#God I love this song so muh

[tachiha3]

Either the LA is making me depressed or I'm either being a whiny bitch. Anyhoo, on with my "review" of the fourth episode.

• Oh Zuko, my precious, you're not supposed to pull a dagger out of someone!!!

• You know those people who complain how Zuko was "more of a main character" and more "developed" than Aang? I think they had a vision of this show somehow.

• Let's be unbiased let's be unbiased let's be unbias- OH MY FUCKING GOD THEY TOOK THE KATAANG OUT OF CAVE OF TWO LOVERS AFSFSJKSSK REEEEEEEE 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 Just.. I'mma kms idc

• That scene with uncle iroh talking to the guard was lovely. I'd love to see that. Just... amazing.

• I LOVED the fact that they gave us water sibling content, since I am always searching for that, and I often find myself on character ai to make it myself.

• That being said... NOT WHEN IT COMES AT THE COST OF MUH KATAANG 😭

• They don't care about their protagonist, do they?

• I've said it before and I'll say it again, Aang's character seems HEAVILY INCONSISTENT. It's like they are trying to balance their whole "Aang's a responsible and serious guy" and the og "Aang's scared of taking responsibility" and FAILING at it.

• Like Aang was literally like, "Bumi let me out of here I don't have time for this shit I need to go save the North Pole." And two scenes later it was like, "Oh yeah Aang would rather goof off." Like... What?

• They made Oma and Shu lesbians. I don't know why but that made me laugh for no reason cuz it was so random.

• The hippies' songs were bangers. They need to drop an album.

• I like the concept of the badgermoles sensing love. And the love message being literal. Though in my heart I'm like "no the og idea was better" but that's most probably just my biases.

• Again, it's just lacking in our main trio's friendship. And I said it in my previous post their friendship was one of the main things that attracted me to this series. So far Aang hasn't had a deep and meaningful moment with the siblings.

• Okay maybe you can count the first episode where they go to that abandoned ship.

• I know I've said it so many times now but I don't.. feel like the writers really care about Aang? Idk.

• That being said, as usual, Zuko, Iroh, and Sokka were the higlights. Katara was nice in this ep too.

[ilynpilled]

the thing about show jaime is that he underwent severe bowdlerization from the beginning along with the boring stagnation and general arc destruction whatever that kicks in full force later on. like as much as i agree that they removed/ruined many positive aspects of his (and added a bunch of nonsense show only actions, or even changed the core of scenes to force him in certain directions) it also really bugs me how digestible they made him in a lot of ways. nothing burger. like i knew something was not right from the start with that ned/jaime scene. ik george does not have as much beef with that shit as i do but god i hate it i hate it so much. why was he bordering on “villainous anti-hero rival” instead of the genuinely horridly cruel coward he was that had his personal baggage and complex with ned bleeding right into the concern regarding the tyrion situation in abhorrent ways. he is trying to reinforce his moral nihilism in every way. instead they just had a generic ‘muh honorable duel’ cock fight type interaction right on my screen (dumb bc again if he actually kills ned tyrion is doomed). like i can excuse the loss of atmosphere and accuracy like ok budget constraints etc and as much as i could jokingly complain about how jaime would have cut that man down in seconds in a fight idgaf about that it is the fact that the writers were already making him into someone ‘likeable’ and doing it in the most surface level boring way imaginable. it also just makes his character kind of incoherent bc he is supposed to be disillusioned and pretty morally nihilistic. i get that you cannot recreate the type of unveiling of depth that is present in the books because you can’t replicate the pov structure in tv that easily, but you could try to do something. framing is also integral to jaime’s character to me. and they kept dropping in things like this that framed him as more ‘sympathetic’ to hint at depth, but it ultimately made his overall narrative so much more generic. jaime is so much more functional if we do not know him and if he completely buries his ‘self’ and we only see him framed extremely negatively by the protagonists (and by what he presents himself as outside of the context of his perspective, what he is at that point: what his rationalization of his own amorality is). jaime is at his lowest point in that book, his alter-ego, one that ned himself (and what he embodied in jaime’s mind when he was 17) is at the origin of, seeped into his actual identity entirely. that scene in particular is in a lot of ways the epitome of that because it is a confrontation with ned himself. and aerys is such an emphasized underlying tension in that scene in the books. jaime brings it up, ned fixates on his sword and makes the connection: the baggage cannot be removed. it is annoying to me because a part that i really love about jaime’s character construction is perception and how your real self is affected by how you are viewed. how that works so well thematically with this whole thing about heroes, villains, knights, myths, songs, and how figures are framed & idealized/dehumanized. the wildfire plot as a reveal is also about framing and recontexualization. if you contradict so much of this so early and make him into a digestible villainous rival anti-hero in a confrontation with ned of all people it becomes more generic and nothing burger. the scene also just removes the weight of jory’s death in particular. i know thrones was always obsessed with making flawed terrible no good protagonists less flawed and easier to like (and this is not only about morality, it is also about a ‘badass’ factor, i liked that in the books jaime left the scene, he didn’t even do the killing that he ordered [juxtaposing ned on purpose] he wants to shit on everything ned stands for to enable his own moral corruption and reinforce his moral nihilism) bc they were worried about jumpscaring the audience but ugh. ok rant over im convinced im like the only person on this planet who is this insufferably pretentious book purist about this scene of all scenes lmao

[indic0lite]

I know about whispers I see how you look at my sister

Don't, I'm not naive I have seen women around you Don't think I don't see How they fall for your charms All your charms

I'm erasing myself from the narrative Let future historians wonder how Eliza reacted When you broke her heart You have thrown it all away Stand back, watch it burn Just watch it all burn

And when the time comes Explain to the children The pain and embarrassment You put their mother through When will you learn That they are your legacy? We are your legacy

[mokuhchi-manuscripts]

Spring Troupe with an S/O Who Shares the Same Hobby

A/N: I had a ton of fun writing these. Hope y’all enjoy! I’ll eventually write these for the other troupe’s as well :)

CW(s): none

❀ Sakuya Sakuma - Theatre

Sakuya absolutely adores the fact you love theatre, as it’s such a huge passion of his

He’ll definitely ask for your help when rehearsing and memorizing lines or when practicing blocking by himself. He’ll look to you for advice at times as well whenever he’s a bit stuck.

If you’re also in theatre productions, he’ll always offer to help you with the same things and will try to give constructive criticism to you too if you ask for it

He will definitely show up to all of your performances, his theatre schedule permitting, whenever you are in a show. Doesn’t matter if you’re ensemble or the lead, he’s so incredibly proud of you and wants to cheer you on

Whenever you go to his performances he’s so grateful and swears up and down he’s performances are always a little bit better when you’re there.

Be prepared to go on theatre dates; if there’s a performance he wants to see, he’ll be sure to invite you and he hopes you’ll do the same

Sakuya looked over at you, excitement written plainly on his face. You couldn’t help but smile in response. The two of you were waiting in line to see a new theatre performance that was set to premiere that day, and you were both vibrating with excitement. Sakuya squeezed your hand and smiled at you again.

“Excited?”

“Extremely.” The line moved forward and the two of you made your way inside. As soon as you sat down and the lights began to dim, Sakuya squeezed your hand again and placed a soft kiss on the side of your face.

“Thank you for coming with me.” he whispered.

“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

The fact that he can do something he loves, with someone he loves, means the absolute world to him

❀ Masumi Usui - Music

Masumi has a passion for music and the fact you do too is just another reason he loves you

He’ll definitely share his favorite CDs with you, and even make you playlists! He’ll also create special music CDs for music he recommends or just songs that remind him of you

He starts to carry earbuds on his person so you two can listen to music together no matter where you are, and if he forgets his pair he knows you most likely have your pair on you

Sometimes, when you’re spending time together, the two of you just listen to music and bask in each others presence

He’ll share a lot of alternative rock with you as it’s his favorite genre, but he’ll listen to almost anything

Even if your favorite genre isn’t his favorite, he’ll still listen to and appreciate every song you send to him

‘Hey babe!’ you texted Masumi, ‘this song reminded me of you ♡ it’s called Same Boat by LizzyMcAlpine! It’s not your usual genre but I hope you like it anyways! (Ɔ ˘⌣˘)♥(˘⌣˘ C) ‘

Masumi read the text message in his dorm, smiling to himself. He opened YouTube and typed in the title and quickly clicked a lyric video. You were right, the song was incredibly far from his favorite genre. The song was slow and soft, but somewhat pretty nonetheless.

As the song ended he opened up your text chat again. ‘I am in the same boat ♡ love you so much’ he typed out.

‘Love you too, Masumi!’ He couldn’t help but smile at his phone once more, absolutely enamored with you.

Masumi just adores the fact he share his hobby with you, and you can understand where he’s coming from when it comes to his love for music

❀ Tsuzuru Minagi - Writing

Tsuzuru finds it incredibly helpful that you also like to write, no matter if it’s script writing, poetry, non-fiction, or stories

If you do more creative writing he’ll definitely bounce ideas off of you and have you peer review some of his work to make sure it makes sense -especially since he writes a lot of his work while practically dead-. If you write more nonfiction, he may ask for help with research whenever he’s writing a historical play or anything of that such.

If you ask him to, he’ll peer edit and review your work as well. He may not always do the best job, especially if he just finished a script

Remind him to sleep and rest! You especially understand what it’s like to overwork yourself so your reminders almost mean more to him. He’ll also remind you to rest, which is quite hypocritical but he does it because he cares about you.

You were working on the final draft of your writing project when you received a phone call. The name on the screen read, ‘Tsuzuru’. You couldn’t help but smile at the sight of your boyfriend's name.

You answered the phone. “Hey Tsuzuru!’

“Hey! I know you’ve been working on that project lately so I just wanted to remind you to go to sleep. The project will still be there in the morning and you’ll be able to work on it better after you rest.”

You couldn’t help but laugh. “Tsuzuru, you’re working on a script right now, right?”

“Yeah?”

“I’ll listen to your words only if you heed your own advice. You can finish the script in the morning and you’ll do better after you rest. ‘Kay?”

Tsuzuru laughed then. “Okay, I’ll try.”

“Then I’ll try as well. Love you!”

“Love you too.”

He also always hypes up your writing! He adores it so much and thinks you’re incredibly talented

❀ Itaru Chigasaki - Video Games

One of the reasons Itaru originally decided to pursue a relationship with you was because of your love for video games

He loves to recommend you games, and he’ll play any and all of the games you recommend him

You can bet you’ll have video game dates. Whether this means you backseat gaming as he uses the controller or vice versa or even playing multiplayer depends on the day.

“You have to go down!”

“No, the extra bonus isn’t here, it’s further down.”

“No no, trust me, Itaru, it’s here I’ve played this game like a bajillion times.”

“And I’ve played it a bajillion and one times.” you rolled your eyes at your boyfriend, although he couldn’t see it. He was lying on his back on the couch, and you cuddled on top of him with his arms around you as he held the controller.

“Please just at least look?” you asked.

“Fine.” You watched the playable character move out of the screen as the game faded to black. Once the game faded back in, you could see the bonus chest in the hidden room. “See! I told you!” you yelled, laughing the entire time.

“I can’t believe you proved me wrong.” he laughed too, although there was a hint of frustration in his voice. You craned your neck to kiss Itaru on the jaw.

“It’s okay, it was more of a lucky guess. Also I played this game before coming over so I could see where the hidden items were.”

Itaru will go with you to gaming stores, and will definitely use you as an excuse for being there in case he runs into a coworker. But it’s alright, as he’ll give you an apology kiss afterwards.

If you ever need help beating a game, he’ll always be there to help and give advice. And if you play gacha, he may help donate to the cause of you pulling your best boy or girl

❀ Citron - Learning New Words

Citron loves to learn new words, and if you do as well, then he’d love to learn new words with you!

He’ll definitely just flip through a dictionary with you, learning how to pronounce new words and learning their definitions

The two of you were lying on the floor of Citron’s dorm on your bellies next to each other. Between you was a dictionary.

“Letter?” you asked.

“F.”

“Alright.” You found the ‘F’ section in the dictionary and flipped to a random page, closing your eyes and pointing to a random spot.

“Fas-mill?” Citron sounded confused.

You looked at the pronunciation key. “I think it’s fac-SIH-muh-lee.”

“Oh! That makes sense. Facsimile. What does the word mean?”

“It says it means ‘an exact copy or reproduction, as of a document’. So I guess, like, whenever the director makes a copy of Tsuzuru’s scripts for you guys to memorize it’s a facsimile.”

“Oh! That makes a lot of sense. Thank you!” Citron gave you a kiss on the cheek after he finished speaking.

Sometimes your dates just consist of flipping through a dictionary and learning new words. The two of you have a lot of fun, even if others may find it odd

Sometimes he’ll tell you stories from his homeland using the new words you learned even if he doesn’t always use them correctly

❀ Chikage Utsuki - Spicy Food

Chikage is so happy someone else finally loves spicy food close to as much as he does

He may ask you for help when writing his reviews, as getting a second opinion can definitely help him at times

He’ll take you to his favorite spicy food restaurants for dates and will ask if he can order for you as he’s eaten at these restaurants so many times, he practically has their menus memorized. Because of this, he has an idea of what is good and what isn’t and you’re most likely to like

Chikage had asked if he could order your meal for you and you and you had agreed, trusting him to get you something you’d like.

A plate was soon placed in front of you and you promptly decided it looked absolutely delicious. You took a bite.

“So? How is it?”

“It’s amazing, oh my god.” you responded, your mouth still somewhat full of food.

“It’s rude to talk with your mouth full.”

“Sorry,” you replied, but your mouth still had food in it. Chikage shook his head.

“Well, I’m glad you like it. I figured you would.”

Sometimes he’ll sneak extra spice into your food- whether it’s as a ‘prank’ or not is really anyone’s guess

Sometimes, as a date, the two of you will order spicy food from a bunch of restaurants and try them all, critiquing them as if you’re professional food reviewers although you could argue Chikage kind of is

· · ─────── · ☆ · ─────── · ·

Masterlists || FaQ || Requesting Rules/Remarks

[sukirichi]

okay. hi. *inhales* EARNED IT WAS SO FUCKING GOOD WHAT THE FUCK THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. part 1 was like, i never thought i'd be crying sad sad tears moments after an orgasm lmao and it. was. an. experience. wow. so many emotions. what a time to be alive. AND PART 2????? AAAAAAAAAA IT HURTS SO GOOD. i feel muh heart crack. im a certified gojo fucker but i literally dont care anymore, i just want y/n to end up happy damn (but give me all the drama in between!). after reading part 2 i was just staring at the ceiling blasting cherry by harry styles on loop while occasionally looking at my gojo figure thinking "you idiot. you fucking did this to yourself. you didn't trust her enough (!!!!!!!!)" my god. im hella invested. mafia aus just hit different wtf. so yeah. your writing is a blessing (*˘︶˘*).｡*♡ and congrats on your milestone!! i hope naoya visits you in your dreams ☺️☺️☺️

NOOO AN EVEN BIGGER THANK YOU TO YOU BECAUSE SEEING PEOPLE HYPED FOR MY STORIES MAKES ME SUPER EXCITED TO WRITE IT AS WELL 😭😭😭 crying after an orgasm asjsal i felt that, i love me some angsty smut 😫😫😫 OFC WE HAVE ANOTHER GOJO FUCKER AAAAHH IM LIKE A NAOYA BLOG WHOSE MAJORITY OF READERS ARE GOJO FUCKERS ASHDLL BUT LIKE THANK YOU FOR COMING HERE AND I UNDERSTAND YOU, I WANT THE BEST FOR Y/N TOO 😭😭😭 yes we will definitely get the tea on what happened before and im gonna apologize in advance because my naoya simping may or may not outshine gojo IN SOME PARTS 😎😎⭐⭐ and omg i listened to that song last night and HOLY CRAP JUST,,,I FEEL LIKE IT WAS MADE SO WELL FOR GOJO AND Y/NS DYNAMIC LIKE THE SONG IS PERFECT OMG THANK YOU!!! IM GONNA BE LISTENING TO IT WHILE WRITING FUTURE PARTS AND I FEEL LIKE I CAN IMAGINE WHAT YOU FELT LISTENING TO THAT SONG CUZ "dont you call him what you used to call me" and im UGH HEARTBROKEN AFFFF 😖😖😖😖💔💔💔 and omg yes gojo is an idiot like of you think about it, he could so definitely protect her? But like its understandable too that he didnt want her involved in that 😔😔 m-my writing is a blessing? if so, then my readers, especially supportive ones like you are my greatest gift 🥺💕 thank you so much for this ask bubs, this made me REALLY happy!! AND AH sadly baoya doesnt visit me in my dreams 😔 BUT THATS CUZ HES ALREADY SLEEPING NEXT TO ME 😛😛😛

[richieisabastardman]

Hold Me Now - Part 4 - Richie Tozier x Reader

Summary:  You had forgotten about everything that happened in Derry until Mike called you up. Now, sitting in the restaurant surrounded by your friends, you remembered everything. More importantly, you remember Richie. (Fluff/Angst)

Warnings: Nothing really. 

Word count: 3181

Notes: Thank you again for all of the lovely messages and comments! I love hearing what you guys think of the fic so far <3

Here are the links to previous parts: part one, part two, part three >>> part five

“Where the huh-huh-hell is he?” Bill remarked, running a hand through his hair. He paced around the bar room, a slight glisten materialising upon his brow.

You stood within the same room beside Eddie, with Beverly and Ben sitting down on lounges not far from the two of you.

“Maybe he lost track of time. Maybe he got distracted…” Eddie trailed off, looking towards you. His face did not reveal his insinuation to any of the other members of the gang, but you knew what he was implying. You looked at him with a stern expression, a silent cue for him to shut the fuck up before I kick your ass Kaspbrack. He took the hint, quickly shifting his gaze from you to the clock which sat upon the wall just in front of the two of you. It was now ten past ten, almost fifteen minutes since you had made your way down to the others and at least twenty since Bill had called you down. What the hell was he-

“Sorry, sorry. I’m here” Richie announced, making his way down the stairs. He was still zipping up the fly of his jeans. His dishevelled appearance, including messy hair and a shirt that was half tucked in, made it seem as though he was just caught in the act. Well, that was almost true you supposed.

“Yeah well its not like we’re in a ru-ru-rush or any-thu-thu-thing” Bill remarked.

“Alright well I was taking a crap okay? You happy now? Let me just adjust my bowel movements to killer clown fighting times. Does nine A.M work for you, Bill?”

Beverly and Ben groaned at Richie’s crudeness. Eddie gave you a quick smirk and you nudged him with your shoulder, an action that you had used as a child to shut the boy up.

“Alright Rich, just sit down” Ben said and for once, Richie obeyed his order, sitting beside Beverly in a free chair. You and Eddie remained standing.  

“Nuh-Now that everyone’s here” Bill said, taking a moment to give a stern look to Richie. Richie looked around before lifting his palms in a surrender and muttering come on man to himself. You felt bad for the man, considering it was partly your fault. “Mike wants us to muh-meet him. Suh-Says he has something he wants to show uh-us”.

“So I guess Beverly you could come with me…” Ben started, however the doubt seeping through his words made it sound more like a question. Beverly nodded her head and Ben suddenly perked up, smiling and almost forgetting he was in the middle of a statement. “Uh, Eddie can go with Bill and Y/N with Rich?”.

Richie opened his mouth but before he could say anything Eddie spoke. “Sounds good. We better get a move on; Mike has probably been waiting for ages” He said and looked towards Richie, almost mimicking Bill.

“Oh my god, just crucify me already for the sin of taking my morning dump. You know if I had remembered how anal you guys are about everything, I never would have come back here!” Richie yelled out towards the gang, who were already almost out of the front door of the motel.  You stared at the man who was still sitting down within the bar chair, raising an eyebrow at his outburst. He finally looked towards you, before standing up and gesturing you to go before him; towards the front door. “We better go” he said, and you nodded your head, making your way towards the exit.

~

Richie had driven the two of you in silence for what felt like hours, but had probably only been about ten minutes. The only sound between the two of you was the radio, which had begun to play an old country song before Richie let out a sound of disgust and turned the radio off - the silence between the two of you even more deafening now. You had considered, multiple times, beginning a conversation about what had happened this morning. However, every time you had meant to start talking, a thick lump formed in your throat and you choked on your words, never releasing a sound.

“I’m sorry about this morning” Richie said suddenly, his eyes still on the road. “I was all… worked up and then I saw Eddie standing there and I freaked out. I didn’t mean to just leave you there-“

“It’s fine” you said and allowed the silence to once again fill the vehicle in which you sat. Richie allowed it for a moment also before shaking his head.

“It’s not fine though. I mean, you’re upset. And like, rightfully so. I just-“ he began before you interrupted him.

“It’s just this hot and cold shit, Richie. This is just like what it was between us as kids. One minute, your asking me to come live with you and the next you’re running away. One minute you’re all over me, the next you wont even let me touch you. This is just like-“ you started and stopped yourself.

Richie’s gaze finally moved from the road to your face, a stern expression (which Richie rarely wore) sat upon his own. “Like what?” he asked quietly. A harsh quiet. “Like what?”.

“Like the night before I left for New York. I mean… I wanted you to tell me not to go”

“Did I not!? Did I not repeatedly tell you to not go!?” he almost yelled, his grip tightening significantly on the car’s steering wheel.

“I don’t mean like that I mean… you know… ‘More Than Words’” you said.

“Do not quote shitty nineties songs at me right now” he said, his grip on the steering wheel was still tight, however his voice was calmer now and his gaze remained on the road. “Do you know how much I regret not telling you how I felt that night? It was all I could think about. Twenty years of fucking replaying that shit in my head”.

“Richie” you said softly, barely realising his name had left your mouth. His confession revealed to you a rare vulnerability that you knew he tried not to show often. The amount of times he had deflected serious talks with jokes and jabs was countless. However, every time he told you how he really felt, your heart melted.

You placed your hand on his thigh, the rough material of his jeans beneath your fingers. His body tensed to your touch and you cursed yourself for the way you had spoken to him before. He was scared. You were both scared. You had barely thought of the man until a day ago when all your feelings for him had struck you in the chest- almost quite literally - as the resurfacing of your memories had caused such a feeling inside you. It had caused a sick feeling within you, yes, which had resulted in you throwing up on a main road out of a taxi. However, it had also caused a squeezing in your chest, a longing that had not quite dispersed out of your body until your eyes had fixed onto Richie in that Chinese restaurant yesterday.

“Why are we fighting like we’re teenagers again” you asked softly, not necessarily to Richie. He answered you anyway.

“Its this fucking town, Y/N. You step into it and suddenly you’re sixteen again and getting random boners all the time or whatever” Richie stated.

You turned your head slowly towards him and opened your mouth to respond before shutting it again. “I think that’s a you problem, Richie. I don’t blame Derry for that” you finally replied.

Richie hummed for a moment, in thought perhaps, and you smiled - staring out of the windows at the passing trees which had become more numerous. Wherever Mike was taking you was away from the main town strip. Despite this, you felt a bubble of excitement within you at whatever was waiting there. You weren’t particularly sure why.

“I think its Pennywise’s fault” you said suddenly, and Richie looked from the road to you, his eyebrow slightly raised.

“You think Pennywise is causing my random boners?” Richie asked and you rolled your eyes, shaking your head at his response.

“No the feeling of like… becoming a teenager again. We left here and essentially forgot about this place right? So maybe… I don’t know… now these memories are coming back and making us remember who we were then” you tried to explain, your hands moving around violently to emphasise your poorly worded points. Richie watched you, his eyes off the road, and he smiled. You turned to meet his gaze once you had noticed it and smiled sheepishly, shifting your gaze away in embarrassment.

“What?” you asked, shifting slightly in your seat.

“Nothing” he said quickly, his eyes moving to the road but a smile still upon his lips. “I mean, yeah uh, yeah you’re probably right. That fucking clown is probably the cause of most of the shit that goes down in this town”.

You nod your head, agreeing with Richie’s reply to your theory. Richie’s GPS indicated that you had arrived at the location Mike told you to meet. You watched Richie’s face as it changed, his jaw tightening as he pulled the car over to the side of the road, parking it. The sound of the engine turning off reached your ears only seconds later, however both you and Richie remained in the car. Richie continued to stare out of the front window, eyebrows furrowed in a harsh stare.

“We should probably get going… Mike will be waiting for us-“ you started but were interrupted by Richie’s exasperated voice.

“What if I don’t want to remember?” he said, his eyes shut tight as he shook his head. You sat within the silence following his statement, waiting for him to continue. “I mean Mike said he’s taking us out here, to the fucking middle of the woods, to help us remember stuff, right? What if I don’t wanna remember. What if I’ve already remembered enough stuff to realise I don’t wanna remember any more”.

Richie finally opened his eyes, turning his head and allowing you to gaze at him. His eyes were pleading a silent plea that you had seen before, but you couldn’t remember where or when.

His eyes said that he wanted you to tell him it was alright for the both of you to leave. He wanted you to tell him that he wasn’t a coward, he was a genius and this wasn’t his responsibility at all. He wanted you to say “You know what Rich? You’re right! Start this car right now and take me back to your house. Fuck Derry! Oh, by the way, I broke up with my Fiancé last night, so we can go and get eloped right now in Vegas if you’d like? But before we do that, why don’t we stop off at a hotel, preferably one outside of Derry, and finally screw each other!”. He wanted you to realise that both of you surviving past the next week wasn’t just an option, it was something he needed. He needed it because he hadn’t begun fearing death again (not since he was eighteen) until he had met your gaze in that restaurant yesterday. He wanted you both out of here. Out of Derry. Out of reach of It.

He also wanted you to do none of those things, because you knew it wasn’t what he really wanted. He knew it wasn’t what you wanted either. You couldn’t abandon your friends; he knew you would never do that. He didn’t want to do it either.  The thought of anything happening to Eddie…or Bill or Mike or Bev or Ben scared him to death. And he knew that you knew that.

As you stared back at Richie, and into those eyes screaming his silent pleas, you remembered where you had seen those eyes before.

~

“New York is shit anyway; I don’t know why you even wanna go there” Richie said. Despite being the young age of eighteen, his tone resembled that of an old businessman who had travelled often for work. The kind of man who preferred a vacation in Florida. The kind of man whose talents were sales, golf and tax evasion.

The two of you were laying in your childhood bed. You had your head resting gently upon his chest, as he held you tightly around the shoulder with one of his arms. His other hand lay behind his head as he stared up at your white ceiling. Your bedroom door was shut, which your parents had only started allowing since you had turned eighteen. Your father still didn’t agree with it. Despite this, there was always the chance one of your parents could burst into the room unannounced, so both you kept vigilant. The cuddling was innocent, of course, but they would not see it that way.

“What? Do you prefer LA or something?” You asked, almost rhetorically.

“Yeah I think I might” he said looking down towards you, laying upon his chest. You looked up at him, his hand behind his head and yours on his chest and around his waist, and you smiled.

“Since when have you been a West Coast guy?” you asked.

“Since forever! There’s still a lot you don’t know about me, doll” he said, his voice mirroring that of Elvis Presley as he spoke the pet name. You groaned and rolled your eyes but smiled at the boy. You had always loved his stupid voices.  His smile turned downwards ever so slightly and you frowned. “That’s why you shouldn’t leave”.

“Don’t ruin the mood again Richie” you replied, sighing.

“You’ll leave and become this big successful director and you’ll forget about me. But I won’t forget about you. And one day you’ll see me on the street in New York as you’re walking into your building and I’ll call your name and you’ll say ‘sorry I’m in a rush, no autographs’! Or worse, you’ll chuck some change at me!” he ranted and you shushed him, worried your parents would burst through your bedroom door and kick Richie out for trying to seduce you or something.

“I’m not going to forget you, okay Trashmouth? How could I forget someone as annoying as you?” you teased and he frowned, grabbing your cheek between his finger and thumb and squeezing it lightly with the hand that was once behind his head.

“I’m gonna miss your squishy cheeks” he said softly. You almost melted at the out of character sweetness of his actions. “All four of them” he finished.

And there it was.

You swatted his hand away as he laughed at his own joke. He continued to reach for your cheeks, and you continued to fight his hands away, trying to grab at his wrists. Frustrated by his persistence, you lifted yourself up to sit above him, straddling his lap between your thighs and pinning his wrists with your hands beside his head. You stared down at him, smiling triumphantly at your victory. Your smile began to drop as you noticed the serious expression he wore upon his face. His breathing was heavy and his cheeks were dusted with a faint pink you had rarely seen before. You both stared at each other, the only movement between the two of you being the rapid blinking of both of your eyelids. Finally, you released your grip on Richie’s wrists, beginning to sit up before he followed you, placing his hands behind your head and pulling you back down into his lips. He kissed you deeply, tilting his head and moaning at the feeling of your lips upon his. Finally. You kissed him back just as deeply, your hands going straight to his hair and losing yourself within it, tugging and pulling.

You both pulled back when you no longer had enough air and once again stared at each other. His eyes, they called out to you with a plea. You know what he wanted to say.

‘Stay. Don’t leave. I want you to stay with me here, please.’

And you would. If he said it, you would do it. You just needed him to say it.

“Y/N I…” he started.

Suddenly, your bedroom door flew open.

 ~

“Tell me what you wanted to tell me before I left for New York” you said and Richie began blinking nervously, shaking his head slightly.

“What? Why?” he asked.

“Because I need to hear you say it” you replied and he sighed, running his hand down his face.

“Uh, okay well… what I was planning to say was that I love you. I don’t know if an eighteen-year-old can really know what love is but to be fair I’m much older now and still don’t know. But I know that when I’m around you, I feel like I could do anything. Like, I feel as though I could do a stadium comedy tour with my own material if I knew you were waiting for me backstage. And I want to go do stupid shit with you like… go shopping at Ikea for a bookshelf or something. Stuff that middle-aged people do. I want to go to Amsterdam with you and get high and walk around the streets holding onto each other and thinking we’ve had a stroke because everyone around us is speaking weird English which is actually just Dutch” he continued to speak, a smile across his face until he looked at you, a stern expression growing upon his face slowly. “And I want to kill this stupid clown and I want us to do it together so that when all this shit is over, we can move on with our lives. Together”.

You stared at the man in disbelief. That wave of memories that had hit you so strongly at the restaurant yesterday, the wave that had literally swept you off your feet, was all Richie. It was as though being within his proximity flipped a switch within your brain, causing all these memories and emotions to flow freely. You had been consumed by the thought of his love when you were a child, you had been consumed by it yesterday and today, once again, it had almost swallowed you up whole. You continued to stare at him, mouth slightly agape.

“Please say something” Richie said, tapping his knee with his hand nervously.

You reached over to Richie and his nervousness seemed to fade. He moved his head towards you also, meeting you halfway in a soft kiss. Your hand rested upon his jaw and his upon yours. He cradled your head as you kissed, the softness of his lips leaving tingles throughout your body. You moved away from his lips ever so slightly, your noses still touching and your thumb still rubbing the stubble on his cheek lovingly.

“Once we’re done with Mike’s thing here, I’m calling my Fiancé, okay?” you said and Richie smiled widely, rubbing his nose gently on yours.

“Okay” he replied.

Tag list: @felicityofbakerstreet @emiliesnowflake @itsfuckinemily @adritozier @the-almond-dinger @brenna-xoxox @fionnthebandersnacc @simplymaddii18 @pinkdiamonddoingthings @frog-face-wolfhard @hair-dye-or-nawh @jutte-m @whosaskinguniverse @imagine-whatever @smokyscreen @sloppybitchardtozier @marlopoe @meaganjm @thexmancometh @letmereid @twitchmoosen @jojo-buttercup @gamingaquarius @sweetotismilburn (I hope this worked for everyone!)

[grilledkatniss]

I was tagged by the actual dream team @theythinkimabitch and @takadasaiko!!

Rules: Tag eight the people you’d like to get to know better.

Favorite color: Green I think. But I’ve come to appreiate blue more during these past few months

Last song I listened to: A song about puffins by Malinda lol The Lovin’ Puffin’ Way

Favorite musician: This is a hard one. I love Taylor Swift as a lyricist; she paints pictures and writes novels all compressed into those three to four minute tracks, and I think that’s sexy of her that’s amazing. But my fave singer is Paloma Faith and dude she’s so underrated! Please go give her a listen!!!

Last film I watched: Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. Hi-la-rious.

Last TV show I watched: The Mentalist. I’ve come to love the Lisbon-Jane dynamic. So damn uncomplicated, refreshing and platonic (so far). It’s like they know they’re perfect for each other but “let’s not take that step yet cause this friendship is so much fun the way it is. We’ll wait for the right moment”

Favorite character: My sister probably Is it Anya from Buffy? I think right now- OH! :):) maybe Daisy from AoS :):,) God I’m gonna mis that show :,,,,)

Sweet, spicy, or savory: Usually I’m more into savory stuff but as of late I want cookies all the time

Sparkling water, tea, or coffee: Oh my god, coffee all day. No, whenever I have a migrane I can’t really do coffee (any strong flavours) and that’s when I’d go for either some tea or a mate tea bag.

Pets: There’s my dad’s son, the 12 y/o golden brown mini poodle; and my 9 y/o mutt princess, a labrador-dobberman mix that’s obsessed with a hole in the backyard she keeps watch over for as long as we’d let her. 

I don’t think I know 8 poeple to tag (without already tagging muh taggers) Let’s see

@spellsofscarlet @paradoxicallytwisted @mcuchaos @whimsyandsomething

[iamnotthat]

10 song challenge

Rules: tag 10 songs you can’t stop listening to and then tag 10 people Thanks for the tag @incurablescribbler and @medhasree<3

I will be doing 15 because I am extra like that 

1) Ishq Zahenaseeb OST- I haven’t been in peace since the day I heard this song. The soft vocals and the amazing lyrics. I love the blend of the modern romantic vibe with the sufi part. Fav lyrics “Main tabah hua, main fana hua. Mera rom jalke swah hua. Tadap meri kuch aur shadeed, tadap meri kuch aur shadeed”

2) Kehna hi kya- Bombay- Classic AR Rehman. Fav lyrics “Sitam thoda thoda hum pe shokh hawa bhi kar jaye. Aise chale, aanchal ude, dil mein ek toofan uthe. Hum toh lut gaye khade hi khade.

3) Supermassive Blackhole- Muse This song always makes me want to pick a fight with someone! Fav lyrics everytime Matt Bellamy says ohhhhh you set my soul alight. *fans self* *takes deep breath*

4) Alif OST- Again the vocals by Shuja Haider and Momina Mushtehsan. My fav lyrics in this song is probably just all of it. The song explains the relationship between God and human so well. 

5) Amaro Porano Jaha Chay- From stories by Rabindranath Tagore- This is the Arijit Singh version. I don’t understand the lyrics but love the way this song is sung and the melancholic feel of the song. Also it fit in so well with the story of the episode

6) Lahu Muh Lag Gaya- Ramleela And at the 6th song my chichora side has come out. If the word coquettish was made into a song it would be this song. Full disclosure I never cared much for this song in the movie I liked it after I saw a clip of YRHPK with Shaheer and Rhea doing nain mataka to this song. Fav lyrics: Bhatak rahi hai aankh yeh malang ang ang ang. Atak gayi hai saans uske sang sang sang”

7) Channa- Atif Aslam- Coke studio- As much as I rail on Atif Aslam for singing out of scale when he does get it right its downright a delight. The softness in his voice in this song is so soothing and just makes me go weak in the knees. The mix of Punjabi lyrics and western classical arrangement works so well in this song. Whoever came up with the arrangement is a genius. Fav lyrics  “ Loon Loon vich teri, deed ravan ve,Nahi reh sakdi tere bina ve” 

8) Jai Jai Girivar Raj Kishori- From Siya Ke Ram. If there is anything that this show got right it was music and aesthetics. This song with the way this shot is set up, classic.Any version of Ram and Sita meeting for the first time for me is just has my heart soar. Fav lyrics: the entire end when the tempo goes up.

9) Pompeii- Basitille- This song just reminds me of my time in London. Times that I really miss a lot. It also has the line which is basically as a question I ask myself all the time “ how am I gonna be an optimist about this?”

10) Do I wanna know- Arctic Monkeys- Alex Turner’s voice is probably the most sensual thing in the world for me. I love the vibe of this song and the whole song is brilliantly written.

11) Paradise- Coldplay - I can not have a song tag without this song. I feel like this song symbolizes my need to move from one place to another ( Along with Kabira). Fav lyrics : I love all of the lyrics but I love the way he sings “lying underneath the stormy skies, she says oh I know the sun must set to rise”

12) Kabira- Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani ( both versions)- This song is just so bittersweet and sings about people who are constantly on the move to find something that feels right. Fav lyrics: “Ban liya apna pigambar, Tar liya tu aat samandar. Phir bhi sukha man ke andar kyun reh gaya”

13) Train song- Gully boy- This song is so wholesome and upbeat. Fav lyrics;  ““Sapne Jinme Ho Aisi Ho Teri Aankhe Payaar Mein Jinme Ho Aisi Hi Teri Baate Jin Umide Ho Aise Tere Din Ho Chain Ho Jin Mein Aisi Hi Teri Rate”

14) Kajar Bin Kaare- Karsh Kale ft Sulaiman Merchant. When this song says ghayal kiyo jiya ra re, that is how I feel about this whole song. The lyrics and vocals are amazing but my favorite is the musical arrangement and how much fun all the people are having while playing this song. The flute bit always gives me goosebumps. Love it.

15) Mathura Nagarpathi- Raincoat- I don’t know how I have never heard of this song up until this year and now it’s one of my favorites. Shubha Mudgal can never go wrong with vocals and is as stunning as ever. The best thing for me is obviously the lyrics, so heart-wrenching and aptly describing the pain of being away from a loved one/place. It gives me all the Krishna struggling to be human while being a god feels.

Anyways I went way over but I just have a lot of feelings about music okay!! What do these songs tell about me? Well if someone figures it out do let me know lol!

Tagging @demonkidpliz @cursedbabyclown @uwu-bro @youandthemountains @nihilisticdebate @allegoriesinmediasres @randomfandomtraveller @anandamayenu @m0hinii and whoever else comes across this and wants to do it!

Stay safe guys!

[moonlightrichie]

Late Night, Early Morning

A repost of my Reddie meet-cute. Wanted to post it properly on here.

Summary:

It’s 7am. A young man has just opened his coffee shop for the day. At the same time, another young man is on his way home from a night out with his friend, and he’s really craving a donut with pink frosting.

Word count: 2900 Pairing: Reddie

READ ON AO3 HERE

It was 5 minutes to 7am, and Eddie Kaspbrak was gulping down his black coffee in a desperate attempt to get his tired eyes to stay open. The coffee shop was cleaned and ready for opening, the cake disk; usually overflowing with cute pastries, was yet to be filled with the cakes he was still preparing in the backroom. Chocolate cupcakes, powdered donuts filled with strawberry-jam and slices of marble cake were only a few of the pastries he was working on.

Baking was one of Eddie’s favorite things to do, and he had just finished a round of donuts, newly dipped in strawberry or chocolate frosting. He had even gotten up extra early to make them. They always sold well in the morning, but because of the long time they took to make, he didn’t do it that often. He just really felt like making them today.  

As he was finding his ‘coffee tunes’-playlist to play on the speakers, the lock of the door clicked, and in walked his co-worker (and best friend), Stan.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning”, Eddie replied. “I was starting to get worried. We’re opening in…” he checked the clock above the milk-steamer, “uhm, now. Just leave the door open.”

He scurried out from behind the counter, and rushed to turn the “sorry we’re closed”-sign to say “come in, we’re open”. Then, he opened his box of chalk, picking out the pink one, and thoroughly scribbled down the daily note on the sidewalk sign before dragging it outside.

The sky was painted in a beautiful pink and red light, and Eddie took a moment to breathe as he felt joy bubbling inside his chest. He couldn’t help the toothy grin forcing its way onto his lips, feeling truly happy.

“I think you need to update your coffee-playlist, Eddie. We’ve been listening to the same boring songs on repeat for like a month now, and I’ve had it”, Stan said when Eddie walked back inside. He already had his apron on, and was frowning at the computer.

Owning a coffee shop was something Eddie had dreamt of doing for years. He looked at his still newly opened coffee shop he had decorated himself with cute lights and artsy paintings, and he looked at Stan standing behind the counter, skipping some of the songs playing, and he sighed happily.

***

It was 5 minutes past 7am, and Richie Tozier was making his way down the street, still full of energy from the night out (and also still a little tipsy). He was walking a few steps in front of Bill who was babbling about how crazy it was that there were people on their way to work at the same time as they were just making their way home. Richie nodded his head in agreement. They had already passed a couple bus stops, receiving judgmental looks from middle-aged men in suits.

Richie was exceptionally happy with how the night had been. Even though he and Bill shared an apartment, they hadn’t really had much time to spend together in a while. They used to do so much, and now that Bill was studying literature and Richie was working at the local radio station, their schedules always clashed. They had finally found a weekend where they both had time, and they jumped at the chance to hang out together immediately.

It had been Richie’s idea to go out drinking, and even though Bill wasn’t too happy about it at first, he sure was happy after scoring a cute girl’s number at the club. Richie was the best wingman in the world. He had truly patted himself on the back for that one.

“Holy fuck, I’m craving cake right now.”

“Richie, you’ve buh-been craving food fuh-for three hours now, w-we have food at huh-huh-home.”

“No, Bill. Not just food. I need something sweet! I don’t know, candy, cake, frosting, ice cream, sugar cubes, anything.” Richie was waving his hands in the air, the desire for sugar burning inside his chest.

Bill sighed next to him. “Well, thuh-there is puh-puh-probably something at huh-huh-home you can eat? Puh-please let’s g-go home, I’m so tired.”

Richie looked at him, resisting the urge to fall down to the ground dramatically. “How can you even say that, Bill? Are you truly denying me the sweet taste of a donut right now? Are you sincerely saying I should instead eat whatever dry crackers we have at home? How dare you?”

Bill rolled his eyes. “S-stop being so duh-dramatic.”

Richie ignored the comment as he suddenly stopped. He sighed intensely, regretting the words he had uttered just seconds earlier, because “fuck, now I want donuts”, he whined. “You know those donuts with pink frosting? Holy shit, I need one of those right now, or else I’m actually going to die.”

“Home, Ri-Richie.”

“Fine”, Richie sulked.

They continued walking, this time Richie a few steps behind Bill. He really didn’t want the dry crackers they had at home as a snack before bed.

“How hard is it to make donuts?”

Bill shrugged. “I don’t know. Puh-probably not that huh-hard, even though I th-think you’d muh-mess it up anyways.”

Richie gasped, clutching a hand to his chest. “How can my best friend betray me like this?”

Then he looked around, and that’s when he saw it. “Oh my god.” 

Just down the street, only a couple blocks from their apartment, stood a cute little coffee shop, and it was open. Richie frantically grabbed Bill’s at arm to stop him from walking. “I can’t believe this.”

Bill looked at where Richie’s gaze was locked and he tugged his arm away. “Richie, please, I ruh-really want to go home.”

“Give me five minutes.” He started walking before Bill could protest more, and stopped when he got to the sidewalk sign.

It said ‘We have donuts’ with small pink hearts drawn around it in chalk.

“They have fucking donuts!” Richie screamed at Bill who was still on the other side of the street. “It’s literally destiny, Bill, come on!”

“Okay, just huh-hush, people are sluh-sluh-sleeping.”

Richie took another quick look at the sign and the pink hearts before they walked in, muttering “cute” under his breath.

***

It was 7:20am when they got their first customers. Stan was cleaning the tables, and Eddie was just finished slicing up the marble cake.

First walked in a fairly attractive guy, tall with auburn hair and pretty eyes. The one thing Eddie noticed, though, was that this man was definitely not on his way to work. He looked dead tired as if he hadn’t slept all night.

Then entered another guy, tall and lanky, dressed in black jeans and a denim jacket. Eddie had to hold back a tiny gasp when he saw the dark curls framing the guy’s pale face, because damn it if this guy wasn’t Eddie’s type exactly. 

The guy was smiling wide, talking loudly to his friend, and the shop was suddenly much more lively than it had been just seconds ago.

Eddie cleared his throat. “Good morning!”

The two guys looked up at the same time, both looking a little caught off guard as if they hadn’t realized there were going to be people there. 

The guy with curly hair locked eyes with Eddie, and Eddie smiled shyly.

For a moment, the guy just stared at him, eyes wide behind his glasses. “Holy shit”, he whispered softly.

Eddie furrowed his brows in confusion, smile faltering just the tiniest bit. “Uhm.”

The guy shook his head as if coming out of a trance, clearing his throat. “Ah, uh, y-yes, good morning.” He was blushing, an embarrassed smile taking over his features. Cute.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” Eddie asked, walking over to the cash register.

The guy came closer, his smile suddenly a lot bolder. “How about your number, cutie?” His tone was flirtatious, catching Eddie off guard.

He heard Stan scoff from where he was washing tables.

It took a couple seconds before Eddie managed to regain his composure. “Well, uhm”, he laughed humorlessly, feeling warmth spread across his face. He frowned, not quite believing the situation he was in. Was he actually being hit on at 7:20 in the morning? “I’m sorry, but that’s not for sale.” He raised his eyebrows. “And actually, I’m not really sorry for that.”

The guy sighed and put his hands on his hips. “Well then, I guess I’ll have to settle for one of those donuts.”

“With strawberry or chocolate frosting?”

“Definitely strawberry.”

“Right, that will be 2 dollars then.”

Eddie could feel the guy’s eyes looking him over as he walked over to the cake disk. He put the donut carefully into a paper bag before returning to the register. There was a 5-dollar bill lying there, and the guy was smiling at him, showing off his semi-crooked teeth. “Keep the change, cutie.”

Eddie couldn’t help but fall a little bit in love with that smile. The guy obviously had lots of charm and charisma and was probably a natural flirt too. Having way too much pride and being the stubborn man that he was, Eddie was not going to fall for it. The guy might be cute, but he did look like a mess. His hair was chaotic, his eyes tired and just like his friend, he looked like he had been up all night. 

Eddie smiled timidly while handing over the paper bag. “Thank you.”

When grabbing the bag, the guy brushed his fingers over Eddie’s, evidently on purpose, and Eddie cursed himself when the touch left tingles prickling on his skin.

“You know, I think it was destiny that we met.” The guy had his elbow on the counter, his chin resting in his palm, eyes never leaving Eddie’s face.

Eddie raised his eyebrows dejectedly. “Yeah? How so?”

“Because…” the guy raised his other hand, pointing his finger in the air as if trying to make a point. “Literally not even 10 minutes ago, me and Bill here”, he pointed to his friend, “we were walking down the street, and talking about how much we wanted donuts. And suddenly, out of nowhere, your cute little shop pops up with a sign saying you have donuts.” The guy smiled wider. “I think that’s fucking destiny.”

“I think that’s just called a coincidence.” Eddie was trying his hardest not to sound mean. He was in his work place, and took his job very seriously. Treating costumers nicely was very important for the shop’s reputation. This guy was making it very fucking difficult.

The guy just kept smiling despite the rejecting tone to Eddie’s voice. “No, I don’t think so. What I think, is that I just met the love of my life.”

Eddie couldn’t help the surprised sound escaping his throat. His face was probably as red as the sunrise outside.

“Richie,” the other guy said. “Can we puh-please go huh-home now?”

Richie just raised his hand at the guy, still looking at Eddie. “Just a moment.”

The guy, clearly frustrated, rubbed his hands over his fatigued face. “You said five muh-minutes.”

Richie turned around then. “Bill, if this was the other way around, I would wingman the hell out of you right now. Are you really trying to ruin this for me?” It seemed like he was trying to whisper even though the volume was very much the same.

Eddie looked over at Stan, and Stan was smiling at him amusedly, clearly entertained by the situation. Traitor.

“We’ve buh-been awake all n-night, the alcohol is out of our suh-system, and you’ve guh-got your donut.” The guy, Bill, was looking ready to pass out, and Eddie felt sorry for him.

“Wait, you’ve been out drinking?” Stan said from where he was now standing behind the cake disk. “Who goes out to party on a Sunday?”

“Irrelevant”, Richie said, looking back at Eddie. “What matters is that I’ve found my soulmate.”

Eddie scoffed, cocking his head to the side. “You don’t even know me.” 

Richie shrugged. “Well, let me take you out then so I can get to know you.” The tone of his voice was much more sincere than flirtatious now, and Eddie was angry with himself for believing it.

He was struggling to find a response, not really wanting to reject the guy anymore. He was very cute and charming, and once again, exactly the kind of guy Eddie would usually fall for.

While Eddie was thinking over his words, Richie opened the paper bag and took a bite of the donut. Every word Eddie was forming in his brain flew out the window as the guy moaned while chewing and looked at Eddie in shock.

“Did you make this?”

Eddie nodded, his mouth slightly open. “Uhm, yes.”

The guy stared at him, his lips coated in pink frosting. “Marry me.”

Eddie jerked backwards while Stan laughed.

“No seriously, we’re perfect together. I love donuts.” He pointed to himself. “And you”, he pointed at Eddie, “make the best fucking donuts I have ever tasted.” He started gesturing between the two of them. “If that’s not soulmates right there, then I don’t know.”

“It takes more than love for donuts to be soulmates, so no, I don’t think you know”, Eddie said.

“Ouch.” The guy placed a hand over his heart, laughing slightly.

Eddie couldn’t help but smile back at him.

“At least tell me your name then.”

Eddie had to consider for a second, but this guy was slowly winning him over. “It’s Eddie.”

“Eddie.” The guy nodded. “Beautiful name for a beautiful man.”

Stopping the blush from spreading over his cheeks was practically impossible at this point. “Thanks”, he answered softly.

“Has this coffee shop always been here? Because I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before.”

“We opened just a couple weeks ago actually.”

“That’s really great, I hope it stays.” Richie smiled genuinely. “These donuts really deserve some true recognition.”

“Thanks, we hope so too.” Eddie smiled back.

“Well, I guess we’re off. Time to get this guy to bed”, Richie said, putting an arm around Bill who looked half asleep.

“Fuh-finally”, Bill yawned.

Richie dropped his arm from Bill’s shoulders as they started walking towards the door, and panic rose in Eddie’s chest. There was absolutely no guarantee he would ever see this Richie again, and despite his efforts of not giving into this guy’s flirtatious behavior, he really didn’t want him to leave. Seeing Richie walk out the door was like letting a beautiful opportunity slip through his fingers.

They were half way out the door, and Eddie spoke before he knew what he was doing “Wait!”

They turned around, Richie’s hand on the door handle. Eddie rushed to find a napkin and quickly scribbled down his number before he could change his mind. He had a feeling that he probably wouldn’t.

He reached out his hand, napkin hanging loosely from his fingers. “Here,” he smiled timidly, suddenly feeling scared that Richie wouldn’t want it after all.

A pleased grin took over Richie’s face as he slowly walked back to the counter. “Really?”

Eddie laughed nervously. “Yes, really.”

Richie reached out, caressing his fingers over Eddie’s as he took the napkin from Eddie’s grip. “Wow, I’ll text you as soon as I wake up tomorrow.”

Eddie grinned. “Don’t you mean later today?”

Richie laughed, crinkles appearing on the sides of his eyes. He looked beautiful. “Exactly.”

Bill tapped Richie on the shoulder.

“Right”, Richie said. “We’re going now.”

They started walking towards the door again, and as Bill opened the door, Richie turned back to look at Eddie. “You’re not going to regret this, Eds.”

“By calling me that, I’m already regretting it!” Eddie said lightheartedly.

The door was closing as Richie started laughing, filling the coffee shop with the beautiful sound one more time.

Eddie just stared at them as the two men talked outside for a second in the pink light.

“I can’t believe that just happened”, Stan said as he stepped up beside him. “Only you could get a date at 7am in the morning.”

Eddie tried glaring at him, but it was impossible with the massive smile on his face.

*** 

It was 7:30am when Richie and Bill stepped out of the coffee shop.

“I can’t believe you just did that”, Bill said. “There were so many people you cuh-could have picked up at the club but duh-didn’t, and instead you pick up someone fuh-fuh-from a coffee shop after we’re duh-done partying.”

Richie laughed. “Well, there weren’t anyone interesting in the clubs. You saw how cute he was, Bill.”

“Well, he wuh-was certainly your type.”

“I’m definitely marrying him.”

“Sure, Richie. Let’s go.”

As the two of them started walking down the street, Richie couldn’t stop himself from looking at the sidewalk sign once more. On the other side that they hadn’t seen on their way inside, it said “Have a brew-tiful day!” a drawn coffee cup with a smiley face grazing the bottom. “So fucking cute”, Richie muttered to himself.

Then he looked up at the coffee shop itself, seeing the name “Books and coffee” in a cursive pink font. He made a mental note of asking Eddie about the name the next time he saw him before turning around and following after Bill, the napkin safely tucked inside the pocket of his jean jacket.

[kirbyforever]

Is this a music store?

Joe meets Patrick and he’s like, “Yo! i know about music.” and Patrick’s like, “Yo! I know more about music\~!” “THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!!!111 ...Do you wanna start a band?” and Patrick’s like, “Yeah, that’s cool” and then he’s like, “Yo! this is a bookstore, it’s not a music store!” And then they met at Patrick’s house. so, Patrick’s wearing shorts and socks and a hat. Patrick is playing drums for some fuckin’ reason. and Pete’s there for some reason. they start playing music together and they’re like, “oh, let’s play some fucking covers from some other bands!” there was like Green Day, and fucking Misfits, and fuckin Ramones. Pete said to Joe, “Yo! We gotta change this shit up!” — HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH — \*sips beer\* — “Yo, we played all these bands, let’s play shit from Fall Out Boy” and so Pete and Patrick were like, “Yo, that’s dope. but we need a fucking drummer!” because Patrick’s playing drums and he’s a singer! Patrick’s like, “Yo! I got a soul voice!” and they’re like, “wait! how do you have a soul voice?” and he’s like, “Yo, watch this – YEAAAAAYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAEEEEEEEHEEEEEYEEEEHEEEEHHH” and they’re like, “ Oh my God, that sounds like soul!” so they put it in a song, it was like, “WHERE IS YOUR BOY TONIIIIIIIIGGGGGGHHHHHTTTTTTT” — THHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH — and then they’re like, “Yo, that’s fuckin perfect. this is fall out boy” — \*drinks beer\* —

And they made records like ‘Evening out with your ex-girlfriend’ Evening out with your ex-girlfriend everybody loves it — “It’s called evening out with your girlfriend” — With your ex-girlfriend? It’s called evening out with your ex-girlfriend. It’s called eating out your girlfriend and it’s real and it doesn’t matter.

And Pete talked to Patrick and Joe and he was like, “yooo, what the fuuuuuck!!?? YO THIS IS GONNA BE FUCKIN DOOOPE” so they made a record and it was called ‘Take This to Your Grave’. They made it without a drummer! and they had like three, four drummers come in; the four drummers ahead come in were like Josh Freese, Neil Peart, the dude from Toto — tnghhhh — the fourth one was like the guy from like Papa Roach or something. And they’re like, “Yo, we need Andy Hurley.” “Andy Hurley, Take This To Your Grave, fuckin record it.” And he did it and he killed it and he was like, “BEGEDEGEDUGUDLULULUHHHLAHLAH BSHHH” Killin the skins! Tappin the skins! Tappin the rim! Playing the shit! Killin these bitches! Wrappin it out! — THAHAHA YOU’RE GETTING A FUCKING TATTOO RIGHT NOW!! WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING OON!!?? —

“We should get signed to Fueled By Ramen, cuz these guys know what the fuck is going on” they were like, “yo, if you can make our scene any bigger than it is which is not fucking hard -” — tnghhh — “- we will sign you guys” he was like, “yo! we got this record that’s fuckin dope dude!” it’s called Take This To Your Grave. It’s called From Under The Cork Tree, it’s gonna be fucking huge. And then Patrick was like, “I gotta keep it real. I gotta keep it artistic. These are - These are three songs that are gonna make the album it’s called — \*burp\* — this is called Thnks Fr Th Mmrs, Twenty Dollar Nosebleed, and Sugar, We’re Goin Down. And they made this record that was fuckin dope and they fucking hit on the charts like ONE, TWO, THREE! THREE, TWO, ONE! THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEEENNN! TEN TO ONE! From Under The Cork Tree sold like four million records… ten million records… FIFTEEN MILLION RECORDS!

And Brendon Urie had nothing to do with the entire record! And Patrick was like, “THAT’S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOODDD”

Pete was like, “Yo, fuck you! I can do whatever I want!” Joe was like, “Yeah, that’s cool man whatever I don’t give a shit” and then Andy was like, “Eh. Cool!” and Pete was like, “Makeup is fuckin great for a guy because it makes a guy look beautiful which a lot of times a guy is not beautiful and i wanna change that. I wanna make sure that everybody thinks that guys are beautiful”

— SPIT. SPIT. SPIT. “I’m good so far” “Do you wanna spit one more time?” “Yeah, I do.” SPIT. SPIT. SPIT. NGHHH SHUT THE FUCK! HAHAHA OH FUCK ALRIGHT ALRIGHT —

Pete was like, “Oh my god! I’m so embarrassed about this dick pic!” and then I saw the dick pic and I was like, “Eh, it’s not bad! It’s not a bad dick. Let’s be real.”

We made Rolling Stone one issue before Fall Out Boy and Fall Out Boy made the issue right after us and they were so PISSED! they were like, “yo, fuck you guys!” They’re like, “YO PANIC! HAS THE FUCKING COVER OF ROLLING STONE!? YO FUCK THESE DUDES WE’RE GONNA FUCKING GO MILES ABOVE! WE’RE GONNA HIT EVERY FUCKING CONTINENT THERE IS KNOWN TO MAN!” but they didn’t! because they missed a second of time! Apparently, they were like, “Oh shit we got every continent!” When they didn’t actually hit it.

Dude, Pete was like, “WHAT THE FUCK!?!?” OOOOH YOU DIDN’T FUCKIN MAKE THE CONTINENT! IT’S LIKE FUCK YOU!

So From Under The Cork Tree happens we fuckin have three four years of awesomeness like people were coming on themselves cuz it’s so big.

Alright, so Fall Out Boy was like —

So Patrick was like, “Yo we’re gonna name this record From ooo - From Under The Cork Tree and from Inninity from EHEHAHA From Infinity on High.

Pete was like, "Yo, Folie A Deux means the theatric of two” — “The Madness of Two” “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” —

Fall Out Boy was like, “Yo, we gotta take a break” meaning Pete was like, “Yo, we gotta take a break bro” and Patrick’s like “I need time for my music - OOOOUUNGHHH” and Joe’s like, “Yo, I need time to find the fuckin art dude i gotta find some fuckin muh-metal” and andy’s like, “I’m just gonna play with some fuckin metal bands :D” and they’re like, “Alright, this break’s from like three years long two years long three years long three and a half?” “we gotta fuckin come back man we gotta come back STRONG”

— YOU TOOK MY BEER AWAY WHAT THE FUCK “you poured it all over yourself” —

“We gotta make this shit legit, it’s gonna be fuckin dope it’s gonna go fuckin sky high! we’re gonna make a fuckin record that sails the skies!” “skieees” “we’re gonna call this record: Save Rock and Roll”

So they made Alone Together, Light Em Up, Alone Together, The Phoenix. Everyone was like, “What the fuuuck?? you were going to the sky you fucking recorded Avril Lavigne and P!nk!” — “WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS ON MY SHIRT DID I PEE ON MYSELF?” “You poured beer all over yourself” “oh god” —

Pete was like, “Yo, we’re gonna end up on a tour with Panic! At The Disco and Twenty Pilots” TAHAHA \*burp. spit.\*

And that’s all. And that’s all that matters. and that’s just how the fuckin story goes.

[pastelgrungewrecker]

Lily Petals and Bluebird Feathers

Somewhere over the rainbow Way up high And the dreams that you dream of Once in a lullaby

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

It had taken months. Months of gentle touches over ancient scars, of soft apologies for ancient sins. 

It had taken Whirl saying, so softly, “Haven’t been able to cry in years.”

“It’s the only way to improve your quality of life, Mister Whirl... It should have been done long ago- no one deserves to suffer like this, especially not you.”

“I’ll only agree if... if it’s Ratch. He and Aid, or no dice. I... I don’t trust anyone else.”

He fidgeted in the hospital bed, feeling exposed, nervous like he hadn’t felt in years upon years upon scars. Cyclonus squeezed his shoulder, smiling softly.

“When you wake up, you will be safe. There will be a place for you, in the study. You will create, and you will be closer to whole.”

Whirl nodded, closing his eye and remembering the pictures on Mimi’s phone of a workbench, of an old clock hung on the wall with the scorchmarks scrubbed off. Of an old picture in a new frame.

“The scarring is deep, and there are cystic pockets. It’s cutting off circulation and damaging the nerves you have left. It’s... going to be invasive.”

“I know.”

He leaned back, and felt a sting at his shoulder. First Aid’s hands were soft even in gloves, and he gently pet over Whirl’s uneven hair and hummed softly in his throat. Ratchet held a prosthetic hand, thumb stroking over steel knuckles and smiling behind the facemask.

“See you in a bit, Whirl.”

“See ya, Doooc...”

The world faded, and went dark. The mismatched dreams came, and he watched them from a distance. Here, in this between place, he was unwounded. He looked down at the memory of his hands, and looked up to watch flickers of a backalley chopshop dressed in hospital gowns and medical coats.

He felt the memory of tears, felt the memory of pain. He wandered through the halls of his near-lost past and reached out to the view of himself on his knees- smelling the burnt remains of an old artisan’s shop and seeing the bright flares and flickers of siren lights.

He turned away, feeling his chest pulling so painfully and let off a sob- here in his dreams, he could weep. And mourn.

“Easy, easy- it’s old tough scarring, work around and then in.” “This never should have gotten like this, its’s... Cruel. How was he BREATHING-” “I know Aid.”

His view changes again, seeing Brainstorm, seeing Mimi- so young, still bright both of them- and he watches as Mimi sits on the counter in Kimia and Brainstorm frets over the third fitting that week.

Both of them plant a kiss to the scars on the remnants of his arms, and he feels warmth around his heart.

“Oh boy, his circulation was big mad Ratchet-” “Mhm, probably the first time blood’s been through here in God knows how long.”

Again, he treads deeper, to the old memories that give him the most comfort. The birth of his children, family holidays... and deeper still, as time passes like molasses leaking from it’s jar. Back to flight jackets that never closed right and a braid he used to hold tight to when the noises in the dark scared him.

How small he used to be- how loved.

He settles here, watching the sepia toned moving photographs with his mind’s eyes- without the dulling of war; without the sound of gunfire. He watces his mother- so tall, so strong, like he tried so hard to be- teach him to aim his little toy rifle, the ping of the soda can being knocked off the edge of a toolchest.

His father, face unblurred and his smile gentle as midnight tides; guiding his son’s tiny hands to nudge a clock face into position. Telling him that if he builds time, he can control it- that he’ll never lose those days he loves so deeply.

He’s crying again, and watching the winter outside an old window while that familiar clock on the wall chimes out the midnight hours and he remembers his eyes slitting open when he hears his mother singing- feels it in her chest, in the way her hand moves over his back while she rocks him in her arms and he holds so tight.

The way Quickdraw did, when he was small and huffy and only felt safe from the nighttime terrors in Whirl’s arms. The way Chrona did, cranky and sleepy and with her little fists holding tight to his shirt.

And he sobs, he bawls like a lost boy in a neverending wood when he watches his mother leave that fateful day- knowing now she’d never come home, knowing now that the color would fade from art and artisan until one day he was monochrome and still and quiet and WRONG.

The fog shifts, and he hears it. A lullaby like bluebird down, like the lily petals on a cold casket. 

He drifts, for a time, unwilling to leave just yet but the songs lure him away from his grief and he follows. Louder, and louder, just this side of hoarse and yet still so soft.

“Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high...”

His eye eases open, and a cold hand smooths over his forehead. He hears talking, soft speech- he sees worn leather and denim. It fades again and the song comes back. He turns his face to the sound, he hears soft tittering and smiles- it feels like home back then... Back when the chimes were soft every hours and there was somewhere over his own rainbow...

Ratchet sits quietly, watching her kiss Whirl’s forehead and sing. She had been a surprise, a shock- appearing at the house and scaring Perceptor nearly to death when she snapped the doorlock by shouldering it open and demanding Whirl’s location with a shotgun in full view.

It had taken a lot of calming words- had taken Quickdraw and Mimi standing up and asking who she was before the tears and pleading came.

“I’m his mother, please, please tell me my boy is alive- I’ve been searching so damn long PLEASE-”

She’d been rushed to the hospital, holding tight to Chrona and Quickdraw’s hands while Mimi drove like a bat out of hell.

And now she was here, gently cleaning stitched incisions that Ratchet knew would be invisible in a few days. He smiled.

“Ma’am, I’m gonna step out to the family- let me know if he wakes up alright?”

“Sure thing, Doc, of course.”

She wouldn’t, he knew that- not until she was ready. But, something told him that was how it was meant to be.

Another lullaby, another nursery rhyme and Whirl drifts back to the surface- floating for a moment before the soreness eases into feeling- Feeling?

His eye opens- the room is dim, and smells sweet; like plane fuel and jasmine tea and-

“Bluebird, oh baby you made oh God-”

He’s being hugged almost too tight and there’s grey and teal in his vision.

“I’ve been looking and searching and tryin’ so damn hard to find you- I thought the worst when the shop was burned down and fuckin’ PROWL is a cock and wouldn’t tell me a damn thing-”

“M-Muh-”

She leans back, her face aged but still the same after all this time. She licks the pad of her thumb, slicking away a stray lock of hair and holds his sharp, scarred face in her hands.

“God, you still look like your Papa-bear, you know that-”

“Ma-Mama-”, his throat catches, he squeezes his eye shut and waits for that pain and the pressure and the redredred- And it never comes.

“Oh bluebird, ssssshsshshsh no tears baby, Mama’s home, I’m here now I’m here forever if you want me to stay-”

He moves, maybe too fast for what his body went through, pressing himself tightly against her as his prosthetics slowly come to life and clumsily (they’re new, they feel new, he sees ten fingers and no gears and knows he’s healing now) wrap around her in a crushing hug.

“MAMA, YOU CAME BACK-”

“Yes baby, I’m back, I’m old as shit but I’m back- don’t cry prettybird, little bluebird-”

And she’s peppering his cheeks with kisses he missed and tears, real tears, are leaking from his eye and he knows he looks a mess as he’s crying for real, for the first time in so long- and Ratchet eases the door open, and glances in with a tired smile. He nods once, and Whirl nods back and then it’s nothing but plane fuel and jasmine tea as he buries his face in his mother’s shoulder and weeps for all the things he’s lost and found.

And he feels it again, as she’s singing- he feels it in her chest, in the way her hand moves over his back and the way she rocks him in her arms.

“Somewhere, over the rainbow, bluebirds fly...”

[beepbeeprichiellc]

💕

Song: I hate you I love you by Gnash ft Olivia O’Brian

He shouldn’t be here. 

It only took a moment for Eddie to realize his mistake, a single second of seeing his so called friend when he had answered the door, completely hammered. There was a shadow of a smile across his face, a river on his cheeks and red blotches where Richie had clawed at the tender flesh along his neck. The air tasted salty and thick, the volume of Richie’s voice was way above maximum as he cried upon seeing him. Their embrace was awkward and one sided, but Eddie couldn’t shy away from the need that seeped from the trashmouth, it sucked him in like the vacuum of space-where no one returned. If he wanted to turn tail and run that had been his chance, he should have peeled the man off of him and left but there was an anchor in his stomach that kept him there-sinking him in the sea that was Richie Motherfucking Tozier. 

“Shh, it’s okay Rich.” Eddie lied, his voice a little shaky as he pushed the leach back through the threshold so that he wouldn’t wake the entire building. Even if he had to be a wake at this godforsaken hour doesn't mean the neighbors did. “Alright, I can’t-I can’t understand you when you do that.” He huffed, doing his best to get to the couch in an effort to unlatch Richie. “You’ve got to calm down.” 

“I-I-cuh-can’t.” Richie sobbed, blubbering snot and nonsense onto Eddie’s sweatshirt. 

This hadn’t been the plan. When Eddie had cut ties from Richie three months ago he had planned on ignoring the drunken calls, the crude and harsh accusations about his absence from the only man he had loved. It had been so easy, with one block the entire world opened up to him, allowing him to finally breathe without an unrequited monster gnawing on his back. Things hadn’t been great, not exactly perfect but it was better for Eddie-healthier than the alternate. 

But the call hadn’t been from Richie, but rather a frantic Beverly instead. She had been there for the spiral, for the drinks and rants and rage but when she had brought him home Richie shunned her-rather rudely-so much that she had called the only person to have ever tamed the drunken beast, the person who she knew would be make sure that the trashmouth didn’t do anything too stupid. On the phone she was pratically in tears, Richie’s vocie hollaring in the background about life and love and what-the-fuck-ever, Eddie couldn’t even really make it all out. Against every sane thought in his head he got dressed and drove across town, down a too familiar street and climbed those painful stairs until he was staring at the apartment 206, the numbers mocking the coward that was inside. 

“What happened?” Eddie asked, taking a very sudden seat on the cushions, Richie’s weight pulling him down faster than anticipated. “Talk to me Richie.” 

“He-he said he di-didn’t want to-” It was so hard to understand, so agonizing to listen to that Eddie was sure that his ears had started to bleed. “I luh-loved him so much why doesn’t h-he love muh-me back.” 

Oh god, Eddie was going to throw up. The irony was not lost in the moment, the bone crushing realization that his life was just some joke that the universe got its rock off on. Of Course the person Richie was crying over was the same person that haunted the reces of Eddie’s brain. The one person that Eddie wanted desperately to be, and failed to do so in every aspect of his life. Stan was the love of Richie’s life, the muse to his soul that he had fallen for over and over throughout the years. Stan was to Richie as Richie was to Eddie. 

Which lead to a drunken confession, a slip that ruined everything. It had been an accident, it really was and Richie did his best to deflect the humiliation Eddie felt when he had turned him down. That lead to a whirlwind of feelings, an abundance of self loathing and harm to which went unnoticed by the world. Eventually though Eddie was able to dig his way out of the hole, and awaken anew. 

But here he was back in the pit again. 

“Sometimes things just don’t work out the way you want them to.” Eddie tried to sound assuring but his words were sharp and bitter. “You’ve just got to pick yourself back up and move on.” 

“I don’t know if I cuh-can.” Richie’s blubbering was calming, being just a small nuisance now. “Oh god, I loved him so much E-Eds.” That name, that horribly wonderful name that sent shivers down Eddie’s back, that awoke so many feelings-feelings he had managed to forget over the past twelve weeks. “I don’t know if I can survive this.” 

“You can and you will.” Eddie assured, suddenly needing space and pushing Richie off of him in one surge of strength. Lucky the trashmouth understood and drew back, leaving just enough room to keep the tension strung. “Look, it’s going to be al-” 

“How did you do it?” Richie slurred, his breath smelling like rum. “How did you just up and forget wha-what happened?” 

It was like a slap in the face, and Eddie nearly spit fire right at the drunken face of his old friend but when he went to do so Richie was looking up at him with those chocolate eyes that played a symphony with his heartstrings. “I don’t know.” He answered honestly, biting his lip. “Sometimes you just have to do things that are best for yourself, even if it hurts.” 

“I’m sorry you know.” Richie’s voice was low, the roughness in his throat making his words come out almost hoarse. “I wish I hadn't rejected you I shouldn’t have-” 

“Don’t.” Eddie wanted, unable to keep his voice from breaking. “Don’t do this.” 

But it was like Richie didn’t hear the plead, “-You were my best friend and when you cut me off I missed you so fucking much and I th-think it’s becuase it wasn’t fair of you to do that.” 

“I know and I’m sorry for that but you have to understand-I loved you Richie. Loved you so much that it nearly killed me when you turned me down. It was selfish and unfair but I had to do it.” 

“I think I could luh-love you, with time.” 

“What?” He sputtered, unsure if he had heart Richie correctly. “What do you mean?” Without warning he felt Richie’s lips on his, covering him in a slick and gnarly glob of slobber that was messly laid on his face. There was no rhyme or reason to the kiss, just drunken Richie who had leaned forward enough to plant a dagger right in Eddie’s back. 

It was like Eddie was in his own personal hell, the depths of Saitan’s fire had nothing on the agony he was currently in. Here he was, sitting on Richie’s couch listening to his drunken rant and wishing that he didn’t get some kind of sick satisfaction from all of this. A piece of himself wanted to cave in, wanted to kiss Richie back-just like he had dreamt of a million times but he knew that if he wanted to come out of this alive he couldn’t give in now. “Stop.” Eddie groaned as he pressed against the trashmouth’s shoulders. Unlucky Richie tried to chase, “No. I said stop Richie.” 

“But I want this.” Richie whined, “I can love you Eds. I can learn to love you if we just gave it a chance.” 

“I don’t want you to learn to love me.” Eddie whispered, shaking his head. “I want-” But he stopped, unsure of his own words. What did he want? Yes, Richie was everything he had ever dreamt of, ever aspired to have but now that he knew that the only way they could be together is if Richie learned to love him rather than love him from the start-it wasn’t enough. Eddie deserved more, deserved better than this. “I wanted you to love me now, for who I am not just because Stan rejected you and maybe three months ago I would have settled for this but not now.” 

“But-but you love me. You said you love me.” 

“I do.” Eddie admitted, his heart shattering into a million pieces. Tomorrow Richie would wake up with a shitty hangover and stomp the remainder of it into the carpet without so much of a care. “And I think I always will.” 

“Then we can be together.” Richie half-shouted half-begged. 

“No.” It was like pulling a needle from the center of his chest, the pain was there but the sense of relief was so overpowering that tears sprang from his eyes. “No we can’t.” 

Richie whined, “Eds.” 

“I have to go.” Eddie said, firm and right. 

“No, don’t-you can’t-” 

But that was the thing, Eddie could. After all this time there was a sudden realization that he alone had the power to cut the ties that held him down, after fifteen years Eddie held the key to his freedom. There was no turning back as the winding road opened up right before him. “Goodbye Richie.” 

And with that Eddie left.

[neverwatchedonepiece]

652-654: "The Last - and Bloodiest - Block! Block D Battle Begins!", "A Decisive Battle! Giolla vs the Straw Hats!" and "Beautiful Sword! Cavendish of the White Horse!"

“Complication?” 

YOU ARE A CELESTIAL DRAGON!!

Or is he...?

Shins of Steel

Usually leave the huge reveals to the end but I can’t wait to talk about this major plot point, since it’s knocked a dent into my immovable “All Celestial Dragons Are Wet Lettuces” viewpoint. It’s like I smugly posted a “Change My Mind” meme and Doflamingo cracked his knuckles and proved me wrong.

Or did he?

After opening with Rebecca and Cavendish in the Colosseum (more on that later), the story veered back to Law, Doflamingo and Fujitora. I thought, “This is nice. Haven’t seen Law in a while. Let’s see what the rascal is up to.”

He was pretty much where Oda had left him: running like hell from a chuckling Doflamingo. And he was still reeling from Doflamingo’s deception.

“I have no interest in your past!” Law proclaimed. Which was totally unfair because I was definitely interested.  “The only people who can use the World Government to deceive us are Celestial Dragons!”

“So what?” Doflamingo answered.

At this point I figured Doflamingo somehow had them in his pocket. That Doflamingo was so wealthy and well-connected he could even manipulate them.

There was a flurry of attacks. Doflamingo pulled a Sasuke vs Orochimaru in the chuunin exams: wired up Law and pinned him to a tree. He was like, “You can’t buy any more time, Law.”

“You said it’s complicated before,” Law said, (buying time). What do you mean?”

But Doflamingo is not so easily led into talking.

“If you wanna chat, hand over Caesar and his heart first.”

“Caesar... no, those SMILEs are that important to you? I guess they are,” Law laughed. “Without the SMILEs, Kaidou’s gonna kill you and it’s all over for you.”

A different sort of attempt at buying time, as Law’s shit-talking made Doflamingo lose his temper and attack. Law shambled his way out of the literal bind but Doflamingo was too quick. It was lucky Fujitora was there because Doflamingo was ready to kill and loot for Caesar’s heart.

Boom went the gravity. Law was pinned to the ground beneath crushing force. (I think I’ve said this before but Fujitora’s power is... it’s just great.)

Doflamingo was like, “Wtf, Fujitora? I almost had him, you party pooper!”

Fujitora, who has played this entire situation suspiciously by-the-book, just said, “Gotta stop you right there, Heavenly Yaksha. I am here to arrest, not execute. Soz.”

Doflamingo had a quiet seethe to himself, then said, “FINE! But I need Caesar’s heart back.” Once Doflamingo stringed the heart into his hands, he cheered up a bit. The odds seemingly in his favour, he was more willing to talk. “By the way, you seem quite curious about that complication I mentioned. You wanna hear about it?”

At this point, I was thinking, “Law, if you do not say yes, I will start flipping tables.”

Luckily, Doflamingo was now in a talkative mood.

“A long time ago - it goes back eight-hundred years, Law - twenty kings from twenty countries came together at the centre of the world and formed one giant organisation. The World Government. The kings who created it decided to move to Mariejois and live there with their families. The Nefertari family of Alabasta refused, so there were nineteen, to be exact. The descendants of those creators who still live there and reign over the world are known as the Celestial Dragons. It means, however, that those nineteen countries lost their royal families eight-hundred years ago. In those countries, they elected new kings out of necessity and new royal families arose. In the case of my country, Dressrosa, the new royalty was the Riku Family. And the old family who moved to Mariejois as the creators of the world was the Donquixote family.”

THE DONQUIXOTE FAMILY.

“But, but, but....” I thought. “Weren’t all Celestial Dragons useless, dangerous spoiled brats like St Charloss and What’s-His-Face who washed up on Fishman Island?” Doflamingo is hyper-competent. How could this be?? Muh prejudices!

I guess that explained the Heavenly Yaksha nickname. Heavenly is similar to celestial, right? I suppose Vergo’s warning to Law, re. lack of knowledge on Doflamingo’s past also makes sense now. Law was technically pitting himself against a Celestial Dragon who can pull World Government-level strings. 

Not only that, but it seems the situation really is complicated.

Because Doflamingo had a bit more to say.

“So you’re called a Celestial Dragon, Doflamingo!” Law raged.

“I was. But not anymore. What is bloodline? What is destiny? I don’t think there are many people who have lived such a chequered life as mine. I wish I could tell the story of my life before I met you, over drinks. But I don’t have time for that. I’ve got to do something about the Strawhats in Dressrosa. I know there are quite a few people who underestimated them and got hurt.”

THANK YOU, ODA!

The plot gods have answered my plea. But these answers have raised only more questions.

1. Doflamingo used to be a Celestial Dragon. Not anymore. What happened? Did he abandon the rank willingly or was it taken from him? The whole “What is bloodline? What is destiny?” stuff is highly suspicious. Makes me think Doflamingo is not a fan of the Celestial Dragons.

2. The Riku Family. They were the ones who took over. They were elected fair and square. Everything seemed to be fine. Until Doflamingo came back to claim the territory his family abandoned eight-hundred years ago. Why return to Dressrosa? The answer to this question is probably tied up with point one.

3. The Nefertari were Originals. Even back then, the future Celestials must have been total moonfruits because the Nefertaris were like, “Ehhhh, nah, you guys go and have a good time on your island.” Imagine being stuck with those losers for eight-hundred years? No thanks.

4. Not underestimating the Strawhats. Doflamingo is smart. He has seen these new whippersnapper pirates topple too many Big Names and institutions to ignore the threat they pose to his territory. I actually cheered when he said this. A villain who can lay aside ego for the sake of the task at hand. I suppose Doflamingo does have the benefit of hindsight. Crocodile never had that luxury.

After that, there was a funny scene with Caesar and a heart-swap (Law still has his heart! Those heat-seeking Karma missiles are locked on Caesar. (LOCK ONNNNN!)) Fujitora also heard a KABOOM of thunder from the direction of the sea, even though the weather was perfectly calm. Law knew that would be Nami. The Strawhats were heading his way.

This was not a good thing.

Amid the chaos, Law made a desperate bid for freedom. Doflamingo pursued. He tried to lure him away but unfortunately, Doflamingo is smart.

Which leads us nicely to...

Debatable, But Okay...

(Side note: I loved how Toei segued seamlessly from Doflamingo’s sinister villain reveal laughter to Brook’s cheerful deceit laughter in 653. Did me a big lol there.)

And at first it seemed like Brook had found a new pal on Sunny. Not only that... he had betrayed the Strawhats? Surely not?

Had Soul King placed his art above his solid gold friendships with Nami and Chopper? Why was he hanging with Giolla? This was an outrage!

Giolla wanted to surprise Law (and gain Donquixote points) by picking up Caesar in Sunny instead of the Strawhats. Oh, what an excellent day it had turned out to be. Her latest art transformation depicted the tragedy of Dressrosa so perfectly! And it would only take ten more minutes for Nami, Chopper and Momonosuke to become part of her art and suffocate.

Like a total rookie, she babbled her plan to Brook, who smiled (if he could smile) and nodded and played the perfect gentleman. In the background, the others wailed and lamented Brook deserting them for art.

“May I play a song to celebrate?” he asked.

“Of course!”

“Then could you turn my violin and bow back to normal, please?”

Oh, Brook, you absolute legend. As soon as Giolla made that fatal error, Brook said, “You see this violin? There’s a cane sword inside. I already cut you.”

Suddenly, Brook was the hero! (Brook is always the hero.) Imagine doubting him, Nami and Chopper, you silly sausages!

There was a bit I didn’t like much that followed when they bickered over who would cuff Giolla. Nami demanded that Brook or Chopper did it, which was ridiculous because they are Devil Fruit eaters. If they touched those cuffs, their strength would sap and Giolla could overpower them. Nami, you should have done it. Doesn’t matter if you think you’re a coward or you view yourself as weak, you should have taken one for the team there. Not cool.

They spent so much time bickering, Giolla woke up and they missed the opportunity to restrain her. They were forced into fighting. Which was actually kind of good, in the end. Nami, Chopper and Brook used their heads to outsmart Giolla’s Giant Picasso Form and fire a Gaon Cannon bolt. Then Momonosuke shanked her from behind when she was down. Nami finished her off with a thunderbolt.

Teamwork, amirite?

Unfortunately, Fujitora heard the thunderbolt and told Doflamingo. So when they sailed round to Green Bit to collect Law and Caesar, Chopper saw the horrendous sight of Doflamingo approaching at speed through his binoculars.

I hope he recovers soon.

Who Says Zoro Can’t Compromise?

Once again, the Strawhats have split up. Usopp and Robin have reunited with Franky at the King Riku Army HQ beneath Flower Field. Zoro originally left with Wicka to check in on Sunny and rescue the others from Giolla, but met Sanji and Foxfire on the way.

Wick was like, “Who dat?”

In keeping with the Legendary Heroes names, Zoro introduced Sanji and Foxfire as Spiral-Brows-land and Topknot-Land (lmao)

Zoro updated Sanji on the dire situation on Sunny. Of course, Sanji was intent on rescuing Nami and the others, so Zoro stayed behind with Foxfire to find Luffy.

Then Violet appeared like a ninja from the shadows to tell him Giolla had hijacked Sunny. How did she know this?

Turns out she has a Very Useful Power.

Clairvoyance. It usually means seeing into the future, but it can also mean gaining information about a person, including their location, through extra-sensory perception. Nice. For Violet, this means she can see things within a 4000km radius, top-down, as a bird would. She is a walking surveillance satellite and can see everything going on in Dressrosa. She guided Sanji to Sunny and updated him on what was going on in Sunny. 

Like I said, a Very Useful Power.

But, since it is a Very Useful Power, the Donquixote Crew are not pleased that she’s betrayed them. Back at the palace, a new character called Gladius is Very Upset. Since he despises and wishes death upon people who cannot follow plans and are not punctual, I’m guessing Violet has used up her two strikes already and is dead to this hilarious weirdo. 

(Why does his hair explode?)

Violet eventually picked up Sunny and informed Sanji the dreadfully bad news that Sunny had been struck by lightning. She was puzzled when Sanji did not react as expected. Instead, he boosted with fury to the ship, where, I expect, he was surprised to find Doflamingo doing the exact same thing.

“Watch this, Law!” Doflamingo laughed. “I will viciously slay your allies right before your eyes!”

Doflamingo sure knows how to turn the thumb screws and punish people, doesn’t he?

But Sanji was like, “NOT TODAY, SATAN!”

He smashed shins with Doflamingo.

And I cheered.

Sanji, you have just gained all your cool points back. I forgive you for being distracted by Violet.

(Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that Bartolomeo recognised Zoro and totally splooshed on sight.)

Rebecca and Cavendish: You Beautiful Legends!

Now Doflamingo has spilled some of the beans on his past, his treatment of Rebecca is odd. If he wanted to get rid of the Riku Family, he could have easily killed her years ago. It’s almost like he wants to drag their memory and reputation thoroughly through the mud. If it’s a propaganda campaign, it makes sense. Keep the people blind to what’s been going on by dangling the scapegoat in front of them. But this is a cruel and unusual punishment. It’s almost like he actually *hates* the Riku family. Or am I reading way too much into this?

In the first scene of 652, Rebecca walked out into the ring. The way Oda had the crowd behave - reduced to shadows, red-eyed, shrieking, inhumane shapes - might be a dig at the sorts of people who love blood sports. Animals and humans risking their lives to entertain uncaring humans and prop up gambling industries.

The insults they hurled at Rebecca were harsh. “Drop dead, Rebecca!” “Foul blooded!” “Today’s your execution day!” “The shame of Dressrosa!” And the worst one, for some reason, “Set her on fire! That’ll make her pyro grandfather happy.”

Ooft. 

Well, it was pretty disgusting, and I wasn’t the only one who thought so.

Enter Cavendish on his Farul, his white horse.

Ohhhhhh, he was not happy. Not happy at all. He heaped abuse on the crowd and called out their rank hypocrisy.

“ENOUGH! I don’t care why you hate her so much but she’s a young woman who stands in the ring putting her life on the line. You guys are not risking yoru lives so you have no right to jeer at her. If you really want to kill her, take a weapon and come down to the ring yourself! The voices of people who have no guts are nothing but irritating noise! I have my reasons for entering this competition, but even so, I cannot stomach it. The lives and deaths of warriors are not a show!”

Well, Cabbage just earned himself some major cool points there. I was like, “YOU TELL ‘EM, CABBAGE! NO MERCY!”

Even Luffy agreed. “Oh, Cabbage spoke up and said the right thing. I’m impressed!”

Well.. sort of. 

“Still don’t like him, though.” (Lmao, Luffy.)

Cavendish’s impromptu speech had an interesting effect on the crowd. They still hate Rebecca but instead of focusing their abuse on her, they decided they would use all that energy to support Cavendish, instead. 

It’s a win-win situation. Rebecca can kick-ass in peace and Cavendish, well, since the crowd started chanting his name, he had a tear-filled, “YOU LOVE ME! YOU REALLY LOVE ME!” moment. 

He’s already contemplating his media strategy.

Classic Cavendish.

When Doflamingo’s here, and you feel the end is near. 

Diarrhea. Diarrhea.

[bloodmoonsabbvth]

Was tagged by @theashenone and @radiant-aether, thank you dear friends! <3 Love doing these

Favorite snack: For me it’s between chips / salsa and popcorn

Favorite place to go on vacation: I mean I haven’t been on too many vacations but going to visit extended family is always nice, if that counts!

What song makes you dance immediately: Your Mama Don’t Dance by Poison

Tea or coffee? What kind?: Not a huge fan of either to be honest.

Do you play an instrument?: Piano. Really wish I put more effort into finding time to practice tbh

What’s your favorite type of personality?: I guess someone who’s both laid-back, but also has strong values and will stand up for what they believe in. Probably more introverted but can be bubbly and loves making jokes 

Favorite comedian: Honestly I don’t watch enough stand-up comedy to have a favorite lol

Gummy candy or chocolate: Probably chocolate, although I do love me some gummies. But I’ve had some good shit from Austria and I just. Can’t say that European chocolate isn’t my favorite thing ever

What did you want to be when you grew up as a kid?: I wanted to be a geologist because I thought rocks were the coolest thing ever lol. Which I still do, but then I found out there’s a lot of math involved in science and it crushed my dreams 😂

What’s your favorite physical feature on yourself?: I’d say my eyes. That or my hair

When was the last time you watched a movie or tv show?: Literally just took a break from watching a Chinese drama to do this 😂 It’s called Meteor Garden btw and it’s ruining my life

Unpopular opinion: Looool here we go. Which one will cost me the least amount of followers? Errrr... the only one that comes to mind right now is that modern feminism is shit and either needs some serious revamping or should be done away with. All in favor of activism that helps, but today’s feminism doesn’t do that in my honest opinion

Are you scared of bugs?: Hell yes I am lol

Cats or dogs: Cats for sure. I do love dogs though

Does the description of your star sign match your personality?: Honestly, it’s never really seemed consistent. I’ve tried to buy into it to make myself feel validated but it’s never accurate lol. And so no offense to anyone who likes astrology, that’s totally cool, it’s just never seemed to have any basis in reality for me

Favorite accent: Scottish all the fuckin way, if you wanna be my lover you gotta have a Scottish accent. Or even just imitate it GOD it’s so sexy

Name the first song that pops into your head: Diamant by Rammstein

Sexiest person to you: Right now it’s Dylan Wang from the aforementioned drama I’m watching (yes, I’m aware that I’m shallow)

Cake or pie: Assuming I could eat them lol, I would pick [vanilla] cake. Although apple pie a la mode makes a strong case

Last time you read a whole book: Oof. From start to finish? It’s been a hot minute. I believe when I reread Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Favorite junk food: Zebra cakes and toaster strudels come to mind first, although sadly I cannot eat either of those, so I guess I gotta go with muh European chocolate

Do you like your height?: I mean, it would be nice to be able to reach the highest shelf in the cupboard without having to climb on the counter, but I don’t mind it lol

Apples or oranges: Apples

Favorite personality trait in someone: Someone who’s consistently caring. 

Do you like salad?: Depends on the type of salad, I really like when there’s fruit and cinnamon bits added

What person inspires you the most?: Uhhhh I guess not one specific person but just like. People who have gone through a lot of hardships and still choose to think positively. That shit takes a hell of a lot of work and strength, and always helps me to realize that it is indeed possible to get through the tough stuff and be happy

What song has made you cry?: “You Are My Sunshine” by Johnny Cash. It reminds me of my great-grandmother, my childhood and heartbreak

Being lazy and not tagging anyone again, if you wanna do this just say I tagged ya! :)

[outlawsofavalon]

Deejay, the Great and Terrible

So imagine that you’re a minstrel dropped into this world from a faraway fairytale universe, and your first encounter with 21st-century music went like this:

“Whoa-oh-whoa-oh-whoa —

Putcho hands up, hands up!

Shawty on the dance floor,

Shakin’ it like what, wha-what?!

I’mma be with muh baby in the club,

Goin’ all night long!

Don’t you stop my song, dee-ee-jay…”

Teeth gritted in pain, Allyn forced his hands away from his ears long enough to press the power button a second time, bathing the car in near-silence once more. He glowered at Will Scarlet. “What in all hells was that?!”

“I gather that whoever played the radio last was somewhat hard of hearing,” Will said, bouncing back from a cringe of his own. “Though whether they started out hard of hearing, or only became so after listening to hip-hop at such a volume for any extended space of time, is anybody’s guess.”

[...] Brow puckered, he tried again, his finger unintentionally sliding a little bit lower. It proved a happy accident, for the radio abruptly forsook the song about the hip-hop minstrel’s encounter with the highwayman called Deejay (or such was Allyn’s best guess as to what the lyrics had been going on about)...

(From “The Ballad of Allyn-a-Dale”, emphasis added)

Weird, sure, but as an isolated incident, it’s just one random nonsense song.

Except the more you listen to hits on the radio, the clearer it becomes that this Deejay person is no mere highwayman.

Clubbers everywhere are praying to this character as if he holds their hearts in his hands.

“DJ give us something to ride to”

“Play my song, Mr. DJ, I’m in love with the DJ”

“Oh DJ, ease my mind will you”

“I love the DJ, the DJ loves me”

“DJ’s got the party started, there’s no end in sight”

“I’m so into you ‘cause I love the DJ”

“Last night a DJ saved my life” 

“The DJ’s gonna save us, DJ’s gonna save us tonight”

“Listen to what the DJ’s spinnin’, he’s tappin’ into just what you’re feelin’”

“Close your eyes to the DJ, close your eyes and fade away”

“DJ! Don’t do this to me - I tried to do my best - I tried not to sing out of key - DJ! Don’t you dare to leave - I tried to be the one - and now I’m on my knees!”

“Don’t blame the world, it’s the DJ’s fault”

*record scratch*

What are you, otherworld minstrel, to make of it all? You never once doubted that music has power, but this...

Is the Deejay a wizard?? A legion of demons?? A sentient drug?? Is he God???

In Deejay we move, in Deejay we love, in Deejay we trust! Don’t abandon us, Deejay! We pump blood to your beat! We succumb to your groove! Don’t take my baby from me, Deejay!

It’s Deejay’s party, and we’re just living in it! But of course are those who resist.

Rebel leader Ke$ha declares “it’s time to kill the lights and shut the DJ down”. She’s backed up by The Smiths, calling for the people to “burn the disco, hang the blessed DJ”.

It is to be war.

And you can only wonder... when the smoke clears... when silence falls ... who will be left standing on the dance floor?

[imarvelatthesight]

Prince

A/N: I know I’m like the only person who cherishes Martin Freeman, but this scenario has been floating in my head for a while and it was too cute to resist. This is fluffy so be prepared to be bombarded with awkward flirting. Also please don’t think I’m trying to be offensive? I’m American but I understand that most of these are just stereotypes (though my friend from the UK would beg to differ).

Recommended song: She Looks So Perfect by 5 Seconds of Summer

Pairing: Martin Freeman x fem!American!celebrity!reader

Warnings: kinda fluffy, talk of stereotypes, did someone say cute Martin Freeman?

When you began dating Martin Freeman, you knew there would be a difference in the things you did. You were quite frantic the first time you saw him walk to the right side of the car after he claimed he wanted to drive. That’s not even mentioning the first time you heard him say ‘crisps’ instead of potato chips.

Your favorite thing was how he greeted you every morning. With his face nuzzled into your neck, he would sleepily mumble, “Morning, love”. You never got over it; he was just too damn cute. You sported a necklace with the UK flag on it often. 

Martin held your hand loosely as you two sat on a stage of sorts for an interview. When he turned and smiled at you, you knew that you had tuned out whatever the interviewer asked you. “Um, what’re we doing? I was off in my own little world just then.” They both laughed at you.

“That’s fine,” The interviewer grinned. “I asked if you would like to compare some of the differences between your American speech and such to Martin’s British dialect.” You nodded at him. “Great. Now I’ll hold up this card that will either have a word or picture on it, and you’ll tell me how you say the word or what you call the thing in the picture.”

He pulled up the first card, which read ‘massage’. You looked at Martin, your lips slightly parted. 

“Muh-saj.” You said slowly, emphasizing every syllable. 

“Mah-saj.” The corners of your boyfriends lips twisted into a smile. 

You looked right into the interviewer’s camera, similar to how Jim from The Office would have. 

But it was the next card that really got you. “Pacifier.”

“Dummy.” You locked eyes with Martin. “What? Why pacifier?”

“Because it pacifies babies! Why dummy?” You laughed, unsure of how he would explain. He simply shrugged at you. “We’re gonna have a discussion about this later.” 

You did, hours later, in fact. The both of you had just finished dinner, and had started a horror film. You were snuggled against Martin’s side. “I can’t believe you say ‘dummy’ instead of pacifier.” 

He hummed lowly. “Our dialect is fancier.” A chuckle escaped him. “Sexier.” You let out a little ‘oh my god’ before pressing your nose to his cheek. He turned to match you. 

“Are you some English prince or something?” You joked, gently giving him an eskimo kiss. “Drinking tea constantly, soon you’ll say ‘pip pip cheerio’ every time you leave.”

Martin tangled his fingers in your hair. “Firstly, ow, stereotypes. Secondly, tea is good.” You sighed and rested your head on his shoulder. “Y/N, love?” He whispered after you hadn’t moved for a few minutes. When he realized you were asleep, Martin carefully slipped away and covered you with a blanket, placing a soft kiss on your forehead.

“Hmph. A prince,” He murmured, “no, but you’re a queen.”