#99% of the time i'm over here yo

[ieatgoldfishy]

"That Boy is A Monster" - Luke Castellan x Ares!Fem!Reader

Content Warnings - hate sex, oral (fem receiving), fingering (fem receiving), making out/kissing, unprotected p in v sex (wrap it before you tap it), cream pie, Luke is an asshole, cursing, some angst, Luke is a bitch, Luke is probably very ooc, use of y/n, lmk if I missed anything!

y'all don't be mad at me if Luke is extremely out of character, Ive only watched to movies and tv show 😭

lowercase bc I'm lazy

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You sat across from him at the dinner tables. you knew you shouldn't have dated within your own friend group. now you have to sit across from the worst man ever for another two months. you were zoned out completely, tuning everything around you out, until.... "do you have anything, y/n?" you head snapped up to look at the person talking to you. you could barely hear but knew it was a boy. looking around you see that its Percy, the newest kid here. "huh? what?" you asked, not knowing what he was talking about.

"do you have any advice relating to camp?" Percy asked you. you looked around and thought for a minute. "one, don't start shit if you can't end it and two, don't date." you shot Luke a sharp look after speaking, but he was already looking at you. you scanned over his face, looking at his smug expression. you hated him. you were 99% sure Percy didn't know about you and Lukes history together and you planned to keep it that way.

you finished your dinner and went back to your cabin, you had found a new book recently that you'd been enjoying. surprisingly you were the only one in the cabin. you walked to your bed to grab the book but it wasn't there. "where the hell is it?" you mumbled to yourself. you tore up your bed sheets looking for it but still couldn't find where you'd put it. "looking for something?" a familiar voice calls out to you, Luke. you tuned to look at him and there he was, book in hand, leaning against the cabin door frame, looking horrifyingly beautiful. "give it back." you demanded. "woah easy, girl" he said, his low voice vibrated through you head like a melody. you hated him so much but god was he beautiful.

"Luke, give it back now." you harshly said. you hadn't talked to him since your break up a year ago. he stood up straight, no longer leaning. "you know, I think Chiron would be pretty upset if I showed him that you had a book like this tucked under your pillow." he said, flipping through the pages. he began walking towards you, his face coming more into view. he got dangerously close to you, about half an arms length away. you looked up at him, "give me my fucking book back, Luke." you couldn't tell if you wanted to punch him in his fucking face or sit on his lap and aggressively make out with him.

"why does someone so pretty have to be such a bitch?" he softly said, reaching a hand up to tuck your hair behind you ear. his words angered you and turned you on at the same time. a million emotions raced though your head. "is there something else you want, Luke?" you asked him as if you didn't know. "oh I think we both know what I want." he tossed the book to the floor and placed his hands on your hips, tugging them closer to him.

your faces were merely inches apart, you could feel his breath against your face. your arms wrapped around his neck. "gods I fucking hate you." your lips smashed onto his. he immediately kissed back. you sat down on your bed dragging him with you, leaving him onto of you.

his tounge explored you mouth like it had many times before. his hands were moving all across your body. your thighs, waist, chest, face, nothing was left untouched. he pulled away from you for air. "you sure?" he put his lips back on yours, harsher than before. his knee moved to part your legs and rub your, now sensitive, clit. the friction made you moan into his mouth. but it wasn't enough for him. he rubbed his knee harder on you, pulling away from your mouth to watch your face.

your hands gripped onto his arms and you threw you head back. you were so sensitive, too sensitive. it had been too long. his knee stopped moving but kept the same amount of pressure. "Luke.." you begged. almost like he didn't hear you, his hands moved up to grope your chest. your hips bucked against his knee, it was agonizing. "tell me what you want." he demanded. "you know what I want." you told him, too embarrassed to say what your truly wanted, his mouth on your pussy.

"do it or I'm walking out." he threatened. you questioned why you even wanted him to stay in the first place. "Luke, please.." you begged "please what?" he knew what he was doing, the smirk on his face was proof. "please eat me out...." you whispered. "sorry what way that?" you show him a look then repeated a little louder. "please eat me out." it was barely above a whisper. "one more time?" he teased. "Luke." gods he was annoying. "okay okay" he said as if he actually cared.

He removed his knee from between your legs, you whined at the loss. he moved down the bed to he could take of your jeans. you lifted your ass up so he could get them off. you didn't realize till the cold air hit that he'd taken off you underwear as well. he spread your legs, taking in the view of your soaked cunt. "You know, for someone who hates me, you're awfully wet." you muttered a quick "fuck off" but he didn't say anything. instead, his head dipped down to your cunt, licking a long stripe up and landing on your clit.

his warm mouth enveloped your clit. you moaned way too loud for your liking. he began sucking, and gods was he good at it. he knew you inside and out, it was almost concerning how much he remembered. He moved down to tongue fuck your cunt. His long was long and thick. It made your toes curl and your hands moved to grip his curls.

He pulled away for a second, which felt like days, but your cunt was soon filled again with his long fingers. He solid them in without warning. He paused to let you adjust a bit. His fingers started at a fast pace, barely giving you room to breathe. Your moans got louder by the second. He looked proud when you saw his face.

He moved back down to suck your clit. It was too much. Your back arched so much it hurt. Your fingers tugged harshly on his hair and you heard him moan. “Did you just fucking moan?” You asked, voice breaking and moaning after each word. “Shut up” he mumbled, his voice sending vibrations straight to your clit.

Your moans and pleads echoed throughout the Ares cabin. Gods you were lucky no one was in here. A tight coil started to form in your stomach. He had turned you into a moaning mass at this point. All you could say was his name. Repeating it over and over and over again.

The coil was getting so tight, too tight. “Please.. don’t stop..!” You begged. He looked up at you for a second and somehow his fingers went faster. You almost screamed. You were so close. He kept going until it snapped. Your toes curled and you back arched. You screamed and shoved his head into your pussy. Your hands griped his hair so hard you swear you pulled out a few strands.

He sat back up and you could see in the yellow light that his face was absolutely drenched. “Holy shit, I-I’m sorry” you breathed heavily, still coming down from your high. You didn’t know you were apologizing but you did anyways. “Don’t worry” he chuckled, “this is the best part.” He said. You blushed a faint red.

You closed your eyes to focus on your breathing.After a couple seconds, you heard him unbuckle his belt. You opened your eyes. He pulled his pants and boxers down at the same time. His dick was fully hard and sprung out of its its confinement.

His left hand pumped his cock slowly while his right spread your legs farther apart. He maneuvered you body to your knees being by your head. He guided his cock to your hole, his tip prodding at you entrance. “Is this still okay?” He asked. You nodded your head.

He slid in and stoped. His tip was the only thing in you but you felt so full. He continued pushing himself in. His girth was already to much. He bottomed out inside you and gave you time to adjust. Your nails dug crescent moons into his upper arms.

He began to move slowly inside you. You both had breathy moans coming out of your mouths. “Luke..! Please…” you wanted him to go faster. He knew what you wanted. He knew everything you want from him when it came to sex. He picked up his pace and leaned his body into yours.

His groans and moans were almost as loud as yours. Your brain was going numb. His dick going in and out of you at such a fast pace was godly. He paused to readjust himself. You whined and begged for him to keep going.

He started again but he was harsher. His hips snapped into yours. Your moans were music to his ears. He angled his hips up and he found your g-spot. Your screamed. You didn’t know how to react to it. He looked shocked for a moment but started up again. He made it his mission to hit your spot with every thrust. It was too much. The overstimulation felt so good and bad all at once.

“Holy fuck..” he moaned. You cunt righted on him. You were so close. His cock continued to ram in and out of you at an impossible pace. You could tell he was getting close. His thrusts got sloppier and his moans got louder. His hands gripped tightly to the headboard and you hips and his eyebrows furrowed .

“Y-y/n fuck…” he groaned. You both were so close. You were a moaning mess. The only thing you could think about was him and his cock fucking into you.

You came with a scream. You clamped down on his cock and he came too. He thrusted softly a few more times then pulled out. You both sat there heavily breathing trying to calm down. he sat back and spread your pussy to watch the mix of cum seep out of you. his face was unreadable.

He walked off and got a towel. He cleaned you off and put your underwear back on. “Don’t tell anyone about this” he didn’t even look you in the eyes. He just walked off. He left you there. Trying to figure out why the fuck you just did that.

[chimcess]

Waterlog || pjm (2)

Pairing: Jimin x Reader Other tags: Olympic Swimmer!Jimin, Ex Olympic Swimmer! Reader, Swim Coach!Reader Genre: Strangers to Friends to Lovers!AU, Coach!AU, Swimming!AU, HEAVY Angst, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, fluff, eventual smut, I'm so soft for these two it's crazy. Word Count: 11.5k+ Synopsis: After a car accident ends her athletic career, Y/N has slowly started rebuilding her life again as a high school swim coach. That’s until she gets a request from an old friend and finds herself back in the spotlight as the new coach of Olympic swimmer, Park Jimin. Warnings: PINING, sexual tension, sad backstory, parental issues, more than likely bad swimming terminology, probably some bad work out advice, i'm trying my best lol, tae is too much but i love him, talks of past drug use (not reader or jimin), strong language, mental health things, medication use, allusions to depression, did i say pining?, reader is horny and awkward 99% of the time, can we blame her?, mood swings, i think they are so cute together, i promise more romance is coming soon A/N: Howdy. I know we're having a pretty slow start, but I think it'll be worth it in the end. I enjoy a good slow burn, especially when there's so much awkward sexual tension involved. Thanks for reading!!!

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Waking up the next morning, I was greeted by a loud knocking on my door. Stumbling, I told whoever it was that I was on my way. The knocking stopped but was quickly followed by Violet’s loud voice. My things were here, and I needed to let the movers inside.

“Christian and Kook are here already,” She added. “Managed to get an extra pair of hands, too.”

I changed into a pair of jeans and threw on a pull over. It was not supposed to be as cold today, but I did not think a short-sleeved shirt would be enough to keep me warm. Sliding into my boots, I opened the front door.

Violet was there, her hair in a braid again, wearing a blue plaid shirt and bootcut jeans. Beside her was Jimin, a large smile already on his face. Two other men were here. I was certain I had seen one of them before. He was very handsome with a heart shaped face and soft chin, large, asymmetrical brown eyes, and downturned lips. His hair was very obviously dyed, the blue so bright when the sun hit it my eyes hurt.

The other man was less familiar. His hair was black, styled into a trendy wolf cut, with his bangs pulled out of his face into a ponytail. He had a pure, youthful, and elegant look about him, and a few piercings. There was one on his eyebrow, one on his bottom lip, and so many on each ear I could not count them all. If I could describe him in a single word, it would be cartoonish. His eyes took up most of his face, large and doe-like, with all of his other features soft and small. Like the blue haired man, he was very handsome.

This upset me more than it should have, because despite how wonderful they both looked, all I could think about was how much I preferred Jimin. It was incomparable, actually. While they were certainly my type, I could only see how not Jimin-like their features were.

“Good morning,” I greeted them awkwardly, my voice scratchy. “I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you both.”

“It’s such an honor to meet you,” The blue haired man’s enthusiasm caught me off guard. Despite me never making the move to shake either one of their hands, he reached for mine anyway. He reminded me of a labrador retriever, and I could imagine a tail wagging in time with his vigorous handshake. “I’m Taehyung Kim. I used to watch you, like, all the time back in the day.”

I knew that name. Studying his face a little more, it hit me. Taehyung Kim, a.k.a., The Seal of Michigan, a.k.a, V. I never understood why he had been given that last one, but it must have some sort of meaning to him because the guy lights up when anyone uses it. He was a famous snowboarder and had been to the 2020 winter Olympics. He was just a few months younger than Jimin.

“That’s very kind of you to say,” I gripped his hand back a bit more now. “I watched you at the last Olympics. You did great.”

He blushed and let go of my hand, “I didn’t win anything, but I had a lot of fun.”

That was true. The kid was brand new on the scene and let some of his nerves get to him. I had learned the hard way that hesitation could ruin a great performance, but I was sure he would do better in January. The Winter Olympics were always a few months ahead of summer, and I would surely be watching Taehyung this year. If I was going to spend time with Jimin then I would need to get along with his friends.

“It’s not always about winning,” I tried to comfort him. “I didn’t win every time either.”

That placated him. Jimin quickly introduced me to Jungkook after. He was an NHL player for the Red Wings. I admitted that I had no idea who he was and never really watched hockey before, but that only made Jungkook swear to make me an avid fan before I left Michigan. For some reason, I believed him.

It did not take long for the movers to get all of my furniture and boxes into the house. With the boys’ help, I was tipping the two men much earlier than I anticipated. All three of them insisted on helping me unpack despite me telling them I could do it on my own. The place was entirely too small for the four of us, but we managed to make it work.

I had told them my bedroom was off limits. I unpacked my clothes and put my underwear away. My room was the largest in the house. With enough space for my full-sized bed, nightstands, and dresser, I was pleased. The only downside was not having a closet, but I did not bring anything nice enough for it to really matter. It was inconvenient but not the end of the world.

I was, however, happy to see more color. My blanket was dark orange, pillowcases covered in baby pink cow print, and the otter plushie Namjoon’s mom made me was resting right in between them. I installed some simple shelving above my bed, warmly lit Christmas lights wrapped around the bars, where I displayed my books and a few of my plants. The rest were lined up on the windowsill beside the bed.

Brightly colored art now hung on the walls, a large mirror above my dresser, and a peg board for my earrings made the space feel lived in. Whatever books could not fit on my shelves got stacked and put on the nightstand. I still wanted to buy a rug and curtains, but that was on the bottom of my list of priorities.

The boys were all talking and laughing as they worked which helped me relax. I hated being trapped in quiet spaces. Finished with my room, I went to check in with them and move things around. I doubted any of them would get the knick-knacks just right.

“Don’t worry about the decorations,” I said, announcing my presence. Taehyung was staring at two of my paintings with mild panic. “I’ll take that.”

Snatching the photos, I smiled at him. The living room was coming together nicely. Jungkook pushed the dark green loveseat against the wall and all of my throws were on top of it. My largest potted plant was beside it and I decided then I would keep it there. Moving the throw pillows to the floor, I started to put my wall art up. Hoseok complained that I was going to become a hoarder if I bought any more shit. Andrea, however, said that I had great taste, so I listened to her instead.

“You’re a big face of Earthy colors,” Jungkook said, looking around the house. “Lots of plants, too.”

I shrugged, “My fiancé had a lot of succulents and stuff, so I guess it rubbed off on me after a while.”

In truth, Namjoon not only had succulents and cacti, but an entire apartment filled with plants. He had a small garden in the back, vegetables and herbs growing in despite the weather in Colorado making it difficult. The man had a green thumb and loved taking care of things. I had been in charge of them once we moved in together and learned to love it. Even after he died, I couldn’t imagine not having at least five plants in the house.

I noticed the room had gone eerily quiet. I realized then what I had said. It was the first time I had spoken about Namjoon with any of them. Knowing I had made the atmosphere awkward, I tried to break up the tension.

“What colors do you like, Jungkook?”

I could physically feel the mood lighten.

“Black,” His reply was quick. I groaned. He laughed. “What? I like the clean look.”

“It’s not clean,” I argued. “It’s depressing.”

Taehyung took my side, “My house isn’t as decorated as yours, but I have more going on than either one of them. I’m a huge fan of video games and photography so I have a lot of stuff hanging up.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Jimin chimed in from the bathroom. He placed himself in charge of getting that room squared away. “His place isn’t as nice as yours. It’s all cluttered and disorganized."

“Nu uh,” Taehyung argued childishly.

“Dude, you have stuff everywhere,” Jungkook shot back, handing me another picture frame.

“They’re lying,” Taehyung told me.

“You’re so full of shit, Tae,” Jungkook sighed.

“Literally the dumbest thing to lie about,” Jimin snarkily threw in from the bathroom.

“Bullies,” Taehyung was addressing me again and this time I could not help my chuckles. “They always gang up on me.”

As the boys continued to bicker, I worked. I finished hanging up the art above the sofa and got to organizing the throws. Taehyung had already pulled out my rug, and I started figuring out how I wanted to place all of the floor pillows. Namjoon never used the couch, no one in his family did, and I had become so conscious of their comfort that I always had a large array of pillows on the floor for them to use. After a few years, I had joined them, and I kept up the trend once I moved to the Springs. The sofa was little more than decoration.

“Damn, these are nice.”

Looking over my shoulder, I was surprised to see Jungkook holding up one of my medals. I was positive I had not packed it and the box he was hunched over was completely unfamiliar as well. Embarrassment and anger swelled up in my chest. I had placed Minho and Tilly in charge of coordinating with the movers so I could focus on work and training Hoseok before I left. If I had to guess, Tilly had thought it wise to ship over a large package of my most prized possessions for some God forsaken reason.

“I don’t know why those are here,” I hoped my voice sounded playful and carefree. I did not want another tense moment. “One of my friends must have packed them.”

“Holy shit,” Taehyung was now holding the medal. “These are heavy. You have so many.”

Walking over to the box, I took out the rest of the medals. Tilly had only packed four of the eight Olympic medals I owned, probably running out of room. Framed photos of me swimming, with the rest of my team, and my coach were also in the box. My swimsuit from the last Olympics I competed at was folded at the very bottom of the box, my goggles and cap wrapped up in the fabric, and underneath it was something I had not been expecting. A framed photograph.

I remembered that night as if it were yesterday. I was eighteen coming off the back of two major wins and making my mark in the athletic community. I had just moved to Denver; Victor had gotten divorced the year prior and his ex-wife moved to Colorful Colorado taking his daughter with her. My coach demanded he was close enough to see her every weekend. It really did not matter to me where I lived, so it was one of the easier decisions I had to make.

I knew Hoseok lived in the area, and we had always been friendly at the meets we had in common. I ended up getting his number from Ozzie and after getting coffee I knew we would be friends for life. The picture was taken at his New Year’s Eve Party. I needed to get laid, he had said, and he knew a few guys he thought I might hit it off with. That was where I met Namjoon.

He was a college student, fresh faced and stumbling over his words. I was charmed by him almost instantly, even if Hoseok was positive the two of us were too different to last. I could recall the smell of fireworks in the air, the way his voice cracked whenever another one would go off, and how excited his eyes looked whenever I asked him about his major. Namjoon spoke for hours about Philosophy, all of his favorite poets, and the way he believed the universe worked. He was so clumsy it was practically a disability, and the loud sounds were so nerve wracking, he flinched whenever the fireworks boomed.

Picking up the small picture, I smiled. It was taken right after midnight. Hoseok’s sister said we looked so sweet that she could not help herself. I had all but ripped Namjoon’s hair out when the countdown began, kissing him before midnight ever came. His hands rested gently on my hips, and he huffed like he had run a marathon when we finally pulled apart. His breath was hot when he went back in for more, panting into my mouth as I clung to him like an addict. It was a beautiful moment. It was a moment I would never forget.

Suddenly, I was no longer mad at Matilda. I was sure it had been her who did this. Minho would not go through so much trouble if he thought it would upset me. Either way, I was happy to have the picture. While I was no longer in love with Namjoon, my heart slowly healing itself and making space for someone new, I would never forget our time together. It was too perfect, too magical; too loving to forget.

“Is that him?” Taehyung asked. The way he said it told me that he knew what had happened. I doubted there was a person in our world who didn't know. “The guy who died?”

I nodded, “His name was Namjoon.”

“Damn, that’s rough,” Jungkook’s voice was very gentle, and I could hear the compassion in it. “Sorry to hear that. Hope you’re doing okay.”

I smiled at him and nodded, “It was a few years ago.”

Taehyung was the one who broke the moment this time and I was grateful for the reprieve.

“These aren’t all of them, right?” He pointed at the medals still in the box. "Olympic medals, I mean."

I shook my head, “No but I guess she just grabbed the ones I had at my house. The other four I keep at my school. They’re in a case in my office.”

The ones Tilly had packed away were from 2012. Andrea had been the one to convince me to bring my other medals to school. Before that I had them all stored in a box in the deepest corner of my basement. I hated looking at them. Hated everything that they represented. The only reason these had been hanging up was because I could not be bothered taking them down.

“Where should we put them?” Jungkook asked.

I shrugged, “No idea. Just keep them in the box for now.”

Truthfully, I had no intention of putting them anywhere. While happy to have the photo of Namjoon and I, my feelings on dragging these things around had not changed. I would be very upset if I lost or damaged any of this stuff. Putting everything away, save the picture, I closed the box back up and placed the photo on my coffee table. I would find a better place for it later.

Like all of the times I had been around him, Jimin bled into the background. I listened for his voice, waited for him to add something to the conversation, but he kept to himself. Even when he left the bathroom and joined the three of us, he only answered in one-word sentences and made sound effects to show he was listening. Taehyung and Jungkook seemed used to it, so I had to believe this was just how Jimin normally was.

“You should come and grab some drinks with us,” Jungkook smiled at me.

The boys were going out for a late lunch since we finished a little later than we had thought we would. I was appreciative that they had invited me out but declined the offer. All of them were disappointed.

“Why not?” Taehyung wiggled a large set of keys at me. I could not imagine what all of them could be for and the sound they made when they moved bothered me. “You worried the food’s going to suck or something?”

I shook my head, laughing, “No, it’s nothing like that. I just don’t feel comfortable going to a bar.”

Jimin smiled at me, a small, tight-lipped smile, and I almost laughed at myself when I realized I was holding my breath. I was being ridiculous. I would call Hoseok tonight to get my head screwed back on.

“It’s not a bar,” It was heavenly to hear his voice again. “Taehyung and I don’t drink. Jungkook just likes to sit at the bar so he can watch the games.”

“Oh,” I replied dumbly. “I guess I can come along then.”

Jimin offered to give me a ride while Jungkook and Taehyung rode in the hockey player's beat up Jeep. He was just as quiet on the ride to the restaurant as he was back at the house, and while I wanted to break him out of whatever shell he had put around himself, I had no idea how. We were supposed to work together and barely spoke. Ozzie was not going to be happy about this.

“What time are we getting your car?”

I jumped, not prepared for the question. His eyes were still on the road, and it looked like he was forcing himself to not look my way. It hurt my feelings, but I knew I would have to get over it. Whatever his problem was, it had nothing to do with me and I would not let it get in between our working relationship.

“Whenever you want to go,” I replied, going back to looking out of the window.

“We’ll pick it up after we eat. My mom invited you over for dinner. by the way. If you're up for it.”

This had been the most he had said all day, but his voice was off. It was embarrassing how quickly I had become attuned to his little mannerisms, but I was so sure that something was wrong with him it was eerie. His tone was flat and disinterested, and I knew I had done nothing to upset him. Something was obviously bothering him, and I would have to silently support him in my own way. I was not comfortable being more upfront and something told me that Jimin would not like my overstepping.

“I might,” I purposely kept my tone light, hoping he did not realize I could see the darkness in his eyes. Looking at him, I asked, “What is she making?”

“Beef and radish stew,” The mundane topic seemed to ease his frown. “She got a yellow corvina from the Asian market yesterday so she’s going to roast it. Do you like fish?”

“Yeah,” I nodded. “It sounds nice. I’ll go.”

A ghost of a smile graced his pretty face and I felt like I had won the lottery. Carefully composed, I looked back out of the window, hiding my little smile behind my hand. He was quiet again, the only sounds in the car being our breathing, but it felt lighter. Finally, I let myself admire the scenery.

Taehyung and Jungkook were already at the bar when we arrived and as soon as we sat down, the snowboarder was quick to hog all of my attention. While Jungkook watched a baseball game on the big screens, Taehyung talked animatedly about his family. Jimin was quietly sipping on a Coke in the seat next to me. It was strange to see how easily his friends ignored him. Like they knew he did not feel like talking.

“My sisters are both in college,” Taehyung continued to ramble. “Twins. It was a nightmare being the baby brother.”

I nodded along and tried my best to keep up with him. I kept getting distracted by Jimin. He barely moved and seemed to be mindlessly watching the tv. He looked so sad it broke my heart. Still, no one else said anything so I kept my thoughts to myself.

“Oh!” Taehyung gasped, noticing a few people who walked in. “I’m going to go say ‘hi.’ It was so great meeting you.”

With a bright smile, Taehyung told the boys about the group and Jungkook decided to join him. Jimin did not even acknowledge he had said anything. Leaving us alone, the restaurant was loud and filled with their chattering.

“Are you hungry?” I asked, trying to make conversation. Picking up the menu the bartender had left with Taehyung when we first arrived, I gave it a quick once over. “We can split an appetizer.”

Jimin looked tired and sad, but I did not know what to say or do for him. We were not lovers, not even friends. We were a pair of strangers who were expected to work together. This seemed much easier over the phone. I took a nervous sip of my drink.

“What are you thinking?” Just the sound of him talking eased my anxiety.

“Uh,” I had barely looked at their menu and pointed to a random item. “Fried pickles?”

Jimin smiled lazily and looked at me, his eyes amused.

“You don’t sound very sure of yourself.”

I shrugged, embarrassed. “I just said the first thing I saw.”

Putting his cup down, Jimin grabbed the menu from my hands and laid it flat on the bar. We leaned over the small paper, our knees touching. I could smell his cologne now and my mouth watered. He smelled so good I struggled to focus.

“Most of the shit here is awful,” His voice had more life in it now and I was glad to see the corners of his mouth pulled up. “Only things worth getting are the chips and salsa, fried cheese, and pasties. The pizza is fine, too, but not worth the money.”

Talking distracted him from whatever had been on his mind, and it made Jungkook and Taehyung’s behavior odd. They were obviously very close, but if I could see how much happier he looked when he was shooting the shit, how couldn’t they? They probably knew something I didn’t, but it did nothing but rub me the wrong way. My friends would annoy me until I had no choice but to talk back.

“Chips are usually pretty safe,” We both agreed on it. “Do you just want chips? I don’t mind getting you a burger or something.”

He shook his head, “Like I said, most of the shit here is awful. Don’t waste your money.”

I ordered the chips for us, and the bartender was happy to help us out. This place was pathetically empty save us and the group Jungkook and Taehyung ditched us for. They were very loud and rowdy, something Jimin said was completely normal. Apparently, they all knew one another but he hadn’t felt like spending time with any of them.

“Are you feeling alright?” I asked, heart pounding. My anxiety over the question was ridiculous, but I felt like this was a good moment to ask. We were both comfortable and the tightness around his eyes was finally eased.

“Just one of those days,” He replied, voice soft.

I sighed, “I get them, too. They’re the fucking worst.”

He chuckled darkly, “It’s like you wake up and that’s already taken all of the energy you had for the day.”

“Why’d you come to the house?” I asked, flagging the bartender for a refill. “I wouldn’t have been upset if you bailed.”

Jimin flushed, “I said I was coming so I came.”

No, I thought, you thought I was going to be mad if you hadn’t shown up. Hamilton had this poor kid so fucked up and scared it pissed me off. As long as I knew Matt, he had always been an ass, but to think he had his trainee putting shit before his mental health and wellbeing made whatever sliver of respect I had for him vanish.

I took a long sip of my drink, “We can’t work together if you don’t talk to me. That will piss me off way more than you canceling on me.”

“Okay,” He let out a very large breath. “I’ll let you know next time.”

As we ate our chips, we moved into safer waters. Jimin was still less talkative in person, but nowhere near as tense as he had been all morning. I found that music was one of his favorite things, and I discussed my own interests in more depth and detail than I ever had before. Jimin’s taste was varied but stuck mostly in 90s R&B and soft Indie artists I had never heard of. At some point I ordered spicy wings and had to admit Jimin was right- they really were awful.

We left the other two behind to go and pick up my car. Jungkook and Taehyung seemed more than happy to watch us leave and the large table barely acknowledged my presence. Jimin accepted their happy shouts when he approached, hugging the ones who stood up to greet him, and forced one of his small, pitiful smiles at a particular brunette who kept batting her eyelashes at him. He introduced me but none of them seemed to really care. Especially the brunette.

“Let me get your number,” Taehyung said to me, holding out a hand for my phone. “We need to hang out again.”

I was nervous about giving him a way to contact me. He reminded me of Tilly, though ten times more energetic, and she always found a way to get on my nerves (the box being one of many examples). Taehyung had yet to overstep the imaginary boundaries I had, but his complete lack of personal space etiquette was astounding. He touched me more in one day than any of my friends in an entire year. He seemed like the type of person to text every day and send a million pictures of himself doing random shit. Even with that in mind, I handed my phone over. He was too nice to say no to.

“Do you like sushi?” Taehyung asked, handing me my phone. “There’s a great place in Detroit we can go to.”

The idea of being trapped in a car with the snowboarder for 45 minutes was not appealing. I could only imagine how much he could talk when he was really excited about something. I would entertain the idea if Jungkook or Jimin came as a buffer, especially if one of them could sit up front. Taehyung yapping away in my ear would give me the biggest migraine I had ever had, and my anxiety over not being entirely focused on the road would make me snippy and rude.

“Only if I can come,” Jungkook piped up. “You’re not going to Bash without me, dude.”

“Well yeah,” Taehyung rolled his eyes. “Y/N has to meet Milo and Darcy,” He looked at me, grinning happily. “I think you would really get along.”

I had no idea who either of those people were, but I did not want to ask any questions. Jimin was inching back towards me and telling the others goodbye, and I did not want to hold him up. Taehyung started making plans that I did not pay any attention to. He could always text me when he figured out what he wanted.

“We have to get going,” Jimin was back beside me. “Y/N’s car is sitting at the dealership. It was good seeing everyone.”

I waved at the table and started walking away before Taehyung could touch me. He was definitely a hugger. Jimin was quick to catch up with me, giggling about my “escape.” It had started to snow again, gentle flurries twisting and turning in the wind, and I had forgotten my heavy jacket at home. The long sleeve I was wearing would do nothing to keep me warm.

“Here,” Jimin taking off his jacket. “You need this more than me.”

Draping it over my shoulders, Jimin told me to zip it up. Stunned, I moved on autopilot and shoved my arms through the sleeves. Everything smelled like him, oranges and spice, and his warmth was still clinging to the thick fleece. I could not remember the last time someone had given me their jacket. Dazed, I followed Jimin out to the parking lot, eyes locked on his back. He was in nothing but a thin, black and white striped shirt.

“Thanks,” I said once we were both in the truck, already shrugging out of the light beige jacket. “You didn’t have to do that.”

He held up a hand, “Keep it. The heater is out.”

I shook my head, “What about you?”

He reached into the back and held up a purple hoodie.

“I’ll be alright.”

I put the jacket back on and buckled in. Jimin slipped into the sweatshirt and started the truck. After buckling up, he backed out of the parking lot. I caught sight of the brunette as we left. She was red faced, shouting into her phone. I looked away. Whoever she was angry with was definitely getting an earful.

“Wonder what Tom did this time,” Jimin mumbled.

“Hm?”

“Tom’s Annie’s boyfriend,” He supplied. “They’re always arguing. Worse than Jungkook and Darcy, they break up every other week, but Tom and Annie are at each other's throats every other day.”

I grimaced, “Sounds like my friends. They finally called it quits last year, but they were insufferable.”

Jimin chuckled, “So, what’s Colorado like?”

I talked to him about Andrea and Seokjin first, how we met and how much I loved their daughter. Hoseok and I’s friendship got quite a few laughs out of him, but those quickly died off when I brought up Namjoon. I told him about the day we met and the coffee date that happened a few days later, and that seemed to brighten up the mood again. Namjoon stories were bittersweet but took up such a large chunk of my life it was impossible to gloss over.

“When’s the toxic couple coming up?” He joked.

“I’m getting there,” I replied.

Hoseok and Matilda had known one another longer than the rest of us. Growing up together, no one was surprised when they finally hooked up in high school. It was, however, short lived bliss. Matilda got caught up in the wrong crowd and began doing drugs. Hoseok had tried to help her get through it, but they could never see eye-to-eye. That started their toxic cycle of getting back together, Tilly going to rehab, her relapsing, and them falling out again. It was not until she went two years ago that it managed to stick, but their relationship was too tumultuous to make it very far. They decided to stay friends and she became a constant member in our group.

“That’s crazy,” Jimin shook his head. “Happy she’s doing better now.”

“Me too.”

The rest of the drive was spent talking about Colorado and how beautiful it was. He stayed away from swimming, mostly wanting to hear about the school I worked at and the places I went to in my free time. He kept me talking for the entire 45-minute car ride, question after question keeping me on my toes. He did not like talking about himself, whenever I tried to switch the conversation to his own interests he barely responded before going back to his interrogation. Before I knew it, we were pulled into the dealership and getting down.

“You can leave,” I told him.

“I want to make sure you’re good before I go,” He replied.

The cashier was lovely, her voice bubbly and sweet as she helped me out. Jimin lingered longer than he needed to, helping me fill out my paperwork and making small talk with the dealer. I took my keys and went for a quick test drive before I was finally able to convince Jimin to leave.

The drive back was quiet. I was used to the silence when I drove, but Jimin’s voice had been soothing. Frankly, I was a bit bored without him around. I decided to call Matila and ask about my medals. She apologized but I doubted how sincere she actually was. After catching up with her, hearing all about the guy she went on a date with, and a five-minute rant about Hoseok spending way too much money on Minho’s birthday present, I hung up before she could give me a migraine. As much as I liked Tilly, she was someone I had very little patience for and her voice, high pitched and loud, was like nails on a chalkboard.

I got back in town a little after 3. Violet and Calvin were both home and watching some black and white Western. Calvin offered to make me lunch, but I was quick to decline. I just wanted some space.

As soon as I got in my apartment, I curled up in bed to take a nap. I was overwhelmed after talking so much and desperately needed to recharge. I set an alarm for 5 so I could make it over to the Park house in time for dinner. Quickly sending a quick text to Hoseok, I turned on thunderstorm sounds and closed my eyes.

Na-Yeon and James were both excited to see me, talking about their days and asking how I was settling in. Eloise was there as well, the twins in the back room playing again. Jimin was going to be late. He had gone for a last-minute swim with Milo. When I asked them who that was, it was Eloise who answered.

“That’s Vincent’s fiancé.”

“Who?” I was even more confused.

“Taehyung,” Na-Yeon answered. “You know he hates that name as much as Jimin hates his, Lou."

Eloise blushed, her entire face turning a bright shade of red.

“Sorry,” She scratched behind her ear. Looking back at me, she sighed, “We went to school together. Old habit.”

Now V made sense. It never occurred to me that Jungkook and Taehyung could have their own American names, and neither one introduced themselves that way either. James came to take the seat beside mine, the dining table more crowded then was reasonably necessary.

“Does Jungkook have a second name?” I asked.

“Ian,” Eloise replied. “He goes by both, so I don’t think he cares as much as Tae and Jimin. I know his girlfriend uses both.”

I assumed that was Darcy. Why else would Taehyung assume she would go with us on a day trip to Detroit?

“They call him Ian on the team, too,” James chimed in. “His name is too hard.”

Namjoon never had an American name, at least, not one I had ever heard. The only person I could think of was Hoseok. A lot of his friends called him Jay, something about an old nickname from school, but that was it. Seokjin just went by Jin, Namjoon went by Joon, and Minho went by…well, Minho. None of their parents used American-Friendly names, and Seokjin’s father’s English was still poor even after living here for so long.

“Y/N,” Na-Yeon brought me back to the conversation. “What banchan do you like?”

“My eomeo-nim made these delicious, braised potatoes,” I answered, thinking back on our dinners together. “Kimchi, of course. My ex made the best braised lotus roots. They were always yummy.”

Na-Yeon seemed pleased by my answer. James and Eloise started rambling about their own favorites. Unlike Namjoon, Mr.Park was a big fan of seafood. He grew up in Busan near the Jagalchi Market, which, according to him, was the largest seafood market in South Korea. Eloise talked a little about her favorite Korean dishes before jumping into what she grew up eating. Her father was Scottish and her mother French, so one night she was eating Scottish Pie and daube niçoise the next. It was fun hearing more about Eloise. I would have never guessed she was a first generation American.

“It’s something Tony and I had in common,” She added. “He learned quite a bit of French before he died. Unfortunately, my Korean is taking much longer.”

“Mine isn’t that great either,” I admitted. “Namjoon’s family spoke English and never liked to make me feel awkward. I can follow a conversation fairly well, but only if you speak slowly.”

James laughed, “I will remember that.”

The front door opened, and I could hear loud talking. Eloise sighed. Whoever was with Jimin did not pass her inspection it would seem. She and James seemed to have a small conversation with their eyes. The men were still at the front of the house. Finally, Eloise looked away and scowled.

“Must have brought Milo and Tae over,” She muttered. “I’m going to go check on the twins.”

Eloise left the table. James told me to ignore her. She and Milo did not get along for whatever reason and she chose to ignore him. It was not my business, so I accepted that explanation.

I prepared myself for a bad interaction. So far, Eloise was such a quiet and sweet person I could not imagine anyone actively disliking her. Then again, this was Taehyung’s fiancé, and he was the nicest, most bubbly person I had ever met. It did not seem likely that he would hang around bad company. It could just be a case of personalities clashing.

“Annyeong,” Taehyung greeted us brightly, immediately finding me. “Babe, come say hi.”

A massive, pale man followed in behind him. Milo was a good-looking guy, bright blue eyes and dirty blonde hair, with a solid build. He reminded me of the male swimmers I worked with, his huge size and bulging muscles intimidating. His fashion sense was not as good as Taehyung’s. Ill-fitting black bottoms and a Rick and Morty t-shirt that made me want to roll my eyes. I was definitely biased, my loyalties already in Eloise’s corner. I did not need to know a backstory to be weary. The dude looked enough like Matthew Hamilton to make me dislike him just off principal.

“Milo, Y/N,” Taehyung introduced, gesturing between the two of us. Behind him, Jimin snuck into the kitchen and gave his mom a kiss on the cheek as a greeting. He looked nice in his gray tracksuit. “Y/N, this is my fiancé, Milo.”

I managed a disingenuous smile, “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” He replied. His voice was smokey.

“Where’s Lou?” Jimin asked, coming around to greet his father.

“Checking on Harper and Cam,” James told him.

There was not enough room for all of us to sit at the table and I ended up giving up my seat to Na-Yeon. Jimin helped her set the table while I was put in charge of gathering Eloise and the kids. Walking down the hallway, I found the kids’ playroom and knocked.

“Dinner’s ready,” I announced, poking my head inside.

The room was bigger than I thought it would be. Each side was decorated in stereotypical boy and girl colors, Cameron’s bed and wall art a wide variety of blues and teals with dinosaur decals on the walls, while Harper’s was a mix up of baby pink and white. Her bed had more stuffed animals on it than I could count and all of them seem well loved. Their toys split the room in half, a large, circle rug in the middle of it all. Most of the toys were thrown on the floor and Eloise was telling them it was time for them to clean it up.

The children looked so cute in their little matching outfits. Harper’s black hair was braided down her back and the ribbon tied at the end of it matched her cream-colored overalls. Cam’s hair was on the longer side as well, falling to his shoulders with a slight wave. His bright red converse stuck out against the rather plain outfit he was wearing, and I had to assume he put up a fight behind them. Harper started to sing the Barney song as they cleaned.

“Feeling, okay?” I asked their mother. She was sitting in the chair on Harper’s side. “You ran off pretty quickly.”

She shook her head, “It’s nothing. We’ve never gotten along.”

I raised an eyebrow, “Do you want to eat here? I’ll sit with you.”

She smiled, “We can play nice, don’t worry. Thanks, though. I appreciate you asking.”

Dinner was as uneventful as Eloise said it would be. She and Milo greeted one another and then acted as if the other did not exist. I stood up to eat, Taehyung, Milo, and Jimin with me while the others sat down. Cam was excited to talk about school and Harper rambled on and on about her imaginary friend Butter Squash. They were both very sweet and it made me miss Dani. The last time I saw her was when we went skating the weekend before I left.

Taehyung was as talkative as ever. His touches also become bolder. By the time I left, he had an arm around my shoulders and his body pressed against my side. Milo was unbothered by our closeness. He and Jimin spoke the most and again the guy I knew when no one else was around seemingly vanished. This one was too put together, too closed off, and no one, and I mean no one, seemed to care. Every time he laughed half-heartedly or nodded along with whatever Milo was talking about, I felt more confused. Why was he so hot and cold all of the time?

During my drive back home, I tentatively attempted to listen to the radio. I only lasted around a minute or so before I switched it off. I needed silence. The Parks were such a lovely family, but tonight was too much. Between unpacking and Taehyung, I was drained. Hoseok had asked me to call him when I got home but I was going to wait. If it was important enough, he would call me himself.

I fell asleep as soon as my face hit the pillow, my medication making it a dreamless night.

The rest of the week was quiet. I called my friends back home to check in Thursday morning and was happy about Hoseok’s progress. The kids were really liking him, and he thought he may have a permanent job for next year if I decided to keep working with Jimin. I told him not to get his hopes up.

Jimin and I spoke through text daily. He was still going about his normal routine while I brainstormed training and scheduling. By Saturday I was ready to start testing out different ideas. We both seemed eager to get started, actually. Sunday, like I expected, was very quiet. That was his mom’s day, so I tried not to bother him. Violet and Calvin kept me company.

The Andersons were nice people. Violet was always coming to the back and inviting me to join them for breakfast, and her husband enjoyed asking me about my life. Calvin was far more personable than his wife was, but they managed to balance one another out. Sunday evening was the first time I noticed Calvin’s memory issues. He had no idea who I was. I came inside and Violet had to tell him I was their daughter Nancy’s babysitter. He was under the assumption that she was still 10. I left them alone when Violet asked me to pick her up from school. She came out back a few hours later to thank me for going along with everything, and I made sure that she had my phone number in case she needed me to help out if things got out of hand.

It was still dark outside when I left Monday morning. Jimin and I agreed to meet up at 6 am to start our day, but I wanted to get to the gym early. Time to set up and get myself in the right headspace was important to me.

The location he had sent me was more remote than I had originally anticipated. Jimin owned the little gym. It had been a swim school in the past and the place he had first learned he loved the water. He and his mom went to classes together when he was young. The place had been too expensive for the previous owners to keep up with and they were planning on selling it, but Jimin bought it off of them and converted it into a public gym/pool.

In our text exchanges he called it his retirement plan, but I was sure the place meant more to him than that. He had no interest in it until after the cancer diagnosis. If I was to over analyze it, I would say he was trying to hold onto a happy memory. This was their place before sickness and death ran through his family. I would imagine anyone would want to keep something that held so much sentimental value if they could.

Pulling into the parking lot, I was first struck by two things. One, it was open and there were people inside, and two, it was huge. Most of the building was nothing but windows giving me a great view of the muscled men inside. Bright fluorescent lights made my sensitive eyes hurt, and I could hear the faint sound of music coming from somewhere near the gym. The small group of men were together, all of them lifting and spotting each other while talking, and a sense of dread filled my belly.

I was always anxious when I went to a new place, but a new gym was a nightmare. I had bad experiences in the past. Overly friendly creeps who liked to stand around and watch me while I worked out. None of the guys inside gave off bad vibes, but I was still in my car and none of them laid their eyes on me. A woman in a gym was like a drop of blood in water. I had to hope they were not sharks.

Gathering courage, I grabbed my duffle and made my way inside. A pretty, dark-skinned, young woman was sitting at the receptionist desk, and I felt more at ease. If they left her alone then maybe they would not cause me too much trouble either. The music was louder inside, and I recognized the Ciara song. It was a great one for cardio. Fighting the urge to dance, I greeted the receptionist. She put down her magazine and gave me an award-winning grin. She had a nice, dimpled smile.

“Hi there,” She had a thick, Southern accent and I could not tell you where she might be from. I was awful at telling them apart. “Do you have your membership card?”

I laughed nervously, my grip on my bag tightening. “No. I’m here to train with Jimin Park. He said I should have something on file.”

She nodded, her smile unwavering as she looked at her computer and asked for my name.

“Y/N Y/L/N,” I replied, foot tapping along to the Lil Wayne song that came on. I had this one on my own workout playlist back in 2008. I could not help mumbling the words under my breath, “She-she-she lick me like a lollipop.”

“Found you,” The girl grabbed a few sheets of paper from a pile on her side of the desk. “Just fill these out for me and we’ll get your card printed. Your fees have been paid already so no need to worry about that.”

I nodded, half listening. This song was great. Why has it been so long since I last heard it? I went to the gym all the time. I needed to put it back on my playlist. Honestly, the entire Carter III needed to find its way back into my rotation.

“My name’s Giselle if you need anything,” The receptionist pointed to a cluster of chairs right at the front entrance. “You’re super early so Christian isn’t here yet, but I’ll give you the key to the pool room so you can do whatever you need before the boss gets in.”

I smiled at her, “Thank you, Giselle.”

“Anytime, ma’am.”

It took me a few minutes to fill the paperwork out and scan my ID, but Giselle made everything as quick as she could. One of the men working out had come by to ask for some wipes to clean off a few of the machines but left without anything more than a ‘good morning’ thrown in my direction. When we passed by the rest of them on the way to the pool house, we were completely ignored, so it was safe for me to say that they would not be a problem for me in the future. Creeps were never subtle about their creepiness.

“I have to double check with Christian, but I think I’m supposed to give you a spare key,” Giselle said, unlocking the pool. “I’m just going to be sure before I promise you anything. Don’t want to get fired.”

I could tell she was joking. Jimin did not strike me as the type of guy to fire anyone over something like that. It only made sense for me to have a spare key since we would be coming around so much, and I would feel bad about disrupting the staff whenever I needed to get inside. They did not get paid enough to deal with that on top of all of the rest of their duties.

“We keep it locked until 9,” Giselle continued, leading the way inside. “Then we close it back up at 5. Maintenance comes in every Tuesday to treat the water, so you’ll have to be out of here no later than 7. Boss man knows this already so you shouldn’t have any problems with that.”

The pool room was very bland and bare bones. The smell of chlorine hung heavily in the air while the lights around the pool walls illuminated the dark room. It was very big, and I itched to go for a quick dip. The coolness of the water would be nice against my skin. I had grown hot with nerves and gotten a little sweaty.

“We have a few other staff members that will be in around the same time the boss man comes in,” Giselle continued to give me the rundown. “I’m sure he’ll introduce you to everyone just in case you need anything. I’d say make nice with Yoongi first. He’s our in-house massage therapist.”

Pointing to a door on the far-left wall, Giselle let me know that was the pool locker room and the door right next to it was a shortcut to the back offices. Management, marketing, and facility supervisors were usually all back there and I would more than likely never see them. They were not the most social people and worked from home a lot. I could tell by Giselle’s voice that she did not particularly care for management.

“Drew should be here by now,” She checked her smart watch. “She’s the general manager. I’m going to go and grab her and see about that key. She might come back to say ‘hi’ but don’t hold your breath.”

I chuckled, “That bad?”

Giselle rolled her eyes, “Drew’s fine, but Dominic is usually following her around everywhere and he’s annoying. You’ll get what I mean if you ever see them together.”

I laughed, “I’ve had my fair share of weirdos. Thanks again. I appreciate you showing me around.”

She beamed, “It wasn’t a problem. You gave me a reason to get up from the desk, so I’d say it’s a win.”

We spoke for a few more minutes until a very large, bulky man popped his head in looking for her. His black t-shirt clung to him tightly and his shorts were a hideous neon pink color. He did have a nice smile, one that took up most of his face and teeth so white they looked fake. Giselle introduced me very quickly, and the man, Sam, turned out to be one of the personal trainers on staff.

“You’re the Olympian, right?” Sam asked. Jimin must really like people who talked a lot, because I had never met more outgoing people in my life before moving here. Everyone he surrounded himself with was just full of energy, and I wondered if it was purposeful. Jimin himself was a rather quiet and sad person. “Jimin talks about you all the time.”

I laughed awkwardly, face heating, “That’s me.”

“Sick,” Suddenly an image of Sam surfing in California flashed through my mind. He just seemed like the type. “Well, I have to go and help out a client, but it was nice meeting you. Gigi, can you go back up front before Drew pitches a fit?”

Giselle sighed heavily, “Tell her I’m coming,” Looking at me she asked if I was okay on my own. “Come and get me if you need anything, okay?”

After assuring her that I was fine, Giselle left behind Sam. The two of them bickered like an old married couple, and I wondered about their relationship. He did call her a little nickname. I shook my head. Regardless, I had other things I needed to take care of before I could get lost in thought about two strangers.

Unpacking my duffle, I threw on my whistle and stopwatch before getting to work on my schedule. I had brought a lot of my personal swimming gear with me like training bands, coach communicator, and forearm fulcrum. Back in the day, I was the brand ambassador for Finis, so I had a lot of their products. The tracksuit I was wearing was from Speedo, and I had so much of their stuff for the same reason. Being a famous swimmer had its perks.

I had planned on doing a lot of drill and some short-burst efforts with Jimin. He had been without a PT for a few weeks now, and while I trusted him to stay in shape, it was no secret someone would be performing less on their own than with guidance. I did not want to over work him when he was, for all intents and purposes, been on a vacation. So, while I wanted to rush head-first into training, I would try to ease into things a bit before going full asshole on the kid. Like Victor would say, “Three times a week for three weeks.” After that, he was going to be at my mercy.

It was just past 6 when Jimin walked into the pool room. I was flipping through my training plan for the day and humming along to the music blasting through the speakers, echoing off the walls. Whoever was in charge of the playlist had a thing for the early 2000s.

“Morning,” His soft voice brought a smile to my face. He sounded tired. “What do you think about the place?”

Stealing a look at him, I had to hold back the gasp that I wanted to let out. He was wearing a black tank top and shorts giving me a great look at his skin. Embarrassed by my reaction, I internally scolded myself. I needed to get over this crush already. I was about to see a lot more of his body once he went to the back to change. I bit my lip. I had no idea how I was going to deal with him in a speedo.

“It’s very nice,” I was happy with how nonchalant I sounded. “Wasn’t expecting it to be so big.”

I wonder what else is big… I nibbled on the inside of my cheek. I really needed to get my mind out of the gutter. Scratch that- I should have dealt with this problem the second I realized it was there. I was going to force myself to call Hoseok today. He would know what to do, and if not, at least I could vent a little.

“Sleep okay?”

I jumped out of my ever-degrading thoughts.

“Yeah,” I sniffed. “Had fun with your mom? I wanted to give you two some space, so I stayed to myself.”

He smiled and I melted. Yeah, this needed to stop. I was too grown to be acting like this around a man.

“I appreciate it. We missed you at dinner, though. My dad kept complaining that things were quiet now.”

I chuckled, “Eloise and the kids not loud enough?”

He shook his head, “She didn’t come over.”

He tossed his sports bag next to mine and pulled out his swim gear. I caught a flash of his speedo and quickly looked away. The visuals going through my mind were distracting enough.

“Do you want to go over everything before I get changed?” Asked Jimin.

I shook my head, “No, go ahead. It’s going to be a chill day.”

“You got it, coach.”

I did not breathe until I heard the locker room door slam shut. Tossing my clipboard onto my bag, I roughly rubbed my face. I needed to pull myself together.

My attraction was easy to ignore and forget about when he was not in my face, but the second I got my eyes on him it was all I could focus on. I was awkward and fumbling all over the place whenever he was around. I focused on him far too much, far more than I should be due to our relationship, and it was driving me insane. I needed to take a breather, but I did not have enough time and I did not want to make him worried. Jimin seemed like the type of person who would become consumed by anxiety if he thought I was upset with him in any way. No, I would have to suck it up and get through this training session like an adult.

The locker room door opened. Jimin’s bare feet were loud against the gray, stone floor. I refused to look at him. I wasn’t ready yet. Bending over, I grabbed the clipboard and cleared my throat. I was hoping to get him in the water first, and then I could safely conduct myself in a professional way. The less skin I had to see at a time the better. I pointed at the pool.

“Like I said, it’s going to be an easy day,” He was walking away from me, and I felt the tightness in my chest lighten. “You’ve been without a trainer for a bit, and I’m not sure how intense your workouts have been since. Your warmup is just 10 minutes of easy swimming, and then we’ll go over our main set.”

I heard him get into the water with a splash and relaxed. I could handle him in the water. No one looked good with those stupid goggles on. I walked to the edge of the pool, clipboard in my hand, and stole a quick look.

As suspected, he did not look as potent like this. His hair was hidden beneath a red and white cap, and blue goggles obstructed most of his face. It was impossible to make out most of his body as he glided through the water, but I got a great look at his arms. He was more muscular than I gave him credit for. He was smaller and more lean than other swimmers, but I could see why he was able to dominate.

He was very fast, but I could already tell he was pushing harder than I wanted him to. Blowing my whistle, I let him know I only wanted him swimming at 80% effort. Jimin pulled a face and lifted his goggles up. Now that he was stagnant, I got a clear look at his chest and swallowed thickly. He needed to start moving or else I might have a heart attack.

“Why?” He was incredulous.

“Like I said, I don’t want you to overwork yourself. You’ve been on a vacation for four weeks now and we need to work our way back up to more intensive sets. It’ll only be for a couple of weeks.”

He pushed back again, “I’ve been coming here every day for hours. I think I’m fine.”

I shook my head, “I’m not trying to be a dick, and I’m not calling you a liar, but I am skeptical of the quality of the training.”

“But-”

“I haven’t been here to see your routine,” I cut him off before whatever smart ass comment he was planning to say could even come out. Jimin’s annoyance was plain as day, and I was not about to put up with a tantrum. “I’m known for being a hard ass, and I’m going to push you harder than you’ve ever been pushed before. You can ask Coach Bunch about me if you want. I will make sure you’re in the best shape of your life this year, but not at the expense of getting you injured.”

He took a deep breath before responding, “With all due respect, I’ve been putting in a lot of work by myself. I don’t think I need kid gloves.”

I smirked, cocking my head to the side. “Is that what you think this is?”

“Isn’t it?” He shrugged, pouting.

He was cute when he was mad.

“Humor me,” I replied. “We do things my way for the week and if I think you’re good to go by Friday then we’ll get back to normal training. How does that sound?”

Jimin thought for a moment before smiling at me.

“I can live with that.”

I chuckled, “Good to know. Now, put your goggles back on and finish your warmup. We’re wasting time arguing.”

As I suspected, once we started our drills, he did not perform up to the standards I had for him. Even at 75% what he was capable of, I could already see the areas he needed to work on. His butterflies were beautiful, but I could pick apart his breast and back strokes. I was happy with his free swim at the end, and I was going to start there the next session. I was hoping by starting off with compliments that we could become more comfortable with one another before I had to get serious. Those breast strokes would drive me insane until he could execute them perfectly every time.

“How am I doing?” Jimin asked during a cool down, doing a few laps before we started our drills again. “I know my breast strokes aren’t that great. I’ve always struggled with them.”

At least he was self-aware, I thought.

“We definitely have stuff to work on,” I replied. “Don’t worry too much about that right now. We can start talking about it more next week.”

He sighed, annoyed, and I laughed. He was very grumpy when it came to his swimming. Not wanting to upset him again, I decided to give him something.

“I would like to watch you swim a bit more and make a plan before giving you my opinion. My coach used to do that with me, and I found it helpful.”

We trained until eight-thirty, and I looked over my notes while Jimin cooled down. We did not talk as much as I would have liked, but it was probably for the best. His body was distracting, and I did not think I was doing a very good job at hiding my reactions to him. He did not seem to notice, or he was simply sparing my feelings, either way he was happy to keep relatively quiet. We only talked about training while he was in the water, and I was grateful he was maintaining his professionalism.

“When will we be back again?” Jimin asked, his last few minutes running down on the timer. “You said Wednesday, right?”

I nodded absentmindedly, in my own little world as I flipped through my notes. I had more than I thought I would have, all of them having to do with fixing his form and how we could go about it. New exercises, grueling training days, and a few new tools that I was not sure he had ever used before, would mold him into a swimmer I would glow with pride over. Park had always been a talented man, but I wanted to see if we could reach for something more. Something bigger and better than he could have imagined. I wanted to make Matthew fucking Hamilton look like the incompetent bastard I knew him to be.

“We’re done for the day,” I sighed, clicking the alarm off. “Do you want me to come for your night swim?”

Jimin ripped the goggles off, rubbing his eyes and already going to release his cap. I bit down on the inside of my mouth. He was so pretty and soft, and the way his muscles flexed as he swam to the edge of the pool made my stomach flutter. I looked away before he hoisted himself out of the water. I did not need that image floating around in my already depraved head.

“You can come if you want,” He replied casually. “I’m mostly hitting the gym when I’m here in the evenings. I only take a dip for thirty minutes and leave.”

I hummed, fighting the urge to look at his body. I focused instead on my breathing and writing down what he had just said. I did not want to forget that. It might be useful for me in the future. If we could exercise together, it would give me an opportunity to guide him through some of my favorite tricks to help with swimming.

“Will someone else be with you?”

“Probably Jungkook and Darcy. They’re my usual gym buddies when Milo is working.”

“Darcy’s his girlfriend, right?” I wanted to see if my hunch from the other night was right.

“Yeah. They’ve been going out for a couple of years now. She’s alright. Not as shy as you.”

I snorted, “You think I’m shy?”

Then I made a critical mistake. Looking over at Jimin, I nearly choked on my own spit. His skin was perfectly smooth, not a blemish in sight, and cream-colored. His body was just as pretty as his face, smooth abs and a tiny waist that led to toned and thick thighs. The tiny scrap of red fabric covering his private area did not stop my eyes from glancing. I looked away before I started to stare.

Hoseok was going to have a field day with this.

“I know you are,” He teased, his voice so soft and sweet. I briefly wondered what he would sound like in bed. I fought desperately to rid myself of that imagery. This could not be happening right now. “You’re so shy you can’t even look at me right now.”

His cocky attitude should have annoyed me, but instead it only further fueled my lust. Every time I had seen this man, he gave me such tonal whiplash it was beginning to drive me insane. First it was this innocent little angel facade that quickly became sarcastic and witty when he decided he could play around without me getting angry. Then it was the whole sad puppy thing he had going on for the last week. Now here he was, practically naked and getting riled up over me telling him what to do, and puffing his chest with confidence I never thought he was capable of. It would have pissed me off if I did not find him ridiculously attractive.

“Go get dressed, Park,” My voice was clipped and too harsh. I winced and quickly worked to soften the blow. Getting defensive only made me look worse. “We can get breakfast if you’re not busy. My treat.”

“Sure, coach.”

When I heard the locker room close, I let out a deep sigh. My sexual frustration was getting in the way of my work, and I hated it. Pulling my phone from my back pocket, I sent Hoseok a text.

Me: I think I’m crushing on Park

Me: Help me get rid of it

The reply did not come until I was done packing up my things. The workout stuff I had brought with me had been useless today, but I was afraid of forgetting where they were the next time I might need them, so they never left the bag. My phone vibrated just as I was done zipping up my bag. I could hear the shower in the locker room and clenched my thighs together. I was still thinking of how pretty his belly was, the tattoo on his ribs pitch-black against his pale skin, and how solid his calves looked. I unlocked my phone and nearly cried laughing when I saw the response.

Hobi: HAHAHAHA

Hobi: Sex is always the answer

Hobi: Never thought I’d see the day you became a cougar

I have no idea why I thought he would be any help. So, I licked my wounds and messaged Andy (like I should have done in the first place) and knew whatever she had to say would be far more helpful than my stupid best friend’s word of “advice.” I just had to hope it would be enough to make all of these feelings stop.

Taglist: @ownthesunshine @screamertannie @lovelytaes-blog @pernesianparapio @tae-with-some-suga

© chimcess, 2024. Do not copy or repost without permission.

[gl1tchr]

Do you think Paul Dano’s riddler is going to die in this universe? And or any of the other rogues (joker Penguin etc.) ?

That is a TOUGH question. I've tried to think about how Reeves used death in Batman, and how death is used in The Penguin to figure out who's *heading* towards it, and it's hard! Death in the Reevesverse is very indiscriminate. It takes the good, the bad, those trying to get better, those actively choosing to be worse. Is Edward's path leading him towards death, or is the more apt narrative punishment for his crimes being forced to continue living in his own mind? I think I lean towards the latter. I've always held firm that Arkhamverse Riddler is HEAVY inspo for Dano Riddler in terms of his narrative decline he will experience over the course of the movies. Beginning as a (still unethical and frankly delusional about his motives) well-intentioned vigilante genuinely doing what he thought would fix things (Early Riddler YO when he's still trying to go thru conventional routes to uncover corruption), to a more overtly violent and vindictive antagonist (End of R:YO and Batman 2022), and finally, into a severely deluded, broken man with very little self awareness because every moment he spends in introspection is painful. He must reckon with his actions and it is brutal, and THAT is his punishment. The quieting of his mind through death is a mercy for Riddler, AND MAYBE with the themes Reeves is going for, giving the Riddler PEACE could be a possible choice depending on what is set up in the second movie! Though, I'm leaning towards his narrative punishment being to live with who he is; Edward Nashton, The Riddler.

WARNING: I mention suicide by explosives ahead

AN ADENDUM; This is just something cool my brother thought of when we talked about Ed's future in the narrative and he agreed that killing him off isn't the move, HOWEVER, we explored some ways in which that could be done in and I really enjoyed his. I've talked about how I think Joker is rearing up to really HARDCORE manipulate Edward. I can't tell you how they'd pull this off, but let me paint you a picture.

Movie II, as we now know, will seem to largely focus on more of the mob and gang violence aspect of Gotham and how Batman will be applying his new philosophy of Hope-Above-Vengeance philosophy. So we don't *see* Ed or Joker for 99% of it. Batman's doing his thing when he gets a call from Gordon, Riddler has been acting strangely and has implied he has information that could give Bruce some insight (See: when he went to Arkham for Joker's perspective on Edward - he seems to know when to use these Rogues for his own purposes just as much as they use too) into whoever it is he's trying to find. A familiar scene, Edward across from Bruce in the interrogation room. He looks *horrible*, but he's elated. Bruce is biting back anger - the last time he saw Edward he was *pissed*, and that hasn't settled, but he's trying to be better. He's trying to have hope. Maybe they exchange some words, but that's not really why Edward called him here. Edward tells him that nothing can save this city. If his cleansing didn't save it, if hope isn't saving it, nothing will. So go down with me, Batman. He's got an explosive, rigged to blow, and while he smiles, he kills himself and attempts to take Batman with him. But he fails. What he does do, though, is cause a massive break-out, which Joker takes full advantage of - because he set it up. He wormed his way onto Eddie's fragile mind and convinced him death would be a release AND his vengeance against Batman. But Joker knew this wouldn't kill Batman, be that through some intuitive hunch or maybe he's familiar with how resilient he is. Either way, he will have convinced Edward to take his life if it meant taking down who he both despises and craves so desperately, but it would be a lie. It would just be to get him out. And he would tell Bruce as much - "I did that guy a favor - he was a *mess*, he'd shake my hand if he could but - I think I saw those on the ground when I left". Edward, always someone's punching bag, months very end. So, in that way, even though death is still mercy for Edward, it's still cruel. NOW I DONT THINK THIS WORKS NARRATIVELY ON A LOT OF LEVELS, it was just a REALLY chilling thought to imagine Edward's manic joy as he accepted he was going to die, but would finally hurt someone as much as hes been hurt. I liked it a lot and thought I'd share just for funsies :]

[toointojoelmiller]

please don't go: a last of us fic

after David / Silver Lake / post-episode 8

angst, Joel & Ellie bonding, 99% canon compliant

rating: mature - content warnings re: s/a, violence, gore, more

The best found father-daughter duo help each other recover, work through their trauma, stay alive - hopefully a satisfying fill in for things we didn't get to see after winter !

if you're after a long read here's one for you

work in prog! +100k words

ch 1 | ch 2 | ch 3 | ch 4 | ch 5 | ch 6 | ch 7 | ch 8 | ch 9 | ch 10 | ch 11 | ch 12

I'm no longer copying this over to tumblr because it got way too long and it's too much!!!! Read on ao3 for the updated chapters

please don't go: chapter 1

Ellie’s frantic eyes finally seem to focus on him, and he can see her body language shift immediately. The hard adrenaline fuelled tension in her muscles sinks away as her face falls into unsettling blankness – he didn’t think it was possible but she somehow looks even smaller. Her lips start moving but she isn’t saying anything. Only low, halting sounds, whimpers and soft gasps of air that slice into his gut with a hurt nearly as sharp as the sewn up hole in his side. 

“It’s me,” he hears himself repeating. Never feeling more useless in his life, except for - it feels wrong to think of Sarah right now, with Ellie so immediately in need in front of him, but the image of her pink t-shirt soaked in blood swims up in his mind anyway, crystal clear even 20 years later, her heaving and jerking belly so small it’s easily covered by the width of his hands until it suddenly stills. He learned a long time ago that he’s helpless to fight it when this moment flashes back to him. 

This is what is written in the stars for Joel - his girls, too good and too sweet to know better than to trust him until that mistake catches up and they pay with their blood. It’s what he deserves. But - he’d seen it coming with Ellie - he’d known he wasn’t going to be able to keep her safe - Tommy would have never let - why the fuck does he keep existing when he’s so goddamn weak, worthless, worse than - poison, ruining everyone he - 

Ellie moves towards him and presses her face into the crook of his neck with more babbling - a word too this time, “He-” - and the weight of her, the warmth of her cheek against his is the only thing that could possibly bring him back into his body.

He feels his blood pound in his head as he wraps his hand up around the back of her neck – so impossibly small – tangling his fingers through her knotted hair, holds her against him like she’s made of glass. Her whole body is trembling.

“It’s ok, baby girl,” he says in a breath as he shuts his eyes, trying to keep himself upright against a surge of heartache. He hears the words as if someone else has said them, like they didn’t leave his lips – but immediately feels the truth in it. The wall he’s tried to keep up between Ellie and Sarah, the nothing-but-bullshit line he’s drawn to try to somehow separate what they are to him is gone. There’s no more pretending. She’s his to take care of – that’s how she ended up here shaking and bleeding, after all, isn’t it?

His penance for failing Sarah is a life sentence, but Ellie’s still here, in the flesh and breathing (he thanks the god he’s never believed in). She needs him present more than he needs to hate himself. There’s a future full of self-loathing stretching out ahead of him - time for that later. For now he just needs to get her safe.  

“We need to leave, baby,” he says, clearing his throat as it strains from the lack of use. He feels the urgency as the words leave his mouth – they don’t stand much of a chance if more men are coming after them, and though he’d die before he let anything (else) happen to her, who would be left to take care of her then? He pulls back from holding her to look at her face again, eyes tracking over the hollow look in her eyes and the fresh blood splattered on her skin. He’s never seen anyone who needs to be taken care of more.

“Are you hurt? Can you walk?” He waits a moment for an answer that he knows isn’t coming. Ellie’s little fingers twist and pinch on the sleeves of his jacket as she holds onto his arms, but she’s still standing. He sees the moment the shakiness that he felt running through her body moves from invisible to visible, and on instinct he quickly slips off his pack, shrugging off his jacket to wrap around her. She’s swimming in it.

“I’ve got you, honey, let’s go,” he says as he shifts to her side, wrapping his arm around her as he begins moving through the snow. Walking again makes the ache in his side throb angrily and he clenches his teeth to keep from groaning out loud.

Ellie starts shuffling along next to him, thank fuck – he’s sure he couldn’t carry her now – but she’s unsteady. After a few steps she falls against his side, leaning her weight against him like she can’t stand on her own. He hates that he’s so weak he feels his body start to do the same. His brain conjures up an image of the skyline as they left the Boston QZ so long ago – two crumbling buildings fallen inward, holding each other in place.

Ellie stumbles and he tightens his arm around her to keep her upright. She makes a noise, half choking and half swallowing, sounding like the air is being pushed out of her lungs. 

“It’s ok, I’ve got you,” he keeps saying. It’s all he can offer. “I’m here.” It’s not enough.

---

Going back along the road towards the suburbs seemed like a death sentence – they're moving so slowly, and clearly the area was within the boundaries of where the group they’re running from was willing to go. If anyone was coming after them it would be the first place they’d look. But the longer they push forward with nothing in sight the more he’s convinced he's made a mistake that will kill them.

It's near silent in the aftermath of the snowstorm, and it’s rough going along the edge of the woods with patches of snowdrifts occasionally blown so high they nearly have to climb their way over. They’ve both sunk down half way up their shins more than a few times and their wet jeans are freezing against their skin.

He doesn’t know how they’re still going. They’ve been moving for hours.

The only noise is the occasional whistle of the wind, and it’s not enough to cover up their heavy breathing and slow, shuffling steps crunching through the snow. It makes it obvious when Ellie starts to flag, the cadence of her steps shifting as her feet start to shuffle and drag more than stepping, and he tries to swallow down swelling, suffocating dread as he scans around them for somewhere to rest. Time is running out – the sun, he’s horrified to acknowledge, has started to dip behind the tree line. He’s hurting more intensely the longer they walk, and he’s sure Ellie is too. Her breath is coming in pants and whines – she sounds so young he aches.

When snow starts to fall again around them, softly first and then steadily picking up, he fights back the urge to start screaming.

They’re fucking doomed – their bodies are running on empty. They’ll stumble soon and find they can’t get up, and he won’t be able to do anything at all other than pull Ellie close to him as they wait to freeze to death. No sooner has the thought crossed his mind than Ellie crumples at the knees and his mind goes empty with terror. He tries to squeeze in the arm around her when he realizes she’s sinking but he’s too slow. She thumps down hard onto her knees on the ground and is only spared from ending up face first in the snow by the way her upper body slams sideways into Joel’s legs.

“M’ sorry,” she’s mumbling, he realizes in horror as he drops down with her and grabs her shoulders to stop her from collapsing. His wound is fucking ripping as he kneels. He tries to soothe her as she keeps trying to get words out.

“Sorry, I ca- I –” seems to be all she can manage before she falls back into silence. Her teeth are chattering and she’s weakly grabbing onto his pants as if to pull herself up, even as her lower body remains motionless. She’s too weak, too tired. She’s done. 

Joel takes a breath, and then another, and another. His vision is tunnelling as he drowns in the fear. This can’t be it.

“Gotta get up, baby, we can’t stop here, gotta get you somewhere warm,” he’s saying, knowing damn well that no such place is around. Ellie closes her eyes and leans her head into him like she’s falling asleep. An angry sob catches in his throat. 

He closes his eyes and leans his face down into the top of her head, breathing her in and out, sliding his numb fingers into her hair to hold her tight against him again, and looks around asking a miracle.

And finds one.

From the slightly lower vantage point, he can see just a few feet further into the trees, below the bottom branches of a cluster of pine trees, and there it is, undeniably - wood. Pressure treated. It looks like the edge of – a porch?

He shifts sideways to see more and really tests the limits of the stitches in his side – fuck, fuck, fuck – and he’s flooded with relief. It’s not a porch – just a couple wooden steps, leading up to what has to be the bottom of a door. A cabin? It can’t be more than 50 feet away.

“Ellie, look,” he croaks out, and she doesn’t move. He points. “Look, there’s a building – we just gotta get there and we can rest, ok?”

For a moment he thinks she’s still not responding, and she doesn’t turn to look where he’s pointing, but he feels a small nod as she moves her head, and she mumbles a quiet “’Kay” into his shirt.

He’s breathless with pride – she’s so goddamn tough, the strongest person he’s ever met – and the fresh surge of adrenaline is enough for him to stand and tug her up on wobbly legs, to tuck her back into his side and move them forward, foot by shaky foot, moving away from their almost-grave in the snow.

-----

working on transferring from ao3 to here but here's the ao3 link if you want more now - updates regularly on ao3 (36 ch so far!)

[mysweetgeo]

“This reminded me of you.” with george harrison please? if possible 65/56 era, shaggy haired geo supremacy 😫

i’m thinking reader is single on v day and so is george, so they both plan to surprise each other with gifts (mutual pining slay) but accidentally bump into each other while buying said gifts at a shop.

or literally just write any cutesy fluff i absolutely adore your writing😭

Picture Perfect

Request: I'm thinking reader is single on V Day and so is George, so they both plan to surprise each other with gifts (mutual pining slay) but accidentally bump into each other while buying said gifts at a shop.

Prompts: "This reminded me of you."

Pairings: George Harrison x F!Reader

(SO SO SO SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY !! I’d written 99% of this prior to V Day and fucked off to England the weekend after and forgot about it entirely 😭)

You and George had known each other for a few years, you’d initially met entirely by accident on the set of one of their photoshoots back in ’63. You’d been a photography assistant and had been asked to do a mundane task and had wound up spilling coffee all over George while retrieving coffee for the group. 

While George had found the situation hysterical, your boss had found it quite the opposite and fired you on the spot. 

This had led to you and George becoming great friends and you had made it a point to visit with him at every chance you got. 

You couldn’t help but feel something more than just a friendly adoration for the man, and what you had thought was just a platonic attraction had bloomed into something much more. 

It was hard to watch girlfriends come and go, but you stuck with him through all his heartbreaks. Always providing booze and jelly babies—which you knew he adored. 

With Valentine’s Day coming up, and George’s most recent girlfriend having just broke up with him last month, you decided a surprise gift would be an ideal way to help cheer him up. 

You’d stepped into the candy shoppe which was filled to the brim with Valentine’s Day paraphernalia. So much so that it nearly made you gag. 

You looked through the candy, grabbing several packages of jelly babies artificially colored with red and pink hues. You’d also grabbed a few packages of digestive biscuits to stuff in there as well. 

You were looking through the card section of the store when you heard a very familiar voice call your name. 

“George? What’re you doing here?” You asked, clearly taken off guard. 

“I reckon I should ask ye the same,” he said with a gentle smile. “What are you doing here?”

You shrugged nonchalantly, playing with a card in your hands, “Getting a gift for someone.”

George leaned an arm on the shelf to give himself a cool persona, “And who’s the lucky fellow?”

Your face tinged pink and you looked down at your feet, “Someone,” you managed to whisper. 

He laughed softly, “Do I know him?”

You flitted your eyes to see George’s amused face, “You could say that.”

“Well, any man who likes jelly babies and digestives is good in my book. How long have youse been seein’ each other?”

“We aren’t seeing each other, I’m just buying these for a friend,” you answered. “You never answered my question—why are you here?”

It was George’s turn to blush, “Well, y’see, I have this girl I know, right. And she’s a real good friend to me and I think I might like her, y’know. So I’ve just gone and gotten her a present that she’ll hopefully like and I needed a card to go along with the present. Somethin’ romantic-like.”

“Ahhh, so who’s the lucky lady this time ‘round?” You asked softly. 

George’s face turned even more red and he scratched at the back of his head. His hair had gotten much longer since you’d known him and his natural curls left his ends just above his shoulders. 

“Well—it’s erm, it’s complicated, y’know,” he huffed a laugh, “'cos I’ve known her for a few years now but I haven’t known how to say what I feel for her, y’know?”

Your heart fluttered in your chest, “I know exactly what you mean.”

George’s eyes narrowed on yours, “You do?”

You nodded, “I do, I really do.” You stopped yourself for a moment, did you really want to tell George how you felt in the middle of a convenience store?

“George I—“ You began but were cut off by him. 

“I think I love you,” George blurted. 

You heard something fall to the floor, not realizing it had been all of the gifts for George you were holding on to.

“George, I love you too,” You closed the distance and hesitantly touched his arm. 

“Oh thank God, I thought you were talking about someone else,” George laughed as he looked down at you. 

“Who else do you know that has an unrealistic obsession for jelly babies and chocolate digestives?” You said with a laugh.

“Thought you might’ve cloned me without my approval.”

You shook your head before leaning up to press a kiss to his lips, which were just as soft and full as you had imagined. 

When you pulled away for a breath, George’s eyes were still closed and his face mirrored your own—pure bliss.

“So what’d you get me?” You asked, breaking the comfortable silence. 

“Well I was walkin’ past this shop in the city centre right, and they had a couple real nice cameras. And I saw this *real* nice one and I dunno, it just y’know,” He paused and pulled a box from the small gift bag in his hand. “This reminded me of you. You said you’d need a new camera soon so I thought I’d help. I hope you like it.”

You could only bring your hands up to cover your mouth in reaction. “George—Oh my God,” You reached a hand out to take the box from his hand, “this is too much, this must’ve been so expensive. Look at you, you’ve gotten me a new camera and all I’ve gotten you is a card and some candy—I can’t accept this, its too much—“

Your ramblings were interrupted by George pressing his lips to yours once again. 

When you pulled away for a second time, George was grinning, “You’ll accept it and I’m sure we can work something out as repayment if you really think it’s necessary—which is completely unnecessary in my opinion.”

Your hand was wrapped around his bicep for stability, “You’re too much you know that?” You asked.

“Obviously, must be why I’m the ‘Quiet Beatle,’” he said with laugh. 

After scooping up the items you’d dropped, you made quick work of paying for them and heading off with George for some more impromptu lip-locking and candy eating.

And if a few photos were snapped of him eating said candy, well they were in good fun and great quality. 

[yayforocs]

OLD ART PART 3!!! WHEEEEE!!!

still in february 2015 :VVV

i made a gif!!! of myself!!! look at that why did i never post this anywhere!!!! hello!!!!

i'm like 99% sure that i drew this bc of the production of aida that my brother was in, but it was like way back in 2009 or something so maybe we dug up the dvd and watched it?????? dunno but i'm pretty certain that's supposed to be amneris

and i did post the tiny here but i never posted the full pic!! which. i can see why sdfkljs but also i do like the interaction itself so i'm posting it now anyway

...a coresilence douglas that i never posted???? huh.

march 2015 V:

this used to be my mobile banner for ages just bc i wanted something to slap on there dklsgs

wasn't sure i'd ever get ahold of the original pic again but yO!! here we are!!

this one is just titled 'why bother' :( unfortunately i went through A Lot mentally around this time period, and there are quite a few doodles i think i made around this time and the next couple years that i never posted anywhere bc they were Too Edgy or Venty or just plain depressing to me. i honestly don't quite remember why i drew this, i think it had something to do with feeling like i was losing friends? maybe? i'm not quite certain honestly.

april 2015 :0

core and i did a little doodle rp character funsies exchange between robin and douglas and this was a response i drew but ended up never using :V

may 2015!

a couple different banners apparently! probably for my rp blog. i don't remember using either of these, but i'm assuming i probably did, atl for a little bit

ahaha oh wow i genuinely have no memory of this huh. absolutely no idea on why there's a jarring disconnect between the first eight and the last two but shrugs!

-oh this has made me realize i now have Much More to post on robin's toyhouse huh

i've also got a lot from july 2015, but uhhhh i say it's a lot bc it's for a lyric video i wanted to make to jason walker's echo :VV there's quite a lot done and HONESTLy i thought i'd lost all of it bUT the firealpaca file!!!! i've got the firealpaca file!!!!!!! aaaa!!!!!!!! so it's all here!!!!!!!!!

there's also this kdlsfjds

and then we skip all the way to march 2016, which is the last folder i have :(

literally my first attempt at a nuzlocke and i'm dying i can't believe i never posted this dlkjfskjl God what a run

hey does this technically mean i've made a complete nuzlocke comic? --shot

anyway that's not actually from 2016! that's just when i scanned it, i made that wayyy back in 2011, possibly even 2010 :V but there's no way i'm not including it in these posts sdklghs

ok so i did actually post this a while back, but then when i started working on locke'd in i went through and deleted all my nuzlocke art posts even slightly relating to it bc of 'spoilers' or w/e, these are some of my mons from a different run that... i dunno, i guess i just restarted or something? not actually sure why i didn't finish this one. i think i was going to cameo these girls in the comic or smth so i poofed the original post

atl i think, i could be thinking of any of the other like. five different teams i was planning on cameo'ing.

GOD THERE'S MORE BUT IT'S FNAF AU AND IT'S BIG BIG SPOILERS DO I. DO I POST.

I AM WARRING WITH MYSELF SO BAD OVER THIS.

I DON'T THINK I CAN LET MYSELF POST IT AUGH

but GOD i kinda want to :waugh: one day..... one day i will post EverythingTM

buT YEAH THAT'S ALL OF IT!!!! THERE'S SO MUCH RECOVERED ART I'M!!!!!!! :WIGGLE:

dude i didn't even start looking on this flash drive for art i was looking for old writing sdklfjdskjl

[exrankluck]

Dear Vocalist Xtreme Momochi Translation — contrary [track two]

disclaimer: this is 99% AI-generated transcription and translation, some things might be inaccurate or awkward.

【ディア❤ヴォーカリストXtreme】 ENTRY NO.5 モモチ

00:20.282 --> 00:22.282

Noisy...

00:24.282 --> 00:26.282

Who is up this early in the morning...

00:29.282 --> 00:31.282

The office...

00:32.282 --> 00:35.282

You know it was nerve-wracking, right?

00:41.282 --> 00:44.282

Hello? Sorry, I'll be late.

00:44.282 --> 00:47.282

It looks like I accidentally put it on silent.

00:50.282 --> 00:52.282

Sorry about that.

00:54.298 --> 00:56.298

I was here.

00:59.898 --> 01:02.698

I don't have time to eat breakfast or anything.

01:02.698 --> 01:04.698

I'm going to the office now.

01:04.698 --> 01:07.698

Make sure you keep our usual promise.

01:07.698 --> 01:09.698

See you.

01:16.506 --> 01:24.426

So, I wasn't doing anything wrong. The CEO had too much to drink and stumbled, and I just happened to help her. The angle makes it look bad, but the other members said the same thing, right?

01:33.226 --> 01:37.826

See? It's just a misunderstanding.

01:37.826 --> 01:42.226

Can they stop the publication of this?

01:44.106 --> 01:46.466

But...

01:46.506 --> 01:48.922

Yeah.

01:48.922 --> 01:59.682

If they stop the publication, won't it already have been on the news? That's the bigger issue, isn't it?

02:02.442 --> 02:11.562

Denying it is one thing, but the rumors won't die down without an official statement. We have a new song and a Fes coming up too.

02:13.504 --> 02:21.904

We need to calm things down quickly. Otherwise, the Cheers will be sad.

02:31.904 --> 02:33.904

What the hell is this?

02:34.042 --> 02:42.042

Me and that female CEO are dating?

02:42.042 --> 02:46.042

Don't be ridiculous.

02:46.042 --> 02:51.042

I wouldn't go for a woman with so many wrinkles.

02:51.042 --> 02:54.042

She's 25 years older than me, too.

02:54.042 --> 02:58.042

I have some standards, you know.

02:58.042 --> 03:04.042

If only I hadn't gone to that dinner.

03:04.704 --> 03:07.704

Why did I even help her?

03:08.704 --> 03:11.704

I should have just let that drunk fall on her own.

03:12.704 --> 03:18.704

And why was a weekly magazine reporter conveniently there to take photos?

03:20.704 --> 03:27.704

Surely that bitch didn't arrange to have the photos taken to stir up trouble, did she?

03:28.704 --> 03:31.704

If that's the case...

03:32.128 --> 03:34.128

I won't forgive her.

03:47.866 --> 03:52.866

Sigh... I'm tired...

03:52.866 --> 03:54.866

I really can't take it anymore...

03:57.866 --> 03:59.866

What?

03:59.866 --> 04:01.866

Can't I come home early?

04:08.866 --> 04:10.866

Wait a minute.

04:11.866 --> 04:15.866

You haven't even started making dinner yet, and it's almost 9:00?

04:16.752 --> 04:23.632

Even though you always say you don't need to prepare, you still do it anyway. Did something happen?

04:26.032 --> 04:32.472

Really? But you've been acting strange since earlier, and your eyes have been wandering all over the place.

04:32.472 --> 04:38.512

You did something to make me angry, didn't you?

04:38.512 --> 04:44.192

I know it, so just tell me everything you did while I was gone, right now.

05:01.146 --> 05:09.146

You had dinner, cleaned up, did laundry, and watched TV afterwards…

05:11.146 --> 05:15.146

What did you watch on TV?

05:18.146 --> 05:20.146

You can't say?

05:20.146 --> 05:26.146

I'm asking what you watched on TV. Answer me.

05:31.034 --> 05:39.034

You watched the news about that article.

05:39.034 --> 05:46.034

What? Why would you even bother to ask that?

05:46.034 --> 05:50.034

It's all a lie, isn't it?

05:50.034 --> 05:53.034

I wouldn't waste my time dealing with that old hag.

05:53.034 --> 05:58.034

You didn't actually believe that false rumor, did you?

05:58.912 --> 06:01.912

So that's why you've been acting strange?

06:02.912 --> 06:06.912

In other words, you doubted me.

06:07.912 --> 06:12.912

Eh, seriously, that's messed up.

06:14.912 --> 06:18.912

I always say I don't want to hear your excuses!

06:18.912 --> 06:20.912

Cut it out already!

06:21.912 --> 06:23.912

I don't need you anymore.

06:23.912 --> 06:25.912

Leave right now.

06:26.896 --> 06:29.896

I don't even want to look at your face anymore.

06:35.896 --> 06:40.896

You believe in silly rumors instead of me, right?

06:43.896 --> 06:46.896

You haven't forgotten, have you?

06:47.896 --> 06:52.896

I told you to stay in my good graces if you didn't want to be thrown away, didn't I?

06:52.896 --> 06:55.896

And yet...

06:56.176 --> 07:01.176

You don't keep your promises and you lie so easily.

07:02.176 --> 07:06.176

On top of that, you betrayed me.

07:07.176 --> 07:12.176

If that's the case, then I don't need to be with you anymore.

07:13.176 --> 07:16.176

Don't ever come back.

07:17.176 --> 07:18.176

Goodbye.

07:26.176 --> 07:26.970

By the way,

07:26.970 --> 07:28.970

Cut it out.

07:29.970 --> 07:31.970

Do you still want to make me angry?

07:47.482 --> 07:57.722

Oh, really? So, it wasn't that president who called the reporters himself?

07:57.722 --> 08:04.322

He's just insisting that he didn't do it. I don't believe him.

08:04.322 --> 08:07.202

He must have been set up.

08:10.522 --> 08:15.808

Huh? Why do I have to believe that old hag now?

08:15.808 --> 08:19.808

This is the result of going along with her entertainment, right?

08:19.808 --> 08:21.808

Don't mess with me.

08:21.808 --> 08:26.808

Anyway, tell that old hag not to come near me again.

08:26.808 --> 08:28.808

Tell her that from you, the president.

08:31.808 --> 08:34.808

I won't admit that such a woman is my fan.

08:34.808 --> 08:37.808

She didn't support me, she just held me back.

08:37.808 --> 08:42.448

It was a good thing that the talk fell through.

08:42.448 --> 08:47.448

After all, aren't there enough sponsors for the Fes now?

08:47.448 --> 08:52.448

I'll satisfy everyone with my singing, even without a luxurious set.

08:52.448 --> 08:54.448

What do you say?

08:57.448 --> 09:00.448

I'll do what I want, even without being told.

09:03.448 --> 09:06.448

I have to go now since it's time for me to record the vocals.

09:37.562 --> 09:40.562

So? How was it?

09:40.562 --> 09:43.562

If there needs to be a retake, could you tell me quickly?

09:43.562 --> 09:46.562

There's no such thing.

09:48.562 --> 09:50.562

Right?

09:50.562 --> 09:52.562

Okay, then let's wrap it up.

09:58.522 --> 10:02.522

Recording is over, so I'm done for today.

10:05.522 --> 10:06.522

- Yeah.

10:06.522 --> 10:08.522

Thank you for the compliments.

10:08.522 --> 10:11.522

But I just sang as usual.

10:15.522 --> 10:18.522

What do you mean by 'my feelings weren’t in it'?

10:18.522 --> 10:21.522

I'm saying it was the same as always!

10:21.522 --> 10:25.522

Don't phrase it as if my singing was different from usual!

10:31.706 --> 10:33.706

Shall we go home?

10:39.418 --> 10:42.418

They really don't understand.

10:43.418 --> 10:46.418

Singing a farewell song to make people cry is just a normal technique.

10:46.418 --> 10:48.418

Why are they saying that now?

10:51.418 --> 10:53.418

Talking about 'my feelings weren’t in it' is just your own selfishness.

10:54.418 --> 10:56.418

That's enough.

10:59.418 --> 11:01.418

As if you care.

11:02.418 --> 11:04.418

I broke up with her, remember?

11:26.202 --> 11:28.202

That person...

11:29.202 --> 11:31.202

I told her not to come again...

11:32.202 --> 11:34.202

If you crouch down like that, the neighbors will be suspicious.

11:35.202 --> 11:37.202

What are you thinking?

11:46.202 --> 11:48.202

Did you quit?

11:48.314 --> 11:56.314

We were able to record normally, and I made it clear I don't need that girl anymore.

12:05.402 --> 12:10.042

If you come any closer, I'll report you.

12:11.122 --> 12:14.322

Just go home.

12:14.442 --> 12:17.562

You're causing trouble.

12:26.970 --> 12:28.970

I'm tired.

12:30.970 --> 12:32.970

I need something to drink.

12:38.970 --> 12:40.970

Tsk, there’s only water.

12:42.970 --> 12:44.970

But it's okay.

12:53.970 --> 12:55.970

This mug...

12:56.970 --> 12:59.970

If I leave it here forever, I'll just keep remembering unnecessary things.

12:56.970 --> 12:59.970

This kind of thing...

13:02.330 --> 13:09.610

Don't touch it.

13:13.210 --> 13:15.490

Huh?

13:32.330 --> 13:40.314

What's this?

13:40.314 --> 13:46.754

No more cigarettes. I just opened a pack this morning.

13:48.754 --> 13:51.314

Damn it.

13:54.834 --> 14:00.674

Is she still downstairs?

14:03.074 --> 14:06.080

Is it 11 o'clock?

14:06.840 --> 14:11.040

Maybe I should wait until the last train just in case.

14:11.160 --> 14:15.080

If so, then she must have gone home.

14:17.800 --> 14:25.360

This is ridiculous. Why do I have to be at the mercy of someone like her?

14:25.840 --> 14:28.240

Haa..

14:36.720 --> 14:40.634

What's wrong?

14:40.634 --> 14:42.634

Nothing, just doing some things.

14:42.634 --> 14:44.634

It's too much trouble to go to the convenience store in this rain.

14:44.634 --> 14:46.634

It's all because of that person.

14:46.634 --> 14:48.634

I mean...

14:48.634 --> 14:50.634

Surely she went home, right?

14:50.634 --> 14:52.634

It's already three o'clock.

14:52.634 --> 14:54.634

And it's raining.

15:07.680 --> 15:10.400

Why do I even care about that person?

15:11.140 --> 15:13.360

It's just like some silly tabloid gossip.

15:13.640 --> 15:15.360

I just have to forget about it.

15:19.140 --> 15:19.880

But...

15:34.720 --> 15:36.120

The rain has stopped, but...

15:36.730 --> 15:38.730

It's already morning.

15:43.730 --> 15:45.730

She’s still here.

15:46.730 --> 15:48.730

This is really unbelievable.

15:55.738 --> 16:00.738

What is that? She’s completely soaked.

16:00.738 --> 16:06.738

Sitting in front of people's houses all night like that, it's definitely a nuisance.

16:09.738 --> 16:11.738

I'm thinking about that person again.

16:12.738 --> 16:14.738

Ugh, enough already!

16:33.594 --> 16:38.594

Sigh. How long do you plan on staying there?

16:38.594 --> 16:41.594

Don't you realize you're being a nuisance?

16:41.594 --> 16:45.594

I told you to not come back here.

16:49.594 --> 16:52.594

Does saying sorry mean anything?

16:53.594 --> 16:55.594

I'm not going to forgive you.

16:55.594 --> 16:59.594

I won't forget that you betrayed me.

17:00.594 --> 17:02.594

I don't need you.

17:03.536 --> 17:05.536

There's nothing good about being with you.

17:07.536 --> 17:08.536

That's why I kicked you out.

17:10.536 --> 17:12.536

It's different from the last time I kicked you out.

17:13.536 --> 17:16.536

Even without you, I was able to sing normally.

17:17.536 --> 17:20.536

Everyone said I sang better than usual.

17:23.536 --> 17:26.536

I want to forget about you already.

17:28.536 --> 17:30.536

Don't make things worse.

17:32.772 --> 17:33.772

Disappear.

17:36.272 --> 17:38.272

Just go away already!

17:45.082 --> 17:49.082

Saying that now is pointless.

17:49.082 --> 17:52.082

If you really need me, you wouldn't have betrayed me in the first place.

17:52.082 --> 17:55.082

I will never forgive you.

18:02.082 --> 18:04.082

Leave.

18:06.082 --> 18:08.082

Don't come back ever again.

18:13.032 --> 18:15.032

Is there something else?

18:15.032 --> 18:17.032

Enough already.

18:23.386 --> 18:26.386

I hate you.

18:27.386 --> 18:29.386

I really hate you!

18:32.386 --> 18:36.386

You're so hated, yet you still say you like me.

18:37.386 --> 18:41.386

How stupid can you be?

18:52.122 --> 18:54.122

It's true, isn't it?

18:54.122 --> 18:56.122

You're so stupid that there's no hope for you.

18:56.122 --> 18:58.122

You're embarrassing.

18:58.122 --> 19:00.122

You're a traitor.

19:00.122 --> 19:02.122

And on top of that, you're soaking wet and still wearing those shabby clothes.

19:02.122 --> 19:04.122

You keep persistently following me around

19:06.122 --> 19:08.122

It's really the worst.

19:08.122 --> 19:10.122

You don't have a single good quality, do you?

19:10.122 --> 19:12.122

There's absolutely nothing good about you.

19:14.122 --> 19:16.122

Who could ever love someone like you?

19:16.122 --> 19:18.122

There's not a single good thing about you.

19:20.122 --> 19:21.504

Who could ever love someone like you?

19:21.504 --> 19:24.724

That's why I told you,

19:27.224 --> 19:28.784

I'm the only one who can love someone like you.

19:30.524 --> 19:31.824

But you betrayed me, didn't you?

19:32.464 --> 19:35.284

It's too late to realize it now!

19:37.064 --> 19:40.124

But just so you know, don't misunderstand.

19:41.564 --> 19:44.724

I will never forgive you for what you did.

19:47.258 --> 19:52.258

I don't believe in you, and I won't love you.

19:55.258 --> 19:59.258

But even if I push you away, you won't disappear,

20:01.258 --> 20:04.258

And you'll keep bothering me no matter how hard I try to forget you.

20:04.258 --> 20:08.258

How annoying is that, loving someone who hates you?

20:08.258 --> 20:12.258

If that's the case, at least stay by my side and don't cause any trouble!

20:13.258 --> 20:15.258

How troublesome.

20:17.232 --> 20:25.232

So at least I'll keep an eye on you to make sure you don't do anything unnecessary!

20:30.232 --> 20:35.232

That's why I'll just stay with you.

20:37.232 --> 20:44.232

I don't like you, and I don't want you by my side.

20:46.128 --> 20:58.128

Because I hate you so much.

[otmaaromanovas]

hi! Approximately how long was OTMA’s hair when they died? I have heard something about them being able to part it but that’s it. Thank you!

Hi!

Off memory, it was about shoulder length. One source describes their hair as being "tumbled and disorderly" the day before their murder, seen by the washerwomen who came to clean the house. However, take that with a pinch of salt because it comes from Helen Rappaport's book, and she did not bother citing her sources :(

They shaved their heads in Spring 1917, so it had just over a year of growth from being completely shaved.

Here's what I could find:

The search of Ipatiev House revealed a number of hair pins (now owned by the Russian History Museum, Jordanville), indicating that the girls' hair was at least long enough to be pinned back, or perhaps pinned up, as this photo of Anastasia at Tobolsk in OTMA's bedroom suggests.

Most of the sources directly relating to their hair come from Tobolsk.

Here is a letter from Alix to Anna Vyrubova dated 15 December 1917:

'...Anastasia, to her despair, is now very fat, as Maria was, round and fat to the waist, with short legs. I do hope she will grow. Olga and Tatiana are both thin, but their hair grows beautifully so that they can go without scarfs...'

Funny story about her short hair from Anastasia sent during the journey to Tobolsk (I think that this was actually an English exercise set by her tutors, I've kept in her original spellings):

17 August 1917

My dear Friend. I will describe to you who [how] we travelled. We started in the morning and when we got in to the train I went to sleap , so did all of us. We were very tierd because we did not sleap the whole night. The first day was hot and very dusty. At the stations we had to shut out window curtanse than nobody should see us. Once in the evening I was looking out we stopped near a little house, but there was no staition so we could look out. A little boy came to my window and asked: "Uncle, please give me, if you have got, a newspaper." I said: "I am not an uncle but an anty and I have no newspaper." At the first moment I could not understand why did he call me "Uncle" but then I remembered that my hear is cut and I and the soldiers laught very much. On the way many funy things hapend, and if I shall have time I shall write to you our travell father on. Good by. Don’t forget me. Many kisses from us all to you my darling.

Your A.

And here are some photos for context...

Olga's hair in 1917, before being shaved off:

Two photos of Tatiana in Tobolsk, one with very noticeably shaved and short hair and one more full (featuring Olga). I would guess that the first photo is from when they just arrived (the sunny weather also gives this away) and the second is towards their end at the Governor's House.

We know that the photo of her with her head shaved is from Tobolsk, rather from 1913 when she had it shaved, as the same little child appears in this photo sat between Olga and Alexei:

Maria's hair in Tobolsk (middle, without hat)

Of course, they mostly wore hats in Tobolsk (it sounds absolutely freezing!!!) so it's hard to tell under their hats and shawls the exact length, especially considering they probably pinned their hair up as soon as it was long enough

But there is this photo, taken after Maria, Nicky, and Alix left for Ekaterinburg:

I'm sorry I couldn't answer more specifically about their hair at Ekaterinburg! I am 99% sure I have read in a book that their hair was shoulder length, I believe it might have been from the account of the Father Ivan Storozhev who gave service to the family shortly before they were killed, however I cannot remember which book... You can read more about Father Storozhev's testimony here and here. A number of Father Storozhev's personal items were auctioned in 2017, including items tied to the Imperial Family. You can view them here.

If I come across the quote I'm thinking of, I will add it here.

Also, unrelated, but there is a very interesting scientific paper you can read here (I think you might need library of uni access unfortunately) that describes how strands of hair found in a portrait of Alexei helped with DNA identification. It's far too scientific for me lol, but interesting at a glance.

This next bit is VERRRRRRY very very unlikely, but the whole family and their entourage had identification photos taken when they arrived in Tobolsk. I would assume that this would include photos of their hair uncovered as it was for ID. However, this are seemingly lost to time. They might turn up one day, but I'm not too hopeful unfortunately. But if they do, it would give us a lot more info, and some good quality close ups of the family.

[britts-galaxy-brain]

I might've been getting either people or their aged mixed up but good call on the fact that Lily also flirts with people with no strings attached, there's no way all of them were 21 and up.

Still that's such a weird age limit to put imo, especially since I honestly can't imagine 21 yos that didn't watch her content in their formative years to watch her videos or actively engage with her tumblr as fans. I would know, I was that 20something that tried to give her a chance and instead came to the conclusion that she's even more awful than i thought, and that was before I even learned anything bad/repulsive that she did.

99% of the time I've watched her talk made me feel either scolded or condescended to, which I know at least one commenter pointed out in one of her video's comment section, only to get more scolding as a reply. Good job proving their point, I guess?

And you would thing that this tone was warranted but no, it's over children's media, which I know mentioning it feels redundant at this point but holy fucking shit.

I need to stop here because I'm going to write an entire essay otherwise and this is long enough already.

.

[emerals]

the lads but it’s cards against humanity

some of these are funny most aren’t lmao

prompts are bolded!!

OZZY - - Seeing my father cry; kid-tested, mother-approved. - Step 1: A sorry excuse for a father. Step 2: Vehicular manslaughter. Step 3: Profit. - What's my secret power? Fucking all my dad's friends. - What's that smell? Poor life choices.

JUNIPER - - Excuse me, straight man, but all the different kinds of lesbians isn't for you, STRAIGHT MAN. - Mr. and Mrs. Diaz, we called you because we're concerned about Cynthia. Are you aware that your daughter is throwing grapes at a man until he loses touch with reality? - Girls. High five, bro. - A romantic candlelit dinner would be incomplete without getting serial killed.

XIMENA - - I never truly understood hot people until I encountered your mom. - But before I kill you, Mr. Bond, I must show you vigorous jazz hands. - That's right, I killed heteronormativity. How, you ask? Bees? - For my next trick, I will pull science out of a Bop It.

WHITTANY - - I drink to forget being rich. - Uh, hey guys, I know this was my idea, but I'm having serious doubts about breaking into song and dance. - I got 99 problems but crumbs all over the god damn carpet ain't one. - Hey guys, welcome to Chili's! Would you like to start the night off right with kissing grandma on the forehead and turning off her life support?

ASH - - Arby's We Have completely unwarranted confidence. - When I am President, I will create the Department of a bitch slap. - Hey Reddit! I'm judging everyone. Ask me anything. - I'm LeBron James, and when I'm not slamming dunks, I love two Xanax and a bottle of wine.

VIVIAN - - YAAAAAAS! You are serving me daddy issues realness! - Dude, do not go in that bathroom. There's men in there. - What's the best metaphor for our political system? 30 shirtless bears emerging from the fog. - 50% of all marriages end in listening to her problems without trying to solve them.

EVERETT - - In the new Disney Channel Original Movie, Hannah Montana struggles with the patriarchy for the first time. - What are my parents hiding from me? Saying "I love you". - As the mom of five rambunctious boys, I'm no stranger to a little boy who won't shut the fuck up about dinosaurs. - If you can't love yourself, how the hell you gonna love committing treason?

KIWI - - Mamma Mia. Here I go again. My! My! How can I resist giggling like an anime girl? - Kids, I don't need drugs to get high. I'm high on sunshine an rainbows. - TSA guidelines now prohibits wizard music on airplanes. - My fellow Americans: Before this decade we will have Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson on the moon!

DEAN - - I get by with a little help from self-loathing. - I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure what you're suffering from is called "being fucking pathetic". - Your dreams are one click away! Learn more at Hope.com. - What's the most emo? A lifetime of sadness.

NIX - - Maybe she's born with it. Maybe it's menstrual rage. - The class field trip was completely ruined by whatever straight people do for fun. - It's a pity that kids these days are all getting involved with unfathomable stupidity. - Old MacDonald had dark and mysterious forces beyond our control. E-I-E-I-O.

HUNTER - - Howdy neighbor! I couldn't help but notice you struggling with getting into a pretty bad car accident. Need a hand? - Why can't I sleep at night? Dead parents. - When I was tripping on acid, BATMAN! turned into therapy. - I'm Tony Robbins, and over the next sixty minutes I'm going to teach you how to harness the power of the Kool-Aid Man!

DOTTIE - - What's there a ton of in heaven? Some god damn peace and quiet. - What's a girl's best friend? Solving problems with violence. - I'm going on a cleanse this week. Nothing but kale juice and silence. - IF you like sipping kombucha like a smug piece of shit, YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK.

ADEN - - Check me out, yo! I call this dance move "establishing dominance." - White people like drinking gasoline to see what it tastes like. - Just saw this upsetting video! Please retweet!! #stopmyinnerdemons - Why do I hurt all over? A mistake.

SYLVIA - - Designers! For this week's challenge, you must make a dress designed for telling Heather she can't pull off that top. - Daddy, why is mommy crying? Toxic masculinity. - And the Academy Award for complaining goes to the careless cunt who left a water ring on my credenza. - Why am I sticky? Soup that is too hot.

LOUIE - - Instead of coal, Santa now gives the bad children PTSD. - We're here! We're doing crimes! Get used to it! - Today on Maury: "Help! My son is being a motherfucking sorcerer!" - Premiering tonight: NBC's new heartfelt family drama, This Is an old guy who's almost dead.

MARSHALL - - I'm sorry Professor, but I couldn't complete my homework because of some guy. - What never fails to liven up the party? Being on fire. - Well if you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I have a date with kayaking with my sluts. - Here is the church. Here is the steeple. Open the doors and there is a messy bitch who lives for drama.

[wherevermybiketakesme]

The Last 59 Days

Yo, we're on the number that starts with 5! I couldn't believe it's been over a month since I started with the number 99. For those of you who follow along, you folks have my sincere gratitude. Thank you for making the time to go through my ramblings. To those wondering what on earth I'm doing with this daily dispatch, here's some context

(PS: at the end, I didn't begin the challenge on the last 100 days, but on the 99, hence I changed the name of the project to The Last 99, just like 99 problems but a bitch ain't one, you sing you lose).

I only had one hour and a half for my ride today, and what better purpose for a ride than coffee? Departing from the Padjajaran area, I set out north toward 5758.

I tried to steer away from the hubbub of the main roads and took the backstreets as much as possible; there's no shortage of them and they're well connected. Relying on the built-in map on my ELEMNT Roam, I love finding my way in the intricate network of residential streets and alleyways connecting one kampung with another. It turns the ride into its own kind of adventure.

After traversing the subdistricts of Cicendo, Sukajadi, and Sukasari, I arrived in 5758 and got myself an iced coffee. I set my timer to go off in 15 minutes and I continued reading The Teachings of a Stoic. The rain had apparently just stopped in the area, and it looked like it would start again soon. But I’d come prepared—I had my waterproof anorak on. It’s every bit as practical. What I love the most is its generous storage—it can even carry a book, for heaven's sake!

I made it back to the car 10 minutes after V finished her dance mentorship. I had an appointment to get a haircut at 3PM and after that we had a late lunch at this soto Bandung place in Otitsta that we wanted to try. We ordered the special menu with oseng daging. I fell in love at the first bite of the oseng and the sip of the soto. We savored our food with solemnity. We were both at loss of words, nothing can describe how good it is. I could only say it's the best soto Bandung and oseng I've ever had. My god! We'll definitely be back.

Until tomorrow.

Bandung, November 3, 2024

[olivieraa]

I've such conflicting (but mostly) negative opinions about dubbed anime. If so much of it wasn't just "strong American accents trying so hard not to sound like they're reading from a script but they clearly are" then it'd be great.

I'm not an elitist, about anything really (not that I can think of, but maybe there's something idk I'm tired), but I will always pick sub over dub. Am I able to properly analyse subbed anime and the voice work done on it? No. That'd be ignorant. The way a character says "nande? nande da yo!?" in Japanese vs a character saying "what? what?!" in American English is obviously going to sound different. And I can't find flaws when I hear Japanese voices. But maybe people who speak Japanese can. Because if I'm listening to that "what?" in English and it sounds forced, scripted, not passionate enough, bland, too angry, etc then I'll know its bad. Cause its my first language. And maybe Japanese people can tell when voice acting is bad in Japanese. Idk. Sometimes I've been able to. I can tell when a Japanese VA does not want to be there but wants a paycheck.

But for the most part, I'm pretty much sold on Japanese voice work. They're passionate about their job. It FEELS like they're there to try their best. And after having only watched subs since, idk, 2010? I'll be quite harsh on dubs. But here's the thing. I'm biased. Any dubs I seen pre-2010 I vouch for being good. Why? Because I originally watched them dubbed. Inuyasha and Death Note being the main ones. And due to that, I constantly re-watch them dubbed. Its actually hard for me to connect them to their Japanese VA's. Now, to give Inuyasha some credit, when you watch the first good few eps, they're not... the greatest. Just some voices trying to match their mouths to the characters and it sounds so off. But then... then they get the hang of it. And they get better at it.

Death Note I believe is the overall best dub.

YGO... ok. How do I even talk about YGO...

Removing Kaiba bc people have literally said no other dub voice could ever replace his and be able to portray that asshole more perfectly, I think the YGO dub is decent. I don't fault anyone for saying its bad. I think the overall consensus is that its a good dub with terrible (but classic) dialogue. If they'd had the same script as the Japanese version, it'd be brilliant.

People can argue about Joey's accent, Bakura's accent, and say "why give them those accents tho", but Joey speaking in that accent is better than literally 99% of Americans giving generic American voices to characters to the point that they all sound the same. PLUS, Wayne Grayson portrays Joey's emotions brilliantly. And its a personal thing to me, but I like Bakura being British. If others dont, that's fine. I know he can sorta come across as Stereotypical British Villain as Deadpool calls it, but I think he's sassy and I like it. Some voices are a NO. The actor that portrays Noah is the most famous actor (not even VA, he's in movies and shit), but his voice is awful. Same for Marik, and Yami Marik, and Weevil. But then Pegasus comes in perfectly. And Anzu doesn't sound forced. And then some are just ok, like Tristan and Ishizu. Dan Green is debatable.

Like I said, I can only vouch for two good dubs. Maybe if I'd seen Kuroshitsuji dubbed I wouldn't think its so terrible and gave it more of a chance than one episode. But I don't know...

Because as of now, I've seen 10 Attack on Titan dub episodes and fuck me......... they sound like Power Rangers every time they talk. In the Japanese, I feel... inspired? In the dub I'm like "could they have not said this line as a normal human being would???????"

[bonnie39-reblogs]

I posted 6,925 times in 2022

That's 3,477 more posts than 2021!

48 posts created (1%)

6,877 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@losst-prophet

@issactikket

@alternatez441

@blazepandaartz

I tagged 888 of my posts in 2022

#yoink - 358 posts

#prev tags - 14 posts

#tumblr ads - 5 posts

#dsaf - 5 posts

#good dad au - 5 posts

#omfg- - 5 posts

#cursed tumblr ads - 5 posts

#jack - 5 posts

#:] - 4 posts

#prev tags- - 4 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#i’m sorry for it looking shitty- i’m running on basically a few hours of sleep- over the last like- 3 days- but also art block is just mmmm-

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

PLEASE DONT MIND THIS ITS FOR A VIDEO-

Um, dois, três, quatro

No quick head in my bed I can't have that I want that long neck not talking giraffe neck Ain't no laying down man we 'bout to have late fun I'm 'bout to make your balls stick up like space buns

Want your dick soaked? Place it down my throat Tongue tickle yo' dick but not telling a joke Peddle in this pussy that's how you rock a boat It get live in this pussy, I'm not talking Periscope

In the sheets I am a bully Give more head than a hoodie Every time you make me cum it look just like vanilla pudding Sit on yo face all day until you say, "Bae, it hurt me" Then I turn around and give the dick more kisses than Hershey's

Yo' dick brick-hard like a medal (uh) I got three holes for it like a pretzel (mhm) Tight as a virgin boy don't get nervous (tight) I'm here to serve you customer service (right) I save dick by giving it CPR (I save dick by giving it CPR, yes) Put my mouth on it like CPR (Let's make porn and watch it on VCR)

I think we should fuck up in every zip code It would make my pussy wetter than a fishbowl Pussy a kitty cat, I pet it like a pet I fuck doggy style so much I need to go to the vet

Hotbox? More like a scorching pussy Open this coochie up like a fortune cookie Yo' banana in my mouth watch my tongue go ape Yo' dick getting more blows than a birthday cake

When I'm near it, no, I don't fear it Licking on that penis like a letter when I seal it Today way wetter than my past slob And if you unemployed, I can give you a ass job

Pussy already wet don't need no lube ointment Dick twisting in my stomach like food poisoning That's how you know when you hit the spot I'll make your pants unzip more than Ziploc

Yo' dick brick-hard like a medal (uh) I got three holes for it like a pretzel (mhm) Tight as a virgin boy don't get nervous (tight) I'm here to serve you customer service (right) I save dick by giving it CPR (I save dick by giving it CPR, yes) Put my mouth on it like CPR (Let's make porn and watch it on VCR)

Anything goes when you up in my hole Dirty panties from the sex, yeah, I got me some loads Listen, I'm the most explicit Long stick inside my river but we not going fishing

Know what to do every time you have a horrible day I'll eat that sausage all day like it's Memorial Day I'm talking BBQ sauce and mustard on it And the mayonnaise comes when you bust right on it

Name anything freaky and you know I'm 'bout that shit Only time I'm not on the dick is when I'm 'bout to shit Pubic hairs all in my mouth, not again So when I suck yo' dick now, I use bobby pins

Who need a gym when you got dick to work you out? I want my face to lose weight so stroke my mouth And any time my pussy wanna be hairy like Harry Potter Becky with the good hair is what you could call her Let's get it

A little faster A little more Right there Give it to me now Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh

5 notes - Posted January 16, 2022

#4

@lemonysakuras

5 notes - Posted January 4, 2022

#3

Do you know where my WIFE is?

I don’t know- I’m bad with peoples @‘s so sorry-

5 notes - Posted August 29, 2022

#2

Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep Go to sleep

Mix- I can’t-

5 notes - Posted December 3, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

HELLO

HI

7 notes - Posted April 14, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[leffee]

(I have no idea why but it never showed in my notifications that I have been tagged so I didn't now until I found it manually uh oh)

Well, time to get those three votes >:)

Oh boy, I wonder who people on my blog that is 99% lps-centered will pick

I tag uhh no one cause I'm afraid to tag anyone but also I tag everyone who'd want to do it :)

Wait! I know who to tag @cheeseycapy get yo ass over here

5 Favorite Characters Poll (Tag Game)

Got tagged by @stargazerlillian and I wanted to give this a try with some of my favorite characters (excluding most of my romantic F/Os of course)

Rules: Make a poll with five of your favorite characters, then tag five people to do the same.

I tag @jesshq , @valerieblogsalot , @fluffy-raccoon-artist , and anyone else who follows me and wants to try this! Have fun and good luck!

[lost-leopard-beanie]

𝑻𝑿𝑻 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒔𝒌𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒔 / 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔

➪ Warnings: cursing

➪ Requested: yes | no

➪ Taglist: @imkyunies @ofaffectionate @jakeycore

➪ Emma talks: I know it's small I'm sorry !!!

↳ 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐘𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐧

Would get HELLA protective

Like nopE you are NOT wearing that outside

Normally isn't the kind to mind the "What would people think" kinda dude

But in this case ABSOLUTELY NOT

Will not let you get out of the bedroom

Will give you a sweat pant instead

And you're like

"Yeonjun, we're going to a party-"

"I don't care, you're not wearing that"

↳ 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐒𝐨𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐧

Would turn into a fucking tomato

Would avoid eye contact

And you're like yO dude you alright?

And he's like yeA I'm FiNe iM pErfEctlY fInE

And you're like okay..........?

Would offer you his jacket over 99 times

"Here take this, you'll be cold then"

"Soobin it's the middle of the day and it's summer"

↳ 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐁𝐞𝐨𝐦𝐠𝐲𝐮

Would be like

"I didn't know you could dress like this"

Nose cut- 🧍‍♀️

But ofc he doesn't mean it in an offensive way

He's the type of person who will tease you to tell you that he loves you

But will also be super protective

Like if he catches someone looking at your leg, will not hesitate to chop off their eyeballs

↳ 𝐊𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐚𝐞𝐡𝐲𝐮𝐧

Will probably wouldn't mind tbh

But will ask if you're uncomfortable 🥺🥺

Will also offer you his jacket (2)

but will not force you uNliKe sOmEoNe aHeM AhEm

Also will not hesitate to call out anyone if he sees them staring at your leg

Overall sweet and caring bf

<333

↳ 𝐊𝐚𝐢 𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠

Will malfunction jsjskn

Will NOT know where to look

Will look anywhere other that your eye

And you're standing here like kai, I'd this good or no ?

He'll be like "yea-? YEA it's n-nice"

Will offer you his jacket (3)

Sweet bf heuning in da building!!

[cinnamonest]

Yo what's up I had a cool dream so now I'm sharing the concept

Set in Liyue during the Archon war, sometimes after Xiao was freed from an evil god by Morax. There's a battle between two factions, and he gets very injured, but is surprisingly healed by a Darling from the opposite faction. In my dream it was Osial's daughter, but it could be any other god's subject. He's confused why an enemy helped him, what their motive is, so he goes to stalk gather information on her. As to why the Darling helped him, maybe she's just a kind person, maybe she saw a young boy on the battlefield and felt pity, maybe she couldn't recognize he was an enemy, who knows. What Xiao discovers is that she doesn't seem like an evil person unlike whoever Morax's enemy is, and thus decides that she's obviously held captive just like he was, which means she needs saving. So he talks to Morax

Eventually, Darling's village is attacked, and she sees her family and friends slaughtered, her God sealed down, and the boy she helped once covered in blood of her siblings insisting he's here to save her.

Whether she thinks she needs saving or not.

Bonus points if Darling despises Morax, obviously she's just brainwashed and doesn't know what she's talking about. He'll fix that.

Hello! I've sent you an anon about me having yandere Xiao dream with an enemy Darling from the Archon War, and I have come with another dream scenario! Xiao won't stop haunting my dreams, good for him good for him. Thank you for the brainrot food it's 99% this blog's fault I'm having yandere dreams I'm sure

Anyways, Darling stuck in Xiao's sereniteapot, it's small and she's begging him and crying to let her outside, how she misses Liyue, etc etc. And after some time, eventually, she wakes up in a different place than the usual teapot room. After looking around, she realizes she's outside, on a vaguely familiar road to Liyue Harbor. Not sure what's happening, but she still runs towards the city as fast as she can, desperate to get some help. And when she sees the city in the distance she almost cries in relief

Except, when she arrives, nobody's there. No matter how much she knocks no doors will open, the streets are empty, there's not even a stray animal in sight. She searches for someone, anyone until night falls and Xiao appears

At this point she's so terrified of the silence and solitude she's even happy to see him, rushes towards him and sobs about how everyone is gone.

Xiao's just confused. He made you a whole new teapot that looked like Liyue so you could stop crying about missing it and now you're crying again. Being hugged by the terrified Darling isn't that bad for him at all tho

Anyways running around a ghost city and being unable to open any doors in the dream was terrifying, I too started crying the moment I saw Xiao

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

NICE NICE how do yall have such detailed dreams I wish I could, I never have dreams tbh :( 

Poor angel. He tries so hard but he just doesn’t get it. He’s a dumb boy at his core and we love him for it.

I am also very very VERY much in love with the idea of a Xiao darling that despises Morax, but he doesn’t learn this until he’s already head over heels and just comes to a screeching halt in his thought process when she starts ranting like??? What kind of blasphemy is this?? He still loves you but that actually just makes him madder like no. You’re not allowed to feel that way. You’re mistaken on something, that’s all. Brainwashed. You’ll see. One way or another.