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corriganatheart · 2 years ago

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A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder Sal Singh x reader

Description: You saved Sal from his own murder.

Warning ⚠️ : Spoilers to A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

You didn’t know Sal Singh, and he didn’t know you. You were two strangers that happened to go to the same school and be in the same grade. You guys never cross paths except making casual eye contact during passing periods, lunch, study hall, gym class, and volleyball games, but never anywhere else.

It was honestly weird that you never interacted with him, seeing how he was one of the most popular and liked boys in school. Even your friends have talked to him and are friends with his friends but not you. Sometimes you wonder why everyone liked him, especially since his girlfriend is the most hated person in the school. Maybe that was why you never spoke to him because Andie Bell is his girlfriend.

You had nothing against her, but you knew she was trouble. She leaked Nat da Silva’s nudes, bullied her sister, and if you weren’t wrong, from what you've seen, she is a cheater. That made you feel bad for Sal and anyone involved in her life.

2 Days before the murder.

Y/N pov

“So, are you going to Max’s party?” Elisha asked as she tossed the ball.

“Nah, staying home,” I shrugged and tossed the ball back to her.

Elisha frowns and gives the ball to the manager.

"Come on; you've never been to one of his parties," she whines.

“Smoking weed and binge drinking isn’t my thing,” I said. “Besides, I get bad vibes from him.”

Elisha rolled her eyes at me and went to ask the other girls.

I chuckled and looked over at our student section; many people were there. Mainly the boys are here to support their girlfriends. I continued to scan the benches until my eyes landed on a familiar pair of brown eyes. It was Sals. He was here with Max Hastings and Naomi Ward, but no Andie Bell in sight. Sal must have noticed me staring at him and his friends, so he smiled, causing me to look away immediately.

1 Day before the murder.

Today was weird. It has only been the 4th period, and I have already seen enough.

It was during lunchtime when everyone was eating in the cafeteria. I stayed behind in the study hall to finish a project when I decided to get a snack from the vending machine. The vending machine happens to be right across from Mr. Ward’s classroom. So imagine my surprised face when I was trying to buy a bag of Cheetos but overheard Mr. Ward and a student talking inappropriately. At first, I thought my ear was playing tricks on me because ain’t no way Mr. Ward was like that, so I assumed it was an affair with another teacher until I saw the person walking past me. It was Andie Bell.

After that, I couldn’t focus for the rest of the day. My mind was filled with so many questions. I often overheard from Andie’s friends that she was seeing an older man behind Sal’s back, but I didn’t think he was this old and someone close to me.

I walked out of history class confused and disgusted. I hope Naomi never finds out about this. I can already tell she dislikes Andie; imagine when she finds out about the inappropriate relationship between her dad and her best friend's girlfriend, she would be embarrassed.

I was making my way to my locker when I spotted Elisha and Max Hasting flirting in front of it. Great, now I have to deal with Hasting too? Can this day get any better?

“Y/N, Max and I were just talking about you!” Elisha says when she spots me coming towards them.

“And I was just talking to myself about how he is spreading STDs on my locker!” I exclaimed.

Elisha rolls her eyes playfully, and he smirks at me. How gross.

“Max was saying you should come to his party tomorrow!” She says while eyeing Max for his attention.

“Ahum, I rather not,” I said and started putting my books back into my locker.

“Why not?” Max asked. “Give it a try,” he said and nudged my arm playfully.

I shook my head and looked behind him to see Sal and Mr. Ward talking outside his classroom.

“Hey, does Mr. Ward tutor Sal?” I asked.

Max follows my eyes and turns around to see what I am looking at before looking back at me.

“Yeah, he’s helping him get into Yale; why?” Max asked.

“Does he only do it for him?” I asked, wondering if he was helping Andie too.

“Probably, he’ll help you if you ask him… kindly,” Max said, a little too flirty with the last word.

“Oh Nah, I don’t plan on going to Yale,” I said and was about to drag Elisha away from him until Max called Sal over.

Sal looked our way and immediately had a confused look on his face wondering why I was talking to Max. Everyone knew I never showed interest in anything Max had to say.

Sal says bye to Mr. Ward, and I watch as Ward sighs, more like a relief sigh, before walking back into his classroom.

“Hey,” Sal says when he reaches us. I awkwardly stood there, fidgeting with the string of my backpack.

“Elisha, let’s go,” I immediately said, trying to avoid being seen by Andie.

Sal and Max stare at me, and I glance at Max, who is smirking.

“Leaving too soon? Aren’t you going to ask Sal about his conversation with Mr. Ward?” Max asked.

I want to slap that smirk off of his face. Something about his face shouts annoying and disgusting.

“You were asking about me?” Sal asked, his voice noticeably surprised that I mentioned him.

“Ahum, I was just asking if Mr. Ward tutors you, that’s all,” I said and grabbed Elisha’s hand, who was refusing to go with me.

“Oh yeah, he does; he’s great at it,” Sal says with an innocent smile.

I nodded without saying a word and pulled Elisha with me.

“Gotta go,” I blurted out before anyone could further the conversation and rushed off.

“I’ll see you at the party tomorrow Max!” Elisha shouts back.

“Are you going alone?” I asked Elisha.

“Yeah, since someone decided not to go with me,” Elisha whines.

She then looks at me and gives me the puppy doll's eyes.

If only I knew going there was going to change my life forever.

The Day of Andie Bell’s murder

“Omg, Y/N! You look hot!” Elisha says as soon as she sees me walk out. I chuckle, trying not to be embarrassed that Elisha’s dress was too short for me. It was also tight, but she said that was the point of the dress; to make my curves stand out.

“You promise you won’t drink a lot, right? And we need to leave by 12:00,” I warned Elisha.

She nodded and saluted me before she started checking the inside of her purse. “Oh crap, I forgot my lipstick!” Elisha shouted before holding out one finger and rushing inside her house.

I checked myself on my snap and started recording my outfit before turning the camera so that everyone could see the moonlight; it was a full moon today.

I re-watched my snap and saved it before noticing someone else in the frame. Andie?

I saw her blonde locks bouncing on her shoulder as she walked on another side of the street and typed aggressively on her phone. Is she also going to the party, but why would she walk?

I then realized what neighborhood I was in. Naomi lives in this neighborhood, meaning Mr.Ward is also around here. Don’t tell me Andie is meeting him right now; that is gross and creepy.

I contemplated following her to see if she was going there, but I also had another person to take care of tonight.

“Okay, we got to go,” Elisha says excitedly, and we get into her mom’s car.

As we were driving down the street, I grabbed my phone and secretly recorded Andie, just in case she decided to pull another trick and leak somebody’s private info.

“What are you doing?” Elisha asked, wondering why I had my phone brightness on low and recording the window.

“Just recording the moon, eyes on the road!” I said.

8 minutes later.

We reached the party, but it was a little too crowded for me. A couple of the cheerleaders and football players were there, and a couple of people I recognized from school were there. Most of the girls had a drink in their hands, but it was weird that the guys didn’t because, usually, it was the opposite.

I looked at one of the guys I recognized as Jaime; I did not expect him to be there since he was always quiet. He must have noticed me staring because his face turned red, and he immediately got occupied with his phone. I chuckle, seeing how shy he is.

“Hey, you both came!!” Max shouted when we walked into the house. I almost gagged when I smelled a mixture of alcohol and weed. Gosh, how does Max get away with this?

“Wow, Max said as he was looking at me.” I glared at him and tugged at my dress to pull it down.

“You girls dressed up just for me,” he said excitedly. “You both deserve a drink.”

Elisha giggles and drags me along to follow Max into his kitchen.

Max started mixing two cups, and I looked around the kitchen. It was a pretty decent place, not big but not small either. It was also hard not to look at the couple making out on the counter since they hardly talked in class. I guess alcohol can do things to people.

“Here, one for you and one for you,” Max said, handing us our drink.

I watch as Max smirks when he stares at our cups, and I immediately nudge Elisha, enough to the point where she loses balance and her drink tips over.

“What the heck Y/N,” Elisha whines like the baby.

“Ops, I’m so clumsy,” I chuckled and decided to pour my drink down the drain. “Since you spilled your drink, it’s only fair for me not to drink,” I said.

“Nonsense, let me make you girls another drink,” Max suggested, and while he was preoccupied with that, I dragged Elisha away from him.

“What was that for?” Elisha asked angrily.

“I think Max was trying to drug us,” I whispered.

Elisha rolls her eyes. “You read too many murder novels; he’s a good guy.”

“No, you don’t understand,” I whispered. “The look in his eyes when he handed us those drinks,” I said.

Elisha refuses to believe me. “I am going to find Max and apologize to him that my best friend is a dumbass,” she says and walks away.

I hate when she does this.

I needed some fresh air, so I walked into Max's backyard, filled with two people smoking and two couples making out in the corner. I pulled out my phone and checked the time; we still had about an hour till we got to go back home, making things worse. I went and sat down on the bench that was a little away from everyone under a big oak tree. Surprisingly no one was occupying the bench; instead, they were standing around. Probably too drunk or high to notice it.

“I am not doing this with you anymore, Andie,” I heard someone say behind me, and I knew precisely to who the voice belonged.

It sounded like he was talking behind the trees.

“No, I can’t stand the drama. We have been over for almost a month, and I hate that you still tell people we are together.”

I can feel the frustration coming out of him. It was honestly a little sad how frustrated and angry he sounded. Imagine when he finds out that she is at Mr. Ward’s house. Hopefully, soon so that he won’t have to be caught up in her lies anymore.

“I am hanging up; I am not doing this with you right now.” He said, and I heard the beep sound followed by an exhale.

I bite my lips nervously, feeling like I had just invaded his personal life. It wasn’t like it was my fault that he was talking at the spot where I happened to be. If anything, it was his fault for talking outside where there were people.

I heard his foot moving; the dry autumn leaves making crunchy noise with every step he took. I heard it stop as it was coming near me and felt a presence behind me. It wasn’t a scary presence, though. He probably won’t know it was me; he was probably annoyed that someone had heard his conversation. Most likely, he will glare at me and walk away. He might also think I am a weirdo for listening to something priv-

“Y/N?” I heard the soft, yet deep voice says.

I- ok, I guess he did recognize me?

I turned and acted surprised to see him.

“Oh, hi, Sal,” I said awkwardly.

Sal stares at me, and he looks at my outfit.

“Can I sit?” He asked, looking down at the empty spot next to me.

I nodded, and Sal sat down, taking off his leather jacket and revealing the long black sleeve he wore.

He then placed the leather jacket on my lap, covering my legs.

“You looked cold,” he said. I nodded, realizing he wasn’t staring at my body but was staring at how I was shivering.

Sal started fidgeting with his hands, and I realized he was anxious, probably wondering if I had overheard his conversation with Andie.

“I won’t tell anyone,” I said while staring ahead. It was now only me, Sal, and a guy who was too high even to know he was in someone’s backyard.

“It’s not about that; I just don’t want you to think bad of me,” he says while playing with his hands.

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that; I already know how Andie is,” I said and checked to see if I had gotten any message from Elisha yet.

“Still..” he sighs and leans back on the bench.

He felt terrible for Andie and their break up. I am not a therapist or someone who knows everything about a relationship, but it is obvious that Sal wasn’t happy. The constant sighs when he sees Andie being rude to others, the continual argument when she sees him talk to his female friends, and the continuous turning away when he sees Andie walking towards him are clear signs that he is in a toxic relationship.

“Sal, I don’t think anyone would judge you if you break up with Andie,” I said, trying not to overstep my line. “I don’t know her personally, but from what I have seen, I am not a massive fan of her. She bullies others for pleasure; I mean, look what she did to poor Nat.” I said, clearly still angry about the situation.

“I don’t even know if I can call what we had a relationship because all we did was argue,” he chuckles and shakes his head while looking down at the ground.

I smiled and then reached for my phone; the time was up.

“Hey, I have to go check on my friend. We are supposed to leave,” I said while standing up and handing Sal his jacket back.

Sal stood up with me, and I now noticed our height difference. We were never this close. Never close enough to know how much taller he was, but today, we were close enough for me to realize that he was tall and for once I'll admit that Andie Bell had a taste when it comes to guys.

“I’ll walk you inside,” he said, looking slightly worried. I was sure he seemed hesitant about me walking around in my dress. Maybe he noticed those guys with us in the backyard; perhaps he saw their eyes lingering too long.

“Okay,” I said and was going to hand him his jacket, but he grabbed it out of my hand and put it on my shoulder.

We walked back into the house quietly; some people had already left, but most were still on the couch taking shots and smoking weed. I noticed Sal’s nose shifted slightly in disgust when he smelled the room. That was probably why he decided to stay outside.

“Have you seen Elisha?” I asked a girl I recognize from my Biology class. She looked between Sal and me, and I knew she would spread some rumor.

“I saw her a couple of seconds ago going upstairs with Max,” she said and started to drink from her cup before I snatched it out of her and threw it on the floor.

“What the fuc-“ she didn’t get to finish because I interrupted her.

“It’s drugged; I suggest you go home,” I told her and started running upstairs, followed by Sal.

“His room is over here,” Sal said and tried to open the door, but it was locked. “Max open the door right now!”

Sal banged on the door angrily before he lost patience and kicked open the door instead.

Max was on his knees while Elisha was on the bed; passed out. I ran over to Elisha, whereas Sal dragged Max by the collar. “Are you fucken kidding me, Max!”

I hurriedly pull Elisha’s underwear back on, trying to fight back the tears. I then checked on her pulse and let out a sigh of relief. She was ok; she didn’t overdose or anything. She also wasn’t bleeding, so I wasn’t too late, but still, I need to make sure she gets checked tomorrow…just in case.

“Get off of me Sal!” Max yelled while Sal continued to punch him. I gasped when I saw Max’s bruised face. “What the fuck were you thinking!”Sal yelled and was about to throw another punch when I called his name. Sal paused and turned to look at me; he then looked at Elisha before giving Max another decent punch.

“Please, Sal, I need your help,” I mumbled, trying my best not to look at the blood coming from Max’s mouth. Sal’s face seemed to calm down when he saw how frightened I was. He walked over to me, and I looked at his bruised hands. He then hugged me and laid his head on top of mine. “I am sorry for scaring you,” he said. We stayed like that for a couple of seconds before I whispered, “Elisha.”

Sal let go of me and went over to pick up Elisha in bridle style; she shifted a little causing me to be more relieved. I give Max the dirtiest look, warning him that I wasn’t finished with him yet.

After locating Elisha’s car key, Sal placed her in the back seat and covered her bottom up with the spare blanket in her car. He then got in the passenger seat while I prepared to drive. “I am calling the cops,” Sal says as he looks up at the window to Max’s room.

We drove to my place since it was closer, and I didn’t want Elisha’s parents to be mad at her. My parents were also away for the weekend coincidentally and won’t be back till tomorrow, so we got lucky.

“Thank you, Sal,” I said as I gripped the steering wheel.

Sal watched my hand and then looked back at Elisha. “I apologize; I must have wasted your time outside,” he said, guilt written on his face. “No, it’s my fault; I should’ve stayed by her side.”

“Max,” he exhaustedly sighs and put his hands on his face. “I thought he was my friend; I wouldn’t have hung with him if I knew; I promise I am not like that, Y/N. I didn’t know he would do such a disgusting thing. I can never forgive him for this.” He says angrily.

It is obvious that Sal didn’t know anything about this, and he thought I was secretly judging him since he had been friends with Max for a while. It also surprises me how much he cares about my opinions about him. “It is not your fault Sal.” I said.

5 minutes later.

We reached my house, and it was almost 1 in the morning. We didn’t reach the curfew as planned, but Max’s beat-up face was enough. Sal called the cops on our way back to my house, and several cops passed by us. Although they might put Max in jail for drinking, I knew we needed solid evidence that he would assault girls. That will have to wait till Elisha gets up.

Sal placed Elisha on the bed and I covered her with my blanket. She was safe now… I exhaled, finally relieved that we had made it back safely to my room.

“Thank you Sal.” I said, and he nodded.

Sal then awkwardly looks around my room and stares at the numerous books on my shelves and the posters on the wall. I saw a slight smile when his eyes fell on the Attack on Titan poster. “You must love reading,” Sal says.

“I do it in my free time.”

He nodded and followed me out of my room. I turn off the light and close the door. Sal pulled out his phone and caught a glimpse of the numerous text and missed calls from Andie. I saw the 1 hour ago near the message before he turned off his phone and sighed. He looked frustrated again.

“Someone told Andie that I got in the car with you,” he said and started walking down the stairs. I followed him.

“I’m sorry,” I said apologetically. It was already hard that she stopped him from breaking things off, but now I added fuel to the fire.

“Don’t be… maybe now she’ll get the hint on why I don’t like her,” he chuckles.

I nodded and followed him outside. “I would offer to take you home, but Elisha is alone.”

“Nah, my home is a couple of blocks away,” he shrugs.

“Oh really?” I acted surprised. I didn't want him to know I had seen him outside mowing the lawn with his brother on my way back from the grocery store.

“Yeah, thanks for listening to my pep talk today,” he said and scratched the nonexisting inch on the back of his neck. “No, thank you, Sal, for helping me.”

“If you need anything tomorrow with Elisha, holler at me. I live just a few blocks down,” he said and pointed down the street.

I nodded, and he smiled at me before awkwardly waving goodbye, and I watched him jog down the street.

The Day of the Interrogating

It was all over social media. Andrea Bell was missing. There was numerous post from her friends about how sad they were and what they were doing to look for her. There were also posts about theories on her missing. Some say she ran away for attention; some say she ran away with a guy; some say she was playing a prank, and worst, some say she was murdered. According to social media, police were interviewing people who might have seen her last night, but there was still no luck finding her.

“It was that son of a bitch, Max Hasting!” Elisha frustratedly yelled as she threw her pillow across the room. I glared at her and shook my head.

“Andie wasn’t there yesterday, and Sal called the cops when we were heading back, so if she were there, the cops would’ve seen her.”

Elisha bit her lips and tried not to throw another object across her messing room. This morning, when she woke up, she was confused. When she asked me why she was in my room, I told her everything that happened last night, causing her to ball her eyes out and cuss at herself. We then went to the emergency room, where she got checked, and luckily, the nurse said she has OK and nothing had happened to her last night. The nurse then suggested we go to the cops, and we did, but now they were too busy with Andie Bell to deal with Max Hasting.

“Elisha, should we go talk to Sal?” I asked.

“Why, do you think he has something to do with this?” she asked.

Immediately, I shook my head, knowing damn well Sal was not why Andie was missing.

“It's because they usually suspect the significant others first,” I said worriedly.

“Oh, your right!” Elisha says and jumps off her bed. “Come, we need to go and stand up for him!”

I nodded and watched as Elisha put on some lipstick and fixed her outfit before spraying herself with perfume.

“What?” She asked when she caught me staring at her in disbelief.

I shook my head and dragged her out of her room.

10 minutes later

We reached Sal’s house, and there were already three police cars. Damn, they beat me to it.

I knocked on their door, and a couple of seconds later, it swung open. There stood a boy who looked like Sal but was a little shorter than him. This must be Sal’s little brother, whom I saw a couple of years ago; he was all grown now.

“Can I help you?” He asked.

“Is Sal home?” I asked.

The boy just stared at me and nodded.

“He’s talking to the police right now,” the boy says and looks between Elisha and me.

“Oh, do you know when they’ll be done?” I asked.

The boy shrugged but opened the door for us and gestured for us to come in. “You guys can wait for him in the living room, but my parents are here too.”

Elisha and I awkwardly walked into the living room to see two worried adults sitting anxiously on the couch. When they noticed us, they were confused but stood up to shake our hands anyways.

“We are a friend of Sal,” I said. “My name is Y/N, and this is Elisha.”

They introduced themselves as Mohan and Nisha and asked us to sit down. I watched as Sal’s brother went to sit down next to his mom and held her shaking hand.

“Sal didn't do it,” I blurted out, and they all looked over at me. I gulped and tried my best not to make things awkward.

“He was with me last night.” Ok, that came out weird.

“I meant we saw each other at Max’s Hasting’s party, and he helped me get Elisha to my house, and then I watched Sal run home,” I said and watched as Nisha's muscles relaxed.

“I know our son didn't do it, but I doubt the cops believe that,” Mohan sighed. “It makes things worse that we are foreigners.”

I nodded, knowing where they were coming from. It was more convenient for people to blame darker skin tones than lighter ones.

“I can tell the cops,” I said. “I promise I'll have Sal’s back.”

Twenty minutes later, Sal and the cops finally came out of his room. Sal was surprised to see Elisha and me sitting in his living room. Whereas the cops were glaring at us.

“Sal was with Elisha and me last night, the time you guys wrote that Andie might have been kidnapped or murdered,” I said, glancing over at Sal at the mention of murder. It was obvious that it still affected him, although they weren’t dating anymore.

“His phone shows that he was on the phone with Andie last night, and she was calling and texting him several times.” The cop says, not precisely buying my story.

“I heard them talking on the phone at Max's house, but that was not even 12. Since you looked at his phone history, you would know. And she texted him and called him one hour before he left my house, so it must be during that time when he was at my home that something happened to her.” I said. Sal seemed to be glad that I was backing him up, but still, he didn’t want me to get involved.

“And how should we know that you’re not lying?” The cops continues to push.

“Because I have prove.” I smirked and pulled out my phone. I showed them the camera footage of Sal leaving my house around 1:45, and he was running down the opposite of Andie Bell’s street.

The cops noted that, and I bit my lips, wondering if I should tell them about another thing.

“For now, you’re off the hook,” the cops glared at me before he nodded his head at Sal and walked out.

What exactly is the cops problem?

“Thank you, Y/N,” Sal said, and I sat back down and made some space for him to sit.

“Well. What I said was all true,” I shrugged.

Mr. and Mrs. Singh smiled at me, and I watched as Sal’s brother’s eyes flickered between Sal and me.

“So…” the brother smirked. “What is going on between you two?” he asked, making sure to point precisely at Sal and me and not Elisha and Sal.

“What are you talking about?” Sal asked.

“Hmm, she said you were at her house past midnight, bro,”

“It was to help my drunk ass, sorry!” Elisha blurted out.

I looked over at her, relieved that she was kind of being honest and saving my butt.

“Have you tried calling Andie again?” Nisha asked Sal. He checked his phone and shook his head. “I tried several times, but she won’t answer.”

I can tell that he is blaming himself for this. In his mind, if he didn't miss Andie’s calls, they wouldn't be in this position.

“I’m sure they’ll find her,” I said and put a hand on his shoulder.

I felt Sal’s shoulder tense up from the unannounced contact, so I immediately pulled my hands away.

“I-I should get going,” I awkwardly said and stood up with Elisha.

“I'll walk you guys out,” Sal said. “And I’ll watch you guys out,” his brother smirked.

Sal glared at his brother before smiling at Elisha and me and following us to the door.

“I thank you for backing me up,” Sal said when we reached the door. “I'll see you at school.” He smiled.

“Okay,” I nodded, and we walked out of his house.

“Damn,” Elisha sighed.

“What?” I asked.

“I thought I had a chance but never mind,” she complains.

“What do you mean?”

“He likes you.”

The Day Sal’s Murder

It was all everyone could talk about. Where is Andie Bell? Is she dead? Did she get kidnapped? No one knew. The teachers tried to get everyone to act normal and pretend that their classmate wasn’t missing, but it was hard; this was high school.

I tried my best not to stare at him, but with everything going on, I couldn’t help it. Mr. Ward was acting weird. To the rest of the students, it may look like he was worried that a student was missing, but to me, it looked like he was scared instead of worrying. But what exactly was he scared of?

I looked back at Mr. Ward when everyone was rushing out of his class; he pulled out a drink he had never drunk in the classroom. I then walked out and scanned the hallways to see if Elisha or Sal was nearby, but they weren’t in sight; it also sucks that I didn’t have Sal’s number.

1 hour before Sal’s Murder

“Have you heard?” Elisha asked as she opened a bag of potato chips.

“Heard what?” I asked.

She leans in and whispers. “Everyone thinks it is Sal.”

I looked at her, confused. “Why would they think that?”

“Because his friends told the cops that he told them to lie about their alibis,” she said.

I stared at her. Why would they do that? Sal wasn’t even with Max at the party, and Naomi was nowhere in sight.

“That’s weird.” I said.

“I know. The cops suck ass.” She shrugged.

“Have you seen Sal?” I ask. She shook her head but paused, and her eyes widened. “Oh yeah, he and Mr. Ward was heading outside before I came to the cafeteria.”

“They what?” I asked nervously.

“I don’t know,” Elisha shrugged.

“We have to follow them,” I said and immediately gathered my stuff.

“What, that’s ditching, and you never do that,” Elisha gasped.

I glared at her before dragging her with me, causing her to drop her sandwich.

“I didn't want to tell you this because I didn’t think it was my business,” I said as we rushed into my car.

I shoved my phone to Elisha, and she looked down at it.

“Is that Andie?” Elisha asked.

“Yea, I saw her the night of the party. She was walking past your house angrily, and I saw her walking in Mr. Ward’s house while we drove past.”

“I thought she and Naomi hated each other,” Elisha says.

“No idiot, she was there to see Mr. Ward because they are having an affair!” I yelled at her.

Elisha gasped. “Oh my gosh, do you think?” I nodded, knowing exactly what she was going to ask.

“Something tells me he is going to do the exact thing to Sal,” I said.

“Hurry, we have to save him!”

Elisha and I drove as fast as we could, looking for Mr. Ward’s car. We went past his house, but his car wasn't there; we drove past Sal’s house, but his car wasn't there either.

“Now, what would be a perfect place to murder someone?” Elisha asked, and I shuddered at her question.

“Omg, the forest,” I gasp and hit the pedal.

Elisha called the cops as I sped through many stop signs and lights. Thank goodness there weren’t many people on the road since everyone was either at school or work.

“Ok, the cops will meet us here.” Elisha said when we reach the forest.

“Ok, let's go,” I said and got out my baseball bat while Elisha took out her pepper spray.

We jogged in the forest, where Mr. Ward’s car was parked near. “I hope we are not too late,” Elisha says.

I nodded and continued to run. All you can hear is our breathing and the sticks we stepped on.

We were nearly out of breath when we spotted two figures. Mr. Ward sat on the ground while Sal was on the floor with a bag on his head.

“What the fuck!” Elisha yelled, and we ran to them.

Mr. Ward immediately stood up and let go of Sal’s hand.

“What are you girls doing here?” Mr. Ward asked and looked back down at Sal.

“He was trying to suffocate him,” I growled and ran to Sal to untie the bag.

“It is not what you think, please,” Mr. Ward says.

“Oh, we know exactly what we saw!” Elisha screamed at him. “You’re a disgusting pig!”

“Sal!” I scream when I feel no pulse. I started doing chest compression on him, trying not to break down.

“Why would you even think of this?!” Elisha continues to scream at him.

“I had no choice; the cops would have arrested me.” Elliot Ward cried.

“Where is Andie?” Elisha asked.

Ward didn't answer.

I continued to do CPR on Sal, and just when I thought he didn’t make it, a loud gasp came out of him.

“Sal!” I cried and pulled him into a hug.

I heard two legs start running, which I knew belonged to Elliot Ward. “Shit,” Elisha murmured before she ran after him. It wasn’t long until I heard a group of people yells, “Stand down!”

“You’re okay,” I said and wiped my tears while looking at Sal’s expression. It was a mixture of shock and scared. He was still gripping my shirt as I moved his hair out of his face.

“Y/N, I-“ he paused. There it was; I pulled him into a hug as I felt him welp. He shook badly, holding on to me tightly like I would disappear if he let go. “You're ok now,” I continue to reassure him.

A couple of minutes later, the cops and the EMS workers came to us. The cops looked at the plastic bag on the ground and the drink that Elliot Ward previously took out in class. He then looked at Sal’s shaken form.

“Sal, you need to go to the hospital, and one of the cops will go with you,” the officer said.

I looked up at the officer, and it was the exact one interviewing Sal. Maybe now he’ll believe us.

“Y/N, I need to take you to the station and interview you,” he says.

I nodded, and we stood up.

Sal looked down at me and wiped the remaining tears from my eyes, and I did the same with his.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

35 minutes later

The cops stare at me as I explain what I saw and show them the video of Andie walking into Mr. Ward’s house.

“You didn't think to show me this the other day?” he asked.

“I wanted to see if Andie was going to show up the next day because it is obvious that you guys thought it was Sal,” I shrugged.

The officer glared at me and emailed the videos to the police station.

“Elliot Ward said he didn't kill Andie but did admit to the affair.”

I was taken aback by that comment. Did they still think it was Sal?

“Isn't it obvious that he did something to Andie and was trying to pin it on Sal?” I asked.

“That is what we are going with, but he keeps denying where she is,” the officer said and shook his head.

“He’ll probably come around,” I said...questioning my own words.

After the cops interviewed me, they told me Sal was no longer a suspect, which was a massive relief because I would be on the suspect list if they kept suspecting him.

Elisha was sitting in the waiting lounge with her parents and my parents. They all ran to me when I walked out.

“Are you ok?” My mom asked as she scanned my hands for any injuries. “I’m fine, mom,” I hugged them all.

“Ugh, I can’t believe these assholes want to interview me too,” Elisha whines when one of the officer motion her to follow him.

I gave her an apologetic look, but she was obviously happy to help.

5 weeks later

“I didn’t kill Andrea Bell.”

I replayed the line again. “I didn’t kill Andrea Bell.”

I kept replaying his words, but It still didn’t change my mind. Of course, everyone else believed he was lying, but why didn’t I?

It has officially been five weeks since Andie has been missing. Everyone was shocked when Stanley Forbes and the Fairview Police announced that Elliot Ward, the history teacher, was the cause of Andie’s death. Every little detail, including their affair, was released. The hate train went from Sal to Elliot Ward real quick. College applications, including Yale, were quickly sent to me, Sal, and Elisha. Elisha was incredibly stunned since her GPA was low, but she was happy to be given the opportunity.

Although everyone has decided that Elliot is the murderer and has hidden her body, something didn’t sit right with me. He admitted to everything, including his plan to kill Sal, but why would he deny murdering Andie, especially since that was the reason why they gave him a harsh sentence? The judge was going to make his sentencing lighter if he admitted to it, but he still denied it. Something tells me he isn’t lying, although it bothers me that I am torturing myself with that thought.

“Y/N! Sal is here!” I heard my mom call from downstairs.

I flip my laptop and put on my sneakers. I then turned to look at myself in the mirror. I was wearing a two-piece black dress with the black leather jacket that Sal let me borrow the night of Max’s party. It fitted me like a short dress, and I have kept it since.

“Ahum isn’t that a little too short,” my dad asked when I walked down the stairs.

“Oh, come on, you know Sal isn’t like that,” my mom playfully hits my dad’s arm, and he chuckles.

“Be back no later than 11,” my mom says, kissing me on the cheeks. I gave them both a hug and walked out of the house.

Sal was waiting for me outside with a bouquet of red roses.

“Wow,” was all he said, and I chuckled.

He then gives me the flowers before kissing my forehead.

“You look beautiful,” he whispers, knowing damn well my parents are eavesdropping on us.

“Thank you,” I said, and he intertwined our fingers before guiding me to his car.

The winter weather hit me when I felt the cold breeze touch my face and legs. Winter was coming fast, and time was moving extremely fast. I will graduate with my best friends soon and move to New Haven with them. Elisha is going there to study literature while Sal is going there for medical school, and I am going there for their law school. Everything will work out, and we will move past this.

“How did the interview with Yale go?” Sal asked while squeezing my hand. “I got in,” I smiled. I felt his hand relax against mine. He would’ve terminated his application if I didn’t get in with him.

“I am going to have a lawyer as my girlfriend,” he said and kissed the palm of my hands. I chuckled and looked at his neck. The scar was slowly fading away. My eyes went up a little higher, and I examined his features. He was more handsome than yesterday, but I wouldn’t tell him that. I don’t want him teasing me about it all night.

Sal stopped at a red light, and I looked out the window. We were close to Andie Bell’s and Elliot Ward’s neighborhoods. I bite my lower lips nervously and see two girls walking down the sidewalk. I recognized one of them: Naomi’s little sister, Cara Ward. She seemed ok, but she didn’t look happy either. I can’t imagine how she and Naomi felt when they were told their dad was a murderer. The whole school also treated them differently. Naomi didn’t go to school for a couple of weeks, and I heard from people that Cara was getting bullied. I don’t really know if Naomi is still friends with Sal. He mentioned that she apologized to him on behalf of her dad, and of course, he didn’t blame her, but Naomi still felt terrible. Also, after lying about her alibi, I doubt Sal wants anything to do with her, Max, Jake, and Millie.

We drove past the two girls, and I saw Cara’s friend. She looked around Cara’s age with brown hair, pale white skin, and muddy-green eyes. The girl must have noticed me too because when I looked in my side mirror, the mysterious girl was staring back at her.

We reached the restaurant, and Sal told me to stay put so he could rush over to my side to open the door for me. He was obsessed with that gesture.

“How is Ravi’s freshman year going?” I asked when we sat down.

“Oh, it’s going; he intends to slack off a little,” Sal shrugged.

“How does he feel about you moving away for college?” I asked.

“Begged me to take him,” Sal laughed. “I told him to finish high school with a good GPA first.”

“What is he wanting to do?” I question.

“Become a lawyer,” Sal said and nodded. “He said you are the reason why.”

I laughed at that. “No, he did not!”

As much as I find that comment amusing, Sal’s face didn't look amused. He was staring at me with deep eyes while rubbing my palm. Oh. I now remember five weeks ago when I rushed to see Sal in the hospital. The nurse told him that he would've died if I didn't arrive on time. I remembered Sal’s parents sobbing and thanking me for saving their son’s life. Ravi was on the other side, holding his brother’s hand. He stared at me with a thankful note written all over his face. Without a second thought, he blurted out, “I want to be you when I grow up.”

“I guess I am the reason why,” I muttered and smiled at Sal.

The waiter comes back with our drinks, and Sal starts placing our orders. I looked out the window and saw someone walking down the streets. I recognize the girl. It was Becca Bell. I examined her face; she looked healthy, normal, more normal than Cara and Naomi. Then I remembered what the police said; Becca Bell was the last to see Andie. Last to see Andie.

5 Years Later

I groaned when I heard the doorbell ringed. I checked the time, and it was 9:30 in the morning. Who in their right mind comes ringing someone’s doorbell this early on a Saturday morning? I looked over to my side; Sal was still dead asleep. He was probably tired from his 16 hours shift last night.

I put on one of Sal’s shirts, which fits me like a dress, and started walking down the stairs. I was still getting used to the new house. It was big, too big for two people, but Sal wanted a huge family, and with him being a doctor and me being a lawyer, we could afford it. Besides, the real estate was also Elisha’s dad. He was very persuasive and excited that Sal and I finally moved back to Fairview after four years of school and one year of working in New Haven. He was so excited that he showed us the best house and gave us a reasonable price so we wouldn’t want to move.

I looked at myself in the mirror and flattened my hair a little. I looked like a mess and would probably scare whoever was on the other side of the door, but it was their fault for coming this early. Maybe it was Ravi trying to convince me again that Sal and I should have our wedding in India.

I twisted my engagement ring, opened the door, and almost cussed out Ravi until I saw a girl standing before me. She had soft brown hair, pale white skin, and muddy-green eyes. She looked oddly familiar. The girl just stared at me as if her arrival was bad timing. She looked at me from head and toe, and I could assume what was going on in her head.

“I just woke up,” I said awkwardly.

She nodded, and I noticed the slight blush on her face.

“Can I help you with anything?” I asked.

“Are you F/N L/N?” She asked, and I nodded even though it seemed she already knew who I was.

“You are the new lawyer in town that everyone has been talking about,” she said with a smile.

“I just moved back, so I guess so” I shrugged.

“Are you the one that solved Andie Bell’s case five years ago?” she asked.

I paused to analyze the girl. Is this some prank that has been going around? Many people, particularly the ones obsessed with Andie Bell's case, were excited to have me back in town. Some of them might go a little overboard by sending a bunch of flowers or, like this one, showing up in front of my house to see if I'll be looking for the dead girl's body.

“Yea, I am that girl,” I said, and she noticed my tone changing.

She seemed satisfied with my answer, though, and smiled. “Let me introduce myself.”

I cross my arms and have my serious face on. The one that Sal never takes seriously but others would.

“My name is Pippa Fitz-Amobi, and I don't think Elliot Ward killed Andie Bell, and I think you know that, so I am here to prove that the killer is still out there.”

I froze. I did not expect that to come out of her mouth. I did not expect that to come out of anyone's mouth; I thought it was just a thought that would forever linger in my mind. But here stood this stranger who had the same thought as mine.

I thought back to a couple of months ago when I was going through my laptop to delete some stuff and landed on a file. A file I promised myself I would delete five years ago was telling me to open it. I did. Two hours later, I told Sal we should move back to Fairview since our family lives there.

I tried to convince myself that I had only moved back here to be closer to my family and Sal’s family, but deep down, I knew why I had come back. That was probably why one of my first stops was at the police station; I wanted to ask them to reopen Andie Bell’s case because I knew the thoughts would eat me up until I finished what I started. I needed it to end, but I also needed someone with the same thoughts as mine. And that person was here.

I smiled at the girl. “Nice to meet you, Pippa Fitz-Amobi; my name is F/N L/N, and you are correct. I also think the real murderer is still out there.”

#sal singh #goodgirlguidetomurder #holly jackson #pippa fitz amobi #ravi singh #good girls guide to murder #goodgirlsguideseries #agggtm #as good as dead #goodgirlbadblood #original novel #novelist #bookaddict #fanfic

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yeonchi · 4 years ago

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Kisekae Insights #17: Angelina Ballerina

It’s about time I started the second run of Kisekae Insights after taking a break for the past few months. My objective is to hopefully cover Gokaiger, Decade and Soulbound this year, but there are some things that I need to cover before that because they are needed in order to understand certain aspects.

Like Fifi and Roary, Angelina Ballerina was implemented early on in my personal project and the characters continue to play big roles to this day. At the time, I was playing Warriors Orochi 2 on the PSP, which introduced me to the characters of the Samurai Warriors series. As a result, some of these guys got Japanese warrior names whereas the rest got Chinese warrior names.

In case you haven’t noticed, yes, I have (predominately) used the CGI-animated sequel, The Next Steps, in this project. Watching the sequel was how I got into this series a decade ago; while I have heard about the original 2D-animated series, it never really appealed to me, which is why I prefer this version over that. And look, I know there are people who don’t like the sequel for various reasons, but you are free to have your opinion as long as you respect the opinions of others. Don’t worry, characters from the original series have been implemented as well.

Setting the record straight (voice actors)

I’m putting this list before the break because this is really important. Here are the characters’ voice actors for the UK and US versions of The Next Steps:

Angelina Mouseling: Charlotte Spencer (UK/US)

Alice Nimbletoes: Rachael Louise Miller (UK)/Naomi McDonald (US)

Marco Quesillo: Louis Williams (UK)/Jules de Jongh (US)

Gracie: Charlie Cameron (UK)/Jo Wyatt (US)

Viki/Vici: Emily Dormer (UK)/Jules de Jongh (US)

AJ/AZ: Lizzie Waterworth (UK)/Larissa Murray (US)

Ms Mimi: Larissa Murray (US)

Maurice Mouseling: Simon Mattacks (UK/US)

Matilda Mouseling: Emma Tate (UK/US)

Polly Mouseling: Leah Zabari (UK/US)

Mrs Thimble: Beverly Klein (UK/US)

Alright, time to rant about the English dubs of this series. See, because the characters of this series are not credited under their voice actors, it can be hard to exactly determine who voiced who (a pain I know all too well in regards to Sea Princesses). On top of that, because there are different English voices for the US and the UK (because they don’t want American kids to end up speaking with British accents or vice versa), it can be easy to miss things or mess them up. Some US voice actors are based in the UK, which can throw things off as well.

Just as there are UK-produced children’s shows that get redubbed for the US, there are US-produced children’s shows that get redubbed for the UK (particularly on Nick Jr). In Australia, we tend to get the “original” version of the dub depending on where the show (or its source materials) originated – if it originally came from the UK, then we get the UK dub, but if it originally came from the US, we get the US dub. In the case of Angelina Ballerina, we get the UK dub and as such, I implemented the series with the assumption that the characters would speak as they did in the UK dub. As such, Marco and Gracie don’t speak in Hispanic or French accents.

Due to my initial ignorance and lack of information, I ended up crediting the characters’ US voice actors for Marco, Gracie and Ms Mimi instead of their UK voice actors. Even worse, I thought Naomi Wilkinson voiced Angelina until a friend of mine tweeted her years ago and confirmed that she didn’t voice Angelina. Also, the really funny thing is that there are people who unironically believed that Hilary Duff and Justin Bieber voiced Viki and AZ in the series. If only we all knew this one simple rule: If an actor isn’t credited in the series/episode, then they didn’t have a role in the series/episode. I did manage to work out the UK voice actors for the other characters, but why Alice’s voice actor was different in both versions despite her voice sounding similar I’ll never understand.

For some reason, I have been unable to find out who Ms Mimi’s UK voice actor is because nobody in the credits has owned up to voicing her. However, if I really had to guess, I would say that Emma Tate voiced her because even though the Scottish accent threw me off, she sounds a bit like Matilda (Angelina’s mum). As for Marco and Gracie’s UK voice actors, Louis Williams and Charlie Cameron, trying to find resumes or records of their past work has been impossible so I wasn’t able to find any proof, but I eventually did. Louis William’s LinkedIn profile mentions that he voiced Marco (he’s an English teacher in Japan now, shock of all shocks) and while Charlie Cameron doesn’t have a site or official profile of her own (why), I managed to link her roles for Dark Souls and Poppy Cat on IMDb to BTVA.

In the Moushouden Series, I ended up “recasting” Marco and Ms Mimi while keeping Gracie’s voice actor the same. Marco and Ms Mimi played major roles in my stories and I needed credits for them. “Getting” Louis Williams to “reprise” his role would have been impossible because he’s not an actor anymore, though it wouldn’t have been a big problem if I had found out earlier that he voiced Marco. Likewise, if I had managed to guess Ms Mimi’s UK voice actor earlier, then maybe I wouldn’t have needed to keep scratching my head all these years.

What’s in a name?

There has been quite a bit of speculation regarding the characters’ middle and last names, and I say “speculation” because there don’t seem to be any official sources that confirm it or the only official sources available can’t be accessed from the Wayback Archive because Adobe Flash is dead. Though the names were on the Wikipedia page at some stage, the only place where they exist now is on a poorly-maintained wiki of the series on Fandom. It is possible that Angelina and Alice’s middle and last names can be backed up because they were in the original series, but even then, I’m unable to do that due to lack of information (seriously, even the official website redirects to Mattel’s website, the absolute sellouts). So please take these names with a grain of salt:

Angelina Jeanette Mouseling

Alice Bridgette Nimbletoes

Marco Fernando Quesillo

Grace Madeleine “Gracie” le Chateau

Viktoria Andrea “Viki” Whiskerson

Adrian Zander James “A.Z.” Smithers (even though an official PDF from PBS WNET13 states that A.Z. stands for “Adam Zachariah”)

Mimi Jane Squigglytail

Maurice Rupert Mouseling

Matilda Felicity Mouseling

Polly Anne Mouseling

Harriet Cecily Thimble

Other stuff before I begin

In late 2015, there was talk of Angelina Ballerina getting relaunched in 2017 by Mattel and 9 Story Media Group. By 2017, however, nothing really came of it, or at least nothing significant that we could see. 9 Story currently have the distribution rights to both the 2D and CGI series, clips and episodes have been uploaded on the official Angelina Ballerina YouTube channel (a mix of UK and US versions, with Brazilian Portuguese and Latin American Spanish dubs on other channels) and the original books created by Katharine Holabird have been republished in the past two years.

Not seeing anything in 2017 has allowed Angelina Ballerina’s involvement in my personal project to flourish, but only time will tell whether anything else will come of this so-called relaunch. This series would probably have gone down the path of Fabio Yabu and Sea Princesses if it wasn’t so well-known all around the world.

The 9 Story pages show that there are some specials for the series. While the 2D series does have three specials, I could only find two movies in the CGI series that are fully original stories and not just episode compilations, namely The Shining Star Trophy and Dreams Do Come True. They don’t seem to be available on YouTube and the only online versions I could find use the US voices, meaning that a UK dub of these movies is unknown.

If you follow Gail Chord Schuler/Gabrielle Chana/The Church of Gail online, you might know that there is a Satanic Jesuit villain named Angelina Ballerina, depicted as a woman modelling a ballerina costume with wings. Rest assured that she is NOT the Angelina we all know and love, as Gail confirms in the comments of one of her videos (though there is a chance that trolls could have fed her that information).

All About Angelina

As I stated in #12, Maurice and the Takeda Army of Mouseland were in conflict with the Salacians before the Dimensional Merge. Because the time in their world, AB-561, was running faster compared to other worlds, they ended up on our Earth in 2009. In both timelines, Angelina and her family and friends became Hiroki and Parker’s comrades. In the first timeline, Angelina had an adventure with the Third Doctor. The second timeline is where things get detailed.

Before the Archangel Tunnel System was activated, there was no other way to get to Chipping Cheddar from Hong Kong, so when the Takeda Army were brought to this world, they had to do what they could to survive. Eventually, they ended up being controlled by another local army and used as their mascots. When Parker went to them to seek an alliance, he discovered this and helped the Takeda Army escape, which led them to pledge their allegiance to Parker.

Over the next two years, Parker and Hiroki became great friends with the Takeda Army’s officers. In 2010, Ms Mimi became disillusioned with Parker when she realised that he only seemed to care about fighting and enjoying himself on the battlefield. When the JIMPS were formed, Ms Mimi began to side with them as she saw Minnie and the others as the better strategists, but she had a newfound respect for Parker when he made peace with Minnie following their battle against each other.

When Squid Girl turns Minnie against Parker, however, Ms Mimi sides with the former again and a split occurs within the Takeda. Ms Mimi became one of the Sanada Army’s commanders while Gracie, AJ and Viki surrendered to the Sanada. Angelina was the first officer Parker found after being separated from Hiroki. Her family was being guarded by Alice and Marco before Parker arrives with reinforcements from the Date Army.

Months after Parker’s death and resurrection, the Sanada Army finally fell. Ms Mimi and the Takeda defectors rejoin their former comrades; Ms Mimi finally admits that she was a fool who never really understood Parker because she believed in loyalty and discipline.

With Parker’s army disbanded and the Flowertots returning home, the Takeda became the only close friends Hiroki had left. They supported him in his fight against Girl Power and the Teiro Army, so much so that they were willing to accept him in their ranks if he decided to leave his secondary school army. Ultimately, Hiroki declined their offer and became a ronin.

The Next Step

The Takeda Army eventually managed to resettle in Mouseland which was transported to Shizuoka Prefecture between the Archangel Tunnels to the Shikoku region and Cardiff. The Takeda Army had no significant relevance in 2013, but Angelina and her family attended Hiroki and Akari’s wedding, which was held in Chipping Cheddar (Kikugawa).

In 2014, the Takeda Army rose back to significance again as a result of events in real life (see #16). Following the Battle of Mikatagahara and Akari’s betrayal of Hiroki, Angelina joined the Doctor (again) as his companion. Later that year, Maurice would attempt another expedition to Kyōto when Girl Power forces stationed around Nagashino Castle in Nagoya would block his army’s path. When the Doctor arrives with Hiroki and Angelina, Hiroki gathers up some reinforcements before the Takeda Army splits up into three groups; one group defending the main camp, one group laying siege to the castle and one group attacking Girl Power forces stationed in nearby Shitaragahara. Despite the Takeda suffering severe casualties at the hands of the superior Girl Power army, Hiroki charges into Nagashino Castle alone and fights the enemy commanders before leaving his drones to crash into the castle keep.

Soon after, Angelina would participate in prototype testing for the Superhero Project, becoming the Pink Samurai Ranger alongside the Doctor and his other companions as they fought Girl Power in a parallel world. Following that adventure, Angelina would be summoned back by her father upon hearing word that Girl Power were preparing for an all-out siege on Yokohama. The Takeda Army allied with their old enemies, the Salacian (Uesugi) Army as they fought at Sekigahara and Ōsaka Castle. After the world was destroyed and restored, the Takeda were one of the armies that helped UNIT defend Yokohama from Girl Power.

Though Angelina stopped being the Doctor’s companion after 2014, she would regain that role again in 2017 when she and Alice officially joined the Superhero Project. Angelina and Marco make a cameo appearance in the Series 10 premiere as a couple and that’s the only time their relationship is brought up (I think that ship was hinted at in the series but not explicitly shown).

Having been selected, Angelina and Alice joined the Gokaigers as GokaiPink and GokaiGreen respectively. Their fighting styles were adapted to fit with their characters and the original Gokaiger footage; on top of predominately wielding guns, GokaiPink incorporates ballet into her fighting while GokaiGreen clumsily incorporates gymnastics which she makes up for with stealth and trickery.

As for the rest of the mouselings, they were hired by BOARD to become Kamen Riders as follows:

Kamen Rider Blade – Marco

Kamen Rider Garren – AJ

Kamen Rider Leangle – Viki

Kamen Rider Glaive – Ms Mimi

Kamen Rider Larc – Gracie

Kamen Rider Lance – Polly

Although not as significant compared to Fifi and Roary, the mouselings do play a significant role in the project. As with many obscure series I’ve encountered, finding accurate information is a daunting task. Though I have managed to find information that I haven’t been able to find in the past, there are times where I am still unable to do so, which results in me having to speculate missing information (usually by observation) that may or may not be correct. This is not so much a problem in Angelina Ballerina compared to Sea Princesses, but regardless, it’s better to have every piece of information confirmed than have even one piece of speculated information.

#kisekae insights #angelina ballerina

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missroserose · 4 years ago

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Wednesday Reading Meme: Bathroom Grinding Edition

Sadly, "bathroom grinding" isn't half so naughty as it sounds. Whatever the remodelers are doing downstairs, it sounds like they're vibrating the whole damn room apart. But! We're three days in and they've been consistently on time, our project manager has been communicative, and (to my admittedly untrained eye) they appear to be doing excellent work. And they've been super courteous about wearing masks, too. So really, I can't complain. What I've just finished reading Angels & Insects, by A.S. Byatt. Confession time: I noped out about a third of the way through The Conjugial Angel. There was some interesting cultural examination of the various social forces that gave rise to spiritualism (and the ways it allowed women of a certain age/lack of marital status to participate in society in a culturally-sanctioned way), but the farcical characters and lack of anything resembling a plot just Did Not Do It for me, especially when combined with Byatt's heavily-Victorian-esque writing style. It didn't even have Morpho Eugenia's implied-incest subplot to add spice. The Trouble With Peace, by Joe Abercrombie. I forgot to write about this last week because I didn't think about audiobooks, and also because I'd been taking a bit of a break from it. Joe Abercrombie is absolutely masterful at that style of writing where the bulk of the story involves setting up all the individual characters and their histories, connections, abilities, and motivations (overt and covert)—and then, in the third act, flicking one of the dominoes and watching everything fall. It's satisfying as heck in the end, but can sometimes be a little long in the windup. Still, Peace definitely fulfills its promises, and ends on that perfect kind of cliffhanger that I both kicking myself for not seeing coming and absolutely get why I didn't see it coming. Related, I note that his major themes for this trilogy include the shifting of norms in the face of new technology, the breakdown of social institutions in the wake of increasing wealth stratification, and the dangers of fanaticism directly related to increasing polarization—definitely none of which have any resonance with current events whatsoever. Definitely looking forward to the third book, and (at the risk of repeating myself) Steven Pacey continues to do an absolutely phenomenal job performing these books. What I'm currently reading One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich, by Aleksander Solzhenitsyn. Straightforward almost to a fault, I'm not sure I have a whole lot to say about the story yet. I get that it was a huge deal in its time, since it was one of the first truly honest portrayals of life in a Soviet gulag that was allowed to be published, but given that my previous exposure to Solzhenitsyn had been in the context of his more philosophical work, I guess I was expecting a little more philosophizing? Still, there's some reflection around the edges; I note the recurring theme of "the guards are just as trapped in their roles as the prisoners are in theirs, and subject to many of the same privations", which feels very Russian. Bureaucracy dehumanizes us all. I did note a passage in the Yevgeny Yevtushenko's foreword where he talks of Solzhenitsyn's disdainful attitude towards liberals, artists, and the intelligentsia, as none of their ideals or pretensions are of any use in the camps. He goes on to note that without the aid of the intelligentsia, who rallied under its banner, Ivan Denisovich would likely never have been published, but appears to dismiss this as a "complicated relationship" without going much further into it. Which struck me as more than a little odd; presumably, Solzhenitsyn had some artistic pretensions—you don't generally write a book, otherwise!—even if it was only to portray harsh realities that had been hidden from the general public. I wonder if this is a Soviet cultural thing, wanting to prove Solzhenitsyn's bona fides at writing working-class characters by separating him out from the pretentious elites? I should ask Ksenia about it. Gideon the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir. I nabbed this audiobook entirely on the basis of some chatter about it in my writing group, and so far it hasn't lead me astray—I've only really listened to the first sequence and a bit of the following backstory, but I really like the two major characters we've introduced so far. (I'm not sure you're supposed to like Harrowhawk, but given that her name is the title of the second book, I don't think you're supposed to not like her. And I admire her absolute ruthlessness.) I admit that I'm a little concerned about the extensive Dramatis Personae listed at the start of the book—I have a mixed track record with high fantasy/sci-fi stories with large casts that I often lose track of—but if the book can keep up the strength of Gideon's voice, that'll do a lot to keep my interest. What I plan to read next Still looking forward to Tender Morsels! After that, it occurs to me that I have the sequel to Naomi Novik's Uprooted, which I enjoyed immensely, sitting on my to-be-read pile...we'll see! Fanfiction Spotlight ancientreader's "Riddle Me This, Mr. Holmes" is a complete delight, both in its concept and in its execution. �� Watson, traveling to visit family but concerned about his friend and lover's somewhat fragile mental health, takes to sending him lines of a riddle via telegram and urchin-enacted charade each day. It's precisely the sort of thing you could see Watson doing for Holmes (no matter how you view their relationship); understated, thoughtful, and introducing just that little bit of extra chaos into the buttoned-up detective's life. I was completely and utterly charmed, all the more so by their banter-via-telegram once Holmes cottons on.

#wednesday reading #bathroom remodel #angels and insects #a.s. byatt #the trouble with peace #joe abercrombie #one day in the life of ivan denisovich #aleksandr solzhenitsyn #gideon the ninth #tamsyn muir #ancientreader #riddle me this mr. holmes

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cherrybloomn · 4 years ago

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Delicate - Chapter 1

Summary:

Naomi Poesy is a TV host of the show about acting and contemporary cinema. She is living life to the fullest, but for some reason she promised herself, she will never do any relationships. Much to her surprise she befriends one of her guests. Will she keep her promise?

***

Warnings: none

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

Feb. 2020

„Naomi, our guest is having his makeup done. He will be in the studio in about five minutes, we’re on air in ten.”

„Thank you. My God, I had such a wonderful weekend! Can you imagine that Samuel Firth, the CEO of The Kellan Investments, agreed to finance my charity?? We actually went out on Saturday. I was certain he would have sent one of his employees, but no! He came himself! We went to Nobu Restaurant. We spent almost three hours talking about the charity and our legal, and psychological support. I told him about all the women and children needing our help. Apparently, he has four kids. He also gave me a wonderful idea – to build a house, where the most needed ones could temporarily live. He said the FI could provide the building to accommodate. That’s fucking awesome!”

„Sounds brilliant! You know I will always be grateful, that you helped me to move on, and that you gave me this job. I don’t know what we’d do without your help. I was such a mess. I mean it.” Sarah smiled at Naomi. „I can’t say thank you enough.” For a moment Sarah zoned out thinking about her previous life. Her husband abused her and their ten-year-old son. He even made them steal alcohol for him. She met Naomi by accident in Buddhist Centre, where Sarah was looking for help. Sarah remembered their first encounter. Despite Naomi’s petite frame, Sarah felt the great energy. Naomi invited Sarah to her charity, provided the legal and psychological care. They managed to fight the restraining order, which made Sarah feel much better and safe.

„Hey, Sarah.” Naomi approached the girl and grabbed her by the hand. „Everything is fine. It is fine. It will be fine.” Naomi gave Sarah a hug. „Now, let’s go to our guest. I’ve heard you fancy him!”

“Oh, I so do. Who doesn’t??”

“Well, sure he is handsome. But I’m definitely loyal to Leonardo DiCaprio. He’s such a great actor.”

„Not that handsome though! I hope I’ll get an autograph for me and for Tom, he’s a big Superman fan.”

„We’ll work that out”. Naomi winked at her, grabbed her notes and headed to the studio. To get there she had to use the elevator, which was at the end of the main lobby. Just after she called the elevator a man approached her.

„Excuse me” He tried not to smile at her, but obviously couldn’t. „I am Henry’s friend. I mean Henry Cavill’s friend. I’m Colin. I am such a fan of yours. I really enjoy your show very much. I so wanted to meet you. Man, you look even better in person. I mean you look wonderful on screen! But in person, you are even more beautiful. I’m sorry, I’m babbling. I know that.” He shook his head and laughed. „I will wait here for Henry. I just. I am your fan, really.”

Naomi was so amused by this situation but it felt really nice what the man had to say. „Thank you, Colin. It’s really nice to hear that. So, if you are a fan of the show, maybe you’d like to see it from the inside? Come with me!”

They both entered the elevator, which lead them to the tenth floor.

„Good evening everyone!” Naomi said rushing through the studio towards two huge sofas located in the centre side of the stage. Her guest was sitting on one of these.

„Mr Cavill, very nice to meet you.” she extended her hand. Henry immediately stood up and shook her hand.

“It’s Henry, Nice to meet you too. Confession time. I must admit I am quite nervous to be here. You can be so abrupt to your quests!” He was partly teasing of course, but not quite.

“Me abrupt?!” She exclaimed with and smirked. “Nobody has ever told me that! When have I been abrupt?”

“I remember the episode with Jesse McBell, the theatre director and how you baptized him for not knowing who Grotowski was! I so watched it yesterday, just to prepare for the worst.” He laughed.

“Oh no. I do remember that! Was that abrupt reaction, really??” She giggled. She did remember that encounter. The guy was so full of himself, there was no discussion with him – each movie Naomi asked about was “shit”, each director was a “spoiled wannabe”. Only Jesse McBell was the greatest. Naomi as a typical hot-tempered person decided to teach him a lesson. On vision. That was very unprofessional, obviously. She regretted being so harsh. It turned out though, that it was one of the most watched and liked episodes of the season. “But I tell you what. Fear not! I am a huge fan of the Witcher, so I will be gentle with you. Promise.” She gave him the sweetest smile. “Please take a seat.”

They both sat on the sofas, facing each other.

“So. Are you the game fan or the books fan?” Henry lifted his eyebrow and smiled at his host.

“Mostly books. I’ve started to play only a couple of months ago. I can’t complete one task. I just have no idea how to..” Naomi stopped talking as she heard the director’s voice in her earphone. “40 seconds to get on air.” She smiled at Henry, who obviously was a bit nervous. “No worries, today I am as gentle as a little puppy.” They both chuckled.

A few seconds later they started rolling. The interview went very well. Naomi kept her promise, but couldn’t deny herself to tease Henry a little bit about his nervousness. Henry felt almost intimidated each time she asked questions and looked at him with her piercing grey eyes. He was impressed by her knowledge about the movie industry and the acting methods. He enjoyed the form of this encounter. It was rather a conversation than a typical interview.

“So … I hope it wasn’t as bad as you expected it to be. I wouldn’t like to become your nightmare.” She said after they heard “cut” in their earphones.

Henry stood up so that the staff could remove his micro. “No, no. It was a real pleasure. I mean it. You have quite a big knowledge about acting methods. Have you ever tried to perform?”

“Well. Yes and no. I have a master degree in acting. I graduated drama school in London and I did a three - month course in Moscow. It was my dream once. So at school I was performing, mostly in theatres. I really enjoyed working on a role and acting in theatre. I did some movie projects but just small indie productions. The surrounding though was not for me. I mean the castings, convincing everyone that I’m prettier, slimmer, fatter, taller, smaller, better, more talented. No. That’s not for me. So, I started to work as a radio reporter. For a short time, I prepared criminal podcasts. That was so cool, I really liked that! Then I moved to the cultural news section as one of the reporters got fired and I was a drama school graduate. And then it just happened, I got the offer to work here.”

“Don’t you regret that you gave up acting?”

“I once did. For a moment. It happened when my friend was a guest of the show, she studied with me. She’s a great actress. When I interviewed her, just for a second, I felt like – oh, it could have been me. But I believe everything happens for a reason.”

Naomi didn’t even notice Colin, who approached them.

“Oh. Naomi, this is my friend Colin. He’s a real fan of yours. And the reason of my nervousness. He showed the bloody episode to me!” Henry laughed and patted his friend’s arm. “He couldn’t wait to meet you”.

“Yes, we’ve already met today.” She turned towards Colin, who was smiling shyly. “Are you from movie industry?”

Both Henry and Colin looked at each other and laughed. “God no!” Colin shook his head. “I would never agree to work in that industry, no money could convince me. Ever. I’m an accountant.”

“Oh ok.” Naomi raised her eyebrow “I’ve never been good at numbers. Unfortunately. I spend money way too easily. Afterwards I always cry.”

“Oh. So, you need a good accountant!” Colin exclaimed.

“Or a rich husband.” Henry looked at Colin and wrapped his around his friend. “But of course, a good accountant would be a much better choice!” He couldn’t believe that after all these years of friendship, teasing Colin has still been so amusing.

“Well thank you gentlemen for your wonderful advice, but I have to announce that I already had a rich husband, and it took me three years to divorce, and I do have an accountant. But to prove my appreciation for your advice, I’d like to invite you to the party held by BBN on Friday evening.” She whispered “They throw great parties.”

Henry was to thank her for an invitation, and explain that he wasn’t sure if his schedule allows him to participate, but Colin was quicker.

“But of course, we will be there! Wonderful. Thank you, Naomi.”

She chuckled lightly and looked at Henry “So, Sarah will contact your agent and provide you with all the details. I will sign you both up on the guests list, and if you can make it, you’re welcomed. It was a pleasure to meet both of you.” Naomi shook Henry’s and Colin’s hands and headed back to her office.

Before she reached the elevator, Henry, who apparently rushed after her, stopped her.

“Naomi, I’m sorry I just checked up my phone and I can’t make it to the party on Friday. I have a family meeting. I can’t let them down.”

Naomi just nodded. She felt a bit disappointed, which was strange to her. She hasn’t felt anything like that for at least two years. Ever since she got divorced, she’s become emotionally numb. It has been very hard to disappoint her, as she didn’t care for anything at all. Excluding her tv work and her charity, these two years have been filled with parties, lots of expensive trips, shopping and flirting, just for sport. “Well, it’s a pity. I thought that I’d get more brilliant advice, like the one about getting a rich husband.” She chuckled. “But of course, I do understand. No worries.”

“Yes… I have some more in stock.” He smiled. After a minute of awkward silence, he added “How about having a lunch this week? We could continue our conversation about movies and the Witcher game, as you’ve said you couldn’t complete a task.”

Two women approached them as they needed to use the elevator. Once they realized who is standing next to them, they looked at each other, at Naomi, at Henry and started giggling, which made Naomi laugh. So, after a second, all of them were laughing.

“Oh God you act as if we didn’t have famous, handsome guests in here!” Naomi rolled her eyes.

“Naomi, you obviously do have them on your tenth floor. We don’t! Sooo. Can we ask for a photo? I know it’s so lame. I feel ashamed asking, but still. Can we?” One of the women put out her phone.

“Of course!” Henry smiled at them, and posed for the photos. Afterwards, satisfied women entered the elevator, and he turned to Naomi. “So?”

“So? Oh, the lunch! Yes, sure we can catch up later this week.” She handed him her business card with the phone number. “If you’re around, just call me”.

“I certainly will! Have a good day Naomi.”

“You too. Goodbye.” She smiled at him one last time, and entered the elevator, which has just arrived.

***

#henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill x other female character #henry cavill #henry cavill fanfiction #series

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iwouldvebeendrake01 · 5 years ago

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WOMEN IN FILM

Agnieszka Holland - director, The Secret Garden (1993) Alice Waddington - director, Paradise Hills (2019) Amma Asante - director, Belle (2013), A United Kingdom (2016) Amy Heckerling - director, Look Who’s Talking (1989), Clueless (1995) Angela Workman - writer, The Zookeeper’s Wife (2017), Longbourn (?) Angelina Jolie - director, By the Sea (2015), First They Killed My Father (2017) Anna Boden - director, It’s Kind of a Funny Story (2010), Captain Marvel (2019) Anna Kendrick - exec. producer, Dummy (?), Love Life (?) Anne Fletcher - director, The Proposal (2009), Dumplin’ (2018) Ava DuVernay - director, Selma (2014), A Wrinkle in Time (2018) Barbara Streisand - director, Yentl (1983) Brenda Chapman - director, The Prince of Egypt (1998), Brave (2012) Brie Larson - director, Unicorn Store (2017) Bryce Dallas Howard - director, Dads (2019), The Mandalorian Ch. 4 (2019) Carey Mulligan - exec. producer, Promising Young Woman (2020) Cate Shortland - director, Lore (2012), Black Widow (2020) Cathy Yan - director, Birds of Prey (2020) Céline Sciamma - director, Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) Chanya Button - director, Vita & Virginia (2018) Charlize Theron - producer, Monster (2003), Atomic Blonde (2017), Bombshell (2019) Chloé Zhao - director, Eternals (2020) Claire McCarthy - director, Ophelia (2018), The Luminaries (?) Debbie Allen - director, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990), The Twilight Zone (2003) Deborah Chow - director, The Mandalorian Ch. 3, Ch. 7 (2019), Obi-Wan Series (?) Debra Granik - director, Winter’s Bone (2010) Desiree Akhavan - director, Appropriate Behavior (2014) Diablo Cody - writer, Jennifer’s Body (2009), Young Adult (2011) Dorota Kobiela - director, Loving Vincent (2017) Drew Barrymore - director, Whip It (2009) Elizabeth Banks - director, Pitch Perfect 2 (2015), Charlie’s Angels (2019) Elizabeth Olsen - exec. producer, Sorry for Your Loss (2018–) Emma Stone - exec. producer, Maniac (2018) Emma Thompson - writer, Sense and Sensibility (1995), Last Christmas (2019) Gal Gadot - producer, Wonder Woman 1984 (2020), Hedy Lamarr Mini-Series (2020–) Gillian Armstrong - director, Little Women (1994), Death Defying Acts (2007) Greta Gerwig - director, Lady Bird (2017), Little Women (2019), Barbie (?) Gurinder Chadha - director, Bride & Prejudice (2004), Blinded by the Light (2019) Jamie Babbit - director, Supergirl (2016), The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2018) Jane Goldman - writer, Stardust (2007), X-Men: First Class (2011), Rebecca (2020) Jennifer Lee - writer, Frozen (2013), Zootopia (2016), Frozen II (2019) Jerusha Hess - writer, Napoleon Dynamite (2004), Nacho Libre (2006), Austenland (2013) Jessica Chastain - producer, I Am Jane Doe (2017), 355 (2021) Joanna Hogg - director, Unrelated (2007), Archipelago (2010), The Souvenir (2019) Josie Rourke - director, Coriolanus (2014), Mary Queen of Scots (2018) Julia Ducournau - director, Raw (2016), Titane (2020) Julie Taymor - director, Frida (2002), Across the Universe (2007), The Glorias (2020) Karen Gillan - director, The Party’s Just Beginning (2018) Kari Skogland - director, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2020–) Karyn Kusama - director, Æon Flux (2005), Jennifer’s Body (2009), Destroyer (2018) Kate Mara - producer, My Days of Mercy (2017), A Teacher (2020–) Kathryn Bigelow - director, The Hurt Locker (2008), Zero Dark Thirty (2012) Katt Shea - director, Poison Ivy (1992), Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (2019) Kay Cannon - writer, New Girl (2012-2013), Girlboss (2017), Cinderella (2021) Kelly Fremon Craig - director, The Edge of Seventeen (2016) Lana & Lilly Wachowski - directors, The Matrix (1999), Cloud Atlas (2012) Laura Lau - director, Silent House (2011) Leslye Headland - writer, Terriers (2010), Bachelorette (2012), Russian Doll (2019–) Lindsey Beer - writer, Chaos Walking (2020), The Kingkiller Chronicle (?), Silver Sable (?) Lois Weber - director, A Heroine of ‘76 (1911), The Angel of Broadway (1927) Lone Scherfig - director, An Education (2009), One Day (2011), Their Finest (2016) Lorene Scafaria - director, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012), Hustlers (2019) Lucia Aniello - director, Rough Night (2017), Broad City (2014-2019) Lupita Nyong’o - producer, In My Genes (2009), Americanah (2020–) Lynne Ramsay - director, We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) Madonna - director, Filth and Wisdom (2008), W.E. (2011) Margot Robbie - exec. producer, Gotham City Sirens (?), Modern Shakespeare Project (?) Marielle Heller - director, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) Marjane Satrapi - director, Persepolis (2007), The Voices (2014), Radioactive (2020) Marti Noxon - writer, Fright Night (2011), To the Bone (2017), Sharp Objects (2018) Mary Harron - director, American Psycho (2000), Alias Grace (2017), Charlie Says (2018) Mary Pickford - writer, The Awakening (1909), Rags (1915), A Girl of Yesterday (1915) Michelle Williams - exec. producer, Blue Valentine (2010), Fosse/Verdon (2019) Millie Bobby Brown - producer, Enola Holmes (2020) Mimi Leder - director, Deep Impact (1998), On the Basis of Sex (2018) Nancy Meyers - director, The Parent Trap (1998), The Holiday (2006), The Intern (2015) Naomi Watts - exec. producer, Gypsy (2017), The Wolf Hour (2019) Natalie Dormer - writer, In Darkness (2018) Natalie Portman - director, A Tale of Love and Darkness (2015) Nia DaCosta - director, Little Woods (2018), Candyman (2020) Niki Caro - director, Whale Rider (2002), The Zookeeper’s Wife (2017), Mulan (2020) Noomi Rapace - producer, Stockholm (2018), Close (2019), Hearts of Stone (2020) Nora Ephron - director, Sleepless in Seattle (1993), You’ve Got Mail (1998), Julie & Julia (2009) Octavia Spencer - exec. producer, Green Book (2018), Self Made (2020–) Olivia Wilde - director, Booksmart (2019) Patty Jenkins - director, Monster (2003), Wonder Woman (2017), I Am the Night (2019) Penélope Cruz - producer, Twice Born (2012), Ma ma (2015), The Queen of Spain (2016) Penny Marshall - director, Big (1988), A League of Their Own (1992) Phoebe Waller-Bridge - writer, Fleabag (2016-2019), No Time to Die (2020) Quiara Alegría Hudes - writer, In the Heights (2020), Vivo (2021) Rachel Weisz - producer, The Shape of Things (2003), Radiator (2014), Disobedience (2017) Rashida Jones - writer, Black Mirror: Nosedive (2016), Toy Story 4 (2019) Rebecca Hall - director, Passing (2020) Reese Witherspoon - producer, Penelope (2006), Gone Girl (2014), Tinker Bell (?) Robin Wright - director, House of Cards (2014-2018), Land (?) Ruth Wilson - exec. producer, Mrs. Wilson (2018) Sally Potter - director, Orlando (1992), The Man Who Cried (2000) Salma Hayek - producer, Frida (2002), Ugly Betty (2006-2010), The Prophet (2014) Sandra Bullock - exec. producer, George Lopez (2002-2007), The Proposal (2009) Scarlett Johansson - exec. producer, The Whale (2011), Black Widow (2020) Sofia Coppola - director, Lost in Translation (2003), The Beguiled (2017) Susanna White - director, Bleak House (2005), Jane Eyre (2006), Woman Walks Ahead (2017) Susanne Bier - director, Serena (2014), The Night Manager (2016), Bird Box (2018) Tessa Thompson - exec. producer, Little Woods (2018), Sylvie’s Love (2020) Thea Sharrock - director, The Hollow Crown: Henry V (2012), Me Before You (2016) Thea von Harbou - writer, Destiny (1921), Metropolis (1927), Woman in the Moon (1929) Tina Fey - writer, Mean Girls (2004), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (2015-2019) Valerie Faris - director, Battle of the Sexes (2017), Living with Yourself (2019–) Vanessa Taylor - writer, Divergent (2014), The Shape of Water (2017) Zoe Kazan - writer, Ruby Sparks (2012), Wildlife (2018) Zoe Lister-Jones - director, Band Aid (2017), Woman Up (?), The Craft (?) Zoe Saldana - producer, Rosemary’s Baby (2014), The Honor List (2018), From Scratch (2020–) Zooey Deschanel - exec. producer, New Girl (2011-2018)

#women #feminism #movies #film #feminist #my edits #mine

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brandydomain02-blog · 6 years ago

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Start A Professional Foreclosure Clean Out Business

A Project Management Office (PMO) is a centralized, coordinating body within an organisation that provides an infrastructure of people, procedures, and tools for effective project management It sets standards, enforces accountability and provides governance to manage a number of projects objectively and fruitfully. Among the many benefits offered by Dubai Media City are 100 percent ownership of property, tax free revenues, a chance to network with others in the industry, fast delivery, transport and communications, venue management and a host of other facilities. He cites research performed at the University of Maryland showing that 'college students who use marijuana even occasionally do worse in school, do less homework, are less likely to finish college and are more likely to be unemployed at some time in their lives',” according to Naomi Schaefer Riley in Why do college kids have so much time to smoke pot. The first step is either to hire an attorney to prepare your legal documents to file an application for registration of your LLC, which is a bit expensive, or use free and easy to use services to prepare your documents and file the application yourself by reading guidelines available at their website. Before Nuremberg, the notion of holding individuals liable for the actions of states was as foreign a concept as holding a corporation liable as a juridical person, as evidenced by the Nuremberg Tribunal's handling of the actions brought against corporate entity I.G. Farben. 32 The next, crucial development, then, was the Limited Liability Act 1855 , passed at the behest of the then Vice President of the Board of Trade, Mr. Robert Lowe This allowed investors to limit their liability in the event of business failure to the amount they invested in the company - shareholders were still liable directly to creditors , but just for the unpaid portion of their shares (The principle that shareholders are liable to the corporation had been introduced in the Joint Stock Companies Act 1844). If a company is in a period of major expansion or retrenchment, if it is acquiring or divesting product lines or properties, if it experiences a significant change in volume-up or down-the human resources executive has another excellent opportunity to bring about major organizational improvement in cooperation with senior line managers. When Mandela and other ANC members 'trekked' from Pollsmoor prison and walked down into South Africa mainstream and main streets in the 1990s, they found an African South African population which had not yet recovered from the battering rams of Apartheid, and facing an increasingly recalcitrant Apartheid regime that still went on years after Mandela took over, viz., night raids, kidnappings, tortures, murder, poverty, environmental Apartheid along with economical apartheid, and the whole bit. www.rizmona.com/blog/what-llc-and-how-setup-dubai/ has now become the norm, and the mantra of "dog-eats-dog" has become embedded into the cultural consciousness of the Africans in South Africa and in their national existence and conversations to the detriment of their authentic culture, customs, traditions, history, rites and practices. If there is only one member, there is no liability protection and the LLC is treated as a Sole Proprietor and reported directly on the individual's tax return on a Schedule C. With two or more owners, the LLC offers very good liability protection when set up properly.

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numanewsnow · 3 years ago

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Ex-TIHP Board Members Try Seating Themselves Back on TIHP Board

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Sources indicate former representatives of the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Tribe to the Toiyabe Indian Health Project board of directors, Robert Zucco and Richard Button, at the last TIHP board of directors meeting on August 6, 2021, attempted to seat themselves as their tribe's representatives, in spite of their removal at the tribe's general membership meeting on August 1. In place of them, Lisa Smith and Melvin Joseph, Sr., along with Naomi Sellberg as the alternative representative, gained the approval of the tribe's general membership.

According to sources, Mr. Zucco and Mr. Button sat themselves at the table for TIHP board members at the last board meeting. George Gholson, TIHP board chairman, reportedly showed reluctance to seat the new tribal representatives for the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Tribe, noting the board had not officially received correspondence transmitted from the tribe naming their new representatives. It was pointed out by audience members how no mention of this requirement is made of this in the TIHP board bylaws or the board procedure policies.

Following some discussion, the board eventually acknowledged and accepted the tribe's replacement representatives.

It was shortly after this acceptance, Mr. Gholson reportedly told the audience members in attendance, largely comprised of interested TIHP patients and members of the tribes represented by TIHP, to leave the meeting due to what he claimed was a COVID-19 protocol, however, Mr. Gholson produced no such policy for the audience members to read for themselves, essentially shutting them out.

Sources note the Bishop Clinic staff screened all audience members for signs of COVID-19, inspected the vaccination cards of those attending who volunteered this information, and were provided adequate room for social distancing with the nearly 3,000-square-foot meeting room at TIHP headquarters at the Bishop Clinic facility.

Numa News Now reached out to TIHP CEO Joseph Herman and former Lone Pine tribal representative Richard Button for comment. Neither of these individuals responded to the request for comment as of publication time.

«NOTE»

The sources for this story spoke to Numa News Now based on the condition of anonymity due to the potential retaliation by the TIHP board of directors or the TIHP management, including the real possibility of being banned from receiving healthcare services amid the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

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anysquared · 3 years ago

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Against Da Fence 2021 was pure joy on Sunday June 27! facebook album > instagram post > Thank you Renegades of Funk Chicago and Squeak Starzula + friends for being AnySquared's partner in this event. Thank you Flash ABC for always being there! Much appreciation Breaker Ray for MCing and highlighting all the artists! (and also being the parking manager). Thank you to DJ Mr Bobby for keeping everyone moving! Special gratitude goes to each and every volunteer who helped prepare the art, haul, set-up, hang, and take down the show, as well as all of you who prepped and painted the wall! It takes all of us to pull of this multifaceted event! Against da Fence is always a labor of love and community. Art+Community now and forever! ––––

Artists & Volunteers | Ahmed Burson @ab_surd9 • AKIRA @akira.portraits • Alex Serrato @dasera00 • Alejandro Vilchez @fire.falco • Alice Gabrielle @teamalice42 • Alys Calvillo @bitches__brew • Amadeo Kain Arroyo @river_arroyo • Andrea Ole @andreaalewise • Andrew Garcia @pelon.art • Andrew Rose Vickers @andrew_the_rose_artist • BboyB @bboyb_abc • BAGizzles @grizzeg • Bee Fueroa @shatter.the.myth • Breaker Ray @breakerraypage • Brett Swinney @bswwinney42 • Catherine Cerda @catherineiscatherine • Chris Ramirez @melatoninbaby_runaways • Cypress Jackie Maxine @the_lady_jak • Das Weinstein @theliminalium • Dial8r @dial8r • EAZEL @el_eaz • Emilio Nadales @emilio.nadales • Evon iz @evoniz • FLASHABC @flash_abc • Frankie Peace @lostfrankie • thegrayfox11 @thegrayfox_11 • HASTE @catchwreckcreatives • Helen Sanchez Cortes @helensanzcor • Ian Ehafh @ehafh_ • Icybee @icy_beee • Iyana Simba @lovee.simbaa • Jacob Ramirez @omnecian • Joel Maxime Jr. @cravechicago • Josue @jgum_art • Killaroses Creations @killarosescreations • kn0w.1 @kn0w.1 • Krissy Soriano @bluevelvettdreams • Lucky Gnome @luckygnomechicago • MADDOG & POOKIE @maddogandpookie • Matthew Petrovich @mapssketchbook • Maritza Botello @sparkyartwork_82 • Mr Bobby @djmrbobby • Mr. Pintamuro @mr.pintamuro • Naomi Martinez @monstrochika • Natalia Sustaita @n.susta.art • Natalie Carrasquillo @zombierecycling • Nicole Ciemniak • NøønsSlaps @_noonslaps • Raine Kam Young @rainekamy • RESTINPISS @d0ntsh00t • Slutbug Studios @slutbugstudios • Squeak Starzula @squeakstarzula • Stevie Dez @moth_bord • Tattianna Howard @tattigram • Tracy Kostenbader @tracykostenbader • Vic Toria @vcrass • Vito Petrosino • Wolf Villalobos @Wolfff456 ______ Anysquared anysquared.com [email protected] Renegades of Funk rofchicago.com [email protected]

#AgainstDaFence #renegadesoffunk #logansquare #art #stickers #projectlogan #anysquared #artpluscommunity

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orbemnews · 4 years ago

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How Naomi Osaka Became Everyone’s Favorite Spokesmodel LOS ANGELES — In today’s world of celebrity branding, captions speak louder than words. But Naomi Osaka’s are decidedly understated. “Keep on keeping on,” the 23-year-old tennis champion posted on Instagram under two on-court photos after making it through the fourth round of the Australian Open (which she went on to win). For a slide show that began with a shot of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, whose Costume Institute Gala she will co-chair, in September: “oh we lit.” Below a portrait of herself draped in Louis Vuitton and Nike (both sponsors of hers), simply: “yo.” Her nonchalance, perhaps, is a way of guarding herself on social media, where many more loquacious celebrities have made unforced errors. “You don’t really know people, by looking at their profile,” Ms. Osaka said recently. “You feel like you can sort of catch a glimpse into their life, which, in a way, is a bit wrong.” She said she has to remind herself to post on Instagram: “My mind hasn’t been able to keep track of it.” But certainly her profile, well outfitted as it is, provides a glimpse into her business — and like the meme decrees, business is boomin’. Ms. Osaka is covering everything from ears to rears, making headphones with Beats, athleisure with Nike and denim with Levi’s. Dresses? She designed them with Adeam, a Japanese-American brand. Swimwear? She crafted a collection with Frankies Bikinis. In April, she announced that she would serve as C.E.O. of her own company: Kinlò, a line of skin care made for people with melanated skin tones, produced with GoDaddy. According to Forbes, she made $37.4 million in endorsements and tournament prizes between May 2019 and May 2020, the most a female athlete has ever earned in a single year. “She’s the first professional tennis player we’ve worked with,” said Jen Sey, the brand president of Levi’s, “but for us, she rises above that. She’s such a powerful voice, the way she’s encouraged others to speak out about equality. She’s outspoken. That’s what we like about her. There’s no point in partnering with someone if you’re just going to tell them what to do.” With Nike, she founded an academy to introduce more young women to sports; with L.V.M.H., she joined a judging panel to choose an emerging fashion designer worthy of a 300,000-euro grant. Her imprint seems to be suddenly on everything from enterprise management software (Workday) to water (Bodyarmor). “She is the perfect storm,” said Cindy Gallop, a brand consultant who has worked with several of Ms. Osaka’s sponsors. “She’s a spectacular athlete. She has a strong sense of social justice, she’s prepared to speak her mind.” “Thirdly,” Ms. Gallop said, “she’s female, and fourthly, she’s not white. I hate, loathe, and detest terms like this, but she is, in quotes, diverse. She ticks every box. You can practically hear the brand managers thinking: ‘She is absolutely the right person to sponsor, right now.’” Serving Salad Tennis stars of the past hawked rackets, pain medication, watches (which Ms. Osaka also does, for Tag Heuer) and the ever-changing category of fast food. On a Monday in March, Ms. Osaka found herself in the Los Angeles test kitchen of the chain restaurant Sweetgreen, the Supreme of salad, trying to wrap her head around the notion that one of the restaurant’s dressings — rémoulade — would soon be disappearing from the menu. “What’s in it that makes it seasonal?” Ms. Osaka said. “The pickles,” said Katelyn Shannon, a research and development chef of Sweetgreen. Ms. Osaka nodded. She was wearing a face mask and a high bun; green and black sweatpants poked out beneath her apron. She had more questions: “Are the other dressings seasonal, too?” “What is a salad ‘hack’?” “What’s more popular, kale or romaine?” “How quickly does Sweetgreen go bad?” (Answers: mostly, no; it’s a way to reverse engineer an ingredient, like a seasonal dressing; kale; after two days, stir fry it for 10 minutes for a whole new meal.) Last year, Ms. Osaka signed a deal with Sweetgreen that gives her equity in the company and makes her its first celebrity sponsor. While both parties declined to disclose the terms of the arrangement, Nathaniel Ru, a founder of Sweetgreen, said the company “wanted to make sure she had some skin in the game.” “We’re not going to get a logo on her shirt, maybe we’ll get a salad on the sidelines,” Mr. Ru said. Ms. Osaka stars in a new Sweetgreen ad campaign, on billboards and the internet, that features four sides of her personality (two of the lesser known: “the gaming mogul,” “the meditation master”). The goal, Mr. Ru said, is to “shift the paradigm of what fast food can be.” Traditionally, salad has not had a sponsor; perhaps the closest it came was 10 years ago, when the blog post Women Laughing Alone With Salad went viral. Most of those women were white; perhaps none of them compelled anyone to eat a salad (unironically, anyway). “Representation is important,” said Ms. Osaka, who is Haitian and Japanese. (Part of the proceeds of a salad she designed for Sweetgreen — with baby spinach and tortilla chips, among other ingredients — will go toward nonprofits working to increase food access in Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities.) “It’s important for me to represent things I actually believe in,” she said of her brand partnerships, “that I actually eat. I would never do, like, McDonald’s or Coca-Cola, because I don’t consume them. I consume Sweetgreen once every three days. It’s not something that you can fake.” She added, “you can always tell when someone’s lying.” So radical is her authenticity that it seems to override any desire to appease. When a Sweetgreen employee asked her what she eats on the road, Ms. Osaka said, “at tournament sites they have a salad buffet, so I like to make my own salad.” “Is it sad?” the employee said. “‘Is it sad?’” Ms. Osaka repeated. “Is the salad buffet sad?” the employee clarified. “Oh,” Ms. Osaka said. “Wimbledon has a really good one.” Sister Act In September, Ms. Osaka won the U.S. Open while declaring solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement through her face masks. From a corporate sponsorship perspective, this was a turning point: taking a stance increased her brand value. She shortly thereafter teamed up with Basic Space, an online swap meet for hype beasts (sample items for sale include a St. John coat and a Range Rover) to sell 500 masks designed by her 25-year-old sister, Mari. They sold out in 30 minutes, with proceeds going to UNICEF. “We have a mutual appreciation and respect for what we’re all trying to build,” said Jesse Lee, the founder of Basic Space, “something cool, unique and authentic.” It was he who introduced Ms. Osaka to the founders of Sweetgreen. The Osaka sisters returned to Basic Space last month to auction off a series of N.F.T. artworks, with the final bid for one, “The Unsuspecting Player,” reaching $150,000. It is a Mangaesque imagining of a brown-skinned woman with a tennis racket and a cascade of pink hair not unlike a wig Ms. Osaka wore in a recent Instagram post. “I’ve always felt like my sister knows me best,” Naomi Osaka said during an April interview on Clubhouse, the audio broadcasting app. “I’ve grown up watching her draw and do digital art and paintings, I always wanted to find a way to use my platform to showcase that.” “Though maybe not exactly how I am,” she added, “she captured me well.” It was Ms. Osaka’s first time on Clubhouse, and she did not hide her bemusement when the volume of Mari’s audio dwarfed her own. “I’m literally right next to my sister, so I don’t get why I have a bad connection and she doesn’t,” she said. Many of her brand partnerships involve Mari. They collaborate on sketches for clothing Ms. Osaka designs with her fashion sponsors, like an upcoming capsule collection with Levi’s. “I draw really badly, she can make it look good,” Ms. Osaka said. “She’s able to interpret. Sometimes we don’t even have to talk for her to understand what I’m thinking.” Before the pandemic, Ms. Osaka visited the Levi’s workshop in West Hollywood to conceptualize the pieces, which include an obi-inspired bustier and denim shorts with crystal fringe. When in-person meeting became impossible, she went on Zoom, signing off on 10 designs before they went into production. “As a little kid, I would watch ‘America’s Next Top Model’ and ‘Project Runway,’ and those were sort of scratching the surface of what goes on behind the scenes,” she said. At Levi’s, she said, she could see the process, “how technical they are about buttons and cutting fabric.” Far from the celebrity sponsorship model of yore, in which stars of syndicated TV shows claim to color their own hair at home, Ms. Osaka does not want to work with a company unless she’s learning on the job. As companies scurry to make up for decades of underrepresentation of races other than white, Ms. Osaka is aware that she may seem like the golden ticket. “I don’t just want to be a figurehead, or someone used,” she said. “If I’m with a brand, I want it to be from my heart instead of just trying to promote a message, just for money.” Surely, some thirsty brands have offered some pretty sweet deals? Ms. Osaka laughed. “That’s really a him question,” she said, gesturing at Stuart Duguid, her agent and manager. “She’s not taking incoming calls,” he said. Back in the test kitchen, Ms. Osaka had cast herself, convincingly, as student in salad master class, asking about the pros and cons of various greens, what ingredients go together, watching and learning as Mr. Ru, the Sweetgreen co-founder, demonstrated the proper way to mix with tongs “You’ve got to do the twist,” he said, flipping his wrist. Upstairs, in a makeshift conference room, she photographed a mood board taped to a concrete wall. She gazed at the unfinished ceiling and a rattling screen window. “Really pretty architecture,” she said, sincerely. . Many celebrities are more keen on checking their texts than looking around the room. That’s not Ms. Osaka, or her brand. “I’m very curious about a lot of things,” she said. “Being curious is one of the happinesses of life, because if you’re not curious, that means you’re sort of settled. I feel really humbled, that I play tennis but I’m able to have all these new experiences and opportunities, like getting to make a salad here. I don’t think a lot of people can say that.” “I’m really good at tennis,” she added, “but I’d like to be really good at other things, too.” Source link Orbem News #Everyones #favorite #Naomi #Osaka #Spokesmodel

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womenofcolor15 · 4 years ago

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‘Genius: Aretha’ Got Pushed Back Due To The Pandemic, Here's The New Premiere Date & New Poster

The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the premiere date of “Genius: Aretha” back. Now, it’s a go! See Cynthia Erivo as Aretha Franklin in the new poster and more about how the delay messed up the EMMY run inside….

The Coronavirus pandemic put a screeching halt to the release of National Geographic’s limited series “Genius: Aretha.”

Cynthia Erivo has been tapped to portray "Queen of Soul" Aretha Franklin in season three of Nat Geo’s EMMY winning anthology series “Genius.” It was originally scheduled to be released right before Memorial Day Weekend 2020, but COVID. The plan was to have each episode air over four consecutive nights in late May 2020, days before the EMMY Awards’ eligibility period ended (May 31st).

No worries. “Genius: Aretha” will now be eligible to be nominated this year since it’ll premiere two months before the eligibility date. Get ready to be engulfed in some soulful vibes when the limited series premieres in March 2021.

Two-time Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo celebrated her 34th birthday by unveiling the new key art:

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A post shared by Cynthia Erivo (@cynthiaerivo)

“Genius: Aretha” is billed as the first-ever, definitive and only authorized scripted limited series on the life of the musical icon. It will chronicle Aretha’s incredible music career, her musical genius and the impact she made on music and culture around the world.

The Broadway starlet will perform songs from Aretha’s legendary catalogue. Several of the singer’s biggest hits will also be featured in the series, including "I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Love You)," "Chain of Fools," "Don't Play That Song" and "Baby I Love You," along with her performances of "Freeway of Love," "I Knew You Were Waiting for Me" and "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves."

Not only that, her activism for civil rights will also be featured.

There’s a star-studded cast to back the new project, including Emmy winner Courtney B. Vance (“The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”) as Aretha’s father, C.L. Franklin; Malcolm Barrett (“Timeless,” “Preacher”) as Ted White, Franklin’s first husband and business manager; David Cross (“Mr. Show,” “Arrested Development”) as legendary music producer Jerry Wexler; Grammy winning musician and actor Tip “T.I.” Harris (“Ant Man,” “Get Hard”) as Ken Cunningham; Patrice Covington (“The Color Purple”, “Ain’t Misbehavin’”) and Rebecca Naomi Jones (“Oklahoma!,” “The Big Sick”) portray Erma and Carolyn Franklin, respectively, as Aretha’s sisters and frequent background singers who supported and collaborated with their famous sibling; Steven Norfleet (“Watchmen,” “Dynasty”) as older brother Cecil Franklin, who stepped in as Aretha’s manager following her divorce from Ted White; veteran actress Pauletta Washington (“Beloved,” “She’s Gotta Have It”) as Aretha’s nurturing and loving paternal grandmother, Rachel; Omar J. Dorsey (“Queen Sugar”) as James Cleveland; Marque Richardson (“Dear White People”) as King Curtis, and Kimberly Hébert Gregory (“Vice Principals”) as Ruth Bowen.

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A post shared by Shaian Nakia Jordan (@shaianjordan)

And introducing Shaian Jordan as young Aretha Franklin, Little Re.

Peep the trailer below:

youtube

“Genius: Aretha” will premiere on National Geographic this March. Will you be tuning in?

Oh...

Yes, Jennifer Hudson is still playing Aretha Franklin in the upcoming biopic about the singer's life. The upcoming biopic film titled RESPECT is set to drop in August 2021.

Photo: One35Agency

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2021/01/13/%E2%80%98genius-aretha%E2%80%99-got-pushed-back-due-to-the-pandemic-heres-the-new-premiere-date-cynthia-e

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cherrybloomn · 4 years ago

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Delicate - Chapter 3

Note: ok Chapter 3 is here. Your opinion is always welcomed (criticism included!). Its my first stoey ever so please be kind. I know I have much to work on, but I hope that it will get better and better.

I would like to thank very (VERY) much @musings-sans-muse and @shellbilee for your support, help, ideas, everything! You girls rock!!

Thank you @oddsnendsfanfics for your encouragement!

Warnings: swearing

April 2020

Naomi spent the whole March shooting her show in Berlin (as there was a theatre festival) and preparing the charity event for children. She managed to schedule everything– the place (Hyde Park), the catering, the guests. Obviously, everything was cancelled due to coronavirus restrictions. Everyone was forbidden to go to the tv studio, so Naomi worked on the new scripts of the episodes, watched movies, wrote reviews of new plays, etc.

Since their last lunch, Naomi had been regularly in touch with Henry, mostly via WhatsApp. They have met a couple of times. The more she talked with him, the more she liked him. He made her laugh. But not only that. He seemed to care about others, yet had this reasonable attitude - often saying that you can’t change the world alone.

She valued him for being the voice of reason. They have known each other for only two months, yet she told him a lot about her family and difficult relationship with her father (who was a real - life spitting image of Logan Roy from The Succession), her issues with James, her weird fascinations of criminal stories about murderers and disappearances and the II World War.

One day she had just come home and put the groceries on the kitchen island, when her phone buzzed. She picked up the video call. Henry. The thought of seeing his face and talking to him always shifted her mood. “Hello boy. Give me a moment I need to wash my hands. I’ve just been out in a bad, bad store.” She giggled and headed to the bathroom with her phone, placing it next to the sink.

“Of course. I can see your tits now, by the way. No worries though, I enjoy the view.” He chuckled lightly. Naomi rolled her eyes and quickly moved the phone to the higher counter. She took a minute to study Henry’s face. Something was off. She couldn’t tell if he looked sad or tired. It was off though. She was wondering why. In this very moment she also realized that he was one of very few people, who were… important to her. Not in a romantic kind of way. No. Naomi didn’t date, she didn’t want to build a relationship with any man, not anymore. Still, he was important.

“Helloo..” Henry waved his hand from the other side of the screen.

“I’m sorry. I thought of my round, perfect, little tits. Changing the awkward subject, how are you doing in times of isolation? You look tired. Is everything ok?” Naomi dried her hands with a towel, grabbed her phone and headed to the kitchen. She placed her phone on the kitchen island, leant on her elbows and focused on the phone screen.

“I’m fine. A bit anxious I think. Not my best day today. That’s why I’m calling. I expect to hear some entertaining story about your crazy childhood.”

She laughed, and thought for a moment. “I’m not in the mood today. You know, I almost got a role in the Moulin Rouge musical in the Old Vic. I mean I did get the part of Satine, and I was so excited, as it would be my debut after all these years. Unfortunately, they called today that due to the lockdown, the project has been entirely called off.” She shrugged “At least Netflix doesn’t disappoint. There’s the Money Heist premiere today.”

After a second she added “Join me today! Look I know it’s illegal, alright? But I can promise we will keep the two – meter distance. I can offer you good whiskey and whatever meal the chosen restaurant could provide. Except for pizza and other carbo shit. I’m on a low-carbo diet. You know I’d love to say I’m one of those women who can eat everything because they’re so cool and don’t care about their looks or have a wonderful metabolism. But unfortunately, I’m not them. My metabolism is my enemy and I do fucking care about how I look because the CEO of BBN asks about my weight like once a month.” She smiled at him “So, take it or leave it.”

“I take it. I can cook something if you want. Oh, can I take Kal with me?”

“Cooking – ok. Sounds cool. Kal – Henry, in general of course. But you need to keep in mind I’ve got two Pomeranians – and as much as they love people and small dogs, they sometimes hate the big ones. So, bring Kal with you and in case there’s war, I’ll take Marilyn and Audrey to my neighbor.”

They discussed the details about the dogs’ meeting and decided to meet at 6 pm. Naomi took her time to call her mum and friends, take her dogs for a walk and take a shower. Afterwards she applied a bit of makeup, put on her black Nike leggings and white tank top. She let her hair loose so that it could dry quickly. Just after she poured herself a glass of water, her phone buzzed and Henry informed, he’s waiting outside with Kal. Naomi called her dogs and all of them headed to the small park near her apartment. Naomi couldn’t stop laughing when she spotted Henry with the Salvador Dali mask on – a kind of tribute to Money Heist, which they were going to watch.

Unfortunately, just as Naomi thought, there was no love between Kal and Marylin. At least Audrey accepted the big bear immediately. Naomi decided to take Marylin to her neighbor, and the rest of them headed to her place.

Much to Naomi’s surprise, Henry cooked a delicious dinner, and they spent the whole evening watching five episodes of the Netflix series. Being her kittenish self, Naomi gently touched Henry’s knee with her toes from time to time. “Heey… relax.” She said with a smile. “I can tell you something nice, wanna hear?”

Henry raised his eyebrow and looked at her with a smirk “Go on, entertain me.” He gently rubbed her ankle with one hand, the other one was supported on the back of the sofa.

“Alright..” Naomi closed her eyes for a moment and enjoyed the delicate massage. Finally she looked him in the eyes. She smiled shyly and turned her face away, “Henry.. Do remind me please, is your dad a boxer?” She asked coyly.

Henry seemed a bit puzzled “No, no. Have I ever said that he was?”

“Well no...but damn, I’m asking because you’re such a knockout!”.

They both burst out with laughter.

“What a cheesy pickup line, I love it! Where do you know that from?”

Naomi started to play with her hair “Well, it happens to me all the time” she joked. “It’s nice to see you laughing.” She added after a second.

At around 3 a.m. they decided it was really late, so they were to terminate their evening with just one glass of Jack Daniels (due to her diet Naomi didn’t drink alcohol, but promised to have a goodbye drink).

Naomi brought two glasses to the living room and sat on the sofa. Henry was sitting on the opposite side. Once Naomi extended her hand and handled him a glass of whiskey, he slowly grabbed the glass with one hand and held her wrist with another. “What a massive rock!” He said, looking closely at her two - carat diamond engagement ring. He gently caressed her knuckles with his thumb. His touch, ever so gentle made Naomi shiver. Something about it felt so wrong and so right at the same time. “Has James proposed to you? I had no idea”. Henry let go of her hand and supported himself on the back of the sofa.

“No, of course not. It’s an engagement ring I was given by my husband. I often wear it.” Naomi didn’t like to talk about her marriage with anyone. She felt very comfortable with Henry and they talked about many personal things, but she never mentioned her married life.

Henry slowly nodded. “You never talk about your marriage.” He took a sip of his drink and after a couple of seconds asked “Do you still love him?”

Naomi zoned out for a second, focusing her eyes on the floor. Her hand tried to retrace Henry’s touch on her knuckles. This touch. So delicate. It was one of the most intimate moments she’s ever experienced. Why was it so intimate - she didn’t know. She had had a lot of sex lately. Mostly with James. James never touched her this way. Why? Why had nobody ever touched her this way, she thought.

“Naomi.” Henry’s low, but soft voice snatched her out of her thoughts. She looked at him with slightly parted lips. What were they talking about? Oh, right. Her ex-husband.

“Do I love my husband? Because I wear the engagement ring? No. Not at all. I just love expensive jewellery with big diamonds.” She chuckled looking at her engagement ring. “That’s the secret. But no. I have no feelings for my ex - husband. As for why I don’t talk about my marriage, there’s just nothing to talk about. I was 20, he was 34 at that time we got married. I wanted to be an actress, he was a serious entrepreneur. I wanted to run away from my mum, who was trying to take over my whole life, and he was looking for a young woman to build a home with. At some point it didn’t work out. We had a nasty divorce and division of assets. He then moved to Moscow, and as far as I know he still lives there. The end.”

Naomi refilled Henry’s glass with whisky, Naomi willed herself to focus back on the conversation and not on the ghost of his touch that lingered on her skin. “What about your love life, Mr. One Hundred Questions to Naomi Poesy?” She asked and winked at him.

“You know how it is Naomi. It’s just hard to get involved with someone, if you have this kind of job. It’s all about either accepting my schedule and traveling with me, or building a long – distance relationship. It hardly ever works. Also…”

Naomi suddenly held her right hand up in a stop gesture. “I’m sorry, but I just have to interrupt here. That sounds like you’re trying to find a justification. I mean – and I’m really sorry for sharing my opinion unasked – but building any relationship is hard in general. Do you really think your situation is any different from a situation of CEOS or anyone who has a career, money and power? The scale may be different but the issues are all the same. I mean a CEO of a big insurance company does have the very same problems. He asks the same questions - if his new other half is with him because of his status, money, position or because she’s in love. And the schedule thing – sure it’s hard to build a relationship when you’re on the set for a couple of months and it literally consumes all of your time. Trust me though, it’s not easier if you work as a physician or a lawyer, or if you work in a big tv corporation like I do. Instead of being on the set for a couple of months, people work their asses off every day, because they have loans to pay, plans to realize. And they usually don’t have any breaks. The fact that you get back home to your other half after 9 pm does not necessarily make your relationship better. It’s just the matter of what you’re expecting from a relationship.”

Henry just nodded and added after a moment “I just want to have a family of my own.”

“Well. But this is not the answer to the question of what you are expecting from a relationship. I mean, obviously everyone wants to start a family. The question is – what does it mean to you? Some want to start a family because they hate to be lonely, some feel like they need to take care of others, and some just feel like it makes them feel complete. You know sometimes you meet the person you resonate with, you feel the great chemistry with, but it just doesn’t work because of lots of other factors like the timing, circumstances etc. So, what I mean is that you really need to know what you expect from your partner so that you can fight for it.” She thought about what she said for a minute “Hm.. it sounded much wiser in my head before I verbalized it.”

Henry laughed and looked her in the eyes licking his lips. That gentle touch. After a few seconds of glancing at each other she smiled at him and shyly turned her face away. “Ok, enough. Don’t try to charm me here.” She grabbed her phone from the coffee table. “Man, it’s 4 am! I’m not surprised I’m bubbling something half intelligent. I should be sleeping already, I have promised to help Sarah tomorrow morning. This morning. If you want to you can stay, I have a guest room and a spare toothbrush.”

“Thank you, but I guess I better get back home.” He grabbed his phone and ordered an Uber. “I just have to say” he started as they both stood up and headed towards the hall. “You are so tiny without high heels!”

She laughed “No shit Sherlock.”

“No, but seriously. I wanted to say” he stopped there and looked at Kal. It seemed like he was fighting with his thoughts whether to verbalize what he wanted to say or not. “I really like spending time with you.”

Naomi crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t date Cavill.” She said with a smile.

Henry just nodded and leaned towards her, so close that their faces were just inches away, and said “Well, pity.” He chuckled and leaned even closer to give her a goodbye kiss on a cheek “Bye, girl. Get some sleep.” He then took a step away and called for Kal, who was already bouncing on his legs ready to go.

Naomi reached to open the front door for them, but instead of doing it, she turned towards Henry and leaned against the door. She noticed his clenched jaw, then placed her eyes on his lips and eyes. She slowly grabbed the drawstring of his hood with her right hand and wrapped it around her fingers. “Hey.. I don’t, but what would you do if I did date…?” she asked playfully. She bit her bottom lip in anticipation.

“Naomi..” Henry smiled lightly at her, and tenderly touched her cheek, moving his fingers from her cheekbone through her lips to her chin. He was slowly studying her face. Naomi looked at him stunned, her lips parted, she was not expecting that.

“I’m 37. I’m too old to play this game. Please, don’t play with me.” He stroked her cheek once more with his index finger and stepped back. He fastened Kal’s leash. In the meantime Naomi unlocked the door and moved back.

“Goodbye” He gave her a warm smile and left.

Naomi quickly closed the door and tried to understand what had just happened. She felt all the emotions at once - arousal, humiliation, sadness, anger, happiness. She brushed her fingers through her cheek. That gentle touch. She took a deep breath. In her entire life Naomi had always been the “tough guy” - first in ballet school, at home, when her mother suffered from depression, and Naomi had to take care of her mother and her brother, then drama school. Establishing her position in television was not easy either. Oh, and her marriage. She was just a girl when she got married and her older husband always knew better. The random men she fucked after she got divorced. James. They all wanted to have her, possess her. And she kind of liked it. It made her feel attractive and in charge. But that touch was somethings new.

Naomi felt the tears welling in her eyes, as if for the first time in her life, she experienced such a gentle touch. And it felt so good.

#henry cavill #henry cavill x other female character #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill fanfiction #slow build

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thisspiderwrites · 7 years ago

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un-fucking-believable (t.h.)

description: you’d think that two people that dream of working in the entertainment industry would have something in common other than their passion. word count: 3.6 k pairing: tom holland x reader based off: la la land a/n: i tried making it fun to read and this is the first fic i’m actually publishing so sorry if it’s not that good, i’m not sure if this has been done before so i apologize if the idea is not that original, anyway i hope you like it (also forgive me if there are some mistakes, english is not my first language) and special thanks to @tomhollandxreader for helping me out warnings: language, angst (i think), mentions of sex (very light ones)

Winter

The sun was at its finest hour and causing people to simmer inside their cars while they waited for traffic to finally flow smoothly. The sound of completely different songs blasted from each vehicle. The drivers managed to find ways to kill time while waiting, some singing along the lyrics of the songs that make it to the top forty, and others crossing off and adding tasks to their to-do lists.

“It’s another day of sun in the city of Los Angeles… A mí me gustan mayores… Let’s just turn down the lights and close the door… They try to make me go to rehab but I said… Si tu novio te deja sola…”

“How come radio stations in L.A. don’t play anything good when you actually need them to?” a very pale freckled boy said to his older brother from the passenger seat.

“It’s not that they’re bad songs, they just don’t fit your mood.” the curly haired driver responded, “anyway forget the music and help me with my lines.”

After many failed auditions, Tom was slowly losing his faith but he couldn’t let his brothers see that. After his big break acting alongside Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor he was hoping to get more than just two roles, but none of his auditions were going the way he wanted them to go. Most times he got the roll, but then the project was shut down, and other times, he simply wasn’t fit for the part. He kept the auditions going just like he kept working as a barista, like everyone else in Los Angeles.

“Tom, where’s your aux chord?” he started looking in the compartment in front of him, once he found it he connected his phone and started browsing through his music library.

“I think about that day I left him at a Greyhound station West of Santa Fé…”

“Okay, let’s see…” the freckled boy tried looking for the last line they practiced.

“Page six Sam” Tom started moving his thumbs to the beat of the song.

“Alright… Mister French please wrap it up.”

“Objection! Your honor, Mr. Pierce’s argument has no base at all. According to California state law, the court does not attend to matters of the heart… Crap, I messed up.” Sam looked at his brother reading the lines once again.

They both got startled when they heard a loud honk behind them. They both looked offended to the car next to them. A girl with an annoyed look stopped right next to them on a nice Buick Riviera Convertible and honked one more time. Tom flipped her off and she drove away shaking her head.

“Jeez, people here could learn some manners” Tom gave Sam his script and started driving.

Tom finally dropped Sam off at the restaurant where he performed at to help pay rent, and went to his audition. This was the third audition of the week, and he was exhausted, he wanted to do more than just knock on everyone’s door begging for a chance, he had his own plan: an amazing indie film that, right now, he thought was never going to see the light of day. He went in the building and he sat there waiting for a while. Everyone around him with the same clothes and haircut as him. He started bouncing his leg nervously without noticing until he was finally called in. He thought the audition was going rather well, but as he was in the middle of crying for the scene, someone came into the room and the casting director told him he could leave. He just nodded and then sniffled before exiting the room.

Tom threw himself on his bed and laid there for a while with his eyes closed. He let out a sigh after rubbing his face with his hands. He took a towel and decide to hide in his shower for a while. He was deep in his eighties rock playlist to sing in the shower when he heard loud banging on his bathroom door. He rolled his eyes and dried his hand to stop the music.

“What?” he shouted while wiping a drop of shampoo that threatened to get in his eye.

“Hurry up Tom, I need to take a shit before we leave!” he heard his other brother, Harry, say through the door.

“Leave? Where are you going?” he asked stopping the water from running to hear Harry better.

“Just get out of the shower already! I got us a way into a party from a movie that just wrapped” he heard his brother and let the water run again so he could take the rest of the shampoo off.

As soon as Harry heard his brother stopped singing he swung the door open. He was hit by a heat wave.

“Holy shit, you want to open a window?” he walked right past Tom and started fixing his hair.

“How did the audition go?” This time it was his best friend Harrison at the doorframe.

Tom gave him a look and shrugged, towel wrapped around his waist. The blue eyed boy patted his shoulder and told him to get ready. Tom walked out of the bathroom in direction to his room trying to avoid eye contact.

“I’m not really having a great day, maybe I’ll just call Megan and we’ll stay in” he used his girlfriend as an excuse even though they had barely seen each other in weeks and Tom didn’t know where their relationship was at anymore.

“Look man, I’m sorry about the audition but you need to clear your head” Harrison said following him. “You’re a great actor and I’m sure you’ll get a call back soon, besides a lot of important people will be at the party tonight. So put on some pants and let’s go out” after this Tom shut the door in his face. “I thought this was the part where we shared a bro hug.”

Right after putting his sweatpants on, Tom heard banging on his door again.

“What?” he found Harrison and Harry ready to go right outside. “I don’t want to go to a party filled with social climbers and Hollywood clichés.”

“You’ve got the invitation, you’ve got the right address…”

“I’m guessing Sam’s here.”

He looked in the music’s direction and he found his brother singing with his earphones still on. The freckled boy examined his roommates and took one earphone out.

“I’ll get ready in a bit, I got a little caught up at the restaurant” he excused himself walking towards his room. “Also, the lady next door asked if one of us could look after her cats” his voice muffled because of the door.

“You choose mate” Harrison said. “The party or cat sitting?”

“Fine I’ll put on some pants” he said like a defeated teenager.

“So I was thinking that this could be the greatest idea since the Lord of the Rings…”

This girl had been talking to Tom about her newest production for about an hour. After a few glasses of whatever it was that they were serving at the party Tom was buzzed enough to not care.

“Yeah, that’s because it sounds an awful lot like the Lord of the Rings… Melanie.” He was tired of his friends bailing on him at these parties when they finally found someone to take home.

“It’s Melissa, and no it’s not. Look, first of all it’s not a ring, it’s a necklace and second of all it’s not hobbits and a shire, it is trolls and a bridge. It’s brilliant!” Melissa would have gotten on Tom’s nerves if he hadn’t been distracted by his own girlfriend.

“Megan?” he thought she wasn’t in town.

“No, it’s Melissa. Do I need to spell it?” Tom excused himself and walked in Megan’s direction.

After two years of being in a steady relationship, Tom and Megan were losing their groove. They started growing apart but felt the need to stay with each other because they feared to lose one of the only things that felt familiar anymore, at least Tom did. They started skipping out on dates, missing each other’s phone calls, forgetting to answer each other’s texts, things that happened in any dying friendship. Except this wasn’t a friendship, this was an actual relationship. Even sex started becoming a dull thing for both of them. So when he saw her leaving with an older guy who looked like a movie producer he wasn’t really surprised.

“Hey! Megan!” he tried going up to her before she was all the way out the door.

“Tom? What are you doing here?” she turned around looking surprised and a little worried.

“Harry got us in” they both stood there for a while.

Tom didn’t really know what he was expecting, maybe an apology, an explanation or at least something to let him down easy. She looked at Tom and opened her mouth a few times trying to decide what to say but no words came out of her mouth until the guy she was leaving with decided to check what was taking her so long.

“Megan, sweetie, I thought you were ready” he put his hand in the small of her back and Tom didn’t know what to think.

“I am, I was just…” she stared at Tom for a while and still didn’t know what to say.

“Who’s this young man?” he held her closer to him this time and Megan looked uncomfortable.

“Nobody” Tom said. “I was just leaving and I thought I knew her but, I guess I don’t” he still looked at Megan hoping she would say something.

“Let’s go then babe” the guy looked at Megan expectantly.

“I’ll meet you in the car Dean, I just realized I got the wrong purse” he kissed her head murmured something that made her smile.

Her smile faded away when she saw Tom’s blank expression. No more anger or confusion, because he wasn’t sure how to feel. Was she dating that ‘Dean’ guy now? Were Megan and him over? Where had she been the past few weeks? Why hadn’t she called? She kept talking but Tom couldn’t hear anything

“…I know this is confusing but I really need this Tom, please don’t screw this up for me. I’ll catch up with you later” she looked at him with the puppy eyes that always got Tom to do everything she wanted.

“I don’t see how I could screw this up. Look, do whatever you want to do. I don’t want to hear anything from you right now.” she nodded and left.

He stood there alone, people passing him by. A few minutes later he decided to get his Prius and go back home.

Un-fucking-believable. That’s exactly what went through Tom’s mind when he saw his car had been towed. He was not in the mood for walking. He wasn’t really in the mood for anything. He wanted to forget about everything for a while. How his audition has gone terrible, how he hated his job as a barista, how his girlfriend basically broke up with him without even knowing, how he had to walk all the way home and go get his car tomorrow morning. This was definitely not his day.

He found himself walking by the restaurant Sam worked at. He was able to hear the classic Christmas tunes, but he stopped to actually listen when the melody changed. It was calm and it sounded familiar. He felt his heavy chest lighten up and he forgot about his shitty day. All he could think was how much he wanted to know who was playing and what was it that spoke to him. He turned around and made his way into the restaurant. He contemplated the pianist on duty and how her fingers moved swiftly to the melody. The strand of hair moving towards her face sparked a memory in Tom’s head.

“I flipped her off this morning.”

“Why is it that they give a driver’s license to any idiot now days?” y/n thought to herself while moving past the Prius that refused to move in front of her.

The guy driving gave her an offended look and flipped her off when she honked again. She didn’t care, she just wanted to get to the comfort of her house after almost melting under the sun. She even hallucinated people getting out of their cars and stopping traffic to do a dance routine. She got out of her lovely car and took the cassette she was listening to out of her stereo. She had the habit of bringing only one cassette every ride so she could listen to the songs she was learning better. She took her prescription sunglasses off and unlocked the door of her apartment to find her brother, Tyler, laying across her leather couch with his shoes on. She jumped to the sight of two feet dangling from one of the armrests.

“Please stop sneaking into my home” she said trying to catch her breath.

“Well hello to you too, sis” he said getting up a little disoriented. “Do you think mom would call this a home?”

“Well this is what the apartment looked like before we picked you up from your foster home…” she stopped abruptly to notice he had taken off the sheet that was guarding the couch from dust and the sneakers he was wearing we covered in dirt. “What are you doing? Please don’t sit there or at least take your shoes off” she pushed him off her couch.

“Are you serious right now?” he got up from the floor.

“There are other couches that don’t have sheets on them, you can sit on those” she grabbed the sheet that was now a ball of cloth on the floor.

Her brother had a hard time walking around due to all of the boxes full of records, cassettes and pictures of musicians.

“When are you going to unpack all of these? It looks like you just moved in, no wonder you’re single, people can barely walk here” Tyler made his way to the fridge and started looking for something to eat.

“I swear when mom adopted the little kid from ‘Maid in Manhattan’ I didn’t think it was for him to come into my house, get dirt on my carpet and steal my food” she closed the fridge on his face “and I will unpack these when I unpack them in my own club!”

“Ugh! y/n it’s like a girl broke up you and you’re stalking her” Tyler started looking through all the pictures.

“Talking from your own experience?” she slapped his hand “Don’t touch that!” he rolled his eyes.

“Look, I have someone I want you to meet” he grabbed a framed picture of their mom and changed its place.

“I don’t want to date another one of your Hollywood fuckboys, I’m done with all of them” she rolled her eyes.

“Even Dylan?” he raised an eyebrow holding up a paper with a phone number.

“Especially Dylan” she said taking the paper with the new boy’s number on it.

She curled it up in a ball and threw it in the trash. The paper fell outside and Tyler picked it up.

“You missed” he stood in front of her trying to stop her from avoiding him. “Look, mom and I are worried about you and she hopes you’re not in some kind of cult of something” y/n looked offended.

“Why would she think that?” she escaped her brother and put their mother’s picture back in its place.

“Oh, I don’t know” he said sarcastically “maybe because you’re living like a hermit and driving without insurance” she rolled her eyes. “You need to get your shit together.”

“I know a guy with a face tattoo, he has his shit together and a heart of gold! He’s perfect for you” she said with a faked enthusiasm.

“Get your shit together” he said with a stern look.

“Get my shit together? Tyler I had my shit together, it’s not my fault I got scammed!” now y/n was moving her hands hysterically.

“Oh my god y/n, everyone knew that lady was shady and warned you. You were too busy shagging her to notice” she opened her mouth but he cut her off. “Look, Sam is a nice guy, he likes music and he’s a pianist just like you. He even works at that restaurant you used to work at. Call him” he put the paper ball on her hand.

“I don’t want to date myself!” now Tyler was the one running away. “Look, you’re acting like life’s got me on the ropes. The truth is that I’m letting life hit me until it gets tired. After that I’m going to punch back” He kissed the top of her head and then mouthed a call him before leaving. “I’m changing the locks!”

“You can’t afford it!” he shouted from the end of the hall.

“I’m a phoenix, raising from the ashes!” she shouted back. “Wow, mom was right, I could’ve been an actress” she thought before closing the door and throwing the number towards a random place in her living room.

She sat on her stool in front of her piano and started practicing the song she was listening to in the car.

The night arrived and even though she hated playing at the restaurant, she had to. She was lucky they gave her a second chance at all, taking into account the fact that last time she was there she fought with a client because he requested for her to play softer.

“Hey buddy, don’t know if you noticed but this isn’t a keyboard. Also if you don’t like what I’m playing the door is right there.”

Yeah, those were her exact words. She got ready and put on her best suit. Somehow the tie made her feel more confident than the heels she was requested to wear but never actually did. She made her way into the restaurant with all the Christmas sheet music in a black portfolio and greeted her boss with the fakest smile she could ever produce.

“Hello sir, thank you for having me back” she shook his hand and he mirrored her fake smile.

“Just play the set list” he said letting go of the handshake.

“Right, even though I don’t think anyone cares what I play but sure thing” she said walking towards the piano.

“If you mean anyone other than me then you’re correct. I care and I don’t want to hear any jazz, that’s what the club in the next block is for” he raised an eyebrow as for asking if everything was clear.

“Understood” she said waiting for him to leave to start playing.

Like on cue, he gave y/n one last glance before leaving. She felt a weight fall of her shoulders and started arranging her sheets. She got a few bills from her wallet for the tip jar and got around to examine in what key she was going to play the set list. Right when she was about to start she heard a sarcastic welcome back from one of the waiters.

“Thank you, it’s always nice to see your face Dylan” she put her fingers on the keys and started playing jingle bells.

After playing the set list twice and having only one dollar from tips that wasn’t from her wallet y/n got tired of playing the classic ‘We Wish You a Merry Christmas’. She looked around, there were only a few hipsters at the bar and only a few couples sitting on the table area. The hipsters were too busy choosing their beer and the couples were all over each other. No one was going to notice, right? She started the set list once again but this time she shifted the melody to something she knew very well. Her fingers started moving passionately to Mia & Sebastian’s Theme. Once she finished she got up her stool, disheveled. She looked around and noticed people staring at her. Not a single person clapping. She turned around to see her boss leaning against the door frame. He just moved his index finger indicating her to approach to him.

“I think I hear what you’re saying but that’s not really what you mean” y/n argued desperate.

“I think I just said that you’re fired, so yeah, that’s pretty much it” her boss said.

“Yeah, I hear you but I don’t think that what you mean, I think you mean…” she gestured for her boss to finish her sentence.

“I mean you are fired” he stood his ground.

“You mean ‘play the set list, this is a warning’, Right?” she continued to try.

“What planet are you from? I said you’re fired” y/n’s face dropped.

“But it’s Christmas…” she tried one last time.

“Yeah, I see the decorations. Good luck in the new year.”

Her blood was boiling now. No one cared what she played. Not a single person gave her a glance except for that weird guy with the lazy eye that tipped her a dollar. She couldn’t believe she had just blown her chance because she played one different song. A beautiful song that she poured her heart into. She looked at the doorway and saw a guy staring at her. She took her money plus the one buck from the jar and her black portfolio with her sheet music. On her way out she saw the guy from the doorway approaching her but she was so mad she couldn’t hear anything.

“I just heard you play and I wanted to…” y/n bumped into Tom but just kept walking.

He stood there stunned. He scoffed and once again thought to himself.

Un-fucking-believable

tags: @zendmylife @spidey-mantom @sam-a-holland @spider-bih @sidespidey @dusktillholland @hollandazing @tomhollandxreader @lovelyimagines @loverholland

#this spider writes #tom holland #tom holland au #la la land au #tom holland x reader #reader insert

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