Odd characters you wouldn't think much of at first always end up playing some role in the game so that no character is truly forgettable. The game has areas where the payer is able to take damage despite not being in a battle or cutscene. I want to have segments like this in my game where you have to risk dying to get from some place to another.

Mad father

Mad father is a top down horror adventure game with amazing story and visuals where you uncover the secrets of the mansion the Drevis families resides in. One of my favorite things in mad father is the quick time events that happen in the game where you have to press the right button combinations a number of times to save Aya. The game has a lovely story to it that is show beautifully through the art style we see in the game through the memories of Aya and other characters. The game tends to use flashbacks as a way to connect the story and explain things to the player. I could add flashbacks to my game for storytelling too.

The Witch's House MV

The Witch's House MV is a top down horror adventure game with a heavier focus on puzzles. Through out the game there are some areas that present the player with a desk where the witches diary rests. them. These diary entries have some very small summaries of parts of the The Diary of Ellen novella as various passages from the Witch's Diary are mentioned within the first few chapters. I think it would be interesting to have diary or just notes with the lore of the game scattered around thud the mansion for the player to find.

Corpse Party

Corpse party is an adventure horror game series with the first game coming out on April 22 1996. The game is know for its great storytelling and immensely disturbing imagery. The games don't shy away from gory and gross imagery and quite often, as the tittle would have you guess, encounter many deformed corpses in the game. The game presents a lot of unpleasant imagery to disgusts and discomfort the player. I could add uncomfortable imagery to throw off the player as well.

Ao Oni

Ao Oni is a survival horror game with RPG and puzzle elements. The game is one of the most influential and well known RPG maker games of all time. The game is know for its great gameplay consisting of chases and puzzles while dealing with the demons that house the abandoned building. I want to have chase sequences in my game which I could do with inspiration from the game.

Misao

Misao is a adventure horror and puzzle game. Its also made by Sen and it also appears to be a sequel to Mad Father another great RPG maker game. Despite having a rather short runtime there are many ways to reach a game over in Misao which are said to be very fun to collect as the deaths in the game are rather unique and creative. The game lets the player chose the gender for the character as either male or female who each have different moments throughout the game based on who you chose. I could make it so theirs more than one character you can choose to play with in the game.

Katana zero

Zero's abilities from chronos are precognition, the ability to slow down time and is also able to essentially rewind time when met with death. This allows the player to replay areas differently based on how enemies react to certain actions. This is one of the cool mechanic is one of the main selling points of the game such as slowing down. The problem with this is that the Chronos drug that gives him these abilities not only curses him with immortality, in the event of a chronos user dying from withdrawal they will spend eternity dying over and over again in their minds. I want to have a similar ability for one, maybe more, character in my game where they will die but come back to life and be able to remember those previous events.

OMORI

Omori is a top down pixel art psychological horror RPG where Sunny, a mute hikikomori teenage boy, and his dream world alter-ego, Omori. "SOMETHING" is considered the main antagonist of the game. Its Sunny's fears and phobia visualized in his head and it takes may forms through the game. The story of the game involving how Sunny comes to deal with his problems and how he does it is the main selling point of the game. Fears and other things we don't like being turned "real" is a concept I would like to my game as it would be interesting to play around with this concept.

[topazadine]

Gas Station Rankings

This is not an exhaustive list (unfortunately) because frankly I haven't visited every single gas station company in America. I know it will sadden people not to see Buc-ee's represented but I can't describe something I haven't experienced yet

Sheetz

Blessed Sheetz. Food is delicious, stores are always incredibly clean, always have a bunch of weird shit I don't need

Love's

Hands down the best truck stop for a very important reason: most of the locations have a dog park :) but they also have incredibly clean bathrooms and their packaged food options are great

All-Time

Met this strange man who promised me eternal youth, and when I said no, the store radio started to play "How to Save a Life" by The Fray, which was interesting. Also had really fresh pineapple fruit cups. That was years and years ago, so maybe it's changed, though?

Pilot

Not quite as good as Love's, but I have never had a poor experience here. It's just meh, though not meh enough that I don't remember visiting

QuickRide

Not bad, per se, but there was an odd animal lurking around behind the back of the store, and when I looked directly at it, I got this horrible headache before it suddenly bolted off on two legs laughing just like my PE teacher from fifth grade

Casey's

Casey's is only this high up on the list because I grew up in middle-of-nowhere Illinois so I have fond memories of here. Also their pizza is really good and simply cannot be replicated anywhere else

True North

Always only has one cashier working, and for some reason, every single location has the exact same guy working and he always greets by name and asks if I've found what I'm looking for yet. Rather ominous

7/11

Not every single one is a gas station of course, but those that are ... okay I guess

BP

Forgettable, can't ever remember going in and having any sort of experience

Vilago

Very forgettable, every time I go in I fill my tank up, then go inside to get a snack or whatever, but as soon as I pay I find myself back on the highway and don't remember even getting back in my car, and there's a strange scent in the car like burnt cinnamon that takes AGES to dissipate

Travelcenters of America

Some of them are a little sketchy and dingy, but it's not terrible, I have seen worse

Citgo

Huge differences in quality amongst different Citgos, like some do not have bathrooms and some just have packaged food and nothing else

Maverik

CREEPY! Every location I have been to has been CREEPY! Also they don't have bathrooms a lot of the time which is so annoying

Ridealong

I could have gone forever about different gas stations and their bathrooms and so on, but now that I'm thinking about Ridealong, it's all I can think about. That one experience.

I should have kept driving. I knew there was a Love's at the next exit but I really needed to go to the bathroom, and I'd also just gotten a text that I wanted to check (no texting and driving ever), so I decided to risk it.

The exterior was ... strange. It looked like it had been scavenged from a bunch of other gas stations, like the gas station overhang thing was clearly from Mobile, but a few of the pumps looked to be from a BP, though the yellow icon had been scratched off. Still kept the green sheathing though. All lit up in the middle of the night, it looked even stranger, all these discordant colors mixing into one another like a giant warning sign. If only I had listened.

The gas smelled off. I know, gas generally smells pretty bad, but it smelled ... sweet. Sickly sweet. I have no idea what leaded gasoline smelled like (am not that old) but I can't imagine it would smell like death. Yes of course gasoline is made from dead dinosaurs but this smelled like fresh death. Cloying and stinging. I had to cover my nose.

Really, this should have been a sign, but the gas was still pumping and I don't know how to shut it off, so I stood there, miserable, not wanting to get back in my car for fear of sparking - especially when the gas smelled like that.

No trash at all. Immaculate. The paving, too, was far too new, as if it had been laid yesterday. No potholes, not even a splash of gas or coolant on the ground. Though the gas pumps were clearly old and scavenged, they looked too fresh, like they'd just come from the factory. Different factories, of course, but all the same date.

I leaned in and tried to see if there was that usual sticker you see on all the gas pumps that said they were checked by some official or whatever, but I couldn't read the language. Not that it wasn't English, I just couldn't read it - like it just morphed in front of my eyes every time I tried to understand it. Maybe I really was just overtired.

Of course the sunk cost fallacy. I was already at the gas station, I might as well go in and get my potty break done because I felt like I was absolutely bursting. I'd been driving for quite a few hours and had been living off Red Bull. I couldn't even remember what state I was in, only that I was still somewhere in the Appalachians, nestled in a valley with the mountains penning us in on all sides. The air beyond the dead gas smelled cold and fresh and menacing, the pine trees indifferent to my presence, to my fears. I heard no animals, and there were no leaves on the ground.

I checked my texts but my phone was off, and I didn't remember turning it off. After all, I'd been using it for navigation the whole time, plugged into my adapter, and it should have been at 100%. I turned it back on and tried to check my texts, but was immediately hit with that obnoxious Amber Alert buzz we all hate. When I looked at the Alert, it said it was for Ohio, which I supposed made sense - it's all Ohio, right? Haha. Maybe I was just picking up what I should be getting at home.

But then I looked at it and recognized my license plate. IUY-7823. 2021 Green Honda Civic Type R. What the fuck? I certainly hadn't abducted any children - I don't even like them.

I kept reading, fingers shaking, as it described the victim. "7 year old white female, blonde hair, 3ft tall, 39 pounds."

Well, I sure as hell wasn't a 7 year old child, given that I was driving a motor vehicle. Nor had I kidnapped any kid that looked just like me when I was 7. Nor had I wanted to remember that one time with a gas station and a strange man smoking a cigarette, who told me I'd lost something and he'd help me find it. I'd run away back to my mom right away - at least I think that's what I did - now everything from that time seemed so strange and dizzy-making. I felt a little sick. I needed the bathroom really badly.

Shaking and putting my phone back into my purse, I stumbled into the door and yanked it open. It beeped, like most gas station doors do, and I didn't even notice anything as I glanced frantically for the bathroom sign. There was one, but it only showed one sign: for men. I'm not a man, but I'm a girl who really needs to pee, so I just prayed it was single stall and booked it there.

The floor felt sticky. The whole store smelled sickly. That scent of death, like a deer left to rot in a field that throws up its perfume from beyond the veil to remind us what comes for us all in the end. I thought of flies. There was an odd buzzing in my ears, deep down in them, a tinnitus I'd never had before. I prayed that some stupid song would come on the radio and drown it out, but everything was buzzing. Buzzing lights, buzzing refrigerators, buzzing flies coming for me and all that I loved.

I ran to the bathroom, but of course it was locked. Not even caring about propriety, I banged on the door and begged for whoever was in there to hurry the hell up. There was no one else there: it seemed like no one else had been there forever, though the store was perfectly clean. It was just a feeling of emptiness. The store had been there forever, in exactly the same position, with exactly the same gas, since it was copy-pasted from whatever hellish universe had spit it up.

The cashier counter was empty. Everything was empty. I couldn't prove it, but I sensed that all those containers in the aisles, all those drinks in the refigerator, had never been filled in the first place. A trap to entice tired travelers who need food and a bathroom and some sign that there is something beyond the highway hypnosis, beyond the empty roads long since drained of people this late in the night.

Finally the bathroom door opened, so slowly. The lights were off inside, and I stepped aside to let whoever was in there out, doing a potty dance like you do when you really have to go. I felt like I'd die if I didn't go within seconds.

Then the light flicked on. I remembered that face. I knew that man. That was the man from every single True North I'd ever seen. A forgettable face unless you see it dozens of times over your life, from age 7 and on, every few weeks or months or years, never changing, never growing, never doing anything but staring at you and asking if you've found what you're looking for. I can't even describe it now. Salt-and-pepper hair, brown eyes, too-large lips, and that's it. That's all I know.

He stared at me for a moment, then smiled. His teeth were off: too white for his face. Too even. Too many of them.

"Ya find what you looking for?"

Suddenly I did not need the bathroom anymore. I felt it gushing down my leggings, a long spigot of utter terror and disorientation. I stood there, drenched in my own piss, looking at him. I wasn't 7 years old anymore, and apparently he had enough manners not to smoke inside the store. But my mom wasn't here to help me. No one could save me from this man, who would certainly finish whatever he'd tried to do all those years ago.

I slipped on my own pee as I ran, but thankfully braced myself with one of the empty-packaged store displays, which went crashing down. Bright yellow bags of air burst to show no potato chips, and a box of what was meant to be Cheezits collapsed when its glue finally came free.

A trap. A trap. True North pointed to this man, this man who wanted to take me on the last Ridealong of my life.

He didn't try to grab me or anything; perhaps he knew it hadn't worked this time. Instead, he grabbed a mop and chuckled.

"Cleanup in Aisle 6."

I started laughing as I fled, that hysterical laughter you get when everything has come crashing down and you find out your whole life has been orchestrated by forces beyond your control. I slammed the door open and ran to my car, the only one resting on the perfect pavement that looked too fresh to ever be laid down. I'd locked my car, so I tried to get to my keys, but dropped my purse on the ground and shortly followed it, scrabbling and crying in my piss-drenched leggings and smeared makeup.

There were all these candy wrappers in my purse that I didn't remember putting there - I'm not really a sweets person anymore. My mom stopped buying it when I was a kid, so I grew out of it.

Finally my keys. I clicked the door open, slammed it shut, pressed the lock button six or eight times, and turned it out. I didn't even bother to check my text message that I'd wanted to see in the first place: I just floored it into reverse and then drive and got back to the highway and kept driving.

My car smelled like burnt cinnamon, so I rolled all the windows down and let it out, but it's never really gone away. I still smell it sometimes when I step into my car for a grocery trip or whatever, but Febreeze really helps.

The Amber Alerts kept coming for a good hour or so, that horrible screech over and over again. I turned on the radio to drown them out because I just wanted to forget.

When I got to the border of Ohio, they stopped abruptly, right in the middle of a buzz. Every since then, I don't get them anymore, even when everyone else does.

This store, this Ridealong, was just so wrong. And what the hell is up with that name? Who is that man? Is he a kidnapping time traveler? Am I really a woman, or am I still a little girl trapped somewhere in a gas station, eating candy to survive? I don't know what anything is anymore. I had to take a week off work, doors locked, phone off, not talking to anyone, drowning myself in booze.

It's been years now, but I still map out my trips so I avoid anywhere that may have been anywhere near that place. I've never seen another of them, though.

Anyway, 0/10 do not recommend.

[fantastickkay]

Album Review of the Week: Oh Wonder - 22 Break (2021; as shown in the 2022 double album re-issue to include 22 Make) ☆☆☆☆☆

When Josephine and Anthony of Oh Wonder went live to announce their new album, it was an incredible roller coaster of emotion!! They are one of my favorite groups and I was completely gutted when their April 2020 show was cancelled that I was to attend, left hoping for another tour in the future! (Luckily, that was resolved in May 2022) During their album announcement, they also announced that they BROKE UP during lockdown. Let me tell you, it took me 3 days to get over that - and that's with knowing they got back together and married and there was a new album coming. With that shocking news, they also detailed that their upcoming album was written and recorded while they were actively breaking up, which is definitely interesting! Finally, the album was released along with music videos for each track and we got to experience some of their best songwriting to date. This album is definitely darker than their previous work, but it is also the most artistic and emotional. I could only watch the music videos once, they did too good of a job!

The album opens with Baby, which is an almost a cappella song with some digital blips here and there. Exploring the insecurity of an unstable relationship. Sonically, I don't love this track but it is important to the story and the lyrics are vulnerable and create a backdrop for what is to come.

Things pick up a bit with Down. I love the drums and driving melody, it's bouncy yet still vulnerable with a repeating call of "am I gonna get this right?".

22 Break is the star of the show as one of the best tracks. "It takes two to break a heart" creates the synopsis of the entire project with a fantastic sound that is more of a continuation of their past sound bridging us into this latest iteration. This is certainly one of the more "sing along" and dance songs on the album.

Free is mostly forgettable if not for the brief one-word chorus with "free" stretched into five syllables which makes for a nice earworm.

Then, we get into Don't Let the Neighbourhood Hear. This song... it is absolutely incredible. It sounds gorgeous and has some of the most heart wrenching lyrics I have ever heard. I am not one for sad music at all, but this one just grips me. Every time it comes on, my heart gets ripped out and yet I keep putting it on playlists. The cry of "am I not good enough to be loved by you?" speaks to every insecurity I've ever had. Anthony gets a solo in the bridge and it is absolutely gripping. If you consume one piece of media from reading my blog, let it be the music video for this song.

Dinner is somewhat of an interlude, and it is also another major standout. I love the jazzy vibes, and just the sentiment of being pissed off at your domestic partner while still performing your obligations. Not to mention the line about trying not to be crazy, that points to such a specific time in the breakdown of a relationship.

Now that we have explored the breaking down of their relationship, we flip over to side B which highlights the attempts to reconcile. Rollercoaster Baby has some more digital blips as we saw on the beginning of side A with Baby while being much more upbeat. My favorite line is "you're going to replace all the moments we had and I just can't take it". This is paired with a crescendo of madness, almost, as the words are said which really illustrates the desperation and the reluctance to let go of this person.

Josephine has said that Love Me Now illustrates her plea to save the relationship - just love me now, come on no big deal! It is another fantastic song, and Anthony's solo at the end is really great. I love when he gets his own moments in these songs - it doesn't happen all the time!

You > Me is not a track that I love, I feel like it sounds a little squeaky which isn't all that appealing to me. I also don't love the sentiment of "I need you more than I need myself".

Kicking the Doors Down is one of the more poetic tracks (when I really concentrate on the lyrics; the older I get the harder it is to understand what people are singing! Lol) All in all, it's the track that finally sets it all down and they decide to make it work no matter what. (THANK GOD!)

Twenty Fourteen bookends the project as sort of a summary. Named after the year they began their journey together, it still has the angst and anger but a lot of hope as well.

In summary, this is one of the most gripping albums that have come out in the last 5 years for me. While I absolutely love music, it can sometimes be hard to really get into an album when there is so much music to consume from both the past and present. This is one of the standouts that kept me coming back over and over again and stood above the noise. Oh Wonder's artistry has never been more apparent than this album, it is almost like everything they have ever written was leading up to this. It's unfortunate that it took such a difficult time, but I am grateful that their "breakup" album still ended up with a reconciliation so that we may get more music in the future! We did get a companion to this one year later, but that is for another review.

[maniafixx]

The Evolution of Mobile Payments: From Contactless to Biometric Authentication

In a world where consumers are carrying wallets full of credit and debit cards, digital payments are on the rise. Mobile payment systems merge one of society’s oldest tools — money — with one of its newest — the smartphone. They offer convenience, security, and ease of use for shoppers who previously struggled with carrying wallets bulging with paper and plastic.

But while mobile payments have been on the rise, they have yet to reach widespread adoption. What’s holding back the industry? According to Bart Van Hoek, principal advisor, UL Transaction Security, a key reason is that consumer demand has been lacking. Consumers want a consistent mobile payments experience that works across devices, at any time and in any location. In addition, merchants need to upgrade their point-of-sale (POS) terminals to accept mobile payments.

To help overcome these hurdles, several companies have developed a variety of mobile payment solutions. Some are cloud-based, while others are based on hardware and integrate into the POS device. Some are independent payment technology providers, while others are backed by major hardware or retail brands. The market remains crowded, and success will largely depend on how well the solution meets four main objectives: It must be widely accepted by retailers, make transactions easier for How is Bitcoin and Tokenomics interlinked? consumers, have robust consumer protections and security, and reduce costs for merchants.

Among the most popular methods for mobile payments is the mobile wallet, which lets customers store their payment information securely on a phone and access it in-store or online. These devices can also support peer-to-peer payments, which are predicted to surge in the near future. In fact, eMarketer expects the total volume of mobile P2P payments to surpass $1 trillion by 2023.

Another way mobile wallets have been helping consumers is by giving them greater flexibility when buying online. Some ecommerce apps, including those from PayPal and Venmo, allow users to purchase products with “buy now, pay later” schemes.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a need for mobile payment services that provide secure and convenient ways to conduct business without needing face-to-face interaction. This is where on-card biometrics comes in, as they can replace forgettable and insecure PIN codes while also adding a layer of security that protects against fraud.

In addition, a new breed of wearables and other IoT devices are being designed to enable a range of biometric authentication functions that can be used for many different purposes beyond mobile payments. These include facial recognition, fingerprint scans, and iris scans. These technologies may not only improve the user experience, but could lead to an entire website technology ecosystem of interconnected devices that deliver secure and highly convenient services — even in the absence of human operators. The evolution of mobile payments will continue to be shaped by these innovations. To see more of the latest developments, attend Money 20/20 in Las Vegas, October 23-26. Register today to save your spot!

[compellingselling]

Why are there so many toothless, uninteresting ads? 

Why do you see so many ads that sell the category instead of the brand?

Because these brands have absolutely nothing unique to talk about but they still need to advertise to survive.

Search Califia’s “Calilujah” on YouTube and you’ll see an example of what I’m talking about. In a trade press article, the Califia client said they found that people were confused by the many milk alternatives available these days. So this commercial simply says, “Try ’em all. See what you like.”

Califia found a truth. But it’s a category truth. And, if someone is out to experiment with different “plant-based milk alternatives,” category leader Silk has FIVE varieties and challenger Califia has only three.

But, let’s face it. Oat milk is oat milk. If Califia doesn’t have any difference to talk about – richer taste, less calories, thicker consistency, greater commitment to sustainability – then all they could do is try to bring new people into the category and shove their brand assets in everyone’s face in an attempt to win them over.

Here’s another example: search “Kids Retirement MassMutual” on YouTube. This is a hilarious commercial inspired by the truth that parents have an ongoing, nagging awareness that they’re not doing enough to save for retirement, but daily expenses and saving for college take precedence. I know this is true because I saw similar research when I was given the same brief at another company.

It’s true. But it’s another category insight. This commercial does an excellent job driving this category insight home. It’s a fresh and fun tone for this category. But they can’t offer much in the way of a brand insight. No tangible remedies, just a promise to “feel comfortable about tomorrow.” Then they flash the woefully forgettable company name. (I had incorrectly remembered this spot being for Northwestern Mutual when I first tried to track it down.) They probably didn’t go further into the service MassMutual offers because it’s boring and undifferentiated.

One time a planner, account director, and I were looking at a brief a client sent over. On the client’s brief form, under the question, “What is the single most important thing we should communicate?” the client wrote a paragraph with about 10 things. We set up a conference call to try to to determine the single most important thing.

After some deliberation, our client answered, “We meet with people to understand their needs and come up with a customized solution to help meet their goals.”

“Isn’t that what everyone does?”

Long pause.

“Our people are really great. It’s our people that make the difference.”

“And their people are incompetent?”

Even longer pause.

So there we were. Nothing unique to talk about. Hoping our attempt at selling an entire category based on well-known category truths would still be worth putting on air.

This continues every day. Ads tell us that banks help you save for your financial goals. Beer is for good times with friends. Chocolate is an indulgent treat. Smartphones have good cameras. SUVs can drive over big rocks. Universities have labs.

For all of you who will spend your day creating ads based on a category insight because there’s nothing that makes your client’s product unique, you have my sympathies. I’ve been there.