#But the edgy ones always claim my heart

[hoshifighting]

I can’t wait for the day you decide to give us staff woozi😭🫶 Like yes give me that man ⚰️⚰️⚰️

staff!woozi

WARNINGS: suggestive, wet dream, mentions of animes.

staff!woozi who’s practically part of your nervous system, making sure your mic is hot and those earbuds don’t fry your brain mid-show. he’s always just there—like this phantom, gliding in with his little toolbox, brows furrowed in that way he thinks makes him look tough, but honestly, you’re kinda finding it cute now. he doesn’t even have to look at you anymore; just one twitch of your finger, and he knows exactly how to tune your sound to perfection.

you’re halfway through soundcheck, squinting against the stage lights that feel hot enough to cook you alive, when your left earbud goes all staticy. and before you even manage to do your little signal—a quick point down—he’s already behind you. no warning. just his voice in your ear, all low, like he’s got some big secret: “left one’s crackling again?”

you turn, one eyebrow up. “damn, woozi, you psychic now or what?”

he just huffs, pulling the earbud from your hand with this look like, duh. “you’re predictable,” he says, but there’s that ghost of a smirk, just the tiniest hint of it, which—yeah, okay, it gets to you a bit.

he’s fiddling with it, fingers so precise you swear it’s like watching magic. “you keep playing with ‘em too much. one more yank, and i’m replacing it.”

“not my fault they suck,” you mutter, grinning when he gives you that little glare, one that says i dare you to test me.

“try it again..” he mutters, his voice dry, clipped. he’s already yanked a whole mess of cables and tested every single one, but well, it’s jihoon. he’s on his perfectionist shit.

“testin’… one, two…” you go through it, all monotone, like you’re recitin’ a grocery list.

he glances up, hands fiddlin’ with some random connector piece, but he’s noddin’, brows all scrunched up like he’s concentratin’ on the meaning of life. and then, without even lookin’ at you, he says, “speak up like you’re actually performin’—not just for me.”

staff!woozi, in his worn-out, slightly-too-tight black t-shirt, earphones looped around his neck like some kinda edgy fashion statement, looks too good for your eyes.

“i am performin’,” you toss back, brows raised. “just, y’know, waitin’ for the tech crew to keep up.”

he scoffs, and finally, he looks up, an eyebrow quirked in that way he does when he’s two seconds away from roastin’ you to death. “keep up? alright, superstar, let’s get your fancy ass mic workin’ then.”

staff!woozi who's always fumbling with your clothing as he fix the mic return on your back. mumbling something about the mic feedback being all off. and with this stage clothing, the skin-tight fabric practically painted on you, there’s no space to breathe—let alone to move. so when he reaches to adjust the receiver on your back, the boy have no gentleness to tidy it up.

“how can you even breathe in these? hold still.” he sulks. his fingers brush against your skin, just under the edge of the outfit, and you swear his touch is cool, like ice, but somehow it sends this weird heat up your body. his hand skims along your back, his fingers grazing just under the fabric, feeling way more personal than it should.

“this is… really necessary?” you breathe out, tryin’ to keep your voice casual, even though your heart’s doin’ that embarrassingly loud thud-thud thing.

he doesn’t even look fazed, just gives you a quick, smug look, like he can sense your pulse trippin’ over itself. “unless you want the mic feed to sound like a dying robot… yeah, this is necessary.”

his hand lingers just a second too long on your skin before he adjusts the strap at your shoulder, his thumb grazing the edge of the outfit. you’re caught somewhere between wantin’ to annoyingly roll your eyes or “hornyly” roll your eyes.

staff!woozi who somehow, always ends up next to you on the road, no matter where you sit, and by now, you’ve kinda claimed his shoulder as your own personal pillow. he doesn’t complain—just settles in, eyes closed, arms crossed, and lets you drift off.

but today, as your head leans into that familiar spot, his voice pipes up. “y’know, there are other seats.”

you crack an eye open, only to see him smirking down at you. he’s lookin’ all pompous, like he’s finally pieced together your little routine. “it’s just… comfortable,” you mumble, shoving your face back into his shoulder, feelin’ the soft weight of his hoodie, and okay, maybe the solidness of his arm too.

he chuckles, a sound that’s too close to teasing. “oh, so i’m a human pillow now?”

“pretty much,” you mutter, pretendin’ to yawn. “it’s just… efficient.”

next thing you know, you’re both out cold, side by side, and the crew’s gotta wake you both up at the next stop. you stumble out of the van, all bleary-eyed and yawning, both of you with puffy eyes, while the rest of the team’s trying not to laugh.

staff!woozi who watches animes during his breaks. you’re sittin in the dressing room, half-done with your makeup, feeling that pre-show buzz, and there’s woozi, huddled over his phone, totally zoned out in his own world. you’ve seen him do this before—earbuds in, watchin’ his anime.

so today, curiosity gets the best of you. you wander over, leanin’ over his shoulder, catchin’ a glimpse of bright colors and characters moving around on his screeng

“you’re into this?” you ask, unable to hide the smirk as he looks up, caught.

he pulls one earbud out, glancin’ at you like he’s deciding whether or not to share his “serious” interest. then he sighs, almost reluctantly, but starts explaining the plot, his voice just a little too enthusiastic. and you’re nodding, totally faking that you get it, but he’s so damn into it, you can’t help but get a little wrapped up in his excitement.

when you’re waiting for the other idols to finish up their set, the two of you are back in the dressing room, side by side, watching some random episode. you don’t know half of what’s going on, but jihoon’s talking fast, pointing out characters, explaining every little detail like it’s life or death. you just follow it because staff!woozi is hot.

you don’t know how you ended up here, exactly— n woozi’s hotel room, in your freshest hoodie and sweats, hair still a bit damp from your after-show shower. but you’re here, a slice of pizza in one hand and woozi right next to you, already deep into the latest anime episode like he’s watching some masterpiece.

it started simple enough, you mentioning anime to him once. you barely know the basics, honestly, but your friend is an encyclopedia of every single plot twist, so you could at least fake it a little. and you’d swear woozi’s eyes practically lit up when you said you’d “totally be down to watch something with him, if he had recommendations.” it became your thing on tour—grabbing a pizza, lounging in his room, and watching the latest episodes like two kids after school.

but right now? you’re barely paying attention to the screen. woozi’s sitting next to you in this black tank top, arms looking like he’s been lifting soundboards for fun, thick enough to make your mind drift way off the anime plot. his shorts? even worse. you didn’t even realize a person could look that good just sitting down, like he’s giving you a whole show without even trying.

“are you even watching?” he mutters, catching you totally off guard. woozi raises an eyebrow at you, smirking. damn, he knew.

“oh, yeah, totally!” you stammer, nodding way too enthusiastically. “i know… exactly… what’s going on here.” but that smirk just grows, his gaze sliding back to the screen as if to say, yeah, sure you do.

staff!woozi, who hardly tears his eyes from the screen the whole night, so focused it’s like he’s analyzing every frame. you’re beside him, bundled up in his bed, head lolling as the exhaustion finally takes over, pulling you under. he glances at you every so often—at first just a quick look to make sure you’re out, catching the soft rise and fall of your breathing, the way your lashes brush your cheeks in the low light. you’d been running on fumes all night, so seeing you drift off wasn’t a surprise.

but then, he hears it—his name, whispered under your breath, soft like it’s the only thing on your mind even while you’re dreaming. his focus shifts. your back arches just the tiniest bit, your brows drawn together, thighs pressing tight like you’re holding onto some sweet secret even he isn’t supposed to know.

and suddenly, he’s more tuned into you than the screen, pulse pounding in his ears.

woozi pretends this never happened. or tries to.

staff!woozi, who’s suddenly got a whole new edge to him the next morning, acting all distant like you didn’t just watch an entire anime season in his bed last night. on the plane, you figure things’ll be back to normal—you’ve got this routine where you always end up leaning on his shoulder, especially after long nights. but today, he’s keeping a solid inch between you both, arms crossed like he’s suddenly allergic to any kind of closeness.

you try once, shifting a little closer, giving him that sleepy, half-pouty look that usually does the trick. he just leans away, adjusting his earbuds like he didn’t notice.

you huff. “yo, what’s your deal? i’m just trying to sleep, and you’re over here playing hard-to-get?”

he glances over, raising an eyebrow.

“don’t act like you’re too good for it.” you roll your eyes, crossing your arms. “you let me last night.”

“yeah, well, I’m not your pillow today. i gotta keep my neck in one piece.”

you nudge him with your elbow. “since when did you start caring about your neck, huh? you’re literally hunched over soundboards for a living.”

he shoots you a side-eye. “and maybe that’s why i need to protect it now.”

you snicker, leaning back, but there’s that stubborn pout on your face. “whatever, woozi. don’t get mad at me just ‘cause you didn’t sleep enough watching the show without me.”

you’re still leaning back, sulking a little, when you hear it — just a low mumble under his breath. “not my fault you were… moaning my name last night…”

your head snaps around so fast you practically pull a muscle. “excuse me?” you whisper, eyes wide as saucers.

he stares at you, lips parting slightly as he realizes he definitely said that louder than intended. his eyes dart away, and he’s already sinking into the seat like he might disappear.

you blink, heartbeat going wild as you piece together last night, flashes of the dream you’d had flooding back—heat and skin and his name on your lips. you remember waking up in his bed, flustered and warm, rushing back to your own room before he could see the look on your face.

“so… you heard that?”

his hand goes up to rub the back of his neck, cheeks reddening under that deadpan expression he’s clinging to. “yeah, uh… kinda hard to miss...?”

you bury your face in your hands, groaning, but you can’t resist sneaking a glance at him. he’s biting his lip, looking anywhere but at you, and you swear there’s a faint smirk he’s trying to hide.

“god, woozi, you could’ve just… i dunno, woken me up or something!” you mutter, feeling the burn creep up your cheeks.

“yeah, right,” he snorts, glancing back at you now with this smug little glint in his eyes. “like you’d want that.”

[hareofhrair]

While I'm yelling about House MD--

I see in the notes of my House posts sometimes people being like "ooh, maybe I should watch that" and I always kind of wince and want to grab them like, yeah, please do, but also watch out. There's a reason we call it hate crimes md, and it's not just because of the queerbaiting.

So the thing about House is... It began airing in 2004. The 2000's were, for those of you who missed them, an... interesting time for what was then still called "political correctness." And these times were heralded by a certain Type of Guy, with a certain type of Edgy Humor. In pushing back against the admittedly very white liberal language policing of the PC movement, his goal was to be as offensive as possible, to every demographic possible. For those that had thought it through enough to justify this behavior, the claim was an intent to shake things up and force people to confront their unspoken biases and have hard conversations. The catch phrase was "I'm not racist, I hate everybody equally." These were your Jeff Dunhams, your Dane Cooks...

(For my part, I think it was, at it's heart, white guys attempting to parrot the marginalized groups demanding radical acceptance? A gay person saying "yeah I'm a faggot, what's it to you?" A disabled person saying "yeah I'm crippled, fight me about it. Call me a person with special needs again and I'll break your kneecaps with my cane." They picked up on the "we'd rather be called a slur than this avoidant, self righteous, language policing bullshit" and came away with "so I should call everyone slurs, got it.")

Enter House MD.

The tagline of the show is "Everybody Lies," and it's a very consistent theme throughout. The thesis of the show is that our society, with its shame and repression and bias, is incapable of real honesty. And approaching problems with soft, non confrontational language that talks around the issue instead of dealing with it only makes this worse.

So naturally, House is one of Those Guys.

I doubt there is a single episode in which he does not at some point, say a slur. When Foreman (the only black character and, until Kutner and Park, the only non white major character) is in the same scene with House, you can be absolutely certain he is going to say something racist, while staring at Foreman with a shit eating grin, daring him to make a fuss about it so he can monologue about how Affirmative Action is actually condescending to black people.

It would be one thing if this were strictly a character choice, something that was specifically wrong with House the person. Unfortunately, even when House is not involved the show itself is still, just, blindingly racist, all the time. Any time the patient isn't white, it's a horror show. Racist caricatures as far as the eye can see. It's also intermittently sexist, intersexist, nauseatingly fatphobic, and while it generally does better with disability than most any other show of the time, it is still shockingly ableist at times given the main character is, himself, physically disabled, and implied to be autistic as well.

What makes it worse is that they set House up as someone who wants to deflate people's egos and make them confront their biases ect, and then almost never puts him in a position where he's punching up. There's even a specific episode where he's treating a conservative campaign manager who released an insanely racist anti-migrant political ad, and his racism just doesn't get brought up. The ugly truth about himself he's forced to confront is that he's gay, and the man he's in love with and the people he surrounds himself with are, well. Conservatives.

All of this is not to say you shouldn't watch House or that House is a bad show. It's just very much a show from a very specific and unfortunate moment in the recent history of the ongoing battle for equality. The worst part is, its heart is in the right place, it is just doing a real bad job. It wants to be progressive. It just thinks being polite and respectful is weak and lame.

On that note! The show also features a canonically bisexual woman who actually says the word bisexual-- fucking wild for the time, where the best you generally got was vague allusions to "swinging both ways."-- And it shows her in relationships with both women and men. Including, very notably, Foreman. And if I need to tell you how revolutionary it was for them to show a romantic relationship between a black man and a white woman in the 2010's, take a minute and think about how many relationships like that you've seen in TV or movies since then. Or ever.

It centers on a nuanced and compassionate portrayal of an addict, and tackles the realities of that in an incredibly honest way I don't think I've seen anywhere else. Just the simple, consistent reminders that both House and the other addicts featured on the show are using for a reason, and it's often because they have medical needs that have been neglected by bigoted doctors. There's a whole arc where they try to restrict House's use of painkillers by reducing his prescribed dose to basically a handful of ibuprofen, claiming he only thinks he needs such a high dose because he's addicted and he'll "adjust" to a lower dose in time-- IE, get used to just living with the extreme pain. Unsurprisingly, the increased pain makes him awful to be around, worse at his job, and eventually drives him further into addiction. The way the show deals with this is honestly fantastic, especially given, again, this was the 2000's and 2010's. For a somewhat contemporary comparison, take a look at how addicts are portrayed in Breaking Bad, which came out four years after House in 2008. The general attitude towards addicts was not great.

This show has a lot going for it. The relationships and the stories it tells are honestly incredible. But it is also very flawed, and people should be aware of that going in.

If you want to start watching House, awesome! But maybe look up trigger warnings first.

(Also, completely aside from All That^ there's also the genre typical medical gore and body horror, so, you know, also be prepared for that!)

[olderthannetfic]

Probably hypocritical of me, because I got into poly through kink and then realized "Holy shit, this has potential for more." But damn I hate how so many poly ships, original and fandom, seem to mainly get advertised with a heavy focus on it being a kink, and all about bedroom dynamics. Even the writer's who claim to write it for visibility, so much of it has that undertone of "This is ok because it's a sex thing."

Also, alternatively it often feels like a bad harem ending from a cheap VisNov, where the characters don't actually have a personality beyond their appointed personality. When it comes to the guys, they always choose two of the most common female gaze character archetypes. Here's the "royal" one who's father puts immense pressure on him to be perfect. Here's the bad boy who happens to have a heart of gold. Here's the edgy emo goth dude who likes cute shit. Here's the smart one, who needs you to realize there's more to life than books and school. Choose two to be the F-MC's lovers.

Don't get me started on the girlies.

--

My experience is mostly with OT3s that are the three leads or a team of three or something. None of them are like this, including the ~for representation~ thing.

[hunnysnoops]

˗ˋ𝕎𝕙𝕚𝕥𝕖 𝕋𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕙 𝕋𝕖𝕖𝕟𝕤ˊ˗

Chapter Nine: Take Me Out

Kyle Broflovski x fem reader

So if you’re lonely, you know I’m here waiting for you and if you leave here, you’ll leave me broken. Shattered I lie.

Also available on Ao3 and Wattpad!

Premise: Over the course of days and eventually weeks you grow closer with Kyle as feelings begin to shift.

Warnings: crude language and humour

MASTERLIST

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

June 29

You and Kyle rush through the park, the world around you blurring as your feet pound against the pavement. The sun filters through the canopy of leaves overhead, casting dappled shadows that dance along the path. You feel the wind in your hair and the exhilaration of the run in your chest, your breaths coming fast but steady.

Recently, you had been looking forward to your runs with Kyle. You had always hated doing it with others, either too slow, stopping too often, or talking too much but there was a sweet spot with Kyle that you didn't mind in the slightest. 

There are several children playing soccer to your left, and you can hear their enthusiastic yells as they play. A couple walks their corgi to your right, the dog is so obscenely fat that his stomach almost scrapes the ground though he seems happy. 

You match his stride by the pond, where the water reflects the clear blue sky and the swarms of ducks gliding across its surface. Kyle slows down, and you equal his pace, both of you breathing heavily but smiling wide. "You're getting faster."

You laugh, the sound light and relaxed. "Maybe you're getting slower," you tease back. He rolls his eyes, but there's a twinkle in them that shows he enjoys the banter.

"Can you ever just take a compliment?"

"Uh, nope," You grin turning for the exit of the park. Your lungs burned in the perfect kind of way. 

The energy shifts instantly as you break away from the still park and enter town, the quiet rustle of leaves replaced by the hum of human life. Cars honk, people chat as they pass by, and the air is filled with the scent of food from nearby cafes and food trucks. Hanging in the air is the strong smell of liquor from a smashed bottle of tequila that crunches beneath your sneakers. 

Kyle is still ahead, his pace unwavering as he navigates through the crowd. You follow close behind, weaving through pedestrians and occasionally bumping shoulders. The buildings loom tall around you, their glass facades reflecting the afternoon sun.

As you turn a corner, something catches your eye. You come to an abrupt stop, causing Kyle to glance back, curious. There, plastered on a wall among a collage of posters and flyers, is an advertisement for an upcoming concert. The bold, colourful design grabs your attention, but it's the picture of the band that really makes you pause. The heading reads 'Suburban Wasteland' one of the hidden gems you listened to almost on a regular. They sang to your edgy little middle school self who went through an emo phase and claimed you would be that way forever. 

The lead singer stands front and center, his eyes smouldering and his messy hair perfectly tousled. He's cute, undeniably so, and you find yourself staring at the poster, your heart beating a little faster for reasons other than the run. "Oh my god," You mutter.

Kyle halts to a stop and walks to your side, staring at the poster. His eyebrows knit together as he takes in what he's seeing "What?"

You hadn't heard him, expression softening as you focused in on the tour dates. "Look!" You point at one of the dates, eyes lighting up "They're coming to South Park!" 

"You actually listen to these guys?" He looks at the four men on the poster 

"Yes!" You grab his arm and shake it, swaying his body in doing so. You were almost screaming the pure excitement that was running through you like lightning causing passersby to cast you judgmental glares. You weren't sure you had been so thrilled about something since you started high school. "They're here in July, we should go!" 

"Is he wearing eyeliner?" Kyle narrowed his eyes at the poster. At first glance, they looked like some corny screamo boyband from the early 2000s, brought to life by ripped skinny jeans and deep side parts. 

"He's so hot," You mutter, hands still gripped onto Kyle's arm without even noticing how tightly you were holding him. 

 "That's the kinda guy you're into?" He abruptly swerves his head to look at you. His eyes widen for a brief moment before they narrow in at you, his lips downturned in a slight frown. 

Your hands drip from where they rest on his arms "Yeah, I guess." Your near shaking with elation at the thought of the band you played on loop daily coming to your little bumpkin town. "Do you wanna go with me?"

He rubs the back of his neck "Don't you want to go with Red or something?"

"Red's going to Alaska at the end of July."

"Why is Red going to Alaska in July?"

"Doesn't matter," You answer "They're really cool, I think you'll actually like their songs-

"I'm sure they're fine. But I'm not really into that type of stuff?"

“What do you mean that type of stuff?"

"Like angry thrashers pushing each other around and breaking necks in a mosh pit," He says, sweat still glistening on his brow, only accentuated by the blaring sun overhead. 

"None of my friends like this thing, please?" Your eyes go wide, silently pleading with him.

He bites the inside of his cheek for a second, staring you down, his thoughts bouncing back and forth like a game of ping pong "I don't really like it either."

“I know you don’t really listen to that genre but-

“I’m not going,” He says, firm.

You give up, rolling your eyes. Your shoulders slump a little, disappointment washing over you. Taking one last longing look at the poster before resuming your pace, you resume your run, pushing aside the lingering let down "You're boring," You call back to Kyle "And slow."

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 4

As you sit at the back of the dimly lit restaurant, the clatter of plates and the murmur of the last few lingering customers fade into the background. The cold, metallic touch of cutlery presses against your fingers as you roll knife after fork into napkins, your movements mechanical and practiced. 

You were nearing the end of your shift though there were still bins of cutlery left for you to roll into little place sets before you could go home. This wasn't exactly how you wanted to spend your fourth of July, especially when all your friends were out and about, living it up while you developed blisters on your feet from countless hours jetting around a restaurant.

The fourth of July seemed like a good cash grab to make good tips but you were proved wrong by the amount of rowdy tourists who talked a big game but tipped you very little if anything at all. You had ended the night with less than you came in with, the tips were so poor you had to use your own pocket money to tip out the house, bartender, and kitchen.

There was the same awful 80s playlist reverberating through the speakers. It was the same 60 songs over and over again, you knew them so well you could recite every lyric and the more you heard them, the more you hated them. You were almost tempted to take two steak knives and shove them into your ears.

Some shifts were so bad that you just needed to sit in silence, this was one of them. The fourth of July was one of your favourite holidays and your evil manager had coerced you into missing it. The worst part for you was the fact that you didn't get to see any of the fireworks, you just heard them faintly outside along with the sounds of people actually enjoying their night.

You wore your little black dress in the hopes of racking up more tips but instead, you had another server knock their customer's drinks onto you, drenching you in the smell of red wine and ceasers. There were little bits of the ceaser spice still visible on your dress while you continued rolling cutlery and biting the inside of your cheek to avoid screaming.

Outside, the sky is dark, with only a faint glow from distant fireworks that you can't quite see. You missed them again this year, the bursts of colour and the laughter of friends and family. The fourth of July has come and gone while you served tables, refilled water jugs, and plastered on a tired smile. 

You think of the sparklers you loved as a child, the barbecue smells, and the warmth of being surrounded by your family. Tonight, the warmth comes only from the overhead lights the persistent hum of the kitchen appliances and the cursing coming from the remaining staff. It didn't help this overwhelming feeling that your dad dropped you off on your way to work, meaning you didn't have your car or a ride home.

Checking your phone only made you feel worse. No new messages. The majority of your friends were at Clyde's party while you hummed along to old rock n' roll songs you've grown accustomed to hate. His party was long over, you had seen through Snapchat stories that the cops showed up. It was nearing twelve am, it was almost the fifth and you had wasted your day.

You weren't sure you could hold your tears back for another minute until your co-worker poked her head into the backroom "Your boyfriends here," Brooke says, walking in and grabbing her phone off the table that had cutlery sprawled out over top. 

"I don't have a boyfriend," You say, furrowing your eyebrows.

"I don't care," She says while tapping around on her phone "Someone's here for you."

Quickly, you tie off your last napkin roll and poke your head out of the staff room door to see Kyle awkwardly standing by the host stand. You bite back a smile, diving for your locker and snatching your bag from it. You hurriedly throw your hoodie on over your dress and spritz some body spray in an attempt to mask the smell of liquor soaked into your dress. 

"Wait, you didn't clock out," Brooke looks up from her phone, watching you as you walk out of the staff room.

"You know what really hasn't clocked out?" You ask and continue without waiting for an answer "Racism, bullying, soap brows, maybe you should get on that first."

You walk down the corridor towards the front door, tugging your skirt down and pushing hair away from your face as you approach Kyle. He looks up from his phone and spots you.

"What are you doing here?" you ask, a smile tugging at your lips despite your tiredness.

"Your dad told me he dropped you off today, I'm taking you home."

"Oh," You keep a smile on your face despite the urge to let it drop. 

As the two of you leave the restaurant and step into the dry heat, he shoves his hands into his pockets "How was work?"

"Fucking shitty," You answer, feeling no urge to sugarcoat "Just a bunch of asshole tourists who smell like cavities."

"What does a cavity smell like?"

"Like plaque build-up and sour breath," You answer, wrinkling your nose at the thought alone. "Uh, how was Clydes?"

Kyle shrugs "Fine, I guess, nothing special."

"You didn't drink?"

"Nah," He opens the door to his car, flicking the light on and waiting for you to climb into the passenger seat. "I left early, actually."

"What? Why?" You shut the door as you get in, dropping your bag to the floor of the car "I wanted to go so bad."

"Just felt like I could've been doing something better with my night," As you and Kyle settle into the car, the familiar scent of his aftershave mingles with the cool night air. The engine hums to life, and the car glides out of the parking lot, leaving behind the warm glow and the remnants of another awful shift. 

You worried if he could smell the liquor on you or the steak sauce but he gave no indication, eyes focused on the road as he drove. "Were the fireworks cool at least?"

"Yeah, they were."

The streets are mostly quiet now, a subtle contrast to the earlier hustle and bustle of Fourth of July celebrations and drunk partygoers, roaming the streets decked out in patriotic accessories from the dollar tree. Streetlights cast elongated shadows, flickering as you pass beneath them. The rhythmic click of the turn signal is a comforting sound, a steady beat that matches your slowly calming heartbeat as your eyelids begin to grow heavy.

You notice the little details as you drive: the way the trees sway gently in the wind, their leaves rustling like a whisper; the soft glow of porch lights in the distance, each one a silent witness to the night's festivities, air running through them like whispers. You pass a park where sparklers flicker in the hands of teenagers, their laughter carries through the now-hushing night.

Kyle glances at you, a smile playing on his lips as he sees you taking it all in. He doesn't rush, allowing you to soak up every moment. The radio plays softly, a nostalgic tune that seems to fit the sleepy mood perfectly. You hum along absentmindedly, despite the disappointment you were coming to terms with it all.

"Where are you going?" You ask as Kyle turns onto a narrow, gravel path leading up a small hill. The car bumps along the uneven road, and your eyebrows furrow at the sound of animals rustling mingling with the crunch of gravel under the tires. "Please don't kidnap me, I'm too tired to fist fight but I do have a corkscrew in my bag," You say, waiting a beat and then filling the silence "Fine, you got me, I stole the corkscrew from my manager." That was true. You were so angry and fed up that you went into her purse and stole the corkscrew her husband gave her for her anniversary, it even had her initials carved into it. You figured she drank enough and you were doing her a favour.

"I'm not kidnapping you, Jesus," His eyes are steady on the beaten road "Just wait." He looks at you for a second "And give that corkscrew back."

"I dunno, sounds like something a kidnapper would say," You tap your fingers on the dashboard. “And the really Kyle would never tell me to give something stolen back.”

“Yes, he would.” He pulls up to a small hill overlooking the town, yanking the keys out of the ignition. Wordlessly, Kyle gets out of the car and gestures for you to follow him. You decide against the idea of him kidnapping you and trail him to a grassy spot that overlooks the town.

Kyle looks down at his watch before looking back up at the sky. He stands beside you, close enough that you can feel his warmth. The inky black sky is punctuated by the sudden, brilliant explosions of light. Like a gigantic chrysanthemum, a flash of red blooms, each flower trailing shimmering flames as it dies. Then there's a silvery waterfall that shimmers as if it's trapped in midair. With each fireworks being more spectacular than the last, you watch, transfixed, as the colours change and intensify.

The air smells faintly of smoke and summer, it takes you right back to the last Fourth of July you spent at Bebe's house, watching the show from the roof of her house and downing Dr. Pepper. The fireworks paint the sky with vibrant hues- fiery oranges, deep blues, radiant greens- each of which leaves a brief afterimage against the night sky.

You glance at Kyle, his face illuminated by the bursts of light. His eyes are wide with wonder, and there's a content smile on his lips. The reflection of the fireworks dances in his eyes like a mirror. 

The grand finale begins, and the sky erupts in a riot of colour and sound. Rapid-fire bursts fill the air, overlapping in a dazzling display that takes your breath away. The booms are louder, the lights brighter, and for a few moments, the sky is swallowed whole with chaos and beauty.

As the last firework fades, leaving trails of smoke that slowly dissipate into the night, a peaceful silence settles over the hilltop. The minute passes over and so does the holiday, the last fireworks of the night and you had a front-row seat. The stars, previously outshone, now reclaim their place in the sky, twinkling softly. Kyle turns to face you "Worth it?"

"Could've been better," You tease, sarcasm hanging from your tone. You know for sure this is one memory you will be forever clinging to. 

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 9

Both yours and Kyle's family gathered in your living room for game night, which felt long overdue. The teams were you and Kyle, Weston and Ike, Your mother and Sheila, your father and Gerald. There was hardly even competition between the four groups, you and Kyle were sweeping them. 

"Whose turn is it?" Your mom asks looking around the room. 

"Weston and Ike," You answer, pushing your brother off the couch and taking his spot, pulling your knees to your chest and yanking a throw blanket overtop.

Ike sits on the floor and leans against the armchair his brothers sitting on, watching as Weston digs around into the popcorn bowl filled with prompts. He pulls a slip of paper out and groans when he reads it "Bruh," He draws out "I don't even know this one."

"Just pick another one," Your dad tells him, he's nursing a glass of wine and standing behind the couch like a vulture.

"Dude," Weston crumples up the slip of paper and chooses a new one "I dunno this one either."

"Just try your best," Sheila tells him.

Weston holds his arms out and begins to enthusiastically flail them. "Shake?" Ike asks, face utterly perplexed as your brother lets out another groan and then begins to convulse his body. "Earthquake?" At Ike's second guess, your brother pauses, runs his hands down his face then begins to violently shake again.

"Seizure?" Your dad asks, eyebrows drawing in at the sight of his son "What is this?"

Your brother clenches his fist, taking a deep breath in then he mimes juggling, but his hands flail wildly, and it's hard to tell if he's juggling invisible balls or trying to swat away imaginary flies. His exaggerated movements have everyone squinting and guessing wildly. "Stroke?" Ike asks, mouth slightly agape while he tries to decode your brother's rapid movements. 

Weston shakes his head vigorously and switches tactics. He starts hopping in place, then drops to all fours, pretending to be an animal of some sort, but it's not clear which one. He growls, then stands up and begins doing it deep lunges back and forth, switching legs.

“Furry?" Ike asks "Gym? Exercise?" 

"Bruh, no," He then stands still and makes a grand sweeping gesture with his arms, as if presenting something spectacular.

"Circus?" Ike guesses again to which Weston shakes his head. 

Weston balls his hand up into a fist and cracks it through the air like he's whipping something. Everyone in the room awkwardly glances at one another, waiting for it to end.

"Cat woman? Batman?" Just for a moment, Ike thinks he is close and then Weston shakes his head once again. Weston starts jumping in place and moving his hands in tight circles like he's skipping rope. Your eyes shift to Kyle, both of you too confused to laugh "I give up!" Ike throws his hands up in defeat "You're awful at this."

"It's the Great Gatsby, bruh," Weston exasperated like it was obvious what he was trying to portray. 

"What was great about that?" Your mom asks, only half joking. 

"I'm gonna lie," You say "That was really good." The second the parents look away your brother sticks up his middle finger for the briefest moment before wedging himself between you and your mom on the couch. You stand up walk to the spot in front of the TV and pull out the slip.

You hold up three fingers on each hand, looking at Kyle "Six words?” He asks and you nod. You hold out one finger to symbolize the first word, Kyle's deep in focus as he watches you. You begin to draw out an infinity symbol in the air with your finger. "Infinity? Forever? Always?" His eyebrows draw in deep and you can see the gears turning in his mind "Eternal!"

Holding up a quick thumbs up, you move on to the fifth word, pretending that you're spraying the air with cleaner and wiping it off.

"Clean? Maid? Tidy? Spray? Wash? Scrub?" 

You shake your head, continuing to do the motion. After thirty more seconds of him not getting it, you move on to the sixth word and start pointing at your head, tapping it and eventually patting it with the palm of your hand.

"Brain? Head?" He stares at you trying to piece together the other clues and muttering to himself "Mind?" He asks and you nod enthusiastically. He slaps his knee, shooting to stand up "Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!"

"Yes!" You exclaim, immediately rushing over to give him a high five. "Eat it shrimps!" You shout at both of your brothers "Being illiterate isn't so funny now, is it?"

"I miss when they were screaming at each other," Weston mutters to Ike.

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 13

You and Kyle hurried into the dimly lit theatre, the screen already glowing with the opening credits as you scanned for empty seats. The hushed murmurs of the audience and the faint sound of dialogue filled the air, punctuated by the occasional burst of chatter from those already settled in.

"Over there," Kyle whispered, pointing to a row near the middle of the theatre. You nodded and followed him, trying to tread lightly as you squeezed past knees and feet in the dim light. Each step felt like an intrusion into the quiet atmosphere of the theatre.

As you reached your row, you realized it was already almost full. A couple gave you a disapproving look as you attempted to slide past them, their eyes narrowing in annoyance. Kyle muttered a quick apology, but you could feel the tension in the air as you squeezed into your seats.

Trying to settle in quietly, you fumbled with your jacket and bag, the soft rustling seeming to echo loudly in the stillness. You exchanged a sheepish glance with Kyle, both of you acutely aware of the eyes on you from nearby patrons who were less than pleased with your tardy arrival.

You didn't expect to find yourself so caught up in the movie, it was an incredibly corny action film and kept finding yourself making faces at the cheesy bots which was almost the entire thing.  Kyle kept stifling sniggers whenever you would mock the movie.

"He's right behind me, isn't he?" The lead protagonist turns around to see his enemy behind him. He pulls a large rifle from his trenchcoat and the two enact in an overly acted fight scene.

"Jeez, he's dressed like someone's imaginary friend," You utter under your breath.

"Sh!" You hear from behind you. You turn to see a large man, his greasy hair tied into a ponytail and a stringy beard that made its way down his neck. You mouth a sorry and look back at the screen. 

The movie got worse the longer you watched, they had managed to pull out every single cliche and implement it into a plot with stiff dialogue and flat characters. Your boredom only grew, the only thing entertaining was a little whisper passed between you and Kyle. 

However, every time you leaned over to share a quick remark with Kyle, you felt a sharp "Shh!" from the man seated directly behind you. His voice was low but firm, cutting through the air like a disapproving whisper.

Startled, you glanced back, catching a glimpse of his stern expression and raised finger before turning back to the screen, cheeks tinged with embarrassment. Kyle stifled a chuckle beside you, clearly amused by the unexpected scolding.

During another action scene, Kyle ducks his head into his elbow and sneezes "You know, if you're sick, just stay home," The man from behind you speaks again, his jaw clenched tight in irritation. 

"You know, if you reek of body order, just stay home," You retort. 

"Excuse me?" He says.

"Yeah, excuse you."

"Calm down," Kyle puts one hand on your shoulder to steady you then looks at the man "We're sorry."

"Oh, of course. The boyfriend steps in to play peacemaker," he sneered. "Put a damn muzzle on your girlfriend," The man says to Kyle. He turns his attention back to the movie but you've already turned around, knees on the seat while you hang over the back and glare at the man. 

"Put a muzzle on yourself, that way you might not look like you ate the ham burglar." You whisper-shout. 

"Don't talk to her like that, man," Kyle adds, also turning around to face him. 

The man's face grows red "You better watch-

"Sh!" You say, watching the man look stunned. Silence stretches between the three of you and when the man opens his mouth to speak you do it again "Sh!"

"Okay-

"Shhhh," You draw out putting a finger over your mouth. "How many pubes did you have to steal from motel shower drains until you had enough to glue on your chin?" You point at his scruffy neck-beard, staring him dead in the eyes. 

"Are you done?" The man asks, huffing.

"Yeah, sure," You snap, turning back around, sinking into the chair and trying to focus on the movie despite the grimace-shaped man behind you.

"Stupid bitch," He mumbled. 

Kyle's entire demeanour changed in an instant. He turned around, his face red with anger. "What did you just say?" His body tense, muscles visibly tightened.

"Leave them alone," Another man from the row above says "They're just kids."

"Y'know what man? I'd be pissed off if I looked like that too," You seethe, eyes narrowing at the guy behind you. 

"Whore," He said in a mocking tone, a proud smile on his face as he did so.

Before Kyle could react, you reached forward to grab the drink sitting in his cupholder and hurled it at the man. The liquid splashed all over him, drenching his face and clothes. The theatre erupted in gasps and murmurs as the man sat there, stunned and dripping. Not one person was still paying attention to the movie.

"What the hell?" the man yelled, wiping his face with his sleeve. His shock quickly turned to rage, and he lunged forward, raising his hand to hit you.

Kyle was quick to grab his wrist, holding his arm midair before it could land on you. Other moviegoers scrambled out of their seats, some trying to pull the man away while others called for security. You could see the fear consume the man's face as Kyle held tightly.

Within moments, the usher returned with a security guard, their faces stern and ready to intervene. You hadn't seen them come in when you bent over the back of the chair, one hand pointed at the man accusatorily while you screamed at him. "Yeah, try to hit me, biggie!" 

The security rushed over to you, trying to put space between you and the man. When you refused to cease, he grabbed the back of your shirt to pull you away, his free hand was held out in front of Kyle, he balanced on one foot while his other was in the air in front of the man. 

"Stop," He said, trying not to lose his balance "Out, now, all of you, out!" 

A manager rushes into the scene, a blue button down and a name tag that reads Hailey. The large man lands a solid slap across your face and you retaliate by throwing a right hook. "No, no!" Hailey shouts, frantically trying to keep you all apart while the man grips your hair and pulls it with what little force he can muster, you grab hold of his wispy neck beard, pulling it until hair rips out. "Stop!" 

Tensions only continue to escalate rapidly. After the man tries to wrap his hands around your neck Kyle hits him, this time everyone freezes as the sound of Kyle's fist connecting with the man's cheekbone sounds through the theatre.

The security guard comes up behind you, grabbing you by your waist and pulling you off the chair. He continues to drag you out while you yell "You smell like a yeast infection, wash your damn rolls!" 

Kyle looks at the man and then at you, following you out of the theatre and into the lobby. The manager comes out with the man walking behind her, shamefully, he drips Diet Coke onto the floor. "Stand against the wall," Hailey says and you oblige like you're getting your mug shot taken.

She snaps a picture of each one of your faces "Banned," She says "For life!" 

"For life?" The man asks, his voice rising.

"Yes!" Hailey says, gesturing to the wall behind the concession where there were several pictures of people taped up for everyone to see, above each of their profiles was a piece of printer paper, the words 'banned 4 eva' written in red Sharpie "Or do you want me to call the police?"

"No, I'm cool with being banned," You answer first "Not sure I can speak with Jabba the Hutt though." 

Kyle's eyes never left the man's as he reluctantly stepped back, his chest still heaving with anger. "Let's go," he said, turning to you and grabbing your hand.

As Kyle trudges to the exit and you follow behind, hand in hand, you stick a middle finger up behind you as you push through the doors and into the daylight. "What a fucking asshole," His jaw was tightly clenched, the muscles visibly twitching with the effort to contain his anger.

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 19

Tolkien sets up his phone on a nearby table, adjusting angles and checking lighting, while Kyle starts brainstorming ideas. You and Red find yourselves sitting by the sparkling blue waters of Tolkien's pool, feet dangling in while you watch the pair.

"What about this one?" Kyle asks, playing an audio. 

Tolkien bites his lip for a moment, deep in thought before he shakes his head "Nah, trends over."

You and Red exchange amused glances, she huffs on a blue raspberry ice vape, occasionally giving you a hit. Her hair is tied up into a ponytail, an old Mötley Crüe shirt thrown over her blue bikini. 

"Let's do this one," Kyle huddles next to Tolkien showing him a video on his phone. The audio replays several times before the two of them begin to practice, going through the motions in little segments to remember until they have it down. 

Tolkien takes the lead, attempting to mimic the choreography he just watched, his movements almost too precise. He kicks off with a series of dramatic arm waves and hip sways, trying to sync his steps with the beat of the short song. 

You lean onto Red, burying your head into her collarbone while you laugh. "That's it, boys, you've made it to the big leagues," She calls out between giggles.  

"Can we get less input from the fog machine over there?"  Tolkien turns around before walking back to his phone and restarting the video. You lift yourself off Red to watch Tolkien start from the beginning; he moves almost exactly the way he did before like it was a formula.

Tolkien dances his part and then Kyle comes into the frame and they begin a synchronized dance routine, exaggerated and goofy, their attempts at coordination often ending in laughter and playful nudges.

It was nice being friends with Kyle even though it was difficult for you to admit. You liked being able to hang out in a group with him and not trying to murder each other even though the thought still passed through your head on occasion. Both of you promised that you wouldn't tell a soul about the movie theatre fiasco and would swear up and down that your pictures weren't posted up next to crackheads. 

When Kyle starts doing his bit of the dance you can't hold back your cackling, clutching your stomach while you brace yourself on Red who herself is shaking from laughter. The boys ignore you but you keep laughing to the point you need to stand up and walk over to the side of Tolkien's house to brace yourself against the wall. 

Tolkien finally manages to nail a sequence, and Kyle lets out a triumphant cheer, their joy infectious despite the cringe you and Red felt watching them film TikTok's, they seemed unbothered. "You won't be laughing when I get famous," Tolkien says to you, Kyle's standing next to him watching the video they just finished filming.

"I'm sure it'll be super unfunny then," You say in a mocking tone.

"Yeah, whatever, nice lungs," He says, briefly looking up from his phone.

"Woah, woah, woah," you put a hand out "Where did all of this hostility come from?"

"Where do you think?"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," You get the last of your giggles out, straightening up. "Tolkien, show me how to do one of those dances," you suggested with a playful grin.

"Seriously?" Both Kyle and Tolkien say in unison. 

"Yeah," You walk over, biting your lip to stop yourself from laughing "Show me."

"Uh, okay," Tolkien says, his expression softening "Which one do you want to do?" 

"I dunno," You answer, leaning over his shoulder while he scrolls through his saved folder. 

 He began to break down the steps of a popular dance trend, his movements fluid and precise. His enthusiasm was infectious, and soon you found yourself mimicking his steps, albeit with a hint of hesitation. "Okay, so it's like this," Tolkien explained patiently, demonstrating the footwork and hand gestures slowly. "And then you add a little spin here..."

Kyle leaned casually against the poolside, a faint smile playing on his lips as he watched you. The way you focused intently on learning the steps but couldn't move without laughing- it all captivated his attention. He admired your willingness to throw yourself into the dance, your laughter mingling with Tolkien's as you both enjoyed the moment.

"You look so ridiculous right now," Red said, holding her phone up to film you and Tolkien while you danced 

"It's kinda fun!" You admit, eyes on Tolkien while you mirror his motions. 

"I told you!" Tolkien says, a bright smile on his face. You followed along, stumbling at first but gradually finding your rhythm. Tolkien's encouragement spurred you on, his gentle corrections and cheerful demeanour made the learning process enjoyable.

You were beginning to think you might've been too critical over Kyle's constant filming of TikToks, while you didn't understand how someone could make a career off it you could confess that you were enjoying yourself despite feeling more than stupid. 

"We should film one and I'll post it," He props his phone up on a lawn chair, setting up the timer.

"What?" You ask but the timers already nearing it's end and Tolkien is in his place. The music started, and you launched into the routine. He was by far more comfortable than you but you still tried your best. 

Your arms swung out to the side in unison, followed by a sharp clap above your head. The song itself was sped up and incredibly annoying, you had a feeling it would be stuck in your head in the following days and you would regret playing it on a loop while you did the choreography. You glanced over at Kyle, catching his eye with a smile.

 Just as the music reached a crescendo, Tolkien swept you off your feet, spinning you around in a dramatic flourish. Your laughter echoed across the poolside, an elated sound that filled the air as Tolkien's unexpected move took you by surprise.

The spin was exhilarating, and your laughter bubbled up uncontrollably, your legs kicking playfully in the air as you struggled to regain your balance. Tolkien caught up in the moment and the infectious joy of the scene, couldn't contain his laughter either. As he tried to set you down gently, the combination of laughter and the slick poolside caused both of you to lose footing.

While Tolkien sprawled out on the ground, you tumbled backwards into the deep end of the pool. Red was laughing even harder, the camera still trained on you, she wasn't sure if your cartoonishly dramatic fall was funnier or Tolkien's face plant.

"Are you okay?" Kyle asked, unable to bite back the smile on his face as you resurfaced. You pushed your hair away from your face and wiped chlorine water from your eyes. 

"Yeah," You laugh wading over to the edge of the pool where Kyle was standing. "Help me up," You held your hand out.

"You're gonna pull me in," he says, inching backwards just the slightest. 

 "No, I won't," You said like his accusation was incredulous "I swear," You outstretch your hand even further. 

"I don't trust you."

"Why not?" You smiled, feeling a flutter of warmth in your chest at his attention. "Just be cool," you replied, reaching out to grasp his hand.

At last, he gave in and as his fingers wrapped around yours, a jolt of electricity seemed to pass between you. The warmth of his hand was a stark contrast to the cool water, grounding you in the moment. Kyle's grip was firm and steady as he carefully pulled you up, his strength evident as he helped you find your footing.

The air grew thick with unspoken tension. Water droplets glistened on your skin, catching the last rays of sunlight, and Kyle's gaze softened as he took in the sight of you. The playful banter from earlier seemed to fade, replaced by a deeper, more intense awareness of each other.

As you stepped out of the pool, you stumbled slightly, your wet feet slipping on the smooth surface. Kyle reacted instantly, his arm wrapping around your waist to steady you. The closeness sent a shiver through you, your heart racing as you looked up into his eyes, which were now only inches away.

"Are you good?" Kyle asked, his voice low and filled with a mix of concern and something more, something that made your pulse quicken.

You nodded, unable to find your voice for a moment. The way he held you, his touch gentle, made it hard to focus on anything else. "Yup, fine," you pry yourself away from him. 

Neither of you moved immediately, the moment stretching out as the world around you seemed to blur. Kyle's eyes flickered to your lips for a brief second before meeting your gaze again, his expression hesitant.

The moment was broken by the distant sound of Tolkien and Red's laughter as they rewatched the video, reminding you both of where you were. Kyle takes a step back "I can't believe you actually didn't pull me in."

"Yeah, I would never do something like that," You say, casually walking past Kyle and shoving him into the pool as you do so. 

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 25

The sun had long set, leaving the kitchen bathed in the warm, soft glow of overhead lights. Your family and Kyle's had come together for a shared meal, full of far too much wine consumption and brain-rotten jokes made by your little brothers. 

As the adults moved to the living room for more conversation and the younger kids dashed outside to play, you and Kyle volunteered to handle the dishes. You both stepped into the kitchen, where the soft light illuminated the scene of culinary aftermath: plates smeared with the last bits of sauce, glasses smudged with fingerprints and lipstick, and serving dishes still holding crumbs of the evening's feast. Even a disgusting concoction your brother had made, water mixed with white wine, rootbeer, ketchup, and relish. He had dared Ike to drink it and then drank it himself when Ike chickened out.

Kyle rolled up his sleeves with a mock-serious expression. "Good god," He mutters at the sheer amount of dishes. 

"Get to work, ginger." 

The sound of running water and the clinking of dishes filled the space, creating a rhythm as you and Kyle fell into an easy routine. He washed, you dried, and the banter flowed as naturally as the water from the faucet.

"So, how does this thing work again?" Kyle asked, holding up a sponge as if it were a foreign object.

"Just like that," you replied, mimicking his exaggerated movements with the dishtowel. "It's a highly specialized technique, you see."

Kyle chuckled, passing you a clean plate to dry. "Ah, I see. Years of training."

As you dried the dishes, you couldn't help but notice the way his muscles flexed beneath his rolled-up sleeves, his hands moving efficiently through the soapy water. There was something undeniably attractive about the way he approached even a mundane task like washing dishes.

You thought back to those massive sleepovers where all of your friends would pile into one bedroom and talk about everyone and everything. How they gushed about how cute Kyle was and you always went quiet, wrinkling your nose like the name alone was poison. 

"Achoo," Kyle feigned a sneeze, taking water from his hands and flicking it onto you. He kept his eyes down on the sink like he hadn't done anything. You retaliated by whipping the wet dish towel at Kyle a little harder than intended, there was an audible snap when you hit him and your eyes widened. "Jeez, are you trying to take me out?"

"Obviously," You deadpan "That's been the plan for the last seventeen years."

The dishes didn't seem to let up, pan after pan, utensils piling higher than mountains. While your brothers played video games and your parents laughed obnoxiously in the living room, you were still stuck on dishes until your fingers wrinkled to prunes. 

The entire time Kyle kept skittishly glancing at you and then glancing away while you pretended not to notice. He didn't know when was the right time to ask you or if you'd even want to hear him out. 

Kyle leaned casually against the counter, a hint of nervousness in his eyes. He cleared his throat, drawing your attention from the last few utensils you were drying. "Hey, I've got something for you," he said, his voice holding a note of anticipation.

You raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued. "Oh? What is it?" You wiped your hands on a cloth to dry them before settling them on your hips. 

Kyle reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and pulls out an envelope, holding it out towards you. You took it, your fingers brushing against his, sending a small thrill through you. Carefully, you opened the envelope, revealing two concert tickets inside. Your heart skipped a beat as you read 'Suburban Wasteland' printed at the top above the seating and date information "I don't know if you still want to go with me. I was kinda a dick about it so you can give the other ticket to Bebe or something and I won't-

Without thinking, you let out a joyful scream and began jumping up and down, the sheer exhilaration bubbling over. Face lighting up as you looked down at the tickets, re-reading them over and over again. "Oh my fucking god!" 

He wasn't sure he had ever seen you so happy, not even when your soccer team placed first in regionals or when your parents took you on vacation. Despite his own indifference towards the band, seeing you so elated made it all worth it for him."You like it?"

"Yes!" You jumped around in a little circle, hands holding the tickets shaking as you looked back up at him "I thought you didn't want to go?"

"I listened to their stuff and I changed my mind," He said nonchalantly. That was only half true. He felt bad watching you go through the month, trying to find someone who would go with you and being turned down every single time. 

"Eeeek!" You shout again, jaw almost sore from the uncontrollable smile. Kyle thought that in seconds you would be bouncing off the walls. In a very impulsive moment for you, you throw your arms around him in a spontaneous hug. It's the first time you've ever hugged Kyle, and the warmth of your body against yours sends a shiver down his spine. 

His frame is taller and more solid than you expected, and you find yourself nestled against his collarbone, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest against you.

For a split second, neither of you move. His arms hesitate before tentatively wrapping around your back, his hands lightly resting on your waist. You can sense his surprise, his body slightly tensed with uncertainty, yet there's a warmth in the way he holds you. Your own hands, holding the tickets, press against his shoulders, and you feel the firmness of his muscles beneath his shirt. 

"Stop fighting!" Your mom rushes into the kitchen at the sound of your shrieking, panic across her face which quickly turns into confusion as she sees you clinging to Kyle. 

You break away from him, clearing your throat awkwardly as you stare at your mom, trying to still yourself. You quickly gather yourself, smoothing down your clothes and clutching the concert tickets a little tighter. "Can I pay you to pretend that never happened?"

A/N: So excited for the next chapter 😽

[glassofgretel]

My honest opinion on Evillious Chronicles...I believe the series is truly deep and beautifully written, but there are some personal issues I have with it.

I don't really care about the point and message of the Evillious Chronicle series nor the concept of "morally gray", I only believe in good, evil and the consequences of our own actions. MOTHY has made an amazing story that we all still enjoy ~16 years later, but I have to disagree with his philosophy and outlook on the world, ours differ greatly– Though he has some valid points, it's rather naïve IMO... and while it's compelling storywise and from an emotional perspective, it isn't as much realistically or from a political/social standpoint of right and wrong.

Morality never mattered in the first place, because evil always succeeds if it has enough power or deems its deeds necessary for a "greater benefit"... Good and evil are both necessary forces that exist to maintain the balance of this universe, just as our fate dictates.

Personally, I'm starting to see far more evil and corruption than light and hope in today's politics and throughout our society's history, so I only get pissed the fuck off whenever I see a political debate between self-righteous snowflakes on Twitter or Reddit (Especially the Character rant mfs), with each side claiming that they're right and the other is evil.

Even though morality is literally IRRELEVANT in politics, it has always been about interests and agendas in the end. If anything, there are only two lesser and greater evils. 💀

I'm no Altright-winger either, as some idiots on Discord might say... I'm more of a Pan-Arab nationalist but I just hate politics in general. Because if anything, we humans deserve all the shit that's coming to us. And trust me, I HATE Hitler with every fiber of my being... but if I were in his shoes, I would've done far worse with all the scum and idiocy in this world.

As for Riliane Lucifen, despite her awful deeds, she was still somewhat good at heart. Unlike the two-faced hypocrites over at the USA, Russia, China and Israeli governments, and especially those scumbags Adolf/Stalin... But it still doesn't excuse her actions despite her lack of moral agency, neither does her being possessed and manipulated by the demons.

So let's stop painting her as some sort of saint, she was a broken kid who deserved her redemption and a second chance- but that's all there is...

Because we know damn well that would NEVER fly in our reality, even if she was truly genuine about making amends.And I don't want to be like her or Nemesis lol, I prefer the likes of Frieza, Judge Holden, King Piccolo etc. as role models, because at least they're purely evil and honest about their philosophy, they embrace it to reach their own goals. Unlike most of our world's society...

I would say I am Near Pure evil though, since I have clear moral standards and my own personal law, I can discern right from wrong- But I'm not really much better than Hitler myself, and I am wrong more often than I'm right. I just despise everything wrong with the world, but I don't intend to change it for the better either. I don't even care about ending the cycle of violence and hate, infact I want to keep it going for my own benefit. That is the path I've chosen for myself and I embrace it fully with no guilt or regrets, even if it might be the wrong one.

I'm not just being pretentious or edgy either, I am simply disappointed and frustrated with this reality- I've had enough of this world and want to watch it burn. I enjoy treating evil with even worse evil, fighting fire with fire- Because it turns me on, gives me a greater purpose and sense of fulfilment too.

I'm sorry I really don't know how to answer this, it's the most concerning message I've ever received in my entire life

[liannelara-dracula]

Hello, I love your writing! Can I please request relationship headcanons for Uta from Tokyo ghoul? 😊

Uta Boyfriend Hcs

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Prompt

Requests are open

Rules

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

🖤The most wholesome yet chaotic couple.

🖤He loves you a whole lot and I say this because he doesn’t keep a girlfriend so that’s why you’re special. Normally Uta will just sleep around or have one-night stands. He won’t go through a relationship, the closet he’s had is friends with benefits but no actual dates or care.

🖤So when he realized he had feelings for you he thought about actually pursuing you, which means he liked you for a long time before asking. So it took him forever, like years, to ask you. Well he didn’t even ask you. He took things slow he didn’t just take you to the bed. He waited to get to something like that because again he actually liked you!

🖤Anyways, Uta doesn’t appear to be affectionate but he’s actually very affectionate (in a needy way) and sexual with you 😂. Its just mostly behind close doors. And he is such a fool for you.

🖤Is constantly attacking you with kisses and hickeys. There are lots of make outs so if Renji walks in on you two he should be surprised.

🖤One of his favorite things is to grab you by your waist with his arm when you walk by him and he’s working at his craft desk and sits you up on his lap or pins you on the desk. Sometimes it’s just to say “hi” and other times it’s just for fun.

🖤A cruel jokester at heart so he is always pranking or trying to scare you. His scaring is something as simple as his hand crawling up your back if you wear a backless top. Or just when you’re home alone and all you feel is someone’s arms wrapped around you. Although sometimes he gets Halloween props to scare you, which isn’t fun.

🖤Gosh and his laugh is so obnoxious and it gives you chills because he will usually just chuckle during something sexual which is already enough to make you embarrassed but this is worse! His laugh is like cynical.

🖤Once you realize it’s a joke you are hitting him in the chest playfully since he pulled you into him. And he loves it when you do that. Even when you nudge him or burry your face into his chest of fear or embarrassment of something.

🖤“This isn’t funny!” You’d pout, with his arm around your waist as he just teases you more.

🖤“Awww, you were scared. You even called for me.” He’d smirk seeing your eyes get watery as you looked away. Of course, he’s attentive to your feelings so he will notice. Though of course, he tried to see if he actually pushed the limits.

🖤“Shut up.” You’d say, your hands covering your face. Given how you reacted and how Uta was a sucker for your tears he felt guilty that he made his girl cry, or so he thought. He tends to forget that you love to joke around a lot yourself.

🖤Hearing your little sobs he felt guilty, “Hey, c’mon, I’m sorry baby.” He’d admit taking your hands away from your face only to see you smile and laugh.

🖤“Got you!” You’d laugh, only to make him smirk, “You’re such a liar.” He’d tease before chasing after you around your shared apartment.

🖤You share an apartment, he first gave you the key to his place and the more you spent time together he wanted to move to where you wanted to. But it took a while to convince you to move to the city with him. He’d ask you every day to move in with him.

🖤You are probably an artist yourself so your whole apartment is a studio and has many aesthetic and edgy things.

🖤Like he has candles of naked woman, abstract paintings, photographs of you (preferably nude), plants, and more. ( and he makes more than half of this joke and fully claims that you are his muse.

🖤His nickname for you is "my muse". Like he calls you other things like babe, doll, baby girl or y/n but "my muse" is a special nickname. Mostly because he has never used a creative nickname such as this one. He will rarely use "sweetheart" but he does use it.

🖤If you are an artist get ready for paint wars, color arguments, styling of supplies and the constant request of drawing him naked.

🖤You should also be prepared for all the “sit on my lap while we draw together” times, the drawing games, the “your my muse,” speech, him baringin in your room to ask for critique when your in the bathtub or changing, and the “you are art yourself complements”

🖤When you’re making art he will randomly kiss you which usually catches you of guard and often times make you mess up.

🖤Gosh, when it comes to kissing this man doesn’t let you go, nor let you breathe. He always has his hands on your face which keep you from pulling away, he cups your face and his hands are so much bigger than your face.

🖤Even after he’s given many kisses and you seem to be at loss of energy, he still has plenty of it too keep kissing and make you out of breath. He has a lot more stamina in sex and pda then he lets on.

🖤If the windows are fogged up enough, he writes on the car, "We just fucked" after you two have sex.

🖤Smokes in bed with you while cuddling. He is into drugs and would get you into it for sure.

🖤You trace his tattoos when you cuddle and loves it. He was probably the one to give you your first tattoo. It was probably a little butterfly on your shoulder or chest.

🖤Anyways he is a cuddle monster so you usually become the body pillow but even when he’s not squishing you, you’re the little spoon. Always.

🖤He writes songs and wants you to listen to them. Will write a song about you. In fact, he’d make an album based on your relationship. Always writes messages on the CDs he gives you (like in the photos.)

🖤If you have a significant height difference where you're the shorter one, he loves this. Loves to tease you about your height.

🖤“You’re so tiny.” He’d grin, patting your head in the process whilst you pout.

🖤He rests his chin on your head when he back hugs you. I mean he’ll put things on higher shelf’s if you can’t reach it so then you can ask him.

🖤He’d joke about not seeing you cause he’s taller.

🖤loves bringing you into his chest or torso and then look down at your cute face.

🖤Makes you sit in his lap.

🖤Loves it when you kiss his cheek as a thank you.

🖤Digs your colorful vocabulary too. Its no secret that his partner would curse, however he usually doesn't but is amused by you doing so.

🖤Super playful with you and a dare devil. He will dare you to do things. This was especially before you two were dating and just friends. "Flash the next person you see on the street" he'd laugh.

🖤"Easy," you'd scoff lifting your shirt up to flash a taxi driver.

🖤You once dared him to go streeking, lol.

🖤Likes to take pictures of you two all the time. He has so many of you both being silly instead of being romantic.

🖤Other times they are straight-up sexual. Which he keeps private and to himself.

🖤I mean he has pictures of you two posing shirtless you only have nipple coverings on you, just black x and so does he. But you two are goofing off in the photo.

🖤I mean, you two have suggestive photos where he’ll be gripping your ass or boobs.

🖤He has a lot where you smile too.

🖤Paints you sometimes and he prefers it if your not wearing a lot of clothes. In fact one time he painted you when you were in bed after a night of sex.

🖤This mostly because he thinks you look really hot after that and you look better than anyone else he’s fucked so, he’s definitely painting you.

🖤And when you tried to move he stopped you.

🖤“Uta what is all of this?” You’d say about to move out of bed.

🖤“Don’t move please, I’m not finished.”

🖤You’d smile at this, “okay, I promise I won’t.”

🖤Sometimes you find him painting or sketching something and you usually back hug him before kissing his cheek which he loves. "What are you drawing?" You'd smile.

🖤Anytime you kiss his cheek to say “hi” or “thank you” he really likes it. I mean hell, he even puts his hand on your hip.

🖤It’s one of the ways you greet him when you come home from school/work. Usually he stops everything once he knows you’re home. And he completely focused on you.

🖤Anything you say will be on his mind, and he almost never forgets anything you say.

🖤Though he finds debating with you very fun. Tells you fun encounters he had which are mostly meant to throw you off so that you can just tell him he’s dumb and then laugh about it with him.

🖤He loves making you laugh and he’s pretty good at doing that. I mean it usually leads to you crying because you're laughing so much.

🖤When he teases you, you end up hitting him a lot.

🖤He’s pretty observant of you so notices even the little things, he knows when your upset right off the bat.

🖤You’ll be doing something productive with him and even if you’re acting normal he asks if you’re fine because he knows you. He tries to get your mind off of things sometimes by just talking to you.

🖤When you two have more serious talks he is holding you by the waist, while resting his chin on your head. He rubs your upper arms soothingly

🖤I know most think he’s not big on affection but he can honestly never sit still. He always has a hand on your back, hip, ass, thigh, arm, shoulder, boob, etc. He holds your hand a lot too, especially in public.

🖤Uta isn’t ashamed of PDA he does whatever he wants whenever. So it’s really up to his girlfriend if there’s a limit.

🖤Although he’s more explicit at home with you. I mean he’d literally play games with you just to have sex

🖤But in public he's not ashamed to talk about things with you, like he likes whispering things in your ear to get you to blush. He also likes playfully biting your cheek or ear lobe.

🖤Randomly pulls you away from a crowd just to kiss you and give you hickeys. So many hickeys it’s gonna look like you’ve been badly hurt.

🖤Literally tries to create abstract art of hickies. He’s made them trail into a heart before on your hip.

🖤You’d constantly try to covering up and he’s always teasing you.

🖤“Nice scarf, you plan on always wearing one?”

🖤“Shut up. Maybe I wouldn't have to if you weren't such a leech.” You'd remark.

🖤Buys a lot of crap, and loves to buy you gifts that are such a troll, like a cum rag. One time he bought you a towel that said “cum rag” just for you. “I bought it for when you squirt so I could help you clean up.” He'd say shamelessly to which you'd just hit his arm.

🖤You call him ugly as a joke and gives you the biggest glare ever and he’ll attack you in cuddles or by picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder.

🖤Gosh has tickle-fights a lot, and you never win. He always locks you in many awkward positions and has you squirming.

🖤Uta is very carefree and isn't picky about appearance or have too much preference, he loves all kinds of woman. So he wouldn't care if you are curvy or not, he finds purpose in both.

🖤In fact, if you were flat chested he'd love to tease you about not having boobs. Wholesome of course.

🖤He'd call you a board sometimes to which you just hit his arm, "Shut up, you're even flatter." You'd claim.

🖤Flat or not he still likes grabbing your boobs.

🖤Very overprotective, even if he doesn't always show it. He never really lets you out of his sight, like ever. Even if Uta doesn’t go everywhere with you, he does want to know where you're going just in case.

🖤But he is a little controlling over his girl, and this is mostly because he always feels the need to protect her. He babies his girlfriend a lot, he be littles her often. Which is a sorta is red flag since he thinks you can’t handle things on your own.

🖤He would definitely have an age gap with his partner, say about 5-8 years. Even ten years, where he is older than her. He's not into older women.

🖤Also doesn't surprise you if Uta knew you when you both were younger he just took forever to go out with you.

🖤So he always interviene in a potential fight, when a guy hits on you, etc.

🖤“I told you I can handle it on my own.”

🖤 "No, you can’t."

🖤Even when you’re going into a certain ward he doesn’t let you go alone because he feels like you’ll get hurt.

🖤 "I was just going out."

🖤 "Oh perfect, I'll come with you then." He'd say, grabbing his keys to accompany you.

🖤“Uta, I can go on my own.”

🖤 "It's dangerous, I'm coming with you." He'd insist.

🖤 "I'm not a little girl, I can handle myself. I've walked there many times." You'd eye roll, having enough of his overprotectiveness.

🖤He’d give you one look of disapproval before saying, “Get in the car, Y/n.” He’d place his hands on your shoulders and turn you to the direction of the car before opening the door and nudging you to get inside.

🖤“Seriously? I’m fine.”

🖤“You have to understand something, my girl is my responsibility.” he'd argue.

🖤Speaking of which when he gets jealous, he gets jealous!

🖤He will act very calm with you but between him and other guy he becomes a completely different person. When he’s jealous he asks a lot of questions which even leads him to sound a little snarky which catches your attention. Although he will be very quiet if he's not asking you questions.

🖤You question if things are okay but he brushes it off. As your lover he usually tries to gain reassurance through affection. He sometimes fights with you about this but it's not always.

🖤It's not pretty when you both fight, well, he may seem like a good boyfriend, but your relationship can be abusive. Especially if the two of you are ghouls, abuse is different than the way humans would see it. Either one, ghoul relationships tend to have toxicity. I won't dive deep into this but I think that there are forms of abuse that ghouls may revert to even with their partners, this doesn't have to mean physical, even verbal abuse because again, they are not human. They do not have the same mentality as human beings. If his partner is human its very likely that she has felt abused or mistreated once or twice, if not more in their relationship just by what has said.

🖤For instance, in a really bad argument, he may revert to a threat such as "eating her" when he first met her instead of keeping her around.

🖤If she's a half-breed he'd make harsh comments about her upbringing and if she was a ghoul just like him he'd tell her to not be so soft.

🖤Though he doesn't show his barsh nature to you (he hardly does) if he ever is angry enough, he might. This once led you to call him a monster because he wasn't the same person you had come to know.

🖤He will try to apologize to you after some deep thought, but it takes forever for you to just get to that step with him. There have been numerous times when you've cried yourself to sleep or ignored him for weeks. There are many relapses in this relationship because he is hard to love.

🖤Aside from this, he would do anything for the girl he loves. He's practically blind for her.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

˗ˏˋ 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑦 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝐼 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 ˎˊ˗ ©𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟔~Present

[undertale-fic-librarby]

Hi do you have anymore swapfell sans x reader?I don’t mind if it’s a one shot or multi chapter.Fluff preferably smut is acceptable no angst please.

Howdy, thanks for asking! Here are some fics that might fit what you're looking for!

WeirdTober 2020 (Because My Therapist Seems To Think Writing is Good For Me) by PineconeTrinklebriar (Teen And Up, Complete)

Your love of the macabre has served you well for most of your life. Well, maybe ‘served you well’ was a strong statement, but it had landed you a rewarding job that you got to work side-by-side with the love of your life, your best friend, and your other best friend, so you weren’t about to start complaining now. Sure, it made for a tough middle school experience, back when people were still burning witches, but you survived and had very few physical scars to show for it.

Black as Pitch by YinYanChan (Mature, Incomplete)

During a time that bitties have been bred with even human killing abilities in illegal kennels for bitty fights. Bitties are still not considered people or even regular monsters...just things or pets in the eyes of the law. One night you managed to save the life of a helpless edgy bitty from a blackberry bitty named Pitch and his gang. By saving the poor Edgy and finding out just how many problems he had to cause him to be in such a situation to begin with led you to the life you have now. You've become a licensed bitty therapist in hopes of reaching out to the abused, the neglected, and street worn bitties and giving them a chance at a better life. With your supportive and loving edgy bitty by your side years later down the road you should have know that eventually the past would come back to claim you after all your life no longer belongs to you.

Play with Me by grimrester (Explicit, Incomplete)

When you decide to pursue your childhood dream of running an arcade, the developing monster city at the top of Mount Ebott seems like an obvious choice to set up shop. The community is growing quickly, you'd have very little competition, and commercial renting space is dirt cheap. The only problem is you've never run a business by yourself before, and you're not very good with numbers. When you find a monster accountant advertising his services online, you jump at the chance to work with him. The skeleton seems formal, professional, and detached, which is just fine by you. Who needs the distractions of friendships and relationships when you've got a business to run?

Skeletons Like Honey Buns by YinYanChan (Not Rated, Incomplete)

Monsters have always lived on the surface. Just not with humans. Keeping to themselves and living up the hype they are dangerous and wild creatures. Sans and Papyrus are just as guilty. Yet both have been intrigued on how humans have grown... they know better than getting mixed up too much with humans... however... they end up crossing a line and getting severely injured. As a last ditch effort to get away, Rus shortcuts him and his brother away from the aftermath. So wounded they almost end up feral and eating out of a nearby house's trash to try and heal... enter Amelia, your kind hearted daughter, to find it's not trash pandas but spooky scary skeletons... and instead of running to you... she offers them a honey bun.

Nox X Reader Oneshot: Ducks, Glue Sticks, and Sleep Deprivation by Chance36 (Mature, Complete)

Nox helps the reader with their uni assignments. Nox belongs to @bonelyheartsclub and @owl-bones.

[sephirthoughts]

30 and 32 for the ask meme, more valenwind please!!

30. Vincent calls Cid Chief sometimes canonically but that’s pretty much as far as he goes. He’s just awkward and terrible at pet names, and is too shy to try it. Whereas, Cid revels in the joy of both embarrassing Vincent and grossing out their teammates at the same time, and thus there is not a pet name in existence he hasn’t used for Vincent.

overheard in the bronco:

cid: how come you don’t have any cute little pet names for me? i wanna hear ya call me one

vincent: no. i am not good at those

cid: awww come on just once

vincent: no

cid: but honey, kitten, bao bei, sugar beet, babydoll, jelly donut, pookie bear, chocobo!

vincent: -sigh-

vincent: yes, sea…slug?

cid: …

cid: y’know what i’ll take it

NOTE: Vincent claims to be indifferent to pet names, but on a certain occasion, he was lurking nearby unseen, making sure Cid was safe walking home from the grocery store (HE HAS ANXIETY ISSUES DON’T JUDGE). He overheard some women flirting with Cid, to which Cid replied “No thanks ladies, i’m goin’ home to my wife.” Vincent went fully nonverbal for three days afterward. Cid’s back and hips have yet to recover.

32. It’s Vincent. He’s a dark edgy loner vampire on the surface but we all know he’s really a shy, touch-starved neurodivergent who’s been living in a box underground for decades. He has circulation issues from having materia in his chest instead of a heart, and thus is chronically cold, but he has discovered that Cid radiates heat like a small sun, and so behind closed doors, he’s always stuck on Cid like a lamprey, absorbing all that delicious human warmth. At least that’s his excuse.

He still has some old fashioned hangups about PDA, so in public he satisfies himself with standing in Cid’s general vicinity, being silent and dour. Until he feels that his man has socialised enough, and he wants attention now. Then he will scoop Cid off his feet without a word, and carry him bodily away, regardless of who he’s talking to or where they are.

The team is used to this and have come to accept it.

[dusty-daydreams]

Guess what! A fat person can indeed be petty, cruel and jealous! Not all fat people are uwu my rolls are so soft uwu. Allow them to be more complex and dare I say villainous. - an actual morbidly obese person.

Hey Anon!

I’m fat too - just for context (it’s kind of weird that anons always assume that the person they message can’t be fat or disabled etc etc)

And yeah I’m not saying it’s bad that they made her cruel because she is fat, I’m saying it’s bad that they took the ONLY fat character and made her villain while trying to claim that she isn’t

A) if she wasn’t a token, if there was more than one fat character (as would be realistic for the noble classes of Georgian England where being too skinny was also not pretty) and they were neutral side characters or one of the silly gossiping debutantes or one of the interesting characters that are good at heart, I would have less of an issue with the ONLY fat character being cruel and jealous - it’s not really a problem that she is like that it’s a problem that that she is the ONLY fat character and she is like that

(Although I suppose Brimsley is also a fat character but he is such a minor character and the stereotype for him is the queer male advisor soooo)

B) In my opinion (which I am entitled too just as you are) I am not very impressed by these writings that tried to go for “cool edgy girl” and landed on mean and two-faced without seeming to realise it - if they had INTENDED to write Penelope as a Villain or an anti-hero I would be so much more interested in that, but to me it feels like they made her a terrible person by accident

C) I don’t know what you’ve been reading/watching but in my experience the tropes that surround Fat Characters are not that they are “so soft, so cute” - no the common trope of the fat character is “so greedy, so selfish” - so the show isn’t exactly being innovative or subversive by making their ONLY fat character a selfish person, greedily hoarding money that she makes from profiting off the misery of others

In Summary - I agree, let the fat characters be villainous and complex! But I don’t think the show intended to do that, and I also don’t want fat characters to ONLY be villainous, you get me

[sasazusa]

A Date with Death — Review

Game Details: Release Date: December 7th, 2023 Platform: Windows, Linux, and MacOS Where to Download: Steam | Itch.io

Synopsis: "You're just an ordinary person... or so you thought. For your entire life, you've been narrowly avoiding death by pure luck... or is it something more? When a strange program suddenly appears on your computer, and someone claiming to be the Grim Reaper says he's come for your soul, your life as you know it is thrown upside down. As you delve deeper into the mysterious man that calls himself the Grim Reaper, you begin to wonder if fate brought you two together for a reason. Can you resist his charm, or will you fall for the one destined to take your soul?" — via Two and a Half Studios on Itch.io and Steam.

When I first heard about this game, I was super happy! I've always loved how "Grim Reaper" characters were written in media. Plus, he has a little axolotl plushie! I knew this game was up my alley, and I'm so glad I discovered it.

First, I'd like to say — he's absolutely my type. Grim has his share of tsundere moments, which I love since tsunderes are my favourite. He's kind, and he's honest. I really love the balance in his character. He's edgy and grumpy, but also has a soft side. I think that's what drawn me into this game. Also, he had me SWOONING within the first 20 minutes. He's a natural at sweeping anyone off their feet.

It's also hard not to tease this man. His blush. That damned blush. His reactions to the teasing are really funny, and my god, his pouty blush is so cute. It really pulled at my heart strings.

I find it really precious that he's trying to learn how to communicate with humans. The kaomojis are definitely adorable. (Y'all, I wanted to say "slang", but I had no idea if that would make sense. I hope you understand what I meant either way.)

I really enjoyed the MC's options to tease him. Teasing about marriage? About going on a date? Even coming over to your place? It's in the options, and I love that. It made this game really enjoyable for me. It made it feel more realistic to me.

I find it really sweet when it comes to MC and Grim's dynamic. "You're annoying, but I like listening to you." or "I hate having company, but I enjoy yours." vibes. I really enjoy their grumpy/sunshine trope. The trope is one of my favourites, so I really enjoyed reading through their conversations. And man, I'd love to read more between them.

Customization Praise!

When I first saw the extensive customization options for the MC's appearance, pronouns, and even an biography that you can type, I was so excited.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy otomes that have a set MC, but it makes the game stand out more when you're able to customize something that is uniquely yours.

You can also change around the appearance of your living space, and even the music anytime within the game.

I really give the developers credit. They shaped the game in a way that everyone has a different experience.

You can easily make a self-insert of yourself, or even an OC of yours with the options available, and that to me is very important.

Protagonist Praise!

As stated above, I'm really glad the game allows for customization of the MC. Whether it be with how they look and appear, their personality, and even their name/profile picture in the chatroom.

The one thing that stood out to me is the options you have. I've played my fair share out of otomes through out the years, but this game really tops it when it comes to what YOU want the MC to say and convey.

You can be a tease, be sarcastic, or even a mix of both.

It really gives you a even a unique playthrough experience. So, each time you go through the game, you may have a different experience than the last.

Art and Character Design Praise!

I absolutely adore the art in this game. From the background stills to character design — I really love everything about it.

Grim's design is so jawdropping. He's the perfect balance of edgy, but cute. (Each of my playthroughs, I wanted his jacket so bad. It looks so comfortable and is very fashionable.) PLUS, he has white hair. White haired anime boys for the win. (Kinda wonder what he would look like with black hair, though.)

As someone who has issues with their visions and bright colours, it really didn't mess with my eyesight that much. So, I really appreciate that the colours are more toned down.

Overall Thoughts and Conclusion!

This is one of the best otomes I've played in quite a while. Hands down one of my top favourites.

Each ending is unique, and I love that about games.

I really appreciate that this game is free with an option to purchase DLCs. I'm really excited for the upcoming DLC for this game! You best believe I'm going to purchase it the moment it's released.

This game has brought me comfort. It's made me laugh in moments I haven't felt quite myself, and I really thank Two and A Half Studios for that.

You can tell the developers and their team put so much love and care into this, and I really think that's incredible.

So, if anyone is looking for a heartwarming, bittersweet, and funny game, I highly suggest playing through this and giving it a shot. You won't be disappointed. Plus, you get to have some lovable moments with the Grim Reaper. That's a 10/10 in my book. :)

Final Thoughts: Rating: 10/10! Recommended: Yes, definitely!

Please go and support Two and a Half Studios! They have other games to play from, so if you enjoyed this one, I'd recommend checking the other ones out!

As of right now, A Date with Death has one DLC. Which you can purchase on Steam or through Itch.io.

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Beyond the Bet DLC — Steam

[keepmovinjunior]

gushy gooey thoughts i have under the cut abt megara ...

i just wanted to like, talk for a second about how megara is just so. near and dear 2 me. and how much i adore her and how emotional she makes me still and how i feel her with my whole heart. and like. i am not at all claiming that I Am Her and She Is Me because self inserts are not great, and i'm not a fan, but i think most people can relate to some aspect of each character they love, and when they write muses they inevitably always bring a hint of themselves to their take. and that's perfectly normal and healthy and makes your interpretation your own. and for me, there are certain things abt meg that i just. really, really feel.

i love women and the disney women in general, i think all of the heroines are fantastic and lovable and great in their own ways. but meg was always one that stood out to me as flawed, imperfect, and i just really felt so ... validated by her extremely sensitive, romantic, soft side that had been so deeply hurt by life and thus shielded by her sharp and cutting Edge, her fierce isolation, and her aloofness she played off as Coolness. i grew up in a pretty emotionally abusive family (i no longer talk to anyone from my biological family by choice) and by a young age i was hurt so many times by my deep desire and want to just. have friends (which i always struggled with so much). i got bullied pretty badly as a child and i was painfully shy and every time i thought i found a friend, it turned out not to be the case and i got burned in some way. anyway tl;dr i too became Cool (or tried to) and Edgy and Aloof as a teenager/young adult as a result and convinced myself i didn't care. i aligned myself with people whom were Mean back because it was the devil i knew. and it wasn't until i really grew up and met my now partner that i learned to be brave, learned it was safe to be vulnerable again and truly felt happy, and i just. seeing meg allow hercules in, slowly, allow herself to Feel and Connect and be safe, her little moments in the film in which she smiles and laughs softly and looks at hercules with such love in her eyes... in which she softens and it's okay for her to soften, that just. that really reasonated so much with younger me and it gave me so much hope, it made me so happy to see her happy. and i'm just at such peace that she got to be at such peace with her vulnerable side that was so full of love.

anyway this turned into such a mush of a post but i just love meg so much and i really love the message her character holds. i love her with my whole heart <3

[crown-of-roses-thsc]

Fun Fact: Crown of Roses (at least in the Toppat Civil Warfare branch, which is the direction I always intended to take the story and thus is the one that more clearly tells the story I want to tell) is inspired quite a bit by a few different musicals, namely Hamilton and Heathers. Now, I am in no way claiming that this edgy little comic holds a candle to either of those stories, but they played a huge part in the inspiration for this comic.

The original story was, as I’ve mentioned prior, conceptualized around a satirical and over-dramatic animatic using the song Satisfied about Ellie lamenting her love for Reginald but staying with Henry as she cared about him and knew it would break his heart. I was fully aware that the idea was stupid as heck and I think made me grow even more attached to it.

But even beyond the original silly idea, many intact ideas still come from both of these musicals (and some additions I’ve still been adding have also been inspired from these musicals).

The rag-tag gang of rebels isn’t a trope exclusive to Hamilton, but it’s definitely where I got the original idea. As well as this, the way I characterize Reginald in this story has always been inspired by Aaron Burr, specifically in “Wait For It”, “Aaron Burr, Sir”, and “The Room Where It Happens”. He’s a little self-centered, and while Ellie (“Hamilton” in this scenario) gets all the glory despite how reckless she is, Reginald tries to be the voice of reason and be more patient- hiding that, as well as to wait for the right time to strike, he’s also quite terrified of everything.)

Sven as a whole was always based off of Samuel Cebeary (“Farmer Refuted” from Hamilton), but I also connect him to Lafayette for some reason (likely because in the animatics I would form in my head, he always ended up cast as Lafayette, prolly due to the funny accents hehe). Lefty has always been Hercules Mulligan, I don’t remember if he was a direct inspiration for Lefty’s character but I would not be surprised if he was.

Under this Point are Major Spoilers!! Proceed At Your Own Risk

Carol originally played a different role in the comic (a more antagonistic one methinks, which I’m trying to bring back a bit) and was heavily based on Heather Chandler (from “Heathers”), with her lackey- Miss Demeanor- being based on Heather Macnamera. I’m still split on what I plan on doing with her? I would like to include her honestly, so I hope I can fit her in.

Crown of Roses Ellie definitely took some inspiration from Veronica Sawyer, then transitioned to JD in Crown of Thorns (this let Sven become her Veronica, in a way).

Randy Radman as a whole was inspired 100% by Beetlejuice the Musical, but the concept of ghosts in the story was inspired by Heathers completely, namely in the song “Yo Girl.”

A certain…scene with Burt was inspired by “Kindergarten Boyfriend”, and though the scene has changed that’s part of where some aspects of his character come from.

[fadeintocase]

i know your music is really personal and there's stories behind songs that you give when asked, and a lot of them seem really heavy. have you ever seen other interpretations that actually made you upset or disappointed that you weren't being understood?

There's always a little bit of ambiguity in meaning and subsequent leeway in interpretation with any creative thing you do. I am generally cool with whatever people wanna pull from things, and get impressed when people connect the same dots i was when i'm writing something.

However two stories come to mind, one funny and one emblematically frustrating.

The funny one

way back when Smoke Damage blew up from some nightcore stuff, i got an influx of attention. I got an email sent, i can't remember through where, asking about the meaning of the line "looking at the present's fucking sad" in that song. They wanted to know, genuinely, if i meant "present" as in current, or "presents" as in gifts, like christmas presents. I guessed this person was very young. And explained plainly but lightly, "The song is about not being happy with the current situation you're in." To which i got an email back, "Ah, so it's about presents? is it like a christmas song?" To which i. had no idea how to respond to.

The frustrating one

There's an OC of mine i thought up when i was a dark and edgy teenager. I wrote several posts about them on here, their connection to my mythos broadly, the things that inspired them, i joked about how it was ultimately a bullshit dark and edgy character. God of pain and suffering, physical form covered in scars, bleeds black, destined to become the soul at the heart of every star and feel the eternal suffering of burning for eternity, to pull other damned souls into the stars for them to also suffer, and feel the weight of every black hole as a pit in their stomach. Evolved after several lifetimes of samsara until they become the most archetypical form of theirself. A friend of mine once told me they thought about what a higher god viewing a person on earth would have to look like, and it would involve a lot of spinning. having to sync up with so much spinning just to peer into the lives of this planet.

I ended up writing a song about this character, The Astrocartographer, about this god of suffering watching all the people destined to suffer for their destiny. (They are also introduced in chapter 3 of PAN, my story about dragon aliens from another universe and a bug robot that talks to them.) At some point recently, someone on here posted a comic of lyrics from the Astrocartographer, not crediting me by my artist name, and in the description just kind of, making up what they thought it was about.

And that did offend me a little bit. That something that was a deep expression of some shit i came up with when struggling with my childhood, that eventually evolved into part of my sprawling fictional universe that i'm proud of. Like i put the effort in this a character who's spoken through stories and ARGs and music of mine, the subject of my most recent album, got glossed over because they were more comfortable with the thought that it was written about a ship they like, because a few keywords lined up for their interpretation. I don't mind interpretations, but i do get frustrated when people make a point to drown out my stated intention, ignore it, and claim my intention was their interpretation. Especially when it represents my own work i have been trying to get out there. long answer, but thanks for the question!

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

This is just my personal experience with them as a jewish person, but the edgy anti-theist people who claim to have read other religious texts never actually interact with the communities that follow those texts. I've met so many, almost always, white and edgy athetists who read or at least claim to have read the Torah and then try to "debate" or "educate" me like they're talking to a Christian. Yes, there's hundreds of similarities between the Bible and the Torah, and the Quran but that doesn't mean our communities are the same or have the same discussions as white American Christians do

Oh one MILLION percent of anti-theists haven’t engaged with communities because they have a superiority complex.

Another secret is that they just read the Bible and go to sparknotes to find key differences between the Bible and the other books or read a wiki article.

When someone tells you they have read the religious texts of several faiths, they’re almost always lying, and even when they aren’t they just skimmed it and took the literal meaning to heart rather than understanding how people interpret and evoke those words.

Religions are very important to a lot of people and the sooner you outgrow whatever edgy god is dead phase you got stuck in during middle school the better.

The fact there’s grown adults acting like that is just embarrassing.

[lionews]

Ballfart.EXE: A Comprehensive History & Guide

Ballfart.EXE is a tall hunched dark gray lioness with fierce red eyes. She has bright red veiny paws, underbelly, and muzzle, and has a red nose, ears, and pawpads. She has long white whiskers, a long tail, and is often seen snarling. This description was provided by (lionews/742622696539570176/).

Ballfart.EXE was first discovered by an unknown user on Lioden.com in 2014. According to the user, if you initiate the "claiming a lioness" page and successfully claim her, she will go on to kill the rest of the user's pride, accompanied by hyperrealistic blood and gore. She was first discovered in 2014, but gained popularity again in 2024 due to many users sharing their stories encountering her.

As one user wrote, "ballfart.exe killed my [ti]gon and i was so sad and scared [of her]😣😣". Another user writes, "I tried to claim ballfart.exe but she started a [NPC] battle and killed my king :((((". And only a few days ago, this user wrote "ballfart.exe KILLED my heir??? [...] i literally watched an animation that played on my screen of her ripping his guts out it was super scary". Along with many other accounts, it is clear that Ballfart.EXE is real, with one user even posting a screenshot (ibb.co/VL36MHm) of an encounter with her.

There have been many rumors of Ballfart.EXE, the most notable and popular being that no-one knows why she kills your lions, and that she has a secret mate (nicknamed Dickdestroyer.EXE by the community) and cubs of her own. However, her appearance and existence on Lioden.com used to be a perplexing mystery, with one user recounting that "...I heard she look different for every [Lioden.com] user but idk if it true :(((((((((". However, due to the efforts of many Lioden.com users, it is safe to say that we now know what the true appearance of Ballfart.EXE is, and that the description above is accurate.

Another mystery of her's is that despite the Lioden.com programmers regularly deleting her files every game development update (scheduled every month), she still always comes back to haunt the playerbase. As one user writes, "no fucking way ballfart.exe is still around, i heard they've deleted her [files] so many times but is she really coming back every single update?", and considering that this user has been around since 2018, it is safe to say that there is something strange about her continuous reappearances over the years.

The strange thing about Ballfart.EXE is that she's been encountering 6% more players in 2024 alone than in the past decade. It could be due to a small dedicated group of users creating artificial clones of Ballfart.EXE, as one user writes, "Omw to Make a buncha ballfart.exe [crunchy worm] clones and chase them 😈". While these users aren't technically breaking the TOS of Lioden.com, their dedication to spreading fear of Ballfart.EXE through clones and encouraging users to close their accounts when they do encounter her (lionews/742633718955540480/) cannot be ignored or understated. However, since we cannot contact these users, we truly will never know if they are being sincere or not when they say that they have made clones of her.

Ballfart.EXE has truly made waves on Lioden.com this past year, and despite her obscene name and "edgy" appearance, she truly has struck fear into the hearts of Lioden.com users for years now. Many people, alongside myself, wish to see her disappear from Lioden.com permanently; and here's to hoping that by 2025 she will no longer be a tangible set of code, but instead a bad memory that the community will share for years to come.

Until the time that Ballfart.EXE is deleted for good, I will continue to update this guide until she is gone for good.

------

Credits:

Anonymous Users: 742633718955540480, 742633684801339392, 742633676286951424, 742622707336806400, 742622696539570176, 742622691503357952, 742601486550401024, 742601450135388160, & 742571051753635840.

Lionews Tumblr & Moderators.

Lioden.com Creators & Moderators.

Author 🌿 of National Game News (Creepypasta Division).

💀😭

[hernakedmuse]

Speaking in Tongues

Preface

Synopsis: Timothée is enamored with a woman he has never met, now will he get the chance?

Warnings: Description of body and sexual fantasy. Not proofread.

Timothée's POV

November 2021

I couldn't believe someone was holding a premiere at Houdini's mansion.

Hollywood never ceases to amaze me, I know being a New Yorker everyone expects me to rag on L.A. but I gotta say, I absolutely love this glittery wilderness. Everyone is free here, weirdness doesn't exist, it's the regular, and there was a little European liberation here.

I was invited to the premiere of James Franco's remake on the 80s cult classic Spellbinder, his was called Spellbound, and it starred my good friend Tom Holland as the straight edge, white collar L.A. attorney, Matt Hayes, Austin Butler played the seemingly good but betraying warlock friend, Dan Clayton, and playing the evil seducing lead on the cover Miranda Every, was my current obsession, Minka Farrah.

I remember seeing her for the first time.It was two years ago at Lily's, we put on a movie before getting intimate, she was the one who raved about this young edgy actress who only does indies, with no connection into the entertainment business at all. The movie was Poison, Joel Schumacher's thriller rendition of Snow White. Set in the New York 90s supermodel scene, Minka plays Nieve Bianco, who's a rising star in the modeling world. Her unique beauty and large breasts bring controversy in the current trend of heroin chic, it shows Nieve struggling with body image and battling bulimia, Lily told me Minka had to lose 90 pounds for the film and she said it messed with her mental state badly since her usual body is curvy. I felt protective of her when hearing that, and wanted to have at it with the director even though his intention was to expose the dangers of the modeling world. Minka's character Nieve, had a rival two years older, Reina Reyes, played by Ana de Armas,  who Nieve usurped as the supermodel of the world. Nieve even caught the eye and heart of Reina's ex girlfriend who left Reina because she was too obsessed with her vanity and career, a butch fashion photographer, Schuyler "Sky" van Axel played by Ruby Rose. So obsessed with her rivalry with Nieve, Reina throughout the movie tries to kill Nieve in different ways but makes it convincingly look like it's one of Nieves many stalkers, even going as far as to give them a name, Malcolm McQueen. Sending pictures of Nieve of circled parts of her body claiming she has gained weight asking why she's turning into a porker, Nieve takes diet pills from Japan, her bulimia gets worse, Reina swapped Nieve's diet pills out with party drugs and fentanyl, Nieve even overdoses and Sky is afraid Nieve has a drug problem as well as an eating disorder, Nieve feel convinced she has a drug problem too but is doing to well in her career to leave for rehab so Sky promises to help her, thinking it's brought on by her stalker. Nieve is followed him one night from a party by one of the photographers, he tries to rape and stab her but he stops and sobs saying she's always been the only model who has been nice to him, Confessing that he's been having money problems due to his drug abuse, and Reina offered him a half a million to kill Nieve and make it look like she was raped and murdered by the made up stalker, he tells Nieve everything. Nieve is so afraid but she doesn't think anyone will believe her, she no longer cares about her career, she checks herself into a mental hospital thinking she will be safe there and if she gives up Sky and her career she will be safe from Reina. But her fans send her letters and praise, the designers donate the proceeds to foundations for eating disorders in Nieves name, Reina was livid of the outcome.

At the hospital she becomes close to her psychologist, Dr. Paul Dormer, played by Jason Patric, tells him about Reina and he has six nurses guard Nieve moving her room to the glass room. Meanwhile, Sky tries to make sense of Nieves mental recession, follows Reina and finds out everything and starts to collect evidence for the police. She finds out Reinas next plan and heads to the hospital, Reina disguises herself as a nurse and crushes up a bottle of sleeping pills putting it into Nieves apple sauce and has it taken to her room.

Sky gets there too late and they're pumping Nieves' stomach but she doesn't make it. Sky dropped video and written evidence of Reina to the cops and goes to kill Reina but the cops arrest Reina. The movie ends with Dr. Dormer and the six nurses at the funeral, they're renaming the hospital after her. Reina is at another mental hospital in a straight jacket crying and laughing that she won, she's the most beautiful woman alive.

The performance of Minka left me with so many feelings, after that movie I watched all of hers. She's so beautiful, 5'3 with the kind of wide hips that shift side to side distractingly, an hourglass figure and bouncy, juicy breasts, 36DDD, a soft little stomach, I wanted to bite every part of her and do explicit things to her curves. I had the living need to lick every part of her light olive skin that was a beautiful resort of her Black, Arabian, and Eastern European heritage. I wanted to see the look of overstimulated pleasure on her round, heart shaped face, her juicy, thick raspberry lips fall open as she tries to scream my name and Rapture but can't as I stretch her with my cock and have my tip pound into her spot.

I rewind the sex scenes in her movies over and over, my source of ejaculation, I tug hard on my cock watching her big violet eyes hood seductively as the screen siren she is. But after my release, when I'm lying in my sheets naked covered in my own cum and sweat instead of hers, I feel livid, colored in green jealousy of her co stars who touched her. When I found out she was in a relationship with Ruby Rose I was inconsolable. When I saw them on the red carpet together, Ruby's nose was buried in Minka's soft, blunt black bob cut. I wanted so badly to smell her.

Her interviews are my favorite. I took great care in learning about her. She lost her mother 24 from cancer, they were close and even mentioning made my lovely girl tear up. I wanted to choke that interviewer for being so insensitive and asking her about that difficult time, I wanted to run her a bath, lock her away from the world and bundle her up in my blankets.

She's from Woodland Park, New Jersey, her mother was from Poland, her dad is a teacher. They moved to Carmel-by-the-sea when she was in her senior year, she went to an all girls Catholic school. She hated school and she's bisexual. Her brother Stone is trans and he's her assistant, her other brother Jerzy is a pilot. Her favorite color is red. She's older than me by ten months and born on Elizabeth Taylor's birthday, who is her idol. She speaks Polish and is an animal activist as well as a queer activist, 80s punk and dark wave is her favorite music and when I found out she and Ruby ended and she bought a home in Beverly Hills, I bought one in Santa Monica.

It wasn't hard for me to get an invitation to the premiere of Spellbound, I know that sounds gross and cocky but for once I'm so grateful for my status.

I made sure to dress my best, begged my stylist to conjure up something eye-catching and revealing, to make me look as desirable as I could. Erin didn't disappoint. She clothed me in a halter like, sleeveless, waistcoat in white with a black collar, matching trousers almost made like formal joggers, and Chanel combat boots. To top it off, red was splattered on the design to look like blood, it was fitting for the film being premiered. The trousers were a little tight around the crotch area.

The mansion looked incredible, the main event was out in the gardens, thankfully heating lamps were everywhere, it was still chilly in November, even in L.A.. I ran into many familiar faces, sometimes I couldn't believe I was famous and that these amazing legends were talking to me.

Suddenly, I heard a musical laugh, it was giggly and scratchy and I fell in love all over again. I politely excused myself to find the source that I knew it belonged to. Standing in the center of the garden , posing with James Franco in an inappropriately tight, Morticia dress with a neckline that plunged to her navel was…her. Her Mia Wallace hair melted beautifully with the ebony of her dress and framed her picturesque face, she looked like she could be a film siren from the 1910s, her eyes were done in vamp flapper style, lips painted the color of deep cherry red that matched her embroidered gloves with occult imagery. My eyes kept slipping to her cleavage that was falling from her dress, almost, with curious eyes, you could nearly see her nipples.

Stirring occurred in my too well tailored trousers. I licked my lips and decided to bite the bullet and meet the woman of my dreams.

I don't know when but before I knew it, I was close enough to tower over her, close enough to hear her whispering to James that his special friend was looking jealous by the fountain, and close enough to smell the hypnotic sweet and dark scent of her perfume.  Before I lost my nerves I cleared my throat and spoke her name like a spell.

"Excuse me..."

@meetmyothersouls @sufferingstarlight