#And I can't remember how far the artist took it: like if it was all entirely made up

[blkgirl-writing]

Valentine's day drabble HCs for the men of BG3 x Reader

These are a collection of small drabbles written in different styles for valentines day! Warning Gales is the longest, whoops.

Gale:

Gales cold warm hands grasped around your waist from behind, squeezing your skin gently as he rested his head on your shoulder.

"The earl grey lavender, please-" He kissed your neck softly, speaking in a quiet tone. It was a perfect day inside his tower, the rays of sun beaming through the stained glass, fluttering rainbows across the cozy kitchen. The kettle whistles quieting down as you took it off the stove.

"It's already in the mug, lovely" You gestured to his favorite mug, a heavy stoneware piece decorated with flowers of purple and pink encased in a golden heart, he said it reminded him of when he realized he had loved you. You never fully asked why, but it made enough sense to be sweet.

"How you know me so well." Gale Smiled. You finished pouring the water and handed him his extra-strong tea. He leaned against the counter, blowing on the drink a few times. "Maybe I should have told you earlier, but I do have a surprise for you."

"I thought we said no gifts!" You batted his shoulder playfully, "though I'll admit, I didn't follow that rule either."

"is that so?" Gale leaned in to kiss your lips through a smile. "We just can't seem to help ourselves."

"So what's this gift?" you asked. He set down his own mug, ducking into the pantry to retrieve a box, unwrapped and simple. He placed it on the counter and patiently waited, his excitement barely hidden in his smile.

You opened the small box to reveal a mug, a matching mug to his, but a dark blue with purple and red flowers, with a silver heart. It was gorgeous, less heavy than his and somehow it felt built to hold within your two hands.

"Oh Gale, it's perfect." You kissed his cheek, refusing to let go of the mug quite yet, the hug would have to wait.

"I had it specifically made by the same artist. Tara now has a similar water bowl as well. She felt left out" Gales hand slipped around your waist yet again. "as much as I love it when you steal my mug, I thought it was beyond time you had your own as well."

"Oh so you didn't want me using yours?" Your teasing turned into pecks, which led to kisses- "Your gift is waiting in the bedroom," You smirked, hand caressing his messy hair. "If that's ok, of course,"

"I was secretly hoping that was the case." His hand intertwined with yours, nearly sweeping you off your feet.

Wyll:

Wyll had been staring at you for some time before you'd woken up, the sun shining down on your resting face, the definition of peaceful. Wyll hadn't remembered pure peace, it had been years since he'd felt fully at rest, but with you, calmness was as easy as breathing. All he had to do was look at you, and he remembered serenity.

He had made sure he was the best man for you, the best man he could be. He loved you with all his heart and made sure you felt like a goddess above every waking moment of your lives together, however long that may be. He loved the small moments you shared, like when you'd tripped and nearly fallen, but straight into his arms. "Well I didn't think you'd be falling head over heels for me this fast," He'd said. And you'd laughed and smiled, and he swore he'd do everything to keep that smile on your perfect lips.

He remembered your first date, where he had tried so hard to reserve a seat at the best restaurant in baldurs Gate, but ended up in a dingy bar, getting more drunk with each cup, and instead of spending the night entangled in each other's bodies, you'd shared barely cohesive thoughts and stories from lives long past. He learned your favorite color, your old friendships, and the star that you felt most connected to, the smaller details that never seemed to have enough time for during your big adventure.

Or the time you'd styled his hair into braided buns, which he'd kept in until his hair was frizzy and far past wash day. But you'd worked so hard on it to be perfectly symmetrical that he never wanted to take out your work. He asked you to help him with his hair, after that, not just because you were good at it, which, hells, you'd made him feel confident in himself for the first time since he grew his horns, but because your light touch sent him into a nearly meditative state of bliss. The way your fingers carefully combed through his hair, spending time to detangle each knot with such care that he had barely noticed it at all. And eventually, you'd taught him how to do your hair, too. Eventually wearing matching styles (if he asked politely), and took turns in the "hair chair"

"Honey?" You whispered, groggy and barely awake, "have you been staring at me again?"

"Is it a crime?" Wyll asked, placing a light kiss on your forehead.

"Only if I was drooling"

"Oh, but you look too adorable when you drool." He chucked, holding you closer to his warm chest.

"Shut up..." You pouted, eyes fluttering open and closed, trying to force yourself awake. But sleep had you tight in it's arms, and so did Wyll.

Astarion:

Red was his favorite color, after all. The room was dripping with it, black, gold, and dark, burgundy. Candles dripping hot wax down into careful carafes, soon to be poured and decorating your skin. It was romantic, it was warm, and it was lustful. Astarions eyes never left you, dancing across your body in pure sin, he clearly knew exactly how your night would unfold, and the only hint he'd give you was the devilish smile on his lips.

"It's going to be a long night, hm?"

"Oh yes, darling" Astarion purred, his hand sliding into your hair and pulling downwards, revealing your neck to him. His fangs scraped against your bare skin, but not piercing it, no, that was for later, with much less clothing and a lot more sweat, when all you could see was his snow-white skin and the blood rushing through your veins.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

@shyminnie07 @makers-breath @claryvoyantfray @black-sapphic @fapqueen

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

(Consider supporting me on Ko-fi)

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

[hyun0o]

hiii!!! hru, sweet???

ik you don't write for nmixx but can I get a request for gp lily?

a little detail::::

kinda tomboyish lily LOVES f innocent kinda girlyish reader.

remember! (don't pressure yourself, you don't have to do it + take your time + love yourself = YOUR INCREDIBLE)

love you!

- idea Bank 💡 🏦

Small Touch Up

[G!PTOMBOYISH LILY X GIRLY F!READER]

(-//=//-) = Such a sweet req☹️🫶 I'm fine with doing any female kpop idols as long as you guys want it, I'll do it🩷 This is kinda short so I'm sorry anoniie but I hope you can still enjoy🫶

(^=^)

Nervousness leaves your body as the final performance of NMIXX has finally ended, the girls resting in each of their dressing rooms as that is by far their only time of being alone and rest before calling it a night. Sure you're just one of their many make up artists but hey they still treated you like a friend. The other staff members even teases you about how they all take a liking to you, to which you can't help but get flustered at. All you want to do is be there for them and support the talented girls. Cleaning your things with a graceful manner you felt an uneasy aura towards your other fellow make up artist, with a soft voce you asked her what's wrong. She seemed to fidget a lot, pacing back and forth with her eyebrows knit together. "Y/n... can I ask you a small favor please?" Her voice seemed desperate, even if you didn't want to do, it seems like you have no choice, your heart is just too soft for that. Nodding your head with a raised eyebrow, the worried girls face lightened up and came closer to you with expecting eyes. "Can you please fill me on lilies check up on her touch up? It's just I have a really really urgent family matter and I don't think I can wait around here any longer!!" She was practically begging with her hands clapped together, you're not a horrible person nor a busy one so you gladly took the favor, it's not everyday you get to have time with Lily alone. As your co worker packed her bags and waved her goodbye to you, you went to Lily's small yet private changing room to help her out on retouching. It was a surprise, once you twisted the cold knob and opened the door, you saw... Nothing.

Lily wasn't there, this was a bit unusual since the other girls are already in their rooms yet the short haired girl isn't. You tried to search for her in the closed space but to no luck. Looking at yourself in the mirror, you hear a sudden twist of the door knob. Getting the view of the beautiful blonde, you two make eye contact, making you feel flustered and awkward since this was your first time being with her in this lonely setting. "You're here? Where's um... Miss Choi?" Her voice sounded smooth, you've always idolized her because of her amazing talents even though you two are quite the opposite duo. While she has more of tomboyish style while you were more feminine and girly. Although, you know what they say, opposites attract. "She had a family emergency so she couldn't really help you, luckily I had nothing else to do and so I'll be doing her job for today, I hope you're okay with that..." You smile awkwardly, trying to avoid eye contact as much as possible, but the silence didn't help ease your anxiety. As you finally look at her, she had a confused face, eyebrows raised and one end of her lip downward which you found very cute. "Why would I not be fine with you?" She slowly walks towards you, making you inhale her rich fragrance. She was so close you felt like your heart was about to leave your chest from beating so hard!

"Um... Well you know, I'm not really your usual staff who's always fixing you up aha.. " Your nervous chuckle didn't help the awkward air between you two, it was almost as if it had some sexual tension too. Her strong stare made you shift and felt small, like a tiny mouse caught by a cats fangs. With a swift motion, you turned around to avoid her. Pretending to get something on the smooth white desk for the blonde's make up. As you started to do your usual routine, you can't help but notice her small glances at you, it's not that it made you uncomfortable, but... You actually liked it, you asked yourself why you were such a pervert! While putting on some of her eye shadow that will compliment her facial harmony, her lips distracted you, as they looked plump and lovely. A sudden heat chained through your body with such unprofessional thoughts. "Y/n?, why did you stop?" Shit. You were so spaced out, you didn't even realize your frozen state." Ah, I-I'm sorry just got a little blank there" You tried to laugh it off to not be so obvious, but hey, Lily isn't an idiot you know?

As you brought you brush down, turning around and trying to clean up before the last step, which was lip gloss. Lily had this heated feeling where she can't just let you go like that after making her so god damn hard. I mean come on you were so cute and awkward, it was hard not to get turned on. With a small smile on your face while trying to think on what you can have for dinner tonight, you suddenly felt fast yet gentle arms taking you in with their body fron behind, the warmth not helping with your already messy state. You looked in the mirror, lily laying her head on your shoulder while mumbling soft words you can't hear properly. "L-lily? What's wrong do you not like your make up? I can change it if you'd li-"

"You're so oblivious sometimes, you know?" With her gentle thrust to your ass, you felt it. Her hard thick boner teasing your warm ass, God you felt your pussy clench into air while already dripping so much. You can't help but stop your small sounds from letting out. "I'm sorry if it may come to a shock for you but... I need your help hun." God if she couldn't make you more horny! The setting was so bad, anyone can walk in and find you two fucking each other IN THE DAMN DRESSING ROOM!. But come on, who can say no to her right? You look at the reflection, her eyes filled with desire and certainty. In a speedy manner, you turned around and hugged her, this is what you've always wanted to do to her for a while now. To smell her comforting scent and feel her warmth. "I'll gladly help you lily. I'll do anything for you" What came over you for confessing such a bold statement? You mentally slapped yourself. Lily paused for a moment, "How can you be so cute?, Well then, please let me ravish you till my hearts content" without wasting another moment, she captured your pillowy lips. Getting the scent of her cherry gloss that you've been wanting to try on, since it reminded you of her.

The back of your waist was gently pushing back at the table, your heart beating too fast to comprehend that Lily was now slightly parting your lips to finally get the taste she'd always craved. Both tongues longed for each other, waiting till one's lungs get tired out. Unfortunately, your's was the loser to drag you from heaven on earth. Your heaving chest rose and set, mind getting clouded with desperation, and heart pumping with excitement and nervousness. "It's just the two of us for now okay? Let's fulfill our desires at lasts" Lily gently inhaled your scent with her hands in action with unbuckling your bra. Your fantasies were coming true, or maybe all of this is just a dream. If it were, you wished it would never end. She slowly took ahold of your breast, teasingly playing and pinching at it for your sharp whimpers. "Don't get too loud now baby" The adrenaline of this scandal is one of the turn ons Lily has, the secrecy of fucking her own stylist? Honestly she wants everyone to hear how good she can make you feel but sadly, the company is a little too strict for that. You placed your hand on your mouth, trying not to moan loudly while the blonde idol sucked on your nipples while her other hand started palming your sweet core. "L-lily a-ah!" Your whole body jolted to the feeling of one finger entering you, your panties getting pushed aside as Lily kept her slow pace.

Her beautiful finger moved in a stable pace, making sure to remember every single part of you. Your back arching with how all the feeling was just too much. But god,why did you want it all? With now two fingers,she was able to hit your gummy spot, your bit your lip from moaning her name. "I found you, baby" She raised her head, eyes more lost in lust. With your heart and mind filled with her, you couldn't stop yourself from kissing her again, for the first one was far way too short for your liking. You could feel her smile into the kiss, her fingers repeatedly abusing your sweet spot that no one has ever been able to reach. "mhm... Fuck Lily please" You are close to going insane, her fingers are now echoing through the whole room with your wet pussy. Honestly the sounds itself made you wanna cum on how lewd it is. You couldn't take it anymore, you wanted to cum on Lilys fingers, you want to cote her with your warm juices. In desperation for your release, you started moving you hips with the same pace as her. This time you couldn't stop the loud moan, it felt like you were going to explode with ecstasy! "You're amazing Y/n... Fuck, I can just cum by just watching your angelic figure" Lily dug her face on the crooked of your neck, "I love you so fucking much..." She said with full sincerity and finally marked you on your neck as hers. Those 3 words, were the only thing you needed to release your love for her. "I love you, I love you, I love you lily!!" You screamed in pleasure as your milky substance finally creamed Lilys fingers. The blonde couldn't take it anymore, not after you screaming her name like that she can't. She wasted no time to taste you making you blush, her eyes darted at you. Another smirk formed on her gorgeous face, "So needy..." she whispered and pulled out her suffocating hard cock. You were still spinning in the best high you've had. "You don't know how much you make me go insane, fuck my cock has been wanting your tight walls for so long now." Lily said as she kept placing soft kisses on you cheeks and neck, making you feel comforted and warm. Lily was big BIG, you can see how structured her dick was with the veins popping and top just so pink from how hard she was, topped with so much pre cum. You couldn't stop yourself from stroking her, moans coming form her mouth, making you feel determined to hear more of her heavenly moans.

"Mhm... If you keep this up, I might cum from just a few strokes my love" She confessed, she's so weak under your amazing touch. You let out a small giggle, "well shall we finally get to business?" You gave her the exact same smile that made her fall in love with you. Lily pressed both of your foreheads together, closing her eyes and heaving a big sigh. "I'll do anything to pleasure you. Tell me when you're uncomfortable okay?" Lily's voice and gentle face comforted you so much, how can she be such a sweetheart. Your lips met once again before whispering "take me as yours Lily" and with that, she positioned her tip on to your wet pussy, before slowly thrusting and filling every single crevice that yearned for her. Your whines were hard to control when you felt her veins practically pulsating!! "Oh my god baby I- fuck!" You wrapped your hands around her neck for stability and hid on her neck. Feeling her adjust her cock made you feel so damn weak. "Holy shit... You feel so fucking good my love, may I?" She kissed your forehead making you giggle at her affection, "it would be cruel of me to deny your release baby" And with that, Lily desperately started thrusting with her full and hard length hitting the spot she just abused a few moments ago.

And you thought her fingers were amazing, then what's her cock? Perfect? because oh my god it really did fill you up to the brim! You were literally a moaning mess with just a moments of her thrusting hard and deep, while her rhythm kept going faster and faster. "A-ahnn... Lilysh o good Ah!" It's hard to talk when the love of your life is pounding you mercilessly while kissing you and sucking your delectable tongue. You were sure that everyone can hear the two of you fucking hard, even the vanity was making a sound at this point, but the two of you just wanted one thing. Each other. "You're so fucking tight princess, ugh Fuck!" You could feel Lily's grip on your hand tightened, she was so close. "Ma-make me yoursh baby" That made her a little to excited, and with a few last hard and sloppy thrusts, she pulled out; completely cumming on your perfect cardigan. It was your favorite to wear since it goes well with anything, but now it's your favorite with a different reason. The room was filled with the scent of sex, but you two couldn't get the grasp of reality yet. Lily rested her head on you shoulder and went up for your sweet kisses. Fuck you two were in trouble, but in all honesty. It was so fucking worth it.

"I love you lily..."

"I love you so much more my Y/n, thank you"

A/N (°=°)

(-=-)

Honestly I'm so sorry anon :((,i hope you still see this cuz this was way back. I'm still so touched by your req. Also I've been thinking to change white bunny,since I wrote some of it's first chapters. I want to change the plot a little and some characters. But pls take note I'm only available on weekends so progress will still be pretty slow. I love you guys❤️

[writingstoraes]

total swiftie 🎶

pairing: charles leclerc/fem!reader

type: instagram imagine/social media au

notes: this was requested but somehow i cant find it in my inbox :(( anyway i hope u like this, anon! happy the eras tour 🤍 sorry this took so long lol

about: it's your life mission to convert charles into a total swiftie.

yourusername

liked by pierregasly, isahernaez, carlossainz55, and 234,592 others

yourusername i once believed love would be burning red — but it's golden, like daylight 🌅

appreciation post for the personification of the lover album, songs and the entire english vocabulary are not enough to express how much i adore u 🤍

(ps. pls join me in being a swiftie baby)

tagged: charles_leclerc

charles_leclerc As much as I want to, I just can't grasp the folklore love triangle, amoúr

f1swift LMAO NOT THE FOLKLORE LOVE TRIANGLE??? Y/N SO REAL FOR THIS

lecsmidnight absolutely right queen charles is such a lover album

sainzz55 more like 1989???

pierregasly I caught Charles today watching the Bejeweled music video if it helps 😅

charles_leclerc MATE

yourusername awwww baby :((

charles_leclerc

liked by pierregasly, arthurleclerc, lorenzotl, and 1,329,112 others

charles_leclerc Spontaneous adventure around the city at night + my passenger princess ❤️ (She races me for the AUX and blasts Taylor songs the whole ride in her efforts to convert me into a swiftie)

tagged: yourusername

yourusername anddd how am i doing so far?

charles_leclerc Getting close 😘

leclercs13 y/n converting charles into a swiftie is just so real of her

carlossainz55 Just be a swiftie Charles, Midnights is so good 😁

yourusername SEE YOU GET IT CARLOS

charles_leclerc

liked by carlossainz55, leclerc_pascale, lorenzotl, and 1,892,330 others

charles_leclerc How I masterminded my way into catching my girlfriend by surprise with the fact that I actually am a Swiftie:

1. Adore how passionate she becomes when talking about her favorite artist

2. Let her rant about album theories, which "Taylor's version" we get next, and finally listen properly when she explains the folklore love triangle

3. Learn Taylor Swift's entire discography, from debut until now

4. Pester the whole grid in helping me get The Eras front row tour tickets

5. Surprise her with the concert tickets and just watch her have the time of her life (surprised that I know the lyrics to the songs)

6. Just when she thinks the night ends at the concert, take her to a magnificent dinner and propose using a "Paper Rings" reference.

isahernaez Oh my god the big surprise is finally here! Congratulations, you two 🥂

lecs13 WHAT THE FUCK WAS THE LAST STEP IM GONNA RIP MY HAIR OUT

sainzzhero charles proposing what the actual FUCK I DID NOT SEE THIS COMING

danielricciardo ...I am so honored to be the one who got the tickets (me and my fast typing skills)

landonorris You only got those cause my computer lagged 😒

carlossainz55 You two arguing I was literally the first one on the website

yourusername

liked by lilymhe, alex_albon23, pierregasly, and 507,991 others

yourusername i like shiny things, but i'd marry you with paper rings, charles_leclerc 💍

except you actually got me a real ring, but i would have said yes as long as it's you. je tàime, my love 🤍

charles_leclerc Excited to spend the rest of my life screaming Taylor Swift songs in the car with you, baby 😚

c2legends such goals im going to cry

charles1655 GOD ME WHEN

lewishamilton Congratulations, Y/N and Charles 🥂 Swiftie Charles is a refreshing new side of him hahaha

carlossainz55 Best wishes, you two! Please remember: I was the first on the ticket website. Don't believe whatever Daniel says 😁

arthur_leclerc Welcome to the family, Y/N! I also want tour tickets 🙏

--------

tagging: @slytherheign

notes: this took some time to make lol ANYWAYYYY thank you so much for reading and lmk what u guys think! 🤍 tumblr is giving me a hard time right now apparently the formatting is weird in ios devices 🥹 like the bold texts are all off n shit and it wont let me fix it 😭

[an-au-blog]

Artist Usopp who has the most vivid dreams of Sanji ever since he can remember, this mysterious blond growing alongside him in the unconscious world. So he grows up, goes to art school, gets his degree, and starts the path of a starving artist. Not a lot of people buy his art, but he keeps making it. He never liked showing the overwhelmingly large collection of sketches, paintings, 3D prints, carvings, clay figurines, literally anything he could make of Sanji. It felt too personal to show anyone, but people would inevitably see them, as he can't stop doodling the man. They keep saying that's what he should be promoting as his work and how people would pay big money for those, but he always doubted it.

A time came where he could feel the "starving artist" title a bit too literally. With regret, he took his friend's advice and sold a painting to some random guy. The man came back with a friend - lover of the arts and before Usopp knew it, he was selling the blond of his dreams to collectors and museums. He started making marble sculptures, now that he could afford it, like the blond was a greek god, an angel sent to feed him in his most desperate times. Usopp knew such a man didn't exist, but it was nice to have him in his dreams at least.

Well... that was until one day Luffy sent him a video. One of those memes where people went to galleries and posed with victorian portraits that looked like them. He captioned it with "lol rly thought it was him for a sec". Usopp thought this would be another video forgotten in the waves of spam Luffy liked to send, but as the different people went by, suddenly, Usopp felt cold sweat down his back. It was the blond. He looked exactly like the man in his dreams... no. that was the same man. He was absolutely sure of it. He had been drawing and studying that face, those hands, the colors and curves all his life. That was him!

He desperately tried finding him, but all he had was a private page and that was it. He couldn't get any clue as to who he was from the user name "LetHimCook" or the bio saying he was 21 and a rat and a cheff's hat emoji.

Usopp gave up hope for the time being as he was supposed to finish a project that was the biggest in his career so far.

The day to present it had come and Usopp stood there, nervous, talking about his art while snobbish-looking people hummed as if they understood anything about his life's work. Some of the asked questions that he absentmindedly answered, but then someone from the back, who Usopp couldn't see asked something that caught his attention.

"I have two questions if I may. Firstly, who is the inspiration to this "dream" collection? It seems to be more about a lover than actual dreams. And secondly, have you ever considered doing an auto portrait?"

The two unrelated questions caught him off guard, and he didn't know how to say anything about the first one without sounding insane, or the second - without sounding depressed.

"Uhm, interesting questions." Usopp cleared his throat. "You see, uh..." he tried finding the words but they died on his tongue when the asker came into view. It was him. "It's you." He said accidentally out loud.

"I beg your pardon?"

They look at each other for a long second. Usopp couldn't tear his eyes away from the blue haunting his every day and night. "Sorry, I- I didn't answer your uh-" Usopp stuttered, trying to keep any semblance of dignity he could. "I don't like doing self portraits, I've made a few but the model kind of sucks." The people laughed with him but the blond only gave a small smile.

"I would love to see them some time, as I'm sure I'm not the only one."

How could this man leave him speechless every time.

After the Q&A bit was over, Usopp tried his best to avoid small talk from the guests so he could get to the blond before he left. But by the time he got there, Sanji was talking to someone, it would have been extremely awkward to join in.

"Hey, Usopp!" The man who was talking to Sanji turned, and oh God it was Luffy.

The artist didn't know if he should be happy or a bit scared. Luffy dragged Usopp into the conversation and it started flowing quite easily. It was not long before Luffy left to see another friend of his but his absence didn't make it uncomfortable. Usopp learned the man's name, that he loved to cook and that he had been a fan of his work for a while.

Agreeing that Sanji would get a "private tour" or the rest of Usopps (not displayed works), the "party" ends.

On their way home, Luffy hits him with a "It was so funny seeing that guy flirt with you all night."

Usopp, stopping dead in his tracks: Who?

Luffy: Blond guy who kinda looks like your obsession drawings...

Usopp malfunctioning: .......... oh...... . .. . . ... OH!

When they finally arrange a date for the "private tour", Usopp keeps an open mind, trying to see if he really WAS flirting. But then they get to the half-assed self portraits Usopp made of himself and, honestly - Usopp never wanted to show them. He wasn't all that good-looking, he didn't like how they turned out, he hadn't put in any effort and most of them were more reminiscent of grotesque caricatures than the usual realistic beauty he was used to painting.

"They're not really - I mean I mostly made them out of boredom, I- I don't really like them and- and-" He tried to excuse himself, but when he looked at Sanji, he lost all his words. The blond was looking at the paintings and sketches with such awe and sympathy. He reached out to the painted face, the tips of his fingers barely grazing the surface.

He looked back at Usopp, causing his breath to catch in his throat.

"You're far too mean to yourself." Sanji said, faint, barely audible. His eyes widened slightly as the words escaped his lips as if he didn't mean to let them slip.

On instinct, the deep-rooted self-loading Usopp had harboured all these years bubbled just the slightest. "Haha, or maybe not enough."

But then Sanji turned to him seriously, lips in a thin line, a bit hurt. "In... in an interview you once said you're glad the public liked your art, because you wouldn't bare sharing a piece of your soul and seeing anyone insult the man who's haunted your dreams." A stuttering breath. "So, I'd like to request you don't insult the man from mine..."

Oh...

[halfagone]

✨ Lex Luthor's Ascent Turns Two Today! ✨

Although other fandom events have filled my calendar, I wanted to take a moment to celebrate this incredible occasion! Our little baby fic turns two today! They grow up so fast 🥺 To think there was a time when I thought it would just be a small little one-shot collection~

That screenshot is from Chapter 6. I don't know what I was thinking with that line, it never turns out well for authors lol

But what about the artists? This fic has received some brilliant works of art that I will never stop squealing about. Artists like @papiliomame and @wilmvandrr and @avensartt who have brought scenes and outfits to life with their wonderful pieces. Chapter 44 alone has received some of my favorite pieces to date. It was amazing to see how everyone took the same outfit and created their own interpretation of it! I cannot thank you all enough for the work you did ✨

And we can't forget about @captain-krow-drozdov who time and again has stepped up to the task with his hilarious memes that always hit just right.

I cannot tell you enough how much all your comments made my day. There are still comments I come back to when I have a bad day, when I need a little pick-me-up and a reminder of why I wrote this in the first place. I remember being terrified out of my mind to publish chapters 47 to 50 but you all blew me away. Thank you for all the support throughout these past two years. 💛

How about you? What has been your favorite part of this behemoth of a fic?

I know I am a touched biased for chapter 27 🤭 but that's hardly the only thing I like about the fic.

Updates have been slow. I won't pretend they haven't. I have seen some comments lately that have discouraged me, but I promise to the loyal readers that I will prevail! I have come too far to give up now, and even if the next chapter still takes a little more time, it will come. After all, we still have 57 more chapters to scream about together.

So thank you, really, for coming this far with me. May I see you in many more chapters and many more stories to come.

This is halfagone, signing off.

[blueskittlesart]

Question abt drawing: been trying to attempt learning how to draw forever but I always have trouble getting over the obstacle of having to learn/study things like anatomy and shading, which then causes me to stop drawing and have a harder time picking it back up. I know it's important for improving your art and yourself as an artist but I can't help but see it as tedious and overwhelming, especially the anatomy since it's more on the science side of things and science is not my thing lol. Do you have any advice on how to get over it or work thru it?

i think there's a couple facets to this question. firstly i'd recommend you consider what exactly your end goal is in learning how to draw: do you specifically want to be able to produce anatomically accurate figures and true-to-life shading, or do you just want to be able to make something for fun that looks good to you? one of the most helpful things I ever learned at art school was that accuracy doesn't matter if it looks good. 99% of my art isn't strictly anatomically accurate, and part of that is stylization, but even when i'm doing realistic figure drawings i like to lengthen limbs and exaggerate curves in order to make my drawings look better. So if your only real goal with art is to make something that looks good and enjoy the process, my first piece of advice would be to stop worrying so much about stuff like perfect accuracy! if you use references and keep pushing yourself, the skill and understanding you're looking for will come naturally with time. before I was ever classically trained, I got pretty far just by drawing my favorite characters in different poses and situations over and over again, and that experience laid the groundwork for when classical training did become available to me. Just because you're not necessarily doing serious figure studies doesn't mean you're not getting valuable practice--what it means is that you're having FUN while you're practicing, and having fun with your art is the most important thing!!!

Secondly, you mentioned anatomy being on the science side of things, which suggests to me that you may be looking in the wrong places when trying to do more serious anatomical study. if you look up 'anatomy' or anything similar on a web search engine, you're likely going to get a lot of very complex scientific illustrations. and while those aren't necessarily devoid of artistic value (I took a class all about scientific anatomy for artists last semester and it was GREAT) for a beginner who's just trying to learn how to make a body look like a body, they're not what you're looking for. what is going to be much more helpful for you are sites like line of action or quickposes. these sites are basically repositories of figure drawing images, and you can set them to automatically switch to a new image after a certain interval of time. if you really, desperately want to improve your anatomy specifically, what I recommend is going to one of these sites, setting it to the shortest interval possible, and trying to copy the pose as closely as you can before time is up. this might sound crazy, since the shortest interval is usually somewhere between 30-60 seconds, which obviously isn't enough to get much down. but what this will do is force you to look at how these models' bodies are constructed and translate it onto the page quickly and without overthinking it. be warned, your first maybe hundred of these are going to look like shit. but if you do this enough, you're eventually going to gain an intrinsic sense for 1. how a body works and 2. the easiest way for you personally to construct a body when drawing it. even without knowing the scientific names and anatomical rules, you're going to get a FEEL for how things work, which is much more important and useful to you as a character artist.

Finally, i think the most important thing to remember is that no art is bad art, even if you're not satisfied with the end product. when you're first starting out as an artist, you're going to make things that don't look right and you're going to be frustrated with yourself because of it. i vividly remember crying over a sketchbook at maybe age 11 or 12 because I was so upset i couldn't put exactly what was in my head on the page. Skill comes with time and practice and that is a frustrating fact of life, but no time spent doing something you enjoy and are passionate about is wasted. It might look bad now but you are laying the groundwork for your future success, and someday you're probably going to look back on your past work and say "I can't believe I thought this looked bad back then. for my age and my skill level i was doing AMAZING." And as previously mentioned, it's a lot less discouraging when something looks bad if you had fun making it, so try to have FUN with your art. draw things you enjoy and are passionate about and don't worry if it looks bad. focus on the experience, the skill will come in time. you've got this!!

[tired-fandom-ndn]

I'm in a new fandom where the main tag tends to be filled with self-insert shipping and the most popular ship (which manages to be both super popular but is also considered problematic which feels almost unheard of these days lol). And people complain about these things in the tag but they never post anything they *want* to see? They could be posting gifs or meta analysis or headcanons or shitposts or screenshots but they don't. They expect other people to provide it for them. I think being a lurker in fandom is fine, but you can't then complain because the people not lurking are just doing fandom in a way you dislike??

[context]

Yeah. Honestly, I get it because I was just a silent lurker in fandoms for a long, long time (long time followers may remember that I didn't start really making my own posts and interacting with people until I got into TUA) and the only "content" I made was complaints and discourse posts.

I think a lot of people are in the same boat I was in, where they think that because they aren't an artist or a strong writer or something, then no one wants to hear what they have to say and they have nothing to offer to a fandom and that is so so so far from the truth. Even if all you're doing to create fandom content is making some tumblr posts or writing fics that took you 15 minutes, that's still something and if you keep doing that, then you're going to build up a nice little space for yourself with other people who like the same kind of stuff you do and like to hear what you have to say.

So like. Instead of making another post complaining about how the sort of content you like doesn't really exist, why not make a post about the thing you like? If you want more of a ship, make a post about that ship. If you want more of a certain trope, make a post using that trope. If all you ever do is put down what other people, then even the people who are into the same stuff you are aren't gonna want to be around you.

[eyesmadeofpearls]

Since it's not 2020-21 anymore i feel there's one thing i have to say to you all (Prepare for a yap session, and please remember that just because something isn't canon doesn't mean you cant ship it! please, continue to ship as i don't think anyone has a problem with it! :) This is just for people who seriously believe that any of its going to be put into the show and have went as far as harassing horikoshi, so if you find yourself getting angry with my words, then you've probably got a guilty conscious)

The bakudeku shippers who harassed the author and put him under social pressure have completely ruined the series. 🤗

Saying that he "doesn't understand English so he can't be affected by what fans say 🥺" is extremely rude and sooo fucking annoying of you. Of course bro knows English, he kind of has to?? To further my point i think it's pretty well known that the people of Japan are very particular about how others perceive them, they definitely care more than Americans do, that's for sure. To add onto my point above, the social culture over there is extremely lawful and strict, so stepping out of the norm can be scary. Crossing that unspoken line has created problems for people in the past and it's why there's a huge mental health epidemic over there. If you can imagine a handful of people over there harming themselves and becoming shut ins because of that pressure from people in their country, then imagine being a huge artist and show maker in that situation. Except.. It's not just half of Japan who's got their eye on him anymore, it's half of America too now. That is more than 'just' pressure especially when you know how die hard fans can really be.

I firmly believe that in his case he opted not to make any ships canon because he didn't want to anger bakudeku shippers. All of his official art both out of his work career (drawing just for fun) and in his work career (the manga and show) have been set up to ship uraraka and izuku. People seem to have forgotten that although a majority of the show watchers from America are teen girls like me, this show is for teen boys living in Japan because it's shonen. In japan it's also more socially acceptable to be straight and that's why it took so long for gay marriage to be legalized. So no, i don't believe that the horikoshi would be making a boy love anime and manga about teenage heroes in training. Notice how the plot doesn't focus on who he's in love with but it's been very clear he has a crush on uraraka? Yeah, that's what Shonen is. It's more plot than inner life things. It's like dragon ball z. Yeah, goku's got a love interest but guys aren't worried about that. Still, it's cool to see he's got a girlfriend since that's what's inspiring to teen boys i guess. I also dislike fans treatment of "feminine" acting guys. Midoriya isn't feminine, you're just an American and so am i, but at least i know that the way they raise boys over there vs here is wildly different. Our boys are quite frankly super disrespectful, loud, and ignorant as teens. The boys over there have to be respectful, they have to follow the rules, they can't afford to be loud, and their main focus is on being an adult and getting a job. Though i guess their parents strictness no matter how hard they try doesn't stop them from being rowdy after school. It's nothing compared to how guys over here are rowdy though. Because guys over there don't sit in the back of your class making fake moaning noises or begin to flip tables and scream loudly. Think of Midoriya like spiderman, he's just easily flustered, kind, and respectful but not "feminine" or gay.

Also, telling fans they watched the show with their eyes closed just because we acknowledged midoriya wouldn't get with his bully and rival is crazy work.. "He apologized!!'' if a murderer apologized, would you forgive them?? Yeah, he apologized and changed, but that doesn't mean its all okay now. Bro literally told him to jump off a roof, burned the notebook he values the most, and then proceeded to throw it in the water causing all of his time and effort to be practically useless. Not to mention he beat him to the point of real injuries and continued to be a right dick even after "apologizing". (An apology means nothing if you don't actually try to change and be a better person.) And no, insulting someone on purpose isn't romance worthy material. Unless you specify you're joking then you have brain damage for thinking anyone in their right mind would date someone who constantly calls them a nutsack face, an idiot, a dumbass, a loser, pathetic, a nerd, and genuinely believes that you should be below them in every way unless they've got a twisted degrading kink. And also, sacrificing himself for Midoriya is just plot. Everyone at one point has sacrificed themselves for him because he's the main character, the entire point of them trying to fight for him before he does anything is to weaken the enemies so that Midoriya can go in and finish them off after they beat the villains to near death. They all work towards protecting his future and upping his chances to defeat their common enemy and the man who raised villain motivation by creating more of them. (AFO) So yeah, no, it's not romantical at all that Bakugo wants to be heroic and give the only person who can defeat AFO a fighting chance. Midoriya has gotten hurt trying to protect everyone, uraraka included. But now that you know this would you say to my face that he's got feelings for her too? Or all of his friends? No, you wouldn't. Because that's just what a hero does.

Him and uraraka were meant to be a slow build up, people keep saying "well he always blushes!" yeah, but never at other men. It's been only women who can make his face entirely red like that. In japan, anime uses blush for multiple reasons, so you need to learn to read context on why they're blushing and the room.. Shock, a feeling of content, happiness, embarrassment, and romantical feelings can all contribute to blushing. If a guy were to put him in a headlock and bring him close to their chest, he wouldn't blush.. If a girl did it, his entire face would become pink. To clear up the blushing accusations, he blushed at tsu because she asked him to put her down since she was embarrassed, and he got embarrassed too because she didn't want to be held and felt bad for making her feel that way after realizing the implications of the way he held her. He blushed at hatsume because her literal chest was in his face, on top of him. That's called shock and embarrassment which is something you'd feel if a random pretty lady landed on you chest first. The other times with hatsume he never blushes again like he did and they return to speaking terms other than that one time she held his waist but that's for the same reasons as before. Uraraka however has managed to get him to blush with a full face without even doing anything. He called her cute, he said he liked her hair, her outfit, and he's always got to be standing next to her in every official art piece. Tell me when he's ever said anything like that about a man other than "he's so cool"?

Remember that in Japan love is a touchy subject, you're expected to focus on your future first so that you can have all that you need to settle down. A lot of people don't even say i love you until marriage over there, so it's not odd that Midoriya isn't as open about his feelings unlike uraraka. I think it's just common everywhere for guys to not be the first ones to say anything.. When i met a lot of my exes i was always the one to say i love you first and to initiate things, and i think that's just because it makes guys feel better knowing that they're being chased for some reason or it could hurt their social reputation with their friends who'd probably tease them about it. But anyways, when you pay attention to the way they act near each other, things tend to fall in place. Your actions will always speak louder than your words.

[nerdyjournals]

Flowers have sad meanings too

Florist!Y/N

Many believe that working in a flower shop is all gumdrops and rainbows, but it's not. It's stories of heartbreak and sadness. I wish I could remember their names, but I can't grieve every one of them. No matter how hard I try.

Author's Note: 3/8 of these mini tales are based on encounters I have had while working in my field. They are INSPIRED and not exact.

DISCLAIMER: ANY SIMILARITIES THESE ENTRIES HAVE TO A PERSON, PLACE, EVENT, OR SITUATION IS COINCIDENTAL AND NOT INTENDED TO MIMIC ANYONE.

WARNING: THIS PIECE TOUCHES ON DEATH AND ITS AFFECTS, SUBJECTS OF DEPRESSION, AND ASSUMED SU1C1D3. IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO SUBJECTS LIKE THESE, PLEASE SKIP THIS POST.

Boy #1

He was a boy with his whole life ahead of him. His mother said that he was very protective of his siblings, so protective that it's what took him.

She said it was a break in, one that happened in the dead of night. She never heard it. All she heard was the sound of her daughter screaming for help as her husband tackled the man to the floor. She didn't even hear the gun go off.

He was on his way to college in the fall, full ride. He was very talented. They hope to release his works down the road, but for now, some things stay locked away. Not because they're bad or sad, but because the grief was too fresh.

Boy #2

He was an interesting story. A quiet kid that everyone thought was mean, but was a very sweet guy and an only child. He loved animals.

His flowers were ordered by his friends because his parents were too shattered by the news. One of them couldn't keep it together, ended up telling about him. He was off volunteering to help build houses when one of them collapsed on top of him and a few others. They came out with minor injuries, but he wasn't so lucky. They spew out so many things about his kind heart but stone-like demeanor. It hurt to see that it was also his undoing.

Other families came and ordered, many of them being young kids in the dance classes he taught. Many of the kids still not understanding why their favorite teacher wasn't coming back. His parents finally arrived to order, but my heart was too fragile to be there.

Boy #3

His sister wouldn't stop talking about how he had wanted to do a lot with his life. She said that he was going to the gym everyday to get stronger. He was a gentle soul, a loving gentleman. Sickness took him far too soon.

It started off with a bad cough and a fever, she said. Then it just kept getting worse. By the time he was eighteen, he was fully living in his hospital room. It broke her heart to see how he dwindled away until he was almost nothing but skin and bones. She was thankful that he went in his sleep, going painlessly.

She couldn't stop repeating that she felt like a bad sister, that she should've done more to help him recover. It broke me a little more on the inside when I couldn't tell her that it wasn't up to her to fix him. I could only stay silent.

Boy #4

Only one person ordered him flowers, but it was a lot of flowers. Other than his parents, this boy received flowers from dozens of people. Friends, teachers, acquaintances - you name it. They all ordered through one person as they were the only one in town.

The pieces were extravagant, ranging from small vases to large sprays. They said that they wanted to reflect him; an artist surrounded by colors. No one knows what took him; whether self or sickness. They just found him in his studio one cold winter morning, slumped over an unfinished painting.

They said he'll have a gallery set up after the service, show off the wonders he created. I might go. If not just to see a fellow tortured soul. One day, his name will be known alongside the greats. For now, he'll be known to me.

Boy #5

His flowers were ordered over the phone by his mother, said something about it becoming too final if she stepped into the store.

I heard about this boy on the news. They found him in his car, just off the highway. He was so young, but the demons got to him before anyone else could.

I could only sit silent as she cried in my ear, blaming herself for not helping him. Little does she know the demons live in everyone. Including mine.

Boy #6

This boy was proof that the brightest smiles hide the darkest demons. His sisters couldn't hold themselves together as I flipped through the binder. The older one said that she blamed herself, saying that she should've seen the signs.

He went as he slept, passing in silence. She said that he had been bullied for years, but since he stopped talking about it, they assumed it stopped. They found him gone in the morning. I can never understand how some people find it acceptable to be so harsh to another.

They showed me his photo. He had a bright smile, one that was even wider with his family. It almost breaks my very soul that he suffered alone.

Boy #7

This was my first family order. The poor family was lost due to a faulty monoxide detector. The remaining members were in the middle of suing the landlord on top of mourning the family.

They didn't know until the son failed to show up for school for three days, unlike him they said. Same for the parents.

The boy was said to start high school next year. They were all excited since he would be attending the private school near the edge of town, one that was hard to get into without good grades. Now, the world could never see what he would amount to.

Boy #8

He was a child.

No mother should ever be allowed to outlive her baby. He was innocent, a victim of medical circumstance. They never said what he had, but they ordered him a beautiful urn display.

His younger brother, one still so small, would almost never know about the brother who left too early. His older brother was deployed, but is in an emergency flight back over to give his good byes.

A child...goodness.

[greenerteacups]

Hi! I am an ardent fan of your writing, and I hope to be as sorted and planned as you some day in my own writing journey.

My question is: you have a keen eye when it comes to planning character personality, dynamics, and such. I've also been wading through your ask replies, and your insights into how you write people and how you make them play off of each other is so wonderful to read. If it's not too personal a q, how did you learn how to write like this? Did you go to school for writing, does it come from years of observing people, do you have reading list recs for "how to write real people and real interactions"?

Thanks! This is a really flattering question. I'll try to answer it honestly, because I wish someone had been brutally honest about this with me when I was a young writer.

I didn't go to school for writing. I started doing it when I was about nine years old. It sucked very badly. I kept writing throughout high school, and it still mostly sucked, but some of it was occasionally interesting. ("Interesting" here does not mean "good," by the way.) I took a break in college, and then came back. I've been writing ever since. Sometimes, I feel good about it. A lot of the time, I don't!

I hate giving this advice, because I remember how it feels to get it, and it's the most uninspiring, boring-ass, dog shit advice you can get, but it's also the only advice that is 100% unequivocally true: you have to write, and specifically, you have to write things that suck.

I do not mean that you should make things that suck on purpose. I mean that you have to sit down and try your absolute hardest to make something good. You have to put in the hours, the elbow grease, the blood, sweat, and tears, and then you have to read it over and accept that it just totally sucks. There is no way around this, and you should be wary of people who tell you there is. There is no trick, no rule, no book you can buy or article you can read, that will make your writing not suck. The best someone else can do is tell you what good writing looks like, and chances are, you knew that anyway — after all, you love to read. You wouldn't be trying to do this if you didn't. And anyone who says they can teach you to write so good it doesn't suck at first is either lying to you, or they have forgotten how they learned to write in the first place.

So the trick is to sit there in the miserable doldrums of Suck, write a ton, and learn to like it. Because this is the phase of your path as an artist when you find what it is you love about writing, and it cannot be the chance to make "good writing." This will be the thing that bears you through and compels you to keep going when your writing is shit, i.e., the very thing that makes you a writer in the first place. So find that, and you've got a good start.

Some people know this, but assume that perseverance as a writer is about trying to get to the point where you don't suck anymore. This is not true, and it is an actively dangerous lie to tell young writers. You are not aiming to feel like your writing doesn't suck. You are aiming to write. You are aiming to have written. Everything else is dust and rust. And of course, you'll find things you like about your pieces, you'll find things you're proud of, you'll learn to love the things you've made. But that little itch of self-criticism, in the back of your brain — the one that cringes when you read a clunky line, or thinks of a better character beat right after it's far too late to change — that's never going away. That's the Writer part of you. Read Kafka, read Dickens, read Tolstoy, you will find diary entries where they lament how absolutely fucking atrocious their writing was, and how angry they are that they can't do better. A good writer hates their sentences because they can always imagine better ones. And the ability to imagine a better sentence is what's going to make you pick up the pen again tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that.

Which is what I mean, and probably what all those other annoying, preachy advice-givers mean, when we say: a good writer is just someone who writes every day. It's that easy, and that hard.

[ash5monster01]

could you write reader introducing Steve to Taylor Swift (let's pretends she exists in the 80s) and him loving her and being a huge swiftie

Mine

Pairing: Steve Harrington x FemReader

Warnings: fluff, language, cliches

Summary: Taylor Swift is a big musical artist in the 80s and you’re a huge fan. In the midst of your excitement about her new album you introduce Steve to her and her music. He ends up loving her too. Steve Harrington would for sure be a swiftie boyfriend.

word count: 2,542

Masterlist

It took all week to convince Steve to drive you to the record store. Ever since the mall had burned down the closest music shop was a town over. Forty minutes away to be exact. Sometimes Melvalds would get a few things in so people didn’t have to travel so far but you knew they wouldn’t have Taylor Swifts newest album. It was going to be on shelves this Friday so that meant begging Steve all week to drive you since you didn’t have your own car. He had finally caved, asking off of his shift at Family Video, just so he could drive you to the music store. You always could get him to cave.

“I don’t get what’s the big deal about this chick” Steve muttered, hands gripping the steering wheel, his Foreigner cassette staticky on the radio.

“First of all she’s not a chick, and second of all she’s amazing. How have you not heard any of her songs?” you accused, turning in the passenger seat to face him better. You had been jittery all day about getting the new album, you had saved all your tips from work for months.

“I don’t know Y/N. I don’t really have time for new music” you rolled your eyes, turning back to sit forward in your seat.

“Yeah, I know. that’s why you’re Foreigner cassette skips, because you never take it out” and then you were reaching a long finger to press eject, silencing the album that everyone knew inside and out because Steve always had it on.

“Hey, I like that song” he pouted like a child but you could only laugh, shoving the cassette back in its case that had literally collected dust from how long it had been empty. Once returned safely in the center counsel you were digging through your bag, looking for the correct tape.

“This is the album we’re picking up today” you informed him, slipping the cassette out and shoving it in his stereo.

“You already have it?! Then why the hell am I driving almost an hour away?” he looked at you with wide eyes, annoyance painting his features.

“She released her version of the album, her first six albums she lost ownership of to her shitty record label. Yet she still owns the rights to the songs since she wrote them all herself. She’s reclaiming what’s hers and making it better all while releasing songs she wasn’t able to put in the album the first time around. She’s bad ass” you explained, adjusting the radio before pressing play. “Just listen”

Steve was still shaking his head when the melody of Mine began to play over the radio. At the sounds of Taylor’s voice, you relaxed back in your seat, excited to hear the latest version of this song. A song you had loved since you were a kid and now it got to be Taylor’s again. Once the lyrics started you closed your eyes, singing along with the lyrics that you wished could be true about the guy beside you. Steve had always been in your life, a dormant best friend, just an accessory to the grand life he had lived throughout highschool, and you were desperatley, irrevocable, in love with him. Always had been. Unbeknownst to you Steve could only glance over as you sang to the lyrics, unaware of his stare and admiration because it had always been you. Always been his.

Do you remember, we were sittin' there by the water?

You put your arm around me for the first time

You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter

You are the best thing that's ever been mine

"Gosh, you just know she knows what real love feels like. It's like all the feelings I can't describe she has been able to put into words and write a song about it" you spoke, eyes opening to look at Steve and see he was already looking at you. Slowly his head turned back to the road, a soft smile on his face.

"I can agree, she's very clever with her writing. The song is good too" you chuckled lightly, hand falling to squeeze Steve’s that laid leisurely on the center console.

"It's just us, always has been. If you want to enjoy her music I would be happy to help" Steve chuckled but squeezed your hand back, comforted by the thought he would always have you when no one in his life had ever been constant. Slowly the song switched over to Sparks Fly and you had forgotten about your hand in Steve's, a part of you wanting to keep it there forever.

Close enough to touch

Close enough to hope you couldn't see

What I was thinking of

Drop everything now

Meet me in the pouring rain

Kiss me on the sidewalk

Take away the pain

'Cause I see sparks fly, whenever you smile

As you listened to the lyrics you suddenly became aware of your hold on him, nerves tingly through your body. You were terrfied he could feel it, the love you had for him, pouring out and covering his skin. He was so warm, perfect, and you'd never risk losing him because of some stupid feelings you had. Your whole life you longed for him while he dated everyone in Hawkins but you. That wouldn’t change now, especially in his car listening to some love sick Taylor Swift song. "This one is better than the last"

"Keep listening" you told him with a grin, slipping your hand out of his own, hopefully not to noticeably. You were afraid with how hot and burning your love for him was you'd sear it on his skin. Steve was always your Steve but he had never really been yours and that would hurt forever. Quickly you distracted yourself with excitement over the next song, turning to Steve.

"This is Back to December, her only apology song ever to her ex boyfriend. She broke his heart and wrote this. They’re really good friends now but it's still so sad to hear the feelings she went through at the time" you informed him, hand reaching to turn it up more. Steve chuckled and turned to you with confused eyes.

"This is public knowledge?" he curiously asked and you nodded feverishly, excitement of finally getting to share these facts with your bestfriend.

"Oh my gosh yes, I've been reading this stuff in magazine itnerviews for years and all of her boyfriends have been out there for the media to see. She also hides hidden clues everywhere for us to figure stuff out. She puts so much into her work, it’s not just songs. Now listen!" you told him, shaking his arm before turning to the road again.

So this is me swallowin' my pride

Standin' in front of you sayin' I'm sorry for that night

And I go back to December all the time

It turns out freedom ain't nothin' but missin' you

Wishin' I'd realized what I had when you were mine

I'd go back to December, turn around and make it alright

I go back to December all the time

"Woah" Steve uttered, the passion behind the lyrics shocking. Steve's breakup with Nancy was the worst heart break of his life. He had never dared getting close enough to a girl since. He knew they both had faults for their break up but he knew if he heard Nancy singing these words back to him he knew a part of him would be comforted, it would fully heal that wound, and he would be able to move on and grow again.

"Amazing" you hummed back, closing your eyes and getting lost in the music again. You and Steve had listened through the rest of the album quietly, him only reacting to parts of the songs where needed. Dear John had left him in shock which only caused you to giggle and urge him to keep listening. Just before you had pulled into your destination, Better Than Revenge came on which had been Steve's favorite. He practically gasped when he heard the lyrics 'She's an actress, she's better known for the things that she does on the mattress, whoa'. You laughed at his reaction, heart warming over the fact he was starting to like Taylor Swift and understanding why you loved her music so much. For the first time the entire trip he seemed happy to have come all this way for a music store.

Steve admired the way your hair swept over your shoulders in excitmenet as you turned your head, searching the building for the latest album. His heart stuttered the minute your eyes widened, them sparkling as you spotted a designated table for the new album. You wasted no time scooping up both the casette and record, clearly needing both, and not feeling guilty at all about spending your tip money on it. Who needed a car, right? Steve realized right then and there that even if Taylor Swift was a shit singer he would’ve loved her for you, because you made everything better, including him. God he loved you and he wished he could tell you, but losing you wasn't an otpion. If things got weird he would never ever forgive himself.

"Should I get a new Foreigner tape while I'm here?" he teased and you rolled your eyes, gripping his arm as you moved to the counter to pay. Steve loved how kind you were to the cashier who clearly was very uninterested in his job. For a moment Steve wondered if this is what he looked like at Family Video.

"Please save me from you ruining Foreigner forever because you overplay them. I still like their music so we need to find you something new" You told him as you gave a soft pat to his chest to which he just shook his head and you grabbed your bag from the cashier. Both of you started to the the car and you were barely sitting before you were ripping the plastic off the casette. Steve watched as you carefully removed your tape before putting in the new one, placing it securely in the case, clearly taking care of your things because you appreciated them.

"I'm on the edge of my seat here" Steve teased and you lightly punched his arm, adjusting your postion in your seat.

"Silence Steve, the whole ride home" you told him with a poitned finger and he held his hands up in surrender as he pushed the car into drive and took back off in the direction of home. You pressed play and Mine filled the speakers again but this time you sat quietly, not singing along, because you wanted to hear it all. Steve wished he could kiss you for that.

Steve had kept his world, stayed silent the entirety of the ride so you could appreciate your new album which he had actually been enjoying too. Taylor Swift was growing on him, a lot. He had found himself accidentally humming along which you had noticed and it instantly made butterflies erupt in your stomach. Who would have thought loving Taylor Swift would look so good on a man? By the time Better Than Revenge came on, the familiar 'Now go stand in the corner and think about what you did' buzzing through the speakers, Steve was trying to sing along, messing up the words here and there.

She's an actress, woah

He was a moth to the flame

She was holding the matches, woah

Your eyes sprung open, looking to Steve with a shocked face as you both began to yell. In disbelief she had changed the lyrics, the most bad ass line of the song, and she had changed it to something so simple. Your hands frantically reached out to pause the tape before turning and looking at Steve with shock. "She did not?"

"She did!" you exclaimed, unsure of what to think about the lyric change. In a sense the original line had been mean but that was what made it so good. You guess Taylor was just growing up, her feelings about an album she made more than ten years ago obviously couldn't still be the same.

"Can I come over and listen to the rest of the album with you?" Steve found himself asking and you blushed profusely before nodding, excited to have someone to share this with finally.

That was how you and Steve found yourselves laying on your bed, listening to the record spin in your room, absorbing each song, and discussing your thoughts after each side of the record was finished. Some songs had brought you to your feet to dance, singing into fake microphones with each other, Steve spinning you so closely to his body you felt like you were on fire. Finally you had reached the tape with the vault tracks which you explained in grave detail to Steve so he could comprehend these were never before heard songs until now. Placing the arm on the record you rushed to the bed, hopping beside Steve as the music began to play, squeezing his hand in excitement.

All I know is this could either break my heart or bring it back to life

Got a feelin' your electric touch could fill this ghost town up with life

And I want you now, wanna need you forever

In the heat of your electric touch, mmm

You sucked in a sharp breath at the words, hand still in Steve’s hold. This time you didn’t feel like pulling away. You wanted him to feel it, the electric, the invisible string tying you to him. You kept your hand there the whole song, and once it ended you waited, heart pounding in your ears. The suddenly Steve was sitting up, and leaning over you, and you were pretty sure you were gonna pass out.

“You know how you were saying Taylor had found a way to describe what you were feeling and put it into a song?” you nodded, nerve endings on fire as he hovered over you. “This song, is how I feel about you”

“What?” this time Steve was nodding, and you were pretty sure you were dreaming.

“I get it if you don’t feel the same” Steve started to pull back but you grabbed him, making sure he stayed in place.

“Of course I feel the same, God I’ve loved you since middle school” you told him and he chuckled, fingers curling into your own.

“You are the best thing, that’s ever been mine” Steve whispered before leaning down. Your breath hitched but you recovered the moment his lips met yours, slotting together like puzzle pieces. He tasted like cherries and your hand that wasn’t locked in his own found its way to his head, fingers dragging through his hair. It was surreal to be kissed by Steve Harrington on your bed, only a dream until now. Yet here he was, warm body pressed to your own, the electricity sending your nerve endings on fire.

That was when you realized nothing could be better than falling in love with Steve listening to the lyrics of a Taylor Swift song.

a/n: this was short, sweet, and adorable. for a moment I thought I had accidentally deleted it so now I appreciate it even more. in the spirit of coincidences when I chose Foreigner to be Steves choice in band it was totally just the first 80s band to pop in my head and not even an hour after I finished writing this I was invited to go to a Foreigner concert this Friday. absolutely insane. also I went with Speak Now TV for this considering that is what’s popular right now and it felt right for the vibe of the story. I hope you enjoyed it all nonetheless 💜

[skeletoninthemelonland]

hey starbs! I was wondering something, I know you are studying biolgy in uni and as someone who wants to be a biolgist but has been told im too "artistic and creative" to spend my life working with such precise things. I know you are also and artist, obviously, how has it been for you that you are a creative person, yet working with a course that is so strict to what it is (like not incudlign the different types of biolgist, like how you work there you rcant do what you want like you could with art or writing etc)

do you have any advice on how to reach for this goal or how youve felt just wanting to be a biolgist? im struggling alot with future stuff and it would be nice to hear from a fellow artist. (keep up the great work)

I'll be honest and say that studying Biology was a bit of a rushed decision (?)

I had no idea what I truly wanted to do while studying for the entrance exam. I knew I enjoyed different subjects and could work flexibly, but depending on the path I took, things would become either enjoyable or difficult for me. Biology has always been a subject I loved as a kid, but never something I was constantly interacting with growing up. With art that was different. I was definitely more passionate and skilled at art than at anything else.

I would have choosed to work with art, if only I had scored higher in the entrance exam and if only it was easy to make art for a living. Still, I don't regret choosing to study Biology.

It was a little discouraging in the beginning with how little I knew about the subject. Some students had far more knowledge than I ever had growing up. Some of them know exactly how a biology major will help them in the future. There were also people like me who had no idea what they wanted to do, but were willing to learn.

Turns out that Biology is one of the least precise things you could ever work with. Sciences in general is a subject that functions on uncertainty, and is what brings people forward to gather more information. My Plant Anatomy teacher often says "Mas é isso né gente, as plantas não lêem livros" (Which can be translated to "But yeah, plants don't read books"), because very often you'll find exceptions and unexplainable occurances everywhere (In this case, students are taught not to make assumptions about certain morphological characteristics that are present in plants... but not in all of them).

Artistic and creative are traits that are incredibly helpful and often necessary as skills. In a more literal approach, it might help you understand illustrated examples and "train your eye" for the tiniest details. Using your creativity as a tool to learn will immediately make things easier for you. I can't always draw and paint like I used to, but I can say that "motor proteins travelling along microtubules look like tiny people going for a walk :D" and never forget the information.

Being creative helps you make analogies with already existing information, so it's easier to retain it. I could also say "motor proteins travelling along microtubules remind me of Michael Afton walking down the sidewalk :D" and it's even easier to remember! Play with the information like it's a toy. If you can explain it to a 5 year old, that's because you learned.

But of course, there will always be classes that are more difficult than others. Mathematics will always be that one for me. You can't escape the challenging parts ^^'

Overall, it really depends on the person. It might work for me, and it might not work for you. The key is to explore and experiment on your own pace. Answers will come to you if you keep searching for them.

My best advice (in any major you're choosing), which will likely save your time, energy and sanity, is to find people like you. Not necessarily people who share similar interests as you, but people that you can count on and share your struggles — and they'll sometimes share their own. Befriending people often keeps you grounded and less anxious about how you'll perceive yourself and the future. It's a win-win interaction. Everyone is struggling, so we'll help each other out.

Remember it's okay to not know things right away. Remember it's okay that you're not as skilled as x person. Remember it's okay to be kind to yourself.

I could be saying all of this, but every day there's a huge effort to remind myself to take it slow. Reality oftens becomes skewed when we don't give ourselves a break.

I hope I helped you somehow, with the little to no experience I've had over the past few months. Wishing you and any other person reading this and who's in a similar situation good luck.

-----

One last advice.

Please, SLEEP!

SLEEP. SLEEP. SLEEP.

Don't even think about staying up late. SLEEP. Eat healthy whenever you can. Carry a banana with you, they have potassium — which is fucking great for your organism !!!

CARRY WATER. EVERYWHERE. TAKE 💧💧💧💦💦💦💦💧💧💦💦

How is anyone supposed to make good decisions while exhausted, grumpy, dehydrated, overwhelmed and hungry? THERE IS NO WAY. TREAT YOURSELF WITH CARE !!!! NOOOWWWW

[yellowhollyhock]

how to NOT use dialogue tags?

Use dialogue tags

Pretty please

Your writing will flow better when you show love and respect for the little helper words. Trying to avoid useful words will just lead you to phrasing things in confusing ways.

I say this because it's a mistake I've made! Trying to avoid 'said' and 'asked' is advice I took seriously and I saw my writing suffer for it.

Some tips with dialogue:

"You can start a new paragraph to show a new person talking," she explained.

"Ah, yes, of course--if both characters have been established the paragraph breaks and quotation marks will be enough for readers to easily follow the conversation," Anon flapped their hands gleefully.

"Precisely. After we've both spoken, we can go back and forth for any length of time. We only need clarify if a third person joins."

"Wait a minute. You said to use dialogue tags, but you've replaced them with descriptive verbs. And in that second one you narrated my actions while I spoke. Aren't you avoiding dialogue tags?"

"It may look that way," she admitted with a shrug, "But the point was never to avoid those words. The point is that on some occasions, explain is the word to use, and on others, said is not only sufficient but preferable. It's about using the most accurate word, not the most impressive one."

"Oh, I see--if our goal is to not use dialogue tags, our writing will suffer. But if our goal is to use our words to paint a picture, it will be easier to decide when we should use bold strokes like 'declared' or 'inquired' and when 'said' or 'asked' will blend more nicely into the background."

"What a lovely metaphor, Anon!"

"Hey," a third person, unfamiliar to either of them, poked their head around the corner. "You wrote that metaphor. Stop being pretentious! All this pish posh about when to use dialogue tags and when not to use dialogue tags--it's exhausting! Can't you make up your mind?"

"It's not that we haven't made up our minds," said Anon, "We're quite decided that different words are good for different reasons, and agreeing how silly it would be to try to avoid a whole section of words when they might sometimes be the very tool you need."

"An unobtrusive dialogue tag works wonderfully when you want to keep the focus on the dialogue itself, or when you want the conversation to be fast-paced," she said.

Anon crossed their arms with a triumphant smirk. "I won't be taking any old advice about writing anymore. Certainly not advice that reads like fad diets, asking for such extreme avoidance of some things and gross reliance on others. If I need to know whether something reads naturally, I'll read it out loud. That trick will work best."

"That's a lovely idea," she dipped her head, "And it's good to keep in mind that there are even time you might want to sound unnatural! As the artist, the question you want to ask yourself is what effect your work will have on readers. Your first priority is to be clear, your second is to be interesting. If you do those two things you really can't go wrong."

"No," the stranger moaned sadly, melting back into the wall. "I came all this way to destroy your confidence. I will have you both! You haven't seen the last of me!"

They watched together, bewildered and a little sad. They were starting to remember the stranger's voice now, and it was one that had often tried to help.

Yet it had done so much lasting harm, and promised more even as it faded into nothing.

"Well," said Anon, "I don't know that I've gotten very far past where I started."

"Perhaps not," she said softly, "But perhaps that is the point. Where you've started is not so far back as you may have believed."

[khruschevshoe]

OFMD Critique: Bad Faith, Fandom, and Respect

All right. You know what? Screw it. I saw one post I just cannot ignore anymore that encapsulated all of my problems with the fandom right now. Personal rant incoming.

I understand that there's a nuance to the discussion of season 2 of Our Flag Means Death, and that there are people going a little too far with both their critiques and their support of the show. But oh my God, I'm tired of being straw-manned and made fun of for legitimate critiques of the show.

I just used the block button on someone in this fandom for the first time. Some of you might think I'm overreacting for this, but I saw a post that I could not on any level stand. This person, who I will not name names of, because I'd rather just block them and never deal with their level of bad faith again, took their one legitimate criticism of those of us who critique the show, the back and forth on whether or not Izzy's death was homophobic or not, and used it as the first in a literal list of straw man critiques that no one I've read in the OFMD Critical tag has made (and I check it like once a day bc I like reading meta, sorry), proceeding to absolutely make fun of the legitimate critiques that people have of the show, parodying them in the worst possible ways. They took our legitimate critiques about everything from the sexist handling Zheng Yi Sao's character, the absolute ableism of the finale, the questionable optics of the handling of trauma, etc. and stretched them into things that they very much were not (two examples were that we were crying ableism bc of something to do with seagulls and that we thought the problem in the Stede&Zheng dynamic was the "emotional labor" involved).

Now I'm pretty sure this post was a joke. I *think* it was a joke. But how in the world am I supposed to feel comfortable in the main section of a fandom like this when the comments and replies to this post were full of people agreeing sincerely that this is what the critical section of the fandom is like? How am I supposed to feel when I just see people making fun of me for my analysis of the show? I love this show. I adore season 1 and I'm clearly still making fan related content (moodboards) for season 2 along with my critiques.

Sure, I vibe way more with fanfiction than the actual canon at this point, but I still genuinely engage with the show. And to have the critiques that I made in good faith, regarding issues that I sincerely care about such as ableism, sexism, homophobia, and the handling of trauma, made fun of and taken out of context and straw-manned to their extreme, makes me feel so absolutely unwelcome in this fandom.

Other than keeping up with the couple of fan series that I'm currently still reading, I don't know if I can stay in this fandom any longer. I can't say that I'm excited for the new season if this is the kind of response that any good faith critique of the show is going to get. I can't say that I feel safe or comfortable when there are this many people ready to dog pile on me for a critique I made with ACTUAL TEXTUAL EVIDENCE to back it up.

I would like to thank all the people who have been making excellent critiques of the show. Their meta-analysis is what got me into making my own critiques, which I was nervous about making in any other fandom. I don't think I've in any way tagged them all, but just a few I can remember off the top of my head. Go read their critiques/meta- it's really good!

@sky-fire-forever @carrymelikeimcute @blue-b-bro @bougiebutchbinch @treesofgreen @sixstepsaway @alex51324

And from the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone who has engaged with my mood boards or my critiques or anything else that I've made, as well as the amazing writers and artists in this fandom (such as @ruecrown, @aletterinthenameofsanity, @fool-for-luv, and @possumsmushroom). You guys have kept me going with my love for the show and engaging with it for a while now. Despite the stuff that is making me take a step back now, I really did love this while it lasted! I'm still planning on making a few more mood boards, but other than that, I'm going to take a step back from engaging.

Hope this post can spread enough support/joy your way to counteract the ache I'm currently feeling!

Sincerely,

Ashley (aka @khruschevshoe)

[curio-queries]

SMERALDO GARDEN MARCHING BAND

My thoughts prior to the release of MUSE. I've avoided pretty much all reactions and analysis posts until I finished this so I have no clue if anyone else has come up with better words to describe some of these concepts but here's my take on it. I wanted to get this out prior to MUSE so that I can see how my view evolves with further context but here's where I am now.

Initial Reaction:

I'd actually had a few issues that night so I wasn't in the best headspace to take in a new song but I did listen to it on Spotify first and then watched the mv twice, once without subs and once with. (And yes, I know it's technically not called an mv...deal with it lol)

Anyways, I definitely wasn't immediately sold on it - which is expected from me, it's EXCEEDINGLY rare that I like any song on first listen but SGMB only took a couple of runthroughs before I was on board. One thing that helped me reframe it in my mind and with my previous expectations is to remember the first part of Jimin's self-proclaimed attributes: Cutie, sexy, lovely. SGMB leans very solidly into the cutie aspect, a little near the lovely side but far deeper into Cutie than anything we've seen in his solo releases. (RememberCute was an answer in the seossword puzzle). That got me thinking about where the rest of his songs would be in comparison and here's the placement I've landed on. Some of these have changed over the past few days but I'm curious where y'all disagree with my placements.

Good old Serendipity, a perfect balance of the three in my opinion. All of FACE is firmly in the Sexy section with Like Crazy leaning more evenly into Lovely. Lie is also right there with LC but more closely on the border. My beloved Promise and Letter holding down the Lovely section with CTT straying closer to Cutie. If you forgot about the cutie circle though, SGMB would have seems like it was complete out of the expected range. I am curious if we'll ever get something that's a mix of cutie and sexy, I can't comprehend what that would be like but I wouldn't put it past our JM to find a way!

Theories?

So, how do I think I did with all of my theories? Let's go through them one by one:

Open Locker Meaning: nothing to prove/disprove this yet. There were an awful lot of references to Serendipity in the mv though, so maybe that's the tie-in? I don't know, this one was a streeeeeetch in any case.

Sound Effects Interlude: we know we're getting an interlude but we'll have to wait for MUSE and any behind info to learn if it's sound effects that Jimin recorded himself like Dive.

Rooms Going from Dark to Light: Yes! I mean we knew it was going to be a lighter album than FACE but I think the word BRIGHT is all over SGMB. And I think this technique in both of those videos was trying to highlight that for us.

SGMB as an Actual Band: Yes! Definitely right here too! I'm going to talk about this more below because I think this is actually a very important part of this song.

The Emoji Poll from the Insta Chat: Yes! I think some people are still trying to make the argument that each option is supposed to represent different songs on muse. And while the others may lean more into any of these specifically, SGMB definitely has elements of all of them as well

An Actual Band?

So, like I mentioned in the theory above, I had the thought that SGMB could be portrayed as a fictional band itself, very similar to what MCR did with the Black Parade. And since Jimin decided to use this as the song's title; as well as make it the pre-release track, I think this is an important topic to delve into.

First, this allows Jimin a perspective shift to share with us his career outside the lens of BTS. Not because he NEEDS or WANTS to separate himself from them but he has had his own journey as an artist that may differ from his experiences from the perspective of a BTS member. Obviously BTS is completely woven through this journey and he gives us an acknowledgement of that with the line about 12 June and the handsign.

(Sidenote, whenever I see any of them do that now, I instantly think of that moment in Jimin's pixid ep where he said they don't anymore...I think we may have been misled...) 😝

Second, the frame of SGMB from a band's perspective also puts the song firmly in the categorization of 'work' rather than 'personal'. With FACE being such a deeply personal projectregarding his very deep human experiences, i love that he'svery upfront with us about MUSE being a work project. I've said this before, and it's one of my absolute favorite things about Jimin's music: he crafts it so that we can easily adapt it to our own interpretations. There's a lot of loving and beautiful imagery in the lines of this song that can have special meaning in all levels of relationships; platonic or not. But his delivery if this message to us, is professional. This is reinforced by the suits Jimin has worn in all of the material released so far. He's following a work dress code. (If you happen to see this post within a week of release, we have a poll regarding Jimin's suits on @bts-polls )

ME + US = MUSE

I just want to touch on this briefly here as I expect there'll be more once the album releases but there are some hints already. Like I discussed in my FACE post, Jimin has again come up with some key words to weave through the project. In FACE, it was several sentences but MUSE seems to be focusing on the following:

ME: Jimin himself

US: Jimin's view on his audience

MUSE: His awareness of us and how that effects his creations and manner of artistry.

SGMB and CTT are both bursting with these references and viewpoints. But I honestly don't think of SGMB as a traditional 'fan song'. I have another post where I talk about the different kinds of fan songs. Like I said above, SGMB details Jimin's experience as an artist and how his audience plays into that process. Not like CTT that's literally a diary of our journey with him. Maybe an extremely nuanced take but SGMB just doesn't feel like it belongs in the same 'fan song' categorization that CTT does.

The End for Now

Does anyone know anything about that little hand-wave Jimin does during the bow at the end? He repeats it. Is just an additional flourish that he's added in himself? I've never seen anyone do that during bows after a performance so I'm wondering if it's a cultural/industry thing.

What do y'all think? I'd love to hear your thoughts! If any of you have made posts about SGMB, I'll try to read them now but rumblr is not very forgiving if you miss something in the timeline. I'm very happy for you to share links to your posts in the comments!

[nekkomaa]

My Love

Notes: This was a story I wrote a long time ago, I posted it in Portuguese once, but I removed it because I thought it wasn't good enough. But well, reading it again I thought I should give it another chance. I hope you like it, Levi is a character that I have a lot of affection for, but writing for him is a difficult job for me, I feel like I can't convey enough of his personality.

!! The art used below does not belong to me, unfortunately I don't know who the artist is (I found the image on Pinterest) if you know, please comment so I can give due credit!!

No warning!

At the end of it all, there was the man who had fought in a war, or what was left of him. The face with the tired expression and the distant look, the man whose past haunts him and the man who lost everything in the war. There he sat at one of the tables in his tea store, which he had once longed for.

The sun was shining on everything that could be seen through the glass in the store, and it was also shining on the man's tired face, as he watched the little movement while he had a cup with the contents so beloved by the older man's palate. Those were the peaceful days that everyone once dreamed of, including him. But in the end, it seemed that the only thing he had left were the painful memories he had acquired during his years alive, and he believed that dying would be the best thing for that "old commander".

But there was someone who had always been there, even if she had never been noticed, she was still there walking through that painful life with him.

The small bell placed on the door to warn that someone had arrived rang, bringing some sound into that place with a faint scent of tea.

"Levi Heichou." The sweet voice called out to him, trying to reach the one she loved so much.

"It's been a while, did you decide to come and visit me?" The man looked at the girl who was still holding the door looking at him.

The immense glow that that gaze transmitted, all that glow was just for him. But he didn't know it, he had always thought that the girl with the now medium-length hair had always looked like that, but the truth was far from it, the truth was even more painful, and the girl preferred not to talk about it, she didn't want to remember the pain and sorrow she had once experienced, not in the presence of the one who was her sun, the one who illuminated her darkest days, the one who brought her infinite peace.

"I always come to see you" The girl tried not to go, she didn't want to be a nuisance to him. "Heichou." His voice sounded calm, but the girl felt an overwhelming sadness when she remembered how happy he had seemed next to those who had once been his friends. She wanted to end his pain, to stop feeling the tightness in her throat that suffocated her every day.

"I'm not a commander anymore, you don't have to call me that." He brought the cup to his lips and sipped the hot liquid, closing his eyes. With a sign, he asked her to sit down.

The minutes passed quietly, the sound of the porcelain was heard every now and then, along with the calm breathing of both of them.

Unable to contain herself, the girl looked up into the older man's face; she wanted to ask him something that had been on her mind for some time.

"Can I stay at your place?" She asked quietly, but loud enough for Levi to hear her and look at her.

The girl believed that sleeping next to him would make her feel calmer, for a few days she had been having nightmares that she preferred not to remember, she was looking for shelter next to the one she loved, even if it wasn't reciprocated, even if he didn't know, she wanted to be close to him. Even if it was just in the same building, it didn't matter as long as she knew he was next door.

"Why?"

A small smile took over the girl's lips, hiding her nervousness.

"I just… wanted to be close to someone." Levi was surprised that it was someone she was talking about.

"Then stay. " The man looked away from her and went back to staring at the sun, which was no longer visible and only painted the sky in warm colors.

"Thank you." Again, the words were addressed to him in a low voice.

In the silence of the night, she woke up. Her face covered in tears and her body trembling, even though it was a dream, it gave her the closest feeling to an abyss, losing the one who was her light, losing Levi.

Levi, in the next room, was also awake, staring at the ceiling, trying to rid himself of the unpleasant memories that kept bothering him.

His attention was drawn to the sound of short but rapid footsteps coming from the corridor, he knew it was the girl who had asked him to stay the night, but he closed his eyes pretending to sleep.

When the girl opened the door and came rushing to the edge of the bed, she knelt down and grabbed his hand.

"Levi… " Her broken voice tried to sound as low as a whisper so that he wouldn't wake up, she would hate to disturb Levi's night's sleep, even if she wasn't being good. "Please stay with me…"

Levi Ackerman. He had never known what it felt like to love and be loved. At one time in his life, he had wanted to know what it was like, but gave up when he remembered the reality he was living in. She, on the other hand, went to great lengths to love him, even though she was in a world where she knew she could lose him.

Her love for Levi was such that she wouldn't mind dying in his place, but she knew that he would feel guilty if she died, so she preferred to say that she would get out of the situation with him. That she would save him.

"I'm here." Levi pulled her up and hugged her. Even though she was surprised, she didn't dare pull away from him. On the contrary, she did the same as him, hugging him as tightly as she could, trying her best to be gentle. She was afraid of hurting him, or that he would disappear as soon as she let go.

She wanted him to lean on her, but she couldn't stop being afraid that one day she would lose him. She wasn't ready for that, and neither was Levi, even if he didn't know it yet.

That night, it was Levi who went to sleep first. Even though she went to him in desperation.

Levi felt at peace for the first time in years, in the arms of the one who had always been there for him.

In the morning, the sun was shining again, illuminating the store. The girl enjoyed her tea while looking at the short, but equally tall body organizing things behind the counter. A smile escaped as she watched his back.

"Levi."

"Hm?" The man muttered, and turned to look at the owner of the voice that had called him.

"I feel that if I don't speak I'll regret it." She said, getting up and staring at the floor.

"How serious is it?" Levi looked at her with a look of concern.

"Levi, I've loved you for a long time."

The man couldn't react, just stared at the girl who was looking at him intently.

"I'm sorry. I can't tell you if I feel the same way, I'm afraid I don't know much about this feeling."

"I'll guide you, no matter how long it takes." She whispered before hugging him again, giving him the feeling of peace that the older man so desperately craves.