#First time drawing her new outfit and I gotta say

[vantablackdraws]

*taps mic* Dizzy with dragon horns

[himbosandhardwear]

Eddie scans the room, looking for who or what he's not sure, just keeping his eyes peeled for something interesting. It's Saturday night, a packed house, some of the usual suspects but some new faces too.

One in particular stands out, especially considering his Sears Catalog attire and artfully tousled hair.

There's something about his loose body language that draws Eddie's eye. He's out of place but he doesn't act out of place. Eddie can respect it.

Unfortunately, when their eyes meet, he gets a kicked gut reaction that makes it clear this guy is off limits. The guy looks away immediately, probably thinks Eddie is more likely to pickpocket him than buy him a drink. Oh well. No great loss, he didn't come to get laid anyway.

He makes his way to the bar, gets a shot of Jack and a Miller Lite and waits. Teddy will probably show up before too long, maybe they can bar hop. He sips his beer and looks around some more, noting the older Mexican lady who runs the flower stand on the corner. You wouldn't guess it just by looking at her but she can drink anyone in the place under the table. He should really get her name.

Sears Catalog has moved to a table on the right side of the room, standing with a presumed girlfriend. Their heads are bent close together. He looks up and catches Eddie staring. They both look away again. He's really gotta stop doing that before he gets hate-crimed. It's a known problem, his type being untouchable preppy boys. He's sure if a shrink studied him, they would say it was because he didn't think he was worthy of love, or some shit, but he can't help it. The straighter, the meaner, the cleaner cut, the more Eddie falls all over himself. It’s a miracle he ever gets laid. Thankfully there’s always closet cases. He swore to himself he wasn't going to do that anymore though, he needs to have some self-respect, not let asshole jocks use him and drop him the second an emotion is displayed.

“That outfit is hideous.”

Eddie jolts in his seat. He finds Sears Catalog smirking at him like what he's said is the height of wit.

Eddie wastes no time pouring the rest of his beer over the guy's head.

He stares back at Eddie in shock, almost hurt. Fuck him. He doesn't care, he's not letting some dumbass gymrat hone his bullying skills on him. Not today.

The guy's girlfriend jogs over with a handful of napkins, which is when Eddie splits.

“I told you not to use that line!” He hears her exclaim. Eddie stops in his tracks.

“But…but...he didn't even let me get to the good part,” Sears laments. Eddie can't turn back around, he's frozen in place.

“Yeah, dingus, because it's a stupid fucking line. I'm sorry you had to find out like this but not every guy who makes eye contact with you wants to fuck you.”

“I know that! I just thought… I don't know. Let's just get out of here.”

He sounds so defeated. Eddie did that. He assumed the worst and reacted accordingly. Like an asshole. Like a bully.

They're halfway to the door when Eddie's feet unstick themselves from the floor. He rushes to intercept.

“What was the rest of the line?” He shouts.

Sears turns, eyes wide, unsure.

His…friend? Looks Eddie over, unimpressed. “What's it to you?”

He winces. “Just…uh…I guess I thought you should know, some of the guys who make eye contact do want to fuck you, they're just too stupid to realize they're being hit on.”

Sears and Mean Friend make their own eye contact. Mostly ‘Beat it' and ‘Are you serious?’ and ‘Yes, oh my god, please go.’

Eddie respects their bond.

Once Mean Friend has sufficiently rolled her eyes and threatened Eddie with bodily harm should anything worse than beer befall her friend, she stalks off into the night.

“You should take it off.”

“Huh?” Eddie responds, stupidly.

Sears smiles. “That's the rest of the line. ‘Your outfit is hideous. You should take it off.’”

Fuck, it really is a terrible line. Something a middle aged creep would use. If he'd waited long enough to hear it the first time it would've made him laugh though, which would have broken the ice.

“Awful. Zero out of ten,” he says while grinning. “Looks like you already offended one guy.” He looks at Sears’ wet shirt, appreciating his own handiwork.

“I'll keep workshopping.” His hand comes up slowly, like Eddie might react badly again. “Steve.”

It's his honor and privilege to clasp Steve's hand in his own.

“Eddie. And can I say, your outfit looks great. It would look better on my floor.”

Steve practically twinkles at him. “Stop, I'm already a sure thing.”

He uses the hand still in his grasp to pull Eddie forward and smash their lips together.

When their grandkids ask how they got together, Eddie is going to have to lie.

[wxshing-aep]

The Prom Committee (pt 1)

Ethan Morales x fem!reader

based on this request:

"how about one where y/n runs an after school club so Ethan keeps getting detention on purpose to see her because he thinks “clubs are for dorks” to quote Paxton and so his reputation as the bad boy isn’t ruined"

Warnings: swearing, banter, the word boobs

AN: decided to make it a 2 parter cause it was getting long while I was writing it and wanted to give Ethan more depth of character than the actually show so part 2 coming tmrw probs!

When his assignment was handed back by Señora Diaz upside down, Ethan wasn't surprised by the big F glaring back at him in red ink when he turned the page over.

“Stupid bitch” he muttered under his breath.

“In Español, Ethan” Señora Diaz paused on her way back to the blackboard, unsure of what he said but certain that it wasn't in Spanish.

“Sorry" he retorted and she continued her route back to the front of the classroom.

"perra estúpida”

“ethan!”

That’s how Ethan ended up in detention for the umpteenth time in his academic career, tapping his pen on the desk in the nearly empty classroom with Mr. Shapiro's happy go-lucky self staring back at him.

"Well, happy to have you here Ethan!" Mr. Shapiro greets picking up a clipboard from his desk. "Not happy to be here" Ethan deadpanned. "Sorry to hear that. Not sure how you managed to get detention during the first week of school, but hey I think that might be a new Sherman Oaks record! Congrats buddy!" Mr. Shapiro cheers before realizing the younger boy is not the slightest bit amused. "Alright, tough crowd."

"Moving right along then," Mr. Shapiro clicks a pen in his hand "time to take roll!" which causes Ethan to look around the empty classroom.

"...I'm literally the only one here"

"I know, I just love checking things off lists," Mr. Shapiro clears his throats " so do I have a Morales comma Ethan?"

"seriously dude?"

"Second call for Ethan Morales"

"you're gonna keep going til I say here, aren't you?"

"You betcha!"

"Here."

"Awesome!" Mr. Shapiro marks a giant check by the one name on his attendance sheet. "god I love doing that- Alright so unfortunately I've gotta skidaddle to help out with the faculty potluck but lucky for you sir we're implementing more of a reformative detention style this year!"

"What the hell does that mean" Ethan asked.

"It means, that instead of sitting here for the next few hours, you my friend, get to offer your help to one of the after school clubs or committees that are a bit low on helping hands" Shapiro responds with finger guns. "so guess who's today's newest member of the prom committee!"

"yea, no. I'm not joining some stupid after school club. clubs are for dorks, losers, and ugly people" Ethan responds grabbing his backpack out of the chair next to him to get up and leave.

"well actually it's a committee"

"even worse"

"Alrighty well I can see what the other options-" is all Mr Shapiro gets out before he is interrupted by your voice from the doorway.

"Oh- hey! Mr. Shapiro, did you find anyone to help with the prom posters? Eric said he'd help me out but then canceled cause he said he had to train with the assistant swim coach to quote make Michael Phelps my bitch end quote. Whatever that means, so I'm kinda flying solo here" You say, drawing Ethan's attention towards you as well.

hot damn. okay maybe after school activities are not only for ugly people. He thinks you might be the prettiest girl he's ever seen and definitely takes a mental note of your outfit that's hugging you in all the right places. He quickly realizes that he doesn't know your name and has no idea how he's never been informed of your existence prior to this moment. He's snapped back to reality by Mr. Shapiro responding to your question. "Ah- I'm sorry but Ethan is-"

"super excited to help decorate for prom" Ethan finds himself blurting out before Mr. Shapiro could finish his sentence.

"Oh- well that's great! Uh Ethan just report back by 6 so I can log your hours! I'm gonna get going, you kids have fun decorating. Go crickets!" Mr. Shapiro says, making his exit as you watch him almost skip down the hall.

"Sup, I'm Ethan" Your attention is brought back to the brown eyed curly haired boy who's suddenly standing in front of you (how the hell did he cross the room that fast, you wonder) with an outstretched hand. He never really shakes hands, he just wanted an excuse to touch you. He's cute, you note mentally. You accept the offer and shake his hand. "and you are?" he continues.

"I'm-" you pause noticing those not so innocent brown eyes are directed elsewhere, "acutely aware of the fact that you're staring at my boobs".

Ethan thinks his brain might've just short circuited cause he was definitely just caught red handed. He'd recently grown a lot more confident with girls since his summer growth spurt and subsequent glow up had dramatically increased the number of girls interested in him, but there was something about you and how you so deliberately called him out that had definitely thrown him off his game.

"Sorry- I uh- I was actually looking at your shirt. They're- It's nice" he wants to die he thinks.

You chuckle at his sudden change in demeanor. "Hmm. Yea, I know they are" you respond, turning on a heel and heading toward the auditorium.

"You comin or what?"

-

For one person, you had made pretty okay progress in a week. The current task at hand was making posters to get people excited for the theme reveal. The ground was littered with several half finished or barely started posters.

"Can you draw?" You asked Ethan.

"I'm not much of an artist"

"Really? the graffiti on the side of the school says otherwise. Your handwriting definitely sucks though so I'll do that, but the art's good and if you can do it with a spray can, you can definitely do it with some paint and markers" your unsolicited review of his graffiti made him crack a smile. His latest act of defiance had been a giant snake comically eating a cricket accompanied with the words "get fucked" on the side of the school building.

"You can't prove that was me" he challenges.

"Maybe not, but Mr. Shapiro had mentioned that I might have a detention helper today thanks to Señora Diaz and I happened to notice the words 'stupid bitch' spray painted on her car containing the same weird ass t's as the graffiti on the side of the school and here you are, Ethan."

"Damn, you're good" he pauses realizing he can't throw your name back at you because he still doesn't know it.

"Y/n" you say quietly.

"Huh?"

"My name's y/n"

Pretty name for a pretty girl, he thought.

"Alright y/n. I'll draw as long as I don't have to to touch any glitter. that shit's impossible to get off"

"deal"

"and I don't write my t's weird"

"you write your t's like a crazy person"

-

Time was pretty much flying by. Together you'd gotten nearly twenty posters done and were slowly finding out more information about each other. You were informed about some of Ethan's tattoos and how he'd actually drawn the designs for all of them himself. Not an artist, my ass, you thought. Ethan learned that he hadn't met you before because you'd previously been homeschooled and had all but begged your parents to be able to go to school with other kids for your senior year until they finally cracked and agreed to enroll you at Sherman Oaks.

"Ah I see, you're a total secret weirdo. That explains your freaky detective skills" he teases.

"I am not a secret weirdo. I just like criminal minds and puzzles"

"You were homeschooled. All homeschooled kids are a little weird"

"That's an unfair stereotype"

"Whatever you say, y/n"

"If anything you're the secret weirdo. or at least an undercover art nerd"

"I'm not an undercover art nerd"

"Yea you are. Something tells me this whole" you gestured largely to him sitting a couple feet away from you, "tortured angsty hot skater boy thing you've got going on is a pretty recent development" you comment absent-mindedly. You looked back up from your poster when he didn't respond to see him sitting there, arms crossed with a smug grin on his face.

"What?" you prodded.

"You totally just called me hot"

You're now very aware that he's a bit closer to you than he was before.

"mm don't think so"

"oh you definitely did"

"did not"

"did too"

"did not" that one came out much less confidently considering his hand had made its way to your face to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. damn, he's good.

"whatever you say, y/n" he almost whispers. have his eyes been that sparkly this whole time? He's leaning in and you're definitely not backing away. You're maybe a centimeter away from his lips until the alarm blaring from your phone, which seemed like much better idea hours ago, sent you flying back from him and scared the shit out of both you.

"shit- I- god that scared me, I uh set an alarm for 6 so you'd remember to check in with Mr. Shapiro cause, ya know, I thought we'd both probably be busy. Um- busy making posters, i mean. Obviously I mean making posters cause we definitely wouldn't be busy doing anything else so-" you ramble.

The smug little smirk has made its way back onto Ethan's face as he is quite enjoying this role reversal from your first interaction of the day.

"shut up" you say to him.

"I didn't even say anything" he responded, hands in the air in surrender.

"I've gotta head home, but thanks for helping out even though you basically had to be here. If you ever find yourself in detention again this semester, feel free to help out. Hopefully the committee is more than just me by then" you say, starting to gather your belongings. Ethan secretly hopes it isn't, he likes the idea of hanging out with just you.

"I probably will find myself in detention again. It's kinda part of this whole tortured angsty hot skater boy thing I've got going on" he says throwing his backpack over his shoulder.

"not what I said" you still attempt to deny.

"sure it wasn't"

"bye ethan"

"bye y/n"

Yea, he'll definitely be finding himself in detention again.

-

Read Part 2 here

[deadghosy]

If I was in Hazbin hotel:

Author insert x Hazbin Hotel

Prompt: an author is bored as they decided to jump into their favorite fandom at this very moment.

Honestly I’m bored asf rn lmao.

Will, the blogger in tumblr known as Deadghosy was bored in his room as he listens to jay aka kub scoutz 😍 playing lil guardsman. Being even more bored they opened their palm as a digital portal opens-

OKAY STOP…at first I was gonna do that story ass shit but let me be real. I died by not getting enough sleep and I popped into hell for not liking those Jesus posts😭

I’d honestly be in the sloth ring for being lazy asf and being tired most of the time. But also be in the gluttony ring as well. A BIG BITCH GOTTA EATTTT😭

But I would probably still be able to go into the pride ring because of my pride in not needing help from people. 😭 I hate asking for damn help irl.

I actually have very sharp canine teeth and bottom rows, I might as well be mistaken for a humanoid demon lol/j

But if did have a demon form, it’s a bear since I eat and sleep all day lmao.

Alastor wouldn’t “hate hate” me but find me annoying. I would try to get on his good side and never do deals with him obviously cause I like my soul 😍. But dead ass I’m showing him lingo of gen z ☝🏾💀 cause ain’t no way ima hear this deer man yap in a way I can’t understand. This is not no new broadcast from the old times dude. “Salutations!-” HAVIN ASS😕

Friendship level: 5/10

Sir Pentious, I’m teaching this bitch how to do the whip and nae nae 😄. I love him personally cause he so silly sometimes. I would just pop up as he works on weapons but not help him lol. I think personally our friendship would be the kind to talk to each other for a little and stop and repeat😕

Friendship level: 4.5/10

Charlie would like me because of my hyperactive personality sometimes. Like if I’m fixating on something, she would listen and probably tell her father. But mostly i wouldn’t do the trust exercises, she’ll have to drag my black ass to do them 💀

Friendship level: 6/10

Lucifer and I would be so chill dead ass. He’s probably adopt me if I’m gonna be honest cause I also have a duck toy in my room as we speak 😭LITERALLY I MIGHT AS WELL BE A MINI HIM WITH HIM HAVING HYPER FIXATIONS.

Friendship level: 10/10

Vaggie and me, idk she’s chill but short tempered. But I don’t think she would hate me but only he suspicious at first, but then just be chill with me. I would try to help her around but procrastinate lmao

Friendship level: 5.5//10

Husk would probably be chill but not have an opinion on me honestly. It will depend on me just going to talk to him or being nervous to talk to him. I hate being awkward so I would just wave or sit by his bar and chill with him as I draw.

Friendship level: it’s probably between 3/10 and 5/10

Angel and me, idk I feel like I would be a small friend of his to help. He wouldn’t trauma dump that much on me cause I’m just a kid so it would be like “oh my work is shit but my boss is even more shit.” So I would just nod acting like I don’t know what’s going on. Plus, I would probably try to make him something with the help of Lucifer

Friendship level: ima be honest…it’s probably a 4/10 cause I’m a minor and he has problems he need it overcome. He doesn’t need a minor to yap his ear off 😕

The Vee’s…😕ain’t no way ima talk to them front to front if I’m actually gonna be their friends dead ass. I would probably mostly be friends with Velvette to hook me up on outfits😍

Friendship level: -1000/10

Valentino…HAH YOU WOULD HAVE TO CATCH MY BLACK ASS ACTUALLY DEAD IF IM GONNA CHILL WITH THIS BASTARD 😂 I’m burning his whole studio down in a cool ass pyro tf2 mask. Fuck that bitch, all my homies hate Valentino 🤭

ENEMY LEVEL: 10000000/10🖕🏾

Vox, I’m begging him to try to advance my phone so I can prank call heaven and hell at the same time. I’m using so much evil ass shit🦆 like dead ass ima say “I heard your high school bully is in heaven” to an angel so they would go crazy trying to find their bully lmao. But Vox would hate my ass cause..I’m me? Idk lol

Enemy level: 8.5/10

Velvette, eh I feel like we would be mutuals but not too friendly. More like a hook up just so i can get free outfits and she can get a quick teen model and I can leave with the fit fr 😍 no money, free outfit‼️

Friendship level: 4.5/10

Adam and me..we throwin hands. Full on fist to fist. He probably would try to cheat but nahhh, you gettin kicked in the manhood bitch 😄‼️ but yeah me and him, enemies for life. He’s funny I’ll admit, but be honest having him beside you irl💀

Enemy level: he better keep one eye open.

Sera…yeah she not letting me in heaven lmao 😭 that’s all ima say LMAOO

Friendship level: -0/10

Lute will 100% percent kill me for my mouth 😭. I’d probably say GYATT to her for funnies only to get stab. But I would just be quiet and try to be on her good side lmao

Friendship level: 2/10

Emily would like me but would be the type of person to keep me in check with my mouth and vulgar language as I just chill eating all the food in heaven. She def givin me good tours.

Friendship level: a good 7.5/10

That’s all I have lmao

[spidermans-l-o-v-e-r]

Orange Blossoms

Pairing: Buck x Reader

Word Count: 4.2k

Notes: It's 5/12/24 at 12:57am. Lmao I wonder if I'm actually going to post this series

Chapter 3: Just Keep Driving

Buck slept over at Eddie’s that night, he was just too excited to be by himself. All he could do was talk about you and Eddie didn’t mind it, he hadn’t seen Buck this obsessed with a girl before 

“Okay, so what’s the plan exactly?” Eddie asks as he dumps a pile of eggs on Bucks' plate 

“You and I are gonna pick Y/N up at Athena’s house around one” He gestures with his bacon before taking a bite 

“Why isn’t she driving herself” Eddie asks as he sits down with his plate 

“Because she’s only got a bike, she can’t borrow May’s car today, and because I might have told her it was gonna rain so she probably shouldn’t take her bike and that we would pick her up.” 

“Is it actually going to rain” Eddie takes a bite of his breakfast and Buck shrugs 

“That’s what the forecast said” 

“Okay, which seat do you want me in?” He butters his toast and Buck sighs, taking a bite of his eggs 

“I’ve been thinking about that all morning, I think I’m just gonna say I had no signal, so you go get her and offer her the front seat” 

Eddie chuckles, he’s thought of everything and all of the different paths to get what he wants 

“And open the door too!! So she can’t say no!!” 

“What if she walks ahead of me and gets in the back first” 

“Hold her hand, she’ll think it’s cute” 

“You want her to think I’m cute” 

“Yeah, like Big Brother, cute! 

“Okay what if I drive and you escort her to the car and buckle her in” Eddie offers while sipping his coffee 

“Because you can’t drive for shit and this is a new car, plus I’d be in the back”

Eddie scoffs indignantly and narrows his eyes over his cup 

“No-no, this plan is the best one, trust me. And if she insists on sitting in the back. You keep your body turned so she feels a part of the conversation. But like try to get her to sit up front anyway because I really really want to see her in my front seat” 

“I should trash your entire plan for that jab about the driving but I won’t.” 

After finishing breakfast and Buck changing his outfit at least four times, they head out. He even spent the night perfectly curating a playlist that he just felt you’d be super into. He plays it on the way there for Eddie, who goes through it, specifically taking out all his “baby-making” songs

“Oh come on!! I bet she loves that song! Everyone loves Bruno Mars”

“I’m so sorry I’m not listening to you sing Please Me knowing you mean her! I have to draw the line somewhere”

“Okay, well can you draw it at Seven? I can deal with that being off, even if I love Jungkook. And you don’t have a problem with W.A.P. but you have one with Please Me?!” 

“Well, you gotta have that one. And If you think for one second I’m not about to unleash my sweet rapping skills with W.A.P you are wrong” 

“Yeah okay I’ll give it to you”

“Call me by your name?!” Eddie looks at Buck and Buck whirls on him, putting the car in park at a stop sign and turning to him in order to fully sass his ass

“Eddie. Ed-dee. You tell me right now that you’re gonna delete that”

“….Yeah okay”

“That’s what I thought”

“Wait this is a good one” 

Eddie hits play and “Case 143” by Stray Kids starts playing through the speakers. Buck turns the stereo up and looks over at Eddie 

“Exactly!!! That’s what I’m saying! Hey, you know I learned the dance for this?”

“Oh my god really?” Eddie is incredibly impressed, as he should be because those dances are not easy. 

It’s raining before they even get there and Buck is starting to panic a little, Eddie can tell by the way he’s silent now. 

“Buck? Buddy?” He smirks when Buck doesn’t answer. He pokes at his thigh 

“Whatcha thinkin'?” 

“What if she runs out ahead of you and just dives into the backseat? That's logical, right? Like it’s raining and she told me yesterday she hates water”

Eddie leans back in his seat, watching the cars pass as Buck goes over every tiny detail in his head. He turns back to him and smiles a little 

“You trust me right?” 

“Course’ I do, why?”

Buck pulls up into the driveway, and unlocks the doors, Eddie reaches in back and grabs an umbrella 

“One Eddie Diaz special, comin' up” 

Buck watches Eddie as far as he can until he’s left alone. He taps on the steering wheel, everything has to be perfect today, or at least as perfect as he can get it. He knows he needs to be prepared for it to not be perfect but he can’t help himself. Not with a girl like you… he doesn’t want to say anything dumb again, all he ever does is say dumb things around you. 

The sound of the passenger door opening breaks him from his internal misery, you hop in and shake the umbrella out, tossing it in the back seat 

“Hiya Buck!” You say excitedly, leaning over to hug him. His eyes are huge as he hugs you back 

“Eddie said he had to grab something from the kitchen he left last time he came over. He said I could have shotgun since I was a lady” You giggle as you buckle up and sit back 

“You okay?” You ask, putting your hand on his cheek “You look a little flushed”

He’s not okay. Because one, you’re sitting in his front seat. And two, this outfit is a real banger. A yellow plaid skirt, fishnets (which drive him crazy), and a cute distressed Nirvana t-shirt tucked into the skirt. Your mini backpack is black and matches your black boots perfectly. He especially likes the belt you’ve got with little metal hearts in it 

“Buck?” You ask again and he blinks rapidly before clearing his throat awkwardly

“Oh! Yeah! No, I'm fine I swear I’m good, I’m cool, I am a- you know thing… that is cool”

You smirk and pull your hand away and he lets out the tiniest whimper at the loss of contact. You blush and pretend not to hear it. A deep blush creeps up his ears and he stalls a little. 

“So um… did you ever clear things up? With May?” He asks, turning to face you in his seat. You smile softly and fold your hands in your lap 

“Yeah, we talked for a long time that night. It’s the first time we’ve really talked at all that wasn’t just you know normal pleasantries” You smile fondly and he leans against the window, listening 

“That’s nice, I’m glad you guys can kind of start to build a relationship. The ax offer still stands though, just so you know” He winks at you and you whack his thigh, blushing.

 “Oh! I didn’t get to thank you for saving me!” You say suddenly, reaching for your bag at your feet and digging through it 

“Oh come on, it’s my job!” He scoffs, putting his hands up “Besides, I’m pretty sure that kiss was thanks enough” His cheeks flush and so do yours as you pull out a little envelope and a small box 

“Here!! I made you something”

Buck eagerly takes it from you “Can I- can I open the present first” He smiles sweetly, holding the little box to his face and you laugh 

“Of course!” 

He takes his time carefully unwrapping it even though you know he wants to destroy it. He folds it nicely and sticks it in his glove box and then opens the box. There’s a rainbow friendship bracelet made of little glass heart beads 

“I wanted to make a solid one but I didn’t know what color you wear most so I just made it rainbow” You blush and shrug your shoulders 

“I know it’s kinda stupid-“ 

He leans forward and kisses you, he seems to like to surprise kiss you. You squeak but kiss him back immediately, nipping at his lip a little, he laughs against yours and pulls away just a bit

“I love it and I’m gonna wear it every single day for the rest of my life” 

The back door opens and Eddie climbs in, dripping water, he shakes out his hair and looks up 

“Uhhh… did I interrupt something?” He grabs a towel from the back seat and wipes his face off 

“Look!!!” He takes it from the box and holds it out to Eddie 

Eddie takes it carefully and smiles at it, shaking his head “That’s disgustingly adorable” 

“Oh my god isn’t it?!” Buck takes it back, slipping it on his wrist. It’s a perfect fit and he slides down in his chair putting his hands over his face 

“Oh my god it's perfect Y/N I can’t handle this” 

“I’m really glad you like it… cause-“You pull another one from your bag, it matches his perfectly and put it on your wrist 

“I made us both one so we could match” 

Buck groans loudly and slumps in his chair even more and both you and Eddie laugh at him 

“Oh god I’m in love,” he says deliriously and Eddie shakes his head 

“He doesn’t mean that. Though that is really cute Y/N” 

“You know that’s also good” You reach into your bag and pull out yet another and hand it to him. “This one’s yours” 

Eddie’s is a solid navy blue with all three of your initials on it, he puts it on his wrist and smiles “Thank you” 

“Yeah, I kinda started going crazy after making me and Bucks” You look at Buck “I made one for everyone! But only you and I match, I put my initials on yours and yours on mine. I wanted ours to be special” 

He stares at his bracelet, your initials are on it. He hugs his wrist to his chest and turns to look at you 

“Thank you, honestly from the bottom of my heart. These are so cute”

You giggle and close your bag, holding it in your lap “Anytime, maybe I’ll make you a matching necklace” you joke and he sits up properly in his chair now 

“If you think for one second I wouldn’t also wear that every day of my life you’re wrong.” 

When you and Eddie get out of the car to head into the bowling alley Buck stops, saying he’ll be in soon. He waits until you’re out of sight and opens the card from you. It’s a bad drawing of a little dog in a firefighter helmet and he hugs the card to his chest, he’s gonna get that tattooed he swears. The card is sweet, just thanking him for being there for you and being someone you could confide in…. And there’s a deep, red, kiss mark on it. He kisses the card back and sighs happily 

He was so in love

You set your bag down on the chair next to Eddie and then sit down, Buck gets on one knee as he ties your bowling shoes for you 

“Are you sure you don’t wanna play?” You ask him, watching Buck concentrate on your shoes for a second before looking at Eddie 

“Oh yeah totally, my back is pretty tired today”

“Hey, I’m pretty good at massages if you want one later!” You offer and Buck’s head snaps up so fast Eddie is 90% he just broke his neck 

“Uh no! Nooo… no that’s- no that’s okay. It’ll go away! Just gotta rest it!” His excuse is flimsy but believable and you shrug it off. Buck sets your foot down and takes the other 

“You know I could have done this myself” you tease him and he looks up at you with a smirk on his face 

“Princesses don’t tie their shoes, I don’t make the rules I just follow them” 

You blush and get up from your seat, you’re up first. You pick up the purple ball and walk over to the lanes as Buck hands Eddie your bag and plops down in the chair next to him 

“Once we’re together, you can have all the massages you want,” Buck says, his arms crossed as he watches you. Eddie snorts laughing and watches the scoreboard, a 6. 

“You know it does hurt a little… maybe I should take her up on her offer” 

Buck’s mouth drops open and he turns to Eddie, punching him in the shoulder as you turn around 

“Did you see that!! I got three!!” You fist pump and do a little dance and Buck melts into a little puddle at how cute you are 

“Awww look at you, my lil bowling expert” He coos and you blush, rolling your eyes 

“Can you just go?” you say as you switch places and take his seat. Eddie puts his arm on the back of your chair 

“Don’t be mad” He says and you frown, confused 

“About what?”

He points to the lanes and you turn your head just in time to see Buck roll a strike. Your mouth drops open, it was completely effortless too and you know it. He gives you a little wink when he turns around to get his ball again and you narrow your eyes 

He gets a second one and you stand up 

“He’s… good at this isn’t he?” You ask Eddie and he chuckles 

“Only one better is Bobby” 

“You know I could teach you” Buck taunts you as he walks back and you purposely bump into him 

“No thanks!” 

He wraps his arms around your waist and pulls you into him and you squeak while trying to pull away. He squeezes you tighter as you try to drag yourself to the lanes 

“Buck! You’re totally cheating!”

Buck gasps loudly “Me?? Cheating?! How!” He spins you around to face him and you pout 

“You’re trying to tire me out” You stick your tongue out and he lets go of you, booping your nose 

“Oh honey, if I wanted to tire you out, This?” He gestures between the two of you “Is not how I would do it”

Your cheeks flush as he turns you back towards the lanes, giving your butt a little pat 

“Now go on. Make Daddy Buck proud” 

“Daddy Buck??” You turn back towards him, snorting 

“You’re right! Just drop the Buck part! Sounds better that way” 

Eddie “boos” from his seat and you laugh as you go to take your turn, Buck sits back down next to Eddie and bats his eyelashes at him

“Hi bestie”

“Did you just tell her to call you daddy”

“I don’t think we need to discuss that, the past is the past!!” 

“What?! What past! it’s been ten seconds!” 

Buck spends the rest of the game taunting you harassing you and heavily flirting. 

He can’t keep his hands off you either, always on your hips or taking your hand and spinning you away so he can take his turn. He kisses you in a different place each time you finish and you always scrunch your nose up in that cute little way he adores. He enjoys the way your cheeks flush and your heart flutters for him… he doesn’t even mind purposely losing. 

Eddie just sits back and watches the whole thing like the third wheel he knew he was gonna be, you both still talk to him and include him, but the tension rising is clear, and he’s wondering when that’s going to explode. It’s only when you finally get a strike and Buck picks you up and spins you around that he finally speaks up 

“You guys are gonna make me throw up” He groans when Buck sets you down. You’re giggling as he wraps his arms around you and walks you over to Eddie 

“I'm not supposed to celebrate my gorgeous girl getting her first strike? Are you jealous Eddie? Do you want me to pick you up too?” 

“Yes, that’s totally what I want,” He says, plainly. 

“I dare you” you grin, looking up at Buck, he leans down and kisses your forehead before letting you go, he backs up a few paces and opens his arms 

“Alright bet, come on, come to “ 

“Don’t you dare-“ Eddie gets up from his chair, stretching. 

“Daddy Buck,” He says in a sickly sweet high pitched voice. Eddie rolls his eyes but goes over anyway and Buck picks him up spinning him around too 

“Lane five, stop spinning people around and finish your game” The man calls over the intercom system. Buck cups his hands around his mouth and shouts back

“Hey! I’ll spin you too if you want” 

“Wait, really?” you hear over the system and Buck goes running over to the shoe counter 

“He’s ridiculous” you giggle as you sit down next to Eddie, he slouches down in his seat and crosses his arms over his chest, letting his head fall back.

“Yeah but you learn to love him for it” He looks over at you as you twiddle your thumbs and swing your legs 

Huh… you are really sweet 

“He’s uh…he’s not overwhelming you, is he? I can get him to cool it” he asks, watching you and you smile, shaking your head 

“No, no he’s not. He’s so affectionate and open. I almost feel like I’m not giving enough to him” You chuckle a little and he smiles slightly 

“Hey, you just met him. And Buck… he’s just that kind of guy you know? He’s very open and helpful. He just wants to be loved by everyone, especially you” 

“I just wish I was less shy” You sigh and Eddie scoffs 

“Shy my ass, you’ve been making out with him all afternoon”

Your mouth gapes and he laughs, watching you splutter for an answer 

“We?! No. No! We have not been making out all afternoon!! It’s just… a friendly kiss between friends!!” 

“First of all, you wouldn’t kiss me that much, and I’d like to think we’re friends. Second of all… I think you guys would be pretty cute together if that’s something you want” 

“I think I could for sure go on a couple of dates with him” you blush “It’s just if he can put up with me being so… standoffish. It’s fine when it’s the three of us! But I just… I get so nervous when I’m alone with him”

“He literally introduced himself as Bevan and said you had pretty teeth. I don’t think you have to worry about embarrassing yourself; he's done it plenty enough for the two of you already. Just give it a chance…he has a way of bringing out the best in people”

You giggle at Eddie and lean your head on his shoulder, he kisses your head and smiles 

“You guys are gonna be perfectly fine” 

Buck is acting a little weird as he drives you all to lunch, you and Eddie are singing together and jamming out to whatever random playlist he puts on, but he’s a bit quieter than normal. You pull up to a good burger joint and he shuts off the car 

“Hey, why don’t you go get us a table? We’ll be in, in a second okay?” Eddie gets out and opens the door for you and then takes your seat 

“Will do!” You salute them and head into the diner and even if he is moping, Buck still turns his head to watch you walk in because he appreciates your ass. 

“What happened” Eddie asks and Buck looks at him now, then down at his lap 

“Do you like her? Eddie?” 

“Of course I like her, she’s adorable”

“That’s… that’s not what I mean and you know it” Buck sighs and toys with the bracelet on his wrist 

“Why would you think I like her?” 

Buck sighs and lets his head fall against the headrest 

“I saw you guys talking…she looked so relaxed around you. And… and then I saw you kiss her head and-“ he tears up the littlest bit and Eddie whacks his thigh 

“Evan Buckley do you think for one second I’m trying to steal her from you” 

“Of course not! But you’re just so suave and sexy” He sniffles “I wanna be sexy” 

“Buck you are sexy you know that! And I was gonna tell you what she was telling me later, but I guess I can tell you now”

“Is it that she never wants to see me again and wants to have your babies?” 

“Yes, that’s exactly it” he flicks his forehead, and Buck whines, rubbing the spot  

“You make her nervous, like really nervous. She’s shy around you and thinks you won’t like how shy she is. And that’s the simplified we need to hurry up and get in their version” 

“She said that?!” Buck unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out 

“Yeah, so just you know reassure her that it’s okay she’s that shy you know? I told her it was stupid because you guys were making out all afternoon but she wouldn’t believe me. I was just trying to reassure her I promise”

Buck hugs Eddie, squishing him tightly “Thanks Eddie, and thanks for putting up with my insecurities” 

“Anything for my best friend and his girl”

Buck being Buck turns everything up about 10 notches. He slides into the booth next to you and sits way too close, putting his arm over the back of it. Your cheeks flush and he just tells you how cute you look. You look at Eddie helplessly and he just shrugs like he has no idea what’s gotten into him. 

“So do you know what you want?” He asks, leaning into you, his chest pressed against your arm and you sink further into the booth 

He toys with the ends of your hair and stays in your personal space, the sweet perfume you’re wearing just wafts off of you, surrounding him in a delirious haze. He can smell that expensive conditioner you buy, he can see the glitter on your body from your lotion that he didn’t notice before. Is it bad he just wants to kiss it all off?

“Uhhh probably just a burger I guess,” You say and he looks at the menu in your hands instead of his own 

“Okay, but just a plain one? Do you want anything on it?” He’s trying his best to coax the answers out of you, Running a finger over your arm. You gulp and turn to look up at him, and he’s just so close to you, his cologne soaks deep into your senses and you melt under his soft gaze 

“Do you, pretty girl?” He asks again, softer now and you bite your lip, your eyes flicking down to his 

“How in the hell, are you turning ordering a damn burger into a flirting moment?!”

You and Buck snap out of your little haze to see Eddie sitting with his arms crossed and the waiter standing there awkwardly 

“Uhhhh can we have a couple more minutes” Buck blushes sheepishly and you hide in his chest, squeaking in embarrassment 

Your burgers are brought out, Eddie made Buck sit on his side of the booth and asked you what you wanted. He ordered for the both of you and Buck put his arms around his neck 

“What a gentleman,” He says dramatically, giving Eddie a big kiss on the cheek, you laugh as Eddie pushes him off and wipes at his cheek 

“Buck!! Gross!” 

You giggle and watch, shaking your head as you bite into your burger. You moan softly and swallow it, wriggling excitedly in your seat 

“Oh this is a good one,” you say, but Buck isn’t paying attention to his food anymore he’s paying attention to all of the sounds you’re making. His cheeks are pink as he watches you pop a fry in your mouth and you and Eddie are talking. He can feel his heart pounding in his chest, as you make another whimpering noise and he has to hold onto Eddie’s thigh for a second. Eddie blinks and looks down for a second before continuing his conversation with you and kicking Buck’s foot to get him to settle down 

“Do you like yours? You’re not eating very much” You ask Buck and his head snaps up to look at you 

“Oh yeah! No, it’s delicious!” He picks at his fries and you take one flying it like a little airplane 

“Open wide,” You say, your voice sweet like honey, and Buck's eyes go wide as he opens his mouth and you put the fry in his mouth. Eddie closes his mouth for him and pats his cheek

“I think you broke him,” Eddie says, munching on his burger and you giggle 

“Oops” 

You feed him another fry and he puts his hands on his cheeks, chewing slowly while staring at you, or rather through you. He looks like he’s on cloud nine as you continue to slowly feed him 

“We should go on a date,” He says dreamily and you nod along with him, Eddie pauses with his burger in mid-air 

“Are you asking me on a date?” 

“Hundred percent,” he says and Eddie nearly has a heart attack. 

“Are we ignoring she’s Bobby’s niece” 

“Yes,” you both say together and he nods his head 

“Yeah okay, I just wanted to make sure we were all on the same page. Carry on” 

“So…will you go on a date with me??“ 

“Of course I will!”

[out-of-the-blue-comic]

It's Nicky's kind and graceful mother, Brenda!

Brenda Parlouzer

Brenda is the mother of Nicky and Anita. Brenda enjoys going out and spending time with her family, but she does spend a good portion of her time at home. But that doesn't mean she's a complete homebody. She likes to keep herself busy most days, whether it's exercising or keeping herself occupied sewing new clothes for the family. While she is very positive and kind most of the time, Brenda will not hesitate to get feisty and give you quite a lip, so proceed with caution.

Age: 40

Birthplace: Hedgehog Town, Christmas Island

Likes: Talking about her kids (much to their dismay), weekly yoga and workout routines, occasional sewing,

----------------------------------

Brenda’s “Classic Outfit” is her base outfit for promo stuff, doodles, or if I run out of clothing ideas.

Oh Brenda... you don’t have much to work with but you have a bunch of ideas going for you. Her look at first was based off of Sango Morimoto’s depiction of her, then later on, when we got more scans and she had some extra details that were depicted in later issues and promo art. So, I decided to combine both her official and Morimoto designs in a new amalgamation. I gotta say, I like how this one came out and is probably one that’s the easiest to draw out of the supporting cast.

[vividzzxz]

🌸 ᴴᵒʷ ᵉⁿʰʸᵖᵉⁿ ʷᵒᵘˡᵈ ʳᵉᵃᶜᵗ ᵗᵒ ˢᵉᵉⁱⁿᵍ ʸᵒᵘ ᶠᵒʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ᵗⁱᵐᵉ 🌸

(Hyung line)

-Heesung:

ⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ ˣ ⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʰᵉᵉˢᵉᵘⁿᵍ

-The first time you both met was at the dance studio, where both of your groups had a mixed dance session. He was flabbergasted by your beauty. He often stared at you for too long while you were dancing, and ofc you noticed it and gave him a smile to which he almost passed out coz of how beautiful your smile was. -He often asked your group members about your details and tried to make small talks between you two. You loved to make new friends and ofc you talked back. (NGL... you found him cute too. Who doesn't..?) -Then the day came where he built up enough courage and asked you out on a coffee date. You being yourself, accepted it coz you had a little crush on him too. You dolled yourself up, doing light makeup and wearing beige-colored clothes to match with the date and went on with the day.. -Heesung was shook at how lovely you looked and couldn't help but stare. After buying you a coffee and one of your favorite snack, you both started talking. -Timeskip to almost a month later, he's glad he took you on that date because once you both became closer day by day, he asked you to be his girlfriend, and you accepted it. He still thinks of it and smiles to himself for earning himself the kindest girlfriend ever.

-Jay:

ⁿᵒⁿⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ ˣ ⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʲᵃʸ

-The first time he met you was one of their concert and afterwards their fansign. He fell in love with how beautiful you were. How you were dressed in a denim mini-skirt and denim jacket with a cropped shirt inside. A simple outfit that made you look like an angel. -He waited Hoped for the moment where you would come for the fansign event. And once you came he was the happiest person ever. He gave you more affection than the others. He felt this surge of happiness when you both intertwined your fingers together like the others did, even you felt it. -After this, both of you hoped to see each other, and guess what, fate brought you two back together at a cafe. He walked into the cafe wearing a mask and a hat, not wanting attention. He saw you sitting there at the corner drawing on your i-pad, the sunlight hitting your face and highlighting you already beautiful features more. -This gave him a surge of confidence as he came and sat beside you, and voila you both started talking casually and now are great friends that are in love with each other.

-Jake:

ⁿᵒⁿⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ ˣ ⁿᵒⁿⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʲᵃᵏᵉ

-Both of you met at a petshop. You went to give your pet dog to the shop owner since you both were friends.. When you were petting you dog and kissing her before leaving, Jake walked in with one of his other friend. He saw you petting your dog and walked up to you. You both were visually shocked by each others looks. Both of you shrugged it off before he initiated the conversation. -He asked whether the dog was yours and started petting it. Surprisingly, your dog let him pet it. "She doesn't let anyone other than me and the owner pet her. Guess there are some people she might like after all." I say before giggling. He replied with a giggle and continued petting her. I looked at the time and sighed before giving her to the owner. "Are you leaving her here with the owner? Are you going somewhere??" He asked. -I replied "Yea.. My mother's sick and she lives in Japan, so I gotta travel to meet her and I can't take her with me coz my mom's allergic to dog fur. I'll be back in exactly a week, hope she'll be fine". He gives me a smile before saying "Hope your mother gets well soon." I smiled and walked out of the shop so I could catch my flight on time. -A week later I come back to the same petshop to see him petting my dog. I run to my dog before hugging her tight and kissing her so much. He laughs before asking how's my mom doing.. After the convo he makes a brave decision of asking me on a date to which I accept and well after hanging out for a while we both start developing feelings for each other.

-Sunghoon:

ⁱᵈᵒˡ!ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ ˣ ⁱᵈᵒˡ!ˢᵘⁿᵍʰᵒᵒⁿ

(Both of you work under the same company / entertainment )

-You both first met at an event, where you both wore similar clothing and sat next to each other. Both of you had small conversations during boring times but kept it limited to prevent dating rumors. But the thing you both noticed was that, you both kept meeting each other at the same events more often. -This caused you both to become better friends with feelings for each other. Both of you knew you liked each other and you were whipped for him and his looks and vice versa. But you both were scared of the attacks and hate you would get for dating each other. Once after an event both of you were called in for a meeting. They shared that both of you had to go to an event as a couple. -This caused major shock for the both of you. They said that most fans wanted you both to take part in a event as a couple as you both looked good together. Later on, you both had a private meeting, with just the two of you. That's when he built the courage to ask you out, to make it official, to show you how much he loved you. You loved it but warned him about the attacks he would face due to this. To which he said he would be ready to face anything as long as you were with him. -You accepted and well until today, he's the best thing that had happened to you.

GYAHHH... I NEVER KNEW MAKING SOMETHING LIKE THIS WOULD HAVE BUTTERFLIES ERUPT IN MY STOMACH... ESPECIALLY THE JAKE ONE.. UwU

✧( ु•⌄• )◞◟( •⌄• ू )✧

-Note

I take requests for writing...

It can be from Skz, Svt, TxT, En-.

It can be based on smut, fluff, etc.

THANK YOU !!

[youvebeenlivingfictional]

Year Two

Part Three of Three Years

Year One | Masterlist | Year Three

Pairing: Nathan Bateman x Reader

Rating: Explicit - 18+ Only.

Length: 7.2K

Notes: ….Hi! It’s part three! Huzzah!

Warnings: Cursing; angst; enemies to enemies who fuck; tech-talk; angst (I know I said it before but really); Nathan being Nathan; slapping; grinding; biting; the next chapter has more spice

Summary: Despite how irritating he can be, you’re finding that you mind Nathan less and less these days. He’s more like a common fungi: opportunistic, probably not harmful if consumed—not that you’re rushing to consume him, as it were. 

Jenn is. 

“We’ve gotta jump, we’ll be late on another call.” 

It’s a warning that’s almost never been heeded before, but you say it as firmly as you can. You can feel your team casting a wary glance between you and the landline that you’re crowded around in the otherwise sparsely decorated conference room. 

The old conference rooms at Sc(ai)le’s original headquarters could be a little tight for team conference calls, but at least they were comfy. The tables weren’t too big, but could fit most everyone’s laptops, and a drink or two. There had been armchairs, couches—enough space for people to chat, take calls, have a quick huddle—whatever was needed. By contrast, the conference rooms at the new headquarters feel like blank, sterile canvases. They have yet to be outfitted properly. For now, you’re all stuck with the chairs from your desks that you’ve rolled in, sitting around a long, bland, white conference table, with a landline in the middle.

“Move whatever you’re going to back,” Bateman’s order is haughty. “We haven’t finished ironing this out. I still have questions.” 

A year and a half ago, you would’ve heeded him. A year and a half ago, you would’ve been afraid to push back, wary of Nathan’s burgeoning relationship with Jenn, and with Sc(ai)le. But now, a year and a half in, you’re far more aware of what you are and aren’t willing to put up with. It’s a gamble, a stupid one, but you roll the fucking dice: 

“I hear you, and I’ll be more than happy to answer them. Pop them in an email and send them over at your earliest convenience. Thanks so much for your time, Nathan.”

You can only hope that your using his name softens the blow of how abruptly you hang up on him. You glance down at your computer repeatedly, eyeing the number for the other meeting that you’re dialing into the landline as you punch it in. You glance around, finding your team slack-jawed and stunned. 

“I cannot believe you just did that.” 

It falls out of Amelia’s open mouth with a shocked laugh. She’s one of the product owners, someone that you’ve been working with since before you brought onto the C-Suite—and has had a front-row ticket to the rapid decline of your giving a fuck. You shrug a shoulder. 

“He’ll get it,” You insist. “He knows how these meetings run over. If it’s between cutting him off or being late for our biggest client, the fuck is he gonna do, tell us to lose money?” 

A couple of your team members guffaw, and you glance up to see some of them trying to fight back smiles. It makes you grin. 

“Alright, c’mon,” You urge, even as you chuckle, yourself. “Button that up, we gotta work.” 

-- 

You wait for the slap on the wrist from Nathan. When it doesn’t come, you wait for it from Jenn. As your monthly one on one closes out, you expect the question: Why the fuck did you hang up on our biggest backer? Stunningly, it never comes. Maybe Nathan didn't mention it to her, even in passing. Maybe he recognizes that your judgement call was the right one.

The company is in a better place than it was last year. Sc(ai)le is drawing clients and revenue in hand over fucking fist. With the newest burst of AI chatbots coming out, there has been a wave of prospective clients. Companies that used to be too busy for you are now beating down your doors. For the first time, you have a chance to be selective about your clients. They’re chasing you and your tech, not the other way around. The company has swelled from 150 people to 400 in just under a year.

Most of your local workforce is coming into Sc(ai)le’s office at least three times a week. Some opt to come in more days than their contracts necessitate, not because they like it, but because it’s just faster to run over someone’s desk to ask a fucking question than to Slack them and pray that they’re somewhere near their laptop. You’re busy, busier than you’ve ever been. The amount of work that you’ve been hit with in the first six months of your second year is closer to what you’d initially expected when you’d agreed to take on two C-Suite positions.

Are you tired? Yes. 

Do you remember what your apartment still looks like in the daylight? Not really. 

Do you have personal relationships outside of work anymore? Definitely not. 

But you’re staring down the barrel of a year and a half of work for stock options and a job wherever the fuck you want. 

There are some moments, rare moments, when you almost want to thank Nathan for strong-arming you into this position. But there are other, far more frequent moments when you want to tell him to take his ego and his backing and cram it up his frighteningly round ass. 

--  

“Knock-knock.” 

You don’t bother to look up; you know the voice well enough. It sets your teeth on edge. You keep typing, eyes on your computer as your fingers fly across the keyboard. 

“You know, there is a door there,” You point out, “Most people actually bother to knock on it.” 

“That’s standard procedure for a closed door. Yours is wide-open. Saying knock-knock was just a formality. I could’ve walked right in.” 

“If you want, I can get up and shut the door, let you knock like a normal human being.”

“Nothing about me is normal, sweetheart.” 

The endearment makes your fingers freeze over your keyboard. It’s not a surprise that he does it so damn easily—but what is surprising is how it seems to just knock your brain offline. 

“Are you in my doorway for a reason?” You finally ask. It’s a moment too late; you can hear him lower into a seat across from you. 

“What are you doing tonight?” He asks. You fight back a sigh. 

“I’m assuming I’m having dinner with you.” 

“You catch on quick.” 

You let your eyes slide to him. “You’re more predictable than you’d like.”

Nathan’s expression flickers with annoyance, but he’s quick to cover it up again. 

“That’s something I’ve never been accused of.” 

“First time for everything. We going to the diner again?” 

He huffs a humorless laugh through his nose, head jerking back with it before it tips forward again. You fight back a smile as you turn toward your computer again.

“Just be ready by seven,” He adds. 

“Alright.” 

“And don’t try to worm out of it,” Bateman warns as he pushes himself to stand and rounds toward the door. “I’ll pull my funding.” 

“I’m shaking in my boots.” 

You force yourself to keep typing, even as you hear Nathan’s step hesitate before it fades complete. It’s just a little, just for a second—but to sense that you’ve managed to put a hitch in Bateman’s day and workflow when he’s put such a hitch in your life? Hell, that feels like your birthday came early. 

--  

“Too bad Jenn couldn’t join us.” 

You’re trying to goad him. From her reaction to your mention of having dinner with Bateman—the way she’d pouted just a little before brightening, telling you to have fun, and to charge it to the company card—you’re fairly certain that he hadn’t mentioned it to her at all. Bateman hardly blinks as he excuses: 

“She had a conflict.” 

That’s bullshit. 

“Besides,” He pushes on before you can argue, “You and I haven’t had a one on one since you came onto the team.” 

“There was that time at, uh…Karaoke,” You correct. 

“Thanks for the reminder. What are we singing?” 

You raise your brows, unimpressed. “Why don't we just pencil that in for my retirement party.” 

“You already have that planned?” 

“Oh, sure. I’m going to make you rent out that, uh—That palazzo, out in Beverly Hills? I want an ice sculpture, the most VIP of VIPs, a whose-who of the tech industry’s who’s.” 

“You make a playlist yet?” 

“No, but it’ll be done, don't you worry about that.” 

Nathan searches your gaze for a moment, and you see a wrinkle of curious confusion there. 

“What are the hang ups?” He asks. 

“What do you mean?” 

“You, in this position. You’re pushing the processes forward, you developed a uniform product release cadence and communications workflow. The efficiency is through the roof, but you’re still unsatisfied.” 

You look away, lips pressing into a thin line. You let your gaze drift over the decor of the restaurant, rather than hold Nathan’s eye, and let him find a hundred little faults in you. The restaurant that he’s chosen is startlingly intimate—it has a short bar, with just two seats, and only a handful of tables and chairs. The recessed lighting has been dimmed for the evening, and if the table between you and Nathan had been just a little bit longer, you might’ve had to squint to get a better look at him. As it is, your knees are brushing under the table, and if you make one wrong move reaching for the drinks menu, you’re going to make even more contact with the guy than you’ve ever wanted. 

“Is it the pay?" He presses into your silence. "Because frankly, you’re being paid more than you’re worth."

“Really? I’ve been offered more to do less.” 

He bristles, and you bite back a smile. He doesn’t like that—and he doesn’t need to know that it’s a bluff. You’re sure he’ll make inquiries, now that you’ve said it, and you’re sure that every one of them will tell him the truth: that you’ve never been approached by any one of them. He won’t trust it. It’s just an added little bit of discord. Hell, you’re almost proud of it. 

“What is it?” He presses. 

“This wasn’t a choice for me,” You shale your head, “It was a negotiation tactic. Actually, you know what, let’s just call it what it really was: it was a fucking emotional blackmail.” 

He rolls his eyes openly. “Emphasis on emotional.” 

“Oh, fuck off,” You scoff, “As if you’d ever take this shit lying down.” 

“No, I wouldn’t.” 

“Exactly, so—” 

“I wouldn’t have signed on in the first place.” 

The fact makes you go quiet for a moment. 

“Because you don’t have anyone like Jenn?” 

“Because even if I had someone like Jenn, I’d leave them to sort out their own shit.” 

“Well, I’ll just add that to the ever-growing list of differences between you and I.” 

“It’s not that long.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“We’re not so different, you and I.”

“Did you watch Austin Powers on the plane?” 

“Raiders of the Lost Ark.” 

“Isn’t that, uh…Our methods are not so different as you pretend?” 

“I paraphrased. And do I really look like someone that watches Austin Powers in his free time?” 

“No comment.” 

“I think we’re more similar than you’d like to believe. I think that pisses you off.” 

He’s right—and it pisses you off even more. You fight to keep from fidgeting in front of him, giving him the satisfaction of your open annoyance. You finally shake your head slowly, keeping your gaze on Nathan’s.

“I’m nothing like you. And I never wanna be.” 

You wanna slap the widening smile off of his face. 

“Wouldn’t take much,” He goads. “I’d say you’re already halfway there. Start missing a few dinners because you’re working, start keeping a change of clothes at the office, sleeping in one of the conference rooms because you realize it’s four in the morning and you won’t have time to get back to yours, shower, change, and not fall asleep on your couch while you wait for your leftovers to heat up in your microwave.”

You feel your face going hot. You don’t want to admit that you’ve already started doing every single one of those things—that you’ve done two of those things in the last forty-eight hours. 

“You know where you go from there?” Nathan folds his arms on the table, leaning forward and holding your gaze with a smiling smugness. “You stop giving a fuck what other people think. Like it or not, that’s going to include Jenn. The only voice that starts to matter is yours.” 

“I told you,” You press, “I’m nothing like you.”

“And if you realize that you are?” 

“I’ll shave my head, start wearing polo shirts, and move to the middle of fucking nowhere.” 

“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it.” 

“The commute would be a nightmare.” 

“You might look cute bald.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” 

The two of you fall quiet as the server sets your drinks down. You gaze at yours, wondering if you can drain it and run, feign illness, or snipe that you have to join Jenn at her meeting. Maybe you can tell Nathan that you just don’t want to be there—but maybe that’s exactly what he would do. So you obligingly knock your glass against his, take a measured sip, and resolve yourself to sit through this. 

“Alright,” Nathan finally relents as he sets his glass down, “We’ll move off of work. Talk about something else.” 

“Like what.” 

“You ever think about starting your own company?” 

Your brows raise. 

“This is how you talk about something other than work?” 

“You hate having a boss.” 

“You really like to talk in absolutes, don’t you,” You comment dryly. “I don’t mind having a boss.” 

“You never just wanted to break off, strike out on your own?” 

You consider bullshitting him, but this drink is still pretty damn full, and if you have it too fast, you’re almost certain he’ll insist on your having another. So you consider for a moment, then shrug. 

“I guess I did, once. When we’d just gotten out of here. Jenn was working on getting Sc(ai)le going.” 

“So, what happened?” 

“Nothing ‘happened’. One of us had to keep things afloat until she had her foot in the door.” 

“You resent her for it?” 

“Of course not.” 

“I would.” 

“Well, I already told you. We’re not the same.” 

“What was it?” 

“The idea?” 

“Mhm.” 

“A consulting firm, crisis-response specific.” 

“You could do it, you know. Once your contract is done—as long as you can resist the urge to stay.” 

“I’m not going to stay.” 

“Not even if Jenn asks you to? I know how much she values your opinion. Almost as highly as she values mine.” 

You used to think that Jenn valued your opinion twice as much as Nathan’s, but these days, you’re dismayed to say that you’re not so sure about that. 

“She won’t ask me.” 

“Why do you say that?” 

“If I tell her I’m happy to serve my three years and move on, she’ll be fine with it.” 

“And if she isn’t?” 

“She’ll learn to be fine with it.” 

“You wouldn’t take her wishes into consideration?” 

“The last time I did, I wound up working for you.”

“So the only voice that matters on this subject is yours.”

He’s smiling like the cat that got the goddamn cream. You fight off a groan of irritation. You hadn’t been expecting it—why the hell weren’t you expecting it? You’re mad that he caught you out like that. 

Worse, you sort of admire it. 

--  

Nathan’s little visits begin increasing in frequency. You don’t question it. Maybe it’s BlueBook business; maybe it’s Sc(ai)le; maybe he’s looking into investing with another company and he just happens to be in town more these days. Whatever the fuck it is, you don’t care. You just care that Nathan is now sitting in on your meetings with various departments, with the C-Suite, with you and Jenn. It’s like you can’t swing your laptop without whacking the guy these days. 

But despite how irritating he can be, you’re finding that you mind Nathan less and less these days. He’s more like a common fungi: opportunistic, probably not harmful if consumed—not that you’re rushing to consume him, as it were. 

Jenn is. 

Jenn is soaking up this time with Nathan like a goddamn sponge. You haven’t seen her this bright, this engaged in some kind of personal relationship in a long time, since way before Sc(ai)le.  

Look, maybe you’re being a little judgemental, you’re almost certain that Jenn has a crush on Nathan. And that is…A little alarming. For one, it means putting even more of her time and interest into the guy. Beyond that, it means that she may be pinning her romantic hopes on the guy who the company’s financial hopes are resting on. Sure, Sc(ai)le is getting bigger, doing better, but the cash flow into the company is still coming from Bateman. 

You think of that as you see Jenn throw her head back in a giggle, her hand landing on Bateman’s forearm. He grins, glancing toward you. If you knew less, you’d think he was trying to get you to laugh, too. But it’s Nathan, and you know better. He’s showing off. He’s showing off how likable he is to your best friend. He’s showing off the fact that he’s making her laugh, not you. He’s showing you that your place in your best friend’s life is being usurped. 

Asshat.

You look down at your food as Jenn’s laughter quiets to giggles, then tapers entirely. You can feel both of them watching you, and you make a point of poking through your food, just to have something to do. You hadn’t even planned on  joining the two of them for dinner, but they’d happened to catch you on your way to the parking lot and insisted. 

Grabbing a meal with Jenn is fine. You can sort of tolerate grabbing a meal with Nathan. But the two of them, together? Cripes, you don’t think you can take much more of this. You can only hope this place doesn’t have a damn dessert menu. Jenn can’t resist a piece of cheesecake, and you’re dying to get the hell out of here. You’re not sure you can take much more of her simping and grinning over a man that you find moderately repugnant, and mildly attractive. 

You frown, putting your fork down in favor of taking up your wine and drawing in a deep sip. 

Mildly attrac—Where the fuck did that come from? Whatever it was, it’s left a bad taste in your mouth. 

“You alright over there?” Nathan asks. 

“Great,” You answer flatly once you’ve swallowed, “Thanks.” 

“Food not to your liking? We’ll get you something else.” 

You shake your head, gaze flickering to Nathan’s. “Seriously, I’m fine.” 

“We’ll go somewhere else.” 

“That is even less necessary than getting me something else to eat.” 

“So!” Jenn chirps, breaking into your and Bateman’s bickering, “We should go somewhere after this, right?” 

“You know what, I actually can’t,” You give what you hope is a regretful smile, “I’ve got a call.” 

“This late?” Nathan looks down at his watch, “Who with?” 

“Brickandbound, the SaaS company down in Sydney. It’s only about two in the afternoon over there. And, actually,” You push your chair back, “I did not realize how late it is. I should get back to my office, prep with the team. Thanks for dinner, Nathan.” You glance toward Jenn, warming at the grateful smile on her lips.

“I’ll see you later, Jenn. Bateman, let me know how much to Venmo you.” You offer him a pat on the shoulder, then round him, dropping a kiss to Jenn’s head before heading out. You don’t bother to give them a second look, you just go. 

--  

Mildly attractive. Mildly attractive? When the fuck did that happen? 

Maybe it’s because you’ve been around him so much, and because, well…He is. He’s still an irritating little worm, of course, the most annoying person on the fucking planet (after Elon), but he’s sort of…Hot. His eyes are dark, and when he’s worked up, his gaze can be intense. His lips seem far more pink and plump these days, but that could be the increasing growth of his beard, which he only seems to trim every week or so. And his smile, which you seem to be privy to more and more these days, can be kinda nice—when it’s not smug, or slick, which is fairly rare. Still, you’re certain you’ve gotten a true smile from him a couple of times. They’re in the minority, and maybe that’s why they seem so much more special when you do get them. 

You lean back in your seat in the conference room, listening to the sales and acquisitions team as they prep around you, volleying pitch lines back and forth, tweaking wording. You can only hope that Jenn’s getting those smiles from him—legitimate smiles, the kinds that’ll turn her insides to goo. She better fucking thank you for your hasty retreat later. 

You glance over as you hear the team beginning to dial in. You draw in a deep breath, pushing it out quietly through your lips. You’ve been on tons of these, but they still make you a little nervous. You sort of hate it. If you’re still nervous, it means that a small part of you still gives so much of a shit that you’re afraid to make a mistake. You glance around as you hear everyone introduce themselves on the call, and open your mouth to add your name, but freeze as you see the door open. 

He shouldn’t be there. He should be in some dim bar with Jenn. She should be batting her fucking eyelashes, playing with the hair that she just got done today because Bateman had emailed to let the two of you know that he would be in town—

“Hey, you’ve got Bateman on the line.” He’s waving the person in the seat next to you over one before he sits down, turning your laptop toward him to get a good look at the deck, your notes. You watch, lips parted, absolutely gobsmacked. There’s just a pause before you manage to give your name on the call, to fill in the blank—and then sales and acquisitions push on. 

You hardly speak on the call. You don’t have to. The team has it handled. Luckily for you, Nathan keeps his damn mouth shut, too, save to lean over and murmur the odd question in your ear. The brush of his warm breath against your ear makes your stomach flip. You’re horrified at the feeling—at the fact that the man is there with you, and not out somewhere with Jenn; at the fact that you’re feeling something other than utter disdain for Nathan. 

Is it petty jealousy? The idea that Jenn’s interest is becoming your interest? Like a little girl, jealous of the toy that her friend is playing with? Or is your disdain curdling in the oddest of ways? And what’s his fucking excuse? Is he chasing you down to piss you off? Is he chasing you down because he knows he’s pissing you off? Or did he clock the heat that you’d eyed him with over dinner, and is he after answers? 

You can’t imagine Nathan chasing anyone for anything but answers. 

-- 

You practically run out of the room once the meeting is up after thanking everyone. You nearly snap your laptop shut on Nathan’s questing fingers as you push yourself up, dropping your laptop into your bag, and going. You make it down the hall and around one corner before you feel fingers close around your wrist, his fingers tugging you to slow, “Hey, where the fuck’s the fire—” 

You whirl around, yanking your wrist away from him. 

“What the fuck, Nathan!” 

His surprise splits to smugness. 

“Is something wrong?” 

“You know something is,” You spit. “What the hell is wrong with you? What are you doing here?” 

“I was told there was a meeting.” 

“You didn’t need to be here for it. You should be out.” 

“Out? Doing what?” 

“Out doing anything but pissing me the fuck off.” You whirl away from him, striding down the hall, and foolishly hoping that he’ll let it go. He follows you, and you hope that he’ll stop at the elevator, but he keeps right up with you. You nearly manage to slam your door in his face, but he just pushes it open, chiming, “Knock knock.” 

“Please leave.” 

“Why are you so pissed off?”

“Why are you here?” 

“In the building? In this business?”

“In my office, why are you here right now?” 

“Honestly?”

“Honestly.”

“Well, my purpose is manifold.” 

“Oh, for fuckssake.” 

“But I’m mostly here to piss you off.” 

“Well, mission accomplished, asshat.”

You drop your things on your desk, then glance up, doing a double-take at the sight of Nathan. He has his hands braced on the back of a chair, a wide grin pulling his lips.

“Stop that,” You grit out. 

“Stop what?” 

“Smiling at me. Looking at me, just cut it out.” 

“I was wondering how long it was going to take you to crack.” 

“Crack?”

“You have been dying to snap at me since the day we met.”  

“That is not true.” 

“No?” 

“No!” 

“Since when, then?” 

“Since you locked me into that dumb fucking contract.” 

“I only offered you the contract. You locked yourself into it. Admit it, you hate it. You hate this, you hate me, you hate Jenn.” 

The accusation spears through you like a hot, sharp knife. 

“That’s not true,” You hiss, rounding your desk.

“You do, you resent her for needing you. You resent her for needing me, too. If she could just get her shit together by herself, neither of us would be here.” 

“Fuck you.” 

“And if you’d trusted her ability to get shit done, you wouldn’t have taken this job.”

“I thought you would be good for Jenn—You have been good for Jenn, and for the company—” 

“But not for you. Nothing I’ve done has been good for you, has it—Not the raise, not the titles, not the work.” 

“Shut up.” 

“Am I wrong about that, too? Do you secretly like what you do? Or are you just going along to get along, biding your time until you can get out of here?” 

“Get out.” 

“I paid for this office, I’ll stay here as long as I want.” 

“Get. Out.” 

“Hell, I paid for you, I’ll talk to you as long as I—” 

The slap is louder than his smug pronouncements. You’re certain it stings your hand and his cheek in equal measures. Your gut swoops. Oh—Fuck. Shit. Shit. Your heart pounds; your chest heaves. You swallow thickly as the room falls into complete silence. Nathan’s pupils are blown wide, the darkness nearly fully obscuring the brown you’ve come to know. You see his mouth move, but what he says doesn’t land on your ears the way it should. 

“...What?” You ask warily. 

“I said, do that again.” 

Your stomach churns. He’s got to be kidding. 

“No.”

“C’mon,” He urges. “I’ve been pissing you off for a year and a half now, that’s all you’ve got in you? One slap? A half-decent one at that.” 

Half-decent? There’s no way. Your palm is still stinging. 

“Do it,” He urges, taking a step closer. “Do it again.” 

“Fuck you.” 

“Hit me.” 

“Fuck you—” 

“You want me to turn the other cheek?” He asks, tipping his head from one way to the other. You balk at the sight of his red cheek. “Hm?” 

“Look, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—” 

“You think I’m mad?” 

“Aren’t you?” 

“No.” 

“You should be.” 

“Why’s that?” Nathan shakes his head. “You just showed me who you are the first time—who you really are.” 

“This isn’t who I am,” You hiss, shaking, "No matter how badly you want to be right, I'll never be you."

“You’re right. If someone I hated offered to let me hit them again, I would’ve done it by now.” 

You raise your arm, winding up for a slap, but Nathan catches hold of your wrist before the blow can land. Panic flares in your chest, and you pull in a nervous breath as he yanks you closer. Your feet stumble, leaden weights keeping your unsteady legs nearly locked into place. Nathan keeps his grip on your wrist, his eyes darting over your face. 

“You do hate me, don’t you,” He murmurs, breath brushing your lips, fanning the embers of your anger. 

“With my entire being, you pompous piece of sh—” 

Nathan’s mouth covers yours with fierce harshness before you can get the rest out. You twist in his grasp, wrenching your wrist away from him. He lets go obligingly, but neither of you get far. You cup his cheeks, sinking your teeth into his lower lip and giving it a harsh tug. His growl snaps you out of it, and you draw back. 

“Fuck,” You hiss, drawing back, “I can’t, I—” You shake your head. 

“Can’t do what?” Nathan goads, hands grasping your hips. 

This.

You can’t do this to Jenn. You can’t give in to the man that’s been waiting for you to fall from the moment he met you. You meet Nathan’s eye. You take in the heat lingering there, the still-pink tinge of his cheek. 

“I can’t do this here.” 

--  

The trip to your apartment is taken in separate cars. It gives you time to change your mind, to clear your head. But you're still just as pissed, just as turned on. The sight of Nathan’s expectant face as he climbs out of his car makes both of those feelings so much worse. He doesn’t ask any questions as he follows you inside, as he stands almost menacingly close in the elevator, as he slouches against the wall as you unlock your door. You toss the keys into the basket by the front door, setting your work bag down. 

“Take your shoes off,” You order, nodding to Nathan’s feet as you lean against the wall, kicking yours off. Nathan follows suit as you walk deeper into your apartment, flicking on the light for the kitchen. 

“Do you want something to drink?” You ask. 

“I want you to hit me as hard as you can.” 

“Drop the fucking Fight Club schtick, alright? I told you I was sorry.” 

“Were you?” 

“I was trying to be.” 

“I don’t want you to be.” He leans against your counter, watching you root around in your fridge. “You lose the fire already?” 

“Fuck you.” You grumble it, with only half of the heat that you felt in the office. Nathan laughs, shaking his head. 

“I knew I should’ve fucked you over your desk.” 

The comment makes heat flare in your stomach. 

“I wouldn’t have let you fuck me in there,” You shake your head. “That place is a fucking fishtank.” 

“You’ll let me fuck you here?” 

“I might have to slap you again, get back in the mood.” 

“I’d be alright with that.” 

“Bullshit.”

“It’s not bullshit,” Nathan chuckles. 

“You really are a glutton for punishment.” 

“Little bit.” 

You gasp as he wraps his arms around your waist, tugging you back toward him. You whirl around, hands balled into fists, and find Nathan waiting for you, eyes bright with intrigue. You shake your head, lowering your hands to rest on his arms—his thick arms. 

This is bad. This is awful. Jenn wants this man, has the worst crush you’ve ever seen her have—she needs him for work, for funding, for—

Nathan’s lips catch yours, and all thoughts of Jenn are pushed from your mind. You sigh softly, fingers curling into fists again. 

“Fucking hate you,” You mumble against his lips. 

“I know,” He laughs, even as you pound one of your fists against his bicep. 

“Do you hate me?”

Nathan hums, grasping your hips and steering you back toward your counter. 

“I have no strong feelings one way or the other.”

“Oh—You know what, get off of me—” You protest, squirming, but Nathan’s laughing again, and you’re hardly pushing at his chest with any meaning, any force. He sucks a kiss to your neck, and your pushing hands take to grasping and pulling. You turn your head, catching Nathan’s lips with yours, whimpering as his hands push you into the harsh ridge of the counter. You rest your hands on Nathan’s shoulder’s, giving him a shove. You hardly move him. In fact, he leans more heavily against you, practically crushing you into the marble. He draws back from the kiss with a sucking sound, and a groan.

“I like that,” He murmurs. 

“What?” 

“You know what.” 

You hesitate before you give his shoulders another shove, then pound your fist against his arm. When Nathan doesn’t budge, you raise a hand, smoothing it over his cheek, then giving it a little tap. 

“C’mon,” He murmurs, “You can do better than that. Make it hurt a little.” 

You sweep your tongue across your lip, giving Nathan another tap, just a touch harder this time. Nathan grunts, and it’s all the warning you have before he’s turning you around. You shiver, bracing your hands on the counter. You twist, raising your hands as he draws your shirt up and off. You can’t get your hands out of the sleeves, and Nathan grasps the slack fabric, using the grasp of your shirt to keep your arms behind your back. You whimper, twisting as he presses a kiss to your shoulder. You wriggle against him, pressing your hips back. Nathan groans, pressing his face into your neck as he grinds up against you. Your clit pulses as you squeeze your thighs together, drawing in a shuddering breath. 

Nathan opens his mouth, panting hotly against your skin as his hands smooth up your sides and across your front, groping your breasts through your bra. You groan in frustration, your grinding turning to wriggling. 

“You gonna fuck around, or are you gonna fuck me?” 

You feel Nathan smile before a sharp sting digs into your skin. You hiss at the bite, throwing an elbow back against his gut. Nathan grunts at the contact, jerking away from you. He gives you a harsher shove against the counter, grasping the back of your neck roughly. You suck in a breath as he shoves your pants down around your knees. 

“This is the best you can do?” You snip. “Bending me over a counter?” 

Nathan chuckles low in your ear, nipping at your earlobe.

“This is where we’re going to start,” He murmurs, “And by the time we’re finished, you won’t be able to stand.” 

--  

“Get out of my bed.” 

“We aren’t going to cuddle?” 

You don’t have to look at Nathan to know that there’s a shit-eating grin on his face. You’ve only spilled into your bedroom about an hour ago, and since you have, he’s drawn three more aching, slow orgasms out of you, and you’ve drawn two out of him. Now, you push yourself up and away from him, clammy hands flexing in the fabric of your sheets before you get up. You suddenly feel a wave of self-conscious nerves, naked in front of him. It didn’t matter to you a few minutes ago, when Nathan had been fucking you roughly from behind, his hands grasping greedily your shoulders, pressing with a force that’ll likely bruise you in just a couple of hours. 

“Get out,” You repeat. “You know where the door is.” 

You hurry into your bathroom, cranking on the shower. You force yourself inside before the water warms, wincing as the cool drops practically sting your heated flesh. You strain your ears over the sound of the water, biting your lip. You only stop when you hear the retreating thud of Nathan’s feet, and the subsequent sound of your front door closing. Once he’s out, you feel yourself relax marginally, bracing your hands against the wall and tipping your head under the warming water. You take painstaking care to clean yourself, doing your best to wipe his touch, skin, sweat, and cum from every inch of your body. 

Fuck, you can’t believe what you’ve done. Nathan is the company’s biggest backer. He helped you gain your footing; he helped you create a proper place for yourself in the market. He’s Jenn’s mentor—he’s Jenn’s crush for christsakes. And you just fucked him. 

Repeatedly. 

When you finally pull yourself out of the bathroom, the sky is still dark, and the apartment is quiet. You glance down the hall, trying to decide your best plan of action. You hesitate before you ultimately head to your bedroom. For all of your financial growth in the last couple of years, you still only have one set of sheets. Of all of the things that you made it a point to get when you moved into a newer, bigger place, bedding was never really a priority, and your late nights at the office have lessened the need further. Still, you can’t sleep in them tonight, not until you’ve washed them. You yank them off of the bed, balling them up and striding back into the hall, shoving them into the washer with an excess of laundry detergent and scent beads before turning the water setting to hot and the cycle to deep wash. 

You turn toward the kitchen next, already bracing for the sight of your discarded clothing, and the items scattered during your first frantic coupling with Nathan. You bite your lip as you come to the doorway, looking around. Cups, papers, a likely shattered BlueBook tablet. You almost want to walk away, to curl up on your bare mattress and ignore the aching in your muscles and core. But you grudgingly walk over and tidy the area, stacking them items and setting them on the counter. You take up the tablet last, wincing at the cracked screen. Yep. Bummer. You ought to expense it, just to spite him. Your lips quirk with a mean smile. Yeah, that’s what you’ll do—at least to annoy him. You’ll send him a repair invoice. Fuck it—you’ll send him an invoice for a whole new one. 

--  

“How was last night?” 

You nearly choke on your coffee at Jenn’s question, but you just manage to swallow thickly and give her a smile.

“Fine! Good,” You nod. “I think we’re close to a deal.” 

“Oh?” 

“Mhm. They just want to iron out some things contract-wise, but we should get the signatures just in time to onboard them next quarter.” 

“Awesome,” Jenn nods, smiling. She hesitates before adding, “Nathan said he was going to listen in on the call.” 

“He did.” 

“Did he say anything?” 

“On the call? No.” 

“Afterward?” 

“Nnn…Nope.” 

“Because a few people said that they heard arguing.”

You bite your lip. You can keep digging the hole that you’ve started, or you can come clean. 

“It wasn’t an argument, it was…A spirited discussion.” 

Halfway clean. 

“Why didn’t you just tell me that in the first place?” 

“Because, I know that you want me and Nathan to get along. And I know about the creepy little crush you have on Silicon Valley’s former boy-genius, so—” 

“Shut up,” Jenn whines, covering her face with her hands, “Oh my god! Am I that obvious?” 

“Probably just to me. I know you, hon. Bateman’s a smart guy, but I get the feeling that he doesn’t really get what the hair-tossing was meant to invoke last night.” 

Jenn groans again, resting her arms on her desk, and setting her head on her arms. You force a smile through the rotten feeling beginning to curdle in your gut. Jenn stays there for a moment before she lifts her head, resting her chin on her arms. 

“So I should be more upfront about my interest.” 

It’s not a question, which is concerning. 

“Jenn, I…I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” 

“Why not?” 

“Because he’s our biggest backer, and besides you, he has the largest share of the company.” 

“It’s not a controlling interest.” 

“No, but…If things go sour, are you prepared for the business relationship to go sour?” 

“Nathan wouldn’t do that.” 

“You sure? He’s, like, the king of emotional blackmail.” 

“Maybe, but this has turned out alright, right?” Jenn waves her finger between the two of you. You consider for a moment before you nod. 

“Yeah,” You agree, “So far. But you and I aren’t fucking, Jenn. And I don’t have the industry pull and capital to bring the building down if I decide that I don’t like one of us anymore.” 

Jenn pouts, dropping her gaze to the desk and drawing in a deep breath. 

“Okay,” She mumbles. 

“I’m not saying never. I just think you should consider the ramifications.” 

“Fiiiiiiine,” Jenn pushes herself to sit up. “What was the spirited argument over, anyway?” 

“Just…” You flounder. “How he operates, how I operate. We don’t see eye to eye on most things outside of the business, you know that.” 

“You seemed to be better last night. At least, you didn’t spend the evening biting each other’s heads off.” 

Your palm tingles with the memory of Nathan’s cheek against your palm; you can see the snap of his head turning at the impact, the flash of hot intrigue in his eyes. You turn your gaze down to your notes in your lap, giving a small shrug. 

“We’re getting better.” 

-- 

“Could you sign for this, please?” 

You look up from the email you’re proofreading, nodding when you see one of the people from the mail room holding a slim package. 

“Sure thing.” You stand, rounding your desk and taking the proffered signature pad, scrawling it out and then passing it back with a smile. “Thank you.”

“Have a good one.” 

"You, too."

You take the package, turning away and rounding your desk and opening it. Your brow furrows as you draw out a receipt and eye the Item Description column—

BlueBookTab - x1

Engrave

Your brows rise, a laugh escaping you. There’s no way. You only sent that invoice this morning, how the hell did Bateman get you a new one already? And engraved? You draw the tablet out of the box, turning it over in your hands and eyeing the etching: 

For two years of work

And one night of service

NB

Your jaw drops in shock, a stunned huff leaving you as you shake your head, fingers tightening around the tablet. Oh, you’re tempted to throw it at the wall just to spite him, and invoice him for another—but who knows that nasty shit he’d put on that one? 

You consider for a moment before you pitch it at the wall. It hits the floor with a satisfying thud. You pick your phone up, zooming in on the cracked tablet screen on the floor and taking a picture. You drop it into your current text thread with Nathan, sending it, along with one word: 

Whoops.

Before you can even close the text messages, you see Nathan typing on the other end. Your stomach flips as you wait. Then—

you can’t keep anything nice can you

Send me another one and let’s find out. 

did you like my little message? 

Oh, there was a message? I don’t think I saw anything 

But then, the things that you do don’t tend to leave an impression 

keep it up sweetheart 

You bite your lip, trying to fight back the smile pulling your lips. It fails when his next text pops up: 

im delivering the next one myself. make sure you don’t miss a thing.

Next part

Tag list: @missredherring ; @fantasticcopeaglepasta ;  @paintballkid711 ; @massivecolorspygiant ; @blueeyesatnight; @amneris21 ; @ew-erin ; @youngkenobilove ; @carbonated-beverage ; @lorecraft ; @moonlightburned ; @milf-trinity ; @nolanell ; @millllenniawrites ; @chattychell ; @dihra-vesa ; @videogamesandpoorlifechoices​ ; @missswriter ; @thembosapphicclown ; @brandyllyn ; @wildmoonflower ; @buckybarneshairpullingkink ; @mad-girl-without-a-box ; @winchestershiresauce ; @aellynera ; @writefightandflightclub ; @thedukeofcaladan ; @beepboopyoda ; @foxilayde ; @revolution-starter ; @rachelwritesstuff ; @queen-of-elves

[wtftaylr]

23, 26, 34 for sadie?

HI MOOT!! <3 <3 Tysm for the ask!!!

#23 - How do they feel about physical touch/affection?

She's quite reserved, prefers her own personal space -- anything beyond a handshake or fist bump will only be coming from friends. They'll gladly accept hugs from friends but 99% of the time Sadie won't be the one to initiate them.

Before the events of New Vegas, Sadie spent many many years (age 15 through 34) as a courier and jury-rigging repairman con-artist, hyper-focused on saving up to one day fund their scientific research -- she didn't provide herself much time for establishing relationships (with humans at least, she's always taken to robots and is far quicker to befriend them).

All that to say, they're not accustomed to physical touch and it's a new experience having friends willing to initiate it -- like Veronica, for instance. I feel Veronica is a big hugger and while Sadie has no problem with it, it catches her off guard the first few (hundred) times.

And Benny -- holy shit. Sadie was not prepared for Just how much she's dotted on, touched, kissed, cuddled -- This could be its own post tbh but she does get used to reciprocating fairly quickly, but in smaller, less grand ways -- leaning into him, wrapping her arm around his, planting a kiss on his cheek before leaving -- her love language leans more towards Acts of Service. But now im rambling, im gonna put the brakes on haha

--

26. How would others describe them / their disposition?

First impressions are Sadie's unreactive, aloof, and short-tempered. Perhaps can lean towards off-putting with just how unreactive she is (I can go off, but it's partially due to Flat Affect from autism, and subsequently made more apparent after head trauma. If you're interested in more info, I go into an absurd amount of head trauma detail on her profile. Warning for mobile users, that particular section doesn't turn into a scroll box on mobile yet. Gotta figure out that coding lol [i know nothing about coding so uhh wish me luck lol]).

Though as she's allowed to warm up, they're genuine and kind towards friends; she's ride or die for life. Always willing to help at the first opportunity -- with anything. To the point where it could be perceived as annoying to some folks lmao /lh

[Lucky 38 Presidential Suite] Boone: hm. I'm thirst- Sadie, materializing out of thin air: WOULD U LIKE A DRINK. PERHAPS A NUKA-COLA. SOME WATER. SUNSET SASPARILLA MAYBE BUT DON'T DRINK TOO MUCH OF IT I HEARD IT'S A HEALTH HAZARD. IF U WANT SOMETHING SPECIFIC THAT WE DON'T HAVE I CAN GO BUY IT FOR YOU-- Boone: Boone: water is fine

Also!! I'm working on the Relationship section of Sadie's profile; this might provide a bit of extra insight on specific characters and their dynamic okay you got me, I just wanted to show this off I love how it's turning out so far and it seemed related tho idk if that's the adhd talking or if im being fr

--

34. What armor / clothing do they typically wear?

OOOHHHH I desperately wanna do a new outfit lineup for her. But I wanna answer this ask while it's still 2024 so (mostly) text-only for now >B)

She most often wears Daniel's Outfit (that guy sucked but, credit where credit's due, that outfit is fuckin fire) -- I drew her in it [here] but Really wanna draw her in it properly. Daniel who? This is Sadie's Outfit.

As for armor, the Stealth Suit MK II (OWB) is her go-to for more dangerous fights.

[electromignion]

Bridgewater doodles dump!! (Different characters wahoo!)

I’m sorry I’ve been away because of 🥰 university 🥰 but I have been in fact keeping on doodling Bridgewater related stuff from when I last posted to until even today! (This is an euphemism to not say I actually draw them every single day) so here’s a dump (Anne, Olivia, Vipin, Jeremy and the Legend Tripper)! (I will post my uni doodles another time these are bigger more complete doodles 🫶)

First of all here’s Anne Becker in the 1980s!! I did 1980s!Becker only once so!! Please don’t mind the fact it was quick doodles djdjjd

The one on the bottom left was how I would have pictured her working at the station, I don’t know why but I mostly picture her with long hair when she was younger and that then she cut it for a sort of pixie cut (probably after Thomas’s disappearance)

Olivia and Vipin doodles!! Wanted to try out that new sketchbook and I wanted to try something more realistic with my brush pens, and also had added more piercings to Olivia following @stillwinchester’s idea 🙏

Jeremy Bradshaw my beloved!! Wanted to draw him with something else than his usual outfit I draw him with, gotta admit, I like that one!! I think he’d defo have some shirts with that kind of motif for summer

Jeremy Bradshaw doodle, I wanted to try another outfit and face angle so yeah, drew him with eyes closed and a mothman kinda t-shirt ksksks + a Legend Tripper doodle too!! I was also trying a new outfit for her, I mean I see her as totally fashionable to be interesting to people as she has a very distinctive style, let’s just say that I LOVE designing her!!

Also, if you have any Bridgewater art idea you want me to try to picture do not hesitate!!! I will try 🫶💜

[coolsosha]

50 SHADES OF ASMO??? INTO THE ASMOVERSE??? 100 AND 1 ASMO?

Dunno about u, but I think thats veeery cool when artists make smol changes to the character they draw. And thats very interesting to see how different people see the same character! ♡

Sooo Sosha drew some sketches with 5 different Asmodeus designs.

IF U ARE ONE OF THOSE UNLUCKY PEOPLE WHO I TAGGED IN HERE, DON'T WORRY, YOU ARE ALLOWED TO IGNORE THIS POST♡

Time is priceless and there is no need to spend it on some random person's post only because they tagged you in it.

-Sosha. 2023.

First one we have... Original one!

Pretty simple cuuus, ya already know how he looks like.

-classic

-boring

-awful hair colour. no wonder why he has different hair colour on different arts.

Second one is... @soshaaaa aka me.

I actually drew this in the end, but i thought that "Well, if i will be harassing other ppl's Asmos, i need to harass my own Asmo first!"

-Eyes. ah, these eyes.

-"You draw nude man because you are horny, i draw nude man because im lazy to think of a new outfit"(×1)

-Why this one have so many "@Sosha"? because im angry when i have empty space on canvas

click to see more..

THIRD ONE ISSS @hiort

NOOO, FIRST DESIGN THAT IS MADE BY NOT-SOSHA?? (Aw, Sosha don't want to interrupt anyone, but I need to give credit for design so Sosha had to tag you, srry.)

-I found only 2 images of this one, but i just HAD TO draw it! I mean, look at this barbiegirl!

-I loove long haired Asmo. Also blonde looks pretty good on him!

-I made this first, so its less full than other ones. But i still think it came out cool!

FORTHTH ONE ISSSSS @noecoded

(srry for tag)

-I saw this Asmo some time ago, even before i went to tumblr, and when i found original artist I KNEW THAT I HAD TO DRAW THIS ASMO SOMEDAY.

-"You draw nude man because you are horny, i draw nude man because im lazy to think of a new outfit"(×2)

-I decided to use orig.artist shading style so it would look more familiar (and because i like it)

-darker skin and bright pink hair look sooo good!

-"Oh nooo, they made her EMOOO (deadass music)"

AND FIFTHTHTH ONE ISS @shootingstarrfish

(srry srry tag srry tag)

-U gotta say "Sosha, but this design is not very different" and i will say "SHUT UP IT GIVES EMU OTORI ENERGY AND I LOVE IT"

-He looks so silly and happy, I COULDN'T SKIP THIS ONE, OKAY????

-This one looks like mostly memes, i admit. I'm guilty. But i like it tho-

-Stealed lighting because IT LOOKS COOL

ULTIMATE MEME SKETCH!

IMAGINE BEING ASMO AND ENJOYING YOUR LIFE, THEN SUDDENLY 4 ANOTHER ASMOS FROM ANOTHER UNIVERSES APPEAR AND START TO DESTROY DEVILDOM TOGETHER???

...yeah, i definitely was high while i was drawing this.

Why they all pink? because i picked colours from their backgrounds, and when i was colouring backgrounds, i used mostly pink.

ALSO ASMO SCREENS FOR ALL YOU ASMO SIMPS AS USUAL♡♡♡

ANYWAY, END OF POST

[bubbledtee]

surprising early-mid!90s!james with you and your baby while he’s doing soundcheck by letting your baby run up and hug his leg and he gets so shocked but immediately picks them up and cuddles?? i’m inconsolable

i'm very much in a baby fever type of mood right now and this is just melting my heart. and i'm imagining load era james rn because i need him.

you'd have stayed behind at the hotel, letting james go to the obnoxiously early soundcheck alone while you waited for your daughter to wake up on her own time. both you and james had learned since the very start that, if you didn't need to wake her, then don't. the consequences would far outweigh the upsides to getting an early start to the day.

your daughter would wake up only 30-45 minutes later, her hair frazzled as she stood up in her pack n play crib, her favorite stuffed animal clung to her side.

"daddy?" you'd hear her voice softly say, causing you to peak out from the bathroom where you had previously been getting ready to look at the drowsy toddler.

you'd walk over and pick her up from the crib, her head immediately moving to sleepily lean against your shoulder. "daddy's not here, baby." you'd coo softly, heading over to your suitcase to pick out an outfit for her.

she'd pout softly before speaking in her simple, toddlerish manner. "where daddy?"

you'd set her on the floor, your fingers gingerly running through her short, blonde curls as you continued to rummage through your suitcase. "daddy's with uncle lars, uncle kirk, and uncle jason. they've gotta make sure they'll be ready to play for all those people tonight," you'd tell her, "we can go see them, but we've gotta get you dressed first, okay?"

your daughter would nod, and within 20 minutes, you were out of the hotel and on the way to the venue, your daughter overly enthusiastic about seeing james.

when you got to the venue, you'd hear your husband's strong voice booming throughout the air over the sound of heavy guitars and drums. you'd make your way to the backstage, the roadies letting you in with a big smile to your daughter as she held your hand and walked beside you.

"hi!" she'd say with a wave every time you passed by a new group of roadies, earning waves and greetings back. you'd just laugh as you continued to make your way toward the stage, only stopping at the band's dressing room to find the small, pink noise cancelling headphones you knew would lay in james's wardrobe case.

"gotta cover up your ears, right, sweetpea?" you'd ask as you unfolded the headphones and began to slip them over the toddler's head.

"yeah!" she'd nod as you settled them carefully over her ears.

as soon as the headphones were safe and secure, you'd find your way to the stage, your daughter leading the way as you told her which way to turn. eventually, you'd find the opening to the stage and call your daughter back to you as the band practiced King Nothing.

"come here, we can watch daddy." you'd pick your daughter up and stand off to the side of the stage, watching the guys play, and as soon as they finished, you'd set your daughter on the ground and let her run over to james. you'd follow behind, simply walking over.

your daughter would hug james's leg as he spoke with the other guys, a squeal leaving her as she shouted up at him, "daddy!"

at the feeling of her wrapping her tiny arms around his calf, he'd turn to look at her and immediately smile so wide. "baby!" he'd shout back, picking her up and peppering her face with kisses. "how are you, sweetpea? daddy missed you so much,"

she'd wrap her arms around his neck and hug him tight, the sight making your heart swell. he'd hug her back, despite the guitar strap that hung over his shoulder. "love you," your daughter would mutter to him.

"oh, baby," he'd kiss her cheek as she pulled away, "daddy loves you, too."

you'd rub a hand over james's lower back as you stood beside him, drawing his attention to you. "hi, honey." he'd smile, pressing a chaste kiss to your lips.

"hi," you'd smile back, looking at your daughter as she was now distracted with waving at the other guys.

"hey, kid!" jason would giggle, waving at the little girl. she'd giggle too, resting her head against james's shoulder.

im ending this here rn because im so sleepy rn

[obsessed-small-penguin]

Mutant Mayhem Was Good!

[Spoilers Ahead] So I just watched Mutant Mayhem and I have 5 things to say and point out. All I gotta say is...

1. MONA LISA?!

Okay, no one can tell me that don't look like Mona Lisa on that locker 😳

Like it's the same position and everything!! If MM became a series (I forgot if I heard anything about this ngl-), then I hope we see her! Even if she turns out to be a human! She was a human in 1987 before she got mutated anyways. Also, Idk if that picture above (with the sunglasses) is another art piece, but what if that's Mona Lisa? 👀 She looks like a cool girl like one of those popular girls in school.

2. I wholeheartedly blame MM...

for making me lowkey enjoy Leonardo x April or Aprilnardo... is that what it's called? Like the turtles act like such teenagers that the crush is quite wholesome ^ ^' I still cringed because omg, this is exactly how 2012 Donnie fell for April (at first sight) 😭 At least this time the crush isn't aggressively shoved down our throats (and obsessive/stalkerish)! MM's portrayal of a teenage crush is what the 2012 creators should've done! Innocent and quite wholesome 😊

3. Showed up to school looking like THIS

If Leo wasn't a turtle and went to school like that, I think he'd be bullied 💀 Like why he dressed up like Jake From StateFarm? 😂 Full on about to tell me how much I can save on car insurance 😂 Seriously... if Rise Leo- no no, if ANY Leo could see him right now 😭

I can't draw whatsoever, but I hope to see someone create the other Leos reacting to MM Leo's outfit OR A Jake from StateFarm meme with MM Leo. Because these would be amazing 😂

4. Leo Need Some Back Bone

Mans is over here being bullied about how his split-up name would be Leo Nardo and he didn't 👏 clap 👏 back. I'm only saying this because Raph Ael is way worse and no one noticed 😂 But I appreciate Leo's character in this movie. It is exactly how I would write him in every version; especially in 2012 (except Rise, that Leo is better at hiding anxiety).

I just realized that Donnie ain't much safe either. Tello would be a good last name, but that would mean his name would be Dona 💀 Unless he just sticks to Don Atello which is what he'd probably do x).

5. I wonder...

how would this universe's Casey look? 🤔

isn't Mondo Gecko a teenager? Why isn't he in school?

why is Leatherhead a female? And why she got an accent? If she was mutated in New York then how did she get an Australian accent?

and does the ooooooooze affect only animals? Because Idk if they said anything about it, but I assumed so (and would make sense why they had Splinter origin be a rat).

[that-ghosts-art]

“Come on buddy, don’t ya wanna make a lil deal with lil ol’ me?”

I’ve been on a bit of an equivalence high recently as anyone following me may have guessed haha ^-^

For anyone who’s interested I’ve written some of my thoughts on demon!Mabel below the cut :3

First things first let's talk about her style and general appearance, cause I feel like I’ve deviated a fair bit from the previously established fancy suit she’d been portrayed as having like Dipper.

My logic for the change (outside of wanting to try drawing something that isn’t a suit haha) is that I feel she would have more varietyin the outfits she wears compared to Dipper. Looking at the show Dipper was out there wearing the exact same outfit for an entire summer while Mabel (admittedly wearing the same type of clothes) had significantly more variety, wearing a different sweater every episode, some episodes even having more than one, and I feel this would continue to reflect here.

Dipper has his suit and doesn't venture much further then that if he can help it (obviously not to say he doesn't but you know what I mean). Mabel mean while would have a new outfit every day, multiple per day sometimes!

Most of the time I think she would default to a more punk, diy aesthetic because of the inherent creativity of it (which for a typically detail averse artist such as myself was certainly a decision haha), not to mention I can imagine Mabel being like “I’m a literal demon Dipper I gotta go for the outfits with the spikes and chains!”

At the same time she would definitely enjoy trying out a whole host of different styles (to a point though. Some just aren't comfortable, not any more at least, a part of her stolen away with the Transcendence).

I'd need to do some research into clothing styles to say specifically what else she would enjoy, but I can say it's a lot of black with small splashes and highlights of colour. She's also, regardless of style wear lots and lots of jewellery and piercings cause I think she’d like them :3

Switching things up a bit I wanna quickly go over her pins (ie, her queer identities). My hc for demon!Mabel is the same for normal Mabel, being bisexual with a masc preference, and a demigirl (she/her/they/them exploring and trying out various neo pronouns as she encounters them, rotating through them depending on her mood).

Slightly serious tangent, but I know the previously established lore for EAU was that she would be aroace, but in all honesty that never quite sat right with me. Like the only reason she, or subsequently Dipper in the main TAU canon, are aspec is because of the demon-ness, and while I love demons and the demonic as much as the next aroace person, and I adore representation of my identity, the implications aren’t my favourite in the world. Obviously no disrespect to the people behind that decision, (in fact I applaud them on exploring how a character like Mabel might react to people assuming she wants that in this lil fic here :3). Only the maddest of respect to the people who make characters the identities they want them to be :) I just wanted to address it for anyone who like me has read every bit of eau content they can get their grubby lil hands on and noticed that particular difference :p

Besides, this way we get to explore the logistical and moral implications of a character being allosexual while also being an incredibly powerful and immortal being, especially when you get into questions of how she ages herself compared regular humans :3c (I think I'll leave that for another post though haha)

On a different note, another design idea I had was that it'd be really cool if she had a dynamic and moving tattoo that would constantly change and show new (typically pig and star related) designs :) this definitely wasn't inspired by my own inability to come up with and stick to a particular singer design, definitely not.

I also thought it would be neat to differentiate the demonic aspects of her and Alcor's design by giving her feathered wings, rather than the typical bat wings. I mostly just thought it could be nice to try drawing something different, and while Dipper and Mabel are very close and have a fair amount in common they are still very different characters, so it would make sense for their demonic features to differ, even is only slightly. On that note I also gave her a pink outline to her pupils as inspired by this art cause I thought it was neat :3

Anyway I accidentally posted this before I was finished so Imma just take that as a sign to stop and put my other thoughts in a different post haha 😅

[brb-on-a-quest]

For the writer asks: 4, 15, 27, and 30 <3

HI IGGY!! :) :) :) tysm; i haven't actually looked through most of these yet so I should do that first XD. Numbers are from here

4- (story idea I haven't written yet)

Ok so I have started this one but then decided I hated it so it's mulling on the back burner until I have more energy to rehash it out for better stuff is part of The Doctor and The Butler storyarc(?world?) at this point, but basically the robins all take the Doc on a Proper Road Trip and it All Goes To Chaos(tm) because the Doctor Does Not Do RoadTrips in the slightest because he just pops in and out of time on a whim and doesn't seem to do great in small spaces for more than 15 minutes (basing this on the cube episode in the Matt Smith Era). It'd be good but it needs a certain... vibe yk? haven't gotten there.

15- (favorite weather for writing). Not a weather, but I can only write when it's dark outside bc then I don't feel about about not doing homework/other things. Rain is also good tho.

27- (Favorite part of writing process). The part in Brainstorming where it all starts coming together and you're just squealing like your twelve and some cool people just invited you to hangout with them, and then you start writing and everything goes smoothly.

30- (Share a fic you're proud of)

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm I don't have any full-length WIP done for you to look at but I think I have some assignments (checks through old google documents) lmao no what assignments (shoves them all into the fireplace). Let me give you the beginning of one of my current WIPS that im really proud of currently even if I've been writing and rewriting it so many times.

It wasn’t even close to the moonset when hands and voices raised them from sleep. “Misha, Rose. On your feet. It’s your turn now.”  “Ugh, just kill me now,” Rose muttered as she and Misha both sat up blearily. “Be quicker and easier.” “That’s the coward’s way out. Also, way too expensive.” Misha stood up and rubbed her eyes. “How much fest prep do we gotta do still, Dani?” She watched as the freckled elf started climbing to the top bunk.  Daeneryl flopped down on her mattress, clutching a fat feather pillow, with a yawn. “Just drinks, but those are last minute.”  “Oh, and be careful how you tread around the old man today.” Fayley peeled off her slippers from her feet as Misha and Rose got dressed into their outfits for the day. “Got a new run of trash gryphons. Damn pests.” “Thought Sammy took care of all that?” Rose sighed as she pulled a brush from the vanity table to untangle a sea of unruly curly hair. Starting from the bottom, she winced every time she had to pull it through to the end.  “He was supposed to. Says he did his whole ‘pied piper act’ which he did, but apparently these are a different breed.” Dani sighed. “Nick’s looking into wizard enchantments.”  Eventually, Rose gave it up and threw it all up in a slicked-back ponytail, held in place with an assortment of ribbons and pins. “One day, I swear, I’m just going to take a knife to this and hack it off.” “You’ve been saying that for five years,” Dani laughed. “I’ll believe it when I see it.” “Watch me.” Rose grimaced. Misha shook her head silently as she braided the front sections of her hair and tied it back with a bright orange ribbon that matched her flowing skirt. It was one of her favorites because it made her stand out in a crowd that mostly wore shades of brown and black for practicality. She slipped into her boots and crouched down, waiting for Rose.

Rose caught sight of her and rolled her eyes. “You’re asking for it. Fayley, your count.”  There was a muffled “Go” and fingers interweaved the laces with their corresponding hooks. They looked up when they were finished, approximately the exact same time. “Call that one a draw, I suppose.” Rose shrugged. “Come on, let’s get some food before we have to deal with life.”

[artsartblog]

I’m back in the fucking building again/ref

But yeah, I’m here to present more of my art to tumblr. Enjoy!

These first couple of pieces are of my Hazbin Hotel oc Esme. She is, as stated in the art, a fallen angel. She has a massive crush on Lucifer; one so large that she literally fell from heaven for him lol. I’m joking, but she did get kicked out of heaven because of Lucifer. Not that it’s really his fault. Heaven just wasn’t the same without him. Plus, she was all for his ideas, so it wasn’t long after Hell was made that she ended up there. Throughout all of season 1 she wears a demon disguise because she’s not keen on being known as an angel in Hell. Especially since she’s been living like an Overlord ever since she got back on her feet. She spent some time under Lucifer and Lilith’s protection after her fall, healing from the loss of her wings (which eventually grew back). The first drawing is my initial drawings of Esme to get her design down. The one after it is just some random doodles I made of her. Including her fallen angel form (the one of her punching Adam). (Small side note: In creating Esme, I had the idea of her being sort of like Cupid and the Fates. She is the one who started connecting people with strings. Who is meant to be she knows, not just romantically, and she can see the strings that bind them, especially when those binds are going to change. Each bond having their own specific colors.)

These next pieces are some refs I’ve made for Esme. The first one is her demon form during season 1 and the second one is her embracing her (human) angel form going into season 2. (Note: I say human angel form because it’s still technically her angel form, just not her full angel form that includes all the eyes). The third ref is just Esme in a new outfit that she gets in season 2 to further embrace her true self.

This next one is just a "What if?" scenario that I wanted to draw out. It's basically just "What if Esme owned Vox's soul?". It's not canon to Esme's lore, but I do keep thinking about how fun it'd be to make it canon lol.

Moving on from the Hazbin Hotel fandom onto the Sonic fandom, I present to you a collage of Cherry drawings. They're just various prompts that my friends and I were coming up with since we have our own little AU in our server. A little context for Swap Cherry, it’s just Cherry having swapped outfits with Amy nothing else.

This next one is just a fun idea I wanted to do since tumblr has been showing so many Sonic fankids, so I caved in and made some fankids myself.

Dawn is the oldest and she looks the most like Cherry and Shadow. (She is the only one to truly be canon in the AU I’m doing with some friends, but this is an offshoot AU of that sorta.) Fern is the middle child and he looks more like Sonic and Cherry. Aurora is the youngest, but takes after all three of her parents. However, the three are actually triplets so they’re all actually the same age lol. Dawn and Fern are the “speedsters” out of the three, but really only Fern is fast on his feet. Dawn’s super speed kicks in when she flies instead of running. Aurora is fast when she runs and flies, but not like her siblings. Her strength lies in her plant powers and chaos powers. She is a lot more connected to the chaos energy that runs through her (as well as the alien dna) than her siblings. Though Fern has less of a connection to those than his siblings, taking after Sonic’s genes more than Shadow’s genes or Cherry’s genes.

More info on them to come (aka gotta think more about them) Also, a side note, in my Triplet Kids AU Sonia and Manic do exist ^w^

That’s all for this post folks. I was going to include my pride art piece, but I’ll make a separate post for that. If you enjoyed be sure to show the love and don’t be afraid to reblog this! If you have any questions or just want to hear me ramble about my ocs feel free to drop a little ask in the ask box!

As always, have a wonderful day and remember to always stay creative!!!!!