#(this is another cent from my two cents hehe)

[athousandbyeol]

discussion #11 (only friends): is mew an outcast in the friend group? is it an intentional tactic by the directors/scriptwriters to make mew "less attractive"?

i think, from episode 1 to episode 3, we aren't seeing much of mew because it's intentional.

he's always at the furthest side of the shot, not really in the spotlight (except in scenes shared with top and close-up shots of himself alone). the clothes he wears aren't exactly trendy or fleshy. those glasses. he looks... boring. ordinary. nothing exciting about mew.

(i just have to put this picture because he's as precious as he can be <'3)

(well, hello there, mew.)

i think the directors and scriptwriters intentionally make mew look/feel like an outcast in this messy friend group so that we'll grow suspicious of him. mew is 'hidden' because he has yet unleashed the 'other side' of his. because i think we might have questions now; is he really all this? is that even possible?

side note: even p'force said mew is the flirty/cunning one in this relationship. he knows a lot of things, but i assume he chooses not to let people know because it isn't of importance to mew. he just wants to have fun sometimes and get that degree. that's all. but is that really it?

i see so many people are having strong opinions about mew, but saying mew is boring is where i believe this is somewhat true. i think many of only friends watchers took the bait— mew is so boring— they [topmew] aren't progressing anywhere— what are they even doing? it's so interesting to witness so much disparity when it comes to topmew. some like their story. some hate them. but as someone who enjoys every plotline in the drama, i can only say the six of them revolve around each other. the story won't progress if one character/a couple is pulled out from the circle. all of them are equally important. some relationships progress faster than the other. it's in sync with the build-up of the story (do refer freytag's pyramid to get a better idea of how a story is constructed), and the growth of the characters. they depend on each other. so, like it or not, the six of them co-exist. it can't be five people or only two pairs. it must be six and three pairs to make only friends work.

i regress.

moreover, i guess, p'jojo and p'ninew want us to implant this idea of mew in mind— just a normal person. i think, in that way, it creates tension, suspense and speculation. i think most of topmew enjoyers see this gradual growth of mew's character. as top has grown out of his confident persona little by little (mostly when he's with mew, top shows more of his vulnerable and child-like personality; the smile top gives mew during the silent disco scene was so pure and innocent. it made top look like a kid again; that lost kid in the fire), mew's other side of the coin is waiting to set sail. this excites me very much. because we clearly don't know who on earth mew is. and i'm taking this opportunity to applaud p'book again. he's doing a fantastic job as mew. kudos to him.

additionally, i have a question, don't you think it's a bit off that mew is friends with 1) ray, an alcoholic (i apologise if this term is degrading), 2) boston, a sexually-active person, and 3) chueam, the party-goer (i don't have anything negative to say about her, hehe). mew— a nerd, who likes partying but is still pretty much an average university student— how did he end up in this group? i just find it a bit weird. a bit out of place. he feels like an oddball in this friend group. it's like he doesn't belong here. and that itself is very intriguing.

i have a feeling mew's transformation will shock everyone, and he might be the core of everyone's heartbreak/headache (with nick being the second/main destroyer). i'm excited to see mewnick's revenge arc unfold because both of them will approach their battles differently; nick is going to be more emotionally driven, while mew is strategic and perhaps, heartless.

thus, i think the directors/scriptwriters have succeded in making us view mew as just... a person. nothing special. dull and one-dimensional. but this is just so thrilling to me as i believe (way before the series aired) mew is so much more than what we think he is, and i can't wait to see that mew. :)

//p.s. i don't know what this is honestly so i apologise for even writing this post...

[1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (i) | 4 (ii) | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12]

[blixabargelds]

for the prompt game “zipping or buttoning their jacket for them” for clegan!! if you want to! 🫶 love your stuff on ao3 and am pressing my face intensely against the glass of all the superstar stuff you post

@roycest too thank youuuu sm guys <33

i borrowed @swifty-fox’s little beasts boys for this one hehe thank u for letting me play with them :3 cw gore mention ~~

- zipping or buttoning their jacket for them

John holds the cigarette up to Gale’s mouth. He knew that he’d quit long before they met. John had offered one without mentioning that; Gale had taken it without a word. His fingertips brush Gale’s lips as he raises the smoke for him again, the usually plush skin turned chapped with anxiety, and sterile air.

He can’t hold the thing himself, because he’s got twin tears through his hands. On each hand: two fractured metacarpals, four torn tendons- palm, and back- one rough, bleeding hole. Disinfected, bandadged, and splinted still now. He’s slated for surgery on both of them in the next couple of days. John’s fingers shake as he helps Gale take another drag.

“Gale-”

“Don’t, John.”

John rubs at his eyes. They sting from being open so long, but each time he shuts them he can only picture Gale, face twisted in agony and two seven-inch iron nails through his palms. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t,” Gale says again. He fixes John with a look. His eyes are red-rimmed, vaguely glassy from the shock, and the pain, and the good stuff they’ve given him, but it’s an effective look nonetheless. “You got nothin’ to be sorry for.”

John laughs. A teasing, phantom itch passes through the crook of his elbow. “I’m the one who-”

“John, stop it, please.”

It’s only the fraying of Gale’s voice that shuts John up. He wants to touch him so bad but he can’t. Everyone knows him, everyone is doing double takes at the young priest, smoking Reds held up to his face by someone else, and sporting gauze-wrapped stigmata at 2am outside the ER.

John wonders if that’s the only reason they picked him. Like John’s got a pronounced connection to the church in some way less complex than the truth of that relationship. Maybe he’s just been going around wearing his twelve steps on his sleeve, giving off some vibe of reformed dedication to his higher power. He doubts that, though. Very fucking much.

The other explanation is that these people- these guys John owed money to, as they told him- knew about him and Gale. That they talk. John’s got no idea how they would. He’s got no idea who they were, because he can’t remember so many of his fuckups; so many people he’s pissed off or fucked over. Got your priest, said the anonymous text on the screen of his shattered phone. Yours. John wonders if they could tell, if they didn’t know already, that his connection to Gale went beyond Sunday Service in the way that he’d reacted; like a rabid dog as they twisted the nails in deeper. They’d thought it was hilarious. Live crucifixion, real original idea, grinding in the rusty iron fixing Gale to the tree behind until said priest had finally cried. John would’ve given over every cent if he hadn’t been scared for a second that they’d just kill Gale.

He’s not sure where his strength came from, in the end. He hadn’t even thought of his parole.

He wants to hold Gale’s fucking hand. But that’s not something they do anyways, and Gale doesn’t need him to. Couldn’t if he did.

John throws caution to the wind, hopes whoever walks past next might see nothing more than the expected level of comfort to be seen outside an emergency room. He wraps an arm around Gale’s shoulders and pulls him tight to his body. John can feel the way he’s shaking. Adrenaline and morphine slowly seeping out of him, and Gale gives in, too, pressing his face into John’s collar. His breaths come fast and uneven against his skin.

“I’m so fuckin’ sorry,” John says.

He dips his face lower, shielded from view by the side of Gale’s head, and ghosts a kiss above his ear. It’s too tender for whatever they are. Which is currently undefined, a burning mess and hidden clashes of tongues, but John’s too tired to care. He can’t stop hearing the scream Gale clenched behind his teeth.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Gale says. John can’t stop hearing Gale’s quiet, fervent praying. He’d been kind of unconvinced by his devotion before. Still is, mostly- John’s pretty sure he was counting his own Hail Marys, too. “You’re uncharacteristically quiet. It’s freaking me out.”

John laughs. It sounds embarrassingly wet. He peels himself back from Gale, dragging out another smoke. He passes this one back and forth between them; watches Gale wince as his fingers automatically flex, as if John’s gonna let him take it himself. He hasn’t really got anything to say, except that he’s sorry.

“You’ll look hardcore.”

Gale blinks. Then laughs, a shaking and breathless thing, kind of heavenly to John; after the night from hell. “Right.”

“You’ll be the most Godly priest around. The gay rumours have got to stop now.”

“John,” Gale hisses.

John holds his hands up in surrender. “I said rumours. Unfounded, I’ve heard. No fucking idea where anyone would get that from, truly, sick thing to make up about a priest.”

“Fuck, John, what if my fingers don’t work anymore.”

John stops talking again at that. He looks down at Gale’s bandaged hands. There hadn’t been as much blood as John expected, the two long nails plugging the wounds where they speared him back to front. It was only when Gale had ripped one out in the car that it really started to bleed. John told him not to. Gale knew not to, only John guesses he hated the look of the things in his palms, because he’d just tugged one straight out in a daze, and sent blood spurting all over the dashboard, pooling down in his lap. John has seen a lot of shit, but he’s never seen right through someone’s body before. Right through his hands. Gale won’t even be able to turn the pages of his precious Bible alone for weeks, at least. John gets a horrible image of Gale’s loose fist working his cock, the slide of it visible through a gory opening in his tender flesh.

These guys in their masks had asked where Gale’s God was now. He looks like he’s still trying to figure it out.

John could kill someone for a drink. A joint, maybe. A line, or worse. He shakes a little with it.

Gale is still shaking, too. Gentle tremors running up and down his lithe body, useless hands coming around to hug himself. It’s cold, and late, but they’ve been surrounded by doctors and nurses and cops, disinfectant and bleating machines for hours. Gale, who doesn’t smoke anymore, had asked for a cigarette, and John wasn’t going to say no. He shrugs off his old Patriots hoodie and helps Gale’s hands through the sleeves.

“’S’alright,” he’s saying, even as he’s blinking slowly, grimacing with the brush of fabric on his fingers.

“Don’t be a martyr,” John says. “For once.”

John zips the sweater up for him. He pulls the hood up over his ears for good measure, and leans back to admire his work. It would be funny if it weren’t so pitiful; Gale dwarfed somewhat by the thing, mussed hair sticking out from under the hood, and that vaguely smug, pious air gone completely from his tired face. John wonders if his voice will tremble at the altar. If he’ll even get back up there for a while. John doesn’t think it’ll take long. Gale is infuriatingly stubborn.

“John, I can’t feel my fingers,” he says, exhaustion pulling down that defensive veil and making his voice thin. John realises he never answered his question

“Hey, it’s the painkillers. The doctor said you’ll get movement back, didn’t he?”

“He didn’t say how much,” Gale croaks.

“Well,” John grits his teeth. Swallows, then says, “Jesus’s hands worked fine.”

It’s meant to be light, but it comes off sort of desperate.

Gale shuts his eyes. “Ain’t Jesus, John. I’m just a fuckin’- some idiot.”

“Cut it out, Gale,” John says. It’s sharp enough that Gale opens his eyes and looks at him, owlish and shocked. John tugs at his curls and sighs. “Fuck, sorry. Just, bad shit happens when there’s scum involved. Trust me. Y’not actually a saint, some guys fucked you up. It should’ve been- it shouldn’t have been you. Alright? This sort of shit shouldn’t happen to you.”

Gale stares at him. John’s arms still itch uncomfortably, a familiar pull in his stomach making him feel off kilter. He thinks of his one year chip. Thinks of swallowing it whole, seeing if it does any damage to his insides.

“Want to listen to some records later?” he says instead.

“I’m gonna be here overnight, John.”

“Yeah,” John says. “Me too.”

Gale blinks. He looks fucking dreadful; tired and hurt, lost in John’s clothes and all messed up where he’s usually so put together. Sheet white and in pain. John wants to kiss him so bad his veins ache with it. It’s sort of funny, how John thinks he’s friends with a priest now.

“Sure,” Gale says after a while. “I’ll listen to some records with you.”

[khaleesiofalicante]

Dani i hope this isn't weird or anything but are you rich? 👀 i swear i am not looking for a sugar mommy

This is an interesting question.

I'd be categorized as rich in Sri Lanka (but not like SUPER rich) because I do have an above-average income - for my age. But that's mostly because I earn in USD and not local currency.

If I did the same thing and worked in a different country, say like Australia, I wouldn't be classified as rich. It's one of the reasons even though I can work from any country (because I work remotely) I work from my own because I can't afford the living expenses in another country with the money I earn.

Also, living comfortably is such an unsettling feeling for me because I grew up poor my whole life. I didn't have a single cent in my savings until 2021 and I lived from paycheck to paycheck. My life literally changed after I quit my job and started working independently. Best decision I've ever made!

But even now, I have no assets. I have no houses or vehicles. I have no one else to financially support me (my parents stopped financially supporting us when we were children oof and I don't have a spouse either). I have no insurance (from work).

So, let's say I get sick and need surgery or something. I'm pretty sure all the money I've saved in the last 3 years would be spent on a single procedure. That kind of thing is expensive here. Living in a country that is going through massive inflation is difficult - especially when you bear all the costs for your family (my mom and my aunt).

I don't why I ranted hehe. I don't talk about money to anyone, so lots of thoughts.

PS - Not sure if I'll be 'rich' next year because I've decided to quit one of my jobs (I have two now) so I can write my book :)

PPS - Currently not taking in any sugar baby applications because my next five year plan (the current one just started!) involves having a child and I need to save money for an actual baby hehehe.

[kairiscorner]

HI HIIII HOW U DOING?? I HOPE GREAT!! 😘😘 anyways, can i req something? Its one of the things i wanna see and its so URGH yk what i mean? HAHAH🤭 soooooooooo HAHA this imagine is going on for awhile in my mind but i dunno if your great at angst but if u r not great at angst, just ignore this request! Dont force yourself.

Anyways this is my request ; Y/n as spider noir’s cannon.

HEHE i have seen other characters but not spider noir so whyyyyyy notttt? THANK YOUUUUU 😘 AND STAY SAFEEEEEE‼️‼️

oh my dearest @ii01vp you have no idea how long i've craved to induce tears :> BUT YES I WANNA DO THIS, thank YOU and stay safe too :DD

(reblogs are greatly appreciated, it helps get my content out there! if you guys like what you see, please reblog it too <:D)

content warnings! mentions of sharp blades, blood, and bleeding please don't read ahead if you are uncomfortable with the topic ^^

blood spilled everywhere on the floor as a sharp blade was lodged into your chest cavity. it happened in an instant, the second of an instant–you couldn't even count to three, and a blade had already pierced your chest, creating a crevice in your heart, forcing blood to spill out of you.

you gasped for breath, for help, for a hand to reach out to–but nobody, not a single soul was there to save you. not even him. you prayed you'd get out of this alright, you'll come out of this alive--because what kind of person deserves a demise in the hands of a lowlife criminal that wanted to take your money.

how defiant you were not to give them a single cent. in the end, a single cent costed you another minute of your life.

you cried out, hoping someone, anyone, would hear. begging to the skies above to bring someone to you, to help you, at least be with you in your final moments as all the blood would soon be drained from your ailing body, for you didn't want to die alone. you didn't care who it was, so long as you weren't alone at the time of your death.

your vision was getting hazy, your feet were giving way as you became more and more light-headed the more the blood stained your garments and imbued in them a deep, red hue. you gasped, hoping to make up for the lost oxygen as the blood continued pouring out of you.

"someone... a-any... one..." you choked out as blood poured out of your chest, no matter what efforts you took to put pressure on the gaping wound. you felt yourself growing weaker and weaker, and to make matters worse, you felt drops of water on your head, back, and shoulders; it would be raining, and raining hard. your cries for help as you waddled on with what little strength you had left would be drowned out in the flood of noise the rain would create.

you fell to your knees, your hands keeping you steady as your breathing became more and more labored. this was it, you thought. i'm going to die. i'm going to die alone, in the rain, in an unnamed alley with rats and bugs as the only witnesses of my death, you said to yourself as the tears began to pour, staining the collar of your shirt along with the drops of blood coloring it with a bright red.

"peter..." you called out for the name of the man you loved, who once held you so dearly and promised never to hurt you or let you get hurt; the man whose kiss tasted sweet like ripe oranges and whose lips fit into yours just right, as if the universe brought you two together to worsen the pain of having you taken away from each other.

your vision was soon darkening, you were going to lose all sensation in a few moments. but before you could close your eyes, possibly never to open them again, you heard footsteps nearby, big footsteps rushing through the puddles formed by the rain--puddles that were doused in the fresh redness of your blood.

you wondered who it could be, but then again, why did it matter? they couldn't save you, not like they'd care to. you were just another statistic in the grand scheme of things--who else would care about another dead body in the alleyway? well... he would.

"l... love..." muttered a shaky voice as the figure who was rushing through puddles moved closer and closer to you, their steps getting slower and slower all the while; as if they were reeling themselves from wanting to just run up towards you. "who..." you muttered, and before you could even answer, the figure was now hovering over you. "...spider... man?" you murmured out as you faced the black and gray clad man.

his gloved hands were quaking, they reached out toward you. "how... how could i... how could i let th-this..." he muttered as he choked back tears. you were confused, what was spider man doing to a total stranger like you, reaching his hand out and weeping over a soul he never met before. "spider man... it's okay... just--please--lock... that criminal... up." you made out with a small smile and a wheezing cough that followed afterwards.

spider man shook his head. "no... no, no, no!" he shouted, which made you gasp. "i'm... i'm sorry... i couldn't... first, uncle ben, and now..." he cried out as he started to weep under his mask. with the last bit of strength you had, you shushed spider man, reaching your hand out for his that caressed your cheek. "spider man... please don't cry... over a--a stranger..." you whispered as he held your hand tightly, and soon... you were gone.

and peter... felt like he had died along with you. words can never begin to describe the sorrow and anguish he felt when he saw you there in that alleyway as he was chasing down that criminal, he could never imagine just how painful it was for you, and he feels like all the punishments in the world were never enough to absolve him for the sin of not being around long enough for you.

for not being able to save you when he could've done something.

"why... why them? why not me?" was all he could cry out to the skies above as he took off his mask and wept, still holding your cold hand in his own, as your lifeless body beat no more for the man you loved and held dearly in your, now pierced and unbeating, heart.

a/n: miguel was watching from a rooftop nearby with jess around the corner and with ben reilly narrating his secondhand grief.

tags !! @thecoolerdor @miguelswifey04 @sabcandoit @binibinileonara @luvstarrstruck @k4tsu3 @fictarian @maxoloqy @connors-cumslurper @ii01vp

[a-dragons-journal]

I use kinnie language, but I don't "kin for fun" - my kintype is genuinely quite sincere, serious, and core to my being. I just also believe that it's in my nature, and a lot of people's nature, to have different ways of speaking about their identity and experiences for different situations.

Like. I'm also transgender, and to me, the way I might take my trans identity very seriously when coming out to someone or in an informative post, but make jokes about it with my friends and use more cutesy and fun language to refer to my gender, is similar to how I might refer to my kin identity seriously in one context, but call myself a kinnie in another.

like, if I'm coming out to my professor, I'm not going to say "hehe im a tgirl", and if I'm making jokes with my friends, I'm not going to say "...because I am a Transgender Woman", y'know? they're different levels of formality for different social situations. I wouldn't say "lmao [kintype] kinnie moments" about myself while seriously discussing my alterhumanity with someone, but I might say that to make light of something I did because of my species to someone who already understands me.

calling myself a kinnie and referring to my alterhumanity in casual terms is just another form of identity-based tone/code switching to me.

idk if that makes any sense! also this isn't a discourse/argument post at all, just my rambly autistic two cents on the matter ;;^u^

That's very fair, and I do have less issue with that kind of thing when it's done in a group of otherkin because it doesn't really carry the likelihood of random people seeing and misunderstanding because of it (and in any case, I'm not gonna get after people for using "kinnie" language for themselves as long as they're not using it for the whole community, and even then usually I'm just going to roll my eyes and move on without saying anything). "Kinnie" itself I don't mind as much as "kinning"/"kin" as a verb, anyway - because using "kin" as a verb carries the implication of it being an action, something you do, not something you are, and that misunderstanding is where this whole KFF problem came from and is still coming from.

[starlightandetherealshadows]

Hello! Feel free to ignore this, but I wanted to give my two cents about the MC's initial personality while playing. Now, this may be blunt, but at first, I was incredibly disappointed. Usually, I tend to play stoic/quiet MCs who don't lash or speak out, and it seemed to be quite the opposite to the distrusting and stoic mc in the game. However, I was thinking extremely hard about this, and I actually get why the MC was so outspoken, especially when V literally pointed a gun at them. Stoic and stubborn MC, from what I saw in the prologue, could easily be more nonchalant *before* the alien invasion, but that, obviously, changed. When C found them and brought them to the hideout, I didn't take into account that MC was in a vulnerable position, and I only focused on the part that MC hadn't interacted with another person in years. So, yeah, of course, MC may be overwhelmed, but their not gonna let people (V *cough*) walk all over them. I guess the thing was that I was so used to stoic MCs in IFs just standing on the sidelines and observing, but that is obviously not that kind of IF. The thing that had gotten to me the most, however, was the second-hand embarrassment of MC actually talking back to V after he blatantly insults them because I could never😭 I guess what I am trying to say is that even though I was seriously taken aback, none of the characters (including MC) are not gonna be 2-dimensional (as you have stated multiple times), and it has definitely grown on me, even if the MC was a little more of a fire-cracker than I expected. I am really looking forward to seeing where you take this story, and I will absolutely be eating it up because even if I might have to be tossing my phone across the room occasionally (bc my second-hand embarrassment is so easily triggered😭😭), I cannot get enough of your writing and characters!! I hope this made sense because I was just rambling about my take on if you are willing to make the MC a little more stoic or have some mute choices, which I am not against, but at the end of the day, I will still be reading the fuck out of Memento Mori! Have a good day/night!!! MWAH💋

Hi sunshine!

I appreciate your super-thorough analysis of both MC's personality and also your initial/developing reaction to it!

Just wanna offer some perspective on why I'm writing MC the way I am (you've already nailed a lot of the points but this is gonna be a succinct explanation from my head hehe)

MC is ultimately a fully fledged character in Memento Mori. While writing, I have about six different MC's in my head, each with distinct personalities, motives, and reactions to events. As I'm writing Ch. 2 in particular, I'm using these characters to influence the choices available and the stat checks necessary for certain actions. MC was never going to be a self insert. I love a good self insert sometimes, but it doesn't work with this if!

What makes characters feel realistic and multi-dimensional to me is their ability to break out of their different archetypes. We all know the ones like The Mean Girl or the Shy Kid or the Comic Relief. We can use your Stoic!MC example. Do we as humans act the same exact way every single day with every single event and interaction? No, we don't. Because we are complex, muli-faceted individuals that can have conflicting thought and actions, or opinions. What makes a character feel flat is when they are only given like 3 personality traits and stick to those regardless of what happens around them in the story.

So in Memento Mori, your Stoic!MC will have moments where they're outspoken and opinionated. The Charming!MC will lose their cool and lash out rather than smooth talk. The Friendly!MC will snap at someone without thinking. We aren't perfect, neither is MC, and I think that adds dimension to what can easily be a very blank slate kind of character. This isn't exclusive to MC, either! Veronica/Vincent will be nice to you sometimes for seemingly no reason. Zero will have moments where he is not okay and rejects your comfort when he reads it as pity. Cecelia/Chase will not always be the bouncy comic relief that uses humor to make everyone smile.

To add insult to MC's injury, like you mentioned in your ask, they are suffering from extreme amounts of PTSD and trauma. They have lost everyone and everything, they're a young adult living in complete isolation for two years. They're starving, they're injured, they hate themselves and being alive. It's going to take them a while to feel like themselves. In the span of one day, they've been nearly killed by a monster, then they're covered in blood guts and sweat when they meet C, then C brings them to meet 6 other people (including two aliens) and now they're going on this extensive journey with complete strangers, while that very morning they were contemplating ending it all. it's a lot.

By the time MC meets V, they are already at their limit of dealing with bullshit so V pointing a gun at them was never going to fly. V insulting them was a no-go either. Now, in the future, MC can ignore V more often because they'll be less on edge than when they were all first introduced. Once they have time to process, then they can react what is most familiar and comfortable for them. It will take time.

I laughed when you called MC a firecracker! I'd say they're more...unpredictable as a character when they're under high stress. As time goes on, they'll adjust and mellow out in some ways, but right now? MC has had ENOUGH with feeling like shit all the time.

I'm really glad you were a bit embarrassed by MC talking back to V because that was my goal AHDSEWLKMFRLK it's supposed to feel a bit uncomfortable. It's MC trying to clap back on someone when they have lost most of their social skills. It made ME cringe while writing it. Like oof MC, just ignore them???!!!

I'll definitely be adding some more options to be a bit more stoic or selectively mute in chapter 2, and as for chapter 1, I think more options to stay silent while talking to Cecelia/Chase or when they're speaking with Delphine/V could be good too. I'll see how it flows!

You'll see at the beginning of Ch.2 that MC already feels a tiny bit better. Nothing much but at least they aren't alone anymore, and they have a hot shower and some real food. So small wins for MC!

I think that's all I wanted to say for now!!! Thank you again for your message, my friend!!! I'm glad you're liking my writing and my characters, it does mean a lot to have your support!! <3

[its--deandraa]

There’s something that doesn’t feel right about this post but I’m having a hard time putting it into words, I think for some people this kind of statement can ring true, but I don’t think saying that “periods do more harm than good” applies to everyone, I have a lot more to say on this subject…

I know I shouldn't be putting my two cents on a post from twitter since it's where most brain dead takes spark aflame, but this one bothered me quite a bit and I couldn't figure out why, but when something bothers me, I keep picking at it like a scab until it bleeds again and I figure out where I got the scab in the first place. Saying a statement that periods are causing harm makes people feel like there is something wrong with themselves and in a society thats already violently hateful towards women and femme bodies and any traits associated with those bodies, this doesn't help. I'm not here to romanticize having a period and because I know there's a lot of people with serious medical issues in which getting your uterus removed is totally valid and totally necessary depending on your choice/situation. But I want to acknowledge that in our capitalist society were always in a rush, things need to get done fast, hustle hustle hustle, and having a period (one that is not painful or along side other health issues) forces those to slow down, rest, and be in tune with our body, even if we don't want too, which is the complete opposite. Our current society is built around a cisgender males body which runs on a 24 hr cycle where as people who menstruate have different phases (follicular, luteal and ovulation) and run on a monthly cycle, which is deemed inconvenient and not efficient. I know of a lot people who mention that having a period has been a good indicator for their health and hormones, a reply under this tweet mentioned how this was a privileged take and that people who menstruate can't even have access to period products in developing countries, another said "now what?" Exactly, now what? Even if that statement was true, what are we supposed to do? A lot of women face mistreatment in healthcare, a lot of women are facing poverty and are not even able to afford healthcare, and if periods were causing us harm then we would all probably be lining up to get hysterectomies instead of buying period products that aren't even FDA regulated. Period pain has been used against us and weaponized against us in order to further dismiss pain that is associated with being a women/femme. This kind of statement, while it may ring true for some people, further teaches people to hate a natural occurring function of their bodies and further upholds this hateful misogynist society we live in.

Another side to note, the replies to this tweet are mostly people talking about their experiences of either getting a surgery or birth control, and never having to deal with their periods again which is great for them and I’m genuinely happy for them, and I’m glad I live in a era where people with periods have access to healthcare that gives them a better quality of life, but with all the good experiences, they are also agreeing with the original statement which in my opinion lacks empathy and compassion for those still having painful periods and are further re-enforcing this hate towards something naturally occurring for majority of the population, and even animals!

I’m not sure why I felt compelled to write this much about this topic, maybe its coming from a place of anger or maybe it’s the fact I’m a women who has done so much work on their body issues and also currently on my period (hehe! 🤗) but it’s been really frustrating to see women promote hating themselves just because their bodies don’t naturally function within a society that hasn’t considered them in the first place.

[horseshoegirl]

I had to drop this in before I forget. I was thinking about the Halloween party and how Jake was initially glued to Midge’s side until the Bathroom Incident.

There’s two things I need to mention.

One, when Midge spoke passionately about art and how it was her voice, she saw a flash of something in Jake. To me, it felt like she touched a chord within him. At the time, he was afraid of the effect she could have on him so he bailed with the excuse of getting her a drink. When some random girl wanted to hook up with him, he accepted it because it was safe and familiar and it was easier than confronting those feelings Midge elicited from him.

Two, when he said all of those cutting remarks about Midge and her friendship with Nat, it reminded me of the beginning of Pride and Prejudice when Elizabeth overheard Darcy’s disparaging remarks about her. Considering that you referenced P&P and Elizabeth in DTDG, I feel like it’s on brand for you (btw, I also enjoyed that fic and I need to leave a proper review for that fic as well).

I’m not sure when they will have that conversation but a vindictive part of me wants Jake to suffer. But, I’m biased because I relate to Midge in the sense that I don’t have a lot of friends. Either way, it’s a conversation that needs to happen if it’s going to be a proper romance.

That’s my two cents for chapter 7. Thank you!

You're also not the first to mention that observation. @sarahsmi13s actually had a similar thought about the bathroom scene, especially in how he interacted with the girl, too!

ngl... I laughed WAY harder than I should at "I feel like it's on brand for you." <- I'm that predictable LOL ... That was a happy accident though hehe

I'm so glad to hear you liked Damn Those Dog Tags! It's not going anywhere anytime soon <3 I think it's going to be the one story I'm always going to be proud of.

It's going to happen sooner than you think. And who is to say Jake hasn't already been suffering? He is, after all, trying to actively fix whatever is going on... maybe not in the best ways... but still...

Those two are alone now and literally have to rely on one another to survive... Anything can happen in the woods... Anything...

<3 Thank you for sending an inbox and talking about it! <3

[edogawa-division]

It has grown late into the night in the city of Edogawa as a certain Hacker’s birthday was slowly approaching its end, only a few more hours were left and Kaoru Shinozaki was spending the remainder of her birthday locked in her lab working on a new invention as always, while eventful and somewhat fun as the day had turned out to be, Kaoru was more than content to lock herself in her lab doing what she loved, at the moment she was currently trying to connect two wires together to power up the device on her table when the intercom in the corner of the room sounded off, surprising Kaoru and accidentally shocking herself.

“OW! MOTHERFUC—“

“Kaoru! Someone’s at the door for you!”

“Ughhhhh..” Kaoru groaned as she slammed her head on the table, rubbing her poor, burnt fingers before sitting up and leaving her now ruined invention to go check (and potentially cuss out) whoever it was that was here for her.

Upon making her way to the main level of the house, she stopped short however as she did not expect Joey Kurusu to be standing (or perhaps, fidgeting would be the right word as the detective looked like a spooked deer) at the house’s entrance, looking like a hot mess as if he had just rolled out of bed in his casual clothes and had ran all the way over here…and knowing her bespectacled friend, he probably did.

Aside from his presence, the numerous pile of gifts he had in his arms had also caught her attention as they had almost blocked the detective from her view. “Joey?” Kaoru questioned and it was a miracle that Joey didn’t drop her gifts with how high he jumped before swerving to look at her, instinctively brightening up. “Kaoru! Hey, happy birthday!” Joey had tried going in for a hug but remembered that his arms were already occupied so he just gave a smile and nod in her direction.

Kaoru couldn’t help but smile at the lovable goofball she called her friend and helped him carry the gifts over to the living room where they sat them on the table. Kaoru plopped on the couch and patted the space next to her, inviting Joey to sit as well, the blonde did so but made sure that there was a respectful distance between the two, Joey kept mentally reminding himself to be very respectful, very mindful, it wouldn’t be very demure of him to invade Kaoru’s personal space even if all he wanted was to—

“S-so! Birthday, yeah? I bet you already got a lot of gifts but I still wanted to put my two cents in, I would’ve given you these sooner but…uhhh, yeah, I guess my habit of binge watching anime for days straight finally caught up to me because when I woke up, I only had like, 30 minutes to get you a present and I may or may not have spent 10 of those 30 minutes panicking super hard haha..” Joey sheepishly laughed and scratched his head, Kaoru only smiled broadly as she cursed A.R.K. the fuck out in her head, she decided to keep the fact that she had returned both Joey and Lyall back to their homes to herself after taking photos upon photos of their cute sleeping faces for her collection.

“Uh, anyways! Go ahead and feel free to open them! I really hope you like them.” Joey placed his hands on his knees and swayed back and forth gently, anticipating Kaoru’s reaction to the gifts he picked out. Kaoru didn’t keep him waiting for long as she grabbed the first gift she had her eyes on and tore into it, revealing…

…A coffee mug decorated as a prescription pill bottle.

“Hehe, I saw this and immediately thought of you, I’m more of an energy drink kind of guy but even I understand how important coffee is to us Anti-Sleep deviants haha.”

After that, Kaoru grabbed another present, this one revealing…

…A…weird ass stuffed animal.

“Now you have your very own autism creechur to squish and cuddle as much as you please! I would have gotten you the ADHD one but unfortunately they sold out of those but hey, this little guy is just as cute!”

After that, Kaoru grabbed another present, this one revealing…

…A Cinnamoroll plush neck pillow.

“Boku Cinnamon!…God that was so cringey, I don’t know why I even did that, please erase that from your memory, anyways, I figured that this might help you with your neck problems or at the very least lessen them, I get it, dealing with a sore neck from countless hours of staring straight at a monitor fucking sucks.”

After that, Kaoru reached for the final present, this one being the smallest one of them all, revealing to be…

…A starry night charm necklace.

“Oh heyyyy, how did that get thereeeee? Um, this was kinda more of an impulse buy but it’s still a gift all the same! I thought of nothing but you when I saw it and I thought ‘hey, Kaoru would look pretty with this’ so I bought it…as a friend! Because friends buy each other bracelets, yeah! Purely platonic intentions here!” Joey grinned, proud of himself after that truly pitiful performance of trying to save face before growing bashful again. “But you are one of the closest people here to me, Kaoru, I really hope you know that.”

Happy Birthday Kaoru! 💙

Kaoru blushed a deep red at Joey’s words. Her mind was running a million miles a minute at hearing her crush say those words. She had even felt her heart skip a beat. Oh lord, did Kaoru have a bit of a meltdown when she realized she had a crush on two people. Lyall and Joey? What shojo manga did she just step into? She wasn’t entirely sure how to deal with her feelings for Lyall when feelings for Joey just crept up on her.

How could she not develop feelings for Joey? He made her laugh with his jokes. He was the person she would spend hours with binging anime, playing video games, and staying up until morning just sending messages after message to each other. Kaoru even waited for the days when she could go visit him down in Kanazawa, wanting to see Joey and his cute freckled face-

…she was down bad wasn’t she?

“Uh Kaoru?” Joey asked, waving his hand in front of the hacker's face and bringing her out of her mental spiral. “You good?”

“Oh! Bracelet, right! I love it, Joey!” Kaoru brightly smiled, trying to squash her nervousness down deep inside. When all of the sudden a voice in the back of her mind that suspiciously sounded like A.R.K kept taunting her telling her that she had “no fucking balls” and we’ll never let it be said that Kaoru made good decisions. Her entire life was proof of that. Gathering every bit of courage she had, Kaoru leaned over and placed a small kiss on Joey’s cheek, letting out a giggle when he began to sputter and turn bright red.

“Thanks Joey. Can’t imagine a world without you.”

[supersoakerfullofblood]

Back with another question hehe. brace for ramble.

so. i was reading about povs and narrative styles and what not, and the person had to mention, of course, that of Virginia Woolf where she manages to jump from the stream of consciousness of one character to another expertly without missing a beat.

The person went on to subjectively add that that style isn't for everyone and best avoided unless you've mastered the craft (do you agree? why why not?)

But that's not the question. My concern is that i may have done this in one of my WIPs. but here's the thing, i assumed what i was doing was omniscient narrarion (i remember it as following the streams and thoughts of ur characters and being all-knowing kinda) but according to the same thing I read, the person claimed that with omniscient narration, while u do move freely, u are sticking to/favoring one character more than others, because too free a movement will confuse your readers. (what's ur two cents on that too)

I realize as I type this that I might need to share an excerpt of the WIP for you to actually see where the pov/style falls exactly (is it truly omniscient, or am I failing at being another Virginia (who I recall in Mrs. Dalloway for instance, she only followed the consciousness of like 3 people), or is my work utterly hard and confusing to follow?)

so for now imma wrap up and have u share ur thoughts on what i blurted. Thanks for putting up with my long rants yet again lol

I think that might've been my post, because that all sounds eerily familiar hahaha

One thing to remember with Woolf is that not everyone is a fan of her style. By all the formal metrics with which we judge prose, she's an incredible writer, but that doesn't mean everyone has to like her stuff. Her prose is thick, and the frequent POV shifts (so many shifts that the novel feels liquid where others feel solid) is inherently confusing. Woolf gets away with it because she has damn good reasons for employing it (highlighting the liquidity of institutions and individual identity under modernism; showing how each person is inherently a collection of the people around them, and there's very little, if anything, immutable about a person; etc.), and her prose is so mind-bogglingly gorgeous that she convinces the reader to stay with her through the POV shifts. Once you really get into Woolf, these shifts become part of her delight, but for a lot of people, this liquidity in narration erodes their enjoyment of her novels, and they put them down (which is fair, though sad). When I said writers should probably avoid writing like that unless they've mastered the craft, I meant that the average writer isn't nearly strong enough in the craft of prose to get people to read something with Woolfian POV shifts, and that the average writer probably doesn't know how to even write those shifts. (This includes me. I tried to write in a truly Woolfian POV style, and it was awful. Third person limited for me!)

I definitely can't gauge your writing without seeing it, but I would say as a blanket statement not to worry too much. I don't know if it's possible to accidentally write the POV Woolf writes with haha, and if your story has a main character/protagonist, that character is probably your central viewpoint character, whether you know it or not. Your story might be confusing to follow, but that isn't inherently a negative. If the prose is strong enough, readers will put in the extra muscle to understand the story (think of all the To the Lighthouses, Infinite Jests, and In Search of Lost Times out there, books known for being daunting but beloved). If you're still worried, though, there's nothing wrong with revising until you're happy with your POV. Just know that nothing is ever inherently wrong in writing, and you can make anything work if you grease the prose's wheels.

[dojae-huh]

i dropped my thought about jhndo here before thinking this is dy's way of making up to jhn when they were distant like that time he didn't tell jhn about his musical and jhn loving to be spoiled. seeing what's been happening, i still stand by my opinion and like another anon and huh said that when dy pushes something, he really pushes it blatantly. again not saying their friendship is fake but i guess that this is dy's way of reassuring especially for someone who needs it loud and clear like jhn. thinking back to the 127 documentary, jhn mentioned the need to feel needed. i'm just guessing but it's not impossible that that was dy's first time hearing about jhn staying cos of his letter OR he already knew but seeing jhn being open about it in the documentary, he wants to be more openly appreciate. many factors combined maybe.

that documentary and the maldives photoshoot probably helped them talk more and the jeju trip. i don't think dy expected jhn to go at first and jhn even misheard (do you want to and can you come). but since it happened that way, i think dy really appreciated it and everything got aired and publicized through the documentary vids.

maybe dy will keep being open about jhn but that's because it's how they are. like how ty is so open about dy while dy acts the tom and jerry way. some people are open and expect the same in return, some people are fine with other ways of expression.

now people on x are like jhndo dating but i think most are joking and see them as close friends while jhndo core fandom really rejoices in the ship. but no matter how they are these past months, jhn has been like that to many other members all these times so i acknowledge that he and dy appreciate each other a lot and their late addition to 127 bonded them but i still don't see them the way jhndo shippers do.

even though some jhndo shippers shade jaedo shippers, and some jaedo shippers shade them too.. even though some of us are saddened by how little dy showed or revealed about jh these days, understandably so since they are busy and i do miss them too, i'm still a jaedo supremacist lol seeing how jh was quiet about his drink support at first, can be endearingly slow, clumsy, random in how he expresses his affection, let's wait for those moments he becomes more obvious again and the random unexplainable cute moments like how jh was during dy's concert. on dy's end, well... it's admittedly harder to hope for something but when it happens, it happens.

words are sure loud and we want reassurance from them but what doesn't get spoken out loud as often isn't any less important. that's a pattern with jaedo and is reflected in their interviews and the way they act, especially after jh leaves the nest and grows up hehe 🫂

btw i read variations of translations about jhn coming on the last day so i still don't know if he invited himself on the last day instead of going with the other neos or if dy offered the last day. but it made sense either way. if it's self invitation, no surprise. i even thought he would come on the last day since i saw the others on the first day. if dy invited, no surprise either cos he met the concert team and there's the beer fam thing now.

saying this in a matter of fact way, no shade, it's jhn's nature. he thrives on attention and being loud about it. jh loves attention from dy too but i'm sure we all see how much more lowkey in the way he tries to get it, or he bides his time to deliver the punchline as we have seen numerous times.

i'm not good at observing as huh but want to share some two cents here. we probably will never get jaedo loud and clear in the traditional sense but they love each other in their own ways.

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

I will comment on JohnDo after I catch up with content.

Fair warning to others: I won't post anymore Asks about how little there is JaeDo content in comparison with JohnDo if it will be written in a complaining and not analysing tone. JaeDo need to hide, they don't do it because they want to. They are made by circumstances: their celebrety status, and Korea being a homophobic country. Casting even a slight shade on how Doyoung goes about things is wrongful. I do not like that the discussion is shifting into some ship and shipper competition, when JaeDo is a real couple (as believed and stated on this blog). Enough.

[thecherryotome]

Rating the court of darkness suitors and their routes

I did not expect this to be so long but it turns out I have a lot to say about them I guess 🤣🤣. Anyways this is just my two cents so don’t take this so seriously. Enjoy~

Guy-

I haven’t played his main route, but I don’t really like him as he‘s too demanding and domineering for me personally. I also low key hold a grudge against him because I remember reading about how he kidnapped me but I can’t remember where I read it from lol. At least his event routes are interesting and he has his moments.

Main Route- haven’t played

Personality- 4/10

Lynt-

He’s such a cutie, and I appreciate his kindness and him being the peacemaker. However, because of his reluctance to do any work in general, I felt his main route kind of lacklustre and didn’t have much conflict going on. The end especially didn’t feel as exciting as it should have been. I also really admire hard workers haha so he’s not really it for me.

Main Route- 4/10

Personality- 7/10

Fenn-

Such a flirt who sometimes steps out of line, but most of the time he’s alright and will try respect your boundaries (note the word try). I did enjoy reading his route, and I liked to see his vulnerability we don’t often get to see. I just didn’t like the ending (do I just have high expectations for endings LOL). There were so many unanswered questions and not in a good way although I can’t remember what they were since I played it quite a while ago.

Main Route- 8/10

Personality- 7/10

Toa-

I like Toa. At first it was because he seemed like the only prince who would actually answer my questions (cough cough Fenn, Guy and Lynt), but I soon came to love him for his hidden kindness for me and his hard work and determination. He also changes over his route and, character development is amazing. In the beginning, he’s so rigid and stiff, only ever doing things that benefit his country because of the way he was raised (by an abusive family 😡😡). I remember him telling me that he used to get locked out of the castle when he was young and it broke my heart. Anyways back to my point. Slowly, and in an understandable, actually believable way, he finally started to think for himself which is just amazing. I just love when he slams the door on Idina at the end hehe.

Main Route- 9/10

Personality- 9/10

Roy-

Roy is another prince I like. He’s such a sweetheart and the definition of a prince. I don’t remember much of his route but it was a pretty pleasant read I recall. Even in other routes, he’s super supportive of the MC no matter what she chooses (It really hurt me when the MC couldn’t return Roy’s love in Lynt’s path :((( ).

Main Route- 8/10

Personality- 8/10

Rio-

Rio is so precious and oh so oblivious which is what makes him endearing I suppose. He’s just not particularly my cup of tea although I have no problems with him, especially as he’s such a great friend. I’m currently reading his route and it’s pretty good so far. However, I’m wondering what the main conflict is going to be and if it’s going to involve and change Rio in any way since it seems like the conflict is really just affecting the MC.

Main Route- 5/10

Personality- 6/10

Grayson-

I’m sorry I almost forgot about Grayson forgive me 😔. I love Grayson too though lol. He’s so shy, cute and selfless I can’t help it. Overall, his route was pleasant, and I enjoyed learning about his struggles with not being able to use magic and how he became more confident in himself over time.

Main Route- 7/10

Personality- 8/10

Jasper-

He’s alright I guess. He knows how to read the room and is adept in his own ways. I also appreciate the kindness he shows, but he just seems really shady to me for some reason lol. Especially when I read about his secret identity and saw him in a suspicious looking wig. Maybe once I read his route I’ll finally figure him out. Although, I’m not really drawn to his route because of his connection to Guy who I’ve mentioned above is not someone I’m particularly fond of.

edit: Against the warning of the comment below… I read his route. It was really hard to read in the beginning as I was really uncomfortable with the way Jasper was so sly, lowkey manipulative and pushy over the MC yet somehow she falls for him??? And how was MC’s main concern how Jasper liked Guy way better than her. Like they’ve known each other for years, and he’s literally his valet, what do you expect. It got easier to read later as the plot thickened and that kept me reading I guess.

Main Route- not played (edit: 4/10)

Personality- 4/10

Knight-

He’s so adorable and I love his determination to become a better valet. His fondness over cats is also very endearing and he seems the most normal out of the bunch. I haven’t read his route yet, but I don’t know if I will since I kind of can only see him as a younger brother now. I’ll try it out though.

edit: I actually really enjoyed his route surprisingly. Like wow there was a lot of info about his background i wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t read this. Very well written. My only complaint is that I wish he stayed short and didn’t have to grow :( I love short knight.

Main Route- not played (edit: 9/10)

Personality- 8/10

Lance- (sorry I realised I didn’t add Lance the first time)

Lance is also one of my faves. He acts all gruff and cold but inside he’s actually a softie with such a soft spot for animals. His route actually made me see him for once. I honestly didn’t really know anything about his existence before but now he’s just taken my heart 🥲.

Main Route- 8/10

Personality: 9/10

Thanks so much for reading to the end of this very long post :)

edit: I just realised how many mistakes there are because I wrote this on a whim right before I went to sleep and didn’t realise how long this would be haha

[penrose-quinn]

TR 258 thoughts. Mostly Taiju. Also spoilers under the cut.

I've been trying to grasp why I don't like Taiju appearing in particular. This isn't a rant btw. I'm just thinking haha.

I can't blame anyone who got excited on his entrance and it's awesome that he's on Toman's side because Taiju's built like a fucking unit and everyone needs the manpower, especially when they're in the receiving end of the fight.

The thing is yeah, he's still an abuser (I'm a little biased over this because BD arc is an emotional ride for me) though I also don't think Taiju is the kind of character that necessarily needs a redemption arc. But it sort of feels like it's going that direction in this chapter for some reason.

It's just that he already had a solid character arc from start to finish. He was a good antagonist, if not one of the best ones in the series. Wakui wrote him in a way that made him despicable but human. One of the things that make BD arc interesting for me is that Yuzuha and Hakkai don't have to end the arc with a "I forgive you" but it concludes with them saying what needs to be said and going on their separate ways. Honestly? That's realistic and way more satisfying. Then Wakui steps it up and does this interesting thing with Taiju by helping Takemichi in the Manila timeline. Not because he owes him, but it's motivated from the fact that he still cares for Hakkai. It doesn't redeem him much, but it shows that he's a nuanced character.

Taiju's story feels finished tbh. But who knows? TR has always emphasized how fate plays a big role in the story, regardless of the timeline. Things keep circling back; things keep repeating, overlapping. Maybe, Taiju reappearing right now is supposed to mirror his reappearance in the Manila timeline where he helped Takemichi. I mean, we do see this with Kazutora too, with the Bonten and BD bad timelines in a way. Maybe, it's something like that.

So here's my second point. Practically, everyone needs more manpower so maybe Mitsuya asked for his help. Narratively, why is he here when there are other characters who have a good reason to fight in this war?

Enter, Kazutora and Takeomi.

The former is because we've been shown time and time again that Kazutora is determined to save Mikey. With Pah-chin’s return and Draken's death, I was hoping what's left of the founding members would team up to save their friend. But of course, I'm aware Kazutora is still in juvie (ngl, he's safer there too) so it just isn't possible right now, unless Wakui pulls out something batshit insane again hehe.

On the other hand, Takeomi has every reason to show up here. I'm sure he will. Because if there's anyone who has a shot at redeeming himself in this fight, it's honestly this guy – as an older brother to his siblings and a friend to BenWaka. Besides, he still has a large role to play regarding Senju and Sanzu's backstory.

On another note, I think it isn't fair to not consider why Taiju has to be brought back into this arc. So here's just my two cents.

With his reappearance, I can't help but think if this ties back to the Black Dragons somehow.

All the former BD members are present. Even mfing Shion is there. Let's all just wait for Takeomi, he'll come. Since we started this arc with the First Gen BD, I'm hoping this is what Wakui actually set up for Taiju. Maybe, he'll get punched by Benkei too haha. I don't think Taiju being here is a fanservice-y moment. But, really, I'm just hoping they talk about Shinichiro again ✌️ and it could just be a stretch, but also maybe, maaaybe, have an Inui flashback. Sadly, the latter seems unlikely now because at this point, everything is either heading to Sanzu's backstory/time-leaper reveal and a possible Black Dragons reunion (+BenWaka backstory).

[deerixiie]

24/7 ramen.

description: you are iwaizumi’s home; even if he is forced to take you to a ramen place at 2 in the morning.

pairing: iwaizumi x gen!reader

genre/warning: banter, fluff, literally just filler dialogue with an overarching plot, light mentions of violence

word count: 1.8k

a/n: this was inspired by some headcanons im going to post. oh and this is for @hajiimes... hehe <3

“I got into a fight.”

Iwaizumi paused, his phone hovering near his ear. He resisted the urge to let out a sharp laugh—of all the things, why did you have to get into a fight?—and slung his arm over his face. “And you lost?”

Iwaizumi could almost hear you pouting. “To be fair, they were-”

“But you lost.”

A pause. “Yeah.”

Iwaizumi dragged his hand across his face with a heavy sigh. “Why are you fighting people at,” he paused to squint at the digital clock on the dresser, “Two in the morning?”

“Ramen.”

“What?”

“Hot and spicy shrimp,” you said solemnly. “There was only one pack-”

“You’re aware we have finals tomorrow, right?”

“Exactly the reason why I wanted ramen.”

Iwaizumi sighed again. “Are you hurt?”

“Well, someone elbowed me in the eye-”

“The eye?”

“Yes the eye. I’m pretty sure it’s swollen, but other than that I’m perfectly fine.”

“Why do you sound so happy?” Iwaizumi asked, getting up to scour his closet for a hoodie. “You lost a fight over a pack of ramen.”

“Well technically, no one won the fight. We all got kicked out of the store. Poor guy didn’t even keep his ramen.”

“Which store?”

“Walmart.”

“You couldn’t have gone to a convenience store or something?” Iwaizumi pulled on the hoodie Oikawa sent him from Argentina and grabbed an old Godzilla hoodie from his closet.

“Haji, this is Socal, not Japan,” you condescended. Iwaizumi scoffed at how haughty you sounded. “I’m sure Socal has convenience stores,” he muttered.

“Well, Walmart was the closest.”

“You could’ve woken me up,” Iwaizumi grumbled, moving on to grab the keys off the drawer, “I would’ve taken you to a convenience store.”

“But you were sleeping.”

“So? You know how dangerous that was? I’d feel a little better if I was there.”

“Yeah, but I wanted ramen,” you sighed. “Anyway, can you pick me up, Haji? It’s getting cold.”

Iwaizumi shut the apartment door with a quiet click. “I’m leaving the apartment now.”

“That was fast.”

“Yeah, I had a feeling that you’d want me to pick you up.”

“Okay. Oh, and remember to drive on the right side of the road.”

“I know.”

“Are you sure? You almost drove into a tree last time.”

“Because I was tired.” Iwaizumi opened the door to the car, dropping the hoodie into the passenger’s seat. “Tired people don’t think straight.”

“Aren’t you tired right now?”

“No, I’ve been awake since you told me you got into a fight. You need to tell me what the hell actually happened there.”

“I told you, it was ramen,” you huffed. “There was one pack of spicy shrimp and three desperate college students in need of ramen.”

“So you fought for it.”

“I lunged for it, some other dude shoved me, I crashed into the third person, and then he was pushing them and I was on the floor and then someone’s elbow was in my eye and then the employee grabbed us and tossed us out.”

Iwaizumi took a moment to process your words. “You sound proud of yourself.”

“I’m not. I didn’t get the ramen.”

“No one got the ramen,” Iwaizumi deadpanned. “Isn’t that what you said?”

“I mean yeah, but now I can tell people I’ve been in a fight.”

“Why would you want to tell someone you’ve been in a fight?”

“I dunno,” you sighed. “I’m tired and hungry. Tired and hungry people say weird things.”

“Damn right.”

“That was an insult.”

“It was.”

“Ouch.”

Iwaizumi didn’t respond, lightly drumming his fingers against the steering wheel as he waited for the red light to turn green.

“My eye hurts,” you said suddenly, your voice crackling from the phone’s speaker.

Iwaizumi furrowed his eyebrows. “Does it hurt a lot?”

“No,” you decide. “Ramen would make it better.”

“So now I’m buying you ramen?”

“Yeah.”

“At 2 AM?”

“It’s 2:28 now.”

Iwaizumi scoffed.

“I found this ramen place that’s open,” you said. “24/7 Ramen. It’s 25 minutes from here.”

“Why is there a ramen place open for 24 hours?” he muttered, half to himself.

“It’s probably run by college students. That’s why the name is catchy too.”

“Catchy?”

“It sounds like a song. You know, 24 Karat Magic by Bruno Mars.”

“Never heard of it.”

“What?” Iwaizumi found himself flinching, despite the fact it was simply your voice coming from his phone’s speaker. “How have you been living in America for two years without ever hearing 24 Karat Magic? That song is a classic.”

“I think you’re forgetting you’re speaking to a guy born and raised in Japan.”

“Haji, you’ve been here for two years. That’s 24 months. 48 weeks. And a certain amount of days I’m too tired to calculate.”

Iwaizumi thought for a moment. “730.”

“730-” you paused. “How the hell did you calculate that so fast?”

“Dealing with stupid people makes you smarter, I guess.”

“No, ramen makes you smarter.” You sighed. “I really want ramen.”

“I heard.” Iwaizumi turned the steering wheel, bringing the car into the Walmart parking lot. “And I’m here now, so you can stop whining.”

“Oh, I see you. Do you see me?”

There was a figure sitting on the front curb, waving erratically in Iwaizumi’s direction. “I see an idiot waving at me like their life depends on it, so yes, I see you.”

“I think being around stupid people makes you grumpy,” you grumbled.

“No, having to pick my significant other up from Walmart at 2 in the morning makes me grumpy.”

You responded by scoffing and hanging up the phone. Seconds later, you were sliding into the passenger seat of the car. “Aw, did you bring a hoodie for me?” you asked, glancing down at the Godzilla hoodie that you almost sat down on.

Iwaizumi glanced over to you, raising an eyebrow. “Hello to you too.”

You rolled your eyes and leaned forward to press a quick kiss to Iwaizumi’s cheek. “Hi, I love you, thank you for picking me up. Happy now?”

“I’m ecstatic. Yes, that hoodie is for you.”

You smiled, pulling the hoodie on over your shirt and relaxing into the seat. Iwaizumi carefully looked over your face. The only noticeable injury was the ring of darkness around your eye—did they really elbow you that hard?—and a slight cut on your upper lip, but those would heal soon. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.

“What, is there something on my face?” you asked, reaching up to brush your fingers over your cheek.

“You have a black eye.”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “Damn. Is it bad?”

“No, not really.” He checked the dashboard for the time and slightly frowned. “Where’s the ramen place?”

24/7 Ramen was a small convenience store in between an optometrist and a cigarette shop. On the outside, it wasn’t much. The name of the store was illuminated in large flickering neon letters. The exterior brick walls of the store were dusty and crumbling with age and wore. The windows were covered with assorted posters and papers, some for missing children, upcoming movies, and advertisements for Japanese snacks.

“Oh, so this is like a Japanese convenience store then?” you asked, looking at one of the Japanese ads. “I guess you were right.”

“Told you.”

“Just come on and buy me my ramen.”

The door opened with a familiar chime that reminded Iwaizumi of warm yakisoba buns, tangled with the sight of preppy school uniforms, and of course, Oikawa Tooru. The layout of the store was straight out of Japan, overwhelming him with countless reels of tender highschool memories. If he closed his eyes he could see himself standing right there, bag under his arm, Oikawa at his shoulder.

“Feeling a little nostalgic, huh?”

His head whipped toward you standing behind him with an amused smile on your face. “This place does have a Japanese feel to it.” You raised your eyebrow in that insufferably adorable way of yours, and Iwaizumi found it hard to breathe.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets as a flush began to form on his cheeks. “Be quiet.”

You hummed but made no other comment, instead choosing to shoot him another knowing look that made his blood roar in his ears. You started moving through the store, picking cups of ramen off the shelves. He hovered behind you, still embarrassed about his nostalgic moment—was he that homesick?—occasionally picking up cups of ramen and examining them before placing them back onto the shelf.

After what seemed like ages, you presented your armful of ramen cups with a proud smile. “I’m done.”

Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow. “I’m not buying you 15 cups of ramen.”

“But you promised-“

“Each one is like, 65 cents? I’ll buy you 5, max.”

“Why not more?”

“I’m just as broke as you are.”

You sighed in defeat. “Being broke in college sucks.”

“I told you we should’ve held off on getting a car.”

“But I wanted a car!”

“More than you want ramen?”

“That’s- that’s an unfair comparison!”

Iwaizumi continued to go back and forth with you, even as you paid for the ramen at the cash register. You were in the middle of a frantic explanation of why investing in a car was important in California when you finally made it outside.

The air was still and cool, save for the slight breeze that occasionally tangled in Iwaizumi’s spiky locks. The only sounds were the distant cars speeding across the road and the faint sound of crickets chirping, for you had both fallen silent after leaving the convenience store. Iwaizumi turned to look at you: one eye swollen, upper lip bleeding, a plastic bag full of convenience store ramen clutched tightly in your hand. He could see the fire in your eyes, that odd determination to make your own dreams a reality, no matter how fickle or ridiculous they were. It was similar to the drive he saw in Oikawa’s eyes, he realized. The reckless, worthless one that seemed to be a double-edged sword.

Maybe that’s why whenever he looked at you, he felt like he was at home.

“I love you, you know that?”

You cocked your head to the side and smiled slightly. “Where did that come from?”

He shrugged and stuffed his hands into his pockets again, turning away from your curious gaze. The corners of your mouth pulled up into a faint smile. Without warning, you turned Iwaizumi toward you with your finger and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. And then you were bounding off toward the car, the plastic bag jostling in your hand.

“Hey,” Iwaizumi called, starting after you. “Come back here so I can kiss you properly.”

“I want my ramen!” came your response from the car. “No kisses until I get my ramen!”

Iwaizumi chuckled softly. You were annoying and feisty, but you still managed to make him feel right at home.

taglist in reblog; please comment/reblog with comments in the tags or in the post if you enjoyed!! i love hearing your feedback :)

[seelestia]

dw he can always come home and rest in my arms after dealing with all the, uh, interesting people, throughout his day lol-

sweat is just. evil. icky. yucky. ew ew get it away from me D; it's unfortunate that i can't get away from sweating every time i'm outside here. tropical country whyyyy ;w; so far no plans for another vacay anytime soon sobsob we'll see... it'll have to be next year for sure :c hbu??

lmao i don't think he finds my jokes funny enough rip 💔 it is!! that's why i did try to pull for him despite having too many polearm characters already ;w; oh well.

xiao: "don't talk nonsense, my power is meagre compared to morax." // me: "yeah no shit i still haven't built him yet-"

you bring him so much entertainment and that's one of the things he just loves about you lolol al haitham looking back at you skeptically like 'what in the world is this little creature barking about...'

hskdhfjsdhf the way you're cheering on us pls that's so cute ;w;

omg you're a genius yes yes i can totally see you walking around with a few dogs ;w; ayato made sure they're trained so well too (flashback to that one time when you first got them, they were untrained and almost made you fall down the stairs bc they're just a bunch of excited balls of fluffs), always walking by your side and never tugging on their leash (altho the moment you unleash their harness they just zoom about everywhere). v v cute <3

ayato and lia having a mini friendly debate session hsdhjs thoma is so used to bringing you tea while you're in the middle of doing this and he's always so amused (he might even cheekily add in his two cents too) hehe

I HAVE SEEN IT YES and gosh i love love love it so much, the colors and shading and lighting is just sosososo gorgeous ughghghghghgh ;w;

i'll let you know when i finish them archon quests ahhhh i did finish the events but i need to start on them sllsdjflksd

us indulging and screaming about each other's selfships 🤝

also your birthday is tomorrow yes? :) hehe. hehehehe >:)

give 👏 the 👏 man 👏 some 👏 rest <//3 if not for the obstacles he had to face as the geo archon, now he has to deal with unique people after he retires LOLLL as a hu tao kinnie, i am afraid i might not be able to help alleviate his suffering. (/lh)

the continuous summer 😭 it's like can't we get more creativity in terms of seasons here?? me eyeing the orbit 🤨 (/j) aaaa, you deffo deserve to go on more vacay trips! they're so therapeutic <//3 i'm not sure about me either, but the highlands have a special place in my heart, so we'll see! expect strawberry-related pics if i do >:)

WAIT, YOU'RE RIGHT. *squints at zhongli and xiao* it's either your fav weapon is polearm or you just happen to like people who like polearms JFWKDKSK dw, rin jie, more characters to pull for soon! it's either tartar sauce or angy shortie now 👀

in alhaitham's eyes, i'm just a puppy trailing after him angrily <//3 whatever do you see in him, my dearest cousin? is it the iq? the brains? his voice? but alhaitham's could never compare to your hubby's (/j)

lia walking with kins of her kind is a sight to see 🤫 we need more fanarts of ayato with animals, i will cry 😭 the power of fanarts over us is smth else <//3 and true, thoma just got himself a ticket to a live debate show in the kamisato estate! he'd put down the tray in ayato's office and just comment on how 'spirited' the both of us are LOLLL ayato isn't vv fond of work, so i might as well do smth to help him get thru it easier, hehe. iirc, in his voicelines, he expresses ironic (?) shock if you tell him that some people who treat their work as a hobby. he just goes "how... exceptional." HELPFKES i think paperwork traumatized him (/j)

I KNEW YOU DID 😭 i just knew you went thru the artist's page and honestly??? so valid because i did too 🤝 if i come across more zhongli fanarts, i'd definitely trip and run over to you in an instant! >:)

YESYES lmk! and take your time~ i love how sumeru is going thru a crisis while mondstadt is just 💃🍃🥂 ✨ LOLLL but i wasn't expecting how the wienlesefest event just went straight for those with parent issues HELPFKWK i thought this was supposed to celebrate wine and autumn... OUCH. 😟 but at least, we got pieces about crepus, razor's parents, amd even kaeya's father. and angst

[petrichal]

I know people don't like Sanji getting "a power up" post- him wearing the Germa super sentai fit but to me it's merely another example of cause & effect??

like some ppl are mad because they don't want Sanji's source of power to be from the Vinsmokes, a family he's disowned and want nothing to do with, which, fair enough of course. But personally, I see this as more of a conflict? than Oda being like "yes!! Sanji's getting Germa powers that will be advantageous to the plot!!" and that might as well already happen, but how much of an advantage/"power up" is it if it's doing damage to the character? Oda constantly tells through Sanji that he doesn't want anything to do with the Germa. He detests them and would rather break every bone in his body than wear a raid suit when forced to. To me, Sanji getting a power up is put on the growing pile of plot-points under Sanji's Internal Struggles™ than simply "This will make him stronger hehe" ya know?

idk im rambling and not making much sense but that's my two cents and im keeping 'em.