#‘how are we going to deal with the messiness of human life?’ THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I WANT TO KNOWWW 👏!!

[yepthatsacowalright]

Esther once again articulating the the thoughts in my brain about humans and modern communication perfectly.

[jungkoode]

𝐅𝐔𝐂𝐊 𝐌𝐄 𝐔𝐏 | 11

˗ˏˋ car literature ˎˊ˗

"Halfway across the country to escape your parents' expectations, only to find their voices still echo in your head. Maybe freedom isn't about how far you run, but what you choose to hear when everything goes quiet."

next | index

⋆｡°✩ chapter details ✩°｡⋆

word count: 7.5k

content: jungkook being late, y/n offering him a ride, coffee mainsplaining, new friendships, jimin being a book nerd, jin reserving tables, professor namjoon kim having dimples and giving you a helping hand on your assignement

✧ author's note ✧

OKAY HI LOSERS!!!! Chapter 11 is here, right on schedule like the little miracle worker I am. I actually have ch11, 12, and 13 all done and ready to go but I'm sticking to my posting schedule because SOMEONE (me) knows she'll burn out at some point so you better savor this while it lasts.

Anyway, about Y/N having a car: yes, she has one because I said so and Jungkook doesn't because he's a whole-ass LOSER LMAO. I did love weaving in the reason behind the car though and connecting it to her messy complicated relationship with her parents. God I love how human she is??? Like, she's so conflicted—grateful for what they've done but suffocated by their expectations. THE COMPLEXITY. I'm obsessed with my own creation, forgive me.

I'll give Jungkook some credit here (GASP) because while he has the self-awareness of a potato, he IS observant and perceptive when he wants to be. Boy's too busy coping with humor and deflecting for his own good though. You'll see what I mean… eventually.

Also can we talk about how much I'm LIVING for Y/N and Jimin's growing friendship?? I love how Y/N makes friends for such different reasons—Yeji is the one who makes her feel like she doesn't have to have her shit figured out, Irya is the emotionally intelligent one, and Jimin?? They bond over their shared love of literature and books and isn't that just chef's kiss beautiful?

And I refuse to apologize for the text messages. REFUSE. The texts are staying because I love writing them too much. Deal with it.

FINALLY THOUGH!!! NAMJOON MAKES HIS ENTRANCE!!! MY KING!!! I've actually had him planned since chapter 3 (don't get it twisted), there are hints if you paid attention. But now he's finally here in all his dimpled glory and we love him. Jin, I understand you completely, babes.

ANYWAY. Chapter below. Enjoy bobs bobes and bobas!!!

⋆｡°✩ read on✩°｡⋆

ao3

wattpad

The sound of Jungkook stubbing his toe for the third time this morning is, objectively speaking, fucking hilarious.

You hide your smirk behind your mug, pretending to be deeply invested in your FYP as another muffled "shit—motherfucking—” echoes from his room. The apartment has been a symphony of chaos for the past fifteen minutes: doors slamming, drawers banging, what sounds suspiciously like a guitar being knocked over (followed by more creative cursing).

And okay, maybe you're a little evil for enjoying this so much. But come on. Mr. "I Pretend To Have My Life Together" finally overslept, and you get to witness the glorious fallout while calmly sipping your morning coffee. The universe gives you so few gifts. You're allowed to savor this one.

His coffee sits next to yours, made exactly the way he likes it—because yes, you've noticed how particular he is about his precious coffee routine. Two shots of espresso, a splash of oat milk (regular milk upsets his stomach, not that he's ever admitted it), and just a hint of vanilla syrup. You absolutely refuse to acknowledge how or why you've memorized this.

Something crashes in the bathroom. Griffin, lounging on the windowsill, barely twitches an ear.

"Has he always been this much of a disaster?" you ask the cat. Griffin's slow blink feels judgmental. Fair enough.

More thundering footsteps. A drawer slams so hard you feel it in your teeth. You scroll past a video of someone's cute dog, not really seeing it, too focused on tracking the hurricane that is your roommate having a morning meltdown.

"Fuck—where is my—" His voice cuts off abruptly. 

You can practically hear him running his hands through his hair, tugging—that thing he does when he's stressed.

Your phone buzzes with a text from Yeji.

𝐘𝐞𝐣𝐢🖤: 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚗 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚕𝚞𝚗𝚌𝚑?

You're typing back a quick 𝚢𝚎𝚊𝚑, 𝚞𝚜𝚞𝚊𝚕 𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚝 when Jungkook bursts into the kitchen like he's being chased. His hair is still wet from the shower, shirt only half-buttoned, and—oh. 

Oh no.

He's wearing The Jeans. 

The ones that make his thighs look like they were carved from marble. 

The ones you specifically remember clawing off him that first night, back when he was just Hot Stranger From the Bar. 

You take a very deliberate sip of coffee and absolutely do not think about that.

"Late for something?" you ask innocently, like you haven't been cataloging every crash and curse for the past quarter hour.

He whirls toward you, and for a split second, you catch him completely unguarded—flushed, disheveled, one hand still trying to button his shirt. Then his eyes narrow, landing on the coffee mug next to yours.

"Is that—"

"Just drink it, Rogue." You cut him off, rolling your eyes. "Unless you want to waste more time making your own."

The nickname slips out without permission. You blame it on the early hour, on not having enough caffeine yet. Not on how he looks with his hair still dripping, water darkening the collar of his shirt. Definitely not on how the morning light catches the silver ring on his hand when he reaches for the mug.

He takes a sip. His eyebrows shoot up.

"This is—"

"If you say 'perfect,' I'm dumping the rest down the sink."

The corner of his mouth twitches. "Actually, the extraction time on this is slightly—"

"I swear to god, if you start mansplaining coffee to me at—" you check your phone, "—eight forty-seven in the morning, I will personally ensure you never make it to wherever you're going."

"It's called sharing knowledge, Phoenix." He's already moving again, a blur of motion that somehow manages to look both graceful and completely chaotic. "And the optimal brewing temperature for espresso is—"

"Do you ever just hear yourself talk and think 'wow, I'm really like this'?"

"—between 195 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit, which you'd know if you actually paid attention when I—" He freezes mid-rant. "Wait, what time did you say it was?"

"Eight forty... eight now."

"Fuck. Fuck." He runs both hands through his hair, making it stick up even worse. "I can't be late to this one."

You can't help yourself. "Don't you skip Film Theory like, twice a week?"

"That's—that's different." He's practically vibrating now. "This is the one where we're presenting our—where the fuck is my phone?"

"The thing you set down right here when you grabbed your coffee?" You tap your fingernail against his phone, which has been sitting next to your elbow this whole time. "This phone?"

He lunges for it, and you definitely don't notice how he has to lean into your space to grab it, or how he still smells like his stupidly expensive shower gel. The screen lights up in his hand and—wait.

"Is that Griffin as your lockscreen?"

"What? No." He shoves the phone in his pocket too quickly. "It's—shut up."

"Oh my god, it totally is. Is it the one where he's sleeping in the—"

"I'm gonna be late," he cuts you off, already halfway to the bathroom. You hear him banging around, probably looking for his cologne. The one that makes him smell like rain and...

You glance at the time again. At this rate...

"Want me to take you?"

His head pokes around the bathroom door, hair falling in his eyes. There's a bit of toothpaste at the corner of his mouth that he hasn't noticed. 

"What?"

"My car?" You try to sound casual, like you're not offering to save his ass. "Unless you'd rather take the subway and definitely be late."

He stares at you like you've just started speaking in tongues. 

“You got a—" His brow furrows. "Wait, you got a car?"

"No, I'm offering you a ride on my imaginary unicorn." You roll your eyes. "Yes, I have a car. Had it for like, two weeks now. How have you not noticed?"

"I've been busy!" He disappears back into the bathroom, voice slightly muffled. "And since when do you—why would you even—who has a car in New York?"

"People who don't want to deal with the subway at 2 AM after work?" You raise your voice so he can hear you over what sounds like him knocking over every single bottle in the bathroom. "Also, time check: eight fifty-one."

"Shit." More crashing sounds. "Okay, yes, fine, please drive me, I'll never make fun of your tea collection again."

"That's a lie and we both know it."

You drop your mug gently in the sink, leaving washing for later in the day, next to his. Then grab your bag, your sunglasses too—from where they're perched on top of your head. Walk to the door and wait for Jungkook to finish spraying his perfume before he’s darting out of the tiny room and positioning himself next to you. 

Then you’re out, glasses sliding on as you lock the door. The movement is automatic, practiced—something you picked up during those long drives when the sun would hit just right and—

"Okay, Gossip Girl," he snorts, cutting into your thoughts.

"You haven't even watched Gossip Girl."

"Excuse you, I'm a man of culture." He's half-jogging to keep up with you, which is... something, considering his legs are approximately twice as long as yours. "Blair Waldorf is an icon and Chuck Bass is—wait, no, seriously." He catches up as you reach the elevator. "Why do you have a car? In New York? Who are you?"

The elevator doors slide open with their usual concerning screech. You step in, leaning against the back wall as he follows, hitting -1 with his thumb. The fluorescent lights make the shadows under his eyes more pronounced—definitely up too late gaming again.

"When I signed the lease," you say, watching the numbers tick down, "Miguel mentioned there was an unused garage spot included. It was actually one of my prerequisites."

"Prerequisites," he repeats slowly, like he's tasting the word. When you glance over, he's looking at you with an expression you can't quite read. "You came here on your own?"

You shrug, suddenly very interested in a scuff mark on the elevator floor. 

"Yeah."

"Where from?"

The question hangs in the air between you. It's such a simple thing to ask, really. Basic getting-to-know-you stuff. But something about the way he says it, soft and curious, makes your throat tight.

"Small town," you say finally. "The kind where everyone knows everyone's business and the most exciting thing that happens is when someone paints their fence the wrong shade of beige."

He doesn't laugh like you expect. When you risk another look, he's still watching you, head tilted slightly.

"Must've been quite the change."

"That was kind of the point."

The elevator jolts, making you grab the rail. He doesn't move, somehow keeping his balance like he's got magnets in his shoes or something. Imbecile.

"So what, you just... packed up and drove to New York?" There's something in his voice—not quite disbelief, but close.

"I mean, I applied to NYU first. I'm not completely insane." You're aiming for light, casual, but it comes out a bit defensive. "But yeah, basically. Loaded up the car, picked a playlist, and..." You wave your hand vaguely.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that."

He's quiet for a moment, and you can practically hear him piecing things together. The way you never talk about home. How you tense up when anyone mentions family. The fact that your room is filled with things you clearly bought after moving in, nothing old or sentimental except—

"The bear," he says suddenly.

"What?"

"The stuffed bear on your bed. The really old-looking one." He straightens up, like he's solved a puzzle. "That's why you got it. It's from before."

Something uncomfortable squirms in your chest. 

“Okay, Detective Kuko, maybe focus on not being late instead of psychoanalyzing my childhood toys?"

The elevator dings, doors sliding open to reveal the garage. He pushes off the wall, but you catch his reflection in the mirrored doors—that little half-smile that he always pulls when he’s being particularly insufferable.

"You know," he says, following you out into the dimly lit space, "for someone who claims to hate nicknames, you sure throw around a lot of them."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Rogue."

His laugh echoes off the concrete walls. "Whatever you say, Phoenix."

The car beeps when you press the button on the key fob, its sound echoing off the concrete walls of the garage. It’s a rundown 2010 Honda Civic, the kind of car that blends into the background of every suburban parking lot. 

The kind your father refused to buy you when you were eighteen and wanted to transfer to a college campus just a bit further away. 

Funny how that worked out for him. You ended up buying this one yourself, and now you’re in New York City—a hell of a lot further away than that first suggestion.

But your chest tightens at the thought, like it always does when you let your mind wander back there. 

What were you even aiming for? 

Retribution? 

Vengeance? 

For what? Daddy not wanting to get you a car? When they’ve paid for your tuition all this time, made dinner for you when you stayed up late studying, and even sat through all of the Avengers movies with you despite hating superhero flicks. Your mom would always cut up fruit for you during finals season, leaving little notes on the kitchen counter that said things like You’ve got this! or Proud of you! in her neat handwriting. 

A mix of guilt and frustration gnaws at you. Because what kind of ungrateful asshole feels bitter about something so small when their parents have done so much?

And yet, here you are. Feeling it anyway. 

It’s not like they were bad parents—strict, sure, but not bad. They just wanted what was best for you, didn’t they? 

So why does it still sting when you think about how they dismissed your creative writing journal as a “waste of time” or how they steered every conversation toward practicality and success? Why does it feel like every decision they made for you came with strings attached? Like love was something earned through achievements instead of something freely given?

You grip the keys tighter as if that’ll stop the spiral forming in your head. Because it’s not fair to them, is it? They did their best. They didn’t know how suffocating it felt to have every move scrutinized, every choice second-guessed. 

And maybe—just maybe—you’re blowing it all out of proportion. Maybe they weren’t controlling; maybe you were just too sensitive. Maybe this whole mess is on 

you.

But then again... wasn’t it their fear that kept you tethered to that small town for so long? Their insistence on safety and stability that made leaving feel like rebellion instead of growth? 

You shake your head, trying to shove those thoughts aside. It doesn’t matter now. You’re here. You made it out. You’re independent and capable and—

“Wow,” Jungkook’s voice cuts through your inner monologue like a knife, dragging you back to reality with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. “This car sucks.”

Your head snaps toward him as he stands there, one eyebrow raised in judgmental amusement. He’s leaning against the passenger door like he’s too good to even touch it properly.

Without thinking, you slam the driver’s door closed with more force than necessary. “Changed my mind,” you snap, glaring at him over the roof of the car. “Go walk.”

He laughs, already folding his stupidly long legs into the passenger seat. "Aw, come on, Phoenix. I'm sure it has... character."

"Get out of my car."

"The duct tape on the mirror really adds something, you know?"

"I will leave you here."

"Is that a Fast and Furious sticker? Did you actually—"

"One more word about my car and you're taking the subway."

He holds his hands up in surrender, but he's still grinning. 

"Wouldn't dream of insulting your..." His eyes dart to the dashboard where the check engine light has been on since you bought it. "Unique vehicle."

"I hate you so much right now."

"No you don't." He starts fiddling with the radio, because apparently personal boundaries mean nothing to him. "Oh my god, is this a cassette player?"

You swat his hand away. "Touch my radio and die."

"But—"

"My car, my rules."

"What are you gonna do, make me listen to your sad girl hours playlist?"

You turn the key in the ignition, the engine sputtering to life with its usual concerning cough. "Bold of you to assume I'd share my playlists with someone who butchers Mayer's solos every night."

"I do not—" He sits up straighter, actually offended. "That was one time, and the strings were new, and—"

"Slow Dancing in a Burning Room doesn't need your creative reinterpretation, Rogue."

And fuck. Why did you have to bring up that specific song? The one he was playing two nights ago, like it was just for you and him in the quiet of the night. 

"Didn't know you were such a Mayer purist, Phoenix." 

You check your mirrors, definitely not watching how he slouches in the seat, all long limbs and morning-messy hair. 

"Seatbelt, Kuko."

"Is that your favorite Mayer song?" 

God, why is he doing this? Making small talk about music like he didn't just watch you have a whole crisis about your car? 

"I guess." You mutter, exiting the garage once and for all.

You merge into traffic, grateful for the excuse to focus on something other than how he's angled his body toward you in the passenger seat. 

But then, because he can’t leave things alone…

"You know any others?"

You lick your lips. Two beats of silence. 

“Some ring a bell." You finally say. Swallow. Change lanes. Don't think about summer evenings and vinyl records and— "It's just that one... brings memories."

Silence, again.

You can feel him watching you, that way he does sometimes when he thinks you're not paying attention. Like he's trying to solve a puzzle but keeps finding new pieces.

Then he sighs, a soft chuckle that does absolutely nothing to your stomach. Nothing at all. 

“Guess I'll have to play some more for you." His voice drops slightly, just shy of teasing. "You know, expand your musical taste."

And what the fuck are you supposed to do with that? With the way he says it—like a challenge, like a promise? With how the morning sun catches his ring when he drums his fingers against his thigh, keeping time to whatever song is playing in his head?

"Bold of you to assume I want to hear more of your mediocre guitar skills."

It's weak and you both know it. 

But he lets you have it, just huffs out another laugh and turns to look out the window. 

And you absolutely do not notice how the sunlight catches the edge of his jaw, or the way his shirt is still slightly wrinkled from his rush this morning.

No. No, you don’t. 

"Wait, you're telling me you've never read Donna Tartt?"

Jimin's scandalized whisper makes you grin as you both push through the library's heavy doors. There's something endearing about how genuinely offended he is by this gap in your literary education.

"In my defense," you whisper back, following him up the stairs to the second floor, "I was a bit busy reading whatever my parents deemed 'appropriate' until, oh, about six months ago?"

He glances back at you, something knowing in his eyes. It should make you uncomfortable—usually does, when people look at you like they understand. But with Jimin, it feels... okay. Maybe because he was there that night at your apartment, quietly positioning himself next to you like a gentle buffer against the chaos.

"Okay, but now you have to read The Secret History." He leads you to what's clearly his usual spot—a corner table partially hidden behind the Classical Literature stacks. "It's like... Dark Academia meets murder mystery meets Greek tragedy."

"You had me at murder mystery, honestly."

He pulls out a chair, dropping his bag with practiced ease. "I actually have my copy here somewhere. The spine's basically destroyed because I've read it so many times, but—"

"Let me guess—you're one of those people who annotates their books?"

His cheeks flush slightly. "Maybe?"

"Oh my god, you totally are." You slide into the chair across from him, already feeling more relaxed than you have all day. "Do you use different colored pens? Have a whole system?"

"...you're making fun of me."

"I would never." You scoff. "I'm simply appreciating your dedication to the literary arts."

He tries to maintain his pout, but you can see the smile fighting through. 

"You know what? For that, I'm not telling you where the secret coffee spot is."

"The what now?"

"Oh, nothing." He starts unpacking his bag with exaggerated nonchalance. "Just a hidden corner where they don't enforce the 'no drinks' policy. But since you're so judgmental about my annotation habits..."

"Park Jimin." You lean forward, lowering your voice conspiratorially. "Are you telling me there's a way I can read and caffeinate without having to dodge the library police?"

"I don't know..." He draws it out, eyes twinkling. "Can you be trusted with such powerful knowledge?"

"I will literally annotate a book right now. Any book. Pick one."

His laugh is barely more than a breath, but it's warm, genuine. 

“Okay, okay. But first—what's your stance on dog-earing pages?"

You gasp. "What kind of monster do you think I am?"

"Just checking." He grins, finally pulling out his battered copy of The Secret History. "Here. But I want detailed feedback on all my margin notes."

You accept the book carefully, noting the well-worn spine, the sticky notes peeking out from between pages. "Did you... color-code your tabs?"

"That's it." He starts gathering his things. "I'm leaving."

"No, wait!" You grab his arm, laughing as quietly as you can. "I actually love it. Really. Show me your system?"

He settles back down, mock-glaring but clearly pleased. "Fine. But only because you actually seem to care about books, unlike some people."

"Let me guess—Yeji ditched the second you mentioned the library?"

"'Sorry, babe,'" he mimics Yeji's voice with surprising accuracy, "'but I only enter buildings with books if they also serve alcohol.'"

You snort. "That tracks."

"Speaking of tracking..." He pulls out his phone. "Want to see my reading spreadsheet?"

"Your what now?"

"It's color-coded by genre, with separate tabs for—"

"Jimin?"

"Yeah?"

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

His smile could power the whole library. "Just wait until I show you my TBR organization system."

And you find yourself smiling back, real and easy, as he launches into an explanation involving multiple apps and something called "reverse timeline sorting." Because yeah, okay—maybe making new friends isn't the worst thing in the world.

Even if they are terrifyingly organized book nerds who probably alphabetize their bookmarks.

Also, the thing about being an English major at NYU is that you end up sharing a lot of classes with the Comparative Literature kids. 

It's not really surprising when you think about it—you're both basically studying books, just from different angles. 

While you're deep diving into English and American literature (thanks to your very traditional parents who would have probably had an aneurysm if you'd picked anything more "experimental"), Jimin's out here analyzing texts from all over the world, looking at how different cultures approach storytelling.

Which is how you end up in at least three classes together this semester. 

Modern Literature with Professor Sullivan on Mondays and Wednesdays (where Jimin always has the most interesting takes on international influences), Contemporary Poetry Analysis (where he somehow manages to connect Emily Dickinson to some obscure Korean poet you can't pronounce), and that one Friday afternoon workshop that everyone dreads but somehow becomes bearable when Jimin starts drawing parallels between Western and Eastern literary traditions.

It's actually kind of perfect. Your English major foundation gives you the deep knowledge of Western canon that his program requires, while his Comparative Literature perspective opens up whole new ways of looking at texts you thought you knew inside out. 

Like right now, as he's explaining how Japanese magical realism evolved differently from its Latin American counterpart, you're seeing 100 Years of Solitude in a completely new light.

Plus, it's nice having someone who actually gives a shit about books. 

Yeji, bless her chaotic heart, thinks anything written before 2010 is "prehistoric," and your other friend from Modern Lit only reads SparkNotes. 

But Jimin? Jimin color-codes his annotations and has strong opinions about Oxford commas. 

Which is probably why, when he suggested studying together, you didn't even hesitate. Because yes, okay, maybe you've been a bit... selective about making friends since moving to New York. 

But someone who understands why you got emotional about Woolf's use of semicolons? That's the kind of friend worth having.

"Okay, but consider this," Jimin whispers, sliding his Contemporary Literature notes across the table. "What if we compared Murakami's use of magical realism with García Márquez? Because I swear there's a connection between Kafka on the Shore and 100 Years of Solitude that no one talks about."

You lean forward, scanning his impossibly neat handwriting. Of course his notes are color-coded. "For the Modern Lit essay?"

"Yeah, Professor Sullivan mentioned wanting unique perspectives, right?" His eyes light up the way they only do when discussing books. "And since you're taking Modern Literature and I've got Comparative Lit Theory this semester..."

"A cross-course analysis?" You tap your pen against your notebook, mind already racing. "That's... actually brilliant?"

"Really?" He perks up, then immediately remembers to lower his voice when someone at the next table glares. "Because I was thinking, with your focus on contemporary Western literature and my background in Eastern literary traditions—"

"We could explore how different cultural interpretations of magical realism intersect!" You're probably too excited about this for a library setting, but whatever. "Jimin, you're literally a genius."

He ducks his head, but you catch his pleased smile. "I mean, you're the one who brought up the cyclical narrative patterns in class last week. I just thought maybe we could..."

"Collaborate?" You're already flipping to a fresh page in your notebook. "Please tell me you're not working with anyone else for the final paper."

"Was kind of waiting for the right partner." He gives you a pointed look. "Someone who wouldn't just make me do all the work."

"Unlike some people we know?"

"I'm not naming names, but..." He glances around conspiratorially. "Let's just say I've already witnessed Yeji's approach to required reading in our shared Literature and Gender class last week."

"Do tell."

"She showed up to discuss Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own and asked, completely seriously, if it was about interior design." He shudders dramatically. "Then tried to argue that her TikTok research should count as academic sources."

You have to stuff your fist against your mouth to muffle your laugh. 

"She did not."

"Direct quote: 'But professor, this BookToker made some really good points about, like, the feminist undertones and stuff.'" He pulls out his laptop, already opening a fresh document. "So, partner? I mean, we're only two weeks into the semester, but I can already tell you actually read the material. Plus, I've got access to some really interesting papers on Japanese magical realism through the Comparative Lit database."

"Only if you let me buy you coffee at Jin's after this." You pause. "Wait, is that weird? Am I being weird?"

His smile is soft, understanding. "Not weird at all. But only if you let me show you my favorite translation of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. The annotations are chef's kiss."

"God, you really are a book nerd, aren't you?"

"Says the person who got excited about cyclical narrative patterns."

"...touché."

He starts typing, fingers flying over the keys. "So, structure-wise, I was thinking we could start with a brief overview of traditional magical realism in Latin American literature, then transition into..."

You settle in, watching him outline your shared project with the same methodical care he probably uses to organize his bookshelf. 

And maybe it's the quiet of the library, or the way afternoon sun filters through the stacks, but something in your chest feels lighter. 

Because this—this easy back-and-forth about books and ideas—this is what you came to New York for.

"Oh!" Jimin's whisper breaks into your thoughts. "We should definitely include the cat symbolism in both texts. Speaking of..." He glances up from his screen. "How's living with Griffin?"

"The cat or his stupid owner?"

The words slip out before you can stop them. Jimin's eyebrows shoot up, a knowing look crossing his face that makes you want to hide behind your textbook.

"Why? Wanna talk about his owner?”

"I meant—that's not—he is stupid!" You grab your water bottle just to have something to do with your hands. "Whatever. We should focus on the magical realism thing."

"Mhm." He's still giving you that look. "Whatever you say. But you know, if you ever want to talk about... cats..."

"I will literally throw this book at you."

"The annotated one? You wouldn't dare."

"Try me, Park."

His quiet laugh makes a few people look over, but you can't bring yourself to care. Because somehow, in the span of an afternoon, you've gained both a study partner and what feels like a real friend.

Even if said friend is now wiggling his eyebrows at you every time you try to redirect the conversation back to Murakami.

Your phone buzzes against the table, making Jimin glance up from his color-coded notes. 

𝐊𝐮𝐤��🖕🏻: 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚛 𝚞 𝚛𝚗

You roll your eyes, typing back quickly.

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚓𝚒𝚖𝚒𝚗

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚠𝚑𝚢

The three dots appear. Disappear. Appear again. Your screen lights up with his reply.

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚛 𝚞 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚒𝚍𝚔 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝟷𝟻𝚖𝚒𝚗? 

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝟺𝟶

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝟺𝟶????

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚠𝚝𝚏 𝚠𝚑𝚢

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚍𝚘 𝚒𝚝 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚡

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚘𝚖𝚐

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚢𝚘𝚞,𝚟𝚎 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝟺𝟶 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚞𝚝𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚘? 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝’𝚜 𝚜𝚊𝚍 

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚞𝚖? 🥺

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚞

Your fingers hover over the keyboard because—what the fuck is he saying right now? What does he mean?

But then.

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚌𝚞𝚖𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝟻 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚎

Fucking bitch-ass motherfucker. 

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚏𝚞𝚌𝚔 𝚘𝚏𝚏

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚎𝚡𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚞𝚌𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎???

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚗𝚊𝚑

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚘

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚐𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜 🤢

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚍𝚔 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚘

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚞𝚛 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚐𝚎𝚝

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚊𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚠𝚎 𝚛 𝚍𝚘𝚒𝚗 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚒𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚖𝚊𝚕

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚍𝚎𝚋𝚊𝚝𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚊𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚙𝚜? 

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚞 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚊 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚓𝚘𝚋 𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝟻 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚞𝚝𝚎𝚜 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚡

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚜 𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝙸𝙽𝚂𝙸𝚂𝚃𝙴𝙳

𝐘𝐨𝐮: "𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚒’𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚌𝚔, 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚡”

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜 🙄

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚍𝚘𝚗𝚝 𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚞 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗’𝚝 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚒𝚝

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚊𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚜 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝟺𝟶 𝚖𝚒𝚗 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚡

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚏𝚞𝚗 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚎𝚛 💅

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚞𝚛 𝚌𝚞𝚝𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚞𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚞𝚙 𝚙𝚑𝚎𝚎

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚜𝚝𝚏𝚞 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝟺𝟶

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚛𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚜𝚝

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚎

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚞𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚠

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚐𝚛𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚒𝚗’𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚘𝚡 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚔

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚙𝚜 𝚞 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚊𝚝 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚗𝚒𝚡

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙

𝐊𝐮𝐤𝐨🖕🏻: 𝚜𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚝 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊��𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚖𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚘𝚌𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚐𝚊𝚖𝚎 😏

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚊𝚗 𝙴𝙼𝙾𝙹𝙸???

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚖𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚎

Read 4:47 PM

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚒 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚎

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚋𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚎𝚝𝚜

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙾𝙿𝙴𝙽𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙰 𝚆𝙸𝙽𝙳𝙾𝚆

Read 4:48 PM

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚒 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞

𝐘𝐨𝐮: 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚞𝚌𝚑

Read 4:49 PM

You shove your phone in your bag. Whatever. You've got actual priorities here—like making real friends who appreciate literature and don't judge your drink choices (does he?).

"Actually," you say, straightening up and pulling out your Modern Lit syllabus, "let’s go to Jin’s right now. Because I could use a caramel frappuccino, and I'd love to hear more about your take on Murakami's symbolism."

Jimin's whole face lights up. "Really? Because I have thoughts about the significance of wells as transitional spaces in—"

"Lead the way, book nerd." You start packing up your stuff, already feeling more centered. "But fair warning—I will absolutely judge your coffee order if it's anything boring like plain black."

"You order everything with extra whipped cream, don’t you?”

"It's called having taste, Jimin. And yes, I want the little chocolate sprinkles too."

His laugh echoes through the stacks as you both head out, earning a few glares that you can't bring yourself to care about. Because this? This is exactly what you need. Good conversation, sugary drinks, and someone who gets genuinely excited about literary analysis.

Your phone stays silent in your bag. You don't even think about checking it.

After all, you've got more interesting things to focus on—like whether Jin will let you convince him to add extra caramel to your drink, or finally having someone who understands why you cried over that one Sylvia Plath poem.

Because honestly? There’s just something deliciously satisfying about choosing exactly how you want to spend your afternoon. 

And right now? That means ordering the sweetest drink on the menu and diving deep into a discussion about magical realism with someone who actually gets it.

Sometimes the best kind of freedom is just... doing whatever the fuck you want.

The thing about Jin is that he treats his coffee shop like it's a kingdom and he's the benevolent (but definitely judgy) ruler.

"Well, well." He quirks an eyebrow as you and Jimin push through the door, the familiar smell of coffee and old books wrapping around you like a hug. "Where's the demon child?"

"Yeji's allergic to studying." You lean against the counter, already eyeing the pastry display. "Breaks out in hives if she gets too close to academic pursuit."

Jin snorts, wiping his hands on his apron. "That tracks. Haven't seen you in a few days—were you actually at the library? Or is this some elaborate cover story?"

"Studying, actually." You gesture to Jimin, who's hovering politely beside you. "With actual books and everything. Jin, this is Jimin. Jimin, this is Jin, who makes the best coffee in the East Village but will definitely judge your order."

"I don't judge." Jin's mouth twitches. "I merely... evaluate life choices."

Jimin waves shyly. "Nice to meet you. Yeji's mentioned this place a lot."

"All lies, probably." Jin's already moving to the espresso machine, hands automatic in their movements. "What can I get you both? And Y/N, before you say it— no, I will not make you one of those abominations with eight pumps of syrup."

"Rude." You straighten up, pretending to study the menu like you don't order the same thing every time. "Fine. Latte with cold foam?"

He rolls his eyes, but there's fondness there. "Let me make you something better. Just got a new blend in—Ethiopian, hints of blueberry. You'll love it."

"Bold of you to assume I can taste anything beyond sugar."

"Trust me." He turns to Jimin. "And for you?"

"Just an americano, please."

You whirl around. "That's so sad."

"Shut up." Jimin shoves your shoulder lightly. "Not all of us need a sugar high to function."

"Your loss." You're already heading toward your usual spot—eyeing the different tables and settling for the corner one with the best lighting and a perfect view of both the street and the counter. "Come on, I'll show you where—"

"Ah ah." Jin's voice stops you. "Not that one."

You turn back, eyebrow raised. "What? It's empty."

"Someone sits there."

"I literally see no bag?" You gesture at the conspicuously empty table. "No books, no laptop, no nothing."

"Someone," Jin repeats, voice somehow both firmer and more amused, "sits there."

"But—"

"Y/N." He gives you that look, the one that somehow makes you feel like a kid being gently scolded. "Pick another table."

You glance at the mysterious empty table, then back at Jin, then at the table again. Because what the actual fuck? Since when does Jin reserve tables? And for who? 

But he's already turned back to the espresso machine, humming something under his breath, clearly considering the matter closed. 

"Come on." Jimin tugs your sleeve, pointing to another corner. "That one looks good too."

You let him lead you away, but not without throwing one last suspicious look over your shoulder. Jin pretends not to notice, but you catch the slight smile playing at his lips as he starts grinding coffee beans.

Weird. Very weird.

You sigh loudly, and woah okay you’re starting to sound like Yeji now. Her energy is definitely rubbing off on you. You take your stuff out along with Jimin and start chatting right away.

"All I'm saying is," you whisper-rant to Jimin, still bitter about this morning, "if someone makes you coffee, you say thank you. You don't launch into a TED talk about optimal brewing temperatures like some pretentious—"

The bell above the door chimes, and holy shit.

HOLY. SHIT.

The man who walks in is... 

Well, first of all, he's tall. Like, unfairly tall. 

And he's wearing these round glasses that should look dorky but somehow don't, perched on a face that belongs in one of those aesthetic academic Pinterest boards. His blonde hair is slicked back in a way that screams 'I definitely know about wine pairings', and his light blue dress shirt paired with navy pants is giving very much 'yes, I read Proust for fun.'

But it's the way he carries himself—confident but not cocky, with a laptop bag swinging gently by his thigh—that really catches your attention. 

That, and how Jin's whole demeanor shifts when he sees him.

"Joon!" Jin's voice is different—warmer, maybe? "The usual?"

The man—Joon, apparently—smiles, and oh. Oh. That's just unfair. Because he's got actual dimples. Like, dimples dimples. 

They chat for a moment, their conversation too low to hear from where you're sitting, but you catch Jin gesturing toward... wait. 

Toward the table. 

THE table. 

The one you were just exiled from.

Namjoon nods, that devastating smile still in place, and heads straight for what is apparently his designated spot in Jin's kingdom.

You narrow your eyes. Who exactly is this mysterious dimpled giant with table-reserving privileges? And why does Jin look slightly pink around the ears as he starts making what is presumably 'the usual'?

"Hey?" Jimin waves his hand in front of your face. "You good?"

"Sorry, just..." You tilt your head toward the table-stealer. "Trying to figure out who managed to get permanent dibs on prime real estate in here."

Jimin turns, trying (and absolutely failing) to be subtle about it. Then he makes a small choking sound.

"Oh god," he whispers, whipping back around. "That's Professor Kim."

You blink. "Professor who now?"

"Namjoon Kim? From the English department?" When you continue staring blankly, he adds, "He teaches Literary Criticism in my major? Published in like, every major literary journal? Youngest professor in the department?"

"That's a professor?" You peek over again, watching as he sets up his laptop with methodical precision. "Why does he look like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like..." You gesture vaguely. "You know. Like that.”

"Please stop staring," Jimin hisses. "He's brilliant and terrifying and I have to present in his class next week."

"Terrifying?" You snort. "The man has dimples, Jimin. And his glasses are literally round. He looks like a very tall teddy bear who probably reads Keats for fun."

"He once made someone cry by asking them to explain their interpretation of a Emily Dickinson poem."

"Okay, but was their interpretation wrong?"

"Y/N."

"What? I'm just saying—"

Jin appears with your drinks, setting them down with more force than strictly necessary. "Stop gossiping about my customers."

"We're not gossiping," you protest. "We're... conducting academic observation."

"Mhm." He raises an eyebrow. "How's that new blend?"

You take a sip of whatever fancy coffee he made you, and... oh. Oh.

"This is..."

"Better than your sugar milk?" His smirk is unbearable. "You're welcome."

He walks away before you can argue, heading back to where Professor Dimples is apparently grading papers, judging by the red pen in his hand.

"Don't even think about it," Jimin warns.

"Think about what?"

"Whatever you're plotting. I can see it on your face."

"I'm not plotting anything!" You take another sip of your annoyingly perfect coffee. "I just think it's interesting that Jin never mentioned having a designated professor spot in his shop."

"No."

"What? I'm just being observant."

Jimin looks like he's regretting every life choice that led him to befriend you. "Can we please just focus on Murakami?"

"Fine." You pull out your notes, but you can't help stealing one more glance at the mysterious professor. "But just so you know, anyone who makes students cry over Emily Dickinson is definitely going on my list of people to investigate."

"I'm pretending I didn't hear that."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Jimjim."

20 minutes pass by. 20 minutes of Jimin humming as he searches articles on the web. 20 minutes of you two now doing your individual assignments for your different classes. 20 minutes of you nearly losing your mind over yours. 

"Who," you groan, slumping over your laptop, "decided that writing a comparative analysis of post-modern narrative structures was a good idea for week two? Week two, Jimin. I still haven't figured out where half my classes are."

Jimin chuckles, leaning over to point at something on your screen. "Look, if you connect these two themes here—"

You lift your head just enough to glare at him. "I will literally pay you to write this for me."

"No you won't."

"You're right, I'm broke. But I'll owe you my firstborn."

"Still no."

"My soul?"

"Bold of you to assume you still have one after declaring an English major."

You're about to argue that your soul is perfectly intact, thank you very much, when you feel it—the weight of someone's gaze. You glance up and oh fuck.

Professor Dimples is looking right at you, one eyebrow raised slightly above those round glasses. Because of course he heard your entire breakdown about his colleague's assignment. Of course he did. 

You drop your eyes back to your laptop so fast you probably give yourself whiplash. Maybe if you slouch low enough, you'll just... dissolve into the floor. That's possible, right? 

Jimin swats your arm. "Stop being dramatic."

"I'm not being dramatic," you whisper-hiss. "I'm just saying, who assigns a five-thousand word analysis before we've even figured out the coffee situation on campus?"

"Having trouble with Professor Lee's class?"

You freeze. Because that voice—deep, warm, and definitely coming from right next to your table—belongs to exactly who you think it does.

Slowly, you look up. Professor Kim is standing there, coffee cup in hand, looking far too amused for someone who apparently makes students cry over poetry.

"I, uh—" Words. You know words. You're literally majoring in them. "No? I mean, yes? I mean—"

"She's struggling with the comparative analysis assignment," Jimin supplies helpfully, the traitor. "The one about narrative structures in post-modern literature."

"Ah." Professor Kim's dimples make an appearance. "Mind if I...?" He gestures to the empty chair at your table.

What are you supposed to say? No? To the professor who apparently has permanent dibs on the best table in Jin's? Who probably knows seventeen ways to destroy your GPA with a single red pen mark?

"Sure," you manage, shooting Jimin a panicked look that he completely ignores.

Professor Kim settles into the chair, setting his coffee down carefully. "The thing about post-modern narrative structures," he says, like he's sharing a secret, "is that everyone overthinks them."

You blink. "What?"

"It's actually quite simple." He gestures to your laptop. "May I?"

You turn the screen toward him, watching as he scans your document. His brow furrows slightly, and you resist the urge to slam the laptop shut and run away.

"See, here—" He points to a paragraph. "You're actually onto something interesting. The way you've connected the unreliable narrator to the fragmented timeline... that's good. You're just getting caught up in the academic language instead of trusting your instincts."

"My... instincts?"

"Mhm." He takes a sip of his coffee. "Tell me—without thinking about theory or criticism or any of that—why did this particular narrative choice catch your attention?"

You open your mouth. Close it. Because honestly? "It reminded me of those dreams where you're trying to remember something, but the memory keeps slipping away? Like, you know it's important, but every time you get close, it sort of... dissolves?"

His smile widens. "Write that."

"What, the dream thing?"

"Exactly that. In exactly those words." He leans back, looking pleased. "That's what post-modern literature is about—the messy, fragmented way our minds actually work. Not the polished academic analysis we think we're supposed to write."

From behind the counter, you hear Jin snort. "Are you corrupting my customers with your literary theories again?"

"Always," Professor Kim calls back, and something in the way they smile at each other makes you think of your earlier observations.

"Thank you," you say, already starting to rework your intro paragraph. "That actually helps a lot."

"Any time." He stands, gathering his coffee. "And Y/N?"

You look up, surprised he knows your name.

"Don't worry too much about Professor Lee's assignments. He likes to seem tough in the beginning, but..." He adjusts his glasses with a slight smile. "Let's just say I've heard his Emily Dickinson lectures. Man cries every time."

As he heads back to his table, you turn to Jimin with wide eyes.

"Did that just happen?"

"Yep."

"And did he just..."

"Give you permission to basically write your paper in normal human language? Yep."

"Huh." You look between your laptop and Professor Kim's table, where he's already absorbed back in his grading. "Maybe the dimples aren't so terrifying after all."

"Please stop talking about our professor's dimples."

"I'm just saying—"

"Whatever you're about to say, don't."

Fair enough. You turn back to your laptop, fingers hovering over the keys. 

Maybe this assignment won't be so bad after all.

Even if you do kind of want to investigate why Jin keeps stealing glances at Professor Kim's table and thinking he’s being subtle about it. 

next | index

⋆｡°✩ taglist✩°｡⋆

@cannotalwaysbenight @livingformintyoongi @itstoastsworld @jimineepaboya @somehowukook @stuti2904 @chloepiccoliniii @kimnamjoonmiddletoe @annyeongbitch7 @jkrailme @rpwprpwprpwprw

© jungkoode 2025 no reposts, translations, or adaptations

[morbidpandabear-blog]

Farming Feline

Date posted — March 13 2025

Hybrid! Yoongi x Reader

Warning! — Down on his luck Yoongi, and fluff.

———————————————————————————

Y/N had always enjoyed the simple life on her farm. There was something about the steady rhythm of farm life that kept her grounded. The early mornings, the soft rustle of the wind through the wheat fields, the clucking of the chickens—all of it had become a comfort. It was just her, a small house, a few horses, and a whole lot of hay.

But one night, everything changed.

It started with the horses. They were whinnying, stomping their hooves, and generally making a racket that would’ve woken the dead. Y/N, groggy and annoyed, slipped out of bed and pulled on her thick flannel robe.

"Great," she muttered under her breath. "Probably just some raccoons again. Or maybe a fox... Who knows, at this point."

Y/N grabbed a flashlight and trudged out to the barn, hoping to quiet the animals and go back to sleep. But as soon as she stepped inside, she froze.

There, in the far corner, curled up like a cat in a sunbeam, was a man. Or, well, sort of a man. He had the body of a human, but his ears? Feline. Pointed, twitching ears. His eyes gleamed in the flashlight’s glow—bright, slitted pupils, the kind of gaze that made you think he could see through you.

She blinked. Then blinked again.

"Uh… hello?" she called out, trying to sound casual despite the fact that there was a hybrid in her barn.

The figure stirred, lifting his head. His hair was dark, almost black, and messy in a way that somehow still looked deliberate, like he had spent hours perfecting that disheveled look.

His voice was low, and a little gruff as he yawned, "What?"

Y/N took a cautious step forward. "What... are you doing here?"

The man, cat? looked at her as if the question was completely ridiculous. "What does it look like? I’m napping."

Y/N stared. "In my barn."

"Yeah, well," he shrugged, his tail flicking lazily behind him. "I like barns. Good hay here."

"Right," Y/N said, trying to process what she was seeing. "Okay, um... you can't just sleep here. This is my barn."

The man—Yoongi, as it turned out after a few awkward moments of trying to get his attention—grumbled something incomprehensible. "I’ll leave in the morning."

Crossing her arms she spoke. "What’s your deal anyway?” Ignoring her question Yoongi began to pick at the hay underneath him.

"Right listen man," she said slowly. "I’m... I’m gonna need some answers. Like, why are you here? And—"

"I could ask you why you live on a farm in the middle of nowhere," he interjected, his tone still as gruff as ever, but Y/N couldn’t help noticing the flicker of humor in his eyes.

Y/N paused, biting back a laugh. "Fair point. But you still have to leave."

Yoongi sighed dramatically and stretched out, his tail flicking in an almost annoyed manner. "Look, lady. I’m... in between jobs. It’s hard enough to keep a job as a hybrid, let alone an apartment. So I thought I’d take a little nap before I figure out what to do with my life. Didn’t know the barn came with a roommate."

Y/N raised an eyebrow. "How about we make a deal?"

"Yeah? What kind of deal?" he asked, his tone skeptical.

"It’s simple, I’ll let you have the spare room and you can have all the food you want, but in exchange you work here around the farm." she said, hands on her hips. " I don’t know if you could tell but I could use an extra set of hands around here."

Yoongi gave her a blank stare. “A farmhand? Really? I’m not exactly cut out for... whatever this is.”

Y/N crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "Well, you're gonna have to do something or it wouldn’t be fair."

Yoongi grumbled something incoherent under his breath, clearly not thrilled with the idea. “Fine,” he muttered. “But don’t expect me to do anything that involves getting dirty. I’m a very clean person.” Y/N rolled her eyes. "You were trying to sleep in a barn, Yoongi."

———————————————————————————

The next few weeks were... interesting, to say the least. Yoongi wasn’t exactly what one would call a “hard worker.” He spent most of his time sitting around on hay bales, occasionally giving the chickens a half-hearted glare when they pecked too loudly. But Y/N had a feeling things would change sooner or later.

"Yoongi!" Y/N called one afternoon, holding a rake as she surveyed the field. "Why aren't you working?"

Yoongi, lounging on a pile of hay under the shade of an old oak tree, didn't even open his eyes. "I am working. I’m supervising."

“Supervising the hay bales?”

“I have a lot of experience in management,” he said, stretching his arms behind his head and yawning. Y/N huffed, trying not to laugh. “Alright, you manage that hay and I’ll get to the rest of the farm. And no more napping, okay?”

“Fine, fine,” Yoongi muttered, reluctantly hopping off the hay and walking toward the barn. “But only because you’re making me.”

———————————————————————————

As time went on, something started to change. Yoongi began to open up little by little. It started with small, random comments. When she made lunch one afternoon, he commented on how good the smell of her homemade bread was. He’d make remakers with only a hint of sarcasm now about how “ Maybe your food is better than scraps." though Y/N knew he secretly enjoyed every meal. And even though he was still aloof, he started showing up more regularly to help her with things—mending fences, feeding the animals, and even walking the horses when she needed a break.

One evening, after a long day of work, Y/N and Yoongi sat together on the porch, watching the sun dip below the horizon. She turned to him, sipping her lemonade, and noticed that he was... actually looking at her. Not just glancing, not looking past her, but genuinely looking, his coal black eyes thoughtful.

"Hey, Yoongi," she said, trying to break the silence. “You’re... not as bad as I thought you’d be.”

Yoongi smirked, though it was less cold now and more... fond. “Yeah? You’re not as annoying as I thought either.”

Y/N laughed, enjoying the lighthearted teasing. “Well, I guess that makes two of us.”

For a moment, they sat in comfortable silence. Then Yoongi, looking at her more seriously, and spoke, his tone full of sincerity, "Thanks for letting me stay here. I know I’m not exactly the ideal farmhand, but... I appreciate it."

Y/N smiled, setting her glass down. "You’re starting to grow on me. Don’t get used to it, though."

He raised an eyebrow. "What, am I supposed to become some lovable farm cat now?"

She chuckled. “Maybe.”

———————————————————————————

A few months later, Y/N could no longer deny it. She’d developed feelings for the quirky, sarcastic man with the cat ears. Yoongi had somehow wormed his way into her life, and she found herself smiling now when she saw him perched on hay bales or tossing a sarcastic quip her way.

One night, after they had finished up a long day of chores, Yoongi dropped his usual detached attitude and looked at her earnestly as they stood by the barn.

“I’ve... uh... been thinking,” Yoongi said awkwardly. “I’m not exactly great with feelings, but... maybe this isn’t just a work arrangement anymore.”

Y/N tilted her head, her heart racing. “What are you trying to say, Yoongi?”

Yoongi scratched the back of his neck, his tail flicking nervously behind him. “I don’t know. I guess... I kind of like being here with you. More than I should. You make things... better.”

Y/N’s heart melted. “I feel the same way, you know.”

Yoongi smiled—a rare, soft gummy smile that made her heart flutter. “Yeah?”

"Yeah," she replied softly, taking a step closer. “You’ve grown on me too.”

And just like that, Yoongi, the aloof, sarcastic cat hybrid, had gone from being an unexpected farmhand to the person she couldn't imagine her life without.

———————————————————————————

From then on, Y/N and Yoongi became more than just farm partners. They worked together, laughed together, and even did the little domestic things that made life so special. They cooked dinner together (and occasionally bickered about who was better at making pasta). They did laundry, each pretending to be the expert in folding, but secretly stealing each other’s shirts when the other wasn’t looking. And, yes, they even took turns herding the chickens—though it was clear Yoongi was much more graceful at it, given his cat-like reflexes.

Before long, the farm felt more like home than it ever had before. It was theirs—Yoongi’s and hers—full of laughter, love, and, of course, a little bit of sass.

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

i was sitting next to this guy while hanging out with some friends, and he was always a little flirty, and i never responded to it but i've stayed friendly ya know? this time he put his hand on my thigh, and i just kind of brushed him off and moved away and everything was fine. Now tho, everyone around me is acting like this is a huge deal and he shouldn't have done it and like,,, i get it, but also he wasn't aggressive and he backed off right away so i don't think it was a big deal at all 1/3

now tho my friends want me or themselves to confront him about it and i'm just so ??? because genuinely it was such a small thing to me and it feels like people around me want me to make it into a big deal for themselves more than to stand up for me since i don't think this needs to become A Thing at all, especially for a dude i've met twice and will probably rarely ever see in my life. idk how to get them to back off because it feels like they're not listening to me or don't believe me 2/3 but to put it in perspective i've been more uncomfortable in the past with men putting their hands on my shoulder/arm when trying to pass by in a crowded space than this guy trying to flirt and backing off the second i moved away. any advice on getting my friends to chill? 3/3

hi anon,

this is an interesting one. do you think your friends would recognize the irony if you pointed out that it sounds like they're being far more pushy and dismissive of your boundaries than the man who they want you to stage a confrontation with?

it's noble of your friends to want to look out for you, of course, but supporting people who we perceive as the recipients of inappropriate behavior means listening to them when they express what they actually need to feel supported. in your case, it's letting the entire thing go because this barely even registers as an issue.

I have to say that I'm incredibly inclined to agree with you here; while this lad may have been a bit forward in putting his hand on you, it sounds like his reaction - dropping it and backing off - was exactly what you were hoping for. human interactions are always going to have messy little edges where we bump up against each other and the signals don't quite line up; that's not a crime. what matters is how people react when they're given a No. by your account, this lad took it like a champ, understanding your no and backing off accordingly.

if that's good enough for you then I think it's really overbearing and, as you alluded to, a little self-serving of your friends to keep trying to pursue this and lambast a guy for a completely reasonable interaction. what exactly are they hoping to accomplish? do they want him to make an elaborate written apology to you, a thing that you've made very clear you don't want? do they want him to promise never to touch someone without explicit verbal permission again, a fairly ludicrous amount of control to demand over someone else's behavior? like. what is the end goal, gamers? what are we actually trying to accomplish? are some of your friends perhaps reacting to this based on their own past experiences? that's understandable, of course, but inappropriate when they're ignoring your own expressed desires in favor of their ideas about what they think you should want.

listen: you can't control your friends' thoughts, but you can ask them to shut the fuck up. if you haven't already, I would recommend sending out some kind of mass statement (there's a groupchat, right? this feels like a groupchat situation, which I say as a terminal group chatter) telling everyone that you, personally, are done talking about this and don't want to hear any more about it, and if anyone wants to confront thigh guy about it then they're at liberty to do that but they'd better make very clear that they're not doing so at your request or with your permission.

if you're feeling extra cunty you can top that off with a little "please respect that, since you all say you're so worried about my boundaries" but that may be a little much.

[pagodazz]

habit hcs when?

HABIT hcs RN!!!!!! :D

Like Vinnie I think HABIT is an avid music enjoyer, But unlike Vinnie, HABIT prefers to play his music out loud and he likes to play it LOUD.

I personally think he invested in (or stole) really good speakers so he would be able to really feel the music. Even if it shakes the house.

He definitely plays heavier music when he's drowning out the sounds of the screams of the people he's torturing, but I think when HABIT comes home after a long day of that or, just a long day of doing WHATEVER he does, he plays softer music.

yk like Frank Sinatra, The ink spots, Nina Simone, nat king cole AND STUFF LIKE THAT!!!!!!

it's something calming y'know.

EVEN AN ENTITY LIKE HABIT!!!! LIKES TO UNWIND GUYS!!!

he needs something to kick back to. Something to have in the background as he sharpens his knives, or cleans the blood off his boots.

(Songs he canonically likes + silly ones bc yeah. & ones I think he'd like/remind me of him)

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

I think that HABIT really enjoys cooking. And I personally believe he's really good at it. like freakishly good at it.

Now, In canon we already know he's capable of cooking (Ex: Making burgers w Vinnie, Baking Vinnie cookies) But I think hes just Weirdly good at cooking.

Like I think he's probably made the best food Vinnies ever had, And I wouldn't even say HABIT would trick him with human meat or anything.

He wants Vinnie to stay on his side, he needs Vinnie to wanna stay so he's not gonna fuck w him like. (He probably kinda wants to tho.)

view it as almost like a Hannibal thing??? but WAYYYYY less fancy. HABIT is just NOT that kind of guy and I doubt him and Vinnie would even like to eat fancy meals.

He's just really talented at alot of things I think. But I like the idea of this HORRIFICALLY TERRIBLE VIOLENT ENTITY enjoying a nice homemade meal he made for him and his roommate that he's holding hostage.

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

I think one thing alot of people don't seem to remember about HABIT is that he likes to draw things out, he doesn't like to RUSH things.

He wants to draw out his victims suffering for as LONG as he can, that's the reason he even made a deal with slenderman at all. he wanted to keep his victims alive longer so they could feel and see everything that was happening to them.

I think HABIT is a very precise man, personally. I know a lot of people see him as almost sloppy, but I could NEVER. He may get BLOODY or MESSY but that doesn't mean he got SLOPPY. He knows exactly where to stab to paralyze a person but not kill them, and I KNOW he can list of the names of your bones as he breaks them.

I believe HABIT is a big perfectionist, and I know that has to be practically canon because how could it NOT be??? he needs absolutely EVERYTHING to go his way the WAY he wants it to. He feels a sense of pride knowing that NO ONE would be able to identify his victims once he's through with them. He gets a small feeling of pleasure at the power he feels when he sees the life disappear y'know?? why wouldn't he want that all to turn out PERFECTLY.

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

I think that HABIT has genuine interest in keeping Vinnie around personally, and wether it's just for his own selfish gain, the fact Vinnie is the collectives favorite part of the machine, or maybe Evans love for his friends just bled into HABIT after inhabiting him for so long.

But I think he (wether he even wants to admit or not) WANTS the company.

After Vinnie summons him, HABIT talks about needing friend's about about he doesn't have many companions other than slenderman and the rake. HABIT wanted someone he could have a functioning conversation with, (WHICH. IS THE SAME REASON VINNIE SUMMONED HIM. HABIT CAN TALK!!! SND GIVE ANSWERS!!) he also wanted someone to stay around and document him as well.

one of the parts that I think kinda shows that HABIT views Vinnie as a partner/companion/friend/a being HABIT can tolerate being around is from the video "Breaking the lease."

The fact HABIT seems genuinely very excited to show Vinnie that he not only 1. Got himself a camera (like Vinnie), but he was 2. able to turn it on by himself. (which previously is something he struggled to do. See in the video "Lexi".) is SO fascinating to me because RIGHT AFTER when Vinnie doesn't give him a positive reaction, making me assume that Vinnie typically praises HABIT for things like that, HABIT INSTANTLY is asking Vinnie what's up, and then he's trying to immediately trying to distract, or make Vinny feel better from whatever was upsetting him by offering to make burgers or play some video games.

Which, then Vinnie declines, and HABIT follows him and continues to try to make things better but he fails bc he's well, HABIT. And then he's very upset to find out Vinnie wants to leave and he seems literally almost hurt and betrayed LMAAOOO.

which he literally loses his shit every time Vinnie asks to leave and just had a break down both times ESPECIALLY in "sleeping dogs lie".

so there's at least smthn there that makes their relationship a little more different than anyone else HABIT interacts with. It's not healthy obviously but, you can clearly see he hasn't fucking eaten him.

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

I also like to think HABIT has a collection of human bones from his countless victims.

And in my head. HABIT only ever eats flesh and meat right off the body FRESH.

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

anyways YAYYYY so much shit that PROBABLY NO ONE WILL AGREE WITH BUT!!!; THERE WE GO!!

[djsherriff-responses]

I desperately need season two of CLH I’m going insane right now

Unlike my Jade and Sarah posts, this one is a lot more speculative as I’ll be discussing my theory regarding what Bullfrog’s backstory is and he’s the character we have the least information to go off of. I may also ramble about other stuff, but Bullfrog is the main focus

We got a lot of Sarah’s backstory in the show already , Dolph had a manga dedicated to explaining his and while Jade and Pey’J don’t have much going on, we do know they’re a close “family” (die Pey’J) and any other details about their lives we can at least make some educated guesses based on information from the show and outside sources. Cody probably has a wiki dedicated to him or something, idk

Bullfrog though, we know very little on him. We only know for sure that he’s the last member of the Assassins Creed, a group who fought for freedom and has been in conflict with the Templars for most of human history

But maybe that’s all the information we really need to figure the frog out

I made a lot of heavy comparisons between Bullfrog and Sarah beforehand in my Sarah post , especially in terms of their colour palette and the symbolism regarding that, but what exactly could Sarah's backstory hint to us regarding Bullfrog's backstory?

Firstly I want to take a quick detour to talk about Jade and Dolph , which will only highlight my theory on Bullfrog's story

While the relationships are very different at a first glance, upon further inspection I have noticed some similarities between the relationship Dolph has with Alex, and the relationship Jade has with Pey'J

Jade/Dolph takes care of Pey'J/Alex's well being , with Jade taking care of Pey'J emotionally while Dolph takes care of Alex physically

Pey’J/Alex sexualised Jade/Dolph , Alex was a groomer. Pey’J , despite knowing her since infancy and basically raised her, has confessed being attracted to Jade. How Pey'J sexualised Jade may just be my theory that he's meant as commentary on fathers who partake in purity culture, I think it's still worth bringing up regarding this pattern

Despite how young they are, Jade and Dolph are also more mature than the older men in their lives. While with Dolph that's debatable considering he spends most of season one dealing with a lot of negative emotions and wanting revenge, prior to the betrayal Alex behaved much more cocky and playful than Dolph who took the heist job more seriously than Alex. I already wrote a huge post about how Jade is basically made to mother her own uncle

Alex and Pey’J died on the same night by gun shots

But the major similarity between Jade and Dolph is they're victims of men much older than them, and those men are fatherly figures that Jade/Dolph trusted to protect them

Jade and Dolph are , possibly not by pure narrative coincidence, both orphans too. Jade's parents are straight up dead and Dolph has no clue if he even has a living relative, nevermind finding out what became of his parents

The common thread between Jade and Dolph's story is primarily focused on non blood related father figures that traumatised them

(I got nowhere else to add this but if Jade is in season two, I want her and Dolph to bond so badly and for them to become friends and help each other heal. They deserve a second chance at a good life)

What does that have to do with Bullfrog?

Let's look at the other ghosts

Cody is a celebrity cameo and isn't really a character with narrative purpose , so can't really pull anything from him. And Pey'J is.... Pey'J

Which leaves us with the one who kidnapped these people to form team ghost in the first place: Sarah Fisher

Now while Sarah is a character whose story is tied to her relationship with an older man , that relationship is nothing like the relationship Jade and Dolph have had with their respective old men

Though the relationship between Sam and Sarah is messy, the two also have genuine love for each other regardless of everything that's happened. Sam , while a human with flaws, was at the end of the day a loving father who wanted nothing but the best for Sarah and her well being. Sarah , as twisted as she has become, wanted nothing more than to have her father be safe

Sam has never been a predatory person to anyone , much less one that's comparable to Alex or Pey'J and certainly not towards his own daughter

Sam is a father who'd do anything to protect Sarah, his own flesh and blood

Since Sarah and Bullfrog are meant to represent the Templars and Assassins as well as the conflict of those two groups, than Bullfrog's story could have a strong focus on his bloodlines. Both groups in the original assassin games have had a strong focus on bloodlines within their respective organisations

Side note: While I’m not an expect on creed lore, being an Assassin or a Templar isn’t always something you’d inherent directly from a a parent or even grandparent. While the memories of past assassins is important to preserve, you don’t need to have any blood relation to join the brotherhood. I think I read somewhere it’s actually sometimes discouraged for assassins to start families (at least while they’re still actively an assassin? Need to look more into it). So while I do think the theme of family/bloodline and their legacies are going to be part of Bullfrog’s story, he himself isn’t going to be picky on who who can join him in (hopefully) rebuilding the brotherhood, it just adds to the already high amount of pressure the guy is under

Based on the deciphering on Bullfrog's mugshot, people have managed to make out that his full name may be "Bullfrog Korvin Jr". While some argue Bullfrog's surname may be "Kermit" instead, the Junior part of the name is easy to make out

Bullfrog Junior implies that there's a Bullfrog Senior for a little tadpole to be named after

I wanna point out as well that hybrid children exist in this universe and are seen along side human children, ( I'm assuming this is a field trip or something?). So while hybrids were created to fulfil a purpose in Eden , they can still get together and start families like any other hard working American Eden couple and if they're lucky their children can be involved in society along with human children, such as school activities

If I am onto something regarding Regan being in the Templar order and her being the reason Sarah has the ideals that she ended up having in the show , than it's my belief Bullfrog's story will parallel with Sarah in that regard and that Bullfrog had an Assassin parent, and that Assassin parent is the person who gave, or at least inspired, the beliefs Bullfrog holds on to in the show

This may be wishful thinking, but I'm gonna believe until proven otherwise that it was specifically Bullfrog's mother that was the Assassin parent

Besides wanting more women in this show I do actually have reasons to think Bullfrog's mother is the parent who passed on the assassin legacy to him, rather than his father

If Sarah and Bullfrog story's parallel each other , and the two are meant to represent the conflict between Templars and Assassins, how does Sam fit into that?

Simple: Sam doesn't

While it's entirely possible that Sam could've learned about the existence of the Assassin brotherhood before he died, we know that he had no knowledge of either the Assassins or their conflict with the Templars when Sarah was growing up. If he did, he would've been far more vigilant about the propaganda that was brainwashing his own kid, even if Regan was directly feeding it into Sarah’s brain

At most, we can take a guess the earliest Sam could've learned anything about the Assassins was some time after he lost custody of Sarah when she snitched on the watch dogs, and that's just a guess on the earliest he could've discovered them. Depending on how open they were in their involvement with the wasteland war or if they were even "public" at all in Eden prior to Bullfrog becoming the only member of the brotherhood, Sam may have died completely unaware of the mere existence of the Assassins

In other words, Sam was pretty much in the dark about the Templars and that side of Sarah’s lineage

Going off of this and my theory that Sarah and Bullfrog’s stories are meant to be parallels of one another, it stands to reason that Bullfrog Senior was , much like Sam , left unaware of the Assassin brotherhood and that part of his own son’s lineage

Bullfrog and Sarah inheriting their mothers’ legacies of eternal conflict with each other can be a sort of play on the phase “sins of the father”. At least with Sarah , having it be “sins of the mother” makes more sense since Sam is more or less a good guy in the narrative who doesn’t have any sort of millennial old legacy to uphold, and for Bullfrog? Again , wishful thinking

If I really wanted to push that angle, I can probably make a reference to Eve , the first sinner and mother of all humanity. Bullfrog is technically already the snake offering a fruit of forbidden knowledge to Rayman’s Adam , so the symbolism is already present

“But it’s kinda weird that Bullfrog, a frog hybrid, has a bird themed surname if he’s from a family of frogs and was raised by his biological frog parents” And while the basic answer would be “it’s an Assassin’s creed reference and even if not , surnames don’t always make sense for an individual” the other possibly answer to that is to bring up another old man in Sarah’s life:

Marcus Holloway

I’ve seen a lot of people theorise that Bullfrog was adopted by a bird (usually crow or raven) hybrid and that’s how he got the bird themed surname. It’s an adorable headcanon

But going off of my theory I’ve explained thus far, I believe that a member of the Assassins creed , who happens to be a bird hybrid, was a friend of Bullfrog’s mother (and maybe father, but Senior wouldn’t be aware of the brotherhood’s existence) and was basically the Marcus to Bullfrog’s Sarah

Now, while I’ve said I believe Bullfrog’s backstory will parallel Sarah’s, I don’t think it’s going to be exactly one to one and the two are different characters , and my Marcus comparison here is an example of that

Remember the hero’s journey and how I used that to figure out Sarah had a hero complex?

While this entire post is a ramble of a theory and I’m most likely off the mark on a lot of stuff (besides maybe Bullfrog’s story involving blood lines and their legacy) , based on everything I brought up till now, we can probably take some (wild) guesses on what events Bullfrog experienced prior to the show's events

Having used the hero's journey as a template to explain the events in Sarah's life and keeping in mind that her story is likely meant as a parallel to Bullfrog's, we can use that to estimate what events happened in Bullfrog's life

Call to adventure:

Considering Bullfrog has a French accent and speaks French, his family originated from either France or a country with French as the dominant language

In season one , we do not have any information about what life is like outside of Eden. The only thing we know in this universe is that America was a country that existed when Rayman came to earth along with the rabbids, but soon after that the very concept of America disappeared and slowly became Eden, essentially wiping almost all traces of the country ever existing beforehand

There's a massive desert area called the wasteland smacked in the middle of Eden, with how a large piece of area in the middle of a capitalist nation where every other corner is a city building wanting to sell you something became untouched is not known

With how control is a defining factor in their beliefs and how they're a global threat , the Templars may have control of other countries , or least the more powerful countries (such as several European nations) in similar fashion to how Eden is currently functioning

Alternatively, Eden may be the only place left on earth that's actually bearable for most life , with every other country essentially being wastelands ,less likely due to the Templars and more so the Rabbids doing

Either because France sucks under Templar rule or Rabbids made it a hellscape , Bullfrog's father decided to leave and try getting into Eden to get a better chance at life , much like what Sam tried doing for Sarah

Supernatural aid: The crow hybrid assassin (or some other ally character) helps out Bullfrog and his family

Threshold , beginning of transformation: Bullfrog gets someone arrested

Bullfrog tells Rayman that he used to watch his show as a tadpole. While Bullfrog is clearly disillusioned by Eden propaganda as an adult, it could've been a very different story when he was a child

Maybe even a raykid?

Now obviously if Bullfrog's mother was an assassin, she would've kept her children as far away from Eden propaganda as much as possible

But going with Sarah and Bullfrog being parallels, so are their mothers. Sarah doesn't speak of her mother in the show but it's safe to assume that Regan, while someone who existed, was absent in Sarah's life before Sarah snitched on the watch dogs

It's likely then Bullfrog's mother parallels with Regan in sharing same fate as her, whatever that would be

Another reason I actually prefer for the mother to be Bullfrog's assassin parent is another parallel that can be made with Sarah: their fathers being against their conviction

While Sam wasn't part of the assassin brotherhood, Sam was never on the side of Eden . Sam may not have had all the information, he did know what Eden was doing was wrong and didn't want Sarah to become another cog in their machine

So paralleling with Sam , Bullfrog's father in contrast was pro Eden, at least by some extent, and thus would've encouraged Eden propaganda onto Bullfrog

Especially when his wife was no longer in the picture to say otherwise

So at some point after arriving in Eden proper , Bullfrog gets someone arrested in a similar fashion to how Sarah got the watch dogs arrested. Who that is exactly and under what circumstances I can't really say, but I can say one thing: It makes Bullfrog feel wrong for doing it

While Regan ensured that Sarah knew of her Templar heritage and the ideals that came from that, so that Sarah knew when "to do the right thing". Bullfrog's mother ensured Bullfrog knew of the beliefs of the brotherhood and understood the importance of justice

Bullfrog , despite being surrounded by repeat propaganda and his own father's belief in Eden, knew on a subconscious level something was wrong

I mentioned that I believe that a bird hybrid assassin would be a parallel to Marcus , and I believe that bird hybrid and Bullfrog have a bond that Marcus could've had with Sarah

If only their circumstances were different, Marcus could've been a second dad to Sarah

At some point there'd be conflict with Bullfrog senior being against his son becoming "terrorist" , and thus Bullfrog deciding to distance himself from his father and take on his mentor's name , Korvin

Challenges and Temptations : most likely Bullfrog's assassin training, maybe something to do with revenge (?)

Revelation, Death and Rebirth: Okay either the brotherhood dies, probably in the wasteland war or Bullfrog senior dies

The brother hood dying fits this better, but Senior dying or rather getting himself killed could be the final step from Bullfrog to let go of his past and fully commit to his destiny as an assassin

You can probably make a plot of Senior seeking revenge only to end up getting innocents and himself hurt along the way, and this that's what formed Bullfrog's views on revenge

Transformation: Bullfrog becoming a master assistant, maybe?

Atonement: Much like Sarah, Bullfrog's story isn't finished yet and thus, we'll have to see what happens in season two

[idontplaytrack]

i fell asleep for 2hours bc my head felt heavy as hell but i just woke up to a bunch of comments from @frogs00 and @reneeswif3 and i nearly screamed maybe cried(im sick and emotional)‼️😬

i started writing bc i needed a way to cope with life’s stresses— more so in the last few years bc i was diagnosed with new chronic conditions after being disabled already since birth. so i was always lonely and made up stories in my head to entertain myself. home life’s honestly pretty messy so quite a bit of what i write into fics are drawn from real life experiences and emotions bc i believe that if i know what i’m writing it will make more sense. in a way, writing what i’ve written so far has given me closure on different things that i couldn’t have gotten elsewhere or in other ways bc it’s the main way i know how to deal with my problems.

i’m just so flattered and happy that people from so many places around the world connect with what i write and even like my writing — i honestly don’t know how to accept compliments like its lowkey scary to me — its a problem i have 🫥 i’ve met some of the sweetest people on here in such a short period of time and not gonna lie, you guys keep me going bc i’d just be having a bad day and y’all would like, comment or even reblog my fics. It just brings a smile to my face when I can’t.

Y’all would be surprised (maybe not) to know that my best friend is someone I have never met and lives halfway across the world from me. We met because of my Auli’i book on wattpad and we talk every single day now. She’s already been with me through so much (I’m chronically ill, everybody I feel like has run away from me or avoided me bc they don’t want to deal with a sick person and I get that. And sometimes friends just drift.) but she is just someone I appreciate so much because she isn’t afraid to be honest with me instead and ask questions. It’s so new to me but so refreshing because it’s forcing me to reflect and learn so much about myself.

People like you all that come across my works one way or another and leave an impression on my mind, I especially cherish because even a small gesture makes my whole day. I don’t even know exactly why I’m writing this much but at this point I’m crying and getting out what I’ve been feeling(you see?🥲)

okay, okay. i’m done. i adore yall, you lovely human beings. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

[owl-with-a-pen]

Been getting back into Supergirl recently, which means I’ve been getting back into Brainia, which means I’ve been thinking more about my Naltorian headcanons.

This is one I’ve just kind of had in the back of my head for a while. It’s not really a mannerism as much as it’s just me rocking a sort of soulmate-adjacent concept because I love those.

Naltorians are a species that mates for life in a very literal sense. They can only form romantic bonds one time in their life. They can bond to multiple partners in the case of polyamory, but in cases like this the entire polycule has to meet each other before any romantic bonding takes place and all bonds will form at the same time. Once it’s done, it’s done. There will be no more partners, ever.

Naltorians tend to be very protective of their partners and proactive in upkeeping and maintaining their relationships, as they know there won’t be another chance if they lose this one. Generally, they don’t have to worry about breakups outside of extreme circumstances. They don’t ever want to be without their partners, so it’s very rare for a Naltorian to voluntarily end a relationship.

When a Naltorian bonds to a member of another species, though, that can get a little messy. Imagine Nia, knowing full well that Brainy is her one and only even in the earliest stages, dealing with that breakup. Imagine Brainy, being very aware of how Naltorian romantic bonds work, dying of guilt that entire time because he knows exactly what he’s doing to her. Imagine the added dismay when Brainy has to go off to the future without her, because they both know she is never going to be able to move on or find someone else.

On a less angsty note, I don’t know exactly how voluntary the bonding itself is, but a Naltorian will always bond to someone who is compatible and makes them feel safe and valued. Brainy would be very honored to know that not only does he meet the criteria, but he does so more than anyone else in the world. He would treasure that.

I also just think it’s a little fun to have Brainy very familiar with the motions of a romantic relationship but not at all with true emotional intimacy with a person he loves, while Nia is the exact opposite. She knows a lot about the closeness the bond entails and the commitment it requires, but maybe not so much about the little things in a relationship because she’s never been in one before. Getting together is a learning curve for both of them.

Ohhh I like this, and also yes that did kill me with the angst factor because of my god Brainy realising what he'd be putting Nia through during the break-up is just devastating to think about. Even more-so when he leaves for the future. Honestly, that being the reason he comes back would definitely be a better explanation than what we got. 😅

But I kinda want to add my own spin on this idea if you'll allow me. Because what if it's a little different for the Dreamer of a family? Nia's mother had a dream of where she had to go to find her husband, so what if that's the standard for finding your soulmate if you have the Sight? What if Nia didn't think it would apply to her, she's trying to convince herself she won't get the Sight and in doing so she rejects a lot of Naltorian customs along the way. Maybe she doesn't even think the whole soulmate thing applies to her either as she's half human, so she does dabble in the dating world but never falls for anyone, or it never feels just right.

And then maybe one day she wakes from a dream that she plays off as nothing, just like any other visions she's had along the way. She pushes it back, so far that when she first sees Brainy it doesn't even register fully that he seems familiar to her somehow, but she does know that this feels different. That something here is worth pursuing, worth fighting for.

Maybe she has the dream again a couple of nights later and it clicks into place, but because she's still trying to avoid her powers it takes her a lot longer to come to terms with what it truly means.

I wonder if you could apply Brainy's foreknowledge of Naltorian customs from Nura to this equation as well. He's so cagey about starting a relationship with her in season 4, but imagine if it was because he was aware of the fact that his residency in that time was only temporary and as much as he was beginning to feel for her, he didn't want to cement himself as her one love if he knew he couldn't be with her forever.

I really like your idea that Nia and Brainy are coming at the relationship from different angles, but also maybe they're actually more similar than they realise. They've both tried their hand at relationships, even if it only ever went as far as physical and never emotional, and so they're both on this new territory where they suddenly have to navigate the very raw feelings they're suddenly experiencing for one another. I also love your idea that Nia at least knows how to deal with that from what she's heard of Naltorian customs and soulmates in the past, but Brainy's got absolutely no frame of reference. Having them learn and work on it all together just sounds so so cute and is also a great doorway for comedy.

Aaah thanks for sharing as always, come join me in jumping headfirst back into that Supergirl pool. 😂

[the-haunted-office]

I have a good deal of James's profile complete! It is up in my document of muses, which is linked in my pinned post, but I'm going to post it here too, because why not. :p

Name: James Wolfe (Jim)

Role: Protagonist

Office of Origin: WIP

Age: 26

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Omnisexual

Species: Human

Personality: In most cases when you meet James he appears to be an affable, outgoing man with a big personality, a lot on his mind, and even more to say. He’s confident, may appear to be bright and know what he is talking about, and may even come across as popular or like he is the delight of the town. He is interested in you and what you think, how you feel, your life, what you are up to, just everything about you.

There is, however, a deeper, darker layer of him underneath all that, and it tends to come out and become easier to see the longer and better you know him. You may start to notice just how attentive he is to you. That he remembers just about everything you tell him about you. Certain details he’s told you about himself don’t align. You start to wonder if you don’t really know who James is or who is the real James.

He can become very attached to a person very quickly, and even become obsessive and downright possessive, sometimes to the point of becoming aggressive about it. He is an individual who can easily become jealous and envious of others, and suffers from an intense need for attention, a desire to love, and a desire to be loved. And he will do almost anything to get it.

Physical Appearance: Caucasian cis male of six feet in height. Dark brown hair that is wavy with a slight curl to it and very messy. Hazel eyes. Wears glasses. Moderate build - James is not exactly muscular, but not thin either, he is somewhere in the middle. Likes to dress to impress, so most often he can be seen wearing nice dress pants and a dress shirt, usually also with a tie and a vest.

Abilities: As an Office dweller, she can respawn in a whole, healthy new body upon death.

Brief History: WIP

PLEASE BE WARNED: While I don’t intend on roleplaying James’s more intensely toxic personality traits with my writing partners and in roleplay threads, please keep in mind that James’s character does have toxic traits, including becoming easily jealous of others and easily attached to others, including to the point of obsession. He may even, at times, insult your muse if he sees them as competition, or become physically hostile, or even try to hurt your muse (although I will never allow him to do so without discussing it with you first).

There is no requirement for you to interact with James and I will not be at all offended if you decide you don’t feel comfortable interacting with him. If at any time you feel uncomfortable, all you need to do is drop the thread. I would also appreciate it if you let me know too so that I will know not to send James to your inbox for ask memes and such, although telling me is up to you.

My intention with James is to explore his darker, more toxic traits internally among my own muses through writing drabbles and such, while keeping his interactions with other people’s muses on the lighter side, but due to the nature of his character, he will never be totally free of his toxic traits (unless he improves via character development). Any interaction with him may include toxic situations at any time. With this in mind, if you are interested in exploring his darker side with me, you are more than welcome to do so! I will require that we plot these things out, so that we are both on the same page the whole way and making sure we are both comfortable with how things are progressing.

Feel free to reach out to me at any time with questions or concerns or anything. Thank you!

Voiceclaim: Davey Wreden

Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/47heSeeJtlsSjZ4khIGW9X?si=5349d74922474df6

[siriuslysatorusimping]

I absolutely LOVE this series! And especially Rinko and just how 3 dimensional she feels as a character!

Her and Gojo's dynamic is just 🤌*chefs kiss*

And you do such a good job to keep Gojo in character! Every dialogue and decision he makes just feels so Gojo and I love how their personalities complement each other and clash sometimes as well because of their respective past and traumas

We love the healthy communication and boundary respect✨️✨️

But i wanted to ask what is everyones ages currently? Rinko and Gojo but also Megumi because his age has always confused me in canon from when exactly Gojo found him.

And also has Shoko ever opened up to Rinko about Geto? and maybe how Gojo distanced himself after as well?

Thank you SO MUCH 🥹🥹 I'm so glad you're enjoying it!! I love the characters and I find it so fun writing them together 😊

The comments and asks people send make my day, truly.

My full response, because I am a wordy bitch, will be under the cut!!

(A note after I have finished writing this response, I am SO SORRY for how long this post is... 🫠)

Read Another Level on AO3 :)

Rinko, Rinko/Gojo dynamic, Trauma

I think maybe I've mentioned it before, but Rinko has quickly become one of my favorite OCs I've ever written. She's strong, sassy, and so fun to write because of how much I've gotten to develop her character.

Her relationship with Gojo is fun because it's so antagonistic but also based so deeply on trust and mutual respect that their entire friendship and relationship would be impossible without. She knows he doesn't respect people hardly at all, but he's made it very clear, since after their very first fight, that he has respect for her.

They both have so much trauma. And they are both so messy. And it makes them so fun to write because it makes them so human.

Their dynamic is also perfect because of how they are with conflict:

Rinko will avoid conflict. She runs as fast as she can because if she runs before the conflict, she can't be rejected after the conflict. She will stand her ground when she has to (Last Stand, eh?) but she will run when she can. She's lived her entire life being told she was an unwanted mistake, dealing with rejection in so many ways. (But you can't reject her if she's already gone.) Remember in Hollow Echoes? When Gojo was actually trying to get her to talk to him and she was avoiding him? When she tells herself he doesn't want to see or talk to her even though he is insistently texting her? This bitch really trying to be a track star with how much she will run.

Gojo, on the other hand, will chase. He doesn't let her hide away. He respects her space when she needs it, just as he asks of her, but when he knows she's just running to run? He is relentless. He is a brute force kind of person. He is all 'pay attention to me because I'm the greatest and strongest and chosen one' and when he knows it's not violating her boundaries, he will push and push until she lets him in. But it's why he's so insistent on understanding where her boundaries are, so that he can tell when he's nearing a line.

As they grow together, she starts to become more comfortable with pushing him when she knows he needs it. She'll stand her ground with him more often and it's going to be beautiful. Because we'll see that he doesn't mind her pushing him when she asks first instead of assuming.

Gojo's character

BRUH 💀 I just really love blue-eyed, overly confident, cocksure fuckers, who are secretly so FUCKING SOFT, I guess. I actually have a different character in an original work of mine, who is similar to Gojo in SO MANY WAYS that it's scary. I think it might be what made me fall in love with Gojo so quickly when I first got into JJK.

But as for Gojo: His character is so multidimensional while seeming so damn shallow at the same time. And that is really fun to write. Because at the end of the day: the asshole is absolutely so fucking shallow and selfish. He cares about Rinko, but their entire dynamic started because he was a cocky shit who hated that someone beat him.

His initial attraction to Rinko started because he wanted to break her and prove he was stronger until he realized that she already knew and just didn't care. She denied him. And she read him like a fucking book by knowing it would drive him crazy. He knew she wanted him too, and it annoyed him that she turned him down just to get under his skin. And it annoyed him even more that it worked.

It blew him away when, even as she was literally in his lap, having just cum on his fingers right after he spanked her and she still looked him in the eye and stated she should have known he wouldn't be able to make her cum. And it drove him fucking crazy because he'd never, ever been pushed in so many ways.

His multidimensional ass is still based off his arrogance in being the strongest, and that makes him so fun.

✨Healthy Communication and Boundaries✨

That's it. That's this section.

JUST KIDDING.

Okay, but it's built and it works because of mutual trust and respect that is the foundation of it all.

It's displayed so perfectly in how well he reads her in the second part of Hollow Echoes:

“If you can’t speak,” he reached up, grasping her hand in his. “Squeeze my hand twice if your color is red.”

He knew she physically could speak, but that she didn't want to. She didn't want to admit allowed that he had her, and he knew that. And he understood that that was actually a boundary she was unintentionally setting, and he understood that forcing her to speak would be pushing her too far. So he gave her a different way to express her consent and then doubled down on ensuring she knew that she could tell him 'no' at any point and that it was okay.

She gripped his hand tightly, feeling her nails digging into his skin. But she didn’t squeeze again, and he looked up now, his eyes searching her face. She knew he could see how her jaw trembled as she refused to meet his eyes, tears still sliding down the sides of her face. “You know,” he said quietly. “At any point your color changes, you tell me?”

Had she squeezed his hand twice, he would have stopped without question and I just AHHH I LOVE IT SO MUCH. Healthy communication is my kink, guys.

Has Shoko ever opened up about Geto and Gojo growing distant?

Yes and no.

Shoko is a pretty private person. And we've already seen that Rinko doesn't like pushing people to open up. She knew that Shoko was relatively close with both of them, and she knows that it really upset her friend when Geto decided to go a different path and Gojo began distancing himself. But, in our world, it wasn't as jarring for her because she had Rinko.

Rinko and Shoko met early during first year. And Rinko's presence in her life meant she ended up spending less of her off time with Gojo and Geto, and more with Rinko. And when Geto left, and Gojo distanced himself, she just spent more time with Rinko instead of with either of them.

Rinko mentions that she and Shoko used to get lunch at least once a month, but saw each other more often after her semi-grade promotion, so essentially, if she wasn't with Gojo or Nanami while she was in Tokyo, she was with Shoko.

As a small spoiler, we will be getting a single chapter from Shoko's perspective in the future 😊 And it'll give a bit of a different perspective and view of Rinko and how well the two know each other.

Lastly for this, we also have to remember that Shoko doesn't really show emotions that often. She's pretty shrewd and straightforward, but we'll get to see her panic a few times because of Rinko over the course of the series.

Character Ages

Ah! I've been planning on posting something about this!! So I'll take this chance and then probably make a larger, separate post about it.

A quick answer: As of Innate Issues - Part 2, Rinko is 26.

Gojo Satoru was born on December 7, 1989.

Kurisaki Rinko was born on October 18, 1989.

Rinko is a little less than two months OLDER than Gojo. So he'll eventually make a joke about liking older women. I don't know when, but he's the kind of little shit that would.

Maki and Mai were born on January 20, 2002.

Megumi was born on December 22, 2002.

Gojo met Megumi not long after killing Toji, and had been visiting him occasionally for a few years when he met Rinko. In the flashback in Strength in Numbers, he had just made the connection between why Toji had ever cared about having Rinko's help, prompting him to bring Megumi up. Early-mid 2012, Megumi was nine and would turn ten that December.

Below, I've included our timeline up until where we are right now, broken down by Title, Rinko's Age, Year, and Month:

---

AHHHH I'M SO SORRY THIS WAS SO LONG I HATE HOW WORDY I GET SOMETIMES 😭😭😭

[5mind]

How do you deal with betrayal or conflict in your relationships?

What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve your goals?What does a typical day look like for you?

What's your favorite way to relax or unwind?

Are there any skills or talents you have that not many people know about?

Do you have any coping mechanisms for dealing with anxiety or fear?

What are your pet peeves?

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Do you prefer working alone or in a team?

What kind of music do you listen to, if any?

What would your dream pet be, if laws of physics and reality were no obstacle?

( @ alllllll)

((I'm just gonna do the first four questions if you dont miiiiind

6. How do you deal with betrayal or conflict in your relationships?

[🔌] "I suppose the most appropriate way to go about this would be through direct communication. Perhaps there could have been a misunderstanding."

"However, that also depends on the nature of the betrayal or conflict, does it not?"

[🐦‍⬛] "No mercy! Chirptune will deal with it!" And how would she deal with it exactly? Well, that's for the her of the future to deal with. Chirptune rarely ever plans ahead unless for pranks.

[🦂] "If it happens...it happens..." Antares sighs. If it's just a mere disagreement or a squabble, he'd probably just avoid facing the issue until it gets bad and messy. Mostly messy.

[🧊] "Preferably quickly. I don't have time for unnecessary drama." It appeared he didn't have the time, or rather the courage, for relationships.

7. What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve your goals?

[🔌] "Them...us." The machine was referring to the units of the mechanical squadron, of course. Due to resource limitations, they were not exactly expendable......but if worst comes to worst, they could be.

[🐦‍⬛] "Hmmmm...." Chirptune tilts her head in thought. "Chirptune will sacrifice one battery! Maaaaaybe two!"

[🦂] "Hm...? I don't have a lot to sacrifice in the first place." Aside from parts of himself that is - physically, emotionally, mentally ...that's all he has. Oh and also the ricecooker he has at home.

[🧊] "....I have not thought about that." That's what he says. The fact that he routinely risks his own physical health and gives up his own personal life just...kinda goes over his head.

8. What does a typical day look like for you?

[🔌] "We often occupy ourselves scavenging or with part-time jobs. Usually it is Yellow Three who lands the jobs but Blue Two has been well-received by our neighbours as well." By neighbours they meant the humans of Bayfloat in general. "Some days are uneventful, some days are not. The definition of a 'typical day' is a little vague, is it not?"

[🐦‍⬛] "Chirptune is a busy bird! So many sights to see, so many nests and birdhouses to demand from! Chirptune needs to keep up to date with what goes on around town too. And then Chirptune comes home to Fivemind."

[🦂] "I wake up. I go to work. I work. I go home. I sleep." He makes it sound so bland for someone who's work consisted of violence and murder.

[🧊] "I do my patrols, maybe go jogging... I do have...a job aside from all this too." He doesn't really like talking about his daily life much...mostly because he has no interest in talking about it. It's boring.

9. What's your favorite way to relax or unwind?

[🔌] "I know it sounds like more of a chore than a way of relaxation, but I find performing internal scans on ourselves rather soothing. I also do enjoy tinkering and painting miniatures when I can."

[🐦‍⬛] "Chirptune likes flying over the sea. If Chirptune flies high enough, no one can hear 'tune yell at the sun." Or can they?

[🦂] "Oh, I used to go to the arcade quite a bit. Still do when I feel like it. But mostly I just stay at home and watch tv."

[🧊] "I don't relax." He doesn't need to relax, not in his opinion anyways. He does realise he needs to blow off some steam though.

"I go to the gym sometimes though."

[nicolesainz]

Within the limits (Ben Chilwell x Jenson Button x OC) Chapter 6

Author’s note: First chapter of 2024!! Happy new year babes! So, unfortunately, the updates on the story won’t be very regular given it’s exam season and school is sucking the life out of me, but I will try my best to update as regularly as possible!

Warnings: fluff, angst

next chapter

“I am so on the Messi hype train. Can’t imagine how buzzed I was when France started missing the penalties at the World Cup.”

“I thought you’d be more of a Ronaldo girl, given you live in Manchester.”

“My parents house is in London. That’s where I grew up. I moved to Manchester in 2022.”

“So, here’s a question for you. Where does the name ‘Chelsea’ come from? When Mase told me I was shocked.”

“So, my dad is a massive fan of the club. Always attending the games whether that’s Premier League, FA cup, Carabao cup, Champions league games, name it. He has pictures of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba on his office walls and replicas of signed shirts.”

“And then you were born, giving your father the perfect opportunity to name you Chelsea.”

“Exactly.”

“The name really suits you. Royal blue vibes. Which leads me to my next question, which club do you support?”

The drive to Manchester was one of the most enjoyable I’ve ever had, with Ben on the line, talking about our lives and getting to know each other. I feel like it would’ve been better if we were face to face but things have their time.

He was so keen on getting to know me better and I was too. I’ve been a fan of his for so many years, something I haven’t admitted yet, and learning more things about his life brings a smile to my face.

“A professional never reveals their favorite team. I have to remain unbiased, impartial and fair to every team.”

“But now you’re not being fair! Come on, it’s just the two of us. I swear I won’t tell a soul.”

“Look, here’s a deal. If you score a goal at the next match that I will happen to commentate on, I will tell you my favorite club. Deal?”

“Fine, you win. A goal for the club it is. You have a deal.” I can hear him groaning annoyed at the offer I made.

Sometimes life is not jolly for footballers either.

“It was lovely talking to you Benjamin. I have to go now unfortunately, just arrived home and I need to prepare my notes for Manchester’s next game.”

“Oh yes, I fully understand. I enjoyed our conversation and getting to know you better. Talk to you later, blue.” I smile at the nickname ‘blue’. It’s not the usual ‘chels’ but I very much like it.

When I open the door I instantly kick off my shoes and drop on the couch as if I am a human slushee. Every inch of my body hurts. And my heart as well. How can Jenson say such nasty things in front of my face?

Does he think I’m a slut? After all we’ve confessed to each other? Do these ‘I love you’s mean nothing to him?

———————————————————————————-

“In two games we play against each other, come on let me score a goal!”

“I love you and I appreciate your effort but no. We’ve been on a massive losing strike and I should be the one asking you to let me score a goal.”

“What if we both score? Game ends up 1-1, shared points?”

“Score all the goals you want against Palace all you want tomorrow. I’m sure she’ll be tuned in.”

“You can’t imagine how happy I was while we were talking. It felt good chatting again with a girl that was genuinely interested in getting to know me and not simply looking to fuck me.”

Being a footballer at the highest level, an England international and presumably one of the most handsome players in the league, can earn you the attention of many women. It’s just shame that most want to be with you simply for publicity reasons.

Chelsea was asking me questions that none of my previous girlfriends had ever bothered to ask me. What was my life in high school like? My favorite position to play in as a child? Favorite memory with friends from high school or teammates? I was stunned and touched by how much she was focused on detail.

“Chelsea is a good one. I’ll just warn you to be careful around the loverboy she’s with. Seems like a feisty one.”

“I wanna be her friend first and foremost. I want to get to know her and get close to her. It’ll be good to add another person to my inner circle and have a laugh with.”

Mason stops talking abruptly, I hear him opening his front door and quietly walking outside. He takes his keys with him and I am assuming he is afraid that something is going on.

"Everything okay mate?" I ask from the other line of the phone but Mason hushes at me really quickly.

"I can hear yelling from Chelsea's apartment. I can see two cars parked in front of her house, but I can't tell who is the person standing in front of her door."

"Is she alright? Is it her father?" worry rushes through me and my heartbeat is rising extremely fast.

"It looks like Jenson. Wait, I will call you back, I'm going here to help her get rid of him."

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

"I need to be alone right now Jense, what can't you understand?" It's incredible how I am literally begging for a few days of sanity.

"I can't live on the other side of England, knowing that my girlfriend is angry at me." The word 'girlfriend' almost made me throw up.

"I am not your girlfriend. You never asked me to be. You were the one who suggested we didn't put a label in our relationship and me being a classic idiot, I agreed" It should have been a warning sign that Jenson was not taking me as seriously as I thought.

"I thought that by saying 'I love you' to each other, this meant that our relationship was serious enough that we didn't have to labelize it."

"The moment you finally realise what I am to you, instead of just assuming, give me a call Jenson." I try to shut the door at his face but he holds it open with his arm. Fuck him.

"You have to be joking? Right? Come on Chels, don't act like a five year old." The moment those words left his mouth, I could have easily shed a river of tears but I had to show him that I wasn't as vulnerable as the current situation made me be.

Asking him to take me seriously is me acting like a kid? By that, he simply proves my point.

In the heat of the moment, before I could answer, Mason showed up, holding two bottles of wine, empty. I was kind of weird out by what he was trying to do. But I didn't question him.

"Hey, I am so sorry to interrupt, but you had promised to give me some of your cousin's wine. Guests are waiting." Mason said in a shyly manner, trying not to catch Jenson's attention too much.

"Oh yes, sorry, they are in my celery, let me bring them." I say, thankfully with the assistance of Mason and him using a very convincing lie.

"I will call you tomorrow Chelsea. You better pick up." Jenson's voice was extremely stern and all I did was nod to him. Not even a 'goodbye'. A simple head movement.

Jenson shut the door behind him and Mason let out a sigh of relief. He placed the bottles on the table and pulled out his phone to text someone, who ended up being Ben himself.

"Are you okay? The moment I heard screaming, I thought something was going on and we both got worried." My heart melted at the thought of two footballers and possible best mates of mine worrying about loud noises.

"Wait, who is we? Do you actually have guests?"

"No. I was on the phone with Ben when the yelling started. I told him about it and he got so worried that he was about to tell me to call the police."

Ben barely knows me 48 hours and yet he acts like the boyfriend Jenson isn't. Cares about me from distance and needs a double check from his friend.

"Thank you guys for everything. I don't know how to repay you. You saved a possible self invitation of Jenson at my house."

"It was nothing, Chels. We are friends. That's what we do. No need to repay us."

"Sure? If you need anything just tell me."

"Well, now that I am thinking about it, would you like to attend with me Chelsea vs Crystal Palace? Unless you're on the commentary box during the game."

"I won't be. Because the next day I will be commentating on United vs Fulham."

"Is that a yes then?"

"Definitely a yes!"

[freneticphoneticfanatic]

My experience with nonmonogamy has cracked my brain open in a way I don’t think I could turn away from if I wanted to. You can’t promise someone you’ll love them the same way forever, as the two of you grow and change. You can’t promise you’ll never want to pursue a connection outside of the two of you. Why should you? And if you choose to pursue a new connection as “just friends,” why should that relationship have a cap on how much you allow yourselves to deepen it? I feel like when I talk about this stuff, people’s minds go immediately to sexual intimacy, because that’s what our culture is obsessed with. But seriously, why are monogamous relationships held up on this pedestal above all our other relationships? Why is your capital-P Partner supposed to be the most important person in your life? Why do so many people expect ourselves to have just one “most-important” person in our lives?

I take issue with exclusivity, jealousy, and possessiveness. If I spend the majority of my time with one person, and one or both of us decides to start spending more of our time with other people, that ought to enrich our interactions, not take away from them. If these experiences are a net negative for a relationship, take a look at the people involved, including yourself, and their actions. In my experience, shallowness, dishonesty, cruelty, and entitlement are the issues, not un-exclusivity. If you care about someone, you should give them the respect of understanding them as wholly human… that includes respecting their right to be messy and have connections with other people.

I understand the fear that comes with letting go of exclusivity, of a traditional relationship narrative. People like security. But shouldn’t that security come from trusting your partner to be kind, dependable, and trustworthy, even when they’re not “bound” to you? To me, it’s the social equivalent of training a dog with treats vs. without. I can tell my partner I don’t want them to be intimate with other people, and if we agree on that and they’re trustworthy, they won’t do it. I see the value there. But it’s far more interesting to me and builds more trust and a stronger bond to see how my partner interacts with people they’re interested in outside of our relationship. If they treat someone else like shit, or start treating me like shit after connecting with someone else, I consider that a win because that’s clarity on their character. But if they don’t, if they still show up for me and make it known that they value me AND handle other relationships well… wow. What a beautiful thing that is, that I never would have experienced if I hadn’t given them that trust.

To briefly address the sexual aspect, SO WHAT? If the sex is positive and safe, and your partner is kind, honest, and dependable, is there any harm actually done? Or is it mainly an ego blow accompanied by insecurity—fear of a perceived threat to a relationship you value? In other words, a “you” problem that you have to decide whether or not you want to deal with. (Frankly, I think either decision is morally neutral. Just don’t be an asshole, that’s the bottom line.) If you’re going to be with someone, you should trust each other to make good decisions. And because we’re human and therefore flawed, you should also be prepared to be there to support each other if something blows up in your face.

I think the reason people act so different, “not themselves,” and irrational when it comes to capital-L Love, the reason people “struggle to differentiate” between platonic and romantic love, is because most people buy into a fucked up, broken framework for human relationships that’s fake as hell and ultimately rooted in men’s exploitation of women. That’s the standard. Marriage wasn’t even culturally associated with romance until the 18th century. And I only know that because I read a lot of feminist material. It’s not exactly common knowledge, and for good reason.

I recommend checking out Lesbian Ethics by Sarah Hoagland and A Passion For Friends by Janice Raymond. They both challenge our notions of what we consider “real” and valuable relationships. Sarah Hoagland wrote about relationships in Lesbian Ethics in a way that was eye-opening for me at the time. (I need to re-read.) I encourage everyone to let yourself and your relationships be messy. Following a script is easy but often unfulfilling. Trust yourself and your loved ones to create your own structures that work for you.

[frownyalfred]

Hey, I’ve always loved your works, and I’m delighted to have found your tumblr!

(TL;DR: I really like the way you write relationships and I’m sorry you’re dealing with some shitty comments) Can I just say, I absolutely love the actions and characterizations of your latest mind-link fic? It’s just so raw and so real, and honestly, I absolutely love these types of fics where good people mess up and behave like assholes. Because we’re all human, we’re all people, and life and love and relationships are messy, messy things.

I don’t want cookie cutter perfect relationships, I want these 3D ones that shows that it’s okay that people fuck up. So many fanfics have a perfect protagonist (and I mean, more power to them, it’s their fanfic), but I personally *love* when the main character messes up and just- snaps at someone or is a little selfish. It just makes it so much more human and relatable. And it makes the fluff that comes after 10000% better because you know how much they care for each other, to make up and to work past issues because they think the other person is worth it.

Anyways, sorry for rambling at ya- I just wanted to express exactly how much I love your recent fic and my utter bafflement at the asshole comments. People are going to fuck up! It happens! And if you don’t want to read about that, that’s 100% fine! But stop yelling at the author, it’s not your fic! It’s theirs!

Thank you so much! I think you encapsulated the issue really well.

Don't get me wrong, I love reading fics where my blorbo is overpowered and can do no wrong and everyone else is in the wrong -- it's really fun and there's some awesome stories like that! It's fiction, and if that's how the author writes that character, I'm down.

I also like reading stories where it's grittier and complicated and closer to real life. I like both! The latter is hard to read constantly, because it's too much like real life to be an escape sometimes.

For borderline, I really wanted to dive into the complicated and awkward feelings that don't always make it into fics (for good reasons). Things like people in the bond feeling someone's else's arousal/other bodily functions, personal thoughts that are never shared out loud, instinctive reactions to things people can't control or even verbalize to themselves. Etc...

The reality is, even the best blorbo comes off poorly when we see their every thought, action, and memory in technicolor. People are complicated, and even genuinely good people rarely fall into that easy, good/not good binary every second of every day.

I think a lot of conflict in my comment section comes from discord over Tim and Damian (and to a lesser extent, Bruce) not being "perfect" or equally bad/good.

I've said it before, and I will reiterate it here: I appreciate the stories where Tim/Damian/etc are written as the victim, the wronged party, the protagonist, etc. I'm not knocking them here. But this isn't that kind of fic -- no one is right, here, or the sole protagonist/wronged party.

Tim isn't a bad guy any more than Damian is. Nor is Damian a better person or victim more so than Tim. Their situations are wildly different and so are their motivations/experiences. Hence why it's interesting (or at least, I think so) to see them involuntarily connected and at odds.

It's okay to disagree with my characterization! You don't have to read my fic. But I think taking a breath and Xing out is better than arguing with me/other readers in the comments about how your favorite character is being mis-written or treated.

[minalblood]

Ep 7, finally! Sorry fellas took a while.

I will try to skip past the Despair destiel parallels since they've been mentioned often enough and focus on other stuff i find interesting.

Ok 1stly Carlos jokingly saying they should try jumper cables for the Ostium only to then look back at Lata judgingly was A++ friendship moments.

Love the Tony mention from Ada so much!

I will say all the shell company and warehouse talk reminds me of spn season 7 and the Leviathan plans which to be fair, the Akrida's plans are basically the same. Both hungry, some type of shapshifting beings. Kinda wanna know which came first for Chuck, cuz we know the Leviathan are meant to have been genuine creature vs the Akrida who were deliberately made as fail safe plague.

Mary big mad this ep beginning and it's all because of her worry.

God I still love the Akrida design and I also adore their growls!!! Tho I add that the fact that they can feel pain but cannot be killed save for something out of this world is hella intriguing, feels like something a, to quote Chuck, "cruel, capricious God" would do.

I adore Carlos brain! They're soooo smart and it's constantly shown in all the subtle ways but it's so consistent throughout that I love it. And not just generally, but also emotionally speaking, especially highlighted in the scene with Mary. Putting the right blame on the shifters, being honest about dealing or not with their parents death and still succeeding in bringing Mary's spirit up.

Why would John be so shocked that Henry would've written something for the MoL? Henry was a MoL so it really shouldn't be that surprising that he wrote stuff down. I personally think it's because he chose not to ask more questions because it would've fucked with him too much and he couldn't handle it.

Millie in the Clubhouse! Finally! She's still too harsh, but this time I tend to give her tiny bit more benefit of the doubt since it's obvious being in the Clubhouse is bringing up all the very complicated feelings she has deliberately not dealt with about Henry. It's why she can go from mentioning love letters with a soft gentle loving tone one moment and then insulting Henry's chicken scratch and its supposed use in saving the world. She has dealt a lot more with her feelings about Henry these past... weeks months? since all the stuff began, especially having received a clear answer about where Henry disappear to (he died), but that in many ways likely made it so much more complicated because the anger hasnt gone away but now it feels almost unfair to aim it so much at someone that seems to have not had a choice in abandoning them as she initially thought. She's still mad tho, not just because of that but also because she was never allowing in by Henry, not really, and we learn later that he deliberately distanced himself from her as well so being invited to the Clubhouse is a huge step in slotting into place what she feels. It's also why I think she demands so staunchly to know exactly what's happening because last time she didn't, Henry died.

The implication that Samuel Campbell is messy from Mary gave me such a John's room in Pilot vibes. Love that parallel (read: hate)

The mention from the Akrida possessing Roxy bout Roxy's beauty is made sooo much worse by the later episode about her possession, but with it in my mind, it give such icky vibes now. Besides the sheer disregard about Roxy's life. It makes it even more clear how much humans are just things for the Akrida to use and discard whenever. And that will only be made more apparent in later episodes.

Carlos' miiind!! The hex bag!! God I love them.

Interesting just for me I guess, but the fact that u just need to know the ingredients of a hex bag to find it, is sooo fun. I have so many questions.

I also love seeing Millie adjusting to the whole supernatural thing, her mind just going and her saying shit only to find out she might actually be onto something to them using her plan. Love that, especially love that it happens in connection to Ada. Millie and Ada have been pretty linked throughout the show so far, and I love that it's while Millie is talking to Ada, one of the few people who actually knew Henry and Henry allowed in, that she gets the idea she does. I also think it's very important that Ada does tell her the stuff Millie didnt know.

Ok, maybe controversial opinion here but I actually agree with Ada here, John is not closed off like Henry. He just isnt here. He is extremly reactive which means you will know what you get with him cuz he will make it clear, in a very bone headed way, sure , but it will be clear what he feels. There are of course things he doesn't disclose, but it aint about him being open, its just that he isnt closed off like Henry. Henry who his wife thought didnt even think of her or if he did it wasn't good terms at least toward the end, Henry who planted a protective plant for his family but never said anything about it. John, in spn, certainly does become closed off like that, id say he gets even more closed off but not this John, not yet and hopefully never. This john is just angry. Really angry, but it's still not the same insurmountable situation.

I adore Lata's excitement about all things monster.

Ahhhhhh I miss you all too Carlos 😭😭😭 #SavetheWinchesters

Nixon being Akrida is a nod to Lucifer possessing the president vibes to me.

I kinda love that Millie sold her wedding ring, it makes sense on so many levels. 1. Shes a single mom with a business to run. 2. She s trying to distance herself from the pain Hwnry left her with. 3. She is very much a dont think about it and it'll not affect you denial stage of grief person.

The music box!

It says shit about Millie that she didnt know john still had the music box all these years. It makes it clear which parts of John's life she paid attention to (or could allow herself to pay attention to) and which not.

I hate that they cant actually deal with any of the stuff because of the short window they have, but that's how things are right? both generally and def in the spn verse, you never have the space or time to actually confront the person thats traumatised you, not really, you just have small pockets of chances to process what happened in the middle of world ending events.

Fun fact, I rewatched Inside Man recently and the spell they use here to summon Henry is the exact same one Sam and Cas use to talk to Bobby in Heaven. And the fucking meaning always hurts me, cuz it calls onto dead loved ones to answers their calls/questions abd it feels like a prayer to me tbh. I also headcannon that the reason the spell works differently here is because Henry was still in the veil rather than in heaven, but ive nothing to substantiate that.

Once more Mary and John have such a genuine relationship tho, they really are honest with each other as often as they can because of the connection and similarities they felt when they first met and everything experienced since. Unlike their spn counterparts who were very much not honest about themselves.

I really love that John gets to hear Henry unequivocally say "it was my fault, not yours". It's so so important, both that Henry immediately owned up to it, and that he made sure to let John know first that it wasnt anything he did and that he wanted to explain everything.

I also wanna point out the immediate dif in Henry's demeanor once John mentions the Akrida aka work. Henry instantly compartmentalizes alll the feels he had about seeing John and getting to see Millie because he very much knows the importance. Better to have ur family alive even though you can't get closure than risk their lives just to explain yourself.

The paaaiiinnn, the emotionssss ahhhhh!! They can't get through everything they want to say but they make sure to say the things they need and my heart hurts now thx! Im very glad Millie got to see him though. It helped close another leaking wound in her. Damn this whole ep is Millie being put through the emotional wringer as much as John and Mary are. It prolly felt really good to hit the cop in the face with a bat after all that.

Love Mary's fighting advice. It shows she gets the urgency and the need to not linger on too long since the end goal isnt to kick ass, but to actually defeat the Akrida. Her hubting experience shows and her reason for doing this shows too.

I just know Lara wouldve had a field day if she couldve gotten that monster essence. So sad for her actually.

Also you know if Ada had been left to her own devices she wouldve followed Tragic Haircut and found the Akrida queens location. We've seen she can be very cutthroat when needed and her input wasn't really needed in the van, but it was needed to follow the Akrida. Thats what i think anyways. Millie for all her harshness, would never leave the kids behind. Shes suprising soft underneath it all, Ada is surpsingly cutthroat. Yay more parallel and contrasts between them.

Oh Mary, you were wrong there and it almost cost you dearly (just like how Dean going after Billie assuming shes thanosing people went wrong). Love the call back to their first meeting. Hate the despair vibes cuz ouch. Samuel to the rescue, congrats, you did the bare minimum. ( i am not a fan of Samuel and all the call backs to Spn!john only make it worse everytime, especially the heroic last second save when he's been mia and shitty throughout otherwise).

God can't wait talking about the queen when she finally appears properly.

See y'all later for a double special of Dean alive (ish) and Trickster/Loki discussion.

[internetgiraffekid1673]

Some of my favorite art actually is just the list of "bad" stuff ON PUROSE. I'm preaching to the choir, but I don't get to gush about this one enough, so:

Let's take one of my favorite musicals of all time: 35mm, a Musical Exhibition. Where photography inspires music and music in turn inspires photography. By Ryan Scott Oliver. The tumblr squad probably is aware of the song "The Ballad of Sara Berry," which is the penultimate number and very popular. Each song is a self contained story with a photograph to match with overarching themes about connection and the human condition. It is an absolutely fantastic musical, go listen to it and then listen to Ryan Scott Oliver's commentary.

It is also delightfully gay, very creepy, cusses a lot, rather anti-religious (although more in an "addressing religious trauma and the ways people twist religion for their own reasons" way than a "religion is bad" way), and UNSETTLING. And I love it. It makes you think and feel in a way that stereotypically pleasant art doesn't. It makes you address all the highs and the lows, and that is an excellent feeling to sit in sometimes.

Looking through the list again, at least one number from the musical ticks every box:

Makes you feel weird---the whole damn musical

Saps Energy---The Party Goes with You is on my bedtime playlist. Immaculate Deception is a gentle waltz with a rather sinister message, and hemming and hawing is a lullaby with a bad ending.

Sets off a downward spiral---I needed a really good cry after quite a lot of numbers, and it was some great healthy catharsis. Cut you a piece comes to mind almost immediately.

Confuses the mind---CRAAAAAAAZZZYTOOOOOOOWN! (And a lot of others).

Produces Stagnation---sometimes it's good to sit and stew in your thoughts. You don't have to be going going going all the time. I listened to Immaculate Deception and Make Me Happy on loop for like 3 days, just because I liked the way they sounded and made me feel, and I didn't have any particular original thoughts on them. I just felt like I needed to listen multiple times.

Weed---I mean this in the best way: plenty of these songs sound like they were written while high, although you can decide what exactly Mr. Oliver was using.

Unstructured and obsessively anti-rhythm--- again, the whole damn musical. That's kinda the point actually.

Instinctively Recognized as a Scam---I don't even know what that's supposed to mean, but seeing as how Immaculate Deception is literally about a scam, I think we get the point for this.

A malevolently bad map---again, idk what the hell they mean with this, but with how unconventional, unstructured, unafraid, and unsettling the music is (it deals with some heavy stuff) I think we get the point (seriously though, Why Must We Tell Them Why is a fuck you to explaining your existence).

Obfuscation, lies, resentment---GOOD LADY, MY BELOVED! THIS IS THE WHOLE SONG! THAT'S IT, THAT'S THE SONG! Most of Hemming and Hawing, plenty of Mama Let Me In, a fair amount of On Monday is like this, most of Immaculate Deception, a lot of Leave Luanne . . . You know what, just a lot of the songs, I'll shut up now.

Wishes to destroy the canon---so very very much. This musical says FUCK societal norms! If you want a VERY tender, but kind of intense gay love song, listen to the Seraph. Again, each song is a self contained story, so no outside context is needed.

Mocks the concept of values---literally every song. Like. Mama Let Me In literally says "Love the sinner and love the sin." The 3rd song has the POV character selling off a 2 year old to a crack dealer. IDK what else you need.

Enfeebles life---This musical has a LOT of death, so like, yes, but also go in prepared to have your soul wrought. You will almost certainly cry.

Spits on beauty and actively celebrates ugliness---oh my gosh so many of the numbers. This musical doesn't shy away from how messy and complicated and ugly and even evil humanity can be, and it encourages you to keep going, keep living, keep making connections anyway because that ugliness is so goddamn beautiful in it's own right.

Whining, coping, seething, and a waste of time---It is a musical that is seething, is full of coping, has plenty of whiny people. The only point it doesn't hit? Not a waste of time. I have never felt like I wasted time listening to 35mm.

Tag yourself as this list of “bad art” features, according to a twitter fascist