#I loved the music. it didn’t feel like anything crazy but I cannot stress enough that that doesn’t mean I didn’t like it. all of the music

[frascospecimen]

Finished bocchi all in one day👍very very good would highly recommend it for anyone who has seen clips/screenshots/etc but hasn’t watched the anime in full yet. It’s such a delight… such a fun time from start to finish and can easily be watched in a day. Very very funny with a lot of heart it’s so fun to cheer on bocchi…. I want her to be happy 🥹 loved how expressive the animation was

[misspelledwordswizard]

Chapter 12 -  I would love to know how people entertained themselves before technology.

Previous chapter / Next chapter

We had been walking for almost an hour, we woke up well after sunrise and were blessed with the opportunity to have a hearty breakfast. It was clear that the Old man was apprehensive, since the attack the night before, he had spared no effort in fulfilling his order not to keep me alone, no matter which way I went, there would always be two heroes on my neck. It is annoying, but I understand that it is necessary, it is better this way.

Due to the previous events there was also an evident concern about a question that had been raised previously: What does the Shadow want with me? I cannot think of plausible reasons that do not lead me to paranoia that it is possible that it is aware of my secret, and if that is true, then I am in serious trouble.

I hate lying to them, the heroes who are trying so hard to help me, but I am not as brave as they are, I do not feel ready for them to know the truth, I am afraid of losing them. But if anyone, especially him, finds out about this, they can use it as blackmail against me. That shadow, if he tries to attack me again, no, when he tries to attack me again I will try to get information out of him. I will need to learn the gift of getting information out of him through idle chatter.

The sun was not so strong today, which is actually a relief for my burnt skin begging for mercy. Unfortunately, what was different from the previous day was also the lack of fun in the group, everyone was worried and distressed, so much so that not even a good night’s sleep and being well fed could lift their spirits. Maybe last night everyone was trying to maintain the good vibes so as not to cause me more stress, but today no one had that much energy.

Luckily for me, Wind was not the type to push you out of bed, we had a peaceful night without disturbances. Four, on the other hand, had been complaining since he woke up about how Wild was kicking, pushing and stealing the blanket. I think the idea of sharing beds in the stables was completely annihilated after that.

— You seem worried. – Wars spoke next to me, loud enough for only me to hear, his tone was not very cheerful, bordering on concern.

— I can’t stop thinking about possible reasons that brought me here. – I was sincere in my answer, he didn’t need to know the details, but it was okay to tell him.

— It sounds crazy, doesn’t it? But don’t worry, we’ll get your life back to normal, even if it takes a while.

I smiled, thanking him for trying to comfort me, but deep down I know that neither of us is sure of what might happen. No matter what I did, the bad feeling of discomfort wouldn’t go away, it was like a bad premonition that followed me and whispered in my ear that I shouldn’t be there.

This whole walk seemed pointless to me, even though I knew the final goal, after all, I probably wouldn’t even be able to enter the forest, and even if I did, I wouldn’t see anything. But the part that discouraged me the most was knowing that we have to keep walking down this road, with nothing intriguing along the way, na absolute bore. Maybe my quiet life reading books wasn’t as boring as I thought.

According to Wild, it was about a day and a half’s walk from the stable we left to the next one, Woodland Stable, so we would end up camping halfway, near the bridge. I observed the surroundings absentmindedly, looking for something interesting to keep my attention, but I couldn’t concentrate, until I noticed Hyrule somewhat apart from everyone else. Curiosity overcame me, suddenly the slightest bit of intrigue was enough to entertain me, anything was better than walking for hours in silence – I miss being able to listen to music while doing boring and repetitive things.

I walked faster to get to the Traveler, but kept a certain distance to observe and find out if it was appropriate to start a conversation. It was then that I saw something shiny approaching the boy right in front of me, who seemed to be waiting for it. The small floating ball of light flew quickly towards Hyrule, rubbing itself affectionately on his cheeks as a form of greeting. A fairy, who seemed to be a friend of the hero, definitely.

Adorable, to say the least, this seemed to cheer up the Traveler, who laughed excitedly, momentarily drawing the attention of the others, who seemed accustomed to it as they merely shrugged their shoulders with na occasional smile at seeing their brother happy.

I felt even more intrigued, assuming that it would be no problem, I approached the happy duo, trying to formulate a coherent sentence, but I was noticed before I could do so. The little fairy flew towards me so quickly that it hit my forehead, with such a loud thud that the noise drew the attention of those around us and the little fairy ended up falling back dizzy. She quickly recovered and began to circle me excitedly.

— Hm, hello? – I said shyly, embarrassed to be caught looking and still momentarily catch everyone’s attention. Rulie laughed softly when she saw her little friend’s excitement.

— You’re as beautiful as the great fairy said! You’re perfect! – The little fairy’s high-pitched voice resounded not very loudly, it was rare to see fairies talking, especially to common Hylians like me, their voices sounded like a tinkling of bells, yes, Peter Pan was right.

— I, well, thank you, that’s very kind. – I felt my cheeks heat up with embarrassment, being complimented by a fairy like that so randomly was a life situation that I would put in a diary, if that makes sense. – I’m perfect for what? – The last sentence the little fairy said intrigued me, I saw the hero look surprised at my question in the background, but the fairy just ignored it and continued speaking, so quickly that I couldn’t understand.

— This is my si- friend. A friend I made during my adventures. – Hyrule explained to me as the little fairy returned to his side, landing on his shoulder.

— Yes, friends! And you, what you and Link are? – The fairy spoke provocatively, but was cut off by a nervous hero.

— Anyway, she just came to say hi, it’s not safe for a fairy to accompany us on this trip. But I’m glad you met! – Hyrule spoke hurriedly as he walked away, taking the fairy with him while whispering something to her sternly.

I sighed in frustration. There goes my entertainment. I wonder what made him so nervous, maybe he just didn’t want the little fairy to explain about his adventures, he was a child at the time, he must have done several shameful or adorable things. Now I wanted to be able to talk to the fairy even more.

I looked around for anything else that caught my attention. God, even after so many years I’m still influenced by the habits of my past life. I was always surrounded by information and entertainment due to the Internet and various different forms of entertainment, or even due to various problems. Now, my life was simple and my biggest source of dopamine was the books I read, something I can’t do now.

Over the years as I grew up, I discovered that life here is very sad for those who know the technological world. Or maybe it was because I don’t have any friends. I mean, if I had a lot of friends I could have fun listening to gossip about their lives or just go out and do stupid things, even if it was in the middle of nowhere with nothing really fun to do.

How boring.

◇

We were finally stopping after hours of walking. I could no longer feel my feet and my legs were shaking with exhaustion. I sat down under the shade of a tree, relief hitting me as hard as a gunshot. Next to me, a smaller body joined me. Four looked exhausted. The poor guy had barely slept and was still forced to walk for hours without stopping.

I was going to comfort him, offering him the water I was about to drink, but I was surprised to feel a weight on my shoulder. The blond head was hanging to the side, resting on my left shoulder while the boy breathed calmly as if nothing was bothering him. The bastard fell asleep. I couldn’t stay mad, with him so close I could see the dark circles under his eyes. In the end, I owe the blacksmith, he was always so kind and tried so hard to help me, he even made me a sword. I’m still mad about yesterday’s painful training, but I’ll forget about it for now, I’ll charge him when he’s in good shape.

I felt my body relax from the previous tension due to the unexpected contact, his neck would hurt if he slept like that, so I pulled his small body closer and moved the blond head gently so that it was on my lap, much more comfortable for both of us. I leaned against the tree and sighed, feeling my eyelids grow heavy as fatigue hit me again.

 The idea of taking a nap before we got back on the road was tempting, but that possibility was snatched away from me when a steaming bowl of food was placed in front of my face, the smell so good it woke me up immediately. Wild chuckled softly at my reaction as he handed me the food, and I had to control myself from drooling right there. The Cook sat on my right side with his own bowl as we ate together in comfortable silence. I wondered if I should wake the blacksmith to eat, but putting myself in his shoes I figured I would be annoyed if he woke me up in na exhausted state to eat. He can sleep for now, I’ll ask the Champion to save some food for Four to eat along the way.

I heard the sound of male laughter nearby in the distance. The sailor seemed to be cheering everyone up with his adventure stories. Good thing the mood was very tense. I wouldn’t want it to last too long. Even from a distance, I could see that Time still looked very serious, stressed to say the least. After all, he must have a lot on his shoulders, a lot to worry about.

Maybe I should try talking to him later. I may not be useful in battle, but I have some emotional knowledge that I can share with these poor traumatized boys, some of them not so young anymore, but still just as traumatized. But that would have to wait, a more private moment when I didn’t have a man on my lap.

God, that sounded weird.

My food bowl was empty in no time. Wild was kind enough to bring it to me since I couldn’t get up at the moment. Lost in thought again, I ran my hands through the blond hair in my lap. It was incredibly silky. It was addictive to run my fingers through the soft locks. I would ask him what conditioner he used if I didn’t know that the answer would be “none”.

My eyes closed again in tiredness, I hope someone wakes me up when it’s time to leave, because I’m taking a nap right now, and I don’t blame myself for that.

◇

I was woken up not long after, still groggy from sleep, I continued walking without even paying attention to my surroundings. The further we walked, the more I questioned my life decisions. Actually, lives decisions, in the plural. The sun was already well to the west and the weather was cloudy, it was definitely better than walking under the scorching sun, but that also meant a chance of rain along the way, and considering that we would have to sleep under the stars that night, it wasn’t something I wanted to witness.

I approached Wind, putting na arm around his shoulders to keep my balance as I threw my weight onto him, making him stagger. I laughed and removed my weight, keeping my arm on his shoulders out of pure laziness, luckily he just laughed and didn’t complain. I continued to ramble as we walked side by side, but I could feel that the sailor was restless, something that wasn’t very common, since he always says everything on his mind.

— What happened? – I asked cautiously, not wanting to invade his personal space.

— I just... – He looked at me with those abandoned puppy dog eyes. – I’m worried about you, it’s not fair that you ended up involved in all this and now you’re in danger. You didn’t have to go through this.

The way he cared for me made my heart ache, poor kid, his own life is chaos and he still finds time to spend with my troubled self. I wanted to comfort him, take away his sadness, but the truth is I didn’t know how. I’ve never dealt with this before, I don’t know what to do, when can I comfort him about something that shakes me to the core?

— You don’t need to worry your little head about that, I’m fine, in the end I don’t regret anything, if none of this had happened I wouldn’t have met you. – I tried to comfort him in the best way I could think of, in the end it’s not a lie, my life is chaos, but before I was lost, I was alone.

The sailor didn’t say anything else, but I could see him sigh and smile melancholically, accepting my answer and putting his arm around my back, in a side hug as we walked. Mental fatigue was starting to set in on me, along with, of course, physical fatigue, I really didn’t have the energy to deal with all this, I could feel less and less like interacting.

Spending so much time only made me unaccustomed to all this attention, being surrounded by people could be very good, but I still couldn’t do it for so long, I like my space. But I have nowhere to run, I’m stuck with constant company due to my current dangerous situation. Not that I don’t enjoy their company, I really do. Being with them makes me happy, but I feel suffocated by having to keep so much inside me, without being able to vent or get it out. Maybe it would be smart to get a new diary. At least I know my secrets will be safe as long as I keep them written in Earth’s alphabet.

I felt a cold, damp sting in my nose. I instinctively looked up and saw dense rain clouds beginning to fall upon us. The others noticed just as quickly. With an order from Time, we started to hurry, picking up the pace to reach the shelter beneath a group of trees near the path.

We went as fast as we could, but even so, we arrived completely soaked at the improvised shelter. The trees didn’t work miracles, rain still passed through the leaves, but most of it was blocked, allowing us a moment to breathe. We were still very far from the next stable, there was no way we could try to get there like that. We all struggled to get the excess rainwater off our bodies and hair, but the damage was already done. Twilight shook his head aggressively to dry his hair, like a wet dog, which resulted in more splashes falling on me and Wind.

The rancher apologized, but that didn’t stop us from giving him irritated looks. I pulled the brat next to me closer to a tree where was drier, grabbing my own towel from my bag and rubbing it on his blond hair to dry him as much as possible, doing the same to myself soon after. While we tried to dry ourselves and not get more wet, Warriors and Legend worked to spread a long cloth between the trees to have some kind of protection against the icy drops of rain. It’s likely that we’ll stay here until the rain stops, or even until daybreak.

The fabric used as a temporary roof was thick and made of a nearly waterproof material, it seems that they had already taken precautions well in advance of a possible similar situation. Wild gathered as many dry branches as he could find for a makeshift campfire, which would be used mainly for warmth. We all huddled around the low fire that we struggled to maintain as the silence echoed, only the sound of the rain in the background creating a somewhat soothing soundtrack.

The space we had didn’t allow us to spread out too much, so we would have to deal with this tangle of bodies seeking warmth. The Cook provided food for us to eat later while the others, with nothing much to do, just stood there, some sulking – Legend more specifically – while others seemed more frustrated or tired.

I sighed heavily, leaning back, leaning against the tree behind me, followed by Sky who wasted no time in settling down for a nap until the rain stopped or the food was ready, whichever came first.

Wind played absentmindedly with a branch, making random drawings in the damp earth. Time watched the horizon, trying to identify when this storm would pass. Many followed the chosen hero’s example and relaxed, Four was grateful to be able to sleep a little longer, while others were content to remain bored and lost in thought. I didn’t feel tired enough to sleep, but I wasn’t willing to lose myself even further in the depressive depths of my thoughts and ideas, so I tried to make conversation.

— Well, at least it’s not thundering. – I said, looking at the sky, trying to sound positive, but soon after a loud bang was heard, refuting me. – Oh, fuck it!

I heard some laughter about my terrible luck and a frustrated sigh coming from the older man. Boredom took over me, I tried to distract myself by thinking about the different things I liked on Earth, cartoons, series, movies, music. Anything. I tried to go over movies I liked in my mind, from watching so much I knew almost all the lines of my favorite movie, but there were still some gaps in continuity due to old memory. When I noticed, I was humming different songs of things I liked, without worrying about the curious looks due to the songs unknown to others.

That didn’t last long, my mind was moving a million times, without focusing on a single thing. Soon the memories I had been avoiding so much came to mind. I remembered how I would watch children’s movies with my little brother and we would do an improvised karaoke with Disney songs, singing out of tune but never getting the lyrics wrong. I shook my head to push away those thoughts that were making my chest burn. I felt a strange desire to be able to show those memorable movies to Wind. I wondered if he would like them as much as my brother did, if he would sing with me too.

I know, it’s not nice to associate him so much with my little brother. They are different people, he is not a replacement, but I still have this brotherly instinct in me that I can’t help. But the truth is, the Sailor would love to play games and watch movies with my brother. They would be good friends if they could get to know each other.

I looked at the horizon, lost in thought. Maybe I should consider the idea of telling the truth one day. If we reach a high level of trust, it might do me good not to keep it to myself forever.

[brucenorris007]

When has it ever been called a Super Star?

It’s Power Star you uncultured.... Ugh.

Super Star is the term they occasionally use in Mario Party games

NOT A POWER UP

They did get Mario’s curiosity right; even while he’s worried the whole way through about Luigi, he’s still looking all around this new world with awe and wonder.

Not sure about him being cocky, even if it’s to compensate for the fact that people have been telling him he’s destined for failure all his life, but as new takes on established characters go, it’s all right.

Nice of Peach to not once ask Mario his name the whole night he trained.

And again, BRO DIDN’T SLEEP; ATE MUSHROOMS TILL HE MADE HIMSELF SICK, AND DIDN’T SLEEP! If anyone tries to spin this movie into another dumbass theory that Mario secretly hates Luigi, it’s grounds for maiming.

And Luigi’s first scene in the Mushroom world, just after he gets through the door and bolts it against the Dry Bones and thinks he’s safe?

Shy Guys as the hidden threat revealed with a flash of lightning were the perfect choice.

Creepy as fuck!

Mario’s obvious discomfort being in the spotlight, that’s spot on; as his career spans over the years, he’ll learn to shrug it off, but it’s so clear that he really didn’t anticipate being involved in such a huge conflict just to find his brother.

Toad was the character who got the most of an overhaul I feel and the little dude was funny, crazy, and brought some of the wacky cartoon energy the movie needed.

The dialogue is... Well. It is.

The storytelling aspects from a visual standpoint were done well; power ups, facial expressions, characterization through how each of the cast moves their bodies. And yes, the animation working in motion was stellar.

Sometimes the spoken stuff just falls flat. Exchanges between the bros are still always cute and wholesome (and of course anything the brothers have to say about each other is cute and wholesome “HE’S MY BROTHER MARIO AND HE’S THE BEST GUY IN THE WHOLE WO-HO-HO-HORLD!”), Bowser is clearly having the most fun of all the cast (rightfully so, as JB is the one with the most VA experience, and he gets to be musical in the movie so he could not be more stoked) and like I said, Toad’s a crazy fun little dude. Rogen was rough, not gonna lie.

That only really accounts for a bit more than half the overall dialogue though, is the thing. Doesn’t quite bring the movie down, but there could’ve been a little more polish. And at times things like Peach’s vocalized love of the world isn’t necessary; could’ve let the facial expressions and her mannerisms and the scenery speak for itself. Pratt exceeded expectations in that he didn’t sour the movie as whole, but his performance didn’t make me look forward to hearing Mario, the titular character, speak unless it tied back to Luigi. Which is... not great.

“We’ve never been apart this long.” Toss up for how long the trek to the Kongs actually took, but visually it’s Mario’s second night in the Mushroom world. Less than 48 hours, and he says, melancholy and matter of fact that they’ve never been separated for that long.

The bros are ride or die for each other. I cannot stress enough how important it was the movie got this so so right.

It is baffling to me that they couldn’t work out a longer run time; perhaps not significantly longer, maybe not even breaking the two hour mark, but there are moments when things could have been fleshed out, just pump the brakes a little bit. I’m definitely guilty of abusing the in medias res style of writing to keep things moving, but just a little more time seeing how Peach handles being in charge before she encounters Mario, more time with the characters before the by-the-book switch-of-focus to the other brother.

I mean, if you wanna sell a grand epic adventure as a grand epic adventure, how things play out and are affected on the smaller scale is just as important as the breathtaking panning shots and global scale destruction.

This is pretty basic stuff; the global threat moves the Plot, and the effect said threat has on the characters moves the Viewers/Readers/Players. Gets us invested. Like, okay, Peach as an asskicking action girl-sure, yeah, we can work with that as a take so long as people aren’t weird about how she’s characterized in the games because that also works-but just enough time between her marching out of the war room and encountering Mario for us to see the toll being in charge during wartime has on her.

She’s tired, stressed, and spread thin because as one of her Toads pointed out, her people aren’t exactly built for combat. Then she meets Mario, a man just as willing to throw himself at this power-hungry insane dragon, if for his own reasons, and suddenly she’s not heading out on this pivotal mission by herself. She was going either way, and obviously she makes sure this little red man won’t get himself killed, but even if marginally it’s a relief that there’s someone next to her.

Just little things that show how the conflict affects the cast, gets the viewers invested, convinced of the stakes, all that. I know the visuals could’ve carried a lot of that storytelling because it does some of that like I said, characterizing the cast visually.

Also, as most any writer or viewer on this site will tell you breathing time between action scenes or major plot points does not always constitute filler. PACING, PEOPLE!

By the way, the Rainbow Road sequence is my favorite of the movie and I won’t be taking questions.

Of course Mario’s low point in the movie would be the WATER LEVEL. Okay, all right, yeah movie, if you did that on purpose, that’s some good self-awareness.

Though it is weird that the film says “Oh this heart-to-heart packed with barbs between rivals-turned-reluctant-allies can’t go on too long because it doesn’t fit in with this wacky cartoon video game movie” but somehow the Doomsaying Luma suits things? I dunno.

DK and Mario’s antagonistic not-friendship works real well. They were enemies for a long time in the franchise, stands to reason that they can’t stand each other even while working together.

DK really doesn’t have enough on-screen time for his end of the not-quite heart-to-heart, but then, a lot of potential for character moments seem to have been pushed aside to make space for some admittedly beautiful animation sequences. Which I love, obviously, but ideally you shouldn’t have to sacrifice one for the other, which ties back into what I mentioned about the runtime.

I have other thoughts, but that’s for other, more organized posts.

[theangryjikooker]

Hey, TAJ!

How have you been?

I know the past several months have been crazy in all spaces (might be crazier now, if I'm being honest, and I'm talking about everyone), but I'm glad you're back to sharing your thoughts.

Have you had the chance to listen to Face and D-Day? May I know your thoughts about them?

Also, are you anticipating the release of JK's album? I'm wondering what kind of direction he's decided on.

I've been feeling that the timing for the release of the members' albums to be very tight, though, I understand that they have a timeline.

Thank you!

Hi! Everything is great with me, I can’t complain (outside of the Internet anyway lol). Hope all is the same for you. :)

So, disclaimer, my feelings are based on my musical preferences. I just know some people are going to take this personally because they’ve made it their mission that music is not a subjective art form at all.

For some background, my listening pattern tends to be that I loop things for an indeterminate amount of time upon initial release. Eventually, I no longer have the interest to loop things and start getting selective about tracks I really like and shove them into my shuffled BTS playlist. If I really love something, I also add it to my like tracks, which is more extensive and spans different genres. I often switch between my specific and liked playlists because my listening style makes it very easy to get bored.

“Just change it,” one might say.

If I could, I would, but I also don’t want to. I’ve been like this since I was a kid. It’s also very rare that I listen to whole albums and like every single song. I cannot stress this enough, though I can confirm that this has been achieved by several OT7 albums. Prior to these, however, I was raised on classical vinyl records, and I don’t quite count them as “albums” in the way we understand them today. Make of that what you will.

Anyway, point being, my listening style and ultimately how I organize songs after the initial novelty has worn off is definitely a reflection of my long-term interest.

And I should hope that many of you are adult enough to understand that not liking everything an artist puts out does not make someone any less of a fan. Purists are not invited in this house; if you have an issue with it, go to someone who’ll pander to you.

All this said, I’ve listened to both albums.

When FACE and D-Day were released, both followed the aforementioned pattern. I agreed with the sentiment that FACE didn’t sound like your typical Kpop genre. Jimin has always defied expectations in that regard. Visually and conceptually, FACE was excellent, but knowing what Jimin is capable of, I was also expecting something a bit more, musically. I’m not saying the album was bad, but it was different. I think, for that reason, I’ve mostly been undecided, even though I did add the majority of the album to my BTS playlist. Except for “Letter”—shipping aside, it’s very beautiful. It’s a shame it wasn’t released as a stand-alone because I probably would have given it near infinite plays, and it would’ve found a spot in my liked playlist as well.

If I were to take anything away from this, it’s that I’m more interested in what his sophomore album will look and sound like, now that he has a taste of the process and has the experience.

D-Day is a very strong album, but keep in mind that Yoongi (like the hyung line) has a lot of experience under his belt. That’s natural. But for a while, with the exception of “Daechwita” and “People” off D-2, I had a hard time connecting to the tracks released under Agust D. FOR SHAME, I know. It wasn’t until D-Day that I was able to listen to D-2 and the self-titled album with a different mindset, which also affected my renewed appreciation for them. D-Day, however, is the superior installment of the trilogy. Maybe it’s cheating, but I think it also helped immensely that I was given free passes for the Agust D tour, which I hadn’t anticipated on attending. But free is free, what can I say. There’s a reason why music and live performances are crucial to an artist and their art. Sometime ago, a lot of people here assumed Yoongi was my bias, despite how rarely I talked about him. He wasn’t, and over time I gradually accepted that I didn’t really have one. Now? I can say that statement probably resonates with me a lot more these days.

And of course I’m interested in what Jungkook’s cooking up. I maintain that his voice is appealing to big western production, so I’m thinking we might see something that fits that particular palate? But the thing with Jungkook is that he’s been exploring sound and allegedly having a hand in the instrumentals, which only serves to expand his range, so my previous assumptions on his album might already be outdated.

[bbodysnatchers]

Tbh if you actually like answering early fandom questions I have like a million (btw it’s me again from the last 2)

You mentioned before that you were kind of out of the fandom by Danger Days but do you remember what the reaction was when Gerard talked about drinking again?

Did many og fans stick around or did they really turn on the band? Like I know you said bullets ppl hated revenge but did it grow on them eventually?

What did ppl think when Gerard and Lynz married???? That one I really want to know bc when I was newer in the fandom everyone kissed her ass like crazy and it seems like ppl have only recently realized she and msi aren’t the greatest.

Ok! Hey!!!! I kind of love you for all of these btw. this is gonna be LONG. SO yes, I was totally out of fandom at that point. However, I do follow a few blogs and I remember when the article was posted where he talked about his struggle with an ED and starting to drink again during DD. Personally, I was kind of. In shock? I didn't realize how much he was struggling at the end of it tbh. I think it also took a lot of older fans out a little bit too. It kind of made him a tangible human being rather than this formative icon we idolized. Saying that sounds awful. But at the beginning, because there was no social media, we had NO idea what the guys were actually like irl. They were human, obviously, but they were people we had put on a pedestal and we could project onto them, y'know? We had interviews and such, but the first glimpse we got into ~the real them~ was LOTMS, which was a highly edited version of the truth that fell into the stereotypes we kind of built. It glossed over Gerards addiction pretty rapidly. Reading his struggle at the end of MCR and DD broke my heart. This band did SO much for me, and a lot of us, but we never took into account how much it was taking from them or Gerard. That's all I can really say about it? Like I said, I wasn't in the fandom. So this was mostly my perspective. No one turned on the band. I think we just kind of grew up and started experiencing new things. Our interests change and merge as we get older. Some things I got from being an MCR fan stuck with me forever - i.e, my love of horror films and graphic novels, as well as my forever love of the guys. But the music wasn't what I needed anymore, yknow? I have diagnosed avoidant personality disorder, and severe depression as a result. My Chem helped me feel seen when I felt totally fucking invisible. It helped me form lasting friendships. I'm still friends with people I met in line to their shows in 2005, and on myspace. As I turned 19-20, my sadness started feeling more melancholy rather than anger. I listened to a lot of The National around then, and started getting seriously invested in film as a way of escapism. In regards to people hating revenge - I think a lot of people either left or stuck around for good. You can go back on old lj entries on the chemicalromance comm and read peoples reaction to Revenge songs. They hated how manufactured it sounded, hated how clean Gerards vocals were, HATED I'm Not Ok - thought it was too commercial for what they were prior. As someone who got into the via Revenge, it actually took some time to get used to the sound of Bullets! ALRIGHT. Ok. GERARD MARRYING LINDSEY. I wish I could figure out how to add a cut to tumblr now but IDK OK.  SOOO. Some background that y’all know but is needed for context. Gerard was in a LONG TERM relationship for YEARS with someone named Kat. No one has ever EVER seen her. Gerard only talked about having a girlfriend, thanked her in notes, and she is mentioned by some reporters sometimes (as goth looking). They break up. Gerard is ~technically~ single for like. a fuckin MONTH. then Eliza shit starts up (even tho she was alluding to being with him for fukin EVER). She fakes a pregnancy, they get engaged (around I Don’t Love You), shit was WILD. like BALLS TO THE WALL INSANE. I can go way way way more into this if y’all are interested just lemme know. THEY BREAK UP around the beginning of Pro Rev. Ok. OK. Within like. another fukin MONTH Gerard is seen MAKING OUT WITH LYNZ FROM FUCKIN MSI. They go to each others shows, seen holding hands ETC ETC. LIKE. THIS DUDE. This dude who had a LONG TERM GIRLFRIEND WE NEVER EVER SAW suddenly has had TWO PUBLIC RELATIONSHIPS IN THE SPAN OF NOT EVEN A YEAR.  also btw. We ALL thought he was gay, no fukin joke. Like I was saying earlier about not having any social media. We had an idea of what the guys were like from their stage personas and LOTMS. And like. Gerards Stage Persona is Loud. We thought Eliza mightve been a beard? Idk it was a weird time tbh.  BUT THEN THEN T H E N G AND L GET MARRIED????>>????? THEY HAD BEEN DATING A M ON TH. a MONTH. and they got fuckin MARRIED. The conspiracy theories, y’all, I can’t. IT WAS INSANE.  SO DUDE GETS ENGAGED TO SOMEONE, BREAKS UP, MAKES OUT WITH BASS PLAYER FROM MSI AND GETS MARRIED TO HER. ALL WITHIN T H R E E MONTHS.  goddamn.  So, ok. Last bit. Unfortunately the attitude towards language and WAS different back then. I know a lot of younger fans shit on older fans for saying so, but it WAS. It was totally different. MSI were seen as ~too cool, and their fans were pissed they went on tour with My Chem, etc. I wasn’t a fan, but I had seen them live a few times with a friend who was (not on Pro Rev). They just weren’t my thing and I hated Urines face. My friend who was actually a huge fan of BOTH msi and my chem separately was SHOCKED that G and Lindsey got together because their band and their vibes were so different. People mostly thought Lindsey was hot at the time but didn’t know anything about her, cuz again, no social media. Like, I cannot stress enough how much about these people we did not know. No one cared about their social lives or what they were like irl so we DIDN’T know how gross Urine and crew were. Like. A Huge factor as to why people were pissed and mad at Eliza was because she was making something Gerard obviously wanted to keep private into a public thing for attention and clout. Also, when he was being SO public with Lindsey it was shocking. Anyway I h8 msi. 

[goldenmazzello]

Never gonna love again.

Everything started when you met Joe on set of Bohemian Rhapsody in London, working as a makeup artist.

You were friends from day one.

Joe would always be joking around with you. You both were a crazy duo that made everyone chortle.

You had so much in common. You loved the same music, movies and food.

You were used to having long conversations in the morning while you were doing his makeup and drinking coffee.

Or when you had lunch during a break.

Two months into shooting the movie, you started to develope a crush on him.

At first, you tried to forget about it, since you wanted to keep everything very professional, but it was unlikely to happen.

You cannot choose when or when not to fall in love.

You remembered details about him that others didn't. And you were embarrassed because you couldn't hide it.

You would listen intently to him, even if it wasn't important.

You smiled at him a lot, often with a big goofy grin.

You fell deeply in love with Joe and the very first person to find out about your feelings was Rami.

You didn't tell him but he noticed it. It was obvious. The way you looked at him not only while you were getting him ready for his day at work but also when you were having lunch, the way you always seemed to be around him.

You begged Rami not to tell Joe about this and he agreed, saying he woud try to find out if he felt something for you.

You started to have high hopes when you heard Joe in between takes telling Gwilym he would ask "her" to go out next friday. You were sure he was talking about you and you were desperate for his question.

" I'm going to ask her to go on a date next friday after work, what do you think?"

You were kind of surprised because Joe could have waited for you to be out of earshot before saying anything.

"It's amazing Joe, I hope she says yes!"

Of course you were going to say yes.

Days went by and you were still waiting for Joe's question. You daydreamed about taking the friendship to the next level.

You started to give him signs so he could see you paid attention to every little detail.

You knew how he took his coffee, what he usually ate for lunch and his favorite songs by heart. The signs you were giving out were like a blinking neon light, but nothing seem to happen.

You thought he might forgot about it.

But he didn't.

It was thursday when the four boys were getting ready with you and your assistants when Ben spoke.

"So you have plans for tomorrow." He turned his face to see Joe, who was adjusting on his broccoli wig.

"Yeah."

"Did Grace say yes?!"

Grace.

So Joe shared your feelings, but for someone else.

She was the costume assistant of the movie and of course she would spend a lot of time with the cast too, with such luxurious outfits.

You were doing Rami's makeup when you heard her name leaving Joe's lips. You felt your heart dropped and Rami noticed. He could see it in your eyes.

He looked at you with compassion and as soon as you finished with him, you left the trailer.

Since that day, your mood changed. You were always with a big bright smile that could light the whole town, but it hasn't been seen in a while.

As much as you wanted to forget about everything and feel better, you couldn't.

Joe and Grace went on more dates.

You felt broken and the worst thing was you had to face him everyday. It was your work.

He could notice you weren't doing ok, but you avoided his questions.

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yes, I'm jus stressed." You said, emotionless.

Everytime you saw them together, you wish you were her.

You really wish you could be her.

You felt like a sixteen-year-old girl, with these crazy thoughts, but you wanted to be her.

You wanted her long blond hair, her precious smile and her perfume.

Maybe then, you thought, he'd like you more.

And you would be good enough for him.

You tried so hard to be everything that he liked.

But nothing seemed to work.

You felt he had found someonе more exciting than you.

You didn't get peace when you thought about her, you even imagined being in her place.

You were so blinded that you thought you really had to change for him.

You were like the song said, Losing my religion.

One day you were found crying in the bathroom by Lucy.

She was worried so she called Rami and they both tried to calm you.

"I've never felt this way before."

It was like your first teenage love, but in your late 20s.

"I'm so sorry sweetie, I really mean it." Lucy held your hand while talking. "I'm sure you'll find someone who would feel the same."

"I thought he was into you...but I guess I was wrong. I'm sorry too." Rami said with a sad expression on his face. He was one of the sweetest actors you've ever worked with and now, he was a friend.

They were all your friends.

But you didn't want Joe to be your friend.

You never wanted to trade places so bad in your life and be his partner.

He broke more than your heart. But it really wasn't his fault.

You took a deep breath and said. "I'm never gonna love again."

[svnflowervol666]

I Want Your Belly (Harry Styles x fem!Reader)

Word Count: 2.2k

Author’s Note: Oddly specific, kinda weird, sappy sweet. Got a good handful of asks for this one so here you go! Harry asks Y/N to join him in the Watermelon Sugar music video. It was a bit hard to write due to the nature of the scenario, but I hope you find it just as cute as I did. Take care and TPWK.

Even in January, the California heat is brutal and unforgiving. Sure, being by the ocean where the momentum of the cool waves cast a light breeze does something to midigate the miserable feeling of feeling like the sun’s rays are going to burn you alive, but it’s only a crumb of salvation really. We’re talking sweat running down the backs of your kneecaps, legs painfully sticking to the seat of whatever chair you’re sitting in, not enough water in the world to keep you from being dehydrated hot. But she wanted to be there.

She’d been oggling him from her sand chair for the past forty-five minutes. I mean, who isn’t oggling him when they see him tracing his fingers coyly over the flesh of a sweet, ripe watermelon. He’d been glancing in her direction in between nearly every take, smirking at her through his aqua-tinted sunnies and wondering if what she was seeing made her reconsider the offer he’d been begging her to take him up on for weeks. All she would give him back was her iconic side-eye before she’d go back to reading the novel in her lap and occasionally picking at the bowl of freshly-cut fruit she’d swiped from the prop table.

“And that’s a wrap on scene one!” one of the directors called out over the crashing waves.

Harry did what was proper - shaking hands and bowing heads and saying his ‘thank you’s before all but jogging over to where she was sat underneath the oversized pale-blue gingham printed umbrella.

“Change yeh mind yet?”

He had his hands on his hips, fingers resting on hem of the crochet-knit tank top he’d chosen himself for the occasion. She waited until she finished the page she was on before even daring to peer up at him through her sunglasses.

“How are you not dying in those pants?” was all that Y/N gave in response before going back to her book.

“‘M absolutely wretched down there if that’s what you’re askin. But yeh didn’t answer my question, lovie.”

She sighed heavily, dog-earring her place in her novel and casting it aside it in the sand before leaning up to rest her elbows on her knees.

“I just don’t know why you want me to be in it so badly. This is your video. If I’m in it, everyone’s gonna go crazy and it’ll be an even bigger shit show in the press than it’s already going to be.”

This made Harry crouch down to her level, his white loafers digging even deeper into the sand as he leaned on his haunches.

“That’s exactly why I want yeh t’ be in it. ‘S my video and that’s what I want. Want this t’ be fun and it would be even more fun if I had m’ girl with me.”

She stared at him, silently giving him her please drop it look, but it only spurred him on further.

“If it’ll make yeh feel any better, I’ll make sure you’re not in it a bunch when it comes ‘round t’ editing. Barely put yeh up close too.”

That was enticing,Y/N could admit. He’d surely let her have the final say in how much she was involved, but there was still a lot of stress that came with being on camera. Especially in her state. She knew she wasn’t exactly hiding anything, as they’d been spotted countless times in public and their friends had posted photos to their stories with her body clearly visible in them, but some things she’d rather not shine a direct spotlight on. Doing something like this would most definitely be putting her business on display for the world to see, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready for that. 

“Please, baby? I won’t ask yeh again, but I’d really love it if you were beside me.”

She wet her lips with her tongue, eyes darting up to the underside of the umbrella as she really, truly contemplating giving in to Harry’s pleads. On her life, she can barely recall a time when she hadn’t given Harry anything that he wanted. He just had a way with people that wasn’t manipulative or conniving in any way - he was magnetic. Everything about him was so charismatic and mesmerizing and anyone that met him found themselves gravitating towards him and going along with whatever he was saying or suggesting. I mean, she let him put a baby in her for christ’s sake.

“Help me up out of this thing and find me something to wear,” she huffed, to which Harry dramatically punched the air with his fist in celebration.

“One condition,” she interjected his boast and Harry tilted his ear in her direction and tapped his earlobe with his finger to show her that he was listening.

“You have to go down on me when we get home. It was torture watching you finger that watermelon, but I’m pretty sure you already knew that.”

“Yeh talkin’ like yeh think I wasn’t gonna try t’ squeeze in a quickie during lunch anyway.”

He pulled her up to her feet, making sure to keep a steady hand on her back as he led her away from the ocean and towards the beach entrance where the trailers were parked.

//

“Wha’ about this one?” Harry asked as he pulled a strapless swimsuit with a palm tree print littered about the fabric and presented it to her.

“One wrong step and my tits will fall right outta that thing,” she quipped.

Harry held it at arm’s reach so he get a better look at the garment himself.

“Yeah. You’re right. They are gettin’ pretty big, aren’t they?”

There was no malice laced within his comment, but when he felt a harsh backhand graze his shoulder, he realized what he’d just said.

“Jesus, Y/N. I’m sorry. Didn’t mean it like tha’. Yeh know I love your boobs. Especially now.”

He tried to make up for it by reaching his hand out to playfully grab at Y/N’s chest, but she slapped his fingers away and continued thumbing through the racks filled with dozens if not hundreds of swimsuits for something she could manage to squeeze herself into.

“Ohh, wait! This one’s nice.”

Harry’s fingers got tangled in the lacy straps of the neighboring article of clothing beside the one he was trying to pull out, making a few hangers crash to the ground with a harsh sound against the linoleum. When she saw what he had found, she didn’t hate it. It was a sherbet-orange colored bikini that seemed as if it would cover everything she was concerned about showing, and the bottoms looked like they’d be somewhat decent at keeping her ass contained and wouldn’t ride up and make her constantly have to readjust it every five minutes. 

“Alright, Styles,” she squinted her eyes and nodded in approval.

“I’ll bite.”

He watched her as she peeled her romper that perfectly cradled her small yet still mighty bump, lingering for just a bit too long when she unhooked the back of her bra and dropped it to the floor.

“You gonna give me the swimsuit or are you gonna keep staring at me? It’s fucking hot in here, Harry.”

She was stark naked and had her hands on her hips, a sticky veil of sweat still shining on her skin from the mugginess of the wardrobe trailer. Harry couldn’t help but chuckle at her state, his heart full of nothing but admiration for the girl standing in front of him.

“Here, I’ll help yeh into it.”

Harry kneeled down to the floor and guided her legs through the bikini bottoms. Just as he pulled them up around her thighs and onto her hips, he gave her bump a quick kiss. 

“We’re kinda matchin’ yeh know,” Harry babbled as he fastened the straps on her top.

“‘S the same color as m’ nails,” he stuck a leg out in front of her to wiggle his toes and show off the bright orange pedicure he’d gotten that morning.

“That’s disgustingly cute actually. Maybe I should change,” she joked.

“No way,” he dismissed her.

“Yeh ass looks too good in this one.”

Harry clapped both hands against her bum with gentle force, the two of them erupting into a fit of giggles. He spun her around by the shoulders to get a good look at her body, protruding belly and all, in the clementine orange swimsuit.

“M’ pretty, pretty girl,” he whispered as his lips met hers in a kiss.

“You’re lucky I love you enough to do this.”

“I know I am,” Harry muttered against her mouth.

“Alright,” he continued.

“Just gotta change into m’ shorts and then I’ll be good t’ go. Meet yeh at the umbrella?”

“Oh hell no,” she jested.

“If you got to see me naked, I get to see you naked. Now get to stripping.”

//

The day went by in a blur.

What was supposed to be a brief cameo turned into Harry dragging Y/N into every scene he possibly could. When the directors instructed the models to gather in a pile around the pop star, he found his head perched in her lap, nestled perfectly atop her thighs with his temples pressed against her belly. When they’d wanted clips of everyone romping about the shoreline, he’d ended up carrying her around the beach after she’d gotten winded from doing one-too-many takes.

“Harry, I cannot fucking do this anymore,” she panted.

“I can practically feel my cankles growing.”

“Fine then,” he replied, hooking his forearm around the underside of her knees and scooping her up so that she was cradled against his burly chest.

“I’ll just carry yeh.”

He’d made her feed him raspberries as he sang the lyrics into the camera, even going so far as to suck on her fingers seductively when she went to drop one into his mouth. It wasn’t intended to be a serious attempt at filming the video, only him messing around and trying to get a rise out of her as he always did, but everyone ultimately decided that that the take they were going to use. She’d cursed him out under his breath, but they both knew it was for making her practically soak her knickers rather than getting dragged into more than she bargained for during the shoot.

Constantly, his hands always found themselves gravitating towards her belly. Whether it was rubbing her taught skin like a crystal ball as he sang the chorus instead of gesturing to the large watermelon that he was supposed to be holding, he couldn’t keep his hands off of her.

She’d known it was bound to happen at one point, but sometime throughout the afternoon he’d called for her and when she turned around, he was had shoved a watermelon up under his sheer, yellow blouse.

“Y/N!” Harry shouted at her from a few yards away, interrupting a lovely conversation she was having with one of the models.

“I’m you!”

He gestured to the fruit stuffed inside of his shirt, toyfully stroking the exterior in the manner that she always found herself doing even she wasn’t realizing. 

It made everyone, and I mean everyone, explode in laughter. It only made her hide her face in her hands after promptly shoving her middle finger in his direction.

But she’d gotten him back. When the director wanted shots of each of the girls taking bites out of a slice of watermelon, she’d made sure to take the messiest bite she could manage so that the juice ran down her chin and down the valley of her breasts. Y/N threw her head back as if were the greatest thing she’d ever tasted, exposing the column of her neck that Harry loved to mark up and bruise with his skillful tongue and lips.

“Yeh tryin’ t’ make me hard right now?” he all but growled in her ear when she’d joined him behind the camera so the next model could have their turn.

She simply cocked her head to one side and smirked up at him.

“Payback’s a bitch, isn’t it? I’m going to the bathroom. All of this watermelon’s making me have to pee.”

When it came time for the portrait and everyone was being distributed their designated slice of fruit, Y/N found herself confused when Harry pulled her out of line.

“What are you doing, H?”

Harry held up a hand to signal that he’d be right back, to which he returned with an uncut watermelon. Quite possibly the biggest watermelon that she’d ever seen at that.

“Yeh don’t get a slice, yeh get the whole damn watermelon.”

They’d all piled up on the bench and stared stoically into the camera, only instead of raising the wedge to their lips to take a bite, Y/N sat on the grass at Harry’s knees, a whole watermelon resting in between her legs in front of her bump.

//

Y/N’s day ended up being far more fun than she’d ever imagined it could have been despite her constant nagging and jabs at Harry’s expense. While she’d initially only agreed to be a part of Harry’s music video under the condition that her role would be minimum, she was secretly hoping that all of their side conversations and what would be considered “outtakes” would actually make in into the final cut. 

In fact, she’d had so much fun that at the end of the day when filming had wrapped and her and Harry were on the way home, the gentle hum of his convertible and the cool breeze that followed a blistering day on Malibu beach had slowly began willing her eyes shut. 

“Baby,” Harry beckoned her from the driver’s seat.

“Hmm?” Y/N picked her head up from where it was leaning against the window to look over at him.

“Don’t go t’ sleep on me now.”

He reached over to grab her left hand that had settled itself on top of her round stomach. Before lacing his fingers with hers, he kissed her knuckles tenderly.

“Still got t’ go down on yeh when we get home. Bet yeh gonna taste like strawberries.”

[steve0discusses]

S5 Ep6: Joey Wheeler is on Fire, Yet Again

Came down with a little sickness-not the biggie, just a little sly guy. But I took some meds, I’m a little floaty, I’ve only been listening to baroque music all morning for some reason? And I hate baroque music usually? But I’ll leave it to bro to tell me if this is fluid enough.

Just so you know, these caps were kind of a hot mess for a while and some of them read like that Garfield in of hot eat the food comic until...today. So pls don’t judge me, Judge my damn DMV where no one was following Covid regulations because I’m pretty sure that’s where I got this damn cold.

We start off with Roland getting more attention than he ever has in his entire life. Like honestly, I don’t know what Roland’s job really is...but he’s got a very diverse set of very useless skills. One of which, is knowing how to announce sports games that aren’t really a sport, while those games he’s announcing slowly fall into chaos.

Anyway, Roland’s taking so long cherishing his sweet time before everything goes to hell, that he’s boring Joey, who’s kinda turned into a ball of stress in the waiting room.

A lot of this episode is us watching them watching Joey having a break down moment by moment, TBH.

(read more under the cut)

Yugi telling Joey to study his cards and straight up--what?

Like at this point they know what’s on the cards, right? Like there comes a point where even Yugioh cards have a finite amount of words and I’m just going to assume that like...Joey probably knows them all in his own deck, right?

(bro note: they have no limit on what they will put on a card)

Then again, maybe Yugi doesn’t know what “study” means?

Also, appreciate how some artist crosshatched the hell on Joey’s nose there and I zoomed out and ruined it.

Now for some reason every duelist is hanging out in the duel lodge, including our current arch-villain guy who’s brought a book. I want to know what book this guy even reads so no one could suspect he’s actually a hacker who uses computers. He’s reading romance, right? And I don’t think he’d even be into Twilight, I think he’s straight up into hard core Mom romance like a lame ass Nicholas Sparks over there reading “Dear John” for the millionth time because he is completely un-phased by anything else happening in this room.

Joey, our hero, just out there being an asshole for no reason.

After Tea is pushed into a locker or something screaming about her need for female friends (which she screamed in earshot of Rebecca again, who I figured was on friends terms with her after last episode...but I guess not) Leon hops up to remind us that we should be caring about the fact that his character exists.

And like, I love Leon’s hair color--that’s a good choice, and legit that is the color I tried to dye my hair at the beginning of the epidemic (it didn’t work PS, my hair cannot take dye for the life of it) but also like...he just kinda feels like a weak Rebecca as far as characters go. He’s young, he’s good at cards...I think he goes to a private school? That’s all I can think of about Leon.

He mostly just reminds us that the big prize of this tourney is to duel Yugi, who anyone could have dueled at any point even without the tournament.

On the way out of the...duel room? lounge? Area? Joey decides to like...make peace with Zigfried, and I gotta tell you, I kinda have to side with Zigfried, because Joey spent the last ten minutes being a freak in the dressing room/lounge/bathroom and at one point looked like he was going to hold the entire locker room in a stranglehold.

I would also want some space from Joey Wheeler, is what I’m saying.

After insulting Joey’s style (which honestly, Joey...has a style? He pops his collar, that’s his entire style.) Zigfried assures us that Joey’s gonna lose and like...

...probably, right? Just looking at the plausible direction this season will go.

Anyway, Joey is such a mess (which is the theme of the episode, that Joey needs to learn to chill in order to win at card games) that Rebecca is like “I understand if all of you leave me to go help our poor baby Joey.” And no one felt bad for her.

Mokuba comes over to tell everyone all of the Kaiba family secrets because Mokuba has no filter.

Seto has devoted himself to staring at a computer screen for the rest of this episode. I guess he’ll put their names into Google, realize that social media hasn’t been invented yet, and then just lie his head down on the desk and take a power nap until the tournament is over. Much like I did after taking Dayquil this afternoon.

I like how Seto dressed for success and then locked himself in the server room for most of this arc so far. Maybe he’s just...really tired, I dunno. I don’t really blame the guy, he’s had a hard time.

And then Yugi was like “DAMN IT MOKUBA, JUST ONCE CAN YOU NOT INVITE THE ILLUMINATI???”

And we had a weird scene where Yugi just started talking to the ghost and it was while he was talking to everyone else, and the show didn’t treat it like that’s a weird thing to do...but it was a weird thing to do.

This show does that sometimes, where I guess they imply that Yugi’s Pharaoh conversations are split second conversations but...they’re not, right?

Also this chick ain’t gone yet, and Mokuba is just failing at his entire job for not zeroing in on vibes coming off this chick like stinky cheeseman.

So listen.

Did the Kaibas make like 3 types of Blue Eyes Caboose to one up Noah? Because Noah made one choo choo dragon, and then Mokuba and Seto were like “how dare” and then made sure that everyone ride every single version of the blue eyes caboose just to see how proud of them they were.

How many months of troubleshooting was the train? Like how long in development did Seto and Mokuba spend on these? A lot right? Like most of the time?

I did not check the subs to see if Roland said Jumping or Champion but I like to believe that Roland thought it was a cool new name he gave him.

Then these guys all showed up.

Hey so...can we talk seating arrangements?

Tea decided not to sit next to Yugi after complaining about not spending time with him for like how many episodes? Or was it too awkward to sit on top of what was probably Pharaoh?

Or did Mokuba go like “please, Tea, I cannot sit next to the others because I’m pretty sure one is a mole that is about to go cray” and was Tea like “Good, I need female friends, these ones are driving me crazy!” and then was Mokuba like peering desperately over the edge of his self made dragon train prison realizing he has to listen to Tea complain about boys for the rest of his ride across molten lava?

Headcanons abound about this weird seating arrangement that the animators drew for the reasons they did...but reasons I cannot fully understand. That and the Dayquil is making me overfixate on random stuff.

And also, Tea is kind of the Kaiba’s security’s understudy. Just there to always protect Mokuba with her ass because she’s the strongest woman alive.

PS I missed the tumblr wars because at the time I was trying to like...run a proper business on blogger. When Blogger died and I jumped over here it was like a weird ruin where everyone was like “tumblr is the most toxic place alive” and...I’ve had a really nice time here, actually. Completely missed that civil war period and I have no regrets.

Now I was there for the Petz wars (warz, I guess) where people were very militant about Petz abuse (abuze?) where apparently people were using the spray bottle on their catz too much and people were very, very upset about it to the point that they were like campaigning about it on their angelfire websites with the most bizarre grassroots campaigns that I still recall, to this day because they were like...well they looked like this:

PLAPA. Not only am I 100% positive that only this one guy ever called this movement PLAPA, but I’m 100% positive that not only are Catz not real people, but also this wasn’t actually happening and we never had any proof that it was. Either way, if people knew or suspected that you hadn’t deleted the spray bottle from your game (which at the time I had no idea how to do because I was a wee child) they would basically assume you were on a one way road to being a mass murderer in real life.

In real life we were 7 years old so like...thanks?

But that’s the closest I got to toxicity and at the time I was too young to make an email account and actually converse with these people. I was just there to download their Petz hexes, and I already made a post about how wonderful and incredible Petz Hexing was.

And y’all, I heard, just now after a little deep dive into the Petz Abuse debacle (which yes, is on the wiki), that apparently, like gardening, Petz Hexing came back in a big way during the epidemic--and I have found an active Petz forum in this the year 2021. The only problem is that I no longer remember how to use old timey forums...and I think I’m locked out of seeing most of these threads (and like this forum is so old I think I have to send them a letter in the physical mail to apply). But, I’m pretty sure they’re hosting a picture contest for who’s dogz poses the best. And I’m pretty sure someone created a hexxed Pickle Rick. Or it’s a photoshop that was made to look like a hexxed Pickle Rick.

Dammit why did it have to be Pickle Rick? That’s not worth re-installing Petz and getting it to run on Windows 10...

Guys is this the Dayquil? Is this really happening? I feel like I’m losing my mind for so many reasons...

Anyway, speaking about useless hexing it’s about time that our villain did something that was actually dangerous, so Zigfried decided to install a new virus that does more than turn off the lights. (it still turns off lights)

the Spreadsheet Virus!

Confounded by the spreadsheet software, it...um...it does this:

Straight up how does Excel make a volcano erupt? Is that why I have to pay for Microsoft office now?

All this because Joey made fun of Zigfried’s naturally pink hair? Which is the most normal hair on this series outside of like...Tristan?

Hey guys...Joey’s fine, right? Like how many times has Joey been on fire? And once in an iron cage next to like...a Fire Golem?

Joey’s fine.

MAN I miss Fire Golem. He had a good mug.

And then we just kinda watch chaos go across the park, chaos that includes: Too many ghosts in the haunted mansion (which honestly--you’ll get your money’s worth, sounds great!), the Ferris wheel goes kinda fast and thus might accidentally be fun, the lights turn off at some concert stage that only had 2 people on it (so it might just be motion detector lights and not even a virus), and um...literal fire and magma are going to set Joey Wheeler on fire.

Just...one of these events does not seem like the others. In fact most of these things sound like good improvements to the park and they should just hire Zigfried at this point.

Roland puts down his microphone and jogs across the stage, about a mile through the audience bleachers, and into the staff lounge, to go and bother Seto Kaiba, who is in a room that has a hi-def classical painting copy-pasted on the wall and I can’t look away from it.

I almost did a Google search on this painting but then thought better about it. There’s like...a billion classical paintings that look exactly like this, and they wouldn’t use like a Monet, they would have to do something that’s harder to catch to avoid copyright issues (because yes, even old ass paintings have copyright issues, but no one tell NFT’s which are going to be so freakin screwed and was such a bad idea, that I can’t even start).

Anyway, I have no idea who it is and it is legitimately driving me up a wall, but I’m on too much meds to do the effort of putting it in a reverse google image search.

Plus, a reverse google image search would only pull up Seto Kaiba.

So Kaiba takes us on a little flashback to his weird ass past, a weird ass past that just...doesn’t follow any of the established timelines, but I assume was shortly after adoption but before Seto got into a phase where he wore his school outfit everywhere and tried to shove his MMO off onto his Dad as a business model.

Seto is like 8 for some reason. I don’t know why, they kinda drew him younger this season anyway, like maybe they got a lot of fan mail and realized “Hey I think we made the 16 yo boy too sexy?” And they just toned Seto the hell down. That, and it’s a different animation team, and maybe they looked at Seto’s character design and were like “we don’t get paid enough to draw this well.” So...since Seto actually looks like a teen again, I guess his 12 year old self has to look like he’s in Elementary school.

Also, I only recognized this, because at some point in S3 as I was roasting Noah Kaiba’s weird fashion:

I remember distinctly roasting that little bow tie. I don’t remember when I wrote it, I think there was a version of this outfit that was in color...but I don’t remember where.

Anyway, it’s not the same jacket...but man that’s kind of awkward, ya? Like the maid who dressed Mokuba deffo got fired?

He um.

Turned the lights off a little bit.

Guys this villain is like...

...why does he think lights are scary? Like look at little Seto here. The boy is already bored. Seto duels on the edges of cliffs...he doesn’t care about the freakin dark.

We had a guy who killed everyone on the planet last season, and this season we have a little fashion gremlin standing in the corner and flicking the light switch going  “wooooo you never catch me!” and it’s like...

...I’m starting to think this guy isn’t a witch.

Like we’re at Episode 6, there’s still time for this guy to be a witch...but I really am starting to think this guy is just...straight up not a witch. It’s everything Seto wanted, a rival who isn’t a freakin magic person...and sets Joey only fake on fire instead literally on fire like last time...

and Seto is just completely unhinged by it.

Anyway, I’m off to go drink a bowl of soup and pass out. If you’re new here, this is a link to read these in chrono order.

https://steve0discusses.tumblr.com/tagged/yugioh/chrono

[wastelandlovingscenarios]

Yey! New fallout blog. I'm so glad, it's honey on my heart! :D Do you have a lot of requests? I have two questions-ideas that you may like. 1: I like to think that Nick has memories that allow him to dance pre-war swing dances. But what about the rest of the companions? How do they react to Sole dancing lindy-hop (it's such fun and energy!) and/or blues-dancing (so slow, lazy, smooth and sexy). Do they know how to dance, do they want to learn from Sole, or do they very strongly refuse to dance?

yes, i have a lot of requests but i love it! keeps me occupied. i have taught ballroom dancing for a good four years of my life and i know about 10 dances. i’m absolutely in love with it! thank you for requesting this. <3

can you imagine the boys in an slightly unbuttoned, loose collared shirt with slacks and a belt.... 🤩

please enjoy! i will make it crushing companions because who doesn’t like a little romance in their life?

-

Danse:

danse is a killjoy, he doesn’t understand the joy of dancing and what impact it has on people. whenever he caught the sight of people doing it, he stood on his opinion that it was nothing but a waste of time. well, that was until he saw sole dance themselves. they had been dragged onto the floor by a friend of theirs and began lindy hopping as if they were suddently recharged and full of energy. even if he tried to deem it as a distraction later in the day, he knew he couldn’t pry his eyes away no matter how hard he tried. he had seen many people dance in his lifetime at brotherhood gatherings and such, but had never seen anyone do it like sole had. danse isn’t a dancer and will probably never be one. this man has spent his entire life in a tin can and is probably already built like one. he is horribly stiff and cannot move for the life of him. even if you were to hold him at gun point, he’d still harshly refuse to do so. after all, danse couldn’t even do the macarena even if he tried. he knows that he is incapable of dancing, which is why he absolutely avoids doing it at all costs. even if he was utterly in love with sole, he’d still reject the offer of learning their hobby and instead watch them dance from afar, secretly gushing over the smile their plastered their face whenever they did so.

Deacon:

he would think it’s absolutely amazing how sole could still remember fragments of their dancing 200 years later. hell, he can’t even remember what he ate last night for dinner, so it’s easy to say he’s impressed by their hobby and how physically demanding it is. the minute he saw sole and perform such an energetic dance, showcasing various fancy twirls and skills on the dance floor, he’d be completely bought, no further questions asked. deacon knows how to dance just for his disguises and such, but had never went beyond the basic steps of it. now that he had seen everything beyond what he’s ever known, he’d become very fascinated by it. he’d practically tackle sole on the floor, nearly begging them to teach him how to lindy hop and he definitely was not gonna accept no as an answer. the more sole had taught him, the more he became passionate about it, pressing sole to teach him more. in the end, he’d be more than willing to learn and even go as far as performing it with sole in different disguises while on their missions. after all, there’s no one he’d rather do it with besides the star themselves- the sole survivor.

Maccready:

maccready is instantly absorbed into soles talent of lindy hopping and although he doesn’t cheer out loud like everyone else does in the bar, he’s smiling proudly while leaning back in his seat. the sight of sole happy and energetic while doing what they love brings a warm feeling to his chest and he hopes that one day he’s able to make them smile the same way. after a few performances, mac would confront sole about it and ask about their history with dancing, curiousity eventually catching up to him. mac would try to listen as they spoke passionately about their hobby but their words would eventually turn into static as he instead admired their face like a middle school crush. he’d blush when sole snapped him out of it and would just reply with a simple, “that’s good.” as if he listened to them in the first place. although mac is engrossed by their talent, he will not dance no matter the circumstances. it wasn’t like mac was stiff or anything when moving his body, it was more of the fact that he was embarrassed to even attempt to dance in front of anyone, especially in front of the only person he has a crush on. mac naturally doesn’t favor any attention on him, so he refuses to learn how to dance for his sanity and don’t even get me started on creating physical contact with sole if he did choose to learn from them. if he were to accept their offer, his crush would be obvious to everyone within a 5 feet range. the thought of sole even linking their hand with his automatically gives him a heart attack, so for that to happen in real time would be an absolutely different story he wasn’t going to find out. he’d support them completely with their dancing but would wave off the idea of him doing the same for personal reasons no one should know.

Hancock:

oh man, the sight of his crush blues dancing on the floor in front of everyone was so sexy in his eyes. the way their hips swayed and how slow and sensual their movements were drove him crazy. especially the way their confidence shone throughout the room made him fall in love with them even more. although he didn’t like the idea of them dancing with someone else, he sure liked the scene right in front of him. his whiskey would be completely neglected as he smirked, watching them dance passionately. hancock is a dancer, but more specifically, a slow dancer. before he had met sole formerly, he had picked up various individuals through different tactics and there’s no doubt that he’s used slow dancing as one. it always won the women over somehow, so he often did it. now that the mayor had his eyes on someone after countless years of avoiding love, he’d be utterly determined to impress sole with dance skills of his own that he had mastered. hopefully, he’d win their heart in the process of doing so. hancock would even try to sharpen them more before he built up the courage to ask sole for a dance. once he did so, it was simple to assume that sole was anything but disappointed.

Nick Valentine:

he’s thrilled to know that sole still contained their memories of prewar dances like he had. he always disliked the fact that prewar dances in the commonwealth were completely disregarded to rot slowly as time passed. it was such a unique hobby and talent nowadays and nick assumed he was going to rust away before he could find another person who could dance as good as anyone back in the prewar era. when sole had presented various dances, such as lindy hop and blues dancing, to a crowd in sanctuary, he’d become automatically ecstatic, a large grin forming on his face. he’d immediately walk over to sole, politely asking for their hand for permission to join in. though nick wasn’t the greatest anymore at dancing and was a bit rusty at it due to his body limiting him, they’d still catch the attention of the crowd who cheered them on happily. he had forgotten how good it felt to be doing something he once enjoyed doing in his past life. obviously by now, you can assume nick is an excellent dancer amongst all the companions and would be the closest to soles level of dancing. he is a very romantic guy, signalling that he prefers much more slower dances and in this case, blues dancing. the fact that he’s in love with sole only proves this more and whenever they’re in private and he has the chance to ask for a dance alone, he does without hesitation. after a while, they’d come up with routines of their own and it was become a nightly habit to dance with each other, whether slowly or with energy.

Preston:

he’d be one of the many companions that would be cheering on for sole as they blues danced or lindy hopped on the floor, saying things like, ‘that’s my general!’ or ‘woohoo! go sole!’. secretly, he’d enjoy the small blush that would appear on their face whenever prestons voice boomed amongst the noisy crowd. he wanted to make sure that sole knew he was watching and that he was their biggest supporter, regardless of the abundance of people watching them. he’s absolutely supportive with soles habit of dancing and often asks them about it, knowing that it was one of their passions that still continued to stick with them even after the bombs dropped. preston would be happy to learn from sole, accepting their offer before they could say another word. it wouldn’t hurt to try something new and if he didn’t like it, he could always just stop after all. luckily for sole, he would immediately find himself liking every dance they taught him, whether it was slow or fast, and would enjoy practicing every once in a while to take his mind off the stress. the feeling of soles hands against his shoulder blade and his hand was more than enough to brighten up any bad day. preston is the type of dancer where he’d prefer to perform and practice in private rather than showcasing to a crowd. he was definitely very shy about it and a little insecure of his skills, but with time, he would eventually attempt to dance in public with sole. maybe not everytime, but it would happen occasionally.

Sturges:

boy, oh boy, lemme tell you right now. sturges is in love with prewar history, so once sole presented their skills of dancing, he’d be practically bombarding them with compliments and questions. he wouldn’t hide the fact at all that he was impressed by their set of skills and would even give them a cute ass nickname like, “my little dancer,” to which he laughed at whenever sole blushed madly. as much as the lindy hopping caught his eye, he liked the movements of blue dancing and the music that came along with it. it was much more of his style, really. the day sole came up to him and asked if he wanted to learn, he had agreed, knowing that he couldn’t say no to such a charming individual. sadly though, sturges has done nothing similar to dancing in his life and is as stiff as a rock when sole first teaches him, often stepping on their foot or stumbling over nothing. he’d blush in embarrassment, apologizing profusely whenever an error was made. he’s a mechanic- he fixes, repairs, tinkers and builds. it was something he enjoys doing and something he was great at. now this- this was something definitely new in his life and something he was absolutely horrible at. although he can’t dance for shit, he’s willing to bite back the hesitation so he could take advantage of whatever time he has with sole.

Gage:

he wouldn’t really have a high opinion of soles dancing but wouldn’t deny the fact that he was slightly impressed by their talent. never has he once seen anyone in nuka world dance the same as sole did and he definitely wasn’t gonna push away the fact that it was something unique and interesting to watch. even if he didn’t tell that to sole out loud, the way his eyes followed their every movement spoke louder than any words he could’ve pulled out of his ass. from time to time, he’d compliment them in his own way, saying things, such as, ‘nice footwork you got there, boss’ or ‘don’t see much of that these days’. sole would eventually taunt him by accusing gage that he liked the performance to which gage playfully snickered at it while rolling his eyes. you never put gage and dancing in the same sentence. he’s absolutely against himself doing so and would rather jump off a cliff willingly than to be caught doing such a thing. there’s nothing you can do to make him dance or even attempt to bribe him into learning- he just won’t do it at all costs. gage has his own set of hobbies and he likes to stick within that area, so the topic of dancing doesn’t appeal to him at all and immediately shuts the idea down the second it leaves soles mouth. as much as he loved sole, there was just no way in hell that he was gonna be forced into this. it just wasn’t him.

[karimjohnson]

Lights Up: I’m Not Ever Going Back (Part 1)

Merry Christmas everyone! I have been so busy here lately. The holidays are always a busy time of the year. I love my family and I wanted to spend some quality time with them. I took a trip to see my friend of 17 years and we haven’t seen each other in person for 6 years. Then my parents had their birthdays. I had to work on top of all of that and work has been super busy. And now it’s Christmas?! Time has been flying and I apologize so much for slowly updating and writing. But lucky for you guys, I have two parts for you! I’m excited to post some more! Thank you for being patient and reading. My inbox is always open for suggestions! I love you guys and I hope you like it! Much love- K

Masterlist

Summary: While on vacation with Harry and his bandmates; there is a huge storm that causes a power outage. You hate storms because you get really bad anxiety. Harry finds you hiding in your room. He tells you that you can stay in his room with him. 

Pairing: Harry x Reader

Rated: PG (Fluff)

Part 2

________________________________________

I was currently on vacation with some of my closest friends. Harry had invited me on a trip with his bandmates to the Caribbean Island for some inspiration for his new album coming up. We were all in this big house with the beach close by. There was a pool and patio out back where they did most of their writing during the early mornings and in the afternoon. I had gone to town a few times to just look around and see the culture. We all had gone to the beach a few times because they didn’t want me to feel left out in anything. I honestly didn’t feel left out at all.

I have heard a little bit of the songs that they had been working on and it all sounded amazing. I just like to be surprised with Harry’s music, hence the reason why I just mind my business while they work. I was currently in the living room watching TV, just trying to relax while everyone was outside working. Out of nowhere, I hear a loud crack of thunder strike and see a huge light flash outside. I jumped looking towards the back glass sliding door to see everyone rushing inside. “What’s going on,” I asked while picking myself up off the couch and rushing over to Mitch and Harry. “There’s a huge storm starting,” Harry said looking down at me. I looked around the group to peek outside.

Sure enough, it was dark and gray outside. The clouds twisted in the sky as it started pouring down rain. I absolutely hated storms. I could never sleep when the thunder boomed. It always made me jump. The lightening was always so blinding and would light up the whole room. I sighed and looked back to Harry, “I’m sorry that the rain cut into your work.” He shrugged as they all sat there instruments down in the kitchen. “It’s okay, we could always work inside. We were about to take a break anyway for some snacks. Do you want to join,” he asked with a sweet dimpled smile. I smiled back to him and nodded, “Sure, I could use a snack.” He chuckled and turned into the big white kitchen.

Everyone got their choice of snacks and sat down talking in their own conversations. I was eating some fruit that Harry and I cut up. I listened to everyone talking trying to drown out the storm that was coming down heavy outside. “Well, should we get back to work,” Ny asked looking to everyone. “Yeah, Y/N did you want to listen,” Harry asking turning to me. I blushed and bit my bottom lip. “I rather be surprised H. You know that. I need a shower anyway. You all go ahead and take over the living room,” I smiled to him and started cleaning up my mess. They all cleaned up after themselves as I headed for the stairs.

I hated declining the offers to listen to the magic they were working so hard on. But this storm was not slowing down anytime soon, and I was getting anxious. There was something about storms that just get my anxiety boiling over. I was not going to make it through a song with all the thunder causing me to jump. I walked into my room I was staying in and got everything ready for a relaxing bath. I started the water and added some bubbles. This will work, right? I started undressing and added a new face mask I brought with me. I had my hair pulled up and my face mask on. I climbed into the warm bath and leaned back closing my eyes.

Everything seemed to be calm for once since the storm started. I could hear some guitars and harmonies coming from downstairs. I smiled to myself and just felt the peace settle in. After a little while, I decided to get out and throw on my pajamas. Plus, I needed to wash my face off. I wrapped the towel around me and walked to the sink. I took a washcloth and ran some water over it. I started washing off the mask. Once that was done, I decided to brush my teeth. As I leaned down to spit, the lights went out. I looked up and around the bathroom. Oh god, please tell me this is a joke. I walked over to the light switch and started flipping it. Nothing. Complete darkness.

I started to slightly freak out to myself. I hate the dark and I hate storms. I cannot stress that enough. I started getting dressed in the dark and walked to my bed trying not to fall. I grabbed my phone off the nightstand and climbed underneath the covers. I pulled them over my head as my phone vibrated. It was a text from Harry. ‘Power is out. Not sure when it will be back on yet. Are you okay? -H.’ I sighed and closed my eyes as thunder cracked outside my window. I jumped feeling my heart rate go up. I was not getting any kind of sleep tonight. I sighed and made myself as comfortable as I could. I gently closed my eyes wishing for sleep to take over my anxious mind. Another rumble of thunder filled my empty room and lighting struck, igniting my whole room in a blinding white light.

My breathing started to pick up and I tried my best to control it. I rolled onto my back inhaling a deep breath trying to relax my body. I started to hear a few voices out in the hallway. I guess everyone is trying to find a light source for their music session. Then a small knock filled my now quiet room. I didn’t move right away because I thought I just imagined it. I heard the door creak open and I slowly pulled the blankets down from my head. I looked over into the dark room towards the door to see Harry’s silhouette posted against the doorframe. “Y/N, you okay? I forget how much you hate storms,” his raspy voice filled my ears, and I could feel myself starting to blush from embarrassment. “It’s not your fault. Honestly, I forget about it too,” I whispered as I played with the comforter on my bed.

“Are you going to be able to sleep tonight,” Harry asked as he shuffled towards the bed. I looked up at him and felt my face just fall flat. “Probably not,” I answered him and looked towards the window. The wind had picked up outside causing the tree branches to clash against my window. I cringed at the noise and tried to ignore it as best as I can. I could see Harry watching my expressions to decide on his next move. “Well, we all cleaned up the living room. We decided to call it night on the songwriting,” he sighed as he took a seat on my bed. I looked at him with a small smile. “Were you able to shower and relax some,” Harry asked nodding towards the bathroom. “Yeah, I felt somewhat relaxed. The power decided to shut off as I was brushing my teeth. So, I just got dressed and curled into bed,” I pouted slightly and shrugged up to him.

He chuckled and I could see him playing with his rings. “Well, do you want someone to stay up with,” Harry asked looking to me with dimpled smile. I rolled my eyes and laughed a little. “You don’t have to stay up with H. I appreciate it but you need your sleep,” I say nudging him with my foot a little. “So? I can still have a crazy sleep schedule if I choose to. We can go in my room if you want,” he said playfully nudging me back. “I could help distract you from the storm in some way,” he spoke up and I raised a brow at him. After a few more minutes, Harry finally persuaded me to go to his room with him.

We walked to his room and I walked to his bed. Harry had walked into his bathroom and started doing his nightly routine. I laid back on his bed and looked up to the ceiling. I could still hear the loud storm roaring outside the house. I sighed and sat up looking into the bathroom door. Harry was brushing his teeth indicating that he was about to come back out to the bedroom. I leaned back and just played with his comforter. I felt the bed sink down and I looked up to see a pair of green eyes watching me carefully. “You okay, love,” he asked tilting his head a bit. “Yeah, I was just waiting on you to come back out here. What are we going to do with no power,” I asked and bit down on my bottom lip. We weren’t able to turn on a movie or anything. “Well, we could talk until we fall asleep,” he shrugged as I looked up at him. There was something about the way the moonlight hit his face in the darkness. I slowly felt myself falling into some kind of trance watching him.

“I guess we could,” I whispered looking down at my hands. I felt him move around the bed and I looked to him. He was laying down with his arms open for me. I smiled and blushed at his actions. Harry and I have been close friends for a while. It’s not like it was weird to cuddle with your best friend or anything. Everyone does it, right? I crawled up and wrapped my right arm around his toned tattooed covered torso. I tucked my left arm into his side as I placed my head down on his chest. I took in his scent and my mouth began to water. I could feel his breathing. He seemed slightly nervous but mainly happy. His heart was beating a little faster against his chest than normal. I looked up to him as I started to play with his shirt.

“So, are you having a good time here? I know it kind of sucks when we all come together to write. I was worried about bringing you out here because I don’t want you to feel left out,” Harry spoke to me softly. I could feel his fingers twirl my hair around and tickle my scalp. I smiled to myself and thought about how our week has been going. “I don’t feel left out at all. I just like to be surprised to hear your new stuff the day you release it. I think we all have had fun here. You guys have been so great to me. You made sure to do stuff with me before you all have your music sessions at night. I really am having a great and relaxing time here H,” I whispered looking up to meet his gaze. He was watching me with a big grin on his face.

“What,” I asked looking at him as I started to worry that I said something wrong. “Nothing,” he chuckled and poked my cheek. “Harry, seriously what is it,” I asked sitting up to balance myself to look at him better. “It’s not bad,” he smiled tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear. “You are just cute,” he winked at me and I felt warmth running to the apples of my cheeks at his compliment. “Harry don’t be so lame,” I scoffed and hit him playfully with a pillow. He started laughing and grabbed his self a pillow. We both moved to sit on our knees while we got more into our pillow fight. Our breathless laughs filled the room. I kept going even though I was losing my breath the harder I went.

    A roaring clash of thunder and lighting struck, my body tensed up and I immediately curled up into a ball squeezing the pillow in my embrace. I shut my eyes tightly trying to make the moment pass. I could feel Harry hovering over my small frame. He wrapped one arm around my waist to pull me closer to him. His other hand gently caressing my cheek. “Shh, it’s okay Y/N,” he whispered to me while running the pad of his thumb along my cheek. I took a deep breath and nuzzled myself into his touch. His presence was helping my nerves feel at ease. “You can open your eyes love, it’s just me,” he spoke softly to me. I slowly let my eyes flutter open and I was met with those green ivy eyes. I let out my breath and sighed as the relief finally hit me.

Harry smiled down at me causing me to smile back up at him. “Feel better,” he asked softly. I couldn’t help but get chills as his breath ran across my face. “A little bit yes,” I nod and realize that he has me semi-pinned to the bed. Harry is beautiful. He wasn’t making me uncomfortable at all. I had just never been this close to him. Sure, anyone who meets Harry is head over heels for him. He was everything. And to think, me crushing on my best friend, how cliché. I took in all his features as the moonlight caught them in all the right ways. I could see Harry watching the expressions and gears turning in my head. He inched his face a tab bit closer to mine. Our lips brushed against each other causing me to gasp at the feeling.

[givelove-always]

I Love Him Not, I Love Him

A/N: Hi! This is my extremely late entry for @bucky-smiles​’ 2K Bollywood Writing Challenge (I’m so sorry for the delay aahhh!)! My prompt was one of my fave songs, Subhanallah from Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, so that’s what this fic is loosely based on! Also a big thank you to @parkerpetey​ for taking the time to edit this and leave hilarious comments throughout the Google doc, ilysm for that. I hope you enjoy!

Summary: The three times you didn’t accept that you were crushing on Peter, and the one time you did.

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Word Count: 7.3k words

Warnings: None, just tooth-rotting fluff and reader being frustrating :)

Something everyone talked about, yet nobody really talked about, was how being the new student in the school, especially given that it was your senior year, was ridiculously tough.

You had recently moved from Toronto to Queens, and you absolutely despised it. You’d spent three extremely long years at your old school creating a name for yourself, be it through your strong academic scores or your commitment to numerous extracurriculars. You weren’t exactly popular, but were definitely spoken of quite highly if you were brought up in conversation, regardless of whether it was teachers talking or your fellow students. You were on the perfect path to becoming valedictorian of your class.

… Until you were uprooted and brought here. Sure, your dad really pulled all the strings he could to help you secure a spot at Midtown, especially given that it was senior year - it’s hard enough as is to secure a spot in freshman year, what with it being insanely competitive and for genius students and all, and while your grades were stellar, it would’ve still been close to impossible securing a spot - and you really appreciated it, but that didn’t mean that you still didn’t miss your school and your friends back in Toronto.

It felt like everyone was talking about you - who was the new girl? how did she manage to get a spot three years after everyone else? was she genuinely smart, or was there some other way she got in? - but at the same time, it felt like you were invisible. People wanted to know more about the circumstances surrounding you than know more about you as a person.

With every day that you went to school and came back home after unsuccessful attempts at restarting your social life and making friends, your morale was deflating. As much as you tried to push it aside, the pang in your chest was becoming more and more undeniable when you constantly saw people surrounded by their friends, laughing and chatting, while you sat to the side all by yourself.

Even then, it was all bearable. Just one year here, and then you could go make friends in university, where life would practically be a clean slate - a fresh start for everyone. Who knows, maybe you could even go back to Canada to a university where some of your old high school friends would be attending. You kept telling yourself that everything would work itself out, and if it had to be after a year of loneliness, then so be it.

The only thing that still felt terrible were the daily walks to and from school all alone. Back in Toronto, you and your best friend would always text each other in the morning to try and coordinate the time that you’d leave so that you could walk together, chatting each other’s ears off the entire way there. If you had time in the morning, you’d often even stop by the Tim Hortons on the way and get yourselves a little breakfast.

Here in Queens, there were tons of cute little cafés and little convenience stores and such on your way to school, and while you would still often stop by to pick up a quick snack or drink (or even just to say a quick hello to Mr. Delmar, the kind man who owned the little sandwich shop around the corner, and pet his adorable little cat), it never was the same as going with a friend. That constant loneliness started to change though when one day, you left home and arrived at Mr. Delmar’s shop earlier than usual.

one

It had been a long night with very minimal sleep. You were up working on a Physics assignment until almost five in the morning and you knew that if you slept then, you wouldn’t wake up in time for your morning classes. The extremely prominent bags under your eyes stood as proof of your exhaustion and you had no energy to make yourself breakfast, hence your early arrival at Delmar’s.

You sat at a little table by the window observing the street outside. Most people look at the way others are dressed outside as an indication of the weather. You, on the other hand, liked to think of it as more of a personification of the weather. If the chilly November weather were to be a person, they would definitely be one of those speedy walkers roaming the streets in some fuzzy boots and a trench coat.

As you sipped on your hot chocolate and tried to assign a more rounded personality to the November weather for no reason other than trying to wake yourself up, the sound of the bells chiming as someone entered the store caught your attention.

Peter Parker.

He was that really smart kid in your Physics class - the one subject you were struggling in. You knew him from that one time you guys were paired up for a quick chemistry lab, but you didn’t know him know him. You remembered vividly and appreciated how nice he was the whole time - it was difficult to find that over the last few months. Either that, or you just somehow managed to keep getting paired up with the wrong people.

You realized you were staring at him when you saw him facing and waving in your direction.

That was unusual, nobody ever really seemed to acknowledge you.

You turned to see if there was someone behind you he might have been trying to talk to, but very quickly realized that you were seated in the corner when your eyes were met with nothing but the plain white wall. ‘Stupid move,’ you told yourself. ‘How do you just forget that you’re sitting next to a wall?’

Grimacing a little, you turned back to face him and waved at him. You gave him a small smile, which he very politely returned before he went up to place his order.

‘Great, you can’t even greet a person normally. What is wrong with you Y/n? This is why people aren’t trying to befriend you right now, if-’

“Hey, do you mind if I sit down here?” a slightly timid voice interrupted. Your eyes locked with Peter’s as your head shot up.

“Oh! Um, yeah- I mean, no! I mean, no, I don’t mind, go ahead!” you stuttered, feeling all the blood rush to your cheeks.

Peter let out the softest giggle you have ever heard as he sat down, and if you didn’t have such sharp hearing, you were sure you would have missed it.

“How are you? How are things going?” he asked as he set his sandwich onto the table.

“Oh, well, they’re going,” you smiled and shrugged. “This point in the semester’s always a little crazy, but it’s not the worst. How are you doing?”

“Yeah, it does get hectic around this time,” Peter sympathized, scrunching his nose slightly in an effort to show mutual distaste over the stress. “I’m not too bad, just really tired from working on that physics assignment. How’d you find that?”

“Oh my gosh, don’t ask,” you groaned, rolling your head before laying it smack against the table. “I literally cannot physics, it took me forever to complete it, and I’m still not confident about a solid chunk of it.”

Peter let out a laugh at your reaction, the sound falling like music onto your ears. You discreetly peeked up from your position on the table to look at his undoubtedly glowing face, and the image you were met with was nothing short of beautiful. His eyes were scrunched up and his perfect teeth were on full display, cheeks turning redder by the second. The sunlight falling on his brown curls gave them a softer hue and made them look even softer than you’d already imagined them to be. Nobody had ever looked this angelic.

It was a sight you wouldn’t mind getting used to.

‘Wait, what? Why did you just think that? Y/n you barely even know the guy, stop being creepy!’

You pulled yourself out of the trance and slowly sat back up, giggling lightly to avoid making it obvious that you had just been staring - that would be awkward to explain.

“I’m sure you did just fine,” Peter chuckled. “And if anything, physics isn’t my worst subject, so um, if you want, I’d be more than happy to help.”

“That’s very sweet, thank you Peter, I appreciate that more than you realize,” you smiled, picking up your backpack. “I hate to cut this conversation short, but we need to start heading to school soon if we want to get to class on time.”

“It doesn’t have to be cut short!” Peter said abruptly standing up, catching you off-guard a little. “I-I mean, we could walk together if you’d like? No pressure though, it’s totally cool if you don’t-”

“Of course, I’d love that,” you cut him off with a smile.

“Okay.”

“Okay,” you nodded. “Let’s head out?”

“Yeah, just hold on one quick second,” he said as he quickly rushed over to the front of the shop.

Eyebrows furrowed, you followed him, only for your expression to instantly morph into one of awe as you were met with Peter petting Murph, Mr. Delmar’s cat, before he jogged back to where you were standing, a goofy smile adorning his face. “I’m ready now.”

Saying a quick goodbye to Mr. Delmar, the two of you made your way out. You shivered a little as the icy wind hit you. Peter picked up on the way you tried to discreetly rub your hands together, your outfit not doing nearly enough to cope with the sudden sharpness of the atmosphere, but stayed quiet, not knowing if it was appropriate to say something or not.

“So you’re a cat person, eh?”

“I’d say so, yeah. I’m just as much of a dog person too, though. Murph trumps all other animals though - I’ve been seeing him since Mr. Delmar got him, and he’s so adorable,” Peter gushed. “What about you, a dog person or a cat person?”

“Oh, a hundred percent a dog person, though I would make an exception for Murph, he is pretty cute,” you chuckled. “My best friend back in Canada has the sweetest little puppy named Maple and I practically lived at her house for the sole purpose of playing with him. Her uncle would drop off his two poodles occasionally too when he was travelling, and there was no way to get me out of her house when all three puppies came together.”

“Maple? That’s the most Canadian thing I’ve ever heard, I love that!” Peter physically had to stop for a minute because he was bent over letting out what could only be described as a ‘hearty laugh’.

If it were anyone else, you would most certainly be offended - what was so funny about having a pet with a stereotypical Canadian name? - but Peter exuded an aura of kindness and innocence, and despite only having spoken to him for such a short period of time, you knew his intentions were nothing but pure. Also, you had to admit, it was a little comedic how stereotypical the name was.

“Anyway, speaking of Canada,” he spoke through light chuckles once he’d calmed down a little and you both continued walking, “I don’t mean to be intrusive, and you definitely don’t have to answer if you’d rather not, but um, how come you transferred here senior year? Was it hard to get in? How did that work?”

“No no don’t worry, you’re not being intrusive at all, I don’t mind! Basically…” you started your not-so-entertaining story of how you ended up at Midtown, and no matter how many times you stopped yourself to apologize for how “boring” you were being, Peter assured you that you were anything but.

The long walk to school couldn’t have been long enough, because you were at your locker way too quick for your liking. And judging by the way Peter stayed with you as you grabbed your stuff and offered to walk you to class, he felt the same way.

You found yourself beginning to set your alarm for just a little while earlier than usual that day onwards, and morning walks together became more common as the month went on. Sure, you adored your sleep, but having a potential chance to run into Peter and walk to school with him again? It was worth it.

Despite having only briefly known him, there was a sense of comfort that you felt in his presence. He made you feel like you could share anything with him. Everytime he smiled, forget full-fledged laughed, you felt like maybe, just maybe, things were going to be okay for you.

To top it all off, it didn’t hurt that he was more than easy on the eyes. Those gorgeous eyes and that cute button-nose, not to mention his beautiful brown curls? You wouldn’t mind signing up for that one bit.

‘Y/n, stop. No. He’s just your friend. He’s just being nice, and you’re just happy you have a friend. You do not see him in that way - there is no chance of anything along those lines happening. You just haven’t had much interaction with people and now you’re playing up a friendship because you have nothing better to do. You do not like him.’

You reminded yourself that every time you caught yourself looking at him for even a moment more than what would be acceptable when you conversed. Peter was a great guy, but you guys were just friends, and you intended on keeping your feelings about him that way.

Besides, the reason you were down to lose some sleep wasn’t just being able to walk into school with Peter. You always had a problem with getting to school just in time to catch the bell, and this gave you an excuse to be more timely.

That’s all it was. A friendship and a way to be more punctual. Not anything more than that.

***** two

“Peter,” you clutched your stomach, loud laughter escaping you, “I’m literally going to pee myself!”

“Y/n, stop entertaining him or he won’t stop making those terrible jokes,” Ned groaned.

Peter had introduced you to his best friends Ned and MJ about three days into your friendship, once you’d gotten the remainder of your paperwork after your transfer completed and could finally sit with the rest of your classmates for lunch, and you’d all instantly clicked.

Here you were, two months later. Colourful lights shining all around you, the sound of squeals and laughter from a multitude of people constantly surrounding you, and a game to play every few steps you took - not to mention the numerous prizes waiting to be won.

Ned has suggested that the four of you go down to the arcade nearby to destress after the exhaustion of your end-of-semester exams, and you all had instantly agreed.

As much fun as you were having playing the different games and winning all those tickets with the people who had grown to be your closest friends, what was absolutely making your day was the way in which Peter would just not stop making hilarious puns and jokes.

“You’re just jealous you’re not as cool or as hot as me,” Peter playfully scoffed and made exaggerated hair-flip movements, grabbing your hand as he dragged a giggling you to the next game. “Come on Y/n, they’ll never know what it’s like to be iconic.”

“Woah Peter, what’s gotten into you today?”

“I’m just happy. I’m a happy boy. A happy boy who’s happy about being at this arcade with his wonderful friends because it’s a happy environment,” he glanced at you over his shoulder as he put in the tokens to play basketball.

You chuckled as you reached out to playfully pull his cheeks. “Well, happy boy, let’s win this thing and win it together. In case you didn’t know, my basketball skills are somewhat impeccable.”

“Y/n, you literally can’t walk five steps without tripping, it’s pretty hard to imagine you being any good at a sport that involves a lot of running,” he sassed.

“Ah, well that right there is the thing - I’m incapable of walking. When it comes to running, I’m a whole other ball game. Basketball game, to be more specific,” you spoke slowly, nodding your head wisely to emphasize your wisdom.

Peter let out a wheeze neither of you had expected, and it sent you both into a fit of laughter. When Ned and MJ made their way over to you a few seconds later, all they saw was the two of you clutching your stomachs, faces red and laughter escaping your throats as though you’d just rewatched another one of those ridiculous ‘5-Minute Crafts’ life hacks.

In the midst of the hysteria, as Peter went to slap his knee, he accidentally slammed the Start button on the game. The ever-so-jolly-yet-ominous-sounding countdown of the machine finally pulling you guys out of your bubble.

“Oh my gosh Peter stand up, it’s starting!” you exclaimed through giggles, smacking his arm repeatedly with the back of your hand to get his attention.

“Oof okay okay, let’s do this thing!” Peter rubbed his palms and cracked his neck, getting in a serious stance and grabbing the first basketball that came through the machine before tossing it straight into the hoop.

“My turn, my turn!” You shoved him with your hip playfully to make room for yourself and get a better angle to shoot.

Ned and MJ, who had been standing close behind and observing this all go down, just looked at each other, heads cocked to the side. Claps and cheers when the other one scored and purposeful bumps into each other every single time you switched, given you guys’ speed and surprising accuracy, were all they could see and hear.

“The two idiots… they really don’t see it, do they?” MJ questioned, looking between the both of you, genuinely puzzled.

Ned groaned and rubbed his hands over his face. “Dude, I swear I can and will cry right now if they don’t stop playing this ‘you’re just my best friend’ game, I’m so tired of it.”

“Are we gonna say anything to them to make them ‘fess up though?”

“Nah, I kinda wanna watch it play out, as much as it exasperates me,” Ned shrugged.

“Alright Petey boy, you wanna take this jackpot shot or do you want me to?” you looked over at him and asked. “No pressure buddy, but it is an extra five hundred tickets.”

“All yours, m’lady,” he curtly bowed, drawing a laugh from you.

You took your stance, legs slightly spread apart and knees bent just a little, preparing for the big shoot. You grabbed the final basketball, dribbled it on the ground twice, and tossed it, aiming straight for the hoop.

“She shoots,” Peter commentated, watching the ball leave your hands, “and… she scores!”

You let out a squeal and jumped straight into Peter’s arms, giving him the biggest hug you could possibly render. Peter caught you and spun you around, cheering and laughing all the while as the machine spewed out your tickets.

“Okay kids,” MJ called out, pulling you both out of your little moment of euphoria. “Chill for a second and pick up your tickets because I will gladly take them if you don’t want them.”

You chuckled her comment and separated from Peter before quickly walking up to grab the tickets. “Hey, Peter and I worked hard for these, back off,” you playfully pouted, hearing Peter chuckle from beside you.

“Okay okay,” Ned laughed. “MJ and I are done with our tokens, are you guys ready to call it a day and get the prizes too or..?”

“I’m ready to go, Y/n?” Peter asked.

“Yup, I’m done too, let’s go.”

You all made your way over to the corner of the arcade where you could total up your tickets and redeem them for prizes. Despite your constant refusal, Peter not only let you take the entirety of the tickets you both won from the basketball game instead of splitting them, but also gave you all the tickets he’d earned that day so that when combined with yours, you’d be able to get the adorable person-sized teddy bear you were planning on saving up for.

Ned decided to splurge on a number of small prizes, like the classic ginormous plastic sunglasses and little notepads, while MJ got herself a Rubik’s cube and a sticker that said “Caution: Falling Rocks”. Nobody knows why she picked that one in particular - she’d simply shrugged when Peter had asked her about it.

You felt bad that Peter didn’t end up getting anything, but he insisted he was totally cool with it. Something about “not having any more space for obscure things to stuff in my cupboards anyway.”

“Guys, I’m hungry,” you said, bringing the attention to you while you all headed out of the noisy arcade. “Let’s go grab a bite somewhere?”

“Ooh yes, I know this place that’s only like five minutes from here - Ned and I went there like last week. It’s-”

Thud.

Peter never really got to finish that sentence. He was walking backwards, trying to make eye contact with the three of you while relaying his expertise on the restaurants in the area, but the man-child had tripped over his own two feet and landed flat on the ground.

“Oh my gosh, are you okay?” you all rushed over to him.

“I’m okay, I’m okay,” he assured you guys as he grabbed Ned’s hand and pulled himself up, dusting off his jeans.

You couldn’t help the laugh that escaped you right then. “Hey Pete, what was that you said earlier about me not being able to walk five steps without tripping?”

“Hey, cut me some slack, okay. MJ’s sticker said ‘falling rocks’ and I was just testing the validity of that statement. Now, with experiential evidence, I can confirm that it is, in fact, false.”

You and Ned burst out laughing at what was probably Peter’s only good joke all afternoon. MJ rolled her eyes, but even she couldn’t stop the smile that took over her face.

You all started to head towards the restaurant Peter suggested, Ned leading the way.

“Hey Y/n?” Peter leaned over.

“Yes?”

“Did you lose an electron? Because you’re positively glowing.”

“Oy smarty-pants, make your own puns, don’t steal them from your t-shirt,” you chuckled, shaking your head. You increased your speed and walked up ahead to where Ned was walking to join him and, hopefully, prevent Peter from the bright red that overtook your features from that one little out-of-nowhere compliment.

You and Ned were joking around about the events of the day and how much fun everything was, and as much as you enjoyed Ned’s company, you couldn’t help but let your mind wander a little.

Why did Peter have such an effect on you? How was he able to make you feel so giddy - all he did was give you one punny compliment and you were blushing? How come this never happens with anybody else?

‘It’s because sometimes you just click with some people more than you do with others. Yeah, that’s what this is. That’s all it is. You just click with him slightly more than you do with the others, and so his compliment is just a little bit more meaningful in that sense,’ you rationalized.

That’s definitely all it was. A strong friendship. Not a crush - definitely not a crush.

***** three

It was the end of senior year, and you were finally in Europe for your long-awaited senior trip that the Midtown teachers had organized for your graduating class.

You’d managed to fall sick on the second day of the trip, but despite the absolute nightmare that all the nausea and headaches had been, it had luckily turned out to only be a 24-hour bug, and you’d been up and running, ready to explore the place by the next morning.

Ned and Peter shared a room while you and MJ shared another, and while the four of you would occasionally hang out in each other’s rooms when you weren’t already out and about, Peter had insisted on practically staying in your room when you were sick so he could take care of you.

You’d pushed them all out of the room to go out and have fun, or even just go sit in the other room so they wouldn’t accidentally contract whatever it was you had.

Peter, though, just would not listen - he kept taking MJ’s keycard and coming in to check up on you, making sure you were hydrated and had everything you needed. You’d woken up the morning after to a number of texts from Peter, scattered at different times throughout the night, telling you that he hoped you were feeling better and reminding you that you could call him if you needed anything, no matter how late or early it was.

You’d made it known to him the next time you saw him how much you appreciated him doing that, but also how you wished he’d have slept without worrying about you so much.

He’d only smiled in response.

Once you’d gotten better - which luckily was by the next afternoon - the four of you would spend time in one hotel room all evening. Watching movies together, having popcorn fights, or just talking, laughing and reminiscing about the year that had flown right by you.

During the day, you would all go out and explore whatever city you were in, making sure to cover all the general tourist attractions and getting tons and tons of pictures with and of each other. MJ had become your unspoken designated photographer, capturing breathtaking candids of you all whenever she got the chance.

Mr. Harrington had mandated that anybody who went out to explore or do something that wasn’t on the itinerary report back to the hotel by sunset so he could keep track of everyone, so you would always make it a point to be in your rooms by then.

Most people stayed out anyway, but not the four of you - you didn’t want to worry the poor man. He worked hard all year too, and he was kind enough to supervise this trip - the least you could all do was ensure that you weren’t burdening him with any added stress.

Occasionally, you would end up getting back to the hotel earlier than others in your group. Sometimes, MJ would want to wander by herself, and Ned would try to approach and converse with Betty, who he found really cute.

Times like that, you and Peter would be the only ones in your respective rooms. The very first time that happened, you both very quickly realized that if you were in that situation, boredom would usually follow very soon.

So the next time onwards, even if none of the others were there, you and Peter would just hang out together in one of your rooms. It didn’t really matter what you were doing - just being in each other’s presence made things fun.

It was guaranteed, though, that obscure things would always happen when it was just the two of you left unsupervised. One time, Ned walked into his and Peter’s shared room only to find you and Peter in the midst of a very soulful rendition of A Whole New World from Aladdin - complete with exaggerated dance moves and hairbrush-microphones. Another time, MJ returned from her walk to a nearby park to you and Peter indulged in a heated discussion about whether pop tarts should be considered a sandwich or ravioli.

The four of you would often stay up until odd hours talking about anything and everything. The later it got, the deeper your topics of conversation would get. They would go from sharing nostalgic memories from your childhoods to passionate conversations about how many pets one could get before they’d be considered too many.

One of those days, when you had a one hundred percent free day because the event on your itinerary got cancelled, MJ and Peter decided they wanted to go visit a museum. Ned brought up that he wanted to go shopping around the city instead, and since you were planning the same, the two of you went out together.

You and Ned decided to hop onto one of those red double-decker buses, because if you’re a tourist in London and don’t get on one of those buses even once, are you really a tourist in London? Since neither of you had anything specific you wanted to shop for or any specific place in mind, you decided to take a random bus and get off wherever you felt would be worth it.

After about fifteen minutes of looking around at the hustling streets, you finally passed through an area that seemed to be filled with a variety of stores, making it the perfect place for some obscure shopping.

You both walked around, entering random stores whenever something in the display caught your eyes and buying random articles of clothing. At one point, you found a really cool thrift store and decided to style each other - the results being surprisingly more wonderful than either of you had expected. You both did an impromptu ramp walk for each other, filling the trial rooms with the sounds of laughter and giggles.

As the evening started to set in and the gorgeous colours started to take over the blue sky, you decided that you should start heading back to the hotel soon. It wasn’t too far from where you were though, considering the fact that a quick fifteen-minute ride would get you back, so you two did have time to stop by one or two more stores quickly if you wanted to.

As you strolled around, looking at the displays to see if there was something you might like, a pretty off-white floral sundress caught your attention. “Ned, can we go in here? I want to try this dress on!” you said as you tapped him excitedly on his shoulder.

He agreed, and as soon as you found the dress and tried it on, you absolutely fell in love with it. It was just the right length for your preference, and fit your body just right. In fact, it would even go perfectly with the adorable cross-body bag you’d picked up earlier in the day. You didn’t have to think twice before heading to the cash register to buy it and officially make it yours.

“Today burned a hole in my pockets, but it was so much fun Y/n, thanks for coming with me,” Ned said as you both got seated on the bus.

“Hey, of course! I had so much fun too! It was so refreshing to, thank you for letting me try on eight thousand different things,” you grinned.

The two of you continued conversing and joking around as the bus slowed down at a stop to let passengers on and off.

“Man, as great as museums are, nothing beats the joy one gets from mindlessly shopping - those two definitely missed out on some hilarious jokes and the best fashion show of the century,” you chuckled, making a reference to your antics back at the thrift store.

Ned laughed, shaking his head.

You relaxed in your seats, just letting the feeling of the wind flowing through your hair encompass you. The slight coolness of the evening breeze was euphoric yet also grounding in a sense, and you wanted to let it consume you for as long as possible.

“Y/n, can I ask you a question?” Ned softly broke the silence.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“You like him, don’t you?” he smirked.

You turned to look at him, eyebrows furrowed. “Like who?”

“Come on, don’t act so oblivious,” Ned laughed. “Peter - you like him, right?”

“Uh, yeah, he’s one of my best friends, so I definitely do like him?” You were genuinely confused at this point.

“No Y/n, I mean like like. Like as in more than a friend,” he clarified.

You froze for a split second and the heat rushed quickly to your face for reasons unknown to you. Almost too quickly, you responded, “What? No! Why would you think that?”

Ned rubbed his face, groaning. “Y/n, why are you both so ridiculously oblivious?” He had no clue how both you and Peter, two people so hopelessly crushing on each other, couldn’t see it.

“Wait, what do you mean?” you questioned.

Ned couldn’t stop the knowing smirk that overtook his features at the quizzical look on your face. He wanted to see two of his best friends happy together, but he needed you both to figure out your feelings for each other because it would be unfair of him and MJ to try and get you both together before that happened.

In this moment though, the utter cluelessness in your eyes was absolutely comedic to him.

“Oh, would you look at that, it’s our stop!” he quickly picked up his bags and walked off the bus, leaving a very perplexed you to follow him.

You pestered him to explain what he meant by that the entire way up to your respective rooms, but he wouldn’t do anything but grin. Your split-second panic and silence, combined with the redness of your cheeks as soon as he’d asked you about Peter was confirmation enough for him. He’d lit the spark, the questioning, inside of you, and that was all he felt was appropriate for now. Now, you needed to let it grow into a full flame and come to terms with your feelings.

“Bye Y/n! I’ll see you in a little bit!” he waved at you as he quickly slipped behind his door.

You groaned, stomping back to your room. You tossed your bags to the side and flopped right onto the bed.

‘Why was Ned asking me that? What did he mean by saying Peter and I are ‘oblivious??’ And why did I panic? Is there a chance that I- No, don’t finish that thought. Y/n, Peter’s just your best friend - feelings involved make things messy. You know what though? You don’t have to worry about that, it’s fine, because you don’t have feelings for him anyway. It’s all good. You’re just best friends, it’s nothing more than that, for sure.’

You lay there, staring at the ceiling, and rationalizing whatever supposed “feelings” you had for Peter until you heard MJ swipe her keycard. In walked both Peter and MJ, and you watched as his eyes lit up as soon as he saw you.

You felt your lips curve upwards into a smile, and before you could even realize that your body was moving, you had both engulfed each other in a massive hug.

That was normal though, right? You would hug MJ right after that too - you always hugged your friends. That didn’t mean anything.

Ned was probably just fooling around. Yeah, that’s probably what it was. One of his extended pranks. That explanation made sense.

Either way, you know what your feelings for Peter are: platonic. Absolutely, positively not anything other than that.

***** one

The day you’d been dreading was finally here: the end of your senior trip.

You were in your hotel room, zipping up your suitcase and making sure you had packed all of your belongings.

“I guess this is it, huh?” you squeaked out.

Hotel rooms had become your home for the last almost two months. They were where you and three of the closest people in your life right now spent so much time together, laughing, crying, just enjoying each other’s presence. Now, you were being made to say goodbye to that, and it was too soon for your liking.

“It is, yeah,” MJ gave you a small smile. “Don’t be upset about it though, we’ll all still be together and go out all the time once we’re back.”

“I know, I just…” you sighed. “I just liked this whole ‘no-other-responsibilities-to-tend-to’ version of going out. Time really does fly when you’re having fun.”

MJ placed the last of her clothes in her suitcase and zipped it up. “Well, at least it was fun while it lasted, right?”

You nodded. It was fun while it lasted. Was it insanely tiring walking around every single day because there was always so much to do? One hundred percent. Was your sleep schedule messed up from staying up late hanging out with your friends and waking up early to go grab breakfast and get ready for the day? More than ever before. Would you trade the experience for anything else in the world? Absolutely not.

You did one final sweep of the room to make sure you’d grabbed everything you’d brought in. “Ready to go?” you asked as you placed your suitcase upright on the ground.

“Yup, let’s head downstairs before the bus leaves,” MJ chuckled, shaking her head. “I am so ready to sleep in my own bed again.”

You laughed and grabbed your keycards. MJ placed the remote back on the TV stand and wheeled her luggage out the door and you followed suit, pulling the door shut behind you. Once you double-checked that the door had been locked properly, the two of you headed down to the lobby, where you were supposed to meet the rest of your classmates.

Dropping the keycards off at the front desk, you made your way over to where you could see most of your cohort already gathered.

“Oh good, you’re both here,” Mr. Harrington checked your names off his list. “The only ones left now are Flash and Brad. They’d better come down soon, wouldn’t want to- ah! There they are!” he marched over to where the two boys were.

“Wow, I don’t think I have ever seen him look that relieved. Is it just me or did he get taller?” you heard a voice approaching you.

Peter.

There he was, walking towards you, wearing that blue checkered shirt that looked oh-so-good on him. Something about him today hit you differently. You couldn’t put a finger on what exactly it was, but it was safe to say that you felt your heart skip a beat at how amazing he looked.

“As much as I hate to say it, I agree with you,” MJ joked. “Crazy what lifting some weight off your shoulders can do for you.”

“Crazy how quickly this whole trip is already over,” Ned spoke. “I don’t know if I’m ready to go home yet.”

“Oh hush, just last night you were on the phone telling Betty that you couldn’t wait to take her to the movies once we’re all back in Queens,” Peter quipped, effectively making Ned blush and all of you laugh.

The aura of the lobby was very mixed. On one hand, the atmosphere felt lively as people chatted with their friends about all the fun times they had over the last few weeks, about the constant highs they all felt. On the other hand, there was a certain longing in most people’s eyes, a willingness to hold on to this feeling for just a little longer.

It was a very bittersweet vibe, and very understandably so.

“Alright guys, um- hey, can I get your attention for just a minute please?” Mr. Harrington squeaked. He raised his arms up to try and grab everyone’s attention, and to his own surprise, it worked.

“So, basically, I just wanted to say thank you to every single one of you for attending this trip, and I hope that it was a great experience for you all. Our bus should be here shortly, but before we go, I was hoping to get one quick picture with the entire group, if that’s okay?” After confirming that nobody had an issue with it, he handed his camera over to one of the staff members from the reception desk, who quickly snapped a wonderful picture of you all.

He thanked her, and then went outside to check for the bus.

“Looks like there’s still some more time before we leave,” you stated, peeking out through the glass windows and noticing the absence of a bus.

“Judging by the way Mr. Harrington’s seeming frustrated, I’d say you’re probably right,” Peter chuckled. “Hey, let’s get some pictures of our own in the meantime, I still have some film left on my camera!”

You, Ned and MJ agreed, and Peter pulled out his camera from his carry-bag. You all took turns posing with each other, starting off with simple smiles, but progressively getting goofier and sillier until you’ve hit the point where you were just standing in the middle of the lobby recreating iconic memes, sending you all into fits of laughter.

“Okay, okay, enough of this,” Peter giggles, still coming down from moments ago when he was guffawing at your attempt to recreate that one young Cardi B picture. “Let’s get some group shots now.”

MJ quickly asked Yasmin, another one of your classmates, if she’d be okay with getting a few shots of them and explained to her how to work the camera.

You went to grab a sip of water and stood off to the side, letting the three have their moment. They’d been there for each other for four years, and while you were all close now, you’d only come into the picture recently. You wanted to let the squad - the original squad - get some pictures too, you’d been in enough with them already, it was okay.

Ned said something which you couldn’t hear, but it drew out undoubtedly heartfelt laughs from the other two. Eyes scrunched and faces radiating with nothing but joy, Yasmin saw this as a perfect moment to capture, and you saw her take what you were sure would have turned out to be an amazing candid.

Yasmin went to hand the camera back to MJ, but Peter quickly stopped her.

“Hold on one second please, would it be okay if you got just one last picture? With the whole group?”

She nodded, stepping back.

“Y/n! Why are you off to the side?” Peter rushed over to you, pulling you out of your thoughts. “Come on, we can’t take a full group photo without you in it!”

In that very moment, as Peter grabbed your hand and gently pulled you to where the rest of the group was standing, something in your mind clicked. You laughed as Peter abruptly stopped and you bumped into him, hearing the click of the camera go off. None of it seemed to matter though. All you could see was Peter smiling back down at you, the crinkles by his eyes more defined than ever, but also surprisingly more beautiful than ever.

You could sense the three people around you continuing to throw up more poses quickly, Yasmin capturing them, but the entire while, your eyes wouldn’t leave Peter’s grinning face, your mind slowly stopped registering anything other than the feeling of Peter’s arms around your shoulders. The pure warmth he radiated pulled you in further, and everything around you except his perfect smile blurred.

One thing became very clear in that moment of complete encapsulation though, despite it being a completely foreign feeling to you, as the same words played in your head, over and over.

‘Holy crap, I think I’m in love with my best friend.’

If only you knew, those were the exact same words racing through Peter’s mind.

[my-watch-begins]

Sam Drake x Reader: The Sam Drake Experience.

Warning: smut, language.

Words: 2995

Part 1 // Part 2 // Part 3 // Part 4

~•~•~•~

Costumer service sucked. You were fucking sure that Hell involved running a little shop owned by Satan, and all he allowed in were people who complained about how they wanted their latte with a bit more milk and they could tell you hadn't put enough.

After a stressful day, all you wanted to do was take your bra off and sit on the couch with a glass of wine, even though it might be too early to start drinking. Plan in mind, you swung your apartment door open, then closed it with your feet, leaving your bag on a chair next to the door.

The TV clicked on after pressing the button, after that you threw the control on the couch and reached behind your back to undo your bra. Your apartment door was knocked, and you walked the short distance to it, still trying to undo your bra.

"Who is it?" You ask, knowing well who it was.

"It's me" he replied, you opened the door and found Sam standing in your doorway. "Shitty day?" He asks, walking into the apartment, you close the door behind him and finally unlock the back strap of your bra.

"It's the usual these days, the holidays make people crazy" you unhooked the straps out of the cups and pulled your bra from beneath your shirt.

"Have I ever told you how I cannot comprehend how the fuck do women take out their bras without taking their shirts off?"

You chuckle, seeing him pull out the lone bottle of wine you had from the upper cabinet.

"And you?" You plop on the couch and hear the click of his lighter.

"Meh-" he lets out in a little whine "had to postpone a trip because of the holidays"

"You were leaving on New year's Eve?"

"Duty calls" he sits next to you and hands you a glass, you take it a clink it with his before taking a sip.

Sam had been your neighbor for a while, almost a year, and after he'd hosted you in his house when you lost your keys, you had become good friends, really good friends, talk for hours kind of friendship, but not everyone thinks we're dating kind of friendship. Sam knew about your past romantic disappointments, having been there for the aftermath of finding some random girl jumping on your then boyfriend's dick when you came home early from work. Ever since then, you hadn't want anything to do with men.

Sam knew about your lack of love life, you knew that he had the exact opposite. Living next to him lead you to hear, and wonder, just what the hell he did to women in bed to have them scream and make their voices quiver for hours sometimes.

"Where were you going anyway?"

"Had a job in Spain. Guess I'll leave it for later"

"And what are you gonna do for New Year's?"

He gave you a twist of his eyebrows as he smirked.

"Maybe I'll head over to Nathan's, after that maybe a bar, there's usually some wild girls out there that night"

You snort, shaking your head.

"And you?" He inquired.

"Probably stay here. And no, I'm not going with you to your brother's. And definitely not with you to a bar to watch you get instantly laid"

"You can be my wingwoman, even better, I can be your wingman" you grimaced, leaving the now empty glass in the side table next to you.

"No thank you, you'll be an even worse pick for men than me"

"Don't be like that" he teased, nudging your shoulder "maybe I'll find the love of your life"

"Well, I don't want to meet the love of my life, right now I could do with just a good fucking"

"Oh wow!" He gasped surprised "well, that's an entirely different subject because I don't think there's that many man out there that are going to help you with that"

"I'm not that un-fuckable" you argue, making him giggle.

"I'm not saying you are, just saying they're not going to do it right"

"Oh, and you know how to do it right?" You teased, bitting your cheek to avoid let out a giggle.

Sam and you teased eachother about sex all the time, if the subject ever came up in a group of friends he would always try to stick out with his stories and tips and tricks about women, and you usual just brushed him off, thinking it was a man thing to do. That was what you initially thought, up until the point when he actually started bringing girls around on the weekends and you could just hear not only how he made woman feel, but how much he enjoyed having them quiver underneath them... Well, you assumed they were always underneath, Sam didn't look the type to let a chick straddle him for long.

"There's a difference between fucking a woman and fucking a woman, you know" he emphasized, taking the last drag out of his cigarettes.

"Yeah, I know the difference" you say, your eyes wandering around the room, trying to remember the last time you actually had a good time in bed.

"You know-" he began with a little voice that made you snap you head back to face him.

"Don't you dare" you warned.

"I'm just saying-" he excused showing you his palms.

"That you could take me to bed" you concluded for him.

"That I could show you the Sam Drake Experience" he motions at you with his hand.

"The Sam Drake Experience?" You giggled "fuck no, Sam"

"Why not?"

"Because we're friends" He frowned in confusion at your answer "I know how the movie goes and how it ends, it's always like 'yeah, we can be friends with benefits' and guess what? They fall in love. I don't want love right now."

You stand up and motion at the door.

"I'm going to take a shower so-"

He hastily stands up and walks to the door, but after he opens he turns on his heels.

"Fine, forget I said it, and besides, just offered to fuck you, not asked your hand in marriage"

You push him by the shoulder, turning him towards the door with an amused chuckle.

"Get the hell out of here" you grabbed the door just as he stepped out "I'll see you tomorrow"

"Happy New years" he says over his shoulder as he walks down the corridor towards his apartment.

You closed the door and leaned on it, crossing your arms at your chest.

The following days after new years, things between you and Sam continued their normal course thankfully, because you really couldn't see yourself without the one person with whom you liked to watch movies, or share long talks over a drink, he'd beckoned you to go back to college, and you were currently studying online for a pharmacy degree. In return for the constant state of anxiety you were sometimes summed into around finals week, he had offered to stay up with you, crunching for the hours before an exam. You crushed it when you two studied together. Sam was just that friend who warmed up your heart.

So, when he brought up the solution to your problems, you hated knowing that it really could fuck up what you had, and you definitely didn't want to lose your buddy.

You had given up smoking, but that day you felt like you needed to ponder over a cigarette before walking to his apartment.

You had been so stressed the first week of the year, and with classes starting soon you felt like you needed to disconnect for a second. Music didn't help, getting drunk either, that just made you overthinking everything more, and you didn't know why but you felt like Sam was the only way out.

You walked to his apartment, stopped halfway and sighed, unsure if you should continue, you turned your head to your place, then shook it and resumed your walk, there was nothing really for you at your place but space for more stressful things to build up, so you just reached his apartment and quickly knocked the door, knowing that the faster you had Sam in front of you you wouldn't be able to back down.

He opened the door, moving into the apartment and letting you squeeze through the door, he had a book in his hand and strewn papers on the table.

"You busy?" You asked, removing your jacket.

"Kind of, what's up?" He asked pointing at the chair in front of you.

"I'm here because-" you stopped long enough for him to quickly wiggle his eyebrows suggestively at you, throwing the book on the table with a loud thump.

"Because-" he teased.

You threw your head back with a sigh.

"Don't make me say it"

"I really want to hear you say it" he stood in front of you, with your head tilted back you could get a good look at his face looking down at you.

"The Sam Drake Experience" you grunted reluctantly, he laughed loudly, placing his hands on your shoulders.

"Come on" he placed his hand on your shoulder blade and pushed you to the bedroom "it'll be fun"

"I have conditions" you turned around just as you crossed the door, Sam linked his hands in front of him and gave you a smile, he was having the time of his life with the whole ordeal, you could tell. "First, I don't want you to give me love kisses" you pointed at him "I want fuck kisses"

"Right" he nodded.

"Second, I'm going to take my shirt off" you gave it a tug "and I don't want you to look at my tits like you've never seen a pair of tits before, they're normal boobs."

He hummed thoughtfully, a sly smirk still painting his face "alright".

"And for the love of Satan Sam, I don't want to ruin the friendship"

He shook his head instantly denying with a twist of his hand "we won't, don't worry"

"Do you promise?" You pushed.

"I promise" he quickly placed his hand on his chest, then grinned. "I have questions too" lifting his other hand he began counting "spanking, hair pulling, choking?"

You tilted your head to the side, your eyes glinting with excitement "ooh, yes please"

"Right" he said with a low voice.

He walked a step to you, and you wanted to walk back, but quickly reminded yourself that his bed was right there. Also, you wanted this, there was no reason to pull back.

"So, I'll tour you in the SDE" he began joking, you couldn't help but choke on a laugh "usually me and the other participant walk into the room, most times with a few more drinks than what we have now, we're usually kissing at this point"

He placed his hands on your neck, he pressed his thumb on your chin and lifts your face up to meet with his "I have an angle I like to kiss women in, they usually love it" his voice lowers down to a whisper, he pressed his pointer finger on the spot just below your earlobe, suddenly making you shiver "you're actually the perfect height for this" he compliments.

He leans in, but stops an inch before your lips. You'd taken a breath and closed your eyes, readying yourself for the kiss that never came. You hear him chuckle, and your hands push on his chest scoldingly.

"Stop fucking with me"

"I thought that's why you came here for?" He jokes again, you try to pull back, getting angry for all the teasing, but he tightened the grip on you, keeping you still "fine, I'll stop, but it's not fun if I don't tease"

You were about to reply to that when he suddenly crashed his lips to yours, you tasted him, his lips, the small pricks of his five o'clock shadow, his tongue teased your lower lip, but before you could open up he followed with his teeth, scrapping your lower lip and pulling, turning his head around to continue the kiss from the other side.

His hands slipped from your jaw directly to your backside, squeezing your glutes tightly and pulling you up on your tiptoes, your body flushing with his. You could feel his hard chest under your hands, you'd kept them on his sides, balling his shirt with them. He lets out a grunt and lets go, making you lay your feet back on the ground and stumbling back just a bit. He stared at your flushed face, your skin turning red at your lips and cheeks.

"Good" he praises "now after the kissing, I like to take the shirt off to, you know-" he swiftly pulls his shirt over his head and discards it to the side "let the guest see the goods" he motions at his chest, you laugh a little, rubbing a hand on your sore lips. He motions at you to do the same, and still with a smile you grab your shirt and pulled up.

You inspect the look on his face, his eyes moving from one of them to the other, his bottom lip sticks up quickly, leading his hand to one of them.

"These are nice" he cups one of your breast and your breath gets caught in your throat, not only his hands were big enough to cup them, but his hands were cold, and the contrast with your hot skin made you jump a little. His other hand reaches to you other breast, pinching your nipple and swinging it side to side.

"Sam I will murder you" you threaten slapping his hand from your nipple, seeing that he was just playing with you, he laughs, making you chuckle as well. Retreating his hands, he leans in to grab you by the back of the thighs and pulls up, jolting you to the bed. His hands head over to your pants, unbuttoning them and sliding them across your legs.

"You haven't made a comment" he leers over you, grabbing you by the waist and pulling you up on the bed.

"You haven't shown me the goods" his eyebrow tugs up and he motions at himself, you chuckle, inspecting his muscles under a layer of chest hair, his broad shoulders were probably your favorite part of his chest. "I've seen you without a shirt before" you excused. He moved to stand on the side of the bed, taking his pants off and joining you, kneeling between your legs.

"Are comments allowed?" He asks, placing his hands on your knees and pulling up, your feet hold your legs up, and he runs a tempting hand down your inner thigh, you pull you arms up over your head, making your boobs stretch in the process "like you look fucking beautiful right now?"

"That's an objective truth" you tease.

"Pet names? Babygirl, or baby in general?"

"Sure. But I'm not calling you Daddy, you're not my daddy"

He sinks down, matching your face with his, his hand sneaks below you to grab a handful of hair from the back of your neck, he pulls not to roughly, making your chin tilt up.

"You will" he assured in a low voice, his teeth scrape your chin, then your lower lip, then he begins a trail of half kisses half bites down your neck, collarbone, stopping at your breast. "We'll leave the girls for later" he bends down, sliding a bit down the bed as he finally reaches between your thighs.

His arms sneak under your legs, you feel the back of your thighs supported by the strong muscles of his arms and shoulders.

Your hips buckled in anticipation when he moved your panties to the side, then your mouth fell agape when his tongue ran across your slit, grumbling once he set out to work your clit with his tongue.

You began with eyes closed, letting out little whimpers as he worked you, but they suddenly developed into high pitch moans when he snuck two fingers inside you, reaching so deep into you your hands flew down to his shoulders as you pulled up your head to look down at him. He grabbed both of your hands with his large one, pinning them just above your belly button, you cried out when his fingers  thrusted into you at a speed you didn't know how he could achieve, his tongue still trained on keeping a good place over your clit. As you were getting closer, your moans were long, having to take short breaths between them to catch up. You stopped feeling his tongue on you, but was quickly replaced by his other hand, leaving your hands free for you to fist the bedsheets beneath you, then your hips buckled out of your control as Sam's fingers drove you to an orgasm, you cried out, arching your back and loosing control over yourself, your body tensed as your orgasm ripped through, and you welcomed it with a long moan, so erotic that made Sam grunt in response as he felt his fingers being gripped by your walls.

He waits for you breathing to catch up, then slips his hand out of you and pats you on the thigh.

You hear him chuckle, and open your eyes just as he slips from the bed and walks out of the room. You pant, running your hand through your scalp, then clear your throat and pull yourself up on your forearms.

Sam walks in with a bottle of water and sets it in the nightstand. His hand dips lower to the drawer and pulls it open, taking a condom with him as he looks over at you.

"That's the end of round one" he swings his hand in a presenting manner.

"Oh Jesus, how many are there?" You joke, moving to lay on your side.

"We'll see how many you can take"

[demivampirew]

Keep Calm and Go to London Chapter 23

Synopsis: This is the story of (y/n), a successful actress,   musician, musical producer and songwriter. After battling depression and  breaking up a long relationship, she seeks for a change of air,   escaping LA for a while going to visit some friends in London and there   she meets Henry. -Disclaimer: some chapters are mostly smut.

Previous Chapters in the masterlist

Triggers: talking about anxiety; quarantine; cursing.

Tag list:  Here’s the incredible people who showed me support (thank  you    so  much for that) and people who asked  me to tag them too  ☺️   (I    think  I will write a few chapters of  this story, if you want me to  tag     you, tell me ☺️   ) @cavillanche @mary-ann84 @henry-owns-these-tatas @yespolkadotkitty @dancingwendigo   constip8merm8      penwieldingdreamer iloveyouyen  littlefreya  wondersofdreaming     alyxkbrl solariumss  sweetybuzz25 @thethirstyarchive @agniavateira   @honeyloverogers @hell1129-blog   @lunedelorient​  @michelle-1185​  @madbaddic7ed​     @summersong69​

When you accepted to go with Henry to the gym, you planned to sit and watch his beautiful ass workout, but your boyfriend had other plans. While he worked on his legs, he made you lift some weights and later practice some boxing. He made you punching in his palms as hard as you could, but he was so strong that your hand almost broke when it collided with his. Dammit! His hands were like rocks. He wanted to help you train better for your role because you needed to gain some strength to be successful in the stunts. After a hard workout session, you decided to go back to the house walking to catch some air. It felt odd. It's been a few months since the quarantine started that now it was strange to go outside. It truly felt like if it was another world. You felt a little anxious, even if both of you were wearing masks because they're more effective in terms of preventing you for spreading a virus if you have it than to catch it; but, in the same time, it felt marvellous to be outside. You took a few deep breaths, allowing your lungs to feel the oxygen that entered your body. Henry was grabbing Kal's leash with one hand, and yours with the other. The little bear has always been his emotional support for his anxiety and your boyfriend was yours. You felt how he stroke your hand with his thumb. You pressed your head against his arm and then give him a big smile. Even though both of you were wearing masks, you knew that he noticed your smile and that he smiled back at you. The world might have gone crazy and thing could never be like they used to, but one thing was undeniable and that was that your life was a thousand times better since you met Henry. You were beyond in love with him and since the beginning, your cold and dark mind was full of light and warmness. And he was the main reason why you felt that way. Therapy was great, but also having someone that praise you and made you feel loved and try hard to help you see how wonderful you were was incredible. After a nice shower, you prepare tea for you and a coffee for Henry and went into his office to give it to him. Before you entered the room, you heard him talk over the phone. "Oh, great!" You heard him said; "Yes, I cannot wait to get back to work. But, I really need to ask for a favour. If they decide to change the date and start earlier, it's ok, but I need to be free by the 28th and 29th of July. The 28th is my girlfriend's birthday and I want to be with her that day," he pleaded and then thanked the person on the other side of the line. You felt tingles and butterflies in your stomach. The fact that he'd beg no to work on your birthday to be able to be with you melted your heart. You waited until he finished the call and then knock on the door. You entered the room and he announced that production was set to restart in August. You pretended not to hear the conversation and acted excited - you weren't faking, though. After all, The Witcher was one of your favourite shows. You spent the rest of the day laughing with him while he played videogames. Later he decided to go prepare something for dinner and you used his laptop to check your social media and listen to some music. To your surprise, you saw your name in second place of worldwide trends. "The fuck happened now," you thought. And then you saw that Henry's name was also trending as well as your ex-boyfriend's. You clicked on yours and saw that a site dedicated to gossip Daily Mail, posted pictures of you and Henry while you exit the gym and walking with Kal with your hands together. The headline said "New hot couple alert: Y/N and Henry Cavill". The article said "The famous actress, musician and producer y/n (age) is seen leaving a gym with British actor and heartthrob Henry Cavill (37), famous for his roles as Superman and Geralt of Rivia in Netflix's The Witcher. (...) The star ended a relationship with actor and musician Jared Leto -who recently was seen walking in the streets of Hollywood with Russian model Valery Kauffman-. The couple walked together grabbing hands while walking his dogs, an American Akita named Kal. (...) Not so long ago were rumours of a possible reconciliation between y/n and Leto, given the fact that she continued to share love song in her Instagram stories, but now it could be assumed that those songs were actually dedicated to Mr Cavill. (...) We tried to contact their agents to get a confirmation of their romance, but there are not comments at the moment. (...)" "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" you repeated in your head. You took a deep breath and went back to Twitter to look at the comments. To your surprise, there were mostly supportive. There were some jealous and aggressive ones, from both sides - your fans and his fans- but were mostly supportive. You then realized why Jared's name was also trending. A lot of people, especially comics and dc fans, were uploading memes about Superman stealing Joker's girlfriend. Some of your fans posted some new selfies from your Instagram account saying "this is a woman who left a toxic relationship for a better man. Be like her"; some fanboys were saying things like "Henry Cavill is the only man allowed to steal my wife," "I don't know who I envy more," and a lot of memes with pictures of Henry and Jared from the Comic-Con mocking Jared because Henry "stole" his girl.

You had to admit that most memes were really funny. After having a good laugh, you were stressed again. How was going to react Henry to the news? You panicked. You felt guilty like you should have stayed in the house and the secret would be protected. You went into the kitchen and delivered the news to Henry. He sighed in a sign of defeat and you apologized again. He looked at you and you felt a lump in your throat; he seemed angry. You knew it, he was mad at you. - Stop it! - he ordered.- Stop apologizing! You didn't do anything wrong! - he exclaimed and you looked at him confused. - Are you mad at me for going with you? It was my fault, I should have stayed here.- you prompted - No, it's not your fault. It isn't anybody's fault because it's not a bad thing. So, people know now, so what? They were going to find out sooner or later. We cannot spend the rest of our lives behind these walls to protect a secret. I don't care that people know that I'm happily in love with a wonderful woman. And, by the way, it was my idea to get out, not yours. - he reminded you. He came closer to you and cupped your face with his hands - The only thing I'm angry about is the fact that you keep blaming yourself for everything and that you'd think that I could be mad at you for that. You should know me better by now. I'm not him. I don't want us to live a secret for the rest of our lives, like if it was something bad. On the contrary, you're the best thing that ever happened to me. I'm more than proud that people know that I'm awesome enough to get a woman like you. Like I just gained hundreds of cool points.- he smiled at you and kissed you.

[loveau]

college!au seulgi

request: elli!! can u please do a college gf au with seulgi? i think we could all use that cute fluffiness right now 🤧 p.s. thank u for sharing ur wonderful writing ilu 💕

major: business w/ a concentration in human resources management

minor: dance

club: prob vp of the school’s women in business club!!! she joined in the middle of her sophomore year and became vp in junior!

she’s most likely been an RA in her sophomore or junior for the upperclassmen

she was in it for the door decs before realizing she actually liked it lOL

originally was a bio major and was stressed about it, but switched to business after being an RA because she thought it was her calling???

it just fit a lot better and she didn’t have to stand there hunched over her lab work and worry about accidentally breathing in pathogens

she had declared a bio major because the plan was to go to med school if all else fails and she didn’t really know what else to do, so that was a safe option right?

never before had she been so relieved to find out that she actually really liked spending time in her business and management classes and leading her volunteer group and being an RA

she also now has an excuse to dress up super nicely for interviews and such because she had so many outfits in her closet but never got a chance to wear them out

she became so much more at ease and bubbly about it too

no more sitting in lecture halls having to recite the functions of B-cells or whatnot

it also helped to have sat down with her ARD irene who told her she might like business

it was a long process of convincing because most of it was spent trying not to keep gossiping about the other RAs on campus alfsdlknfmsdlgkn

afterwards she quits reslife so she can focus on other stuff and lives in an apartment near campus her senior year

she becomes pretty popular around campus for her happy personality and her calm energy to match, making it so easy to start a conversation with her or just hang out

seulgi will be studying somewhere in a common student area and previous residents or club mates or classmates will wave to her or stop by for a quick chat

she’s also normally p busy tho being the vp of the wib club and also making sure she’s updating her resume and leaving time on the weekends to volunteer at the animal shelter like she loves

and also making sure she isn’t spending too much on online shopping for clothes and oOPS HER FINGER SLIPPED AND NOW SHE HAS LIKE TWO TOPS AND A PAIR OF OVERALLS ON THE WAY 

but she often doesn’t have a lot of time to spend with her friends unless they plan it like a MONTH beforehand since she’s been applying and interviewing for countless internships

she was just so excited to find something that she’s super passionate about instead of biology and she kind of overloads herself on that energy akfsldgnskjgn

so of course when her friends invite her to parties or kickbacks she has to decline because she has to make the next powerpoint presentation for the club meeting and also make sure the club’s end of semester dinner is being all squared away

seulgi’s a busybody and enjoys what she does, so much that she doesn’t realize that she keeps overloading her schedule and not giving a lot of time for just herself

which usually means she also spends a lot of time cramming everything at once and might end up passing out at a friend’s place during a study session, in the middle of club meetings, or even in the library late at night

that’s just how she spent her thursday night 

she had been setting up a speech for her recruitment and selection class and had been so tired from her club meeting a couple hours before that she ended up falling asleep in the library

it was kind of cute since she had hairs slipping from her bun, some coffee stains on her sweater, ink all over her hand from notes, candy wrappers spread around her area, and her head was tipped back and her mouth wide open as she slept

okay............ not that cute

she was a mess

but it was enough for her to get startled awake by a longboard rolling across the room and hitting her chair leg quite hard

she didn’t know what happened at first and checked around only to find a somewhat empty library save the couple of students also diligently working

her laptop she left open was dead and she cursed because she didn’t save her speech and her phone was below 10%, but it was enough to tell her that it was like 3am in the morning

seulgi only noticed the skateboard because she was going to go to the bathroom to freshen up and almost slipped on it when her foot landed on the top

she caught herself and saw that there was a bottle of water and a granola bar and a note on it

‘hey, you look like you need a little refresher. i also had a spare charger in case you needed it, your laptop has been open the past hour’

sure enough there was a charger but it had been knocked to the floor after she slipped on the longboard

silently, seulgi placed the items on the table with the rest of her stuff and looked around for anyone who would have given her the stuff

except nobody was popping their head up and were all busy

plus they all had chargers with them so she didn’t know who would have given her the treats

nonetheless she opened the water bottle and felt replenished when the water hit her throat

she was so confused????? still?????

she decided to take her trip to the bathroom like she wanted to and maybe she could scope out whoever decided to give her the food and drink while she was at it

subtlety wasn’t exactly her forte either since she was craning her neck around every table and making the other students confused

eventually seulgi makes it to the bathroom and cleans herself up and when she comes back the longboard is gone and her laptop was charged for her and a new note lays on top of it?????

who???????

‘i had to go for the night, sorry about that! don’t worry about the charger, i have another one and i’ll just collect this one when i bump into you again :)’

and just like that seulgi was completely and utterly confused

she stays like that for the next two weeks or so, seeing no sign of anyone with the same longboard and she tries not to pounce at every person she sees riding one to class

it gets so bad that the prez asked if she was okay and getting enough sleep since she was so distracted during her meetings and if she called the caterer for the dinner yet asgGNSGDN

her friends sooyoung and yerim were also trying to use this as an advantage for her to get invited out to “clear her mind” as they say since she’s been so out of it lately

and they’re absolutely elated when seulgi agrees and decides to go because why not?? she’s been so stressed about finding this mystery person because she wanted to properly thank them... but also to get the laptop charger with hello kitty stickers all over it back to its owner

and also did they see she had drool running down her chin bc that was really embarrassing and she just wants to make sure if anyone saw that before she promptly packs her bags a moves to another country

she’s blushing at that don’t point it out or else it’ll get worse amsdlknsg

once they’re actually inside, she can’t help but look for any longboards by the door even though most of the people at the party came by on foot or by someone’s car since the house was relatively close to campus

sooyoung and yerim are basically pushing her further into the house as they chatter excitedly and they’re happy it isn’t a byob type of party

seulgi is basically saying she won’t drink that much because she’ll look after the two and let them go ham... for a bit..

but they’re basically like

“seulgi it’s fridaaaaay it’s fine”

“yeah! besides we know the house owner and can call joohyun if we anything”

and they’re both going “pleeeeeeeeaaaaase” and doing their best to yell it over the loud music

and before seulgi can deny any longer she’s turned to the kitchen that’s been blocked by a foldable table and there’s cup lining it and drinks all over on the counters

but she’s not distracted by the abundance of drinks and people surrounding it.........

she finds you smiling cheekily at her

“what can i get you?”

and seulgi starts sputtering over her words and she REALLY cannot get a single word out because oh my gosh who are you and are you single because UHHHHHHH her brain is going overload

and both sooyoung and yerim are already cackling at seulgi’s stunned silence and giving each other mischievous looks behind seulgi while she malfunctions

meanwhile you’re just drinking it all up with an amused smile and gleam in your eyes and oh god do you HAVE to lean against the counter like that?

seulgi can barely get a word out before you’re laughing a little and turning around to prepare three red solo cups

you pass the cups to sooyoung and yerim and they basically BOLT away to leave seulgi all alone and more importantly alone wITH YOU SOMEONE SAVE HER

you laugh at her red cheeks that shine from the kitchen lights behind you and seulgi is absolutely enamored by you at this moment

“don’t worry, i gave them more fruit juice than i did alcohol. they’ll be fine”

seulgi barely registers this and gapes like a fish to where her friends are dancing and drinking from whatever you prepared them

had she been paying proper attention like she normally does, she’s notice that yes you basically watered down the alcohol with some lemonade

“i know how crazy those two can get after a couple parties with them, so i’m making sure they don’t go overboard”

seulgi only watches as you take her cup and put it under the sink to give her water

she takes it an tries not to get giddy when your fingers brush

inner seulgi facepalms because she’s acting like she has a crush in high school

but she’s never felt this way since she switched majors???

and omg that feeling was so addicting exhibit a when seulgi overloads her schedule and now??? she just met you and can’t get enough already

“thank you” she practically inwardly screams when she realizes how meek she is but you only give her a friendly smile

“yeah! thought you could use a little refresher. i didn’t know if you wanted anything so i didn’t want to give you anything you wouldn’t feel pressured to drink. let me know if you need anything else!”

all seulgi does for the rest of the night is basically hang around the room and watch everyone get kind of crazy and make sure sooyoung and yerim are staying on their feet, but with a second set of eyes she actually feels like she has more freedom

especially since you stopped giving them alcohol and basically have been serving them just juice after they started getting past the bit of tipsiness

eventually seulgi has enough of just standing around and has had enough cups of water (she had maybe 3) to finally talk to you

before she’d been working up the courage to talk to you and had come back with a refilled cup of water but noW???

NOW???

she’s ready

at least she hopes

seulgi’s marching up to you and then sooyoung is at her arm whining and sort of falling over

seulgi manages to catch her and is p disoriented by everything like what is happening is she okay??

and sooyoung is just like

“seulgiiiiiiiii i wanna go hoooome, can we get burgers?”

and before she can ask where yerim went, she suddenly pops up and joins in

“burgers? i heard burgers can we go, i was foooood”

before she knows it she’s dragged out of the house by the two and basically walking them home a couple blocks away

and now seulgi’s bummed that she didn’t get to finally talk to you like she wanted

she doesn’t even know when she’ll be able to see you again since she didn’t get your name at all and she’d be mortified by all the teasing the younger two would give her since they knew how choked up she was if she asks them who you were

she’s even kind of sulking about it and she’s so caught up in it she gets a notification from her phone that she needs to finalize things with the caterer and reserve one of the areas on campus for the club’s dinner and that reminds her she needs to shop

but as she’s on her phone she nearly swerves into somebody and it shocks her enough to bring her back to reality and she moves to apologize to the person and all of a sudden

“oh hey! you again, fancy seeing you!”

and she’s now forgotten everything since she sees you smiling at her

this time she forces herself to find her voice and not embarrass herself and it’s like her interview persona comes in and she’s got that natural confidence oozing in and she beams that pretty smile of hers right back at you

“and you too! i never thought i’d run into you again”

you laugh and all of a sudden you’re like an inch shorter and seulgi looks down and spots that you’d been riding a longboard before almost crashing into her

and she recognizes that longboard with all of the sanrio stickers on it and is that a sicker of your face with some filter on the corner of it???

but she recognizes the longboard since it’s been engraved in her mind and it just clicks for her and suddenly seulgi is scrambling to pull her backpack from behind and you just watch on like

uh r u okay? are you good? pls don’t take out some random textbook and smack me over the head with it

the hello kitty covered charger she’s been saving in her backpack is suddenly thrust into her hands and you think she’s about to stumble her words again like in those anime love confession scenes but she’s almost aggressive with it????

“i’ve been keeping this in my backpack for a few weeks! i didn’t even know what you looked like so i had no clue how to find you, do you know how stressed out you made me? you’ve been on my mind for almost a month!”

she doesn’t even realize how her words sound until you’re responding back in kind with another one of those easy smiles of yours

“sorry, i’ve been meaning to catch you sooner but i’ve so many labs back to back” you look at your phone and bite your lip nervously, something seulgi is a little too focused on “i actually have one in like five minutes, that’s why i almost crashed into you...”

seulgi finally realizes you’re wearing a white lab coat, something you’d worn in preparation since you were already rushing to be on time

your phone is thrust into her hands with the empty contact already loaded up 

seulgi quickly types in her number and even snaps a cute profile photo of her and it’s your turn to be stunned by her because wow that was an impromptu photo and hOW DID SHE MAKE IT SO GOOD????

and then seulgi is ushering you off because you have like thREE MINUTES BEFORE LAB and you’re like OH YEAH UH BYE!!!! I’LL CALL YOU????

and she shouts back with a “YOU BETTER!!”

and suddenly seulgi gets a phone call and when she picks up she can hear the wind rushing past the speaker and you’re kind of breathy since you’re reaLLY using those leg muscles to PUSH to that lab

“yEaH so UH i wanted to tell you but i didn’t get the chance since i don’t want to have to do a makeup lab??? bUT UH, i saw one of your dance performances last year and thought you were really cute!!”

seulgi vaguely remembers that because she had done a solo dance for a showcase in the performing arts department and it was basically for the students to show off what they were working on and to her it was just a homework assignment on top of like four labs and a research paper

“oh yeah! i remember that... well not really, i’d been so busy that it all just flew by”

“yeah! that was around the time you were a bio major, right? i’d been meaning to talk to you then, but i wasn’t able to since you switch majors afterwards!”

“ah, bio as well?”

she hears your voice echo and she knows you’ve entered the building by now

relief floods her system that she didn’t keep you too long 

“nah, i’m a chem major. it translates pretty well to mixing drinks, huh?”

instead of getting embarrassed and recounting that previous experience at the party, seulgi’s business confidence is suRGING and i mean IT IS LARGO and she’s like

“i can’t really say. you’ve only made me water, so i’ll have to see another time?”

at this point you’re absolutely vibrating with excitement at the proposal of a date and you quickly accept

and that’S WHAT HAPPENED BUT YOU SPENT IT OVER A HOMEMADE DINNER WITH WINE AND SEULGI COULD NOT HAVE BEEN MORE IMPRESSED?!?!?!?!?

you’d cooked it all and brought it to her apartment since you said your housemates were hosting some study session so you just offered to bring it all over

she’s also shocked you managed to find time to do all of this given the busy stem major life and how she was struggling before

but she’s also mentioning that giving her one cup of wine doesn’t mean that’s mixing up a drink so you’ll have to do this again

and it happens aGAIN when you’re at a restaurant this time and it’s a pretty nice one near campus and y’all are just chatting away about seulgi’s women in business club dinner and she invites you to be her plus one aSDFKNSLF sHE MAY HAVE BEEN TOO SHY TO SAY DATE BUT YOU GOT THE MESSAGE

bUT AT THE SAME TIME the restaurant is the one making the drinks, so you’ll have to have her over again and mix something up

and sooyoung and yerim and just so distraught lIKE GO OUT ALREADY

and seulgi’s like we are?????? WE ARE????? WE ARE GOING ON DATES AND STUFF

but they just groan out and are about to storm up to in the middle of a lab and just hand seulgi over like

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE JUST CALL HER YOUR GIRLFRIEND ALREADY

when you finally do it’s funny because it’s at another party that sooyoung and yerim invite her to and you’re there mixing it up again but she didn’t realize that the first party where she met you was your house????

she’s hanging out with you in the kitchen and you’ve made her a cup of something sweet and seulgi has to admit that it is pretty good

and you just wink at her saying that your chemistry skills are actually pretty good

BUT THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU IS EVEN BETTER HEHEHE

and you’re totally not just hanging out in the kitchen away from the sweaty dancing crowd and sticky floor you’re having your housemates clean up since you’re the drink master

and yOU ARE ABSOLUTELY NOT STEALING KISSES FROM EACH OTHER WHILE SEULGI’S SITTING ON THE COUNTER AND YOU’RE PRETENDING TO REACH AROUND HER FOR A BOTTLE BUT NO INSTEAD YOU’RE REACHING FOR HER WAIST AND HOLDING HER CLOSE AS YOU KISS HER AND NOW YOU’RE SMILING AGAINST EACH OTHER’S LIPS

you spend late nights in the library together now and you’re also most of seulgi’s impulse control when it comes to making plans and doing stuff

mainly because you’re telling her that no-no do not force yourself to go to that resume workshop you’ve been to them enough times to LEAD those

and then she gets all excited like REALLY DO YOU THINK THEY’D LET ME?!?!?!

and you’re like no stOP WE’RE STAYING IN FOR A MOVIE NIGHT AND WATCHING CARS 2

but it’s also funny to see seulgi falling asleep against your shoulder and her mouth is hanging wide open and you’ve set so many pictures of her like that as your homescreen and been yelled at too many times to change it

and when you do change it, it’s just a different picture of her in that position from a different day

she likes to run through her speeches and presentations with you and you find it so cool that she’s so poised when doing that BUt she gets so shy when she wants a kiss but doesn’t want to say so and SHE KNOWS you know she wants a kiss

you’re constantly doing her buns for her since you’ve had some practice keeping your own hair out of your face for labs but also getting tips from other girls in your labs and lectures and when they find out the reason why they’re just like pLS YOU TWO GET MARRIED

but the closest they can see the two of you dress up together is when seulgi decides to wear her business clothes out on a date and you’ve gotten stuff to match her and now you’re basically a ceo power couple walking around campus to go return some books to the library

you sitting in on her meetings and watching with lovestruck eyes as she basically spends the good half of it also staring right back at you and when they’re in discussion or activities she just clings to your side and cuddles you

you teach her how to longboard and she’s still a little wobbly but it’s SO CUTE when she’s fearfully holding onto your hands and staring down at her feet and shouting at you to NOT LET GO AT ANY COST

eventually she gives up on that and buys a pair of rollerblades instead so you can just pull her around while she hangs onto your backpack strings while you move on the longboard

BUT WHAT MAKES EVERYONE JEALOUS???

you hold her hand instead :)

she’s just laughing and giggling and being all around smiley when your hands are linked and you’re rolling around campus with her in tow

you even go to all of her dance events as well!!!

she’s been able to put a lot more effort into them since switching majors, but especially since you manage to keep her rooted and not going off doing so many things at once

she also wants to make sure she looks good for you

when does she not though??

y’all are literally tooth rotting sweet for each other

it’s the absolute cutest thing and you totally didn’t put a sticker of her sleeping face with her mouth open on your longboard........ and on your charger...... and the laptop........ and hers.... -q- zzZZZ

[theloyaltyofthewolves]

stray kids

one of you asked me if i could talk about why i love stray kids on my old blog. i know it’s about three months too late, but if ur still out there anon, this one’s for you.

it’s been five years since i stumbled into the world of kpop. i started listening in 2015. which is crazy. you know how long ago five years was? bts hadn’t even won an award in 2015. b*g b*ng was still together in 2015. twice and ikon won rookie of the year, nct hadn’t debuted, exo had just begun their rise to fame. 

it’s been a fun five years. i have loved many different groups. i have watched them sprout, grow, blossom, followed several of them to stardom. some of them, i’ve broken up with. many of them, i still check in with from time to time. i’ve watched several of them disband or go into hiding. i still listen to their music, i still watch their old fancams. 

this is all to say that stray kids are different. they always have been and i knew that right away. i was sitting in my dorm room, five thirty am, headphones on while my roommate slept, watching the 2018 MAMA awards. you know the performance. we all know the performance. two years later, and it’s still their best performance. not just because they won rookie of the year, not just because of bluesung. but because they threw absolutely everything they could into it. sure, maybe the show was a little sloppy. maybe there were mistakes, maybe they were a little bit awkward, maybe the vocals weren’t perfect, maybe they couldn’t fill the whole stage. but they were giving it everything they had. and the thing abt live streams, live performances, is that shit like that shows. you can dose up music videos with as many special effects as you like. you can edit the official recordings, slip in some autotune, crop some angles, blur some skin as much as you want. but you cannot fake desperation. you can’t fake passion. 

to this day, i have never seen a performance like that. not from a rookie group, not from a veteran. i didn’t even know who the hell they were, where the hell they had come from, who they belonged to, what their names were, but i could feel their desperation across six thousand miles of ocean. in an industry overflowing with glittering diamonds, these kids were broken shards of obsidian. they were raw. they were unpolished. they were sharp. they had cut themselves open for this performance, they were bleeding all over the stage. 

i will always have a weak spot for underdogs. for the kids who fight tooth and nail just to be there, who come out with scraped knees and bruised knuckles. the kids who force themselves into places they don’t fit into, stages too clean for them. the kids who make a scene just by showing up. who come in hot, burning, running their mouths. talking way bigger than they are, way bigger than they have any right to be. the reckless hubris of youth, the kind that turns heads. fucking look at us. fucking pay attention. we fought to be here, we survived, we’re staying.

that is what stray kids is. an experiment, a test. eight wolves just coming into their own. they’re messy and they’re ragged and they’re scrappy and they’re real. they can’t be handled the way that other groups have been built to be, they can’t be air-brushed into perfection. the thing about a company ceding control the way it has is that there is no reclaiming it. there’s no picking up the end of the leash once it’s been dropped. stray kids are self-made. they built themselves with their bare hands. it’s their blood, their sweat, their sacrifices. their music, their dream, their voice, their sleepless nights and empty bank accounts. their fire, their heart, their honest-to-god love. yes, they have been confined within the limits of jyp and yes, they are still chained to the performative nature of being an idol. but they have pulled the boundaries far further than any group that has come before them. their own terms, their own music, their own limits. stray kids are the new standard. 

and then there are the members themselves. i could spend another four thousand words talking about why i love them individually. but stray kids are more than the sum of their parts. they always have been.

all idol groups love each other. i cannot imagine there is any other way that they survive. the pressure, the expectations, the fame, the stress, the exhaustion, the bullshit, the objectification, the subjugation. being worked to the bone, run like a racehorse, treated like a commodity instead of a human being. it’s a version of trauma bonding, it really is. your teammates become the only people who understand what you are going through, who can relate to you, share your burden. they are also often the only ones looking after each other. keeping each other safe, keeping each other healthy. friends, if not family. allies, if not friends. teammates rely on each other, that is universal.  

but stray kids’ bond runs deeper than that.

we like to talk like it was fate that they found each other, like they stumbled into one another and it all just fell together and everyone was happy and the river ran smooth and the blood was sweet like honey. we like that, we think there’s something holy in it because it rings like destiny and we like that. soulmates, meant-to-be’s. 

that’s not what they are. i wish i could get it stapled across my blog in big bold letters. it’s not a coincidence. it’s not a miracle. it’s not an accident. stray kids are not an act of fate, they are an act of love and that is what makes them so fucking special. 

it’s not luck that got them this close. it’s not destiny. stray kids put in the time. they put in the effort. they looked at each other and they decided this isn’t going to be an accident. love takes work. love takes sacrifice. love takes patience and selflessness and respect and effort. it’s not one and done, you don’t just fall in love and everything falls into place. choosing to love someone, committing yourself to someone, devoting yourself to someone – never mind seven other people – is a big fucking deal. it has to be done consciously. it has to be done on purpose. you have to look inside of yourself and say this is more important. these people are more important. i will put them first over everything.

it’s the millionth time, but i’ll say it once more for the people in the back: stray kids practice active love. love as an action, love as a verb, love as an act of defiance. on purpose, on purpose. i’m going to love you on purpose. i’m going to take you for everything you are, all your flaws and all your strengths, all your dreams and all your fears, all the stones and scars and ghosts that you carry. i’m going to love you for all of it. the good and the bad. 

losing teammates is a bitter and terrible loss. it must haunt them restlessly, follow in their footsteps and shadow their shoulders, whispers in their ears at every turn. wounds like that don’t heal right on their own, so they have stitched themselves up with parts of each other. it’s why they never stray too far, are never more than an arm’s length from each other’s sides. it’s why chan doesn’t let the kids out of his sight, why they are always so on-edge when they are not eight, why every time one of their teammates is returned to them, he is subjected to a full check-up by seven worried faces. they all have it, that obsessive tic. they reassure with their hands, with physical touch. tangible. it’s not enough to see, they have to feel each other under their fingers. reassure that we are here, we are together, we are eight and we are still alive. they are terrified to lose one another so they bind themselves tighter, lean on each other harder, love fiercer and bloodier.

it’s an act of resistance, love like that. screaming into the endless void of hate and emptiness, loneliness and despair, failure, defeat, grief. even after all this time. all the heartbreak and the devastation, everything they’ve lost, all the tragedy. to get back up, to put on a brave face, to take a stand with your chin up and your arms outstretched: these are my people. my heart and my soul, my blood and my bones. you cannot take them from me, you will not take them from me, i will cherish them to my death, i will protect them to my death, i will love them to my death. practicing active love because they want to be together, because they will be together, because they are better when they are together--that’s brave. that is bravery. that is an act of rebellion and it is the most human thing one could do and it is the reason i love them more than anything. because they love each other on purpose, and because somehow in this world of chaos and violence and hatred and fear, that is enough.

you kiss me with your mouth wide open like you're not afraid of swallowing poison. i taste the good and the bad in you and want them both. we call this bravery. - anita ofokansi

[jj-ktae]

Millennials - Part 7 -

Title: Millennials Genre: Fluff, romance Pairing: Kim Yugyeom x You Summary: Life is made of stages and each of them is a hard push on the back, forcing you to forge ahead. You’re facing your biggest crisis, and then there’s him, who lives from day to day. Of course he does, he is just a kid. Words: 3964 Warning: Small age difference. Yugyeom x Noona Reader.

- Teaser - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - 

- Part 7 -

Yugyeom doesn’t like how down he feels right now. He has been sulking for the whole night even since he came back home and doesn’t seem to know how to deal with it. He had a horrible evening and ran away from his friends, no able to keep his cool anymore.

He barely heard them calling him, didn’t even hear his phone ringing and most certainly couldn’t notice how shaky he was.
 It’s a new feeling.

He feels played with. Like someone actually lied to him and he was too stupid to believe them. He knows he is gullible, he knows he trusts too easily, but he cannot deal with the pain of being hurt by someone who is so dear to him.

Out of everyone, he thought you wouldn’t be able to do that.

And somehow he can’t believe it. He can’t believe you would meet with another guy behind his back. Yugyeom doesn’t think he is jealous and he isn’t. If the guy is just a friend, then it’s fine by him.

This is how he ends up feeling miserable.

Yugyeom doesn’t know how to address the issue. Jinyoung tells him to meet with you and ask for justifications but he knows himself too much to do that. He isn’t the type to get mad and say big words and he will probably chicken out even though he did nothing wrong.

His friends always make fun of him for avoiding conflicts.

Instead, he avoids you at all cost. He doesn’t answer your texts and ignores the phone calls. The device doesn’t show your name often though and Yugyeom feels even more depressed.

It’s like you don’t care that he is ignoring you.

Yugyeom even ditches work, coming up with a shitty excuse about exams who aren’t going to happen. Speaking of which, he fails big time while trying to come up with a choreography and end up being yelled at by one of his senior for being so uninspired.

Great. Life is great.

At the same time, he wants to know what you’re doing. Was that guy someone important? Are you enjoying life with that not so handsome jerk? No, he should stop caring. You played with him and he will move on.

But he always ends up groaning, his motive vanishing like dust when he thinks about how deep his feelings are.

He hates himself.

--

You don’t know how you end up without any news from Yugyeom. The latter seems to be rather busy because he doesn’t even answer your texts. Maybe you shouldn’t push it. Maybe Yugyeom hates clingy girls.

Still, you’re getting curious. Maybe he is sick? What if he hurt himself while dancing?

You had planned for a date at your place. You wanted to get to know him better and do something chill where you could have exchanged a bit more.

At least that’s what Naya’s co-worker had told you to do.

He had been full of advices and very understanding of your inner conflict, he who is also dating a younger person. It made you feel better to know that your feelings were natural.

“Oh wait, you’ve been to the place where he practices, right? Go there!” Naya yells over the phone while you’re cooking, one night. “It’s unusual, though. Did you do something wrong?” She is now scolding, her voice turning higher all of a sudden.

You sigh, stopping midway in your vegetable cutting session. “I didn’t do anything. I haven’t seen him in ages.”

“This is the problem. You’ve just started a relationship and it feels like you’re still single. Why are you acting like you don’t like your boyfriend?”

Your head goes down in frustration and you’re glad your friend isn’t next to you, right now. “I do like him! We’ve talked about this already. I agreed to meet with your co-worker because you said he’d help me see things differently and he did but please, give me some time. He isn’t even answering my calls right now.”

It’s annoying. How do you end up being the horrible one when you clearly did nothing? Of course Yugyeom doesn’t deserve this, but you warned him, you told him and even Naya that you were not good enough for a relationship but still, they forced this.

“I told you he didn’t deserve to be put in such misery. Stop putting the blame on me.”

Naya chuckles, her voice dying before she continues. “You’re taking the easy way out. Just fucking try harder; the kid will agree to everything you say, he is freaking in love with you! You can’t offer only this and claim you can’t do better. I think you don’t care about his age. You’re just frightened because he is serious and forcing you to become someone better.”

Damn her and her tendency to read psychological magazines.

“Why are we even talking about this? He probably is too busy and you’re here telling me it’s MY FAULT he isn’t answering my calls.” That girl must be crazy.

“Remember what we told you. That boy is younger but that doesn’t mean his feelings are invalid. Just like my colleague’s girlfriend, he will end up being very hurt if you don’t at least reassure him. You’re not the only one doubting so even though it might have nothing to do with you, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to find out what’s happening. I know you want to so stop being so damn stubborn.”  She cuts the line before you can object and it tears a sigh out of your mouth.

Suddenly you’re not hungry anymore.

The days after that go slowly. You send another message and it stays unanswered. You try calling but it’s another failure. Maybe Naya is right, again. There’s something wrong with Yugyeom. It keeps you up even, thinking about what could have hurt him. There could be many reasons, but nothing comes to you. So, against better judgement, you follow your friend’s advice and aim for the place Yugyeom took you to when he needed to practice.

The walk there is endless and making you feel anxious. You quickly understand it’s the probability of a mad Yugyeom that puts you on a trans. What will you do if he refuses to talk to you and breaks up? You don’t even know if he will be there and you’re already freaking out. Great.

Part of you hopes he is just busy and will hug you and blush like he oh so typically does. Then there’s excitement. Excitement because you missed him, as hard as it is to believe.

So as you open the building’s door, you conclude you really need to feel him against you because it’s been too long.

There are many people there. All of them are young boys, sweaty from head to toe and moving around. You walk past bodies, all of them intimidating as they stare at you.

You peek behind the door, eyes meeting with guys dancing in sync.

Yugyeom is in the front, concentrated yet looking bothered as he seems to be struggling.

“Are you looking for someone?”

You jump when you hear the voice right next to your ear. Your head turns, eyes falling on another guy who tries to peek in hopes to get which one of the boys you’re coming for.

“I’m Yugyeom’s-” wait, how do you introduce yourself? You’re not sure he even spoke about you to anyone. What if he is too embarrassed to talk about his talentless girlfriend? What if you’re not even his girlfriend anymore?

The guy quickly catches up. “Yugyeom’s girlfriend? Please save us all, he’s been a pain in the ass recently. I was about to beat him up for always using the main room to practice. Just take him out of here.”

You blink at him, not getting what the guy means but understanding Yugyeom has been going through hard times.

“Do you know if it’s going to take long?” Your eyes go back to the room where Yugyeom is still busy dancing, his face blank.

The guy smirks, relief painting his tiny face. “He is done-” the guy opens the door before you can protest. “yah, Yugyeom-ah, get out of here, someone is asking for you.”

You freeze behind the guy, head barely tilted to meet Yugyeom’s face, both shocked and confused.

“Hyung, I’m still-” He tries, his voice tiny because everyone is whistling at the revelation of his love-life.

“You’re done. I swear if you don’t leave right now-” He turns around and stops before he starts cursing when he sees your face. “He will be out in a minute. You can wait in the main hall.” His fake smile transforms into an annoyed face when he goes inside the room and he starts chasing the poor Yugyeom.

You walk back and decide to wait. Still as stressed as earlier.

Yugyeom is surprisingly quick you notice, because his sweaty body appears next to you before you can gather your thoughts.

“What are you doing here?” It’s the first time he speaks to you that way. No greetings, no physical contact.

“You haven’t been answering my calls or texts….” You try, conscious enough to preserve the distance between you and him.

Yugyeom nods, aware of that fact yet not explaining anything. It stays that way, both of you ignoring the loud music signalling more rehearsals are probably happening.

After a while, he licks his lips, eyes meeting yours uncertainly. “I don’t understand you.”

“What do you mean?” You subtly shiver, not liking Yugyeom’s tone at all because he sounds so depressed and it visibly hurts you more than you think it would.

“When I say I’m in love with you I al serious. I know you don’t take me seriously, but I wish you wouldn’t play with me. If you don’t want to be with me just say it.” He is calm, scary yet doesn’t even try to act mad.

He looks so damn dejected.

“I don’t get it…” You’re quite lost. You don’t remember saying or doing anything that would make him think you’re playing with him but apparently, you fucked up.

“You don’t have to go as far as lie to me so you can meet with another boy, noona. I’m old enough to understand you don’t feel the same way about me.” Yugyeom adds, eyes now looking at the ground because damn it, it hurts so much to say it so bluntly.

On the other side, you’re completely lost. Meet with another guy…? When did you ever-

Shit. Naya’s colleague. How did he even see you? Naya was there, too…

…But she left for a good thirty minutes for a phone call. Yugyeom probably saw you and thought you were cheating on him.

That explains a lot.

“You were in that bar?” Your mind can only say this much, your brain trying to come up with an explanation before Yugyeom thinks you’re cheating on him for real. “It’s not what you think it is, he is-”

Yugyeom shakes his head. “It’s fine. I understand. I knew it was going too well. I’m not mad at you, noona. I just wish you’d let me know before I get too attached.”

“No, for real, Gyeomie. It’s really not that big of a deal. I was out with Naya and her colleague. He is dating someone younger than him and Naya thought it’d be good if he could share his experience. You probably saw me right when Naya left because her parents called but I wasn’t on a date.” You justify yourself in a hurry, not even mad that he wouldn’t trust you but rather eager to let him know you care about him.

Yugyeom opens his mouth and closes it, disturbed and trying to assimilate your words.

You grab the chance to explain further. “I didn’t tell you because I knew I’d be getting pretty personal and I needed advices. If I told you I was meeting with friends you would have tagged along – and I have nothing against that- but I just- ah, this is messy. I’m sorry, Gyeomie.”

The latter looks up, doing his best not to be bothered by the way you’re calling him. “Advices?” he tries, his voice thicker with confidence as he feels a weight being lifted from his chest.

You nod, slowly. “Because of the way I treat you. I keep on acting like a lunatic bitch and I just, well, I guess I need to chill.”

“Did it work?” Yugyeom speaks fast, surprising you again.

“The advices? Yeah, kinda. There are still things I need to sort but it has to do with me more than you. I hope you believe me because I’d never be able to do this to you. Never.” Yugyeom gives you too much credit. No one will ever be interested in you.

“I believe you, noona.”

You smile at the nickname.

He waits, seems to be thinking, plays with his fingers, before stopping. “Still, I wish you had told me. I wish I was more involved in your life. Not in a way that would make you feel suffocated but…like a real boyfriend.”

You suppress a shiver, the word boyfriend stimulating your heart and penetrating warmth into your stomach.

“I’m sorry I hurt you again. I’ll do my best not to make you feel left out.” You admit, face turning into a pout and hoping he’d sense how honest you’re being.

He shrugs, mumbling about how you didn’t do it on purpose and straightens his back. He is waiting for you to continue.

“If you’re free tonight, we can watch a movie and order something to eat at my place. I mean, if you’re too exhausted that’s fine, too.” You propose, hopeful to the point of turning into a lost puppy unknowingly.

Yugyeom’s heart is about to burst at how soft you are.

“I’m always free for you, noona.”

--

On the way to your flat, you’re both silent. Yugyeom feels like dying because you’re the one who grabbed his hand when he got out earlier, freshly showered. You don’t seem bothered by it either and even your body is close to his. You’re relaxed, like you’re glad he is back in your life and Yugyeom feels like you finally understood his worries.

“What type of movie do you like the most?” You break the silence naturally, feeling shy yet energised by how good things turned out.

You’ll never admit how ecstatic you feel.

“I like lots of genres. Horror is fun, romance is cute, action is entertaining…how about you?”

“I watch horror movies then curse at how stupid I am because I’m all alone at home.” You laugh softly, remembering how you didn’t sleep the last time you watched that Chainsaw Massacre shit.

Yugyeom laughs loudly, finding you horribly cute for finally admitting your weakness and leaving some room for him to act like a boyfriend would.

“Next time, call me so I can protect you, noona.”

His voice dies with embarrassment and cheeks turn burning hot as he comes up with the cheesiest line ever but it doesn’t matter.
 You’re as blushing as he is so it’s definitely worth it.

Once you both arrive, you quickly set up for a comedy. Both of you are too tired to focus on a deep or action scenario and hell no you don’t want to watch something scary.

Also, the mood sure is calling for something simple as you watch Yugyeom, wrapped in your fluffy blanket and waiting for you to bring the flyers so you can pick something to eat.

You let him pick the food while you look for something to watch and it’s peaceful, silent and cosy. You feel warmth as he shares a bit of the blanket with mischievous eyes and shows you the pizza he’d like to eat.
 You don’t feel like eating pizza but you agree, smiling sweetly at how shiny his eyes are.

If Yugyeom wants you to eat dead crickets even, so be it.

You discover his quiet side. He is unmoving, almost scared to even brush against your body in a moment of overconfidence. You let him struggle, quietly amused when his face turns red during a heated scene.

The delivery boy saves you both as you hurry to open the door, hushing a protesting Yugyeom who desperately wants to pay again.

“It’s fine, Gyeomie. There,” You put his pizza on your little wooden table and open your own on your lap, “I can pay from time to time.”

You see him shake his head but soon enough his face transforms into pure bliss as he opens the pizza box.

“Thanks for the meal.” Is the last thing you hear before he starts stuffing his face with food, mumbling about how he needed food after so much dancing.

You finish before he does, feeling full and giving up after a few slices. You forget about the movie and set your eyes on his concentrated face as he eats though, orbs never leaving the screen and mouth greasy.

You wait until he is finished, suppressing a chuckle as you see the way his face becomes a mess of tomato sauce and cheese.

Yugyeom doesn’t notice how fondly you stare at his face. He even almost forgets about the situation because how come this comedy is so sad? Also, the puppy in it is so cute.

He ends up eating the whole pizza, his stomach too full and he finally turns around to thank you again.

But you’re looking at him and he suddenly feels so small.

“Are you okay?” He speaks, obviously surprised by your behaviour but mostly confused.

You chose not to answer, your hand going to his mouth to wipe the food off his face with a napkin. “You’re so clumsy when you eat.”

He freezes. Yugyeom doesn’t know what happens but he feels like throwing up. His insides churn deliciously and his heart starts hammering into his chest. He lives for your attention and can’t express how blessed he feels as you quietly wipe his dirty mouth, whispering about starving kids and stained clothes. Yugyeom lets you do your thing, his hand gripping the soft fabric of the blanket. His whole body is on alert, the proximity enough to make him crave for your lips.

Unconsciously he ends up staring at them, not missing how subtly your tongue peeks out to moist the reddish flesh. Your eyes find his when you’re done, the napkin now stained with what used to paint his beautiful face.

“All clean...” You trail off, hand slowly aiming for your lap but body paralysed by his radiant warmth. You go from his mouth to his eyes, deep and expectant.

You don’t want to escape. As much as you’d naturally let some distance under any other circumstances, you barely move. You stare back, even.

This is when you read it. The uncertainty in Yugyeom’s eyes. He looks like he is dying to get more proximity but is retraining his own body. It’s noticeable, how scared he looks. he experienced disappointment way too much already.

“Noona...” He whispers, eyelids fluttering close. He waits, inhales and relaxes. “Will you let me kiss you...?” His question takes you off-guard. You didn’t expect him to ask so bluntly, considering he doesn’t really need to ask but still, your heart speeds up uncontrollably in front of a needy Yugyeom. His hand reaches for your face to cup your cheek in silence, his lips itchy and face turning scarlet.

“Of course, Gyeomie.”

The answer sends him over the moon and back in a matter of seconds, his body moving before he can process what you just said. In his head it’s a whirlpool of feelings mixed with eagerness as his lips find yours.

You don’t try to move. You don’t even need to, for Yugyeom is making all the work fast, his nerves sending jolts of electricity inside his muscles. You end up pushed against his chest, legs parting until you’re straddling his broad body on your own couch.

He doesn’t let you part from him, his hands pushing you more and more against him as silence surrounds you. Only short sighs seem to ring into your ears, signalling you how much he enjoys the moment.

You answer every kiss, your own hands sliding skilfully into his hair to mess the brown locks playfully. Yugyeom feels your nails against his scalp and cannot help but shudder, his whole existence vanishing into a thousand stars and painting the sky - or at least this is how he feels right now.

He doesn’t know how to deal with the intimacy, doesn’t even believe it’s happening. You’re kissing him back. You’re sitting on is lap. You’re whining whenever he sucks on your lip.

Yugyeom freezes when he comes back on earth, chest against chest and slightly parts before he becomes too clingy.

“I..I..” He starts, glancing around the dim room and finding nothing to hide his eyes from yours. You tilt your head, lips red and swollen your eyes sparkling and not the least bothered by the situation.

You aren’t going to back off and it’s freaking him out.

“Are you okay...?” You whisper, air hurrying out of you as an attempt to hide the growing fear inside your chest.

What if Yugyeom regrets going this far? Of course he would, you can’t possibly think he’d have any type of desire toward such a freaking bitch who hurts him on a regular basis, it’s ridicu-

“I don’t know if...I really want you, noona. I want you and I don’t know if you want me. I want you to want me, too.” He chooses this moment to glance at you with timid eyes, face hot and biting his lips and you get it. You freaking understand.

You love Kim Yugyeom so damn much.

So naturally you don’t keep your mouth shut. This whole thing is too important for the both of you to ruin everything with clumsiness and there’s nothing you could say that would make the situation better than it actually is. You pick to keep quiet, leaning to offer more kisses, embarrassed yet feeling finally lucky for not making anyone run away from you.

And it’s quite the opposite if you ask Yugyeom. His arms hurriedly collect you again as you offer your mouth, body now relaxed and without any intention of rejecting him. He sticks to you even more, not the least annoyed by his growing desire and unfazed by how it shows dangerously against you.

You feel it and you take it surprisingly well. It doesn’t matter how long it has been, it doesn’t matter how rusty you feel, it’s doesn’t freaking matter if you don’t know what to do with yourself.

So you let go, you turn off your brain and focus on your fingertips, brushing the soft and tender skin of Yugyeom’s neck and earning a needy grunt.

It’s the best sound ever.

And indeed, Yugyeom does the same, focusing on instinct as he is now done testing waters. He touches back, body against the couch and legs lazily parted. He even hears you chuckle when his phone starts vibrating in his pocket and he almost tears it off his jeans to throw it in the living room.

You become brave even when Yugyeom start kissing your neck. He almost yelps when he feels your hands on his stomach and retaliates quickly, teeth softly nipping the skin and making you shudder.

You whisper sweetly and this is how he knows he will never have enough of you calling his name.

“I love you so freaking much, noona...”

It’s the last thing you hear before getting lost into his surprisingly skilled being.