#Best Gaming Gifts for 2023

[cyberwavedigest-23]

Best Gaming Gifts for 2023

Searching for the ideal gift for gamers can be a daunting task, especially if you’re not well-versed in the world of video games. The coveted gaming gear often comes with a hefty price tag, and expenses can quickly add up. Although many items in our guide to the best gifts for gamers are on the expensive side, don’t be discouraged. We’ve also included a selection of items that cater to smaller budgets.

Below, you’ll find the well-established essentials such as Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Series S, Sony’s PS5, and the Nintendo Switch OLED. However, if you’re shopping for a dedicated gamer, chances are they already own one or more of these consoles. Not covered in our roundup are the latest Windows-enabled handheld consoles like the Lenovo Legion Go and Asus ROG Ally, which, while carrying a hefty price tag, are not yet ready for widespread adoption.

Delving deeper into the gaming realm, Meta’s Quest 2 retains its status as the best VR headset, even with the recent release of the Quest 3. While the Quest 3 is newer, the Quest 2 is still a solid option, and its lower price can be a significant factor when you’re purchasing multiple gifts. It’s worth noting that our review of the Quest 3 is still pending, and our opinion may evolve after completion. Sony’s updated PlayStation VR headset, the PSVR 2, is also excellent but comes with a price tag comparable to the PS5, which is necessary for its use.

These impressive options are incomplete without essential accessories like gaming headsets, mice, and keyboards. While more budget-friendly, these accessories can still be relatively costly. We are diligently exploring numerous options across various price points, and we will continue to add more recommendations right up to the last possible moment.

Continue Reading on Cyber Wave Digest

[johnnydany]

Leveling Up To Daddy EST 2024 Funny Gamer Lover T-Shirt

Get yours now: https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/47095426-leveling-up-to-daddy-est-2024-funny-gamer-lover

[starreo]

multi-character drabble.

includes cheating, alcohol consumption, adult themes so, mdni.

you don't understand why he's dating your best friend. you're so much better than her. you make him a wholesome breakfast when she has to rush to see a friend, you drive him home when he gets drunk, crying about how he's probably never going to find anyone who loves him as much as he loves them, and you bring him hot soup when he wakes up with a hangover.

when he comes over to see her and she suddenly has to see a friend of hers, refusing to mention the name when you ask, you keep him company...ordering takeout, pouring drinks, and talking for hours, before she comes back, a little too happy, starting to be handsy as she sits on his lap, "c'mon, baby, wan' you so bad" his slightly conflicted eyes stare at your disappointed ones for a minute before taking her to bed, leaving you alone on the couch.

on his birthday, which his lovely girlfriend almost forgets about, you gift him that video game he'd been wanting for so long...you, stand in the long line in the heat to get your hands on it before it sells out. "heard you talking about it last month, so i thought it'll be a good gift for your birthday."

and it was. which is why, to thank you, he invited you over to his place, something about wanting to teach you how to play it...but you didn't care much about that, did you?

you'd gotten yourself a bikini wax the day before, so you opted for a manicure and pedicure right now, choosing the color red to paint on your nails. that was his favorite. he'd told you that when he saw you in your body-hugging, red tube dress at his birthday party. "seeing you in that color is...dangerous...makes me wanna do things i shouldn't..."

so you weren't delusional...sure, you weren't a good best friend, but she didn't deserve him...he was so sweet, so kind, so hot, so perfect, and that bitch, she cheated on him, multiple times, laughing as she told you about it.

"t-thank you-fuck..." he whispered, his cold breath hit your cunt, planting a quick kiss on your ankle, as his fingers spread your sticky cum across your folds, making a mess before he plopped them in his mouth, sucking your slick off...he looked into your teary eyes, taking his fingers out and leaning forward to kiss you, letting you taste yourself.

as he distracted you with his kiss, his cock easily slipping inside of your slippery entrance, smiling as you gasped into the kiss. so tight. so warm. so perfect. "y'er s-so good, y/n...so good to m-me, fuck i think i'm in love with you-"

eren jaeger, nagi, gojo satoru, reo, suna rintarou, hiori, isagi yoichi, rin, chifuyu matsuno. + your favs <3

© starreo 2023. do not copy, translate or repost .

[thyme-in-a-bubble]

pleasant pile of pillows

kinktober, day eighteen

warnings: brother's best friend!james potter x reader, smut, secret relationship, cuddling, corruption kink, pillow humping, dry humping

word count: 714

∼ gentle reminder that feedback, but especially reblogs are the way you support writers on here ∽

masterlist | join my taglist | kinktober 2023

Blinking up at the door as you heard three soft knocks resonate, the visage of James’ face poking in couldn’t help but send butterflies soaring throughout your stomach. 

“Hey, may I come in?”

Hoping that your eyes weren’t too red and puffy, “sure,” you slowly unfurled yourself from the pleasant pile of pillows on your bed. 

Closing the door gingerly behind him, he then sat down next to you, “I come bearing gifts,” and conjured a small, red lollipop from his pocket. 

Exhausted smile blossoming upon your lips, you grasped the sucker, “thank you.” 

“Are you okay?” he asked as you unwrapped the candy and popped it into your mouth. 

“Yeah…” you picked up one of the numerous pillows and clutched it to your chest, “I’m really sorry about crying back there, I just can’t stand it when my brother talks to me like that, like I’m just a child… I’m only two years younger than him, but somehow, he thinks I stopped ageing after the age of ten.”

“Hey, I get it,” he attempted to catch your gaze, “if I had a brother who talked to me the same way, then I’d probably cry too.”

“No, you wouldn’t,” a soft giggle bubbled out of you. 

“I most certainly would! Like a baby!” his chuckle mixed and mingled with yours for but a second before he offered tenderly, “I’ll talk to him-”

“No, please don’t,” you reached out and grazed his forearm, “because then it’ll just seem like you-”

“I what?” he raised his eyebrows challengingly, “like you?” 

Letting out a low exhale as a shiver promptly ran down your spine, “you know he would hate you if he found out you saw me as more than just his little sister, right?”

Reaching out his fingers, he gingerly grasped the stick that stuck out from between your lips, “I don’t care,” eyes locked on your mouth, he slowly retraced the lollipop, only to push it back inside. You were none the wiser to how lewd the motion appeared, simply blinked back at him, solely fixated on the declaration he’d just uttered. Bottom lip lightly encaptured between his teeth, he let go of the sucker and redirected his gaze up to your eyes, “can I stay here while you rest?” his tender touch descended down your arm till his fingers weaved with your own. 

With a light nod of your head, “please,” you wrapped your arms around his neck in a warm hug. 

Sloping back down onto the mattress, James intuitively slotted in behind you, one arm draped over your waist. 

“What if he notices you’re gone?” you asked nervously, wiggling slightly to get more comfortable, the leg you weren’t lying on consequently flinging gently over the firm pillow sprawled out directly in front of it on the bed. 

“He’s knee-deep in some annoying boss battle in the game he’s trying to beat,” James’ hand ghosted over your form, nearly tickling you with soft, soothing circles, “he wouldn’t notice if the house was set on fire. You just rest, don’t worry about him.”

As his hands roamed your curled-up form in a comforting dance, the sensation nearly lulled you to sleep. 

Nearly. 

Because when his fingers began to more frequently skim over your thigh, going far enough to notice the pillow lodged beneath it, he suddenly grabbed a hold of the cushion and wedged it even further up between your legs. 

The stationary plush by itself was enough friction against your clothed clit for you to suck in a sharp breath, but it didn’t stop there, as with a fist tight around the corner, James began to rut it against you. 

Letting out a soft whimper, it felt like you were floating on a cloud, and when his face then nuzzled against your neck, your hips couldn’t help but bashfully rock back against the pillow. 

“James…” you whined wispily, the cherry lollipop nearly falling from your slackened jaw. 

“Hm…” his voice vibrated against the rapid pulse on your neck, pelvis behind you grinded a bit closer, driving his hardness against the softness of your ass. 

“Y-you’re-”

“It’s okay, love,” a fluttering kiss grazed the shell of your ear as he tugged the cushion harder against your throbbing centre, “just let me help you feel better…”

© 2023 thyme-in-a-bubble 

[taylorswiftstyle]

Chiefs vs Buccaneers | Kansas City, MO | November 4, 2024

Vintage ‘Kansas City Leather Jacket’ - no longer available Louis Vuitton ‘Louise PM Earrings’ - $575.00 Chanel 'Quilted Cutout Plate Necklace' - $4,475.00 Retrouvai 'Magna Ring' - $5,855.00 Louis Vuitton ‘Ombre Blossom Open Ring’ - $3,150.00 The Row 'Vintage Leather Belt' - $630.00 AGOLDE 'Dee High Rise Shorts' - $150.00 Dior 'Saddle Bag' - $5,500.00

Let's firstly address the 'debutation' in the room with us. The combination of a black colour palette rendered in a western silhouette or a 'horse girl' nod courtesy of her boots and bag feels as comedically obvious as mashing up "Our Song" with "Call It What You Want" on the Eras Tour stage. I like to imagine that she's smiling about the tease on the inside.

Here, Taylor takes a western style boot for a spin in her Chiefs ‘fit for the day, paired with another Horse Girl chic accessory - a new matte black version of the gold hardware Dior ‘Saddle’ bag she carried from an outing in NYC last month. I personally love both!

When Taylor first made waves at Arrowhead Stadium last fall she spent her first season as a sports spectator developing a recognizable game day uniform. Like any uniform, it was one that centered on crafting style pillars that were identifiable, easily repeatable, and that underscored her overall brand as a relatable public figure while also feeling distinctly separate enough from her other style ‘genres’. This approach is not easy to pull off. It’s intentional and carefully thought out! As all good styling is. But it’s one she exceled at.

To my eye, her three pillars of choice were sentimental accessories, women/locally-owned businesses, and vintage.

Pulling on sentimental accessories like ’87’ rings or a gifted ‘TNT’ bracelet anchored the reason why she was there (to play a loving, supportive role). Highlighting local and woman-owned businesses diffused her gigantic spotlight onto deserving vendors that could use a lift. Lastly, incorporating vintage Chiefs merchandise allowed her to be a loud and proud fan without funnelling funds into bankable NFL wares and gives a +1 to the trend of shopping sustainably by giving love to pieces that already exist in the world.

Here, we see that third pillar of vintage on display in a very covetable oversized jacket. Assessing things on the surface, I think this is one of her best NFL showings. The slouchy jacket looks cohesive with her all black ensemble but the styling with more streamlined pieces proportionally balances out the jacket’s volume. The red lip pulls on the Chiefs colours in the paneling and keeps the eye moving consistently throughout the outfit. Meanwhile the belt ties into both the vintage element of her jacket and the black/gold elements of the rest of her outfit by a more ‘quiet luxury’ brand that she’s worn many times and is thus a recognized, existing designer in her fashion directory. Well played accessorizing!

In the last year or so, Taylor’s approach to jewelry has been: “Yes and”. Since she added three piercings to her lobes in the summer of 2023, she’s been comfortable opting for an earring stack and experimenting with upper cartilage cuffs, multiple piercing threaders, and more. That experimentation has also extended to necklace stacks and “fun” pieces like hand jewelry and bodychains.

Even more recently, her jewelry approach has favoured the big, the statement, and the noticeably monogrammed. Take her repeat LV monogram earrings which we saw at the US Open in September. They’re paired for a double down luxury moment with a statement Chanel necklace.

One of Taylor’s key brand signatures has always been her relatability. Whether that be in her emotionally resonant lyrics or in her easily coppable style. Stylishly, she’s executed this most often through her clothes in the form of the fashionable high/low (pairing high end designer pieces with more ‘accessible’ high street options from lower priced brands). But as of late we’ve seen an uptick in layered luxe. That is, monogrammed designer on designer looks.

Some might find it ostentatious, perhaps even tacky. Particularly given the rise of the “quiet luxury” trend which prizes a “demure” take on spendy fashion. Looks that revel unassumingly in expensive taste. In this moment, to me the logo-mania evokes her increasing confidence and ease in leaning in to bigger, bolder, luxe fashion. And perhaps there’s also something there in confidently and loudly reclaiming your identity with fabulously obvious “self named” pieces.

However! I know holistically the increase of monogrammed luxury during this season of NFL styling has given many pause. Does a heavy dose of monogrammed luxury brands paired with a sustainable vintage piece provide balance … or does it cancel the other out?* I’m curious to hear your thoughts!

Photo by Jamie Squire via Getty Images

[dead-lights]

simblreen 2024 gift #2 // witches of war

ok but I'm obsessed with that hat on Tess. yes, that's kristopher volkov's mom up there on the right.

I have for you a companion to my previous simblreen set - 4 pieces of wall art depicting witches who fought in the war between spellcasters and vampires. These are meant to be older than the previous set, but in color bc magic!

If you're interested in learning more about the Century Conflict (the war between vampires and spellcasters) I compiled information about it from in-game text here.

@simblreenofficial

All of the frames come with all 4 witches in all 4 frame colors, for a total of 16 swatches each.

I don't want to ramble on forever because there's kind of a lot - if you just want to get to the download, follow the link below. Tess's frame requires Realm of Magic. Maria's frame requires Werewolves.

download all here (requires werewolves & realm of magic) [SFS]

or keep reading for:

previews of each frame & individual download links

information about the witches

full-sized renders

list of cc

flora's revelation [SFS]

Florencia learned long ago that the only way to survive chaos is to become chaos. That's her excuse, anyway. Florencia Dillon is an oc spellcaster-turned-vampire who later became Elle DeVampiro's mother-in-law. I don't want to clutter up this post more than I already have, but she shows up in my previous set and you can read more about how I've developed the DeVampiro family here.

keisha's plunder [SFS]

No one knows how Keisha got this frame. Best not to think about it too hard. Keisha Hughes is a premade from the Realm of Magic Sages household. She is L. Faba's predecessor as Sage of Mischief.

maria's historical prints (requires werewolves) [SFS]

Maria understood the importance of photography in maintaining and communicating a robust historical record. She designed these frames to house her favorite moments. She may have gone slightly overboard in duplicating literally hundreds of them on the assumptions that her colleagues would be as passionate about the preservation of history as she was. Someone will find something to do with the excess - they’re really quite cute! Maria Volkov was a Mooncaster (one of the spellcasters who successfully fought vampires by becoming werewolves). She was Kristopher Volkov's mother and died a very long time ago.

tess's discovery (requires realm of magic) [SFS]

After the invention of the camera, Tess began experimenting with different chemicals and development methods in an attempt to invent color photography. Weeks spent inhaling noxious fumes in an unventilated basement led her to one conclusion: Just use magic. Tess Dyer is a premade from the Realm of Magic Sages household. She is Morgyn Ember's predecessor as Sage of the Untamed. According to this trailer, she was the one who ascended them.

1. maria volkov

hat: helia hat by @clumsyalienn

hair: marjorie by @buzzardly28

dress: from victorian visions by @gilded-ghosts

pose: from model poses by @starrysimsie

2. florencia dillon

hat: bewitching hat by @nolan-sims

hair: franny by @buzzardly28

dress: governess dress (SFS)

pose: from simblreen 2023 part 3 by @simmerianne93

3. keisha hughes

hat: harvest witch hat by @litttlecakes

hair: meg by @simkatu

dress: summer swells dress by @gilded-ghosts

pose: from emotions: mix 2 by @akuiyumi

4. tess dyer

hat: bad witch hat by @akalukery

hair: beatrice hair by @simkatu

dress: elphaba dress by @sentate

pose: from 18th century portraits part 1 by @anachrosims

cover

keisha's pose: from halloween magic by @helgatisha

other poses: from simblreen 2023 #3 by @simmerianne93

[literaryavenger]

New Year's Eve

Summary: A game of two truths and a lie reveals to the team a fact about the you that Bucky can’t seem to stop thinking about.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Female Reader

Warnings: Minimal use of Y/N. Language 'cause why not. A lot of fluff. My poor attempts at being funny. Mutual pining, idiots in love. Self-deprecating thoughts.

Word Count: 3.2K

A/N: Happy New Year's Eve! Thanks for all the messages when I was sick, I'm finally feeling better and I'm negative for Covid! I really wanted to post something for New Year's Eve and this came from a fever dream I had when I was sick, lol. I hope it's any good and someone enjoys it! A particular thank you to @ordelixx for helping me with this story!💘I've only started posting here about a month and a half but I'm really enjoying it and feeling more and more comfortable in my writing. I hope I'm also getting better at it. Anyway, I have big plans for the New Year that I hope you'll enjoy! This year hasn't been great for me, but I'm planning on working harder than ever to make sure the next one is a year I can be proud of. I hope you guys have a nice last day of 2023 and an amazing start of 2024! Love you all.💘

Masterlist

“Ok, your turn, Kill Bill. Two truths and a lie, go.” Tony says, referring to the fact that you fight with swords, making you roll your eyes before you join in on the laughter.

“Ok, uhm...” you try not to look at anyone so you don’t give away the answer “I have a teddy bear that I sleep with, I have bungee jumped from the top of the tower and I’ve never had a New Year’s kiss.”

You look back up to the room and wait for their guesses.

It’s a Friday night and the people that remained in the Tower for the holidays decided to have a little game night.

Every year the same people stay around, having nowhere in particular to go, and spend Christmas together. 

Clint and Scott usually spend this time with their families, this year Thor decided to go to New Asgard with Bruce and Loki to visit Val and Korg, and Peter decided to spend it with aunt May and Happy.

You usually alternate between going to visit your family and staying in the tower each year, and this one was your turn to go to your first home.

You came back the day after Christmas, never being one to miss Tony’s New Year’s Eve party that’s gonna happen in two days now.

“Well, we know she has a teddy bear.” Wanda says.

“Do we know that?” Tony turns to you, narrowing his eyes. “Do you have one?”

“Yes, she does, we’ve seen it” Natasha answers for you while you glance at Bucky, praying he doesn’t put together that they’re talking about the teddy bear he gifted you for Valentine’s Day this year along with flowers. 

Natasha and Wanda were more happy than you when you told them, sustaining that he did it because he liked you until you pointed out that he gave flowers to them too, because he’s sweet and a gentleman and that’s just who he is.

They wouldn’t let up on the fact that neither of them got a teddy bear though, and you would have agreed with them but Bucky never really did anything else about it so you decided to let it go and not read too much into it.

You're brought back to the present by Tony.

“Ok, so she has one. Then it’s gotta be the New Year’s kiss, everyone has had one at least once in their life,” he was looking at your reaction very closely while talking, but you did your best to keep an easy smile and not give anything away.

“Even Captain Virgin over there had one last year.” he adds vaguely waving towards Steve’s general direction. 

You crack at the nickname and at the undignified sound Steve made while blushing and glancing at Nat that shared that kiss with him.

“Tony, there’s no way that she bungee jumped from the roof without us knowing, that’s gotta be the lie.” Sam interjects, also watching you closely for any signs of a reaction that you manage not to give.

“Alright, just take your guesses, people.” You say to the group.

“New Year’s Kiss.” Tony all but yelled, Natasha and Wanda agreeing with him.

“Bungee jump.” Sam says and Steve and Bucky agree, then they all seem to hold their breath as they wait for your answer.

It’s not a surprise that even these stupid little games cause a lot of competition amongst the team.

“Neither.”-you finally said and let out a laugh when they all groan in annoyance while taking their shots for guessing wrong.

“WAIT- you bungee jumped off the ROOF? When?!” Steve seems more concerned than anything.

“Well, you know a few months ago when we happened to all be on different missions at the same time?” They nod, not knowing where you're going with this “Clint and I came back first from ours, we were bored and there was no one around to stop us from doing anything stupid so…” you trail off, shrugging while laughing. 

Steve looks shocked, Sam is laughing his ass off while Tony immediately goes to look for the security footage.

They all cheered while watching you throw yourself off the roof, Clint's yells and laughter could be heard, and then Steve shakes his head while joining you in the laughter when you see Clint take his turn and scream like a little girl while you fall to the ground laughing on the video. 

Once you all composed yourselves, Tony pokes Wanda’s arm “I thought you said she had a teddy bear.” he's looking at her like she brought him on a treasure hunt and then betrayed him and left him for dead on a deserted island.

“She does! She got it from-” you interrupt her before she can finish the sentence, blushing a little and avoiding Bucky’s eyes.

“I do have a teddy bear, I just don’t sleep with it.” you say, shrugging.

“Oh, come on, that’s cheating!” Natasha whines.

“It’s really not, just because I do have one it doesn’t mean I didn’t tell a lie about it” you laugh at her pout.

“Wait a minute, so you’ve never had a New Year’s kiss?” Tony looks at you like you suddenly grew two heads.

“It’s not a big deal. Funny thing is, I have had boyfriends during New Year’s Eve, I just never happen to spend the day with them.” you say absentmindedly while thinking back at all the parties you’ve been to over the years to celebrate the new year.

“Really?” it's so quiet you almost missed it, your eyes snapping up to meet Bucky’s that were already looking at you.

“Is that so hard to believe?” The room seems to go quiet as everybody looks at you two, but you're too focused on each other to notice.

“I didn’t- I mean…” his cheeks started to turn a little pink as he seemed to have trouble finishing his sentence “It’s just you’re very pretty, who wouldn’t want to kiss you?”

You didn’t know what to say to that, you start blushing too while opening and closing your mouth a couple of times, looking like a damn fish.

You settle for a quiet ‘thank you’ with a smile that he shyly returns, neither of you noticing the glances passed by everyone else.

The whole team is convinced that there’s something between you and Bucky, but both of you always deny it and don’t seem to read too much into each other’s actions, always dismissing the glances and lingering touches as friendly affection even though you’re not really that close.

But really what else could it be?

The team lets the moment end and the game goes on, everyone keeps drinking and having fun until it gets really late and you all decide to call it a night.

Bucky goes to his bedroom and gets ready for sleep but he can’t seem to focus on anything else but you.

He really doesn’t understand how can anybody see your pretty self when you’ve just woken up, no makeup and your eyes full of sleep and not want to kiss you, let alone when you are all dolled up in a pretty golden dresses like you do every New Year’s. 

Every year it gets harder for him not to just grab you and kiss you, hell every day is pretty much torture to see you around the Compound and not get to be with you the way he wants to.

But he has to keep his hands to himself because there’s no way you could actually like him like that. 

He’s even tried to drop hints here and there like giving you the teddy bear for Valentine’s Day but, except for the cute shade of pink that your face turned, you still didn’t seem all that interested.

Still, that didn’t stop him from thinking what it would be like if you did like him and fantasize about being your first New Year’s kiss and maybe even your last first kiss.

At the same time you were in your own room getting ready for bed while your own thoughts kept going back to the moment you shared with Bucky in the living room. 

You didn’t know if you were more embarrassed because you actually told the team you’ve never had a kiss on New Year’s Eve or happy because Bucky called you pretty.

If it was anyone else you wouldn’t even think twice about it, but coming from him it just felt like you were being complimented for the first time ever. 

Everytime you thought about it you felt all warm and fuzzy inside, and at this point the moment was pretty much on loop in your mind.

The more you think about it the more you feel your face heat up, sleep not coming easily as you slip into Bucky filled dreams.

The next day everybody’s hanging out in the living room, most of them nursing a hangover from last night. You get ready for a last minute shopping trip to try and find a new dress for New Year’s Eve.

When you get to the living room you see Steve grinning at a disgruntled Tony, Wanda, Sam and Natasha who are obviously very hangover and nowhere near as amused as the blonde supersoldier. 

Bucky’s attention is on you as soon as you're in his field of vision and no one fails to notice it, except you of course, your own attention on Wanda and Natasha sprawled on the couch.

“Well, I was gonna ask you if you wanted to come shopping with me,” you start watching from one to the other, as amused as Steve at everyone’s inability to contain themselves when drinking. “but I don’t think that’s happening.” 

“Bite me, YLN.” Is all Nat says.

Wanda, on the other hand, is a little gentler. “I can come with you, if you want.” she says sweetly.

“That’s okay, Wands.” you smile at her “just rest and drink lots of water.”

You turn around, saying bye to everyone and making your way out. As soon as the doors of the elevator close, everyone turns to Bucky that's not even pretending not to be staring anymore.

Not that anyone could ignore the longing look on Bucky’s face as he watches you walk away.

“Buck,” Steve starts talking, glancing at everyone before setting his gaze back on his best friend. “we need to talk.”

“Okay…” he slowly drags out, unsure if he even wants Steve to keep going.

“Well, we’ve been noticing some things lately…” He’s unsure of how to say this. “Between you and Y/N.”

Bucky’s cheeks start to turn a slight shade of pink, but he’s still not sure where Steve’s going with this so he says nothing.

“So we thought” he gestures around at everybody. “that maybe we should-”

“We know you like her, and we want to help you get with her.” Tony interrupts Steve, quickly getting to the point.

At Steve’s glare, Tony merely raises his hands in surrender saying, “Listen, Capsicle, I’m way too hungover to take the panoramic route. Let’s just get this over with.”

“Yeah, Stark’s right.” Sam says, turning Bucky whose face is fully red now. “You have a weak ass game, man. Let us help you.”

They all look at the brunette supersoldier while waiting for his answer. He chews on his lip while looking at the expectant faces of his friends, before letting out a deep sigh.

“How would you even help me?” He says quietly, neither accepting nor denying their help just yet.

“Well, we know Y/N,” Wanda says.

“Yeah, we can tell you what turns her on.” Natasha smirked, before Wanda flicks her ear making her let out an ‘ow’ with a slight pout.

“What she means is,” she glares at Natasha “we can tell you what she likes, you know. Maybe help you get closer to her.”

Bucky shakes his head lightly “This is not a good idea. And it doesn’t even matter if she doesn’t like me.”

Wanda and Natasha seem to have a silent conversation, ending with Natasha raising her eyebrow at Wanda and Wanda just sighing with a soft ‘fine’.

“She does like you.” Wanda turns back to Bucky.

“She’s just convinced that you don’t like her like that.” Natasha says with a roll of her eyes.

Bucky still wasn’t completely convinced, but he agreed nonetheless. Maybe it was the glimmer of hope the girls gave him, but if there was even the slightest chance you could actually like him, he owed it to himself to try. 

So he let the team make a plan to get you guys together, hoping to god he wouldn’t come to regret it.

You come home a few hours later, super excited to have found the perfect dress for the party the next night.

Bucky thought you were just so cute, all smiles and giggles.

Wanda and Nat talked you into having the last girls night of the year, although it didn’t really take much convincing.

And so the plan begins.

You’re relaxing on your bed, Wanda lying next to you, your head on her lap, and Nat sprawled on the love seat near the window close to your bed.

You’re wearing bathrobes, sheet masks on your faces as you watch a cheesy romcom that you’re so embarrassingly into you don’t even notice the girls exchange a look and nod at each other.

Wanda clears her throat and then begins talking, as casually as she can. “So, how come you never told us you never had a New Year’s kiss?”

They had to approach the subject somehow, right?

“I don’t know,” you say absentmindedly and then shrug, your attention still on the Tv. “didn’t think it was important.” 

“Sure it isn’t.” Nat said, and her tone took your attention away from the movie for the first time since it started.

“What’s that supposed to mean, Tasha?” she simply shrugs, an innocent look in the face.

“It doesn’t mean anything” she says, her attention seemingly on the movie “I mean, if it doesn’t bother you, it doesn’t bother me.”

“Why would it bother me?” you frown, you don't understand what's so weird about this.

“Well, some people might find it a little…” Wanda trails off.

“Sad?” Natasha ends for her.

“It’s not like I’ve never kissed anyone.” you're starting to get a little defensive.

“We know that, sweetie.” Wanda coos, stroking your hair while you look up at her.

“We really didn’t mean anything by it.” Natasha ends, giving you an apologetic look.

“Yeah, whatever.” is all you say, and you turn your eyes back to the tv, your attention nowhere near it.

Natasha and Wanda can basically hear the gears turn in your head and give each other one last glance. 

Part one of the plan is complete.

The next day goes through like usual, the team spending basically the whole morning together.

It’s a tradition, having the last breakfast of the year together, watching the last movie, having the last lunch and so on. Doing all the lasts together.

It’s silly, but it’s a tradition you've all come to be very fond of. 

The afternoon comes and you and the girls spend it getting ready for the party, last night’s conversation almost forgotten.

Almost.

As you got to the party the music was deafening before you even stepped out of the elevator and, once you did, you were immediately immersed in a sea of perfume and cologne and, like every other Stark party extravaganza, you didn’t know about 98% of the people there. 

You quickly find the team, as outgoing as most of them are, you usually spend most of the night together because it’s the last night of the year, last party and, again, it's your tradition.

You talk, you joke, you laugh but the more you drink the more you keep thinking about your conversation with the girls last night.

Was it really that sad that you’ve never started a new year with a kiss?

Midnight came sooner than you would’ve liked and your teammates decide to ask you a sobering question.

“So, who are you kissing?” Tony asks very casually.

You turn around confused, the team’s eyes all on you. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, nobody told you?” Sam says, looking around him “We’re all kissing someone tonight.”

“I- You- What?” you glance towards Bucky so quickly he almost thought he imagined it.

“Well, Romanoff is kissing Rogers, I’m obviously kissing Pepper and Wanda is kissing Wilson.” Tony said, before specifying while pointing at the last two “As friends, obviously.”

“So, you’re all kissing someone?” You look at everyone except the one person you actually want to look at.

Something inside of you just believes that he would nod too and a beautiful woman that you could never compare to would appear at his side.

“Well,” Steve starts. “not all of us…”

He trails off and, following his gaze, you land on the very pair of blue eyes you were trying to avoid.

Suddenly everyone else scatters and it was just you and Bucky. You don't know what to say, but you feel like you can't look away from him now.

What the hell is happening to you?

You’re talking before you can even stop yourself “You know, we could also kiss. As friends.” you add, realizing what you just said, your eyes wide with your own surprise.

He’s about to say something, but you don’t give him a chance to get a sound out before you’re backtracking so fast you might actually fall out the window.

“You don’t have to. Obviously. It’s not like I’d make you.” you chuckled awkwardly, but you can’t stop yourself from rambling “Unless you wanted to. But why would you want to? It’s not like you’re missing anything. I’m not anything special.”

You can hear the countdown starting, but it sounds distant to your ears as your heart pounds faster. “I mean, I’m sure you’re a good kisser. Why wouldn’t you be? Not that you’re like a lady’s man.”

Bucky glances around him, the team giving him encouraging looks as they near zero and you just keep going “But like you were, you know. Not that it’s a bad thi-”

You're thankfully interrupted abruptly by Bucky’s lips on yours just as everyone yells ‘Happy New Year’ and gold and black confetti starts falling down on you.

You can't even begin to comprehend what's happening but your body does, kissing him back almost immediately.

It feels like forever and also too soon when he pulls away, you can't even hearing the chaos around you anymore.

All that exists is you and Bucky and his eyes and his arms around your waist and yours around his neck and his lips that you wanted to kiss again and kiss forever and never stop.

“You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that” he says after a few seconds. Or maybe days. Weeks? Hours? It doesn’t matter.

All that matters is the bright smile he gives you when you say “Me too.”

He kisses you again, but this time the spell is broken by the team’s whistles and cheers. 

When you pull away you’re both blushing a little, you glance around you and see all the smug faces of the idiots you love to death, Bucky’s attention never leaving you.

“And by the way,” Bucky says, gaining your attention once more. “you have more qualities than you think,” he then pointed at your chest “You have this.”

You looked down to where he was pointing before saying “I do have great tits, yes.”

When you looked back at him he was blushing even harder and looked like he was having a hard time maintaining eye contact, while you were more relaxed now that the kiss took away all the awkwardness, but trying hard not to laugh. 

“... I meant heart” he said after a few moments of silence.

“Either or.” you answered, shrugging and when you heard the snickers of the team around you, you couldn’t help but join them, followed by a still blushing Bucky.

Yep, this year is definitely gonna be an interesting one.

[mysteryshoptls]

2024-2025 Player Birthday Login Message Lines

These are all the messages that you get from the boys when you log in on the birthday that you set in-game from 18 Mar 2024 to 17 Mar 2025! For those that want to hear them, you can find them in the Archive, under the tab その他　→　監督生バースデー④. (This will not be in your game archives until the birthday you set passes.)

You can find the 2021-2022 Birthday Login Message Lines here! You can find the 2022-2023 Birthday Login Message Lines here! You can find the 2023-2024 Birthday Login Message Lines here!

HEARTSLABYUL

Riddle

Happy Birthday, [Yuu]. Thanks for always looking out for those two dorm students of mine. Actually, we're planning on hosting a reception this weekend at our dorm. I would like to invite you, as part of your birthday celebration. Heh. My apologies. Looks like that has caused you a little anxiety. No worries, I'll be beside you teaching you the proper manners the whole time.

Ace

Yo, [Yuu]. Happy Birthday― Mmkay, so let's get started on the birthday party. I'm just gonna pop on over to this one restaurant in town and nab some tasty-lookin' stuff! Just chill and wait here at Ramshackle... Hey, c'mon, I ain't tryin' to pull anything over on ya. Sometimes I just want to have a normal celebration too, y'know!

Deuce

[Yuu], Happy Birthday! Let me take you to go buy a prese... Eh? You're saying that I've already given you a present because I fixed the broken lights in Ramshackle the other day...? No way, you don't gotta hold back like that! I want to go all out for my pal's special day. That's what makes me happy.

Cater

[Yuu]-chan, Happy Birthday―☆ Did ya post on Magicam that it's your birthday? Oh, not yet? Then, let Cay-kun here with all his power and wisdom write a post for you! We'll attach a cool photo and some slammin' hashtags... Whaddya think? A perfect gift from me, or what?

Trey

Happy Birthday. So, about your present... I do have one. It's just... I was asking around for what to gift you and in the end, I couldn't really figure out what I should get... So in the end, after being at a loss, I ended up getting you this shirt. I look at it now and wonder what possessed me to pick this pattern... Yeah, I know, it's just laughable.

SAVANACLAW

Leona

Yeah, yeah. Your birthday's come 'round again, hooray. ...What're you doing, setting up a chessboard on the floor like that? You practiced just to win a game against me? Oho, so you're challenging me, then. Look at the pluck on this herbivore. So, what're you willing to bet, then? No way you're gettin' away with just a simple game after throwin' down the gauntlet at me like this.

Jack

So, it's your birthday today. Have you set up any new goals yet? What, you're going to surpass me in our classes? Heh, that's a hilarious joke. You really think you can beat me? But I'll take you on. If you get a better score on our next test, I'll get you some kind of present.

Ruggie

Happy Birthday―! 'N that means, I got you somethin' that's fittin' comin' from an upperclassman like me. Ta-da! A homemade fishing rod～ ...Ah, you totally just thought it's a cheap gift, didn'tcha! But this totally works! I know what it's like to go hungry too, y'know～ You're probably always goin' through things, so if you're ever in a pinch, make sure you use this!

OCTAVINELLE

Azul

A very Happy Birthday to you. Have you thought of a gift you'd like to get for yourself? Please, allow me to procure it for you... ...Oho, you have a keen eye to request something of that caliber. It may be considerably difficult to just anyone to acquire. HOW-EV-ER! If I were to handle it, that is a different situation altogether. I shall definitely make sure to retrieve it for you. Please wait expectantly.

Jade

Happy tidings for your birthday. I do hope this year will be another fruitful year for you. By the way, [Yuu]-san. Have you eaten yet? Oh, not yet, how wonderful. As a matter of fact, I thought I would treat you to something in my own little way. I only offer this with the best of intentions, of course. Fufu.

Floyd

Oh hey, Shrimpy-chan. It's your birthday today, huh. Mmkay, then I'll give you some snacks. I got these strange tastin' gummies, these wicked hard cookies, and some squishy jerky. Awesome, right? I got a ton, but all of them expire today, so. These are my presents to you, so you better eat them all without wastin' any, 'kay?

SCARABIA

Kalim

[Yuu], Happy Birthday! Here's your present, from me to you. Ahaha, did that surprise you? I tried making a pop up birthday card just for you. I also tried making a ton of paper flowers that we use during celebrations back in the Scalding Sands. Don'tcha think they came out real pretty?

Jamil

Happy Birthday, [Yuu]. It isn't much, but here's your present. Ramshackle is a fairly old building. I'm sure there are bugs that will find their way in and try to settle down here. However, if you use this, you can rid yourself of all of them in an instant. I can vouch for its effectiveness. Use it as soon as you can.

POMEFIORE

Vil

Happy Birthday, [Yuu]. ...You wish for me to come to your party here, at Ramshackle? And to top it all off, you've prepared a healthy menu just for me... Heh, how considerate of you. Very well. I suppose I can make an appearance out of respect for your enthusiasm. I do hope you're honored that I'll be there to celebrate with you.

Epel

Happy Birthday! I put in a lot of thought picking out a present for you. Here ya go, fingerless gloves! Nice design, right? Makes using your phone a lot easier, too. It'll make you look super cool, and the more you use it, the more comfy it'll feel. I hope you use it tons!

Rook

I've been waiting, Trickster. Waiting, that is, to celebrate your birthday with you. A spectacular day requires a spectacular memory. That is why I've come up with a wonderful plan of my own. First, we watch two back-to-back theater performances, then attend a poetry reading, and finally, watch a movie in the evening. There will be no time to rest. Come, we must quickly fly towards the theater!

IGNIHYDE

Idia

Kk, time to pretend we all get along and celebrate a birthday again... Eep!? D-Did you hear that just now...? Uh, so... Happy B-day, I guess... Soz, I don't have a present for you. Didn't even know it was your birthday... What, you're seriously just happy hearing me wish you a happy b-day? [siiigh] Nah, I'll order something small online and have it shipped to Ramshackle sometime later.

Ortho

Happy Birthday! Here's your present. Go ahead and open it! Hehe, you see what I did? I used a laser to engrave a birthday message on a glass tumbler for you. It was a little difficult fine tuning the power adjustment for the more detailed parts, but it came out pretty good, don't you think? I really hope you like it!

DIASOMNIA

Malleus

Child of Man, I see today is your birthday. ...Hm? What's the matter? You look a tad glum. Ah, I see, you are struggling to carry all your presents. Well, allow me to deliver them to Ramshackle with magic in your stead. No need to protest, this is an effortless task for someone like me. You should enjoy your special day to the utmost.

Silver

Happy Birthday. You're curious about this braided cord? It is your present. Lilia-senpai explained it to me thusly... If a string wrapped around your wrist or ankle snaps off on its own, then your wish will be granted. I strung this cord together in hopes that you may have your wishes come true. It may be a tad ill-shaped, but if it pleases you, it is yours.

Sebek

As I recall, today is your birthday... Hm? You want me to come to your birthday party? What poor semblance of a joke. I don't have the spare time to waltz into some human gathering like... WHAT!? MY LIEGE HIMSELF WILL ALSO BE THERE!? THEN SAY THAT FIRST! For goodness' sake, humans like you are just... so thoroughly thoughtless. Hurry and provide me the location and commencement time!

Lilia

Ooh, nice. So today's your birthday. Just look at how big you're getting. ...Khee hee hee. Don't look so downtrodden. It's just me pretending to be a doting gramps. The other guys in my dorm don't ever let me joke with them like that. And so, I have a present for you. Here, a CD of my performances, specially made! Take this and enjoy my raging screamo music with your whole heart and body.

OTHERS

Crowley and Rollo do not have new lines. Theirs are repeated from last year's.

Grim

Today's your birthday, huh. Happy Birthday to you! ...Huh? Do I got a gift for ya? What're ya even saying? Shouldn't ya be happy enough that you're my number one favorite henchie? Fiiine. Guess I can use my paws to pad you a massage sometime. Wouldn't want to hafta sit in a hard and uncomfy lap, after all!

Crowley

Ta-daaa! What do you suppose this could be? That’s correct, it’s an exchange coupon for use at the Mystery Shop! You have been a consistent helping hand, so… This is a special gift for you. Happy Birthday. Incidentally, that is only worth 500 madol (5 Thaumarks). It cannot be exchanged for something pricier than that. Please don’t hold it against me.

Crewel

It seemed rather rowdy in here, but now I see it was just you, pup. Are you excited simply because its your birthday? I see, well, in that case, I have a special present just for you. As for what it is... It is a special alchemy homework assignment. You should be happy; you'll be able to improve your skills even further with this, don't you think? Haha, Happy Birthday.

Rollo

Whatever is the matter, [Yuu]-kun? There is a strange glimmer in your eyes… ...Ah, I see. Today is your birthday. A present? Hmph. I hardly think that it should be something you request of others… But no matter. Indeed, birthdays should be treasured. However, what would be an acceptable gift…? I am afraid I’m rather unaccustomed to this. I would hope I do not disappoint you with a poor gift choice.

Fellow

Oh, my, hello there, my learned scholar! I've been searching, and finally, I've found you! I was fervently hoping to wish you well for your birthday. Here, your present. ...As fellows lacking in magical abilities, we should get along together, don'tcha think? Happy Birthday! Fwahaha!

Requested by Anonymous.

[hyuckdolle]

P!LLOW PRINCESS. ᥫ᭡ jaemin x fem!reader

request: ( yes / no )

content warning: ( headcanon ), yk i love a spoiled reader, oral mentioned ( f + m receiving ), squirting, and all that freaky sht. ⭐️ black coded reader ??

messages: y’all i want to start taking requests more real bad, like ik they’re always open in case i do answer them but i really need to get on my request game. especially since i barely write.

⋆ jaemin loves his pillow princess, all you have to do is lay there and look pretty for him. he loves the cute little panties you put on, the way you smell, and carry yourself.. that shit will literally have him on his knees ready to serve you. the gold plated necklace that sat on your chest with the cursive spelling of ”jaemin”, that he had gifted you for valentine’s day. he loves the way it clinks up against your other ones as he pounds into you.

⋆ he would eat your pussy for hours until you would cry and have to force his mouth away from your kitty. the way he’d suck and would lay sloppy wet kisses on your clit and then tongue fuck you afterward. grab and tug on his hair!!! he loves it. “don’t make me fuck the attitude out of you,” and it’s him eating you out until you’re crying for him to stop so that you can catch your breath.

⋆ OR it’s him overstimulating you until you squirt for him, whispering out a “there we go,” as he rubs your clit messily.

⋆ the way he manhandles you into any position that he wants because your job is to lay and look pretty, you would tell him that yourself.

⋆ you would scroll on your phone on shopping websites as he sucked your perky nipples, occasionally flicking his tongue against them. and as mentioned, you played with his hair, your long acrylics massaging his scalp.

⋆ “i barely ride or do any of that, i just sit and look pretty, and get spoiled,” you remember telling your friends, who had gone into shock, during the lil talks y’all be having about y’all dudes — before sipping your strawberry milkshake as if it was normal for every other person. “meanwhile our knees hurting and shit,” one of them said and swore she was trying to get like you. “oh yeah my man want too much,” the other one said before going to text him to whine about it.

⋆ one of your best gifts is giving him head, for you to be a pillow princess you do a damn good well of doing so. and when you do, you get nasty with it. the way you let him nut on your face, tongue out and ready. his raspy voice praising you (ik y’all know what i’m talking abt). calling you his pretty girl.

⋆ y’all his muscles are so thickly built, idk how to explain it oml. but the way he little spoons you with his big arms wrapped around you as he lazily thrusts into your wet pussy, that openly invites his just as thick length in. like yeah. jaemin’s pillow princess until death does y’all apart frl !

⋆ when you’re with jaemin, you gon have it good !!

2023 HYUCKDOLLE. © all rights reserved !

[wintfleur]

🍂 ͡ ꒱ JULIETTES RELATIONSHIP WITH MAT & QUINN

au masterlist - everything for the AU is under #🍂 ͡ ꒱ Juliette Leclerc

°. — everything for the couple under #⋆ ˚｡⋆୨🤎୧˚ Juliette’s lovers

°. — you can find anything smutty under #⋆ ˚｡⋆୨🎞️୧˚ smutty lovers

ᡣ𐭩 BASICS !

how did they meet?  

mat and quinn met when they were younger at a hockey tournament and they instantly became close, over the years they became each other's best friend. 

julie met mat at a party in august of 2021, a mutual friend of theirs introduced them to each other, they spent most of that night at the party together. 

julie and quinn met in november of 2021, she was invited to a canucks game and they had filmed a small video together where he had given her one of his jerseys. 

who confessed their feelings first?  mat and quinn were the ones to confess their feelings first, they had noticed julie had became a little distant (she was afraid of her feelings) they surprised her at her apartment in april, and they had a long and emotional talk of their feelings, and they ended up asking her to be there girlfriend. 

first date?  juliette was the one to ask them on a date in february of 2022. She invited them over to her place, they made dinner together, laughed and drank wine as they talked and got to know each other better, having some dessert Julie made while watching a movie. It was a perfect first date for them, they could be comfortable and be themselves in the safety of Julie's home, not having to worry about being seen. 

first kiss?  mat and quinn had their first kiss together when they were at a bar, quinn was 22 while mat was 24 – they were in a photobooth and it kinda just happened. Mat and Julie shared a tipsy kiss the night they met at the party. Julie and Quinn had their first kiss while they were hiding away on a balcony at an event they both were at. 

first I love you?  quinn was the one to say i love you first, the throuple were cuddling on the couch at quinn’s lake house in july, he was having a bad day and julie and mat were just being so sweet and soft to him. he was so overwhelmed with love that he just whispered the words. a happy julie and mat of course said it back, reassuring quinn who got all shy, littering their boy and each other with sweet kisses. 

how did everyone find out? 

family + friends: they told their families and close friends, weeks after they were official, they wanted to take their time until they were fully comfortable with everyone knowing. 

the public: the public found out about them in June of 2023, when an article was posted with the sole purpose of ruining their careers. The article had pictures of them that were taken without their consent, intimate details of their relationship. 

ᡣ𐭩 DETAILS !

their tropes: dom!mat x switch!quinn x switch!julie, friends to lovers, talker!mat x listener!julie x talker!quinn, hyper!mat x sleepy!quinn x sleepy!julie, 

love languages: 

mat’s: physical touch, acts of service 

quinn’s: words of affirmation, physical touch 

julie’s: gift giving, physical touch 

pet names: 

mat’s (for them): baby, love, sweetheart 

quinn’s (for them): honey, angel, babe 

julie’s (for them): darling, love, handsome 

mat and julie love to call quinn pet names in french, it makes him very flustered 

their favorite sleep position: 

mat’s: big spoon 

quinn’s: little spoon / being in the middle 

julie’s: either 

songs that describe them: 

seven – jungkook & latto 

sweet – cigarettes after sex

meet me halfway – black eyed peas 

. . . more to add! 

contact names: 

mat’s phone 

quinn’s: q baby 💙

julie’s: julie baby 💞

quinn’s phone

mat’s: barzy 🤍

julie’s: juliebug 💗

julie’s phone 

mat’s: matty 💕

quinn’s: quinny 💕

lockscreens: 

mat’s: is a picture of julie and quinn, they had all gone to this really cool record shop when they were exploring a town they were visiting. mat that it was cute how silly they were being and took a picture. 

quinn’s: is a picture of julie and mat on date night, they had just left a restaurant and the three of them were all a little tipsy, mat and julie were being really giggly so quinn took a picture to remember the moment forever. 

julie’s: is a picture of mat and quinn, they were all staying at a family ranch of a very close friend of julies for a vacation. She loves horses, she loves her boys and they all looked perfect, Julie of course had to take a picture of this moment! 

ᡣ𐭩 THEIR THINGS !

Judging everyone and everything together.

Cozy nights on the couch with a warm blanket and bottle of wine.

Matching jewelry in some way, Mat with a necklace, Quinn with a ring, and julie with a bracelet

Always texting each other good morning and good night.

Spending weekends on her yacht.

Skinny dipping

Spending their nights in the hottub on her balcony or at the lake house, laughs and tipsy kisses Shared between them

Clubbing! . . . well more like Julie and Mat dragging Quinn to the club with them.

Going on late boat rides at the lakehouse, so they can relax and watch the stars.

 Quinn and Mat playing one on one at the rink while Julie watches and cheers them both on, a lot of bets are won like this ;)

Slapping each others asses

Always touching each other in some way

Mat planning spontaneous dates

Going to carnivals/fairs and the boys competing against each other to get Julie the biggest stuffed animal.

Nights where they make homemade pizzas and play video games, a loving competition of course between mat and quinn.

Quinn and Julie holding hands while Mat is holding one of their waists, wherever they all walk together.

Their hands in each other's back pockets.

Juliette sending them love letters.

Always sending each other flowers when they are apart, the flowers remind them of each other.

Having amazing communication

Counting down the days until they see each other again.

Having access to each others calendars

Whenever they call their parents , they end up talking about each other.

Giving each other massages

Being each others biggest supporters

The boys painting julie's fingers and toes for her when she doesn't want to go get them done

ᡣ𐭩 FUN FACTS !

They love going on vacations together, mostly tropical places.

When Julie and Mat first met at the party, they shared a tipsy kiss. When Mat got home that night, he called Quinn and told him all about it. It was just one kiss, but God that was all Mat could think about.

Quinn didn't admit it , but he was a little jealous of the fact that mat and julie kissed. His feelings for Mat were confusing and honestly scaring him a little bit . . . but he wasn't jealous that Mat kissed someone else that  wasn't him, no he was jealous that he also didn't get to kiss julie and he wasn't there to see it happen.

They planned on keeping their relationship a secret for a while until they were comfortable enough for the public to know, but sadly that didn't happen.

They are all very family oriented, and they can't wait until they can have a family of their own

The boys both have their own place, but they practically live with Julie at her place in Monaco when they don't have hockey.

They love late mornings where they can wake up late, cuddle in bed for however long they want until they get up to make breakfast.

They love doing sports together, going golfing, and playing some tennis !! They are a very active couple.

The boys love to take advantage of the fact that they're good at the two sports, loving to help her. “Helping" means pressing their body close against hers and whispering tips in her ear . . . little do they both know that she pretends to be bad just so she could feel them pressed up against her.

 Mat’s filthy dirty talk always leaves Quinn and Julie a flustered and breathless mess . . . he loves the hold he has on them.

They all love how domestic they are when there together, especially in the mornings. Waking up in each other's arms, soft music playing through the kitchen as they make breakfast before eating it on Julie's balcony that gave them the beauty of monaco.

At the lake house they have a loveseat in the living room where the three love to curl up with each other , watching movies with Jack and luke. Mostly scary movies . . .

Physically Mat is more protective out of them all, but vocally that's julie. She will not stand for them to be disrespected or talked down to because of their sexual preference. Quinn is also very protective, but in a more of an intimidating way if that makes sense?

 Mat and Quinn get along wonderfully with Julie's friends , they feel very welcomed with them.

It's bittersweet when the boys are together and Julie can't be there with them, they are happy to be with each other, but it's just not the same without their girl.

They all proudly talk about their relationship when asked, but they usually keep it to themselves. All of them like their privacy, and even though they were exposed they were still going to sorta private about each other . . . Which is almost  impossible, the amount of pictures that the paparazzi take of them is crazy.

They once went on a cruise where they invited their parents and siblings and their significant others. They had a great time and it definitely brought them all closer , especially Arthur with Mat and quinn.

They love the city and living by a lake, but they absolutely love living in the country. They have talked about it many times being their own land to build a home and stables, ranch and vineyard, growing old together with their family . . . it's their dream.

Whenever they do have arguments which isn't often , they all have different reactions. Quinn normally just needs some time to himself to calm down and collect his thoughts.

Julie wants to fix things right away , she hates the idea of them being upset with her and she feels terrible and gets hard on herself.

Mat is like a mixture of the both of them , he needs some space but he also tears himself up with guilt.

Mat definitely is talking in their group chat the most , and poor Julie wakes up with tons of messages she has to read through from the two of them.

Out of all of them , mat is the most open about their relationship with the public/media

The boys love getting in contact with Julie's assistant so they can plan surprises for her!

Julie loves taking her boys shopping , trying on different outfits for them and picking out clothes for them to wear. They pretend to hate it but they all know they dont.

They love when Julie sings to them or plays the piano.

The boys love when Julie goes out with them and their teammates, they just love seeing how well she gets along with all of them.

ᡣ𐭩 INTERNETS FAVORITE MOMENTS !

The day after the article exposing them came out, Julie proudly said that both of her boyfriends were in attendance at the race when she was being interviewed . . . She then went and won the race and then proudly kissed them both after the race.

An interview had asked Quinn a very highly insensitive question about his relationship and Quinn was quick to snap and shut the reporter down, a very very intimidating glare on his face while doing so.

In the background of an instagram story Charles posted, you can see mat, quinn and julie cuddled up in a hammock in the beautiful leclerc home backyard, smiling and laughing at Arthur who was trying to impress them with a hockey stick that Quinn and mat had bought him.

When Julie made a special appearance on lando’s stream and the two were talking about a night out they had with mat, quinn and a few of their other friends. Julie was talking so fondly about the two boys and Lando had a great time playfully teasing her about it.

 When a video of the three of them dancing (grinding) together on the dancefloor at a club went viral . . . along with a clip of mat pouring champagne from the bottle into julie's mouth, quinn licking and kissing up the few drops that rolled down her neck.

The photo dumps Julie posts whenever they go on vacation together.

Every time Julie is shown on the big screen at their hockey games , or when the boys are shown on the screen in the paddock.

The clip of mat and julie going on the big screen at quinn’s game , mat having his arm wrapped around julies shoulder as she was snuggled into his side as she sipped on a beer , both of them wearing a quinn jersey , then it showed quinn who was sitting on the bench smiling as he saw the two of them on the big screen.

ᡣ𐭩 MOODBOARD !

˖ ་ 💭 roro’s notes ( AHH FINALLY ITS OUT !! I’m so sorry it took me forever to get out , I had a little struggle with coming up with some facts about them. I really hope you guys enjoy this , I love them so so much !! I’m not proud of the moodboard at all , it’s so bad !! Maybe in the future I’ll make a new one , it was just hard finding pictures for them !! )

°. — taglist ( @lovings4turn @toasttt11 @cixrosie @ru-kru @alwaysclassyeagle @theopenlocker @lavisenri @callsignwidow @willowpains @winterbarnesblog )

©️WINTFLEUR

[goldtheorys]

Flufftober day 10: Gift giving

Ticci toby x gn reader

_Hiiiii sorry for disappearing I’ve never posted my writing before (cause I haven’t written in like years lol) so I haven’t felt that dedicated.

_Using the 2023 flufftober cause I like it the best

══════════════════ -`♡´-

Lately, you had noticed Toby seemed to be a bit down. He had become more clingy as of late, but his gaze was always downcast. He rarely responded to your words with more than a hum and a nod. You had to check on him more than often to see if he had ate, drank and slept. You urged him to go on walks with you, to play a video game with you, but they only seemed to lift his mood for a short while.

It hurt to see him in such a depressive state. An idea had popped into your head from something he had been rambling about before. After scouring through a few stores, you had a small but hopefully meaningful group of gifts, put in a simple beige basket you had hastefully grabbed from a clearance aisle. Hurrying back home to him, you fumbled with the door for a moment before scurrying in.

No sounds signaled Toby had gotten up to greet you, so you carefully held the basket behind yourself, creeping through your small but comfortable shared home. Peeking around corners, you finally found him on the couch in the living room. At first you had mistaken him to be asleep, but when the floor creaked under your weight he lifted his head, looking at you under his eyelashes.

“Hello, lovely” you murmur, shifting to make sure the gifts would stay hidden until their grand reveal.

He sat up fully now, pushing his bangs back to look at you more clearly. He blinked a few times before his vision focused, and his gaze immediately locked on how you suspiciously held your hands behind your back.

“Hey. What you g-got there?” he inquires, slinging an arm over the couch as he rests his head on top of the cushion, face slightly smooshed.

You laughed lightly before pulling your hands from behind your back, presenting the hastily made gift basket. He lifted his head in curiosity, peering into it. He smiled once he viewed the contents, hand reaching out to gently take it from you. You walked over and slid into the spot next to him, leaning against his arm as he sat the box in his lap to sort through your presents, his face finally beaming with joy. He was still quiet, only noting something about a gift when he found it particularly pleasing, but it was all you needed to know your trip was a success.

The last thing he took out was a movie, gasping when he saw the cover to realize it was his most recent favorite. He turned to you, eyes crinkling at the edges as he wrapped you in a hug. You wrapped your arms around him, grinning from ear to ear.

“I take it you liked all of them?” You question as you pull back, hands still resting on his waist.

“No, I hate ‘em,” he replies sarcastically before planting a kiss on your cheek.

Ah, well, at least this obviously helped make his day. In the meantime, you should probably go start making popcorn. Toby had already walked over to the disc player to watch the movie.

══════════════════ -`♡´-

_Yuuuuck this is so bad. I kinda rushed it and tbh had trouble with how to go about the gift giving prompt, but hopefully it’s still enjoyable!

(⌒_⌒;) hope I can keep up and write some more stuff like this throughout the month.

_PS sorry for how short it is 😧 I’ll try to make them longer from now on

[johnnydany]

Leveling Up To Uncle EST 2024 Funny Gamer Lover T-Shirt

Get yours now: https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/47094845-leveling-up-to-uncle-est-2024-funny-gamer-lover

[starreo]

multi-character drabble.

includes bad bf, cheating, adult themes so, mdni.

he doesn't understand why you're dating his best friend. he's so much better than him. he picks up your calls immediately on nights when you're feeling lonely, he sticks to you in parties while his best friend is chatting up some girls at the bar, he brings you your favourite cravings randomly to make you happy.

when he's out shopping with his best friend, he sees something you'd like, "hey, y/n might like that, no?" and he just laughs, he says it's been months since the two of you started dating, and yet he has no idea what you like. however, he picks it up. and gifts it to you, "thought you might like this."

when he's playing video games with his best friend and you ask which outfit would look better on you, he is the one that looks up while his best friend still has his eyes concentrated on the screen. "you'd look stunning in both." he says, eyes refusing to look away from yours, observing your hurt stare at your boyfriend.

when he's with the two of you and it's a cold night, he asks you if you're feeling warm enough. when you shiver as a response, he takes his jacket off and places it on your shoulders. unlike your boyfriend who says, "should've just worn something else, babe ".

when you're crying about the lack of attention and love from the other side of your relationship, he is comforting you. telling you, "you deserve the best man, and if your boyfriend can't be one then, you should leave him." oh he whispers so much of that sweet stuff that by the end of your third drink, you blurt out how your boyfriend hasn't been able to make you cum even once. and that's when he can't take it anymore. he grabs you by your head and smashes his lips against yours.

when you're whimpering in his ear, gripping his shoulders tightly while creaming all over his cock, he promises you that you'll never have to fake an orgasm again. "i'll fuck you so good, you'll cum even if you don't want to ."

nagi, rin, isagi, reo, mikey, chifuyu, gojo, geto, hiori, eren, jean, suna rintaro, atsumu miya + any of your favs <3

© starreo 2023. do not copy, translate or repost .

[joeys-babe]

Joey B Imagines: Birthday Boy

————————————————————————-

Summary: December 10th, Joe’s 27th birthday spent with you and your twin boys.

Warnings: Fluff, *he's not injured!!*

Pairing: Joe Burrow x reader

Imagine universe: Into The Mystic

————————————————————————-

December 10th, 2023

Joe had awoken in bed by himself this morning to his surprise. He had expected you, his wife, to be waking him with smooches all over his face but your side of the bed was empty.

He rolled over to grab his phone off his nightstand when the setup sitting on it made him smile. Every year since you and Joe got together in high school when you guys were 16 and 17, on Joe’s birthday you'd get him white roses. The number of them would be the age he was turning that day. There they were, 27 white roses in a vase.

Realizing there was a card and a gift bag propped up next to it, Joe leaned up in bed and picked up the card first.

Happy Birthday, Joey!

Gosh, how are you 27?! You're getting old babe. JKJK. I just wanted to tell you that I’m so happy to share another birthday with you, this is the 11th one that we've celebrated together and I hope I've made every year better than the last. 26 was such a year for you, and I'm proud to say I was by your side for all of it. Cheers to another year of getting to show you how much I love you. You're my husband, my rock, my happiness, my high school sweetheart, and most importantly my best friend. I love you more than words can explain, Joey Shiesty.

To my nerdy, quirky, antisocial, video game, Kid Cudi-obsessed boy, Happy 27th birthday.

Love, your y/n.

Joe didn't realize tears were streaming down his cheeks till he put the card down and saw a wet spot on the blanket on his lap. He quickly composed himself and grabbed the gift bag.

Pulling the contents out of the bag, he felt his eyes well up again when he realized it was a photo album.

It was white leather and on the front in gold font, it simply read “Us.”

Joe flipped to the first page and it had a song lyric quoted.

“When they wanna see how true love should be, they'll just look at us.”

Flipping the page again, it was a collage of pictures of you and him as high school lovebirds. A picture of him picking you up after a win while you were in your cheer uniform, one of you two sitting next to each other at lunch just smiling from ear to ear, you and him sitting in the back of one of his friend's truck while at a drive-in movie, a pic of you two at senior prom, and finally one of you guys graduating.

Joe flipped the page and wasn't at all surprised to see it was the Ohio State era of his life. Since Joe was a year older than you, you were stuck in Athens still when Joe was a freshman at OSU. Long distance sucked, but you guys made it work, and multiple pictures were showcasing that. You took screenshots of you and Joe's face timing that he had never seen before. There was a lovesick look in his eye that made Joe giggle knowing he's still just as infatuated with you. His favorite picture was the one of him lying on top of you in his dorm bed, you were running your fingers through his mullet as you cuddled him.

The LSU page made Joe’s heart warm, so many pictures of you standing to the side and smiling at him just so proud of everything he had accomplished during his time there. There was one slightly spicy photo that made Joe do a double take. That was the first photo you had ever sent him with the intention of turning him on. While Joe was out doing something with the team after winning the national championship you put nothing on but his letterman jacket and the “Big Dick Joe” that he had.

The next few pages only made Joe smile get bigger.

In order it was him getting drafted, the 2022 AFC Championship win + engagement, the wedding, finding out I was pregnant, the gender reveal, the boy's arrival, and everything in between.

When the last few pages were empty for more memories Joe shut the book and put it off to the side. He again had to compose himself and wipe his eyes after the emotional walk through memory lane, you guys had been through so much together and Joe couldn't a picture his life without you.

Joe was about to text you but as soon as he went to grab his phone you were walking into the bedroom. Truthfully you had been downstairs listening to him secretly through the baby monitor you had put up in the bedroom. You had heard him wrestle around in the sheets before sniffles were heard. After it went quiet for a bit you went upstairs and watched him through the cracked bedroom door as he wiped his eyes.

You walked towards the bed with a stack of pumpkin-flavored pancakes topped with candles singing Happy Birthday as Joe wore a huge grin.

After you were finished singing, Joe blew out the candles and you placed the plate on his lap.

“G’morning, Joey. Happy Birthday, my love. - you

He pulled you into a hug and squeezed you so tight.

“I love you so much, y/n.” - Joe

You rubbed his back and kissed him after you pulled away, his arms still around your waist.

“What did you wish for when you blew out your candles?” - you

“Can't tell you, you know it wouldn't come true if I did.” - Joe

“You're no fun.” - you

“I'm just kidding, baby. I actually didn't make a wish.” - joe

“What why? Did I not give you enough time to? I'm sor-” - you

“No. You gave me plenty of time. I just don't have anything to wish for. I have everything I could ever want or need so there's no need for me to wish for something. I have a beautiful amazing wife, perfect twin boys, a good career…” - Joe

You stared at him dumbfounded, wondering how you were ever able to bag this sweet man.

“You’re gonna make me cry.” - you sniffled

“C’mere.” - Joe opened his arms to you

Immediately in his embrace, Joe held the back of your head and kissed your temple.

“I've already cried twice.” - Joe giggled

“Awe Joey. Okay enough sappy stuff, you eat your birthday breakfast while I go clean the kitchen up.” - you pulled away from him and headed for the door when he stopped you

“Wait don't go! I'll help you clean later, can you stay with me right now?” - Joe

You smiled sweetly at him before waking back over to the bed and getting under the covers with him.

Joe turned on Spongebob and ate his pancakes, a few minutes in you heard little feet in the hallway before knocks on the door could be heard.

“Mommy? Daddy?” - Tyson

“You can come in, Ty!” - Joe

The twins happily opened the door and toddled over to the bed. You lifted them onto the bed and they sat with their backs against the footboard.

Tyson giggled as he jokingly got his hand under the covers and tickled Joe’s foot. Joe played along with it for a little bit, loving the sound of his son’s laugh before he started fighting back.

“Do you boys remember what today is?” - you

“Uhm… no momma.” - Miles

“It's someone's birthday!” - you

Tyson and Miles looked at each other for a second before they gasped at the same time and yelled out the answer in unison.

“Daddy’s!” - The twins yelled

“Mhm! Remember what you guys made yesterday?” - you

The boys nodded and you instructed them to go retrieve what they made from their room.

Joe gave you a skeptical raised eyebrow look, but you just leaned in and kissed him while you still had the chance.

It wasn't long till you could hear those little feet again and Tyson and Miles were running back into the bedroom. They handed Joe a few pieces of paper after he put his empty plate on his nightstand.

Tyson drew a picture of him, his daddy, and his uncles passing football at the practice fields.

Miles drew a picture of him and Joe playing with Hot Wheels tracks.

The drawings had Joe feeling a different form of bliss, his heart warmed to an insane level as he looked at the little details in his boys’ drawings.

“I love them, boys. Thank you.” - Joe croaked

“You welcome!” - Tyson beamed

“Dada? You sad?” - Miles

“No, Daddy’s really happy.” - Joe

“But you cryin'…” - Miles

“He’s crying happy tears buddy, really happy tears.” - Joe

“Oh… okay!” - Miles

“You guys should go play. Mommy and Daddy are gonna clean up before Gramps and Grammy come.” - you

When the boys left the room you turned to Joe who was still crying. You softly kissed his cheek and wiped his tears off of his cheeks.

“You okay, baby?” - you

“Never been better. This is the best feeling.” - Joe

“Good. They worked hard on those. Come follow me downstairs. I have something cool to show you.” - you

“You gonna give me my 27 birthday spankings? Or is that later?” - joe

You laughed as you pulled him out of bed and shoved him into the closet, asking without words for him to put clothes on since he was only in boxers.

He returned in sweatpants and a T-shirt and followed you downstairs.

“Is the cool thing you have to show me a sink full of dishes? Or do I have to unload the dishwasher?” - Joe

“You’re exempt from those chores today since you are the birthday boy. But no, I’m giving you one of your gifts now.” - you

Joe smiled and I told him to close his eyes as we started walking into the kitchen. He did as you said and you took his hands in yours to guide him to where the setup on the counter was. You smiled at the secret camera you had recording and dropped Joe’s hands.

Telling him to open his eyes, Joe looked around rather confused but when he looked down at the counter his eyes went as wide as saucers.

There was a positive Clearblue test next to the same onesie you showed Joe when you found out you were pregnant with the twins.

You watched Joe’s eyes start to water as his chin started quivering, causing your own eyes to get misty as you smiled at him.

“You’re pregnant?” - Joe grinned

“Mhm.” - you smiled as tears dripped down your face

Immediately his arms were around you, lifting you and spinning you around as he cried into your neck.

“We’re having another baby!” - Joe cried

When he put you down, Joe picked up the pregnancy test with shaky hands and fell against the counter with his head buried in his arms. He was so overcome with emotion.

“Are you happy?” - you rubbed his back

Joe stood up abruptly and nodded vigorously.

“I've never been so happy. What if we have a girl, y/n? I could be a girl dad.” - Joe cried again

“Oh baby.” - you pulled him into your arms

Joe hugged you so tight but was now trying not to put pressure on your stomach now that he was aware his baby was in there.

“I love you so much, y/n. You and our family are the best things to have ever happened to me. I can't believe we're having another baby.” - Joe

“I love you and our babies so much. I can't believe it either, I'm so excited.” - you

“How long have you known? Well about the baby?” - Joe

“Not too long, found out a couple of days ago and thought I'd wait till today.” - you

Joe nodded and leaned down to be level with your stomach. It hasn't gotten bigger yet but Joe didn't care, his baby was still in there.

“Hey, baby. It's your daddy. Me and your momma already love you so much. We can't wait to meet you.” - Joe

“I have an ultrasound next week. Think you can go?” - you

“For sure. I'll make it happen.” - Joe

The rest of the day Joe couldn't keep his hands off of you, always making sure you weren't farther than arm's length away from him.

Robin asked what was up later at dinner when you rejected your usual favorite wine that she and Jimmy had brought.

You and Joe were ecstatic to tell his parents about Baby Burrow #3 coming next fall and they were just as happy finding out about their next grandkid.

That night after dinner, dessert (pumpkin pie of course), and putting the boys to sleep, Joe and I were lying in bed talking about everything baby.

“y/n, you know, I've only been 27 for a day but I feel like it's going to be the best year yet.” - Joe

“You think so?” - you

“I know so because I’m gonna spend it with you, our boys, and baby Burrow.” - Joe

You had a strange feeling that Joe was right, but also an overwhelming feeling of love washed over you. How'd you get so lucky with Joe?

————————————————————————-

Authors note: happy bday Joey B!

there was a birthday imagine request in my messages so here you go!

hope you enjoyed! 💕

[babydollmarauders]

GENDER REVEAL — JACK HUGHES

part of the el!hughes au

notes: this takes place November 21st, 2023!!

y/n.hughes

liked by jackhughes, lhughes_06 and 480,617 others

y/n.hughes we’re getting the best of both worlds 🩵

so excited for this journey and for baby boy to join us in the world. i can’t wait to witness El’s transition into big sisterhood, she’s such a sweet and caring baby, i know she’ll be an amazing sibling.

currently calling Mama Ellen to get some tips on how to be a boy mom.

tagged jackhughes

Comments on this post have been limited

jackhughes so grateful to you for giving me the two greatest gifts i could ever ask for. i love you, El, and our baby boy ♥️

y/n.hughes i love you so much, my beloved 🤍

colecaufield my godson 🥹

y/n.hughes your godson! you gonna help Jack teach him how to skate when he turns 3?

colecaufield oh, i have to share that honor with Jack? the man that trips over nothing every game? alright, i guess

jackhughes you know, it’s not too late to make Trevor a godfather again

colecaufield @/jackhughes NO! I’M SORRY! I TAKE IT BACK! PLEASE, I’VE BEEN PRACTICING!

jackhughes i’m a little scared to ask but practicing what?

colecaufield @/jackhughes swaddling, diaper changing, throwing him up in the air and then catching him

y/n.hughes okay so please don’t do that last one

lhughes_06 nephew time!! he’s gonna love me! i’ll teach him how to get chicks

jackhughes yeah, moose? how’s your girlfriend? oh that’s right, you don’t have one

_quinnhughes BURN! 🔥

jackhughes @/_quinnhughes neither do you, Quinny

trevorzegras LITTLE TREVOR HUGHES!!!

y/n.hughes absolutely not 🫶

jackhughes never gonna happen

_quinnhughes i can’t wait to meet this little angel. i know he’s gonna be just as amazing as his mom and his sister 🩵

y/n.hughes i love you Quinny 🤍

jackhughes i feel like i should be insulted?

_quinnhughes you feel correctly

jackhughes but jokes on you, i don’t. because my wife and daughter are perfect and i know my son will be too

nicohischier he’s gonna be amazing! i’m so happy for you guys ❤️

y/n.hughes thank you neeks! we’re so excited for him to arrive!

_alexturcotte he’s gonna be so cool like his uncle 😎

trevorzegras aww thanks turcs!

_alexturcotte i was talking about me…

dawson1417 have you guys picked out a name yet? may i suggest: Dawson?

jackhughes you may not

y/n.hughes @/jackhughes okay wait don’t knock it just yet

dawson1417 YES! DAWSON HUGHES!

trevorzegras she never said it was for certain, dude. it’s not happening

dawson1417 well i got farther than you 🤪

john.marino97 excited to see him at future family skates! i know with El’s sweet and caring heart, she’ll be the most phenomenal big sister ♥️

y/n.hughes oh okay- yeah, sure, make the pregnant woman cry, Johnny

john.marino97 i’m sorry (???)

jackhughes you should be, she just accidentally kneed me as she crawled on my lap to cry. but also, thanks man!

[leveloneandup]

For Christen Press, the Joy is in the Journey

Progress isn’t perfect.

That’s been Christen Press’s motto over the 781 days since she last played in a soccer match—and not just when it comes to her recovery from the ACL tear she sustained in June, 2022, but also when thinking about life as a whole.

“You have to accept that things won’t go the way you think they will, but maybe they’ll go better,” she explains. “Progress isn’t linear. It’s up and down and back and forth. But in that movement there’s more than what you ever imagined. So the imperfection—the struggle, the setbacks—those are actually the greatest gifts as you get to learn about yourself and you have the chance to grow.”

Press has had more than her share of setbacks over the last two years, as an initial surgery turned into two, then three, and finally four.

“I think every single time that I was told I’d have to have surgery, from the first ACL reconstruction and the three scopes that I had, I always thought I would be on the quickest timeline possible,” said Press when she returned to Angel City training in June. “I think that's part of who I am. I'm just relentlessly optimistic. I'm naively positive, and just thinking that everything's going to work out for me—and I never want that to change, you know? And I got off course of all of those timelines so many times that I finally had to actually relinquish that expectation of myself.”

In her two years off the field, Press says she’s grown and healed in more ways than just physically, but the goal was always to return, even if that possibility felt far off at times.

“I never thought about giving up,” says Press, “but there were moments that I thought I’d have to accept that I wouldn’t make it—or that ‘making it’ might not look how I expected.”

One of the hardest things about this process has been accepting that the outcome was not fully under her control. “I’m able to do a lot of suffering for success, and I’ve been that way since I was a child,” she says. “The question I had to answer was how to accept and be open to things I cannot control.”

Press had access to the best medical and rehabilitation care in the business—first at the Meyer Institute of Sports, an El Segundo rehab and performance facility specializing in elite athletes, and then with Angel City’s training staff, including VP of Medical and Performance Sarah Smith, Head Athletic Trainer Manny De Alba, Head of Sports Science Dan Jones, Director of Rehabilitation Sarah Neal, Performance Coach Michael Roman, Assistant Athletic Trainer April Seymon, and Senior Physical Therapist Joscelyn Shumate Bourne.

Ultimately, bodies don’t always heal the way we hope they will. All she could do was show up every day and try her best.

“I had to make decisions that centered my well being and full personhood,” she says. “To start to find my inherent value outside of excellence in the pitch.”

In part, that meant finding joy in other areas of life. She worked on her business, re–Inc, including starting a podcast with (business and life) partner Tobin Heath, initially focusing on the 2023 World Cup, then branching out to cover women’s soccer more generally. She went to the beach. She spent time with family.

In some ways, this time away from the game Press loves has been freeing. “The last two years have been the first of my career that I wasn’t evaluated on my performance,” she says. “I showed up for PT every day with a smile on my face and gave max effort. That’s all I had to do.”

Press’s return comes at a perfect time for the club: they’ve begun to build momentum with two convincing Summer Cup wins, against Club América and Bay FC, as they look ahead to the back half of the regular season. Playoffs are still well within reach heading into this stretch, a fact that Press’s return can only make more tangible.

“Her quality is inevitable,” says First Assistant Coach Eleri Earnshaw. “Last week in training, she scored a couple of goals that we haven't seen anyone else do yet this season in training.”

Returning to play after such a long hiatus isn’t easy for anyone, but Earnshaw says there’s a point the coaching staff have emphasized both to Press and to other injured players eyeing a return to the field: “your ability doesn't change overnight,” she says. “There are some things that just stay with you. Her chance creation, her separation from defenders—you’ve got to be in the right physical and mental place to be able to perform those things, to be confident to do it, but she is building those things up every day.”

“If we can get that quality onto the pitch for any number of minutes, great,” she concludes.

As Press anticipates her return to what she calls “the real world of professional sports”—one “filled with stress and pressure and often angst,” as she puts it—she’s going in with a fresh perspective.

“I’m determined to enjoy it,” she says. “I know who I am as a player and person, and I see this opportunity as a chance to do what I love. I told my teammates today: football is a miracle. It’s a miracle we get to do the thing we love.”