#Gia Campbell

[soapsudsblog]

[superghfan]

Marisa Ramirez (Gia Campbell).

[jewelrychic88]

I love the way that Nik always moved Gia’s braids back from her shoulder or her face. It was very sweet.

[anyathefandom]

Have u ever watched Nik and Gia’s journey? I looooved their angst.

I haven't yet but their story is definitely something I plan on getting to since people have compared them to Sprina at times.☺️

[practically-an-x-man]

Since I was just talking about this with a friend... here's the symbolism for my various OCs' names!

At least... here are the main OCs, though I usually apply symbolism to the antagonists, secondary characters, etc. as well (I can talk about them too, but that would make this post ridiculously long)

____

Rachel "Rae" Ayla McKinney: the name Rae is used as a shortened nickname from Rachel, but on its own means "protector" - fitting, with her protective personality and ability to create impenetrable energy shields! Middle name was chosen from her grandmother's first name; the same grandmother that she inherited her mutation from. Surname was not chosen with intentional deeper meaning, just chosen for a Scottish surname. Hero name, Aegis, is a reference to Athena's mythological shield.

Robin Eleanor Cassidy: first name is both a traditionally Irish name and links back to the music- and sound-based themes within her story. Middle name is also Irish in origin, and can be seen as a variation on the name Leonore, as in the opera Fidelio. Surname wasn't chosen with deeper symbolic meaning, just to connect her to the X-Men's Cassidy family as a whole. Hero name, Aria, is a reference to her sound-based mutation and operatic background.

Madison Sarah Douglas: first name has multiple derived forms, one of which means "strength in battle", and was also chosen with nicknames in mind to symbolize the stages of her life: she goes by Maddie until she's 15, then leaves that behind once she runs to the wilderness and begins going only by her full name, then begins to adopt the nickname "Mads" as she grows comfortable with Alex. Middle name was chosen from a list of popular names for the time, intended to be simple and unassuming like Madison's parents (her mother especially) expected her to be. Surname is can be translated from Gaidhlig to mean "black stream", a symbol towards her aquatic-based mutation. Hero name, Lionfish, is a reference to the physical traits her mutation grants her, and in the earlier stages of her story can be seen as foreshadowing towards the venomous fins and more lionfish-like traits she will later develop.

Ophelia Jo Octavius: first name stems from the Shakespearean Ophelia, intended both to connect her to her literary-focused mother and to foreshadow the tragedy she will experience throughout her life (and at one point, foreshadows her multiversal variant that genuinely goes mad and later dies to her own actions). Middle name is also literary, stemming from Little Women; however, her middle name is only Jo, not the full Josephine, meant to symbolism Ophelia standing apart from expectations. Surname is not chosen with deeper meaning, just to tie her into the canon Octavius family, but the alliteration of her first and last name is meant to be "superhero-like" and further connect her to her father. Hero name, Argonaut, represents both Jason's mythological Argo and a species of pelagic octopus.

Giovanna "Gia" Isabelle Pantazis: First name, in both its full and shortened forms, translates to "God is gracious", symbolizing Gia's faith and feeling that her surviving HYDRA was an act of God's will. Middle name also holds faith-based translations to further this symbolism. Surname is derived from the Greek blessing "live forever!", representing how having her life force bound to her clover makes her effectively immortal (at least in certain ways).

Jasper Nightingale Wilson: First name was chosen from a list of modern gender-neutral names, mainly meant to be a fitting, likely choice for a name a genderfluid teen would choose for themself in the 2010s. Middle name was chosen to honor Florence Nightingale, Jasper's personal hero and the person that inspired them to go into nursing. Surname can be derived in some ways from "desire", but was also chosen for an ongoing joke with their partner about having "two first names". Derby name, Gemstone, is meant as a connection to the name Jasper. [note: I will not be analyzing the symbolism of their deadname, and I didn't choose extensive symbolism for their deadname even if there's some to potentially be found. The only thing I chose to line up is that they chose their former derby name to be derivative of their first name, the same way Gemstone is derived from Jasper]

Indigo: Uses no surname until marriage - first because she didn't know her family, later as an act of rebellion for how "loaded" her family surnames would be. She chose her first name herself, for the deep blue color of her eyes, because being a foundling on the dog-eat-dog world of Corellia meant nobody bothered to choose a proper name for her (prior to choosing her name, her guardians would just summon her with "girl!" or "hey, you!"). Name was also chosen with a nickname in mind, both to provide variety and as a symbol of familiarity as she moves through the story.

Prometheus: Name as a nightmare was Nyx (from the Greek god of night), or the Fear of the Dark, for them being a primal nightmare of the dark. Name as a dream keeps the Greek mythological roots, but represents them claiming fire for the sake of the human dreamers they choose to protect, as well as representing the day-by-day injury they undergo in order to protect those same dreamers. The transition from Nyx to Prometheus also represents them becoming closer to their human dreamers - beginning as a primordial god, ending as a human hero.

Eris: Given name from Themyscira was Adamantia, meaning "untameable" or "unbreakable". After their bloodlust and sense for conflict became clear to the people around them, those on Themyscira began referring to them as Eris - believing they were an embodiment of conflict itself, a reincarnation of the Greek god Eris (similar to the Ares story in Wonder Woman)

Nikoletta Bordeaux: First name means "victorious" and is drawn from the Greek Nike. Surname is a region in France, but has no other translated or derived meaning (especially considering that Nikoletta's family stem from Louisiana Cajun French, not traditional French, and the further linguistic separation there). Altogether, her name symbolizes "a victory that means nothing", indicating the various façades she implements while in Belle Reve - holding a position that only grants her power while within the prison, and her abilities themselves being used as a symbol for death while actually having no tangible danger.

Azalea Jordan "AJ" Campbell: First name is a flower, connecting her to her mother Violet as well as representing her career as an assassin in disguise: azaleas are beautiful flowers, but are toxic to humans and animals. Middle name, as well as her nickname, are intentionally gender-neutral, meant to symbolize her ongoing disguises and anonymity as an assassin (since the names apply to any gender, there are fewer visual assumptions that can be made about her). Surname translates to "crooked mouth", representing and foreshadowing the reveal of her facial scars.

Quinn: Any surname or former name for her have not been revealed or even decided, and I don't intend to choose any - that stage of her life has been left long in the past, and she's intentionally placed a distinction between that life and her current identity. The name Quinn has various meanings: it can be derived from "wise", "beautiful", or "chief", but was also chosen in-universe as a reference to Harley Quinn. Her rooftop name, Aces, furthers the association with Harley Quinn, decks/suits of cards, and luck/gambling.

Kestrel: Name and character design as a whole are pulled from an American kestrel - solitary animals save for their lifelong mating bonds, known to be adaptable to a variety of habitats and nesting conditions, and extremely effective hunters despite their small size. Former name, Deborah "Debbie" Browning, was merely meant as a mundane and human identity for them to have held before they revealed themself as a changeling.

Katherine Alessia Johnson: Name is largely derived from the NASA astronomer Katherine Johnson, known for contributing valuable research and computations to the moon landing (the moon symbolism also being tied back to the moonlight-powered Tablet of Khonsu). Middle name Alessia means "defender" or "truthful", notable elements of Katherine's character as well as her connection to Bastet, the Egyptian god of domestic protectiveness.

James "Jimmy" Aaron Luciano: As a whole, name was just chosen on a whim based on what sounded right, and wasn't intended with particular deeper meaning aside from being a period-accurate name for an Italian-American New Yorker in the 1910s. However, there is symbolism to be found in that both his former partner Robert and current love interest Lars choose to refer to him as James rather than his nickname.

Vivienne Siversdatter Andenæs: First name means "life", representing her being saved from death by her transformation into a siren - the name was also chosen to be a classically beautiful and feminine name, both for a siren's ethereal beauty and as a subversion towards Vivienne being nonbinary (at least, that it would be nonbinary by modern standards). Middle name is a family surname from Norwegian naming conventions, preserving her father's name. Surname has no listed translation or meaning, but is also Norwegian in origin.

Souriya "Spider" Prakash-Cooper: First name is Lao in origin and means "sun" to symbolize his explosive energy and social "brightness", and was chosen by his parents to honor his maternal grandfather. Surname is his parents hyphenated last names - his mother Adhira Prakash and his father Darius Cooper. Prakash also means "sunlight" to double that earlier symbolism; and while the surname Cooper originally derives from barrel-making, the name was chosen more for the juxtaposition between his father's family in America and his mother's family across India and Laos. His nickname Spider comes from friends at his speed-climbing gym, who gave him the nickname for his long limbs and fast, eclectic climbing strategy.

[hysteric-sweetheart]

hot girls love leopard print🐆💘

[westeroswisdom]

Five HotD cast members play Guess the Emoji.

If you come up with any new combinations related to House of the Dragon, please post them!

[p-redux]

Here's a second video of Sam Heughan and the MPC crew, and blue bikini lady, Susie Nicole Evans posted on Tik Tok by Melanie Raymond. Melanie is the Digital Content Manager for My Peak Challenge. It's from the same day as the first boat video a few days ago.

Click here to watch the video. 👇

Here is Susie with Marina et al. 👇

Here is Sam, also with Marina, but it seems Susie is sitting in between them. I'll show in other screenshots. 👇

See the yellow drink can Sam is holding and his black cell phone next to it. 👆

Well, they're right next to Susie in the screencaps from the previous video. And you can see Sam sitting verra close to her. His leg is hanging down under the table.👇

In the second video, you can see Sam's from behind on the right and Susie's leg/foot below the table. I lightened it up for better view. 👇

They are sitting verra cozily IMO.

BTW, the name of the yacht is Zanzibar 👇

Anyhoo, let's see if they're seen on vacation together...or not.

PS. As for her age, some are saying late 30s, others are dating 41 ish. Ancient for Sam, but hey, Gia Marie was 40, and he spent WEEKS with her in Hawaii. Sam is getting closer and closer to getting cougarized and I'm SO here for it. 🤗

[matysiameow]

I'll see you on the dark side of the moon

[soapsudsblog]

Paris

[motherdelores]

[jewelrychic88]

I’m so grateful for the Sprina fans to mention Nik and Gia. I didn’t know about them because when I started watching GH both of these actors were already gone. It has been cool going back and seeing the story. 🥰🥰

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in November 2024 🌈

🌈 Good morning, my bookish bats! Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Happy reading!

❓What was the last queer book you read?

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ I Am the Dark That Answers When You Call - Jamison Shea 🧡 Snowed in With You - Reba Bale 💛 Fire Spells Between Friends - Sarah Wallace & S.O. Callahan 💚 Ho Ho Homicidal Maniac - K.A. Merikan 💙 Escape to the Sea - Alex Callan & Angelica Babineaux 💜 She's Always Hungry - Eliza Clark 💛 Phoenix Rising - Emily Hayes 💙 A Flower's Fatal Thorn - Jordan Dugdale 💜 A Sharper, More Lasting Pain - Alex Harvey-Rivas

❤️ The Librarian's Gargoyle - Evelyn Shine 🧡 Dead Girls Don't Dream - Nino Cipri 💛 Of Hoarfrost and Blood - Scarlet Tempest 💚 Judgement - Lucas Delrose 💙 Deadline for Love - Candi Tab 💜 Wake Up, Nat & Darcy - Kate Cochrane ❤️ All the Truth I Can Stand - Mason Stokes 🧡 Celia - Addison James 💛 A Diamond Bright and Broken - Holly Davis 💙 Hexed - Emily McIntire 💜 Hometown Christmas - Laura Conway 🌈 This Christmas - Georgia Beers

❤️ Suite Heart - Jade Winters 🧡 We All Fall - Arden Coutts 💛 Taiwan Travelogue - Yáng Shuāng-zǐ 💚 Pit Stop - L.M. Bennett 💙 The Damaged Hearts Bargain - Sienna Waters 💜 War of Night - Greyson Black & E. Scott Clevenger 🧡 I'll be Boned for Christmas - Katherine McIntyre 💜 All You Want for the Holidays - Quinton Li 🌈 Queer as Folklore - Sacha Coward

❤️ Time and Tide - J.M. Frey 🧡 Ghost of the Heart - Catherine Friend 💛 Flopping in a Winter Wonderland - Jason June 💚 All the Painted Stars - Emma Denny 💙 Currency in Flesh - Heather Nix 💜 I Really Do - Emily K. Hardy ❤️ Something Close to God - Erika del Carmen Ruiz 🧡 The Crack at the Heart of Everything - Fiona Fenn 💛 Undeniable You - Chelsea M. Cameron 💙 The Twice-Sold Soul - Katie Hallahan 💜 Always on My Mind - Kelsey Painter 🌈 Interstellar MegaChef - Lavanya Lakshminarayan

❤️ Don't Break Character - Jules Landry 🧡 Rani Choudhury Must Die - Adiba Jaigirdar 💛 Remnants of Filth: Yuwu - Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou 💚 Sugar, Spice, and Christmas Nice - Anne Hagan 💙 The Wishing Tree - Barbara Winkes 💜 Love on Moonlight Lake - Adriana Sargent ❤️ Mistletoe Motel - Lise Gold 🧡 The Royal They - KJ Sinclair 💛 My So-Called Family - Gia Gordon 💙 Frosted by the Girl Next Door - Aurora Rey & Jaime Clevenger 💜 The Star-Crossed Empire - Maya Darjani 🌈 A Hard Fit - Jennifer Moffatt

❤️ The Sacred Heart Motel - Grace Kwan 🧡 Leap - Simina Popescu 💛 I Dare You - Regena Mercy 💚 Love Lessons - Mary Ellen Capek 💙 Afterglow - Emily Antoinette 💜 In the Back Row With You - Natasha West ❤️ Make Room for Love - Darcy Liao 🧡 Here Goes Nothing - Emma K. Ohland Just for the Holidays - Micah Carver

❤️ Cookies, Candles, and Cute Butts for Christmas - Cameron D. James & Cali Kitsu 🧡 Objects in Mirror - N.W. Downs 💛 Sleigh Bells Ring - Alyson Root 💚 Real Tree / Fake Boyfriend - Ree Thomas 💙 Out of the Storm - Logan Sage Adams 💜 Hungry Heart - Jem Milton ❤️ A Wild and Ruined Song - Ashley Shuttleworth 🧡 Beneath Her Power - Margaux Fox 💛 Thanks for Listening - Molly Horan 🌈 The Lotus Empire - Tasha Suri

❤️ Naughty November - Anthology 🧡 Hearts and Stars - Phoenix Kathryn 💛 Guarding Her Gangster Queen - Persephone Black 💚 The Shadow Spinner - Eric Kao 💙 Black, Queer, and Untold - Jon Key 💜 Hall of Shadows - Mariah Stillbrook ❤️ The Last Hour Between Worlds - Melissa Caruso 🧡 A Crimson Covenant - Aimee Donnellan 💛 Isaac - Curtis Garner 💙 Vineyard Dreams - Carol Wyatt 💜 Kiss of Death - Bryony Rosehurst 🌈 The Many Mistakes of Amy Love - RA Hunter

❤️ Accidentally in Love - Kimberly Cooper Griffin 🧡 Unwrapped - D. Jackson Leigh 💛 Hot Honey Love - Nan Campbell 💚 Havoc for the Holidays - Jay Leigh 💙 London - Patricia Evans 💜 Fatal Foul Play - David S. Pederson ❤️ The Gift of Us - Abigail Taylor 🧡 Upon the Midnight Queer - 'Nathan Burgoine 💛 The Christmas Pic - Rena Sapon-White & Ella Schaefer 💙 Seducing Scylla - Lex Logan 💜 Fated Winds and Promising Seas - Rose Black 🌈 A Surprise For The Holidays - Anna Sparrows

❤️ Immortal Hunger - KL Bone 🧡 Love and Loyalty - Emily Hayes 💛 A Kingdom of Lies - Ben Alderson 💚 Christmas Dreams - Carol Wyatt 💙 Wrecked for the Holidays - Kerry Kilpatrick ❤️ Not for the Faint of Heart - Lex Croucher 🧡 Phoenix Found - T.J. Nichols 💛 Room for Two - Rochelle Wolf 💙 The Long Winter of Miðgarðr - Edale Lan 💜 A Handyman for the Holidays - Valerie Gomez 🌈 Sundown in San Ojuela - M.M. Olivas

[practically-an-x-man]

Also that "everyone in fanfic has these jobs" thing is making me laugh bc I know it's just a silly thing about common tropes but like:

Rae is a translator/linguist

Robin is an opera singer

Madison nearly became a pro swimmer, later becomes a woodcarver

Ophelia is a biomedical engineer working in prosthetics

Gia runs a florist's shop

Jasper is a trauma nurse

Katherine is an artist for museum exhibits

Kestrel is effectively a wildlife biologist (but for magical creatures)

Jimmy was a zookeeper, specifically in the aviary

Vivienne is/was a sailor, mainly on schooners

Indigo and AJ are mechanics

Spider is a foley artist

And while these aren't exactly legal jobs: Quinn's a pickpocket and Nikoletta runs a voodoo scam for gullible tourists in New Orleans.

No lawyers, waiters, or coffee shop jobs. Technically Rae and Robin both do a bit of teaching while at the X-Mansion, but neither are teachers by trade.

[uconnposter01]

Chapter 2

Warning:Cursing

4.1K words

  October 2021, Third-Person POV

Nuveah is struggling; she's never struggled this much in her life. The constant thought of saying, Forget this and attempt going to the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) crossed her mind daily. Don’t get her wrong, the schoolwork is easy, and she loved being here with her sister and friends, but her insomnia has gotten so bad this year that she’s considering leaving it all behind. 

Three major things consistently ran through the soccer player’s mind. If she is even good enough to make it to the NWSL, trying to balance her friends and school. Finally, the person who occupies her mind the most is Azzi Fudd. Nuveah couldn’t get her mind off the girl, no matter how hard she tried. Unfortunately, Nuveah knows she will never tell Azzi how she truly feels, so she will just have to admire from afar. 

Trudging tiredly to her self-assigned seat in the back of the lecture hall, Aniyah puts her head down on the desk, hoping to catch some sleep before the curly-headed girl arrives. Nuveah hopes to get a quick five-minute nap before the basketball player arrives. She is not up for conversation but she doesn't want to ignore Azzi when she does show up for class, so Nuveah is hoping that resting her eyes will help her from being as irritated.

Azzi eagerly approached the soccer player as she entered the lecture hall, Giving Nuveah a light tap on the back of her neck. Azzi's smile disappeared as she saw Nuveah's weary face staring up at her.

“When’s the last time you've been to sleep?” Azzi asks softly.

“Like two days ago, I think,” Nuveah lies while laying her head on Azzi’s shoulder.

 In reality, it’s been three going on four days, but Nuveah didn't want the girl to worry, so she figured a little white lie wouldn't hurt.

“You need to smoke,” Azzi says

“Can't I wanna be sharp for the rest of the playoffs” Nuveah says, tiredly rubbing her eyes.

“But you aren't. You know you can call me if you can’t sleep, right? Azzi says softly.

“I can't do that; you need your rest, too,” Nuveah responds.

“I mean it, Nu. Call me anytime, okay?” Azzi responds just as Professor Flanagan begins her lecture.

Nuveah laid on Azzi’s shoulder, half asleep, the whole 45 minutes of class; it was the closest she had gotten to sleep in the last couple of days. Azzi would have a light dusting of pink across her cheeks if she weren't so concerned for Nuveah and her lack of sleep. She thinks the girl is too hard on herself, an act that causes major anxiety for Nuveah, which in turn causes her to stay up.

Nuveah's movements are sluggish and halted after class. She was not the first person to leave the classroom; in fact, she was one of the last few to leave. To ensure the girl does not fall, Azzi trails closely behind her.

“Do you want me to walk you to your dorm?” Azzi questions 

“Nah, I should be good,” Nuveah mumbles.

“Let me know if you have trouble falling asleep,” Azzi says

“Az, I can't do that to you,” Nuveah says.

"Yes, you can. I made my mind up already, and I'm preparing to stay up if you need me to, so like I said, call me if you can't sleep, okay?” Azzi says once more, cutting her eyes over at Nuveah.

"Okay,” Nuveah mutters, relenting.

“I’ll see you later,” Azzi says, hugging Nuveah.

After departing, from Azzi, Nuveah slowly walks back to her Dorm. Hopefully, she can take a quick nap. Her eyes burn, and she's hallucinating a bit because she could've sworn she heard her roommate Gia talking when she first came in, but after looking around the dorm apartment, she's not even there.

Laying down in her bed, Nuveah prays she can catch a few hours of sleep. Unsurprisingly, she doesn't fall asleep, but resting her eyes feels excellent; the burning, aching feeling coming from them has finally stopped. Hearing the front door slam, Nuveah sat up in a panic. Hopefully, it’s Gia.

Nuveah walks towards the living room, checking to see if Gia or Aniyah came in. Checking the dorm apartment, Nuveah notices that it is empty. 

“I need to go the fuck to sleep,” Nuveah mumbles. Making her way back to her room and lying down.

Closing her eyes, Nuveah rests her eyes once 

more. She's unsure how much time has passed but hears the door slam again.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Nuveah grumbles as she gets out of bed.

"Wassup,” Gia says, eyeing the girl before her.

“Nothing; I just heard the door slam earlier, and I'm trying to make sure I'm not going insane,” Nuveah says.

"Dude, you look like shit. When's the last time you've been to sleep?” Gia Questions.

“I don't know; I think it's been three or four days,” Nuveah said, rubbing her face.

“You need to get some sleep, Nu,” Gia says softly. 

“Don’t you think I fucking know? Don't be dumb, Gia; I would if I could,” Nuveah snaps.

“My bad,” Gia mumbles.

Nuveah instantly feels awful; she didn't mean to yell at her best friend. She's just so irritated and tired of people telling her she needs to get some sleep. If she could, Nuveah would be knocked out right now. 

“I’m sorry, G. I didn't mean to snap at you. I‘m just really irritable, and I'm kinda hallucinating, and I'm so tired, but I just can’t go to sleep, and it's fucking sucks,” Nuveah explains.

“It's okay, I get it, Pook. I just want the best for you,” Gia says, smiling widely.

 “Okay, you wanna do anything?” Nuveah says, changing the subject.

“I mean, we can play Back 4 Blood; I heard it's pretty good,” Gia said 

“I’m down,” Nuveah says, yawning.

The duo ends up playing the zombie game for three hours. Azzi stayed on Nuveah's mind throughout the entire time. She wonders what the girl is doing—if she ate or was busy—and honestly, Nuveah wishes she was there with the girl right now.

Nuveah knows Azzi said she can call her whenever, but she’s nervous. What if Azzi is only being nice because they have class together? Nuveah refuses to let her feelings sabotage their budding friendship. 

“What’s on your mind, dude?” Gia asks, looking over at Nuveah.

“Azzi,” Nuveah shamelessly admits.

"You down bad for real," Gia teasingly remarks.

“I know,” Nuveah groans, running her hand down her face 

“Why don’t you just tell her?” Gia questions.

“You sound like MoMo. Speaking of young bul, lemme call her. I wonder if she gonna go food shopping for us. We don't got shit, bro.” Nuveah says she is trying to change the subject 

“Don't try to change the subject, Pook,” Gia says, rolling her eyes.

“I ain’t ever gonna tell her; you and Niya know this,” Nuveah responds.

  “Wish you would. Shawty may like you,” Gia said.

“I can't risk it.” Nuveah quietly says.  

 Personally, I think she likes you, so you should go for it. Gia says, glancing over at Nuveah.

“Sometimes I think so, but Azzi is flirty with friends, so I genuinely can’t tell if she's just playing or not, so I’m not saying shit,” Nuveah explains.

“Write her notes,” Gia suggests

“What you mean?” Nuveah inquired, slightly confused.

“Be her secret admirer or some shit,'' Gia says.

“GG, that’s smart as fuck; I'm mad as shit I didn’t think of it, but ion think imma do it,” Nuveah admits.

“Why?” Gia asks, rolling her eyes

Nuveah didn't respond; she had no reason other than being anxious about the outcome, and she knew that was not a good enough reason not to write the anonymous love notes.

“Bro, why?” Gia asks once more, only to be met with silence.

Gia quickly realizes that she’ll have to use alternative methods to motivate Nuveah to write to Azzi.

"Yo, bro, I just peeped some shit,” Gia said, looking over at Nuveah.

“Wassup?” Nuveah asks, not looking away from the screen.

“You low-key a bitch,” Gia says.

“You sound dumb right now,” Nuveah says 

"Yeah, you are; that’s why you don’t wanna write her,” Gia says.

“You know I ain’t no bitch,” Nuveah says, sucking her teeth.

“Matter fact, shawty pretty as shit; I know niggas and bitches are gonna try to talk to her if they don't already, so don't write her letters and let one of them scoop her up. Ya, ass would be sick,” Gia says, laughing slightly.

"Aight, stop dick-eating; I know what you doing, and imma do it. Just chill.” Nuveah pleads.

Gia smirked, glad that she and Nuveah were both from the Philadelphia area. She’s unsure if that would’ve worked if Nuveah was from anywhere else.

“Azzi knows my handwriting, so I must type it, Nuveah says.

“Aight, you need help with what you gonna write?” Gia asks 

“Nah, I should be good. But put Mortal Kombat on; I wanna whoop your ass real quick,” Nuveah says, smirking.

“You stay talking shit” Gia says, sucking her teeth.

The duo played the fighting game for the next hour and a half, with Nuveah winning 75% of the matches.

“Aight, I’m done; I’m starving,” Gia complains, rubbing her stomach.

"Yeah, me too, where you wanna eat?” Nuveah questions.

“I’m feening for some Chick-fil-A; are you cool with 

that pook?” Gia asks  

"Yeah, that’s cool, but can we doordash that shit? Ion feel like leaving,” Nuveah admits.

Her body feels so tired; Nuveah’s not even sure if she can move from this spot on the couch. Even though she feels extremely exhausted, Nuveah’s mind can’t stop her mind from racing. She wasn’t even thinking of any in particular, but she couldn’t stop thinking. Honestly, Nuveah feels like she is going insane.

“Aight, the food will be here in like 30–35 minutes. Imma play some Fortnite. You wanna play?” Gia asks.

“Nah, imma watch,” Nuveah says.

"Aight,” Gia says, turning on the game.

Nuveah watches Gia win the first two rounds before there is a knock on the door.

“I'll get it,” Gia says, standing up.

"Wassup, Azzi,” Gia says once she opens the door.

“Azzi” Nuveah repeats sitting up.

Nuveah anxiously rubs her sweaty hands on her pants. She isn’t prepared for Azzi to come over, which makes her incredibly nervous. Being as sleep-deprived as she is, Nuveah isn’t sure she can contain her feelings for the girl now.

“Sike, gotcha dickhead. Look at ya face. I wish I took a picture of that shit.” Gia says while bringing in the food. 

“That shit was not funny. I should smack you.” Nuveah grumbles angrily.

“Ah ha, that was for earlier,” Gia says, handing Nuveah her food.

Nuveah stayed silent. She couldn’t blame Gia; she had yelled at her for basically no reason earlier. So Nuveah just munched on her tenders and scrolled through her phone.

“You tryna watch some shit?” Gia asks, looking over at Nuveah.

“Like?” Nuveah asks.

“Hunter X Hunter cool?” Gia asks.

"Yeah,” Nuveah responds.

Gia smiles to herself as she turns on the anime. It's only 8 p.m., and she's hoping that around 10, she can convince Nuveah to fall asleep. Gia is absolutely concerned for her best friend. As long as she's known Nuveah, the girl has always had issues with insomnia, but the soccer player has never been up for four days straight before.

After two hours of watching the anime, Gia decides it's time to call it a night. She's not tired yet, but she knows Nuveah needs the rest, even if she doesn't go to sleep. She's worried about her eyes; she needs to rest them.

“I’m getting tired,” Gia fake yawned.

“Aight, my eyes are starting to burn again, so imma try to go to sleep; I'm scared to be up for another day,” Nuveah admits softly while standing up.

“I love you, Pook; try to get some rest,” Gia says softly.

“I love you too, G,” Nuveah mumbles, walking into her room and lying down.

Nuveah stared at the clock in annoyance after trying to fall asleep for the last 4 hours. The clock 1:30 AM, the time stared back at her like it was taunting her. Azzi’s words ran through her mind again; surely Nuveah couldn't call her right now. 

Even though Azzi gave her the go-ahead to call her at any point, no matter the time, she couldn't bring herself to do so. In Nuveah's opinion, she felt as if she would be incredibly selfish. Even though Nuveah thought Azzi’s voice would help lull her into a peaceful sleep, closing her eyes, Nuveah tried to fall asleep again but was unsuccessful in her efforts. 

“Fuck it,” Nuveah mumbles, calling Azzi.

Azzi stayed up way past her bedtime today; it’s a Friday, so she knows she can do so and not completely regret it in the morning. She hopes Nuveah calls her soon or at all. Azzi wants to be here for the girl; hopefully, Nuveah will let her. Drifting off slightly, Azzi is startled by the sound of a Facetime call coming through.  

"Hello,” Azzi answers.

Nuveah’s breath caught in her throat. Azzi looks so beautiful, her glasses perched on her nose. A pink bonnet covered her thick, curly hair. She looks gorgeous. It makes Nuveah feel somewhat self-conscious; Azzi is a queen, and Nuveah isn’t sure if she is good enough for the basketball player, which is another reason for her hesitation in revealing her feelings for Azzi.

“Did you hear me?” Azzi says, bringing Nuveah out of her thoughts.

“Nah, can you repeat it?” Nuveah says, clearing her throat.

“I asked if you were okay,” Azzi repeats.

“Yeah, I’m good; it’s cool that I call, right?” Nuveah asks.

“Yes, I told you earlier that it was okay,” Azzi says her tone is light and teasing.

"Right, uh, I ain’t gonna hold you ion know what to talk about,” Nuveah admits this while rubbing the back of her neck.

“We can talk about anything; it doesn’t matter to me,” Azzi says, smiling. 

“What did you eat?” Nuveah questions cringing.

The conversation feels awkward, and the silence is deafening; she’s unsure what to say or do. Nuveah is starting to regret calling Azzi, feeling as though she’s bothering the girl.

“Nu, where did you go just now?” Azzi says this once again, bringing Nuveah out of her head.

“I’m not bothering you, am I?” Nuveah quietly asks.

“No, of course not, I promise; I just want to talk to you until you fall asleep,” Azzi quietly explains.

“My bad for being so awkward,” Nuveah mumbles.

“You are sleep-deprived, Nu. I’m not expecting you to be able to keep up a full-on conversation. I promise everything is okay,” Azzi says, smiling. 

“I really appreciate you, Az,” Nuveah says, also smiling.

“Aw, I appreciate you too,”  Azzi answers, her smile growing wider.

“How was your day?” Nuveah questions. 

“Good, what did you do today?” Azzi inquiries

“It was okay; I just played video games, you? Nuveah says, glancing at the camera.

"I went to the gym and then worked on my shooting and just relaxed,” Azzi mindlessly explains.

“Sounds eventful; glad you had a good day,”  Nuveah grins.

 “Got any plans this weekend?” Azzi cordially asks.

"Tomorrow, no, but I have a 1 pm game on Sunday against Villanova,” Nuveah explains. 

“On campus?” Azzi questions.

"Yeah,” Nuveah said, closing her eyes.

The shooting guard makes a mental note of the game and time, knowing that she won’t miss the game.

“Do you wanna hear about practice? Maybe it could help you fall asleep,” Azzi offers.

Nuveah opens one eye and glances at the screen, making eye contact with the basketball player.

Of course, she always wants to hear Azzi talk, knowing that Azzi’s soothing voice could help lull her to sleep.

“Yeah, of course, Nuveah said, closing her eyes.

"Okay, so Geno isn't as bad as Paige said he was gonna be, he yelled, of course. But it wasn't awful; overall, it was a pretty good practice,” explains Azzi.

“Mhm, sounds good,” Nuveah responds, half asleep.

"Nu, you can go to sleep,” Azzi says, removing her glasses.

“But I'm listening to you,” Nuveah says, pouting slightly.

“You’ve been up for two days; I wasn’t expecting you to stay up,” Azzi says.

"Yeah,” Nuveah mumbles out.

“Go to sleep, Nu,” Azzi softly states.

“Are you leaving?” Nuveah asks softly.

“When you go to sleep, I will,” Azzi says 

“Okay, keep talking,” Nuveah says after about five minutes.

“I did pretty good in practice; Nika is a monster on defense-,” Azzi trails off.

Hearing the soft snores coming from the other end of the phone, Azzi smiles to herself, feeling extremely proud that she helped Nuveah fall asleep. 

“Good night, pretty girl,” Azzi mutters softly, hanging up.

Nuveah slept most of Saturday, only waking to use the bathroom and eat. On Sunday, she woke up feeling refreshed at around eight a.m. After showering and putting on her practice gear, the soccer player walked to the kitchen to make herself a protein shake.

“Yo, wassup, sleeping beauty,” Gia says, coming out of her bedroom.

"Wassup dude,”  Nuveah says, finishing up her shake.

“I’m glad you finally got some sleep,” Gia says, smiling.

“Me too; I was going insane and getting sick as fuck.” Nuveah admits.

“True, don’t tire yourself. I know how important this game is to you, but don’t do too much.”  Gia advises.

“I’m not; I just have to win today,” Nuveah says.

Gia can see the hunger in Nuveah’s eyes. She knows how important this game is to her and how determined she is to win. 

"Aight, bro, I’ll see you later at the game,” Gia says, dapping up Nuveah.

After finishing her shake, Nuveah leaves and walks the 10 minutes over to the Riazza Performance Center to see if she can get a ball and some cones to warm up with some shooting and dribbling skills. 

"Waasup, coach,” Nuveah says

“Hey, kid, I just got done setting up the pitch for you,” Susan says.

“Thanks; I'll see you soon,” Nuveah responds, smiling.

Susan will never be impressed by the raw talent that oozes out of the girl. Her dedication to the sport is so impressive that it doesn’t matter the weather; Nuveah will be practicing and working on her craft, rain, snow, or shine. The girl has the potential to be one of the greats; Nuveah just has to believe it herself.    

The weather is still warm for the middle of October, so Nuveah strips out of her hoodie and begins her drills, weaving in and out of the cone Nuveah kicks the ball and it flies into the back of the net. She does these drills a couple more times, sinking the ball in the back of the net from every position on the soccer field. 

Pausing for a bit, Nuveah down some water and scrolls through her phone. It’s already 11:45, and seeing that the game is only an hour and fifteen minutes away, Nuveah is becoming anxious. Nervous butterflies began to erupt inside of her stomach. Her team desperately needs to win, and Nuveah is determined for them to do so. 

“Dude,” Her teammate Hailey said, running over.

“Wassup dude,” Nuveah says.

“How long have you been out here?” Hailey asks in astonishment.

“I think like two hours,” Nuveah said while drinking more water. 

“Damn,” Hailey mutters.

“You wanna do some drills with me?” Nuveah asks

“As much as I would love to, coach asked me to come and get you so we can regroup before the game,” Hailey explains.

“Aight,” Nuveah says as she gathers the equipment.

“You can leave that there. We still gotta warm up, remember?” Hailey says, laughing.

“Oh right,” Nuveah says, embarrassed.

As the duo walks towards the Performance Center, Villanova’s team gets off their bus, and their players immediately start glaring hard at the pair. Confused, Hailey looks over at Nuveah and sees her grimacing at the players.

“You good?” Hailey questions concern in her voice.

“Yeah, I just don’t fuck with them no more,” Nuveah grumbles. 

“No more?” Hailey asks, her eyebrow raised. 

“Let’s not get into that shit right now; it’s a long story,” Nuveah complains, picking up the pace. 

Hailey, confused, trails behind the girl back to their coach and the rest of their team.  

The team gets geared up and ready for the game; Nuveah has a chip on her shoulder, which all her teammates have picked up on. The usually awkward girl isn’t cracking jokes or laughing; she’s sitting, listening to music, and ignoring the world around her.  

Soon, it’s time for the game, and Nuveah will be more than locked in. This is a must-win for Nuveah; this is a chance for her to prove herself.

The game starts very physical; the entire Villanova team is trying their hardest to injure Nuveah. Azzi nervously watches as Nuveah goes down again, this time even slower to get up.

“Why are they going after her so fucking hard? They need to chill.” Azzi nervously says.

“They got beef,” Gia vaguely answers.

“Why?” Azzi questions.

“Cause she chose Uconn over them, they heavily tried to recruit her too. She gave a verbal yes, but obviously, she didn't go”, Gia reveals.

“Well shit,” Azzi mutters 

Nuveah is growing extremely frustrated. Her defender is actively trying to break her ankles, which is tiring. Nuveah hopes she can get a free kick or a goal soon. The score is 0-0; she believes her performance today is not good enough for her standards.

Finally, Nuveah got fouled badly enough that she earned a free kick. Walking up to the ball, Nuveah nervously wipes her sweaty hands on her shorts. Noticing Azzi after looking around and making eye contact with the basketball player, Nuveah gained brand new confidence. Twenty seconds are left in the game, and Nuveah is determined not to let the game go into OT. Nuveah aims the ball to go left, but at the last second, she kicks to the right, which confuses the goalkeeper; the ball hits the back of the net, causing the entire stadium to break into loud cheers. The Villanova players hung their heads down in defeat, getting beaten by the player they needed and wanted the most.

Nuveah honestly didn’t care about any of the cheers and chants of victory. The only person’s cheer she cares about here is Azzi’s. It makes her feel prideful and happy to see the girl cheering loudly for her.

After the game, Nuveah didn’t want to party or go for drinks; she just wanted to write this letter to Azzi and sleep. 

“Nu-Nu, I'm so fucking proud of you,” Azzi said, hugging Nuveah tightly.

“ Thank you, Az. How did you get back here?” Nuveah questions, not wanting to let go.

“I got my ways,” Azzi says, smirking. 

Hugging Azzi again, Nuveah ushers the girl out quickly. She showers and gets dressed in under thirty minutes so she can go home and write the secret admirer letter. Azzi showed up to a game that Nuveah talked about to her once, making her feel special. Hurrying up and leaving, Nuveah returns to her dorm in record time. She sits down at her computer and begins typing the short message.

After finishing, Nuveah makes her way to Azzi’s dorm, slipping the note under the door and ringing the doorbell. She runs like hell so no one from the basketball team can catch her in the act. 

Azzi got home feeling disappointed. She wanted to go out and celebrate with Nuveah, but after leaving the locker room, she waited for the girl, only to realize she had disappeared and hadn’t responded to a single text from Azzi.

Hearing frantic buzzing, Azzi opens the front door, only to see no one there but a letter. Confused, Azzi sees that it is addressed to her, so she opens it and begins to read. 

                                       Dear Azzi,

        You are the most beautiful girl I have ever had the pleasure of laying my eyes on. You are the most generous and selfless person I have  ever met. There’s so much more for me to say, but I don't think I can begin describe how wonderful you are. You simply light up every room you walk into. And you put a smile on everyone’s face, especially mine.

                    Love, Your Secret Admirer, 

Azzi read the letter repeatedly, wishing she knew who this was. It’s sweet, and it makes her feel so special. However, she wouldn’t put aside her feelings for Nuveah; this letter is sweet, and all but the shooting guard is determined to make the soccer player hers. For now, she would just appreciate the letter and not focus too much on who it’s from.

[bearterritory]

#8 Cal Wins Opening Weekend

Bears Are Flawless in Dispatching Four Opponents

BERKELEY – The No. 8 ranked California beach volleyball team closed out its opening weekend at the Clark Kerr Sand Courts with straight wins, beating all four opponents by a score of 5-0. In fact, with their victories over Saint Mary's, Santa Clara, American River and San Jose State they only dropped a single set.

"It was really exciting being able to open at home this year in front of our fans and supporters," Cal head coach Meagan Owusu said. "It was fun to see a bunch of new players in the lineup. It's a new squad, so we're just growing and getting to know the strengths that this specific group has and rolling with that."

Cal 5, Saint Mary's 0 The Golden Bears (4-0) got out to a fast start to the day as their first two pairs flew through their opening sets. Sophomore Portia Sherman and junior Ella Dreibholz started with a 21-11 win. After falling behind 13-8 in set two, they quickly rallied and pulled away late to take it 21-17.

Across the way, junior Ella Sears and freshman Kendall Peters cruised to a 21-12 opening-set victory before dropping set two 24-22. They broke a 9-9 tie in the decisive third set with three straight points, closing out the Bears' first nailbiter of the season with a 15-12 win.

Kicking off the next set of matches, sophomore duo Marilu Pally and Gia Fisher rallied from five points down in set one and never looked back, claiming a 21-17, 21-9 victory. Senior Brooke Buchner and graduate student Lara Boos broke out of a pair of close sets, holding off a pair of SMU (1-1) comeback attempts in a 21-19, 21-16 sweep.

The No. 1 pair of Emma Donley and Alexandria Young-Gomez finished things off with a dominant 21-10, 21-13 win in the final match against the Gaels.

1 Emma Donley and Alexandria Young-Gomez (CAL) def. Sedona Sherman and Sadie Shipman (SMU)  21-10, 21-13 2 Marilu Pally and Gia Fisher (CAL) def. Hannah Couch and Hawley Harrer (SMU) 21-17, 21-9 3 Brooke Buchner and Lara Boos (CAL) def. Allie Cataldo and Angie Bour (SMU) 21-19, 21-16 4 Portia Sherman and Ella Dreibholz (CAL) def. Karmin Brown and AJ Slojkowski (SMU) 21-11, 21-17 5 Ella Sears and Kendall Peters (CAL) def. Paola Peralta and Nya Crump (SMU) 21-12, 22-24, 15-12

Order of finish: 4 5 2 3 1

No. 8 Cal 5, Santa Clara 0 In their afternoon matchup with the Broncos (0-2), the Bears comfortably handled every set by at least four points. Pally and Fisher went 21-8, 21-17 while Sherman and Dreibholz won 21-15, 21-17.

None of the Bears' final three pairs gave up more than 13 points in a set. Donley and Young-Gomez won set one 21-13 and finished things off on a cheeky bump winner to take set two 21-11. Sophomores Amelia Vugrincic and Jenna Colligan jumped out to 16-6 leads in both sets en route to a 21-13, 21-11 victory. Buchner and Boos ended the day with wins of 21-12 and 21-9.

1 Emma Donley and Alexandria Young-Gomez (CAL) def. Katie Kishton and Elena Radeff (SCU) 21-13, 21-11 2 Marilu Pally and Gia Fisher (CAL) def. Ella Duffner and Noelle Niederman (SCU) 21-8, 21-17 3 Brooke Buchner and Lara Boos (CAL) def. Casey Campbell and Sveva Munneke (SCU) 21-12, 21-12 4 Portia Sherman and Ella Dreibholz (CAL) def. Jordan Bennett and Hailey Benesz (SCU) 21-15, 21-17 5 Amelia Vugrincic and Jenna Colligan (CAL) def. Alexie Epstein and Alexia Gallegos (SCU) 21-12, 21-9

Order of finish: 2 4 1 5 3

Up Next The Bears will now head south for the weekend for their road openers in the Battle For L.A. at Mapes Beach. Cal takes on UCLA and Cal Poly on Friday, March 1. The following day, the Bears face Concordia University Irvine and Loyola Marymount.