#5 for 5 and i cranked this bad boi out late at night in 5 hours on the day it was posted cause i lost 89 % in a computer crash

[spnbabe67]

I Know You're Shitty And You're Bad For Me But I Can't Stop Thinking About It

Kinktober Day 14: Shower Sex (B.B)

Pairing: Billy Butcher x Original Female Character

Warnings: Smut, Shower Sex, mentions of being homeless, incredibly brief mention of violence

Summary: When Samarra can't sleep, her go-to remedy is a hot shower. But she isn't as quiet as she thinks

Word Count: 2074

Authors Note: Title from the song If You Think I'm Pretty by Artemas. Why are there so few quality GIFs of him??? Also, I was half tempted to name this fic "It's Raining Men".

Samarra didn’t hate the apartment. It was cramped, sure, living with 5 other people, so the bathroom was the only place she could get some goddamn privacy. The lock was busted on the door, but it wasn’t like the others were keen on walking in on her; Hughie had, once, when they all moved in here from out of the Haitian Kings HQ. The poor boy had been traumatized, both by walking in on her naked and nearly getting a bullet in his brain. Butcher had looked equal parts disturbed and impressed when Samarra mentioned she kept a pistol on top of her clothes. She’d shrugged, saying that you could never be too careful; after all, they were being hunted by Supes.

The water pressure was decent and as long as she got to shower before M.M., there was usually enough hot water. Considering she was up before all of them and the last one in bed, the supply of hot water wasn’t usually an issue. Besides, as the one who paid most of the utilities, Samarra decided she could use as much of the hot water as she pleased.

Everyone else was asleep, or so Samarra figured. It was late enough in the night to be considered early morning when she gave up on trying to toss and turn in the little twin sized bed. With Hughie sneaking, or what he thought was sneaking, out to see Annie, her and Butcher had claimed the bedroom. M.M. really hadn’t protested to it, much to Samarra’s surprise. At this point she felt bad for Butcher, who’d fallen asleep next to her after one of their late night escapades. He wasn’t awake, but she knew her constant moving around wasn’t exactly facilitating the level of sleep that he needed. Samarra sighed, dragging her hand down her face as she glanced over at Butcher, snoring softly beside her. God, I wish I could sleep that well. She gingerly got out of bed, the floor cold against the bottoms of her feet.

Samarra cringed as one of the floorboards creaked under her weight. She glanced over her shoulder, relaxing a bit as Billy seemed to still be in the throws of sleep. She grabbed a change of clothes from her bag, only the muted rustling of fabric indicated her movements. The one thing she did miss from living on her own, if it was only out of homeless shelters and gym bathrooms, was her fluffy towels. It was the small luxuries that had kept her going before she met Frenchie, and by extension the rest of The Boys, like her towels. But those had been long since abandoned, probably still in a trash bag by the side of the road after fleeing the last place she lived, so the scratchy, plain black towels supplied by group funding it was. Samarra folded her clothes, catching the open toilet seat before she set them down. She rolled her eyes. Men. 

Her clothes pooled around her ankles in ripples of cotton and linen. Samarra shivered as the ambient air hit her naked body, skin riddled with goosebumps. She cranked the dial to almost the hottest setting, the old pipes rattling as water flowed through them to pour from the shower head. Samarra hissed as the scalding hot water hit her back and shoulders, but quickly the sting faded to a pleasant warmth bringing life back to her chilled and aching muscles. She tipped her head back, letting the spray soak her silver hair, pouring over her shoulders to trail down the front of her. Steam quickly enveloped the room as Samarra dragged her fingers through her hair, making sure the strands were soaked through.

She and Kimiko both shared toiletries. Butcher had gotten this, fruity and sickeningly sweet smelling shampoo and body wash set as a joke, but Samarra refused to let it go to waste. It was another small luxury she missed. She never in a hundred years would have picked the cherry blossom and passionfruit scented soap, but it was what they had and she wasn’t going to toss it simply because she didn’t like it. The citrusy scent wafted around her as she lathered the soap into her hair, scrubbing the grime and sweat away. She’d always found solace in bathing. The ritual of it solid and relatively unchanging. There was a time where a shower in and of itself was a luxury, especially one with some semblance of privacy. After everything she’d done in her lifetime, hell the last 6 months, Samarra needed it as a way of cleansing herself, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. She wasn’t religious, but a hot shower was as close to repentance for her actions as it got for her. As if washing away the dirt, sweat and oftentimes blood could make up in any way for the things she’d done.

One, two, one, three. Soft knocks sounded at the door, barely audible over the pounding of the water. It was a code her and Butcher had come up with on a mission. She had infiltrated an office building where their intel had indicated Vought was keeping some files on the Supe’s they’d been dosing and she was supposed to let him and Frenchie in after everyone else at the office had left. Butcher had claimed that ‘How else is she supposed to know that its them at the door and not some random twat lookin’ for a fix?’ Samarra had shrugged, not caring either way. Leave it to Butcher to overcomplicate some things and under complicate others.

Seconds passed and Samarra heard the faintest click of the door shutting before the curtain pulled away, Butcher sliding into the shower with her. His hands landed heavy on her hips, making to switch so he was under the spray but flinched away as the water hit his skin.

“Bloody hell, woman.” Butcher growled, reaching around her to turn the temperature down. “Gonna boil alive in ‘ere.”

“Pussy.” Samarra teased, shuffling around so the water ran down Butcher’s body, soaking into his hair and beard and running down his body. 

Samarra couldn’t help the way her eyes followed the path of the water down his body, feeling the temperature in the room grow incrementally hotter as the tension between them grew taut. Butcher wormed his hand to tangle in her hair, tipping her head back up to make her eyes catch his again. The heat in his eyes reflected her own, desire and lust blowing his pupils wide.

“What are you doin’ to me, Mara?” Billy mumbled before he used his grip on her hair to bring her lips to his.

Samarra let her eyes flutter shut into the kiss. His lips moved against hers like molasses, his grip on her hips purely possessive as he pulled her front flush against him. She opened her mouth to him, letting him take control of the kiss as her hands wandered across his body. She caressed her hands along the soft planes of him, across his broad chest and even broader shoulders, feeling how his softness gave way to hard muscle underneath; it reminded her just how strong and unyielding he could be. Eventually her hands found home in his hair, brushing through the transition from the coarse, curly hair of his beard into the softer, finer strands adorning his head. 

She gasped as the cold tile of the shower pressed into her back as Billy pinned her to it, having her retreating closer to the warmth beating off of his body and from the shower. Butcher took advantage of the momentary distraction, sweeping his tongue into her mouth. Samarra rolled her hips against him as he grew hard against her tummy, reaching down to run her hand over his length, stroking him to full hardness. Butcher growled against her mouth as she lazily pumped her hand, twisting her wrist as she did. Samarra nipped at his lower lip, grasping at his shoulders to steady herself as Butcher slid his hands down her sides, cupping her ass to lift her off the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist, steadied by the slowly warming shower wall at her back and Billy practically pinning her to it with his hips. 

Samarra kissed him sloppily, all tongue and teeth and noses crashing together, greedily drinking him down. Samarra silently thanked whatever gods or supernatural beings were out there that Butcher wasn’t a selfish lover as he slipped his hand between them, sliding a thick finger through her folds to toy at her clit adding fuel to the growing fire he’d lit in her belly. Samarra’s breath hitched at the first nudge of him against her entrance. Their kiss only broke as her mouth dropped open as Billy thrusted shallowly, slowly working his cock into her. Her forehead rested against his as she glanced down, watching him slide in and out of her, working himself in and in until he was fully seated inside her. 

Butcher cursed in a long, drawn out breath as her inner walls fluttered around his cock. Samarra captured his lips again, granting him leave to move. He pulled out almost completely before resheathing himself in one smooth stroke that had her choking on a moan that was swallowed by his mouth. 

“I know it feels good, but we gotta be quiet lovey.” Butcher mumbled between kisses and Samarra groaned in protest but complied, knowing he was right. The last thing they needed was M.M. or Frenchie walking in thinking someone was being hurt. 

Samarra dug her nails into his back, digging them into his shoulders as his short thrusts rocked her back against the wall every time his hips crashed into hers. That calloused thumb of his still made quick, small circles on her clit, spurring her on. That gentle, arousing sensation added to the amalgam of factors that had her barreling for that high. Samarra held Butcher close to her, her peaked nipples rubbing against the patch of hair on his chest, the steady rhythm of his cock sliding in and out of her shoving her over that edge. She shuddered in Butchers arms, her orgasm shooting down her spine, making her legs go lazy around his hips. His mouth muffled the satisfied moan she couldn’t hold back as he rutted into her fast and hard, chasing his own high. Butcher gently set her on her feet, a hand on her hip steadying her as he pumped himself raggedly until he came, his cum leaking out of his cock and into the shower. Billy kissed her languidly, his hand rubbing up and down her side to re regulate their systems. 

Samarra smirked against his lips. “You gonna keep distracting me or can I finish my shower?” 

Butcher arched a brow at her. “And here I was thinking you enjoyed my company.” 

Samarra opened her mouth to volley his jest but Butcher simply held up a finger, gesturing her to turn around. Confusion had her furrowing her brows, but she complied, turning away from him. She flinched as the softness of her washcloth brushed against her shoulder. 

She glanced over her shoulder. “What’re you-”

“Shush and let me do this.” Butcher cut her off.

Samarra mentally shrugged, closing her eyes to savor the feeling of Butcher dragging the washcloth across her back and shoulders. Once he was satisfied with that, he moved onto her arms, then her torso, then her legs after that. He was surprisingly gentle with his ministrations, which by itself didn’t surprise her. What did was the fact that he was gentle with her. She had never expected him to be gentle with her, he hadn’t been thus far. It wasn’t unwelcome, just, unusual. 

He let her rinse herself off, retreating out of the shower while she did to grab both of their towels. Once they were both dry, Samarra having pulled on her t-shirt and panties, Butcher opting to wear nothing at all, they climbed back into bed. Samarra snuggled into the sheets, Butcher curling himself around her from behind; it was like a big, warm teddy bear had settled behind her, wrapping its arms around her torso.

Only the sound of their collective breathing and the low hum of the A/C filled the air for the next several minutes until Butcher spoke, his tone an annoyed grumble.

“I hate that bloody shampoo.”

[helvetica12point]

Doll Trashion Tutorial

So I've mentioned the doll obsession I've had lately and the oh so lovely Gretchen Stripes here arrived recently:

She's a raccoon themed Nanana Surprise teen doll, and they went all in on the trash panda theme. Trash bag shirt, shopping bag shirt, even her printed on jewelry is made of trash.

Anywho, I was chatting with @nanana-dolls about how cool she was and they mentioned the idea of making Gretchen clothes out of candy wrappers and I was immediately inspired because that leans into the trash panda theme even harder and is conceptually hilarious!

So last night I ate some candy and this afternoon I got crafty and it's been ages since I did a tutorial so let's get into it!

I've assumed a pretty basic level of skill, so depending on your own sewing skills some of this may be irrelevant or I may have skipped something you needed. Feel free to skip parts or ask questions as needed for your skill level

Step 1

Gather your candy wrappers! I strongly recommend using waxed paper wrappers-think starburst, now and laters, tootsie rolls, dumdum pops, that sort of thing. Could you do it with with more plasticity wrappers? Maybe, but they tend to tear so easily and it's going to be a lot harder. If you are really determined to use something like a 3 musketeers wrapper, I would honestly use tulle and make see through pockets to put the wrapper in.

I went with Frooties wrappers because we had some in the house and they're bright and colorful.

Step 2

No pics for this one either, but it's easy enough. Get your wrappers as flat as possible. Use a press cloth or bit of scrap fabric on either side of each wrapper and press them flat. Use a lower setting on your iron just in case your wrappers are plasticized instead of waxed. Once you've verified they won't melt, you can crank the heat a bit. I think I used the setting for polyester on mine. You may feel a bit of stickiness when you're done-that just means you got it hot enough for the wax to melt a little. (This is why you've got it sandwiched between fabric, so you don't get wax on your iron).

Step 3

Arrange your wrappers in a pleasing manner. Frooties wrappers have a really nice length, so I just put them in a row and overlapped them. I used 10 to get 7 inches worth of "fabric", but wound up adding a couple more.

Step 4

Normally I would never say this, but we're not using fine fabrics, so go ahead and use a bit of a tape to hold them together along one edge and sew those bad boys together! A 1/4” seam is about the biggest you want for doll clothes to avoid bulk.

If you don't have a sewing machine, definitely use extra tape to hold them together because they're going to suck to hand sew. You can also do whatever size seam you want if you're doing it by hand, it's not crucial at this point.

Under no circumstances pin anything together as, it will leave permanent holes in your wrappers!

Step 5

I added a tulle underskirt so the wrappers wouldn't directly be touching her, and to give the skirt a bit more stability and support. For this I cut a piece of tulle about twice as long as my wrappers, ran out through the machine real quick with a long stitch and gathered it to fit. Then I stitched it to the back of the wrappers. Watch the direction you place your wrappers! The way they're oriented here is correct--if you have them the other way they may get mangled feeding through the machine.

If you've not got a machine this can all be done by hand, and shouldn't be too awful.

Trim any excessive length on the tulle to your desired length. I trimmed mine pretty close to the length of the wrappers but just a hair longer.

Step 6

Do a test fit and just wrap your strip around Gretchen's waist. Make sure the two ends can fully overlap and cover her undies. If they don't, add a a couple more wrappers and a bit more tulle. I used some of the excess I trimmed off.

Steps 7 & 8

This is where it gets hard. Now you've got to figure out a way to fasten it around her. I opted for an elastic waist, but you could do Velcro or whatever you like.

I folded the top edge of the wrappers where everything is sewn over and used that to make a channel. This seam needs to be over 1/4" away from the edge to allow room for the elastic (I used 1/4"elastic). Don't make it crooked like I did; you want a nice wide channel the entire length of the waist.

Get your narrow elastic threading tool of choice and slowly insert the elastic from the bottom most wrapper (the free end in the above pic). Following the overlap will prevent you from poking out between wrappers.

Step 9

Once you've got the elastic in, trim it a little long and overlap it at a point that's appropriate for Gretchen's waist. Stitch it together (I did this by hand cause it's fiddly), trim off the ends and gently move the wrappers over the joint. Gently do a fit test.

Step 10

Make any adjustments needed for a better fit. Hand sewing will probably be your best route here I wound up folding one end over a bit more and stitching it into place just to get it to lay better in the back and cover her bum a bit better. This is also a good point to mend any tears and reinforce any weak spots.

The zig zag is where I overlapped after elastic insertion. You can see a tear along the channel seam where that end was on the narrow side. I'll mend that later.

Step 11

Gently slip the finished skirt up over Gretchen's hips and enjoy!

I think it looks better with her shopping bag shirt than her original skirt, tbh

Various notes:

Wrappers can be stitched together in more places for reinforcement. Paper sews like fabric, except you don't have that give between fibers so any holes made by the needle are permanent.

Theoretically, you might also be able to strengthen and reinforce the wrappers by adding more wax to the paper.

You could also embroider the wrappers, or add a second layer of tulle over them for a more subtle/fancy look

[elettralightwood]

First 100 pages ✨

Imagine watching both Stiles Stilinski and Alex Claremont-Diaz playing lacrosse 😮‍💨 Alex, babes, u wanna fuck him so bad it makes you look stupid 🫶 "Alex’s kind of love story is much more Shakespearean." Someone has to tell him 💀 No cause twelve years old Alex wanting to keep a pic of Henry? Y'all are gonna have to sedate me 😃 "4. Any information regarding or involving HRH Prince Henry’s personal or private life not previously released by official Royal documents, speeches, or approved biographers, including any personal or private relationship the Guest may have with HRH Prince Henry; 5. Any information found on HRH Prince Henry’s personal electronic devices." This is actually heartbreaking ☹️ Sleepy Henry 🥹 "A blue-haired girl in the crowd lifts up a homemade poster that reads in big, glittery letters, GET IN ME, PRINCE HENRY! " OOP 💀 "He’s been aware for too long that most people don’t navigate thoughts of whether they’ll ever be good enough or if they’re disappointing the entire world." Same here my boy 🫡 All of the hospital scene is permanently engraved in my brain 😪 I'm liking this Rafael guy 😌 "Ellen says, starting on another slice crust-first." Immediately jail 😦 "Henry’s super into classical mythology" just like me 🥹 "You keep doing that stupid smile every time you look at your phone. Who are you texting?" Full on giggling 🤭 Who is writing a ff about Alex and Macron 💀 Istg i've seen every movie and tv show they talk about in this book 😎"Alex doesn’t know why Henry never responds to his selfies from bed." I might have a theory 🤔 The turkeys phone call, best thing to ever happen 🤝 "i sent pics of turkeys so i deserve pics of your animals too." ALEX U SNEAKY FUCKER 🤭 "he’s right back in his teens, caring too much about his parents and helpless to change his situation." This one hit a bit too close to home y'all 🫥 STFU HE CALLED HENRY 😭 "I don’t know. I’ve been kind of ... off ... lately.” Alex, babes 🙂 "something feels so restless and hot somewhere beneath his sternum. / He spots Alex, and his smile broadens." Two idiots in love 🤧 “Here,” Alex says, moving his own hips, “watch me.” With a grave gulp of champagne, Henry says, “I am.” Henry is holding on to his champagne for dear life. GIVE MY MAN A BREAK 💀 Alex likes the look on Henry’s face, the sure curl of his hand around the neck of the bottle, the way his lips wrap around the mouth of it. Horny jail 🚨 Maybe he can absorb some of the “much” from the place where their shoulders are pressed together. Thanks for asking, i am not well 😀 THEY KISSED MOTHERFUCKERS I AM SO UNWELL RIGHT NOW Y'ALL ARE GONNA HAVE TO SEDATE ME

"Go fuck yourself.” “Hardly enough time,” Henry says. Jaw on the floor. Left completely speechless. Iconic behavior.

“No need to apologize,” Henry tells her. “Rebel commanders outrank royalty.” He shoots Claudette a wink and a salute." Henry my beloved 😭

"a picture of Henry’s dog wearing a Slytherin scarf. (i don’t know WHO you think you’re kidding, you hufflepuff-ass bitch, Alex texts back, before Henry clarifies his dog, not him, is a Slytherin.)" This is literally a married couple.

"You are the thistle in the tender and sensitive arse crack of my life." "Thanks!" OH MY GOD 💀

"I thought you’d kill me in a more personal way. Silk pillow over my face, slow and gentle suffocation. Just you and me. Sensual.” “Ha. Well.” Henry coughs. My brother in christ was fighting for his life every second ☠️

"And I know you like Henry.” “Shut up,” Alex says. He brushes a finger under his collar and finds his skin damp. Do they always have to crank the heat up this high when it’s snowing outside? “This is interesting,” Nora observes. “No, it’s not,” Alex snaps. “Fine, he can come. But if he doesn’t know anybody else, I’m not babysitting him all night.” “I gave him a plus-one,” June says. “Who is he bringing?” Alex asks immediately, reflexively. Involuntarily. Oh he panicking panicking 🤭

"Please do smack me if this is out of line, but you are the most exquisite woman I have ever seen in my life." “You’re a charmer,” June says, smiling indulgently “And you are a goddess.” I would've blushed SO HARD.

It feels as steady and huge as the ground under their feet, as encompassing of every part of him, as likely to knock the wind out of his lungs. SHUT THE FUCK UP 😭

Whoever told me Alex wasn't in love from the start was LYING to me. He didn't realize it, yes, but boy was whipped!

Reading Red White and Royal Blue and reacting every 100 pages ❤️💙

[the-wlw-cafe]

Supercorptober - Day 5: Family

Read it on ao3 here!

CW: Implied alcohol abuse

Lena knew Jess was worried about her. Granted, she did little else, especially after the whole Eve situation that had Jess coming back from her deserved sabbatical without Lena even doing so much as lifting a finger. She still felt guilty about the palpable sense of relief that had accompanied signing Jess back into her old position – she’d desperately needed someone in her corner she knew she could trust. She would never have presumed to ask her for it, but still, Jess had come, just a little bit of comfort in a world that had spun on its axis so substantially Lena wasn’t sure she’d ever recover her balance. But Jess had come back, and she’d stayed.

And now, with the holidays fast approaching, her fretting over Lena had increased exponentially. For the impartial observer, the signs would be almost imperceptible, but after years of working together Lena was keyed in to all of Jess’ tells. Her worry was clear in the way she’d space out Lena’s meetings a little wider, affording her some breaks she definitely didn’t need, and subtly hinting that it was getting quite late whenever Lena tried to pull another all-nighter at the office. And Lena ought to be thankful, really, to have someone keep an eye on her since Kara and Alex were visiting their mother in Midvale. But the holidays were a difficult time for Lena, they had been back when Lillian would still try to coax her to come visit the LuthorCorp Holiday gala and Lex would write her a single card filled with as much backhanded compliments and disguised mockery as the limited space would allow, and they were even more so now when they’d…stopped. She hated it, and she hated the part of herself that, for whatever misguided reason, missed it. Truth be told, Lena was tense, a swirling vortex of negative emotions barely held down by a cocktail of whisky, antidepressants and ibuprofen. All of that didn’t excuse the way she snapped at Jess when she suggested that Lena take some time off for the holidays.

“What for, Jess, to spend some time with my family?” she’d hissed, an apology already on her tongue the second she realizes what she’d said. Jess however stood her ground, unperturbed.

“Yes, that actually was what I was thinking of.”

For a second, Lena was too stunned even to answer, before she managed to gather herself. “Miss Huang, you surely must be joking.” Her voice was low, carefully controlled.

Jess didn’t even flinch.

“I’m not talking about your blood relatives, Miss Luthor. Everyone can see that you’re basically a part of the Danvers clan already.”

Lena had already opened her mouth to refute whatever claim left her assistant’s mouth, but now found herself lost for words. She closed it again. Never once in her life had she found herself so utterly disarmed, because, as much as the ugly part of her, the one that spoke to her in the voices of Lillian and Lex, tried to convince her of the opposite the truth still remained: Jess was right.

The first time she’d ever felt that way was a good year ago, and it came as a surprise so shocking and abrupt it felt like she’d missed a step when walking down the stairs, and it went something like this:

Lena found herself chanting “please don’t pick up, please don’t pick up” under her breath. She’d lie about this detail if anyone would later ask her about it, since she’d never been one to avoid conflict; a necessary trait in her line of work. And yet, she couldn’t help but silently hope against hope that Kara, who usually picked up the phone in a matter of seconds when she was calling, presumably dropping anything and everything she was currently doing (and sprinting to the phone, considering how out of breath she sometimes sounded) just to answer her on time, would make an exception to this rule just this once.

She really didn’t want to disappoint her by cancelling on game night.

She couldn’t bear to make her sad.

And she really, really wasn’t in the right headspace to get into the why.

“You’re speaking with Kara Danvers, hi!”

God, there she went again, answering her mobile phone with both her first and last name like the dork she was and now she had to sit down due to a bout of dizziness that was definitely not caused by the amounts of whiskey she'd consumed beforehand.

"Hey, Kara."

Her voice sounded hoarse from crying. The anniversary of the Luthor’s taking her in had always been rough on her, and yet she’d never come unravelled like this. It was as if the sudden and unplanned arrival of Kara Danvers in her life had wrenched something free inside of her, some blockade she’d built when she was young, and now she couldn’t help but cry over things she’d long since ought to move past. Then again, she also never entertained childish crushes like this. It seemed as if Kara Danvers had been engineered for the sole purpose of throwing Lena off her game.

“Lena! I was just talking to Alex about ordering from that new Ethiopian place you recommended for game night! What’s the point in having a cultured friend if I don’t get to show off their amazing palate, am I right?”

“Yes, Kara, about that”, Lena interjected before her friend could get herself too amped up. Before she could do something immensely stupid, such as let Kara talk her into coming to game night anyway, dragging everyone down with her and ruining everything.

“I’m sorry, I don’t think I can make it to game night after all. Busy life of a CEO and all that.”

Funny, how lies that used to pass her lips effortlessly now felt like they were suffocating her, leaving behind a foul taste in her mouth. It’s because you are an awful friend. It’s because Kara deserves better.

“Oh.”

The disappointment in Kara’s voice was palpable, and Lena hated herself for being the cause.

“But there’ll be a bunch of other game nights, and I’m sure the others appreciate the chance when the Danvers-Luthor dream team can no longer dominate them!”

Lena let out a choked sound, a pathetic excuse for a laugh.

“Lena, are you okay? Because it sounds like you’re crying – are you crying? Did something happen?”

Lena dug her nails into her forearm, leaving angry red crescent shapes in the flesh. Selfish, so selfish, making Kara worry on a day that was supposed to be reserved for her friends.

“Don’t worry about me”, she said, not being able to bear the enormous lie that would be an I’m fine. “It’s just…”, she floundered, trying to find a way to put her feelings into words that wouldn’t make them seem as laughable as they were to Kara.

“It’s stupid”, she sighed, but Kara intercepted before she had even reached the end of her sigh.

“It’s not! If it makes you upset, it’s never stupid. Your feelings are valid, Lena.”

“But it all happened decades ago! I should be over it by now!”

“Oh, Lena…”

She used that tone. Lena hated that tone. She hated that Kara always used just before pointing out that something about Lena’s upbringing, or something about the strategies she’d developed to cope, was inherently wrong. It was so much easier to pretend like it was justified, that some inherent quality she had or lacked had was the root cause of all she experienced. But there went Kara, taking a sledgehammer to all the things she’d considered immutable truth before. There went Kara, telling her that what they did wasn’t fair and what happened to you was not your fault and there are things whiskey and tiny boxes can’t fix.

It was painful, it made her feel wretched, and she couldn’t take it, not today.

“I told you not to worry about me, I’ll be fine tomorrow”, she insisted.

“But I do worry about you”, Kara replied, “constantly. Because you’re my best friend, and I love you, and when I told you I’d always protect you I meant it. So please answer me honestly, and don’t listen to the voice in your head that tells you you’re selfish, cause it’s a liar: Do you need me to come over?”

Kara hadn’t even finished her sentence and Lena was already crying. She was a pathetic, slobbering mess, not worthy of the Luthor name, but she hoped desperately that somehow, she could be worthy of Kara. (It was clear as day she wasn’t.)

She tried to do the selfless thing, tried to tell Kara to just enjoy the evening with her loved ones, and that they could schedule dinner the next day if she really insisted. But Kara, beautiful, stubborn Kara, was having none of it.

“Lena, I won’t just abandon you when you’re obviously not in a good place. You’re family! And family means nobody gets left behind.”

“You’re a plagiarist, we watched Lilo and Stitch just two weeks ago”, Lena chuckled wetly.

“Don’t distract from the question!”

“I…”, she gathered her courage. She needed this, she needed Kara. “Can you come over?”, she asked, her voice the smallest it had ever been.

“Of course”, Kara said, her voice warm as the sun.

And Lena still cried, so much, but it was okay, because she got to cry in Kara’s arms and listen to Kara tell her that it’s okay to cry, that she wasn’t pathetic, that she’d feel better after a good long sob session, and maybe, just maybe, Lena was inclined to believe her.

Realizing that Alex saw her as family too was more of a gradual process, like leaning back in your chair too far and only realizing your mistake after it’s far too late.

They hadn’t started out on the best of terms. Alex had never be openly hostile to her face, which wasn’t something she could easily say about many people in her life. Still, the distrust with which she’d viewed Lena had been palpable, so much so that Kara saw it necessary to take her aside and told her in no uncertain terms that she had to respect the choice in friends she made. It was the first time anyone had ever defended Lena so ardently, and as much as she wished she could have seen it as the moment of vindication she deserved, in the moment she had overhead their fight Lena had just felt so guilty for driving a wedge between the two sisters she’d had to call her driver to take her home immediately.

Kara, bless her, had apologised profusely on behalf of her sister the next day no matter how much Lena tried to convince her that it was no big deal, really, Kara didn’t have to.

Because here was the truth: Lena understood. Truly, she did. If she had a sister, she wouldn’t have wanted her to keep pace with the likes of herself as well. But she was selfish, utterly selfish, and she didn’t have the power of will to protect Kara from herself.

Of course, now she knew this had been a rather reductive and self-centred view of the world. Because Kara was Supergirl, had always been Supergirl, and wasn’t some shrinking violet to be protected.

And the fallout had been grim. Weeks of silence punctuated by shouting matches with her former best friend, and it was so, so painful because she’d still loved her so, so much.

And after the dust had settled, even after Kara had forgiven her, she certainly hadn’t expected Alex to forgive her as well. The agent was fiercely protective of her little sister after all, and was known to carry grudges.

She’d been prepared for many things when she showed up at game night for the first time after everything had happened, she’d expected Alex to throw her out, yell at her to leave and never talk to her sister again, or just up and go herself. What she didn’t expect was Alex fixing her with a long look, before putting a hand on her shoulder with the words “It’s good to have you back. Kara was so busy being mopey we didn’t win a single game while you were gone.”

At that moment, Kara’s joyous call of her name rang through the air, and she looked so excited just because Lena had decided to join them again, both Lena and Alex couldn’t help but smile. They both loved Kara, and Kara loved both of them, and maybe they’d become something like accomplices.

Then, Alex had invited her to National City pride with her since Kara was making an appearance as Supergirl and seeing her arrive with the both of them would have been to conspicuous, and Lena had wondered if maybe she’d misjudged. Maybe they’d somehow, miraculously become friends.

And now, well, now she’d been dating Kara for two heavenly weeks and she was still working up the courage to tell Alex – liquid courage, as it were, because she was already on the second whiskey on rocks in the bar they’d chosen as their venue for breaking the news to Alex. They were both comfortable here, more comfortable than was healthy, probably, and if it went pear shaped she was already in the right place to drown her sorrows. Kara had left for a moment to say hello to a patron she recognized, a former employee at CatCo back when Cat Grant had still been around, and the cruel fates aligned that Alex chose that exact second to slide onto the barstool next to her.

“Hi, little Luthor”, she said, while motioning the to the barkeeper for her drink.

“Hey Alex. Kara literally just went to meet an old colleague-”

“Yeah, I saw her.”

Lena downed her glass in order to fill the awkward silence that arose, a mistake she bitterly regretted as the next words out of Alex’ mouth were: “So you and Kara, huh?”. She sputtered so hard some of the whiskey came up through her nose, the burning sensation forcing tears to her eyes.

“How did you know?” she coughed.

Alex gave her a somewhat pained smile. “Found your panties in the crease of her couch – satin, looked more expensive than anything she could afford – so I kind of put two and two together.”

Lena could feel the blood rush to her cheeks and prayed that Alex couldn’t see it as she kept her eyes to the floor, as if it might take pity and swallow her up if she just stared hard enough.

“I am so, so sorry that you had to find out this way”, Lena began, but Alex just waved her off.

“Eh, it could have been worse. I’m just glad I didn’t walk in on you.”

Lena kept her mouth shut, preferring not to let Alex know about how close she’d come that one time during a risqué tryst in the DEO.

“So I suppose this is the part where you give me the shovel talk? Tell me that you’ll have me executed for treason if I ever hurt her?” she asked.

Alex regarded her with an unreadable look as she finished her drink in one swig, grimaced, and shook her head.

“No. I don’t think I need to. Just – ugh, I’m bad at this. Listen, I know the concept is antiquated and means nothing, but you make Kara very happy – like, accidentally-starting-to-float-while-telling-me-about-your-first-kiss happy – and for what it’s worth, you have my blessing.”

Lena didn’t tell her that she disagreed, it meant everything, but she held her tongue for now as it was too early to start crying. It definitely would happen over the course of the night, she’d always been a weepy drunk, but there was no need to purposefully induce a sobbing breakdown.

“Lena! Lena, I forgot! It’s karaoke night!” Kara’s voice pierced the constant hum of chatter and ambient music.

“Oh no, I don’t dance”, Lena immediately objected. But, embarrassingly, Alex had slid off her barstool and taken her into a headlock before she could even begin to put up a fight.

“Yes you do”, she grinned, looking entirely too happy with herself. “You’re one of us now, and karaoke night is a mandatory experience for every Danvers.”

Lena didn’t even protest too much as she was dragged away, and she definitely had to apologize personally to Celine Dione after the way she bastardised My Heart Will Go On, cry-singing and occasionally hiccuping.

“Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up”, Lena muttered into her phone. It was a long shot, With Kara probably already being surrounded by family in Midvale, eating the contents of Eliza’s pantry in one day. She’d almost resigned herself to failure when she heard Kara’s voice from the other end of the line, and it still made her heart skip a beat like the first time Kara had called her baby.

“You’re speaking with Kara Danvers, hi!”

“Never change, darling.”

“Lena, hi! It’s so good to hear your voice, baby, I know you’re busy but I miss you so much!”

Lena could hear her girlfriend pout.

“Actually, Kara...I was wondering if I might join you over the holidays – not right now, of course! I’m sure you’ve already made plans, and you deserve some time with your family alone, but maybe we could -”

“Lena, oh Rao, hang on a second, I’m putting you on speaker”, Kara gushed, sounding uncontainably excited about something.

“Alex – hey Alex!”, Kara shouted, and Lena had to hold the phone a good 10 inches away from her ear.

“Whoops, sorry baby. Alex, guess who it is!”

“Lena? You’re kidding me, right, you have to be!”, Alex replied, and the remark stung a bit. Confusion swirled in Lena’s head and her anxiety climbed higher.

“You betcha! I hope you have eight dollars to pay Eliza because I forgot my wallet at home!”

“You bet on me?” Lena asked, unsure whether she wanted to know the answer.

“Yeah, we did – it’s nothing bad, I promise. Eliza was just so sure you’d come, she made you a sweater and everything, and I told that the holidays are a difficult time for you and you usually prefer to spend them alone, but she was so sure you’d come, and I – well, I didn’t want to get my hopes up.”

“Mom is going to be so smug”, Alex groaned from somewhere farther away.

Lena’s chest seemed to fill with something warm and lighter than air at the thought of her attendance at the holidays was something to hope for.

“She made me a sweater?” Lena asked, not in the least bit surprised at how choked up she’d become, and too happy to care.

“You betcha! It’s really ugly, you’re going to love it.”

As she put the photo of Kara and her, both clad in the most garish sweaters known to mankind, Lena laughing with abandon because she thought Kara’d gone in for a cheek kiss in the photo, but instead had blown a wet raspberry on her skin, up on the Midvale mantelpiece she mused that being welcomed into the Danvers family by Eliza felt much like returning to a home she’d never known existed.

[hopekiedokie]

The Dreaded First Day of School (single dad!jimin)

SUMMARY: On his son’s first day of school, we learn that the badass, leather jacket wearer, and tattoo clad single dad might not be so tough after all. Or maybe, his soft little son isn��t as pure as he ought to be. (In short, Jimin’s baby is growing up and he’s not prepared for it.)

GENRE: fluff, humour, maybe angst if you squint hard enough

WORD COUNT: 1.6k

NOTES: So Jimin isn’t supposed to be a mean or awful dad here. He’s just still not totally equipped to be one even after five years now. This might become a mini series with Ms. Y/n being Haneul’s teacher in the future. Who knows? Also, the photo is not mine.

POSTED ON: 26th March, 2021

What the actual heck is this??

Jimin has seen a lot of crazy things in his life but this, whatever is happening in front of him, is something he truly cannot believe.

You see, today is his son's, Haneul, dreaded™ first day of school.

The kid was up until 3 in the morning, crying his eyes out. He kept begging Jimin to not let him go, saying things like “I’ve been a good boy.” or “I don’t know those people.” or “Please, daddy, I don’t want to go!”

Half of the time, Jimin didn’t even understand what he was saying because he was crying so much.

The worst part is that Jimin had half the mind to give in to all these excuses and to just let Haneul attend school next year.

Contrary to popular belief though, he’s not entirely an awful example of what a father should be. In general, yes, he’s done a lot of questionable things. But in particular, as a father, he does like allowing his son to eat whatever junk food he wants, watch whatever is on the tv, or letting him up way past his bedtime (as late as 4am).

BUT he still has a smidge of decency left in his being and he actually wants his son to grow up decent.

(Which for the most part, is going along fine since Haneul is probably one of the sweetest and softest kids he’s ever seen. How though? Jimin has no idea.)

So with tired eyes and barely 4 hours of sleep, he dragged his son to school.

Even during the drive, Haneul was still adamant about skipping school and all the while, he kept using his cute crying voice that ALWAYS turns Jimin into mush.

Not this time though.

“It’s gonna be okay. You’ll meet a lot of friends and you’ll play with them! It’s gonna be fun, I promise.” This is one of the many things he said to lift his son’s spirits up.

All his efforts are still not enough to pacify Haneul as the tiny boy kept throwing a tantrum. Jimin even had to carry him after getting out of the car and during the entire walk to the school gymnasium where the assembly is, Haneul held his arms tightly around his neck.

To be completely honest, Jimin thought that it would be embarrassing but actually, he found the entire thing quite endearing.

Maybe it’s the narcissistic prick inside him that’s talking but seeing and hearing his son say that he’d rather spend time with him makes him feel like perhaps he’s not so bad of a dad after all.

Which brings us to the present.

To reiterate, Jimin cannot believe what’s happening.

One moment, his son is clinging to him for his dear life, then in an instant, he watched him grow up right in front of him.

In the worst way possible.

Not to be dramatic, but it was like watching his entire life slip away from his grasp.

The beginning of the end started when Jimin pointed to these three boys and insisted Haneul to introduce himself.

Boy, oh boy, oh boy, BIG mistake on his behalf!

He probably should’ve pushed his son to the “nerdier” looking kids. That would’ve helped him in the long run, as well!

At first, he watched in awe from a far as Haneul progressively turned less tense and more comfortable with those boys. They started with cute small smiles but it quickly turned into wildly animated gestures while comparing their Paw Patrol themed trolley backpacks.

“That’s my boy! Already making friends and it’s only been 5 minutes.” Jimin proudly thought to himself.

Okay, maybe Haneul is going to be fine. All that crying thinking Jimin did the entire night was for nothing! His cute soft son can totally do this.

Now, Jimin’s life altering moment comes. The time to actually say goodbye is here.

A teacher announces that they’re taking the kids to their respective classrooms and even if they cry or make a huge fit about it, the parents or guardians should stay where they are. They should refrain from “babying” their child.

Alright, now’s the time for Haneul to cry again! There’s no way he doesn’t cry even just a tiny bit…....Right?

Jimin makes eye contact with Haneul and, without any second thoughts, proudly mouths “I love you” while pointing to him.

Normally, Haneul is quick to return the gesture. Heck, he even goes as far as drawing a huge heart with his tiny pointer fingers!

But today, he doesn’t do that. No no no no no!

Instead, Haneul discreetly looks around him to check if anyone is watching him then……….

He shakes his head towards his father then faces back to his new friends.

Gasp! What is this???

Jimin has never felt so betrayed in his entire life! Not to mention, by his OWN son too.

This irks him so much.

So much so that he stands and gets close to his son, opposing the teacher’s instruction of letting their kids be.

Bitch, no. He’s getting his “I love you” from his son no matter what.

As he walks towards Haneul, it’s apparent that the kid had somehow done a complete 180 from his mood 10 minutes ago.

How can this be? How is he suddenly so cold towards his own man?

When he finally gets to Haneul, he literally, no joke, had to call his name 4 times to get his attention. The actual audacity of this kid!

“Hey, Haneul. Daddy’s gotta go!” Jimin says with his world famous “no eyes” smile.

Haneul’s face drops.

Bingo!

This kid is about to get a huge reality check or so Jimin thinks he is.

He’s waiting for any signs of despair, a sniff or maybe some glassy eyes but nothing happens.

Come on, where are the water works?? Where are all the hugs and kisses???

Haneul is like (・-・) to Jimin.

O-okay…….

“...”

“...”

“...”

Nothing???

“There’s a lot of scary strangers here……”

Okay, so that was really mean for Jimin to say bUT HE ONLY WANTS TO SQUEEZE EVEN JUST A DROP OF AFFECTION FROM HIM. Sue him!

Haneul finally opens his mouth.

Jimin quietly anticipates his son to return to his warm and loving self that he still doesn’t quite know where he gets from...

“So what, daddy? I’m a big boy! I don’t need you.”

(´⊙ω⊙`)?！

Uhm exCusE mE, but W H A T??

Needless to say, that statement hurt Jimin like a buttcheek on a stick.

However, he’s not gonna break away from his badass persona in front of all these people, especially around these little shits that they call “children”. He has an ✨𝓪𝓮𝓼𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓽𝓲𝓬✨ that he strictly abides to, people!

And frankly, he’s not gonna let his son walk all over him.

So without any word, Jimin leans down to give Haneul a kiss. If he’s not gonna receive any affection through words then fine! He’s gonna get it through a different way.

Jimin’s lips are almost in contact with Haneul’s plush cheeks. They are literally a hair away that Jimin can feel the heat emitting from it but all at once, that heat is gone.

You know why?

Because Haneul is quick to do that matrix shit where he bends his back to avoid his father’s lips.

Then he saunters away, leaving Jimin hanging.

(๑´⊙ ₃ ⊙`๑)

Jimin calls him a couple times but again, he did not look back.

S I G H

Alright, then. He doesn’t normally raise his voice towards his son (nor disciplines him tbh) but oh boy, oh boy! This kid is practically asking for it.

He doesn’t give a fuck if he’s five, no son of his is gonna be allowed to treat him like that!

“HANEUL! GET BACK HERE. NOW!”

Well, that got him looking back towards his father.

Jimin points in front of him to which Haneul begrudgingly complies after taking a peek from his new found friends.

Haneul hears the other boys snicker behind him as he trudges towards his slightly pissed father.

When he’s standing right where his father wants him, Jimin leans his cheek down again for him to kiss.

Now, the other boys are blatantly laughing at him.

Maaaaaaaan. He can’t be a laughing stock on his first day of school! He needs to be as cool as his daddy!

As Haneul contemplates his life choices, Jimin patiently waits for his kiss. There’s no way Haneul is gonna reject him for the third time in a row within a span of two minutes!

Within a few seconds, he feels Haneul’s lidol babie hand against his cheek.

O M G

How 😭 cute 😭 is 😭 this 😭 ??

This has got to be one the softest moments they have shared together. AND it’s in front of all these people!

Take that Namjoon hyung for saying I can’t be a gentle and tender loving father!

Jimin is about to place a hand over Haneul’s small one to caress it but then Haneul pushes his face away.

“Just go, daddy!”

Before Jimin is able to process what just transpired, Haneul is already strutting towards the other kids, feeling like a king or a boss for bitch-slapping his own father.

This little fUqer!!!

Who does he think he is to act like this towards Jimin iN FRONT OF OTHER PEOPLE??

This is what happens when he lets his son spend too much alone time with his Uncle Jungkook and Uncle Taehyung.

But to be fair, Haneul is still Jimin’s son at the end of the day so…..like, maybe he shouldn’t be too surprised??

Yet, still, he truly cannot believe it.

All it took was 5 minutes and a rowdy set of friends, then his kid has grown up.

He apparently “doesn’t need him” anymore, according to the kid.

To think that Jimin got up early to make him those cute bento boxes. He even specifically made them look like various pokemons that Haneul fancies!

Wow. Just. WOW.

Excuse him, but he’s just gonna get in his car and crank up “Slipping Through My Fingers” by ABBA while he ugly sobs.

[twinkleimagines]

✨Check Please!✨

Summary: you’re his families waitress but having a rough night. Even though Tom is a big star now, he still has a pure heart.

“Fuck!” You mumbled under breath as you looked for your keys in your unorganized purse.

You were almost an hour late for your shift as a waitress tonight because you overslept studying for some of your college exams. Life hadn’t been treating you well since you moved to England for school. You had no family or friends, you were just completely on your own. And even though the school was paid for, it didn’t pay for your food or your gas , etc. so after school you worked at this overly fancy restaurant that was reservations only . It was essential to keep this job because it was the only source of income you had .

“ oh my god there you are” you sighed in relief, Quickly cranking the car up.

When you pulled up to the restaurant you noticed a long line of people waiting for a table , so you just knew that your boss was pissed and they were short staffed.

“Excuse me, excuse me, sorry! Excuse me!” You said as you moved your way through the crowd.

“Y/n!” You heard someone yell as you were walking back to the employee break room. It was your boss standing at the hosts’ stand with a huge line of people waiting to be seated.

“Get over here!” He yelled. You sighed walking up to him fast, knowing you were about to get humiliated in front of all these rich classy people. “ where the hell have you been? “ he said sternly but low enough for some to not hear.

“I-I’m sorry I overslept I’ve got some pretty big tests-“

“I don’t give a damn get your ass over there and go seat these people they’ve been waiting and we’re short staffed!” He said while pushing the clipboard of table arrangements into your chest. You sighed heavily trying to calm your breath. “ you’re lucky we need you tonight or you could’ve kissed this job goodbye” he said before walking off. You looked up finally to see a young man , with brown wavy hair and   and a piercing Jaw line, staring at you with his big brown eyes. You could see the sympathy written all over his face, but instead of acknowledging it you stood up straight , brushed your hair out of your face and smiled.

“ name please?” You asked, looking back down at your clipboard while waiting for his response.

“Uh Holland” he stated.

“ how many?” You asked still refusing to look up in embarrassment.

“ There’s 5” he said glancing back at his group.

“ okay, right this way, Sir” you stated , giving him a quick smile before turning around walking towards a table .

You stood to the side as you waited for them all to sit down before passing out menu’s.

“ my name is Y/N, I’ll be serving you guys tonight” you said glancing around the table looking at all their faces. “ can I go ahead and get your drinks for you?” You asked while pulling out your notebook. They all started naming off their drinks one by one, the brown haired boy last .

“Tom!” One of the other young boys yelled, grabbing his attention. “ tell her your drink, idiot” the younger one laughed. Tom looked over at you and grinned .

“Sorry I zone out sometimes I uhm, I’ll take some tea, darling”. He said smirking at you. You raised your eyebrows back at him before nodding.

The night was going by so long and you couldn’t help but feel so drained. It was hard to keep smiling and pretending to be this happy go lucky person when you were in such a bad mood as it is.

“Hey y/n , I think you got a crush” your coworker said while nudging your arm.

“Huh?” You asked looking over at her. She nodded her head towards the first table you catered to tonight. your eyes went straight to the brown headed boy, Tom. And sure enough seconds later he was back looking at you. You quickly adverted your eyes to your co worker. “Oh him? Nah” you said throwing your hand up in dismissal. “ he’s probably looking at me cause he feels bad for me. Boss man totally embarrassed the crap out of me in front of him, threatening my job and all that” you said looking back down at the table you were cleaning off.

“ yeah he’s a total ass for sure but that dude can’t keep his eyes off of you” she said referring back to Tom. You glanced over and sure enough he was looking your direction.

“ yeah yeah yeah” you said shaking your head. “Hes probably waiting on me to give him a refill “ you said. You both laughed before going separate ways to deal with more customers . You grabbed a picture of tea to bring to Toms table and started walking towards him. As you were making your way to Him, you couldn’t help but stare in awe as his laugh lit his whole face up, he had a smile that you could stare at all night. And those eyes, the just glistened-

“ dammit Y/N!” You heard your boss yell as you accidentally bumped into him, spilling tea over him , yourself and the elderly couple sitting at the table next to you. Everyone in hearing rang looked your way, including Tom.. again. “ can’t you just do anything right?” Your bossed asked, more like stated. You stood froze not even sure what to say and overly humiliated. “ just go clock out and go home! I’ll let you know if you have your job by the morning !” He claimed while he walked away, wiping what tea he could off of him. You leaned down picking up the now empty picture , grabbing napkins to clean why you could up when all of a sudden an extra hand was next to yours with napkins.

“ you okay?” He asked softly, looking at you with complete concern on his face. You sniffled looking up at him, tears pooling up .

“ I’m fine” you mumbled before grabbing all your stuff and walking past him, going straight to the break room. You felt bad for leaving that way but you were just so embarrassed and humiliated you couldn’t even look him in the eye. You scurried to get your stuff together, dreading to walk back out into the lobby for people to see you again, specifically Tom. You slowly walked out with your head down, you had almost made it to the door when someone grabbed your arm. Go figure, it was Tom.

“ yes?” You asked looking down at his hand.

“ you forgot to get our check” he said.

“I’m sorry” you stated shaking your head. “ he sent me home and I can’t afford to lose my job so I figured I needed to go ahead and get out of here before i screw up more” you stated nervously.

“ accidents happen” he reassured. “ it happens no buggy. But we weren’t Able to tip you “ he stated pulling his wallet out.

“ no no” you said pushing his hands away. “I did a horrible job tonight” you exclaimed. He shook his head.

“ no you were just under a lot of pressure” he said reaching back in his wallet.

“ is everything alright here sir?” You heard your boss say. You rolled your eyes knowing he was about to cause more problems again. “ I’m so sorry about your troubles tonight. I don’t know what was going on with our waitress here but I would be glad to fix any issues you may have had tonight”. Your boss exclaimed to Tom. Tom though smirked looking back at you.

“ I actually came to tip her 2 months worth of income that she makes here so when you fire her in the morning she can still make it . Because accidents do happen and you’re just looking at her job as some toy you can toss in the trash when it’s no longer beneficial to you”. He exclaimed. Your jaw was to the floor at this point . “ but if you’ll excuse me I’d like to finish tipping her so i can get back to my family” he said . Your boss scoffed before walking away.

“ look I appreciate the gesture but I’m no charity case” you stated. He looked at you furrowing his eyebrows.

“ no no I didn’t think you were- I mean I don’t think you are a charity case I just watched you deal with complete bullshit since I got here and that’s not fair of any boss to treat their employees like that” he exclaimed. You looked at him for a second and then smiled .

“ well thanks .. I really appreciate it cause I’m pretty sure my job is done for” you said lowering your head in embarrassment. You walked him over to the check out counter , and he ended up tipping you 2 grand .

“ it’s to make sure you’re straight and have plenty of time to find you something else” he said when you looked at the receipt printed out. Tears started to fill your eyes as you handed him the receipt.

“ well here’s your copy and if you’ll sign this one please” you said sliding him the restaurants copy.

“ there” he said as he signed his name, “ and here’s this “ he said as he flipped the receipt over, writing a phone number down. “ don’t be a stranger , Y/n. Maybe we could be friends” atom said before sliding the paper back to you and walking back to his table . You grinned ear to ear blushing as you looked at the phone number written down.

This would be the start of something new.

*part two may or may not happen, inbox “ check please 2” if you want a second part!*

[goodwriterwithbadhabits]

Starving Artists

Master List

Warnings: Mentions of suicidal ideation, alludes to sex, and swearing.

New York was always loud, always living up to its nickname. The city that never sleeps, Sungjin thinks as he meanders through the alley leading to his destination, but it’s always so quiet over here. The area he’s in is nothing like where he lives, here the gutters are littered with broken bottles and discarded newspapers flutter across the sidewalk like tumbleweeds. Here the buildings are brick and wooden, fire escapes creaky and used more as a place to smoke than to run, so unlike the pristine glass buildings Sungjin inhabits with his roommates. However, this part of Queens holds something Manhattan could never, here in the dark bars and the dimly lit doorways, are more musicians than Sungjin can count, and in the building in front of him, lives the best bassists he’s ever heard.

 Brian and his girlfriend Y/n live the way artists in movies do, the way Sungjin thinks they were destined to, in a studio apartment, in some dingy brick building, in nowhere Queens. Y/n is a barista by night and a painter by day, Brian plays in Sungjin’s band most nights and teaches people about music at some half-dead music shop. Sungjin liked to dream these two were living the perfect life for them, but he knew the reality, he knew their vices, the way they would smoke when they were stressed, the way she would crank the music up too loud in her headphones when she was focused on something, he knew how Brian liked to stand on the edges of tall buildings, just to feel the rush of almost dying. Sungjin knew they weren’t in great places, he knew they struggled more often than not, even though they would never ask him, or any of their friends, for help, that’s why he was here today, he had something, something for them that would change all of their lives. 

Their apartment was on the ninth floor, all the way at the top, and the only sound that echoed through the concrete and brick building was that of Sungjin’s sneakers as he jogged up each flight of stairs. Stopping in front of their door, Sungjin caught his breath, winded from the climb up. 

“Yo, Y/n, Brian, you guys awake?” He calls, rapping on the metal door. It quiet for a moment before he hears you answer him, beckoning him in. As normal, the spare key is hidden behind a loose brick and Sungjin lets himself into the flat. The door rolls closed behind him and he kicks off his shoes, setting the key down on the kitchen counter. He’s not surprised to find you in bed (which is actually just a mattress and box spring on the floor) flat on your back, probably just having woken up. “Hey, where’s Brian.” 

“You know he hates being called that.” You laugh, tucking one of your arms under your head to see him better. “And you just missed him, he went up on the roof.” Sungjin huffs, rolling his eyes. 

“Yeah okay. When you see him again, tell him we’re having a band meeting at Lucky’s. You work tonight, right?” You nod in confirmation and Sungjin copies you. “Okay great, be there at 3, it's important.” He rolls his eyes at your salute but turns to leave anyway. “Bye Brian, see you at three.” 

“Bye Sungjin.” The voice from under the blanket calls. 

Once the door rolls closed you throw the blanket off your boyfriend, whose face is now tinted pink and pressed into your bare thigh. 

“Why are you like this?” You whine, and he responds by pressing a kiss to your inner thigh, “You absolute exhibitionist.” His laugh shakes through your body and he finally looks up at you, a cheeky grin on his lips. 

“In my defense, I was kinda in the middle of something when he knocked.” Brian reminds you, nipping at your leg, making you let out a squeak. 

“The logical response is usually stopping, or telling him to fuck off.” You counter, and Brian only shakes his head, crawling up your body, only stopping when his hands are next to your head, his head hovering only inches above yours. 

“Admit that you liked it.” His voice is slightly deeper now, and he can’t stop his eyes from roaming from yours, down to your lips. 

“You liked it more.” You answer and he can’t help the grin that spreads across his face. 

“Maybe, maybe I want Sungjin to catch us.” He drops his head down, pressing kisses into your neck, “Maybe I like the way you react.” His leg hitches up further between yours and you bite back a moan. “Maybe I think, you want to get caught too.” You don’t actually have functioning words, too lost in the way his lips feel against your neck, so instead, you only groan. “What time is it?” You shift your head sideways, picking up the phone that lay discarded on the bed, he picks his head up from your neck to read the time displayed:

11:21 am

“We’ve got time.” You shrug, dropping the phone and pulling Brian’s lips to yours. 

~~

You walk into the cafe with exactly 2 minutes to spare and are not even slightly shocked to find that Jae is running late. Sungjin gives you a smirk as you take your seats at the table in the back corner. 

“Good morning.” Dowoon greets happily, “I bought you coffee and a muffin.” He slides the two over to you, with a grin on his face. “Did you get me anything?” Brian asks and Dowoon makes a face at his elder, shaking his head. 

“We can share, besides, I get plenty of muffins during my shift anyway.” You move the treats in between you and your boyfriend, “Thank you Dowoonie.” 

“So, Y/n,” Sungjin begins, and you prepare for the worst, “What’s Brian’s head game like?” Wonpil chokes on his drink, and you hear Jae from behind you say:

“Bet its weak.” 

“We aren’t talking about yours.” Brian retorts immediately. 

“Hey, I happen to be fantastic at giving head.” Jae defends, dropping his bag next to you and taking the empty seat on your other side. 

“Boys or girls?” Dowoon asks, cheeky grin on his face. 

“Yes.” Jae answers, "Care to test my skills?" He throws the younger boy a wink, and Dowoon stares at him silently for a moment before fake vomiting onto the table, and the others erupt in laughter. 

“I don’t know Jae, it was pretty bad in high school.” You comment, sipping your drink innocently. Jae gasps dramatically. 

“I was just an inexperienced young lad.” He replies, hand over his chest in mock hurt. 

“What ass are you eating to be getting any better?” Wonpil asks, making Sungjin choke on his coffee in shock. 

“Hey, I ain’t eating no ass.” Jae defends, “Unless it’s Brian’s.” His flirty remark is met with Brian pretending to vomit onto the floor. 

“I’m sorry, can we go back to the part about Jae and Y/n in high school?” Dowoon asked, “Cause I was in high school with you, I have no recollection of you two being together, together, you always insisted you were just friends.” 

“Oh cause we weren’t” You shrug, “We had sex, like once, maybe twice, then he got super shy and didn't speak to me for almost a year.” 

“You were like, the hottest girl in school, and I was this dorky nobody. I panicked.” Jae pipes in, “ You literally wore leather to school on the regular, and I once wore the same outfit for a week and no one noticed.” 

“You’re gross.” Brian comments. “Also unrelated note, do you still have any of those leather outfits, babe?” “I would but they’re probably at my parents if they kept anything after I left.” 

“It would be a shame to get rid of those outfits, like the one pair of leather pants with the studs up the sides.” Jae recalls, “Those were sexy.” 

“Thanks, Jae, I’m glad you thought I was sexy in high school.” 

“Hey, that’s not to say you aren’t sexy now.” 

“Oh my god, Y/n, you’re literally the Eagle 2 meme.” Wonpil cuts through Jae’s attempts at redeeming himself. You can’t help but laugh at your younger friend’s words, realizing he’s right. 

“What’s the Eagle 2 meme?” Sungjin asks. 

“It's from either Parks and Rec, or the Office,” You begin "and it goes something like this.” You sit up a little straighter. “From now on we will be using code names, you may address me as Eagle 1, Jae will be ‘been there done that’, Brian is ‘currently doing that’ Wonpil is ‘It happened once in a dream’, Dowoon is ‘If I had to pick a makinae’ and Sungjin is,” You pause for dramatic effect, “Eagle 2.” 

“Oh thank god.” Sungjin’s sigh of relief is met with a chorus of laughter. 

“So are we done talking about my girlfriend’s sex life?” Brian asks, tapping his fingers on the table, a nervous habit he picked up from you, “Cause we both have work tonight, and I gotta be there by 5.” You can tell he’s upset by the conversation, but all you can do at the moment is lace your fingers into his, and offer him a smile. 

“Oh right,” Sungjin snaps his fingers, pulling a flyer from his back pocket. “There’s a battle of the bands in Central Park next month, the winner gets an exclusive deal with JYP Entertainment.” 

“You want to sign up?” Jae asks, reading over the flyer intently, with you peeking over his shoulder. 

“Winner claims an exclusive spot on JYPE artist roster and a confirmed year-long contract. Further prizes pending. Runner ups get 50,000 dollars. Two runners up prizes available” You read aloud, “That's fucking amazing, even if you don’t win, you’d still get some mad money.” 

“That’s only if we get a runner up spot.” Wonpil reminds you. 

“Pillie, you guys are so good, I would be shocked if they didn’t refer you directly to JYP himself after your audition.”

“When’s the audition?” Brian asks, accepting the flyer from Jae. “Its next week, but we don’t have any experience playing live unless you count those little sessions at work.” 

“You guys could probably play here, we sometimes have bands come in to perform on Fridays, and I don’t think we have anyone set for this week.” You offered. 

“Well, what does everyone think?” Sungjin prompts, looking to the younger band members. Dowoon and Wonpil exchange a glance before they both nod. 

“It sounds like a good plan boss,” Dowoon chimes in, flashing everyone a thumbs up. 

“Great.” Sungjin nods, turning back to you. “Could you ask your boss?” You salute him for the second time today, before leaning forward to talk to someone seated at another table. 

“Miyoko, do we have anyone coming in to perform Friday?” Your boss glances up from her phone, thinking for a second before shaking her head. “Cool, can my boyfriend’s band play?” 

“Sure, what’s the name?” All eyes fall to Sungjin, as the realization that none of you had ever figured that part out hits. 

“Day6.” 

~~

It isn’t long before the band members have to leave, Wonpil and Dowoon having classes to attend, Jae being forced to attend his dad’s company get together, and Sungjin scurrying back to his apartment to get everything prepped for the performance. Soon enough, it's time for Brian to leave as well. 

“Do you want me to pick you up tonight?” He asks, slinging his bag over his shoulder. 

“No its okay, I’m not getting off till 1 am anyway, you should go home and sleep.” You smiled up at him, pulling him down to your height for a kiss. 

“Okay, see you when you get home.” He kisses you once more before he’s walking away, stuffing his headphones in his ears. You know something’s wrong, and you know it's going to bother you all day.

And you’re right, most of the day, well night, is filled with you wondering if Brian was okay. When 1 am rolls around, you're tired, but you walk as quick as your legs will take you to get home. No one bothers you, not even the homeless men or junkies on the streets, most of them know you anyway. 

“Good morning, Y/n.” A familiar voice greets you as you turn down the alley to your building’s back door. 

“Good morning, Bear.” You greet the looming man. 

“You heading home?” He asks, not moving from his spot as you make your way further into the darkness. 

“Yes sir,”

“Anyone bother you?”

“Not tonight, sweetie.” You yank open the door, and he lifts his hand in goodbye.

“Sleep well, little one.” 

“Find somewhere warm, Bear, I hear we’re due for a storm soon.” 

“Don’t worry about me.” You wave to him once more, before entering the dark building. You’re not shocked that the elevator isn’t working, but still grumble your way all the way up the stairs. Your apartment is quiet, so you creep in, taking care to not let the door creak as it slides closed. Your shoes are discarded at the door and you tiptoe through the apartment, trying to create as little noise as possible, although you know your boyfriend could sleep through a hurricane if he so chose. However, to your shock, the apartment appears to be empty, no lights are on and your bed is free of a Brian sized lump.

“Babe?” You call, dropping your bag on the floor by the bed. Flicking on the lamp on the bedside table, you wonder how long your boyfriend hasn’t been home, though your suspicions as to his whereabouts are confirmed when you glance to the side to find the window to the fire escape open. 

Brian liked to be on the roof, even though he wasn’t supposed to be up there, something about always being able to hear music on the wind. He was sitting on a small ledge, an old garden box someone was growing weed in, with his back to you, his hair whipping in the wind. 

“Babe?” Your voice doesn’t seem to reach him, and as much as you hate it, you join him fully on the roof. “Baby?” He starts, turning to you abruptly. 

“What are you doing up here without a jacket?” He asks, opening his jacket and motioning for you to sit on his lap. You oblige, perching on one of his legs and wrapping your arms loosely around his shoulders. His arms, and a good portion of his jacket, wrap around your torso, protecting you from the biting wind. 

“Why are you still awake?” He doesn’t seem to hear you, instead pressing his face into your collarbone, “Hey, talk to me, something’s been eating you since lunch.” One of your hands moves to cup his cheek, forcing him to look up at you. 

“Nothing’s wrong babe, I was just thinking, didn’t realize how late it had gotten.” You knew he was lying, and instead of moving, you stared down at him with a raised eyebrow. 

“Babe, I love you, and I have for a few years now, which means I know when you’re lying to me.” He shook his head, as well as he could with his face still in your hand. 

“Nothing’s wrong, baby. Let’s just go to bed.” He tried to stand but quickly realized you weren’t moving. “Babe.” 

“Babe me all you want, Younghyun.” He flinched slightly at your use of his real name. “I sleep literally inches away from you, sometimes less, if you try to go to sleep right now it’s just going to keep us both awake.” He stared at you for a moment before finally relenting under your gaze. 

“I just, at lunch, when you were talking about high school with Jae and Dowoon, how could you possibly be happy the way we are?” 

“What do you mean?” He sighed again, gaze dropping to your legs. 

“Back in high school, you were popular, you had your family, you were with someone like Jae, the son of a very rich man, he could have given you the perfect life.”

“Is this about me and Jae? Cause aside from the two times we slept together, we were never a thing.” 

“This is about the fact that we live in a shitty apartment, we barely make rent some months, there’s a rat the size of a fucking cat that lives with us, and you’re stuck here. You could have been something by now, you could have been living a comfy life, rolling in money, surrounded by your friends and family, not stuck out here in Queens, with someone like me.” He finished his rant quietly, and your heart broke at his words. 

“I don’t care about the size of our apartment, and I’m not stuck here.” You explained. “Babe, look at me.” His gaze remained on your legs, “Younghyun, please?” Slowly, with the help of your fingers on his chin, he finally locked eyes with you. “I don’t care about my status, I would rather be a nobody in a trashy apartment with you, than in some fancy apartment building, staring down at the people below, completely alone. Before you, and before Sungjin and Dowoon and Wonpil, I had one friend I knew was real. Everyone else only wanted to be around me because my parents were literally worth twice what theirs were. Jae was my only friend, and for a while, I didn’t even have him. And you know what, just after high school, when Jae was still debating going to college, I had made up my mind. I was going to get a major degree, then I was gonna move somewhere away from my parents” You couldn’t help but smile as the memories caught up with you. “One night, after I finally got rid of the last of my fake friends, I am sitting on Jae’s couch, drinking shitty beer and watching reruns of Parks and Rec, when someone knocks on the door. I don’t think the person on the other side was expecting to find a girl in her undies answering Jae’s door, and lord knows I wasn’t expecting to find an incredibly handsome man, with two suitcases standing outside. But let me tell you something. That man changed my life, he showed me what it meant to live, to be free, to love with my whole heart.” You bring your hand up through Brian’s hair. “I don’t care where I am, as long as I am with him, with you, I’m where I’m supposed to be.” You were both quiet for a moment before Brian's hands were pulling you closer, and he was pressing kisses to your jaw. 

“What did I ever do to deserve you?” He murmured between kisses and you can’t help but giggle. 

“All the right things” You offered, “Now come on, let’s go back to our shitty apartment, and Jervis, and all the things that make living with you fun.”

“Jervis?”

“The rat.”

[thewebcomicsreview]

Can you maybe contextualize the Homestuck epilogue for someone who has never read Homestuck but is curious what all the hullabaloo is about?

It’s 200,000 words following 8,000 pages of comic, so I’m not sure if I can really explain it “simply”, but I’ll do my best. *ahem*

Spoilers, obviously. 

tl;dr;, by the way, I actually really liked it. But I can see why a lot of people didn’t. 

So, I can, have, and will rant about the myriad of reasons everyone hated the ending, but for the sake of context let’s only focus on the main ones:

1. The climax of the story was meant to be “John masters his powers, goes back in time, and undoes a lot of the terrible things that happen”. This didn’t at all feel like a climax, so everyone expected a “real” climax and was confused when we didn’t get one. Worse, because the solution to, say, Rose’s alcoholism was that John changed things so that she never started drinking, it felt less like characters overcoming their struggles and more like the characters we loved being replaced with alternate, better versions, and we never saw how things went for the “real” characters (John’s main change, preventing Vriska’s death in Act 5, invalidates something like 15% of the entire comic!). 

2. Because the climax fell so flat and the big bad wasn’t defeated (and because [S] Collide ended with the music turning all sinister), everyone went in to Act 7 expecting one last huge twist. But while we were given enough information to figure out the basic gist of how Lord English was defeated, we don’t actually see it.The above screenshot, of Caliborn powering up into his Final Form, comes in the last fifty seconds of Homestuck.  

So, that’s kind of the context of the ending. Everyone went in expecting like a full act, was wildly confused that Act 7 was a victory lap, and then we all kind of figured out eventually what Hussie was going for and we were like “Oh. Okay” in a monotone. So, everyone hoped for the epilogue to “fix” the plot, but the plot wasn’t so much broken as it was badly told.

Phew. Okay, now lets talk about the epilogue. 

So, John is given the choice of whether to actually go back into the comic and kill the bad guy or not, represented as a choice of eating meat or candy for lunch. The canon, alpha timeline choice is to kill Lord English (”meat”), and the choice to stay behind and leave a time loop/plot thread unclosed (”Candy”) creates a doomed timeline. Doomed timelines in Homestuck exist as physical bubbles you can fly to, so the two “timelines” are really physical places in Paradox Space. There are three such location in the epilogue 

1. The “meat” timeline, which is the actual “canon” alpha timeline with no unbroken time loops, where most of the Meat Epilogue takes place. It takes place in the normal universe 

2. The furthest ring, a void above and around all timeline bubbles where John fights Lord English. This is normally where all the doomed timelines are, but they are getting sucked into a black hole that’s sweeping out all the “irrelevant” stuff

Nepetaquest 2019 was never meant to be

3. The “candy” timeline, which is doomed, irrelevant, and thus sucked into the black hole. The whole thing looks like this

The reason I’m explaining all this is because the two epilogues are actually one epilogue, and one affects the other such that you need to read them both. 

In the Candy timeline, Dirk immediately realizes that he’s no longer canon/alpha, and immediately kills himself. Rose and Kanaya are happily married and adopt a troll. Roxy goes all stepford wife and decides all she really wants is to crank out babies with John. John is all “you seem to be wildly out of character for reasons that won’t be explained but okay”. Jade, Dave, and Karkat have a miserable polyamorous relationship where the boys don’t admit they want to each other’s dicks but are willing to settle on Jade’s furry knotted dog penis, which she apparently grew after becoming a dog girl in [S] Cascade

Pictured: The exact moment in Homestuck that Jade Harley grew canine genitalia. I had a print of this artwork and I’ll never look at it quite the same again

There’s relationship drama, but the most important part is Jane, who is now TrumpHitler for basically no reason,. She marries Jake but Gamzee cucks him and, well

There’s a scene of Jake talking to Jade and thinking about maybe murdering a baby while his wife has rape-play sex with a clown in the next room. We don’t have time to unpack all that, because Jane is also TrumpHitler now, and sets out to commit a literal holocaust on all the Trolls for….um…..well for no reason. She’s just evil now. Jade’s corpse crashes from the sky, which is a shock to everyone, most of all Jade. Then Aradia and Sollux show up and Jane’s corpse comes to life as a god and everyone kind of just….nods…..and ignores it. The JadeCorpse is possessed by a version of Calliope who’s basically God, whom Aradia serves. Calliope explains that nothing in this timeline matters and it would normally just dissolve but she’s keeping it around because letting everyone dissolve into nothing when you can stop it seems like kind of a bitch thing to do and also she needs somewhere for Lord English’s body to land. Everything in Candyland gets as comically terrible as possible, full-on civil war. John has an existential crises about being irrelevent but gets over it, and Calliope finally finds Lord English and eats him, gaining the power to escape the black hole. Somewhere all this Dave meets up with Barack Obama (??!!?!?!) who is a god (!!!!!!!!!!!) that fucked Dave’s bro (!efefiebnfuewf) and merges all Daves together into one Ultimate Dave that he puts in a robot. Davebot, Aradia, and Calliope all leave the black hole and close the door behind them such that nothing inside (which includes the “canon” Vriska and every single alternate Timeline that existed or will ever exist) can ever get out to interfere with the canon timeline ever again. 

Also 16-year-old Vriska fucks 40-year-old Gamzee and is so embarrassed about it that she kills him. 

Feel free to take a break here

==>

In the Meat timeline, Dirk has ascended and god from God-Like-Thor to God-Like-God, and can now manipulate the story in a fourth-wall breaking way that’s effectively nigh-omniscience and mind control. He’s also evil now, but that makes more sense then Jane being Hitler. 

John recruits the pre-retcon versions of Dave, Rose, and Jade, who with John are the closest thing to the “original” versions of the main four that Homestuck is gonna give us at this point. They fight Lord English and successfully boot him into the black hole, but all die in the process. John is mortally wounded but survives long enough to bang Terezi in the back of his dad’s car and get them both home (said car ends up in Candyland, where Candy John finds it and recognizes Terezi’s cum because thanks Hussie). Jade lives long enough that she could get to Earth C herself, but this version of Jade doesn’t even know about Earth C and decides to die via black hole. Dirk tries to stop this, but Calliope, who is more powerful than Dirk, pulls her in

It is indeed to late, and OG! Jade gets sucked into the black hole, crashes into Candyland, and leaves behind a fresh corpse for Calliope to control and all the people in Candyland to be weirdly blase over because deep down they know their world doesn’t matter. Having control over this Jade lets her possess the alpha Jade in Meatworld, which in turn lets her influence things there. She and Dirk fight about who gets to be president of earth (which doesn’t seem important unless you read Candy and know what president Jane will do), and Dirk manages to tranquilize Jade and keep Calliope from affecting anything else. 

Jane becomes president of Earth and starts off and the path of becoming God Empress of Mankind. John dies, and we get more than a hint that Dirk killed him for being insufficiently grateful of their paradise planet

With things on Earth taken care of, Dirk mind controls Rose into become his (sex?) slave, and mind controls Kanaya into thinking that’s cool. He tells Terezi (who he can’t control, since Mind is her power) that if she comes with they can maybe revive John, and they all home into a spaceship and fuck off to a new planet. Dirk is the new Lord English, Jane is the new Condesce, and Rose -now a dreambot - is the new Handmaid. And Terezi is….also there. They find a new M-Class planet and set up to evolve some life there for a Sburb game. On earth, now of of range of Dirk’s mind control, everyone realizes that him kidnapping Rose was actually kind of fucked up, and they hop a spaceship to chase after them, with Jade-possessed Calliope giving them advice.  

And that’s the epilogue! Dirk has kidnapped Rose and become unto god, and is setting up a nefarious plan we don’t know the details of, and a the heroes are racing to stop him. Good night everybody!

I’m assuming there’s going to be an Epilogue Epilogue, because this was just a straight-up cliffhanger, and I’ll guess I’ll see when I think when that happens or when it becomes clear that won’t happen.

Hopefully that was easy enough to follow, I did my best. 

[writingamongtheroses-archive]

Showtime- Chapter 3

(Liza, at 25 and 3, finds a present. Then she finds a music box.)

The Musicbox

Liza forced herself to go home to shower in the crappy cold water only shower in her apartment- the hot office and fear for her life had produced sweat- and change before she went to tío Rafael's house.

The three-story house was where Liza had spent her childhood since she was ten. Her parents had disappeared after the same accident that left scars on her head and somehow, she ended up living with tío Rafael, alongside the kids he fostered. She wasn't sure why- he was her great uncle, and she had tia Camilla-Rose and tio Jorge. But that did spare her from her cousin Candela.

Liza marched up to the door to give it a solid knock. There was a moment before the door opened, revealing her foster cousin Lynn. She had been a foster child when Liza moved in, although she had moved out years ago to become a psychologist, helping victims of police violence. "Oh boy," Lynn said when she saw her. "You should probably wait, Abuelita-"

"¡Lynn! ¡Vuelve, querida, para que sepas dónde está la fiesta!"

The blonde turned to yell back. "Un minuto!" Liza had paled at the voice from inside by the time she turned back, rolling her eyes. "Sorry, Abuelita's here, raving about Candela's engagement party."

Liza winced. "Oh! Um..." She rolled her sleeve back to consult the notes written on her arms. "Who is she..."

With a sigh, Lynn took pity. "This guy named Tom. Don't tell her or Abuelita, but I don't think he was planning for it to go this far."

"Lynn!"

"Un minuto, Abuelita!"

There were scoff and some footsteps, approaching the door. Lynn gestured for her to run. "¡Un momento, dice..." Liza turned to sprint away but froze at the old woman's voice. "¡Ah! Elizabeth, preciosa, ¡estás aquí!"

She turned back, fixing a fake grin on her face at the sight of the old woman. "Abuelita!" The old woman pulled her into a hug. "¡Me alegro de verte! Otra vez."

"¡También me alegro de verte, nieta!" Abuelita pushed Liza away to smile even harder. That smile warned that talk about Candela, Abuelita's favorite, was incoming. Lynn and Liza shared winces. "¡¿Escuchaste las noticias?! Tom finalmente le ha propuesto a Candela!" She opened her mouth to reply, but her great-grandmother was already dragging her inside. They passed three more foster kids- Tucker, Huang Fu, and Anne- playing in the living room as they entered the kitchen. "Rafael, Candela y Tom, Marisol, mira quién vino de visita!"

Tío Rafael was sitting with Liza's cousin and her twin, as well as a blonde guy who must've been Tom, at the kitchen table. Rafael aimed a warm smile at his great-niece. "Hola, Liza."

"Hola, Tío Rafael." Liza turned her fake grin to Candela, who was gripping and nuzzling Tom's arm like there was no tomorrow. (He looked a bit lost.) "Congratulations, Candela," she said in English, for the benefit of Tom, as she pulled up her sleeve. "I'm so happy for you."

"Heh, it's no big deal," Candela said with a sweep of a hand, showing off the huge diamond on her finger. "I just knew Tom was the one." Liza shared an eye roll with Marisol and Lynn. "Anyway, the party's next weekend at 5. You can remember that, right?"

Everything went silent. Liza could feel everyone's eyes on them. She managed to regain her smile, nodding. "Of course! Now, as much as I enjoy your...company, I'm actually here to-"

"Oh my gosh! You have to hear how he proposed!"

Liza’s eye twitched as she felt the urge to bang her head against something.

-_-

When she parked at the restaurant, it was 11:30. She had arrived earlier than yesterday, planning on trying to talk to Mr. Calworth. But, when she got in, there was nobody there. The dining hall looked like there wasn't even a cleaning crew.

The three animatronics stood on-stage, looking innocent as hell. It looked creepy, like they hadn't moved at all last night. Liza stuck her tongue out at them. She flinched a minute later at the thought of them taking even worse offense to that, and hurried to her office. Midnight must be when they started that weird night mode.

She should've come earlier.

Why were they hunting her? The whole 'naked endoskeleton' sounded like a bad lie.

Liza bit her lip before glancing outside. It was a bad idea, but she still had twenty minutes left. Her curiosity won out. First, though, she ducked back in to grab the landline and dial star-66. The phone guy must have some answers to her questions. Instead of the guy, she received an answering machine. It was late and he was probably asleep- she could try later.

She grabbed the office flashlight before she made her way down the hall, keeping to the shadows. A too-loud creak made her dart through the nearest door. She resisted a scream when she found herself surrounded by parts. Lisa glanced at the sign on the door, only to groan. Of course. She was in Parts and Services.

Liza flipped the switch to lighten the dark room. There was a shudder before a bulb blew. "Great," she grumbled. Now, there were shadows to jump at. She did jump at one when she poked around. A stab of pain lanced up her arm. She glanced over to see that she had scratched herself against a spare endoskeleton. Liza hissed as she grabbed the cut to stem the blood, glancing over to see a shelf of spare heads.

The room was dark, but she could still see the toys. This must be the Prize Room!

She let out a shudder, moving past. A loud screech made her freeze. She watched as a blur of grey sped past the doorway. That must've been Bun, which meant...oh no. It was midnight and she was far from the safety of her office. Liza immediately shut the door and turned off the light before she could blink.

She had to be quiet.

What was most interesting was the pretty present box, perched on the counter. The three-year-old wandered up closer to get a look at the purple paper and the poofy golden bow on top. But, even as she stood on tippy-toes, she couldn't see it!

Liza tried to move lightly on her feet, further into Parts and Services and farther away from the door. Hopefully, if any of the animatronics poked their head in here, they wouldn't see her. Instead, she ended up tripping.

The breath knocked out of her, Liza froze on the floor. She could hear footsteps passing by. From what she had figured last night, Bun had a metal leg and Kitty and Rex shared a limp. She clamped a hand over her mouth: it was Ted, just outside the door. She laid there, heart pounding in her ears, for what felt like an eternity. Finally, the footsteps walked away.

Liza looked around for something to help her to see the present. She ended up pushing a chair behind the counter and climbing up it. She was able to get next to the present and look at it better. The purple wrapping paper had a pattern of flowers that Tío Rafael called 'oleanders.' The bow suddenly shuddered.

Something was inside!

She sat up, aiming the office-issued flashlight at what she had tripped over.

It looked like a Ted suit, although the fur had lightened to a shade of gold and the eyes were empty sockets. It sat there, collapsed and lifeless. For some reason, Liza set aside the flashlight. She reached up and gently unhooked the faceplate from the suit.

The suit was empty inside, just as she expected it to be. No, wait...Liza reached inside. She snagged something that felt rough, then snatched something smooth from deeper in the suit. She pulled her hand back to look under the flashlight.

In her hand sat what looked like a clump of blonde hair and the shreds of a green ribbon. Both were stiff with age.

Liza attempted to pull off the lid, but it remained firm. The three-year-old whined- she needed to see what was inside! She looked around again for something to help her.

Liza tucked the two into her pocket before replacing the faceplate and trying to get to her feet. Instead, her boot kicked something. She winced. If she had broken something, Mr. Calworth probably wouldn't be very happy. She got to her knees, swinging the flashlight over.

It was a present.

It looked old. What must've been a few years of dust and grime had dulled the bow into an ugly shade of yellow. She could see some type of pattern on the purple wrapping paper, but the grime made it hard to see. Liza blinked in confusion before looking around for something to explain why a present box, of all things, was in this horror room.

Her flashlight caught the gleam of something on the workbench next to them.

Her eyes landed on a music box.

It was pretty. Liza picked it up to examine it further. It was a shade of dark blue, while gold made oleander patterns on it. She glanced between it and the present. Could this help her? She started cranking it until the handle couldn't move anymore, then released.

When Liza heard the twinkling tune, she nearly broke the box by grabbing the handle to try and force it to stop. The animatronics would hear and Ted would break the door down and grab her and start stuffing UNTIL SHE FIT-

Liza giggled when she recognized the tune. It was the family lullaby, about oleanders! Tío Rafael played it whenever she stayed at his house. She watched as the music box played the song, not noticing the present box’s lid shifting. Until it finally stopped...

And the box opened.

Liza stared at...whatever it was.

It looked like an animatronic, which made her tense. It had a completely black body, except for the face. The face looked like a china mask, completely white. Blue streaks were painted from the eyeholes to the cheeks. The chin was painted red- it looked like blood- stretching from a mouth made of a black line. It stared at her with little white dots, floating in dark eye sockets. Liza stared back, ready to run.

A spindly-thin hand raised up and a finger beckoned.

She wasn't sure why, but she scooted closer until she was right next to the Ted suit. The thing glanced downwards. Liza followed it's gaze to see the cut on her arm. "Oh, um..." She held her arm out so it could see it better. "I scratched myself a little bit ago." The dots flicked from the cut to her, and she got the feeling it was unimpressed. It turned in its box, turning around a minute later to reveal a bandage. "Thank you?"

...that was totally an eye-roll.

It withdrew a little when it finished bandaging up her arm, watching her. Liza watched it back. "So...what now?" she said finally, wincing at the too-loud volume of her voice. The thing merely stared before rising a little...

She didn't have a chance to yell before one spindly finger tapped her on the forehead.

Liza collapsed and all went dark.

The job done, the Puppet retreated back in its box.

"Hey, Liza, look!"

Liza looked over from the guard's hold. The Puppet pointed to its head. The three-year-old raised a brow as she raised a hand to her head. She pulled out her yellow hairband, offering it over. The Puppet took it before retreating back into the box and shutting the lid.

She was starting to wonder how to explain losing her headband to her mama before the lid opened and it popped up again, offering the headband back. A pretty bow now sat on it, made of yellow ribbon. Liza couldn't help the squeal of delight that escaped her as she took it, pushing it into her hair. There was a chuckle from the guard. "Now, what do we say?"

"Thank you!"

Six came and left.

In the shadows of Parts and Services, she slept.

[silverfootstepswrites]

Equinox: Fall [4]

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3  | Chapter 4 (here) | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6

The leaves began to turn orange and gold as the temperature dropped. The most brash were the maples, who turned blood red overnight. They stood blazing between the pines who refused to change with the season. 

As the ground disappeared under the falling leaves, the sounds of raking replaced the constant chatter of crickets. Smoke curled into the sky as people burned the piles. Others packed them in big paper bags for the garbage truck to take away. Part of Sakura wished that they would never rake up the leaves. She loved the snap of a crisp leaf under her shoe. The crunching noises stacking together when she stomped on a big pile.

Ino laughed at her when she stepped out of her way to get the crunchiest leaf. But ended up doing the same too. 

As they walked past Kakashi’s house, they heard several different barks. And when they turned the corner, they saw Kakashi past the chain-link fence, rolling in the leaves with his bulldog. A pug pounced on top of the both of them, teeth latching on to Kakashi’s pant leg. They could see the other dogs running around in the yard. Sakura hadn’t believed him when he had told her that he had five dogs.

“See, the sheriff’s issue is kind of like me with shoes. I see. I must have,” Ino had explained. 

If there was a stray dog anywhere in or near town, Kakashi was sure to take it in. 

And Sakura was glad she knew this one night as she drove back to Old Pines from Empire City. It was so dark on the road that she had to use her high beams. One of her worst nightmares was accidentally hitting a deer.

At a particularly steep bend in the road, she spotted a shape. It was too stocky to be a fawn. And definitely not tall enough to be a buck. As she drove closer, she realized that it was a dog, lower half caked in mud. It shied to the side of the road as she approached, but didn’t run off. Sakura turned off her high beams, leaving on the regular lights. Parking the car, she hung out the driver’s side window.

“Hey, baby. You lost?” she asked. Like the dog could respond to her. It stood there, trembling.

“It’s pretty cold outside, huh? Are you hungry?” she inquired. Ducking back into her car, she glanced over at the passenger’s seat. She had leftovers from the taco bowl she had ordered for dinner. She wasn’t sure whether dogs could eat cilantro so she took a second to brush the herb off the chunks of steak she fished out. Sakura opened up the car door. She held out her hand, offering the steak. She could see the dog sniff. But after taking a few steps towards her, it ran off.

Sakura glanced at the clock on her dashboard. It was getting late. But she didn’t feel good just leaving a dog out here. A less observant driver could hit it. And even if that didn’t happen, knowing that a hungry dog roamed the streets didn’t sit well with her either.

She found Kakashi’s number and called him. He answered after several rings, voice thick with sleep.

“Is everything okay?” he asked right away.

“Hey, Sheriff. Sorry. I know it’s really late. But I could use your help,” she said.

She gave him a rough estimate of where she was. After she hung up, she sat staring at the pieces of sliced steak in her hand. She could see the dog pacing back and forth further up the road.

“Come eat, baby. I won’t hurt you,” she called. And while the dog looked at her again, it didn’t try to come any closer. The car chimed when she opened the door. She took slow, careful steps to cross the road. She laid the pieces of steak on the asphalt before getting back in her car. As she wiped her fingers on a paper napkin, she kept her eyes glued to the dog. It stared right back at her.

She began to wonder if the noise of the car’s engine was what was scaring it. And as she debated whether to kill the engine or not, the dog took a few tentative steps towards the steak. When she didn’t move, it took a few more steps. Sakura’s face broke into a grin as she watched the dog gobble down the few pieces of cold steak. The dog lingered where it had found the steak, licking its chops.

Sakura lifted her head when a shadow interrupted the shapes the headlights made on the road. She recognized Kakashi easily. Dark tail swirling with mist. He looped around the other side of the car, careful not to spook the dog, whose ears had already perked up. Kakashi’s silhouette shifts. When he opened up the passenger side door, it was in the shape of a man in grey pajama pants and a t-shirt. He had at least thought to wear his duty jacket over his attire so that he looked slightly less like a lost sleepwalker.

“Is that our friend?” he inquired in a low voice. He put a knee on the seat, ducking his head to get a look at the wary dog.

“He ate a little steak. That’s a good thing, right?” Sakura whispered.

“I’m guessing your charm doesn’t work on dogs,” Kakashi commented. She made a sour face at him. He chuckled.

“You did good. Lucky for us, my charm works on dogs pretty well,” he added. Before she could ask him what he meant, Kakashi picked up one of the bigger chunks of steak before he hopped out of the car. Sakura watched him pass in front of the headlights. The dog growled low in its throat when Kakashi approached. Kakashi lowered the steak down onto the asphalt before walking back to Sakura. They waited for what felt like a million years. Then the dog bent down to sniff at the steak. Gobbled that up too. And then it lifted its head, staring at Kakashi now.

Sakura leaned back to grab the takeout container. She passed it to Kakashi, who sat on the road, his back pressing against Sakura’s car. Kakashi stretched his legs out in front of him as he picked out another piece of steak. He made a kissy noise, holding out the food. The dog sniffed, but stayed in place.

“Come here, sweetheart. We won’t hurt you,” Sakura called.

Kakashi reached out to place the steak just past his foot. After a long while, the dog took cautious steps toward them, hesitating every few paces. It snatched up the food, watching them with huge eyes. It took another step. One more. Closer and closer until it sat between Kakashi’s legs, gobbling down what remained of the taco bowl. Sakura’s hands itched to pet it, but she restrained herself. Instead, she squeezed out of the driver’s seat, crouching down beside Kakashi.

“There’s a cut,” she observed.

“Where?” Kakashi asked.

She used her finger to trace her finger under Kakashi’s eye, right along his cheekbone.

“I can’t tell if it’s old or not,” she added, tilting her head this way and that.

The dog finished its meal. Licking its chops, it lifted its head to regard the both of them.

“Hey there. Do you feel better?” Sakura inquired with a smile. Kakashi reached out, slowly. And when he patted the dog’s neck, it stayed still. He rubbed through the fur, scratching between its ears.

“No collar. Pretty friendly for a street dog,” Kakashi remarked.

“Oh my god Kakashi. I want to hug him so bad. Look at those big, sad eyes,” she whispered. Kakashi chuckled. He gave the dog a few pats on the belly.

“Maybe a little later. After a bath. Because we’ve got a stinky boy or girl on our hands right now,” Kakashi declared, nose scrunching. Sakura hopped back into her car. She contorted and stretched until her fingers grasped the blanket she always kept in the back seat. As she unfolded it, the dog tilted its head to watch her. She crouched beside him, copying the same, slow movements that Kakashi had been using to drape it around the dog..

“Alright, buddy. Let’s get you cleaned up,” Kakashi declared. He lifted the dog in his arms. Sakura leaned across the console to open up the passenger side door for him. Kakashi rested his hand on the dog’s head as he ducked inside the car. He settled into the seat, the dog resting on his lap as he fumbled with the seatbelt.

“Where are we going?” asked Sakura, switching to the high beams. She cranked up the heater before she pulled back onto the road.

“I’ve got room for one more,” replied Kakashi.

“Poor baby. It was must’ve been scary out there alone. Well don’t worry about a thing. We’re going to take good care of you,” Sakura said. And to her surprise, the dog looked right at her. Like it could understand what she was saying.

The winding path led them into Old Pines. She turned off the main road, to the quiet street where Kakashi lived. It was impossible to miss, especially since the steeple of the abandoned church was the tallest thing in town. Ivy had grown up one side of the building, but it was still in great shape. Sakura suspected that Kakashi maintained it in his free time.

Sakura pulled into the driveway. She parked right beside his cruiser. A chorus of barks greeted them. The dog in Kakashi’s lap gave them a bewildered look. Kakashi laughed.

“They’re friendly. Don’t look so scared,” he assured the dog, giving a few more pats. He opened the door and lifted the dog into his arms again. Sakura killed the engine and hurried to close the door for Kakashi. He stepped down path to his home. The grass was perfectly-trimmed. The little lights lining the path lit up when they moved near them.

“Do you mind grabbing my keys? They’re in my pocket,” Kakashi said as they stepped onto the porch. Sakura reached inside his jacket. His keyring was heavy with all sort of keys of different shapes and sizes. With some direction from Kakashi, she managed to find the one for his house. Inserting it into the lock, she turned it and slid the knob to the right. As soon as the door opened, she was greeted by a wet, black nose.

“Bull, give us a little room, buddy,” Kakashi grunted as they stepped inside. The burly bulldog kept close, but took a few steps back. He sniffed, stubby little tail shaking furiously. A pug came scrambling down the hall, colliding with Bull in his hurry. Kakashi chuckled as he kicked off his boots.

“Alright, everyone. We’ve got a guest today. Be good,” Kakashi ordered as he walked into the kitchen. The pug ran after him, but Bull lingered in the foyer with Sakura. Bull eyed Sakura for a moment. She had the feeling that he was an older dog from the way he trundled. Bull looped around Sakura and nudged the back of her legs, as if urging her inside.

“Okay, okay. Give me a second,” she laughed as she stepped out of her shoes. She paused to scratch Bull’s chin, earning a lick on the cheek. She rubbed her face with her sleeve as she straightened. And then followed Bull into the house.

The first thing that struck Sakura about Kakashi’s place was how cozy it was. The walls were crowded with photos. The frames were all mismatched and some of the pictures looked way older. Like black-and-white photo, no-smiles old. Like most homes in Old Pines, there was a fireplace. Kakashi’s was made of brick and there were currently a few logs smoldering inside.

As she followed Bull deeper inside, she entered the kitchen. A kettle sat on the stove with the flame on high under it. Kakashi sat on the floor, the muddy dog sitting between his outstretched legs.

“Huh. You were right,” Kakashi said.

“About what?” Sakura inquired.

Kakashi gestured to the spot below the dog’s right eye. There was a gash there. Skin pink and shiny, like it had just healed over recently.

“It doesn’t look infected. I think it’ll be okay once the fur grows back in,” Kakashi guessed. He picked up the dog’s left paw. Then the right.

“Looks like you were running for a while, bud,” he then observed.

Sakura crouched down in front of the dog. Who regarded her with those big, doe eyes. She patted the top of its head.

“It’s a good thing you picked him up. It’s supposed to rain in the morning. He could’ve caught a cold,” Kakashi told her as he got to his feet. Wrapping a dish towel around the handle of the kettle, he poured the water out into a big washtub. The pug sniffed at it, only backing off when Kakashi flapped the towel.

“It’s water, Pakkun. Quit being so nosey,” he scolded. Sakura laughed as the pug ran over to her instead. She obliged a few pats. But the pug wandered off after discovering that she didn’t have any treats.

Kakashi gave the dog a warm bath, scrubbing the mud from its tangled fur.  He removed a few burrs that had stuck to its back and tail. He covered the dog’s eyes as he poured water over its head, patting it all over with a clean towel.

“Aren’t you a good….” Kakashi paused, peeking under the dog’s belly, “Boy. The best boy.” Pakkun’s ears perked up. Stubby tail wiggling back and forth. He wandered up to Sakura, who patted his butt.

“You’re a good boy too, Pakkun,” she assured him.

“Do you mind holding him for a second?” Kakashi asked, as he walked off.

“Sure,” Sakura replied. She took his place, ruffling the towel over the pooch’s damp fur. She rubbed at his ears too, smiling when she saw his tail wag a little.

“You like that, huh?” she teased, rubbing his ears again. She laughed when the tail wagged even harder.

Kakashi returned with a hairdryer to finish drying the dog off. When Pakkun wandered over with curious eyes again, Kakashi directed the warm air at him a few times. Sakura burst into laughter when Pakkun tried chomping the warmth with his teeth. Stubby little legs stomping all over as he tried to bite the bad air.

By the time the stray was clean and dry, the other dogs had wandered off or gone to sleep. Bull lay on his back in the warm patch of floor in front of the refrigerator. Pakkun lay beside him, curled up into a little ball. But his eyes opened whenever Kakashi walked past.

“I’ll take him to the vet in the morning. But we gotta quarantine him for now. I don’t know if he’s up to date on any of his vaccinations,” Kakashi declared. And as he guided the dog into a cage in the corner of the kitchen, Sakura felt a little sad.

“Won’t he get lonely?” she wondered. Kakashi looked surprised as he closed the door on the cage. The dog took a moment to survey his surroundings. He turned around a few times before settling on the floor of the cage, on top of a faded blue blanket.

“Actually, he’s probably feeling pretty overwhelmed. This’ll give him some space to get used to being here. And he can get used to the other dogs without them going too crazy,” Kakashi told her. He spoke with the confidence of someone who knew a lot about dogs. Which was good. Because Sakura really didn’t know anything about dogs other than she wasn’t supposed to give them chocolate.

She hugged her knees to her chest, cheek resting on her knee as she took this in. Kakashi stood with his hands on his hips. He tilted his head as he looked her over.

“You look like you could use a drink,” he observed.

“Yes, please,” Sakura said without hesitation.

Kakashi offered her hand his hand. He pulled her to her feet with surprising strength.

“Uh. You’ve got a little…” Sakura uttered, gesturing to the front of his shirt. Kakashi looked down. The entire front of his black t-shirt was plastered with golden hairs. He looked over at the cage where the dog still lay, head resting on his paws. Blinking innocently at him. Kakashi sighed.

“There’s no point in wearing black when you own dogs,” he muttered. He put his hands on Sakura’s shoulders, spinning her around. Gave her a light push in the direction of the living room.

“Let me wash up. I’ll be right there,” he said.

Sakura found a light grey dog sitting on the brown leather sectional. As she sank down on the opposite end, the dog stood. He sniffed in her direction, his collar jingling. He hopped right over to her, tail swishing back and forth.

“Hey there. What’s your name?” Sakura asked. She reached for his collar to flip over the tag.

“Shiba? I don’t think you’re a shiba inu though…” Sakura mused as she rubbed his back. Shiba yawned in response, settling down beside her on the sofa. He snuggled up close to her, head resting on her leg.

“Okay. Since you’re cute I forgive your name that makes no sense,” she muttered, leaning her head back. After a while, she heard a door open down the hall. The whir of a bathroom fan droned on before the light went out. She glimpsed Pakkun trot out of the kitchen. There was the swish of fabric, wooden drawers sliding open and then shut. Kakashi strolled down the hall a couple minutes later. She heard several clicks as he turned on the stove.

Sakura didn’t realize that she had dozed off until she blinked. Suddenly Kakashi was hunched in front of the fireplace. He tossed a few logs into the fire box. Dusting off his hands, he turned to look at her.

“This might be the world’s comfiest couch,” she declared. He picked a mug off the coffee table and handed it to her. She could smell the cinnamon as she let the steam bathe her face. Curls of orange peel floated at the top of the drink.

“Mulled apple cider,” Kakashi told her as he sat next to her with his own mug.

Wow,” Sakura sighed after she took a sip.

“I could add a bit of rum if you’d like,” he offered. But Sakura shook her head.

It was quiet. Only the fireplace crackling. Bull snoring in the kitchen. It was a perfect autumn night. Just chilly enough that the fire felt warm and not hot. Sakura held the mug in both her hands. She rested it in her lap, careful not to jostle Shiba.

“So… it’s six dogs now…” Sakura remarked.

“Seven,” Kakashi corrected, pointing at himself.

“Oh. I always forget that,” she confessed. She folded her legs under herself. Shiba rolled onto his back, exposing his pink belly. Sakura rubbed her hand up and down it, watching his little leg twitch. When she looked back at Kakashi, he was smiling too.

“He’s a cutie,” Sakura commented.

“Mm. Ino found him digging through the trash can behind her shop. Scared her half to death,” Kakashi told her.

And then a thought occurred to Sakura. She finished her mug and set it to the side before she broached the topic. Unsure of how Kakashi would take it.

“I did some reading the other day. About church grims,” she confessed. Kakashi’s smile faded. But he didn’t look upset. He leaned back a little, putting his feet up on the coffee table.

“Oh?”

“Please tell me those books are wrong,” she uttered. Kakashi draped his arm over the back of the sofa as he closed his eyes. He drew in a long breath through his nose. And when his eyes opened, he was smiling. But there was something sad about it.

He just shook his head.

Because the books in the library had informed her about a lot of the magical residents of the town. There was so much she didn’t know. And she didn’t want to say something rude out of ignorance. The more she read, the more she learned about the darkness that sometimes lingered in their stories. In particular, the story of the church grim had shocked her. In fact, the lore was so horrific that she had referred several other texts before she understood that it wasn’t a fluke. It was the truth.

“They buried you alive?” Sakura whispered.

“In the foundation of the church. Right under the cornerstone,” Kakashi confirmed.

“That’s horrible.”

“They were scared. They needed someone to guard the churchyard. And it couldn’t be a person,” he said with a shrug.

Sakura said nothing. She looked down at Shiba, who blinked back at her.

“It wasn’t so bad at first. I roamed the church grounds at night. And I would go to sleep in the church rafters during the day. I kept the robbers away. And the humans were happy,” recalled Kakashi. He went on, gaze growing distant now.

“I noticed that the town started getting smaller. People were moving away. And then I was all by myself one day. I still tried to guard the church. But it started to fall apart. I knew that if only I had human hands, I could do something…” Kakashi drifted off.

Very carefully, Sakura touched his forearm. Kakashi’s gaze returned to her. And then he was smiling. The same old sheriff with those sleepy eyes.

“In other words, I’m an old stray dog. Just like him,” he concluded. He reached out to scratch under Shiba’s chin. Shiba’s tongue lolled out, making the both of them laugh. Sakura didn’t press him for anything else after that. She could see that it was like an old wound. Still a little tender under all the layers. She felt a pang of guilt as she wondered whether he had only divulged this much under the influence of her charm.

The conversation flowed a different way after that. They started to talk about the town. Its residents. How the harvest festival was coming up soon. As he spoke, Sakura found her eyelids growing heavy. She snickered.

“What?” Kakashi asked.

“I thought I was supposed to have the magic voice,” she commented.

“Why? Is my voice magically boring you?” Kakashi inquired.

Sakura yawned, shaking her head. “No…. it’s just… really nice. It’s kind of like…”

“Like?” Kakashi prompted.

“A hug,” she decided. She yawned again, rubbing her eyes with the heels of her hands.

“Sorry. I’m just so sleepy. You’re not boring. Promise,” she added.

Kakashi got off the sofa. She heard the mugs clinking together. His footsteps growing far away. After a while, the floorboards creaked again.

“Get some rest. I think Shiba could use the company,” Kakashi suggested.

“Just a quick power nap. I’ll be out of your hair in a bit,” Sakura sighed. A blanket settled over her.

“Sure,” she heard Kakashi chuckle. With a click, the lights went out. The fire crackled on as she drifted to sleep on the most comfortable couch in town.

When Sakura jolted awake, the sun was out. Birds cheeping by the window. Shiba was gone, but Bull had taken his place. Bull’s eyes opened when Sakura shifted. She twisted to look out the window.

“Where’s Daddy, Bull?” she inquired, turning to the bulldog.

Bull blinked a few times. He placed his paws on the windowsill, staring outside. He looked at Sakura. Then back out the window. So Sakura copied him, trying to follow his line of sight. And she realized that the cruiser was gone. It was just her little red car occupying the driveway.

“Oh,” she said.

Sakura got to her feet, trying to remember whether she had brought her purse into the house. As she wandered into the kitchen, she saw the cage was empty. Pakkun sat on the kitchen floor. He looked up at her with his big, wet eyes. Sakura paused to pet him before she noticed a note on the refrigerator. It was held up with a magnet in the shape of a fish.

Got an emergency call early. Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge. I already fed the dogs. Don’t let them fool you.

Sakura eyed Pakkun sulking by his empty food bowl.

“You sly little thing,” she accused. He yipped in response.

Sakura locked the door to Kakashi’s house before she headed outside. The dogs followed her to the door, including two that she hadn’t seen the night before. She had never seen Bull make such a sad face before. They jumped up on the sofa, lining up at the window to watch her as she got into her car.

On the way home, Sakura paused at the stop sign right by Ino’s cafe. There was plenty of coffee in her cabinets. But that would require actually having to brew it. Which felt like an unnecessary journey to her. So she found an empty spot on the street to park. The bell on the door tinkled as she stepped inside.

“Hey, hun. I knew you’d be by. Give me two seconds,” Ino called from somewhere in the kitchen in the back.

Sakura waved at the other patrons. She knew most people in town by sight now. Especially her fellow caffeine addicts.

“Blueberry scone with lemon drizzle,” Ino announced, emerging with a waxed bag pinched between her fingers. She handed it to Sakura. There was already a cup of ice coffee waiting on the counter with her name written on the side.

“Although I don’t understand why you’d want a cold drink in this weather,” Ino added.

“Hey. I thought this was a judgement-free zone,” Sakura protested.

“No. All the judgement. My house. My rules,” Ino corrected as she punched the numbers into the register. Sakura handed over a few bills, dumping the change into the tip jar.

Ino reached out to grasp Sakura’s hand. Her eyes went wide.

“Why’re you in such a good mood?” she demanded.

“Because you’re here, Ino,” Sakura replied, fluttering her eyelashes. But Ino refused to be distracted. There was a glint in her eye that Sakura was coming to realize. When Ino smelled gossip, she was insatiable.

“Noooo. Something happened. Girl, you gotta dish,” Ino persisted.

Sakura laughed. And as she considered coming clean, the bell attached to the door chimed again. Ino gave her a stern look.

“No running away. You need to tell me,” Ino warned her. Sakura gave a helpless nod, sighing. She took a step to the side to make room for the new customer.

“Hey.”

Turning her head, Sakura automatically replied, “Morning.” She started a little when she saw blue flannel. A heavy tool belt. Her gaze drew up to Kiba’s face. She hadn’t seen him in almost a month. His stubble had grown out into the beginnings of a rather impressive beard.

“It’s been a while. How’ve you been, stranger?” she asked.

But she didn’t get the response she expected. It was just idle small talk. To be polite. But Kiba avoided her eyes. And his discomfort made her uncomfortable too. She wondered what she had done.

Ino came running out. Finger pointing like a weapon.

“Stop! Whatever you’re doing, stop, Kiba! I won’t have you screwing up Sakura’s morning. So if you’re being weird, cut it out!” Ino ordered.

“Relax, Ino. I’m not doing anything,” snorted Kiba. And as he reached into his pocket for his wallet, he angled his head slightly toward her. His eyes widened. Staring straight at Sakura, he took a deep breath through his nostrils.

“Why-?” And then Kiba cut himself off as he looked around at all the other people in the cafe. Shaking his head, he took his change from Ino.

“See? You’re being seriously weird! Cut it out! You’re making Sakura uncomfortable!” Ino continued to scold.

The door to the cafe opened a third time. And a tan-colored dog walked in, followed by Kakashi. Sakura’s face lit up.

“Hey there! Are you feeling better?” Sakura asked, kneeling. The dog ran up to her, tongue hanging out of his mouth. He peppered her face with kisses.

“Kakashi, did you get another dog?” Ino demanded, hanging over the edge of the counter to peek at the dog.

Sakura ruffled her hands through the dog’s fur before she got to her feet.

“Yeah. Found him wandering the road at night,” Kakashi replied. As Sakura turned, she spotted Kiba eyeing Kakashi in the same wary way he had looked at her. The look Kakashi gave in return wasn’t friendly either.

“Good thing you’re here, Kiba. Someone reported hearing shots in the woods last night. I could really use your ears and your nose out there. This is really starting to spook folks,” Kakashi told him.

“Was there blood?” Kiba asked.

Kakashi tapped his nose. “Yeah. Can’t tell from what though.”

“My guess is hunters. Bunch of humans wandering where they shouldn’t be,” sighed Kiba. He reached into his pocket to grab his phone.

“If we don’t have too much work today, I’ll go out there and check it out,” Kiba declared.

“Thanks,” replied Kakashi with a curt nod.

Humans sometimes stumbled into the woods near town, thinking it was part of the territory that their hunting permits allowed them to roam. But they were usually bumbling hobbyists who were easily redirected north where they were supposed to be. Normally a few strangers in the woods wasn’t a big deal. They would shoot at a few deer and be on their way.

The two things that made this dangerous were the following:

It was almost a full moon.

The pups needed to run.

While adult werewolves had no problem suppressing their transformation, the pups always phased during the full moon. Whether they wanted to or not. They normally ran through the woods under the supervision of older weres, learning how to track and how to control their still-growing bodies. Humans had a tendency to shoot whenever they saw wolves.

Overall a bad combination.

Kakashi explained all of this as Kiba made his phone call. All of a sudden, Kiba hung up, cutting his conversation short. He grabbed his coffee.

“I’m gonna get out there while the trail is fresh,” Kiba declared. His eyes rested on Sakura for a moment. Like he wanted to tell her something. But he hurried out of the cafe without saying anything. The door slamming shut as the engine of his pick-up rumbled to life.

[sambart93]

2019.02.04 and 8th Amakuhanaize 3 [Review]

Official Website here Official Twitter here Official Online Store here Press Coverage 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

CAST and CHARACTERS

Itokawa Yojiro as Amami Annojyou Sakata Ryuichiro as Amakusa Tenshiro (10 Jin Actor) Futaba Kaname as Kakao Chiyota Futaba Yuu as Kakao Masubee Domoto Shohei as Sakamushi Manji Magoshi Takumi as Anou Kikai (10 Jin Actor) Matsushima Yunosuke as Haniitera Kazu (10 Jin Actor) Kajihara Hayate as Ogura Kanyou Mitsutake Shinnosuke as Origo Touji (10 Jin Actor) Yashiro Takuya as Kurumi Yuzunosuke Nishihara Kenta as Ameyatsu Nekichi Sekioka Mark as Clotted Scone (10 Jin Actor) Oribe Yoshinari as Shougoin Korekiyo Urashimantarou (Guest Act for Tokyo) Sato Chuuki as Kuzukiri Kuromitsu Nagome Jin as Taffe Natsu Shogun Aoki Shunsuke as Abekara Shinobu

As you can tell a lot of their names are things from dessert or sweet things (that's the whole theme and point xD)

NON-SPOILER REVIEW

Overall: This is the first time I’ve been somewhat disappointed in a Bancho stage. It was bound to happen eventually! Every time they’re one-upped, one-upped their performance, their stories, the quality, so we were bound to get to one sooner or later that just doesn’t quite reach the bar. This one is it. Don’t get me wrong!! It’s still: a very good play; lots of good comedy, lots of great acting, lots of really memorable moments, very funny, very enjoyable. But some aspects just weren’t good enough or at the standard of previous stages. I personally felt like there was too much exposition and explanation about the history and time period they were in (I found it unnecessary). I also felt like this was one big advertisement for 10 Jin Actor; I noticed pretty quickly that ALL the scripted comedy and all the major spotlight moments were given to them. Even though Yojiro and Kaname are supposed to be the main leads, I saw more scenes and more moments from the 10 Jin boys than from anyone else. So it definitely felt like this big 2 hour advertisement and push for their popularity. I also felt like it was their least funny play. I still laughed A LOT but you would expect a silly play like this to always be cranking out the laughs. I didn’t really laugh much during the first hour or so, but the final hour to 90 minutes are very funny. However, that first half is just a lot of character and history set up. The Bancho Boys themselves really got to shine during all the adlibbing. They pretty much adlibbed most of the time and of course they were more than capable, and got a lot of laughs not only from the audience but from the rest of the actors on stage which is great -- I personally love when actors break out of character and can’t stop laughing themselves, it just proves how much fun they’re having too! I have to say, seeing them (especially Yuu and Kaname) break into laughter on stage was the biggest reward for me and my favourite moments. Rating: 7/10 - Not their best but definitely not a bad play either.

SPOILER REVIEW

MAIN STORY

So Kaname plays a struggling chocolatier who has many worries as Valentine’s Day gets nearer. He falls asleep at a shrine after praying for his work to go well. When he wakes up, he’s back in the beginning of the Meiji Period (late 19th Century, 1868) in Fukuoka where his ancestors are from. He meets his ancestors and a range of characters who are trying to get through life during this difficult time of Japan’s transition to modern/western styles. In usual Amakuhanaize style, there is a food battle between the two opposing groups.

That’s the basic premise. I’d probably break the characters up into different groups though:

Running/Staying at an Inn and Minding Their Business: Kaname, Yuu, Domoto, NishiKen, and Magoshi.

Modernising Japan Team: Oribe, Hayate, Origo, Mark, Urashimantaro, Chuuki, Nagome, Aoki Shnusuke

Want to Protect Japanese-ness Team: Yojiro, Takuya

Converting Christians: Sakata, Yunosuke.

So there are really four different groups but some band together and that’s how we get two rivaling groups towards the end, a few of them switch sides and such too throughout the play, but this is at least how they start.

*

GENERAL COMMENTS

Depending on who wins the chocolate battle -- there is a 10 minute break towards the end of the play where we can try the chocolate they 'made' for that show and then vote which we prefer -- the ending is a little different. I was lucky that I got to see each person win between the two shows I went to! So I'll quickly write the difference between them:

1. If Amami/Yojiro Wins: Tenshiro walks off depressed but Kazu/Yunosuke runs after Tenshiro and tells him he'll always be there for him and Tenshiro feels better. 2. If Tenshiro/Sakata Wins: Yojiro comes back on stage and attempts to commit seppuku with an icing knife (is that what they are called? *googles* ... nope it's called an Icing Spatula! Well now we all know don't we ^_^) but obvious he is not serious about it and he tries to be positive about it.

Either way in the end he is able to open a pastry shop and welcomes in customers and has a grand opening. So the very last scene doesn't change just the scene immediately after the Win/Lose moment.

There is one part that is higawari and it's the night before the chocolate battle when all the boys in Yojiro's group have to answer some questions. The two questions are: What to Say When You Get Choco, and Choco You'd Hate to Receive.

My favourite scene without a doubt was the matsuri/festival scene and the opening dance number. In the matsuri they have this super fun dance number which just left me smiling from side to side. They looked to be having so much fun and were smiling too and the song had a great beat and the dance looked so much fun too! It was/is definitely my favourite scene out of this stage!

I have so many feelings about the characters in this. I enjoyed quite a lot of the character (why are we not surprised) so I'd like to just flail about them a little.

Character Break Downs and Comments

*I'll refer to them all with their actual real names though! Sorry if that's confusing.*

☆ Yojiro: Is one of the last remaining Samurai who are trying to hide from the changing political powers in Japan. I honestly don't know what to say about Yojiro... even though he's supposed to be one of the main roles, he had hardly any time on stage. And when he was on stage, he was playing a character I've already seen many times before from him. He didn't play anyone interesting; he didn't play anyone new; he had a very safe character and there was nothing amazing at all about his acting this time around. He was just alright both in terms of character and acting.

☆ Sakata: Catholic/Christian Priest in Japan. I went in really thinking I was gunna fall for this guy, but I ended up not liking his character at all. And just like Yojiro, he's advertised as a main role but was hardly in it! I can only remember about 2 scenes he was properly in. I am upset he ended up being an uninteresting character because Sakata himself has such a fun auro about him. He seems like a really nice and a really fun guy! Also he plays priest who is trying to spread the word of God... I am personally not a religious person and I prefer my stories not to have religion in it so this is just a me thing. His character IS a nice and good person but I just wasn't interested.

However, there is one good moment I liked from Sakata. There is a scene where he is capture and locked up but while talking to the guard, he all so easily opens the jail gates and gets out. But then like the good person he is, at the end of his scene, he gets back in the jail and closes the gate again xD

☆ Kaname: Chocolatier from Present Day Tokyo who Time Slips into 1868 Fukuoka. I really fell for his acting in this!! I really, really enjoyed his acting and his character! Also his dancing is very good! You can tell all that Tenimyu training really paid off! He character was fun and he had some ridiuclous moments and sometimes unfortunate things happen to his character too which was funny! And of course there were some classic moments with him and YuuKun which created hilarity too!

☆ YuuKun: Kaname's Mother and Ancestor, Also an Inn Owner. On my first viewing, I was 99.99% sure he plays a female this entire play but actually he just plays Kaname's mother in the beginning but then in the time slip he's a male ancestor of Kaname's family. But it would totally make sense if he played a woman the entire time. He has his onee-san voice for the entirety of the play! Also his character in the past is obsessed with a male Kabuki actor, his personality is very faint and soft and weak-looking, it would've made sense to have him as a girl the entire time xD SO in my mind he DOES play Kaname's mother and great grandmother the entire time hehe I absolutely loved how he plays a fan. He plays a Kabuki obsessed fan and he said a lot of stuff that the audience could clearly relate to and the way he flailed over stuff and spoke so passionately about his oshi/bias was so relateable and so much fun to watch! He was GREAT!

Once I saw the play, I soon understood why Kaname and YuuKun had both dyed their hair back black. YuuKun had to because he was playing a historical role, and I guess to make to MORE obvious they were playing family relatives xD

☆ Domoto: A Drunkard Who Lives at the Inn. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t ACTING drunk for this role xD his drunk acting was great! I also really loved this one scene bewteen him and Takuya:

- Takuya pretends to be a simpleton passing by when Domoto attacks him and of course Takuya, being a samurai, can dodge the attack and Domoto is super impressed and responds 'oh you not just a normal person at all. No normal person can avoid and react that well' but Takuya thinks Domoto will sell him out to the police but Domoto's character is a good boy so stays quiet and protects him. It was such a simple moment but I really liked this scene.

Also Domoto's eye makeup is so nice up close!!! I got a good look when I took chekis with him and it really is nice! There is one other moment from Domoto that really hit home for me. Lately, I've been having a really rough time mentally but this simple line from Domoto gave me so much strength: "None of my friends made it through the war. They can't drink stupidly. They can't wear flashy over the top clothing. I living their life as well as mine." It really hit home but it gave me strength that I really need right now.

☆ Magoshi: A Crazy Inventor Living in the Inn. His character had two very funny personalities: when his goggles were off he was very confident and very sane. But whenever he wore his goggles, he became geeky as F. He gave everyone many many laughs with his flawless switching between the two roles! He did very well! His name was also a play on words. His name is Anou Kikai which means 'That Chance' but also 'Ano' is what you say when you want to say something, it's the English equivalent of 'ohhh / ahhhh / ummm' when you want to start saying something. So many times Kaname's character wanted to offer to help or wanted to suggest things but he always started with 'Ano = Ummm' and Magoshi would immediately butt in like 'Anou Kikai shall do this task!' and Kaname always looked so sad every time he got shot down xD

☆ Yunosuke: Sakata's Disciple. He has a very interesting story arc and his character development is very fun! I don't quite remember how he ends up like this but Yunosuke very quickly joins the 'money' side of society and gets obsessed with gold and flashy jewelry and he is very ridiculous and very hilarious. He gave me a lot of giggles with his overconfidence and with his loud voice and his ridiculing of others! But then towards the end, he sees Sakata give guidance and attention to someone other than him and he just completely explodes with jealously, which again he does in a very hilarious way. I thoroughly enjoyed his character! And he is beautifully tall and very good looking. It's a shame he's only 19 because he was gorgeous. I really liked his character and how he looked!

☆ Hayate: A Reporter. He was a reporter who turns from a dirty gossip reporter to a report who actually wants to do good for the people. He gives Oribe a run for his money because he's constantly following him and trying to get the true story. Hayate showed off his skills throughout this play with his acrobatics and his flips. He would make an entrance by flipping, or in some fights he got caught up in he would do a flip, or during the dance scenes he did some hiphop spin moves. So he really find many chances to show off what he can do; I assume this is part him personally enjoying doing these stunts and part him showing what he can do incase casting directors turned up to the stage.

☆ Mitsutake: Oribe's Henchman/Guard. I absolutely loved that he got nicknamed 'Beard / Hige' by Sakata in this. It gave everyone giggles everytime he was called xD I also loved his character arc too! At first he's on Oribe's side but thanks to Sakata, he has a change of heart and decides to do the right thing and starts helping us just because he should, because he wants to, and because it's the right thing to do.

☆ Takuya: Yojiro's Disciple/Follower. Takuya is getting so damn good looking as he gets older! I don't know why but as soon as he came on stage in the semi-modern samurai attire and his sword, I was in LOVE! I absolutely adored his look! And with is now longer hair!! OH MY!!! Seriously, he's gunna be dangerous soon. He's still only 19! *cries*

☆ NishiKen: A Neighbour Near the Inn. Luckily there was no black face or racism in his character this time xD he was just a neighbour who is slightly strange. He's dressed like a fox and helps out at a local matsuri/festival. I really liked the opening scene which is just him and wooden blocks and with the blocks he starts a beat and gets everyone in the audience clapping and singing We Will Rock You but then is like 'you're so loud! Shhhh!' which is ironic. He's always the most loud xD

☆ Mark: British Politician. I really really enjoyed his pompousness and the stereotypicalness of his British character. Also loved the American Accented English words he would speak. He was a fun character, he had this funny way of walking too; he would skip or spin in and out of his entrances which were very amusing. I also loved his outfit and his hat.

☆ Oribe: Japanese Politician/Leader. He had a very small role which made me upset but he was still good! I like how he spent most of his time running away from Hayate but then the moment he realises someone else's corruption he runs to Hayate like 'I'll tell you everything! Just please protect me!!' xD he looked very dashing in his suit!! But again, I was like 'damn how are you STILL only 18?!' xD His dancing during the two major dancer parts were wonderful!

*

Now onto some differences between the two shows!

First Show

☆ There is a scene where Yuu pushes Kaname to the side. But at my first show, Kaname went flying the end of the stage and into the stage light because of Yuu’s push, and Yuu threatened to do it again but Kaname was like 'No it's okay! I learnt my lesson! Just don't do it again!' he was half smiling as he stood up and rubbed his back and butt xD

☆ Akira and Shuji were sat two rows in front of me and during a scene where Hayate runs around the theatre, he spotted them and was like 'you look very familiar... aren't you (enter their Amaku Character's name)?' but both of them got really nervous and shy and denyed it, hoping he would leave quickly xD

☆ For the Higawari scene, I remember Mark having a drawing of Domoto, and YuuKun's answers were always baseball references xD

Second Show

☆ The second show was a hot mess of hilarity! Everyone, the cast AND the audience, were just high on giggles. The entire play there were so many line mess ups and the boys couldn't stop laughing for most of the time. Even when they tried really hard, they ended up breaking halfway through their lines and such. It was so much fun seeing all of them completely break xD I'm glad it was my second viewing and not my only viewing of it. Maybe if it was my only viewing I might've been a little miffed but because it was my second viewing I could just enjoy the ridiculousness that went on!

☆ YuuKun didn't push Kaname as hard this time so when Kaname asked for the chocolate back, YuuKun just gave it back nicely hehe

☆ For the scene where they had to give an answer to: What to Say When You Get Choco, Mark's answer was all in Filipino and everyone was like '????? what did you just say?!'

☆ Because everyone was high on something, during Sakata's very important line of serious, he held it together right well until right at the end of his line and he just broke into a squeal of laughter. Everyone was dying.

NEGATIVES

A lot of these points are just extensions of what mentioned in the non-spoiler section:

☆ I realised very early on that the 10 Jin boys were getting more lines and more moments and more comedy than our Bancho Boys so it really did feel like an advertisement for their acting group. 

☆ Also this is the first time I’ve been somewhat disappointed in a Bancho stage. This is a SOLID installment but it was just the weakest one I’ve watched of theirs so far. Especially after the amazingness that was Nemurenai Hitsuji and Saraba Gold Mountain (review) that we got last year.

☆ I was very much expecting for myself to really like Sakata Ryuichiro (especially with the whole blonde look -- we ALL know how I feel about blondes!), but I ended up finding his character really, really boring, and he was playing a heavy Christian believer (side note: I am Agnostic after being brought up in Catholic education for 12 years) so I personally lost all interest in him straight away.

*

PHOTO & CHEKI TIME

I got chekis with my usuals: YuuKun and Domoto! As usual they're both just so great! Even though it's a small, minute moment, it still means a lot to me.

So first I went to YuuKun and can he get anymore perfect?!?!?!?! He's just the sweetest fucking thing every time! And he always takes the lead and asks me questions and such xD So our conversation was:

Me: Otsukaresama desu / Thanks for the good work Yuu: OH! Thank you! I asked to do the heart pose but just before it's taken, he prods me, 'hold on. let's move over here, it's a better place. Is that okay? Are you ready?' so naturally I was like 'oh, okay. Yes! I'm good!' so then we took the picture. Y: Did you have fun? M: Yes I laughed a lot! Y: Don't forget our lives too! M: I already have tickets! Y: Oh thank you! M: And I'll come back on Friday (to see this) Y: Oh really? Thank you! *hands me the cheki* bye! *waves* M: Bye! *waves*

Then with Domoto...

M: Otsukaresama desu / Thanks for the good work D: Thank you! You too! Do the heart pose and take chekis M: I'm really sorry I was too sick to come to your birthday party. D: Oh don't worry about it! It's fine! Please don't apologise! M: Really? Oh thank god. *hands me cheki* M: get home safely! D: You too! *mutual wave*

I finally got to properly apologise to Domoto which made me feel a lot better xD Also I love how awkward he is in the chekis. He has such an awkward adorableness hehe

At the end of every show too there was a 'Photo Time' so here are some I took:

*

And that’s that!

[typical-college-blog]

September 14, 2018 4:11 pm

Ever since I was little I’ve always loved Thursdays. The school district I went to always had late start on Thursdays. Elementary school me took this as time to play more video games than usual before school. But post elementary school, Thursdays became an excuse to stay up late the night before or do homework in the mornings. Now college doesn’t have late starts, but somehow my schedule played out so I go to class from 9:30 am to 11:50 pm. Ahhh short days. 

Just like every other usual Thursday, I came back to my room and started cranking on homework. Since I only went to school for a mere two and a half hours, I was still in the school mode. I worked on my Calc II homework until my professor’s office hours rolled around. She helped me clarify how to find the radius when doing the disk, washer, and shell methods to find volumes. 

Around 4 pm I came back to my residence hall. I was walking down the hallway and I heard faint sex noises. As I approached my door they got louder and louder. Oh boy, I’m in for another ‘come back in 5′. This time I had a speech prepared. I was running through it in my head as I knocked on the door. The noises stopped. I put the key in and opened the door just a few inches. My roommate and her boyfriend had gone under the covers and were pretending to sleep. What the actual fuck. So do they want me to come in and just plop down and start doing homework as I had planned??? No way. I’m not joining your sick sex party. I shut the door and walked down to The Han’s room. BrownPeople was hanging out even tho LesHan and HanHan were in class. I told her what was going on, she walked down the hall and could also hear sex noises. She knocked on my RA’s door to make me explain what happened to my RA. Then we went to get lunch/dinner. 

A few days ago some old dudes were forcefully handing out New Testaments. So I took one and put it under my roommate’s pillow. I also just put a condom on top of her pillow, just in case she’s lacking. I’ve also decided I’m going to start moving all her furniture to the left by a tiny bit every day. Some residents have told me to put pop rocks under her sheets so when they get wet her bed starts popping. Maybe I’ll even put some dish soap near her bed to make the floor sticky. 

In other news, in my Psychology class today we were talking about the corpus callosum. Back in the day, severing the corpus callosum was a procedure done to people who had bad seizures. We were talking about the side effects that were later discovered from severing the corpus callosum. A bunch of people in the corner started yelling and heads started turning. I looked over and a girl was having a seizure. One person asked if we should call 911 and the professor was trying to deescalate. She was okay, it only lasted a few seconds. A girl offered to walk her to student health services. 

[eternitas-archive]

ohh, im interested, try and do all the domestic questions with kenkira?! kekekekek

Dat Domestic Meme!

oH BOI OH BOI LET’S GO

Who’s more dominant:

AHAHAHAHA it’s safe to say that Kenzo and Akira really like to battle that shit out. Even if Kenzo isn’t someone to charge and lead, he does enjoy teasing Akira about that stuff. If push comes to pull they work great together and switch it up, but Akira will always at least TRY to assert dominance! (because she is a small angry chipmunk that many people like to underestimate)

Who’s the cuddler:

Akira, no surprise there haha, she can be clingy as shit. She does know when to back off, but if Kenzo let’s her she’ll be very cuddly.

Who’s the big spoon/little spoon:

... seeing how Akira is half a body smaller it’s usually Kenzo being the big spoon and she also lets him, but boi are you mistaken if you belive she’d never try to be the big spoon.

What’s their favorite non-sexual activity:

Games. And boi, does Kenzo always wreck her. It pisses her off to no end, especially because he likes to be a shit and tease her so she loses focus

Who uses all the hot water:

Surprisingly, Akira does. She takes a long time to get ready, with her medical treatment too, so it happens that she takes super long showers. They relax her and are the few times when she takes off the bandages so she likes to just stay under the hot water and meditate.

Most trivial thing they fight over:

aNYTHING, AKIRA WILL FIND SOMETHING TO FIGHT OVER and god Kenzo thinks it’s hilarious. 

Who does most of the cleaning

Actually I can see Kenzo being the one to keep stuff organized, at first, but then he finds it fun to fuse stuff together around the place and Akira takes it upon herself to clean

What has a season pass on their dvr/Who controls the netflix queue: 

I am actually not too familiar with Netflix series, but anything involving heroes is a MUST for them both, obviously.

Who calls up the super/landlord when the heat’s not working:

Akira does. Kenzo is actually very patient with a lot of stuff and can work around it, Akira not so much.

Who leaves their stuff around

Both, but Akira more so, because she tends to forget where she put her bandages or something.

Who remembers to buy the milk:

Akira. Definitely Akira. She doesn’t even trust half the grocery runs to Kenzo. This guy is just gonna buy stuff he likes anyway oh boi

Who remembers anniversaries:  

Kenzo and Akira are both bad with dates and such, usually Akira remembers way too late, like 5 days later that they had their aniversary. But they do after celebrate if it was anually or so

Who cooks normally:

AKIRA AKIRA AKIRA!!! She was the head chef at their Dorms in UA and she won’t stop once they are pros.

How often do they fight:

Real fights? At first a lot. Kenzo needs time to figure out when he pushed his teasing too far and Akira is very eratic and emotional in her UA time. Only at the last half of her UA days she finally manages to find a way to calm down and see things objectively and not too personal. They both mature together and it makes them understand each other and take care of each other. Akira learning to give Kenzo space and not be too clingy and him realizing that sometimes it’s just a good idea to stfu

What do they do when they’re away from each other:

Akira misses Kenzo. When he is away on longer missions she tries to distract herself only to end up missing the shit out of him. If she is at work herself she has an easier time distracting herself with work but small things remind her of him and she’ll message him a short text or something. For Kenzo? I dunno you tell me~

Nicknames for each other:

for Akira: Shorty, short stack, gremlin, little shit, demon waifu, Kira, treassure

for Kenzo: behemoth, giant, lunatic, frankenstein, Kenny, shitbag, asshole, bitch. Ken, Sky

Who is more likely to pay for dinner:

AHAHA THERE BOTH BROKE AF, so they split.

Who steals the covers at night:

Kenzo, but since it has Akira cuddle closer to him it’s a win win

What would they get each other for gifts:

Kenzo loves bringing back obscure souvenires when he gets bigger missions. Akira has a whole collection of weird stuff he finds. Otherwise he surprises her with stuff like keychains and postcards. She loves collecting postcards. 

Akira gets him keychains. She knows if he has the idea for it he’ll fuse keychains together and even so he likes having a single key with 6908 Keychains.

Who kissed who first:

the first inofficial kiss was from Kenzo under a mistletoe. The first REAL kiss was after a long and exhausting training session. It was night already and Kenzo was laying on the ground exhausted, while Akira gave him a soft spiderman kiss.

Who made the first move:

Akira, when she invited Kenzo to the winterball and asked him to be her date. He didn’t realize it back then but yeah, she basically initiated their come together.

Who remembers things:

Surprisingly Kenzo does. Even if he’s bad at remembering dates and stuff, he has a very good memory and remembers way more things than Akira,.

Who started the relationship:

As previously said it was Akira. She basically confessed in a fight, yelling at Kenzo that he was a dumbass for never caring about his well being and if he even know what pain he causes her, since she has to see the person she loves in such a terrible state. There were tears. Lots of them. And confusion on Kenzos part but a few days later they talked it out and decided to go on their first official date.

Who cusses more:

Akira, by a landslide. U think Bakugou is bad? oh boi have u not met Akira yet

What would they do if the other one was hurt:

WELL I THINK Akira would be swaying between revenge and just getting them to safety. Being a pro Hero later she knows that in different situations there are different priorities. For example she and Kenzo know to hold civilians life as top priority, to make sure not more harm is done. Then they take care of their own colleagues, unless the Villain or something is being a more pressing dangerous matter and have to be stopped. Being as impulsive as she is, she might lose it but only for a moment and then return to her job.

Kenzo is more collected and would put his duty first, but as soon as he can he’ll rush Akira to safety and for her wounds to be treated. Surely he is pissed and upset, but he can’t risk anyones safety for his personal feelings now.

Who is the dirty talker:

Kenzo, but unintentionally. His teasing is usually tame, but sometimes he cranks it up a notch and really pushes the right buttons to get her flustered. Mostly because seeing her all tsun about it is the funniest thing.

A head canon:

Kenzo is that shit that puts his cold ass hands under her shirt or his cold feet betwen her tighs just to tease her, but he is also the first to cuddle her warm when he notices she’s REALLY freezing

---

I totally dare you to give me your take on this!

[dartsadvice]

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The Best Multi Game Tables Available: My Top 8 Picks

#1. MD Sports Multi Game Combination Table Set - Best Pick

One of the best multi game table for adults has got to be the MD Sports one! It features some of the most popular game variations and many more you hadn't seen coming. If you are a fan of good-old arcade-style games, you will love MD Sports multi game table.

Okay, so first, let's cover what MD Spots have to offer in terms of games. You will get a chance to play up to 12 different games! Can't you believe that all 12 games are packed into this one game table?

Those types of games include a popular air hockey game, knock hockey, ping pong, archery, bag toss, backgammon, dice, traditional foosball, chess, checkers, shoutout basketball. It's awe-inspiring to see all of these popular games included in a space-saving table.

However, I have to admit that one game stands out, and that is the air-flow foosball. It brings a fun twist to the traditional game and gives smooth and effortless gliding actions.

One of the best features is the easy installation. Sure, a large number of games is essential, but it's also super helpful to have a fuss-free installation.

Due to the nifty built-in storage, you can alternate between these different games and not stress about reinstalling the table each time you desire a recent activity.

The high-quality combo table is comprised out of durable and sturdy material and features adjustable leg levelers.

Pros

12 different games

Convenient size

Suitable for kids and adults

High-quality

Cons

The air hockey game is faulty

BUY FROM AMAZON

#2. GoPong 8 Foot Portable Beer Pong Tables - Runner-Up

Your gaming sessions are about to get a whole lot better with the GoPong combo pong table. If you searched tables on the market and just can't seem to find that custom table you want, then check this out. GoPong table allows you to customize the board any way you like? How is that? Stick around to find out.

This combo table features a dry-erase customizable playing surface. You can draw pretty much anything on it, from team logos to creative player's nicknames, and have hours of fun! What's great about it is that you don't have to charge a person to keep score in the back when you can do it yourself right then and there on the table!

If you want to get a bundle deal and now worry about whether you need more markers or ping pong balls, this is the best choice for you.

This 8-foot long beer pong table features six ping pong balls and four dry-erase markers to get you started on your first game. The table is made out of sturdy aluminum, but I would advise you don't play too rough with it. However, this is easier said than it is done; the table's build will simply not withstand force or rougher games.

The table also has "pre-cut" holes where you can place your cups and not worry about spillage.

Pros

Official beer pong size

Pre-cut holes for cups

Includes six ping pong balls

Lightweight

Cons

Not so sturdy

Not waterproof

BUY FROM AMAZON

#3. MD Sports Multi Game Combination Table Set - Best 5-in-1 Deal

Another big hit from MD Sports is this 5-in-1 combo game table with many different game variations! If you are not a big fan of the previous versions, check out this one. It could potentially be your best pick!

Firstly, this MD Sports multi-table game weighs around 48 lbs making it a tad lighter than its competitor. Also, it follows convenient dimensions of 22.75" W x 48.5" L x 32 inches height making it the perfect space-saver! If your game room does not have a lot of room to spare, this is just the right choice.

The 5-in-1 combo game table offers the perfect balance between budget and desire to play as many games as possible! Although it features fewer games than the previous pick, it still is an attractive choice for players of all ages!

The table includes the five most popular games as a billiard table, slide hockey, table tennis game, foosball, and basketball. The combination table comes with all the necessary follow-up equipment.

With the purchase, you will get all the accessories needed to play any of the games. Those include pool cues, billiard balls, a brush, rack, table tennis paddles, and balls.

The very best feature of this MD Sports table is the fantastic construction. The table is built with high-quality MDF, ABS, PVC, wood, and metal components that altogether bring a long-lasting entertainment unit.

Pros

Five games in one table

The table includes all accessories

High-quality construction

Cons

Tricky to install

Has sharp edges

BUY FROM AMAZON

#4. Lancaster 3 in 1 Multi-Game Table - Best 3-in-1 Multi-Game Table

Listen up, all of you who have an industrial-themed game room, pay attention to the following product. The Lancaster 3-in-1 game table may not incorporate plenty of stylish features, but it will sure look sleek and stylish in your man cave. Plus, it has three of the most popular indoor games! What more can a guy want?

This Lancaster 3-in-1 game table has the option for you to play pool, air hockey, and foosball table game. As a base, you have the traditional pool table while the other two games can be installed on top. They are secured safely via a latch-and-lock system that connects them to the pool table base.

This is probably one of the most best-selling features of the multi-game table. You don't need to do any heavy-duty installation. All it is for you to convert one game to the next in a matter of seconds.

Now, my favorite feature of the multi game table is the incredible design. This will blend in your game room decor with ease and look astonishing! Just wait and see. All of your housemates will complement your choice.

The Lancaster 3-in-1 game table is designed with high-quality MDF wood, which allows a luxurious look. Moreover, it's battery-free! You can do so manually and not worry about any game you want to play if you have an outlet nearby or not!

Pros

Manual scorekeeper on the side

3-in-1 game design

MDF wood construction

Easy to switch from one game to the next

Cons

Low to the ground design

BUY FROM AMAZON

#5. Fat Cat Original 3-in-1, 7-Foot Pockey Game Table - Best Air Hockey, Billiards, Table Tennis Deal

The Fat Cat Original 3 in 1 multi-game table has got to be one of the most popular picks! The versatile choice combines three of the most popular games and brings the bar fun into your game room.

As I mentioned, the Fat Cat Original 3 in 1 deal includes air hockey, billiards and it gives you the chance to play ping pong! All of the three games are neatly packed into the convenient multi game table.

However, since the unit is pretty extensive, I recommend you clear up some space in the room before you go and buy it.

The Fat Cat Original 3 in 1 table measures 7 feet and is wide by 3. 6 feet. Although it allows you to play your favorite games in a big style, it's not an excellent choice for those with smaller rooms.

Now, it may take you some time to assemble this hockey billiards table tennis unit, but can you blame it? Have you seen the size of it? After the installation, switching from game to game is a breeze! All you need to do is unlock the latches, flip the playing surface, and lock it again.

A versatile model is an absolute dream for anyone looking for easy conversion from pool to table tennis or air hockey.

With the purchase, you will be getting the pool cues, billiard balls, pucks and pushers, net, and a paddle.

Pros

Air hockey, pool, and table tennis 

Easy conversion 

Sturdy design

Cons

Not suitable for smaller rooms

BUY FROM AMAZON

#6. Best Choice Products 4-in-1 Multi-Game Table - Best Multi-Game Table For Kids

Coming right up is the Best Choice Products 4-in-1 multi-game table! If you want to surprise your little ones with the best game tables, then this is a perfect pick for you.

The Best Choice Products offers one of the most convenient and space-saving units I have ever seen. With the overall x 32 inches of playing surface space, your kiddo is in for endless fun for sure. All you need to do is clear space and install this bad boy.

You will be getting 4 of the most popular indoor activities such as table tennis, air hockey, pool, and foosball table. Can't you just picture rainy days while you're blasting a game of foosball with your kiddo?

As for the construction, the multi game table is constructed out of a high-quality MDF wood frame that makes sure you have the best playing experience of all time! What's truly impressive is that all plastic components are completely safe for kids since they are ASTM & CPSIA approved.

Most of the hype around this multi game table comes from its easy game conversion. All you need to do is stack one table on another, and you have the 4-in-1 system all set up. Plus, you can take advantage of the creative 7.5-inch space-saving storage unit.

The best feature, according to some, is the equipment you get along with the purchase. Everything you need for a game start-up is right there.

Pros

Great gift idea for kids

Space-saving

Easy conversion

Cons

Tricky assembly

BUY FROM AMAZON

#7. Sunnydaze 10 Combination Multi Game Table - Convenient Size

If you need something with many games, may I suggest the Sunnydaze multi-game table that consists of 10 games? Pretty impressive, right? Let's see what it has to offer.

Like you can see, this is a standing design, not a tabletop version. That being said, you will need some space in your room before you even think about buying it.

The Sunnydaze multi-game table includes many games such as air hockey, table tennis, chess, checkers, backgammon, foosball table, cards, shuffleboard, and bowling. Isn't this just amazing? You have the opportunity to play these popular table games all in the comfort of your home.

All of the accessories for the assembly are included in the set. It may take you a while to put everything together but keep in mind that you are in for endless fun. You can make an easy switch from one game to another and enjoy each of them separately.

All of the game variations are installed on top of the billiard base, so it makes the perfect accessory for the kid's room or your living room. It's quite the space-saver when you think about it.

For a fantastic price, you can surprise your buddy, kid, or anyone special and gift them this great unit! It's quite the space-saver when you think about it.

For a fantastic price, you can surprise your buddy, kid, or anyone special and gift them this great unit! Plus, just think about all the compliments you will get on your next get-together. I bet everyone will envy you.

Pros

Ten games

Easy conversion

Convenient measurements

Cons

Some complained about the quality

BUY FROM AMAZON

#8. Fat Cat Original 3-in-1, 6-Foot Flip Game Table - Perfect For Smaller Rooms

Lastly, we have another Fat Cat Original 3-in-1 multi-game table. How is this distinct from the other model? Well, for starters, this is the best option for those who don't have a lot of space in their home but still want a fun unit they can play during rainy days.

Now that we have that covered let's check out some of the basic features of this game table.

Firstly, it offers three game variations such as billiards, air hockey, and table tennis. With the help of the "flip" feature, you can alternate between these three games in a matter of seconds.

The pool tabletop is constructed with sleek built-in pockets and a realistic playing field. Overall, the pool table's entire design is quite impressive and allows you to have a practical playing experience.

Moreover, the highly-impressive air hockey is the feature we are completely nuts for! With some models, you will get a "slide hockey" feature, but that's not the case with this one. With Fat Cat, you can play air hockey with a 110-volt electric motor.

Plus, the glossy surface feature makes the combo game table 10x more attractive. Whether you are playing pool, air hockey, or table tennis, you can keep track with the manual scorer.

Lastly, this 6-foot design is made for smaller places, so you shouldn't have trouble fitting it into your kids' room.

Pros

Excellent dimensions for smaller rooms

Electronic air hockey table surface

Impressive built quality

Cons

Often arrives broken

BUY FROM AMAZON

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Buyer's Guide

1. What Games Do You Need?

First and foremost, you should know ahead what kind of games you want. Do you want a classic push hockey or a motor-powered one? Do you need a full-sized tennis table surface, or could you settle with a tabletop version instead? These are some of the features you need to keep in mind before purchasing.

Most of the tables incorporate up to three most popular variations, while some smaller models combine up to twelve!

Therefore, you can expect some of them to have faulty features. Тhis does not apply to all of them, of course, but there have been a few mishaps.

For example, if your top priority is a tennis table, then go for the one bigger. Some of the multi-game tables have a few great games, while the rest lack quality. Hence, pick focus on one or two games you want the most and let the rest go with the flow.

2. Accessories

As you could notice from our review, some of the multi-game tables come with all the necessary equipment you need. Those include paddles, push hockey pucks, nets, billiard balls, and so on.

Think about whether you absolutely need the follow-up equipment, so you don't end up cluttering the entire game-room.

Accessories can be a great feature if you are gifting the combo game table to someone; think of the money they will save!

However, it's seldom seen that the accessories you get with the purchase are high-quality. They will usually last you for a few games, and after that, you should consider getting yourself a suitable starter pack.

3. Easy Conversion

Apart from the installation process, you want to search for combo tables that have an easy conversion.

When you decide to switch from table tennis to air hockey table, the process shouldn't represent a dread! I prefer tables that have a locking style conversion since it means your next playing surface is tightly secured on the table.

Also, wheels on the combo game table are a significant helper! You can move the unit anywhere you'd like without relying on someone else for help. However, you need to look for ones with lockable wheels because we all know how tense foosball, table tennis, or air hockey can get.

4. Size Of The Unit

The size of the unit will pretty much be the top feature to look for.

First, I would advise you to think about where you will place the game table. It's essential to pick the room with a bigger size if you are going for a full-size table. Not only that, but you need additional space around the unit if you want to move freely, and my guess is you do.

If you are looking for something for kids, I will suggest you choose a tabletop version or a unit that combines many games to get bored quickly.

5. Price Point

In the market, you can find some multi-game tables that range below $150 and ones that go over $1000. In this category, you pretty much get what you paid for. You can't expect excellent build quality and parts if you purchased a cheap model.

If you are looking for a real full-size deal, I suggest you set some money aside and get a quality version that will last you forever. For kids, you can go below the budget since these combo tables are constructed for light use. Even if something happens to it, you won't devastate over a few dollars.

Preview Product Rating Price

12-in-1 Multi Game Table Set for Adults, Kids, Families - Foosball Tables with 5 Conversion Tops,... $199.99 $179.99 Buy on Amazon

GoPong 8 Foot Beer Pong Table with Customizable Dry Erase Surface* $89.99 Buy on Amazon

MD Sports 48 Inch 5-in-1 Combo Game Table, Multi* $305.99 Buy on Amazon

Lancaster 3 in 1 Pool Billiard, Slide Hockey, Foosball Combo Arcade Game Table* Buy on Amazon

Fat Cat Original 3-in-1 Green 7' Pockey Multi-Game Table - Air Hockey, Billiards and Table Tennis... $1,249.99 Buy on Amazon

Best Choice Products 4-in-1 Multi Game Table, Childrens Combination Arcade Set for Home, Play... $89.99 Buy on Amazon

Sunnydaze 10 Combination Multi Game Table with Billiards, Push Hockey, Foosball, Ping Pong, and...* $195.00 $156.69 Buy on Amazon

Fat Cat Original 3-in-1, 6-Foot Flip Game Table (Air Hockey, Billiards and Table Tennis)* $699.99 $529.99 Buy on Amazon

Read more —

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FAQs

How much space do you need for a multi-game table?

This will all depend on the type of the best multi-game tables you choose. The size of them can vary between 4-feet to an even 8-feet. Logically, the smaller ones will often have a lot of games packed into them, while larger ones will give a better playing experience as they have a bigger playing surface.

Overall, depending on the multi-game tables, you will need to suffice at least 3 feet on each side plus around 30" for width.

What are multi-game tables usually made of?

Multi-game tables should be made out of durable and sturdy material. Hence, you can expect a bigger price point—the ones we see as high-quality incorporate MDF wood frame, metal components, PVC, and ABS plastic.

What is the best multi-game table?

The best multi-game table is the MD Sports Multi-Game Combination Table Set. This one brings convenient dimensions and up to 12 different games for a fantastic price! You get a chance to play your favorite activities indoor or surprise your kiddo with an entertaining unit.

What size room do you need for a full-size pool table?

Let's look at it this way: if you pick a 7-foot best multi-game table, you need a 13' 6" x 16' 8" size room. You always need to set apart some space in the back, front, and sides not only to fit the table but to freely move around when playing.

If you don't have the room for such measurements, then your best pick is a tabletop version of the popular unit.

Read more —

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Final Words

The best multi-game tables can be a real hoot if you spend most of your time indoors. Getting the right one can be tricky, but if you follow a few guidelines and stick to your wishlist, you can get a marvelous table with your favorite games. Our best pick is the MD Sports Multi-Game Combination Table Set.

It combines the 12 most popular games that are bound to wow every house guest.

Sale

12-in-1 Multi Game Table Set for Adults, Kids, Families - Foosball Tables with 5 Conversion Tops, 4...*

12 GAMES, 1 TABLE: This all-in-one game table includes air hockey, traditional foosball, knock hockey, shootout basketball, ping pong, bag toss, archery, chess, checkers, backgammon and dice. So many options in one convenient, compact space.

DIMENSIONS: 22.75" W x 48" L x 32" H | Weight: 50.69 lb

SIMPLE SET-UP AND TRANSITION: Effortless assembly was our main goal, so we made this interactive combo game center as convenient as possible. It’s equipped to store accessories and pieces and shift between activities with no tools or frustration.

PREMIUM BUILD, HIGH QUALITY MATERIALS: At MD Sports, we pride ourselves in providing long-lasting gaming equipment. Comprised of durable, strong material, this at-home multi sports kit with adjustable leg levers will last you throughout the years.

THE PERFECT GIFT SET: Looking for a unique way to celebrate a person or holiday? the MD Sports indoor activity center is a unique and fun gift idea for birthdays, graduations, housewarmings, Christmas, Father’s Day, and more!

$199.99 −$20.00 $179.99

Buy on Amazon

The post Top 8 Best Multi Game Tables for Ultimate Indoor Fun appeared first on Darts Advice.

source https://dartsadvice.com/best-multi-game-tables/

[sweet-star-cookie]

Stolen again aha

1. Describe and inside joke with little to no context

“Bean”, “Muffin”, “Noodle”, “Cinnamon Roll” and “Star-shaped Sugar Cookie” are all terms that have been used to describe me in any given situation. It’s like a bakery up in here.

2. Describe something that makes you happy

Finishing a piece of art and feeling really happy rather than doubtful about it after, or finding something new to completely lose myself in, like a new game or TV show. Both are really good feelings, especially if I can share with my friends.

3. What’s the funniest joke you know by heart?

Myself.

... Too soon?

I actually don’t consider myself that humorous so I have no idea what to put here, sadly. I wish I was funnier in a linguistic sense but outside of sarcasm and my reactions to things I’ve got nothing. My friends seem to find entertainment in it though. Entertainment in my emotional suffering while watching fictional content, that is. (love you guys)

4. What’s the craziest conversation you’ve overheard?

Not really a conversation I guess but outside my window some people walked by and all I hear is “I FUCKING LOVE PARADES” and no following response. You hear a lot of things from the surface when you live in a dragon’s lair basement.

5. What’s your favourite song at the moment?

I have several at any given moment based on what I find in my YouTube subscriptions, but if I were to pick one right now I guess it would be Flashin’ Like I’m Gatsby by Atom Smith, it’s an electroswing hop track. For a slower track right now I’d pick First Things First by Neon Trees. That and the entire Owlboy OST by Jonathan Geer. Quality content.

6. What languages do you wish you could speak?

Japanese and French probably. Japanese for anime/manga purposes and French because I’m in Canada and I used to love learning French in school.

7. Describe your idea of a ‘perfect day’

Oh boy time to crank out some radical, overly detailed hypotheticals. -cracks knuckles-

I wake up at a decent hour, well rested for the first time in forever, no anxiety or depression clawing at the walls of my brain. I had a dream that night that was either interesting enough to right down or gives me an idea for a character design. I get out of my bedroom in my own apartment, and greet my two cats who are likely named after my characters and have subsequent Warrior cat names as well. 

Sunlight comes in through the sliding doors, the cats watch the birds on the feeder outside on the balcony. I see some of my favourites there to meet us: cardinals, blue jays, maybe an oriole or a hummingbird depending on the season. If it’s winter, snow is gently falling, with no wind to whip it around. I live in a small enough town or city that the view out the window is of more organic scenery rather than concrete, maybe there’s a river or a body of water nearby and it’s at least relatively quiet. 

I stay in my comfortable clothes for a while as I mull over the idea I have in my head and make breakfast (or lunch, depending on the time), listening to music as I make it. Maybe pancakes with bacon, strawberries on the side. Or if I’m feeling like a sandwich I’ll have a BLT. I don’t feel sick after eating it so close to waking up like I usually do. 

Suddenly, the design I had clicks into a viable story. The ideas start flowing, and I’m completely taken into my imagination, reality doesn’t exist for a little while as I dive headfirst into this world of new if unclear possibilities. I write and draw things for it, likely pacing around the room and talking to myself to work things out. Much to the confusion of my cats, I’m sure.

I make something viable enough to post, and I feel excited enough to rant about it to my heart’s content, no fear. Feeling satisfied in my endeavours, I get to work on what I need to do that day, like making a comic page for the week and making a new design for Redbubble. If I have freelance work to do, that takes priority, knowing that I’ll need the evening to get together with my friends.

I wear my favourite colours, hat and scarf probably with a star on it somewhere, I feel cute but comfortable, no inhibitions about what I look like for once. We go out to eat (knowing my friends it’s probably sushi), maybe see a new animated movie that’s out and analyze the heck out of it. We laugh and talk for hours, a complete unit of solidarity in our combined friendship. I hear they’re all doing well in their endeavours, and I’m immensely proud of them.

I get back home in the evening, greeting my cats once again. The stars are out, and I stargaze for a little bit. I come back in and relax on the couch to watch TV or play a video game of some kind, probably scroll through my social feeds / check messages. I see pictures of the time out with my friends and I’m actually in them this time.

I get a message from whoever I consider to be my best friend, either from after the hangout if they were there or from earlier. We start chatting about art we’re making or ideas we have, bouncing them off left and right and encouraging each other the whole way. If we’re old friends, it’ll feel like it did back in grade school with our late night Facebook chats.

I go to bed feeling happy, and probably with at least one of my cats sleeping on me in a precarious spot. It doesn’t take long for me to fall asleep, aside from maybe the ideas still flowing. If so, I take some time to read or something down and then sleep, not too concerned about what’ll happen tomorrow.

8. What’s the worst movie trope in your opinion?

The first one that comes to mind for me is the “liar revealed” plot, overused and often a lazy source for conflict in the third act. I also hate forced romance in general but I’m not sure if that’s consider a trope or something broader. This applies to TV shows too.

9. What made you laugh the hardest ever in your life?

Hysterical laughter at reckless hours of the morning is what allowed me to survive college and the apocalypse that was 2016, so there are quite a few moments. One of them happened during a particularly bad bout of depression while I was alone in Toronto for the summer. Out of morbid curiosity I watched a shitty theatre rip of the Emoji Movie online to kill time while I couldn’t sleep (don’t ever do that, not recommended). Then my friend sends me her drawing of Spyro to make me feel better (important note: she doesn’t draw dragons) with a funny caption and I lose my fucking mind. Just... gone, immediately. After the soul-sucking depravity of that movie and my depression combined I’ll bet anything was funny. At that point I didn’t even care if I was being loud at whatever time it was at night I was WHEEZING. Bless my friend.

10. What animal is the most majestic?

All.

(though I am partial to dragons, cats and birds)

11. If you could afford everything, what kind of clothes would you wear?

I’ve noticed I often dress myself like a character designer would when it comes to colour coordination (hard to turn that part of my brain off lol), so I guess I would continue doing that but tailor it even more to that idea. That and fandom shirts all the time. And custom cosplay outfits that I could commission from other people, of both my fave characters and my own OCs. I make armour designs a lot so that would be so much fun. If I were a bolder personality I would probably wear the cosplays in public and see how many people notice, or see if it makes a kid excitedly point at me. If I could act I would recite a quote or two for them. It would be quite the game with something more subtle, and you get that one fan on the subway coming out of the woodwork like “...are you dressed like _____ from ______?”.

[twilightvolt]

A 3 month late art summary featuring art that i haven’t uploaded here due to my absence. unless i randomly feel like it, i don’t think i’m gonna go back and upload them here. if you wanna see them, though, they’re all on my DA.

I know i've pretty much said all the important bits in A Sacrifice for the Wind, but i figure i reiterate everything said along with expanding upon everything that occurred during 2017. piece by piece. and yes, i did intend to make an art joke. So, to get it outta the way, 2017 stunk more than a dead fish on a city bus. i lost a lot during that year. i lost the will to believe in whatever the future had in store for me, i almost lost a few friends, i lost my motivation to work on my projects and above all...i lost the smile i've always kept on every year before that. never have i been so emotionally damaged in all 5 years of my artist life leading up to this point. But, i can't say it was completely terrible. as much as i bashed it, art wise, 2017 was a very progressive year. looking at every wedge on the clock, i can't stop staring at how far i've come since the end of 2016. after being stripped of my tablet at the end, i've even learned how to not be afraid of making permanent mistakes. But yeah, let's begin. by turning the clock all the way back to January. when things were much simpler.... January: Hukaro Nakawa ~Final Mix Yeah, this was done in October, but i uploaded it in January for Moon's birthday. plus, there was nothing noteworthy this month. i still remember all the nice comments i got. this was the beginning of a year that i ran right in and yelled "LET'S SHOW THIS WORLD THAT WE WON'T STAND FOR ANOTHER 2016!" Oh how naive i was... February: The Beast Inside Remember when i played a lot of League in my free time? i sure do. anyway, this was my next attempt after Hukaro to continue doing my "Squeenix Cinematic Style." this time on the, at the time, new revamp for Warwick. needless to say, i still think i did a better job on Hukaro. BUT, this was still pretty good. it was during these first few months when things were really lookin' up for me. i was continually working on things cuz i really wanted to make something and school was pretty cool too. March: Digimon ZX Cover ZX ISN'T DEAD I SWEAR! *ahem* I MEAN....hai. owo As we march on into March, i think R2 of Digimon Temporal Jump was going on at the time. we were going through our story entries and things were pretty great being with my best buds. i also began doing art streams i'm pretty sure, with this drawing in particular being done during two days of streaming. i'm being serious, by the way. ZX is not dead. i've been typing up the story on my phone, so look forward to those chapters sometime soon! April: Are You Ready? Yup. in anticipation for Digidestined.Com, i decided to start seriously developing Digimon Unchained ahead of time so people would be able to get to know Yuki beforehand. unfortunately, i didn't actually get to start the story until much later, but that was just me being a lazy bum. i was hangin' out on Discord and stuff, talking about how excited i was for what was to come. we all know what happened, but at the time, being able to go back to the world i once knew with Luneth was a big deal for me. it's like i was going back to the beginning. And fear not, peeps! i've been working on Unchained for quite awhile. you'd be surprised how much i've worked on it with Gao. ^w^ May: Bits n' Bytes Ultima Vocal Collection Oh yeah, i did a birthday gift for Fire too! just so you know, i do still wanna make OSTs for my other Digimon adventures, but without my tablet i can't really do them right now. this month was pretty alright if i remember. making new friends and strengthening bonds with old friends. things were pretty fun in the sun cuz y'know......summer was coming. June: Connection Flow in Ice and Snow AWWW YEEEAAAAH, LET'S KICK IT!!! *Another Way by Girugamesh plays at full blast* (if .Com had a vocal OST, that would be opening.....3 if i remember the list i made. would've been the final opening i think. it's been awhile since i looked at the files.) Now that .Com finally began, i was on the hype train to the sun as i feverishly worked hard on my .Com stuff. this poster was one of my proudest works this year tbh. i promised i would make something great outta this story. this would be the closure that Luneth and Vivi so desperately needed, and Yuki and Arcus would be the ones to save them and close their book for good. not only that, but i was also graduating high school. after throwing my cap in the air, i said my heartfelt goodbyes to all the friends i've known since elementary and middle school including the close friends in my AP Art Squad. Team AP Art Will Never be Apart! honestly, things couldn't be any more exciting for me. Gee, it would be a shame if something were to happen that would trigger a chain of events that would divide my friends forever and send me down a spiraling pain train to the void known as crippling depression. July: DigiJuly Day 5: V-Mon (Vivi) This drawing was done to commemorate three years of adventures with Luneth and Vivi. this was during DigiJuly, when i was doing Digimon doodles nonstop for the duration of the month. What was once a hype train became a train wreck once July came around. things were ok until DTJ burned down in a raging fire and that set the stage for the rest of the year. i literally wouldn't be able to overcome any of this until November or so. i don't wanna dwell on it anymore since i'd be sounding like a broken record at this point. August: D3P: D-Sona 3 Portable Not a lot of art this month either. can you believe that? XD Hoo boy. August. need i say anything more about this month? we thought things settled down after DTJ shut down, but something was amiss.... This was the month that it happened. the climax of the story best left untold....even though i told it a hundred times already. >_>' Outside of the incident, time was running short for our stay at our current home and we were thinking of our next move. i began to worry about college as steep student debt caused us to have a change of plans on where to go. i was beginning to doubt if i even had a future to believe in. i was running out of options, and i was running out of hope. And trust me, it only gets worse from here. September: The Next Generation After awhile, things were still going on outside my realm of knowledge. it only made me feel worse seeing everything transpire long after the initial conflict. with this stigma hanging over me, i finally decided to pack my bags and leave the Digimon group era of my artist life. it was a pretty sour note to end it on, but let's be real here, there was no way i could wait any longer for things to get better. granted, my birthday was awesome, and i couldn't thank everyone enough for coming together to try to bring my spirit back. unfortunately, my bout with depression was just beginning. it was so bad, i pretty much stopped taking care of myself, which would lead to a few days ago when i'd end up with one less tooth in my mouth. i swear i won't let it get that bad again. With everything plummeting down to the dark abyss, i said goodbye to the life i once knew. from here on, things were about to change. i wasn't gonna end here. not now. October: Howling in the Shadows From this month forth, my family had no idea where we were going. the beginning of the tale of the borderline homeless that still continues to this day. Packing away my computer and drawing tablet for what feels like an eternity, i was moving out of my current home that we rented for the duration of my senior year and into grandma's house......in a raging storm. i'm not kidding. the rain was so bad that when we got there, our clothes were completely soaked and we couldn't even see 5 feet ahead of us outside that night. i knew immediately that it was some sort of ill omen for what was to transpire in the coming months. in fact, i even had dreams of the aftermath of what might happen. Now that i was stripped of my digital art abilities, i had to think of something else to do. so, i decided to dedicate myself to going back to traditional art. Boy, did i have fun. November: Return to the Realm of Sleep Now, this was the only thing i was able to crank out in November. BUT, that doesn't mean i didn't draw. i drew stuff, but nothing noteworthy enough to upload here. i'm gonna tell it to you straight now. Arcus will return. With my mental health still kicking me in the butt (it hit me so hard i had a panic attack one day.), i wasn't really motivated to draw much. in fact, i even hid myself away from the internet for quite awhile. without my friends or my sense of purpose, i felt like i had nothing and i was pretty under the weather for a majority of this month. that being said, i snapped myself out of it by force. it was stupid that i still felt the way i did months after what happened. sure, it was horrible, and i wish i could forget everything. but i can't stay stuck in the past. And so, i picked up my colored pencils and other such tools, and began my journey to recovery. December: Lexicon (Lex) and A Sacrifice for the Wind I got the hang of drawing traditionally pretty quickly. throughout the month, i was on fire, drawing masterstroke after masterstroke. (at least, in my opinion. XD) Making my new home in the mobile communities of Amino, it was a nice change of pace from the big screen of my computer. i made a bunch of new friends (to the staff of the Aminos i'm in and the rest of the crew in our Digimon Discord server, you guys are the best and thank you for healing the pain of yesteryear!) and had a grand old time making new OCs, Lex being one of them. i honestly luv Appmon and i wish we got more, but i'm content with what we got tbh. it'll live on in Seikatsu and his friends. be ready to see them once again in the near future! And so, in the wake of destruction as the world continues to change around me, i chopped off my signature anime emo locks, revamped my wardrobe and set my sights toward the future. Nowadays, i've completely moved on from the pain, but that doesn't change the fact that it still happened. overall, 2017 was a complete pile of poopoo garbage and i'm glad the nightmare is finally over. Even if i can't completely write it off as bad, there's just way too many negatives that weigh down the rest of the year for me personally. it's March now and things are pretty hectic, but i've got newfound courage and i know this year will be better than the last. time for me to get back up and charge forth to a better tomorrow!