#And it's from an independent company and it genuinely is very pretty it's got a print of a painting of a shipwreck across it

[shamblz]

The real danger of home ownership is £72 lampshades

[loveinhawkins]

There’s perks to working a summer job where there’s seemingly no manager. Steve got an at most five minute interview with an overly smiley dude who said, “An independent workforce is very important to us,” and didn’t even check his references before telling Steve that he was hired.

So it’s down to him and Robin alone to open and close Scoops Ahoy. And the lack of any boss—not even a supervisor—is mostly great, means that no-one’s hovering over their shoulders droning on about ‘company policy’, means they can take their breaks as and when, and no-one’s tapping their foot with an eye on the clock.

But then there’s the times where it’s absolutely swamped with customers, and the statistical likelihood of having to serve an asshole skyrockets; and most assholes don’t tend to think of teenagers slinging ice-cream as being worthy of even the tiniest shred of respect.

“Are you wilfully this stupid, missy?” a douchebag snaps at Robin during the lunchtime rush, after she added chocolate sauce on his sundae instead of raspberry.

She remakes the order with a look that, if there was any justice in the world, would make him drop down dead on the spot. But instead, he just scoffs when she passes him the new sundae.

“Have a spectacular day,” Robin says acerbically, and if it was any other time, Steve would be ducking down behind the counter, pretending to check on stock levels so he can hide his laughter.

Except Robin’s also doing that thing where she blinks a lot, and Steve knows she’s fighting tears of frustration because he privately does something remarkably similar.

There’s a sinking feeling in his chest coupled with what’s becoming a steadily frequent flare of protectiveness. That one usually comes with the kids and The Upside Down—except Robin is a girl who’s round about his age, so he half-heartedly assumes it must be because he has a crush on her.

But he’s not even thinking about said crush at all when he gently bumps her towards the break room with his hip and says, “Take yours first, I’ve got this.”

For half a second, Robin’s eyes seem to shine in gratitude before she puts a hand over her heart and declares, dripping in sarcasm, “You’re a god among men, Harrington, I never believed what anyone said about you.”

“You’re wel—hey, what did they say about me?”

The door to the break room shuts, but not before he hears Robin let out a genuine snort of laughter. He smiles and pivots back to the register.

The line’s calmed down; Steve recognises a substitute teacher waiting to be served: Mrs Greeves, who’s been at Hawkins High since the sixties, at least. There’s no other adult in the shop, so it’s presumably her little granddaughter who’s running about the place, without so much as a glancing eye on her.

But Steve doesn’t have to worry about a potential lost child scenario, because a guy suddenly slips out of the booth he’d been sitting in, bending down to the kid’s eye level and subtly ensuring that she doesn’t hightail it out of there.

It takes a few seconds for Steve to recognise him; he’s still getting used to the whole phenomenon of seeing people without the high school setting behind them. Like, Robin used to be just a name from a class he can’t even recall, and now he knows her for her dry wit and love of cryptic crosswords.

And this Eddie Munson is sort of a different beast from the guy Steve saw stomping around the cafeteria tables.

He’s dressed pretty much the same, (Hellfire shirt sans the leather jacket must be the ‘summer look’, Steve reckons), but he’s quieter as he chats with the little girl, letting her try on one of his skull rings to distract from her obvious boredom. His grin is softer, too.

Mrs Greeves clears her throat, and Steve promptly puts on his vacant ‘delightful customer service’ smile.

“Afternoon, Mrs Greeves, what can I do you for?”

She orders a simple strawberry cone for the kid, Abigail, and two scoops of lemon and vanilla in a cup for herself—appropriate, Steve thinks, because her face looks like she’s sucking on a lemon half the time.

As he prepares the ice-cream, he’s quickly remembering why she’s on the list of substitute teachers that students dread, even if he’s only had the ‘pleasure’ of being in a class supervised by her once. He has vague memories of how she’d talk with other teachers in a scandalised stage whisper about students from ‘broken homes’—he’s pretty sure she’s still an austere teacher at the Sunday School, too.

“Abigail,” she says sharply, when Steve finishes the cone, and she finally seems to realise her granddaughter isn’t by her side, “what have I told you about—”

“Oh, it’s okay,” Eddie says hurriedly. Abigail hands him the ring back, very carefully dropping it into his palm, and he gives her a gentle smile. “I don’t mind—”

“—not talking to strangers?” Mrs Greeves finishes, as if Eddie hadn’t spoken.

“But,” Eddie says with tiny frown, “you know me, ma’am, I’m—”

“Let me be plain then, Mr Munson.” She finally turns to favour Eddie with a scathing look. “I meant that I don’t want my granddaughter around a corrupting influence.”

There’s an awful silence while Abigail collects the cone.

“Oh,” Eddie says, still crouched down by the booth. He sounds very small.

And Steve’s view of Mrs Greeves quickly turns from a general dislike to an icy hatred.

“And here’s yours,” he says, sliding the cup over.

She looks down. Her mouth goes all pinched in displeasure.

“What’s the meaning of this?”

“It’s your ice-cream,” Steve says, playing up a confused blink. “Is—is this not what you ordered? I’m terribly sorry for the—”

“Don’t be obtuse, Mr Harrington. These scoops are tiny; they barely fill the cup!”

Yup, Steve thinks with a savage satisfaction. They’re the size of a melon ball, and even that’s being generous.

“Mrs Greeves, I’m afraid it’s store policy. Nothing to do with—”

“What kind of policy could possibly justify—”

“Rudeness,” Steve says smoothly.

Eddie’s head jerks up at that, his mouth slightly agape.

“Mr Harrington,” Mrs Greeves says, her face turning puce, “I would like to see your manager.”

“The manager,” Steve says flatly. “Okay, sure. I’ll go get him.”

What he does next, compared to everything else that’s happened in his life thus far, isn’t all that stupid.

Well. Maybe a little.

It’s worth it though, to see the way Eddie Munson’s eyes widen at the sight.

Making sure to have zero expression throughout, Steve mimes walking downstairs, throws off his hat while crouched behind the counter, then re-emerges with a quick ruffle of his hair.

“How can I help you?” he asks, like they’ve only just met.

The cup of minuscule ice-cream is soon up-ended as Mrs Greeves storms out, barking over her shoulder, “Abigail, come here!”

Eddie stands to let the kid out of the way, who seems blissfully ignorant with her cone. Steve’s sure he hears him mutter under his breath, “Jesus, she’s not a dog.”

“I’ll be reporting you, Steve Harrington, make no mistake!”

Yeah, good fucking luck. I sure as hell don’t know who really runs this place.

“Uh-huh,” Steve says. “Looking forward to it. Harrington with two ‘r’s one ‘n’, ma’am.”

“Shit, Harrington,” Eddie drawls. He’s leaning next to the booth, hip cocked, and if it weren’t for the fact that he’d seen it himself, Steve might’ve been convinced that the Eddie from a moment ago was a different person. “That was not worth getting fired over.”

“I’m not getting fired,” Steve says—although honestly, if that had been a real threat, he thinks his actions would probably have been the same. Huh. “I meant it, dude, there’s no manager here.”

Eddie nods slightly, looks up at the Scoops Ahoy sign and grins. “So you and Buckley are the skeleton crew on this ship.”

“Uh, I guess?”

Come on, man, Steve thinks, as Eddie keeps up the wide grin like it’s a shield. This isn’t the high school cafeteria; I’m not about to hit your lunch tray or whatever.

Out loud, he calls into the back, “Hey, Robin, the chocolate’s low. I’m just gonna put in a new batch if you want some of the old stuff.”

The sliding doors open.

Robin sighs as if she’s just had a very relaxing facial, but she’s actually holding a folded newspaper with the cryptic crossword all finished.

“I am so chilled out,” she says, with a delivery that could rival Eddie Munson’s trademark dramatics.

“You’re so weird,” Steve says mildly while making up a cup with the leftover chocolate ice-cream.

“You’ve just got no taste, Harrington.” She waggles the crossword at him. “You should give ‘em a try.”

Steve wrinkles his nose. “I’m no good at that code-breaking stuff.” He passes her the cup, goes to start assembling his own and pauses. “Hey, Munson, you want some?”

“Oh, uh, I’m good,” Eddie says, sounding suddenly wrong-footed. “Sorry, I’m just, uh, killing time before my movie starts. The other stores said if I wasn’t buying anything I should get out, so…”

“So you’ve come to our oceanic sanctum,” Robin deadpans.

Steve rolls his eyes. “You know, just ‘cause you do crosswords doesn’t mean you have to turn into a dictionary. Ow.” He doesn’t quite duck in time to avoid the newspaper smacking him in the face. He turns to address Eddie again, who appears to be fighting back laughter. “What’re you gonna see, Munson?”

Eddie’s eyes glance away for a second. “Something very scary and befitting of my stature, Harrington.”

Robin, who’s made a habit of memorising the mall’s movie schedules, checks her watch and narrows her eyes. “Return to Oz?”

Eddie’s cheeks start to glow. “Fuck off, Buckley, I’ve never liked you.”

“You’re such a liar, I’ve heard your applause at band practice—”

“Okay, but,” Steve cuts in, jumping up onto the counter with one hand. “I thought the whole point was Oz was a dream. How can she return to—?”

“Christ, I don’t know, Harrington,” Eddie says. “I didn’t pick it for critical analysis; the poster had a dude with a pumpkin head on it, and I thought it looked cool.”

“Oh, I saw that,” Robin says. “Made me think of when all those pumpkins went bad. Like, imagine if they had faces.”

Unthinkingly, Steve says around his ice-cream spoon, “No way, I’m not dealing with that, too.”

“Excusez-moi?” Robin says.

“Hmm?” Steve says innocently.

“Hey, you missed quite a show earlier on, Buckley,” Eddie says. “Reckon Harrington deserves a tally in the ‘you rule’ column.”

Steve glares at Robin. “I told you to keep that outta view of the customers.”

“Ah, but I’m not buying anything,” Eddie points out, “ergo, not a customer.”

“Ergo,” Steve mimics.

“That board is strictly for romantic successes,” Robin says.

Eddie snorts. “Aw, that’s hardly fair. I think it should have more… rounded criteria.”

Robin’s eyes narrow again. “Eddie Munson, you’ve never complimented a jock in your life, don’t start now.”

“Hey,” Steve says, overselling a ‘wounded’ expression. “I’m more than that, y’know. I contain multitudes.”

“Sure,” Eddie says, smiling. “Folks, we’ve got Hawkins’s own Whitman right here.”

Steve flips him off and, on a whim, decides to channel his inner Dustin.

“Maybe I just see the world more clearly than you two ‘cause I’m free of societal constraints.”

“You’re working in a mall,” Robin says.

“High school societal contraints. I am unshackled and ergo, free.”

“Damn,” Eddie says, patting down his pockets for an imaginary pen, “I should use that.”

“Stop inflating Harrington’s ego and go catch your totally scary movie,” Robin says.

Eddie checks his own watch. “Oh, shit. Um.” And Steve thinks that it almost looks like he’s reluctant to leave. “Time flies, I guess. Better go ashore.” He catches Steve’s eye, gives a tiny little salute as he leaves. “May your summer continue to be mundane and manager-less.”

“You’re a poet, Munson,” Steve says, even though Eddie’s already out the door.

“So what was the show I missed?” Robin says. “I couldn’t hear anything back there.”

“Nothing that exciting.”

Steve tells her, and even though a smile tugs at her mouth as he re-enacts his mime, for some reason her eyes are kinda sad for most of it.

“Good job, Popeye,” she says thoughtfully—and though it directly contradicts her own words, she marks up a singular ‘you rule’ tally for the rest of her shift before wiping it off.

Eddie doesn’t re-appear after the movie—not that Steve’s keeping track of time, or anything—but at least they don’t have anymore nightmares for customers. As Steve mops, he thinks about how Dustin’s return from Camp Something Something is approaching—and the fact that he’s circled the date with a goofy smiley face is between him and his bedroom calendar.

He smiles to himself while clocking out of the now ghostly mall, recalling Eddie’s parting words.

The thought of a mundane, manager-less summer stretching before him sounds pretty damn good.

[hexhomos]

Kiss on the check accepted! :3c

And your response reminded me of a detail I always pick up on rewatches but hadn't fully untangled yet—in the flashback of her childhood, Mel steps into that broken throne room with blood still drying on it. At Ambessa's prompting, Mel goes right into talking about how to renovate the place. "Paint the walls gold"...like gilding over the horrors of conquest that got that power in the first place.

And when she describes the regent they should have, she finishes with, "she should be pliant, so we can mold her." That IS what she was doing with Jayce, slowly, over a decade, and then quickly through Acts 2 and 3.

And then in the scene, after Mel finishes describing a "pliant" regent who can be molded, her mother suggests MEL could be that regent. Young Mel is excited at the idea, entirely missing the implication that she too would be an asset of her mother's reign.

That's why she takes off her Medarda ring right before casting her vote for Zaun's independence. She's finally realized she's just as subject to her mother's games as anyone else and Chooses to stop working in the interests of her family's power.

And augh, I wish her s2 plotline hadn't taken her out of Piltover so we could have seen more of the spycraft against Ambessa she was up to in Arc 1. I can't help but think of how much stronger her confrontation with Ambessa would have been if we had a full season of "daughter works against mother" instead of just a few scenes and a lot of getting kidnapped. More ambiguity with Leblanc would've been great too instead of her killing Elora to say hello.

[continued from here]

EXACTLY the way they shafted the politics in s2 (specifically so they wouldn't need to have hard conversations) genuinely had a negative impact in the ENTIRE story. The systematic horrors were downplayed and plotlines were dropped with very short acknowledgements - this is why we get people complaining about the jayce/mel breakup scene "coming out of nowhere" despite the fact that it made perfect sense for these characters!!!!!! It was just too short and they changed the subject too quickly, so we don't have TIME to think about the economic issues again.

It's so clear to me that jayce, viktor, ekko, mel (each representing a diff political facet. curious!) etc were carefully removed from the actual real world so we never have to analyze or push back against the notion that cait/ambessa are doing a hostile military coup and HAVE gotten people killed, imprisoned, and tortured en masse. So they can neatly resolve all of the plot with an avengers-style montage and never talk about the stuff with real world implications. There is no war in piltover and zaun. Just a cartoony last second villain. We just need to unite to protect... piltover...? And now viktor is randomly forgetting his proud zaunite commie stance and teaming up with the imperial invaders that were plaguing the earth moments ago........? We never talk about the class inequality ever again? Forget everything. Nothing ever matters.

The end result was that we spent far less time with these characters and they ended up being pretty underdeveloped. I know this happened for marketing reasons, its so incredibly clear aspects of the story were dumbed down so they could sell more ingame skins or pitch new champions, and that was seen as more valuable and desirable for the company than politicking - because at heart riot don't care about the political stuff anyway. But it still makes me throw my hands up in the air. such an asspull

In a reality where we had enough time and investment to touch on this, Mel could have actually gotten to push back against ambessa/cait and directly deal with the consequences of her actions. SEVIKA could have gotten a proper payoff for her underground character arc, instead of vanishing halfway through and then randomly accepting a diversity hire seat on the council (insanity. that was insanity) Ekko and the firelights would have obviously played a key role in rallying people against ambessa and helping Jinx recover from her displacement crisis (sorry isha, but even you could have been better used as part of the firelights dilemma) Jayce's mounting disillusionment with piltover and his loyalty to Viktor would be much better explored if they were still in conversation about the cities, the world they wanted to help, and the chaotic blurry lines of personhood/citizenship that decide who is an 'acceptable' target under the fist of the state. Vi could have built a self-reliant identity for herself, something better to fight for that isnt 'being a cop'. This show could've been awesome. I wish it existed

[crushedcoffeecups]

my genuine thoughts on the amazing digital circus episode two because someone has to hear all these thoughts and it sure aint gonna be my friends anytime soon:

the pacing felt off - not sure why, but if i had to guess i think it would be due to how much info and exposition was crammed into the first episode, with very little in the second episode made it feel weird. i literally got halfway through and went 'how am i halfway when nothing has happened?'

like the whole scene when they were arriving at the candy kingdom (i dont remember what it was called currently) felt a bit too long, like they dragged it out a little to fill time (or to show of the animation and design, and if so, valid)

i think the pilot also had more visual comedy aspects to do with 3D animation which i really appreciated. they did keep some in the second episode but less so

Jax definitely came off a whole lot meaner this time, but after revisiting the pilot he's basically the same level of mean just without the comedy or charm. im assuming that they're doing this to keep it in the audience's mind that Jax is an asshole so when he does some cruel shit later on it doesn't seem like such a 180

on that note, this episode also just felt a lot less funny. it might be that it purely wasn't my kind of humour, but i thought the pilot had a fair few good bits and the second episodes comedy just didnt really hit with me

i think also there are specific moments that felt they were building suspense/tension for either comedic or dramatic reasons just for nothing to happen, which felt disappointing. best example would be Kinger throwing the lifesaver (what did he throw?) the second time, going to check on the rope, for nothing to happen. felt like a set-up with no pay-off

and a similar point, and it could just be an emphasis on how old and immortal these characters are so they're used to this shit, but none of them react strongly! to anything! Jax is thrown over the side of the truck with no reaction, the knifes everywhere don't illicit a strong response, Ragatha watches herself get IMPALED IN THE CHEST? and they fall from a cliff and dont even scream. no reaction to anything. it just felt weird.

HOWEVER, it is not all bad. Caine and Bubble are still great (i think a large part of why i did not find this episode as funny is likely coz these two had very limited screen time)

i loved the little gators designs, and the plot line of existential crisis followed by acceptance and then just being smite by god

character development on Pomni felt sweet, great symbolism in one short little moment

i'm real interested to see more of Zooble, and a bit more into Jax's development (i saw his expressions at the end, dont think i didnt)

i think the characters mostly stayed the same (besides Jax and Pomni of course) so im excited for exploring them more in the future!

the possibility of the gators returning is very interesting

the designs of the locations were all very pretty

i did still like this episode, although i enjoyed the pilot i lot more. i'm excited to see where this series goes! and massive kudos to doing this independently, regardless of how this series ends up ill always have respect to the creators for not going to a big boss company to produce it

also dont get me wrong i definitely love this series and i love jax i can criticise and love things simultaneously

[ssecretgardens]

hey y’all! this is denver [sh/th, cst, also the mun of seo daon and do jihan] with ydh entertainment’s soloist noh saetbyeol / saena. you can find her career info here, her stats here, a pinterest board for her here & everything you need to know under the cut! as per usual, please like this post if you’re interested in plotting and i’ll come to you asap. ♥️

i.

tw for brief mentions of body image, disordered eating & a toxic mother-daughter relationship.

noh saetbyeol was born may 30, 1998 to an, uh… unwell single mother. her mom is a raging narcissist who had gone through a number of failed relationships/engagements/entanglements and ultimately decided that all she really needed was a child who would love her unconditionally. never told the father that she was pregnant, and saetbyeol never attempted to find him as she grew older.

early in life, it was pretty much saetbyeol and her mom against the world. there were occasional visits from other family members (saetbyeol’s parents and sister mostly), but again—her mom was a raging narcissist, and those relationships felt the affects of it as well so they didn’t come around much. for a while, she had her mom on a pedestal.

her mom had always kind of wanted to be an entertainer, but never had the confidence to actually pursue it considering she isn’t/never was conventionally pretty. but her daughter was! never put a ton of pressure on saetbyeol to do well academically (which was nice) but did push her to take dance and vocal lessons and to take them seriously (which was less nice). umm… eventually saetbyeol learned to like it! it made mom happy, so it made her happy—however, the older she got & the better she got at performing, the more her mom would criticize her body/looks. was always trying to “help her” look better through providing smaller meal portions and giving unsolicited advice. naturally, their relationship had started to deteriorate.

attended numerous auditions starting at age 15, never got signed. still, she was working with professionals to continue to strengthen her singing & dancing skills and eventually she was good enough to get a spot on some fucking competition show as an “independent trainee”. her mom encouraged her *not* to do it and instead to continue looking for a company that would take her right away, but she decided to go through with it anyway. was one of the most popular picks amidst people voting at home, but was less popular with the actual panelists/judges on the show and ultimately didn’t make the cut but was immediately picked up by ydh. trained for eight months before she debuted.

had a burst of popularity in the first ~year of her career, went viral a couple times & picked up a majority of the fanbase that she still has today. however, has struggled to reach *that* level of success since—has yet to have another song go viral, is pretty well-recognized and most people who hear her name know who she *is* but she’s not really bringing in new fans like she used to. present-day, she’s trying to figure out what her next move should be to get a little more attention/popularity. also attempting to move away from the aegyo-centric image and concept she’s (mostly) stuck to so far while needing to find some other point of appeal.

ii.

publicly, saetbyeol is incredibly upbeat. most of her songs speak of bravery, hope, self-love & confidence, and her personality mirrors it well. she comes off as this happy, sweet girl who doesn’t doubt herself for a second—she’s always smiling, she always has something nice to say, and she’ll do any aegyo or fanservice that’s asked of her in a second. seems incredibly genuine and is generally seen as a role model of sorts for young women & girls.

but most people who know saetbyeol personally probably know her as… well, a raging bitch. because she is a raging bitch. used to be, anyway—very recently, she became self-aware and realized she needs to treat people better. before that, she was a nightmare. at best, she was passive-aggressive and high maintenance; at worst, she was confrontational and condescending.

admittedly, she has a *lot* to unlearn and it’s going to take some time. still has an attitude ad tends to treat people a little unfairly, but has gotten really into journaling as a means to understand herself and her feelings more deeply. it’s helped calm her down a little bit. has looked into therapy but isn’t quite ready to take that big of a leap yet.

is and always has been pretty lonely. nowadays, she’s putting a lot of effort into meeting new people and making genuine friends. can seem a bit overzealous, like she’s trying too hard to fit in or pay attention or even *be interested* in other people. again, baby steps… but she’s trying!!! and maybe it’ll work!!!

iii.

open to any & all plots, but here are some thoughts to get the ball rolling:

a younger/newer idol who used to look up to her, but was quickly disillusioned when they met her. now that she’s on this self-improvement kick, she feels like they deserve an apology.

a mean girl friend… someone she’s spent countless nights shit-talking others with. of course, that wasn’t all that there was to the friendship, but… well, it was a lot of it. and saetbyeol doesn’t really want to be that way anymore, so she’s started slowly breaking away from her—is there any resistance? does she think that saetbyeol thinks she’s above her now?

a friend who was always genuinely too good for saetbyeol but stuck around through it all anyway. maybe they saw that she needed someone who actually meant well in her corner or maybe their low self-esteem wouldn’t let them break away from her; whatever the case, she’s hurt their feelings a hundred times and doesn’t feel like she could ever truly make up for it. they swear that it’s okay and they forgive her. do they mean it?

an ex whom saetbyeol treated as an accessory. she swears that she truly loved them, but they never felt it—she was always focused on her phone when they were together & diminished their feelings any time they tried to talk about being hurt. recently, she’s been trying to come back into their life & they’re suspicious of her intentions.

new friends who feel a little perplexed by saetbyeol. on one hand, she is nice—on the other, she kind of seems like she doesn’t really give a fuck when they’re talking. maybe it’s all in their head?

idol-actresses or actors whom she’s met at auditions / someone she is/was interested in who had heard of what a bitch she is and won’t give her the time of day because of it / idols she really admires (worships the ground that her haute pink bias walks on, probably trying to become a part of her inner circle) / etc etc!

[reallylilyreally]

Hey love, I posted a comment under Say It (like you’ll come back) that I admit was in poor taste to post publicly like that (I don’t believe I can delete it but you might want to). The responding comment goes on about not ‘owning the concept’ and that was not the intent of my original comment at all.

I have a half written fic on the same idea and I think it’s a killer concept. Clearly, people (you) are allowed to (and should, honestly) write their versions of it. I’m not sure there’s a particularly polite way to ask this, but did you get the idea from a different fic, perhaps called Eastbound and Down Bad, or did you come up with entirely independently? This isn’t meant to start a fight or anything of the sort, but is asked as a genuine good-faith question, and if it was your very own genius idea then high five for the genius idea (this is not meant as sarcasm), and I will absolutely read yours once I’m done writing mine. (And if you did you can tell me to fuck right off for essentially accusing you of idea theft. If you did get the idea from my fic all I’m asking is a little nod somewhere for inspiration.)

I’m really hoping I’ve got tumblr worked out correctly and only you will see this.

PS: I read All The Strangest Things Keep Happening, which you wrote with escrivoir, and loved it. Just devoured it. Whatever you take this as, don’t take it as a critisicm of your writing.

So "say it (like you'll come back)" is written by @euph0riacc (I'm doing the easy POV, not the original) and from conversations with her I'm pretty sure she started it because she hadn't read any BoB/MotA crossover, and wanted to explore the idea of the two companies coexisting.

I think I read the first chapter of your fic back when you first posted, but honestly I don't think there are a lot of similarities between the two pieces apart from the very basic premise that the two companies meet in Germany. I'm pretty sure euph0riacc hasn't read it at all.

[shakingparadigm]

SECOND ASK HELLO!!!!

IVAN AND TILL TIME (will get to the other characters separately)

soo!!! for ivan and till i'm still debating whether they should be what most closely mirrors their alnst counterparts (idols/musicians/actors) or something that kinda just has the overall vibe

One of the reasons i'm more inclined to go with ivan being an idol and till being an independent musician is that for till (ivan i can see doing something else), till's character is really tied to his music and i think it would be weird to separate him from that if that makes sense. So i'm going with that for now :D So everyone else will probably be idol/music industry related so they know each other

BEFORE THE TRAIN (basically just a modern au)

Note: Anakt garden here would probably be an idol/acting training program or something

IVAN:

- Was raised from childhood to become an idol, has had very little control of his life

- faces constant pressure to preform well and keep a good brand image

- Every aspect of his life is monitored by someone else from his diet, hobbies, relationships (not that he has any skjdjf), etc

- (he's an almost perfect mirror of his alnst self)

- Due to the heavy restrictions in behavior, ability to peruse passions, and being isolated from a normal childhood, till caught his eye for that reason

- He envies till's freedom in being an independent artist, having split off from contractors/labels to persue his own music (and his ability to make his own decisions, live his life without the huge pressure etc)

- The intense competitive nature of his career is something so ingrained in his life that he finds it hard to imagine a simple domestic lifestyle

- His manager is Unsha of course

- basically, i barely changed him

- BOY'S GOT PROBLEMS

TILL:

- Was initially part of a music group signed to a music label after anakt garden

- Has a background in acting

- Broke away from the group to create his own music

- He has a decent sized cult following online, though his popularity is nowhere near ivan's

- He still faces mistreatment from other higher-ups in the industry and is looked down on for his choices

- Usually, this is from former friends & managers (HI URAK)

- He admires Mizi (pop singer? maybe?) for her carefree and genuine persona

- i may still change some things about him

ALSO mizi sua ivan and till are friends here and stuff. They see each other outside work and things

ALTERNATIVES:

- Ivan: business/finance, faces pressure to inherit a family business

- Till: still acting/music, but not independent and mistreated by urak

- Other ideas?

BOARDING THE TRAIN

IVAN:

- TILL'S ON THE TRAIN UH OH,, NATURALLY IVAN FOLLOWS

- His number is pretty high. either 500 or like 1000 idk what's considered high i forgot

- His number remains pretty consistent

TILL

- I'm thinking mizi disappeared and this upset him enough the train appeared

- "WHY CAN'T I FIND HER" oh sorry till here you go she's right here

- His number is probably similar to ivan, give or take a few numbers only

- His number constantly goes up and down

OKAY I NEED HELP FOR THIS PART WHAT DO THEY DO WHEN THEY'RE ACTUALLY ON THE TRAIN

HELLO!!!!

(long infinity train au post incoming!)

I 100% agree on the first part!! I've had those thoughts when thinking up my College/Modern AU, the question of "if these characters weren't forced into it, would they still choose to pursue music?" and although my answers for certain characters fluctuated, Till was consistent in the way that the answer was always yes for him. He is a goddamn prodigy, after all, and literally makes music of his own volition (which doesn't seem very common in the garden, at least to the extent and frequency that Till does it). Though he was forced into it as well, Till views music as an outlet rather than a responsibility.

Ivan, I think he'd definitely be under a company or management. Though I feel like if he wasn't forced to sing in this universe, another route for him could be his (very successful) modelling career. It seems to be his main "thing" besides singing, after all, and he rose to fame because of it. I also think the finance/business stuff might translate better into the modelling thing since he deals with commercials and brand deals, ambassador stuff (not to say this can't happen with idols, it'd just be emphasized if he was a model I think. The idol idea is still perfectly fine! It'd also make more sense for Ivan and Till to meet/grow close if they were from the same company, though I was also still fond of the childhood friends idea.... I realize it might be hard to pull that off in a modern au if Unsha and Urak are still rivals).

Ivan boarding because Till boarded first is so Min and Ryan 😭 insert that one meme "I'd follow him to hell and back but I just wish he'd stop going there" (it could be argued that Min was just trying to get his keys back, but. come on. we all know it wasn't just about the keys).

Till boarding because Mizi went missing is so unfortunately plausible 😭 it's literally the love conga line all over again. Mizi boards because of Sua, Till boards because of Mizi and Ivan boards because of Till. Insanity.

Though depending on the reason for their boarding, it could go a lot of different ways. Would they have some kind of meteor scene parallel where Ivan tries to take Till away from the train, Till gives him a sorry look before running in, Ivan pulls that sad smile and then runs in right after him? Would the train appear during a fight? Would they board separately? I feel like boarding together was a rare instance for Min and Ryan (at the time) because their issues were largely centered around each other (and their circumstances of course. but the point is they had to figure themselves out together). So for Ivan and Till to board the train together, they must've had a very prominent issue within their relationship that they need to confront (which is already true, very complicated issues in fact so no worries about that part). Though I'd love to hear your thoughts on how their issues and relationship complexities translate to this more modern au!

500-1000 is an insanely high number 😭 I mean at least it's not as bad as Grace and Simon, but I'm fully convinced that Ivan and Till could come close that point at least once 😭 (or just the ALNSTverse versions of them maybe). Maybe they'd be around (and I apologize for always bringing them up) Min and Ryan's 202. It's relatively high to Jesse's 20-something and Tulip's 30-something (I can't remember atm my bad).

Ohhh wait sorry I'm answering this ask in portions and I just realized you said they had different numbers. Does this mean you had them board the train at separate times?

I love the detail of their numbers going down in different ways! I could definitely see Ivan's staying more consistent and harder to budge because (as VIVINOS says) Ivan is incredibly persistent. Or stubborn. This can be seen in his mindset too, where he's firmly convinced he isn't cared for despite their childhood comics proving that he and Till were basically friends. I feel like Ivan is the type who's number doesn't change very often, but when it does it goes down by a large amount.

Till, on the other hand, with all his severe reactions seems like his number would fluctuate quite a lot. Just like how his collar switches between colors fairly quick. It would definitely go up and down a lot 😭 smaller amounts than Ivan's, I think.

Though I can see the situation reversing (Ivan's number constantly fluctuating as a reflection of his muddled and confusing thoughts, Till's number being more constant because he's more firm in his self identity), I still think the ones mentioned above fit just the slightest bit better.

WHAT DO THEY DO... HMMM... It really depends on the reason they're on the train in the first place. And that reason depends on the severity of their issues in this modern au. Do they board for their own personal reasons that aren't as intertwined with each other? Are their attachment methods still as unhealthy as they were in the ALNSTverse? Or are they slightly more mellowed and better adjusted in a more "normal" society? would Ivan still be unhealthily fascinated and devoted to Till? Would Till still feel conflicted about Ivan? Would they be more focused on their own individual issues and less on each other or vice versa? Naturally both can be the case but one usually wins over a certain amount. There's a lot to think about!

A lot of the train cars force the passenger to deal with their issues in somewhat literal ways (like how min and ryan are usually forced to work together, tulip is forced to sing a song she is emotionally attached to, actually hey wait fuck that's a good one?) Would there be a train car where Till has to recognize Ivan's feelings head on (Finally looking at him)? Would there be a car that would take their deepest inner thoughts and manifest them into physical, tangible beings or objects? Many possibilities! I'd love to hear more of your thoughts and ideas!

( + @chiisana-lion !! I'd also love to hear any thoughts you might have on an ALNST infinity train au !! If you have any !! let's share these brainwaves together !! )

[rotinthedark]

🍁 easiest way to win Sebastian’s heart?

|| meme

Sleeping with Sebastian can actually be pretty speedy, if there's chemistry off the bat and you pass the 'vibe check' (not be a total dickbag or otherwise emotionally unattractive. Someone he feels he won't regret in the morning, especially given he's a virgin.) That speaks more to his intense touch starvation and willingness to use sex as another form of distraction and superficial human connection, though it's certainly possible to build a relationship with him from this foundation eventually (he's a soft boy deep inside who rly wants that real connection, he's just terrified of reaching out for it and expecting the other person to get bored and drop him anyway).

Winning his heart, however, is a process no matter who you are.

He's a very reserved individual. If he gets along with someone, he can relax enough to tease and be snarky but that's still with layers of walls underneath. He grew up emotionally neglected/abused in an environment of favoritism against him since about 7-8 years of age, which would fuck anyone up tbh. This has left him with a crippled self-esteem and natural wariness with people who try to get closer to him.

Even Sam had to earn his way, after he moved to Pelican Town. Abigail had it easiest because she and Seb grew up together. He's particularly aloof and avoidant with people whose personalities are different from his own: extroverted, arrogant, loud (god, he hates loud). He spends most of his time on his own, which he expects to be respected regardless of relationship status, which can put a snag on trying to spend time with him.

That said, there are chinks in that armor he's always wearing:

Keeping up a good banter with him will catch his interest; he loves someone who can tease and comfortably be teased back.

He's a bit competitive, so good games of pool can be an opportunity for him to show off and/or show you up.

Paying attention to him enough to notice things he likes or needs and act accordingly will surprise him, as he's grown to not expect it from anyone. (Honestly, just paying genuine attention to him at all is a good thing. As I said earlier, he's a victim of neglect.)

Understand his moods and where he's coming from when they aren't pretty. He's understandably got some anger/bitterness issues that can flare up with the wrong topics. He's generally levelheaded, so that tends to be more of a specific circumstance (his family, especially his stepdad Demetrius). Accept the uglier parts of him and he'll realize he's safe enough to show them and lower that much more of his guard. As he was always the scapegoat at home, that can be a very important form of development between you and him. Even if you fight, he's pretty good about coming back and owning up once he's had time to cool down and think. He'll hope that you're the same way.

His love language is Words of Affirmation. He craves validation more than he lets on. He wants to be wanted, to be enough. Give that to him sincerely, where he'll believe you mean it, and it'll go a long way. (His giving language is Acts of Service btw).

You can generally get a sense of when it is and isn't okay to approach him when he's outside alone. If he looks relaxed, just lost in his thoughts, he'll likely welcome your company (or at the very least tolerate yours). If he looks stiff and like he could glare a hole into the ground, maybe leave him be.

He likes to share opinions with ppl he likes, getting their perspective on things, being introduced to new ways of thinking. He'll be paying attention and remembering things about you just the same. If he finds you pleasant and interesting to talk to, he'll stick around.

He's infamously stubborn and independent, but he also takes poor care of himself. While he's normally resistant to being taken care of, in those moments where he can't argue or fight back, it really does give him some dokis when someone takes that time and effort for him.

Just get to know him, rly. As you are with him, he is with you. With patience and persistence, you'll work your way through his layers to the soft, vulnerable, sweet, introspective, observant, empathetic, compassionate, affectionate, considerate, and loving man deep within.

If you're going for his heart, the whole shebang, it takes some elbow grease to get there. He is a great guy, but also a damaged one. With all of that, everything, the best method to getting close to him really is just time and effort.

I promise you, he's worth it 100%.

[polyhexian]

nate you are the person i know who Understands modern neopets. i saw a bunch of people talking about the site no longer being under That Weird NFT Guy and getting excited about the site being back on track to actually work again at some point, is this an accurate assessment of the situation

Yes, so, neopets was owned by Jumpstart and Jumpstart was owned by Netdragon. However Netdragon finally nuked Jumpstart, but Neopets is apparently still profitable enough to be allowed to live. As a result they created a new company, World of Neopia Inc, and WoNi owns neopets now. So they are now independently moderating their own game. Staff has always given a shit about neopets and wanted to make a better game but jumpstart hand Netdragon have been shaking them by the throat like Bart Simpson. It's been pretty awful. Neopets has turned into a sort of shuffling zombie gacha game and become virtually unplayable. Only an incredibly dedicated user base who fucking refuse to leave has kept it afloat.

However now that the neopets team is actually in charge of neopets.... Yes, it's very possible the game might see real improvement. It's pretty exciting. We have a community manager in the discord (that's not new) who seems pretty happy.

I am very hesitant to get excited because I'm not joking about neopets being a fucking shuffling zombie and an unplayable game. We are so deep in the shitter it's unreal. And even with TNT in charge- well, I've run some numbers from Netdragon shareholders report about the budget and I've got an educated guess as to the operating costs and... Well, it's not great. I don't think they have all that much funding to work with considering the scale of the job of improving neopets. Which is. A huge fucking job. An absolute nightmare. So I am hesitant to get excited because I don't want to be let down again. Hell, the jumpstart acquisition was supposed to be exciting.

So, yes, it is very exciting and genuinely might be the dawn of a new day for neopets. It might also be business as usual. Only time shall tell.

[cherrychipheart]

Update

Heya~ It’s been a while. 5 years

First off... I’m genuinely surprised that my dead blog still gets likes and reblogs occasionally. During the course of time, a lot of asks were sent, and I’m really sorry for having left you guys hanging. At that time, high school grades were a priority ;; Now that I’ve been free from all that for a while, at the very least, an update was necessary. 

1. Updating blog theme

There were concerns that the blog was hard to navigate and to add, also lead to external links. I’m incredibly sorry to those who experienced this. The blog has now reverted back to the vanilla tumblr theme. 

2. Back to being active?

I’m afraid that I have lost all motivation to continue this blog. There are 15 drafts/unposted theories that were left sitting there, and when I look at those posts, I think man, what was I thinking? As of right now, I’ve forgotten 80% of what my theories were originally about, that I’ve had to reread them over and over ; And it’s unlikely I’ll ever get back on track. So with that, I’m afraid that I won’t be able to answer all of the asks, since the part of my brain concerning itself with Cheritz has been collecting webs and dust 😞

3. The future of this blog    

I’ve considered deleting this blog for some time. It’s pretty much dead, but I’m still conflicted over whether I should or not. It’s actually my very first and only tumblr blog...  

4. Moving on

Part of what made this fun were some online friends I made along the way in creating these seemingly wild theories. I’ve lost touch with them overtime, but its a part of growing up in general, moving on with life. I’ve had so much fun also looking at others’ theories and looking at the asks. In fact, there were some that were like a revelation o.o, things that I had never considered. There was one ask which talked about how some of the organisations making contact with the RFA sounded like they were making desperate wishes 😮

Anyway, I’ve moved on. From Mystic Messenger. From Nameless, Dandelion. All of Cheritz I’m afraid. I was never interested in The Ssum from right when it was announced back in 2017, because first, it came out of nowhere, and I had doubt that it was connected to the previous games. Turns out... 

I’ll leave that there for you to figure out (don’t wanna risk spoilers haha).

But the biggest demotivator for dropping my blog has to be...

5. Cheritz’s declaration that the story of Mystic Messenger was up to interpretation

That particular post shook me. Starting from Nameless, Cheritz had established that their future games were truly something to look forward to, at least for me. It’s not just throwbacks or cameos, it’s within the same universe. The announcement of MysMe and introduction of Jumin’s character hooked me in right from the start. It was very exciting back in the past. But now, it’s just... eh. Cheritz appears to want to please everyone. Apparently, the Mysme fandom that hadn’t played Dandelion or Nameless were angry that they had to check out the two to understand the story of Mysme which was why Cheritz had made that post (don’t quote me, even I’m unsure of whether this is true or not 😶 But if Cheritz had to make a post like that, it must mean something)

Ultimately, I actually hadn’t even started V’s route nor got a satisfactory ending with Saeran. Their routes were a big surprise, and I felt it got messy quick. When I looked at the story of Mysme at face value (so looking at it independently without any connection to the other games) and paired with other people’s perspectives of Saeran’s and V’s routes based off screenshots, I found there were some inconsistencies regarding the characters and their point of views of events. And if that’s at face value, then there’s just no way I’ll be able to, well, make connections between the games. And the fact that Jumin’s got a route based off a bad ending... well, more profit is good I guess? They are a company after all  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Ultimately, if there are inconsistencies, paired with the fact that Cheritz says that the game is up to interpretation... what, then, is considered canon or a theory?  

If you’ve read this far... nah, there’s no way haha.

6. Just some rambling (my own thoughts, feel free to disagree of course)

I feel like Cheritz has made a mistake. By saying that Mysme can be interpreted in any way, only to connect the Ssum back to Mysme, and killing Lynn Project. Dandelion and Nameless had a clear direction. Lynn Project could’ve had a direction, who knows? Both Mysme (any additional content after the main story, new routes etc) and the Ssum don’t feel like they have a clear direction, with how they’ve had to develop these two within either a tight time frame, or lacking storytelling and anticipation. 

Anyway, I’m not sure if people are still interested in the theories surrounding Cheritz games. If so, it’s really impressive their brains haven’t fallen out. Mine fell out a long time ago. Looking back at my theories, I have now understood how crazy I must’ve sounded to others haha. 

7. So what am I doing now?

At the moment, it’s still unclear on whether I should keep this blog up or not. It all depends. Although I doubt there are others following this blog to begin with (like, is there even a discord server for Cheritz fans on theories and headcanons?)

I’ve moved onto other things at this point: working for a living, learning art, checking out other otome games, Kdramas, and so on.           

Peace~ 

-cherrychipheart   

[beachboysnatural]

My ultimate John Garfield movie recommendations (following a loose one-per-year format) in chronological order:

1. Four Daughters (1938) - this was his film debut and his performance in a supporting role was so revolutionary it immediately catapulted him to stardom, and the movie is actually pretty good too

(1,5. Daughters Courageous (1939) - if you end up really liking Four Daughters this is a good one to watch but otherwise you can skip it. You can also watch the actual sequel to Four Daughters which is Four Wives which he's technically in but not really. You do you)

2. Saturday's Children (1940) - this is not the best movie but it features a great performance from John Garfield where he is cast against type and he is having a GREAT time. Beware the tonal shifts and the sexism

(2,5. Castle on the Hudson (1940) - if you want to see a typical movie of his from this era of his career, go with this one, because it's better than the others, but that doesn't mean it's great)

3. The Sea Wolf (1941) - John Garfield has a supporting role, but this is genuinely a spectacular movie. The entire cast and atmosphere are so great

4. Pride of the Marines (1945) - John Garfield did a lot of propaganda movies during the war years. This is the best one. There's some not-great stuff in here because it was made in 1945, and at the same time, this movie has merit outside of propaganda

5. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) - 1946 was arguably the best year of John Garfield's career, and you could pick any of the movies he made that year and you'd have a good time. But this one has Lana Turner and it's important to the history of film noir and stuff

6. Body and Soul (1947) - this movie was his first film with his independent production company. It's considered one of the best boxing movies and so anti-capitalist that almost everyone involved got blacklisted. Definitely a must-see

7. Force of Evil (1948) - the second and last movie he made with his independent production company. It's considered one of the most influential and anti-capitalist film noirs ever made, and again, almost everyone involved got blacklisted. Another must-see

8. The Breaking Point (1950) - really, really well made and well done. The movie has a sense of dread that gets more and more intense and mixes film noir and humanity very well. Would have gotten awards attention if John Garfield hadn't been blacklisted

(8,5. He Ran All The Way (1951) - if you end up really enjoying all of these movies, his last is worth a watch, but if you don't like film noir or movies that are just plain unhappy, don't make yourself miserable. This movie's atmosphere is note-perfect)

Years skipped: 1942 - his only release this year was Tortilla Flat which relies on stereotypes about Mexican people and did not have a lot of Mexican people in the cast

1943 - lots of propaganda movies. If you're into that, Air Force is one of the better ones

1944 - same as 1943, but without airplanes

1949 - besides a cameo appearance in Jigsaw (an awful movie) his only release was We Were Strangers which is just kind of bad so don't even bother

Other movies that could be worth a watch:

Dust Be My Destiny (1939) - if you want an early John Garfield movie that is a little sucky, this is the perfect movie for you

Dangerously They Live (1941) - it's not great but it's a good time

Out of the Fog (1941) - I actually really liked this one, but it's not groundbreaking

Between Two Worlds (1944) - this kind of sucked but it was also good at the same time I hope this helped

Nobody Lives Forever (1946) - genuinely a great time!

Humoresque (1946) - it's Joan Crawford it's classical music it is DRAMA

Under My Skin (1950) - if you like feeling sad about your dad and you also like horses this is PERFECT for you

DO NOT WATCH:

Juarez (1939) - horrendous. I can't believe I wasted two hours of my life watching this movie

East of the River (1940) - John Garfield went on suspension at least twice trying to avoid doing this movie and it is obvious why

[violetren]

Aether Chapter 26

My "I'm gonna be annoyed at Sierra" senses are tingling.

At least Maggie got a cute peck on the cheek from Varsha first.

Revenge? REVENGE!? EXCUSE THE FUCK OUT OF YOU!? THE AUDACITY! THE ENTITLEMENT!

I have a mighty need for Maggie to give Chance the nod to get Eurion to punch Stupidhead.

Fucking revenge... I was right. I am annoyed at Sierra.

At this point I could probably write a fucking essay on why it's not just reasonable but healthy and better in just about every fucking way that Maggie chose Varsha over Sierra. It's probably get to like paragraph 8 before it even touched on the fact that Sierra is in a highly unstable trauma induced transitory period of her life and should not be trying to date anyone. Fucking hell. I think at this point I'm closer to thinking of her the way Maggie would think of Garrett (not wanting to be too mean because she's someone Maggie loves, and therefore giving her more credit that she's fucking due).

"She lets me be selfish" is a very interesting way of "she reminds me I have choices and encourages me to do what will be right for me and doesn't try to push me into making decisions that would suit her" but you know what basically everyone who ever puts on a supersuit and means it has this kind of thinking when it comes to letting themselves be happy so I can't even pretend to be surprised, or exasperated over it.

I live in desperate hope that Maggie will be the straw that breaks the camels back and gets Ashley to just fucking talk to Hannah already.

I kinda wonder if Maggie actually needed the heads up about Chance's pronouns. I mean... I guess a big part of Digilife is being someone else, but Chance could put their pronouns there or let slip to Maggie as they got closer online. Idk. Still nice of Ashley to give the heads up even though they're technically already friends since this is kind of a paradigm shit for them.

I'm gonna blame this on playing Synth Riders with some suprise custom songs earlier this evening, but probable hologram Change was just spotted talking to Fractal and a little gremlin voice went "oh Hatsune Miku style" followed by another thought slipping in like a wizened elder gremlin smacking the other with a stick to go "Like the Voyager EMH you heathen." Wild experience since both are pretty well valid comparisons but the important part is actually CHANCE CAN VISUALLY MANIFEST INDEPENDENTLY OF NAOMI AND TALK WITHOUT EVERYONE FEELING LIKE THEY ARE ON A PHONE CALL!

I love this for them.

It is of great comfort to me that Jia Li is consistently a flirty shit stirrer and genuinely hilarious that Eurion stands there grumping over the fact that Jia Li gets away with it when she doesn't.

There is so much good banter (and general dialogue and a decent bit of description) here that is doing a fantastic job of drawing relationship lines, (re)establishing character personalities, and showing how these people fit in a space that I cannot possibly gush over all of it and get to bed in time to be up for work in the morning. But I did want to say it was all awesome and I was delighted to finally see Maggie meet not just Chance, but Naomi, Anika, Jia Li, and Emilia. And she even managed to be so distracted as to not immediately have a gay meltdown over Emilia! Good on her!

Maggie is about to have a VERY full schedule, but she's going to have EXCELLENT company. Also the potential variety of "hot for teacher" jokes that I might get to make (if in world characters don't make them first) as she trains with Varsha is great.

It's very secondary to wanting to see Maggie become a competent ass kicker and kiss Varsha some more, but I think it would be cool af to see Hannah stop by for some of these training sessions and just be cool with Chance and Naomi (both much more open and out about their trans/nontraditional gender status) and just blow that "what if she isn't accepting" fear of Ashley's right out of the water in text.

[sugoi-and-spice]

Chapter Eight - Sink or Float

Pairing: Tomura Shigaraki x Fem!Reader, (3rd Person)

Rating: Explicit - Minors DNI

Summary: Tomura Shigaraki was her dad's boss's son. He was the creep that stole girls' underwear and tried to grope her in his room. But it's not like he could get her Dad fired just because she wouldn't sleep with him, right? ...right?

CW: Quirkless!AU, Explicit Smut, Dub-Con, Coercion, Blackmail, Cheating, Sexual Guilt, Humiliation, Unhealthy Relationships, Virginity Kink, Groping, Power Play, Hate to Love

A/N: Shigaraki's been way too sweet lately. Time to put him in a situation where he's a brat again.

Read Full Chapter on AO3

[EXCERPT]

“We’re not just a corporation. We’re a family .”

That had been the theme of All for One’s latest self-aggrandizing speech, and she genuinely wondered how he got through it with a straight face. At least in this situation the topic didn’t come out of nowhere. After all, he was giving this speech over the loudspeakers of the company’s annual family picnic. 

Held at a fucking waterpark.

Picnic was a loose term. It was a seated, catered lunch in the water park’s big event hall — max capacity 500. And it certainly was close to max capacity. Nevermind the fact that it was November, apparently All for One believed that a bright, summer atmosphere was exactly what was needed to maintain morale through any quarter of the year if his “fun boss” Ralph Lauren Hawaiin shirt was anything to go off of. Besides, that’s why they built indoor water parks.

And events like these were great bullet point perks for the recruitment team, well worth the no doubt exorbitant price of renting out the entire place.

Yes, it was a mandatory fun event that her father made them attend every year without fail. But to be honest, it’s one that she didn’t mind. The luncheon itself was stuffy and pretentious with a summer semi-formal dress code that felt a little silly to maintain at a freaking waterpark. But that part only lasted an hour and since her father hadn’t quite risen to the upper echelons of the company yet, they were able to sit at the table with the rest of his department’s management team and their families, rather than the raised banquet table at the front of the hall with All for One and his VP’s. Then she was free to galavant the waterpark with her family.

And despite the strain the latest advancement opportunity in her father’s career had put on their relationship, she did actually like her family. She liked sitting in inner tubes side by side with her mother, chatting as they floated down the lazy river. She liked being dragged on waterslide after waterslide by her little brother who was determined to ride as many times as her stomach would allow, because without her, he was too short to ride most of them. She liked playing Marco Polo with her Dad who was notoriously and hilariously bad at it even when the rest of the family wasn’t cheating and getting out of the pool (which they always were).

So to be honest, she was pretty disappointed when things had turned out a little differently this year.

While her father hadn’t been invited to the head honcho table during the luncheon, he had been invited to drinks at the very exclusive and very snooty clubhouse afterwards. All of them had in fact. All for One, ever the matchmaker, had placed particular interest in wanting to introduce them to the VP’s who had children around her brother’s age. Much to her surprise though, her parents — knowing how much they enjoyed this event in its usual form — actually gave them the choice of how to spend their day. Her brother — who as of late was on a bit of an independent “I’m a big boy” streak — decided that he wanted to go and play with some kids his own age rather than his older sister. 

She however, with her last fancy-schmancy event with the Shigarakis still on her mind, decided to opt out and brave the waterpark alone.

A decision that, as she sat by herself on a lounge chair across from the wave pool, she was kind of starting to regret.

“Well what do we have here?” 

Okay, make that really starting to regret.

She didn’t recognize the dudebro that was suddenly blocking out her artificial sun. He was around her age and given his particular brand of swagger, obviously assumed that his Daddy had a higher position at the company than hers. 

His hair was even more styled and product-filled then her own and he’d obviously contoured his skinny-fat stomach into a crude six pack.

One word, two syllables: Douchebag.

“What’s a pretty thing like you doing all alone in a place like this?”

What the fuck else could she be doing? It was a family “picnic”, in theory she should’ve been near her family. It was besides the point that she wasn’t actually — the fact of the matter was that she was obviously not here to be picked up by little lost dudebros.

“I’m not alone. I’m waiting for someone actually.” she smiled politely.

“Oh, well it couldn’t possibly be anyone important.” he said, sitting down uninvited on her lounge chair just a little too close for comfort, “After all, no decent guy would keep a lovely lady such as yourself waiting.”

Holy shit, how much would it sabotage her dad’s career if she threw up on this Nice Guy™ right now? Because she was getting pretty fucking close.

Suddenly, a pale mop of hair popped into her periphery. One that — for a record-breaking second time — she was actually thankful to see.

She stood suddenly, arms raised and voice as shrill and lovey-dovey as she could push it, “Hey, babe!”

Shigaraki paused, looking over to glare at whatever dumb bitch had the right to be so loud and happy near him. So he was colored genuinely surprised to see his fuck buddy jogging up excitedly to him.

She latched onto him, pulling his bicep flush between her tits for the whole world to see, “I missed you so much!”

“What the hell—?”

“Just pretend, alright.” she hissed, nodding her head back to the douche canoe staring at them in offended astonishment.

Shigaraki smirked, suddenly understanding the situation. And determined to milk it for all it was worth.

“Oh, hey honey !” he cooed obnoxiously right back, slipping his arm around her waist.

Then he grabbed a tight handful of her ass.

She deadpanned, “Seriously?”

“He’s still watching,” his grin widened.

Damn, maybe she should’ve taken her chances with Mr. Hairspray.

“Oh my gosh, Baby!” she squealed, swatting at his arm playfully, “Not here! My Dad will see!”

She hazarded a look back to see the boy shaking his head dejectedly as he stood and walked in the other direction — clearly and obnoxiously licking his wounds and looking for the next piece of ass he could try and catch.

“Seriously, knock it off before someone sees.” she snapped back to Shigaraki,

He pulled her tighter into his side instead. 

“What, so you only want me when it’s convenient for you?” he teased, fingers playing with the hem of her swimsuit just over her hip, “That’s hardly fair.”

She shoved him away, “Hey pot, I’m kettle.”

Shigaraki decided to let her have that one, taking the opportunity to instead let his eyes roam shamelessly up and down her figure. She flushed instantly, embarrassed and irritated. She was just wearing one of her retired competition swimsuits— a definitively utilitarian and cleavage-covering one-piece — so she knew that he was making a show of his oggling just to fuck with her.

“I’m getting a smoothie.” she grunted, walking past him. 

Obnoxiously, Shigaraki took this as an invitation.

Continue on Ao3

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[miekasa]

any dad!levi hcs for father’s day today🥺🤲🏽

Absolutely!! I’ll do this I guess using the kids I have for him in my parent au? If you’ve read that, you know about Holden, but there are two more so prepare to meet them :’) happy father’s day to Levi <33

To begin with, you guys would plan to have your kids (to the best of your abilities; you were intentionally trying to have kids at a time when you both knew you were ready for them. 

Although accidents to do happen, and Levi would welcome an unplanned child all the same; that being said, if you’re both want a family, you would have discussed it beforehand (which is to a degree, is a lot about mental preparation for himself). 

In his perfect world, he’d have two daughters. They’d be equal parts him and you, and they’d be quiet and curious and lovely and life would be good. He’d spend his days with you and his two tiny daughters, raising his little family and doing all he could for his favorite girls. 

So, naturally, he does get two daughters, but also a son in between; and the latter two kids are far from easy in their own unique ways lmfao 

You might have already met Holden, and she’s the oldest in my dad Levi au, and the most like him. Levi’s dark hair, his grey eyes, his overall unimpressed visage, his knack for cleanliness and organization—down to the way she holds her sippy cups, she’s damn near Levi’s doppleganger. 

Holden is somewhere between 3.5-4 years old before you have your second kid, and in that time is when Levi confirms he thinks he was cut out to be a certified Girl Dad. 

Both Levi and Holden take quality father-daughter time very seriously. It’s impossible to change plans once they’re set: “Daddy, you promised we would go to the famer’s market on Sunday. You pinky promised.” And Levi wouldn’t dare break a pinky promise, so he makes time for it. 

Levi doesn’t play favorites with his kids, but there is something special about Holden as his first born. He’s constantly in awe of just how much she resembles him. Four years into raising her and it’s still hard to wrap his head around. 

Much to his chagrin, Hange and Eren are Holden’s favorite adults. Maybe Levi understands the admiration for Hange, but Eren... come on, Holden, you’re breaking his heart at that point. 

It’s almost out of character for your daughter to be so openly affectionate about someone outside of your immediate family, but she really loves having Eren as a babysitter; and you know she’s playing favorites, because she remains neutral on Armin, even though he and Eren always babysit as a duo. 

She doesn’t have a favorite grandparent, but Kenny spoils her the most. Levi tells him he shouldn’t, but when has Kenny ever listened to Levi. The man isn’t a fan of kids, but he thinks yours and Levi’s are pretty cool, and Holden is about the coolest 4 year old he could ever meet. 

When she was learning to walk, Levi’s favorite thing was holding her little hand and guiding her around. Even now, when she can stand perfectly fine on her own two feet, Levi loves it when she reaches for his hand; Holden is a pretty independent kid, even at 4 years old, so Levi never takes affection from her for granted. 

They’re best friends and Holden goes everywhere with him. Their favorite father-daughter activity is going to the grocery store, and Levi lets Holden point to and assess her favorite fruits and veggies while she sits happily in the shopping cart. 

Sometimes there are other parents struggling with a kid throwing a temper tantrum. Levi simply clicks his teeth, while Holden shakes her little head. “That’s pretty embarassing, daddy,” she says, looking at the poor parent with an unamused glare that rivals Levi’s. He nods and pushes the cart past the scene, “Tell me about it, kid.” 

Your second kid is a boy, and he looks more like you than Levi, but manages to have Levi’s signature hair color and pout when things aren’t going his way.

He comes as a shock to both you and Levi, because after your ultrasound, you were told you were having another girl. Turns out, they’d accidentally mixed up your files, and you were having a boy instead, which you do not find out until your mid-term check up a few months later. Cue Levi buffering like an old computer. 

Kiaan is welcomed all the same, even tho Levi is still in disbelief; he was mentally preparing to have another daughter on his hands. He puts more pressure on himself with his son; not that he wasn’t trying his best to be a parent to Holden, but any insecurities he might have about being a good come out when your son is born, because Levi has no “man of the house” example to follow from. 

You reassure him that your son will turn out to be just fine, and raising him the way you raised Holden, and would have raised another daughter is perfectly acceptable. Of course Levi rises to the occasion after the initial shock; he’s determined to be the dad to his son that he never had. 

Where Holden is more reserved, Kiaan likes to talk and babble about anything whenever and wherever he can, to whoever is around. It’s not uncommon for you or Levi to find your son completely entertained by telling a story out loud to himself while playing with his toys.

Loves to rope Levi into making his toys interact and have “conversations” with each other, and Kiaan genuinely thinks his dad is hilarious, even if he doesn’t completely understand what he’s saying. It always makes Levi smile to hear Kiaan try and copy the bass and tone of his voice when he’s mocking him. 

Kiaan loves messing with his dad, and Levi’s all talk, so of course he lets him. He’ll be on a Zoom meeting for work, and Kiaan will be sat in his lap, running little toy cars across the desk in front of him, or tugging on Levi’s hair, and Levi just lets him. It makes quite the cute sight, and Hange has definitely taken a few screen recordings. 

That being said, your son is more of a mama’s boy than anything. Kiaan loves messing with Levi, but if you’re in the room, there’s a 95% chance he’ll be on your lap or at your side shadowing whatever you’re doing. 

Kiaan is a universal copycat tho, so whatever you, Levi, or Holden say or do, he tries for himself. This makes him especially susceptible to repeating Levi’s foul language and bad habits than Holden. (“Kiaan, you can’t sleep on the chair, it’s not good for your back.” “But daddy sleeps on the chairs sometimes!” “...Alright kid, you got me there.”) 

He’s a very loving kid with his words, too, always thanking people and proclaiming his love, so he doesn’t exactly have a “favorite” adult or babysitter, but he does get particularly excited when Erwin or Farlan come around. He feels especially tall when Erwin lets him sit on his shoulders, and Farlan always entertains his story-telling. 

He’s a sucker for his grandma though, and gives Kuchel a million kisses whenever she comes around. Does not let go over her for the entire time she’s over at your house, and will sit on her lap throughout dinner. 

The most affectionate child, so where Holden only likes holding hands, Kiaan loves cuddling with you and Levi, and likes to be held whenever possible. Levi spoils him a little too much, and more often than not, if you’re walking outside for more than two hours, Kiaan will end up on Levi’s shoulders or in your arms. 

Your last kid is another girl, and, yeah she’s just a baby no older than a few months, but Levi can’t help but think she’s especially tiny, and he can’t help but to look at her and hold her whenever possible. Your baby girl also leaves Levi a little dumbstruck because she manages to look like a combination of you and his mother. 

As she grows, it becomes apparent that you’ve got another daddy’s girl on your hands. Doesn’t matter if you’re literally breast feeding her, Aria will throw a tantrum if she’s separated from Levi for more than an hour. 

The good news is, her sleep cycle is as irregular as Levi’s, so he’s got someone to keep him company when everyone else has gone to bed for the evening. Unfortunately, this also means Aria naps a lot during the day, which leaves Levi a little bored since Holden is old enough to be in school full-time, and Kiaan is gone for at least a portion of the day. 

So, he would never tell you, but sometimes he wakes Aria up from her naps just a little bit early to spend more time with her (and cure his boredom). Having an infant trying to grab at his hair with her ravioli sized baby fists while he tries to cook lunch certainly makes the task more difficult, but it also adds welcomed color to his day.

You and Levi have to hold Aria constantly when she’s awake or else she’ll cry (although, if you leave her in the arms of her siblings, she does settle down, too); that, or she’ll find her tiny baby hands somewhere they shouldn’t be. Like dipped in a jar of strawberry jam. Or peanut butter. Or both. 

Levi talks to his kids like he would any other adult, so it’s not uncommon to find him brewing tea with a baby strapped to his chest, narrating the steps to good tea-making out loud to her for her to hear. He swears she can understand him, and he attributes Holden and Kiaan’s growing vocabularies, and the early ages at which they started speaking to this. 

Aria will be in her little chest strap thing while Levi’s cooking dinner, and he’ll look down at her like, “Alright, we’re gonna julienne your carrots today. Yesterday we cubed them, but you’ve got grabby hands, so this will give you more room to work with.”

Kiaan loves holding Aria and honestly just being around her, and you and Levi think it’s adorable how he loves to play with her, and how he knows to be gentle with her. He shares a room with her, and loves sharing his bedtime story times, so you or Levi will read them to sleep together. 

Holden isn’t crazy about babies, but she’s a good older sister, and Aria seems to be obsessed with her. She crawls and scoots towards her if given the opportunity, and Holden will always look to you or Levi before attempting to hold or lift her up, as if asking permission. She’ll pat Aria’s head to get her to stop crying, or let her play with her hands. 

Levi thinks one of the best parts about being a dad is seeing the different dynamics and relationships between your kids. Holden isn’t most physically or verbally affectionate, but she’s still compassionate, and Kiaan looks up to her; and Kiaan is the perfect middle ground, knowing when it’s appropriate to bother (affectionate) Holden, and when to give her space, and curiously hovers around his baby sister, too. 

[oitommothetease]

Invisible String (6/?)

Pairing:  Bucky Barnes x Female reader (Modern AU)

Description: James Buchanan Barnes, the owner of the most expensive-looking club in town and your new apartment. He was a dick and you hated him. What could possibly go wrong when you, the new girl in town, start bartending at his club to pursue your dreams?

Word Count: 2.1k words

Bucky couldn't recall the last time he had a genuine conversation with someone who wasn't his best mates, Sam and Steve. He enjoyed your company and as much as he hated to let his guard down, he wanted to do just that with you. You were everything that Bucky thought he would find repulsive, but he couldn’t help but be attracted towards you. And for the first time he wanted more, he didn't want a one-night stand or a fling with you, he wanted to know you. He admired your courage and bravery, but mostly he admired you. You, with all your stupid yet funny jokes and spontaneity; he liked you more than he would like to admit.

But there was this thing that you were his employee and one meal doesn't count as a date. It was just a meal. But yet, Bucky wanted it to be more. He had never been so intrigued by another person, but it was also clear that you didn't reciprocate his interest. And Bucky would have all of his 206 bones crushed out rather than giving his heart to someone only for it to be not requited. 

So, when you walked into the club the next day, pretending as if nothing had changed, Bucky knew where your relationship lay with him, and he was content with it. Okay, he wasn't content with it, but he knew he couldn't force something that wasn't there. He would choose to be in your life as your boss, acquaintance, or maybe even a friend if he's lucky enough than to not be in your life at all. 

***

When you got settled behind the counter, your mood wasn't that great. It could be because you weren't drunk this time, or maybe because you enjoyed your meal with your boss a little too much for your liking. You wouldn't call it a date, but it sure as hell was a lot better than all the dates or meals you've had with people.

Your good mood was definitely not because of the fact that your mother called only to inform you that this family friend's son is not going to wait around long, and you should at least find a stable job if you can't find a suitable boyfriend. Then she started boasting about your sister and her amazing profession and how she and her husband save lives every day. And you might have had enough of her bullshit and lied that you indeed have a stable job and relationship. None of which is true. 

Bartending only pays the bills, and you haven't had a relationship in years and none of them were serious. You always ran away from any sort of commitment because you knew you would eventually have to introduce your partner to your family and nobody deserves to see that circus, and you told yourself that you're doing a favor to those previous partners by leaving them or as your friends like to call ghosting them. In your defense, dealing with you and your family is more horrific than any scary movie. 

Well, until now because tomorrow your sister and her family are coming to meet your partner and take you back to your parents' place for the weekend. The only problem is that you lied to them about your job and your partner. The worst part is that both of them are pretty non-existent.

"Hey, How are you feeling? " Peter asked you, noticing how you still weren't paying attention to the customer in front of you. 

“Great, not drunk, if that's what you're wondering.” 

“I'm fine," you retorted, glancing at the concerned look Peter was giving you. You quickly took the customer's order and proceeded to make the drink. 

"The last time you said you were fine, you threatened to kill a dude," Pietro interjected, enjoying the faux disbelief that landed on your face. You looked over to Wanda for help, but she just chuckled at her brother's antics.

The rest of the night at work went by as it usually did. Pietro making a sarcastic remark here and there, Wanda countering her brother with a snarky response, you were laughing your ass off watching the duo and Peter awkwardly tried to suppress his amusement. In a weird custom, these three coworkers were the only thing that felt normal. 

By the time you were done, it was mostly you left like always, with the addition of security guards that James added since Rumlow. You wanted to talk to him, especially after the wonderful not date you had, but the situation with him was not under your control anymore and it released from your grasp which scared the shit out of you. If James and you had met under different circumstances, then you would have tried to date him, but with him being your boss and the whole Rumlow thing made everything so complicated, and you didn't have time for any sort of relationship complication in your life. At least that's what you kept telling yourself.

When you were done with your shift and were about to leave, a very familiar voice called for you. You've been trying to ignore him all day and just when you thought you've succeeded, he catches up to you. 

The thing that scared you with James was that you felt safe, too safe with him. You were scared that you were going to become dependent on him for your security, and you hated that. You always despised women who weren't anything except their husband's wife, as if their whole identity was being a man's property. Furthermore, you knew the only thing to be blamed here was patriarchy and men, but you decided that you weren't going to be someone's property, you were going to be your own person. 

And you rebelled a lot to reach here, dyed your hair blue just because your mom told you not to, pursued your dream just because your dad told you to follow a secure nine to four job, left ex-partners because they told you what to and what not to wear. And some part of you knew that James wasn't like that. He wouldn't exploit you and your weaknesses. 

But what you didn't realize was that these were merely excuses that your brain mustered up because you were too scared to be dumped. A long time ago, you decided that it is better to leave than be left. And James — well, James made you feel things that you didn't want to chase. You feared commitment and abandonment too much to go after a guy. 

Your thoughts were brought to a halt when he held your wrist gently and called your name again. Reluctantly, you turned around, pretending to be surprised as if you didn't see him. 

He obviously caught on to you. "Why are you ignoring me?" 

"What?" You scoffed in feign disbelief, taking your hand away from his grasp and setting it on his shoulder. "Why would I ignore you, bud?"

Bud? What the fuck? , both of you thought at the same time.

Carefully, he eyed your hand and then you, "Okay, come on, I'll drop you home."

"No, James, it's fine, I can go on my own." 

"Yes, yes, you are an independent, strong woman but come on," He teased, but you didn't seem to pick up the glint of mischief in his eyes. 

You heard that as a taunt, a taunt your father has told you an ample number of times, that you indeed can never be anything on your own if you don't have a man beside you. While you were lost in your thoughts, James was moving towards his car, assuming that you were following him.

 "But I am," you argued. 

Your voice sounded distant to him, he turned around and walked towards you. "You are what?" 

"I am strong and independent."

"Yes, you are," he agreed as a matter of factly because it was the truth. He had never met someone so strong who would leave behind their whole life to pursue their dreams. He, being the mob boss, and filthy rich couldn't do the same, and he may not tell you this, but he admired you so much. 

Once you got the assurance you needed, you started walking towards his car. "Are you coming or not?" and he followed you. 

Of course, you knew you were strong, but your life had not been going as smoothly as you anticipated. You're stuck in writer's block, your family interference and lack of trust in you hurts like a bitch. You were somewhat crushing on your boss, and you blurted random embarrassing stuff in front of him without thinking. You know, normal crush things. 

When you reached the apartment, he insisted on dropping you to your floor. The car ride was spent in peaceful silence, but the time spent in the elevator was everything but that. No, the fifteen seconds were spent in James fidgeting beside you because he wanted to say something but didn't know how to. 

After you unlocked your door, he finally spoke up. "Um, I was just wondering whether, you know, - I had fun last night and I don't have smooth conversations with people - um, I don't know, I'd like to go out with you again," he didn't finish, but your eyebrows shot up to your forehead and he quickly backpedaled. " Not as a date, if that's what you want. It could be a meal shared between you and your boss. Not that I'm implying that you are obligated to go with me just because I'm your boss. I'm asking this as a stranger, well, not as a stranger but as a friend, I think."

"James,” you spoke softly, and he could feel the denial coming his way.” I had fun too, but you're my boss. This is highly unprofessional."

He signed in defeat and looked at you one last time. There was so much he wanted to say, he wanted to tell you that he enjoyed your company more than he should. He wanted to tell you that he liked you. He wanted to tell you that he wanted to see where this thing would lead with you, but he knew better than that. At the end of the day, you were his employee and if you were to get involved with him in any form, it would only end in your tarnished reputation. So, he nodded, not trusting himself enough to speak much after the clear rejection. "I understand."

"Y/N! “

Both of you turned towards the source of the voice and frowned. He frowned because he was confused, whereas you, oh, you weren't confused, you were furious at the person standing there and at yourself for forgetting about their arrival.

 "Hi, Carol. I thought you were coming tomorrow," you stated, faking a smile, and everyone in the area could see your distressed attempt at looking excited.

 Well, everyone except your sister because she shrieked with happiness and ran towards you to throw her arms around you. Her husband followed behind and gave you and James an awkward smile.

 "I just couldn't wait to meet my baby sister and we'll take you guys back for the weekend."

You guys, James and you thought at the same time. James looked at the side of your face for an explanation, and you kept looking forward at your sister, avoiding his gaze.

Fuck, you forgot about that. How can you forget about that? You mentally cursed yourself and didn't say anything because you didn't know what to do. 

Your sister picked your silence as her cue to talk and pointed her index finger at James, who was standing beside you now. "Is this him?"

Your sister looked at you, expecting an answer, your brother-in-law looked at you with something called, please hurry up, I just want to go back to the hotel. James looked at you with bewilderment. 

You sighed and took your boss's hand in yours, who also happens to be the most dangerous person in the town. He complied, holding on to you tightly, running his thumb on the back of your hand in a soothing manner. It felt like the most obvious thing as if your hand was made to be held by him. The thought sent a pleasant shiver down your spine, but you were too stubborn to accept it.

"Yes," you finalized. "This is James, my boyfriend."

TAGS: @bananapipedreams @akkinda10 @rivers-rambles21 @emmabarnes @goodcleanfunsis @valsworldofcreativity @boofy1998 @marvel-3407​ @priii​

[hetamavi]

America’s Dishonesty

Credit goes to Hetarchive for translated content. America has issues with being honest with his feelings. Really big issues at that. 

America can read the atmosphere, he just chooses not to. His tactlessness is a choice and, unlike someone like England who is also dishonest but still transparent with his real feelings, America’s tactless act is more convincing and he rarely drops it. Even feeling like he had to express concern for England clearly annoyed him (and it was described as uncharacteristic for him to act concerned at all).

Because he’s not as transparent as someone like England and is even less willing than him to be honest about his feelings, he can sometimes do hurtful things and it’s probably harder to understand where you really stand with him. On two different occasions, his way of getting England to act more like himself involved him doing things that clearly hurt England’s feelings. Those moments were when he pretended to be happy England died so he’d wake back up (”The Long-Awaited Deep Emotion is Ruined”) and when he lied to England about remembering England’s pain from the Revolution fondly (”Happy Birthday!”). In the latter instance, England even looked like he was close to tears before America admitted he lied. This sort of behavior is maybe more understandable in the instance where England needed a shock (when he was trying to wake England back up), but otherwise, it’s a very unconventional way of comforting someone that gets around directly doing the “comforting” part.

And while it’s usually England we see on the receiving end of this behavior (probably because England puts in a lot of effort to be closer with him), it is not just him that America acts this way with. Another notable character who America is also very close with that gets this treatment is Canada.  America is aware of Canada’s insecurities, but doesn’t make any attempt to resolve the tension between himself and Canada. Instead, after catching Canada trying to have a stronger presence, he acts like his usual tactless self, makes a vague comment on Canada being fine the way he is, and only reflects on what he admires about Canada in comparison to himself when he’s alone. 

He’s also pretty passive aggressive. In one strip about his relationship with Russia, fittingly titled “What’s going on Behind Those Smiles...?!”, America and Russia insist their bad relationship is ancient history (even though the Cold War lasted until relatively pretty recently - ending in 1991 with the dissolvement of the USSR) only to follow up with a lot of stuff that contradicts that claim. First, Russia says he wanted to “squeeze and snap” America in the past and America, acting like his usual cheerful stuff, actually challenges him to give it a try. Russia then starts talking about all the reasons he hated America in the first place before admitting he still wants to smash America’s glasses into pieces. Then, he and America (who heard all of that) go back to cheerfully insisting their relationship isn’t that bad. 

To make things clear, this isn’t to say that everything we usually get from America (that being his cheerful personality) is an example of him being dishonest. In a lot of ways that would take too long to go through here, he’s actually unapologetically himself. But there’s some clear discomfort when it comes to things like affection, opening up about his insecurities, and directly addressing negativity - whether that negativity be from others or himself. 

Why?

I think there’s two potential reasons for why he’s written this way. One is a real life explanation. Some of America’s characteristics mirror behaviors of real Americans being polite.

Maybe the best example of this is the frequent smiling. In the United States, instead of smiling being an indication of genuine happy feelings, it’s often just the polite thing to do. There’s also the fact that even though that kind of friendliness has been normalized as the polite way to act, Americans don’t care for being touched and like personal space more than what you’d see in many other countries. 

It’s possible those cultural norms made Hima want America to have similar contradictory behavior. He’s friendly and cheerful to an overwhelming extent, but he keeps the people closest to him at a distance and he keeps up his happy-go-lucky attitude even when that’s not actually how he’s feeling. 

The reasoning in Hetalia itself likely comes from his colonial days and the Revolution that followed. He didn’t get to socialize a lot as a kid. His most significant relationship was with a mentor that lived across an ocean and was mostly not around. So it’s not surprising America is lacking in social skills like resolving conflicts and dealing with negative emotions towards and from others. Those aren’t things you can learn from burying yourself in books on politics. 

But why does it sometimes feel like he’s almost deliberately pushing other characters away in some instances? 

America probably is deliberately pushing those characters away. Again, his most significant relationship as a kid was with a distant mentor that, because of his own shortcomings with other people, was emotionally invested in his relationship with America to an overwhelming extent. And to say it ended poorly would be an understatement. Things got violent, his relationship with Canada soured as well, and many nights after the conflict were spent with no sleep and him worrying over how to fix things with England. America gave up a lot for Independence, including being able to rely on the two most important people in his life - nearly the only people in his life - as people that would be there for him. And throughout all of that, there was probably a point where his relationship with England seemed like it might be beyond repair. This kind of stuff leaves a lasting impact on a person, especially someone as young and inexperienced with people as America was.  Even though America wants the company and friendship of others, he’s handling things in a way that maximizes how comfortable and safe he feels in these relationships. He’ll pick England to dress up with for Halloween, but only if he can get England to think he was picked for an insignificant reason like being his first Twitter follower. This keeps a distance between the two that keeps America feeling safe from once again experiencing the pain he endured from prior experiences. But not being understood by even those closest to you is a very lonely experience and as a result, America finds himself in a tough position of trying to alleviate his loneliness with loud, attention-seeking behavior while never making much of an effort to deepen the friendships he has or even actively sabotaging the efforts of the other person who is trying.