#I still haven’t seen ghostbusters | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

thaliaisalesbian · 7 months ago

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i get myself twisted in threads

Chapter 22: how many times will i do this

Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23

“I can’t believe you. ABBA? You like ABBA enough to dance to it like this?” Jonathan knows, of course, that Steve—Nancy, too, but Steve’s a little more intense about than she is—likes ABBA, but somehow, dancing to it on the regular hadn’t crossed his mind as an event he might have to take part in.

“I can’t believe you don’t.” Steve spins Nancy like they’re dancing in a ballroom, not his too-big, too-empty kitchen, like they’ve got slow music playing instead of… ABBA.

“Jon, come on, you have to know by now that Steve and I have got you beat on this one.” Nancy grins, holding out a hand to him. “Just give in already.”

“I don’t know, Nance.” Steve tugs her a little closer. He’s been less cautious lately, about what he does, what he says.

Jonathan hopes it means that he’s starting to realize that they’re not going anywhere.

“Maybe I want to keep you all to myself.”

“Are you sure it wouldn’t be me keeping you?” Nancy leans up to kiss him lightly. “You wouldn’t be able to, you’d miss Jonathan too much.”

“Yeah, I would.” Now it’s Steve holding out his hand. “She’s right, Jon. You should join us.”

“Someone has to make dinner.”

“Nah, let’s order pizza instead. Come on, Jonathan. I think you can stand dancing to ABBA once in your life.”

“If you both insist…” He rolls his eyes. Dancing with three people who refuse to let go of each other is difficult, but they’ve been figuring this out for a few weeks now. They’ve got this figured out.

Or they’re trying, at least.

“Steve!” Nancy’s trying for stern, but she’s laughing too much. “Steve, you’re not supposed to end up on the floor!”

“The floor is a perfectly fine place to end up, Nance, I don’t know what you mean.” There’s a slight catch to Steve’s voice—a couple of months ago, Jonathan wouldn’t have even noticed it.

“Ankles or side?”

“Ankles. Side’s fine.”

Mom had thought this would happen—they couldn’t take Steve to an actual doctor even now.

Well, maybe now they could. But the scars are thick and obvious, and he knows Steve doesn’t want to explain them.

Jonathan can’t blame him for that.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Nancy’s got that little frown on her face; when it’s not directed at him it’s kind of cute.

“It’s not bad, guys, really. I didn’t even notice until I was on the floor.”

Steve’s so good at pretending nothing was ever wrong that it’s easy to believe.

Mom thinks there’s probably permanent muscle damage. Nerve damage, maybe. They don’t have a good way of knowing.

“Let’s order the pizza.” He helps Steve up. “We can start our movie night a little early.”

Steve leans on him a little, less than Jonathan had thought he would need to.

Steve doesn’t usually let them fuss over him—he certainly hadn’t when the wounds were still fresh, not when he was coherent enough to avoid it. He lets them set him up on the couch, Nancy’s fingers massaging his ankles gently. Jonathan already knows they’re not actually going to pay attention to the movies they’ve picked—they always pick ones they’ve seen before on purpose—but they’re not going to be too busy making out and teasing each other this time. Still, it’s nice to have the background noise, and Steve’s said before that having something else to focus on helps.

“Ghostbusters? Really, Steve?”

“Dustin wants to watch it like, four times a week, I figured it’d just be better if I owned it at that point.”

“Well, I guess that’s what we’re watching then.”

Nancy groans. “Really, Jon? You don’t get enough of that with Will? Mike’s not as bad as Dustin about it, but he’s had his obsession with it, too.”

“I haven’t actually seen it.” He admits. “Will usually watches it with the others. It’s not something we’ve watched together.”

“Really? Dustin’s yelled at me for not paying attention before.” Steve props himself up on his elbow. “Will’s probably the least intense of the shitheads, though, so I guess that makes sense.”

“That’s why Dustin’s my favorite.”

“Shut up, Nance.” Steve laughs. “See if I kiss you at all tonight, huh?”

finish on ao3 or continue reading

“You won’t be able to help yourself.” Nancy says primly. “I know you, Steve Harrington, and even you’re not fool enough to think you could follow through on that.”

“You’re right, I’m not. But I can do it for now. Jonathan, come here, please.” Sometimes it’s easy to feel left out, with them, but they always manage to draw him right back in.

He’s working on it.

“I hope you know I’m not going to stop kissing Nancy for you.” He says, sitting on the arm of the couch.

“I wouldn’t expect you to. She’s a good kisser, isn’t she?” Steve winks over at her, and she just slaps his thigh.

“If you’re going to kiss Jonathan, just do it already.”

“Don’t act like you don’t know he likes watching us banter.” He doesn’t get a chance to put the movie down before Steve grabs his shirt, kissing the corner of his mouth before pulling Jonathan on top of him.

“Well then.” He hears Nancy mutter, and he knows if he looked back at her, she’d have that look on her face.

Maybe they’ll do more making out tonight than Jonathan thought.

Steve kisses like it’s a contest he’s got to win, at least at first. As soon as Jonathan pins his wrists, or puts a hand on his chest, or does… pretty much anything, actually, Steve relaxes into it. It’s more than a little hot, and Jonathan’s never had a bad kiss with either Nancy or Steve, but there’s something about that—winning the ‘contest’, as it were—that just makes it so much better.

He’s the first one up the next morning—not a surprise, Steve is still recovering and Nancy has never been a morning person anyway.

Untangling himself from them to sneak away and make breakfast is one of the hardest things he’s done recently, and he’s been in the Upside Down and Mrs. Click’s class recently.

He’s tried to avoid thinking about Steve’s room and how ‘showroomy’ it is. Nancy had told him not to ask before his first visit, saying that Steve’s not allowed to decorate at his dad’s orders.

The kitchen is much the same: All-white coffee mugs and plates, fancy but impersonal glassware, and a silverware set that might be made out of actual silver but is free of dings and imperfections.

At home, he has his mug, something Will painted for him the other year, and Mom has one from each of them. Their silverware is dinged up from use, and they have a variety of novelty plates and glasses.

It’s like no one lives here, because it doesn’t feel lived in. No worn spots on the couches or chairs, the decor is tasteful but there’s no family photos anywhere.

If Mom and Hopper got their way, it would actually be true. Steve would stay with them all the time. Having his boyfriend over all the time? It would be fantastic.

Or a deal breaker.

Steve’s good at masks, and Jonathan can tell that sometimes he’s more uncomfortable than he lets on.

He might still think this is temporary. That once he’s fully recovered, they’ll leave him again.

They’ll need to have a conversation about it, at some point. There’s no amount of kissing that will convince Steve otherwise, especially when sometimes kissing seems to make things worse.

He’s gotten very good at pulling himself and Nancy back when that’s happening. He’s not going to let Steve’s apparent avoidance of saying ‘no’—or maybe he thinks he can’t, which is another conversation they need to have—ruin them.

The Harringtons’ fridge and pantry is stocked full. Steve had insisted on doing his own grocery runs, but most of it looks like the kids’ favorites, not Steve’s (dark chocolate, sparkling water, and strawberries), and there’s not much actual food. It’s protein shakes and protein bars.

“Jonathan?”

“Hey, Steve. Thought you would sleep longer.”

“You were gone.” Steve rests his head on Jonathan’s back, as if he were the shorter of them. “You’re warm.” So is Steve. His forehead is radiating heat.

He doesn’t need to be sick again.

Fuck, what if he’s gotten another infection? He’s been healing up so well, he doesn’t even have any stitches anymore.

“Nance is up too, but she wanted to clean up first.” Normally that’s something Steve would do with her. He likes to help them both dress for bed, completely non-sexually, it just seems to settle something in him. “What are you making?”

“Eggs and toast.” It’s about the only non-kid or protein-based thing Steve’s got. “Do you wanna come over for dinner this week?”

“Mmm.” Whatever he’s trying to say is muffled by Jonathan’s shirt. “I go back to school this week.”

“Yeah, you do.” There’s no way Steve is catching up, and they all know it. He might pass one or two of his classes, but he’s missed too much to pass them all. He’s been working hard on his make-up assignments, but there are a lot of them, and without instruction, only so much he can do. “All the more reason to come over.”

“I don’t want—” Steve inhales sharply, and must rock back on his heels, because he pulls Jonathan off-balance a little. “I don’t want Will to see me like that.”

“Like what?” Will’s seen him doing his make-up work before. Will’s even read some of them out loud to him. So what is Steve talking about?

“It’s one thing for the kids to know I’m stupid, it’s another for them to see it.”

“Steve, you’re not stupid.” Jonathan turns the burner off so he can turn around. “You’ve had a few concussions, and those can make things more difficult. But you’re not stupid.”

“I can’t even read right, Jon.” Steve whispers. “I can’t—I don’t know how to read, of course I’m stupid. And the concussions shouldn’t matter. I should be able to focus in class and understand things, and I can’t. I’m only good for sports and making sure the kids are safe.”

“Steve, no.” Jonathan pulls him to the couch. “That’s… that’s not true. Nancy and I love you, my mom and Hopper love you, and the kids, of course. Dustin looks up to you so much, and Will based one of his characters on you. El thinks you’re the best person in the world, maybe after Hopper.”

‘“But if I stopped giving them rides and bringing them food, would they?”

“You haven’t been able to give them rides lately, Steve.”

“I know. And I don’t see them! None of them come to visit, not even Will or Mike when you and Nancy come over.”

Shit. Hopper and Mom had limited visitors for a while, but now they’re not and while the kids have asked about Steve plenty, they’ve never actually asked to come see him.

They demanded it, at the beginning, but it’s been a while since they’ve done that.

This weekend is probably the first time he’s seen most of the kids in a while. Mike had been over the other day, sure, but it’s not like he was there to talk to Steve. Dustin, Max, and Lucas—Jonathan can’t even remember when he’d seen them before Friday night, when they’d all been over to move Steve back in.

The kids had seemed fine with each other, but maybe they had a fight or something.

That probably wouldn’t stop them from seeing Steve, though.

“Doesn’t Dustin call you every day?”

“Yeah, but I’ve told him I can come see him, or take him to a movie or something, and he always says no.”

“You’re not supposed to be driving much, Steve. I’m getting you for school tomorrow, remember?”

“Yeah.” There’s something on Steve’s face that said he hadn’t remembered, but with two concussions—that Jonathan knows about—that’s not a surprise. That, and they’ve spent this weekend, the first weekend Steve’s been back in his house, just spending time together and getting things set up. He probably hasn’t been thinking about school at all.

“Good. You’re not only good for sports and rides, Steve, I promise. The kids might just not know what they can do with you, now. Aren’t they usually all over you?” If Nancy were down here, she might know what to say. But he knows Steve is still nursing hurt over how their relationship ended, that it crushed him, so maybe not.

“Good morning, my boys!” Nancy hasn’t seen them yet, and Steve tries to straighten up and put on a smile.

It doesn’t work.

“What’s wrong? Steve, did you pull something? Are you hurt?”

“It’s nothing big, Nance, I don’t want to bug you with it.” Steve tells her, like it’s easy. Like he wasn’t nearly crying a few minutes ago because he thinks he’s stupid.

“Steve, I’m not letting you downplay this, okay?” Steve watches his face for a minute, then nods before curling into Jonathan’s shoulder and staying there.

“Is it school? Steve, if you don’t want to go back yet, I’m sure we can get you more time. Maybe you could just skip the end of the year entirely.”

‘You’re not going to pass anyway.’ goes unsaid, and he realizes that unintentionally, Nancy is part of the problem. She thinks she’s helping; maybe even thinks all of the solutions she’s posed to get Steve passing grades for this year are kind. But has she asked Steve if that’s what he wants? Have any of them?

They’ve asked if he wants to go back to school, and he said yes. But they haven’t asked if he thinks he’s going to pass any of his classes, or if he even really wants to try passing them, after all this time.

He probably is, too. Without trying, they’ve been hurting Steve, and it’s finally all coming to a head.

Of course it’s when Steve’s sick, because this is probably the only time his guard is down enough for him to tell them this. He’d never want them to know otherwise.

And Steve is the most emotionally competent of the three of them. At least when it comes to their feelings, and the kids’, and apparently anyone but himself.

“You can tell me, Steve.” Nancy is too proper to slide down the banister (Jonathan’s not—it’s fun), or to outright run down the stairs when no one is actively bleeding, but she settles onto the arm of the couch as fast as she possibly can. She tilts Steve’s face toward her. “Oh, you’re burning up, babe. Does your side hurt? Your ankles?” Steve shakes his head.

“Just sick?” She meets Jonathan’s eyes for a minute. Steve’s warm, but he’s warm all over, not the concentrated heat that would signal an infection in one specific spot.

Unless it’s sepsis. It can’t be sepsis, though, right? They would have caught that before. Steve hasn’t been infected for a while, there’s no way it’s sepsis.

Jonathan almost doesn’t want Nancy to ask what they’d been talking about that had gotten him this upset. They can focus on Steve being sick instead.

A door slams outside, and they all jump. None of them are expecting anyone, and it’s not like Mom or Hopper would slam the door.

Steve’s scrambling off of him and shoving them toward the back door. Jonathan had parked on a little side road; there had been construction on one of the houses when they’d gotten here.

“Go, go, go!” Steve pushes a little harder. “My parents are home—they weren’t supposed to be back yet—go, get out of here. They’ll be pissed if you’re still here, I don’t know what they’ll say to you.”

“Come with us!”

“My car is in the driveway, if I’m not here I’ll just get into more trouble later. Go. I’ll see you at school.”

Jonathan hears the door lock behind them.

He wants to go back in, but the key Nancy has is for the front door.

The only thing he can do is let her pull him away, hoping that tomorrow morning, they’ll be gone again.

<- 21 23->

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franckyfox2468 · 11 months ago

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Francky's top 5 games released in 2023

So with 2023 ending soon I decided to make a little list and a top 5 of the games that I enjoyed and played that came out this year

Though i will be limiting myself to games/remakes released this year so while i greatly enjoyed Sonic Frontiers and AI the Somnium files this year, they wont make the lsit sorry.

I will start with the honorable mention of games that i still enjoyed but didn’t make it to the top 5.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Like a Dragon: Ishin

Ishin is the last Yakuza game I've played that was made by its longtime director, Toshihiro Nagoshi. And after playing Like a Dragon Gaiden, it helped me realize how much of a difference a new direction can make and how much I have taken the quality of the series for granted. Ishin wasn’t the worst nor the best Yakuza game I've played imo. Which makes sense given it was made right in between one of my least favorite games in the series (yakuza 5) and one of my most favorites (yakuza 0). Its story is perhaps not something you would be used to compared to the rest of the series but it is based on a tale that is as old as time itself that is still quite enjoyable for what it is and while it has some annoying bits (like substories always getting in your way during important event or gun fights), Ishin is still a quite enjoyable game with some fun stories, fun combat and fun minigames. And honestly the funniest version of Baka Mitai somehow.

BombRush Cyberfunk

I decided to check out bombrush cyberfunk after it was absolutely snubbed over in the same award show that decided to promote a JetSetRadio game and I figured I would finally get around checking what it was about before the year ended. I haven’t finished the game yet. I haven’t played JSR so I can't exactly make a full comparison but through some of its rather painful and counterproductive input mapping/options and some frustrating platforming here and there, BRCF is still a game with a very charming, silly and engaging presentation with its story, art and music.

Robocop: Rogue City

Rogue City is not a perfect game, and a quite short one at that. But it is a really good and enjoyable game for what it is. It's not something I would recommend to someone who hasn’t seen the two first movies as they would absolutely get lost in just what the hell is going on and potentially get spoilers from both movies. While the final battle was a bit underwhelming in contrast to what the plot was potentially leading up to with it and some fights could get absolutely tedious, the game to me is in line with the telltale back to the future game or the atari ghostbusters where it can easily serve as a new chapter for the mainline film franchise but through a really good game.

TOP 5:

#5: Baldur's Gate 3

Don’t get me wrong, Baldur’s gate is an excellent game and a fantastic experience that I would recommend to anyone who likes RPGs of any sorts with ease. But part of the reasons it is so low on my list are, 1, i did not finish it unlike every other game on that list, 2, all of the fun and your will to plan a future character and playthrough is absolutely drained out by the time you reach act 3. I played explorer mode as I am not exactly a tactical rpg person myself and wanted to put more focus on the story, which is absolutely great. Every party member is fantastically written and voiced characters, each with their own tastes, goals and views upon the world and situation around you that makes them very likable and fun to have. Honestly some of the more fun companions i've seen in an rpg. The game really does a great job at emulating the sense of playing through a real DnD campaign with a ton of hilarious optional dialogues and where your actions and picked skills will matter in the end, as well as how you synergize them with the rest of your party (without the dogshit power hungry dm or the potential constant in-fighting of other players), the way you are introduced to most of the main party members so early into the story really helps to that feeling of your DM making a scene to make sure all of the players are quickly gathered together and introducing each others’ characters.

For most of the game creativity with your spells, tools at hand and strategy are absolutely rewarded and if you bring in some friends for co-op it can get hella chaotic for better or worse. But by the time you reach the third arc, the story and paths you can take in combat are really narrowing down and not exactly for the better as each fight and situations you start being put through really ties your ends and forces you to be quite careful and specific with what you do even on the easier modes. It's gotten to a point where I kinda haven’t played the game in a long time because doing literally anything done by that part of the game feels like a goddamn chore. But BG3 is still a fantastic game that I do intend to get around to finishing someday as I still think quite positively of it for the most part.

#4: Hi-Fi Rush

Hi-fi rush is simply a fantastic game. A game that involves platforming and combat while mixing rhythm game mechanics could have easily been a blunder but this game manages to succeed at every aspect it does on top of its fantastic artistic presentation. The art, the animation, the music, the writing… It's all fantastic. The only thing that really left to be desired is the ending kinda falling flat on its message and just going back to the situation the world was in despite the systematic issues still being there but the good guys are on top of it now so that makes it okay i guess? But with that aside, I would say the game might not be for everyone as some of the rhythmic elements can be quite tight and unforgiving in some aspects and fights but overall it was one of the more enjoyable and absolutely hilarious games i’ve played in awhile.

#3: Trepang2

On the surface, Trepang looks like a dull military shooter game with some horror elements that are inspired by FEAR. But the problem is that going into detail about why it is so much more would spoil a fantastic experience that absolutely caught me off guard with how good it was. As someone who has never played FEAR, the combat, if anything, was a lot more reminiscent of Titanfall 2. Sure you don’t have cool giant robots but trust me it makes up for simply how absolutely bonkers and high octane it can get. It just feels absolutely amazing from start to end. This is one of the best single player fps games i have played in a long while and i am absolutely looking forward to the story dlc they have announced coming in 2024.

#2: Street Fighter 6

I have a love hate relationship with this game. I hate it because this game has caused some severe damage to my hands and at times I had to take a month long break from it because of how much it was starting to hurt. On the other hand, this is one of the most fun, enjoyable and accessible fighting games that I have ever played and definitely my favorite to this day. And i don’t simply mean because of its different control scheme. SF6 does an excellent job at giving all of the information the players need to better understand the game from within the game as well as official reading material like frame data and such provided by the devs themselves. And even if you aren't into fighting games or multiplayer games, I would absolutely still recommend SF6 for its world tour alone. While it does not have the most phenomenal story imaginable, it is a really goofy and enjoyable experience that perfectly blends rpg and fighting game mechanics for all to enjoy. And the best part is that every dlc release comes with free content and the ability to learn techniques from dlc characters you do not even own. Which honestly despite some of its issues with the monetizations is a huge W on the part of the devs regarding this game. Honestly despite some of its issues SF6 is the real first fighting game i started to feel like i was able to take seriously with how much resources and content you get, and it helped me get even closer to some friends as well as meeting some quite friendly people. I love SF6. But what could possibly beat it then?

#1: Pizza Tower

S rank is for Street fighter, which is pretty good. P rank is for Pizza Tower, which is perfection to me. I’ll admit I nearly gave up on this game because of some initial frustrations but pizza tower is a game you can ALWAYS get better at, even if you managed to finish the whole game. The best way to describe it is… it's the best Nintendo game not made by nintendo. Not because it tries to do something fans always wanted or replicated an aesthetic. But it's through just how polished and tightly designed the game is but it does so in a way that doesn’t punish experimentation with all of its crazy movement mechanics and it doesn't try to streamline anything for you except perhaps how player damage is handled, which feels like quite the opposite of what Nintendo does with a lot of its game nowadays. Everything feels so samey, streamlined, slowed down but the dated tired shit like extra lives and such are here to stay and you have to deal with it, while the new fancy stuff rarely brings benefits and usually are more so gimmicky annoyances (at least this is my feeling towards a lot of more recent Kirby games). While the game definitely has some of its downside and it's a quite hard game, it is honestly one of the best 2d platformers I've played and I'd easily put it aside to a game I would deem legendary like DKC2 or Super Mario World. Every level is well defined, well designed, you always get something new and fun at each of them. And that is not even mentioning its absolutely wonderful and hysterical art, animation and this absolute banger of a soundtrack.

I am ultra excited for the upcoming character dlc as it will give me a reason to replay the whole game with some new mechanics to add some spice to it all. Pizza tower is excellent.

#2023 #goty #goty2023 #pizza tower #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #trepang2 #hi fi rush #sf6 #street fighter 6 #robocop #yakuza #ishin #BRCF #bomb rush cyberfunk

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king-mera · 2 months ago

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Give me some Ghostbusters kid hcsss I wanna know about them hehe If you want specifics any podcast hcs?

Sure!! How about I write some Podcaast headcanons and include his relationships with the other kids? (I admit some of these are recycled ideas from my dead RP blog, but here we go:

He’s the one who came up with the name “Summerville Squad” and keeps calling him and his friends that even if hardly anyone else does. He’s trying to make fetch happen.

His parents had strict upbringings, they didn’t want to raise Podcast the same way, so they gave him a lot more freedom. Unfortunately this also means they’re a bit neglectful.

His real name is Corbin Song. He’s embarrassed by it because Corbin means crow and “no one wants to hear a crow sing.” Phoebe likes it, though.

He knew Lucky before the events of the movies and she defended him from bullies when they were younger. Ghostbusting brought them closer together.

He hangs out with Trevor sometimes to play music (Podcast on keys and Trevor on guitar, they are trying to convince the girls to start a band) or playing Grand Theft Auto (they wasted plenty of time looking for Bigfoot in San Andreas).

Favourite food is shrimp tacos, or shrimp in general.

LOVES ska music.

The flying drone trap was his idea and his design. He sent Phoebe the plans by email while he was still in Oklahoma and she was able to build it in the Firehouse.

He is lowkey jealous of the others since he’s the only one who hasn’t been possessed, cursed, or mind controlled in any way. He KNOWS that would be a bad thing but he’s curious about how it feels and doesn’t like being the odd one out.

As an adult, he has a tattoo sleeves depicting various ghosts and demons the Ghostbusters have faced.

Also Adri if you still haven’t seen Afterlife then YOU NEED TO DO THAT RIGHT NOW! 💥

#Mera’s answers #theroboticscientist #Mera talks GB #ghostbusters #ghostbusters afterlife #ghostbusters frozen empire #podcast ghostbusters #thank you!!!#I love talking about the kids #I think Podcast would be your favourite Adri

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obwjam · 1 year ago

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Officially submitting a request for any ghostbusters gt or Jurassic Park gt one shot or even headcannons

okay so i've been working on this ghostbusters story for like a week and i just kept writing and writing and writing so this is super long, please accept my offering 🫴🫴🫴

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Really, it was just another day at the office.

You, Ray and Egon? You were over in the lab, poring over red goo and test tubes and weird steam that had stumped you three for days. You knew this slime responded to human emotion in some way, but you just didn’t know quite what it did.

Winston? He was talking to Janine, trying to sort out next month’s schedule, papers falling from his arms as he tried to keep everything straight.

And Venkman? He was sitting, legs crossed, feet up on the table, chomping down on a sandwich as he flicked through channels on TV.

Typical Venkman, as far as you were concerned.

“This doesn’t make any sense,” you sighed. “It’s just — it’s like — where are those lab notes from last week?”

Ray shrugged. “I dunno. Egon, have you seen Del’s papers?”

“Hm?” Egon finally answered after a full 30 seconds of silence. “Oh, uh. No. No, I haven’t, sorry.”

“You’re always losing things, aren’t you, newbie?”

Just the sound of his voice made your blood boil. “Alright, Venkman,” you rolled your eyes. “And I’m not a newbie. I’ve been here since February.”

“Yeah, yeah, talk to me when you save the world and blow up a giant marshmallow, okay?”

You groaned. “Does he have to be here?” you pleaded with your lab partners.

“Of course he does, Del,” Ray said, eyes not once wavering from the experiment in front of him.

“Just pretend he’s not here. That’s what I do,” Winston deadpanned as he whisked past you.

“Love you too, buddy!” Venkman called out.

“Okay, enough talking now, please,” you snipped. “This is confusing enough as it is—“

“Ray? Egon? There’s a gentleman from the Post who wants to speak with you both,” Janine ran into the room, almost out of breath. “And he won't go away.”

Ray and Egon looked at each other and shrugged. “Fine, tell him we’ll be there in five minutes,” Ray said.

You watched in almost horror as the two unceremoniously left the room, leaving you alone with Venkman. Great.

“So, egghead,” Venkman started, sandwich still in hand as he pushed himself up. You heaved another sigh. “What kind of nerdy fun do you get up to over here?”

“Not now, Venkman, please,” you begged. “This slime is serious stuff. And no food in the lab.”

“Psh. It’s not that serious. I’ve been slimed before. We all have.” He paused. “Well, almost all of us.”

You bit down on your tongue to keep from screaming. Peter didn’t want you here, that much was clear. He was perfectly comfortable with the four-man operation, and he strongly opposed your addition even when Egon and Ray begged for it. He eventually relented, but only because he knew it was a battle he couldn't win. You always figured he had it out for you so you’d be forced to quit on your own. The demeaning nicknames, the constant teasing, acting like you didn’t know what you were doing; you couldn’t take it much longer.

“Well, this one is important,” you retorted. “It’s from that weird ass ghost we came across last week. The composition of this, it’s… different than the others.”

“Hm. Different how?”

You turned to him and glared. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”

He held his hands up in mock surrender. “Alright, alright, sheesh. No need to get snippy.”

“I have to get snippy when you won't listen.”

“Woah, hey, alright now. Is there a problem?”

“Yeah, there is!” you fumed. “You don’t want me here.”

“Oh, we’re just making stuff up now, are we? You know, just because you can’t instantly figure out the solution to a new problem doesn’t mean you can take it out on me!”

“This— this isn't about the slime!” you scoffed in surprise. “This is about you not respecting me here!”

As the bickering continued, neither of you noticed the way the goo began to jiggle and make strange gurgling noises. It only got louder as the arguing went on, until Venkman noticed it was emanating an eerie glow.

“Uh, why is your goo glowing?”

“What are you talking about—” you started, but never got to finish. As soon as you turned and you both were looking at it, the light became blinding and filled the room. You and Venkman shut your eyes and covered your ears as a deafening whining filled both of your heads for the briefest of moments before it all came to a halt.

When you opened your eyes, all you could see was white. You were sitting down, somehow, and you suddenly had a splitting headache that was definitely not there a second ago.

“Ugh… what happened?” you mumbled. Your eyes widened at the weird sensation you felt when speaking — like you were alone in a sprawling field and all your words had floated out into the void, never to be heard by another living soul.

“Venkman?” you tried. Nothing. It took a few seconds to blink away the residual light, but you finally managed to see straight again. A shiver ran down your spine as you adjusted your glasses. Why were you so cold?

As soon as you saw it, you knew.

You had felt this weird looming sensation, so you spun around on your butt to see what was behind you. It wasn’t a person, or a ghost. It was a sandwich. Venkman’s sandwich. Which was now as tall as a house.

You were on top of the table, and you were tiny.

“Ho-ly shit…” you murmured, shakily pushing yourself back. Panic was beginning to set in as you took in the now-giant world around you. How was this even possible? Would your health be affected in any way? How were you going to fix this? You couldn’t let anyone see you like this!

“What did you do?!” a voice rang out from behind you. You groaned and turned around. Venkman had shrunk with you.

“What did I do? Are you kidding me? You’re gonna blame me for this?”

“I bet it was that freaking slime,” he muttered, already turning his attention away from you. His eyes darted around the table, which looked more like the Great Plains than a lab counter, to find where the goo you were observing was. He tried to pretend he wasn’t utterly freaked out when the tupperware container holding it came up to his neck.

“It’s like it’s laughing at us,” he sneered, observing the way the goo bounced up and down as he stood right over it.

Soon, you were standing right beside him. “You’re right. That’s…”

“...unusual?” he offered.

“Yeah, you could say that,” you began, “considering we’re FOUR INCHES TALL!”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have been messing with that stuff,” Venkman shrugged, slowly walking away from tupperware to the edge of the table.

Your eyes widened as he got closer to the ledge. “Venkman! Be careful!”

“Come on, I’m not gonna… fall…”

In a rare moment, Venkman was speechless. The drop to the floor looked impossibly long – longer than the Grand Canyon, or the view from the top of the Empire State Building. No, this was a longer drop than he had ever experienced in his life.

“That’s… pretty far,” he confessed, voice lacking his characteristic wit. Also at a loss for words as you stared straight down, you simply nodded.

“God, that guy was such a hack, wasn’t he?”

Your eyes blew wide. No, they couldn’t be back so soon…

“I hate reporters. Always making me feel like I’m doing something illegal.” Egon snickered. “Or that I got caught.”

You were frozen. This was the absolute worst-case scenario. Not only were you stuck with Venkman down here, but now you had to deal with two scientists you had only looked up to figuratively. They had to see how you had failed.

“RAY! SPENGLER! DOWN HERE!”

You cringed. It felt so counterintuitive to yell, but Venkman wanted this fixed and fixed fast.

He began waving his arms around frantically. “STANZ! SPENGLER!”

The giant Ghostbusters paused. “Do you hear something, Ray?”

“I was just about to ask you the same thing.”

“It sounds like it’s–”

“–coming from the table,” they said in unison. It didn’t take long for their eyes to find you.

“Oh… my…” Ray couldn’t even finish his sentence. He took cautious steps forward, slowly leaning down as he did so. You shrunk back.

“Venkman? Del? What–what happened?”

The words got caught in your throat as his gigantic face settled in front of you. He was so unbelievably huge, and his size filled you with a sense of unavoidable dread.

“Oh, thank god,” Venkman sighed. “Look, you guys have to bail us out. I’m positive that this slime you guys were messing with did this to us.”

Egon and Ray were beside themselves. The square-cube law didn’t allow for this! How could this have happened? Well, they supposed, anything can happen when ghosts are involved.

“Uh… guys? You can see us, right?”

You and Venkman exchanged an unnerved glance that said I’m pretty freaked out that they keep staring.

Cautiously, Egon stuck his finger out and was halfway to poking Venkman before his face twisted into anger and he sidestepped. “Spengler!” he cried. “What the hell do you think you’re doing!”

Egon pulled his finger back, unfazed by Venkman’s annoyance. “Oh, wow. It’s real, Ray.”

“This… this is incredible. Simply incredible!” Ray’s booming voice marveled. You winced at the volume. “I mean, this is a game-changer! Slime that not only responds to human emotions, but can alter their physical body in ways we – we didn’t even think were possible! I can’t believe this, I…”

Ray trailed off when he finally locked eyes with your trembling form. Sure, he was excited – he knew you understood that – but what he didn’t understand was just how scary this must be for you. To suddenly have your autonomy taken away from you… being loomed over and stared at by beings fifty times your size… it had to be no less than utterly overwhelming.

Venkman rolled his eyes. “You two can ogle at us later, after you find a way to fix this.”

“Sorry, Peter, you’re going to have to speak up,” Egon said, leaning in closer. Your eyes grew wider than you thought was possible, and one shaky step backwards to get away from his pinning gaze sent you tumbling to the ground.

“Egon!” Ray gasped, pushing his friend back. “Del, are you alright?”

Sheepishly, you nodded.

“Sorry, Del,” Egon said, concern all over his face. “I suppose I’m going to have to make a few adjustments to the way we interact.”

“Gee, you think?!” Venkman cried in exasperation. “We’re tiny, you’re huge. There, I think that settles it!”

“Calm down, Peter,” Egon chided with the tone of a concerned father. “Look, we’re going to have to run a few tests to see how—”

“No!” you piped up, surprising everyone, including yourself. You cleared your throat as your eyes darted from Ghostbuster to Ghostbuster. “I mean… you guys are gonna have to give us a little bit to, you know… process all of this.” You eyed Venkman. “Back me up here…”

Peter shrugged. “Yeah, what Del said.”

You groaned. “Thanks for the help.”

“Del’s right,” Ray agreed, turning to Egon. “Right now, we can just… ask them how they feel. Besides, we have to re-calibrate all of our equipment and cancel all our appointments until we can get this sorted out.”

After a moment of thinking, Egon nodded. Even though he still thought the best way to solve this was to run as many tests as possible, he understood the need for space.

In a shaking voice, you recounted the events leading up to the shrinking and how you felt now – overall normal, just overwhelmed and a little cold.

“Well, that makes complete sense. Your bodies are so small that the amount of heat you lose proportional to your height is faster than you can generate.”

“Oh, great, so we’ll freeze to death?”

Ray hesitated. “Well… all science points to yes, but you told me you feel completely normal.”

“So far,” Venkman grumbled.

“And nothing is darker?”

You both shook your heads.

“Fascinating. It was always theorized that the smaller you get, the less light your eyes would be able to process, therefore the world would appear darker.”

“I mean… I guess it’s darker,” you admitted. “But not by much.”

“Incredible. So basically, everything we’ve ever posited would happen if humans were shrunk… isn’t happening to you at all. I’m surprised we can even hear you talking, to be honest.”

The longer this Q&A went on, though, the more tired you grew, and Ray noticed. Truthfully, he always had a soft spot for you, which is why he lobbied heavily to bring you on board in the first place. You were the top of your class at NYU in biochemistry, not to mention you were passionate about helping others in any way you could. He could barely stand watching you cower away from the world you loved and have dedicated your life to understanding.

“Guys?” Winston’s voice rang from the back of the room, finally back from sorting out the schedule. He wasn’t going to be happy that all his hard work was about to go to waste. “Who are we… talking… to.”

As soon as he joined the fray, it became too much for you. “I… I… I can’t do this,” you sniffed, the first tear finally breaking free. “I – this is crazy.”

“Del? Are you okay?” Ray asked, sorrow written all over his face. A rather unfamiliar feeling suddenly washed over him – he wanted to scoop you up, hold you close and reassure you that everything would be alright.

“They don’t look okay,” Winston replied, his wide eyes fixated on you.

It was like the worst kind of judgment day you could imagine; like you were in trouble at school and everyone was in on it, or being scolded by your parents all over again. Three people you considered to be your family were now unfathomably large, and right now, there was no end in sight. Were you going to have to look up at them forever? Have them cart you around wherever you wanted to go? How were you going to shower?

“Del–” Egon started, but it was too late. Now furiously wiping away tears, you ran toward what you perceived to be an amorphous blob of technology behind you and disappeared around the back of what was, ironically, a microscope.

You instantly dropped to the ground, folding your knees into your chest and tucking them in tight. Right now, you wanted nothing more than to be left alone for the next several hours.

You wouldn’t even get a few minutes.

“You know, we’re going to need them if we ever want to get back to normal.”

You wiped your eyes and sniffed. “I don’t really want to talk right now, Venkman.”

Instead of the usual quick-witted comeback, Venkman took a seat next to you, stretching out his legs, as if that would make him taller again. There was a rare comfortable silence between you.

“Did you know I got fired from Columbia?” he said suddenly, unprompted.

You looked at him in surprise. “Uhm – no. No, I didn’t, actually.”

“It was a while ago. Heck, it’s what inspired us to start the Ghostbusters in the first place.”

You sniffed a laugh. “I didn’t even know you worked at Columbia.”

“What, is that so hard to imagine?”

“...Yes. Yes it is. What were you, a professor of laziness?”

“If ‘laziness’ gets you PhDs in parapsychology and psychology, then, yes.”

At that, you had to laugh. “I think you’re making that up.”

Venkman feigned offense. “Ask Ray and Egon! They wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Maybe if they weren’t a hundred feet tall and could crush me in an instant, I would.”

You hadn’t meant to let that slip, but you also didn’t regret saying it.

Venkman sighed, but it wasn’t out of annoyance. It was out of… concern?

“Look, kid.” That was the first time he had ever called you that. “This is weird as all hell, don’t think I don’t agree with you on that. All I’m saying is… all of us, we’ve fucked up before. Massively. This… this isn’t your fault, you know, right?”

“Are you trying to make me feel better?”

“Is it working?”

You wanted to say no, to keep snapping at him and telegraphing just how awful he usually made you feel. But right now… you weren’t feeling that. Maybe you just didn’t have the energy. He was probably just trying to cheer you up out of sheer necessity.

“Maybe,” you said. “Maybe not.”

Venkman shook his head. “You’re one impossible kid to please, you know that?”

Somehow, that response didn’t make your insides boil up with anger. Instead, you smiled.

“Should… should we check on them?” Egon asked, still staring straight at the microscope.

Winston shook his head. “Give ‘em time.”

Sure enough, a few moments later, you and Venkman emerged from your hiding spot. Venkman didn’t seem to have a problem staring up at his longtime friends, but for you, it was still too difficult and too weird. You kept your eyes trained in front of you, nervously wringing your hands together.

Venkman clapped his hands. “So! You guys come up with a brilliant plan to get us back to normal yet?”

Ray, Egon and Winston exchanged glances.

Ray ventured to speak first. “Well… truthfully…”

“We have no idea how long it would take,” Egon interrupted. “Or if we even can do it.”

“Nope, I won’t have any of that quitter talk,” Venkman said a little too quickly. “Can’t you see how much that would upset Del?”

All eyes fell on you. You squeezed your hand harder.

“Venkman’s right,” Ray declared. “We have to try everything we can. Exhaust every avenue! We won’t stop until you two are back to normal.”

“...I can help,” you said meekly, almost too quietly to hear. “I mean, I was studying that stuff for days, and I’m the one it zapped. I should be able to–”

“–no, Del, you can’t,” Ray said suddenly. At that, you finally mustered up the courage to look at him. He looked stressed. “It’s too dangerous, and you’re too small. What if you get hurt?”

You felt your face get hot. “Then I’ll deal with it! I–”

“I think we all need a break,” Winston stated in that firm, authoritative voice of his. When the other Ghostbusters failed to think straight, he was always there to pick them up. “Maybe we can deal with this in the morning, alright?”

Everyone nodded in unison. Winston was usually right about these kinds of things, and he knew it.

“Well, I’m goin’ home and getting some rest. Maybe now that Venkman’s so small, we won’t have to hear his yapping all day.”

Peter frowned. “Ha ha.”

Suddenly, you heard a soft voice right next to you. “Hey,” Winston practically whispered, marveling at just how small you were. He wanted to be comforting, but truthfully, he didn’t know how much words would help. “Hang in there, alright? You just let me know if you need a break from these yahoos.”

The way you gaped back at Winston, so impossibly large when situated right next to you, he wasn’t surprised that all you gave him in response was a nod. The small smile he gave you was reassuring, but it was hard to keep your breath from hitching when he stretched back up to his full height and left the room.

That left the four of you.

“If you three don’t mind, I need to go over Del’s lab notes and start modifying our equipment,” Egon said, eyeing the array of instruments at the corner table. “Or, Venkman, perhaps you’d like to come with me–”

Venkman was quick to refuse. “Nope, nooooope, nuh-uh. I’m not climbing into anyone’s sweaty hand. Just… bring me food and a blanket, I’ll make do on the table.”

Egon couldn’t suppress his smile at how adorable tiny Venkman was. “Alright, camper.”

Venkman furrowed his brow. “Don’t smile! This is not amusing!”

“Maybe not for you,” Egon deadpanned, laughing at the death stare Venkman gave him as he walked away. You don’t think you would get used to the feeling of watching your friends walk around a giant room, taking mere seconds to cover ground that would have taken you forever.

You finally noticed that Ray was eyeing you, but with a different look. Was he… nervous?

“Del…” he started, unsure of how to ask this. “Why don’t you – um, if you don’t mind–”

“Oh, this is embarrassing,” Venkman muttered.

Instead of bothering to finish his unsalvageable sentence, he sucked in a breath and put his hand, palm-up, down onto the table a few inches from where you stood. You gulped and stepped back, not prepared for just how massive it was going to look.

“Why don’t you come with me and get some supplies for you and Venkman?” he finally asked. “Nobody knows what you two need more right now than you.”

Every one of your basic instincts told you not to get on his hand; no, don’t even go near it. He won’t even be able to feel you in his palm. He would forget that you’re there, close his hand, tip it down, crush you, drop you…

But this was Ray. The guy who believed in you from the very start, who you had connected with almost instantly. Whether you liked it or not, you had to rely on him now – hell, you had to rely on all of them. You were a team, after all. A famous, ghost-hunting, rag-tag team that you spent every waking hour with… and you wouldn’t want it any other way.

To Venkman’s surprise, it only took you a few moments of deliberation before deciding to climb onto the hand. You hoisted yourself up like you were situating yourself on a boat – more like a lifeboat, in this scenario. You didn’t really know how to sit, or what would be more comfortable, but you supposed you had all the time in the world to figure it out.

Above you, Ray smiled. He wanted nothing more than to fix you, but damn it if you weren’t absolutely adorable at four inches tall.

“Ready?” he asked, consciously keeping his voice low.

You took a deep breath. “Yeah. Let’s do this.”

“Enjoy the ride!” Venkman called out, waving to you as you were lifted into the air.

“Try not to get jealous!” you grinned back, adrenaline coursing through you. It was the first time you felt like joking all day.

“Trust me, I’m good down here,” Venkman said, before muttering to himself, “for now.”

Ray beamed down at you, and you gave him a wary smile back. This was uncharted territory for any human in recorded history, but you had the Ghostbusters. You were going to be okay.

#this really got away from me lmao #but god fucking dammit i love them so much #i want to write more of this like i havent even scratched the surface #fuck it i'm probably going to because why not #it's the spoopy month i'm allowed to go through my ghostbusters phase right now!!!#asks #obwrites #ghostbusters #g/t #giant/tiny #giant tiny

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who-canceled-roger-rabbit · 1 year ago

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Okay I still haven’t seen the 2016 Ghostbusters remake with Kate McKinnon and Melissa McCarthy, but perhaps it’s appropriate that they were in a ghost-related comedy together, because based on their other work I can see each of them playing a spot-on genderbent Beetlejuice

#fancast #genderbent #genderbend #ghostbusters #beetlejuice #kate mckinnon #melissa mccarthy

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drybranmuffin · 2 years ago

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tagged by @cosmicrhetoric to share my top ten films... i am possibly the worst person to share my taste in cinema. but you asked for it babe i’m sorry i warned you. in no meaningful order, here we go:

1. WEIRD: the al yankovic story (2022): saw this movie the night it came out (11/4) and am STILL thinking about it. it’s (guess what) a really uh, strange film and not at all what i expected--or actually kind of wanted??? bc i do really like Actual “Boring” Al--but i thought it was a lot of fun!! and the re-records are fantastic. the entire rocky road scene makes me so happy.

2. baby driver (2017): hey look i know i know half this cast is absolutely terrible and they should’ve gotten run over with a car in real life but the first time i saw this movie i was in kansas visiting my freshman college roommate for her wedding and it was only like. the third time i’d ever been stoned and it was incredible. literally was the most incredible and life changing experience. made me want to become a stunt driver. i cannot legally operate a motor vehicle at 24 so that isn’t happening but it was a nice feeling while it lasted.

3. dead poets society (1989): i rented this movie the first weekend at college--literally got a library card just to check out the physical DVD copy of this movie because i did not have netflix yet. i was so dramatic and 18 about majoring in something i didn’t want to do, at a college i didn’t want to be at in the first place, that watching dps immediately made me cry. also mr. keating’s little speech of “Mr. Anderson thinks that everything inside of him is worthless and embarrassing” haunts me every day.

4. how to survive a plague (2012): idk if this counts but this is my favorite documentary. it always makes me cry but i think it is such an important and informative documentary. but also it tells the whole story of all the people involved so well. like the way people’s voices stop appearing as voiceovers as the years go on. like you MISS THEM you FEEL the loss of all those people from the queer community in the 80s and 90s. it’s just so fantastic.

5. rocketman (2019): i don’t think i can accurately describe how much i love this movie. elton john is such a cornerstone of my childhood and feeling at home. and the performances in it are so incredible. i watch the crocodile rock scene whenever i’m close to losing my mind. it contains curing and healing properties.

6. glass onion (2022): not to be like i finally watched a modern, relevant movie and fuck people were right it IS GOOD but. guess what i watched a modern, relevant movie and fuck people were right it was very good and i had a lot of fun watching it. also blanc’s outfits made me feel so goddamn envious. the linen pants COME ON!!!

7. ghostbusters II (1989): not to say i don’t also love gb1 but the the “higher and higher” sequence, baby oscar, sigourney weaver being a cellist, “boys, you’re scaring the straights.”, “no, i believe it's one of the fettucinis...”, like c’mon. this movie is amazing. okay i’m realizing that i really need to make you watch ghostbusters II with me. even if you haven’t seen the first one i don’t care we’re watching the guys imply that egon has fucked the goo.

8. groundhog day (1993): okay so maybe i’m just a guy that really likes a certain era of bill murray movies??? ironically this is a movie that, i’ve found, i can really watch again and again and again. like: credits roll, start it again. andie macdowell’s blue coat has been on my mind since i was eleven and saw this movie for the first time. i love the town it looks so delightful--and actually was reminded a lot of it when i was in vermont recently--but it has destroyed me to know that the set was not in punxsutawney but actually somewhere in illinois... boo.

9. beetlejuice (1988): i’m saying beetlejuice as a stand in for like all tim burton movies from 1982-1993 (& like, two in 2005). but i remember watching this movie as a kid and literally not being able to regurgitate the plot at all. like, jump in the line is playing and i’m like “i have no idea what anyone’s name is and don’t know what’s going on. but that lady’s dress [barbara] was nice!!” haven’t changed much but now i at least know what’s happening. also: know that me listing this movie is also me saying that anything danny elfman touches is amazing and i love the soundtrack to this movie so much i wrote a paper on it in undergrad [music in film class] and made my professor read ten pages about the genius of danny elfman making the film’s main melody motif be three. notes.

10. barbie as rapunzel (2002): best for last. i don’t need to explain myself here. the movie is like: 20 minutes of experiencing the horrors of both servitude and otto, 5 minutes of the best dress montage of your life, 10 minutes of being like “oh my god is the prince really that stupid?”, 10 minutes of “yes, he is...”, 15 minutes being confused by the romantic pasts of the kings and gothel, 15 minutes of family therapy between two talking dragons, and 3 minutes of crying over “I know Rapunzel's secret. She painted what she dreamed.” “When you do that you’ll never be wrong.” and it deserved an oscar.

#personal #isha i'm so sorry #also this tag game is SO OLD i will let it die here unless you feel so inclined to do it yourself...#also yeah i had to put a read more bc i can't shut up ever apparently and wrote reviews for all of them #man i'm SORRY #*

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bogleech · 1 year ago

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Oh did something else go around about it at some point???

The Jumanji animated series was largely the product of the late Everett Peck, also known as the creator of Duckman and a creature/character design for The Real Ghostbusters. I haven’t seen the 2017 and 2019 Jumanji movies, but I’ve heard that they borrow a few broad concepts from this series and even feature some direct subtle references to it, however they are nowhere near as surreal or as dark.

According to this series, “Jumanji” is a malevolent entity of unknown origin that manifests for equally unknown reasons as an immersive jungle-themed game world. Here are some facts about this world:

The sun is a satellite and the sky is an animated tarp. On the other side of the sky is possibly an endless, empty white void.

There are various “NPC villains” like the big game hunter, a religious fanatic ape, a guy who’s clearly coded as a misplaced nazi general and others but it is eventually revealed they may have all been normal people “taken” by the game. If one of them is killed the game will seek to transform anyone it can into a replacement for that character.

The show avoids depicting “jungle people” by instead having strange creatures who are themselves wooden masks, but an episode implies that these are another former human “NPC,” and in this case, they’re what happens to children who could never return home.

One of the villains is a mad inventor who can create fully sentient mechanical creatures, so there’s also robots, but we also find out that a great deal of the actual animals in the game world are just robots as well. They still eat and live like animals, but they’re hyper-advanced and ambiguously magical “animatronics.”

Within the Jumanji world is an artifact similar to the Hellraiser puzzle cube that will take you deeper down into a game-within-a-game, a horrifying biomechanical netherworld, and it’s possible somewhere in this reality there’s another supernatural game to get sucked into, and so on and so forth.

We never find out what the entity is or its true motivations - Allen (the Robin Williams character) says it’s just an evil thing that “eats children” - but if you manage to “cheat” or break its rules it will chase you down in its personal avatar, a reaper that kills everything it touches. This is also when we see that there's giant clockwork gears under the ground.

Also just really like these sirens from the nautical episode

I have a whole article about it on my website but please ask me to over share the lore of the 1996 Jumanji cartoon series

#cartoons #jumanji

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dean-a-mean-tae · 4 months ago

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Im all for watchibg turtles roll that's like sick asf

Am currently watching the new Ghostbusters movie its so freaky idk how to feel abt it (idk if you've seen it, but the fire orotectors for the ice god reminds me of fire lord as in ATLA😭)

-🦊

Ngl Turtles kinda scare me.

Actually, I haven’t seen it. I’ve noticed it takes me a long time to watch new movies or shows. I can’t be still long enough to get attached.

My attention span is shit. 🙁

I’ll watch my comfort movie or show any day tho 😁

#deantae: anons #deantae: 🦊 anon

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joyofkinoko · 3 years ago

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Diamond in the Rough | epilogue

You’ve never liked your older brother’s job as a paranormal investigator on YouTube, but as long as he never brought it home, you didn’t mind. But after a series of nightmares and unexplainable circumstances, you suck it up and ask Yeonjun and his friends for help in getting rid of the ghost that’s attached itself to you. And though Taehyun warned him against it, Hueningkai finds his own self getting attached to you too.

.: friends to lovers .:. f!reader .:. fluff, hurt/comfort, paranormal :.

.: tw: paranormal elements, mature language, depression :.

.: masterlist .:. budget ghostbusters :.

final author thoughts:

hey you guys! first and foremost, i wanna give a massive thank you ❤️ to every single one of you reading this right now for having read and supported this series. it’s been a long time coming since the first installment of budget ghostbusters, so it means a lot to me still be receiving support from some of you old readers and all of you new ones from this year as well!

the past few months have meant a lot to me creatively because i really just feel as if i’ve gotten back on top of my game, so i’m just generally grateful for all the love and emotional investment you guys have given the smau, especially since i know that some of the subject matter was very serious and dark and honestly, very personal to me.

i hope i was able to give these topics some sort of justice.

and as we bid farewell to our beloved kai and diamond, i hope you guys realise that this isn’t a final farewell ~ please stay tuned for the next installment of budget ghostbusters which is beomgyu’s! i have a couple thousand words written for a potential one-shot but a part of me also thinks that the storyline could work as an smau sooo we’ll just have to see when it comes out.

(and if you haven’t already seen my most recent personal update post, i am going to be busy and away for like the next 2-3 months, so please be patient with me!)

once again, i thank you all dearly, i hope you all feel loved (as you all deserve), and make sure to stay hydrated and get some rest!

take care, my loves! and until next time ~ 💎

taglist: @day6andetcetera @blaaiissee @etherealcherrie @duolingofanaccount @lovable-squidbrain @choi-y-n @soobsdior @rae-blogging @xiaosimp3 @butterflx @groovybiscuitdiplomatpeach @joti17 @rieoluv @tennisv

#tomorrow x together #txt kpop #x reader #hueningkai #tomorrow x together kai #kai x reader #txt smau #social media au #txt fluff #txt imagines #txt scenarios #txt headcanons

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jazy3 · 2 years ago

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Ghostbusters: Afterlife Review

!!SPOILERS AHEAD!!

If you saw my ‘Favourite Movies this Year’ post, you’ll know that Ghostbusters: Afterlife was right up there! Free Guy was my favourite movie of 2021, but Ghostbusters was a close second! Initially my best friend was more excited for this movie than I was. We first saw the trailer for it back in 2019 and to be honest I’d pretty much forgotten about it before the trailer appeared again in 2021. But her enthusiasm was infectious, so I looked up the trailer again and wound up falling down a Wikipedia rabbit hole researching the movie and its production and from then on, I was hooked! In preparation we decided to re-watch the original Ghostbusters movie from 1984 and I recommend everyone else do the same if you’re interested in seeing this movie. It’s on Netflix and since the last time either of us had seen the movie was back when we were teenagers it was good to have the refresher and get into the spirit of it.

You can watch Ghostbusters II from 1989 or skip it. I looked up the plot on Wikipedia to jog my memory, but you don’t need to re-watch it to get Ghostbusters: Afterlife. You do however need to re-watch the original Ghostbusters movie if you haven’t seen it recently because there are a lot of references to it in the new one. While I think I would have still enjoyed the film if I hadn’t watched the original recently, I definitely think I enjoyed the new one way more because I did! Ghostbusters: Afterlife is the answer to the question, ‘What would the original Ghostbusters movie look like if it was made today with updated special effects and timeless humour?’ You may not have asked the question, but you got the answer and it’s great!

This movie is a riot from start to finish! It’s action packed, there are ghosts and ghouls galore, and the comedy is on point! Fan favourites Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, and Ernie Hudson are back as Dr. Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore to clean up the town once again and the spirit of Egon Spengler and Harold Ramis are alive and well throughout the film. In this latest installment we are introduced to a new younger cast of characters for the audience to relate to. Finn Wolfhard of Stranger Things fame plays Spengler’s grandson Trevor, McKenna Grace from the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina plays his granddaughter Phoebe, and Carrie Coon of Avengers: Infinity War plays their mother and Spengler’s daughter Callie.

Paul Rudd plays high school science teacher and Callie’s love interest Mr. Grooberson and newcomers Logan Kim and Celeste O'Connor play Phoebe’s new friend Podcast and Trevor’s friend and love interest Lucky Domingo. In this long awaited sequel, set thirty-two years after the Ghostbusters first defeated Vigo the Carpathian in New York City we learn the fates of the original Ghostbusters and meet single mother Callie and her teenage son Trevor and eccentric daughter Phoebe. When Callie, who’s facing eviction, learns that her estranged father Ghostbuster Egon Spengler has died she moves her family to Summerville, Oklahoma and they take up residence in the old farmhouse Egon left them.

Once there Trevor gets a job at a local dinner after developing a crush on Lucky, one of the carhops, and Phoebe enrolls in summer school where she finds a kindred spirit in Mr. Grooberson the science teacher. While at summer school Phoebe befriends another student, who goes by Podcast, and as the movie progresses the kids learn that their grandfather was one of the infamous Ghostbusters and that something very strange is happening in Summerville. The movie features lots of great call backs to the original film. We see Phoebe, Podcast, and Mr. Grooberson tamper with a ghost trap, the Muncher ghost reappears to wreak havoc on Summerville, and Ivo Shandor returns! We also see Phoebe restore the Ghostbusters’ original proton packs and Trevor finds a dilapidated Ecto-1 in the garage and fixes it up. It was previously thought that a third installment of the Ghostbusters franchise would never happen as Bill Murray and other original cast members had made it clear they were not interested and would not sign on.

However, after the death of Harold Ramis in 2014, Jason and Ivan Reitman reimagined the long furloughed sequel as a tribute to Ramis and his beloved character and approached Murry and the other original cast members about the project once more. This time everyone agreed, and the project moved forward. It’s worth noting that prior to Ghostbusters: Afterlife being made the rights to the franchise were renegotiated in a deal that made sure that the original cast and their families were taken care of and would not have to want for anything financially for the rest of their lives. This is what allowed that disastrous all female Ghostbusters reboot in 2016 to be made, but it also paved for Ghostbusters: Afterlife to be made following Ramis’ untimely death.

I think perhaps my favourite thing about this movie apart from the humour is that it’s a touching tribute to an actor and character that so many of us, and our parents, grew up with made by the people closest to him, his friends, and colleagues, and you can really see that in the film. The original actors aren’t acting when they mourn the loss of their friend. The characters mourn Egon as their actors mourn Harold. Something I really loved about the movie was how the ghosts and poltergeists our heroes fight throughout the film and the mission that they are on can all be seen as an allegory for battling disease and the loss of a loved one.

What’s most interesting to me is that this allegory that stuck out so strongly to me was likely unintended as the film was shot in 2019 and wrapped production the year before the COVID-19 Pandemic hit. Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but see the similarities. In the opening scene we see Egon Spengler running from a powerful ghost alone which he attempts to trap using an elaborate set up of ghost traps on his property only for the traps to fail when the power goes out. This leaves Egon defenceless, the ghost attacks him, and he suffers a fatal heart attack.

Watching this in the fall of 2021 two years into a global pandemic that had left over a million dead at that point I couldn’t help but see the similarities between the effects that ghosts, poltergeists, and similar entities in the Ghostbusters universe have on their victims and the way disease can ravage the body and leave those suffering feeling helpless. When a powerful disease takes over those suffering often feel alone and isolated and a heart attack or brain aneurism are common causes of death when someone dies after battling a disease.

In the wake of Egon’s death his daughter Callie and his grandchildren Phoebe and Trevor are left to pick up the pieces, pack up his house, and try to make sense of what he left behind. His friends and fellow Ghostbusters are left feeling remorse and regret for not keeping in touch, for not believing him, and they are left wishing they had more time. All of which will be familiar for anyone that’s lost a loved one to disease whether it was sudden or slow. I found this particularly poignant in the time of COVID-19 and it’s a heartfelt reminder of how fragile we all are and how precarious and precious the lives we lead truly are. While the filmmakers would have had no idea how close to home the movie’s portrayal of loss would be for so many us, I find it fascinating how good art can speak to things that haven’t even happened yet.

The filmmakers weren’t trying to speak to an audience that was living through a global pandemic and watching loved ones die they were simply expressing their own loss over the death of their friend. I think because this depiction came from a genuine place of love and grief for those involved I found it deeply moving and it’s one of the many reasons Ghostbusters: Afterlife will take its place on my list of favourite movies and comfort films that I’ll watch again and again for years to come.

On a lighter note, I have to say I really enjoyed how funny the film was! I thought the humour throughout the film was well timed and well played and the younger actors they cast did a great job of giving the film the levity it needed to make it fun and balance out the heavy themes of loss and regret. It’s fitting that they cast Mike from Stranger Things to play Trevor. Afterall, the show is largely responsible for the eighties’ classic coming back into the public consciousness. While the original movie never really fell out of public awareness the iconic Ghostbuster Halloween costumes from Season 2 of Stranger Things reawakened interest in the original movie and streaming rates skyrocketed as a result. The series is full of references to the franchise.

One of the first thoughts my friend and I had when we walked out of the theatre was that were probably Stranger Things references, we didn’t get yet because of the delayed release of both the movie and the new season. Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Season 4 of Stranger Things were both supposed to premiere within a few months of each other and since Finn Wolfhard appears in both it’s likely that tie ins were planned for both projects. But unfortunately, the release of the film and the actual filming of the show got delayed, pushed, and interrupted by the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

To be honest having watched both the film and the new season of Stranger Things I expected there to be more references and tie ins than I was able to spot. However, this is likely because such references were most likely edited out as they no longer made sense or were never filmed because the release dates had been pushed back considerably and it was unknown when either project would be released for quite some time. For instance, in Ghostbusters: Afterlife you can tell that there’s a cut when the characters are looking at the dates on the tomb wall because of the movie’s release date being pushed from 2020 to 2021.

If you look closely you can also see that the writing on the tomb wall has been edited in post-production to match this as moving the release date to 2021 throws off the original timeline. In Season 4 Vol. 1 of Stranger Things when the Hawkins gang enters the Creel House and Dustin drops his backpack on the floor you can see an ‘I got slimed’ button with a picture of the Muncher ghost on it. I’d love to know what other references and tie ins were originally planned for both projects and if any other eagle eyed fans managed to catch references I didn’t.

Until next time!

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castlefly · 5 months ago

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Things are going great :D!!! How have you’ve been? (I couldn’t unsee it XD and ouiiii YEAH!!!)

I think studying the game is just as good as playing methinks! It’s nice to enjoy the game without the handle sometimes. (Same here honestly) OOO SCULPTING!! That sounds so fun (tell me how it goes I’d love to see frames)

Alice madness returns!! (I’m in the same boat) I’d love to play it one day! The game looks so fun and the designs for Alice’s dress and environments are insanely good. When your done playing tell me how it went!!

True!! Playing on the computer is a bit of a challenge, still get some controls wrong sometimes as well. Hopefully it doesn’t impact your gaming of Alice too much XD.

Ah yes half life! I’ve been snooping into it since that request you made awhile back. And creating games? Ouiiii do tell!! (The hand mechanic is very much sometimes, sometimes, I do not have the time!!)

Uuuuuu portal is so good, I cannot lie, very fun to watch people play.

Primordia is new! I haven’t seen this game before, but the art is fascinating! I’ll have to watch for the writing!!

Year walking!!! I’ve seen a lot of playthroughs of the game!! Beautiful game!

I remember a story about my uncle, I’ll have to revisit it again (you just reminded me of half of these!!)

I have always been a bit confused about outer worlds, I’ll definitely look more into it.

HADES!! The art in that game is gorjous!!

Bioshock! Of course!!

And hmmmm, I haven’t been playing much recently, but the last game I played was the ghostbusters remastered. I think!

Tomodachi life! Controlling so many lives!! I mostly like the character growth of my dachis. (I also have another save file for character I like at the time)

Saints row! The 2023 version(I also just like the customization feature) I think it’s a cute game and I have a Lisa Frank helicopter that I use to commit theft!!

Gmod! (A tale as old as time I’m afraid)

Harvester! And phasmagoria! Are good ones too! They fascinate me always with how they mixed live action with 3D.

Hello laxsland!! I was wondering if you play any games at the moment and if you had any favorites?

Hello Castlefly! How have you been?! (your comment about Frank screaming in the window made me chuckle, also would be a great drawing idea gdfhghdfg)

Oh, as for games I've been more or less studying them than playing (regrettably). I'm almost done sculpting the character for our character assignment (I'm not sure whether I can share them one here since they someone else's and also due to privacy reasons).

But I can share the many fire animations for their hair afterwards (it'll be a 2/3d mix of assets!

Gamewise, the last game I've played was Alice Madness Returns which was one of the games I waned to play ever since I saw playthroughs of it yet didn't have the chance to until now.

It was kind of funny getting back into playing on PC again cause I was so used to using it for art/modeling I had to remember how to from scratch.

Alice was as wonderful as I remembered it to be and I'm still halfway through (will finish it soon I swear, if the art ideas aren't a game in themselves)

As you know though I love the Half Life series and highly recommend playing it if you have the thyme or if it's on special (sometimes the whole bundles go down to 2 dollars). It's also inspired me to pursue creating some kind of game which lets you pick up objects the same way you can in the Source Engine (it just feels so tactile, without waiting for a hand animation, you just pick it up y'know).

The Portal series is also one of favorites and I might just make a list of my favorite indie games before a ramble to the moon:

Primordia (is a wonderful point and click game with challenging puzzles and humorously gloomy yet chipper writing/characters),

Year Walk (an atmospheric multi device game with your phone and ipad where you go through with the real Swedish tradition of Year Walking and uncover the mysteries of the forest and your future)

A Story About my Uncle (more of an interactive story platformer where you're playing through the story being told, its environment design is wonderful and certainly has inspired what I want to do for my future project game thing)

Outer Wilds (running outside the cage of this game, knowing it won't be on the switch ahhhh!!!)

HADES (gotta finish it dfhjggjfgh)

I'll also just put down some games from memory lane before I go, Bioshock, the game Drawn and The Room series.

And an uno reverse question, what are you favorite games fellow moot?

#ramble on!!#so many gamer thoughts

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ldfanfic05 · 2 years ago

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Stu Macher x Male! Reader

Stabbed Heart🫀🔪 Part.3

(Extended Version)

As you drove to your house, shocked. You walked in your house and locked your door then walked to your room, getting your work clothes off and getting dressed for the party.

( Multiple options); ⬆️

You walked to your car and got in, starting to drive to Stu’s house. You saw lights, cars and a ton of people. “Jesus...” You said, parking your car and getting out. You walked to the door and knocked loudly, for someone to hear over the blasting music. “Y/N? Hey!” You saw Sidney Prescott. “Hey Sid! I never expected you to be here!” You said with a smile. “Well I didn’t expect to be here either..You know how I am..!” She said, moving to the side to let you in. “Y/NNN!!” You heard Stu shout, running over to you and wrapping a arm around your shoulder, walking you in his Massive, Crowded home. “I knew you’d come! Did you get the horror film?” He asked. “Yep! It’s right here..!” You gave Stu the film tape and he walked you over to the couch, sitting down. “Hey babe, could you get some more beers, and one extra for Y/N?” Stu said to Tatum Riley, his Girlfriend. “What am I, some beer slave?” Tatum chuckled and headed to the basement.

A couple hours later...🕧🕦🕥🕣

The phone rang as you and the other random group was watching the horror you picked. “Y/N could you get that? This horror is lit!” Stu said. “Okay..” You nodded, walking to the phone. “Hello? You said. “Hello Y/N...” A deep voice seethed on the other side of the phone. “Who is this?” You asked, a little scared. “You don’t need to know until you see me, your heart, in my hand...” You hanged up quickly out of fear and rushed over to the living room. “Stu! The mur-“ You stopped, everyone was gone. When you were on the phone everyone heard that there was a dead body in the woods and went to see it. You heard a thud then a scream upstairs. “Sidney!” You said, running up the stairs and opening the door. You saw Billy’s dead body on the ground and the murderer in the corner of the room, trying to kill Sydney. “Sidney! Come here!” You screamed getting her out of the room. “Y/N! We have to help Billy!” Sidney sobbed as you got her downstairs. “No time, he’s dead!” You said, scared out of your mind.

Sidney kept sobbing as you dragged her out of the house, looking at the garage door you two saw Tatum, head crushed and neck snapped, hanging off the garage door. Sidney sobbed even more as you feared the murderer was near by, as you were right, the murderer ran out of the bushes and ran towards you. Not Sidney, you. He slashed his knife on your temple, making blood rush down your head.

You guys ran back inside and into the kitchen to go outside from the back door until you saw Billy, with a gun and his shirt all bloody, he licked the blood on his finger while pointing the gun at you two. “Syrup, my favourite...” He said lowly as Stu walked in. “Stu! I told you! I told you the murderer was here!” You sobbed but Stu didn’t react, he only smiled. “Oh Y/N, haven’t you heard of teamwork? Me and Billy are pretty good at it” Stu said as he leaned his head over Billy’s shoulder. “What’s the matter guys? You two look like you’ve seen a ghost...” Billy said, a voice box to his mouth, making him sound really different. “It was you..It was always you...” Sidney said, tears streaming down her face. “What’s wrong? Scared?” Stu said to Sidney. You pulled out a knife from the drawer and held it out. “Stay away you fucking psychos!!” You screamed, the wound on your head stinging.

Stu and Billy did a fake surprised look then smiled, you grabbed Sidney’s hand then sprinted, Billy shot you in the shoulder and you screamed in pain, still running. Hiding in the closet.

Ring, ring...

The phone rang and Stu answered. “Wanna play a game?” A low voice spoke. “What game..?” Stu had been stabbed and tried to gain consciousness. “It’s where some friends call the police on your sorry ass!” Sidney yelled through the phone. “Aw...My parents are gonna kill me..!” Stu sobbed then fell to his knees.

Billy ran in the hallway but got stopped as the door slammed him against the wall, Sidney running to him and stabbing him repeatedly with a umbrella. Billy fell, dead for real this time.

Stu stumbled into the living room, planning acting like the victim when the police arrived but another thing happened.

You shoved him to the ground then pushed the TV right on his head, electrocuting him until his feet kicked and twitched.

You moved the TV and looked at his burnt and bloody face. You frowned upon him and lowered your head.

“Stu...I always had a crush on you...But now I know why we couldn’t be together..” You whispered and bent down to close his, dead, open eyes.

You heard police sirens and walked Sidney out of the house, you covered in blood.

#Spotify #scream #Stu Macher #billy loomis #sidney prescott #chostface #1990s #horror #fanfic #male reader

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spxnglr · 3 years ago

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Okie doke folks, here comes my smol ramble about Aft.erli.fe and why it’s not part of my Egon’s canon.

Spoilers for the film incoming, so scroll on if you haven’t seen it yet and want to.

Don’t get me wrong, the film as a standalone piece was BRILLIANT. I was in literal tears at the end when Egon makes his final appearance and is reunited with the others one last time before he has to “move on”. It was such a fitting tribute to Harold, masterfully done.

However, what irks me is the detail of his relationship with Callie, his daughter. For those who haven’t seen the film and aren’t going to, and don’t know what I’m talking about. it’s revealed that Egon fathered a daughter named Callie during the 1980s and has nothing to do with her, like, at all. No visits, no relationship. This leads to Callie being resentful of him thinking that he’s a deadbeat dad, and rightfully so, to be honest. I mean, at the end they have their sweet moment, and again, perfectly well done, but even so, there are two factors which really get to me.

The first is that there is NO reference to Callie in the original films, nor in any of the extended media. Fair enough if we didn’t have a probable birth date for her, but we do - 1982. This means she was born BEFORE the first film. To cut a very long story short, Egon just...NEVER mentioned her to the other Ghostbusters, as they have to introduce themselves to her at the end of Afterlife - which means that his closest friends didn’t even know she existed.

“But what if HE didn’t know she existed?” - he did. There’s an entire wall collage in his work room dedicated to her throughout her life. He absolutely knew she existed, and yet STILL mentioned nothing about her to anyone else. Oh, and yes, Aft.er.life explained his absence as being something he had to do in order to keep her and everyone else safe from the threat of Gozer, but that’s just a...REALLY flimsy excuse in my eyes, and that STILL doesn’t explain why he never talked about Callie to anyone.

So, to sum up, Aft.er.life is not canon for my Egon because there is NO WAY he’d behave like this. Yes, he’s not the most emotional soul, and he avoids dealing with people too much if he can help it, but he would’ve absolutely given a damn about his child if he knew she existed. You can’t convince me otherwise. To me, that film happened in another timeline. I’m sorry if that disappoints anyone, but that’s just my stance on it.

#𝙷𝙾𝙻𝙳 𝙾𝙽 - 𝙿𝙾𝙿𝚂 𝙸𝚂 𝙷𝙰𝚅𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙰 𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚄𝙶𝙷𝚃. (OOC)#long post cw #sorry it had to be said #not intending to cause any offence or upset with this either! literally just my thoughts

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hrina · 4 years ago

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Something Strange

PAIRING: Harry x Reader RATING: R WORD COUNT: 6.3k+ REQUESTED: no

uhhhh hi. so. this is my (first ever) halloween fic, ft. infuriatingly cocky ghostbuster!harry. i really hope you guys enjoy it, and just like every other writer on this godforsaken site, i’d love to hear any feedback that you might have. ok im done now lol go forth and read :)

warnings: cursing, brief nsfw content, a nasty habit of jumping to conclusions, and harry being an asshole with a secret heart of gold.

~*~

October 2nd, 2021

Your attention is first caught by the massive, obnoxiously-coloured truck parked in Mindy and Gerald’s driveway. The entire vehicle is a shade of navy blue, though its sophistication is ruined by the neon green bubble lettering streaked across its doors.

Spooked? Call Styles’ Scares!

Beneath that, there’s a promise painted in bright pink:

Lasting results or your money back!

“What the hell?” you mutter.

You unbuckle your seatbelt and exit your car, momentarily forgetting about the groceries sitting in the trunk. Mindy and Gerald are standing on their porch, absorbed in a light-hearted conversation. When they catch sight of you trekking across the lawn, they smile brightly and offer up a pair of welcoming waves.

“Hi, there!” you call, shoving your hands into the back pockets of your jeans. “What’s all this?”

“Good afternoon, dear!” Mindy replies. She quickly descends the front steps, meeting you halfway and enveloping you in a tight hug. “How are you? It’s been a while since we last spoke.”

“You can drop in whenever you want,” you say, chuckling. “It’s not like I live very far away.”

“How have you been?” Gerald follows his wife, steadily making his way off the porch. “How’s school?”

“It’s alright.” You shrug. “Things are picking up, now, but I’m trying my best to stay on top of them.”

You toss your thumb over your shoulder, gesturing to the bright pickup truck parked in their driveway. (It really is ugly, you think. Probably one of the ugliest vehicles that you’ve ever had the displeasure of perceiving.)

“What’s going on?”

“Oh!” Mindy lifts her hands to her mouth, gazing at you with wide, serious eyes. “Our house is haunted.”

You balk. “Pardon me?”

“I know, I know,” she sighs, shaking her head. “It sounds silly. I didn’t believe it at first either, but—something keeps knocking our picture frames off the wall. And the lights! They start flickering at random intervals throughout the day.”

“Are you sure it’s not just rats?” you joke.

Gerald, who has now joined you on the lawn, holds up his hand solemnly. “We tried using traps, but they haven’t been touched at all.”

“Exactly.” Mindy nods, turning back to you. “We’re already worried about Joseph’s wedding next week, so one of the ladies at the community centre recommended Harry. That same day, Gerald gave him a call, and that was the end of it.”

“Who’s Harry?” you ask, brows knitting together in confusion.

“Er—” A deep voice sounds from behind you. “I am.”

When you turn around, you come face-to-face with one of the prettiest men you’ve ever seen. He’s got mossy green eyes, dark pink lips, and brown hair that curls around his temples and behind his ears. Smooth skin stretches out over high, chiseled cheekbones and a sharp jaw. He’s wearing a pair of light-wash jeans and matching white sneakers. A black hoodie covers his broad chest; upon taking a closer look, you note that the two front strings have been tied into a picturesque little bow.

Mindy wastes no time, introducing the two of you immediately. When Harry holds out his hand for you to shake, you don’t hesitate.

“Did you want my card?” he asks, peering at you curiously.

You study his expression. Beneath his seemingly sincere exterior, arrogance runs wild and unchecked. You know this man. You’ve met him a hundred different times under a hundred different circumstances, and you’ve learned to recognize a lost cause when you’re staring it square in the face.

“Not at all.” You shoot him a fake smile. “I’m just the neighbour.”

“Right.” His lips twitch. He steps back, rolling his shoulders and lifting his chin in the direction of the house. “Well, I should probably get to work. It was nice meeting you, babe.”

Your nose wrinkles as the pet name sinks in.

When you turn back around to resume your conversation with Mindy and Gerald, they’re gone. Your eyes bounce to the right, where you find them guiding Harry up the porch steps. Mindy has one hand on his bicep whilst gesturing animatedly with the other. Gerald opens the front door and holds out his arm, welcoming Harry inside.

You scoff, shaking your head in disdain.

“Ghosts aren’t real,” you mumble as you make your way back across the lawn. The trunk of your car squeaks when you pull it open, and plastic bags rustle as you gather your groceries into your arms.

Ghosts aren’t real. And Harry is obviously a scammer, based on…well, based on everything. The tacky design on his truck. The unprofessional wardrobe. The self-assuredness emanating from every cell in his body. Babe.

But Mindy and Gerald truly believe that their home is haunted. Trying to change their minds without a shred of physical proof is pointless. You blow out a soft sigh, accepting the grim reality of your situation.

Your neighbours are gullible, trusting people. And for the next few days—whether you like it or not—Harry is here to stay.

October 5th, 2021

You’re approximately two seconds away from chucking your textbook against the far wall.

You’ve been trying to finish this chapter for the past hour. And though you pride yourself on being tolerant when it comes to petty annoyances, your patience is wearing thin. A quick glance out of your bedroom window reveals Harry’s hideous pickup truck parked—yet again—in Mindy and Gerald’s driveway.

You roll your eyes. Of course.

The piercing, raucous whirring starts up again; you release a frustrated yell, slamming your book shut and leaping off your bed. You’re muttering obscenities under your breath as you stalk down the hall, stopping briefly to slide on a pair of fuzzy slippers. When you yank your front door open, the chilly autumn air settles into your bones.

The clamour grows louder as you stomp across your shared lawn. When you knock on Mindy and Gerald’s door, the commotion is nearly unbearable. A few seconds go by, during which your presence remains unacknowledged; you rap once again on the wood, hoping that the sound will be conspicuous enough amidst all of the background noise.

Sure enough, everything goes quiet. Your shoulders slump with relief just as the door opens. Mindy greets you with a friendly smile.

“Hi, dear,” she says kindly. “What can I do for you?”

“Hi.” You force yourself to mirror her affable expression, hoping that she can’t see the pained exhaustion brewing in your eyes. “Could I just—could I speak with Harry, please? It won’t take long.”

“Of course.” She nods before peering at you anxiously. “Don’t tell me that you’ve got ghosts, too.”

“No.” You shake your head. Ghosts aren’t real, you want to say, but you hold your tongue. “No, I just—I just need to have a quick word with him, that’s all.”

“Alright. I’ll go fetch him.” She turns around and totters away.

You hear her call his name, followed by the telltale sound of shuffling. After a few long moments, he’s there, leaning against the doorway with a bemused look on his face.

“Evening, babe,” he says coolly. “What’s up?”

“Don’t call me that,” you snap, folding your arms over your chest.

Harry’s eyebrows shoot upward. He hadn’t expected you to greet him with such animosity, you suppose. His outfit is nearly identical to that of the other day, save for the red bandana perched atop his head. He buries his fingers into the pockets of his jeans, shrugging nonchalantly and pinning you with a blasé, unimpressed gaze.

“Noted,” he says. The corners of his lips curl up into a crooked smirk as he repeats, “What’s up?”

“You need to keep it down,” you say flatly. “I don’t know what kind of fake ‘exorcism’ bullshit you’re trying to pull off, but the noise is driving me insane. I need to study.”

“‘Fake’?” Harry parrots. “You don’t believe in spirits?”

“No,” you deadpan. “I don’t.” You narrow your eyes, studying the subtle movements of his face. “And if I had to take a wild guess, neither do you.”

“Really,” he says, chuckling softly. It isn’t a question.

“Really.”

Harry watches you, tickled by your obvious exasperation. “I get the feeling that you don’t like me very much.”

“Look at that,” you say, rolling your eyes. “He does have a brain.”

“You’re so judgmental.” He laughs, shaking his head. “How can you dislike me when you barely even know me?”

“I know enough,” you reply, scowling. “I know that you’re a fraud who takes advantage of people and their fears. And for what? Just so that you can take home a paycheque at the end of the day?”

“Ouch.” Harry feigns injury, placing a large hand over his heart. “That hurts, babe.”

There it is again. Babe.

“You know what?” Your nostrils flare. “Forget this—it’s like trying to explain rocket science to a toddler.”

He grins. “Yeah, I suppose. I’m much cuter, though, don’t you think?”

You scoff, pedalling backward. “In your dreams.”

His delight only seems to grow when your retort sinks in. You whip around, descending the porch steps and storming back toward your house. When you chance a glance over your shoulder, Harry is still standing in the doorway, a shit-eating smile stretched wide across his cheeks.

“Just keep it down, okay?” you call irritably.

He raises two fingers to his temple in a mock-salute, and you march away without another word.

October 8th, 2021

“You’re sure?”

You laugh. “Yes, Mindy, I’m sure. I promise.”

“Alright,” she assents, blowing out a quiet sigh through the phone. “I went grocery shopping today, so our cupboards are fully stocked—help yourself to anything you’d like. Also, when you flush the downstairs toilet, the water may look like it’s rising, but it goes down after a second or two.”

“Noted.” You snicker. “Anything else?”

“That’s it,” she says. “Thank you so much.”

“No problem,” you reply. “Tell Joseph and Amy that I said congratulations, yeah?”

“We will! See you later, dear.”

“See you later.”

October 9th, 2021

When Mindy and Gerald get back tomorrow afternoon, you’re going to wring their necks.

Agreeing to housesit whilst they celebrated their son’s wedding a few cities away? Sure. Fine. You had a long night full of nothing planned—sitting in front of the television, munching on some snacks, relaxing for the evening and trying to forget about all of the schoolwork waiting for you at home. You were in the middle of watching a Golden Girls rerun when, suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

“Coming!” You stood, setting your bowl of popcorn aside. The knocking continued as you made your way to the front entrance, wiping your buttery fingers against the dark leggings covering your thighs.

“I’m coming,” you said exasperatedly. You opened the door, ready to shoo away whoever it was—a salesperson, probably.

Instead, you came face-to-face with Harry.

And now, you’re here—slumped on the couch, angrily shovelling popcorn into your mouth. You keep your gaze trained on the television, trying your hardest to avoid the man who is setting up his “equipment” in the middle of the room.

“Can’t you do this in the kitchen?” you deadpan.

He flicks a switch on his machine—it looks an awful lot like a standard centrifuge. What a fraud.

“Spirit energy’s strongest in here,” he grunts. His knees scuff against the carpeted floor.

A derisive laugh falls from your lips. “Mindy and Gerald aren’t here—you can drop the act.”

Harry glances up at you, his pretty green irises glimmering. “What act?”

You roll your eyes and look away, fixing your attention back on the grainy screen.

Neither of you say anything for the next few minutes; tension builds, saturating the air and making it hard for you to breathe. Eventually, Harry breaks through the awkward silence. You want to scream.

“Er—” he starts, expectant. “Do you mind stepping out for a second? I need the room.”

Your nostrils flare. “Excuse me?”

“I need the—”

“I heard you,” you say, sitting up straight. “You don’t need anything. What the hell are you playing at?”

“I’m not quite sure what you mean, babe.” His tone is genuine, but you can sense the mirth simmering just beneath the surface. His lips twitch, and your frustration boils like water over a stove.

“Stop calling me that,” you snap, folding your arms across your chest. “And stop playing dumb. Other people might put up with your pseudo-spooky bullshit, but I won’t. Ghosts aren’t real!”

The lights go out.

You gasp, straining your eyes in an attempt to regain your bearings. Slowly, blurry shapes and shadows materialise in front of you. You fumble around for your phone, picking it up and tapping the screen. A moment later, the device’s flash lights up the room. You shine it from side to side, eventually settling on Harry, who is looking up at the ceiling in complete and utter bewilderment.

“Fuck,” he mutters under his breath. “Now you’ve done it.”

“Done what?” you squawk, glaring at him. “The power went out. Big deal.”

The lights flicker fleetingly, and then the room is dark again. Your eyes drift over to Harry; he’s smirking.

“This isn’t a ghost,” you say stubbornly, waving your phone around. The bright light bounces across the walls before you steady yourself, positioning the beam back on him. He stands, sinking his hands into the deep pockets of his sweatpants.

“And how would you know?” he teases, cocking one eyebrow challengingly.

“Because,” you scoff. “Ghosts aren’t real.”

Something crashes to the floor. You yelp in surprise, your head snapping to the right. When you shine your light in the direction of the noise, you find a shattered picture frame lying on the ground.

“What the fuck?” Harry murmurs, advancing toward the mess.

“Careful!” you say, holding up your hand. He stops in his tracks, peering over at you in confusion. “There’s glass, idiot,” you explain, climbing to your feet. “You’re going to hurt yourself.”

He shoots you a crooked smile. “You do care.”

“I don’t.” Your response is curt. “I just don’t feel like driving you to the hospital so that they can remove fragments from your foot.”

Harry chuckles.

You sigh, squinting at the fallen frame. “We can clean it up when the lights come back on,” you say, mostly to yourself. “I don’t want to risk anything.”

He nods and yawns, stretching his arms out above his head. “Suit yourself, babe.”

“The next time you call me that, I’m going to—”

“What?” he asks, padding over to the sofa. You watch him approach with a deep scowl on your face. He collapses onto the couch, slouching and spreading his legs obnoxiously wide. “You gonna beat me up or something?”

You shake your head in disbelief, stepping away from him. “You’re a piece of shit.”

“So you say,” he replies, unbothered.

“You’re so—”

You break off, producing an angry noise in the back of your throat. Harry winks at you; in response, you whip around and storm away, carving out a path from the living room to the kitchen.

You shine the light from your phone across the cupboards, making a beeline for the fridge. When you pull it open, the cold compartment is dark. Squinting, you reach for one of the many water bottles stacked on the top shelf.

Stupid Harry, with his stupid smile and his stupid eyes and his stupid attitude and his stupid bogus business. You can’t believe that Mindy and Gerald were naïve enough to fall for his bullshit. You need to have a long talk with them when they get back, you think—to ensure that they never swallow a pill this big ever again.

“Thirsty?”

You nearly jump out of your skin, pointing your phone toward the kitchen’s exit. Harry is standing there, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his broad chest. You bring one hand up to your sternum, trying to calm your racing heart.

“Jesus Christ,” you hiss, shaking your head. “You scared the shit out of me!”

He snickers lowly. You turn your attention back to the fridge, grabbing a water bottle and uncapping it quickly. Through the darkness, Harry watches you gulp down the cool liquid; you pretend not to notice.

“Can I help you?” you finally ask, wiping your mouth with the heel of your palm.

“No.” He shrugs. “Just…looking, I guess.”

“That’s creepy,” you reply flatly. He laughs.

“May I steal a bottle?” he says, padding across the tiles. “I’m parched.”

You chew on the inside of your cheek. “I—sure. Whatever.”

And though you try, you can’t seem to tear your gaze away from him. He hums as he opens up the fridge, leaning forward to get a better look inside. You play with the hem of your sweater, standing behind him awkwardly. When he peers over his shoulder, you quickly look away, feigning interest in the marble countertop next to the sink.

“Er—” he starts. He fixes you with an inquisitive look, glancing down at the device in your hand. “Would you mind? I can’t see anything.”

“Don’t you have your own?” you ask.

“Yeah, but you’re already holding yours. Come on.”

You roll your eyes. “Fine.”

You draw nearer, lifting your phone and shining its flash into the fridge. Harry hums, plucking a water bottle off the top shelf with a satisfied smile. When he turns to face you, a puff of air catches in your throat; he’s awfully close, his torso brushing almost imperceptibly against yours.

You stare up at him, stunned. There’s a small mole beneath the left corner of his mouth. Part of you—an insignificant, microscopic part—fights the urge to reach out and run your thumb over the mark.

“I’m sorry for calling you a piece of shit,” you blurt.

He inhales deeply, chest expanding and fitting a bit more firmly against your own.

The contact snaps you out of your trance. You retreat, backing up against the counter to maintain your balance. Harry clears his throat and glances away.

“Thanks,” he says, his voice hoarse.

Unable to find the right words, you simply nod.

The two of you stand there for a long moment, sinking into a pool of uncomfortable silence. Just when you think that you’re going to choke on the invisible tension, a faint buzz resonates through the air. Less than a second later, the power returns, illuminating the kitchen in a wash of warm, brilliant light.

“Thank God,” you mutter. You shut the flash on your phone, sliding the device beneath the waistband of your leggings.

Harry blinks rapidly, disoriented. “Shit.”

“What’s wrong?” you ask, tilting your head to the side.

He waves your question away. “No, it’s—it’s nothing.”

And you don’t really feel like pressing the subject, so you let it go. A tired sigh falls from your mouth as you scan your surroundings.

“Help me find a broom,” you tell him. “We need to sweep up the glass in the other room.”

His lips twitch. “What’s the magic word?”

There he is. The same insufferable man who has been pushing your buttons all week. You scowl, shooting him a displeased glare.

“Forget it.” You drag your fingers down the left side of your face. “I’ll do it myself.”

~*~

“You sure you don’t want my help?” Harry calls, kicking his feet up onto the sofa.

You grunt, crouching next to the shattered glass on the floor. “Positive.”

The broom and dustpan that you’ve acquired from the laundry room are old and frail, but you suppose that they’ll get the job done. You set the dustpan down on the ground, wrapping your fingers around the broom’s handle and trying to maneuver it in an efficient way. It’s no easy feat, but eventually, you manage to create a small, compact pile of shards. Gingerly, you reach for the picture frame, plucking it up from the ground and setting it off to the side. Next, you take your time sweeping all of the fragments into the dustpan, inspecting the floor for any lingering bits.

“Struggling over there?” Harry asks.

You grit your teeth.

“No,” you counter in a matter-of-fact tone. “I think I got it all, actually. No thanks to you.”

You throw the last part over your shoulder, coupling it with an accusatory frown. Harry holds up his hands in surrender, suppressing his amusement.

“Shouldn’t you be exorcising spirits?” you ask. Sarcasm drips from your words.

He chuckles. The couch squeaks as he shuffles around; a moment later, the sound of approaching footsteps reaches your ears. You stiffen when he stops next to your squatted form.

“To be quite honest,” he begins, and you can practically hear the smirk in his voice, “I’m having a much better time watching you.”

“Creepy,” you say. “Again.”

He laughs, lowering himself to his knees. In the periphery of your vision, you watch him pick up the abandoned picture frame, turning it around and studying the photograph inside. His cheeks lift with the slope of a familiar smile, but somehow, this one is different from the others that you’ve witnessed.

It’s real. Sincere.

“Nice, don’t you think?” Harry asks, pulling you from your thoughts.

He extends his arm, revealing the photograph. Mindy and Gerald’s beaming faces stare up at you, a balance of bright grins and crinkled eyes. Subconsciously, your lips curl upward, and you take the frame from Harry’s hands.

“Yeah,” you murmur, running your fingertips over the photo. “They look happy.”

“How long have you known them?” he asks. There’s no malice behind the question.

“Since I moved in,” you say absentmindedly, admiring the ornate frame around the picture. “A few years, now.”

He hums in response. “They talk about you a lot.”

“All good things, I hope.” You cast a wry look in his direction.

He chuckles and nods. “Yeah. They look out for you, it seems.”

“I try to look out for them, too.” You sit back on your haunches, groaning quietly. “Which is why I was surprised that they didn’t come to me when they first thought their house was ‘haunted’.”

Your intonation changes on the last word; you still don’t believe that your neighbours are being plagued by spirits, despite the plethora of peculiarity that you’ve witnessed tonight.

“Maybe they didn’t want to worry you,” Harry suggests.

You roll your eyes. Even now, he refuses to drop the act.

“Sure,” you say. “So, hiring a spirit exterminator—or whatever you pretend to be—was a better move?” You snort softly, climbing to your feet. “How much are they paying you, anyway?”

He purses his lips. “They’re not.”

You freeze.

A beat of silence drags out, during which you swallow your shock. You clear your throat and lift your chin, staring down at Harry banally.

“You’re lying.”

“Nope.”

“You are!” you insist. A short, incredulous laugh tumbles off your tongue. “You are one hundred percent fucking with me.”

“I’m afraid not,” he says.

“Your truck, though...” you say. “‘Lasting results, or your money back’?”

“I’ve got to make it look legitimate, don’t I?” He smirks. “But it’s cute that you remembered.”

Your eyes lock with his, and suddenly, it’s almost impossible to breathe. His gaze is deep, open, and honest. Your lips part, but no sound comes out. Instinctively, your legs carry you a few paces back, veering toward the sofa. You plop down onto the plush cushions, clutching the picture frame tightly between your fingers.

“Then, why—?” you break off, shaking your head. “Why would you—?”

“Peace of mind,” Harry shrugs, still rooted to his spot on the floor. “Ever heard of the placebo effect?”

“You admit it, then,” you say, sitting up straight. “There’s no such thing as ghosts.”

He nods, blinking languidly. “There’s no such thing as ghosts.”

“So,” you start, trying to make sense of the situation, “you let them believe that you’re actually cleansing the house—for free, too—just to—?” You glance around the room, searching for the right words. “—just to put them at ease?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s…”

Sweet. Thoughtful.

“…ridiculous.”

Harry chuckles. “Thanks.”

“I—” You hesitate, depositing the photograph next to you on the couch. “This whole time, I thought you were just…”

“A con?”

You bring your fingers up to your mouth, nodding silently and studying him with big, rounded eyes.

He shrugs.

“I mean, I never really got the chance to explain myself. You’d already made up your mind about me, hadn’t you? So, I thought I’d just let you stick with your assumptions—it didn’t bother me much.”

“I’m a horrible person,” you say, mostly to yourself.

Harry laughs, shaking his head. “No, you’re not. You’re just a bit judgmental, that’s all.”

“You’re right.” You nod again, bowing your head in shame. “I am. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, babe, really.”

You stand abruptly, abandoning your spot on the sofa.

“I should finish up,” you state, embarrassed beyond belief. Harry watches you closely as you approach. You crouch down next to him, reaching for the dustpan with shaky hands. A few small shards of glass are littered at the brink of the collector; you nudge them away from the edge, trying to be as careful as possible.

“Ow!” you suddenly hiss, retracting your arm quickly. You twist your wrist, fixing your attention on a thin cut engraved into the pad of your index finger.

“What happened?” Harry asks, leaning forward.

You shake your head, waving away his worries. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Just got nicked, that’s all.”

“Let me see,” he requests, holding out his own hand.

You pause, taking your bottom lip between your teeth and stealing a quick glance at his face. His expression is concerned, but neutral. Your hesitation is silly, you think—he may be a bit of a jackass, but he’s not going to hurt you. You’ve already condemned him once before, and you were wrong.

You don’t want to make that mistake again.

After a brief moment, you give in, sliding your knuckles into his open palm.

“It’s alright, really,” you say, speaking around the lump in your throat. “The piece was tiny—it hardly broke the surface.”

Harry inspects the laceration closely, and you fight the urge to roll your eyes.

It’s not that serious, you want to tell him, but you refrain from letting the words escape. Part of you is enjoying the way your hands fit together so perfectly. You don’t want it to end—not yet.

“You’re bleeding a bit, babe,” he announces faintly, brows cinched in concentration.

“I am?” You try to tug your arm back, but he keeps a firm grip on your wrist. A low, confused noise echoes in the back of your throat; Harry peers up at you, his features unreadable.

“It’s just a spot,” he murmurs. “Let me.”

And before you can say or do anything else, he’s taking your finger past his lips and giving an easy, gentle suck.

You squeak.

The sound snaps Harry out of his trance; he releases your hand and recoils hastily. You exhale, driving out the stale air gathered in your lungs. When you peek up at him from beneath your lashes, he’s already watching you, shoulders taut with anxiety.

“Sorry,” he stammers. His nostrils flare. “That was weird—sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you say, shaking your head. “Er…thanks.”

“No worries.” He swallows.

“Alright.”

Awkwardly, you wipe your clammy palms against your thighs. Harry seems to be looking at everything except for you; his gaze flits to the ceiling, then to the couch, then to the floor. You gnaw on the inside of your cheek and push yourself up off the ground. The room is painfully quiet as you slowly slink back toward to the sofa.

“I should probably put this somewhere safe,” you mumble, picking up the forgotten picture frame.

Warm air floats over the nape of your neck. You gasp and spin around, nearly toppling over in your haste. Harry’s hands find your shoulders, steadying you and crowding you closer to his chest. You glance up at him; your shallow breaths mingle together in the narrow space, noses only inches apart.

“Is this okay?” he asks, his voice no higher than a gruff whisper. “Tell me. Please.”

In response, you fumble for one of his hands, grappling at his wrist; he loosens his hold on your arms, confused but willing. He’s motionless as you lift his knuckles up to your mouth. You glance down, tilting your head to the side and studying them carefully. Harry says nothing when you press a soft, feathery kiss to the pad of his index finger.

But then you’re dipping the tip of the digit between your lips, and suddenly, he’s undone.

“Fucking—”

He grabs your face in his palms and seals his mouth to yours.

The two of you stagger backward, tumbling onto the couch. Mindy and Gerald’s picture frame slips from your grasp, landing on a neighbouring cushion with a faint thud. Reflexively, your legs part; Harry takes his rightful place between them, slanting his body accordingly. When he applies the faintest hint of pressure, you moan.

“Fuck.” He draws back, his warm breath wafting over your chin. “Don’t.”

“‘Don’t’ what?” you ask, puzzled.

He shakes his head. “Don’t make those noises. It’s—you’re—I’m—”

He curses quietly and reaches for one of your hands. You allow him to guide your palm lower, inhaling sharply when you feel the slight bulge protruding from his trousers. Instinctively, your fingers close over the subtle ridge of his cock. His shoulders stiffen, and his eyes squeeze shut.

“You’re hard,” you murmur, as though it’s the most fascinating thing in the world.

“Not fully.” He swallows. “But I’m getting there.”

“Because of me?” you ask, peering up at him innocently.

“Yeah.” Harry expels a wobbly, disbelieving laugh. “Yeah, babe—because of you.”

Your teeth sink into your bottom lip as the familiar moniker falls from his mouth. He notices your unusual reaction, mouth curling into teasing smirk.

“What?” he says, lifting one eyebrow. “No nagging, this time? I thought you hated that nickname.”

You grip the collar of his sweater and give a gentle tug, guiding him down for another kiss. When the two of you finally break apart, you shrug. “It’s growing on me.”

He smiles.

“Do you—?” you pause, pursing your lips. The question sounds silly—presumptuous, even. Rather than finishing your sentence, you lift your chin, gazing up evenly into Harry’s green eyes and declaring, “I think I want to sleep with you.”

His cheeks dimple with a wide grin. “Is that so?”

You nod.

“Right, then.” He kisses your nose and pulls away. “There’s a condom in my wallet, but…I may or may not have left it in my truck.”

You groan, allowing your head to fall back against the sofa with a heavy thump. Harry chuckles at your theatrics. After a brief moment of contemplation, you compose yourself and sit up quickly.

“That works, actually,” you say, tucking a stray piece of hair behind your ear. “Grab your wallet, and then we can go to my place. I don’t think my neighbours would be very happy if we fucked on their couch.”

He laughs, climbing eagerly to his feet and shooting you a smug wink. “You got it, babe.”

October 10th, 2021

It’s nearly half past noon when you step out onto the porch the next day. You yawn, squinting up at the sun shining brightly in the sky. There are no clouds in sight; the slight chill of the autumn air tickles your exposed arms. You tug on the waistband of your sweatpants, keeping the material seated firmly on your hips.

“Good morning, dear!”

You jump, head snapping in the direction of a familiar voice. Mindy and Gerald are sitting on their veranda, nursing twin cups of coffee and looking awfully cozy. Gerald smiles at you, folding up his newspaper and setting it on his lap.

“Good morning!” You wave before re-evaluating your words. “Well, it’s technically past twelve, so good afternoon.”

Mindy laughs.

“How was the wedding?” you ask, approaching the side of your deck. You lean against the thin metal railing, combing your fingers through your messy hair. “I wasn’t expecting you to be back this soon.”

“We woke up early,” Mindy explains. “And the wedding was fabulous. Amy wore the most beautiful dress I’ve ever seen.”

“Really?” You grin. “Do you have any pictures?”

“Of course! Just let me run inside and grab my phone—”

“Mornin’,” a gruff voice says from behind you.

You gasp and spin around, bringing a hand to your chest. The sight laid out before you has your heart speeding up, galloping wildly and battering against the confines of your ribs.

Harry’s wearing that same hoodie from last night. Your gaze trails lower—he’s also sporting a pair of grey boxers and white socks. There’s a mug nestled in each of his large hands, his spindly fingers wrapped around the handles comfortably. Your eyes lock with his sleepy ones, and your breathing hitches in your throat.

“Morning,” you whisper, unable to muster up anything louder.

“I—” Harry clears his throat, stepping closer and extending his left arm. “I, er, took the liberty of making us some tea. Hope you don’t mind.”

“No, it’s—” You swallow as you accept one of the mugs, suppressing a giddy smile. “It’s completely fine. Thank you.”

“Of course.” He leans in, pressing a soft kiss to your lips. “Sleep well?”

“Mhm.” You nod shyly.

He chuckles. “Good.”

His gaze wanders over your shoulder, and it’s then that he notices Mindy and Gerald sat on the neighbouring porch. Without even batting an eye, he lifts his hand in a friendly wave. “Morning, you two. How was the wedding?”

You turn back toward the couple, a sheepish look on your face. Mindy is beaming, and Gerald is trying to hold back a laugh. Heat creeps up your neck; you wish that the ground would just open up and swallow you whole.

“It was wonderful!” Mindy trills. Her enthusiasm has skyrocketed. You pinch the bridge of your nose, utterly mortified.

“Yes.” Gerald finally pipes up, smirking knowingly. “It was great. What about you, though? How was your night?”

“Fine,” you blurt before Harry can respond. “It was fine.”

The duo share a look, and then Mindy giggles girlishly. You bring your mug up to your mouth, taking a long sip and groaning into the cup. Harry’s arm snakes around your waist, making you jump. You steal a glance at him out of the corner of your eye; he’s fighting a smile.

“Well—” Gerald clears his throat, plucking his folded newspaper from his lap and rising to his feet. “I think I’ll be going, now. Need to catch up on those few extra hours of sleep.”

“Me too,” Mindy says, nodding fervently. She directs her next words at you. “If you pop by later, I’ll show you those photos, okay?”

“Okay,” you croak.

She shoots you one last grin before disappearing inside.

“God,” you say immediately, hanging your head. “That was torture.”

Next to you, Harry laughs. You aim a weak swat at his chest. He snickers, catching your palm and ducking down to drop a gentle kiss against your knuckles. You exhale shakily, twisting your body around so that you can face him.

“Your hair’s a mess,” you murmur, running your free hand through his dishevelled curls.

He cocks one eyebrow. “And whose fault is that?”

You scoff. “Shut up.”

He chuckles quietly and steps closer to you, holding out his mug. You smile in assent, mirroring his movements and clinking your cups together.

“So,” Harry starts, sipping his tea casually, “you gonna let me take you out on a proper date, sometime?”

“That depends,” you say, trying to ignore the flurry of butterflies flapping around in your stomach. “I’ll go—but only if we take my car. I refuse to drive around town in your tacky truck.”

“It’s not that bad!” he protests.

“It’s awful,” you tell him, shaking your head. “It looks it was decorated by a preschooler during arts and crafts.”

“Fine.” He rolls his eyes playfully, giving in. “Any other requests?”

You pause, lost in thought.

“One more, actually,” you say, fixing him with a challenging stare. “You need to come clean to Mindy and Gerald.”

He doesn’t miss a beat. “Alright.”

“Really?” You balk, taken aback by his compliance. “That’s it? But I—I had a whole speech prepared.”

Harry laughs softly, cradling your face with his free hand and kissing you slowly. Your fingers tighten around your mug. When the two of you break apart for air, he shrugs.

“I started considering it after everything that happened last night. Keep your speech, though.” His lips twitch. “You’ll be needing to scold me again in no time, I’m sure.”

Your shoulders shake with a silent giggle. “You’re probably right.”

“Also—” Harry clears his throat, soothing the ache with another sip of tea. “You may want to suggest that they hire an exterminator.”

“An exterminator?” you repeat, blinking in surprise. “But…they don’t have rats. Gerald said that the traps hadn’t been touched.”

“Not rats,” he hums. “Squirrels, I believe. Living in the walls.”

“And how did you reach that conclusion?”

“I’ve been doing this for a while, babe—I’ve seen my fair share of pests. Plus,” he clucks his tongue, “they like to chew on wires.”

“Really?” You sigh distantly, pinching your bottom lip. “God, that sucks.”

“It does.” He nods, wrapping his fingers around your forearm. “But you can tell them later.”

“Later?” you say, brows knitting together. “Why not right now?”

“Because,” Harry grunts. You squeal when he crowds you up against your front door. He cups your jaw and tilts your chin up with his thumb, handsome face splitting into an easy, salacious grin.

“Right now, I’m taking you back to bed.”

~*~

thanks for reading! if you enjoyed this piece, please consider donating to my ko-fi! and as always, don’t forget to share your thoughts. thank you bunches <3

#harry styles smut #harry styles imagine #harry styles one shot #harry styles fanfiction #spookrry #harry writing #ok here it is 🙃 i lowkey feel like its gonna flop but w/e

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