#I know I'm missing tons of stuff that the show has yet to touch on
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I cannot fathom what the plot of V10 would even be if it really does become the final season.
Like, regardless if that's really what's gonna happen or not, IF V10 even happens, I'm just thinking hypothetically.
We just had an entire Volume of nothing of actual importance happen, and then.....????????
Sure, we saw some shit with Summer. But all that really did was provide more questions and kinda just stoke people's already ongoing theories and such.
Even learning about The Tree and the Gods and such was meaningless, and our characters didn't actually grow in any meaningful way.
So it really boils down to: V8 had all Hell break loose, the main cast and 1 cockroach fall into the void, Salem got 2 relics, and an entire Kingdom and then some got dumped onto another in the middle of a sandstorm.
Then the characters from the Void just show up to continue the plot.
So I'm really struggling to see what could possibly get resolved in any meaningful way...
Cuz we still have:
Tyrian & Mercury already at Vacuo
The relic from Beacon still not found
No idea how to actually beat Salem
The possible merging of Oscar & Oz
Winter being a Maiden
The summer Maiden still not heard of or seen
Summer Rose and whatever the fuck happened there
Raven, as she is still a Maiden and a charceter that SHOULD have relevance, especially now with the news of the Summer Secret
Silver Eyes to actually be relevant to the plot
SEWs being made into Grimm
Where is Pietro & Maria
Penny's death & Jaune's part in it actually being addressed (saying "they talked about it off screen" doesn't count)
Neo's whole thing
And just so much more.... like SO much more!
There's 2 main ways (that may just kinda merge into 1) the heros could win as things stand: The villains keep screwing themselves over or switching sides and end up helping (intentionally or not) to defeat Salem, or, they toss Salem into a portal that sends her directly to the Tree in Ever After and she's forced to Ascend 😑
Awful bonus points if it's Jaune that pushes her.
Like...... even with a whole Volume of content, I really don't see a satisfying conclusion or one that even really makes sense.
I'm kinda hoping they don't even try to make a finale. If it dies here and now, it'd be a mercy
#rwde#Knees Talkin#tag later#I know I'm missing tons of stuff that the show has yet to touch on#and that list is in no particular order or importance#but each of those plot points would require so much time devoted to them to flesh out#Glynda!! forgot about her! be good to get her fleshed out and such too#but yeah.... trying to think of how they'd even end off this show hurts the brain#but I'm interested to see if anyone has any ideas just for fun XD
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Todays rip: 15/05/2024
Mallstep‼️
Season 8 No Album Release (Read More)
Ripped by BluLuigi7
youtube
Can I just say: I am SO happy to see that Jay Eazy posting is still going so strong past January 7th? Like, we pretty firmly established back with Hella Pummel that venula is the champion of Jay Eazy posting, but we've had tons of other talented rippers take their own crack at it - there's circunflexo back with You Are Book Smart, of course, but also the focus of today's rip - BluLuigi7. After making the first-ever Jay Eazy Raft Ride with She Gon Make Me Ride On Her Raft Like I'm Link‼️, he's finally ready for the main stage with perhaps one of my favorite Jay Eazy rips to date - or, if nothing else, one of the most creative ones.
See, a lot of people still only really know Jay Eazy as the funny Mega Man rapper, and fair enough - it is a very funny video, and a lot of his music sounds rather...homogeneous, for lack of a better word. But there is a silver lining to his songs sounding so similar, in that rips like Mallstep‼️ are able to leverage different ones at the same time without it clashing. Indeed, Mega Man is only one part of the rip, the part that introduces the rip with the iconic "Yo bro, why are you doing that??" - but after the most iconic bars of said song drop, it changes seamlessly to using Respect Your Elders without missing a beat. And honestly, that's absolutely the right call for a song like Pigstep, I think Respect Your Elder's flow fits the track far better - but I love that Mega Man still gets incorporated AT THE SAME TIME as the former song, with it being used as a backing layer to the whole thing.
It's just a very clever rip all around, tons of small touches you'd otherwise find unneeded but just make the rip funnier in the long run - small uses of sound effects call to mind rips like Locked In The Underground except here done explicitly for comedic purposes, playing a sudden Nutshack sample when Jay Eazy says "nuts" or a reverb fart SFX far in the distance when the lyrics mention "shittin' on 'em". It's primarily a mashup at first, but with tons of these small additions throughout, little edits to how Respect Your Elders flows through Pigstep's ebb-and-flow lead melody, all of course culminating in a fully pitch shifted section at the rip's melody. The Jamminest Of All is a recent example of it, but these kinds of surprise pitch-shifting rips are always a favorite - it can be overbearing at times if done for an entire rip, yet it adds just enough variety when used as spice to an already fantastic rip like it is here.
The point is - a rip like Mallstep‼️ is at once very funny through its concept alone, but elevated even more through how prominently BluLuigi7's own character shines through it. It feels like a flex in the best ways possible, a big grab-bag of additional notes onto an already super-solid rip. The star of the show, fittingly enough, is the short little nod to Starboy near the rips end, which was the joke in one of the first-ever Pigstep rips on the channel in I'm a motherh*cking Starpig, a rip that's evidently still remembered fondly even four years later. I received a comment a while back noting that nobody loves SiIvaGunner as much as the team itself, and it's the stuff like what Mallstep‼️ pulls that keeps reminding me of that: the rips made by people like BluLuigi7 who just love having fun with their ideas althewhile paying small tributes to past rips on the channel. Hugely popular rips like Stickerbrush Queen are far from the only ones to get references like this, and it always makes me so happy to see, to be reminded that each individual ripper has their internal web of rips that means more to them than I've ever considere that they could.
Back to the rip as a whole, though - it just kind of bangs in that very particular Jay Eazy way. For as stupid as his music may be to some, it's difficult not to love with everything that the meme of his music has wrought. So much passion from the side of the internet that just loves to have fun spawned purely from a guy promoting his music in a bizarre way on TikTok, and Mallstep‼️ is just one of many examples - a rip that has fun with its concept, fun with the very channel its on, but most crucially of all exudes the fun energy of its very ripper in spades. To say that I'm happy that Jay Eazy is a reoccurring gag on the channel would be a grave understatement: I'm looking forward to just how many fun ways his music will be reinterpreted with next with far too much excitement, and thus far SiIvaGunner has not yet failed to deliver in regards to fresh ways to go about it.
#todays siivagunner#season 8#siivagunner#siiva#BluLuigi7#Youtube#minecraft#pigstep#minecraft music#lena raine#celeste#minecraft ost#mojang#jay eazy#mega man
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sadly I can't really get into Killing Eve, but I *still* see "it's queerbaiting cos they haven't had sex yet" and my god ppl please, critically think for once?
Yeah, I don't know what to think about this one! I do get the sense that the show shies away from committing to their romantic connection sometimes; I definitely wouldn't have thought this to be the case after season three's finale had a lot of overtly romantic interactions between them (the DANCING the BRIDGE!), but season four kinda seems to be resetting the dynamic between them somewhat from what we've seen so far. (And it's been a little confusing because I cannot for the life of me tell if they had a falling out that we missed that we'll eventually be told more about or if we're just supposed to read their current interaction as what came right after s3!) However: there are still five episodes left in the season, so I'm not making a judgment yet because I still think there's tons of room for tons of stuff to happen.
I do think that Villanelle's love for Eve -- transformed from her earlier urge to possess her -- was articulated very beautifully in this most recent episode, and I'm really curious to see if this season we get to finally see Eve in a place where she can have those feelings back. At this point, I have no idea what to expect, but you do get the sense that narratively, that's where the show has always been going, ya know??
Anyway: I do think there's something to be said for the idea of something being romantic -- especially big R Terror And Awe Romantic -- specifically because the characters haven't had sex yet, which I think is the realm Killing Eve has always lived in and very likely will always live in. I personally am okay with that! I get why people are frustrated, but I don't think this is the show to look to for healthy relationship representation. (Which, duh, haha!) Even though I would love to see them actually be together, especially over many episodes, and I think their chemistry is so great that it would be a joy to witness, I also think that this show has always fundamentally been about the chase and the distance and I thiiiiiiiink I'm okay with that even through to the end. I like the crackling energy between them where the touch of a hand can be Everything!!
And like, yes, obviously they are both not straight women and obviously they are romantically obsessed with each other! Maybe the worry here is more like ... happily ever after-baiting? Although I don't think they've ever done that in the paratext of the show either, from what I recall. I think we all just want them to live happily, morally-wretchedly ever after, because we care about these characters and their relationship and it would be amazing. But I don’t know that not getting that is the show really breaking a promise; I don’t know if that’s ever a promise the show has made.
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𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 | 𝐒𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐬𝐚 𝐊𝐢𝐲𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐢 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧| 𝐇𝐚𝐢𝐤𝐲𝐮𝐮 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧 | 𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆
Alright, just want to put out there that I do NOT SUPPORT cheating. I'm going to write one where I might just lash out at OMI. Hmm, I don't like cheating for personal reasons, but I just don't think it's right.
So, for my previous post, I want to clarify that he did not full-on kiss the close friend but maybe like a lip to lip touch only; that was what I was going for initially.
Now, I want to write something that really hurts because I'm just reminded of something.
But, this post might be triggering and sad.
Warning (s): mentions of cheating, strong language, hospitals and breakups.
a/n: omg i didn't know i was going to write this long. just's a heads up, i used the she/her pronouns!
Enjoy...
Sakusa Kiyoomi
You felt like your relationship with Sakusa was slowly breaking down.
It was becoming toxic for you and him; it was not working out like last time.
When you guys fought in the past, you two would make up the next day, but these days, he stays out and comes back once every few days.
You tried calling him and even staying up to wait for him, but he never came home.
All the stress from your work and your relationship problems were becoming troubling for your body.
Still, you want to make this relationship work. You have been together with Sakusa for five years, almost half of your youth.
You two have been with each other through ups and downs; you guys can work this out.
Or so you thought.
It has been weeks that you tried to meet him and call him to have dinner together so that you two can have a proper conversation and makeup.
He never replies to your texts or calls.
When you are out at work, he only returned to the apartment to collect a change of clothes and belongings.
You noticed that his stuff was slowly getting removed, and you dread the worst.
Hell, you really wanted to confront him and ask him for the truth.
How did you two end up in this state?
You confide in your best friend that you consider as your sister from another womb. Since you only have brothers.
Your boss was being extra generous and gave you half a day off, considering that you have been overworking and decided to make his favourite dinner.
You bought tons of food so that you two can bond again and work the problems out.
It was a good day, and you were feeling hopeful.
Oh, hell no.
You felt your stomach dropped as you noticed the familiar pair of heels and that customised sneakers.
You heard giggles and moans.
There he was, half-naked and full-on making out with your best friend that you consider as your sister.
She hurriedly stops Sakusa when she noticed you.
Your knuckles were turning white from your grip.
"So this was why you have been avoiding me? I see two of my best friends hooking up. Ah, you must be glad that I was a fool so that you two can fool behind my back, huh?" You let out a bitter laugh and took a deep breath.
"How long has this been going on?" You asked the two of them.
"Six months."
They have been seeing each other for six months, and you spend all your tears on these two people you trust the most. They were your world.
"Was it fun? Hmm, Hanari? Tell me? How was it fucking your best friend's boyfriend knowing all of our relationship problems? Six months...I can't believe it. I must look like a fool where I pour my heart and tears to you about my relationship, and you two were fucking behind my back." Your eyes have gone completely dull, and the tears were threatening to spill.
"Kiyoomi, I was the one trying to work things out and trying to make this relationship work. What about you? I know that you are tired from your practice, and you could not even bother trying in this relationship?
How about me, huh? I am exhausted from taking care of patients and trying to please you. Was this relationship all about you?
Hanari, I know you like him since high school but just didn't have the balls to confess before I did. I felt bad, but now, I don't. But, as my best friend, how could you?
I am over this. Enjoy my sloppy seconds, Hanari. I hope you two are happy. Thank you, you assholes."
You flipped them off and turn your back on them. Before you even reach the door, you felt a sharp pain on your right cheek and taste blood in your mouth.
"Well, I guess you can't even handle words that you need to resort to physical violence." You threw her a nasty glare and walks out of that apartment and both of their lives.
Once you reach your car, you collapse on the car seat in excruciating pain.
It started when you confront them, and you felt the sharp pain in the lower right side of your abdomen. You could not raise your voice at them as it worsens the pain.
Your hand trembles as you reach for your phone to call someone to come and get you as you can't drive due to the pain.
"Oh, why are ya callin' me? Did ya miss me?"
"Tsumu, can you come to the parking lot in my apartment building? It's urgent." You requested, trying to pace your breathing.
"What's wrong? Are ya okay? Hey, I'm comin', hang in there."
You ended the call and laid back on the seat. It hurts so much that you feel like fainting.
Though it was only a ten-minute wait, it felt like ages for you.
"Oh lord, I'm glad I pull Samu along. Can ya walk?" He asked you, and you shook your head. He tries his best to make a minimal movement, but he sees you grimace at every small movement he makes.
Osamu got behind the wheel, and Atsumu cradle you close to his chest.
You whimpered in pain and clutch on to his sweatshirt tightly.
"Where's Omi? Didn't he went home earlier to get ya?" You shook your head, tears slowly trickling down your cheeks.
He knew something was wrong but decided to not probe you anymore.
You were immediately wheeled in, and Atsumu were left to handle your paperwork. Osamu sighed and started contacting his girlfriend that he might not return back today.
Hearing that you were hospitalised, she told Osamu that she would be driving up there.
Atsumu tries not to show his nervousness, but as his twin, Osamu clearly knows that he is distraught for you. Your boyfriend was supposed to be here, taking Atsumu place, but instead, he was nowhere to be found.
You were in so much pain that you could not even drive and had to ask Atsumu, who is an amateur driver.
"Doctor y/l/n requires immediate operation since she has a ruptured appendix. May I know who is her next of kin?" The assistant doctor asked and Atsumu followed after him to wrap up the paperwork for you.
Atsumu watches you slowly breathe in and out in a constant manner and gently brushes your hair away from your pale face.
He called and informed Sakusa about your hospitalisation, but his teammate just told him that he was just exaggerating and you were just down with the flu.
You were still in a deep sleep from the anaesthesia.
"Hey, how is she?" Mira, Osamu's girlfriend, asked Atsumu.
"She just came out from surgery about three hours ago. So, she's still asleep. Her brothers are coming tomorrow." Mira lets out a sigh and gently holds your hand.
She heard about Sakusa from Osamu and almost wanted to storm to his apartment and drag his ass here.
"I think the two of them broke up. She called me and asked me to pick her up, and she was hunched over in pain. Sakusa left practice early saying that he was going to pick her up, but it was a lie."
Mira lightly pats your hand and heads out of the private ward.
After Mira left, you squinted your eyes and grimaced at the faint pain on your right side.
"Oh, thank the lord you're awake! Do you know how worried I was? What happened between you and Omi?"
"We broke up. He cheated. I'll be fine." Even though you say that you would be fine, you can't help but feel the hot tears spill.
Atsumu pulls you to his chest and pats your back gently.
"Hey, I'll be here for ya. Don't ya worry, 'kay? Don't waste yer precious tears on someone who doesn't deserve it. Take care of yourself, 'kay?" He gently wipes the tears away from your cheeks and places a light kiss on your forehead and heads out of your ward for you to rest.
It's all going to be okay, you still have other people that care for you.
He never came to the hospital to check on you after you collapse in the parking lot. In fact, he released an announcement about the breakup.
Your brothers held back a lot when they went to pick up your belongings.
Atsumu offered for you to temporarily to stay at his place until you find a place for yourself.
You knew that Atsumu has been by your side this whole time and his feelings for you, but you just need to confirm it.
"Hey, ready to go?" He arrived just in time.
"Tsumu, I want to ask you something and you have to be honest with me." You pats the empty space beside you. He sat down beside you and you took his hand and held in your small hands.
"Do you have feelings for me?"
He froze and blinked at you.
"I know. Since a long time ago." His face fell and he braced for the rejection that was going to happen soon.
"Loosen up. I'm not ready for a relationship yet but if you can wait, I'm taking that confession."
Atsumu's expression lights up and he threw his arms around you, careful to avoid your stitches area.
"I'll wait! No matter how long it is, I'll wait for you!"
Alright, I hope this does not change your mind about Omi. ITS ALL AN IMAGINATION. I love Omi with all my heart but I had to break to y'all the harsh reality. Being cheated is never pretty and with the right support system, everything will all work out fine.
This has been the alternative ending that I would have written for my previous post.
Thank you for reading.
Stay safe and healthy!
With love,
Rosalie🍓
#sakusa kiyoomi#sakusa headcanons#sakusa angst#sakusa x reader#sakusa x you#sakusa x y/n#sakusa kyoomi headcanons#haikyuu!!#haikyuu hcs#haikyuu imagines#haikyuu angst#msby black jackal#msby headcanons#msby sakusa#msby atsumu#atsumu haikyuu#atsumu x you#atsumu x y/n#atsumu headcanons
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welcome to the day a duck ruins your perception of items in genshin impact. i uh. made some items in genshin impact as yandere boys and what they're like sort of?? you could try and burn your eyes now. ;) adepti seekers stove- he's going to be a tsundere no buts or uhts. he's the type of yandere that's trying to be protective and failing miserably everytime. so being impatient and angsty. so, he resorts in kidnapping you instead. but hey look on the bright side! even when you're kidnapped you can have delicious meals and snacks! secretly likes to cook for you a lot, but he won't admit it even in death. just don't question why there's a lingering scent of sleeping potions in your meal and you'll be good as jolly jee! probably wants you to help him in the kitchen, since he once heard that couples do that. would probably give you self esteem issues down the line. "didn't i tell you to not get hurt? are you that much of an idiot?? here. have this it'll lessen the pain just a bit so we can walk back home. just drink it already." windsong lyre- smug bastard, smug shit. he's probably a player or just overly dramatic with everything. maybe he's righteous or something.. likes to show off his music skills a lot. he sucks at it tho. gaslights you probably in public places to add more pressure, because people are staring like you're having a performance or something. calls you love even if he's pissed at you for not listening to him, or accusing him of being toxic or suspecting him of being your stalker that always watches you from your window at 2am! would make you paranoid a lot. loves kissing your cheek and tickling you. he's a closeted pervert. you're gonna have to move in an isolated place too, he will spread rumours of you being his lover. "love, I'm sure that you're just overreacting. plus even if i was the stalker that you're talking about I wouldn't be oh so casually talking to you in public when I could've been hiding! jeez it's like your going crazy." wind-blessed harpastrum- such sweety! just so wholesome bakes you a pie in tuesday sweet. seems patient too but beware he will break your legs when you get a little bit too bratty for his tastes. touch starved too and it shows, that's why he loves to cuddle you lots! really obsessed with what you think of him. if you say you hate him he'll tear up and try to convince you that he's good, but if you pretend that you like him he'll shower you with uncomfortable affection and confessions. really great at making bombs and torture weapons too. probably sewed in a bomb inside your body threatened that he will kill you with it if you leave. bad at darts and archery. if you say that to him he'll laugh and take out his diploma saying that he's too smart for those childish games. he's impulsive in decision making. "haha. you know. you almost escaped from me back there. but hey! now you won't do anything stupid like that ever again if you can't walk." windblume balloon: listen man. im going to be killed but he's an airhead, pun intended right there. probably lowkey manipulative and doesn't even know it yet or chooses to ignore it. protective of you a lot. really delusional to the point that he rationalizes your escape as someone kidnapping you. so say goodbye to whoever poor stranger who was trying to help you escape they'll be greeted by an arrow through their head once he finds you. has a habit of holding your hand because he's afraid you might disappear from his line of sight and leave him all alone. if you let go tho he'll gorilla grip your hand, might crush it too. just very overprotective. he also doesn't know that he's an airhead. yeah."hm? why do i like holding you hand..? i just like it.. your hand makes me feel... uh. safe..? is that the word for it? ah. it was the word loved." wind catcher- he's a full on sadist. throw all of your escape plans out the window, this guy will climb a mountain and ride any wind current available to catch and torture you. persistently trying to make you like him atleast a bit. yeah, he's that kind of delusional. would teasingly push you
of a cliff as a 'light' punishment. dark humour and likes to joke about killing you from time to time. note: he can kill you. and he would also do it by ripping you in half with the wind current so just stay in his house and be a good lover that'll shower him in kisses, okay? okay. he mostly sees you as a tool of interest, but not just any tool- you're his favourite tool. "pfft! hey stop crying now! you're making me feel bad! hm? oh? why am i doing this? well i mean maybe I'm angry that someone was trying to escape. again." warming bottle- he will absolutely leave you in the cold if you were being a brat towards him. lives in dragonspine to spite you, also because he can just turn take away your blankets and anything that can give warmth so you gotta ask him to cuddle you to survive. he usually does this when he's feeling a little petty. which is so frequent. that you can almost give it a schedule. but don't tell him that. kind of a tsundere but only when it comes to physical affection since he's shy. that's why he has to take away your blankets so it looks like he's just mocking you but not because he's touch starved. he's not at home that much too but don't worry, he will make it up to you by uh.. physical activities.. "what? you're freezing? no shit we're in dragonspine. oh? you want me to hug you..? hm. fine. I'll indulge you for a bit. I am quite merciful." parametric transformer- businessman that scams you a lot lol. he's going to be a masochist because i said so, yeah i know the electric stone thing gag that's why i made him a masochist. really likes to collect useless stuff and spoiling you, so expect your room to be filled with a lot of random things from jewelry to mushrooms and crabs. has a you should be grateful i even give stuff mindset. thinks that giving someone something of vaue would make them fall in love with him instantly. also probably loves it when you fight back especially when you successfully land a hit on him, he will enjoy it. but be careful he has different responses whenever you hit him. pick your poison. spends a ton of resources on everything to keep you in line. that rope costed him 700 pinecones. "why do you even wanna escape? i give you a ton of stuff so you won't get bored! hah. maybe if i had picked up someone else they would've been grateful." portable waypoint- throw out your escape plans the season sequel. he's very quiet but has a small temper that won't last that much. maybe he's like that since he tries so hard to repress it. listen he's trying okay? escape always fails so quickly. one minute you're in springvale shouting, crying, begging for anyone to help you and then back to his house to see him sipping some tea. his punishments are cruel too- he makes sure to leave you in a den of monsters and ruin guards, waits until your in the brink of death and teleports you back to him. has a superiority complex over everyone too. probably likes to make you feel weak when you have to rely on him. loves to crush your self esteem. wants to be affectionate but thinks that you, as an inferior being, should be affectionate with him instead. so tsun. "see? this is what i was trying to tell you. you're too weak to actually survive out there. you even had to rely on me to save you. pathetic." memento lens- mysterious and elegant. he's quite cryptic to say the least. likes to watch you from a far if he's feeling a bit angsty. you try to make sense of what he says and it just leads to you being confused even more. and he likes that about you. you actually try to understand him, even if what you guess is wrong. you're going to have a tough time with this guy if you wanna escape. just avoid any fox statues and you'll be good. the problem is the shrine maidens. they basically want the two of you to end up together so they don't have to deal with him. he's actually very gentle with you punishments still suck but atleast he doesn't do it physically, he just makes you write that you're sorry over and over until your wrist are tired. loves poetry and solving puzzles, riddles, scriptures. he's
smart but soft. "spring blossoms even in the darkest depths of uncertainty, is that why you have the courage to try and escape me..?" kamera- perfectionist stalker. wants to make sure that the photos he takes of you are perfect to every extent. colour, lighting, and expressions. even if it means going inside your room and having the possibility of waking you up from your sleep. likes to take pictures of everything too. kind of like this; both of you are walking somewhere and he stops to take a picture of a sunset. he takes twenty minutes trying to find the correct angle. but the sun is already gone so he sulks. maybe- you can cheer him up by volunteering to be his model? you'll do that? right? also worships you like a god so if someone dared to even say something breath near you or celestia forbid insult you, best to say they'll be quickly disposed of by blackmail and fake shit. would not steal any of your belongings, he would just take pictures of it. so he's not that bad. "i consider everything in this world is beautiful, but you have surpassed that. so that is why im keeping you here. no one deserves even a glimpse of you!" waverider toolbox- he's such a gentlemen and a sweetheart. always there to help you with repairs, sometimes he'd add some updates to it too. just ignore the stuff going missing inside your boat thing. he probably guilt-gaslight you into staying with him in his waverider then bam your in an island stranded. ahaha, now both of you just have to survive by working together ya know? like a loving couple likes hugs and physical affection a lot! bonus points if it's given when he's tired from doing his job. as i said tired guy so appreciates all the things you do for him whether it's paying for his meal or giving him a gift. next time, he'll make sure that you won't leave the island permanently. thinks that stranded island equals date smh. " ahh? oh! is this for me? really? thank you.. i don't usually receive gifts but that just makes this even more special! say, do you wanna go on a trip? i just fixed the waverider from last time." red feather fan- mischievous little shit. likes to scare you a lot by appearing on trees and just jumping on you. knows that you're trying to escape but pretends not to since he likes to try and guess which direction you would run to. hugs you a lot even before he kidnaps you really touchy even if you say no he'll use the good ol puppy eyes! doesn't work? okay he'll just smell your clothes when you're sleeping as compensation. he likes to flirt with you a lot. some pickup are cheesy.. but others are a little- personal? acts cool by making a dramatic entrance everytime even. you know those radical superhero landing stuff? that's him. he would build a nest as your house even being a dick and placing it on top of a mountain, goodluck on trying to get down. "caught you! going to the shore was so predictable by the way. maybe you should try a different place next time, dear? hm? maybe a restaurant so we can have date? sounds great right?" serenitea pot- unhinged malewife that wants to make a the perfect living space for you- ehem. probably a perfectionist if you squint hard enough. he's delusional but just a little lucid about the stuff he does to you. likes to make a ton of furniture too! personalized the room you're trapped in with a ton of valuable and expensive materials. just don't try to escape he'll cut your limbs off just like a damn tree shawtie. owns a shit ton of pets ranging from boars to cats. all of them are like bodyguards to you during your stay. dreams about having a peaceful life with you in the realm someday, sigh. he sometimes has burnouts where he just places a bunch of furniture on a single room and call it a day. "and here is your room! do.. do you like it? i made it just for you! i didn't know what wood you would prefer so i just settled on whatever i can find! ahaha. we're kind of like a married couple living together now... right?" nre menu- he's probably going to be from the adventurers guild. really awkward and shy. takes for him a long time to
open up to you. when going on quests he's the one in charge of carrying the food and healing shit you need. really patient and nice! slightly uh mean with other people trying to talk to you but other than that everything is normal. everything is normal the long loving gaze he gives you every now and then and some food being left on your doorstep. yeah let's not question it i mean he's just so shy! he would never do anything wrong? right?? he's a closeted pervert, cliche i know but he's a pervert with a line to not cross. he just checks you out. good for him. would cry if given any ounce of affection. sweet baby. "t-that was a tough commission.. oh u-uh.. do you need some food to replenish your energy? we need to do the other commissions you know.. hm? why aren't you eating it.. something wrong with the food..?" seelies- spoiled. that's the word to describe him. really straight forward with his courting kind of dumb? but he's so damn lucky for some unknown reason that your plans to avoid him always fail. yeah the high quality rope you just bought for 1000 mora? it broke and you fell into his arms. he's probably rich by sheer dumb luck too. finds a ton treasure chests even in the places you didn't expect. people pressure you into spending time with him. since he's just so cute! how could say no to such a face? it really feels like the gods are on his side ya know? he throws a lot of very very aggressive tantrums if you're not with him. thinks he's doing a good job at courting you, with rationalize rejection as a playing hard to get. "tada! look i got you this crystal i found while i was walking! it looks like a diamond and it has a ton of colours too?? is it valuable?? would you kiss me if i give it to you??" endora- majestic, regal, and likes to explore a lot. he uh. probably trapped you in a bubble once or twice too. really curious about his surroundings, also has no personal space since it's first time going out. he would cuddle you when he feels like it homie. kidnapped you and made you his tour guide. don't try to fool him he learns quickly about stuff. fast swimmer, so no joining any expeditions in water if you don't want their ship to be wrecked by a mysterious being of the teyvat seas. he likes to see you cry. it's not a kink he just feels connected to you when you cry. doesn't have a house so you just live in a run down boat. he's doesn't know when you're lying to him sometimes. god complex bastard. "this world. at first i wasn't sure if i was going to like it or not, but ever since I've met you... I've grown to tolerate some parts.. so you should be thankful, you've convinced me. mortal." intertwined fate/older twin- listen. he's just so smug about everything he does. and he knows you love him. probably invites you out on dinner only for him to not show up. so basically he's an asshole without a doubt. toxic boyfriend that gives you false hope and has a ton of admirers. you probably think he won't settle for you right? ah, he's not that cruel. so picks you as his lover out of all the billions of people. you should be grateful! he even kidnapped you! do you know how hard it was for him to go all the way from his home to yours? anyways yeah. asshole. he likes to do the open the door for darling trick where he just gives you a small crack on the door and watch you make a decision. it's an act of your loyalty. if you escape he'll make you feel pain. if you don't then he'll reward your patience. god complex bastard 2."sigh. did you try to escape? again? patience is the key to everything you know. maybe you should learn that. i expected more smart from you." acquaint fate/younger twin- cinnamonroll he's such a sweet guy. he's always there for you when you need him. okay- he has a nice guy complex, fucking damn it. probably uses the but I've been there for you since the start trick unintentionally a lot. he just doesn't know he wants some action, so be thankful that he didn't just jump on you like a barbarian. he's kind of contradicting himself too. one hand he wants you to love him, on the other hand he doesn't
believe he deserves you. loves to give you the same things, remember that one painting you liked from two years ago? he got you that. quantity beats quality. surprisingly, he's really patient but would have bursts of anger every now and then. has a self value issues?? yeah, but did i tell you he's a touch starved guy. punshments are just him softly lecturing you about what's good and what's wrong."i always viewed myself as inferior, that i didn't deserve anything.. but this time. i want to be greedy just once." that's it- :'D i haven't proofread this but here you go mer! ill probably continue with more humanisations of items in genshin later.. if you ask why i ruined your day with this crazy idea i was watching that one video of a person humanising social media and got this idea. also i discovered how to bold out texts... i have power..ejwjdhshaj
so yeah have a great day! -🦆anon
I AM IN AWE?!?! WHOA OMG!!!!! 🦆, THIS IS FANTASTIC!! AAAAAA (≧∀≦)
All of the various characterizations… *chef’s kiss* It’s literally so good! With each one I read I kept thinking okay this guy is my favorite and then I would read the next description and my heart was stolen again. I can’t pick a favorite now. T_T
#chit chat#yandere#🦆 anon#meraki faves#YOU HOLD SO MUCH POWER#AND YOUR BRAIN IS IMMENSELY GALAXY#BECAUSE WOW OMG I AM IN LOVE WITH THE CHARACTERIZATIONS
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I noticed in the recent update that there was a net to keep the MC from swimming too far *cough escaping cough*. It got me thinking about what if the MC- in guise of trying to find more creatures- finds an opening big enough for them to squeeze through and almost escapes. I'm not really sure which villager/character would fit best in this situation though.
Okay so like anon, not to be like that but I would dIE FOR YOU! THIS IDEA IS SO GOOD!!! YOUR MIND! ITS TO POWERFUL ANON! But yeah this was really fun to write and I choose my two favorite bitter ex boys both wanted the same poor representative. You guessed it, it’s out boys!
Yandere Tom Nook X Reader X Yandere Redd
Hole
Sneaking. You were sneaking. It was a beautiful summer day, kids were outside playing, some were out fishing or catching bugs. But where were you? You were sneaking like a teenager trying to get past their overprotective parents. You didn’t want to sneak but you had no choice. Ever since Redd first showed up on the island Tom had been more protective than ever. He didn’t want you to wander off without him, he wouldn’t let you go outside without his permission and sometimes he would want you to sleep in his house. You used to love Tom but nowadays he was just too overbearing for your comfort. You and Tom never really said out loud that you loved each other and you never did any couple-stuff. But both of you knew, you both were in love. Or, that’s how it used to be at least. Any and all feelings for Tom that you had gone right out the door once you lost control of your life.
“Y/N? Where are you going, dear?” Shit. He had found you, he had heard you. And now he was gonna stop you. “I-umm...I was just gonna go outside and search for some sea creatures for blathers” you said, trying and failing to mask the fear and worry in your voice. “Oh? Is that right...hmm...well do you need to do that? I mean, what if you drowned? What if you got attacked by a shark or octopus? Or worse! What if Redd showed up!? You remember what happened last time right? Do you want that to happen again?!” Tom asked you, you knew very much what had occurred between you and Redd, in fact just thinking of it sent shivers down your spine and formed a pit in your stomach. But at the same time, you didn’t want to stay with Tom, you’d be lying if you said that he didn’t scare you at times. Sometimes at night, you’d hear him mumbling things in his sleep, things that made every part of your brain scream to run away and never return, yet your body refused to listen. You worried about his well-being and especially now since he seemed almost obsessed with you. “Tom, listen...I haven’t been out of the house without you for some time now and I was just hoping to have some privacy. You know I’d never wander too far off” you grabbed one of his hands, taking your other hand to gently stroke his cheek. You felt him lean into your touch as he closed his eyes. These were the moments you missed, the tender, loving gestures that you and he would exchange. But now, these moments were just a way of getting you out of his intoxicatingly strong grasp. You didn’t want to stay with Tom, not in the slightest, that Tom whom you once loved died when he started limiting your freedom.
“Mmm...oh well...I guess if you know what you’re doing. Then sure, you can go out for a while yes, yes?” He said, this brought an actual smile to your face as you gave him a hug to which he giggled in reply. “Alright! I’ll see you later Tom!” “Be careful!”
And so, you were off. You ran straight to the shop to buy a wet suit, and then you ran straight to the water to do a cannonball. You laid in the water for about twenty minutes before rising up and swimming around. You didn’t bother trying to climb over the net, you knew it was useless as any major disturbance on the net sent a notification to Tom and inform him of your apparent escape. You learned that the hard way. So instead you just tried to relax for now. Later you might visit some of your residents and maybe go talk to sable, it has been a while since the two of you talked. But for now, you were trying to find sea creatures to give to Blathers. That was until you saw something that made your eyes squint before going completely wide once you realized what it was. It was a hole! A big hole in the net! Big enough for you to fit through without alerting Tom! You could escape! You could finally leave this hell!...but...what would happen to Tom if you left, you worried what he might do to himself or the others if you leave...no...you can’t think like that! The reason Tom is unwell is because of you. The only way he can heal is if you stayed away from him, if you didn’t, his obsession would only get worse.
You swim closer to the edge of the net and Closer to the hole. Looking at it you could indeed conclude that It was big enough for you to fit through. Hastily yet carefully you went through it. Making sure not to touch anything on the way out. If you did, it would be game over. Tom would see that something, you, were trying to get through and he would lose it. That’s what made you afraid. But you just couldn’t care right now, you were done sacrificing your life for other's happiness! It’s your time to be a little selfish. To look out for yourself! Carefully navigating your legs out of the hole your whole body was now out, you were out. You could barely believe it! But you wouldn’t stick around to see if Tom saw it or not. You had a plan. There was an island a bit away from yours, which would normally take about five minutes with a plane so it would maybe take about twenty minutes to swim. If you could hold out and keep out of dangerous water, you could make it. You would either make it or drown. Either way, there was no turning back now.
As you were swimming briskly, you started to rethink your decision a little. I mean, abandoning all your friends? And what would happen with Tom? Would he become unfit to take care of Timmy and Tommy? You didn’t want to consider that scenario, you wanted to believe that he would get help. But it was hard when you had experienced how deep his possession over you had gotten. After about halfway there you realized how far away the other island truly was, your arms got very tired and you had swallowed what felt like a ton of seawater accidentally as you had swum. You’re honestly starting to give up hope of reaching the island in time. You were gonna drown. You were gonna drown. You were never gonna see your friends again, never gonna find a significant other, never get married, settle down, get a pet fish with said significant other. Never gonna- Wait...is that a...boat? A little boat, sailing off in the distance caught your attention. Maybe there was still hope! Maybe there was a chance of survival! You had to do something, anything, you had to get its attention.
“HELLO!!! IM HERE!!! PLEASE HELP ME!!!” You shouted at the boat. And as if on cue, it turned around and went over to you. Yes! You had done it! You were gonna survive- Wait a minute...you recognized that boat...was that...oh god, it was! That was no other than Jolly Redd's boat. He was even worse than Tom! You had no time to think before the boat arrived in front of you. “Well well well...if it isn’t my favorite human! What are you doing all the way out here cousin?” He asked you, his voice full of glee, knowing you would need his help. “Get away from me Redd!” You said you didn’t want anything got to do with him. “Oh really? What was 'please help me' about then? I just wanna help Y/N, I don’t know why you’re getting so defensive about this. Now tell me, why are you all the way out here in the middle of the Ocean?” He asked you. Tilting his head while resting his chin above his hand, huge grin present on his face. “...ᴵ ʷᵃˢ ᵗʳʸᶦⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᵉˢᶜᵃᵖᵉ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵀᵒᵐ” “huh? A little louder cuz, I couldn’t hear ya?” “I WAS TRYING TO ESCAPE FROM TOM OKAY!!! HE PRETTY MUCH LOCKED ME INSIDE OF HIS HOUSE BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU DID!” Everything became deathly quiet as you said this. Out of all the answers, Redd had NOT expected that one. After quickly regaining his normal posture, he mustered up another smile on his lips. “Well, do ya need a ride, or would you like to swim for another forty minutes, hm?” Forty minutes? You had grossly underestimated the time that it would take for you to swim. “Get away from me Redd, I don’t want your help after what you did...” you told him, refusing to look at the smug bastard. “Oh Y/N. I don’t think you’ve comprehended this situation...you can either come with me or drown. Now I’d understand if you’d want to drown yourself, I would if I had to spend so much time with Nookie. But ask yourself, is this really the way you’d want to go out? By drowning? That’s lame!” He was right, god damn it! You hated that he was right. You were completely and utterly helpless right now and the only way to get out of this would be to accept his help.
You swallowed all of your pride and looked at him. He still had that shit-eating grin plastered across his face. “Alright, you win. I’ll come up on the ship...but as soon as we get to the island, that’ll be all okay!” As you said this, Redd's grin only got wider. He walked away for a few seconds before throwing a ladder down on the side of his boat closest to you. You could practically feel his joy as you climbed up the ladder. Once you were up, Redd immediately came up to you. Holding his hands together as he looked at you like a giddy kid to open up their presents. “Ohohohooo~ trust me Y/N, you won’t regret this!” He giggled as his movements got more jittery, almost as if he’s restraining himself. “Yeah yeah, whatever Redd,” you told him sternly. You didn’t want to be in his presence for any longer than you had to. Stepping in front of you, the fox pulled the curtain to the entrance open for you. You let out a loud sigh as you saw his dumb gesture. “God, shut up Redd,” you said as you walked inside, you knew he was joking. But jokes were supposed to be funny. And you hated him. “Ah come on Y/N you know I’m just yanking your chain here! I know you can fend for yourself! I’m not like good old nookie-“ “stop!” “Stop what?” Redd looked at you in confusion. “Stop trying to make yourself look better by comparing yourself to Tom! You have no right considering you’re the reason he’s like that! I know what your doing Redd! I’m never gonna join you! So quit trying, let’s just get a move on” you said aggressively, only to be met by the deep chuckles of the fox behind you. Blocking the exit. “What are you laughing at!?” You fidgeted with your hands as you backed up slightly. But it was no use since Redd blocked your exit. “Oh, cousin...you haven’t seemed to have gotten what’s happening right now...I don’t CARE If you want to come with me! You’re coming with whether you like it or not! We’re not stopping at some island. You have nowhere else to go, besides into my arms! So why don’t you make this easy for the both of us and just comply would ya?” Oh...oh no...oh god! He was being serious! “Wha...i...”
As soon as he approached you, you bolted off onto the deck. You knew you couldn't get away but you would rather drown than let yourself become some toy to this maniac. But before you could jump off the boat, Redd ran up behind you and hastily scooped you up by your arms. You thrashed and struggled but it was no use. He was so much stronger than you. “Ah Ah ahhh~ you wouldn’t want to do any myths rational now, would you cousin?” He said in a teasing manner. It made you even more irritated than you were scared. And so, you elbowed him right in his face. He instinctively dropped you as you did this but he quickly grabbed your leg and threw you back onto the deck before Anything could happen. There you laid, on the floor with a rage full fox above you. He was still mumbling curse words under his breath as his face still hurt. But he didn’t care, he just grabbed you roughly by the hand as he dragged you inside. You were being pulled to the furniture part of his boat, all while trying to punch, scratch or halt Redd. But nothing worked. Soon it dawned on you where exactly he was taking you. He was taking you to the big iron door at the back of his boat. The one looming door that had a giant padlock on it. “I wanted to do this the easy way Y/N! Trust me, I did! But if you’re gonna act like this then I’ll simply have to do it the hard way!” He yelled as he threw you up against the wall. The impact made you fall down and lose part of your consciousness for a few seconds. While you were trying to regain yourself, Redd opened the padlock with a key. As he turned around he saw what you were trying to do, you were trying to crawl away. You were failing, of course, the meek attempt made him chortle as he now calmed down a little. “Oh Y/N...” he said softly as he picked you up, looking right into your eyes as he continued. “You can’t escape, and no one is coming for you. Better make yourself comfortable because the ride home is long” while he told you this, he walked in the room. It looked like a bedroom. In the middle of it was a mattress, did...did he plan to do this? How long had he planned to kidnap you!? He placed you on the bed and kissed you on your forehead. You tried to protest but only weak movements and a small groan came out. Redd walked to the door but just before he closed it he turned to you, eyes gentle and seemed very genuine. “Sleep well...”
That was a couple of hours ago. Redd was now steering the boat and was whistling to himself in glee. He got you, he finally got you! And he didn’t even have to do anything, you were just served to him on a silver platter. But before he could think of anything else he felt a powerful wave hit the entire ship. It sent him falling down to his knees. Some madman had crashed into them! Walking outside with violent steps Redd was getting ready to curse out whoever had driven into them. “HEY! WHAT'S WRONG WITH-“ he quickly shut up once he saw who was in the boat. In the boat that had driven into his side sat a very angry tanooki. It was Tom, as he looked at Redd the glare he gave sent shivers down Redd's spine. Let’s just say, if looks could kill, Redd would be dead where he stood.
“Redd! Where is Y/N!” Tom asked, well it was more of a demand. “How did...how did you find me” Redd was completely and utterly baffled. He was out in the middle of the ocean, yet Tom had managed to get to him. “Where is Y/N. I know they’re here so quit acting stupid and tell me where they are!” Tom was raising his voice more and more as he got madder and madder. Redd has taken everything from him once, he wasn’t gonna let him take it again. “No chance nookie! Don’t you think there’s a reason they’re out here? Maybe it’s because they hate you! Maybe it’s because they hate that you act like a restrictive psycho! Have you ever thought of that Tom! Huh? Huh?!” Redd was now leaning over the railing of his boat. He was almost face to face with his bitter rival. “SHUT UP! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP REDD! I HATE YOU! I-“ Tom grabbed ahold of Redd's shoulders and pulled him down, into the water. “HATE YOU!!!!”
You were peacefully sleeping as the now slightly wet tanooki walked up to your tranquil form. He kneeled down and stroked your cheek, as he smiled to himself. Poor Y/N. Such a sweet individual didn’t deserve to be touched by someone as sleazy and dishonest as Redd. Thus he picked you up and walked over to his motorboat. You were going home.
“Helloooo....wakey wakey...Y/N dear? Can you open your eyes?” You could hear a distant voice say but it was very blurry. Lifting your eyelids open felt like lifting iron weights, but as soon as you caught a glimpse of who was next to you your eyes went wide open with fear. “TOM!?” You threw your body away from him. Backing up until your back was up against the wall. “Ah your awake now, good...you’ve been sleeping for quite some time now. I’ll be honest, for a minute there I thought you were dead” he laughed a little to himself as he said this, a laugh which at one point you thought was adorable but now struck terror right into your chest. “Silly me...oh! Now that you’re awake, are the chains too tight? Do you want Me to loosen them for you?” He asked you. What? You had been so preoccupied with the fear that you hadn’t realized that you did indeed have chains and chuckles attached to your wrists. They were very long so you weren’t exactly chained up to the wall, but they were just short enough so you wouldn’t be able to move around too much. This is when you started hyperventilating. Why were you here? Where was Redd? How did Tom find you?!
“Oh! No no shhh, don’t worry, I’m here, I’m here...Redd won’t ever get you...I made sure of that...” what the hell did he mean by that!? “H-how did you find me?” You asked him, voice quivering just like you were. “Oh Y/N, did you think that the net notifications were the only way for me to see if you escaped?” He said as he petted your head. He hadn’t been so certain whether it was necessary to implant that chip in you, he thought that he could trust you enough but it would seem that he really couldn’t. “By the way, thanks for bringing that up. I’m sure by now you’ve figured out your punishment for trying to leave me. Don’t think just because I’m happy I got you back that I’m not angry, that I’m not sad, that I’m not heartbroken that you would ever think to escape from me! I just want you to be safe and this is how you repay me!” His tone got a little angrier towards the end but he quickly gathered himself in front of you. He sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “You hurt me Y/N...but I’m happy you’re alright...and your safety is the only thing that matters right now,” he said as he snuggled up to you. The tanooki was madly in love with you. He wanted you to be with him for the rest of his life. He had tried to do it with you being free. But it had seemed like he couldn’t trust you with that freedom. So, he would have to lock you in, cage you up, keep you with him. Whether you liked it or not. He was gonna be with you. By this point tears had started to well up in your eyes, your whimpers getting stronger once Tom started cooing you, stroking your hair.
“Don’t cry Y/N....I...I love you...”
He said it. He had said it. The three words that you had dreaded him saying. Up until now. You could have just pretended that Tom was just a very protective friend. But now...now? He had admitted to loving you. You couldn’t back out now. You couldn’t keep that level of comfort in that Tom wouldn’t do anything to engage a relationship, but now it was only a question of when he would actually start proposing ideas of dates and stuff. You were doomed. Doomed forever with this possessive, lovesick man. You couldn’t handle it.
You started sobbing. Tears that had threatened to spill started pouring out. The only thing you could do was bury your head in Toms's neck, closing your eyes and hoping this was all just a nightmare. That you would wake up and all of this would’ve just been a dream. But it wouldn’t, this was your life now. And you wished you would have just chosen to drown instead of joining Redd.
#yandere#acnh#yandere acnh#animal crosing new horizons#animal crossing#yandere animal crossing#yandere tom nook#yandere redd#x reader#tom nook#crazy redd#jolly redd#animal crossing x reader#ac x reader#tom nook x reader#crazy redd x reader#tw kidnapping#tw yandere#tw swearing#tw obsessive behaviour#tw murder#i guess#well its hinted at#i love me some tom nook content
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Une seconde avant noël.
Pairing: Lee Ten x reader.
Genre: Christmas, exes, fake dating, feelings realization / Fluff, angst.
Warnings: Vulgar language, alcohol consumption.
Word count: +5.2k.
Prompt chosen: It’s Christmas Eve. It’s the one night of the year when we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year, we are the people that we always hoped we would be.
Plot: What an idea to break up before Christmas, Ten thinks, as he announces to his mother that yes, you will indeed be present at the annual party organized for Christmas Eve.
A/N: This is part of the Walking in a winter wonderland collab hosted by @suh-insane and @neocitybynight.
"Do you always have to be in my way? Fuck Ten, be careful where you are going!" you growl, looking at the content of the box strewn on the floor. You have a ton of work to finish if you want to have a meal break, and Ten really is not making it easy for you. "You piss me off." you mumble as you kneel to retrieve the glitter bloxes, and sigh in exasperation when you notice of them opened. You'll find glitter everywhere for a month at this point. Who is stupid enough to think of glitter as a passable Christmas present for a child, you think, rolling your eyes.
"Can't you be polite? We have customers, damn it!" you turn your face to Ten who looks at you as if you caused the accident yourself when this idiot was hunched over his phone at the time of the impact. "And you, can't you at least pretend to work instead of checking how many sluts you'll be able to bring in your dingy apartment this weekend?" you stuff the glitters into the box while huffing, you can't take any more. If you didn't need the money so much, you would quit your job this instant.
Ten's chuckle is enough to make you angry once again. You can not stand hearing him and his stupid laugh anymore, and if you looked up at him, you would see his annoying little smile. "Are you jealous?" he asks, and you bite your lip so as not to laugh. They are causing enough commotion in the middle of the store, you do not need your boss to come and see what's going on. "Jealous? But why would I be jealous, Ten. You really need to take the time to think and calm your fucking ego, it's not good for you."
"I'm not saying you are jealous, I'm just saying that worrying about who I can bring back to my apartment is suspicious." you look at him, shaking your head. God damn his face would be beautiful with your fist pressed against. "You're so full of yourself Ten. I don't care what garbage you take home, all I want is for you to get down to work, before if you haven't noticed yet, it is almost Christmas and the store is full of customers."
"Garbage?" he asks, tilting his head, and you turn on your heels. "As far as I know, I took you back to my apartment at one point." it is too much for you. You leave the arts and crafts section, and you put the box at the feet of one of your colleagues who looks at you, incredulous. "I'm going to be sick, can you take care of it." you are not sick, but if you stay with Ten for a minute longer, you will eventually be.
You ignore a client who ask you about an interactive teddy bear they sac on TV, and you know it's wrong, but you have no choice, or you'll end up spitting your venom on a poor innocent person who wants nothing more than to please someone for Christmas. You push the door to the break room, and you walk to the bathroom. As you thought, it's empty. The boss doesn't allow anyone to go while they are working.
You push the door open, and you sit on the closed toilet. It is not the cleanest place, but it is the only place where you'll have time to think, and where you can calm your sudden urges for murder. It's sad to see where the relationship between you and Ten is. It was not always like that. There was a time when you weren't insulting each other at any opportunity, when you could smile at each other without wanting to throw up. There was a time when you were in love, and convinced that you would spend the rest of your life together.
You tense when you hear the door open, and you remain silent, pressing your hand against your mouth, as if it would help you go unnoticed when your feet are visible under the door gap. "Y/n?" of course, there is only Ten to follow you to the toilet. He approaches the door and you see by his movements that he sits on the floor. You grimace, because you do not know how long the cleaning person has stopped washing the once white tiles.
"Ten, it's disgusting on the floor." you mumble, and hear him sigh. "What do you want? What's important enough for you to follow me into the bathroom?" you ask in a voice barely above a whisper. "I am sorry." he says, and you shake your head. This is not the first time you've found yourselves apologizing to each other after a little quarrel in the middle of the store, and you know it won't be the last time either.
"We only have one week left before Christmas, after that we won't have to see each other as much anymore. Can't we make an effort to ignore each other?" your voice is so weak, Ten feels his heart skip a beat. He never wanted the situation between the two of you to become so chaotic. He wanted nothing more than to be happy. Be happy with you.
"But- but I don't want to ignore you." Ten answers, and you get up to open the door. The boy almost rocks forward, since his forehead was pressed against the door. "Ten, you need to learn about the existence of germs on the bathrooms." he smiles weakly, and he stands up too, dusting his uniform pants. "What do you propose?" you ask, cocking your head.
"We're burying the hatchet." Ten crosses his arms against his chest, and you sigh. "Ten, we've already tried dozens of times since we broke up, and it always comes back to the same scenario. It's useless."
For the first time since they broke up, you do not pull back when he puts his hand on your arm. "But we can try. For real this time. We were friends before we were a couple, maybe we can be again?" there is so much hope in his voice, and in his eyes, that you can't afford to deny him anything. "We can try." you finally say, and Ten's smile is so bright that you could almost be blinded.
"Perfect! So will you come with me to the party my parents are hosting for Christmas Eve?" he asks, and this time, you pull back at his touch, and you clench your fist to punch him in the shoulder. He whines loudly and you refrain from not doing it again. "You asshole! Why are you doing this to me?" Every year, the Lee family host a Christmas Eve party. It's always lavish, with beautiful decorations, and exquisite food. You loved spending Christmas Eve with Ten's family. So reminding you that you will not be attending this year hurts.
"But I'm serious!" he explains by rubbing his shoulder. He takes a step back to make sure he doesn't get another hit, he knows you all too well. "You are invited." you frown as you dig your hands into the pockets of your pants. "We are not together anymore, why would you parents invite me?" for a moment Ten looks embarrassed, and he is unable to meet your gaze. "Ten, what are you hiding from me?" he hops from one foot to the other, and you are ready to ask him if he feels like pissing when he opens his mouth to explain. "It may well be that I didn't tell my parents we broke up."
"But why Ten? You told me you did! It's been months now." the fact that he is embarrassed is at least a good thing, he is still human. "I was going to do it, I promise, but my mom started talking about the party, and hse said she missed you and really can't wait to see you. You know how much my mom adores you, I didn't want to break her heart!"
It's really mean to include his mother and her love for you in the story, because he knows you considered Ten's mother like your own when you first met her. "I'll tell them everything after the holidays, I promise! If you come, I'll never ask you anything again, and I'll disappear if that's what you want."
"I hate you, Ten." even though it's a phrase he doesn't like to hear, he knows you do not mean it. At least that's what he hopes, because he doesn't know what he would do if you really hated him. "So?" he asks in a whisper, and you roll your eyes. "I'll come, but this will be the last time I do anything for you. Anything, do you hear me?"
He nods, and he smiles once more. "Good, very good! We'll take my car, and I won't carge you for your share of the gasoline, don't worry." he is so excited that you start to feel the excitement too, but you do not show him, no. You walk to the bathroom door, it's time for you to get back to work, but before you leave, you turn to Ten. "I need my day tomorrow, so I'll let you tell the boss you're going to use your day off to replace me."
The following week is the calmest week you've had since breaking up with Ten. You meet in the store, but you ignore each other. Well, you ignore him every time he tries to talk to you, it's much better than insulting him until he resigns himself to being silent. And when Christmas Eve comes, you wonder if you really made the right decision by agreeing to follow Ten. And pretend to be his partner again.
You wait outside your apartment for Ten to arrive, your hands in the pockets of your coat, and your face niched in your scarf. The cold wind is whipping your face, and the snow have started to fall on the city which is festive with the fairy lights, the decorated trees in the streets, and the laughter of the locas who are eager to come home and celebrate Christmas Eve.
Thanks to Ten, you were able to get out of work early, and also, you won't be spending Christmas on your own. That's the only positive things you can find in this strange situation. Even your friends have told you to text Ten and cancel, they all think it's bad, and they think it will do them more harm than good. And you understand them, you too wonder what will happen after the party is over, once you have to go back to your routine without each other.
But that's life, and sometimes you have to make sacrifices to avoid hurting the people you love, you think with a sigh.
When you feel ready to freeze in place, Ten's car pulls up in front of you, and you huff. Finally. He gets out of the car, and he opens the door. Seeing him do that make you roll your eyes. "I can open a door." you mumble, and when he lifts his big shining eyes, you sigh. "You'll catch a cold, Tennie." he shakes his head, and you get in the car.
You feel a weight being lifted from your shoulder as your warm up, and Ten watches you, smiling when you take off your gloves. "You want a photo, it'll last longer." you say, and he shrugs. "I'm just glad to see you." yeah, you don't believe that lie, he must already be playing his part not to be caught off guard in front of his parents.
Ten starts the engine, and begins to drive out of town. "I had my mom on the phone earlier, she is excited to see you, and so is my dad." you hum. "Me too, I really missed them." Ten's lower lip juts out, and you avoid looking at him, he knows you are weak when he acts like that. But not tonight, no. "Ten, don't forget your promise. We can't do this at every family reunion, you know that, it'll only hurt more every time.
"Yes I know, and I will, I promised, didn't I?" you nod, and you turn your head towards the window. You watch the landscape gently getting cover by a thin layer of white snow as you approach the countryside. You love the city, yes, but you would love to be able to land in the countryside, and have a simple life, far from the hustle and bustle of the city.
The rest of the road is silent, and you slowly fall asleep, you head against the window, rocked by the vibrations. It's Ten's hand on your shoulder that wakes you up. He is out in the car, and you notice that it is now dark outside. You stand up, yawning. "We're here." he says. The Lee family house is impressive, and decorated with lights. It is really beautiful, and you expected no less from Mrs. Lee whose favorite holiday is Christmas.
You get your bag and get out of the car. Your legs are numb, so you take Ten's arm to avoid tripping in the snow. Yeah, that would be fun, but you do not really want to soil your clothes now. Maybe later. You stop in front of the door, and Ten turns to you. "Ready?" and when you nod, he knocks on the door.
It only takes a minute for the door to open on Ten's mother. She looks at the both of you, and she smiles with a sweetness all her own. "My loves, how happy I am to see you! Come in or you'll get sick." Ten lets you pass, and when you enter, you are immediately engulfed in a hug. You melt, you can't help it. You feel like coming home, and god damn your heart hurt at the realization.
Ten clears his throat, and you refrain from laughing. When Mrs. Lee lets you take a step back, you both turn to the boy who frowns. "Impatient." his mother says before taking him in her arms in turn, for a shorter moment. You are pretty proud of it. "Come into the living room, the guests have already arrived."
You follow her into the living room, and you greet the guests. You and Ten have been together for a few years, so you know all of the family and friends who are used to being invited every year. "Ah, the lovers have arrived!" his father says, and you nod. You put the gifts you brought in your bag at the foot of the three, and you smile. You had a great time looking for the perfect gifts.
Immediately, you are taken aside by Ten's sister who is surprised to see you here. She is the only one in this room, besides Ten himself, who knows about your situation. Because yes, maybe you were drunk one night and called her, crying to complain about the ordeal your life had been like since breaking up with Ten. Tern is younger, but she is quite scary, so you hardly swallow your saliva when she comes face to face with you.
"What is this mess?" she asks in a whisper. "Did you get back together?" you worry your lower lip, giving Ten a furtive glance, he seems to be in the middle of a heated discussion with his father, and you shake your head. "Ten didn't say anything to your parents, so he asked me to come over, so as not to break the holiday spirit." you mumble, and if the Lee family was not there, you know Tern would go and slap her brother right away.
"You both are idiots." Tern says, and you shoulders slup. "Are you masochistic or what? Do you like hurting yourself?" you do not know what to say, you are just here to help Ten. "I know it's not the right thing to do, but it's Christmas Eve, so I'm going to pretend it's okay, smile, laugh, and be happy beofre I go back everyday life without Ten."
Tern sighs, tilting her head. "Is that what you want?" she asks before resuming. "Go back to a life without Ten? Because a person who has no more feelings would never agree to help their ex." That's the question, you don't know how you feel, your head is empty and your heart is a mess, it's been like this since Ten left. So you shrug. "I don't know Tern."
As you are about to speak, you are called out by Ten's mother who beckons you to approach. "Come help me in the kitchen for a minute, please." you nod, apologizing to Tern before joining her. There's nothing more to do, so you frown. "It's the only way to have some time with you without Ten jumping on you." she explains, and you can't help but laugh. "He learned to behave in public, don't worry."
"Is everything okay?" Ten's mother asks, and you nod. She looks worried, and for a second, you feel ready to tell her everything, but you can't, you promised Ten, and as he said himself, he doesn't want to hurt her, and neither do you. Not tonight anyway. "I'm asking because it's been a while since we've last seen you."
You nod. It's true that before, you used to visit the Lee family a couple of times each month, even though Ten was busy at work, and even more during the month of December, used to help Mrs. Lee prepare Christmas Eve. But being convinced that Ten had warned his parents, you did not do it anymore, you found it inappropriate.
"I was overwhelmed with work, I'm so sorry. But it's true that I should at least give given you a call." you explain in a weak voice, and the older woman shakes her head, placing a hand on your shoulder. "You have a job, you have a life, you have you own family, so you don't have to apologize for not having time. I get it, I was your age once."
You blame yourself more and more for the pain you are going to cause her, but you bite the inside of your cheek. Sometimes things don't go as planned, and you have to adapt. "And with Ten, is everything going well?" the question you would have liked to avoid. But you smile. "Everything is not perfect every day, but we both make an effort, because our relationship deserves it." Ten's mother smiles, she is proud to hear that her son has matured enough to do whatever it takes to keep his relationship healthy, and going.
"Don't hesitate to tell me if he crosses the line, then I'll give him a piece of my mind, believe me!" you laugh softly. You know that Mrs. Lee is, and will always be, there to help you. At least for now. But you need to stop thinking about the future, and focus on the present. You need to enjoy this last night you have with your surrogate family. "Thank you Ms. Lee, I appreciate that."
When she offers to return to the living room so as not to worry the guests, you follow her. Ten is still talking with his father, but the conversation seems to have calmed down, and you are happy. You know that the two men are used to arguing, and you have witnessed some rather disturbing scenes already, and you do not want that to happen again. You do not want to have to pick up Ten again.
"Everything okay?" you jump when Ten comes up behind you, and you turn to him. His cheeks are flushed, and you pursue your lips to stifle a laugh. "Don't tell me, your grandmother's friend?" he shakes his head with a poud, he doesn't like it when old little ladies pull his cheeks, it hurts. "My poor child. Maybe she'll stop someday."
"When she is in a coffin, yeah." Ten mumbles, and you put your hand over your mouth. "Don't say such things, Tennie!" you giggle and he smiles. He likes to be the reason for your laughter. "But to answer your question, yes, everything is fine. Your sister was a little surprised to see me here, but outside of that, like clockwork!"
Ten nods, and takes a sip from his glass of wine. He looks around him. The three, the decorations, his family, their friends, and you, and for a minute, he completely forgets that things are not the same as last year. Nothing is as before, everything is only an act. And when he turns his head towards you, and sees the lights of the tree reflected in your eyes, he thinks to himself that maybe, it was not a good idea.
See, you and Ten had a long relationship. You are his first love, and he always hoped that you would be his last. And to be honest, he still hopes so. But he knows that despite everything that has happened, all the insults you have exchanged, it would take very little time for him to fall in love again. No, he wouldn't need time at all, he is still in love, he always will be, he knows it deep down inside of him. And seeing you here, acting as your girlfriend, knowing that you'll probably never will be again, hurts like a bitch.
You think the same, and it hurts you too, but you both have too much pride to say it.
You then meet around the table, enjoying a fabulous feast prepared by Mrs. Lee. That's what you'll missed the most, the food. Ten is next to you, and every now and then, he leans in to whisper a joke in your ear. It's a tradition that you have, you try to make the other laugh, and get all eyes on yourself, knowing that it will be too inappropriate for you to say the joke out loud. At least some things are not changing.
You honestly can't remember the last time you had such a good time with Ten without it ending in an argument. What you do not notice is Tern's gaze. She watches you both, frowning. She can read between the lines. She knows that you still love each other, but are also too stupid to admit it.
The meal stretches over two hours, and when you finish, a full stomach, and ready to explode, it's time to open the presents. You get up from your chair and collect the packages. You give one to Ten's parents, one to Tern, and the last one, you hand it to Ten who titls his head. "You didn't have to, you know." he says in a whisper, and you shrug. "I know, but I got it before.. well before you know what."
Ten also gives you a present, and you arch an eyebrow at him. "I didn't want to see you pout thinking I forgot about you." he mumbles, and you smile. You open the present, and sigh. Inside is your favorite book, but not just any, the very first edition. It's old, rare, and probably extremely expensive. "Ten.." you whisper, and the boy smiles. "I know you've always dreamed of it."
What makes your heart beat a little faster is not that he gave you the book, but that he remembered it, because you only mentioned it once almost two years ago. Perhaps accusing him of never paying attention was wrong, now that you think about it. "Thank you so much Ten, you have no idea how happy this makes me." you lean over, and place a tender kiss on his cheek. And when you take a step back, you notice the rosy tint on Ten's cheeks. Cute.
"Come on, open yours!" Ten nods a minute later, the poor man needs to recover from the sudden physical contact first, then, he unwraps his present. If there is ont think Ten loves more than himself, and you, it's his watch. His father gave him his own watch for his 18th birthday, and it quickly became his most precious item, and unfortunately, he broke it a few months ago.
He thought it was irreparable, but nothing is ever irreparable, so you grabbed it one morning, and sent it over to have it fixed. It's not much for you, but when you see the tears in Ten's eyes, you knows that it was a perfect idea. "I thought I lost it." he says under his breath, and you shake your head. "I took it from you, wanted to surprise you, but I didn't expect it to take that long. I'm really sorry if I worried you."
Ten shakes his head, and he wipes his tears with his free hand, before a smile spreads over his beautiful face. "This deserves a kiss!" Ten's mother exclaims, and you hear Tern sigh loudly. "Mom, don't embarrass them." you are grateful for Ten, but you have to do it. So once more you take a step forward, and you cup Ten's face, and your face meet in the middle for a long, and soft kiss. Yeah, maybe you wanted to kiss him too. And for a while now.
"How beautiful young love is!" one person comments, and you smile weakly. Ten does the same, and you help him put the watch around his wrist. "Thank you, thank you. I don't think I will ever have enough words to thank you. It's the most perfect present." he says in a long sigh, and you smile. "I knew how much you cared about this watch." you run your fingers through Ten's hair to pull it out of his face, and realize how easy it is for you to fall back on your old habits.
The rest of the evening goes well.
You sit on the couch with Ten, and you listen to the stories the family members are telling, laughing every now and then, but you can't really focus with the heat radiating from Ten's body. Proximity in your hands. It would be so easy to take his hand, or rest your head on his shoulder.
Why the hell not, you think, it's Christmas, and you are supposed to be acting, so might as well make the most of it. You rest your head on Ten's shoulder, and if he is suprised, he doesn't show it, he lands a kiss on the top of your head. You feel his shoulders relax and you smile. You always have the same calming effect on each other. True love, but you refuse to think about it.
It's getting late, and you can't seem to suppress a long yawn, Ten notices. He stands up and you pout at the sudden lack of contact, and you sit up. "We're going to go mom, we still have a way to go, and it's snowing again." she nods, albeit a little sad, but she knows it would be too dangerous for Ten to drive if he is tired, of if there is too much snow.
"Thank you for coming, my loves, it made me very happy." once again, you find yourself engulfed in a long her that you give back with pleasure. And you thank her and Ten's father again and again for the invitation. And in a few minutes, you find yourself in front of the car. Tern follows closely behind you, and before Ten gets into the car, she puts her hand on his shoulder to take him aside. "Take care of yourself, and your heart, okay?"
Ten nods. "Don't worry, I know what to do to keep my heart safe." he looks at you to see if you heard him, but no, you are half asleep on the seat, and you would not even hear if a bomb were to explode near your ear. "Really, don't worry." he places a kiss on his sister's cheek, and he gets into the car after making sur the passenger door is closed. You collapsed into the seat, your new book clutched to your chest.
"It was a very good evening. You family is amazing." you say, and Ten can only agree. "You are right. Thank you for coming." you smile and lean your head against the window. You do not want to fall asleep, you want to enjoy your last moments with Ten, but unfortunately, fatigue quickly gets the better of you, and when you open your eyes, the car is already parked in front of your apartment complex.
"Thanks for taking me home, and thanks again for the book." you lean in to kiss the corner of his lips, but before Ten can say anything, you get out of the car. He opens the window, and you turns to him. "Have a good night, Ten." his fingers tighten around the steering wheel, and you see that he wants to say something, but he holds back. "Good night Y/n, and merry Christmas."
You walk towards the door that leads to the lobby, but the sound of the door opening and closing catches your attention. You turn around and find Ten in front of the car. You embrace your body with your arms to fight against the cold. "What are you doing, Ten?" you ask, and the boy finally approaches. He's so close you can feel his breath against your lips. "Would you like to go have coffee tomorrow? And maybe we can go check out the Christmas lights."
You smile, and you nod. "I would love this, Ten." his smile is as bright as the moon, and you chuckle softly when he places a small kiss on your lips before heading back to his car, not without a victory move that almost makes him trip in the snow.
It’s Christmas Eve. It’s the one night of the year when we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year, we are the people that we always hoped we would be.
And maybe sometimes, you can decide to stay that kind of people.
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Bowling w/ @AMindfulChaos @ALoverOfDreams & @InspiredAdams
Jaiden:
Just one or do you want a pitcher? <Beer. Talking about your traditions, it was nothing for Rainey and I to put a large pizza, nachos and a few pitchers of beer away while bowling in our day. It was the one thing she had insisted on once we found ourselves aged out of the system. She called it our one day of the week that we could look forward to for years and the old pastime had quickly became a favorite to us both. The problem was ever since my run in with gallery guru as she had come to call him, I had been laying low when it came to my partaking in any substance. Drinking mostly. Apparently, my issues tended to turn into a variety of problems that only people with policing authority could handle and wasn't that just the bitch of it all. "Actually, how about a Pepsi."> Rainey.. <That earned her a look. "What? I just don't feel like drinking any tonight." Right. Shaking my head, I took a turn towards the concession and headed there while Rainey set up our game. The half hearted glare she had given me in return, earned herself a chuckle of recognition. I knew why she wasn't drinking. Not that my sister was a lush or anything but beer and bowling, normally went hand in hand. Shrugging it off though and having to grab a bowling ball on the way back, I finally made it up there to look over the menu, even though it didn't take me long to figure out what I would be ordering. It was almost always the same. However, my thoughts were suddenly stolen from me because of the lovely brunette directly in front of me in line. You would have to be blind not to notice her but even with that, it would still be a poor excuse. That's when it hit me. What was I thinking? She has be here with someone. Another friend maybe. Seeing not another soul around on half price Wednesday night, I finally spoke up when you seemed to be lost in menu land.> Do you normally bowl by yourself? <So it wasn't the greatest ice breaker but my first impression wasn't a total loss I hoped when I flashed her that crooked grin.>
Camryn:
{I had fully intended to lock myself in my room and binge trash TV with a boatload of munchies. But @InspiredAdams wasn’t having any of that. He was insistent that we do something “outside of the house.” I held out for a long time. But then he promised me one of those ooey gooey cheese pizzas they had down at the bowling alley. And that sounded way better than the stuff laying around the house. Especially since we were down to slim pickings as we approached grocery day. As soon as we were inside, I left him to figure out all the technicalities while I made a beeline for the snack bar. The question was just pizza? Or did I want some wings too? Nachos? Oh, they had sliders too… Suddenly I was pulled from my decision making from a voice behind me. I spun around, intending to lie and say I was here with my boyfriend. It wouldn’t be the first time I had forced Chris to play the boyfriend role to save me from some random. Then he offered me that crooked grin, and my heart did a little flip} Oh, I’m not alone. {the look on your face told me you were assuming, and my eyes flew open a little wider} Brother! {jerks my thumb over my shoulder in the direction that I had left him} I’m here with my brother. {smiles, glancing around now for anyone that looked like they were with you} What about you? Are you here alone? {cringes internally at how hopeful that sounded}
Jaiden:
I'm not alone. I mean if you count us both, we're here together. [Chuckling low, I glanced in the direction you looked before turning my gaze back to yours. My grin only growing wider at the mention of a sibling because what were the chances of you believing me when I told you it was the same for me.> That was a joke. I'm here with my sister. <Not a joke. It couldn't be if it were true and we very much were not alone. Those kind eyes of mine, won you over then when you smiled my way, letting me off the hook only to have it falter when the clearing of throats could be heard. "You ordering, hun?" Arching a playful brow, I point up at the menu you had been looking at only moments ago.> They are waiting on you. The pizza is good and so are the nachos. My sister likes them.
Camryn:
{I wasn’t ready to stop talking to you. And I had just opened my mouth to ask if it was an older sister or younger when I heard the cashier asking for my order. My cheeks instantly flushing as I let out a laugh at myself and turned to her} Oh, geez. I’m so sorry. {flashes her a bright smile before beginning} Um, a pepperoni pizza, please? And a pitcher of Pepsi? {glances over my shoulder at you, taking that nacho recommendation to heart} Oh, and some nachos too please? {I quickly paid her, and stepped out of your way, off to the side where she told me to wait for my order to be ready.}
Jaiden:
<"Same for you?" I actually laughed, shaking my head out of my thoughts at the order you had already placed.> The Thomas special. <I knew you were watching on. The fact that we spent that much time here wasn't lost on me or you for that matter when asked for my own order. It was our usual and I paid accordingly once she rang me up. Receipt now in hand, I casually slipped it into my pocket and walked over to wait beside you when our pitchers of Pepsi were set down in front of us.] They will put the rest on a tray and bring it out.
Can I walk you back to your lane? <I didn't want to part ways just yet. Besides, I still needed to get your number and when you offered me that smile again with a touch of a soft nod, I held my arm out for you to hook your arm around. Leading the way, carrying your soda for you, we reached our fork in the road so to speak, and I cleared my throat before addressing the situation we found ourselves in. Again.] I guess the question now is are you seeking out lust or looking for love? [Can't help but smirk when I look you way now.]
Camryn:
{pops my brows at mention of the Thomas Special. Wondering if Thomas was the first or the last name. Then it dawned on me that it meant you came here a lot if you had them knowing your order so well. And I smirked to myself. Suddenly I was very interested in bowling more often. Chris was going to be either really pleased, or wishing he had never made me come out tonight. Then you were standing next to me again. I didn’t even have the ability to care how lost I seemed because all I could think about was how good you smelled. If Ed or Chris were here they would be rolling their eyes and accusing me of already mentally doodling our names in a notebook. That’s…if I knew your name at least. Thomas though! I knew Thomas! Then you asked to walk me to the lane and I probably agreed way too easily. But it was such a cute offer. And you were hot so…} Umm…? {Your question had caught me off guard. Both is a bad answer right? I laughed nervously because I had half a mind to be really honest and tell you that it was both. But I also knew that was going to only get me in trouble. So I said what I hoped wasn’t going to scare you off} Honestly? I would love to be in love. I write a lot of songs about it. But, yeah, actually experiencing it would be…cool. {cringe number two of the night. I needed a better vocabulary}
Jaiden:
Love it is then. <With a soft tug of my arm and a wink, I began the short walk with you down to the LOVE side of the lanes, pointing it out on the wall with a kick of my chin in that direction.> Does this look familiar now? <I knew in asking that you could have taken it literal, and began looking for your brother, or you could have taken it all the way back to my original question itself. For whatever the reason, I chose to stay in that space and ask the question that had been dancing to get out since you said you had never experienced being in love before. My desire to know more about these songs was fueled by your same statement as well.> Never. Not even a guy in high school? <You have to at least be in college, right? There was no way around it and you really hadn't offered that up yet either. So I took the plunge and spoke up with a grin.> What name could I find these songs under if you don't mind me asking. You already know my last name is Thomas.
Camryn:
{I had to stop myself from facepalming when I saw the big letters written on the wall. But before I could turn too red with embarrassment at my awkwardness, you redirected my mind with your next question} No. Most of the boys in high school were too scared of my brother. {CRINGE! Why would I say that? Now you were really gonna run. But rather than make things better, I did what I always do and just kept talking. Making it worse, I’m sure.} He had a little bit of a temper and… {Trails off as I finally manage to stop myself from rambling, and clears my throat} Nothing has been released, released. I mean, I have a Youtube. Camryn Adams. {smiles} But you can call me Cammy.
Jaiden:
Ah, an older brother. <With a temper no less. This was getting better by the second. Was it possible I was walking towards that sense of impending doom? Or would I be spared of your brother's wrath upon his first impression of me. Fuck... Glancing back over my shoulder, I look Jaiden Thomas. Trust me when I say, I'm still going to check out that Youtube. <Flashing that crooked grin again, I pulled you closer to me by that hook of my arm you had.> You want to head back the other way?
Camryn:
{my eyes had scanned all the lanes close to LOVE, and I hadn’t spotted Chris. I guess I should’ve waited long enough to figure out where he was going before I went to the snack bar. But then, if I had done that, I might have missed you. Giving one last scan, I nodded my head} Hmm…yeah, I don’t see Chris anywhere. Maybe I should’ve known he wouldn’t have gone this far. {laughs more to myself than anything, relief flooding my body that you hadn’t dropped my arm the second you heard about my brother} Oh! There he is! {lifting a finger, I pointed to him before pulling you to stop for a second} But if you contact me through my Youtube…I might mistake you for a weirdo that wants pictures of my feet and not answer…
Jaiden:
Do you want me to contact you again, Cammy? <It was only a quick glance in the direction you pointed, your brother not that far from where @ALoverOfDreams was before I turned my attention back to you and that death grip you were suddenly imposing on my arm. Smirking at first, I welcomed how forward you appeared to be, going for gold as it were only to be cut short with the rest of that final thought. Yeah, the second you said feet, I knew I pulled a face. It would have been smart of me to pause when you held me back by that arm of mine but I couldn't stop the chuckle if I wanted to. You laughed at the expression on my face, and nervous or not, I leaned in to whisper against your ear, unbeknownst to me that @InspiredAdams was about to make his presence known just in time to see you cozying up to yours truly.> How about you give me your number and I'll text you. That way you have my cell too.
Camryn:
{Flushes instantly at your first question. I was making a ton of assumptions, and I knew it. But I really liked you already and it just happened. Then you leaned in and whispered and my stomach filled with butterflies, causing me to completely forget about the proximity of @InspiredAdams, already reaching for my phone in my back pocket to hold it out to you} Here, text yourself with my phone.
Jaiden:
Sure thing, beautiful. <And just like in the movies, it really was that simple. You had been getting your phone out when I heard a shuffling of feet and yours of course, came to a full stop when I heard the clearing of a throat next. "Cammy, this guy bothering you?"> Who, me? <It was your brother. There was no way it was anyone else and from the way you had spoken, I believed this wasn't a normal thing for you. Bowling that was.> She's fine. Just giving her my number. You mind holding this? <I didn't give @InspiredAdams a chance to really reply. Instead I simply handed the pitcher of Pepsi over so I could take your phone from you. All the while your other arm was still hooked around mine as I plugged my number in, quick to snap a pic of us together while your brother watched on and waited for you to introduce us.>
Chris:
What the hell is taking her so long? [I glanced toward the snack bar and didn’t see @ThroughTheNotes over there anymore. Then I finally saw her coming toward me. But she wasn’t alone. Immediately I was on my feet and making my way over to her. She was way too fucking nice for her own good. And I was fully prepared to pull out whatever card I needed to make him get lost] Cammy, this guy bothering you? [He barely looked at me when he answered with that, “Who, me?” And my brow shot up as I was handed a pitcher of soda, looking between @ThroughTheNotes and @AMindfulChaos.] Camryn, who is this? Do you know him?
Rainey:
(I must have entered @AMindfulChaos's name three times before the electric scorecard saved it. The final time, I changed the spelling to L O S E R and would you look at that, it set up the sheet no problem. Laughing quietly to myself, I hadn't heard the gentleman walk up until he asked me if I needed assistance. Politely declining his invitation to join him when I explained I wasn't alone, he didn't seem to take the hint until I held up my hand, sporting a gold band. The fact that it was found inside the bowling bag of one "Fred from Kentucky" and after many, many failed attempts to locate its previous owner, Fred from Kentucky had been born. Thinking back to the day that I found it, I remembered the crap Jaiden had given me over the name. "Fred the blue ball. Do you hear yourself, Rainey?" We had a good laugh about it but it worked seeing how Fred always came through for me from that day forward. Smiling now too, I waited to look up until the guy had made his exit to return to his own lane, taking a gander around the bowling alley in search of my brother. It wasn't like Jaiden to take a stroll, always one to come right back anytime we were here, I furrowed my brows when the snack bar attendant showed up with our food. It was only after further inspection though I realized it wasn't ours and I got up to go in search of you, heading back up to the bar to let them know our order was wrong in the process when I spot you with a girl. And a guy... Feeling that pit in my stomach already, I started to head towards you all instead. Our food long forgotten as worry started to set in.)
Camryn:
{squints my eyes at @InspiredAdams in warning. He was NOT going to scare this one away. And I hoped he was picking up on my unspoken message as we stared at each other. Until you held up the phone and I smiled for the picture before finally speaking} I do now. Chris, this is Jaiden. Jaiden, this is my totally going to not be a jerk brother, Chris.
Jaiden:
<Chuckling, I waited until I handed the cell back to you before I extended my hand.> Nice to meet you ... <Not a jerk Chris almost flew out of my mouth when I happen to see Rainey heading our way on a mission. Her purpose plain as day the closer she got and I mumbled "Shit.." under my breath. The last thing I needed was this guy on my ass about you but to do it in front of Rainey, well I wouldn't live it down if I got us kicked out of our favorite home away from home. Not to mention, it was your brother.> ... Chris. She was alone so I offered to escort her back to her lane. I plan on asking her out soon too. <What the hell was I saying? This was suppose to make it better, right? Laying out my intentions. Rainey always said it was the best policy to be honest so why stop now.> I was just on my way back. <Looking to @ALoverOfDreams as I spoke, that last part was meant for her when I finally cleared my throat, only taking the moment to introduce my sister to @ThroughTheNotes, purposely.> Cammy, this is Rainey.
Chris:
[I kept my eyes on Cammy as she gave me her damn looks. And continued to stare at her when she introduced me as her “not gonna be a jerk brother, Chris.” Then @AMindfulChaos said that bit about asking her out that had my eyes finally flicking over to him, really assessing him now as I firmly shook his hand. He looked like he could be another clown in the business Cammy played around in} Are you an artist too? {I smirked because I was out of slapping range of Cammy. But then we were joined by another person which left my question unanswered. But one look at her and I wasn’t too bothered to hear the answer anymore. If this was his sister, maybe I could keep an eye on him if it meant she stuck around…]
Rainey:
It's nice to meet you, Cammy. (My gaze darted between @ThroughTheNotes and Jaiden, seeing her arm still wrapped around my brother's like her life depended on it until I saw him shaking hands with the other guy privy to our little gathering here. The gesture between the two was older than dirt and more so added to complement the giving of your word on something. I could read body language pretty well though. The guy didn't seem to thrilled about Jaiden escorting her back but all that changed the second he looked back over his shoulder at me.) He boxes. I mean, boxing. Like bowling. I mean it's not like bowling per say but it'ssss a sport. (Damn it. Not now... My smile was small as I gave Jaiden a look of my own. If he wasn't going to tell him, I was.) That is if you consider kicking ass an art form.. (Maybe I wasn't so good at ice breakers either. Being met with utter silence was clue number one. Not even crickets as the four of us stood there as if we were in a stalemate. Only I wasn't going to allow that.) Would you guys like to join us for a game? Or maybe you two would like to play your own? Oh I know, teams!
Camryn:
{smiles brightly at Rainey when she addresses me. Then squeezes Jaiden’s arm at the mention of his being a boxer. Should I point out the obvious to Chris that they had something in common? That could be good? Or maybe very bad… Before I made up my mind, the silence was broken again, and I jumped on it} Yes! Chris! We would love to. {nods}
Jaiden:
<Fantastic. Can't wait. Those were just a couple of options for answers to that ever popular question my sister asked and as I felt you give my arm a second squeeze, your brother's gaze sizing me up once again caught my attention after Rainey had let the cat out of the bag.> I do good for being fairly new to the sport. I get by. <Giving another nod of my head, I wink and start to walk with you as Rainey leads the way, speaking loud enough for Chris to hear me.> So you want to play against me, Cammy or with me? I could show you a few things too.
Chris:
[Boxing. So, he wasn’t a clown in her business. He was one that dabbled in mine. Now I was assessing him in a whole new light. Cammy was in for an earful on the way home. I’d seen how fucking cocky some of those guys could be… “I do good for being fairly new to the sport.” Cue my brows shooting up again. Maybe not too cocky… “I could show you a few things too.” Nope. There it was. I opened my mouth to bite back on that bullshit only to have Cammy fucking kick me. I let out a grunt and glared at her as she shook her head at me. It was clear I wasn’t getting her away from him tonight. So now, I needed to make the best of it. With a smirk, I spoke up again, bruised shin be damned] Cammy doesn’t need to learn anything new. And the Adams are better as a team.
Rainey:
Family first always. You guys like pepperoni pizza? We have plenty! (Yep. Making lemonade shouldn't be too hard with the lemons this bunch was carrying. Trying to make light of the tension that seemed to shift into second gear and right on into third when I reached our lane, I didn't even look in the direction of the guy from earlier as we passed him. Opting to stop at our scorecard to enter in your names instead as I see Jaiden assist Cammy with finding her ball.) Chris (Lifting my gaze to yours, I smile, before continuing on.) With a "C" or "K"?
Chris:
[Clearly I was speaking French. And this guy wasn’t the least bit deterred by me. As I watched the two of them picking out balls, I was redirected by my name being called. My gaze catching with @ALoverOfDreams’ and grinning crookedly at that smile. disappointment, but did my best to hide it]
Rainey:
That's right. Like the rain but with an EY at the end. (Don't ramble. Don't you do it! Telling myself that should have worked but I wasn't so sure it was going to. Not when I saw that crooked grin of yours.) It's okay, they seem distracted. (Taking your hand when you offered it right away, I gave it a light squeeze, my smile growing kinder by the second. That was until I followed your slight change in direction with your eyes down to our clasped hands. Oh no! How was I going to explain this? And even better, the follow up question to that, was were you going to believe me?) Fred from Kentucky.. (That questioning brow lift you gave had me laughing nervously as I started to explain it, still holding your hand until I realized it and I let your hand slip free suddenly. The game hot potato had nothing on me.) My fake husband. I use the ring to keep creepers away. Like the guy we walked by? (Fighting the internal groan won out over hiding the heat that seemed to rise on my cheeks at how close you were and I broke my gaze away from yours so I could finish putting your names in.) Do you guys bowl a lot? I don't think I've seen you here before.
Chris:
[Fred. From Kentucky. At first, I thought you were trying to tell me you were in a long distance marriage. But then the pieces of the puzzle started to fall together. And oddly enough, when you mentioned a creeper, I felt that same protective instinct I had a few minutes ago bubbling up again. But this time it was about you and not her. Apparently he had felt the weight of my stare. Because he looked over just in time to lock eyes with me in a stare down I wasn’t going to lose. And I smirked when he were out of my mouth] I wonder if I could convince Cammy to get a Fred from Kentucky… [just as quickly as I said it, I realized that was probably offensive to you seeing as how the current dude was your brother. And I mumbled out.] Sorry… [looks up at the screen where our names finally popped up, welcoming the chance to ignore my little outburst] We used to bowl a lot with our pops. He was on a league. But after ma passed, he became a bit of a hermit. [jerks my thumb over my shoulder in Cammy’s direction] She’s been in a funk lately. So I thought I’d pull her away from the Netflix and out into society again that doesn’t involve the shitheads that she dances with.
Rainey:
Oh, I don't know about that. Fred is a good man, he works hard for his family. A very upstanding and loyal guy too. I wouldn't have married him if he was a cheater. (Teasing a little, I gave your arm a soft nudge but only after spying your stare down that bounced between Jaiden and Mr. Creepy, himself. Waiting until your gaze finally met mine again and I nodded softly as I spoke.) You two have more in common than you think. Jaiden is just as protective of me as you are of her. (My voice took on a softer tone then but didn't lack in conviction as I spoke about my brother. He was the only family I had left. I loved him.) I know you just met me...us really but Jaiden is a good guy, he just has some issues sometimes controlling himself when people are assholes too. (Taking a moment, I looked behind you to see them standing there a ways back, bowling balls in hand and lost in their own conversation. My smile widening further when they start to make their way back over to us and I'm quick with my own curiosity taking center stage for a second as I added to the "story". Only this time, it included you..) So was your wife busy tonight too?
Chris:
[I wanted to take you at your word about Jaiden. But it wasn’t that simple for me. I’d seen her go through too much shit with her overly trusting heart. What if he had a hidden shitty guy side that you weren’t privy to as his sister? Still, I didn’t hate the protective side you hinted at. As long as his aggressions didn’t ever turn toward Cammy. The thought alone causing me to tense up for a second before blowing out a calming breath. Your question causing my eyes to snap back to you in utter shock] Me? Wife? [shakes my head with a chuckle] No. There is no Francesca from Kentucky. Real or fabricated.
Jaiden:
<There's a first time for everything right? As sayings went that one there was a great indication that I was pulling double duty, while trying to appear cool about it, and was failing miserably at that. It was the first time I not only had tried to keep my eyes on Rainey but then there was you, and that pull to let my gaze linger on your beautiful face was just too great.> I apologize. I don't normally leave her for this long. <And therein lies the dilemma. There was the asshole that was in here every time we were that constantly hit on my sister too that was a factor. So the protective streak kept hopping the rails like a train would, the direction it sought suddenly flipped like a switch and damn if that didn't make me feel exposed for all of 60 seconds too long. In fact, it put me downright on edge. I had a feeling you could sense it too because suddenly I was met with a pair of the kindest eyes I had ever seen and I braved that grin for you. Having found the right size ball, our trip back over to our lane was met with one last pitstop and that was to ask for a fresh pie and pitcher to be brought over, the clerk letting me know it would be on the house for the mix up anyway.> Be honest, are you any good? <Chuckling, I take the ball from you to carry as we head back that way. The sight of your brother sitting so close to Rainey causing me to pop my neck and grin over at you.> At the game. Any family secrets I should know about?
Camryn:
{I could sense the anxious energy rolling off of you. And after a few seconds of watching your eyes flick back over to your sister, I recognized that same brotherly protectiveness that Chris sported most of the time. Which honestly, made me like you even to her, but I knew if I were talking to Chris, that wouldn’t have comforted him either. So I stopped myself, instead just following your lead first to the snack bar and then back toward the lane} I used to be decent. {glances over at you with a smile} Our papa was on a league and he used to take us bowling a lot. But I haven’t been for a long time. So I might be a little rusty.
Jaiden:
Rusty or not, it's cool that your family use to bring you. Rainey and I went once before when we were kids but it wasn't until we left the system that our love for it really took off.<Too much, too soon? I didn't think so. The way I looked at it if you weren't interested after that then I knew where you stood. Something told me though that wouldn't be the case as I gazed into your eyes.> Does your Dad not bowl anymore? You said was.. <Which led me to believe something happened or he would have been here today. Still holding your gaze, I stopped just a few feet away from the lane. Close enough to hear your brother start to clear his throat and I motioned for you to go on.> He can wait.
Camryn:
{my curiosity was piqued by your statement. But then you were asking me about papa. And I didn’t know which way to go. With a laugh, I decided to tell you just that} First, I want you to know I’m very curious about your past now. {smiles} I hope you’ll share with me whenever you feel comfortable? And papa is still around. He just… {makes a face} I don’t know how to explain it. He’s different. After mama passed, he stopped leaving the house. We go over there a lot to make sure he’s okay. But he doesn’t like to come out, he stopped working on cars with Chris… It’s almost like he died in a way too. {sighs} I’m sorry. That’s super depressing.
Jaiden:
No, I'm sorry that happened with him. Sometimes things happen to people and they just don't come back the same. <My eyes flickered briefly over to Rainey as I said it, hearing her laugh at something your brother said and I offered you an apologetic look when I turned back, adding a crooked grin into the mix.> I am glad you told me for what it's worth. As for me, I'm an open book. You can ask me anything.
Camryn:
{laughs with a shake of my head} Oh, Jaiden. You shouldn’t have said that to me. Watch this… {pulls you over to where Chris and Rainey are sitting and taps Chris on the shoulder} Hey, Chris? What would you do if… {laughs hard and looks at you again when he groans instantly} See? I ask TOO many questions. And it annoys some people. {sticks my tongue out at Chris}
Jaiden:
Yeah but I'm not some people. I'm Jaiden. <Taking a moment to watch the exchange between you two, I chuckle and shake my head. There was no question you were siblings and as I looked over to Rainey, I kicked my chin up next, our secret signal as if to ask if everything was okay. When she gave me that kind smile of hers in return, I felt the tension leave my shoulders a bit and took a glance up at the scorecard, ready to start our game. As I looked up to see who was going first I see the name LOSER in the spot where mine normally went and my eyes narrowed playfully in my sister's direction.> Cute, Rainey. I'm on your team, remember?
Chris:
[“What would you do if…” Those words meant Cammy was about to unleash a million hypothetical questions on you. And I couldn’t help but groan the second I heard them. I didn’t even care that she was setting me up to prove something to Jaiden if it meant I didn’t actually have to go down that path. But it was my turn to laugh when I realized Rainey had put his name down as loser] I like the odds already. [shoots Rainey a wink]
Rainey:
(There was no Francesca. At least not from Kentucky and not real either. That meant no girlfriend and no wife. Suddenly, I found myself smiling wider at that little known fact now and started to say something moronic like, "That's really great!" when it hit me out of nowhere. Just because there was no Francesca didn't mean there wasn't the possibility of a Fred for you too. I felt silly then for my assumption at first, thinking I read your body language all wrong and was about to ask if there was a Fred instead when both of our teammates showed up. Our conversation cut short.) There you guys are! (It was then that I moved to sit on my knees and address them both, only to be reminded that it was moments ago that it had been just us planning to play, and not teams with new friends.) It was before I asked them. Give me a break. (My tone was teasing even when you give me that wink and I mouthed a quick "Sorry." to my brother. Our fresh pizza and Pepsi arriving then too.) I'm up first! (Gathering up my ball, I took to our lane after thanking the server for bringing our food, making sure Jaiden tipped before I moved to the middle diamond, marking my spot with the tip of my shoe, seeing my shot right as I take it and I come back after rolling a spare. Not bad! Now, it was game on.)
Camryn:
{rolls my eyes at my brother’s cheesy remark, grabbing a piece of pizza instantly. It was, after all, the thing that had convinced me to come in the first place, and taking a seat on one of the chairs off to the side of the lane as I watch Rainey take her for my overprotective brother}
Jaiden:
<I probably sat there and watched the whole thing unfold before me for a good ten minutes. Long enough for your brother to damn near trip over his tongue with the way it rolled out like some damn cartoon with wolf eyes. Only my sister wasn't Jessica Fucking Rabbit. It was payback for the way I had handed the pitcher over and seeing the both of them interact as they were, Rainey all smiles more so than normal, I had to wonder just exactly what your brother's story was, and yours too.> Is it good? The pizza? Best in all the state as far as bowling alley food goes. Not to mention, they serve Pepsi. Speaking of which, do you want? <Chuckling, I got up while you took a bite of pizza to grab us both a cup. The soft nod you gave me as you brought your hand up to cover your mouth was adorable and I poured us some of the tasty beverage, handing you the cup as our siblings became lost in their own conversation, with your brother finally getting up to take his shot when I clear my throat loudly as if to say some time today..> So I'm curious about something. What are you going to tell your boyfriend about me taking you out? <Sitting down beside you now, I ran my arm along the back of your chair, the action causing you to scoot in closer to my side and I take a drink, grinning over at you.>
Camryn:
{Mama always told me to take my time when I’m eating. Especially around boys. It’s not lady like to stuff your face like you haven’t eaten for a week. I never listened to mama. And this pizza was exactly what I wanted. So when you asked me if I wanted some Pepsi, all I could do was nod. Luckily I had managed to swallow and hadn’t taken a sip of my soda yet when you asked that. My eyes automatically darting to my brother because of how he’s covered for me in the past before returning to yours} There is no boyfriend to speak of. {smiles} What about your girlfriend. Will she be mad at me for sitting this close?
Jaiden:
No girlfriend. <I chuckled at your comeback. The assumption on both our parts turning up to be false and yeah, I was happy to hear that.> You know I had to ask with you being so beautiful and all. So what is it that you do? You working anywhere or go to school? <Taking another drink, I watched as you did the same, this unspoken conversation we were having with our eyes was just an added bonus when I bring my free hand up to tuck a loose strand of your hair behind your ear.> Your brother have a job? <I didn't see anything wrong with asking that. Doing a bit of recon work myself, I wanted to know what I had to look forward to in the likes of your brother suddenly hanging around too. I wasn't about to let anyone hurt Rainey.> He got a girl?
Camryn:
{takes my time with my next sip, only popping my brows in response first. If you spent any time around me, you would quickly recognize the tells that I was about to tease you} Hmm…were you thinking about asking him out too? {smiles wide at you. I knew what you were doing. And I didn’t blame you. But I had to tease. Had to. Finally letting a laugh out, I answered you} I am a Laker Girl. {smiles proudly} I’ve worked for it all my life. And my ex ALMOST screwed it up for me. But I made it. I also do a lot of acting and singing. I’m a born entertainer. I’m also in school. It’s one of the requirements actually. {nods seriously} As for Chris, he’s a photographer and does web design to pay the bills. So he lives on his computer. {leans to the side, placing my hand beside my mouth as I whisper} And he’s single. So you’re safe to make your move. {nudges you before busting into a fit of laughter}
Jaiden:
I don't know though.. What if I'm not his type? <Laughing this time, I had been busted before but not quite like that. You were smart, funny and hot. Did I really meet a Laker girl at the bowling alley? Could I be that lucky? You were definitely beautiful enough, that was a given but as I let my eyes wander down along your body, checking you out, even with you sitting I suddenly had visions of you in your uniform. Those routines at half time coming to mind then too and I quickly snap my gaze back up to yours before looking back at the scorecard, coming face to face with a shooting glare when I see that it was officially my turn.> Looks like I'm up. Hold that thought. I want to know more about this singing career of yours and your channel. <I hadn't forgotten about that part either. Grabbing up my ball, I killed what was left of my drink and set the cup down. Moving to take my position to serve you with a strike first thing. Setting the bar pretty high where my competitive nature was concerned.>
Camryn:
{I watched as a series of emotions seemed to play out across your face, relishing in the fact that you seemed to be just as animated as me without meaning too. Then follows your eyes to the scoreboard, nearly humphing that you had to leave, and watching maybe a little too closely as you took your turn. Jumping up and cheering for you when you roll that strike, causing Chris to remind me that you’re the opposition} What? It’s in my nature to cheer. Kind of. {offers him a shrug and laughs before turning back to you as you return to the sitting area}
Jaiden:
<And that's how it went. Every few minutes we would take our turns, keeping up with our separate conversations for the most part outside of the occasional trash talk we seemed to throw one another's way. It was all in good fun even as I moved to help you with your next turn. Not really caring to win one way or the other anymore, the more we chatted, my curiosity piqued.> When are you off? Or maybe I should ask when a good time is to take you out on this date of ours? <grins and grabs up another piece of pizza, offering it to you first.>
Camryn:
{mama’s words were playing out in my head again. “Don’t overeat. That’s not lady like either.” Reaching for the piece, I smiled at you} We practice a couple times a week. And, of course, I dance at all the home games. Other than that it’s kind of up in the air with my other projects. {laughs} But if you give me a date, I’ll make it work. {winks at you as I take a bite of that piece of pizza now}
Jaiden:
We will make it work. <I put emphasis on the "we" part and grinned, picking up another slice and digging into it. Thinking over the evening and what you said while I chewed, I waited until I finished my slice to ask my next question.> You think it would be okay if I came and checked out a home game? See you in action. <Grinning wider at the thought, I shrugged a shoulder as I got up to take my last turn, Rainey calling my attention to the scores. Yeah you didn't have the final say on who could attend but we both knew I would be going to see Then maybe I could escort you home. Unless you have other arrangements made? <Glancing your brother's way when I said that last part, I was waiting for my ball to come back to me on the return.> Does that sound like a plan?
Camryn:
{sits up straighter in my chair, the excitement clear on my face at your question as those butterflies filled my stomach. The idea of you watching me while I was out there would make my night. And I was ready to say yes before you jumped up and went to take your turn. You probably knew my answer anyway as I bobble headed along while you talked} I can get you really good seats too! One of the perks. {my smile dropping slightly} Sometimes I don’t get out of there until a little later though. Will that mess with your work? {tilts my head curiously} What do you do anyway?
Jaiden:
I take a couple of courses then I drive the delivery van for Rainey. Wherever she has a catering gig, I normally will hang out but the last one didn't go so well. <It wasn't really my story to tell, it was Rainey's and while I was okay with sharing anything and everything about myself, there were some things still private for her. Offering a small grin, I nodded impressed, the excitement clear as day on your face and I have a seat next to you to start changing back into my shoes so we can turn our bowling ones in.> I think congratulations are in order. You guys won. <I wasn't even sore about it. Granted, I wasn't sure how well I liked your brother getting all cozy with Rainey but I didn't have much room to talk, did I?> She's going to have her own commercial kitchen one day. That's her dream.
Camryn:
{I could feel the weight of Chris’ stare as we made our plans. But I ignored him. He was NOT going to have any say in this. I did shoot him a smirk though when you came and sat back down next to me so he couldn’t fully eavesdrop on what it was you did} I’m smile} And that you help support her dream. Maybe I could put a good word in with the team next time we need an event catered.
Jaiden:
You would do that for her? <My brows popped at the gesture, my grin widening further when you nod once again and I couldn't help but chuckle. The offer to put in a good word could do wonders for Rainey's business, really getting it off the ground more. The Lakers were nothing to snub your nose at either and the more I thought about it the more I realized just how life changing that could be for her. For us.> Only if you're sure but you know don't have to. I'm still taking you out regardless. <Winking, I gathered up my bowling shoes when you do, walking with you up to the front slowly on purpose to drag the night out, I didn't want it to end even though I knew it had to. It wasn't until we were all outside though, our siblings walking ahead that I slowed even more, turning to face you.> I'm going to call you tomorrow.
Camryn:
{If you were walking slowly on purpose I couldn’t tell. But I sure was. Thank goodness I let Chris talk me into coming tonight. This was way better than the promised pizza. My last thought causing me to let out a soft laugh at myself that probably confused you} Please do. {steps a little closer, leveling my gaze with yours} And like actually call tomorrow, yeah? None of that macho guy stuff where they make you wait a day to not seem too eager. Trust me, I’ve dated those guys and I’m not interested in more of that.
Jaiden:
<Keeping my gaze locked with yours, I let you finish, thinking there was no possible way I was waiting two days to call. Not after the night we had and as I reached out to stroke your reddened cheek, seeing that smile, I shook my head and leaned in, whispering against your ear when we reached your car, your brother having walked Rainey to ours across the parking lot.> You’ll be lucky if I’m not texting you before then. I’m not like other guys, Cammy. <Leaning up against your car with you now, I can’t help but grin then too, seeing that blush deepen across your face..> You’ll see first hand that I’m not. That’s a promise.
Camryn:
{I know I had just met you. But I already trusted you. I’m sure Chris wouldn’t be happy to hear that. But it was the truth. And I found myself chanting in my head, please don’t be too good to be true. Please don’t be too good to be true} I believe you. {playfully glares at you, the effect being lost as my blush betrays me} Don’t make me regret it. {That crooked grin had those butterflies kicking up again as I let out a shy laugh} And you can text me any time you want. I might even assign you your own special tone.
Jaiden:
No regrets. Not even a single letter. <Laughing, I cracked that joke, hoping like hell you've seen that movie when I stopped short, brows furrowing at first before I gave you that crooked grin again. That shy laugh I was sure was going to be my downfall but I was finding I didn't mind the more we spoke. I thoroughly enjoyed the night out bowling with you and went as far to tell you so before opening your car door and waiting for you to step inside. At that last minute however, I took hold of your hand and brought it to my lips, kissing across each knuckle as words left my lips, that grin still firmly in place.> I really had a great time. Text when you get home? <Even that was a date in itself if we thought about, a date I was looking forward to once I were settled for the night.>
Camryn:
{With that kiss to my hand, I was a goner. However this turned out, good or bad, I was in for the ride. Giving your hand a light squeeze as I finally settled into the seat, I smiled up at you} I will. I’ll pick out your special tone on the ride home. {offers you an exaggerated wink and a laugh}
Rainey:
I’m thinking beginner’s luck maybe? (How is it this easy to joke with you? I had been asking myself that all night and almost let the words slip out once or twice when the ice breaker effectively did its job. We had found ourselves in a rather comfortable position. Some mild jabs when it came to our turns during the game but the night had actually turned pleasant which I was grateful for with the addition of yourself and your sister to our little bowling league mix we had going on.) So no Francesca, huh. How is that possible? (A very bold or forward question coming from me. It was so unlike me to even... Oh. Realization hit like a ton of bricks then. Was it considered flirting? If it was, it was so apparent that I was bad at it and BOOM, hi there anxiety.) I'm glad I... mmmet you tonight. (Oh yeah. Yep. Still horrible at it. In fact, my nerves got the best of me and I had to pause so not to stumble over my words. And only when we reached my van, did I take a chance glance your sister’s way with Jaiden, making sure they were okay before I continued on around to the passenger side of my van with you, feeling completely safe in your presence while out of sight of Jaiden’s. Which was another first for me too.)
Chris:
[I didn’t know where the hell you came from. But I was thanking all the stars and gods that I had the idea to bring Cammy here today. Had I not, I wouldn’t have met you. Which is funny because before tonight, I was completely closed off to the idea of a relationship again after the dumpster fire that was my last. A few minutes with you and I was rethinking the whole thing. You were a total package from what I could tell. Funny, beautiful, a good sport. Hell, you even caused me to lay off of Cammy for the time being while she was clearly getting close to your brother. I couldn’t help the goofy grin that graced my face when you stumbled over your words for a second. Damn if that didn’t just make me like you even more} Honestly? {stops so that I’m standing directly in front of you as you lean back against that van door} I almost had a Francesca. And that was a mess. {rubs the back of my neck before giving a shrug} Kind of turned me off to relationships for a while. {smirks, the fact that I was being so quick to say certain things the exact way I always tell Cammy not to not lost on me as I reach to tuck a piece of hair behind your ear} I’m feeling a little more open to them again now though…
Rainey:
Now? As in right now... (I had zoned in on those eyes of yours first but then that goofy grin was next which only made me smile wider, effectively leaving my gaze to linger on your mouth. You were right there.. That strand of hair you tucked behind my ear fueled my desire to reach out but I stayed right there pressed up against the van. Reminding myself that this wasn't some steamy romance novel. At least not yet.) That's good.. I mean wait no, it's not good. I didn't mean it was good that Francesca hurt you. I would never. (Cue my blush again then, silly me making this more awkward for us both and oh hi anxiety thanks for rearing your ugly head again. Sighing softly, almost embarrassingly so, I give you a kind smile, trying to rein it all in when it felt like you stepped closer. And suddenly it felt really hot..)
Chris:
[Somehow you managed to get more desirable with every minute. And when you made that slip saying you wouldn’t? I grinned probably the most embarrassingly dumb grin I’ve ever grinned in my life. Figuring I might as well go for broke, I stepped a little closer, carefully assessing your face and body language for any resistance as I brought my hand up one more time, this time cupping your cheek as I shook my head} I wouldn’t either. {lets the words hang between us for a few seconds, carefully gauging your reaction for a couple more seconds before whispering] Please don’t slap me. [With that, I took the plunge, leaning in and placing a light kiss to your lips]
Jaiden:
Make it a good one. <That crooked grin wasn't leaving my lips anytime soon. Not when I kept seeing that excited smile grace yours and I reluctantly let your hand slip from my fingers when you finally had a seat in your car. Shutting your door for you, I waited until you rolled your window, giving you a wink first before I dipped my head inside and brushed my lips against your cheek.> Be safe, beautiful. <Righting myself and the world for that matter, I started walking backwards towards the direction of our van, keeping you in my sights for as long I groaned and waited for my sister to get inside. Knowing the drive home was going to met with an awkward as hell conversation.>
Rainey:
(Oh my God.. He was going to do it. One second, I was convincing myself I was never hearing from you again and the next, I was throwing all caution to the wind when your words grand slammed into my brain, finally registering. "Please don't slap me." I melted into a puddle right then and there, legs wobbling, the whole shebang! For that split second in time, I was the heroine of all my books. All those worlds I got lost in and even if it was the smallest of kisses, it meant everything in that moment. Only it wasn't a book I was reading, it was my life. It was ME you were kissing. Very lightly, I returned that kiss, lips slow dancing against yours and I brought my hand up to coax you closer by that soft grasp of your jaw. Completely lost in you until I heard the van door slam and I was catapulted back to my very real reality.) Call me.. (It was a simple request and when you nodded against my lips, ignoring my brother completely, I gave you one last kiss to remember me by.) Night.. (I tried opening my door from behind me, fumbling for the door handle before I finally got it open and I turned to hop inside, coming face to face with my own brother. Mouthing "Not a word!" as he started the van and put it in gear, his groan of disapproval, was laughable and I did just that quietly as we made our way home.) #Kismet #WFW #ForKeeps
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I'd like to request a matchup of you don't mind! I dunno what to put down so I'm gonna ramble and call it good,, I'm 5'2 [and a half. I'm adamant about that half] and have adhd + severe anxiety! I tend to ramble a lot! I do have haphephobia, which means I hate being touched.i get violent when its not on my own terms or with people I trust. I'm very protective of people I love! I really like stars and bonfires! I'm my friend groups therapist,which I don't mind.I love reading and naps, Thank you!
I saw that you didn't mind two posts being used for the match up- I thought I'd give you more to work with! I have a kitten called sweetpea who's a RAT but she gets away with it! I have a ton of books,everywhere,I'm running out of space. I seem mature when alone but with friends I can and will hop from a giant pipe to a higher up one just to prove I can,scratches or not.I've put a small lightbulb in my mouth and broke it on accident, I felt like this was important to include
Hello! May I just say that I absolutely adore the utter chaos of a human being you are?? Like hello?? You accidentally broke a lightbulb in your mouth?? I appreciate greatly that you told me this but also please explain?? Why was it in your mouth?? How did it break?? Did you just?? Chew?? And didnt expect it to break?? You just had it in your mouth and when it broke you had glass in your mouth looking like: :0
please I'm begging you for a story time wether its dm or on here through submissions/asks for all of us to see and behold
aLSO PLEASE I I DON'T KNOW SWEETPEA BUT TELL THE RAT CAT I LOVE HER THANK YOU
Okay now onto the actual matchup I'm sorry I rambled you literally just left me with so much to think about. These questions will haunt me. I want you to know that. This matchup is a fever dream and I mean that in the best way possible.
I match you with Underswap Sans!
No doubt in my mind that this is your guy. This is a cursed couple. You both frighten people immensely and for you two that is a mission well done. You genuinely bring out both the best and the worst in Sans. On one hand, he has never been happier with anyone! On the other hand, Papyrus suspects that the reason as to why Sans was missing in the ball pit for 72 hours then later retrieved with 24 stolen items in hand was your doing. How did you play a role in this? He doesn't know yet but he'll figure it out.
You think that Sans is innocent? A bouncing blue baby boy man? No. Well yeah, but also no. He seems like a very happy skeleton who just wants to help others, and yeah that's still accurate; but he's also a literal troll. You both can relate to each other due to how people see you as mature at first, which isn't incorrect i'm assuming but you're also capable of utter chaos. Nobody suspects him to do half the chaotic shit he does. He will be the cause of Armageddon. This man single handedly causes the world to end. Normally Papyrus is the one to keep him from doing something chaotic but with you here now? Now it's just utter chaos. If you do something stupid just to prove that you can, Sans is not too far behind to prove that he can also do it but better. Genuinely the worst part of all of this is how Sans has his own motorcycle he rides and he can take you wherever you need to go. Want to go into some obscure area people fear to cause chaos? Sans will drive you no questions asked. He does have some limits however, for example y'know, he'd be immensely concerned if someone broke a lightbulb in their mouth.
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You: hehehe
You: hey sans look
Sans: HM?
You: [shoves lightbulb in mouth]
Sans: :0
You, voice muffled: isn't this cool?
[insert shattered lightbulb noises]
You: :0
Sans: OH FUCK
Sans: HUMAN ARE YOU OKAY
You: :00
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Whether or not at the end you're shocked about how Sans cursed or you're still in shock about the glass in your mouth is up for interpretation.
Honestly most of the stuff you two do together are your ideas. Sans just really wants to impress you and show you how magnificent he is! So please, of course you two can have fun, but don't completely rot this skeleton's mind. Not that Papyrus would allow that anyways. You both are essentially the Sans protection squad, and you're both very protective and would die for Sans before he got hurt, but Papyrus is the more responsible one out of the two members of the squad. Depending on how you view Papyrus, that can be seen as concerning.
Okay let's actually get serious for a moment here since I got carried away. That's my bad lol. When it comes to physical touch, Sans would typically all for it! However the moment you inform him that you have haphephobia he initially doesn't understand what that is. Once he does the research and understands it'd be totally alright with him! He respects your boundaries and wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable. Sometimes you'll have to remind him since when he's happy his immediate instinct is to hold the person closest to him, but a light reminder is enough to get him to back off again. If you ever want to try and overcome your phobia, he'll be right there. If not, that's okay with him too! He's here to support you no matter what.
It's important to mention that I personally headcanon that this version of Sans also has ADHD. Sooo in terms of usefulness, he's very sorry, but he isn't going to be of much help since he has a lot of the same habits you do. He can offer you some of his fidget toys if you'd like them though, and some pointers as to how he handles having it! Papyrus has gotten him plenty once he was officially diagnosed by Undyne and he's very happy to share! Sometimes both of your conditions lead to hilarious conversations and rambling since you both have that habit. Or just no conversation. Sometimes the two of you will be mid conversation and you both just kinda.
Forget.
You both forget what you were talking about.
In quiet acknowledgment you both just decide to move on to something else and not dwell on it.
However with anxiety, Sans is willing to do anything he can to help you! Would you like something to distract you? Soothing words? He knows that you typically don't like touch, but would it help in this situation? Would you like him to breathe with you? He's trying his best to help you in any way possible and he's there to listen if you need him.
Speaking of listening to each other, Sans appreciates the fact that you listen to people so much. He loves his brother very much but being treated like a child is frustrating, you know? Sans is an adult just like his brother and he has his own worries and problems. He won't like it if you try to treat him like a kid, so please refrain from doing that if you could. He'd greatly appreciate that.
Most of your date nights take place in your own home! Once Sans learned that you had a cat he was immediately determined to become besties with your cat. I'd personally like to imagine that your cat, for whatever reason she might have, doesn't feel the same way. If he ever cat sits it goes a little like this:
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You: hey Sans, I'm home! How was sweetpe-
Sans, covered in scratches: SHE WAS GREAT
Sweetpea: >:)
You:
You: o h ?
Sweetpea: >:))
Sans: I FEEL LIKE WE REALLY BONDED TONIGHT
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Yeah, it isn't great. But Sans hasn't given up just yet!
For dates Sans tends to take you out to places such as bookstores (a popular location for you two), the movies, restaurants, the park, and then end the night at his place! Alternatively, Sans would love to set up bonfires and a night of stargazing with you! If you'd like him to he could invite a handful of his friends and yours to share the night together with. If not, he's more than happy to sit with you and gaze at the stars as he lists all of the reasons in his head of why he loves you so damn much. These are the moments he loves the most with you. Just spending time together, no one else there to disturb you two and the beauty of the stars above.
#i am 100% serious about the storytime#please i need to know#also i know nothing about sweetpea but i'd die for her#please let her know that#I had a lot of fun writing this!#sorry if it's overly chaotic I just got carried away as always lmao#Underswap#Underswap x reader#x reader#reader#matchup#Undertale Matchup#underswap sans#underswap sans x reader
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I did it :)
So, I cried. That's a given.
Also this might be the most overwhelmingly happy ending in the series so far, you know, if you're used to every entry ending with "KIRYU DIE?????"
Bonus points because this ending DID NOT immediately reveal that he lives! I know my intro here is all unserious and the like but genuinely, that does a lot for making the scene so much more impactful and it worked here even though I know he returns for Y6.
So, I'm gonna do this post like the last big post because there's too many thoughts to expel.
Timestamps as I rewatch so I can share my thoughts. Then a short conclusion because honestly? This game has taken all my words multiple times.
I just want to calmly and happily say my final piece at the end :)
0:39 - Spoiler, this ending SUCKS because it doesn't include a final rhythm battle for Haruka! Now I think I read somewhere that there's a member of that assassin clan she can dance battle as a final challenge but I clearly didn't do that right and missed out and that's beside the point- THERE'S NO RHYTHM GAMEPLAY IN THIS FINALE >:(
9:00 - I EARNED IT, I'M USING IT!
13:00 - Spoiler for later, Shinada doesn't get to say this from what I recall. Instead Baba gets a different wake up call, but that works out :)
17:00 - Not now, but this will come up, I offer to you my johns for what happens in the first boss fight. My eyes were dry as hell so I missed some QTEs which means I didn't get the flashiest stuff to happen. This actually happened at the end of Y4 also but I restarted just to capture good footage- not this time.
17:30 - MOUSE. MOUSE MOUSE, A LITTLE RAT, MOUSE. Love to see it.
19:00 - The audible sigh I let out when they played the same song I've heard like 40 times in my playthrough was palpable. I do dig the song! But there are what? 4 Idol songs? They really needed more or to not saturate their use so much :(
19:40 - I legitimately gasped and went "Oh no... of course it's you!" at Baba's role in this. It added a lot of weight to the way he practically begged Haruka not to show up.
20:50 - So here's the gist. Majima's plan didn't work out, we know that. Majima has a REALLY good line and motivator moment where he says he's following orders now to protect Haruka because she means more to Kiryu than anything (and that's how Majima rolls), Majima then reveals some shit which can be amounted to "I think you've gotten weak and wanted to protect you!!!!" which does ring slightly hollow since we saw Majima at a ridiculously low point earlier. So either his low point was him contemplating Saejima's survival chances, or his low point was sincere (it sure sounded it) and his worry over Saejima being weak was just also happening at the same time. I don't really mind either way to be honest, we beat him up. I fail some QTEs.
33:00 - Baba deciding not to fulfill his orders on his own accord is actually extremely important and good as hell. It shows that all this changed him and gave him the motivation to forge his own path- or rather it began to though he's overwhelmed with doubt. It's extremely good.
33:50 - The fact he intentionally leaves evidence shows how much doubt he has though, he's giving up entirely more than forging his own path, he's just refusing to follow the orders of another but hasn't found the strength to continue on his own. It's really good is all.
38:00 - This was the first cry I had beating the game x.x Shinada is just a phenomenally likeable character, and watching him accept where his life has gone and what it's meant to others is way more touching than I'd assume considering it's a tale of a baseball star.
40:50 - THIS WAS HYPE AS HELL AND LEAD TO MY SECOND CRY. THIS PRISON FAMILY HAS NO RIGHT BEING THIS ENDEARING. Also, more or less, they get to deliver the message Shinada was supposed to lol.
42:50 - THIRD AND BIG AS HELL CRY. SHINADA YOU FOOL, YOU'VE A FOUND FAMILY AFTER-ALL!!! I genuinely adore this moment so much is all. It's such a wonderful payoff for this loveable fool. After all the runnin' away he has a home.
43:36 - I love Shinada so much the silly fuck.
46:00 - I got a laugh out of Akiyama KICKING ASS in the news footage (didn't mention but the first brawl cutscene was rather lacking wasn't it?) and Kiryu just like... punches a guy. It's hilarious to me. Also you best believe- I UNLOCKED IT, I'M USING IT!!!
48:00 - Now this is a, well, it's a bad reveal. Like look, there is a metric ton of good going on in this finale- but the reveal that Aizawa is his son and is evil and is the final boss is just too much zero-build-up-payoff. It's the worst part. It's not like extremely detrimental or anything- like it doesn't take away from the good stuff- but it's just entirely uninteresting and bad. It makes Aizawa's interest in Morinaga bizarre and uninteresting since he got no payoff, he had buildup with Saejima and then in the final scenes he's just like "Yeah, Mori was nice but who gives a fuck I am the one who killed him (I think he said) and I aspire to be strong as fuck because all of YOU IDIOTS have FRIENDS and CHARISMA >:(" and like, who fuckin' cares bud.
52:00 - Now I'll more or less sum up all of Akiyama's payoff here. 1- I unlocked it so I'm gonna use it! 2- He offhandedly says he wants to be a legend in this town, which in Y4 he already was- he was a myth, a city mystery- but of course he means like Kiryu not the loch ness monster. 3- He gets to be a legend by being the only civilian (or person in general) the Omi would bow to. It's kind of not built up at all and is a bit lame, but to be honest Akiyama has a pretty bit part in this entire game. He's kinda just a convenient returning character with motivation to assist Kiryu and a career that allows motivation to get involved through Park. To be blunt, his part in the story is weak. I wish it was stronger. But it's inoffensive and he at least gets something- as minor as it is. Getting to say he's king of the world is something, you know?
56:00 - I will say that the build up of "Oh shit, these are Kanai's men!" and the reveal that "Oh shit! They are WATASE'S men and all the clans who the Tojo were seeking alliances with!" is a good one. Watase is a fine enough character which I bring up only because I was told he was a standout- but he wasn't for me. His scenes are great, his growth with Katsuya is nice, but he's barely in the game and really only exists to be betrayed and then to be like "I'm one of the good yakuza despite being a war-lusting one because being a good yakuza is just complicated enough to allow this overlap" which is interesting for sure, but I don't know. Unless he does stuff in the subsequent games I didn't catch much in this one. Maybe he does- I assume he runs the Omi now!
1:00:00 - I kinda summed it up but yeah. Here's the final boss, Aizawa, a character we were mislead on and who's motivation is empty as fuck. It's, whatever. It's not the good part of the ending. The good part is everything prior and directly after. Like his entire deal is anti-silver-spoon talking points but also he includes being charismatic or capable as silver spoon-isms??? He pretty much just wants to be leader because he's strong. He'd arguably be more interesting if he just said it that way.
1:11:00 - The lyrics to Dream are anything but subtle and I love them and I love Haruka. Sliding this in here- Majima gets no payoff >:( Park's dream is accomplished in seeing her star on the stage, but no Majima moment? No sight of him accepting her loss? Lame.
1:14:00 - I genuinely LOVE that Aizawa focuses in on Kiryu's gunshot wound. He still accepts it as a fair fight because Kiryu presents it as one, but even then he pays mind to it as you'd expect someone wanting to fight at their strongest would- he wants to fight Kiryu at his best and he's accepting this because Kiryu presents as his best even when wounded- it's pretty cool. Fight happens. It's fine stuff, flashy and fun. Still maybe the weakest final boss yet because he has no build up. I'd be the first to admit without looking it up I can't list every final boss thus far, but like, Nishi was built up, Mine was built up, Goda was built up, I just, in this moment, don't recall having a big "WHO THE FUCK, THIS MEANS NOTHING?" fight in yakuza and this is certainly one of those.
1:25:00 - I cried AGAIN. Haruka just hit me with a truck of emotion here is all.
1:41:15 - This is a beautifully shot, emotional, and tragic looking ending. Heck, at 1:43:00 I initially thought he was being awoken in a hospital bed and I was like "Heh, there's the old Kiryu dies fakeout!" but no! They hammer home, they go for broke, they give a TRAGIC AS FUCK bitter ending on top of an ending that's like 99% happy as fuck in terms of offering everyone involved hope for the future. This was a good end :)
So then, some overall thoughts I maybe didn't get out- I mean there's no way this post touches everything but I want to at least try to because I like sharin' the experience and what I got out of it.
The fighting styles were mighty uneven as far as strengths or fun factor. To be blunt,
Kiryu has an overpowered counter attack and heat mode and since heat mode is underwhelming as hell that means he has JUST a counter attack- his strikes don't really hit all that well considering the improvements other characters saw this time around, so he's a bit one note here.
Saejima feel even meatier than before, nothing particularly 'stands out' but the fact that he has super armor as long as he has heat is a pretty big factor in making him feel good to use.
Akiyama got the short end of the straw this time around. His new gimmick is the launch combos and they are... well... less than shit at least from what I could feel during gameplay. They don't hurt much, they burn heat like crazy, and they can MISS, all while being a move that targets just one enemy- has no counter to blocking or armor- and provides no armor in turn.
Despite not losing anything, he kinda got screwed.
(I'm lead to believe Akiyama is invulnerable during his aerial combos which my blurb in my finale post complained felt worthless and cited that as a reason.
If so then I was wrong but I still hold all my other complaints towards it, just not the 'it has no armor or invuln' bit assuming that's true.)
Shinada wins out for being unique and being a weapon oriented character that actually does well with weapons. Weapons have always been something I pretty much ignore in Yakuza and the series itself has always desperately tried to make them interesting with things like weapon skills, Kamiya works, and the like. But other than the god weapons like the golden gun weapons just never felt good to manage.
Using them, sure, that's fine, but managing them? Durability and skills and limited movesets and all that? Nah. But Shinada really does a lot to make them less shit! His innate abilities that raise durability a metric ton REALLY make weapons feel better to use with him- and his unique movesets with weapons are pretty damn good (mostly. The pipe/'normal one hander pole size object' moveset is worthless as heck, it regularly misses).
He's fun.
===
Revelations were a miss this time around for me. Since you couldn't have seen them if you tried on my blog let it be known- I ONLY got the quest related revelations for each character- which is to say- ONE rev per character.
Revelations in 5 are weapon based, and not just 'bat or pole or gun' or whatever- they are DISPOSABLE TEMPORARY weapon based.
What you are supposed to do is go to the specific place on the map where that one revelation weapon spawns, hope like hell you find an enemy, and wail on them like crazy. If you use a weapon x amount of times then you'll get a revelation according to the internet. This is beyond ridiculous and means a normal playthrough will get none of these, while a focused one will be bored out of their mind GRINDING to get these.
I did not bother.
===
Now.
Yakuza 5.
This might be my favorite Yakuza overall.
I still think 0 is probably the best overall for most people, it has the best style, it has from what I've experienced the best gameplay, it's story is tear jerking and exciting and fun.
But as a yakuza game overall, I really have to give it to 5 personally. Because 0 tried to work within its bounds- it made itself a great entry point to the series or a great addition to Yakuza 1 / Kiwami as background.
But 5 is building on 4 previous games and it does so fucking phenomenally.
There's something to be said about a later entry in a series gaining extra payoff thanks to multiple entries of build up and character depth and 5 fucking does it.
I just. It explores the motivation of some fan-favorites so well, it expands characters so fucking well, I know I've harped on about it but just Saejima- man! Saejima goes from a run of the mill "Decent" character to a fully fledged and explored entity! And I LOVE him!
And no he's not the only shining spot, like hell he is, but he's such a posterchild for what 5 does right in my eyes- take something that's already good and breath some life into it. Also I adore it's laser focus on a singular theme and all the ways it wanted to explore it.
Like. I think Kiwami and Zero take the cake for the most fun I've had " 'playing' Yakuza so far, but 5 takes the cake for the most fun I've had 'in general' like gameplay and me just thinking about it because there's so much to think on.
More time will tell as I compartmentalize my thoughts and perhaps forget some details as one does, but right this moment- this might be my favorite Yakuza game.
I love it.
Also, woot! I beat Y5 before Monhun Rise came out :D Now I can start that game without putting a story on hold!
...
Except I also told my sister that I'd start Omori after Y5. So I guess alongside monhun I'll be playing through a game with a hefty and wonderfully done story. Which is what I didn't want to do with Y5.
I just can't win, lol.
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Thinking journal for season 12 Prime Empire 😎😎😎 (1/2)
So, I'm keeping this during all of season 12 to put down my thoughts as they appear. It's mostly for not ranting every single time a new episode comes out so please don't mind me too much 😅 I'm following the English release so please no spoilers 😙
I'm gonna split it in two, since apparently the season has 16 episodes. So this is the first part, enjoy my rambling 💜💜
It's the 30th of March and here we go!
IN GENERAL
I'm so, SO HAPPY, we have a theme for this season. For my experience apparently silly themes (tech ninja, ghosts, pirates) had brought very surprising results so I'm SO DOWN FOR THIS 😍😍
It seems that they fixed the mood, there is a specific mystery and a specific mission to follow. I like it too
THE NEW WHIP IS DOPE AS ALWAYS
I'm really glad there are plenty of references to past episodes, comebacks are my jam
The only thing that still kinda bothers me is the length of the episodes. It's not all bad, I just think the 20 minutes format was better. One thing is splitting 20 in 10 minutes, another is putting together 11 minutes of important stuff. Doesn't bother me too much, I just wish there was more time for my favorite show 🤷♀️
WOULD YOU LIKE TO ENTER PRIME EMPIRE?
Is it normal for me to feel really old after they made the "what is a VCR?" joke? Like, I'm a uni student so still pretty young, but I lived through the transition from that to the DVD so... eh, I laughed anyway👵
Jay is smart, I really believe he is. Yet I saw him putting a possibly corrupted motherboard into a legendary game randomly found into a villain's lair, and I was like "Of course he did that, I love you you dumb*ss" raising my glass of juice towards him 😎
Okay, I'm down for this Lloyd. I'm down for a season with Lloyd being creeped out just because, being silly, just a ninja helping his friends and- (remembers there's a Harumi avatar in the sets) I'M NOT READY
The ending was actually nicely creepy. Cool nods in approval
DYER ISLAND
THAT INTRO THOUGH, THAT WAS EPIC! Love the techno sounds, love the clear gaming connection, I rate it 10/HECK YEAH LONG LIVE THE FOLD
I was scared about how the shorts were supposed to play along with the season, but it looks fine so far with the mechanic and later for Scott. Good 👍
Ah, Fist to Face, that game came all over from the nostalgic season 1. That's what I'm talking about 😎
So they just associated that Unagami is probably Dyer's avatar like that? Like sure, I thought about it, but it looks a little rushed. Mm, I wonder if there's something more behind it?
LEVEL 13
Cyrus Borg is back and he TALKS!!! Finally, he gets some action! Go tech dad!
I'm so happy he referenced the Digiverse, I would have been very disappointed if he hadn't. Time flies Borg...
Not gonna lie, I thought the next to follow up Jay's spot as best in videigames was going to be Kai or Lloyd. It's not disappointing though, since pretty much all the ninja have been seen playing, and to be honest I like the implication that Cole and Jay probably played a lot together. As bruiseshipping or as BrOTP, I still love them together no matter what 💙🖤💙🖤
Ooooohhhhh, that's why Zane and Pixal are left behind. It makes sense, sure, but I don't understand the implication of the plan: they saw Dyer entering Prime Empire, so why looking for him in real life? Mm, maybe they will investigate about his life and what happened... PIXANE ON THE CASE 😍
Already saw Prime Empire's world in the shorts, of course it looks DOPE, still very happy to finally being there!
SUPERSTAR ROCKIN' JAY
I don't know why, but Kai questioning the double jump made me laugh. Also poor him, he just got his powers back from last season and they're already gone again 😂
And of course. Them. Wow. It must be the most amazing and CURSED thing I've ever seen so far, the League of Jay 🤯 I'm so happy they exist and they freaking use past seasons' suits!!! Awesome!!! Never thought I was going to see Jay's old plain haircut again... yeah, he got better with the curly one, but I'm feeling nostalgic 🤷♀️
Their nick are histerical omg, Jaybird, Dee-Jay, Jaywalkin, I'm loving this way more than I should 😂 Also they freaking screamed "JAY-NJA GOO!!!" and I don't know what to do with that, it's too great for me to comprehend 👏👏
And then, THIS happened:
Your Honor, I would like to confirm this as THE MOST SECRET DREAM I'VE EVER HAD FOR THIS SHOW FINALLY COMING TRUE!!! A NINJA FROM NINJAGO DOING THE NARUTO RUN!!! 🤯🤯🤯 Done, I'm done, conclude the season, this is more than enough for me 😍
First Kai gets hit and fall from a building, DYING, then Lloyd gets desperate for his brother (MY BROTP 💚❤💚❤), then Kai respawns and Lloyd looks so relieved and Kai is all panting while slowly realizing it's a game and MY HEART CAN'T HANDLE THIS MUCH OKAY???
As a very passionate Kai fangirl I always expect the cringy moment, it really is inevitable for my favorite hothead. I love that idiot so much it's unbelievable, even if it's an absolute and costant suffering 😅 Holy Garmadon it was painful seeing his VERY slow realization that in this game you only have four lives
... SO HE HAS ONE NOW!?! NINJAGO CREW YOU ALREADY KILLED ZANE, NYA AND LLOYD ONCE AT THE END OF A SEASON, DON'T YOU DARE PLAY WITH ME AGAIN 😱😱😱
Okay, I did not expect to hear about Mr. Cuddly Wamp ever again since Hands of Time and BOY if I'm happy it was actually a password, I love this show 😂
SCOTT FINALLY!!! YESS!!! 😍😍😍
Okay, for as long as it is not debunked, I will hold onto the Scott is Jay's brother/twin theory. I'm sorry but: his jacket has dragons AND lightnings on it, they have very similar skin in avatar mode, he said he was waiting for him in the short, he could very well have his same hair under cap and hoodie and he's a mechanic too. I know, I know, they could have the same skin because Scott helped him for the avatar, and there might be shadier reason behind the 'I was waiting for you' thing, and there are tons of good mechanics in Ninjago... STILL HOW COOL WOULD THAT BE??? 😍
SCOTT HAS ONE LIFE POINT TOO??? NO! NOOO!!! NOOOOOOO!!! Don't you dare appear and steal my heart only to die at the end of the season, come on!! 😭
So for now it seems like he just wants to survive. Can we actually confirm he's an avatar and not an NPC? I mean he could be, but I don't see the point of an NPC self aware of his life points. Idk, maybe I'm overthinking this 🤷♀️
Lol, Kai is the only one weirded out by the Jay-con all around him. Probably because he hasn't heard from his fans since Skybound 😅 (I'M STILL HERE MY FLAME BABE, ILY ❤❤❤)
And in all of his glory, freaking Superstar Rockin' Jay!!! 😎😎 Okay, I loved the design since the first time I saw it, but it looks possibly even better in the show 😍😍😍 And Jay looks absolutely adorable in it, and he's got a guitar, and he was waiting for his friends, and he hugs them (I'm weak for LEGO hugs for some reason) and he is so happy and AAAHHH 💙💙💙💙💙
I'm very curious about how Scott will play into the situation, clearly he will provide some kind of insight about Prime Empire. I can't wait to know more about him!! 😍
I AM OKINO
I did not expect this when I saw this Okino guy in the trailer... and I'm so happy I was surprised, I love him 👌
And he's voiced by Alessandro Juliani?? HECK YEAH!!! With all the hype about the DnD 13th season, and consequentially the knight theme, I really miss Nexo Knights and having Aaron's VA around makes me happy... any hope to have Giles Panton as well? I miss Clay the most 💙💙
This is what I'm talking about, the game theme needs this stuff! I was already happy to see life points, double jumps and respawns, but this? The NPC guide? Awesome 👍 It's nice to see the take on the matter, the guide seeing so many players getting killed, first because they did not listen, then because they were actually just unlucky. The touchy matter I always expect watching Ninjago 👏👏
At least I THINK he's an NPC? For now I don't really see a way of knowing, and it doesn't look like it matters. He didn't show life points so maybe? Does this mean he can't die? I have questions people
Which brings me to the cube thingies. That's what happens to the dead players? I mean, I would understand if they just become pixels, but there's also the drone that takes the datas every time. Idk, feels like there's more behind it. And honestly? It looks like great material for angst, like one of the ninja dies but then they discover they just need to get where Unagami stores all of the players! I hope it's something like this!
They designs of the players are really cool, I already saw them in the other episodes, but seeing them this close just confirmed it. Between this and Jay's awesome avatar, I see lots of great cosplay ideas coming 😍 I wonder when will Kai and Lloyd use their avatars, and why would they since I'm guessing Jay did for disguise and to distinguish himself from his fans
PLEASE TELL ME WE'LL SEE SCOTT SOON, I ALREADY MISS HIM!!! 💙💙💙 I have too many theories about that tech dude, I'm so excited about who he might turn out to be!
I was a little skeptical about the new ninja suits, but seeing them in the show convinced me, very cool! Especially on Nya 💕💕💕
THE GLITCH
Alright, Okino is indeed an NPC. Cool the fact that at first he could not understand the fact that he was in a game, but when reality changed he was forced to. Welcome into the crew! 😙
I'm kinda worried about it though, either they will shut down the game and he will stay inside or he will sacrifice for them. He's a very loyal samurai, I can see that happening and I'm SCARED
I WAS SWEATING BULLETS AT THE AMBUSH!!! I 100% saw it coming, we all freaking saw it coming, even the ninja did but where like 'we can walk and die or we can risk and die so might as well'. But still, my babies DYING and respawning so fast was not pretty 😱😱
Nya got the scariest death until now in my opinion, holy Garmadon Dyer DOES have a twisted mind...
Seeing Kai so scared of being in a new situation and with one HP reminds me A LOT of the Digiverse, and that's actually a nice touch. Give him a cellphone, hothead is a social media expert, but put him in a game and... huuhhh... 😅
Have I mentioned I love the ninja's new emoji masks??
BECAUSE I DO!!! 😂😂😂😂
So Unagami knows about them trying to stop him and he sent the rat people because of it. Considering how little we know about this guy, I'm wondering what we are about to discover
Alright, going to the next challenge, very curious about this adventure. So... beware of the rats, ninja? Still not sure what I think about the rats 😅
THE CLIFFS OF HYSTERIA
I would like to say Okino is the edgiest character of the show I've ever seen... but I've seen MORRO. But still poor guy, he got a case of the Matrix
Oooohhhh, the major question in videogames: better go grinding for more money to get the better stuff but while losing lots of time, or get the least expensive just to go on with the story but definitely risking to lose lives?
Ah there we go, so the energy cubes mean something! Also reference to the Sushimi guy of the set (gosh that name, I can't 😂). So do people actually die in Prime Empire or they are just kidnapped kinda? Can the ninja just bring back? ANGST POTENTIAL
Cole please don't die please don't die please don't die for the love of Garmadon please don't die somebody help-
HOLY FSM KAI I MEANT HELP FROM SOMEONE WITH MORE THAN ONE LIFE DON'T DO THAT BE CAREFUL PLEASE I FREAKING LOVE YOU YOU RECKLESS HOTHEAD ❤❤❤
Nya giving Kai a sweet look after seeing her brother is okay, that's what I live for 😍
So apparently Unagami is trying to build some kind of device using the energy cubes of the dead players (sounds kinda creepy like this 😱) to create some kind of portal? To Ninjago? I don't understand, if Unagami is Milton Dyer then why this? Just to bring his army and conquer? I mean I guess, sounds a little simple though. Then again, if it turns out it's not Dyer, it could be Unagami wanting to be real and get into his creator's world? Mm...
I like the message, having the ability to choose your own path. Very fitting for a game themed season, I hope it gets explored even more!
More for the "I love the ninja emoji masks of this season"'s compilation 😂😂😂
THE MAZE OF THE RED DRAGON
Duuuude, Jay being good at mazes comes all the way from Possession, the Tomb of the First Spinjitzu Master! 😍 ... or maybe I just rewatch this show too much... could be both really 😅
Unagami is NASTY!
Confirmed the thing about going into the real world, what scares me is how much powers Unagami seems to actually possess. Like, can he do the block thingy whenever he wants? Just straight up pause and do whatever? Wow...
Jay being extra 😎
I mean, of course he is, he's got better statics! 😂 I like how he seems so focused and in charge, I still hope we see more of him... and Scott... WHERE IS SCOTT???
I love dragons, this metal one is cute 😍
So now we have two ronin: a samurai looking for a path on his own in a digital world... and a shady guy named Ronin 😛 Total respect for Okino, he really showed the values he believes in. No matter he was programmed his way, I hope he finds what he's looking for. Better come back for the final battle!
One Keytana down, two more to go. I know one is the price of the race, while the last one... I don't really know.
More of the masks because I love them 😂 Here we have Vegeta Lloyd and Kawai Cole ✌✌
#ranting#this is kinda therapeutic#i feel good#i like this season#ninjago#lego ninjago#prime empire#ninjago season 12#ninjago spoilers#spoilers#ninjago s12#ninjago kai#kai smith#ninjago jay#jay walker#jay gordon#ninjago nya#nya smith#cole brookstone#ninjago cole#kai ninjago#ninjago lloyd#lloyd montgomery garmadon#lloyd garmadon#ninjago zane#zane julien#ninjago pixal#pixal borg#ninjago okino#ninjago scott
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The Bucketlist
Mini-Series of Short Stories
St. Valentines Day: CHAPTER 1
"Number 5. Done! So much to do, so little time." The woman said.
Checking an item off her list.
She already got her things packed, ready to leave for the beach.
She rode a plane, a cab, and a train going to her destination.
"Plage Solitaire." Gisela mentioned the name of the beach.
Her vision turned from left to right.
She inhaled the fresh air and appreciated one of her best decisions in life.
The place looks private and isolated for there are only few people living at the sea-side.
"No pure white sand. Waters are not so clear. Lonely. Of all the Beaches, why here in this damn stinky hole? Well, 'can't blame ye, the morning and afternoon in this village is peaceful indeed." An old folk muttered with a western accent as he is mixing drinks at his so called 'BoozeBar' which the old rusty sign said.
She just smiled and looked at the man.
"Oh, where's my darn manners, the name's Old Man Larry. What's your name child?" She shook his hand and answered.
"Nice to meet you Larry. Gisela. I have just moved in, I wanna live here, this is one of my favorite places as my parents brought me here once... Way back, when they're still alive. Wouldn't exchange it for another. Even if it's the last place I go to." She said forcing a smile to the man who just nodded feeling sad by just listening to her tone and watching her facial expressions.
She must be going through something.
Not just something.
A lot.
Tons of things are running on this silent woman's mind.
"Grandpa, can I drink this juice?" His grandson asked Larry.
"That ain't no juice son. That's poison. By the way, Gisela, you're welcome drink's on me. Ye may join the party later. The Valentine's Night is the opposite. It's the only night apart from Christmas ye can consider a festival." He said as he handed her his own concoction, like it was derived from two known mocktails/ladies' drink, Mimosa and Sangria.
Then an old lady approached and greeted them.
She seemed tough but she went to them smiling.
"I'm the owner of this isolated place you called a stinky hole Larry, like you have no respect for your wife, goodness gracious! You should be helping me build this place up, not spread rubbish to tear this place down. Do that again and I'll burry an old man to the sand. Nice to meet you?" She did not finish the sentence.
"Gisela. Of the doomed." She said laughing a bit.
"Oh such a joker. I'm Olivia." The old lady introduced herself.
The old woman showed Gisela the directions to her beach house.
It was a tiny, cozy, bright-yellow colored wooden beach house.
It's so remarkable and outstanding that you would even recognize it from afar.
It outshined the other dull-colored houses.
Plus, the best part is that, it's the nearest one to the beach.
She was busy arranging her stuff... When she heard the loud music pumped and started at the beach, she peaked through the window and saw the lights that gave life to the dead atmosphere earlier.
She heard and saw the people mingle, laugh and started to gather round the campfire to dance, chat and have fun not being sober tonight.
She dressed up wearing my lace bikini under my beach dress.
She went out and hanged at the BoozeBar when a guy recently approached her.
"Why aren't you drinking yet beautiful?" The weird guy asked.
"I don't plan on drowning myself in hard-liquor tonight. I would rather just drown in my own thoughts. Alone. Thank you." Gisela answered.
"Just a sip. Please." He insisted.
"No thanks. Can you go and leave the goner now?" Gisela resisted.
***Phone Rings***
Gisela's phone rang, she just stared at the screen to see who's calling, thinking if she would answer or not.
As she was doing so, split-second, the man dropped something in her drink and left without a trace.
She took a while deciding whether to answer it or not but in the end, she chose to ignore and miss the call.
She sipped her glass and her favorite songs played.
She went near the waters and sat on the sand to get a feel of what she seeked for.
Freedom.
After a few hours of listening to music, her vision began to blur.
She panicked and immediately stood which was a bad idea for she felt more groggy... Like a bad case of vertigo.
She tried to walk passed the crowed, little did she know that there was a hungry hyena waiting for her at the other side.
The man she was with earlier was waiting for her to fall under his trap and sieze her, like a predator stalking his prey.
Well, I guess first impressions last, by the looks of it, he isn't really gonna do any good.
She walked, but she also felt so dizzy that she cannot even stand straight.
Her knees are trembling and it looked like her eyesight betrayed her for being inconsistent, it goes back to normal in a few seconds then intermittently goes back to being blurry again.
Her strength gave up on her and she lost her balance.
A man caught her from her back using his strong and firm arms.
A different man than the one from before.
"Are you alright Miss?" The man with a very deep voice asked.
Gisela gathered all of her strength to open her eyes wide to locate her house.
Well, it's literally just near the water, the BoozeBar and the party so she did not have a hard time pin-pointing the place even if it's just the outline and the color of the house that she can recognize as of the moment.
She lifted her arms and pointed her finger to that direction.
To make sure, the guy asked old man Larry where she lives...
"Well, it's that bright house over there. Take care of the lonely woman but don't try to do anything ungentlemanly or you'll end up in a dungeon..." The old man warned the handsome man and he just nodded.
It seemed that he got tired and carried the woman in his arms.
When they got to her place, he immediately looked for the sink and filled the kettle with water then he set it to boil.
He's now got a luke-warm water on the basin and wiped Gisela's face with a wet cloth.
It seemed that right after, Gisela went to life a bit and asked the man who he is...
"Are you sure you do not recognize me? I can't blame you, this place has no TV." He muttered his observation.
"I can't breathe! I might die from it! Why is it so damn hot in here?!" Gisela screamed and immediately slipped out of her dress and untied the knots of her bikini, exposing her bare skin in front of the stranger.
The man is also drunk but Gisela might have been drugged.
But the man was not aware of that, he just thought she had more than enough Booze because of her stench.
Technically, she drank but just little.
So that's what he smelled.
The man tried to dress her up again.
With the shown concern, Gisela got curious to get to know the man who's taking care or her.
She looked at his face carefully trying her best to recognize a feature of his face which might have been misinterpreted by the drunken man.
He thought that she was trying to kiss him and suddenly their faces went closely looking at each other...
It did not matter who broke and closed the space between them but their lips met, passionately kissing and wildly answering evey touch of the other person.
Leave it to one's imagination.
You name it...
They did it all the way that night.
Then, the rest were just hot history in the making.
Next morning, er, afternoon, with eyes still closed Gisela felt her aching body muscles and her 'you know what' is definitely sore but that was the best and the longest sleep she ever had especially for the passed couple of weeks that she has not been able to sleep properly due to insomnia.
Not remembering what happened last night, she moved a little to embrace the pillow beside her but she felt that the pillow turned rocky and it felt like a heat of another person's flesh.
Little did she know, that it really wasn't a pillow.
So she opened one of her eyes, trying not to be blinded by the light coming from the window.
She froze and opened both of her eyes widely.
Not because her body is aching from the strenious activity she did last night...
But because she saw a naked stranger sleeping beside her...
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Characters/Cast/Face Claims (But feel free to imagine😉):
Courtney Eaton as Gisela Valentine
Choi Seung-hyun as Dorian West
#Youtube#drama#feels#fiction#general fiction#general#gen fic#love#notyourtypicallovestory#random#random story#relationship#romance#series#short#short fiction#thebucketlist#undeservedfavor
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By the amount of fic I read and how bad my memory is I'm still not surprised that I remember exactly what happens in your fic a superstar, a year on and I'm still so intrigued as to what would've happened next it was so good and such an interesting take on kid fic ugh your mind blows me away with your creativity and conception of plot
oh wow, a superstar! barring something truly unexpected that’s gonna be a forever WIP, so here anon, is what happens next along with a shit ton of backstory
Backstory / Outline
Dan’s been an au pair since he was 20. He’s only had a few families (because he’s so good and they love him) who all swear by him. Families who can afford nannies are, by nature of the job, usually wealthy. Families that can afford an au pair, particularly one of his rate and reputation, are usually quite wealthy. He hasn’t broken into the big Old Money leagues quite yet, but he finds the nouveau riche to be a little more flexible as far as Dan’s style and general deportment.
Of course, working primarily with new money means he’s often working with celebrities. They’re British, so the celebrity culture isn’t nearly as rabid as it is in America.
But he does have a respectable stack of clippings from gossip mags that have identified him as someone’s mysterious new lover or piece on the side.
He doesn’t blink at Bryony’s assignment of one last job: Phil Lester.
Lester’s been making a comeback in the last couple of years, rebuilding his cultural cache after a few years outside of the spotlight. Bryony swears it's a short job, nothing like the last years-long job he just wrapped up.
Dan’s loathe to admit it, but part of the reason he’s hesitant to take on another job, other than wanting a career change, is that leaving families wears on him.
He’s not that breed of caretaker who can separate himself from his families. Some of these kids he’s watched grow from little lumps of cute into real humans with opinions and preferences and it can be hard to let go.
Which is why, when he meets Sophia, he knows he’s screwed because she’s a firecracker of a kid and he falls a little in love with her as soon as they meet.
Note: Sophie’s real first name is Manon
Dan’s bi and ends up helping Phil work through some of his own stuff about being pretty much gay, but having been in love with Margaux
He’s got depression and a touch of anxiety and explains those to Sophia at some point.
He knows he’s in when he realizes he’s been looking up tutorials for styling curly hair online.
Phil
Former youtuber that won a contest to be on a couple episodes of some failing TV show & became a dark horse who ends up getting picked up for a few other shows and eventually (shortly) makes the jump to film.
The industry falls all over themselves to talk about how -nice- he is, how -polite-
It's untreated anxiety that leaves him bordering on panic attacks at every red carpet debut but he never says that.
It gets worse after he’s caught coming out of a gay bar, mouth still attached to some boy
It's not exactly homophobia that drives him out. People are kind and don’t say anything to his face.
But suddenly they want to know things.
How long has he known?
What's his type?
They want him to be a role model and he just wants to live
It's an easy decision. It's so easy to walk away he almost feels guilty. He loves acting, so much it surprised him when he first started, but he knows he can’t stop doing it.
So he stops taking roles. He doesn’t sign any new contracts. He nods and smiles when people tell him he’s making a mistake and he pickets his last checks.
He doesn't go far, just moves to a smaller apartment in London, in a less ritzy area and waitings until people stop trying to follow him home.
It's not a meltdown, no matter what The Sun (?) says. The fame just starts to feel like a cold hand around his throat and he gets out before it starts to squeeze.
There are people who understand and they’re proud of him. That feels awkward too, but nothing like the gaze of the public.
He can eventually go back to school, for video editing, and he has a few things with guys that are short term.
Which is fine. He’s young enough that he’s allowed to be restless and a little freewheeling.
Margaux is...was...is a shock to his system.
She’s a second generation French-American who moved to London so she can be boring in peace.
(She’s French & Creole specifically. Sophia’s legal name is Manon Sophia Ange Siméon Lester. Obviously she only goes by Sophia Lester for the most part. Her maternal relatives aren’t pleased with that)
Margaux’s family was small when they met and only got smaller over the years they knew each other until it feels like it's just them and Sophia.
The thing is, Phil never called himself gay. The press did.
But he would now. Because he knows that there won’t be other women after Margaux. He knows it's unhealthy, but it's better than deciding there will never be anyone else at all.
They were friends. They’d never called themselves anything more than that--not before Sophia and not after.
Sophia is nearly seven with Margaux goes on the trip. They’d lived together on and off, so it's nothing strange for her to be with Phil rather than one of her two remaining maternal grandmothers.
Phil is Sophia’s father, legally, biologically, all the way. But he sometimes feels like the most out of place person in her life. He doesn't know how to express to Sophia how much he loved Margaux while still being a mostly-gay man.
Phil’s weirdness about bisexuality (his own and the very idea) is a sticking point between him and Dan
Sophia knows and doesn’t particularly get why the delineation matters. All she knows is her Dad sometimes acts unsure of his own Dadness.
Margaux dies because of a head injury. She’d gone on an extended vacation with friends and gone bike riding without a helmet and fell. The friends took her to a clinic and she’d gotten a bandage for the scrapes to her forehead, a scolding and a clean bill of health. She’d skyped with them that night and made jokes about ruining her moneymaker. In the morning, she was gone.
People in Phil’s life, his relatives and former friends, characterize Margaux as a funny little deviation that would have just faded into a fun story if not for Sophia. Phil doesn’t argue, because he doesn’t want to upset things)
Dan realizing that Phil loved her is a moment of breaking through Phil’s shiny veneer of untouchable politeness)
When Phil decided to start acting again, he’s not expecting things to progress as quickly as they do. He knows that people were impressed with him when he was younger. He’s shocked to hear words like “critically acclaimed” get thrown around. He was just a kid escaping into the lives of people who had bigger problems than him.
But he reaches out, because he misses it and he’s tired of being a not-widower, hanting everywhere he goes, and the roles come.
And the gaze comes with them. There are small things. A c-plot role, a secondary character. A lead role from a smaller studio. And then a big break comes across his desk. It's a middling role, but everyone that gets top billing comes with an Academy Award attached. And there are explosions in the script. The kind that mean a summer blockbuster. He takes it, and suddenly, he’s on the edges of spotlight again.
Phil knows what he looks like. Internet star turned film star who goes gay, disappears for a few years, then returns, unpartnered with a brown, French speaking, half-American (half black America) pre-teen in tow. He looks like a ton of clicks, maybe a record number of copies sold.
Soph is 11.
He takes the role and calls Bryony directly, because there’s no way he can do this alone.
Part One: Meeting
Dan’s finishing up his first month back home after leaving a family. He’s got scripts on his desk--good, meaty roles that have him thinking he might not take another family on, yet.
Bryony calls, which is interesting. She’s the head of the agency & they’re friendly but not on phone call terms.
She offers him the job. He initially refuses. She admits it's a personal favor kind of job, and temporary and she wants her best on it.
Dan agrees to a chemistry meeting.
They meet up, Sophia charms dan and he still says no.
She comes with a short term nanny because her dad’s running late.
Phil shows up & Dan’s jaw clenches because PHil’s the kind of rung-jumping acting success story that Dan’ resents.
So he’s sarcastic and a little cross because he hates that and the choir boy facade Phil puts on
Maybe he makes a euthanasia joke? Or something about an uncaring universe that goes over Sophia’s head.
Except Phil laughs and doesn't glanced nervously at Sophia the way parents do sometimes when dan gets a little dark.
Phil finally sends Sophia off to buy a cupcake so he can be alone and upfront with Dan.
He explains that it won’t be a long term job, just the 9 months he needs to be in America to shoot and then Dan is free.
“This is just the first time we’ve done this,” Phil says, watching Sophia through the window. “And I want to give Soph the best. She deserves the best. Better than that.”
And Dan’s a goner. He’s still a businessman, so he asks for time to consider and sends his terms of employment to the agency’s lawyer. But he knows he’s going to do it. He makes a mental note to look up a list of tutors if they don’t already have one hired.
Part 2: Getting to Know Each Other
Dan makes the assumption that Sophia is adopted & Phil awkwardly corrects him--this is the beginning of their conflict over the word bisexual.
Phil’s never had an au pair, so he’s uncomfortable with how *there* Dan suddenly is. He doesn’t move into their London flat because there’s not room for him but they start preparing for the move & he’s got experience in ordering houses for that, more than Phil does.
They don’t have any other staff. Sophia will get a tutor in America, but she’s finishing her year in school & Phil lives well within his means, small flat, they cook for themselves and the cleaning lady visits once a week. Dan’s the only one there all the time & despite all his years of experience, he feels invasive. But he also gets to see how close Phil and Sophia are, including watching them do “homework” together, Sophia doing equations & Phil running lines.
They go to America. Phil’s one movie has turned into parts in three movies. In one he’s playing a semi-serious playboy villain who was once the husband of the (superhero) lead. In another, he’s a professor/mentor in a teen dramedy. In the last one, the blockbuster/oscar bait, he’s playing a man whose life is ruined by the rise of the regime the main cast is fighting. Dan thinks the last one is the only one that sounds interesting. But he’s impressed with Phil’s handling of learning all the scripts. They’re surprisingly disparate characters. The playboy is, at his core, a sleaze that covers himself in a fine patina of British politeness. The professor is clearly meant to be someone whose awkwardness translates into the kind of cool kids would find appealing & Phil manages to strike the balance gamely. And the last one is...it's Oscar bait and even though Phil’s part isn’t big enough to get him supporting actor billing Dan can see him prepare to give a career-changing, maybe even life changing performance.
The first two he practices in front of them. Dan gets sick of the lines, finds himself muttering them along with Phil as he makes Sophie’s snacks.
The other one, only Dan sees.
He doesn’t at first. For a while Phil locks himself away in his room and Dan can only hear the muffled yelling of a one sided argument.
But one night he’s sitting, looking out over the city, thinking about going to bed when Phil comes out and asks him, sheepishly, if he’ll listen and tell Phil if he sounds wooden.
Dan agrees and they sit at the kitchen table. Phil takes a long, steady breath and suddenly there are tears. He holds his head just slightly higher, proudly, and there’s suddenly a stoney archness Dan’s never seen on him before.
“And so that’s it,” Phil says, his voice cold, closed off and defeated. “Eleven years and you hand me over to your precious leader.”“Josiah,” Dan says, looking at the script. “You have to understand. I had no choice--”“Coward,” Phil says. It's a simple word but still feels like it pierces Dan’s core.“My darling,” Dan says. “Please.”Phil stands. Dan watches him. “Remember that.” He stalks around the table, his eyes still shining with tears. “When I am on my knees, begging for life, when they’ve made you my executioner.”He steps closer, standing a hair too close to Dan, and says, anguished, “Remember that I was once your darling. Your beloved. Your love.”Dan is rapt, waiting for the next line, but Phil clears his throat and takes a step back. “And then they kiss and Josiah leaves,” Phil says, suddenly back in his own body and self. “What d’you think?”“Wow,” Dan says, hoping his face isn’t betraying his surprise that Phil can actually, really act. “Um. It’s good. Your movements could be a little smoother. They were together, right? So Josiah should be used to getting in--what’s her name?”“His,” Phil says, settling back into his kitchen chair. “Theodore. Theo.”“Woah,” Dan says before he thinks better of it. “You’re playing gay?”Phil quirks an eyebrow, “It's not really...playing?”Dan waves a hand, “Obviously. But that’s a big choice, role-wise. You aren’t afraid they’ll just see you as the gay one?”Phil stares at him, brows furrowed until Dan mouths, “What?”“You do know...about me, right? How my career got started? And why I stopped? I’m already the gay one.”“But you have a choice. I’m not saying you should change your mind. The film industries closet shit is bullshit. But you have a choice.”“Dan. I know. And the choice is what I get to be private about. An actor--a celebrity who isn’t trying to walk back their youthful indiscretion is way more interesting than a mostly gay man with a kid and a dead...Margaux.”Dan feels...so many things. “You can’t hide Sophie. She’s your kid.”“I’m not hiding her,” Phil says, and Dan knows immediately that this isn’t the first time Phil’s heard this exact argument. “I’m protecting her.”
Dan keeps agreeing to run lines with Phil. He never asks for the script, so he learns Josiah through Phil, the early scenes where he’s playful, teasingly sensual, his deteriorating life and mental state and the way he dies.
They don't run those lines when Sophie is home. It's understandable. It's unsettling for Dan, an adult who understands the depths you can get to while acting, to watch Phil muss himself up and drop unceremoniously to his knees, hands clasped behind himself. It's a short scene & Dan knows the public will be outraged with the scene. But every time he reads his own lines, a choked, delicate line of “I have to.”Phil nails it with workman’s precision everytime, He looks slightly past Dan, huffs a soft broken laugh and says, so quiet and tender, so full of betrayal. “You’ll never forget this day, Theo.” Dan doesn’t know what happens in the rest of the movie, but he’d pay the price of admission to watch Phil say that sentence.He’s been convinced, won over, sold & transported.
The fic doesn't end after they hook up for the first time, follows them through figuring out that this can’t be a one time thing and they both want this to last. Phil encouraging Dan to take on acting and not just because they can’t be together publicly while Dan is Sophie’s au pair.
Ending of the fic is Sophie and Dan hanging out at the Oscars (or BAFTAs?) waiting for Phil to come out of the bathroom. It's a few years later (enough years that Dan should probably be freaked out about how many of the actresses he and Soph agree are super hot) and Phil’s up for an Oscar for best supporting actor.
*At some point they get drunk together (after some terrible award show?) and talk about their first and best times with men and Dan accidentally dirty talks to Phil because he’s drunk and reminiscing about some truly outstanding cock he’s had in his day.
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Do you think Cas got it when Dean said "I'm not mad, I'm worried"? Like, do you think he understands that Dean meant "I'm worried about you - specifically you, Cas (because I love you)" not "I'm worried in general/for the world what fresh hell killing Billie will unleash"?
That’s a good question. Honestly, I think we can read this either way.
We can say no, he didn’t get it, because Cas always takes things so literally, and he’s got so little self-worth, that he wouldn’t think Dean could be worried about him to that degree. After all, Cas’ never seen Dean turning inside out after he’s lost him, so what he can see Sam is the only person in the world Dean can’t function without. Because maybe Cas wasn’t too far gone to hear Ishim’s little speech and realize Dean would rather face the certainty of pain and death than risk hurting Cas, but I think in his mind, Dean’s love for him is no different than Dean’s love for everything else (romance trope: Love You and Everybody). Feeling responsible for everything and everyone - that’s just the way Dean’s wired, and Cas knows this better than most.
On the other hand, Cas is now learning the difference between angelic love and human love - @elizabethrobertajones wrote a splendid meta about this - and we know he tends to mirror Dean, so if he just stopped and bothered with some soul-searching for five minutes (and he must have, right? that’s what depression does to you, after all - it forces you to second guess yourself, examine your motives and failings) then he’d realize that he himself has basically stopped to give a damn about the world a while ago - or, at the very least, at the end of S10. There’s no way Cas didn’t know what curing Dean would unleash - he must have had some suspicion, at least - and yet he went and did it anyway, because Dean was more important than the world and he’d completely bought into the old Winchester logic, I’ll do something real stupid so my brother lives and I’ll worry about fixing the rest of it later. So, well - if he’s honest with himself, he probably realizes Dean is more worried about Cas, personally, than the world at large.
The thing is, though - all of it - the answer to your question, and how their relationship is built - depends a lot on those scenes we keep missing out on. There are tons of discussions we haven’t seen, not to mention glimpses of what life is like in the Bunker now Cas is there full time. For instance, the end of the last episode moved rather quickly from I’ll get killed and it’s no big deal to Hey, remember Lucifer’s demon baby? - but I’m hoping the evening went on after that. Just off the top of my head, I’m expecting Sam and Dean to make it clear to Cas his death is not an option, to ask him what are the limitations of his Grace (and also what’s up with his wings) and how they can help, what happened with that vessel back in 1901 and mostly Are you okay? because man, all those angels, even snotty Mirabel, were Cas’ friends, and the way Cas stared at the imprint of Benjamin’s wings…I think Sam and Dean (and us too) focus way too much on the fact angels are dicks and not enough on this other truth - that those dicks are, or used to be, Cas’ friends, and not only his brothers. That Cas fought with them and for them and forged bonds with them which go back thousands, if not millions, of years. We’ve never seen Cas discussing what happened with Balthazar and I’m not bitter about it, or Samandriel - we’ve never seen him grieving for Hannah, and now for Benjamin and Mirabel and those other two unnamed angels who were part of the Lily Sunder mission. And this, right here, is something I really don’t like about Supernatural - how the show is basically about killing stuff and people dying, and yet we mostly never see the consequences of that. Sam hardly ever mentions Jess, or Madison, or even Ruby. They don’t talk about Bobby. We’ve never seen Charlie’s grave. Even John is now a name that never comes up, which is a little hard to believe, considering Mary’s right there and only Sam and Dean can fill in the blanks of what John’s life was and how he died (that whole thing was handled so badly, don’t get me started). And nobody ever bothered to ask Cas how he feels about anything - like, can he (still) sense it when his brothers are hurt of killed? Does he need to talk about it? What happens to angels when they die, anyway? And I don’t know what’s going on here - if everybody’s so damn macho and emotionally repressed and/or fears they’ll fall apart if they mention someone they lost, or if those scenes exist and we’re simply not seeing it - but, to me that’s a real weakness of the show, and one that could be easily fixed - you don’t need to devote entire episodes to these things - a small touch here and there would be plenty enough.
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