#I DON'T CARE IF DAXTON WINS

[leoalvarez-clowncarcommittee]

Sprite Objectification Poll Round 2

[pcpulr]

" im not picking sides. i would be there for you too if you needed me. we were all friends at one point, ash. the three muskateers even." when moving to their block as a kid, it was a nerving feeling. they moved to their neighborhood from cuba. her family knew little to no english, except for carmen and luna. they were the ones to translate to their parents. being the new faces in such a small town. it was a hard transition but she couldn't have done it without daxton and ashton. they made them feel welcomed and settle into the town. carmen grew close to the twins, especially with ashton. they became the best of friends and eventually with daxton, who mostly clung on. " i don't know what else you want from me, ash." carmen rubbed her forehead, sighing. " i can't win on any side." carmen was always the middle man between the twins. even after all these years, she was fighting for her life to defend her choices between the two. it was frustrating and drained the life out of her. yet she wouldn't give both of them up for the world. they all had too much history together that kept their relationships strong. she dropped her hand and looked at them. " either you deal with it, or don't. i don't even know if i care enough of what you think or say to me at this point. i've made my choice and im not going to go back on it."

as much as ashton didn't want to admit it, carmen was right, they needed each other but they couldn't just ignore what was happening to her. "you were my best friend hurting, more than i've ever seen anyone hurt before. i did what i had to because i love you." the last thing ashton wanted was for carmen to feel like she had been a bad friend, she hadn't, not in ashton's eyes. "i don't want you to feel guilty about things you did and did not do, better or not. it's my shit that i have to deal with when i'm ready and i'm sorry that puts you in a tough position." they listened to her speak, unsure what she expected when she allowed daxton back into her life. "it was always going to happen, whether you realised it or not. i am trying to see your point of view but i realised i never will. you love them in a way that i can't understand, your feelings, your thoughts, they're shrouded in love and that's your business but you can't expect me to see things the way you do."

"you had every right to feel a certain way, you two were together for years." ashton stayed quiet for a moment before continuing, "i don't think there will ever be a day that you don't love them." only when ashton started seeing svea could they relate to how carmen felt for daxton. the powerful kind of love, a love you never want to give up on, that you'd do anything to keep. ashton admired carmen's ability to forgive, not not hold onto the hate she had every right to. it gave ashton some peace knowing dax didn't think they deserved another shot with her. it took a moment for ash to digest everything carmen had said, "exactly, there are consequences and until i'm ready, if ever, they can continue to live a life without me in it." they wanted to believe her but did they know it wasn't just a show for her, doing what she wanted to get back into her pants, which had clearly worked for them. "i thought you said you're not picking sides? it's okay though, i've always known where you stood. i just hope you haven't made a mistake."

[rainparadefromhell]

tw// LOL a think piece by me about daxton and s3 expectations (it is long bc i am bored and extremely opinionated)

(if you are a daxton fan please try reading with an open mind as i am making commentary on tv romance and ship dynamics on a broader scale than just why i dislike your ship. at the end of the day we are all here to have fun and it is perfectly fine to like whatever you like!)

Putting all of my anti daxton jokes aside, I would actually love to see Mindy handle their storyline with respect and their, in my opinion unavoidable break up, with some cleverness. I don't hate Paxton and I don't wish him any harm, just to clarify!

I know nhie is a comedy show and its point isn't to make some big commentary on romantic high school relationships but i think it is a great opportunity to show young impressionable people that you shouldn't hide the parts of yourself to win over someone's affection. You shouldn't change for them or just want to be with them because of societal pressures. I am team benvi but I do realize that Devi isn't ready for a relationship and her ending up single would be fine with me. What I do not stand for is this horrible notion in teen rom coms and rom coms in general that portrays girls and women like some desperate for love, would do anything to get it creatures. I will say this description does suit Devi for now - she is a (young!) nerdy, insecure and traumatized girlie that just wants a boyfriend. Ain't nothing wrong with that! And ain't nothing wrong with having a kind of superficial relationship when you are that young. I do understand that. But if we are taking the longevity of the show into account, I want to see Devi mature and learn.

And maturing means understanding that you ARE deserving of love AND respect! This is not to shame Paxton, he is a kid as well but why aren't we teaching young women what it means to love and be loved? And not even love, just how to feel respected in a relationship, even a silly high school one. How much time it takes and sacrifice, yes, but not at the expense of losing yourself in that person. Why aren't we teaching young men how not to feel pressured by your friends to obtain an image? I see that a lot among boys. The feeling like you can't share your feelings and that masculinity means pretending like you don't care about anything and that nothing fazes you.

Imagine if the show went in deeper into THOSE topics and not just have Paxton have one panic attack and 3 days later he is magically okay. This is where I fail to connect to his character and I would argue that that is not his fault. I just don't understand how the same writers that wrote these three amazing characters with the most depth in the show (Devi, Ben and Nalini) won't do that for the rest of them (there is probably not enough time but c'mon Paxton is a pretty big character).

I also see a lot of discourse about daxton and the idealization of their relationship from young people (not all of them are young of course but I am talking about influencing young people here) and it makes me sad sometimes. Not because I look down on them (bc i ship benvi) but because this trope, if you will, is all over media. We've seen it a million times. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of the message that it's "cute" to pine over someone that isn't really that interested. That the crumbs that this person gives you sometimes are acts of love or romance (like climbing through your window to make out or saying "Damn Devi are you really gonna make me say it" when asked if you are committed, or showing up with your tail between your legs at a dance). I'm sorry but that isn't romantic and shouldn't be viewed as such! It is teaching young girls to settle and conform if they want love. And that is absolute bullshit! You are deserving and perfectly able to find someone that is going to communicate with you in a healthy way and treat you the way you want to be treated. And this goes both ways! Devi should communicate all the issues and things that bother her to Paxton!

It would be fine and I wouldn't be writing this now if Devi is a type of girl that is fine with being casual and not putting much effort and passion into things. But she is not and that is where Paxton and Devi's love languages will probably never meet in the middle. And that's okay! As long as they realize that in s3 and talk about it and end things with no hard feelings. Devi now understands what she wants in a relationship and even better how to ask for it. This would be my perfect ending for s3.

(i need to take a break from the nhie tag now like i've got actual college papers to do lol-)

[rainparadefromhell]

i am ready to fight anyone who says they don't ship daxton bc paxton's hot. like even if you don't ship it for that reason specifically or exclusively, the whole basis of their relationship is that he's popular, she's not but he's gonna choose her bc... reasons??? and the only reason he's in that position (being the popular guy) is bc he's an athlete and hot! i am willing to put actual money on the fact that ppl wouldn't defend him so passionately if he wasn't good looking bc his whole character doesn't make sense without that! if he wasn't, devi wouldn't have to try so hard to win him over bc he wouldn't care what others think so much.

what i am trying to say is, it's fine to ship daxton ofc, ppl can do whatever they want but saying that paxton being conventionally attractive isn't one of the main things you find appealing about the ship is silly bc their whole dynamic relies on it.

(also, this is just personal preference, of course, and i'm not trying to invalidate anyone's feelings but the least attractive thing ever about a ship to me is feeling like you're inferior to that person and that you have to try sooo hard to earn their affection. like it just seems kinda....sad to me. why would you go after someone who's not really that interested? but again, that is just MY preference.)

[emmamayhews]

I'm scared but kinda reassured too. If there's a season 3, then I think it would be the last one. Netflix has a history of sticking to 3 seasons for their original shows. Throwing conflict Ben at daxton too early is unlikely because they seem like they want to really explore the relationship. It's good because they would be giving them a fair shot. The bad is: the endgame is up for grabs in the last stretch of episodes. I don't care for "endgame" if the ship isn't properly explored so it's a win for me. At the same time, I don't want to feel the bitter aftertaste of a break up when the endgame is in reach.

Unless (!) they treat the Ben issue completely separate from daxton because his feelings for Devi and Aneesa, whatever they may be, is his issue to solve. I may be biased but I really believe the only person who needs to end this show single is Ben. Not because lonely boy is faithed to be alone. Because you need to be comfortable being alone if you want to be comfortable in a relationship, and that guy is always getting in relationships.

But this is still a teen drama, so I'm not holding my breath for scenario #2.

Maitreyi, Darren, Jaren and Lang talk about a potential season 3.

[softdrabbles]

"you know exactly what i'm talking about, svea. i know how they work, i know how they operate. i've seen it all before." ashton could feel all the eyes on them but they were far too distracted to care. the anger and pain raged inside them, with no control whatsoever. they shook their head scoffing, "you wouldn't know the first thing about respect, daxton, so if i were you i'd be very fucking quiet." carmen's voice finally pulled their attention away from their twin, their eyes lingering for a moment with such pain and disgust before moving to their best friend. the look that they were met with was one they had never seen before from her, in all the years they'd known each other, through all the arguments and fights. it almost made them flinch, almost. ashton had never been so worked up in their life, their heart pounded in their chest, wanting nothing more than for daxton to feel the pain that they had made them feel.

"no, you're right, it's not. you want me to make this about you? the minute they came back it was like you forgot what they did to you, how much pain they put you through, you didn't even have the audacity to tell me they were here, knowing how i felt but not only that, you asked them to stay and you didn't expect something like this to happen? what did you expect, carmen? i can't just let it go, i'm not like you. they can do no wrong in your eyes. you let them weave their way back into your life and once more, they've got their hooks in you. we barely even see each other anymore and when we do it's daxton this, daxton that." they'd been so caught up in their tirade to even notice that she'd started crying. right now, carmen was collateral damage. "you're right, i am really fucking hurt." ashton's issues ran much deeper than anyone expected and with daxton returning, they felt abandoned by carmen, which triggered many other abandonment issues from their parents, from daxton. "and i told you i'd try but mark that down as a failure, just like your washed up lap dog."

daxton couldn't help but feel guilty for how ashton was behaving. they were the one that had hurt them so badly. the one that caused them all the pain. they could see it in every inch of their twin's body. ashton had never acted out like this before, that they had seen and especially towards carmen. the only thing that came close to this was when they were being kicked out of their house. it was hard to watch ashton put the nails in the coffin between themselves and carmen. carmen meant everything to ashton and they were throwing away their friendship as if it was nothing..over them. it was obvious that ashton had an issue with the two of them reconnecting but that wasn't something that was going to change.

seeing carmen so visibly upset broke their heart and they wished they could make ashton pay for what they were doing to her but they couldn't, a scene had already been made, it didn't need to be made worse by them and show everyone that ashton wasn't wrong about them. in another life, daxton wouldn't have hesitated to let let the anger win, to retaliate. they did their best to control their breathing, to keep calm for carmen's sake. gently, they reached for the woman's hand, soothing the skin on top with their thumb. she didn't deserve this, especially not on her birthday. "you don't need to listen to this," they spoke to her softly, "let me help clean you up?" more than anything dax wanted to pull her into them and shield her from ashton's words but they knew it could only make it worse. "whatever our differences are, your problem with me, that's between us. how dare you stand there and talk to her like that after everything, but i'm the bad guy, right?" they reached to wipe a tear from carmen's stained cheek, "i got you."

everything seemed to happen so fast. svea was chatting with daxton and suddenly here came ashton coming up to them and blowing up at daxton. " wait what?" was svea's reaction from ashton accusing of daxton of trying to flirt with, let alone take, svea. " what are you talking about, ashton?" now seeing everyone's eyes on all of them made her uneasy. svea was one to diffuse the tension between others but considering this was coming from a place of hurt, she understood. however, it wasn't the time and place. she agreed with carmen. " carm is right, ash. it's not the time and place. you can say anything you want to daxton but not right here."

her blood was boiling. there weren't times where carmen was mad at ashton. they had their own silly fights like they were siblings of some kind but this time? it was different. her jaw was clenched. tonight was the night for celebrating her birthday with the people she loved and now it no longer was that. " have you thought about that this isn't about you or about daxton, ashton?" she snapped. her eyes were glaring, but hurt, at ashton. possibly a look that she had never given ashton. at least not one that was as painful as mad looks she had given them. " not everything is about you and how you felt about your sibling. nor is it really about daxton either. you're hurt we get it. you were my savior during all those times and i appreciate that so much. but you know who you are hurting right now? me." both twins hurting her in separate ways was something she didn't except but here it was. her own best friend causing her pain was a whole different thing. with that thought alone, her eyes began to brim with tears. " you can't be the knight in shining armor you claim to be and still hurt me in the end." tears ran down her face. " i wanted this one thing, ashton. all i asked was for a peaceful celebration and for everyone to put their differences aside. i don't even ask for much.