#I point you all to the part in Homecoming where everyone is singing Ready to Go and you clearly hear Dylan over every single one of them

[man-down-in-hatchet-town]

Okay so I trust Matt Dahan with all of my heart, I am sure whoever he picks will be INCREDIBLE, but I'm gonna go ahead and start my Dylan Saunders For King Itzal campaign Right Now.

[ireadyabooks]

Books to Read After Watching Julie and the Phantoms

By Mackenzie Cutruzzula

First things first...

If you’re anything like me you haven’t been able to get the songs from Julie and the Phantoms out of your head. Whether you love music, a good ghost story, or a little bit of both, these books are on the edge of great.

Julie and the Phantoms: The Edge of Great by Micol Ostow (On Sale December 29)

After the passing of her mom, Julie has lost her passion for music and is on the verge of being kicked out of her performing arts high school. That is, until she makes the ultimate comeback with her new band, Julie and the Phantoms. There’s only one catch: all of her bandmates are ghosts. 

Back in the 1990s, Luke, Reggie, and Alex were on the cusp of rock stardom with their band, Sunset Curve, before an unfortunate encounter with Los Angeles street food brought their rock band dreams—and lives—to an end. Now, with Julie as their lead singer, the guys have a second chance to make it big and to help Julie discover the real power of music. 

This novel based on Season 1 of the hit Netflix series is told in alternating points of view and include a full-color photo insert and exclusive story content not seen on the show!

If you love the music of Julie and the Phantoms try these reads:

P.S. I Like You by Kasie West

While spacing out in Chemistry class, Lily scribbles some of her favorite song lyrics onto her desk. The next day, she finds that someone has continued the lyrics on the desk, and added a message to her. Soon, Lily and her anonymous pen pal are exchanging full-on letters -- sharing secrets, recommending bands, and opening up to each other. Lily realizes she's kind of falling for this letter writer. Only who is he? As Lily attempts to unravel the mystery, and juggle school, friends, crushes, and her crazy family, she discovers that matters of the heart can't always be spelled out...Kasie West brings irresistible wit, warmth, and sparkle to this swoon-worthy story of love showing up when you least expect it.

Turn It Up by Jen Calonita

The Nightingales are in a serious funk. Bradley Academy's all-girl a cappella group used to be the pride of the sunshine state, but the Nightingales have recently fallen out of harmony. Best friends and co-captains Lidia Sato and Sydney Marino haven't been speaking ever since a boy came between them. And not just any boy-none other than Griffin Mancini, the lead singer of Bradley Academy's smug all-boy a capella group, the Kingfishers.The Nightingales have no chance of making it to the big state final if their captains are at each other's throats. Their only hope is new girl Julianna Ramirez. But in addition to her serious pipes, she has some serious stage fright.The Nightingales will have to come together if they want to shine at the upcoming competition and restore the group to its former glory.

K-Pop Confidential by Stephen Lee

When Candace Park secretly enters a global audition held by the same music label that made the K-pop boy band SLK famous, the last thing she expects is to actually get a coveted spot in their trainee program. And convincing her strict parents to let her to go is all but impossible ... although it's nothing compared to what comes next. Under the strict supervision of her instructors at the label's headquarters in Seoul, Candace must perfect her performance skills to within an inch of her life, learn to speak Korean fluently, and navigate the complex hierarchies of her fellow trainees, all while following the strict rules of the industry. Rule number one? NO DATING, which becomes impossible to follow when she meets a dreamy boy trainee. And in the all-out battle to debut, Candace is in danger of planting herself in the middle of a scandal lighting up the K-pop fandom around the world.

Kill the Boy Band by Goldy Moldavsky

Just know from the start that it wasn't supposed to go like this. All we wanted was to get near them. That's why we got a room in the hotel where they were staying. We were not planning to kidnap one of them. Especially not the most useless one. But we had him-his room key, his cell phone, and his secrets. We were not planning on what happened next. We swear.

Muted by Tami Charles (On Sale February 2, 2021)

For seventeen-year-old Denver, music is everything. Writing, performing, and her ultimate goal: escaping her very small, very white hometown. So Denver is more than ready on the day she and her best friends Dali and Shak sing their way into the orbit of the biggest R&B star in the world, Sean "Mercury" Ellis. Merc gives them everything: parties, perks, wild nights -- plus hours and hours in the recording studio. Even the painful sacrifices and the lies the girls have to tell are all worth it. Until they're not. Denver begins to realize that she's trapped in Merc's world, struggling to hold on to her own voice. As the dream turns into a nightmare, she must make a choice: lose her big break, or get broken. Inspired by true events, Muted is a fearless exploration of the dark side of the music industry, the business of exploitation, how a girl's dreams can be used against her -- and what it takes to fight back.

Spin by Lamar Giles

When rising star Paris Secord (aka DJ ParSec) is found dead on her turntables, it sends the local music scene reeling. No one is feeling that grief more than her shunned pre-fame best friend, Kya, and ParSec's chief groupie, Fuse -- two sworn enemies who happened to be the ones who discovered her body. The police have few leads, and when the trail quickly turns cold, the authorities don't seem to be pushing too hard to investigate further. But nobody counted on Paris's deeply loyal fans, ParSec Nation, or the outrage that would drive Fuse and Kya to work together. As ParSec Nation takes to social media and the streets in their crusade for justice, Fuse and Kya start digging into Paris's past, stumbling across a deadly secret. With new info comes new motives. New suspects. And a fandom that will stop at nothing in their obsessive quest for answers, not even murder...

If you love the ghosts in Julie and the Phantoms and are looking for something a little spooky, try these reads:

City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

Ever since Cass almost drowned (okay, she did drown, but she doesn't like to think about it), she can pull back the Veil that separates the living from the dead . . . and enter the world of spirits. Her best friend is even a ghost. So things are already pretty strange. But they're about to get much stranger. When Cass's parents start hosting a TV show about the world's most haunted places, the family heads off to Edinburgh, Scotland. Here, graveyards, castles, and secret passageways teem with restless phantoms. And when Cass meets a girl who shares her "gift," she realizes how much she still has to learn about the Veil -- and herself. And she'll have to learn fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous than she ever imagined.

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater

Any visitor to Bicho Raro, Colorado, is likely to find a landscape of dark saints, forbidden love, scientific dreams, miracle-mad owls, estranged affections, one or two orphans, and a sky full of watchful desert stars. At the heart of this place you will find the Soria family, who all have the ability to perform unusual miracles. And at the heart of this family are three cousins longing to change its future: Beatriz, the girl without feelings, who wants only to be free to examine her thoughts; Daniel, the Saint of Bicho Raro, who performs miracles for everyone but himself; and Joaquin, who spends his nights running a renegade radio station under the name Diablo Diablo. They are all looking for a miracle. But the miracles of Bicho Raro are never quite what you expect.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Bestowed by the ancient goddess of death, Yadriel and the gifted members of his Latinx community can see spirits: women have the power to heal bodies and souls, while men can release lost spirits to the afterlife. But Yadriel, a trans boy, has never been able to perform the tasks of the brujas - because he is a brujo. When his cousin suddenly dies, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free. However, the ghost he summons is not his cousin. It's Julian Diaz, the resident bad boy of his high school, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade

After a close encounter with a bus, Alona Dare goes from homecoming queen to Queen of the Dead. She’s stuck as a ghost in the land of the living with no sign of the big, bright light to take her to a better place. To make matters worse, the only person who might be able to help her is Will Killian, a total loser outcast. More than anything, Will wishes he didn’t have the rare ability to communicate with the dead, especially the former mean girl of Groundsboro High. He’s not filling out any volunteer forms to help her cross to the other side, though it would bring him some welcome peace and quiet. Can they get over their mutual distrust -- and quasi-attraction -- to work together? Readers of this spirited paranormal comedy won't want this odd couple to ever part.

[meredithstanien]

me and my thoughts ab homecoming

feel free to ignore i'm just rambling about how much i love everyone in starkid (please dont reblog this haha)

- jaAIME thank you maam for your service

- is jeff blim wearing eyeliner? thank you king

- sometimes i understand why all of you are simping for white boy manion and show stopping number is one of them. hips!

- personally i will simp for mariah though i hope you dont mind

- LAUREN WALKER I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU THAT SHIRT

- IM SO HYPED FOR FIREBRINGER I'M GONNA LOSE IT

- i want bhol's shirt. honestly i would wear his whole outfit

- brb simping for meredith.... leather jacket.....

- also lauren that fit is beautiful

- rachael soglin i love you also she has such a wonderful voice

- TOGETHER!!!!! i love everyone looking at meredith and lauren Like That

- "we are womankind" *meredith thumbs up and :)

- lowkey wish we had more lauren walker during this

- okay. tto songs slap so hard and i'm also bopping

- wISSSCONSSIIIIIINNNN i love corey

- wait how have i not said anything about jeff's outfit yet??? i love the vest so much

- okay they kept the audience participation for tto in this and i love it so much

- MS LOPEZ THE BOOTS???

- SPEEDRUN thank you for letting rachael bless us, i thought they were just gonna do tto and naked in a lake and i was gonna be so sad

-i'm crying over jeff's bowlegged step in place

- i love this four person crew for ani, i was wondering what they were gonna do for this since it was a traditional musical

- why dont people simp for clark? look at this man he's so fine

- HOW DID I NOT KNOW THAT CHRIS ALLEN ALSO PLAYED DUDER IN LITTLE WHITE LIE? i never made that made that connection because i only watched lwl once

- jim povolo makes an appearance i love xem

- the cheers during no one remembers achmed... me too.

- denise and meredith sharing a mic and having the time of their lives doing it brings me joy

- lowkey was stoked for a meredith-dylan duet for 1001 nights but britney and carlos gave us so much more than we deserved

- okay as a meredith stan i am very sad about the lack of a meredith solo in the twisted medley i will not lie to you guys

- the hmb lighting.... thank you to the lightning designer i will have to check the credits.... AND THE SOUND DESIGNER the echoes are so cool

- gotta say i am so happy about the variety of funky outfits onstage today

- ROGUES jaime kills that one part. yall know the part

- literally any part with denise singing makes me so happy i cant wait for starship

- the audience clapping made me so nervous at the end of super friends bc for a second it sounded like it was throwing off the orchestra and making them speed up without realizing

- craving some commissioner gordon right about now

- STARSHIP I'M GONNA PEE

- ms donovan knows what she's talking about, thank you denise's mom we are dreamers

- i love that theyre giving solos to people who didn't get them in other medleys because i needed this. starkid women are so talented

- i feel so bad for not knowing everyone's names. theyre so amazing and i cant even name them

- JUNIOR STARSHIP i simp for bhol specifically as junior

- BRANT COX THE BUG MAN I LOVE YOU i love starship and i love him, i wish he had been in more shows

- joey your cue!!!!

- where is the way i do? i pass away

- "please enjoy some songs from 'me and my- ...." goodbye brian

- mamd is highkey problematic but that doesnt stop ready to go from being a bop

- brian and meredith standing together 🥺

- i love brian and nick lang awkwardly asking if everyone is having fun

- nick is so wonderful i love him

- the strings sound SO cool with comin back to hogwarts i love cellos

- the screams over the glasses, i love this audience

- i love the audience singing along and saying the lines along with the music, i bet the energy in that theatre was fucking amazing

- joey and darren just going "whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa" over bonnie!

- ms. lopez... the BOOTS again. lauren lopez as draco malfoy does things to me

- DYLAN COMING FROM THE AUDIENCE that is my favorite gag

- the people in the audience as dylan is coming through look so excited

- HUFFLEPUFFS ARE PARTICULARLY GOOD FINDERS!!!!!!

- meredith dances like a cartoon character it's so cute i love her

- tbh the whole second act has me smiling constantly i dont have much to say bc it just makes me so happy

- IMAGINE BEING THAT SAX PLAYER thank you king

- not even gonna lie ive never been a huge fan of avps or avpsy but the energy here makes up for it

- darren where is your fit you are harry freakin potter all the other men here are showing you up, you are wearing a black t shirt

-[yeah at thsi point a bunch of my thoughts ab the second act got deleted bc tumblr sucks and didnt save this draft but whatever i loved it]

- i'm gonna cry, the way the orchestra the end of days of summer became a slow version of back to hogwarts

- this is so sad. this is so happy but so sad.

- darren this is the sweetest thing

- "enthusiastic, but sometimes questionable fan art" i'd like to formally apologize to starkid for whatever they may have seen.

- joey in the background making faces as darren talks about loving your friends

- yo i didnt expect to get so emo over this but them finishing out with back to hogwarts really did me in, plus everyone onstage wiping away tears

- ITS AN ENCORE THANK YOU BROSENTHAL AND SANGO

- what a stupidly wonderful way to finish this show

- joey carrying out walker and brosenthals jackets

- oh the classic disconnected and off timing theatre kid bow to end the show

- IM LOOKING AT THE CREDITS AND OFC THEY HAD COREY LUBOWICH, SARAH PETTY, JUNE SAITO, AND MARK SWIDERSKI DOING TECH WHO ELSE WOULD THEY POSSIBLY ASK TO DO IT?

[awakendreamersworld]

Welp, here’s another Luca fanfic I made called “Ocean Waves” here’s chapter 1!

Homecoming

Today was the big day, Luca and Giulia was coming back home to Portorroso! Alberto was very excited to see his friend again after a year away, he was racing around town on his Vespa gathering decorations and gifts awaiting their arrival. "Ciao, Alberto1" Said a neighbor "Ciao!" Alberto replied back riding past them back to his house where Massimo was preparing the pesto. Alberto parked his Vespa next to the wooden gate and hopped off and went inside with the box of decorations and gifts, "Hey, Massimo! Look at the cool stuff I got!" He said pulling out some balloons and colored strings and party streamers. "Very nice, Alberto. I'm sure they will love it!" Massimo said bring out a helium tank and starting on blowing up the balloons while Alberto started throwing up the streamers across the room from wall to wall.

"Oh boy, I can't wait to see my papa again!" Giulia said looking out the window from the train heading back to Portorroso "Yeah, I can't wait to see Alberto! There's so much I want to tell him!" Luca said excitedly also looking out the window. "You think he'll like it when I tell him about space and how huge it is? And these photos of stars up close?" Luca asked Giulia "I'm sure he will!" She said sitting back down looking over the images of stars with Luca "Pretty cool, huh?" She said. "Yeah!" Luca said, Giulia gasped "Here we are!" She said pointing at the town of Portorroso. Giulia and Luca giggled with glee happy to be back home, they grabbed their backpacks ready to get off at the train station.

Alberto finished hanging up the balloons and decorations with Massimo and set the gifts on the table he then looked at the time, "OH FISHSTICKS! Their gonna be here any minute!" Alberto said and he and Massimo started outside and headed towards the train station awaiting Luca and Giulia's arrival. It was twelve in the afternoon and Alberto and Massimo made it to the station just in time as the train began pulling up. Alberto was jumping up and down excited to see his friends again after a very long time away, Giulia and Luca ran out of the train screaming Massimo and Alberto's names in excitement. "ALBERTO!" Luca said running towards Alberto and hugging him "Hey, Luca! Long time no see!" Alberto said hugging back, "PAPA!" Giulia said hugging Massimo who was holding her with his one arm. "It is good to see you two again!" Massimo said smiling "Yeah! We have a big surprise for you guys! C'mon!" Alberto said pulling Luca's arm to follow him as Giulia and Massimo followed behind. When they entered their home, there were balloons and streamers hung everywhere across the kitchen with two gifts placed on the table. "TA-DA!" Alberto said showing Luca and Giulia the decorations and gifts. "Wow, this is amazing!" Giulia exclaimed amazed at the decorations "What are those?" Luca asked pointing to the boxes on the table "Those are gifts for you guys!" Alberto said "Go on! Open them!" He said giving Luca his gift and Giulia hers.

Giulia and Luca begin to open their gifts, Luca opened his and it was a friendship bracelet with his name in colored cubes attached to a string. "What do you think? Pretty cool huh? I made it myself." Alberto said putting his arm around Luca, "Wow, thanks, Alberto!" Luca said smiling. Giulia opened her gift and it was a book about pirates, "Santo Pecorino! You actually managed to get one!? I thought they were all sold out!" Giulia exclaimed "Aye, but I managed to find one!" Massimo said, Giulia squealed "Thanks Papa!" She said hugging her dad "Hey, I helped too." Alberto said crossing his arms "Thanks Alberto" Giulia said hugging Alberto and Luca "This is the best surprise ever!" She yelled "Yeah, anyways, c'mon Luca! I have the ENTIRE day planned for us to hang out!" Alberto said "Ok, but let go see my parents first, they're gonna be happy to see me!" Luca said "Ugh, fine!" Alberto said accompanying Luca to the water to see his parents. As they entered the ocean, they began towards Luca's home where his parents were waiting for his arrival. Luca's mom was outside trimming the seaweed when she looked over the rocky edges and saw Luca approaching "MOM!" Luca shouted and started swimming towards his mom "LUCA!" She screamed and swam towards Luca and hugging him as Luca's dad pops out of their home and also swims towards his son. "I'm so happy to see you back home in one piece!" she said squeezing Luca's face "Hehe, I'm fine Mom!" Luca said removing her hands from his face "Its good to see ya, son! How was it out there in the big world?" Luca's dad asked, "Its amazing! There were so many things that I want to tell you!" Luca said excitedly "But unfortunately, we don't have time for that for we have plans packed for today, so he'll tell you guys later!" Alberto said pulling Luca's arm to head back to the surface "Oh, ok! Have fun you two!" Luca's dad said waving goodbye to them.

Once on shore, Alberto brought Luca towards his Vespa, "What do you think?" Alberto asked showing off his Vespa to Luca

"Whoa, how'd you get one?" Luca asked

"How else? Delivering fish and getting money for it!" Alberto said "Wanna ride it?" He asked Luca

"Yeah!" Luca said,

"Then lets go!" Alberto said grabbing Luca and both hopping on the Vespa and riding it through the town together, then after that, Alberto showed Luca more human things he's found and Luca told Alberto what those 'human stuff' were which kinda killed the mood. Alberto and Luca then headed back home after a really long day of hanging out together, and sat at the table waiting for the pesto to get done "Woo! Today was awesome!" Alberto said "Yeah, riding the Vespa was the best part!" Luca said "I know, right?" Alberto said "I can't wait to do more tomorrow!" "Oh, uhh, actually I already agreed to spend the day with Giulia, she has more books that tells you all about the entire world!" Luca said excited "Ok fine, whatever..." Alberto said annoyed as Massimo gave them their pesto and sat down putting a napkin over his shirt as a polite gentleman and they all began to eat. Once dinner was done, Giulia gathered everyone's plates and began washing dishes "C'mon Luca, let's go in the tree." Alberto said heading upstairs to Giulia's room "In a minute, Giulia said she wanted to show me her book about pirates!" Luca said excitedly. Alberto sighed and started heading upstairs again but Massimo stopped him, "Alberto, I need you to take out the trash." Massimo said "You got it!" Alberto said and took the big bag full of trash then looked at Luca fawning over Giulia's book. He gave a jealous look then left outside and dumped the trash in the trash bin, he then began walking towards the water "I wish Luca, or SOMEONE would hang out with me more than Giulia's stupid books" Alberto said kicking a rock, then he heard someone singing, a lady singing.

Alberto went to where the singing was being played and saw a female figure sitting on a rock by the water singing some sort of lullaby, Alberto tried to come closer to get a better look at the silhouetted lady when he suddenly stepped on a stick. The sound of the stick alerted the singing lady as she stopped singing and turned around and looked at Alberto, Alberto stood still not knowing what to do as he stared down at the dark figure. Looking at her, he noticed that she had fins on her back and elbows and her eyes were glowing a bright amethyst color and her hair looked as if it were a brunette color and she looked like she was his age. Gaining all his courage Alberto took a deep breathe and walked closer to the woman with his hand out ready to shake her hand. "Hello there!" Alberto said coming closer to the mysterious woman, but the woman got scared and dove back into the water "Hey, WAIT!" Alberto said running towards the spot the mystery woman was just at and gazing at the water where she disappeared into, suddenly Giulia came outside to see what was taking Alberto so long to come back in the house "Alberto! What are you doing by the water?" Giulia asked "I... Uhh... Nothing just, uh... checking the fish! Y'know, gotta be ready to catch them tomorrow!" Alberto said heading back inside the house as Giulia followed. Later that night, Alberto and Luca were in the tree ready to go to sleep when Alberto told Luca what he saw. "Whoa, really? Do you think it was another Sea Monster?" Luca asked "I don't know, I couldn't really get a better look at her, it was too dark." Alberto said laying down on his pillow and looking up at the night sky "But whatever she is, I'm gonna find out! Maybe she could be our new friend!" Alberto said excited, "Yeah! That'd be awesome!" Luca said also laying down "Goodnight, Alberto!" Luca said as he closed his eyes and went to sleep "Goodnight, Luca!" Alberto said looking back up at the night sky thinking about that mysterious singing lady, as he closed his eyes he could hear her melody singing in his head, "Come with me, into the sea, as we swim far out to sea. In the deep, you will see, a world of my dreams. As you sink into the ocean, without a warning, you didn't know you've fallen-" Alberto couldn't help but hear her song on repeat, what were the last bits she was going to say? Alberto sighed and didn't mind it much, he turned over to his left side and went to sleep. Tomorrow, he was going to go look for that mystery woman.

[gingerwritess]

WAIT ELLIOT’S GONNA BE IN A RELATIONSHIP WITH MORGAN?????

ew, no, Morgan Potts-Stark is gross.

And annoying.

(Wait wait wait, this isn’t a hate post at all, keep reading you fool.)

She laughs too loud, she calls him names—especially Elli; “that’s not my name, Morgan”—she laughs when he gets hurt, blames him for things when Tony or Pepper catches them getting into trouble...she’s a pain.

But...as gross and annoying as Morgan is, she is fun, Elliot can’t deny.

You can usually find them sitting at the top of their staircase, eating Uncle Fury’s triangle grilled cheese, waving down to the countless superheroes bustling about with their day-to-day avenging. Most of the time, Morgan is the one doing the talking while Elliot listens intently, eyes wide and sandwich frozen halfway to his mouth.

She teaches him forbidden words, like his new favourite, “shit,” or another one they heard her dad muttering to one of his robots, “asshole.” Morgan knows a whole other language, he’s discovering.

She does things that he’s never seen anyone do. She builds things, purposely breaks her belongings just so she can fix them, she’s loud and dances too much, and she spends too much time smirking to ever smile at him.

She does laugh though, often, and most of the time at him.

And she knows, like, everything.

It’s a little intimidating.

* * * *

“Who’s that?”

“That’s the sad hobo from the fourth floor,” Morgan explains, following Elliot’s finger to the man falling asleep in an armchair. “Dad says he’s been alive over a hundred years!”

“Why’s he got a metal arm??” Elliot presses his face to the balcony railing, eyes wide as he stares.

“Bad guys. My dad said they were real bad.”

“Woah.”

Morgan grins at him for a moment, pride worming its way into her little heart at knowing more than him.

Then she taps Elliot on the shoulder and points at Thor. “Wanna know something about him?”

“I know that one, dummy, that’s my uncle.” Elliot rolls his eyes and scoots closer.

“Well duh. But did you know he’s stronger than Mr. Hulk??”

Elliot claps a hand over his mouth with a gasp—Thor hears and glances up at the two kids, flashing them a smile and a wave.

“No way,” Elliot whispers, giving his uncle a tiny wave back. “Nobody’s stronger than Mr. Hulk. ‘Cept my dad, but—”

“Um, I don’t think so.” Morgan turns around with a giggle to make sure your office door is almost closed, keeping their conversation private from you and Loki inside. “C’mere.”

She waves him over and cups her hand by her mouth, leaning in to whisper in Elliot’s ear.

“Mr. Hulk beat your daddy into a pulp one time.”

“That’s not true!”

“Sure is,” she giggles, waving down at the doctor in question who just walked in, thankfully not...well, green. “My dad told me he ruined your dad’s mon-uh-logue, they musta been playing a game or somethin’. Dad said it was the funniest thing he’s ever seen in his life—”

“That’s not very nice.” Elliot frowns and crosses his little arms. “Well, did you know my dad threw your dad out a window one time?”

“Uh huh.”

“Oh.” His chest deflates and Morgan giggles.

“You’ve got a sad face.” She pokes a finger into his cheek. “Stop it.”

Your son shakes his head, for some reason wishing he could run into that meeting and just...give his dad a hug.

I think they both need it.

“C’mon,” Morgan pleads, shaking his arm, “stop being sad. Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop—”

An inevitable smile starts to tug at his lips. “Stop bein’ annoying, then.”

“Can’t.” She shrugs and starts poking him in the tummy. “Not ‘till you’re done being sad.”

Within seconds, Pepper is stopping the corporate meeting you’re in to poke her head out the door and shush the two shrieking kids rolling around at the top of a staircase, a full fledged tickle-war underway.

* * * *

Elliot learns a lot from her. Stuff his books could never teach him—at least, not the books he reads. Like AC/DC; Elliot had no idea that words could be so loud.

He decides he likes it. Rock and roll. He likes listening to it at the top of the staircase with earbuds in—one in her ear, the other in his—the music so loud that he squints with each drum beat as they watch the weird people their parents work with bustling about the compound.

Morgan always insists on having the left earbud. He never argues or asks why.

One day she lets him have the left earbud for one song, something by a band called Guns ‘n Roses, and he nearly calls her an asshole when she turns the music up all the way.

The left earbud is louder. “More bass,” she explains when she’s done laughing. She takes it back and unpauses the song.

She doesn’t flinch at the music.

Morgan is stronger than he guessed.

She once told him that the guitar is her favourite part of the music—that night at dinner he announced he wants to learn how to play guitar.

If Morgan likes it, it’s probably a good thing to know.

He doesn’t catch the small smile you and Loki share when you agree.

Elliot is terrible at it, he quickly discovers, and he gives it up after only a couple lessons. Not, of course, before Morgan finds out and makes him play her a shakily picked out rendition of the intro to Sweet Child of Mine about seven times.

Each time he tries, she claps and smiles and laughs and he beams, glad that finally, he did something she was impressed by.

She has everything. She’s good at everything—like when she picked up guitar a week after he gave up and was playing entire songs within days.

It’s annoying.

Morgan is annoying.

Even more annoying when they’re in high school and she won’t admit she hates him.

Growing up together, Elliot always had a tiny grip on her feelings, her emotions, could always tell when she wasn’t herself.

When she was almost ten, she figured out that maybe her little black-haired friend wasn’t just a good guesser when she would quiz him about herself. Elliot could guess more than her favourite colour, favourite animal, food; the basic stuff.

He started being able to guess when she had a restless night, when she was mad at her parents, when she needed to get out of her head. How she felt in a good moment, where she feels most at peace. When she’s in a situation and wants a way out.

At first it made her uncomfortable.

Elliot could tell, naturally, and stopped spending time with her for a few weeks.

He avoided her at all costs, kept his head down when he had to walk by her in the compound, did everything he could to start controlling this third eye.

Except talk to Loki. He came to you at one point, almost in tears because Morgan said he was “kinda weird,” and you told him that he should talk to his father about this, too. After all, he would be the only one who might have a single clue about what Elliot is going through.

But he won’t, he won’t talk to Loki about it, for some reason he doesn’t want to bring it up.

Their abilities and for lack of a better word, magic, have always been something that brought the two of them closer. Never was a problem, was never weird—

Tony and Pep apparently had a talk with Morgan, judging from the stern frowns and the tear stained face of Morgan when they showed up on your doorstep to apologise.

“You’re not weird,” she choked out. “I’m sorry, Elli, you’re not weird, you’re my friend and I’m so, so sorry.”

He didn’t correct her, you noticed, for calling him Elli.

Morgan Potts-Stark is annoying—and gross—and...well, it’s a pretty dress.

It’s blue.

Soft looking, satin-y, draping down her back, and she feels unstoppable. Elliot can tell; this surge of confidence (he’s guessing it’s coming from wearing the heels), she’s never felt this sure of herself.

It’s weird, watching her walk down their staircase. They don’t sit up there much anymore. Sometimes Elliot will, he’ll make his own sandwich (unless Fury is there, of course) and take his homework, grab a book, and sit at the top of the staircase until you and Loki are ready to go home.

Morgan doesn’t sit with him much anymore. She has a workshop that she likes to hide in, and Elliot’s only been down there once.

As much as he tells himself it’s not because he’s in her head, she’s just busy, there’s a nagging thought that just won’t go away that maybe she’s back to avoiding him.

She’s going to homecoming; only her first year of high school and she got a date to the dance. Tony, of course, had everyone in the compound stand by the foot of the staircase to watch her grand entrance—she deserves it, Elliot thinks, when everyone starts applauding and she blushes deep red.

Elliot isn’t going to the dance. Same high school...different experience.

He chose not to go, said he didn’t want to. Said that crowded rooms hurt his head, they’re too loud, too full, too busy.

You and Loki take him and Frigg out for ice cream. Elliot doesn’t seem too bothered to be missing such an event; he carries Frigg on his back and lets her eat half his ice cream, shoving his hands in his pockets when they start turning blue.

The four of you watch a movie when you get home, the usual dogpile on Loki. Elliot seems happy; he’s smiling, laughing, has his head on Loki’s shoulder and occasionally stops to tickle Frigg when she tries to push him out of his spot.

In his pocket, his phone buzzes.

There’s a couple texts waiting to be opened. From Morgan.

“Guess what the theme of the dance is...winter wonderland. In September?? Made me think of you, frosty!”

His hands are still blue and patchy. He pushes them deeper in his pockets.

Loki notices and presses his lips to his son’s forehead. “Don’t,” he whispers, smiling softly. “We love you. Don’t.”

Frigg takes advantage of Elliot’s distraction and wedges her little self right between the two of them with a proud fit of giggles.

His phone vibrates again and he glances at it—Morgan again.

“Someone is trying to sing a karaoke Sweet Child of Mine. HELP.”

“Seriously, I’ll take your guitar version over this ANY day.”

He can’t help it and smiles down at his phone.

“OoooOOO!!” Frigg pokes him with a squeal. “Are you talking to a girl??”

He scowls and shoves a pillow in his sister’s face. “Shut it, Frigg.”

“You gonna date her??” Frigg can’t stop giggling, fighting against the pillow and trying to reach Elliot’s phone. “Gonna kiss her?! Mom!! Elli’s gotta girlfriend, Elli’s gotta girlfriend—”

“Shut up!” A pillow smacks Frigg across the face and Elliot tackles the little girl, shoving handfuls of snow down her shirt as she shrieks with laughter and tries to fight back.

Morgan?? His girlfriend? Oh, please, that’ll never happen.

Morgan Potts-Stark is gross.

And annoying.

Remember?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

since i’m on mobile it wouldn’t let me tag like half of you on this post, sorry folks!!!

loki tags: @bluediamond007 @himitoshi @drakesfiance @destiel1597 @dangertoozmanykids101 @archy3001 @jcalpha1 @yzssie @skullvieplu @forthesnakeofdragons @skulliebythesea @wegingerangelica @storiesfrommirkwood @agarwaeneth @adaliamalfoy @laurfangirl424 @belladonnabarnes @fitzsimmons-is-forever @ladylokimischief @katelinwrites @tarynkauai @polaristrange @loavesofmeat @canadian-ravenpuff-multishipper @lou-makes-me-strong @holyn0vak @chocolatealmondmillk @swtnrholland @kenzieam @jessiejunebug  @catticas @the-republic-and-face-of-texas @doralupin01 @whitewitchdown @atomiccharmer @falconfeather23435 @babygirlicecream @avengrcs @vethrvolnir2 @bookgirlunicorn @wabisabigrl @myhealingstar @khaleesi-marvel @ei77777 @spacecrumbs @scarlettghost13 @rocks-are-pretty-odd @confessionsofastrugglingteen @easilydistractedwriter @arttasticgreatnessoftheawesome77 @fluffyllamaswearinghats @milktearose @lcyouinhell @h0tshotholland @dontmesswithmemundane @southsidesarcasticwriter @helnik-s @lilith-akemi @fire-in-her-veinz @unlikelysamwinchesteronahunt @mischievousbellerina @kcd15 @mellowgirl01 @lokislilcaribbeanprincess @allthingzhiddleston @scorpionchild81 @lokixme @blue-automne @galaxycharmed @devilbat @kangaroobunny @end-up-well @planetariumx @sarcsep @mrfandomtastic @amaru163 @im-way-too-many-fandoms @caswinchester2000 @kybaeza @wester-than-west @vintagesunshinebitch @adefectivedetective @poetic-nikolai @moonduhsted

[whereisten]

The Wedding Singer

The Wedding Singer (Feat. Taeyong and Yuta)

Summary: You are an up-and-coming singer and songwriter who is thriving in the wedding singer business. When you find yourself singing for your former best friend Samantha Perez and not-so-former crush Yuta Nakamoto, shit really hits the fan.

Genre: Brace yourself...IT’S FLUFF (some suggestive dialogue and colorful words)

Multi-part series: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

Part 2

Word Count: 4k 

The rehearsals were passing by quickly, thankfully. There was a month left until the wedding. You and Taeyong grew very close in the past two months. You had to be honest. You were ready to date him after you both cursed at the same jumpscare when you watched The Conjuring 3 and were shushed by the rest of the audience. You both had to hold in your laughter for ten minutes. 

But you wanted to make sure the friendship was strong before you explored something deeper. He respected that. He would’ve done anything to spend time with you.

Sonya also enjoyed tagging along whenever she could. She liked telling random passersby on the street that she was the one who brought this beautiful couple together.

Which brought you to your latest non-date but was practically a date. Taeyong took you to a Cigarettes After Sex concert in Miami Beach. You swayed to the sweet and seductive tones of Greg Gonzalez. Taeyong had his hands in his pockets and you felt him take your hand and squeeze it.

You turned to him and he gave you a shy smile.

You squeezed his hand back. You were going to surprise Taeyong that night and tell him you were ready to take it to the next step. You would be the one to ask him out on your first date together. 

As “Crush” played, you turned to Taeyong and held his face in your hands. You kissed him deeply, relishing in his frozen state. But he didn’t take long to return your kiss. He leaned into you and stuck his tongue into your mouth. You sighed in content and wrapped your arms around him. 

After the concert, Taeyong wouldn’t let go of your hand. 

“That was incredible,” you said, referring to both the concert and the kiss that transformed you. You’ve had your fair share of kisses in the past. Some awkward. Some that you wished you could erase. Some that you thought would lead somewhere but did not. 

But then there was Taeyong. 

His kiss was electric and lit you up. You were surprised you didn’t light up like a glowstick at the venue. 

Taeyong pushed you against the wall outside of the venue. The venue was nearly empty. Only a handful of concertgoers were walking out. “You have no idea what you’ve done.”

You laughed. “What? The kiss?”

Taeyong sighed. “What am I going to do with you, Y/N? I’ve been waiting so long for this and now...I don’t ever want to let you go.”

His head was down and he surprised you by looking up at you with bedroom eyes. All this time, Taeyong tried to contain himself when he was around you and played the benevolent suitor/friend/love interest rolled into one. But there were moments where he couldn’t and you could see it in his deep brown eyes. He wanted you so badly it was killing him. 

All this time, you had to keep it together. As much as you loved teasing Taeyong, it killed you to restrain yourself this time. You wanted to jump his bones when he left you at your door after your first non-date. 

You bit your lip. “Did I catch you off-guard?”

“Oh, more than that…” His words grew quieter as he moved closer to your neck and kissed it. 

“Taeyong, what if someone sees us?”

“You didn’t mind it at the concert....Or are you toying with me?”

You blushed, feeling his hot breath on your neck. You wanted him to look at you but he was avoiding your stare. “Taeyong.”

“So...what’s the verdict, Y/N? I think I’ve been very patient.”

You ran your fingers through his hair. “Yes, you have. Which is why I’m asking you out.”

He met your eyes. His eyes softened. “What?”

You smiled. “What are you doing tomorrow night?” 

Taeyong’s angelic smile reappeared full-force. “I was going to play pool with the guys. But to hell with that.”

You caressed his cheek. “You suck, anyways. You won’t be missed.” 

He pulled you off the wall and kissed you. His lips were soft against yours and you really regretted making you two wait for so long to do this. 

;;

You were at Starbucks, working on song lyrics for a song titled “Jack Frost”. After your first kisses with Taeyong last night, your heart was ablaze and your fingertips were just dying to release lyrics for your new song. You were writing the lyrics on your Breaking Dawn notebook. It held all of the songs you’ve written since you were eighteen. And the Twilight Saga just stuck with you, whether you liked it or not.  

“Y/N!” You were so into your writing that you jumped at the sound of your name. 

You looked up from your notebook and saw Yuta in front of your table. He waved. 

“Oh, Yuta, hey.” You closed your notebook. “How are you?”

He smiled. “I’m alright. Just needed to get out and get a change of scenery. He held up his Five-Star notebook. Wedding vows.”

“Oh,” you said, “How’s that going?”

He sighed. “It’s...not.”

You frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m...not the greatest at expressing my feelings out loud,” he said, wincing. 

“You?” You were shocked. “I don’t believe that.”

He sat down across from you at the two-chair table. “Oh, you should. This is what I have so far. And this took two hours last night.”

Samantha, I am so excited to marry you. 

“Yikes.” You didn’t sugarcoat your response.

He shrugged. “Can I be honest with you?”

This didn’t sound good. 

“Samantha’s family and mine...Not only do they want to unite businesses but..they want to unite our families.”

You wished you didn’t sip from your Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher then. 

Yuta sighed. “I couldn’t refuse. Samantha’s family has done a lot for mine. Samantha and I figured we could appease our parents…”

Why was he telling you this? Why? Why was it that people thought you were the go-to for their deepest, darkest secrets?

“Yuta, I don’t-”

Yuta realized what he’d said. “Oh, shit. I’m so sorry, Y/N. I’ve just been thinking too much these past few days and you’re the first person outside of the lie that I’ve seen for days and...it just slipped.” 

You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. So...from the sound of it, Yuta and Samantha didn’t love each other. The marriage was a business transaction. And...Well, that was it, actually. 

Frankly, it wasn’t your problem. But it still rattled you to know the truth. 

You replied, “Yuta, it’s not my place but...why go through with it?”

He avoided your gaze. “I think I could love her...someday.”

It actually hurt you to hear him say that. You couldn’t understand their worlds. Samantha and Yuta’s. But from the sound of it, Samantha loved Yuta. But he didn’t love her. 

Warning bells were ringing in your head. This was way out of your jurisdiction as his old high school friend. 

Yuta apologized again. “I owe you Starbucks for life for unloading all of my crap on you.” 

You shook your head. “It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.”

“Please, it’s unforgivable. Allow me to buy you your favorite.”

This caught your attention. “What?”

He smiled knowingly. “Double chocolaty chip frappuccino?”

“How did you know?”

“Once upon a time, Y/N, I had a crush on you,” he said nonchalantly, like it was no secret. “Or did you forget?”

“You’re messing with me, aren’t you?” You asked. Yuta’s sense of humor was always so wholesome. Maybe sometimes a little sarcastic. But never cruel. 

His eyes grew bigger. “You really didn’t know?”

“No. Because you didn’t.” 

He raised his eyebrows. “I thought I made myself very clear at homecoming senior year.” 

“At homecoming? I-” And then you realized it. 

Gomez Addams Senior High School Homecoming 2011

Yuta asked you to dance to “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper. At this point, you’d come to terms with the fact that if Yuta hadn’t liked you at this point, then you could still enjoy his friendship. 

He spun you in circles and tried out his latest material on you and had you laughing at all of his cheesy jokes. He even surprised you by asking you if you remembered that one Spongebob episode, “Frankendoodle”. He did his impression of Doodlebob and had you cackling as you danced. No one loved Spongebob like you did but it was nice when people could at least appreciate it. 

“I’m having a great time, Y/N,” he started.

“Me, too, Nakamoto,” you said. 

He moved closer to you. “You’re beautiful.”

You blushed. “Thanks Yuta!”  Trying your best not to die on the inside. Yuta knew how to flatter a girl. He was always straightforward when it came to compliments. 

“I-” He was interrupted.

Vice Principal Mortimer was up on stage with announcement cards. “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to announce your homecoming king and queen!”

Yuta and Samantha won that night. You knew Yuta would be occupied the rest of the night so you chose not to stick around. You met up with Johnny and the rest of your friends and left early to go to Burgers and Shakes. 

“You left early that night,” Yuta said, a soft sad smile on his face.

“Yeah, Johnny and everyone wanted to get burgers. And...I figured you forgot about me. Homecoming King is such a crucial position,” you said, still confused about what exactly went down at homecoming. 

“I thought I made it obvious, then...Kissing your hand. The ‘come hither’ eyes. The Frankendoodle impersonation.”

“Yuta, you were a total flirt back then!”

“I should’ve brought out the ring sooner.” He fiddled with his BIC pen. 

“Whoa, a ring?” You sipped the melting ice from your drink.

He chuckled. “I was going to ask you out that night. But I saw you leave with Johnny so I thought-”

You burst out laughing. The staff and other patrons at the Starbucks looked at you in confusion and concern. Tears were rolling down your cheeks. “Me and Johnny? Are you mad?” 

“You and Johnny were….awfully chummy back then,” he said, rolling his eyes. 

I laughed. “Clearly, you’ve never had a female best friend.” 

“So you and Johnny never…”

“Oh, trust me. We’ve never dated. Never thought about it. We actually have an unwritten agreement that if neither of us got married by forty, we would marry each other.”

Yuta laughed then. Not as hard as you but hard enough to earn a couple of stares. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

You doodled on a blank page of your notebook. “I’m immune to Johnny’s charms. Imagine the pain and disappointment I caused my parents all these years. For not dating Johnny.”

Now you and Yuta were laughing and remembering the good old times in high school. He told all of the times he wanted to tell you how you felt and you told him all of the times you thought about confessing to him. 

“I can’t believe you liked me,” Yuta said, seeing you in a new light. 

“Really? I thought I was pretty obvious.” 

Yuta relaxed his elbows on the table. “You were shy with everyone so I couldn’t tell if you liked me.” 

“See? We were both ambiguous for completely different reasons!”

And then you both laughed again. 

“Wow, I really had no idea, Yuta. Well, I’m sorry I accidentally rejected you…” You giggled again. This was hilarious. And good content for another song. Tentative title: “Fools in Time.”

“Water under the bridge, Y/N. Now about that frappuccino…”

;;

You and Yuta spent a few more hours at the cafe. You gave Yuta few pointers on how to write his vows. He could draw inspiration from love songs. He could talk about how he treasured Samantha as a life partner and his most valuable teammate in life. 

“Get it? Because you’re a basketball player?”

Yuta blew his paper straw sleeve at your face. “Boo.”

Someone cleared his throat and interrupted you two.

You looked up and saw Taeyong, who was not shy about how pissed he was to see his girlfriend being so close with his best friend. 

“TY!” Yuta cheered. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Yeah, I’m here to pick up my girlfriend,” he said. “Surprise!” He added with a fake smile. Only you could tell that he was being insincere. You both were Cancers, after all. 

Yuta looked taken aback. “Wait, you two are dating?”

You nodded. “Yeah, we’ve been hanging out since the first rehearsal and...we went on our first date last night.” You were giddy remembering that that actually happened. 

Taeyong’s anger dissipated at the dreamy look on your face.

Yuta’s smile faded completely. He had no idea that you and Taeyong even knew each other. He almost felt like a fool. “So you’re the girl Sonya’s been raving about.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t know. Sonya’s not exactly discrete,” you noted. 

Taeyong hugged you from behind and relaxed. “Well, the cat’s out of the bag. We’re together.”

Yuta swallowed his pride and mustered his most winning smile yet. “Congratulations are in order, then. Let me treat you to dinner.”

You were about to say yes but Taeyong beat you at responding. “Raincheck, amigo. I’m taking Y/N roller skating.” 

Yuta blurted. “Y/N, you don’t roller skate…”

You sipped at the remains of your melted frappuccino, which Taeyong was pissed to find had “Yuta” written in Sharpie. “I don’t but Taeyong’s got it in his head that he can change me.” You said it so dramatically that you laughed. 

Yuta chuckled as he looked up at Taeyong. “Good luck. She’s hopeless.” 

It seemed your friendship with Yuta was stronger than you let on, Taeyong thought. 

;;

Taeyong surprised you and booked The Milky Way Skate for the two of you. Taeyong’s family was wealthy but you didn’t realize just how much. 

“I hate you for making me do this,” you told him. You were tying the shoelaces of your skates. 

“You could’ve said no,” he said, shrugging innocently. 

“I did. Several times but I believe you said there was a reward at the end of the night so...I caved.”

Taeyong relaxed after you two left Yuta at Starbucks. You seemed to be completely unaware of the fact that Yuta was interested in you. He knew Yuta didn’t love his step-sister and that was something everyone in the Lee and Nakamoto families already knew.

But you would unknowingly pose a risk to the wedding if things kept going the way they did. He knew Yuta and he had never looked at someone so fondly the way he looked at you.

It made him want to beat Yuta up. But Yuta didn’t know you two were together until today. So as long as he didn’t try anything, then all would be well. 

Taeyong kissed your cheek. “I promise it’ll be worth it.”

You smiled up at him. “Help me up? I should warn you that I’m heavier than I look. I say this because I do NOT want you to drop me.”

Taeyong joked. “Resistance training is a hobby of mine so I should be fine.”

You punched him in the arm. “Hold me.”

“With pleasure,” he said as helped you up.

The skating rink was beautiful with its galaxy-themed atmosphere. The Milky Way was painted across the floor. The rink was huge but thankfully not so huge that you would have to suffer to get to a barricade.

The music overhead was oddly catered to your tastes. They played “Lego House” by Ed Sheeran, one of your favorites from your senior year of high school. Then, they played “Lose Yourself to Dance” by Daft Punk. Then it was “Last Dance” by Donna Summer.

Taeyong asked Johnny and Jungwoo to send him lists of your favorite songs. He knew you two were good together when he saw that you shared almost all of the same faves. He wanted to pull out all the stops for the date he planned for you. Especially after you blew him away with a homemade dinner and an acoustic concert. You knew how much he loved your voice. 

So when you mentioned a month ago that you wished you’d learned how to roller skate, Taeyong made a note of that. Actually, he made note of a lot of things you’d said.

Brace yourself, Y/N for a surprise trip to Niagara Falls, a horseback riding lesson, a Valentino handbag, and a record deal.

You really should be careful what you say around Taeyong.

Taeyong guided you to the rink. 

“All right, Y/N. You can do this,” Taeyong said as he guided you to the center of the rink. He was leading with his graceful movements. 

“Can you just hold my hands the entire night and just spin me around every now and then?” You asked. You were thankful he had such an easy grip on you. 

He smiled. “You’re learning and you’re gonna like it.”

So, he taught you step by step how to roller skate. Sure, you’d fallen fourteen times out thirteen but you felt more confident and stable so after an hour of falling and moaning and groaning over the process, you could hold your own. Taeyong had been super patient and kept his laughter to a minimum. 

Or so he thought. 

Then, holding hands, you two skated together around the rink.

“You know something? All of the songs so far are basically my favorites,” you pointed out.

Taeyong smirked. “What a nice coincidence.”

You looked at him knowingly. “So you asked J and J to give you my playlists, didn’t you?”

“You caught me,” he said as he pulled you closer.

He guided you to the center of the rink. You two held hands and spun in circles. You were in a purely blissful state as “goodnight n go” by Ariana Grande played. 

You both got dizzy pretty quick and fell. You fell on top of Taeyong and you exploded in giggles. Taeyong groaned in exaggeration and started laughing with you. 

He cupped your face in his hands and gave you a quick smooch. 

“Taeyong, thank you so much. This has to be the best night of my life,” you admitted.

“Darling, you ain’t seen nothing yet,” he said as he pulled you to him and kissed you again. 

;;

You were going to perform at Taeyong’s nightclub. He was the owner of the renowned Holy Hell nightclub in Downtown Miami. It was a Korean-American fusion nightclub. To your delight, it also had a karaoke bar. He surprised you after your night of roller skating. He wanted to indulge you and show you off to his high-profile clients, including some record label executives. 

You were backstage. You looked exquisite and sultry in a sleek black jacket and leather booty shorts. Your thigh high boots even left you stunned when you posed in front of the mirror. 

Taeyong’s close friend Stella was a talented makeup guru that helped you put the final touches on your makeup. You and Stella became fast friends. It seemed like Taeyong’s gifts never stopped. You wondered how you could thank him. 

“Taeyong adores you, you know?” Stella said as she fixed your eyeliner.

You blushed. “Yeah...He does, doesn’t he?” 

“It’s almost sickening.” Stella laughed. “He’s dated on and off for a while but...I’ve never seen him this happy.”

“Really?” You were about to tear up at hearing this.

“Oh, don’t you dare cry. Save the tears once you score that record deal, mama. We’ve come too far to secure that face for the next few hours.”

“Thank you, Stella.” You hugged her. 

Yuta and Samantha came backstage to wish you luck. Well, Yuta did. Samantha just nodded along with Yuta’s words before they left to join the audience. She continued to despise you and you wanted to wonder why.

But not tonight.

Taeyong was the last one to wish you luck on stage.

“Severely break your leg, babe,” Taeyong said. He could have a very dark sense of humor, this one.

You kissed his cheek, leaving a lipstick stain on it. You giggled but hoped he wouldn’t notice it. Seeing Taeyong walk around with your lipstick on his face would give you much more confidence on stage.

“I’ll humor you and keep it on,” he said, almost as if reading your mind. You hugged him tight and thanked him profusely. 

It was time for you to get on stage. You were so pumped to perform. You were also extremely nervous that if you let your mind wander to the worst case scenarios, you wouldn’t have left your makeup chair. You remembered that singing was everything to you and that you were going to go up there and have a great time. When you let yourself be you, you often surprised yourself with the results. 

You heard your boyfriend on stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, it gives me great pleasure to introduce our next act. Give it up for Y/N!” 

You got up on the stage and performed your own choreographed performance of the English version of “Bad Boy” by Red Velvet. The crowd went wild. It was one of the first times you danced on stage. Usually, you only practiced choreographies in a dance studio but tonight was one of those rare nights that you really let loose.

You swayed your hair back and forth and your movements were sharp. You hit the notes to perfection, nearly making yourself tear up from how well you were doing. 

You were very emotional but you hid it well this time. 

Unbeknownst to you, the record label execs were eating everything up.

You were sensual and sweet. Taeyong lost his breath for a moment and couldn’t believe that a seductress hid beneath your sweet demeanor. He caught glimpses of your mischievous nature now and then when you sang but tonight, you released your demon. And he wanted to get to know you even more.

Taeyong yelled. “GO, Y/N!!!!!”

And so did Yuta. 

Taeyong noticed that Yuta’s jaw might as well have been on the ground. Samantha huffed and went to the bar to get a drink. He was also in awe of you. Taeyong had to hold in his temper. You were his. Yuta had his chance and he blew it. 

You finished your performance and were met with cheers and whistles. Roses were tossed onto the stage, to your surprise. Taeyong’s doing, no doubt. You bowed and ran off the stage. Taeyong was already at the bottom of the steps and you jumped into his arms. 

“You were amazing, love,” he said into your ear, sending shivers down your spine. “I can’t wait for an encore performance when we get back to my place.”

You gulped. “Shut up.”

This had to be one of the greatest nights of your life. To your shock and delight, scouts from Capitol Records, Epic Records, and Atlantic Records approached you and wanted to meet with you. You were over the moon.

You told Taeyong all about it on the drive back to his place. “I can’t believe Epic Records was there!” Epic was your dream label. 

“Epic?” Taeyong frowned. He didn’t invite anyone from Epic but he was thankful they made it, anyway. 

“Taeyong, you spoil me. I can’t believe you’ve done this.” You said the last sentence in a British accent, paying tribute to your favorite Vine. 

He smiled as he turned into his driveway of his beachside estate. “It’s all you, Y/N. You are a true talent. You would do the world a huge disservice if you didn’t share your voice with them.”

You took off your seatbelt and leaned over to the driver’s seat and kissed him deeply. You tried to straddle over him but his car was too cramped. 

“Slow down,” he said, laughing. “Allow me to carry you inside.” He knew you were dying in your heels.

You laughed. “Thank you.” 

He carried you bridal style inside. He let you down so you could remove your heels. Taeyong took off his jacket and loosened his tie. You seized the opportunity and jumped into his arms. You kissed him again and he quickly reciprocated. He lifted you into his arms and took you up the stairs. 

You entered his bedroom and he plopped you onto the bed and jumped right over. You unbuttoned his shirt. He helped you pull your dress off. He kissed you so passionately that that alone made you weak. You wondered what you would feel when he fucked you for the first time. 

“Are you sure?” He asked as he looked down at you. 

“Absolutely,” you replied, nearly breathless. 

And Taeyong once again assured you that this night was the best night of your life. 

Part 3 (Coming Sooner Than You Thought)

A/N: I would like to say I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING THIS FOR FIVE YEARS. I have ideas for the main climax and the ending but I want you to suffer...I mean ENJOY the ride. I would especially like to thank the sweeties who reached out and specifically asked for this. You really made my cold heart a little warmer. Bless. 

[rambling-at-midnight]

Inferno: Part 3

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

God I love Peter Parker so much. Anyways, he’s a dork even when he’s Spiderman. This is so fluffy I’m gonna get cavities. I have so many great ideas for next chapter! Also, I lied; there’s gonna be at least 5 parts.

You’re thankful for your fans. You really are. A good majority of them are sweet, caring individuals completely appalled at the blatant lies the American government sent out as a reason for your arrest. It’s nice to see people promoting positivity.

Unfortunately, being rich and having fans can sometimes lead people to hate you for no other reasons. You’re not saying there are rich people that don’t deserve to be loathed. Of course not. And maybe you do deserve to be hated. You’ve certainly done enough questionable stuff.

But at this point scrolling through your notifications feels like playing Russian Roulette with every chamber loaded.

cap2n/merica: Hey @Y/N_Stark, just do us all a favor and turn yourself into the authorities before you start melting people again.

bigbossbitch: @Y/N_Stark is another case of gross celebrity misconduct. Yes, her jail time was wrong, but now that she’s been released she’s just another spoiled celeb kid born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She gets away with murder just like her father does because of their wealth and it’s a sign of the American government’s (1/2)

You don’t feel like finding the second part of that tweet.

givemebackmymeat: @Y/N_Stark is an ice bitch

Stacey-Toland: yeah it’s great and all that New York gets Spiderman and @Y/N_Stark , but if they really cared about people they would branch out and help people in cities with a lot more crime. New York doesn’t need the Avengers, Spiderman, AND Inferno!

just-a-dumbass: y’all Inferno is the dumbest superhero name i’ve heard in a long time @Y/N_Stark

With a sigh, you turn your phone off. The public outcry will quiet down after the official statements are released. Everyone needs some time to cool off.

The pesky bandages on your hip crinkle as you sit up. You rip them off without looking. Tony insisted that you wear them last night after Helen Cho fished the bullet out of your hip. There’s no pain this morning, and you don’t even need to check to know there’s no scar.

The temptation is too great. Maybe you’re a masochist. You grab the phone before sitting down on the toilet, determined to find at least one positive comment about you in your feed. You try Instagram instead of Twitter this time. Since your public appearance last night, comments on your last post about a year ago have been flooding in.

spideyismydaddy: hey @The-Official-Spiderman what do you think about @Y/N_Stark? She invading your territory or what?

You click on @The-Official-Spiderman. It’s got to be a spoof or fan account, right? Sure enough, the account isn’t verified. You almost swipe out of it but your eyes catch on some of the photos he’s got uploaded. Either he’s super good at photoshop, or...

Is this really Spiderman’s account?

The photos look exactly like the crime-fighting spider you’d encountered last night. He doesn’t have a recent story that you can watch, but he does have a highlight story that you click on. In the first one, he does a backflip. The second clip is of him racing a train and winning. The third one is a pretty picture of the sunset.

You rest your hand on your cheek. Before you know it, you’ve watched his entire highlight story and wasted fifteen minutes sitting on the toilet.

“Miss Stark, your father wanted me to inform you that breakfast is ready,” FRIDAY says, making you jump a little bit. At first it had been a struggle to stop talking to her. The amount of times you’d say, “FRIDAY, turn off the lights,” or “FRIDAY, what time is it?” is a little bit embarrassing. No doubt how many times she’ll startle you will be embarrassing too.

“Sure,” you grunt, throwing a MIT sweatshirt on and shoving your phone in its pocket. “Coming.”

“Morning, sweetie,” Tony says cheerfully, attempting a smile when he looks at you. “I made your favorite—waffles.”

“Great.” You try a smile yourself. “I haven’t—that’s—thanks, Dad.” You’d been about to comment that you haven’t had waffles for over a year, but that would probably bring down both your spirits.

“How are you feeling?”

“Fine.” You take a big bite of waffle and look as innocently as you can at your father. “Just peachy.”

Tony gestures to his own hip. “No... pain? Bleeding? Scar?”

You shake your head and shrug. “Healed overnight.”

“Good.” Your dad actually fiddles with his fingers as you take another bite. “I, um... I don’t know what you want to do.”

I want to spend time with you is the first thing that crosses your mind but it sounds way too sappy and weak. You settle on a shrug. The familiar fire under your skin wavers and you scowl to bring it back to a simmer.

The next time they try to take you away, you’ll be prepared. Even if you have to take out thousands of agents. But you can’t let go of your anger for even a second.

“I have an idea,” you say after another awkward silence, struck with a great idea that would involve time with your dad but doesn’t involve actually asking for it outright. “I couldn’t keep up with all the new shows and movies that came out. Maybe we could get Disney+ and, I don’t know, watch The Mandalorian? I saw a lot of Baby Yoda memes online and it looks like a cool show.”

“That’s the new Star Wars show that came out, right?” Tony checks. “With the ugly green baby?”

“Hey! He’s not ugly!”

“Well,” he starts. You already know he’s about to suggest a bad idea. “Star Wars is probably Parker’s expertise. Considering both of us won’t know what’s going on, maybe we should call him and have him here? Just to translate the nerd stuff to the non-nerds?”

The hand holding your waffle clenches. You should have known that Tony would try to involve his precious Peter Parker so he wouldn’t have to spend time alone with you.

The waffle starts to smoke and you drop it with disgust. “I’m going to the training room.”

“Come on, Y/N—” Tony starts but you stomp off. Why won’t you understand that he just wants you to make a friend? He’s not trying to replace you with Peter—he’s trying to get you to replace Tony, at least a little bit, with Peter.

Tony eyes the waffle you hadn’t finished. A clear outline of fingers is burnt onto its surface.

You stalk through the compound angrily, halfway expecting a team member to jump out at you. You were the last one to be released, after all. Then again, they’re all under house arrest or on the run. But what about the ones that had sided with Tony? “Where are they?” You’d love to run drills with Nat or talk with Rhodey.

“Tony cleared his schedule for the next week,” FRIDAY informs you. “He wanted this to be a more relaxed homecoming so you wouldn’t be overwhelmed before more enthusiastic well-wishers arrived.”

“He cleared out his schedule for everyone except Peter fuckin’ Parker,” you mutter. Jesus, how important is this kid to Tony? First he never stops talking about him to you, takes him to pick you up from jail, and now he’s banned everyone but him from the compound?

For lack of sparring partners, you decide that lifting weights and running on the treadmill wouldn’t be too bad. Thankfully your muscles didn’t atrophy too much while you were locked up, though you rarely mustered the energy for exercises. You left the heat simmering under your skin at all hours. Judging by how many times you woke up to singed blankets, you started doing it in your sleep too.

No doubt due to the Extremis, you can lift every weight in the weight room—together. It’s too easy, so you move to the treadmill.

Your feet pound on the track. With every step, another thought bombards your mind: Peter Parker smiling, how you spent three months in the cage before they consented to giving you a plant, the cell smaller than your whole bed, you never even saw the sun for months, Tony coming to brag about Peter fucking Parker—

Only when your foot hits the ground do you realize that you’re running hot. “Shit,” you mutter, reaching for the ‘off’ button. Your whole body is glowing bright red and instead of turning off, the keypad melts at your touch just like how your shoes had melted off and how the track is hardly more than a melted pile of goo around your red-hot feet. The poor treadmill gurgles unhappily and its gears stop churning.

“Miss Stark, you are not wearing your fireproof clothes,” FRIDAY points out.

“Yeah, I got that, FRI,” you respond through gritted teeth, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath. You need to calm down before your clothes burst into flame.

The red hue to your skin fades slightly.

You need to get your excess anger out. And you know exactly how to do that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Some guy swings a metal bar into your face. Something definitely cracks but heals within seconds, so quickly you almost don’t register the pain. It doesn’t slow you down, anyway, and you grab the man’s arm before he can whack you again with the bar. You slam his head against the side of a brick building and he slumps to the ground. If he doesn’t wake up in thirty seconds, you’ve either given him brain damage or flat-out killed him. You can’t find it in yourself to care.

Before you can turn around, your back burns. Not the comforting burn of your anger, but a stinging burn that takes your breath away.

You turn around slowly. The man’s partner backs away, his hands in the air as a scared expression takes over his face.

You reach behind you. Your hand hits something hard that makes the pain in your back worse. It’s the handle of a knife, you presume. With a wince, you pull it out of your back. The blade is dark with blood that you already feel dripping down your back. The wound will knit together, scab, scar, and fade. A body’s week- or month-long process of healing occurring in seconds.

You’re not thinking when you brandish the weapon, but thankfully a weird thwip sound interrupts you. The man’s raised hands find themselves stuck against a wall by a white, sticky substance.

“Shit!” a vaguely familiar voice hisses after a second thwip. “Oh Jesus! You killed him!”

You turn around. The man you’d knocked against the wall still hasn’t moved, but there’s a dark puddle spreading around his head. Spider-man takes a quick look at him, shakes his head, and looks at you.

“And you got stabbed!” Sounding sort of like a smothering grandmother, he spins you around and lifts up your shirt. “Oh, shit, that’s a lot of blood...”

“The wound’s probably closed by now,” you mutter. The ground sort of leans away from your feet and strong arms wrap around your waist as something swipes at your back.

“I don’t see an opening.” He gingerly takes the knife from your hand places it on the ground. Then you find that the ground is underneath your butt. Spider-man’s mask swims in your vision.

“I killed him?” you ask blearily. Shit. You can’t afford to be murdering people not two days after being released from prison. They’ll send you back. They’ll lock you in that cage! Is Spider-man here with them? You smack his hands away. He’s here to get you, he’s here to take you—

“Whoa, whoa, let’s calm down a little bit,” Spidey says beseechingly. “You don’t have any wounds, but you lost a lot of blood.”

“It’ll replenish soon,” you mutter. After some sugar. Sustenance. That would help. As if he’d heard your thoughts, Spidey waves something in front of you. It takes a hot second for your eyes to focus on it, but when you realize it’s a churro your mouth waters.

“I did not mean for this to go this way,” he mutters. Almost shyly, he thrusts it at you, saying, “Here. I got it for you.”

You’re not one to refuse free food. If he’s poisoned it, chances are the poison won’t affect you much, anyway. You’ll take your chances.

You wolf the churro down in record time. Now that you’re feeling less woozy, knots are starting to form in your stomach. Spider-man, a superhero largely known for helping people out, just witnessed you accidentally murdering someone.

And you just murdered someone. You need to take that knife and burn it in an alley far from here and toss it in the trash.

Heat rises in your cheeks, but it’s not anger-heat that can be used as a weapon or self-defense. Letting Spider-man see you like that is embarrassing.

“Are you feeling better? I can get you another churro, if you’d like, or maybe a burrito, I think I have enough cash for that...” Spider-man reaches into his back pocket, but maybe his tone is too light, maybe he’s not being nice and he’s trying to lull you into a false sense of safety.

Quick as a whip, you take the knife and hold it in Spider-man’s direction. The superhero falls back, his voice cracking as he exclaims, “Hey! Whoa! Please don’t stick me with that! Do you have any idea the potential ramifications of mixing blood? Not that I think you have STDs or something, but still, I could still get alien bacteria in me! The Extremis is still in your system, right? Well, of course it is! I really don’t need that in me because it might make me blow up! Please—”

You blink. He sounds like a kid. Like someone your age. He’s in no way your father’s age. And he’s definitely not a threat. “Relax.” You close your fist around the knife and channel your anger into that extremity. It melts within seconds and drips to the ground. You shake your hand of the last bit of molten metal and allow the flesh to return to regular temperature. “You’re not going to hurt me for killing him?” Your heart still races in his presence, but it’s starting to calm down.

“I saw everything.” Spider-man stands up awkwardly, especially for someone that can do backflips and crawl up walls, and points up to the top of a nearby skyscraper. “They attacked you. It was self-defense. Besides, these two killed a bystander in a shootout recently. I’m not saying they deserved it, because that would be really mean to say, but I’m also not saying that you’re a terrible person. You know?”

“You certainly talk a lot,” you comment. It’s amusing.

“Do you want me to stop talking?” Spider-man rubs his neck. “I know it can be annoying. My friends—”

You shrug. “Why were you watching?”

“Well, last night you got shot, right? And I see you out again fighting crime. So I’m like, ‘Holy crap, is she in pain, she’s probably not all right, maybe she’s getting mugged because she slept on the streets because I didn’t help her when she got shot in the hip and then you slammed that dude against the wall and I saw the other dude stab you and—”

“Yeah, yeah, I get the point.” You stuff your hands in your pockets. “It was my fault, anyway. If I was wearing my suit the knife wouldn’t have gotten so deep in. It probably wouldn’t have gotten in at all.”

“Why are you just wearing a MIT sweatshirt and sweatpants, by the way?”

You shrug. “Couldn’t be bothered to change.”

“Well, I think you’re going to have to now. There’s a big hole in your sweatshirt and your whole back is bloody.”

“Shit,” you mutter. “But that’ll lead people back to... him.” You shoot a glance at the dead man. “And he’s going to snitch on me.” You shoot a nervous glance at Spider-man. You have no idea how he’ll react to you considering a tied-up would-be mugger.

Spider-man shakes his head. “People will see my webs. They’ll blame me.”

“So we’ll both be blamed,” you say grimly. “Great.”

“Yeah, The Daily Bugle is going to have a field day. But we should get out of here.” Spider-man puts a hand on the small of your back (right where you’d been stabbed) and gently applies just enough pressure to get you moving. Shocked at the gentlemanly gesture, you take a few steps before remembering your bloodstained clothes. “I’ll get you new ones,” Spider-man says grimly when you voice your concern. “But then I won’t be able to get you a burrito.”

The sweet concern is touching. “It’s really okay,” you say. If you had your credit card, or any cash on you, you’d buy the poor boy as many burritos as he wanted. “You gave me your churro. You’ve done more than enough.”

“Well, I wanted to make a good impression!” His voice cracks again.

“Really?” you shoot him a glance out of the corner of your eye. “Why?”

“I don’t know a lot of other teenaged superheroes,” he shrugs. “I thought we could be friends.”

See, Dad? You think viciously. I can make friends without your interference. I’ve found a friend loads better than Peter Parker. “Get me a change of clothes and we’ll talk.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“A radioactive spider, huh?”

“Yeah. And I know all about the Extremis. Killian.”

“Yeah. He murdered my mother and then tried to blow me up but my body didn’t reject the serum.”

“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Your mother’s death is like a bruise; tender when you poke at it but livable with. “What about your parents?”

“Oh, they’re both dead.” Spider-man gives you a half-shrug. “I live with my aunt. My uncle used to live with us until he died.”

“Shit, dude.” You lay down on the skyscraper, hesitant, and fold your hands together over your stomach clad in the I <3 NEW YORK sweatshirt Spider-man bought you. Goosebumps rise on your exposed legs, courtesy of the NEW YORK sleep shorts he’d barely had enough money to buy at that sleazy mart. What would you want someone to say to you?

“Like you said. I’ve dealt.” Spider-man lies down next to you, watching the sun set.

“I guess we kinda have to be friends, right?” You say after a brief pause of silence. “We got all the heavy stuff out of the way.”

“Sweet!” His phone buzzes. He pulls it out and types a quick text to someone. You presume his aunt, considering that’s the only family he has. Or one of his friends.

You can hear the smile in his voice and it makes a smile spread across your face too. For the first time you feel the wind whipping and realize you’re not angry. You call the heat back immediately, both to warm yourself and to protect yourself. What if—?

“Can I do a livestream?” Spider-man props himself up on his elbow and holds up his phone, which displays his Instagram page.

“Sure?”

Spider-man rolls up his suit to just under his nose and starts recording a video. You notice he lowers his voice slightly, probably to make himself seem more mature, and roll your eyes. “Hey guys! You’ll never believe who I’m with right now.”

Immediately comments start to roll in and people start sending emojis, mainly hearts.

You wave at the camera before unlocking your phone and following him on Instagram, now that you know it is actually him. A minute ago you’d gotten the notification he’d followed you, so you figured it was only fair.

Spider-man starts to do a run-down of his day, leaving out the man you’d killed. “Then I gave Inferno here a churro and we went shopping because we’re besties.” He nudges you with his arm. “No, but seriously, we had to burn her clothes. I can’t believe that dude threw her in the dumpster. It was disgusting.”

You wrinkle your nose at the camera, actually enjoying playing along. It does make you wonder exactly how much he says on his social media is a cover-up of some sinister stuff. He seems perfectly fine at lying about why you needed new clothes.

“Okay, now I’ll answer some questions...” Spider-man browses the flood of questions. “Okay, well, you guys know I can’t just tell you my name. No, I haven’t seen Iron Man recently. No, I’m not an Avenger. Still. And no, I do not have a girlfriend... Why is everyone asking if Inferno is—no, she’s not!” His voice cracks again and you glance curiously at him, tucking your wild hair behind your ear. The wind is whipping it everywhere.

“What?”

Spider-man just waves a hand at you. “I can’t tell you guys my schedule, either, because the bad guys will take advantage of it. You guys know that. Sheesh. Okay, well, since you guys are being jealous and immature, I’m going to log off now. Bye!”

“Let me guess,” you say sarcastically. “Mostly female fans, huh?”

“It’ll be such a shock when they all find out I’m gay,” Spider-man jokes. At least, you think he’s kidding. After a beat, he clarifies. “I’m not. By the way.”

You shrug and transfer your gaze back to the skyline. The sky is starting to turn orange and pink. “I wouldn’t really care if you were.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“Hey, you know what isn’t fair?”

“What?”

“You obviously know who I am. Everyone does.” Not to sound conceited or anything, Y/N, good going... “But the only thing I know about you is that your parents and uncle are dead and you got your powers from a radioactive spider.”

So what, you’re curious about who’s under the mask. Sue you.

“My middle name is Benjamin,” Spidey suggests. “But I’m not going to tell you the rest of it.”

“So I should refer to you as Benjamin?” You don’t take your eyes off the horizon, not wanting to seem or sound pushy.

“Please don’t.” You giggle as he pretends to gag. “You can call me Spidey. I know Spider-man is a long title. As long as I get to call you Y/N instead of Inferno.”

“Sure thing... Benjamin.”

“I should not have told you that,” Spidey sighs. “Um, what else... I, uh, go to high school.”

You nod. “I should still be in high school.”

“You graduated high school when you were fifteen and went to MIT, same as your dad, for two years, same as your dad, and graduated college summa cum laude...”

“Also same as my dad.” You sigh.

“Sorry. I’m just... kind of a fan.”

A weird warm feeling spreads in your stomach, but it’s not Extremis-heat. “That’s okay.”

“And then you were arrested.” Spidey’s tone turns a little bit dark. “You turned eighteen in the Raft.”

“Happy birthday to me,” you sigh.

“It was shitty what happened to you.”

“I’m out now.”

“Still,” he persists. “It sucks I can’t make it better.”

You laugh. “What would you do? We only became friends maybe fifteen minutes ago.”

Spidey sighs. “I know. It just sucks, right? All these powers and we still can barely make a difference in the world.”

You sit up halfway, propped up by your arm. Desperate to make the subject lighter, you say, “Speaking of powers. I know you’re sticky and all. What else?”

“Fast and strong.” Spidey shrugs. “Not much else.”

“Wanna race?”

Inferno Taglist:

@paullrud @eridanuswave @loveissupernatural @moistpotatobear @oh-annaa

Peter Parker x Reader Taglist:

@iconicbabesss

Forever Taglist:

@lemirabitur @annymcervantes @queenmissfit @quiet-because-it-is-a-secret @iksey @thehyperactiveteen @luxmoonlight

[angelhummel]

I am not a woman of my word, I tell ya what

So I started watching s6 after all. Well, parts of it...

Anyway I thought I’d just post my thoughts like I normally do for the rewatches. Although there are not many thoughts at all.

When I started watching, I was like wow. It’s good to not really feel invested in this at all because s6 is so pointless and also didn’t happen. But then Darren’s acting in That Scene blew me away, and Kurt’s breakdown in the bathroom- tears. Well not tears but something. ...A little something. 

I’m sure someone’s already made this meta connection but Kurt telling Rachel about how he was the only one who showed up to their spot reminded me of s3 when Kurt’s the one who convinces Blaine to go to glee practice and they meet up with Artcedes and everyone comes in after that and they’re all together. 

But also Artie is just... in film school, still. So he’s there. Ah well guess he didn’t feel like going out in the rain 

At one point Sue refers to Kurt as “Middlesex” which is, surprise, another jab at his gender presentation and sexuality. Oh and she says he smells like a nursing home. Just a fun little taste of the oh so hilarious insults to come :)

Although even Jane sounded tired of what she was saying. Her voice was just so calm and chill. Not the usual crazy rage of a Sue insult tornado 

Let It Go is actually a really good song for Rachel to sing at this point in her life. It’s very fitting. I mean I left the episode playing while I went to the bathroom, but it sounded really good from down the hall.

Wow that’s it for Loser Like Me. Moving on!

Yay Jane and Roderick are finally here. Happy days are here agaaain

I love Mercedes’s verbal smack down of the Tea Party people. And Tina’s one line outburst. But the funniest part is still Sam running into Quinn and her laughing like that. Unscripted moments > scripted moments on this show any day

Speaking of which. You know how someone edited the cartoon Hunchback of Notre Dame movie to completely remove the gargoyles to make it less wAcKy? Anyway someone make an edit like that for Glee where you just take out all Brittany lines 

Anyway more importantly, Unholy Trinity hot. Me gay 

All of the songs in this one are so fun, and I love the new characters, and the fact that Kitty is back. Am I actually warming up to s6?? Weird... 

I love when Blaine gets angry. I mean people already demonize him for having any emotions or feelings in the first place so he might as well be angry. No one can do anything about it 

Homecoming has great new characters, amazing songs, even made me laugh a few times. Normally when I think s6, I think Santana’s awful rant, the crazy Klaine locker, Myron, Dalton fucking burning down for no reason??? But hey parts of it aren’t so bad. I’m making progress 

Anyway that’s Homecoming. On to Jagged Little Tapestry 

Klaine duet. Not my one of my favorites but it’s still Klaine so... one of my favorites. I love how soft Kurt looks in the flashback. Little Dalton bbs

I love how you can tell that some of those pictures on Blaine’s phone are Chris and not Kurt. Probably some bts pics, which I love, because one of my pet peeves is when they use promo pics/stills for actual photos lol

“We all left glee club with a better understanding and appreciation of all kinds of music” me @ everyone about Glee

Okay I highkey hate Becky but the “Shut up I know!” delivery to Tina made me laugh 

Oh great, more scissoring jokes. That’s totally what I was missing 

They even say “I would hate us if I didn’t know us” well yep. I hate them. But I do know them lol. Ah well. Their duet mash up is probably one of my most played Glee songs. So there’s that

Santana proposes in the choir room and says it’s going to make all the single people upset lmao. Also she loves Brittany because they... don’t improve one another. Yeah it shows. God I fucking hate Brittana sorry not sorry 

God Santana literally reads as psychotic here. Kurt barely even said anything bad and she looks like the fucking Kill Bill sirens are going off ffs. I reeeally hate her this episode oh my god. It makes me hate all of s6 

Also can we please stop pretending like Brittany is a math genius. I’m over it. I’m tired. I’m tired of Brittany full stop. She’s the worst 

Tv writers have a straight guy and girl know each other for one minute and like make eye contact and expect viewers to be falling over themselves invested in this couple (Finchel) and I’m like ...yawn. But also Jane and Mason have one duet together and I’m like 💖💜💕💞💝🥰💖💜💕💞💝🥰💖

“I think because we’re so close” Rachel shut up I’m still not buying it

“Did they really say that? That I helped them?” God Kurt I love you. You help everyone 

“This isn’t about who I want to go to bed with. It’s about who I want to go to bed as” al;fklsdafjds nice line. I’m also making my peace with Coach Beiste being trans. They actually did a good job I think? The storyline just started and the rest I haven’t watched in 4 years so idk

Sooo all in all of 6x01 I watched maybe... 15 minutes of it. Basically any scene with Kurt or Blaine in it (except them watching Rachel’s pilot, or the Warblers number) and also watched the Sam/Rachel stuff. Everything else? Fast the hell forward. 

6x02 I watched almost all of. Just skipped some Sue stuff. 

I was ready to only skip through That Scene in 6x03 but I remembered all that Becky crap so I skipped most of that. Probably ended up watching about half an hour all together, so the majority of the episode. I consider that a win. 

Overall, Homecoming is the only one I actually really loved. Gotta move it waaay up on my Glee ranking list lol 

[justpeachyshua]

vocal unit theater au - seungkwan

seungkwan as the assistant director

“passion. so many people in this world are filled with so much passion. passion for writing, for dancing, for painting, for performing. passion moves us to pursue our wildest dreams and achieve our highest goals. but, what about when one’s biggest passion is also their biggest weakness?”  (warning/tag: angst-ish?)

part 3 of the vocal unit theater au

read below the cut!

as soon as you met seungkwan, you knew what kind of person he was

when you were both juniors, you were paired together for an ice breaking activity in your literature class, the only class you both shared

you were supposed to learn a couple facts about the other person and then present about them in front of the class a few minutes later 

you were super hesitant at first, not really wanting to talk to anyone in class

but when you were paired with the nice-looking kid sitting a few desks away you were a little less nervous

you introduced yourself and discovered his name was seungkwan

as you guys shared memories from summer break you cracked a few jokes and somehow actually?? enjoyed ? a school ice breaker???

when he ‘presented about you’ you got a feel for the kind of person he was

he threw some clever remarks in and got the class laughing and you realized

ah, he’s definitely an attention-seeker

not in the bad way of course!!!! you could just see that he enjoyed the spotlight 

you were actually pretty confused as to how you had never met this guy before,, i mean, he was so vibrant and outgoing and he seemed to know just about everyone

a few months into the school year and you guys were regular seatmates and great friends

you had pretty much mastered the art of discreetly passing notes to each other in class lmao 

(chaewon asked this guy out to homecoming in my science class. i felt so bad for her, she was flat out rejected) 

(how did she ask him out?) 

(full on song and dance TT)

(yikes) 

as you guys were super close, you shared pretty much all of your after school activities with each other, to the point where you had his schedule in your planner and vice versa

you always tried your best to support each other in extracurriculars! 

you were involved in model un and sca while seungkwan was balancing chorus and theater (ofc) 

that’s something that was really important for you two:

as different as you guys may have been - him the more exuberant type, you the more reserved and studious type - you always made sure to be there for each other

you know what they say, opposites attract 

so

when spring came and it was time for musical auditions, seungkwan made it very clear how excited he was to audition

and you were here for it! 

in the few weeks leading up to auditions, you spent countless hours helping seungkwan prepare his monologue and audition song

he was absolutely perfect ofc but he was dedicated and kept nitpicking his skills

even though you knew next to nothing about music, he would still always come up to you asking if something sounded right

“you think i should sing it more like this” “or like this”

“i.. i didn’t really hear a difference”

“do you think i’m too flat on this note?” 

“you know i don’t know what means” 

 you couldn’t quite explain it, but hanging out with seungkwan those few weeks made you feel all jittery inside 

especially moments when he was so involved in acting out his monologue and he had a passion in his eyes that made him look like he truly was in a fictional world

although he could be a bit obnoxious when he started humming, or worse, singing, in class, when he was in his element it was mesmerizing

as these sessions progressed, these jittery feelings persisted and eventually evolved into a more heart-pounding sensation

when seungkwan practiced his monologue in front of you, you spent less time listening to what he was saying and more time staring into his eyes and counting all of the moles on his face

you told your mom about what you were feeling

“it sounds like you have a crush on him!” 

oh

o h 

OH 

you had NO idea how oblivious you could’ve been to your own feelings if you hadn’t been able to see that you did, in fact, like seungkwan 

from then on, you desired to be closer to him

you wanted to get more involved with the musical

so, in a spur of the moment decision, you ended up auditioning for the musical with seungkwan

while seungkwan was effortlessly amazing, you,,,,, weren’t so great

you didn’t have high expectations necessarily

you’d never really acted or sung before and you definitely messed up the lines to your monologue

but when the callback list came out and you didn’t see your name anywhere, you were a little let down

you then searched for seungkwan’s name on the list and saw that his name had been starred

was he a potential for the lead character? did they want him to have a massive solo? what did that little star mean? 

you set your disappointment aside to celebrate with seungkwan when he heard the news himself

when callbacks were finally over and the actual cast list had come out, you were surprised to see,,,,

seungkwan wasn’t on the list at all

“oh, yeah it’s fine!” 

“what do you mean it’s fine?! couldn’t they see what an awesome actor and singer you are?!?! who do they think they are, turning a star like you down” 

that was when he told you he was actually chosen to be assistant director for the show 

“oh.....” 

seungkwan explained to you that the director of the show, the theater teacher mr. choi, was really impressed with his dedication to the class and to the show that he employed him as assistant director

his job for now was mostly to check up on the cast and crew to make sure things were getting done on time and to coach people on their acting/singing

he took it seriously, making sure to be friendly but stern when needed, and always helping out wherever he could

but, as the weeks past and opening night was fast approaching, he started taking it,,, too seriously

at first, when he attended after school rehearsals, he would ask you to join and help with building sets or organizing boxes of props

but soon enough he was so busy with the show that he was no longer inviting you 

lunches that you two used to spend together became lonely when he had to go to the auditorium to run scenes with the cast

while you would normally have seungkwan quiz you to help you prepare for model un competitions, you had to start asking for your parents’ help instead when seungkwan began spending long nights at dress rehearsals

you couldn’t blame him for being dedicated, after all his job was crucial for the success of show 

but it still hurt

there were a few times where you tried to reconnect with him

you tried calling him on nights when (you assumed) he wasn’t busy

but it would go to voicemail and later on you’d see his snapchat story updated with videos of him singing with the ensemble 

on nights like those you decided to shut your phone off entirely

bc it seemed like all at once seungkwan was dropping you for the musical,,,

when you realized your feelings for seungkwan, you made such an effort to stay close to him, even going out of your way to audition for a musical you didn’t really care to be a part of and taking time out of your days to help with the set up

and now it felt like all of your work had gone to waste now that seungkwan barely wanted to hang anymore

so, when your birthday came around, you tried not get your hopes up

when your classmates gathered to decorate your locker with sticky notes, you tried not to look for seungkwan’s handwriting

when you checked your social media and saw a few birthday comments from close friends, you tried not keep refreshing the page, looking for one from him

when your parents brought out the cake and candles, you tried not to imagine him singing happy birthday to you, his voice as boisterous as he was 

when you were about to head to sleep, you tried not to check your phone, waiting for a message or a phone call 

and by the next morning, you had zero new notifications

you walked into school that day downcast

you were assigned a new project in your literature class that day and, to no surprise, you were paired up with... seungkwan

“alright! ready to get to work?” 

“....”

you just nodded, lips tightly pursed

“okay.. well, let’s divide the work up. I can do this half of the research and the works cited if you do the other half and maybe make the note cards for our presentation?” 

“sure” 

it was unlike you to be so un-talkative, especially with seungkwan, so he was obliviously confused but he decided to let it go until you guys were out of class

he approached you in the hallway

“hey are you ok?” 

“i don’t know, seungkwan” 

“you know you can tell me anything, right?” 

“i don’t wanna talk about it” 

“please, you were acting strange all class. clearly, something’s up”

“well you know, maybe i’d be acting more normal if my project partner and closest friend hadn’t completely forgotten my birthday” 

seungkwan’s face dropped

“i’m- god, y/n i’m so sorry. i-i didn’t realize.. shit i’m so so sorry”

“i’m just tired of this, seungkwan. we barely talk anymore and i’m the only one that’s noticed”

"i..what do you mean”

“i mean you spend all your time with the drama department, so of course you don’t feel lonely like i do. you’re always so busy with them that you forget to check up on me, to say hey every once in a while. what happened to calling each other every friday night just to tell each other we don’t have plans over the weekend? what happened to our study sessions? what happened to us?”

“i’ve just been so busy-”

“yeah i know you have. but you can’t just drop your friends like that. i know your job as assistant director is as important as it gets, but you can’t let it take over your life. god, forget the fact that i even have a crush on you, i just want my best friend back” 

“you- what?” 

in the heat of the moment, you seemed to have spilled something you never thought you’d say 

your face was heated with frustration and embarrassment and seungkwan was equally as shocked

“just forget about it”

you sped off to your next class, not wanting to spend another second standing in front of seungkwan

the rest of the week was silent

if you thought seungkwan had forgotten about you before, then he was actively avoiding you now 

you opted to stay home the day you had literature rather than face another awkward class period 

although a part of you didn’t want to leave seungkwan to work on the project alone, you couldn’t possibly face whatever rejection you were anticipating

the day seemed to drag on forever without anything to do or anyone to talk to 

you wanted to be productive, but all you could do was lay in bed, swaddled in at least three blankets

about halfway into the afternoon, you were close to drifting into your third depression nap when your phone began to loudly ring next to you

picking it up, you saw it was seungkwan who was calling before you hit decline

he called again and, again, you hit decline

he called once more

you hit decline again

he call-

“what do you want, seungkwan?” 

“god thank you for picking up. i wasn’t about to keep trying until my phone died”

“what did u call for?” 

“well, i’ve been thinking a lot lately and you’re right, i’ve been spending way too much time on the musical and i’ve been neglecting our friendship. i fucked up so bad that i forgot your birthday and i ended up pushing you away. that’s.. that’s not what i want. i don’t like where we are right now”

“..neither do i”

“no, i-i really don’t like where we are right now. i want to make it up to you, y/n.. let’s go on a date” 

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“............are you still there?” 

“yeah i am. i’m still here. i just.. don’t know what to say” 

“that’s alright. you don’t have to say much. but i do hope you’ll say yes, because i did just ask a sophomore to fill my spot as assistant director for tonight’s performance in order for us to go out” 

you couldn’t help but lightly chuckle 

that sounds like seungkwan

“well, it’ll take a lot for me to completely forgive you..... but ok. let’s go on a date”

“oh thank god! again, i was really betting on you saying yes. i can stop by yours at maybe 6 later? if that’s alright by you, of course. unless you think you need more time to get ready. not that that’s a bad thing! but i did buy tickets for a movie at 6:40 so-”

“seungkwan, you’re rambling” 

“you.. you’re right, i am. sorry about that”

“that’s alright. i know we’ll have a good time

....as long as we’re not seeing a musical, of course” 

[thedepthsremember]

TRR 3.20 "A Warm Reception" what does that mean. does that mean FIRE i am on edge

I'm expecting it to go all nice and heartwarming, and then Anton shows up at the end. We shall see.

Officially longer than any other TRR book! We’re in uncharted territory now!

From what I saw from my roommate’s Liam playthrough, a lot of the carriage dialogue is mostly the same no matter who’s there, but, I do like this as a callback to awesome-storm Maxwell-Riley from the Homecoming ball, or Duke Whirlwind Dancemaster-Deluxe. With Maxwell, everyone keeps emphasizing how our lives together will be full of adventure and never be boring. ♥

You fools, take this chance to make out in the carriage! No! F O O L S 

Oh. Hello Ana! She’s got a new dress for us, of course. 

... Mehhhhh sorry not into that plasticy cutout look. Why do they keep doing that, it doesn't look like fabric. Sorry Ana, I’m gonna stick with what I've got. 

Maxwell says it doesn’t matter what Riley’s wearing, he and everyone else won’t be able to keep his eyes off her. :’) ♥ bro

Ana, a true friend (despite how I keep tossing out all her hard work) leaves us alone in the boutique. 

We are a storm... a hurricane… a mega punching robot... of love

sweet nervous boy. Riley literally said “I do” (well, ‘hell yeah’ in my case) and he’s still can’t help doubting a little. 

now makeouts?? nope, Madeline. Girl you are about to get stabbed. ANA, WHY DIDN’T YOU STOP HER, I’M SORRY, I’LL WEAR THE DAMN DRESS

(If we keep trying and then getting interrupted, only to finally succeed I will actually love that.)

Oooooo the reception hall is so pretty! Damn, they have really been outdoing themselves with the art lately. First the cathedral, now this. *__*

People coming up to tell us how we made them cry out our vows! Yessss tell us all about your tears! Our love is powerful, baby.

Took no screenshots of Hana’s parents so I can ignore that they came. 

NEVILLE?! WHAT THE F. RASHAD, DID YOU BRING HIM. DUDE. YOUR FRIEND IS SHITTY AND NO ONE LIKES HIM, STOP BRINGING HIM PLACES. 

You know, at the beginning of the tour we heard Neville wasn't even planning on coming to the wedding so I guess that's........ ssssomethingg..g..........…

like maybe he’ll get shot this time. aim better, assassins 

Anyway, better people now! Hello friends! 

Hana says we were like a fairytale! Even Drake is getting poetic. Liam sees how much we love each other. Maxwell has won the wife lottery. Excellent, so much love here. 

LMAO....... SAVANNAH EYEING BERTRAND LIKE, HUH.... MARRIAGE..... HOW BOUT..... THAT...…. :|

Me and Maxwell, poster children for impulsivity: YEAH, JUST DO IT JUST JUMP INTO MARRIAGE IT'S GREAT

Bertrand : *SWEATS BUCKETS* 

Hgnngggg I would stab a man for that wedding food right now. I picked Drake’s beef pork stew and oh my god...……. How do they always make it sound so good??? 

[pause to google feijoada recipe]

Time for toasts! Maxwell’s...….. awwww. ;___; 

He starts it as a Once Upon A Time story of how Riley was whisked away to love a prince, but her happy ending was swapped when she fell for the court jester instead. 

(Flashing back to the apple festival and Maxwell being excited to be jester. Good times.) 

My heart is bursting. I love our story too T_T 

Andddd he just blurts out about the hippo tattoo to everyone and covers it up with an awkward metaphor. That's a deeply Maxwell moment and I love it. ♥ 

Omg. Might regret it but I desperately want to hear Olivia's idea of a wedding toast.

EXCUSE YOU MADELINE, SCHEDULE SMEDULE. THE BRIDE DEMANDS TO HEAR EVERYONE RAPTURE ABOUT OUR LOVE

Olivia:  So soon after I met Riley I was like "I hate that bitch" Riley: a-awwww....thanks...…… 

I'M DEAD "LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT" I WON OLIVIA’S RESPECT! :’D BEST DAY EVERRR

I mean we also got married but like. you get it. 

“As we say in Lythikos, you’re still alive, so drink!” never change. 

Liam: Aww...…. He tries but falls back on being super formal, referring to me as "Cordonia’s newest dutchess” and me “being a friend to Cordonia and [him]”

It's ok buddy, sneak out whenever you're ready. Hana and Drake can cover for you.

Hana: Hana wins the toast both for having the most insightful things to say, and also being LITERALLY THE ONLY ONE (besides Bertrand) TO TALK ABOUT MAXWELL. She also made me cry, so like, triple points. 😢 😭 I love her so muuuuch.

Drake: “I knew you were trouble when you walked innnn~” 

Those were some real nice things you said about me but YOU ARE THE BEST MAN. 

I know I'm great and we're all in love with me, but come on. 

Alright here’s Bertrand, he’s gotta talk about Maxwell. 

new big bro you will be NICE to your BROTHER or I STG

starting out rocky what with the “wow Maxwell made like so many mistakes” business. let him rest, it’s his day, good lord 

*snaps fingers in front of his face* BABS, FOCUS

OH. OH OKAY. HE TURNED IT AROUND. HE SAID HE LOVES HIS BROTHER IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. THE DANCING COMMENT AND EVERYTHING AND HE ADMITTED MAXWELL DOESN'T NEED TO GROW UP. I'M. OVERWHELMED. 

In which I will take any choice that turns Riley into a woo girl. And Kiara’s family continues to be my favorite. They’re coming over to Valtoria Revanasi all the time. 

After all that, my toast was … whelming. I did get my vows already, so I guess it’s whatever. 

First dance time! Aww this track is giving me HSS prom flashbacks. Michael I hope you're happy out there.

Apparently Maxwell picked the song, which can only mean he is a secret HSS fan. 

“Partners” is such a lovely title for these two. I've always loved the term, you're partners in crime, partners for life, but they're also dance partners.  

Number of times Maxwell has done the dip kiss: 4. This boy SMOOTH AS HECK. 

Bertrand is scandalized by our nonsense but Drake understands they should take what they can get.

(where are my boy’s damn jello shots) 

..... I think I just married Emperor Kuzco. 

Maxwell challenges Drake to a dance off, and holy shit Drake can dance. Or at least spin kick. I'm still fairly certain he has no sense of rhythm. 

....Drake did not dispute the best friend comment and I'm counting that as a win for Maxwell. 

time. for. CAKE????! 

Real life me is a little sad I don’t have cake. I do have fancy rice crispies from my friend’s coworker’s wedding. It’s no passionfruit cake tho :’( 

(they successfully distracted me from wait where’s Olivia with cake. How dare you take advantage of my short attention span.)

Maxwell and Riley have matching swords. I might cry. That's the best.

..... Incredibly tempting to fuck up and cut the table. But OUR CAKE ok doing this right. 

WHOA Bastien hello, where'd you come from.

Aww Madeline has pleased her goblin father.

Maxwell is so happy about the Cheetah cake SUCCESSSSSS [sneakily high fives Gladys]

[I hope Gladys gets cake. At least 3 slices for Gladys.]

Ooooh so Savannah and Drake's mom still came! She’s off taking care of Bertie. Bring forth the Walker matriarch, I wish to meet her. [ spoilers: we do not :( ]

Uh oh Savannah is pissed and I bet I know why~

Bertrand's only just noticed oh dear.

Savannahhhhhh pleeassssse. These two need to work on commutation so bad. I TOLD YOU TO BE DIRECT WITH THIS DUMBASS. YOU'RE STILL HINTING. 

Bride awkwardly hovers outside her own reception trying to get her fool friends to communicate AGAIN.

Like I'm pretty patient and Bertrand is family but oh my god I can't be there for everything

Riley is tired too, bless her. We could totally have snuck off with Maxwell at this point but no, here we are. 

Ok Riley's prize for taking the diamond option to help Bertrand one more time is that she gets to cause shenanigans. You know my girl loves a good shenanigan! 

Oh my god are we getting the band back together YESSSSS

Stop one: Drake. He knows Riley by this point and senses shenanigans a mile away. 

Drake: You don't need my permission, Savannah’s her own woman and all that.  Bertrand: But I'd like it. Drake: ok then FUCK NO. Bertrand: :’O

Bertrand making the shocked face is always funny. Same with his mad face. Really just Bertrand emoting = comedy gold.  

Drake fully won Maxwell's respect with the breakdancing, and he's won Riley's by realizing he has the power to make Bertrand do whatever he wants right now. 

Drake immediately regrets his abuse of power. Aaahaha ok, ease into it.

Somehow we talked Drake into singing. I'm just saying, this would have been so much easier with him last, when peer pressure was on the table.

Maxwell has been waiting for a moment like this moment his entire life, he'd pay to be part of this.

Liam would both do anything I asked and is always down for bromance time.

There is an option to panic and throw the bouquet at Neville. I have to try that at least once. But later. 

Man Riley should have demanded the boys reunite their quartet anyway. BEST WEDDING PRESENT EVERRRRR (after all their other gifts because those were actually really sweet)

Savannah: holy crap you're smiling  Bertrand: Well you make me happy so fukkin get used to it 

^Those are totally direct quotes. 

While I’m making other people happy - TIME FOR GIFTS! 

The book for Liam is a nice follow up to all his talk about how he wants to bring Cordonia peace. You’ve got faith that he can achieve his dreams! Aww.

Everyone else does surprised sprites but Drake is wary as ever. Smart dude.

Hana's gift............... Ok yeah let’s just...… move along. sigh. 

At least Riley succeeded through the roof with Maxwell’s gift, he was about to pass out with all the layers this gift has. Aww, that was so worth it. 

Honestly these were all kind of short. Meh. Maxwell’s was worth it, Liam’s was a nice second. 

Finally can we sneak off--??

MADELINE.............. I WILL STAB YOU WITH MAXWELL’S FANCY ACTION FIGURE, DON'T THINK I WON'T 

Time to see other friends! We go to Kiara first, which is good. I continue to be proud of her forever. 

Penelope is me at every party. Where are the dogs. I can people watch just fine next to the dogs.

HOOOOLY SHIT

DANIEL

D A N I E L

DANIEL IS HERE, TAKING SHOTS WITH LEO

What do you know :D I have friends! Well. One friend. And no family. They’re really determined to leave that open, huh. You know, I’m okay with it. 

Daniel, I admire your thrift, especially considering what it must have cost to come here on a waiter’s salary, but someone is definitely going to think you're here to serve food.

..... Whelp that came true immediately. Hey Regina. 

Leo goes off with him. I guess they're bros now! 

or .... well. I've seen the posts going around. Make this a trip to remember, Leo! ;) 

Awwww nice moment with Regina. Look how far we’ve come!  I've always liked her. She's a practical lady. 

GLADYS

GLADYS IS HERE TO LET US GET ALONE TIME, FINALLY. BLESS YOU GLADYS, I COULD KISS YOU but that’s for Maxwell 

Wait...... I'm getting suspicious. We're just. wandering away......… mmm :|

oh noOOOOOOOOOOooo--[all goes dark]

Aw mannnnnnnn Gladys D: Riley is never trusting anyone in this broke-ass country again. Remember how we kept talking about how in New York you can trust people to be upfront with their intentions???? 

[throws Daniel and Hana into a suitcase] COME ON MAXWELL, WE’RE MOVING BACK TO NEW YORK. 

IS THAT SOMEONE ANTON, GLADYS

:’((((((((((((

I’m so sad, I liked her. I hope we can still win her back to our side. She seemed so surprised every time we treated her decently, I think there’s a chance. She probably got into this plot before she got to know us. 

Things we know: 

Liam is the only LI who doesn’t meet you in the hedge maze if you’re his LI. On the one hand, getting the king to sneak out is a whole nother level, but also he’s likely to have a big part in next week’s plot. 

The poor guy is also still definitely in love with you, even if you softened the blow with the closure option. And he’s especially taking it hard if you’re with Drake. We’ll see how those things go together. 

Olivia disappeared! Before cake. For their plot to work, they still need her around to make her queen. She’s loyal to Liam no matter what, but I’m still holding out hope that befriending her or not is going to play a part whether that loyalty extends completely to you. 

She was also our strongest defense, what with all her knives and proclivity for stabbing. So Olivia is likely to be okay, but who knows if they will be. 

Do they have our friends? We didn’t see them after gifts. concern.

what do you think? 2 more chapters? Wrap up evil plots and then have good things, hopefully? or just keep adding chapters and then it doesn’t have to end hahaaaa 

[helpingmehelpmyself]

Things I Used to Enjoy- March 29, 2021

Gosh, I have so many things going through my head. I miss the days I was able to daydream, read fanfiction, and watch television. I remember the day would go by and I would question where the time went. But it felt like self care to me then and I enjoyed it. Now it feels like a useless distraction that no longer serves its purpose. 

I want to enjoy the things I used to enjoy. I love fanfiction (particularly, Teen Wolf sterek fanfiction. I can also ship steter, starrish, and stackson. I believe they can all compliment Stiles well). I would squeel while reading and get excited every time I found a new fanfiction that fits my criteria. Sometimes I have good days in which I can read fanfiction and fall into the story.

I used to love daydreaming. My imagination is basically a fanfiction with ten or so fandoms running around with some cannon and non-cannon storylines. I liked falling asleep to my daydreams or staring at the wall while I daydreamed. I considered writing my daydreams down and turning them into a fanfiction for Ao3, but part of it feels personal. This is a world I have written and rewritten so many times since I was... 16, maybe? It’s easier to rewrite or follow through a storyline in my head than it is to write it down and focus on details that I never really focused on before. If your curious, my daydream fanfictions include the following fandoms: Teen Wolf, Scandal, Glee, Twilight, The Gentlemen, and Crazy Rich Asians. Occasionally, Beyonce’s Homecoming special and other things will make an appearance. I include most characters from these programs and create some OC’s in my head that have nothing to do with the other fandoms. Sometimes I’ll pluck someone from another place, like Carrie from Sex & The City but combine her with Isabel from Glee and mix up her storyline, or create a character with the appearance of a famous actor, like the original Mr. Fantastic actor.

I loved music. I could listen to music all day and enjoy myself. Sometimes it was the soundtrack to my imagination or I’d have some of my characters sing the songs I was listening to. I would listen to the same songs on repeat and create scenes with them and sometimes I’ll be able to add new music to the mix. If I wanted to listen to an album, I’d sit/lay down in my room and focus on nothing but the album. If there was an artist I liked and wanted to explore more of, I would go through their entire Spotify history and listen to every song at least once. I’d add it to my Liked Songs playlist because I am crap at creating playlists (minus the Boudoir playlist I made last year for my photoshoot, but that’s another story). Almost every song I have ever liked is on my Liked Songs. I think I have over a thousand songs on there, which is pretty decent. I kind of know where every song is located when it’s organized by Recently Added. Minus screamo, heavy metal, gangsta rap, underground music or electronic music, I listened to a little of everything. I loved Glee, Hamilton, Meg the Stalion, Kendrick Lamarr, the Civil Wars, early Taylor Swift, American Authors, Secondhand Serenade, G-Eazy, Mulatto, Into the Heights, Moana, Victorious, I could go on. Every song plays a part of my history and I love expanding it.

I can’t really do those things the same anymore and I wish I could. Writing fanfiction sounds like it could be a possibility for me because most of my life, I wanted to be a writer or be an editor. The fear of financial security made me switch to a business major and it didn’t make things any easier I find. I guess more approving nods from other adults about my choice in degree was a plus.

I can’t focus on my own daydreams anymore. It used to give me so much joy but it also reflected my emotions: horny, sad, in love, etc. The fact that I was able to create worlds that don’t exist to anyone but me made me happy. Sometimes when I wanted to be closer to God, I’d even deepen the relationship of some of my characters with God. 

Music doesn’t sound the same anymore. I can’t focus to the point of slipping into happiness often.

I did have a good day the day before yesterday. I decided that maybe listening to the song that always lifted my spirits in the past, whether they needed lifting or not, would help. My song is “Do You Believe in Magic” by Aly & AJ. I don’t know what it is about that song but when I first heard it on Disney Channel when I was little for the movie, Now You See It. Something about that song was and still is special. I was able to sing horribly to the song. I was watching Freaky Friday that day and remembered how much Ultimate by Lindsey Lohan rocked. I was able to listen to that song and daydream a totally new scenario for my mental fanfiction characters. There was so much happiness and positivity in the scene.

That same day, when night fell, I felt so sad I made myself sick and was gagging in the toilet. I convinced myself not to make myself throw up because I don’t want that to become a habit. I don’t want to mentally make myself sick and think that throwing up every time will fix me. I felt like shit for hours later, but I was glad that I didn’t throw up. I knew I was in a bad enough position that I needed company. 2/3 of my best friends and one of their boyfriends showed up at my place, late at night and stayed with me for hours. We’d talk about the issues that were plaguing my mind and about 2 of them moving into a new apartment together. 

I went back and forth from lying in the bathroom and lying in my bed. I don’t know why but whenever I was sick growing up, laying on the bathroom floor made me feel better. I know it is unsanitary and gross, but you get to a point that you don’t care. The bathroom has always felt safe for me. I still remember the first time I did it. My mom, brother, and I lived in an apartment about 20-30 minutes away from where we live now. I was getting ready for school one day and I guess I didn’t feel good. I laid down on the bathroom floor and that’s how my mom found me. She knew that this little 5 or 6 year old that never complained about school wasn’t faking anything. I think after that point, my mom became pretty trusting of me whenever I said I can’t go to school. Whether I was physically sick or needed a mental health day, she let it happen. I didn’t practice this often until I was junior high and high school, but it helped knowing my mom would let me take care of myself however I saw fit. I think she also didn’t want to have to keep taking off of work to pick me up from school.

The issues that brought me to tears were my boyfriend, the love of my life. I have only dated one boy before him. That was back in high school and I liked that I had a boyfriend more than I actually liked my boyfriend. We had been friends for years and were in speech and debate together. I asked him to my prom and, due to a misunderstanding, he never replied. When we realized the misunderstanding, he asked me to his prom (We went to two different schools) which was fun. It was at a country club, his parents had dinner catered to their house for us (very successful accountants) and we got some cute pictures from that night. I found myself bored with the relationship and knew ending it wouldn’t affect my quality of life within that moment. So I did. Now he is happily out as gay with his partner of 3 years and starting Harvard Law in the fall. I kind of like that fact and it made it easier to be friends with him on Facebook and Instagram again.

But back to my current boyfriend, the boy I didn’t think that I would fall for. To make our love story short (I’ll probably go into more in another post), we met on Tinder 2.5 years ago when the guy I was talking to/dating previously decided to go back to his toxic/abusive ex-girlfriend. I was talking to my soon-to-be boyfriend and another guy at the time and my boyfriend was the one that lasted. I remember that I would message every Tinder match with “Aye” because everyone wants the other person to start the conversation or else there won’t be a conversation. He responded with “I love your smile. It’s so positive” and that was my downward spiral. We’re pretty good at communication and we are a good match for each other. We both come from mostly different backgrounds, racially and socially. Sometimes there are things about me he’ll never understand, but making strong friends with people who weren’t racially the same as me kind of prepared me for that. 

Anyways, he wants to be a doctor of osteopathic medicine (still don’t know what that is) and go to med school for it a year after our undergrad. I don’t plan on starting grad school right now because I am not fully sure what I want to do with my career just yet. I’m not going to put myself in more debt or spend more time in school without a reason. Anyways, not many medical schools in our state offer the certification he’d need so he’s even looking at schools out of state. I have always wanted to go with him and support him through it while I start my career, but as that time draws closer, I find myself unsure of myself.

I need a lot of attention and am very sociable. I know when he goes to med school, he won’t be able to give me as much attention and he can’t really be faulted for that. It probably won’t get any easier once he does his residency and beyond. Despite being sociable, I have created a support network of my family and friends (we’ve been together for like 10 years). It’s to a point that I can socialize with other people with the idea that they are going to be acquaintances or somewhat distant friends. I usually know what kind of friend I want people to be before or during meeting them. But my dependency on my support network is so... strong that it kind of messed up a very big job opportunity for me a few years ago. I am afraid of having to make new connections again once we move away. Regardless if he choses a school in our state or not, we’d have to move. I don’t want him to be my only social connection, but am also afraid of making new ones. 

I made a list of all the things that scared me with possible solutions in which moving away with him was on it. I wrote that I would try to connect with coworkers (I can’t imagine and kind of don’t want to be best friends with a coworker. You never know when play ends and work begins) and neighbors. I don’t even talk to my neighbors now. I thought I could bake my famous browned butter salted chocolate chip cookies and share them with people, hoping that it would be the start of something. I’ve picked up random conversations with random people before so hopefully I can still do that (I stopped the whole “don’t talk to strangers” thing when I was like 19). 

These solutions made sense to me and I hoped that by writing it down, I could move on with my life. That wasn’t the case. I became so focused on would by current boyfriend be able to meet my needs in the future and whether I’d be strong enough to let him go if it was impossible. I found myself loving him more than I loved myself and make decisions on bettering myself for him. Covid Vaccine? For him. Finding a good job? For him. I don’t want to love someone else more than I love myself. I don’t want these decisions to be based on another person. I want to chose what is right for me for me and not someone else.  

I wasn’t this way before my boyfriend. I actually avoided being in a relationship for a few years because I didn’t think I’d enter one for the right reason. Usually, I put myself and my happiness first. When I decided I was ready to care for another person, my boyfriend wasn’t the first guy I chose. I didn’t know he’d become the love of my life. I didn’t know that we’d want the same exact thing from our relationship and have active, open communication about or wants and needs from the other person. I craved his attention, always wanted to be around him, and didn’t even stop talking about him our first year together. I am better now, but he still finds way into my conversations because he’s what makes me happy. 

I’m not upset that I love him. I wouldn’t take that back. I just wish that I was enough for myself again in which I could make decisions for me and stand by them. I want to create the life I want and I want him a part of it. But if that’s not God’s Plan, can I let go of him? In all honesty, I’d rather be miserable with him with occasional happiness than miserable without him. Maybe that’s too strong of a statement so don’t take that at full face value.

I want to be able to figure this out while we are still together, but mentally I keep thinking I have a time frame to “fix myself”. At the same time, I know I don’t because I know mental health doesn’t work that way. I have the ability to take the time I need to take care of myself again which I am grateful for. It’s like having an adult and child in my mind. The child is crying all of my fears and anxieties while the adult is trying to calm them down with reasoning. I am thankful that I am at least this aware of my mental state. I can understand when something is anxiety or depression, name it, and although I am stuck with it, I try not to fall too deep in it.  

I still have hope things will get better and I won’t always feel this way. Hope and faith is all I have some days and that’s okay. I am one day closer to being the me I want to be.

[musicallisto]

Hey! Can I please get shipped with a female from ES and ILITW? I'm 5'6, blond (shoulder length), female with blue green eyes. I like swimming, playing videogames, working out, listening to music (BlackBear,ChaseAtlantic), binge watching shows and making lame jokes. I'm shy until comfortable with someone (then I never shut up), kind, witty, oblivious at times, strong-willed, opinionated, honest, a perfectionist and a nerd when it comes to my grades. Thank you so much, have a great day/night😆

here you go Anon! Hope you like it!

I Ship You With…

E S T E L A M O N T O Y A

(faceclaim: Lucy Vives) • She would be intrigued by you as soon as she meets you, wondering what could be hiding underneath all those layers of shiness. Once you warm up to her, you start showing your true self without any mask on, and Estela is very impressed by your strong, determined mind, and your stubbornness when it comes to your projects.

• Okay so this is a v random headcanon but I actually see you starting a band together with a few of your other friends in Hartfeld, after La Huerta or like if nothing of it ever happened? I don’t know why, but I can really see Estela’s musical taste being close to yours, and you would jam to the same songs and artists. So maybe you could make your own indie/alternative band with you on the guitar or the bass and she would sing, because I can imagine her having a really good voice.

• Estela never was one for commitment, but it completely changed as soon as she met you. She was quick to realize that you were one in a billion and that letting you go would be plain stupid. It really hit her when you were lazily playing videogames with her in her living room, and she was so content with you, surrounded by your peaceful breaths. She had never felt so simply happy, doing nothing in particular, stopping and relaxing for a second, and you were the only one who brought her that kind of quiet. That’s when she promised herself that she had to make you hers for the rest of her life, one way or another.

S E A N G A Y L E

(faceclaim: Broderick Hunter)• Your kind and strong-willed nature strongly suits Sean! He would be the most amazing best friend in the world, and the most supportive person you’ve ever known. He would always encourage you to outdo yourself and go out of your comfort zone, and he’s also the number 1 fan of your band with Estela like he’s there at literally every gig and at this point he’s basically a honorary member and has written half of the songs

• You two would have kinda “best friend dates”, where you would hang out in downtown Hartfeld, grab ice cream and then spend a few hours on the field, where you would watch Sean practise, run around and try to improve his passes. He loves asking you for feedback because you always tell him the truth, with a little bit of harmless of teasing. You basically always end up playing tag you’re it or another child game on the field, and he always wins, because have you seen those legs?? he’s a giant he could literally catch you just walking?? and it’s a mess of laughter and muddy hair and clothes but none of you care, you’re just so caught up in the moment and it’s amazing

• He’s also your Netflix buddy when Estela is in class or just can’t spend time with you for some reason. He’s more of a movie guy, rather than TV shows, but you were so persuasive (cough, try desperate) that he finally agreed to watch your favorite show with you. He expected to just watch the few first episodes but you ended up watching the entire first season in one night, slumped on the couch and drowned under several packets of potato chips.

S T A C Y G R E E N

(faceclaim: Gigi Hadid)• You two are badass females who know what they want and are determined to get it whatever it takes! You would be a very sporty couple I think, always taking part in very different sportive activities, and alternating cheerleading, swimming, running. I can see you both getting very cheeky and competitive when it comes to those fields! Literally any activity where you two are together can be transformed into a date because you are so creative and always find ways to have fun, but your favorites are undoubtedly coffee/diner dates! You often go to this diner after school to the point that the waiters know you and don’t even have to ask for your order.

• At first Stacy was super oblivious and didn’t see at all that you had feelings for her, because she was too absorbed in her own self-loathing and the blackmailing problems with Britney. Fortunately, you managed to steal Britney’s phone from her locker and delete the video while she was doing her routine in the gymnasium, so Stacy was freed from all that pressure. When you announced her the news, she had the hugest smile in the world; she couldn’t believe it, started to jump and dance around, giggling, until she stopped in front of you and exclaimed “oh wow, I could kiss you!”. She stopped dead in her tracks when she realized what she had said and blushed lightly; you took it as an opportunity to kiss her softly, and since that day you two have been inseperable.

• You are Stacy’s favorite shoulder to cry on, especially because of her family/mother trouble. She gradually starts to gain more confidence as days pass and thanks to your prep talks and reassurance, and was more and more able to stand up for herself. You also helped her confront her mother, discuss openly and calmly with her, and she felt much better after affronting her thanks to your advice. You’re so happy that she’s starting to feel more confident because she’s absolutely gorgeous and awesome and you wish she would see herself the way you see her. Luckily, after lots of work, she’s almost stopped feeling self-conscious and you quickly become THE Power Couple™ of Westchester High, both being Homecoming queens because you are, indeed, queens.

L U C A S T H O M A S

(faceclaim: Brandon Arreaga)• So you would meet because you’re both on the student council, being very good, responsible students, who somehow had never talked to each other despite being very alike, personality wise. You found out that Lucas was - or more precisely, used to be - one of Stacy’s closest friends, which intrigued you, and you couldn’t help wondering why they weren’t in touch anymore. Lucas amazed you; you didn’t expect him to be that intelligent, thoughtful and friendly. You had to admit you thought he would be a little-bit of a stuck-up, but turned out he wasn’t at all. Stacy thought it was very funny that you progressively became best friends with the guy who used to be hers as well - it showed that you lived in such a small town that everyone basically knew each other.

• There would be a ton of disagreements between Lucas and you. I don’t necessarily mean really violent fights or anything, but since you are two strong minds with firm beliefs, it often leads to differences of opinion. Neither of you is willing to back up from their position and your pride can lead you to give each other the cold shoulder for days… Until Stacy gets tired of your endless whining and complaining about your best friend and how stupid and stubborn he is, and forces you two to apologize and make peace. tbh you’re usually very bored during those periods because you can’t share anything with Lucas so you thank Stacy for putting up with your obstinacy.

• You’re also there for Lucas all along his drug use recovery. He was afraid you would runaway or despise him after learning that he had a past with drugs, but you were particularly worried and disappointed. You didn’t want him to relapse, so you helped him by throwing his pills away when he asked you, distracting him when he felt the urge to take them, forcing him to go to sleep early instead of killing himself on a paper… it was a lot of work, but you were ready to make efforts if Lucas was willing to do some too.

Moodboard

bigger version

Playlist

Fifth Harmony | That’s My Girl

Kings of Leon | Waste A Moment

Ke$ha | Woman

Elle King | Good Girls

R.E.M. | Losing My Religion

[starsforastro]

part 1  → best friend! sanha

↳ hahahaaaaaahksaldjflajsdfklasdf I thought it would be the greatest idea if i made pt2 to that bff sanha bUT THIS TIME yA’LL ARE DEVELOPING A CRUSH ON EACH OTHER MAN i”M A GENIUSSS

guys this is too cute i’m cringing omg eSP THE LAST PART AHHH

don’t sue me, this is the Classic™ The-Both-Of-You-Had-No-Idea-You-Like-Each-Other type of story

bECAUSE iT FITS

SANHA CAN BE A LITTLE SLOW ABOUT THIS

AND YOU CAN TOO BECAUSE LIKE

no experience,,,,,

pLuS LoVE IS gRoSS

hah

haahhhhhhhhhhhhhh

the first time you sort of changed in Sanha’s eyes was when he caught you in the middle of a volunteer event he couldn’t make to

he couldn’t go because his band had a gig the same night and he had to practice

but the other boys decided to walk to the nearest froyo place

which just so happened to pass the park where you were volunteering at

so as he scanned the people milling around the small fun fair, he caught sight of you plopped right in the middle of all these toddlers and five-year olds laughing and covered in glitter, glue, googly eyes and silly string

where the silly string came from, he doesn’t know

(from your other friend working at some other booth)

aND BOY DID HE TURN SOFT

kids were hanging off of you, walking up to you to ask how to make a certain craft, and you had the biggest smile on your face

laksjdflkasdflad

it definitely didn’t go unnoticed by the other boys

jinjin and rocky decided to spare him and just looked at each other, made a face and continued walking

bin barked a high pitched laugh and ran after rockjin in giggles

BUT MJ AND EUNWOO AIN’T HAVING ANY OF IT

poor sanha didn’t even notice the other’s shenanigans

as he’s unconsciously watching you, a soft smile spread across his features

this lovestruck boy

mJ SAW THAT AND SCREAMED

THAT’S WHEN SANHA FINALLY BROKE HIS GAZE

(eunwoo got a picture of that Soft Smile™ tho)

plus a couple of bystanders looked at the commotion that was mj’s squealing and sanha’s protests that nothing happened

“DON’T LIE TO ME, I SAW EVERYTHING!” mj screamed

“nO nONONONO HYUNG YOU’RE WRONG”

eunwoo’s just cackling in the corner

“YOU LIKE Y/MMMGJHHMMM”

sanha clamped his hand on the eldest’s mouth and dragged him away

you sort of just watched all of that in amusement when you noticed the kids turning their attention to the noise, not understanding any of it

“HI SANHA! HI  MJ!” you called out, waving your hand in the air

sanha’s grip on mj slackened as he was caught off guard, eyes widening

mj laughed and grabbed eunwoo’s hand before sanha ran after them

sanha sulked the entire time to and from the froyo place

and completely forgot about the incident during the gig that night

as for you and your view of sanha,,,,

unfortunately began developing when one of your friends said she likes sanha

you were 100% supportive!!

well, 99.90%

that .10% was because it’s  s an h a

gross :P

so ya kno

life goes on

ya’ll still bffffsssss

and one day when you and your friends were just hanging out at your house

he comes over

with plums from his mom’s plum tree

because she told him to bring it over

so when you opened the door,

he shoved the box into your face, making you flinch and him laughing obnoxiously

“SANHA”

“here you go, plums from our tree~”

your face brightens because their plums are super sweet and delicious and you just take the box and “omg yes thanks sanha <3”

BOI HE TURNED SOFT SAVE HIM PLEASE

so he’s just smiling dorkily like “you’re welcome”

you don’t notice ofc bc sanha’s always weird

you smiled back and a happy feeling bloomed across your chest

little did you know all your friends were giggling into their hands at your interactions

so when he unknowingly danced off the porch when you closed the door

all your friends waited until he disappeared and pandemonium erupted

“YO”

“YO”

“YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO”

“HE LIKES YOU”

“YOU LIKE HIM”

“YOU TWO ARE SO CUTE”

you’ve heard this before and was not amused

“why can’t we just be bes-”

“YOU KNOW THAT’S THE MOST RIDICULOUS EXCUSE EVER”

“WHY IS IT THAT IN THE STORIES, BEST FRIENDS ALWAYS FALL IN LOVE?”

“BECAUSE THEY’RE STORIES”

you noticed your friend who had a crush on sanha sitting their quietly and your face fell

“um,”

she looked up and smiled weakly, knowing exactly what you were gonna ask

“yeah I liked him, but it’s so obvious he doesn’t have any interest in me and… idk, it’s cliche, but he likes you (y/n).”

“even if he doesn’t know it yet”

and for that coming from her?

you couldn’t sleep for three days

so as life stilllll passseddd

and nothing changed too much

except for the nagging feeling in the back of both of your minds every time you hung out

which is all the time

you kept being best friends

roaming seoul

swinging your hands violently

pigging out on french fries

reenacting Singing in the Rain with streetlights when you walk down a more quiet street

falling asleep on each other when he and astro had late night practices and stayed back in the studio

fretting about homework

“hey sanha did you do the english home—”

“OH SHOOT WE HAD ENGLISH HOMEWORK?”

it’s just

you don’t remember him being that endearing

he’s usually a little sht

and did you always yearn for him?

like ofc you’d find any opening to just talk to him

but now you actually can’t stop thinking?/?kldjsalfja//ALAkdsFS???

aHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

GROSS

even when senior year homecoming came around,

and sanha asked you out by jokingly singing to you in tHE HALLWAYS

WITH HIS GUITAR

TO ASK YOU TO THE DANCE

he was a dork about it don’t worry, nothign serious

the both of you thought  n o t h i n g  o f  i t

just bursting into giggles when sanha finished his song with a bag of french fries from the diner

and while everyone was swooning

you two were lost in your own world, making jokes about ways he could’ve asked better

it didn’t even cross your mind once that a month or so ago,, sanha was gushing about his crush

so why didn’t he ask them?

fast forward to the dance, the two of you spent half the time on the dancefloor, the other half walking around the school, just talking

cue the cliche where the both of you heard a loud crash somewhere nearby and grabbed the other for dear life

heartbeats pressed against each other,

his head buried in your neck

and when nothing appeared

you slowly pried yourself out of each other’s arms

and your eyes caught

then your breathing hitched because--

was he always this handsome?

guys this is too cliche omg, ya pretty much knows what’s gonna happen

your friends run down the hallways screaming to you that the homecoming royals are gonna be announced

and since sanha’s on the court

they yanked him down to the gym

sorta leaving you in the dust to take in what just happened

the friend who used to like sanha?

she smiled and gave you a wink before rushing after the stampede

leaving you a blushing mess in the middle of the dimming night

things really changed one day when sanha walked into a cafe with his other friends from the school’s Overwatch Club and thERE YOU WERE, PERFORMING?

like what????#!@!? he knew you asked for him to teach you guitar from time to time

but you aCTUALLY KNOW HOW TO PLAY NOW? WHAT?

he froze in the cafe’s doorway and his friends had to shove him to move

he couldn’t keep his eyes off you

but in the way that was because he’s shocked

cuz you two always broke out singing

and it wasn’t that your voice was bad or anything

it’s just your range isn’t too great

y e t  y o u  s o u n d  a m a z i n g

and he’s sorta freaking out

like his heart started to race and all that sappy stuff

and he was like alksfja wtf

so he actually decided it would be better to choose a seat facing away from you

yet his friends took all those seats first and now he’s stuck with a seat giving him a completely full view of you

let’s just say he just spaced out

never removing his gaze from you

that is, , until his friend elbowed him in the ribs with a ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

“ohhohohohhhh san haaaaaaaaaaaaaa, don’t tell me you’re falling for you bff now, are you?”

heat immediately rushed to sanha’s face and his friends burst out cackling

oh no

sanha tried to be subtle about it, but this boy can never really keep his emotions in check

and you’d notice the second too long gazes and brushes against your arm

and your friends are pointing it out

and you’re like

no

NO

ya’ll being extra and that’s wrong

poor sanha’s heart was always ready to burst whenever he’s with you now

but to make sure nothing changes this friendship the both of you treasure so much

you don’t do anything about it

never bringing it up

nor acting on feelings

especially shoving embarrassing moments to the back of your mind

it wasn’t too hard

because you two were still screaming about everything

but……..

prom rolls around

and you were asked by someone

he was asked by someone else

:))))

the Classic

you wanted to just hang out with your best friend,,,

but you had your date

and he has his

but every time you caught his eye from across the room?

you’ll make a face and he’ll laugh

throwing one back

so it wasn’t too bad

it was just you two goofing off again

so when prom ended

and your date’s parents picked them up

you stood in front of the venue, waiting for your parents

happy, exhausted, and maybe slightly disappointed you couldn’t spend prom with your best friend, but had fun nonetheless

as you studied the lights of the city

sanha snuck up to you and

“BOO”

you swung around the punched him in the gut

“(Y/N)!”

“YOU’RE THE ONE WHO SCARED ME”

he just laughed and settled to standing next to you as you waited for your parents

………..

“you had fun?”

“yeah….. you?”

“yeah. my date is pretty cool.”

“really?”

“they know how to dance—unlike someone”

asdfjlkasdf “excuse you”

his pretty laugh rang out again

you stole a couple of glances at him here and there and,,, when he finally caught you, a completely innocent face on him, wordlessly asking “is there something on my face?”

cocking his head cutely

which made the streetlights frame him like a halo

and his eyes sparkled

and that’s when you knew

you’ve fallen in love with your best friend

[sithlordintraining]

What’s Your Tale, Nightingale?

A/N: I plan on just giving it to you whenever I finish. :D Btw it’s 3K words sorry, I told you I made the first chapter wayyy too long, and this is 2/3 of the first chapter.

Summary: Good girl Rey Kenobi and greaser Kylo Ren fell in love over the summer. When they unexpectedly discover they’re now in the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance? OF COURSE, with a little help from their friends and some singing. But that was Junior year, can their love really stand the course of Senior year, college applications, and other teenage problems?

Chapters: Roles, 1, 3

You adjusted the books in your hand before pushing open the door. “Well, well, well, looks like the DCP duchess is trading in her crown to become a Hoth hipster.” “Hello, to you too,  Rizzo.” You sighed, sending her a short smile. “Hey Y/N!” The others said in unison. “Hey Martie, Hey Frenchie, Hey Jan, how are you guys?” The girls began to surround you. “So, is this your lunch?” Rizzo crossed her arms. You nodded to be reciprocated with a devilish smile. “Join us.” She cocked her head and all the Pink Ladies followed and so do you. Getting your lunch you followed the clique. “So Y/N, are you looking to go from Red Roller to Pink Lady?” Jan asked as you all made your way to the bleachers. “Well Jan, I was never a Roller and if that’s an offer, I’ll think about it.” “Jan you know she was just the Queen of DCP and she was miss social butterfly, plus it was that ‘friend’ of hers that was lead Roller. How’s Big Gwen?” Rizz quipped. You sucked in a deep breath, trying to compose yourself. She was talking about Phasma; Phasma has been your best friend ever since you could remember and she and Rizz had their fair share of altercations. “Yes, Rizz that was Phasma and she’s fine. And I’m sorry about last year.” She shrugged at your apology as she sat on the bleachers. “Eh, you win some, you lose some.” Martie scooted closer to you grabbing your wrist “Flip! Is this a Tiffany’s bracelet?” Martie shoved her sunglasses up and all the other girls moved closer. “Bonafide.” You smiled and all the girls squealed.

The Pink Ladies surrounded you on the bleachers as the sun illuminated their pink satin jackets. With your shining curls, black cat-eyed sunglasses, and being in the middle made it seem like there was a pink spotlight on you. And the Knight’s noticed. Kylo, of course, didn’t because he was too busy watching Rey at cheer practice. “Oh, man look at her!” Juney exclaimed. “This chick is choice! Don’t you think so Kylo?” Kylo felt a dull pain from being shoved before he turned to see Juney. “What?” He asked, with an underlying tone of annoyance. “This chick!” Juney pointed at you. “Oh, she’s beautiful! Who is she? I need to know!” Juney’s amber eyes seemed to glow as he couldn’t stop looking at you. “Gee Juney, you’re acting like Kylo before him and Rey got together,” Doody said and the others snickered. Kylo punched Doody in the arm before Juney began again. “Oh man, Kylo, you gotta help me out, man. She could be my Rey!” Kylo rolled his eyes at his friend’s statement. No one could ever be Rey. Especially not Y/N.Juney stood up “Psst! Psst!” He yelled receiving looks from everyone on the bleacher. You didn’t budge nor did the Pink Ladies, as you continue to be engrossed in whatever conversation you guys were having. “Kylo,” Juney nudged him again. “What’s her name?” “Y/N.” He said rather short. Juney smiled to himself, “Y/N.” He said it to himself giddily. “Y/N!” He began to yell and you finally looked in his direction.

Kylo rolled his eyes. He got up and began to walk down the bleachers. Rey noticed and whispered something to Rose before making her way to him. “Hey, baby.” Kylo shoved his hands in his leather jacket. A smile appeared on her face, exposing her dimple. She loved when he called her that. “Hi.” She said softly and she was met with his lips on her forehead. “How’s practice?” He asked. She shrugged. “It’s ok, just getting ready for Homecoming.” Rey peered behind his broad shoulders. “What’s going on?”  He looked over his shoulders to see the Knights and Pink Ladies yelling at each other, with Juney and Rizzo at the forefront. “Nothing, don’t worry about it.” His large hands raked through his raven locks. Her brown eyes followed the movement of his hands. One of his defense mechanisms. “Who is that yelling at Rizzo?” She asked. “Um…” Kylo’s fingers combed through his hair. He didn’t want to tell her about Juney. “That’s Juney-” “He’s your friend?” “Um, yeah and-” “I haven’t heard anything about him.” Rey shook her head. “He just moved back.” All he wanted to do was change the subject, but thankfully she did it for him. “Do you have a class right now?” Rey asked. Kylo’s ears started to redden. “No.” He lightly chuckled. “I have lunch.” She placed a hand on her hip. “No, we have lunch together, remember?” He smiled widely “Oh yeah, now I remember! It’s a free period.” Rey couldn’t help but giggle at her boyfriend’s lack of persuasion. “Ben.” She said. “Rey,” Kylo replied. “Ben, please go to class. I really want us to go to the same school.” Rey wrapped both of her hands around his large one. He sighed, nodding. “Anything for you baby.”

Kylo decided he would go to his last class, he thought it wouldn’t be that bad: English. Just a bunch of reading and talking about what this stands for, he was pretty sure he could do it. He walked in the class, book in arm. “Well, nice of you to join us.” Mr. Tekka said. Kylo looked at the clock, realizing he was late. “Better late than never.” He shrugged making his way to the empty seat in the back corner. “And I guess better an F than not showing at all.” All the students chuckled and the teacher’s reply as Kylo rolled his eyes. “As I was saying, I decided to do partner work this term to see how each person’s opinions differ from one another. And I would love to start now. So Mr. Solo if you may.” His hand pointed to the opposite corner. “It’s Ren.” Kylo got up and walked over. “Until it changes on the roster, Mr. Solo it is.” Mr. Tekka turned around. A mumble of curses left his lips only for him to stop moving. Sitting in the corner was Y/N, legs crossed and nose in a book. He grabbed an empty desk, dragging it across the floor towards her. Her fingers clutched tighter to the book before she closed it. “You really know how to make an entrance Benji.” She said. He plopped down in his seat. “Don’t call me that. It’s Kylo now.” “Oh, so I’ve heard.” He was now up close and he could see how your features had matured. “And you’re here.” You furrowed your perfectly arched brows. “Am I not allowed to be?” you questioned. He shrugged. “I never said that. I just wanted to know what brings you to Hoth?” It was your time to shrug. “Just trying something new, Benji.” You teased. “Alright you listen,” He pulled your desk closer to his. “Don’t call me that. I hated it then and I hate now. It’s Kylo.” His brown eyes stayed locked with your (y/e/c) ones. “Did I razz your berries? I still can’t believe you’re mad at that.” You moved your desk back to its original position. “You named your dog after me!” He moved closer this time. “Oh, for the last time,” You shook your head. “It wasn’t me, it was my mother. And she had sincere intentions.” Kylo’s eyes bugged. “SINCERE?! She named the dog after me because it had big ears!” He exclaimed. “We were six! It’s been eleven years!” Kylo crossed his arms and stuck out his bottom lip. “It still hurt. You’re one of the reasons I changed my name.” You twisted your lips to the side before facing forward. “If it makes you feel any better seven months later, my mother gave it to my nanny when she moved to Mesa. I didn’t even get to say goodbye.” You sighed. Kylo eyes darted to you and he saw yours start to glaze over. “Um, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-” His hand started to hover over your shoulder. “It’s alright. I always thought you were the better Benji.” You shot him a smile and he couldn’t help but let a small one slip. “Oh kid, I see I’m going to have a long year with you.” No one else even noticed the slight emotion Kylo was showing and usually it was only with Rey that he acted like this. But Rose did and she definitely was going to tell Rey.

School was over and Kylo and his crew made their way down the crowded hallway. Everyone began parting like the Red Sea. “Hey, baby.” Kylo leaned next to Rey’s locker. “Hi.” She placed a soft kiss on his lips. “So I was thinking we head to The Temple for some shakes and then-” “Oh Ben I can’t, I have an Apples meeting.” She shot him a solemn look. “I’m sorry.” Her shoulders dropped. “Hey, hey no worries.” He grabbed at her shoulders. “Listen, baby, I’m very proud of you ok. Don’t forget it ok.” His plush lips gently touched her forehead. “Hey, you guys go. I’ll meet you.” He told his friends as he felt her hands slip into his.He liked being alone with Rey, without being hounded or made joked about. It made him feel calm and he thought about this as he got into his car. He drove out of the schools horribly paved parking lot and rounded onto the road. Driving down Walgrove, stopping at a light he saw a very familiar figure. He honked his horn before yelling. 

“Hey! What are you doing?” You stopped in your tracks turning to your left. “I’m walking.” He stifled a laugh. “I can see, but where?” “Home.” You said shortly before continuing to walk. He began to slow down and move closer to the sidewalk. “Do you want a ride?” Kylo asked, if his mother knew he would let a girl walk home by herself, she would scream his ears off. “No, it’s ok.” You said, head still high moving as quickly as possible with your heels. Kylo glanced down at your choice of footwear and looked back up. “Well, are your sure? I’m pretty sure this is better than those.” He peered back down. “Are you trying to tell me what I should and should not wear, Kylo Ren?” His name slipping from her colored lips flowed with unintentional seduction from her devilish smirk and he hoped that her sunglasses were dark enough to miss the twitch from the jolt that ran through his body. You continued to walk down the block as the car caught started to catch up with you once again. “So I take that as a no, are you sure? I mean if my mother-” “I’ll gladly tell your mother she raised a perfect gentleman, but I live three blocks over and I’m basically there. Thank you very much for entertaining me on my walk home.” You smiled before rounding the corner. He was stuck just as the light turned red. Kylo looked back to see her hips naturally sway side to side. She definitely wasn’t the little girl with the big eyes and pigtails anymore.

The next day seemed to be going by fast. Before you knew it, it was your last period: gym. Which was only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, where you concluded that you hated Tuesdays and Thursdays. You exited the locker room in your Hoth gym uniform, which was blue, green and white polo and matching tennis skirt. You squinted your eyes looking over at the bleachers. Frenchie and Martie waved and you reciprocated. You also saw that your stalker, this Juney boy wasn’t there. Thankfully. You made your way into the middle of the field. “Hi, coach.” You shuffled next to him. “Oh, Miss L/N! I’m glad you’re here. I want you to meet some people. This is Coach Secura and cheer captain, Patty Simcox.” You went to shake their hand only for you to be rattled by Patty. “Oh, Y/N you welcome to Hoth High! It’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance. I hope you’ll join the cheer squad, it would be beyond unreal for you to be on it!” A 300-watt smile was plastered on her face as you just nodded in agreement.

“Hey Rose, who is Patty and the coaches talking to over there?” Rey asked mid-stretch. Rose turned to see you. “Oh, she’s a new here. A transfer.” Rey tilted her head. “She seems to be doing very well, I think I saw her with the Pink Ladies the other day.” Rose turned back Rey. “Well, I heard her parents are a kind of a big deal in the city.” Rey’s eyes wandered all over the girl, she had these amazing long legs that looked even longer in the gym skirt, all the way up to her face. “She’s quite a beauty, isn’t she?” Rey squinted for a better look. “Yeah, I think her mom is a pageant queen or something. I don’t really know, I just overheard some of the guys talking about it in English.” “English?” Rey perked up. “Like the class, you have with Kylo before this?” “Y-yeah.” She wasn’t the jealous type, but she had to admit this girl was beautiful. But after everything they went to finally get together, she didn’t want anyone coming between it. Rose saw how focused Rey was and decided to keep her observation to herself. “She’s coming over,” Rey said jumping down into a stretch.

“Hi, can I, um, join you?” You asked. “Sure.” Rey sent you a bright smile. “So you’re new here right?” She asked immediately gaining a look from Rose. “Yes, and you’re clearly not from here either.” You said. Rey was taken aback at your reply before you decided your choice of words sounded a little harsh. “I mean, your accent. You’re British, no?”  Rey began to laugh. “Yes, Yes I am. Are you liking Hoth High?” She asked. You shrugged. “It’s different from my last high school, but I know a few people here.” Rey looked at Rose before continuing. “Well, like Rizzo, Mart-” “Are you a Pink Lady?” Rose interrupted. Her voice sounded nervous. “Haven’t decided yet.” You reassured her. She laughed. “Ok, well if you ever want to hang with other people, you can hang with Rey and I. I’m Rose.” You smiled at the girl, who had her hand extended. “Thanks, I’m Y/N.” You shook it. Turning to do the same to Rey, she rejected it by asking a follow-up question. “How are your classes? I hear you are in Rose’s classes, how is Tekka?” Retracting your hand, confusion wiped on your face. “Um, classes are good. I didn’t know we had class together.” You turned to Rose. Rose only shot Rey a look. “Yeah I think so, but you were in the corner and then Kylo is so big.” Rey's eyes bugged. You only nodded “Yeah, that’s my class. And yeah he is pretty big. I would’ve never thought he would get that big.” A memory of him as a six-year-old playing ran across your mind. “Wait, you know Kylo?!” Rey interrupted. “Yeah, we went to school together when we were younger. Before, you know, the name change.” Rose coughed, allowing Rey to pull herself together. “Kylo? That’s not his name?” Rey slouched impassively. “Well, I don’t think I’m the right person to say. It’s not my name, you know? There’s probably a legitimate reason he wanted to change it.” Rey slowly shook her head before the coach was calling everyone over. “But knowing him, it was probably over something childish.” You smirked at the girls.

Kylo watched as Rey and her cheer friends made their way from practice. Their ponytails swinging from side to side as the whispered amongst each other. Her hazel eyes glanced at him before a lazy smile fell on both of their faces. “Ok, bye girls.” Alone in the school parking lot, these two lovebirds were on cloud nine. Both gazing at each other with brown doe eyes. Even in the car, they held hands, stole glances, and gave quick kisses. But, it was soon cut short when Kylo asked: “How was your day?” Her pink lips started to form for her opening word before, she jumped from the two loud horns coming from the car. “Hey kid, do you want a ride?” Rey sat back as she watched him slowly pull the car near the sidewalk, and sticking his head across her and out the window. “Oh God, is bugging me apart of your extracurricular activities?” The corner of Kylo’s lips twitched up, his eyes washing over with amusement. She followed his gaze, only to see you.

You rolled your eyes. “No, thank you. If I endure this harassment walking, I can’t even imagine what you’ll do to me inside.” Letting out a sarcastic huff of defeat. He bit his lip, chuckling at your stubbornness, his eyes looked down at your feet. “Oh! But, she listens to me! She’s wearing Earth pads, ladies and gentleman.” You couldn’t help but let out a laugh, a wide smile breaking out. And so did he. “No. I chose them because they go with my outfit.” You placed your hand on your hip. His eyes followed, seeing your figure in your gray shorts. Meanwhile, Rey just sat there flabbergasted watching him openly flirt in front of her! “Ben!” Rey shouted, causing Kylo to jerk to halt. “What? Rey, Baby, is everything ok? Are you alright?” His worried eyes searched for anything abnormal. “Ben!” She said through gritted teeth. “Are you really just going to sit there and act like I’m not there?” His brows furrowed. “No, I was just asking her if she wanted a ride.” You, on the other hand, watched while a quarrel started to arise. You tilted your head, thinking ‘She’s with Benji? No wonder she was acting so strange.’ Feeling uncomfortable, you decided to leave without being noticed.

“Well she’s gone now, so you can drop me off now.” Rey crossed her arms. Kylo looked at the spot you previously stood to see it abandoned. “Rey,” He sighed. “Don’t be like that.” “Be like what? Should I just let my boyfriend openly flirt with someone in front of me?” His eyes bugged as he faced her. “It wasn’t flirting! It was far from it, we are just friends.” Rey looked at him with tears brimming. “It seems that you have a lot of friends I don’t know about.” His large hands cradled her face. “Hey, no. Don’t cry.” “Then who is she?” She whined. Kylo pondered quickly over the right words to say, to not upset his girlfriend. “Her name is Y/N, we went to school together when we were little. And then she moved. I never saw or spoke to her ever again. She was my best friend” He cast his eyes down. She was his only friend.

P.S: I hope you like it! Hit me up anytime with questions, comments, and concerns<3 see ya <3

[jordmac]

The Reality of My Senior Year

As I write this, I recall the feeling of summer 2019. Care free, doing what I could to make money for the dances that were coming this next school year, excited for what senior year had to offer. You know that feeling, that starts at the top of your head and goes down to the tip of your toes, stretching throughout your body, while also sitting in your stomach, that what was coming was going to be truly amazing?

And then when that feeling comes crashing down.

AUGUST 10th, 2019

I had it all planned out. Senior year was going to start in T-10 days. I was going to hang out with my “boyfriend” tonight. Last night I was at my first and last Friday Night Lights of my high school career. That feeling was rushing through my body. In T-10 days I would start the best year of high school. In T-17 days, I would become the official girlfriend to the boy I had been with since November of my junior year. The feeling was sitting in my gut, and at this point I couldn’t tell if it was excitement or nerves, but knowing me, it was both.

As he got into my car, he gave me the same smile he always did. He held my hand as we drove off, and he kissed my thumb like he always did. Things were just the same as they had always been. It was the first time we had really been able to spend time together in four months, as we both had summer vacations. Everything was the same, I thought, and in T-17 days I will be this boy’s girlfriend, and my senior year was going to be amazing. The energy wasn’t the same, which is stupid to say, but it was true. Something was off, but I wanted to ignore it, because as much as I felt like I knew what was coming, I didn’t want it to be real, I didn’t want it to be true.

He asked if we could talk. I froze. I anticipated the words. And then it happened. My plan for senior year, and what felt like the plan for the rest of my life, crashed in the words “I’m not in love with you anymore”. And then I had to drive him home.

I don’t know why, but this is where I start my senior year. It didn’t start on August 20th, it started the night of August 10th. I felt myself break as he left, not looking back with the same smile he always did. He had just broke my heart, and we both knew what he did. So why did I have to pretend to not be hurt just so he wouldn’t feel bad? He said we’d still be best friends, he gave me a pinky promise on that...how long do you think that lasted?

I called up one of my bestest friends, Savannah Stacey. If I was alone that night, it would not have gone well. I picked her up, and we picked up Amy, and I told them what happened. I didn’t cry in front of this boy, and this was the first time I had broke down about this, the ending of it all only an hour prior.

They did what they could to help cheer me up, but it was going to take a lot more than ice cream, Zupas chocolate cake and blasting Truth Hurts to make me feel better. We all knew that.

The next morning, I woke up really late. I got into the shower, and the only memory I have was how empty I felt. The fact that I didn’t wake up to a good morning text from him, telling me that he loved me. I remember I got out of the shower and I screamed and dropped to the floor. But I had to do what I had been doing for many years of heartbreaks. I had to pick myself back up.

We did continue to be friends as the summer came to a close. I had my final high school stomp. I worked my last night of summer at a job that I should have gotten out of. And although my plans seemed frayed and lost, I knew that some of them could come together. I still had hope of that. I had hope for this boy to come back and tell me he regretted everything that he had done. Some hopes come true...some are just hopes and dreams, and that’s how they should stay.

AUGUST 20th, 2019

The first day of senior year. I still had hope for this day, it was still going to be an amazing day, even if I didn’t have this boy by my side. I had my best friends by my side, and they were going to stick there and help me through. I sat through my classes, and went to seminary, and there he was. He didn’t notice me, and so I went and talked to him during lunch. It was a short conversation, but his energy was there: he didn’t care about me. I turned around and went to my friends, my heart sinking in my chest, and I couldn’t help it. I just broke and cried. And then I had friends who cried with me, for other reasons, but it was nice to have people with me having mental breakdowns on the first day of school. This was how I started my senior year.

AUGUST 2019-MARCH 2020

The next months were just going through the motions, not really trying to be spontaneous and have fun with my senior year. I auditioned for the school musical, Les Miserables. Theater was one of the things that had been a constant in my life since eighth grade, how I had made all of my friends. I went to homecoming, and honestly, I kind of popped off. I went to the Halloween dance with one of my best friends, Isaac Gates. I had my last performance of theatre on the BHS stage, doing a musical I had loved for 10 years. I had an “on-and-off” friendship with the boy, and we went to Winters together, which may have been dumb on my part, but it was honestly one of the most fun dances I had been to, and I don’t regret going. I had 6 choir concerts, as well as some extra performances at Temple Square and at elementary schools. I had my last musical revue, where for the first time, I felt like I had let go. I went to UTA and honor choir, and made new friends with people I had never really talked to before. I went to Sweethearts stag with my best friend, Courtney. And that night, my heart broke. He moved on, with my best friend, but I think it truly helped me to let go. I went to my Senate with the coolest Jew, Carter Page, and that night, after I dropped him off, and I checked my phone, it seemed as if the world had shifted into a different place. This is where things started to change.

I had been so sad for such a long time, and finally at my day activity for Senate, I felt genuine happiness, and I was like “it took me 7 months, but I really need to live up the rest of my senior year”. So I did what I could, while also getting a new job.

The text was from him, after I had gotten closure and apologized. He was trying to be clear, saying he only apologized because he would have felt bad if he ghosted me, and said he wasn’t trying to lead me on. I was livid, because I apologized because I just apologized because there were things and misunderstandings that needed to be apologized for...not because I wanted to get back together.

The rest of the week felt like a dream. Monday was nothing special, and neither was Tuesday. Tuesday I spent four hours baking and frosting cupcakes, because the next day was special. Wednesday, March 11th, I turned eighteen. I bought a fish. His name was Brahms. That night, it was announced that Utah Jazz player, Rudy Golbert, had been diagnosed with Covid-19.

Now you see, up until this point, Covid-19 was just seen as a little virus going around, at least that’s how I saw it. I didn’t think it would become that big of a deal. And then that happened.

MARCH 12th, 2020

You know that feeling, that starts at the top of your head and goes down to the tip of your toes, stretching throughout your body, while also sitting in your stomach, that something is coming, and you’re not ready for it.

That is what sat throughout my body as I sat through seminary, English, and choir. I was sick of hearing about Covid-19. In my head, nothing was going to happen. I was going to finish off school at Bountiful High. Covid-19 wasn’t going to affect me.

My voice was gone, and I had solo & ensemble that night. As I sat in choir, we sang the song “O Love”, a beautiful song, one that had helped me through the past months, telling me that I would not be let go. I didn’t sing, but as I listened to everyone else, I sobbed. Something about this day felt off. I watched my best friends sing their songs for their festival performance. I sobbed. We held each other and cried. I think we all knew, that whatever was going to happen, it probably wouldn’t be good.

As I watched them perform at Festival, I cried again and again. I cried as I watched them sing their solo & ensemble pieces. And then I was left alone, as they went home and I still had to perform.

My dad picked me up. On the way home, we cancelled our upcoming trip to Arizona, the trip we were going to go on the next day. Monique came over and we ate chips and queso, unsure of what was to come. We helped Amy and Savannah answer to prom, and we all were unsure.

I didn’t go to my first three periods the next day. I went to theatre, that was it. I took my cousin to pick some toys out from Target for his birthday. And that’s when I got the news: school was closed for the next two weeks. Plans, much like the beginning of this school year, started to shatter. What about the choir concerts next week, and the theatre competitions?

MY SENIOR YEAR:

From the start of my senior year, I couldn’t tell how this year was going to end up. I just had hopes it would be good. And then we got the announcement that we weren’t going to go to school for about three weeks. I felt robbed. I had two choir concerts and two theatre competitions in those weeks. What was going to happen next? The choir’s trip to San Diego being cancelled?

News flash: it got cancelled...

Everything was going to be fine. I just knew that we’d go to school after those weeks, and it would be just fine.

And then they announced that the soft closure of school would go until May 1st. And that was fine to me still. We’d still have our final concert. I’d still be able to watch my best friends perform in their production of The Diary of Anne Frank. Everything was going to be fine.

APRIL 14th, 2020:

It was a blur. I couldn’t tell you what day it was. I was just talking to my friends and then they said “this can’t be true”, and I was confused. But that feeling, the one that stretched throughout your body and sat in your stomach, it was back. And I knew. I think I always knew.

I wasn’t going to be able to finish my senior year at a school. My heart broke. I got out, bought a Red Bull and drove around. My senior year. My senior prom. My last choir concerts. Graduation. Getting closure with everything that has happened the last twelve years. Ribbed from my grasp. I didn’t cry. I couldn’t cry. I just drank my Red Bull and drove.

THE TRUTH OF IT ALL:

Don’t take things for granted. Live up your senior year. Live up every year of high school. That’s what I’ve learned.

As much as all of this does suck, I think back: would I appreciate my friends for sticking by me as much as they have if I still were able to see them in person every day? Would I so desperately wish and be grateful for those Target runs I had, if I weren’t allowed to have them anymore. Would I want to hug people as much as I do right now if they weren’t somewhat dangerous, if I hadn’t felt deprived of those simple hugs between my friends and I. Will I go bowling as much as I have with my new friends after this is all done? Am I going to crave adventure as much as I do right now, now that I can go after it all?

It is true, that the end of high school isn’t the end of life. It’s the end of an amazing chapter to look back on, the start of a whole new adventure. Am I going to take advantage of this whole new adventure? Am I going to fill it up with memories to tell my kids, telling them to “full send” and do stupid crap, just like I did when I was their age?

I don’t want to blame that silly boy that had more control over a year of my life than he or I wished he had control of for the fact that my senior year sucked. I’m not going to blame Covid-19? What’s it going to do? There is no one to blame. In fact, if that silly boy is reading this: Hi...it’s been a while. I forgive you for all the crap you put me through, and I hope you forgive me too. Life is too short to hold grudges. And high school is too short to hold a grudge on someone you might never see again.

Life is short. Senior year is just a small small portion of my life, and as much bad that went into it, I wouldn’t change it for the world. I mean, I probably would change the whole Covid-19 thing, but I can’t, so all I can do is take advantage of the time, and take advantage of the fact that I will be adventuring as soon as this ends.

CLASS OF 2020:

This may sound cheesy, but despite all the struggles we’ve been through, heartbreaks, bad test grades, friendship struggles, and the cancellation of school with Covid-19, I know that the class of 2020 will come out on top, resilient as ever. We are the future, and we will become some of the best leaders, teachers, actors, newscasters, scientists, musicians, etc that this world has ever seen. We will take everything further than it’s been before. New discoveries, new ways to help our nations, ways to help and serve others, new music, and teaching the future that comes after us. That is what we will be known for. We are far from weak. We are stronger than any generation has ever been, and that is what we will be known for.

Senior Year Video:

[daebakinc]

We Make the Kingdom - Pt.7

Image by silverdagger865

Pairing: Yongguk x OC Genre: Fantasy, with Angst and Smut to come Summary:  After a vampire attack leaves you almost dead, you are rescued by a group of werelions, powers long thought to be extinct. Upon discovering the same power flows in your blood, you join their fight against encroaching vampires and another, very human monster, to save the kingdom. Previous parts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ,  8, 9(M), 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16(M), 17, 18 ,  Final  

With your mastering of shifting and subsequent additional training with Daehyun and Himchan, you forget all about returning to the village. Three more months pass, marked by three more visits from werebears. Each time, you scurry to hide the instant you hear or smell their approach and mask your scent with the horse blanket and Youngjae's herb mixture. Every visit brings a different man, though each has the same look of trained composure and meets the same cool reception from the lions.

Long after the third bear, Minhyuk, rides out, and after it becomes too hot to work in the sun, you all walk back to the keep.

It's then that you finally ask, “Why can we not trust the bears? If the king subjected them to the same brutalities as you and the wolves, should they not hate him as much?”

Daehyun scoffs. Dust covers his hair and clothes from helping you practice incapacitating foes as a lion. “They are directly under his thumb. They stay in safe in the palace as his bodyguards while we risk our hides. He bought their loyalty a long time ago with soft living. Anything we say or do will be whispered in his ear the same day.”

“I don't care what they say. Yifan would never have been caught unless they told the king.” Youngjae tosses a dagger into one of the unused shed's door with a grim expression. “They betrayed us.”

“The king can use their families against them more effectively,” Himchan points out, though it looks like speaking on their behalf pains him greatly. “We cannot say we would not do the same if our places were exchanged.”

“I almost wish a vampire would finish him for us,” Junhong mutters. “Then we could just take care of them without sneaking around and rule the kingdom ourselves. Yongguk would make a much better king.”

“Careful. You speak of treason,” Jongup jests, drawing a light chuckle among the men.

Treason it may be, but you must agree with Junhong. Many of your conversations with Yongguk come around to his dearest wish in life: to improve the lives of anyone and everyone within his vicinity. He was studying to be a lawyer to defend the common people before he was summoned by the king, he had told you. Passion saturates his voice when he speaks of different plans and laws he would implement if only he had the power. If Yongguk was king, you have no doubt the kingdom would only benefit.

“Speaking of Yongguk,” Youngjae says, turning to you as he recovers his dagger, “did you ever ask him about going back to your village?”

Startled, you question how you had ever forgotten. “No, I haven't.”

“I don't believe it's more than a two or three hour ride. It is still early; you could go and return before the sun sets today.”

“Do you still wish to go?” Himchan eyes you carefully. Of all of them, he worries the most about everyone. You can tell he still has concerns about what will happen if you go and come back with only disappointments.

“Yes.” It is better to try and be foiled than let the fear of what you may find control you.

The need to leave all of a sudden overwhelms you. Leaving the others behind, you run into the keep. Yongguk had spent the morning inside, pouring over a new manuscript Minhyuk had delivered. You burst through the doors into the great hall. The manuscript and Yongguk's book of notes sit alone on the table.

“Yongguk? Yongguk?” You run into the den. Spotting his head poking out of the blankets, you pounce on the bed and crawl over to him. About to call his name again, it never becomes realized.

Eyes still blind with sleep, his hair a mussed mess, Yongguk rolls to his side to blink up at you. While his mind attempts to awaken, you cannot help but stare.

The alpha is conspicuously naked from the waist up. Like the giant cat that is his second skin, Yongguk had been enjoying a nap in the sun. His tanned skin, stretched across the lean muscles of his slender torso, begs your fingers to feel its absorbed warmth.

Even more surprising are the black lines that intricately dance across his chest and arms. Tattoos, though not common, are not so rare what with their use with protection or luck spells. But you cannot recall any as elaborate as these. Barbed edges brush silken ribbons. Bold blacks fade in and out of elusive grays, twisting back and forward around each other. More golden skin peeking out from beneath. You wonder if you could follow the tattoos with your eyes closed, guided only by the ink's raised borders under your fingerpads.

Your eyes flit up to Yongguk's before you give in to the temptation to find out.

His gaze fixing on yours, he suddenly realizes his state of undress. “Oh.” With that single word, the spell is broken and you both jump back. Yongguk snaps up a blanket, pressing it to his chest.

You tumble off the bed, keeping your eyes on the ground. You've certainly seen men shirtless before, but you cannot remember one ever affecting you so. The redness in his cheeks only makes yours feel hotter. “I'm sorry. I'll wait outside. I'm sorry.”

Yongguk's voice stops you before you can flee. “Stay. It will only take a moment.” After some rustling, you hear Yongguk get to his feet. “I'm sorry, I only meant to lie down for a minute. Is something wrong?”

Hesitantly, you turn back around. His shirt is crumpled and not properly buttoned at the neck so part of his chest tattoo still shows. Forcing your eyes back to his, you lick your lips and remind yourself of your purpose. “No, nothing. I only wanted to ask you something.”

“Yes?”

The words come out in a rush because of the mixture of embarrassment and eagerness swirling in your chest. “Can I go to where you found me? Daehyun and Youngjae believe it may help me regain some of my memories. Daehyun said you keep a map of where it was and Youngjae said it's less than a quarter of a day's ride there and back so I would be back before night falls. I can take someone if you think it's too dangerous because I know I'm not ready be out after dark on my own but please say I can go.”

Yongguk looks back at you as he processes your onslaught of words. You pray he will allow you to go, even if it is with an escort. You're already forming your counter argument when he nods.

“The idea has merit but you are right. You cannot go alone. I will accompany you. I meant to go myself after I recovered, but other things took priority.” Yongguk moves to put on his boots. “I assume you are ready to set out soon?”

“Yes! I'll go get the horses.” You spin to do just that, but Yongguk grabs your elbow. Your head jerks back to his face, confused.

“You know as much chance as you have of regaining something, you may very well gain nothing?”

Sobered, you nod. You have no choice but to come to terms with that possibility. “I do. I will not be devastated if this venture does not succeed. I only wish for some kind of closure. And maybe to see what I must fight for.”

Hours later, your heart thuds against your chest when you crest a hill and spy the cluster of buildings nestled against a towering, sheer cliff. You search your heart for a feeling of homecoming, that swell of anticipation and happiness upon returning to the well-known. Yet this place is as foreign to you as the distant capitol.

Yongguk waits beside you without a word. Noir restlessly paws the ground, but Yongguk only pats his neck until he settles down. When you meet his eyes, you do not see judgment at your hesitation. Only a calm that reassures you, one way or another, it will be alright. He will make sure it is.

Knowing he is with you gives you the push to knee Rose forward. The grass parts and spreads as he walks down the hill. To someone passing by, nothing about the village would seem amiss, only quiet. Sleepy. Homes and shops stand erect, their plastered walls smooth and fresh. The main road into the village is almost free of grass. Fenced gardens blossom and birds sing from the distant fields.

Although the view looks as perfect as a carefully constructed painting, that is exactly the problem: there is no life within. All is still. No people or livestock move among the buildings, filling the streets with everyday chatter and commonplace noise. A wagon sits on the road just past the first house, horseless. Its load of vegetables sits rotten and crawling with buzzing flies.

Your feeling of disquiet grows the closer you get. You pass the first house and crane your neck to take every corner of the village. Searching for just one thing to spark a feeling of familiarity. Anything.

Instead, only the feeling of wrongness deepens. Doors and windows, ripped from their hinges, lay where they were tossed. Broken dishes, snapped farming tools, and torn clothing litter the street, evidence of countless struggles for survival that were inevitably lost. The carnage only worsens the farther into the village you ride.

When you reach the village square, a wide, open place meant to be the hub of village life, you pull Rose up short. In the center, remnants of charred logs lie on a large circle of blackened earth. White petals of ash cling here and there to the wood. Most are gone, washed or blown away by nature's sweeping hand. But hints of burned flesh and old blood linger like phantoms. The smell makes bile rise in the back of your throat.

“We burn them all? Every time?” you ask softly. You try to ignore the acid taste now stuck on your tongue. Your knuckles strain against the skin of your fingers as you curl them on the reins. The leather bites your palms.

Yongguk stops Noir beside you. “Yes. As you've read, we don't precisely know how a human becomes a vampire. It is better to burn the corpses of the victims than have them rise again as our enemies.” His voice struggles to be detached, but you can tell this is something that disturbs him too. “The vampires as well, to be sure they are dead.”

You nod to let you know you heard. As your eyes rove the square, they fall on a tall pole standing by the untouched temple. A large metal bell, painted dusty red by time and weather, sits on the ground by its feet like a fallen sentry.

Its toll echoes faintly the longer you gaze at it. Dismounting, you draw closer and crouch down. Yongguk calls your name, but his voice is so faint you barely hear him. You reach out and night swoops over the sun like a bird of prey.

Quiet moonlight paints the world in soft grays, but you cannot appreciate the beauty as you run through the fields. The tall grass whips your legs and hands, goading you to run faster. Run faster towards the unearthly screams, crashes and howls that come from the village.

Coming to an alleyway between two houses on the edge of town, you press your back against the wall. In the streets, shadows of your neighbors fall to monsters blacker than the night. Some fight. Some try to flee. Others are dragged from their homes. Your heart pounds, your mind racing to come up with a plan only to circle around one thought: you must find your family.

Your hand finds a staff leaning against the wall beside you. Armed, you inch towards the mouth of the alley. As you ready yourself to run, something knocks into your back and sends you sprawling. The ringing bell crashes beside your head.

A light in the temple urgently beckons. Sanctuary. You will be safe there. You try to push yourself up to run, but something heavy strikes at you again. It clings to you as you both roll, clawed fingers digging into your shoulders and chilling teeth snapping at your neck. You land on your back, thrashing, kicking, pushing at the thing above you.

It resembles a decayed body, saggy, wrinkled gray flesh stretched across a skull. Ragged clothes covered with dirt, grime, and holes are barely in a better state than its hair, thin clumps of greasy tendrils. Yet its sunken, red eyes and fangs that protrude past its red stained lips are anything but human. A rabid hunger sharpens its features as it fights with you for possession of your life.

With each wild dive of its head, its gnashing mouth gets closer and closer to your throat. Although your arms and legs are tough from years of work, the monster is stronger and wearing at your strength. Worse yet, it seems able to almost predict your every move.

As you swing your fist to strike it in the side of the head, it catches your wrist and slams it to the ground. You cry out as the fragile bones there snap. Your other hand soon joins it. The creature throws back its head and lets out a bloodcurdling crow. It looks down at you with an evil smirk before it swoops down towards your throat. You screw your eyes shut, bracing for the end.

“Wait.” The female voice is light and so out of place, but the thing on top of you stops just before its teeth sink into your skin. You can feel the cold radiating off its mouth. “Step aside.”

The monster whines like a kicked dog, but does as the woman says. She comes into view as you risk a look. For a second, you feel only confusion.

She is beautiful. Hair blacker than the depths of a lake and pale skin the peachy white of late spring snow at dusk, she is perfect, statuesque. A golden tiara inlaid with jade rests delicately on her carefully coiffed hair, and her dress, a rich plum purple, look antique but of the highest quality.

But when she leans closer, you understand. Her eyes are the same as the monster who was ready to slaughter you. She is beautiful, but it is the same deadly beauty as a hooded snake. As when caught by the hypnotic gaze of the serpent, you are unable to move to save yourself for fear she will strike.

“A beast child,” the woman purrs, somehow sounding both displeased and delighted. “Pity. I had hoped you all had died out. But then this would be all too easy.”

Her icy fingers grip your chin, lifting the upper half of your body from the ground. Eyes the crimson of freshly drawn blood rove your face. You want to struggle, every instinct screaming to escape, to run as fast as a rabbit flees the fox. But this fox already has you firmly in her paws.

“Ah, you do not know of your powers, do you, child?” She pushes a lock of hair from your face almost tenderly. “No, you do not. You would have fled long before we caught you. Unless your blood is so diluted it is only enough for one as experienced as I to sense it. I wonder what I should do with you...”

“My Queen,” comes a strangled voice from behind her. The monster who had first tackled you to the ground is on its knees, wringing its hands. Its eyes flick back and forth between the woman's face and your throat. Sniveling, it says“Please, I am I starving, Your Majesty. I caught this one. She is mine.”

Your head is thrown back so hard your vision swims from the impact. Although the two are reduced to dark blurs, their voices are unmercifully clear.

“You dare speak to me in such a way, cur?” Her restrained rage is made all the terrifying by  the softness in which it is spoken. “You live because of me. You should be grateful for every drop of blood that slips down your damned throat. If I decide to claim your prey, you will be ecstatic that I so favor you!”

“But-” The monster's words are cut off with a pained yelp.

“Get out of my sight before I stake you myself,” the woman hisses. “There are plenty of other blood-slaves to feed on.”

All dissension gone from its voice, it replies “Yes, my Queen.” Footsteps hurriedly shuffle away, enveloped by the chaos still surrounding you.

“Now,” she squats beside your again, your labored breathing becoming more erratic in your frozen panic, “where was I?”

You try to scramble away, but your fingers only manage to feebly scratch at the dirt. She straddles your hips and lays her hands over yours. Caressing the back of them, she tuts, “No, no, my pet. You are not going anywhere. You and I, we are going to conduct a little experiment. Let us see just how strong your were-blood is.”

“I don't know what you mean,” you manage to choke out. Your voice trembles, but there is nothing you can do to stop it. Nor does it concern you. “I don't have magic.”

“If only that were true, dear. Then I would just kill you instead of having a little entertainment.” She lowers her body over yours, sliding against you sensuously. You tremble in revulsion, but you cannot move. You are at her complete mercy. And you already know she has not one drop of it in her black heart.

The woman smiles and whispers in your ear, “You see, I do not think you have enough to save you. Maybe you will become one of mine and, oh, what a treat that would be. You will be so strong, like me, but under my command. Or, maybe your blood will reject me, and you will die. Either way, I cannot lose.”

“One of your what?” You shudder when she glances pointedly beyond the two of you. “One of them?” Her grin confirms it.

“Ah, do not cry.” She wipes away the tears now streaming down your face. With a wicked smile that exposes fangs of her own, she says, “It will be over soon, one way or another. Consider it an honor you are being bitten by Queen Lamia herself. Few mortals can boast of such a thing.” She laughs suddenly. “Not that you shall be mortal if you survive.”

Amusement still glitters in her eyes as she lunges forward, teeth plunging into your neck.

“No!”you cry, falling backwards.

Solid arms catch you before you hit the ground. You struggle in a blind panic for the split second before you realize bright sunlight is bearing down on your face instead of cold night air. The fight drains from your body, leaving you limp as you open your eyes.

Yongguk adjusts his grip around your shoulders, his face inches from yours. His eyes rove over you in concern. “Are you alright?”

You nod, then immediately shake your head. The newfound memory of the night you lost your life has your head throbbing. If you had had any expectations of what you would find, this was not it.

“You did not find good memories, I'm guessing.” Yongguk keeps his voice low and soft as if speaking to a spooked horse. When you open your mouth but nothing comes out, he adds, “Take your time. We have plenty of sunlight hours left.”

Your fingers tighten on the sleeves of his shirt. Yongguk eases his knees out from under him where he had been kneeling beside you and pulls you into his lap. Your head rests in the crook of his shoulder. He smells of the sunshine he had bathed in earlier, wholesome and fresh and alive.

The scent helps steady your breath and collect yourself. You sit up and slide off Yongguk's lap, but when he tries to remove his arm around you, you catch it with your hand. You need that simple touch, an unspoken support and comfort, even as you need to stand on your own feet.

“I remembered the night of the attack.” Your thumb rubs the back of Yongguk's hand, your head falling to his shoulder again. It feels like it was made for you to rest against. To soak in Yongguk's solid strength as you continue. “They struck just after dusk when everyone was home. I was late returning from the fields when- when there was a great sound, like lightening hitting the mountain. I ran, but I heard the cries too late...”

The rest of  what you'd seen spills out. You try to tell him everything, some aspects still blurrier than others. Still, even a small detail may prove invaluable. When you cannot recall any more, you lean more heavily against Yongguk, emotionally spent.

“You did not remember more about yourself?” he asks gently.

“No.” To be honest, you had little hope this morning you would remember anything. You are glad to have gained that small glimpse, even if it proved a nightmare.

“More will come with time.”

You glance around the small square, imagining it full of innocent people going about their day. Each with their own stories, their own hopeful futures. Now they are only ashes, forgotten. Robbed both of their potential and legacies. Massacred without hope or chance. The mindless waste of life makes your heart ache. Your eyes burn as if with tears, but you are too empty to produce even a single one.

“Why didn't the village protection spells work? We had to have them. ” You press your face into Yongguk's chest. You will not cry, you tell yourself. You will not. “They should warned us. We weren't prepared.”

“Vampires are as immune to magic as we are. The spells could not have held them back. Any magic to detect them would have faded years ago if it was ever in place. Even if you had a warning, there is very little chance anyone but weres could have stopped what happened.” Yongguk's hand comes to the nape of your neck. He hesitates before slowly stroking your hair in long, steady sweeps.

“I could have fought them,” you say, desperately wanting to believe you could have changed your village's fate. “If I'd shifted-”

“No.” Yongguk's answer is firm as the hand that stills on your neck until you look at him. “Even if you had known you were a were, you had no training. She would have made sure she killed you beyond certainty.”

“I should-”

“No. Do not chastise yourself for the past, especially outcomes you could not have changed no matter the choice you made. It only creates self-doubt and loathing that spirals until you wish you were dead rather than deal with the pain.” He pauses before adding quietly, “I know what it is like. It is not a place I would wish on anyone.”

You instantly know he speaks of his twin and sister. The guilt that came with shifting only in time to save his life and not theirs. In comparison, you were granted a small mercy. Your loss is faceless while Yongguk must look at his every time he sees his own reflection. Yet you never see him despair, never hear him utter words that expose the grief haunting his heart.    

“What do you do?” you ask, shifting closer. Your hand wraps around his that rests closed in a tight fist on his thigh. “How do you overcome it?”

Yongguk's eyes fall to your hand. His fingers loosen to slowly interlock with yours. “You live. You learn and train as much as you can bear to become stronger and wiser. You force yourself to rise from bed every day and laugh and smile until it becomes natural again. Some days, conquering the demons in your head exhausts you more than battling the tangible ones. But you fight on, because you discover new reasons to keep yourself alive.”

“What are your reasons?”

“Because even if I had not been forced to, I know I would have fought to protect our people because it is what is right. To prevent anyone else from suffering so. To see my family again. To stand with the new family all this brought to me.” Yongguk glances down at you, half of a smile curving his lips. “We can never underestimate the strength we can acquire from our friends. I have lost count of how many times they have saved my life, even when they were unaware of it.”

Gazing back at him, the enormity of his courage and fortitude washes over you. On top of leading the pride and researching endlessly, Yongguk fights with himself to be better, all without complaint. How many others have such bravery to drive out fear and hatred from their souls instead of succumbing in order to preserve the light of goodness.

You release his hand on your shoulder. Your hand slides up his jaw and you stretch up to kiss his temple before you truly realize what you're doing. Yongguk's arm tightens around you. You worry your small gesture of admiration and support upset him.

When you lower your chin, his eyes capture yours. Before you can apologize, Yongguk's lips push against yours. Soft, sincere, and simple, the kiss still steals your breath and any ability to feel or hear anything except his skin, his breath, his scent heavy in the air. A warmth to rival the sun's blossoms in your lips.

As your hand slips to his neck to draw him closer, Yongguk pulls away. A conflicted frown is settled on his face. “I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-”

You press a finger to his lips.  “Do not say you shouldn't have kissed me.” If he thinks it was a mistake, you do not want to hear his regret and have it ruin what just happened. “I am a clear-headed woman capable of deciding what I want and will allow for myself. It was a fleeting, beautiful moment. Shouldn't we take advantage of those when we can?”

Hurrying to stand so he cannot reply and your face cannot betray your hurt, you reach your hand down to help him up. You wish you didn't feel a shock when his hand closes around yours. Yongguk looks like he wants to say something, but you turn away to look for your horse. The sooner you leave, the better.

Rose snorts his disapproval when you cut his snacking on a nearby garden short. You smile and pat his nose. “We're going home, boy. Plenty to eat there.”

Yongguk is already on Thorn's back when you wheel Rose around to face the way you had come. He's staring at the bell, where the two of you had been sitting only moments ago.

“Yongguk?”

His frown deepens. “You said the vampire who bit you called herself Queen Lamia?”

“Yes.”

“I have seen that name before. I don't know where, but I do not think it bodes well.” He looks up at the sky. “We should leave now. Come.”

Letting Yongguk and Noir stride ahead, you give Rose his head to follow them. As you climb the hill, you look over your shoulder at the shell of a village. You almost feel guilty for being so eager to leave it behind, but the keep you are returning to is now more home to you than this place. Shrugging it off, you return your eyes to Yongguk's back. Another part of your heart still stings. You wish the new face of an enemy could push the thought of the kiss from your mind as easily as it had Yongguk's. Instead, it is all you find yourself thinking of.

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Kingdom Map, The Keep Map, Weres scale, Were Guide