#Blake Hamilton

[dianalillian]

I spent the next 10 years being tossed between the two like dead weight. But for the next two months, I can be anybody.

FLOAT

I’ve been a manga fan ever since, and manhwas have overtaken my life lately. It’s been a looooong while since I’ve binged an OEL comic.

So I found this comic through a banner in LINE Webtoon saying that this comic got a live-action adaptation and got intrigued. I didn’t check out the movie since live action adaptations do have bad rep and I’m not a movie person myself. Usually, when a novel (yup, the original work is a novel, it seems) is adapted, the novel must be good, right? RIGHT?

Well, this comic was a pleasant surprise. The first few chapters were hard to get through but not in a bad way. The main character Waverly hits too close to home by saying the most unnecessary or inappropriate stuff out of nervousness. I needed to take cringe breaks every time she throws out social suicide bombs and brace myself for the reactions of her peers.

Nonetheless, the cringe is what I found endearing as well as how her newfound friends take her quirks in a stride and how she learns to express herself better.

There is one plotline where they brushed off cheating easily, but the latest chapters will seem to give spotlight to this character, so we might get a more nuanced take.

Nonetheless, it would be another Webtoon comic I’ll look forward to every week!

[orangethreads]

mota as textposts, part two mwuah

part 1

[sainz100]

assortment of little gifs I've made lately (part 1/?)

[amourrapunzel]

— [♡] ; chloes blog

hi! my name is chloe/chlo, i’m 22 and i am utterly obsessed with yellowjackets! i also enjoy so many tv shows/movies that i will post abt too!

things that make me happy:

♡ yellowjackets: taivan!! taissa turner!! van palmer!! natalie scatorccio!!

♡ criminal minds: jennifer jareau!! elle greenaway!! jelle!! garcia!! tara lewis!! kate callahan!!

♡ disney: tangled!! walle!! frozen!! princesses!!

♡ musicals: dear evan hanson!! wicked!! chicago!! hamilton!! moulin rouge!! hairspray!!

♡ 911: bobby nash!! athena grant!! bathena!! buck!! maddie buckley!!

purely using this space to learn how to write and create and just make things that i love! feel free to leave me things to try and attempt to write or mood board or create things from! ୨ৎ

my twitter is @/vansttai ✮ feel free to follow me there for more posts!

my ao3 is https://archiveofourown.org/users/amourrapunzel ✮

always down for a chat 𖦹

[disventurecamptakes]

I think the problem with the All Stars merge is that they don't really let any positive relationships, especially newer ones, linger for too long.

Grett and Gabby defeat Yul and become friends! Gabby is eliminated the next episode.

Jake and Aiden work out their differences and become friends! Aiden is eliminated two episodes later.

Connor and Alec make up and become friends again! Alec is eliminated THAT SAME EPISODE.

Meanwhile, the negative relationships (shoutout Jake and Ally, shoutout Connor and Riya) get milked and dragged out for all they are worth. No wonder the show feels so miserable nowadays.

.

[orangethreads]

realistic modern au mota headcanons :

- brady would post bible verses on his insta story

- bucky and curt would do zyn

- douglass would be an elf bar fiend

- bubbles would drive a janky toyota corolla and be the groups dd

- rosie would never be allowed aux unless they’re smoking 🍃

- buck is the one who gets them alc because adults trust them

- croz would fail the sats because he forgot to turn the page

- alex would yell at them to shut up during study hangouts and kick them out (except bubbles) once a week

- ham would be a “where’s my hug at” kinda guy

- jack is the one calling the cops on their parties because he wants to sleep goddammit

- ev would smoke cigs but smack them if he saw them smoking

[alumi-san]

Motel episode let's go!

- Well, great. You ruined a great friendship and turned it into a toxic one. Well done ONC!

- Missed girlfriends and boyfriends!

- Still pissed that Huntessally isn't canon.

Um, when??

No, he's not!

I get that Miriam is older than Connor but it's still funny. Also TOM is in the background.

- The idea is very interesting! Instead of the finalists choosing who is going to help them, THEY choose who are they going to help!

- I liked Gabby Ellie and Grett as a trio!

- Welcome back old Ellie I missed you!

No! There's no way in hell you make me feel bad for this motherf*cker! First Riya now him?! Wtf???

- James stop empathizing with him! You're better than this!

WTF????!!!!! Nina is a demon?! The hell ONC?! Since when Disventure Camp is a mystic series?! Why did nobody reacted to it?!

- The "huh?" joke was funny.

- Help! Why did James pronounce Riya as Raya??

Was his mom brought up before? I don't remember.

- Wow Derek chose Trevor instead. Well, congrats you don't suk as much now.

Surprisingly no.

- Jake being terrified is gold

Bonus Alec and Fiore my beloveds

See you guys at the horrible finale!

[nerds-yearbook]

Julie Newmar was the first actress to protray Catwoman on the Adam West Batman TV show. She made her debute on March 16, 1966. It is said that she designed and made her own costume. ("The Purr-fect Crime", Batman, TV, Event).

[sarahowritesostucky]

Authors Who Can't Let Their Story End at the Right Time: A Rant

Lord, that's a big pet peeve of mine. It's something I've certainly fallen into with one of my fics, in particular, but I actively try to avoid it these days. HERE is what I have to say about the Anita Blake series, by Laurell K. Hamilton (if you know, you know).

The saga of the universe-that-would-not-conclude gets worse with each new Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book that comes out. Author Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book series began (many, many, many, many, many moons ago) with a fresh, interesting, and unique setup; a great combination of themes and genres (supernatural, detective, horror, erotica), engaging plotlines, and an instantly relatable narrative style.

One complaint I hear from a lot of other current/former LKH readers, is that the sex and the powers and relationship entanglements just became stupid-complicated--unbelievably so (and that's saying a lot, in a universe based on the premise that preternatural creatures live among humans as known co-citizens). Still, even as the sex got more and more screentime with each installment, and the three-way became a four-way became a polyamorous web of 9, 12, 20, I still liked the stories LKH was telling (and felt that they were worth telling) well into the 5th-6th novel. She held true to the characters, for the most part, and came up with some cool new ideas to explore, new facets of this preternatural underworld AU that she could show us without becoming repetitive or devoid of purpose.

But after those first 6 books or so--let's say 8, to be generous (there are 29 😑), she started to lose originality. She repeated the same thing over and over and over again in new packaging, leant too heavily on embarrassingly typical Mary-Sue/pick-me heroine tropes, and became unproductively addicted to overly-dense, never-ending, flowery prose for even the most mundane of things. It made the books more and more tiresome to get through.

To be completely honest, I loved Anita's character (and many of the others!) and felt that LKH did a good job in creating her, fleshing her out, exploring her world, developing her, and showing her personal evolution through the first books of the series. It was really great!

But then ... she just. kept. writing. She has continued to pump out unneeded and increasingly lackluster Anita Blake installments, long after the story should have ended (I suspect for the dependable paycheck that a well and long-known series can continue to bring in from the die-hard segments of a fan base).

LKH is definitely an author who just does not know when to let go of her baby and bring the story to an end--for the sake of the story itself! She does all of her once-inspired and unique ideas, plots, and characters a massive and almost ruinous disservice by not recognizing that she should have written a series ending and moved on from this particular universe--or at the very least, from this main female character--long ago.

This refusal to progress or improve, combined with LKH's many online demonstrations of her personal immaturity and deep insecurities (that's a whole 'nother post), makes me respect her a heck of a lot less as both an author and as a person in general. It has definitely driven me onwards, off to seek out better authors in the genre who are more willing to evolve, grow, explore, and graciously engage with fans.

There comes a point where some authors begin to rely on their past successes more than the quality of the actual work they're presently putting out, and LKH has been there for the better part of a decade, at least.

THAT SAID: I recently picked up the first book of the series out of nostalgia (I began reading them in middle school, when they were the only "porn" I knew how to get my hands on. I'm beginning to re-read the books I did like in the series, and you may see me post about them from time to time. I highly, highly recommend the first handful of books of the series, if you're a fan of preternatural romance that has a lot of non-romantic substance to the plot. The first books are very entertaining vampire-erotica-crime-thriller books.

And remember folks: if your story is truly worth telling, there is an ending meant for it. One of your jobs as an author is to figure out what (and when) that ending is.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

💖Sarah

[disventurecamptakes]

DCAS is like. the worst season of DSVC ever and not only that but it’s so much worse than even TDAS. which, like, the bar is in HELL so it should be impossible to not make a better show than that but somehow ONC managed to make it THE WORST.

three love triangles, almost zero real development, almost no good plotlines. if you didn’t bring back half this cast and just ended their stories with their respective seasons, not only would nothing have been changed, but they’d have been BETTER.

likd, the only people who actually got something good out of DCAS were alec & fiore because they made up. say you don’t bring back tom & jake - they get a hopeful ending. don’t bring back gabby & ellie - okay, they’re happy anyways. don’t bring back miriam - she won! who cares! don’t bring back james & aiden - they’re together, they’re happy. don’t bring back grett - she gets a hopeful ending. don’t bring back ashley - who the FUCK cares about ASHLEY she did NOTHING for the story. don’t bring back huntessally - who cares they’re all mid-tier characters at best. don’t bring back connor - everybody forgot he existed anyways. don’t bring back yul - please GOD do NOT bring back yul.

like. name me one character besides alec and fiore whose story was significantly changed by being in DCAS. gabellie? they had a mild disagreement then went back to being okay. tomjake? they literally returned to that hopeful ending they got in season 1. jaiden? james was kicked out first and aiden was just stuck in between tomjake the entire season.

and also, oh my god i could’ve lived happily without ever having to deal with trevek again. man FUCK trevek they have zero chemistry from day one. they piss me off sm they’re like tomjake but a bit older and so so so much stupider and meaner on dereks part.

all ONC did with DCAS was show us they genuinely 1) do not care about their characters whatsoever, unless it directly benefits them and 2) cannot. fucking. write.

.

[erstwhile-punk-guerito]

[shark-watermelon]

About two months ago (damn lazy-), @eurovisionfan12 wrote to me to make a drawing, to draw Tom, Jake and Connor with special outfits and here they are

(Anyone can call me Da Vinci now btw, I'm on my way to taking a long time on the drawings)

[damedianariggalbumphoto]

[sweetponythings]

Tipiskaw International High School Part 5

Beware that this story contains bullying, homophobia, mentions of abusive relationships, transphobia, mental health, heavy subject matter. Please take care when reading.

I'm Glad You Came

Jake was sitting happily at his desk; all his work was done. The room was completely empty apart from Jake; Richard still hadn’t returned after lunch; perhaps he wouldn’t. Jake was half tempted to sit at the teacher’s desk at the front of the room for a laugh; there was no one there to tell him he couldn’t! With Tom’s help, the rest of those algebra questions were a breeze, so the only thing left to do was to chill out and wait for the day to end. He couldn't help but smile to himself as he recalled his time with Tom during lunch. Although they were sorting through annoying algebraic formulas, they had fun doing it, laughing and joking together. Tom said he would check in on Jake the following day at lunch, offering to sit with him while they both ate and even offering Jake a place at the soccer team's lunch table in the future. Jake was hesitant, but Tom went above and beyond to reassure him that his teammates would be completely cool with it and that there was no pressure if Jake didn't feel up to that yet. The taller boy had also practically begged Jake to attend that evening's soccer game, his reason being that he needed all the support he could get for such a difficult game. Jake was weighing his options; he had no work tonight and nowhere else to be, but he didn't want to risk an incident like this morning's happening again. But Tom did ask him personally…

The blue-haired teen’s thoughts were disturbed by the sound of the door at the front of the room creaking open slowly. Jake didn't expect anyone to open the isolation room's door for the rest of the afternoon, apart from if Richard needed to come back in to collect something he had left behind, much less for Connor to emerge with a boy from his grade in tow. It was Aiden Brooks; Jake shared a couple of classes with him. Aiden was nice enough of a person, not exactly one to follow the crowd. The teen’s e-boy style was distinctive with his dark and light dyed hair and his cross earrings, and he was generally well liked by those who knew him. However, Aiden's usually cheery disposition was vastly different from the teary-eyed boy who hung behind Connor whilst hugging his own arms to his chest. The e-boy was a picture of pure sorrow; the glossy eyes, red face, the tremble in his movements, his eyes avoiding anyone else's – it was like looking in a mirror for Jake. 

“Here, Aiden, let's have you stay here for the rest of the day and tomorrow too, just until we've resolved things. I need to head back to my office to wait for your mother to call me back. I'll let you know if she does, okay, buddy?” Jake couldn't help but listen to the other men's conversation, being hit with a major case of déjà vu all the while, especially when Aiden couldn't form any words to reply to Connor, simply nodding his head and clearly trying his hardest not to cry again. Without so much as glancing at Jake, Aiden paced his way down to the very back of the classroom, choosing a desk right in the corner. Aiden dropped his face right onto the desk, resting his head on his crossed arms and closing his eyes tightly. Jake knew the shorter boy wasn't meaning to be rude or dismissive; he had clearly just been through something horrible. Even Connor looked depressed at the sight. Catching Jake's eye, he pleadingly mouthed, 'Keep an eye on him?’ To the taller boy. Jake nodded nervously while turning around once more to glance at the other young man; he couldn't help but feel very out of his depth with the request from the principal. 

Ten minutes ticked by with nothing but silence from both boys; well, mostly silence; Aiden was quietly sobbing into his hands for about five minutes after Connor left and then was deathly quiet for the rest of the time afterwards. It was haunting to witness; Jake knew he couldn’t just sit there at his desk and ignore the other lad forever; he had considered just putting on his headphones and pretending to do some more non-existent work. The blue-haired boy knew he wasn’t great in social situations at the best of times, let alone when the only other person in the room was clearly going through a crisis. At least it was quiet now. Oh wait, no it wasn’t. The pitiful sound of Aiden’s cries picked up in Jake's ears again, and now the blue-haired lad was hit with another wave of sympathetic sorrow for the e-boy in the corner.

There had been days where all Jake had done was cry; it had been the only thing he was capable of doing at some points in recent months. His eyes had been so swollen one time it looked like he had suffered an allergic reaction, and the headaches, dear god, they were awful. A pounding ache in the temples from the strain of the tears and dehydration. It was the perfectly miserable icing on an already awful cake of suffering. The memories had the seventeen-year-old physically contort his face with a wince; a tender pinching in his forehead was forming at the thoughts, and he could feel the unease and panic start to set in. It was coming back again, the memories of those awful days, the memories of the last few months, last week, yesterday, this morning – Calm down, Jake; you need to get a grip. Find some water; water was an amazing distraction in a pinch. Jake’s grandmother had taught him that when his anxieties about starting high school had caused him to start having anxiety attacks and resulted in a downward spiral for him mentally a few years ago. His dear grandmother was the kindest, most thoughtful woman anyone could have hoped to have met. She had sadly passed on when Jake was fifteen, but he knew that her lessons would stick with him until the day he joined her in the afterlife.

His grandmother had taught him that when panic and fear tried to take hold, the gentle feeling of cool water running over your wrists was the perfect thing to focus on and help you calm back down. He was thinking of going to the bathroom down the hall, but after briefly scanning the room after standing, his dark eyes fell upon something that worked just as well at such short notice: the water cooler next to the trash can at the back of the classroom, on the opposite side of the room from where Aiden was sitting. He was on autopilot now, striding to the back of the room and pressing down the switch which would allow some icy cool liquid to run over his wrists. Slowly count down, Jake: ten, nine, eight… Although she had been gone for some years by this point, Jake could still hear his grandmother’s voice in his ears as clear as day, directing him, guiding him, and watching over him. Soon enough that awful sensation drifted away… and his wrists were starting to sting from the coolness of the water running over the tops of his forearms. With a pained hiss he pulled his wet arms away and gave them a little shake to rid his skin of the excess water; however, his mouth was desperately dry from the panic that had previously tried to set in. Grabbing a plastic cup, he filled it to the top and downed it in one, then went back to get a refill. Upon filling the white plastic container again, he thought of Aiden; he was going to need something to rehydrate him after all those tears. The answer was simple; Jake picked up a second cup and filled it, cautiously wandering over to where Aiden was still sitting, face down. In his previously panicked state, Jake hadn’t noticed Aiden’s cries becoming silent again…

Standing above the smaller boy, Jake couldn’t think of a single thing to say. He just placed the cup on the table, hesitated for a couple of moments and walked quietly back to where the water cooler was and looked out the window towards the soccer field. Pulling a chair out from under the desk closest to him to take a seat, the room’s silence was broken with a weak murmur. A single “Thanks, Jake…” was croaked out from Aiden’s clearly rough-sounding throat. The blue-haired boy was truly stunned; he wasn’t expecting Aiden to remember his name, let alone say anything to him in his state. “Oh! You’re… welcome! No problem, dude.” Jake had turned around to look at the other boy; his face was a little bit less red, but his eyes still looked like they were glassy. The poor, split-colour-haired boy was clearly so thirsty too, gulping down the cool liquid like he had just run a marathon in a drought. The smaller boy climbed off of his chair to meet Jake at the other side of the room, leaning down to the water cooler’s blue tap to get another drink. “Rough day, huh?” Aiden winced at Jake’s words before shaking his head. “Pssh, yeah. The worst.”

Jake was relieved to finally get a conversation going with the other boy. Feeling much more at ease, he leaned back against the glass window while taking another sip of water. “I don't know what's happened, but if you want to talk about it... I'm all ears.” Aiden smiled slightly at the offer, but his face fell just as fast. “What do you mean you don't know what happened? It's all anyone's talking about…” Aiden came to join Jake, also leaning against the glass but facing the opposite way from the other teen, the split-colour-haired boy gazing outside aimlessly in defeat. The blue-haired teen couldn’t help but feel slightly annoyed at Aiden’s statement, although he didn’t mean to. Jake’s temper had become less tolerant and more easily flared in recent months, no thanks to all that had happened to him. ”Well, I don't really go on social media much because usually I get a torrent of abuse from everyone and their grandmother. Plus, I've been in this room most of today because people are incapable of leaving me alone. You aren't that famous, your highness.”

Aiden wasn't quite sure how to respond. He should have been mad at Jake's dig at him, but at the same time, he was talking to someone who had gone through what Aiden had experienced today for the duration of around six months. Noticing the other teens silence, Jake came to the realisation he might have missed the mark. “Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be snappy. You really do have my sympathy.” Aiden looked genuinely surprised by Jake's sincere response. “No, it's fine; I get it. I’d rather not talk about what’s happened to me… But, I know… I know that it really can't be easy to be in your shoes either, Jake.” The two men looked at each other in a kind of sorrowful mutual understanding, as if gazing into the other's soul to see the pain that they both experienced. Holding that silence for a few moments until it was broken by Aiden's little quip of “It sucks to have your privacy violated.” “Agreed. Cheers to that, brother.” Jake moved the hand that was holding his cup of water towards Aiden's. The shorter boy gave a little giggle at the gesture, and the two tapped their plastic cups together in a mock ‘toast’ of sorts. The pleasant sound of laughter fell across the room for the first time in a long while; the two boys were more than glad to hear a cheerful reaction from the other.

Aiden thought to himself momentarily; he had heard some pretty awful things about Jake. Rumours spread like wildfire across the halls of any high school, but the ones about Jake in recent times were particularly horrendous. Aiden had never been one to follow the crowd and tried his best to make his opinions on others based upon his personal experiences, not what he had overheard some girl whispering about in line at lunch. However, when you hear something enough times, you’ll start to believe it whether you want to or not. Aiden was ashamed to admit that he had let some of the gossip dictate his opinions about Jake, but from what he had experienced within the last few minutes, he couldn’t help but feel like he was seeing a double of sorts of himself. “Hey, I heard that something happened to you this morning too. I’m sorry you went through that. Tom told me he saw you crying." Jake's face contorted into an expression of shock. Oh god, was Tom sharing things around with other people about Jake? How many other people had he told? "Tom…told you?" "Yeah, I could tell something was bothering him during our biology lesson this morning, and he told me. He was just really concerned about you; he wasn't sharing anything personal or in detail, I swear. He just wanted someone to talk to, I think; some stuff really affects him, you know?" Aiden was trying his best to put the older boy at ease, sensing his sudden change in attitude. Jake gave a small smile, but the expression on his mouth didn't reach to his eyes. Aiden could tell there was a sadness that lingered there at the mention of someone sharing information about moments that Jake would rather forget. "Tom is a good guy, Jake, I swear it. He's one of the best, a really good friend of mine. He's very fond of you! You've been the topic of his conversations more than once recently… All good stuff, I promise!" Jake giggled in response to Aiden's cute insisting. "Okay, I believe you… I didn’t know you were good friends with Tom, but I can't lie; it's been really hard to trust people recently because of…you know, him…" Aiden didn't need to ask; he knew it was Blake that Jake was talking about, and he couldn't blame the older boy.

Once again the door to the room flung open; it was Richard. The older man gave both boys a bright smile upon seeing them talking to each other. “Oh great, I’m glad to see you two boys getting along. I just saw Connor in the corridor, and I expected this room to be about as cheerful as the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan.” Simultaneously, both boys choked on the water they were drinking, each lad throwing his head forward and making strangled noises, a mix between the sounds of laughter and gagging on the water that had gone down the wrong way as a result of Richard’s blunt statement. After composing himself, Jake turned to face the older man whose face was now painted in worry for the two teens. “I mean, you wouldn’t be wrong in assuming that, Richard. This place isn’t exactly known for its light-hearted delight and whimsy, is it?” Aiden was still in a fit of giggles; both Jake and Richard were glad to hear it after the experience the smaller boy had just endured. "The reason I came back in, boys, is because Connor wanted me to give you both these." Richard dropped a pack of cards onto the desk in front of him, something to keep the two lads entertained, no doubt. When Aiden looked at Richard’s other hand, he noticed the teacher was holding his backpack and phone. “Ellie Parker went to Connor’s office to have these returned to you, Aiden; Connor was going to come to bring you these himself, but he’s a bit preoccupied at the moment. Connor also said that he hadn’t had any luck in contacting your mother.” Richard placed the e-boy’s belongings onto the desk next to the cards as he spoke. Aiden wasn’t surprised; his mother was so busy with her job. He had also been planning to stay after school today to watch Tom’s game with Ellie and Gabby; Aiden and his mother had a mutual understanding that she wouldn’t be available to contact until it was time for him to be picked up after the game. The e-boy looked towards Richard with a grateful smile and gave him a soft “Thank you.”

The coach nodded and then made for the door again. “Really sorry, guys, I've got to rush off again. Have a look at those cards and try to behave yourselves!" The older man was out of the room again in a flash, no doubt late for a P.E. lesson or something; the two teens silently waved him goodbye and went to investigate what he had left for them. Picking up the packet, Aiden turned it over and started to read. “Get to know me cards, huh?” “Clearly one of Connor’s ideas if I’ve ever seen one.” Jake knew that man like the back of his hand; the principal had all the subtlety of a bull in a china shop. It was very much like him to chuck two of his students in a room together and literally force them to get to know one another with a children’s game. “Aww, these look fun! Let’s have a try; the questions can’t all be shitty.” Aiden was already sat down, moving his things out of the way and pulling the cards out of the sleeve, turning them over to read what was written. Jake followed his lead and sat beside him, waiting to be asked some of the most stupid things imaginable. What could he say? The other teen’s cheerful enthusiasm was infectious.

“Oh, here’s a good one! Favourite place to go on vacation?” Jake looked thoughtful for a second; he had been to a lot of places thanks to his parents being rather well off. Sadly, he knew his parents weren't going to ‘waste their money’ by taking him anywhere with them the next time they went abroad, but he could deal with that. Jake would rather shove his hand in a blender than be forced in a hotel with his parents ever again. “Hmm... I’d say, Hawaii. That was good when I was young.” The other boy’s eyes were wide and amazed. “You’ve been to Hawaii? You’re so lucky! The farthest we’ve ever been is California; we went to Disneyland when I was really little. It was the best vacation ever, so I’d have to say there. We haven't really had any big vacations since.” Jake nodded, then took the opportunity to pull out another card so he could ask a question. Of course he pulled out a dumb and childish one. “Favourite ice cream flavour? I’d have to say mint-chocolate-chip, personally.” Aiden’s face contorted again, this time in utter disgust. “Ugh, I’m sorry, but that shit is so gross. I’m much less ‘adventurous’. I keep it simple: vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce for me.” “This is important information; I’ll remember that just in case I ever need to blackmail you, Aiden.”

“Okay, my turn again.” Aiden flipped over the small piece of card and grinned with delight. “Ohh, a controversial one. Pineapple on pizza?” “Yes – don’t kill me, please.” The younger boy started to laugh again. “I’m the same; don’t worry. Admitting to it always makes me feel like I’m going to get shot.” It was Jake’s turn to laugh now; he hadn’t known much about Aiden beforehand, but just sitting and talking with him, it was easy to see that the smaller boy was so easygoing and friendly. Why would anyone have a bone to pick with him? Who would dislike him so much as to want to hurt him so badly? “Jake? It’s your turn again.” “Right! Right, sorry…” Aiden gave him a confused look that Jake tried to alleviate with a smile. The blue-haired boy really had to work on not spacing out constantly. Reaching for the next card, the question was surprisingly fun. “Favourite band? Jesus H. Christ, where do I start?” Music was one of the only things he truly found solace and peace in these days; music didn’t judge; it took you to another place. Jake could be truly free when he drowned out the rest of the world. “Tell me yours first, Aiden; I’m having trouble deciding.” The younger boy was almost instant with his answer. “Easy. Mine’s The Neighbourhood.” Jake had to use all of his might to not let a knowing smirk slip through. Of course that was Aiden’s pick; he certainly had that look about him. Aiden wasn’t oblivious, however. “I can see you judging me, Hamilton.” Busted. “I wasn’t judging… but I’m hardly surprised, though. The blue-haired man gave Aiden a wink as the other boy rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. Jake had truly considered his answer carefully. “Okay, don’t judge me either. It’s Panic! At the disco… followed closely by Weathers.” “I KNEW IT!” Aiden had sprung up from his seat with a shout, his finger pointing directly into Jake’s face. The older teen almost fell backwards from the shock of the other boy’s response. Aiden instantly regretted his wild reply and grabbed Jake’s shoulders to steady him before both lads looked at each other with a hearty laugh. “Sorry, Jake, but hey, I’m glad to have found a new friend who likes Panic too.” Friend. Jake hadn’t been called someone’s friend for a long time until that moment. “Yeah… It’s really nice to have you as a friend, Aiden.”

The rest of the school day was spent asking every question the boys found on those cards. What's your favourite colour? Cats or dogs? Favourite food? Once the question cards had run out, the boys just took to making up their own questions, quizzing each other on this or that about themselves. Jake finally asked the question he had been hesitant to speak: “What happened earlier to make you so upset?” to which Aiden gave a brutally honest reply. Explaining how Riya must have wanted to get her own back at him because he dared to stand up to her in the hallway this morning. Jake confided in his new friend about his ordeal this morning too and how Yul and Riya had decided to make him feel even less of a person after finding something so horrendous written on his locker. The two boys seemed to just have this understanding the more that they spoke; they talked and talked and talked, happy in each other's company, until the school bell rang.

Each boy went to grab his belongings. “So… I guess you’re going home now?” Aiden shook his head as he pulled his black bag over his arms and shoulders. “Not quite; I’m going to watch the school soccer game tonight; Tom’s playing. I was going to walk home because my mom is still working and just didn’t feel up to it after everything that happened earlier, but if I did do that, isn’t that letting Riya win? So I’m staying; I’m going to support Tom and have a good time. Do you want to come with?” With all of the fun he had been having with his new friend, Jake had completely forgotten about Tom’s offer of coming to see him play tonight. Jake was still a bit hesitant, but he didn’t want to let the dark-haired boy down. It wasn’t like Jake had work tonight, and the longer he could avoid going back home to the scowling faces of his parents, the better. Connor did say he should try to reach out to Tom more, didn’t he? It was time to bite the bullet and try to put himself out there. “Yeah… yeah, I’d like that, Aiden. Thank you.” It was a relief to the blue-haired teen to know he wouldn’t be sitting alone while watching the game; Aiden was a real gift for putting him at ease. “Tom had asked me earlier to come tonight…but…” “You didn’t want to be alone, right?” Aiden had just taken the words out from Jake’s mouth. How could he know that? “I know the feeling, Jake; my two other best friends can’t hang out after school, and the majority of their lessons are on the other side of the building. Tom, Gabby and Ellie have been a blessing to find. ” Oh shit, Ellie… This evening could get very interesting if Jake wasn’t careful. “Don’t worry; I know you’ve had a fight with Ellie. She can be hard work sometimes but really kind once you get to know her. I promise to try to keep her civil tonight.” With a wink from Aiden and a tug at Jake’s sleeve to direct him towards the backdoor, the two new friends were off to enjoy their evening together.

[nerds-yearbook]

King Tut made his first appearance in the Batman episode that aired on April 13, 1966. King Tut was the first villian completely created for the show. While Zelda the Great was technically a new character, her story completely mirrored a comic starring a different villian. ("The Curse of Tut", Batman, TV event)

[alumi-san]

There's a new tier list