#And he'd need someone to play for him
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monkiinart · 4 months ago
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cooking up a jojo p5 oc...
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paimonial-rage · 1 year ago
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from your character analysis ask meme, for alhaitham: Are they prone to jealousy? would he be too logical to be jealous? Would his jealousy be in vain or would it perhaps be a sign that his partner has crossed the line of sorts?
Definition of jealousy:
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I apologize for taking some time with this ask. I’m going to answer this in a more analytical format because I think this situation calls for it. I want to say that no, under normal circumstances, Alhaitham is not the kind of person to get jealous. In my experience, there are usually three triggers for jealousy:
1. Reader interacting normally with friends and hobbies and partner gets (unreasonably) jealous
2. Reader getting too involved with spending time with friends/hobbies not realizing they’re neglecting partner which gets them (reasonably) jealous
3. Reader specifically does things that will incite jealousy within partner by purposefully doing things like ignoring partner or flirting with others
Alhaitham would not get jealous under the first instance. Being a very independent person, he would understand and respect his partner’s need for it as well. The second instance would be the closest he’d feel to your definition of jealousy. While he’d be able to withstand it for a while, eventually he’d probably feel neglected and would pull you away to capture your sole attention.
As for the third scenario, while he would get upset and would get jealous, I don’t believe this would happen in a normal relationship. Personally, I would never flirt with someone that isn’t my partner just for fun, even if I’m close to them. I think that’s a very hurtful thing to do to someone that has feelings for you.
So long story short, no, I don’t think Alhaitham is prone to jealousy. Not that he’s “too logical” to be jealous. He just understands and respects people’s need for independence. That being said, he probably can end up feeling neglected if left alone too long.
#genshin impact#genshin x reader#alhaitham#alhaitham x reader#anon#character analysis ask meme#now as i always do i’m going to answer the part you’re looking for in the tags#the reason why alhaitham wouldnt be a jealous person is that hes both reasonable and he doesnt play games#when you enter into a relationship with alhaitham he will make time for you and seek you out#he's self-regulating in that way that he'll make sure to get his fill of you regularly#even if you are busy he'll find some way to slot yourself in your schedule#and like... the thing with him is that he really doesnt need much#itd take you turning him down consistently for other things for him to get jealous and feel neglected#this is when he gets immature because if you try to spend time with him after you can expect some passive aggressive sass#'hmm... you seemed to be having a lot more fun with them instead'#you'd have to make it up to him#add onto that someone flirting with you? he'd swoop in there to stake his claim#that being said i highly doubt this would happen often?#you'd have to be REALLY DENSE to neglect him up to this point#when he is feeling neglected expect him to be more physically touchy#he'd just want you near#haha#sorry this isnt much#i'm the wrong person to go to for jealousy asks#i'm not a person that finds jealousy attractive#unreasonable jealousy i find restrictive and childish#reasonable jealousy i find as a sign i am not doing my job as a significant other#my job as someone's partner is to make them feel loved and needed no matter what#so if theyre not feeling that that means i'm doing something wrong and i need to fix it
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ekat-fandom-blog · 2 years ago
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Very Angy Baby
Dani is out traveling the world when she finds a bunch of heroes leaving the premises of a weird government building. She obviously has to explore it! Going invisible and intangible, she enters. The first 3 levels are boring, but the elevator says there's tons more to explore underground.
She's noticed immediately by the genomorphs, but convinces them not to do anything. So they start telling her that the facility is used for making clones, though there is only one left at the moment(because the Roy in the facility is the original). Obviously, she wants to meet this other clone. They don't see any problem with it. She seems to be very strong and capable.
She meets Match and notices that he's very angry and confused. She figures he could use some friends that are more durable. So she gets the genomorphs to agree to let him leave with her and she brings him to Amity Park. She introduces him to Danny and a bunch of ghosts.
Something gets said, no one's sure what, that makes him extremely angry. He started attacking. No worries though. Ghosts socialize via fighting and this guy is just the equivalent of a very angy baby ghost.
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triglycercule · 21 days ago
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horror's jacket fluff has probably accumulated so much DISGUSTINGNESS over 7 years in it that it's managed to acquire it's own signature Dog Smell (TM). however i think this would be a prime opportunity to pet him and then get some of that disgusting smell on you because for some reasons Dog Smell is just unavoidable when you pet a dog with a lot of hair
he'd hate it but awww awww whos a good boy (ノ´∀`*) whos a good boy (*≧∪≦) YOU ARE!!! awww so cute you didn't commit all those murders against innocent people you were innocent ( ̄▽ ̄)/ such a good boy!!!! (gets beheaded) (he got too embarrassed)
#forcing the dog horror agenda down people's throats#CAT DOG RABBIT TRIO I SCREAM INTO THE DISTANCE#cat and dog run circles chasing eachother around the sleeping rabbit (MURDER TIME TRIO REAL TRUST I WAS THE AIR)#THIS IS SO FUNNY TO ME. guess where the inspiration came from. THATS RIGHT (triglycercule owns a dog) (for context)#my favorite recurring theme i keep on bringing up 4 some reason is horror not wanting 2 be treated like hes feral or animalistic#he is a rational man. he can think for himself. he isn't a DOG. SO THEN STOP TREATING HIM LIKE HE'S NOTHING MORE THAN SOME CAGED CANINE#(glares at killer and dust. dust simply looks off to the side (not paying attention) and killer slightly smiles bigger (creep))#it would be SO fucking demeaning. something killer does to horror to piss him off EASILY#leave it to killer to find a way to get on horror's nerves all the time. thank god dust is much less pissy than horror 🙏#can just SEE the thought bubble of horror as a dog above dusts head#he wouldn't verbalize it (because why would he need to) but dust can see the dog parallels (truly like me)#maybe he'd say it on an off day when theyre all feeling chill and its dead silent#someone's gotta be the calm one out of the three maniacs and why not let it be the rationally insane one ‼️‼️‼️#and theyre all just like chilling. horror's organizing the pantry. killer's playing a cat game on his phone. dust's reading#and then he just says to nobody in particular. horror reminds me of a dog#it's almost as if nobody reacts when horror turns around flabbergasted??? as if nobody said anything!!!!!#because dust is still reading and killer's still on his phone!!! WHAT!!!! and horror's just like ever so slightly irritated and weirded out#but...... its a good day. its been chill. maybe he just imagined that. and he goes back to his thingy#and dust just ever so slightly smiles. killer's actually been looking at horror ever since dust said that (the blank sockets hide his gayze#and in his head hes like..... damn. dust is right tf i do see it??????#kemonomimi mtt when. when do i get to see them with animal ears and tails that i approve they would fit in????#triglycercule you have to do it yourself.WHAT!!! NO!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOO (disintegrates) (imagine that ashy baby photo)#i felt like killer typing out that second paragraph. its like i can hear his voice saying it as i type. its like i can see his smug face#killer sans#dust sans#horror sans#murder time trio#utmv#tricule hc#i mean killer and dust are mentioned in tags so its whatever DONT KILL ME DONT GUILLOTINE ME OK SORRY 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
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I was rewatching The Stone Forest and I really like to think that Hilda had to pass by the Bell Keeper’s outpost on her way out of the city limits. I like to think that idiot looked at what was happening, shrugged, and said ‘eh, she’s the scariest thing out there’
#“‘the scariest thing out there’?”the girl sends him a look that isn't quite a glare for once; it still conveys her opinion just as clearly#Edmund shrugs. Hilda is still within sight of his binoculars. he watches her run and can’t be sure whether she’s running *towards* or *from#*.He doesn’t think she knows either.#'I mean. it’s not like trolls can harm her at this time of the day.#Don’t tell me you believe in fairies kid.'#And there it is at last: the glare. Meiri looks up from her art project - her new therapist had reccomended it as a way to express herself#and since he'd been helping so much so far she'd decided to grudgingly give it a shot -#“*No*” she states pointedly; to anyone who knew her it was an affirmation. And Edmund knew her better than she cared for#'What I believe in is wolves and recluse spiders and ticks and nettle. And I believe that someone with the spine#to sabotage the Patrol wouldn't have the self control to not lick a pretty mushroom'#“Hey!” Edmund protested putting down his binoculars. “I sabotaged the Patrol! For *you* I might add!”#Meiri's smile turned mean; it was a regular expression for her yet it never conveyed any malice. Just the thrill of a game that never tired#her. “And would you?” she lifted one thick eyebrow; signaling to her dad that it was his move now#The dad in question was unfortunately thinking back to a time in his young teenage years when he figured he could eat anything animals bit#and gave himself a poisoning that had him taken to the ER. But she didn't need to know that. *ever* in fact.#“Obviously I would. Like I'd let a mushroom ruin my perfect sandwich diet”#Meiri groaned loudly. Some games were worth playing. But some wars she'd already accepted she'd never win#“Anyway” he turned back to staring at the outside of the wall as if it was of any interest to him (it wasn't)#“kid'll be fine is my point. And even if she isn't ya know what's the best think about this situation?”#They looked at each other with matching smirks. “none of our flipping business” he said at the same time as she echoed#“None of our fucking business”#He gasped immediatelly. “*Meiri!*”#The chastening was useless. She just shrugged innocently.#He'd really have to limit her library visits#the bell keeper hilda#meirdom#hilda the series#hilda netflix
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end-orfino · 1 year ago
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I know it's not a new idea (idk where I heard it before. But I did) but I don't really think Felix was like. The only one orchestrating all the murders and all
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bumblingbabooshka · 1 year ago
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This is literally one of my favorite moments for both Harry Kim and B’Elanna characterization. I think a lot of people forget how soft hearted and altruistic B’Elanna specifically can be while Harry, of course a friendly and sweet individual, devotes himself most often to the mission, his friends and Starfleet’s ideals. Harry’s been shown to be much more down-to-earth and less fantastical in his thinking than either Tom or B’Elanna. The only time he gets in major trouble with Janeway and breaks protocol is because he wants to be with a woman. This is distinctly different to me than Tom’s (attempting to save an alien world) and B’Elanna’s (giving a robot race the ability to reproduce) transgressions. His other biggest infraction is begin a mutiny which he does in order to save Janeway & Chakotay. He doesn’t get in trouble for this which is why I put it last but again it seems different from Tom or B’Elanna to me because it’s For The Ship it’s For The Captain it’s a crime which displays his loyalty to Janeway instead of one which demonstrates him going against her ideologically (as shown by the lack of punishment). In that way I think B’Elanna and Harry balance each other well. B’Elanna is a person who seems very nervous and defensive when in conversation with others, who thinks of herself as a person who is ‘bad’ and doesn’t believe in herself much. Meanwhile Harry seems to be at ease with most anyone he speaks to, attempting to befriend even Seven of Nine right away. He’s confident in himself and his abilities and out of everyone (yes even Tom who seems most often to just become frustrated) would be the one to push B’Elanna and break through her defenses. That’s to say it makes perfect sense that B’Elanna would be absolutely enamored by this person who views her as inspiring, would be struck by that while Harry views it as just a weird question. 
#I do n't know if I'm being coherent enough...but I really like this scene!!!#and I really like both B'Elanna and Harry Kim!!#st voyager#You might say 'It's just bc B'Elanna's been with these people'#BUT I REALLY think that Harry wouldn't have gone through with the whole 'participating in a play exit'...I think if it was Harry the episode#would have been one of those that ended with him looking sadly out a window like 'It's damn hard to follow protocol sometimes...' but he'd#see no other option#I REALLY hope I'm being uhh understandable HEHEH#whenever I ramble like this I'm like 'Bea you're not making any sense'#also thispost is dedicated to the folks who yell at me (affectionate) about putting the majority of my post in the tags HEHHEHE#I finally di d it...I put the whole post up there...#I was really going to just put 'This is one of my favorite characterization moments' up there and put the rest of that in the tags#but then I was like no...they need the whole thought process#labeling Harry Kim as just 'sweet boi uwu' and B'Elanna as 'fiesty angry lady' is a real disservice to their characters#and might be rooted in some OTHER things#like CERTAIN preconceptions#I think Harry's biggest established fears are not being particular special and being underestimated or babied#But none of those fears seem to drive his behavior the way B'Elanna's do#....God I hope this information is correct I always put this shit in the tags bc I'm afraid someone's gonna reblog this like#'Bea none of this happened what are you talking about' and I'll look it up and I'll be like what WAS I talking about#B'Elanna Torres#Harry Kim#Harry's fears also demonstrate that he thinks of himself as 'good' and more worries others won't be able to see it or he won't stand out#enough for it to matter - again much more confident than B'Elanna
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sysig · 7 months ago
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One better (Patreon)
#Doodles#SCII#Damned#ZEX#Blood#I knew going into this and it was still so distressing :'0#Who needs plot twists when you can create such an intense sense of Dread#Probably doesn't help that I read this At Night In the Dark lol - actual shivers#Gods this was a hard scene to read - there have been several instances of my face hurting from furrowing my brow so hard haha#The way that ''Doctor'' is written is So skillful - I'm so impressed by everyone's prose and quirks and syntax!#Not to mention when he breaks character in a later scene to apologize for taking a bit to move the scene along haha <3 Play!!#It really does speak to just how much skill and effort is put into everything <3 It's so well done all the way around!!#Anyway to the actual scene at hand lol ow :') Drawing blood is always fun but I wish it wasn't his ;u;#Ugh the way he takes the surgeries is so well written - fear of course but a kind of stoic suffering as much as he's able to -#Until it comes to his eye#Ugh the /break/ of it all he goes from so eloquent - almost snarky and silly! Still trying to find an out make peace do /something/#It all goes completely out the window he's so /reduced/ and nothing hurts worse than that ughughugh#For all his intelligence and wit and prior successes and charm and just - everything that makes him /him/ to be dissolved into abject fear#It's so sad ;; And so well done <3#And he still holds enough of himself to know what he'd be losing wegh it's so sad!! He's so defined by his vision as most VUX are it's fjdsl#Zelnick is already gone by this point but I wanted to throw him in for extra sad flavour :')#Plus - I've mentioned his post-Op was one of the ones from the gallery that Actively kills me every time I look at it#Can you imagine my heartbreak to find out that he didn't have his Captain to comfort him after this in actuality? That he was fully alone?#''Are we home? Is it over?'' ''N...not yet'' - The Absolute Devastation of realizing that Never Was not really#Just tear my heart out why don't you ugh I'm fully bleeding out 💔#That last one is actually meant to be Max but it's open to interpretation :)#I think it's such a waste that his eye was just disposed of! Someone else could've used that (lol)#I do think there's something to the idea of seeing what used to be a part of your body elsewhere - like the Leftovers!#Even just keeping as a memento tho - a trophy - insult to injury but literally#Just points to no one being special and nothing being sacred I suppose
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todayisafridaynight · 1 year ago
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YOU MAKE THAT POST AND DON'T SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON EVERYONE'S OPINION ON SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG???
I MEAN IT'S SUCH A NICHE FUCKING TOPIC LMAO I DIDN'T THINK ANYONE WOULD CARE
but anyway here's the Egregiously Simplified version of Everyone Is Forced To Play Ten Routes Of Shadow The Hedgehog And Has To Give Their Opinion Afterwards
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#snap chats#i already hear someone going 'the fuck you mean mine is number one shadow the hedgehog defender' YOU WILL LISTEN TO ME#at first i do think he'd be like 'what the fuck' but then going through all of shadows routes. or at least ten to get the final story#and seeing the constant betrayal and inability to trust others he faced yet still ultimately persevering due to his promise to maria#i think bro would be moved.. just a little.. would he think shadow a bit headassed for that considering what the humans did to him#Of Course but also its evident that shadows clearly taking things into his own hands now- as righteous of a mission as it is#despite the persistent attempted influence by everyone around him. shadows a complicated TRAGEDY he'd be moved#mine's artsy like that..... gotta go before i get shot ive said insane things before but this one'll take the cake me thinks#im not explaining everyone else mine's just felt like the one i NEEDED to explain lest i look more insane than usual#06 daigo's purely a Shadow Angst enjoyer. he understands shadow and he's wallowing in the misery of his backstory#majima's weird to categorize cause he definitely can be like Lmao The Fuck and/or just play the game chaotically#and then the aspects of identity come in and on the outside he'll be like 'bro its not that deep' but on the inside its like#Damn He Just Like Me Fr. i think. idk i dont study majima leave me alone im not making ANOTHER One Chara Exclusive category#i said i wouldnt explain anyone else and here i am explaining shut UP im gonna go eat#im not looking at this anymore bye#FORCING myself to leave cause i really will just end up typing essays on bitches perceiving shadow LMAOO
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loosingmoreletters · 9 months ago
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slams hand down do it you know you want to do it,,, sugar daddy au and now its just awkward as fuck but they get to Deal with It. bonus points for people laughing at them in the background. i am your inner demon whispering that this is a good idea and you should absolutely write it (no pressure ofc!!! take your time and its fine if you want to!!!)
for ship names. yeah very sad. i havent settled on like. a combination of their names that sound appealing to me so im just. sitting there awkwardly in Yun Taeheon x Shin Junseo. simple but it works. ill bonk my brain for ideas later,, i have cut down on thigns i need to hand in tomorrow im procrastinating because the thing i need to do is so horribly boring
maybe the korean side of the fandom has something going on but that would require me to go on twitter and figure out what korean words to put in the search box and I'm already failing at "go on twitter".
sdkhldfkhg the inner demons are winning. now I'm kinda contemplating how this would even start, which made me realize we know fuck all about Shin Junseo's past??? We only knew that apparently he had a shitty job before he awakened and didn't have any friends and seemingly also has no family.
So like? Local man signs up on an app bc honestly at this point being a sugar baby would not be worse than another horrible shift at whatever minimum wage job he has to pay the bills?
And cool, he hits it off with Yun Taeheon, something something business man. It's a lot less hollywood-pretty-woman than he expected, more nice dinners with genuinely entertaining discussions, and sure getting laid is nice too, and then, well, the world goes to shit for a hot second and well, the contract written before runs out, isn't renewed and Shin Junseo has a moment between picking up a shitty job again and awakening where he comfortably lives on his savings while his,,, ex? well, no, ex would be implying they dated. boss is also not quite the term, his previous situationship, made himself a guild master.
whatever.
and then the world goes even more to shit and he drags corpses and the memories of a world annihilated out of a dungeon. He makes his plan, keeps his head down and then fucking Yun Taeheon is standing in front of him again.
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protect-namine · 1 month ago
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you know, I think neji would enjoy playing dnd. getting to write stories and play characters with no limitations, and having to improv with the other players because he would never have full control of where the story was headed? it would be a dream come true, and also therapeutic. neji would of course be the dm who would "yes and" anything his players want to do. the story would be something everyone has input on and would help shape. an adventure that neji himself couldn't predict or write on his own. also, just imagine him describing his setting and doing all his character voices, he'd love that so much
I think it would be a good exercise for quartz too, because they'd have to make their own characters and backstories and roleplay in character without a script to direct them. especially to kisa "transparent vessel" tachibana, who can act out any character but is afraid of letting herself be seen through them. similarly, kai as well, since he'd be in charge of his own character instead of propping someone else up
on the flip side, fumi would get to enjoy playing a character but not having the pressure to be the lead/spotlight of a story. he's there to play, not perform
sou would also LOVE dnd. I think he'd be really into the character creation and lore, and is probably the next person I can think of who can try being the dm when neji is sick/tired/wants to be a player. he's the player who takes down notes and remembers one small detail neji mentioned four sessions ago that becomes relevant to the current session. neji loves him because sou is the one who appreciates his world building the most
suzu and fumi would instigate so much in the adventure, which neji would love. suzu makes a character everyone loves (like hachipochi) and always brings snacks to the table
fumi has read all of the player handbook, and mitsuki has read maybe a quarter of it (only the relevant parts to his character and how some dice rolls and combat work). mitsuki is also the one who doesn't put much effort into his character's backstory but unexpectedly gets big character development during the adventure, surprising everyone in the table including both the dm and himself
otori is very good at both roleplaying and combat, has created a compelling character, and tries to go on solo adventures but eventually gets roped into the party because he can't adventure alone in neji's setting
#mine musings#liveblogging jj#jack jeanne#this would also be like. a way less stressful way for them to practice improv than anything neji makes them do for the class lol#theater kids enjoying dnd? tale as old as time#i am unsure of everyone's classes except for kisa. kisa would be the bard. sou is probably a wizard#i like the idea of kai choosing warlock because then he'd have a patron to play off of#but neji forces him to roleplay more and exercise agency by making his patron unpleasant to be with lmao#i have no idea what fumi would be because like. if this was acting he'd be a high charisma character. but he's here to play not perform#i think the class closest to his natural self would be sorcerer but idk maybe he wants to do something different when playing#like... rogue. it's so un-fumi-like but it would be fun for him i think precisely because it's not like him#suzu is the one most unfamiliar with the rules so he chooses fighter/barbarian. he's very good nonetheless#also we need a melee character here or someone with high str lol#and suzu would enjoy being the athletic character who brings victory to the team#mitsuki looks at everyone's character sheets. sighs. chooses cleric because SOMEONE has to be the healer in the group :/#but he also likes being the support to everyone so it works out#just like with kai. neji makes mitsu roleplay more by making him frequently engage with his deity of choice#idk what otori would choose but i like the idea of him being a paladin. i think that suits him#neji is usually the dm but when he's the player he can be anything. he has the same problem as fumi#but while fumi chooses a character different from himself. neji would just go full eccentric#so maybe a druid who keeps changing to different animals. or an artificer with weird/creative inventions#actually i think sou would be a good dm for a neji who wants to play artificer. he'd be intimidated at first but he can roll with it
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gay-caesar-truther · 2 months ago
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I need to draw Gabe in his New Vegas fit- its some priest vestments (I know they aren't in game I'm using my powerful imagination) with leather armor peices he took from his armored Vault suit over the top. Of course he still has his spiked knuckles but he also has a rifle with some rosary beads wrapped around the stock.
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tsutan · 2 months ago
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btw the last one isn't pico being abusive or anything
i just think pico would be mad at bf for not taking care of himself well enough
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drowningparty · 3 months ago
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Never understood the trend of media like Only Lovers Left Alive saying Kit or Will wrote eachothers plays either, even as a bit. They both have distinct writing styles! Stop pitting two bad bitches against eachother! It negates what makes them and their works uniquely compelling!
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jinglerat · 2 years ago
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some people out here really speaking for a 47 year old man as if he hasnt called himself "slutty" years before the internet started calling him daddy lmaooo
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eoinmcgonigal · 1 year ago
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07: Bill/Johnny
Catching up! Here's my very late thing for @almost-a-class-act 's prompt: Character A's ex-lover/high school acquaintance/friend they haven't seen in years has just turned up on their doorstep. "The curse. It's real."
For context/warning: Bill is massively dysregulated at the start of this.
Also. This is long. Oops.
-
He could do without the buzzer going. He could do without a lot of things happening today, but the last twenty four hours have just been like that. He’s still unsettled from running into Pat yesterday, and could seriously have done without that reminder of the past. It’s been three years since high school, and not one single memory that’s come back to Bill in the years since has been a good or happy one.
The intercom is, of course, still broken. Bill tugs his keys from their peg, and goes to answer the door manually. Two floors, four flights of stairs, and then he’s hefting the lock of the front door open, yanking on the unimpressive thing. The door swings open, over the worn mat, to reveal a typical grey day, and someone Bill never thought he’d see again. His heart trips, and then sinks to new, unknown depths, taking Bill’s already shit mood with it.
As gorgeous as ever, as perfectly handsome as Bill tries not to remember, Johnny Cooper stands in the street, smiling his brightest everybody-loves-me smile.
Bill doesn’t know what he’s done to deserve this.
“The curse,” he mutters to himself, pulling the door back towards himself so that there’s no space for Johnny to see past him, into the hallway. “It’s real.”
Johnny’s expression falters, falling. “What curse?”
Bill has no interest in dealing with this. It’s already a bad day. Facing the person he had a crush on since S3 the day after he bumped into the guy he disastrously dated for a whole week in S5 really is torture. The universe is laughing at him, and Bill half expects someone else from school to jump out from behind Johnny.
No one does. It’s a start. But Johnny is still there, staring up at him. “Um, I…”
“Yes?” Bill prompts. He wants to get this over with. “What is it?”
Johnny recoils from the tone of his voice. Bill can tell it was perhaps a bit abrupt, but he really doesn’t care. “I, um…” Johnny repeats.
Bill lets out a sigh, aching to turn away. There’s a deep, familiar stinging in his chest, and he hates that, after all this time, it’s still there. He only managed to get over Johnny after school because he never saw him again, and Johnny became a sometimes-memory of the only person Bill ever felt genuinely attracted to. The fleeting, passing fancies he’s had since then have never got so deep under his skin, and never lasted so long.
“Pat said he saw you yesterday.”
“Great.”
He hadn’t meant to mutter that, but the filter between Bill’s thoughts and speech usually fucks off when he’s in a sour mood. It never improves matters, but Bill is beyond caring.
“Did you want something?” he bites out. The sooner Johnny comes out with it, the sooner Bill can retreat back upstairs and deal with the horrible nest sensations swirling inside of him.
“I wanted to see you.”
Bill snorts at that. “Well, now you’ve seen me.”
He leans against the door, wanting to shut it, just as Johnny climbs the step. “Bill…”
He’s reaching out, not to touch or anything, but… Bill’s attention falls to that hand for a moment, and then he looks back up at Johnny, hating that he now knows those blue eyes are as heartbreakingly beautiful as ever.
“What happened?”
“What happened?” Bill echoes, not understanding the question.
“I thought you might… want to see me?”
“No?” is Bill’s immediate response. “Why in the world would I want that?”
He can see how much his words hurt. The hurt little part inside himself is pleased, but the rest of him feels awful. Johnny actually looks upset, his eyes going wide as his expression falls. Regret comes hard on the heels of his own words, and makes Bill feel even worse. Why won’t this day just end? Why did he have to see Pat, and indulge him, admitting to things Bill never wanted to tell anyone else?
“Pat said…”
In his horror, Bill doesn’t know if he should slam the door, or scream. He freezes, his eyes starting to sting as he tries to defend himself. “That was years ago!”
He realises he’s breathing hard. It hurts. Why did Pat have to go and say anything? Why did he repeat what Bill told him?
Johnny leans forwards so subtly he probably doesn’t even realise he’s doing it, but Bill does, and he wants to run.
“I wish I’d known,” Johnny says.
Bill scoffs at that. He knows he’s being ugly, but he doesn’t know how else to be. He feels like a raw, exposed nerve, and needs it to end. “What, so you could laugh at me?”
Johnny pulls back. “What? No, of course not!”
When Johnny shifts his weight again, his shoulders soften, his expression gentle.
“I liked you too.”
Oh.
Oh fuck. No. This isn’t happening. It’s not.
Bill takes a step back, laughing harshly. His mind tells him that Johnny is being serious, but he can’t understand why the world has to be so cruel. He could have lived the rest of his life without ever knowing that. Now, if his thoughts drift back to that time, they’re going to be forever changed by the painful ‘what if?’, instead of the old, familiar knowledge that no one as handsome and perfect as Johnny would ever want Bill. No one ever wants Bill, which is just fine, really, in spite of the deep, aching loneliness at the core of him, because Bill has never wanted anyone anyway.
Well, apart from Johnny.
He lets out a breath, the laughter gone as quickly as it came. He doesn’t know what to say. Johnny is still standing there, gazing up at him, not leaving. Bill wonders what it would take to get him to go.
He wonders, and does nothing. It’s Johnny who leads, now. “Honestly?” Johnny continues plainly. “I still think about you sometimes. You are my ‘what if?’, you know?”
Bill does know, although he doesn’t know why he’s that to Johnny.
“So if you want to hang out, catch up, get a coffee…” Johnny trails off for a moment. “I would like that.”
Unclenching his jaw, BIll tries to get his tongue to work. He’s not sure he can trust this. It’s too good to be true. “Is that why you came here?”
“Yes,” Johnny breathes. “A few years late, I know.” There’s a weak little smile, something… shy. Vulnerable. Cute.
Bill swallows, not sure where he stands. He doesn’t feel better, but at least the swirling, angry irritation has shifted into something quieter. “Aren’t you and Pat…?”
Johnny shakes his head. “No. We are just good friends.”
“Oh.”
At least Bill hadn’t admitted how he felt about Johnny to Johnny’s boyfriend.
“He knows how much I like you,” Johnny continues. “I mean, he only found out after you two…”
Yeah, Bill would really rather not remember that disaster.
“Is that really why it didn’t work out?”
Bill isn't able to answer that. It's too raw, too personal and private. He’d carelessly admitted to Pat yesterday that when they’d had their silly little thing he’d liked someone else, and couldn’t get over them. His guard had been down. He’d admitted that it was Johnny when Pat asked, knowing even as the confession escaped him that he was going to regret it. Pat had gone still for a moment, and then chuckled a ‘Cooper? Damn’ before moving on.
He wonders if Pat also told Johnny that he’s still single.
“Well, anyway,” Johnny breathes, his tone shifting to something breezy. He seems dismissive, brushing away what he’s just asked. “If you want to, as friends or whatever, I would like that. I can give you my number?”
“My phone’s upstairs.”
“I can give you a missed call, and you can message me back.” As he speaks, Johnny gets out his phone and, feeling somewhat trapped and unsure how to get out of this, Bill automatically rattles off his number.
It’s only when Johnny repeats it back to him, and gives the call a few seconds to connect, that Bill realises he could have given the wrong number, and Johnny would never know.
“What sort of place would you like to go?” Johnny asks.
Embarrassed by his answer, Bill gives the only one he can: “The arcade.”
Johnny’s face lights up. “By the beach?”
Bill nods. “Yeah.”
“I haven’t had a chance to go yet.” His smile is distracting. “What about this evening?”
Bill doesn’t really feel like adding to today’s disaster, but the temptation of getting it over and done with, and not having anything up in the air, is stronger. “Okay.”
“It’s a date!” Johnny grins.
Bill flinches at that, not ready for it. “I don’t know you,” he points out.
Johnny’s expression falls, suddenly seeming sad. There’s something gentle about that look, though, making Bill want to reach out and do something to make it go away, because it feels like he could do something to make it go away. He is the cause of it, after all.
“You don’t have to know me,” Johnny says softly. “Wanting to get to know me is enough.”
“Oh.”
There’s a twitch of a smile, something very open and unguarded about Johnny, and in that moment Bill feels like no time has passed at all since that last day of school. Only, this time, he has a chance, and not just a cheery ‘good luck!’ that had felt false. Johnny had wished everyone luck—they still had exams, after all—and given everyone a hug. Well, everyone apart from Bill, who had curled his shoulders forward and wrapped his arms around himself, trying to keep his head down and survive without any unwanted touch. It had been a wretched day, and gladly forgotten once he was free of school walls.
Bill looks at Johnny, and forgets everything else. “Aye, okay,” he decides, and watches as Johnny smiles again, his whole face lighting up. It’s strange to know that he’s caused that.
“Text me the time, okay? And where to meet.”
He starts to nod, and then goes still. “Wait here.”
“Okay?”
Bill doesn’t hang around to explain. He turns, letting the door fall shut behind him as he darts back up the stairs. It’s suddenly urgent to check his phone, and he makes it through his front door to find his phone where he left it in the kitchen. There’s a missed call. With a sigh of relief, he bounds back down the stairs.
Johnny is still standing there, a step back. Bill joins him in the street, letting the door shut behind him. He hadn’t realised how chilly the air was. Lifting his phone, he shows the screen. “This you?”
Johnny peers at the number, leaning in close enough that Bill catches the scent of his deodorant. “Yes.”
Nodding, Bill pulls his phone back, and saves Johnny’s number properly. “See you later?” he wonders.
“Definitely,” Johnny smiles, and it’s then that Bill realises he has about an inch or two on Johnny, now that he stands up tall instead of curling in on himself. It makes Johnny feel different to him, new, while at the same time still the same person Bill fell for. It’s both dangerous and reassuring to know that Bill could easily fall for him again.
There’s nothing more to say. Bill lets out a breath, an agreement reached, and the unknown before him. At least he won’t have to wait long. He gives an awkward wave as Johnny takes a step back, and tries not to watch him go while he works his key into the lock. He doesn’t have a fucking clue how it’ll go this evening, but it feels so much better watching Johnny walk away knowing that it’s not forever this time. Well, not that it was forever last time, but Bill didn’t know that.
Safely back in his flat, Bill realises that the turmoil of earlier is gone. Another kind of turmoil has replaced it, but it’s not as distressing, nor as fraying. He’s excited, he realises, although has no idea how he’s going to apologise to Johnny for being so abrupt earlier.
Trying not to think about it, Bill sends Johnny a text telling him to meet Bill at the arcade at six. It closes at eight today, instead of ten. Two hours isn’t too long if it goes badly, but if it goes well they’ll still have time afterwards, maybe even to walk along the beach. Bill would like that.
With that in mind, he goes into the hallway and sets his army surplus boots in front of the door, hopeful they’ll be the right choice.
Some time close to eleven, he’s kicking them off again, and smiling absentmindedly to himself. They were a good choice.
War is Helloween
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