#I understand he never plays for the winning team and that must be frustrating in the long run

[pucksandpower]

DSQ

George Russell x Wolff!Reader

Summary: George was on top of the world … until he wasn’t

Note: I actually had a whole other fic written in honor of George’s win, but yeah, that happened

George slumps in his chair, staring blankly at the wall of his driver’s room. The sting of disappointment and anger courses through him, his victory at the Belgian Grand Prix cruelly snatched away by a technicality. He runs his hands through his hair, tugging at the roots in frustration.

The door creaks open, and you step in quietly, holding a steaming cup of earl grey tea. George’s nostrils flare at the familiar scent, a small comfort in this storm of emotions.

“Hey,” you say softly, approaching him. “I brought you your favorite.”

George looks up, his eyes red-rimmed and puffy. “Thanks,” he mumbles, reaching for the cup with trembling hands.

You perch on the arm of his chair, your hand finding its way to his shoulder. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He takes a sip of the tea, closing his eyes briefly. When he opens them, there’s a mix of gratitude and anguish in his gaze. “I just ... I can’t believe this happened. All that work, all that effort, and it’s gone because of 1.5 bloody kilograms.”

You nod, your thumb tracing soothing circles on his shoulder. “I know, love. It’s not fair.”

“Not fair?” George scoffs, his voice rising. “It’s a bloody joke, that’s what it is! I drove the race of my life out there. I fought for P1, managed those tires like a pro, and now ... now it’s all for nothing.”

“It’s not for nothing,” you counter gently. “You still proved yourself out there. Everyone saw what you can do.”

George shakes his head vehemently. “But it doesn’t count, does it? Not officially. I went up on that podium, I held that trophy, I sprayed champagne, and now ...” His voice cracks. “Now I have to give it all back.”

You slide off the arm of the chair and kneel in front of him, taking his free hand in both of yours. “George, look at me.”

He meets your gaze reluctantly, tears threatening to spill over.

“You are an incredible driver,” you say firmly. “One issue that you had no control over doesn’t change that. This wasn’t your fault.”

George’s jaw clenches. “But it was the team’s fault. They should have caught this. They should have fixed it before the race even started.”

You nod, understanding his frustration. “You’re right. They made a mistake, and it cost you. But you can’t change what happened now. All you can do is move forward.”

He lets out a bitter laugh. “Move forward? To what? More disappointment? More near misses?”

“To your next victory,” you insist. “Because there will be a next one, schatz. This isn’t the end of your story.”

George’s shoulders sag, the fight seeming to drain out of him. “I just ... I wanted this so badly. For the team, for myself, for ...” He looks at you, his expression softening. “For us.”

You reach up, cupping his face in your hands. “I know, liebling. And I’m so proud of you, regardless of what the official results say.”

He leans into your touch, closing his eyes. “Your father must be furious.”

You can’t help but chuckle. “Vati’s always furious about something. But he knows this wasn’t your fault. He’s far more angry at the team than at you.”

George’s eyes snap open. “Really?”

You nod, a small smile playing on your lips. “Really. In fact, he was quite impressed with your driving today. Said it was some of the best he’s seen from you.”

A flicker of pride crosses George’s face, but it’s quickly replaced by doubt. “But what if ... what if this is as close as I get? What if I never actually win another race this season?”

“Hey,” you say firmly, making him look at you. “That’s not the George Russell I know talking. The George I know doesn’t give up. He fights. He perseveres. He comes back stronger.”

George swallows hard, his eyes searching yours. “How can you be so sure?”

“Because I know you,” you say simply. “I’ve seen your determination and your passion. This setback? It’s just fuel for your fire.”

He takes a shaky breath, nodding slowly. “You’re right. You’re always right.”

You grin, lightening the mood. “Well, Vati always says being right runs in the family.”

That draws a genuine laugh from George, the first since news of the disqualification broke. “God, I love you,” he says, his voice filled with warmth.

“I love you too,” you reply, leaning in to press a soft kiss to his lips. As you pull back, you notice some of the tension has left his shoulders.

“So,” you say, a mischievous glint in your eye. “What can I do to help you feel better?”

George raises an eyebrow, a hint of his usual playfulness returning. “Well, your presence alone is doing wonders, but I’m open to suggestions.”

You stand up slowly, your hands moving to the zipper of your dress. “How about we start with getting rid of this?”

George’s eyes widen. “Here?”

You shrug, a coy smile playing on your lips. “Why not? I think you’ve earned a little rule-breaking today, don’t you?”

He hesitates for a moment, glancing towards the door. “What if someone walks in?”

“Then they’ll get quite a show,” you tease, your fingers toying with the zipper. “Unless you’d rather I stop?”

George’s gaze darkens, his earlier frustrations momentarily forgotten. He reaches out, pulling you onto his lap. “Don’t you dare,” he growls playfully, his hands finding your waist.

As you lean in to kiss him, you can feel some of the day’s tension melting away. You know there will be more challenges ahead, more disappointments to face. But right now, in this moment, you’re determined to remind George of all the good things he has in his life — starting with you.

The kiss deepens, and for a while, the world outside this room ceases to exist. There’s only you and George, finding comfort and strength in each other’s arms, ready to face whatever comes next … together.

[bluhourz]

when you watch baseball together

-

The stadium buzzed with energy as you and Taehyun made your way through the bustling crowd, your hand securely tucked in his. You’d never been to a baseball game before, but when he suggested it for your date, the excitement in his voice was enough to make you agree. Now, as you stepped into the arena, the roar of fans and the scent of freshly grilled food hit you all at once.

“Wow,” you said, your eyes wide as you took in the massive field, the bright lights shining down on the players warming up. “This is… a lot bigger than I expected.”

Taehyun chuckled, giving your hand a gentle squeeze. “Wait until the game starts. It’s going to get even louder.”

You turned to him with a small, sheepish smile. “You know I don’t know anything about baseball, right? Like, nothing.”

He grinned, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “That’s okay. I’ll teach you. By the end of the game, you’ll know all the basics, I promise.”

The two of you found your seats, right along the third-base line. Taehyun handed you a baseball cap in your team’s colors, and you eagerly put it on, feeling like you belonged just a little more.

“So,” you started, leaning closer to him as the players jogged onto the field. “What’s happening now?”

“That’s the pitcher,” he explained, pointing to the mound. “He’s the one throwing the ball. And the guy at bat? He’s trying to hit it and run to those bases.”

“Okay, that makes sense,” you said, nodding. “And how do they score?”

“When the batter runs all the way around the bases and back to home plate, they score a run.”

You listened intently, your eyebrows furrowing as you tried to process everything. Taehyun couldn’t help but smile at how focused you looked, as if you were preparing for a final exam rather than a casual game.

As the game progressed, you bombarded him with questions. “Why did the umpire yell like that?” “What does a strike mean again?” “Why is everyone cheering? Did something good happen?”

Taehyun patiently answered every single one, his heart swelling with affection. Most people might have just enjoyed the game without trying too hard to understand it, but not you. You were determined to learn, and he found that so endearing.

When a batter from your team hit a home run, the entire stadium erupted in cheers. You jumped to your feet, clapping along with everyone else.

“Did he just—? He scored, right?” you asked, turning to Taehyun with wide eyes.

He laughed, his dimple showing as he nodded. “Yeah, he did. That’s a home run. He hit the ball out of the park.”

“That’s so cool!” you exclaimed, your excitement contagious. “I think I get it now!”

By the seventh inning, you were fully invested. You cheered when your team made a good play, groaned when the opposing team scored, and even joined in on a few of the chants.

“You’re a natural,” Taehyun teased, handing you a hot dog he’d picked up during a quick break.

“Thanks,” you said, grinning as you took a bite. “But I still don’t get why some people just stand there and don’t even try to hit the ball.”

“That’s called a strikeout,” he explained. “The pitcher threw really good pitches, and the batter couldn’t hit them.”

You frowned, tilting your head. “That must feel so frustrating.”

“It can be,” he admitted. “But that’s part of the game. You win some, you lose some.”

You nodded thoughtfully, taking another bite of your hot dog. Taehyun reached over, brushing a crumb off your cheek, his touch light and affectionate.

When the game ended with your team’s victory, the stadium erupted into applause. You cheered along with everyone else, even though you still weren’t entirely sure what had happened in those last few plays.

“That was so much fun!” you said as you and Taehyun made your way out of the stadium. “Thanks for explaining everything to me.”

He smiled, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as you walked. “I liked seeing how into it you got. You were so focused, like you were trying to learn everything all at once.”

“Well, I wanted to keep up with you,” you admitted, glancing up at him. “I know how much you love baseball, and I didn’t want to ruin it by not understanding.”

Taehyun stopped walking, turning to face you. His expression was soft, his eyes filled with something that made your heart flutter. “You could never ruin anything,” he said quietly. “Just seeing you try so hard, being so excited—it made me love you even more.”

Your breath caught, his words sinking in. “Taehyun…”

“I mean it,” he said, his voice steady and sure. “You make everything better just by being there.”

A smile spread across your face, your cheeks warming. “I love you too,” you said, reaching up to adjust his cap, which had slipped slightly. “Even if I still don’t totally get baseball.”

He laughed, pulling you into a hug. “That’s okay. I’ll take you to another game, and we’ll keep practicing.”

As the two of you walked hand in hand into the cool Seoul night, you couldn’t stop smiling. Baseball might not have been your thing at first, but spending the day with Taehyun, learning and laughing together, made you realize it wasn’t about the game—it was about him. And you wouldn’t trade that for anything.

[oodlyenough]

arcane s2 act 1

alright might as well collect my thoughts for posterity

first and foremost: obviously the triumphant cackle i was doing the entire hexcore scene. huge W for me, personally. did it always feel like the most logical and narratively satisfying extension from s1? sure. do i trust television to do the most narratively satisfying thing? no. especially not after fandom spent years of the hiatus trying to convince me otherwise

really all the jayvik scenes were, more or less, exactly what i expected/wanted and very satisfying lmaooo. i knew jayce wouldn't give a fuck about the shimmer or unethical experiments. i win!

other stuff i liked:

in the hiatus i've now seen all of yellowjackets and it has made me fonder of ella purnell and by extension jinx, lol. i love sevika and i think their grudging alliance in the wake of silco's death is a fun direction. jinx finding a random dumpster baby and adopting them immediately, silco would be so proud lmfao

i love caitlyn's dictator arc. i have to be honest i found her disney princess schtick in s1 pretty boring, so this is finally something more flawed and dynamic for me to invest in. yes girl get worse

ambessa rules. i was a little rolling my eyes at the "wow she was pulling the strings all along" reveal, bc it was so obvious and i was sort of hoping they'd do something more interesting with her. but this show has never been subtle. either way it still seems ambessa believes she's protecting mel? so i AM curious about how that plays out

i don't know shit about the league lore around the black rose stuff and don't want to <3 knowing league lore has never improved my arcane experience. but those sequences were very cool and took me by surprise. some good body horror with elora. good luck in the nightmare labyrinth mel!

stuff i liked less:

i think the stylized music video sequences are being a little overused. maybe s1 did them as frequently and I forget? anyhow, the police brutality one really worked for me, because it's the kind of info that def needs to be montaged, and the style was cool and engaging. cassandra's funeral ... i understand why they did it but i didn't like the regular arcane models mixed with the charcoal bgs, i found it distracted me from what was meant to be the emotion of the moment. and the jinx montage i found kind of mid.

i do think the pacing feels as breakneck as ever, to its detriment. i said above the jayvik stuff all played out basically as i wanted, which is more-or-less true, but viktor just be like I Have To Go Now was a bit abrupt. i can excuse a lot of that on the basis that i don't think viktor is really himself anymore because of the hexcore -- very flat emotionally, etc. and i assume we'll see them butt heads again later in the season. but still, the hextech weapons, the nonconsensual hexcoring, etc, would've expected something a little more explosive lol

plus, then we shift from that scene to the Furby Comedy Hour and jayce and heimerdinger having like a nonreaction to each other despite how acrimoniously they parted or how emotionally charged jayce must be sleeping next to viktor's empty cocoon etc... felt whiplash-y to me. but i hate heimerdinger and ekko teaming up to begin with lmao (and ofc ekko directs his frustrations with piltover to jayce, and not the 300 year president furby he has no beef with for some reason)

this extends to vi's decision to pick up the badge, etc. stuff just happens really quick and the fact that the passage of time in the show isn't very clear doesn't really help. i can understand why riot didn't want to spend two decades making five seasons of this show, but 2 seasons will probably feel too short imo.

[thesoftboiledegg]

This whole Dan Harmon interview is worth reading, but here's a few essential quotes:

When the show scored its second season, Harmon was eager to staff up, filling out their ragtag cable team with Harvard-educated Community writers. If they were going to make a play for network primetime audiences, he reasoned, they’d need network primetime writers. “If I had felt like I was imposing something, I would have never done it,” he says, having played the whole thing back in his head countless times over the past decade. He can see now how Roiland must have felt that that transition was about making the show more Harmon’s than his, but he insists that was not his intent.

“If anything, what I wanted was for Justin and I both to be able to be increasingly lazy and not show up for work. That was the dream,” says Harmon. “We’d be these rich idea men. He could roll around and go, like, ‘What if a genie had a butt instead of a dick?’ And I could be like, ‘Yeah, and plus, we’re going to make people cry about it, and that’s going to make them freak out. It’s a story about a genie butt dick, but then we’d win an Emmy, and it’d be more ironic than ever.’ And then I’d come to find out later that it was like, ‘Oh, Harmon brought in his Harmon writers,’ and, man, that is not how I saw it.”

[...]

The last time he and Roiland spoke was over text in 2019, a conversation that left Harmon in tears. “He said things that he’d never said before about being unhappy, and I remember saying to him the last time we spoke in person, like, ‘I am worried about you, and I don’t know what to do about that except to give you all the string and also just say I’m scared that you’re not going to come back.’ But then this conversation became unprecedentedly confrontational.” Harmon stops himself there. “I think that’s as far as I get to take the story. At that point, we’re no longer both there for it, and it starts to become not only unfair for me to continue but totally uncomfortable because, from there, a friendship goes away, and I still don’t fully understand why.”

[...]

“The easiest thing for me to say about Justin has been nothing. Easy because he isolated so well and easy because I’m nobody’s first choice as a judge of anything or anyone. This is where I’d love to change the subject to myself, to what a piece of crap I’ve been my whole public life,” he says. “I would feel so safe and comfortable making this about me, but that trick is worthless here and dangerous to others. It’s other people’s safety and comfort that got damaged while I obsessed over a cartoon’s quality. Trust has now been violated between countless people and a show designed to please them. I’m frustrated, ashamed and heartbroken that a lot of hard work, joy and passion can be leveraged to exploit and harm strangers.”

---

I suggest reading the full article because it goes pretty in-depth into Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland's relationship and how their collaboration fell apart. The article also has some intriguing details about how the show operates behind the scenes.

[twopoppies]

Hi Gina... I need to rant 😠 lmfao

As a life-long Chiefs fan and KC native all I can say is this T*ylor shit is fucking annoying. I know you talk to a LOT of people in the fandom, so you may not remember, but I'm a fellow Sw*ftie hater (maybe that's too harsh but idgaf) and I didn't think it was possible to get more annoyed with this woman than I've been since I stopped being a fan in 2018. Boy, was I WRONG. I'm a die-hard Chiefs fan. I loved my team even when we sucked and couldn't make it to the playoffs (before Patrick Mahomes), so to see EVERYONE make the game on Sunday about her is beyond frustrating. People (Sw*fties) are seriously saying she's the only reason we won. Like we haven't won multiple AFC championships and two Super Bowls in the past three years. Maybe I'm just taking it too seriously, but when our boys played a kick ass game on Sunday after such a shitty season opener (that we lost), it was so nice to see that we're getting our mojo back but I literally can't look at any post, tweet, article, tv segment, etc that doesn't make the game about her.

God, please don't let her be around for the rest of the season 🙏🏻

Also, I'm not saying they're not hooking up, but this is 100% for PR. I've personally never seen them pan to a celebrity so many times during the game. I've never seen "candid" photos of Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, or any of the other popular Chiefs' players leaving Arrowhead Stadium after a game like we just got with Travis & T*ylor, or "candid" photos & videos of any of the popular players driving through the city, which is so sus. And then what really sealed the deal for me was that T*ylor announced earlier today that her concert film will be shown internationally. She was also named as an entertainer of the year for entertainment weekly and is on the cover. Not to mention, she has a new re-recording coming out in a month and continues to announce new versions of the 1989 re-recording. "Someone" must not be happy enough that she's already broke records with the Speak Now sales, is selling the most number of albums overall, but she must be aiming to break those Speak Now records with the 1989 re-recording sales bc she's releasing new versions quite often. I mean, how greedy can one person be. Like you haven't sold enough albums? You don't have enough publicity? You don't have enough money? It's just gross to me.

Also, I personally just found her reactions over the top for someone who isn't even a fan, especially whatever that head shake thing is at the end. But maybe that's just because I find everything she does annoying and cringe.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxmAHqjrACL/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Plus, the stats around Travis and the Chiefs have skyrocketed. So they're absolutely getting a lot out of this as well as the NFL like someone mentioned earlier.

I'll attach an article but here are some numbers:

Travis' jersey sales went up almost 400%

Stubhub ticket sales for Chiefs' home games increased threefold in just 24 hrs

Travis gained 325k new ig followers - more than he gained after winning the last Super Bowl

Sunday's Chiefs' game was the most watched NFL game on any network last week

It was also the most watched game among girls and women 12 to 49 yrs old

https://www.axios.com/2023/09/26/taylor-swift-travis-kelce-merch-sales-up-chiefs-kansas-city

And yes, I know I know a lot about her for someone who doesn't like her. But she's inescapable even when I have muted everything related to her... And now she's taking over my everything related to my favorite football team and my city 🤢 Where's Pete Davidson when you need him? 😂

Ok, sorry for that rant. I know I probably sound ridiculous, but I prefer my life T*ylor free just like I prefer my life Ol*via free, and I thought you might understand 😂 Anyways, feel free not to post if you don't want to discuss her anymore.

I hope you're having a good night, Gina. Lots of love.

She really is a horrendous actress. Everything she did at that game was so embarrassingly fake. But clearly people want to believe it because it’s everywhere.

That’s bananas how much his stats already went up and just shows why it’s worth it to do this kind of nonsense, even to someone who’s already really famous.

I’m not interested in football at all, but I’m so sorry she’s contaminating your safe space. 😩

[thenhlteaissuperhot]

Campbell being sent down to the AHL - thoughts?

The whole thing is extremely complicated with so many layers to it, but...

As much as I love Campbell as a human being and as much as I feel sorry for him because he wants to succeed so badly that he is nearly crying in his interviews when asked about his lack of performance, he has never been the most revolutionary goalie skills-wise in the league, that's something we can all agree on, and in his case, his streaky mindset doesn't help him either.

Goalies oftentimes have a hard time keeping themselves fit mentally, understandably so, there is a huge pressure put on them because they are alone in the net and more than often blamed even if the blame isn't entirely on their shoulders, and Jack is one of those who suffers from not being able to keep his head up through the obstacles that come his way so a mental boost of some sort is desperately needed for him right now - perhaps winning a couple of games in the AHL and a bit of social media break slash detox would help him get back on his feet.

At the same time though, you can't throw all the blame at him. Everyone on that team struggles because of how bad they are and that does get under your skin eventually no matter how mentally strong you are - even Leon and Connor are frustrated beyond what we have seen from them until now so imagine how hard it must be for Campbell. He knows that he can't rely on the defense because they are practically non-existent at this point and that's not a feeling you want to experience as a goalie with so much pressure put onto you because many people called your team Stanley Cup contenders during the pre-season.

I also feel strongly about Dustin Schwartz - Oilers goaltending coach, who has been there since 2014. Doesn't seem like the most competent guy, in my opinion, so a change resulting in a different face with a different mindset and approach to coaching the goalies definitely wouldn't be hurtful.

Overall, I understand why has the management done so, but bringing up one of their young goalies (who are nowhere near promising-looking) won't really make much difference if the rest of the team, the defense especially, won't start playing their asses off on that ice, it will only mentally ruin another goalie and also his reputation.

[itsblasttothepast]

It's Mexico week so I have nothing but fluff and warmth for you :) And of course I have something for the video and the booth, how could I now (also I just saw them getting that pink cat and I'm crying, they were so awkward and the PR team is crazy for this one but I LOVED IT) Okay I have two songs that Max and Checo would sing about each other and their (imaginery) situation. First Sergio because seniority or stuff: Nothing by Bruno Major based only on the vibe of this week and to bring you a little bit of calm during all this awful things going around about Sergio. So it's like Sergio thinking about them after he saw how the photos turned out to be and having weird/confusing/tingly feelings about Max. "Track suits and red wine/Movies for two/We'll take off our phones/And we'll turn off our shoes" It's about them letting loose with each other, the way they just have fun no matter what, even if the sport is stressfull, even if the pressure is growing they just catch those little moments to enjoy. The 'turning phones off' is (for me) just a way to say that they cut themselves from the world and the media and just let themselves be (Checo said he uses his phone only for calling and texting and Max said many times that he doesn't care about social media so yeah, that wouldn't be difficult) AND they have the same favourite movie (for christmas but who cares) and I can imagine them just watching it while cuddled on the couch in some hotel or Max insisting on watching Sergio's favourite childhood show during their shared flights and pretending to understand much more Spanish than he can and Checo just finding it absolutely adorable. "We'll play Nintendo/Though I always lose/'Cause you'll watch the TV/While I'm watching you" Well, they played FIFA for sure so I'll just count Nintendo as just a video game (sorry) and I think Max would be focused on the game while Sergio would be just happy to play and relax, maybe amused by Max's determination and losing just to see him smile (but of course he needs an excuse so he's saying he was just distracted) ending up not caring about the match at all, he just wants to laugh with Max. "There's not many people/I'd honestly say/I don't mind losing to" I would take it out of context just to say that Sergio knew he was coming to RBR to help Max and the team with the Championships but I doubt he doesn't want to win, he wants to be the best after all. But I can't help and think that he doesn't mind being second to Max, that he doesn't care about being second if Max is first. Of course he is still frustrated but the pain is easier to handle when Max is beaming at him from the top step. And he never had that with his previous teammates, he alwasy wanted to best them. "But there's nothing/Like doing nothing/With you"

It doesn't matter what the PR team makes them do, if they are doing it together they would making the most of it, even if the challanges are stupid. Just look at the photobooth, it's fanservice in the purest form, they were squeezed inside a tiny box and they still made it look fun for themselves - they are not doing anything spectacular just photos but they are enjoying it (even if only a little) - the same goes for going to get that car, they looked awkward but still joked around and that's just sweet. "Dumb conversations/We lose track of time" Do I need to explain this one? I'm sure they yap to each other about anything that they can think of (they both said that they hate always talking about races and cars so I doubt that's the only thing they talk about when they see each other). They make the PR activities fun, they often are seen just talking here and there when there is no recording or they are waiting for one and I think that's amazing. "Have I told you lately/I'm grateful you're mine" I think Checo is happy with Max as his teammate (and vice versa) because something about them just clicked, even if noone would believe that they would work in 2020 or well, in 2022. He must find at least a little support in Max, or find at least a tiny bit of comfort in the way he was protecting him from the media - they are an unlikely par but very much adorable one and I think they both know it. I guess Sergio told Max that they make a great duo and maybe he didn't have a chance since that fateful Brazil race but I think he wants to show it every chance he has. "We'll watch The Notebook/For the 17th time/I'll say "It's stupid"/Then you'll catch me crying" It's just my imagination but that would be so funny if Max made Sergio watch that movie. I think Checo would want to cling to the tough image he thinks drivers are supposed to have and would make fun of Max for liking romantic comedies but he would be the first to get emotional and would tell Max to 'shut up' when he would catch him staring. Or well, if Max would propose anything that doesn't match the 'manly man' vibe F1 has for some reason and Sergio would be surprised but he would end up liking it much to Max's satisfaction (who may or may not be trying to soften up Checo a little, just enough so he would be open to discuss feelings). "We're not making out/On a boat in the rain/Or in a house I've painted blue/But there's nothing/Like doing nothing/With you" There is nothing dramatic about them, they don't have all that love/hate of the Ferrari duo, they don't have the rivals vibe from McLaren and they do not have anything special going for them (aside form being the most successful RBR duo of all time) and yet they somehow managed to convince us they are amazing - mostly by being natural and goofy and not trying too hard to be the perfect PR image so yeah, it's nice. They just are who they are and they are obviously happy with each other - I think Sergio loves the calm and plesant vibe their duo has.

"So shut all the windows/And lock all the doors/We're not looking for no one/Don't need nothing more" They are comfortable with each other and Sergio wants to stay by Max's side, he is happy where he is and Max says the same so I think they would just want people to leave them alone finally and let them do their job. They are kid of shutting off by avoiding the annoying questions and speaking out against the stupid claims and it's lovely to see they have each other's backs in this. "You could be dancing on tabletops/Wearing high-heels/Drinking until the world/Spins like a wheel" Well Max and Sergio may not be actualy party animals but we all know when they go to one they have fun (or too much fun based on the videos of drunk Max lol) but I think they would prefer to stay inside only with each other as company, enjoying the evenings while doing nothing. I don't know if they ever went out together or if Max got the Lance' experience of Mexico but I think they would have the most fun with each other (or they would laugh at everything until they couldn't breath, that's also an option). Okay and now for Max: Is It Love by JORDY because of two things - the general vibe (Max does have a little quirky energy, even if I don't like to judge people who I don't know and that song's vibe reminds me of him) and the 'bi lighting' of the photobooth video.

Mind you (it's still fiction but I like to make things up) this is from Max who doesn't get 'tingly' feelings about Checo anymore, he knows exactly what he feels but is a little bit confused about it. "Look at those hazel eyes givin' me butterflies/Making me feel it's getting real, but I just don't know" It's canon that Max likes to look Sergio in the eyes (how else would he notice the little bit of green no one can find even with a microscope?) so this part is self-explanatory. He just isn't sure if Checo is looking at him the same way, he doesn't understand his teammate who (and it's a first for him) wants to stay BECAUSE OF HIM (at least partly) and doesn't mind not being the team's priority. He wants to believe what he and Sergio have is real but he can't be sure because they can't say anything in the open, it would be too risky and too reckless, especially since they just now went back to the 2021 closeness. "It's been a minute now since we been going out/We get along, feelings are strong" Sorry for always bringing this up but - Brazil 2022 - it took them some time to put that behind them and I think Max doesn't believe fully tehy were able to pull this off and not end up hating each other. I think he feels so good in the new 'honeymoon phase' that they found that he is afraid to do anything about his own feelings - their lives aren't easy enough to simply make a move and he doesn't want to ruin anything again. But tell me, isn't 2024 how they were in 2021? Or maybe even better since they know each other a little more and share the same struggles with the car.

"Oh baby, just before I met you/I was only in it for protection, validation" This is my interpretation but I do think Max felt a strong pressure and need to make himself seen in the sport since he was the youngest to enter and there was a lot of criticism going towards him for basically being a rookie - even other drivers were mean to him and only a few treated him nicely. And one of the people was Checo, who always believed in Max (come on, that post where he congratulated him for a podium? It was so sweet) and we know from the photos that for his first years at RBR Max was circling around Sergio, probably finding comfort in the warm way he treated him (the way he got himself inbetween Esteban and Sergio during that photoshoot still makes me laugh) and it kept on happening until they became teammates - when he got the chance to really learn about Sergio. "But with you, there's something different/Don't mind a little distance/I'm fine, not even stressing/But you got me asking the question" I guess they both had a rocky relationships with their teammates (only Kamui was nice to Checo [I don't count Lance because of the wierd situation in the team 2020 - also Lance is too neutral to be on either side of the debate lol] and only Daniel became friends with Max) so in 2021 they discovered something new - something they made work for their own benefit and the team's. It is good to see them getting alone but I wonder how they feel about the weird comfortable cooworkers/friends but only at work/collegues situation they have going on. It's calm and easy for the most part, not problematic but I think there could be some doubts on both sides and Max would be the first to start asking himself questions about what they are and if what they have is enough. (I cut one refren here to put it at the end)

"Something's not feeling right/I still got my appetite when you don't text me/'Cause I'll see you next week" I doubt that they are in constant contact due to the different time zones (Sergio always goes back to Mexico when he can and Max is alwasy hanging around Monaco) and completly different social circles but I think it doesn't stop them from feeling like they were alwasy together when they meet again. Max probably gathers things (even unconciously) that he wants to tell Checo and Sergio probably gets ready to listen all of it during his flights back to Europe. And they do see each other more often than their own life partners soooo yeah. "Oh baby, baby/Not in my bed, not in my head/Emotional rollercoaster" Essentially they are nothing - they cannot be - just friends or teammates and that's all but I wonder if either of them ever thought about what if or something like that. F1 is an emotional rollercoaster of its own but I think Max would also feel this away about his feelings towards his teammate - who is supposed to be his greatest rival but is always nice and wants to work together? Who is supposed to work for himself but works for the team? Who should be nothing to him but became something he didn't know how to describe? (I am ignoring the 'lovely' description because it would be too much even for me) What even is that? "Everything's great, fallin' to place/Like it's supposed to" They are closer to each other than before, the Americas are treating them good and they are giving us so much content it's crazy and well, this is what the F1 circus should be about right? They are having fun and we get to watch it. But back to the main topic: I think Max is thriving in Mexico - he loves the food, he loves how happy Checo is, he loves how passionate the people are, he loves Sergi- well that's too far but you know what I mean. And I don't have to describe how Sergio is in front of his beloved crowd.

"Is it love/If I'm not fucked up?"

I think Max could have doubts about what 'love' is due to his childhood and he might be wondering what he is feeling even if he is familiar with the sensation. (And before people who read this come at you - Love can have many forms, it doesn't have to be romantic). For the same reason he might also not be sure if his perception of love is correct or if what he thinks is true.

"Is it love? Is it love?/Tell me I'm crazy" He would probably not be very comfortable with thinking that Sergio is something more than a friend, not after they spent almost 4 years as teammates - he was observant so finding that out just now would make a mess of his head and he would get exactly as he is around Checo - giggly and awkward and blushy. "Is it enough/If I'm not messed up?/Is it love? Is it love?/Maybe I'm crazy" I think Max could have doubts about if they are really close or if Sergio really forgave him for 2022 because he didn't do much aside from being persistant and doing everything to put the issues behind them fast. People in F1, especially drivers aren't meant to be nice and forgiving after all but I think in the end he would accept that this is just who Sergio is and I think he would also accept that he is a bit crazy for a certain Mexican even if he's never going to say anything. (Sorry for the long ask, I hope you got through it without difficulty.)

Thank you song headcanon anon! Mexico week has to be happy and cuddly, like that photobooth video!

Also, I know they totally blindsided them with the Miaw Award, they weren't expecting that but went with the flow and gave us the best Chestappen content!

You know? First I read 'Bruno Mars' instead of 'Major', and I was excited because I love Bruno Mars. Not that Bruno Majors isn't great, but Bruno Mars has a vibe, you know? I don't know why 'Talking to the Moon' feels like a post-Brazil song for Chestappen, what do you think? (aw, I said no angst this week, but can't help it!)

Now the image of Checo and Max all cozy in a couch watching Home Alone is living rent free in my head. So much fluff and love.

The song gives me the feeling of 'us vs the world', and enjoying the little things, even accepting a silly cat award, or maybe learning sign language. They always seem to be in their own world when they talk and interact, it's so fascinating!

I have to be honest anon, the song for Max I think it totally fits, but when he was younger, before they were teammates. The Chestappen lore has always pointed out how Max could be feeling this: "Look at those hazel eyes givin' me butterflies", like Max has been seeing Checo under a different light but maybe because he was so young and they weren't exactly close, he thought there was no chance. And then, for the next part of the song, after the minute of going out, I do feel then it starts when they finally became teammates.

You know? This would be an incredible fanfic!

Your asks are always super amazing and insightful!

[persephoneflouwers]

don't you think the money thing he said meant for the genre he choose and not the other way round?? Like not going full on pop commercial with radio hits when he had success with jho bty but changing his direction completely for his debut album. cuz we know he almost had an album ready with very different sound from leaked stuff like that's the way I do, help but then scrapped it. Atleast that's the story he is telling since he wrote that ig note in 2019. that was my interpretation. what do you think?

Yeah, I mean he said “I feel like I finally got my own way, making the music I wanna make. I hope some people find some respect in that idea ‘cos I could’ve had it the easy way and I probably would’ve made more money, but for me it was much more fulfilling to do it this way around”.

[gamersonthego]

GOTG Review: The Last Guardian

This is the second game in my Backlog Roulette series, where each month I spin a wheel to randomly select a game on my massive backlog that I must play (though not necessarily to completion). These wheel spins occur on the monthly preview episodes I co-host with my friends on The Casual Hour podcast.

I’m trying to remember the last time I felt genuine emotion for a character in a video game. Fire Emblem comes to mind. It is my favorite franchise after all. The idea of building up a roster of characters from zeroes to heroes. I celebrate their wins. I’m pained by their losses. But they don’t feel real. When one goes down, I mourn the loss of their utility more than I do the loss of their character.

I may not feel genuine emotion for Lapis as a character, but I sure do love when she does this.

Pokemon has a similar issue. I watch these monsters grow up and evolve over the course of my journey, my six faithful companions helping me take on the world. But the artifice never fully falls away. I see their “health points” and their mechanical abilities and am reminded these are still just bundles of data, and if I think about the numbers long enough, I can game them just right to always land in my favor. The closest I’ve felt to a critter in Pokemon is in the most recent entries, where Game Freak added in a chance to “hang on” with 1HP left after a devastating enemy move if your Pokemon’s friendship stat was high enough. It’s cool to see a Pokemon break the rules of the game through the power of love, but it also happens too often and too randomly for it to feel authentic.

Cliche as it might be, that last time that genuine feeling occurred might be Team Ico’s previous game, Shadow of the Colossus. Agro, your character’s horse was a constant and stalwart ally. Yes, it was mechanical in its own way, but in a game built around solitude, having this one thing on your side was a comfort, one that made the mostly empty world a little less lonely. And while Shadow of the Colossus plays on this attachment in a few key moments, Team Ico’s third game, The Last Guardian, is built entirely in service of this interaction. 

Reductively put, The Last Guardian is the video game embodiment of “a boy and his dog.” You control a nameless boy, waking up in a prison of a cave. But you are not alone. There is a creature locked in here with you — a massive griffin-like animal. Chained, injured and afraid, it lashes out whenever you come near. This is Trico, and while you might not know it yet, this monster is going to become your best friend. 

Trico is the whole reason The Last Guardian works. His appearance may be fantastical, but his movements, his mannerisms, his stubbornness — they are familiar. You look at Trico, and you know he’s made up of polygons and AI "if/then" statements, but that artifice just melts away, expertly hidden by characteristics that are innately animalistic. Trico barks at things he doesn’t understand. He looks at you in confusion as you try to coax him to move. He paws at his food. He stretches his legs after escaping cramped quarters. He shakes the water off him when he comes out of water and then he preens his feathers. It’s magic. And the developers are able to keep up this trick throughout the entire 12-hour experience. 

How could you not love this goofball?

The game around it however, can leave something to be desired: An awkward camera that’s both rigid and yet has a mind of its own, scenarios that go back to the well a few too many times (I can’t tell you how often my character blacked out due to story reasons, only to be woken up in a new area by a rescuing Trico) and world design that, while undeniably beautiful, is often confusing and repetitive. 

But while those things can (and will) frustrate you, they can’t stop the emotion you feel for Trico. Never have I spoken so much to a TV during a playthrough, using the same tone as I would with my own pet. “That’s right, just a bit further. You can do it.” “No, not that way, Trico.” “Oh, you’re hungry now?” “There, there, the bad guys are gone. Nothing to be afraid of.” I caught myself saying these little phrases often, then laughing at how the game had fooled me yet again that Trico was a living, breathing thing.  

The Last Guardian definitely has its moments of intentional heartstring-pulling — big set pieces and scripted events with you or Trico put in a tight spot just to miraculously have the other save them at the most critical of times. And those moments do often land with their intended impact. But it’s the quiet moments that give Trico, and The Last Guardian by extension, its heartbeat. 

I have played and will play hundreds of games that are “better” than The Last Guardian. Games with sharper controls, more layered stories, nicer graphics, smoother framerates and less obnoxious  puzzles. But few games will leave the impression The Last Guardian has. Because despite its flaws (and perhaps, even thanks to them), The Last Guardian made me feel something in a way that most games can't. 

[all-about-cr7]

Ten Hag the liar and hypocrite: “Cristiano remains an important part of the squad”

🗣Ten Hag when asked if he thought Ronaldo would stay for the rest of the campaign, and if that was what he wanted (21.10.) “Both. It is for this game and then we continue. It's a strike. As we said in the statement, Cristiano remains an important part of the squad and I count on him for the rest of the season.”

Graeme Souness is spot on in his Daily Mail column: “Look what Manchester United have reduced Cristiano Ronaldo to - it's so sad!”

It’s a desperately sad situation that Cristiano Ronaldo finds himself in. Here is a player who has taken Manchester United to the heights and scored goals for them which will live long in the memory — yet look what that club have reduced him to.

What we saw at Old Trafford when the team played Tottenham on Wednesday night was a player plainly angry, upset and deeply frustrated — stuck on a substitutes’ bench while players he will rightly consider himself superior to were out on the field.

For a player as hugely competitive as him, that will have been agony. An experience he will never have imagined himself facing. I have to say that I can understand how he feels.

This is a situation entirely of United’s making. A problem they just didn’t need to create. Erik ten Hag has made some bold and courageous decisions, trying to instil discipline and unity. But how did he think this situation with Ronaldo was going to work? How did he think the player was going to respond to being asked to sit on a bench, run up the touchline doing warm-ups, only to remain redundant and unused, with the cameras trained on his every facial expression?

People should only be talking about that performance against Tottenham but instead it is this. Ten Hag and United have shot themselves in the foot and not helped themselves one bit.

For Ronaldo to have refused to come on to the pitch when requested by Ten Hag is clearly something the manager cannot accept. Such a fundamental breach of the team ethic is the first step on a road to ruin.

But it is not hard to imagine how the conversation went between the two of them when changes were being made and he was asked to go on after 87 minutes, to run down the clock. A three-minute role at the dog-end of a 2-0 win is an indignity that this player will not have expected to be reduced to.

Every player must be ready to play, however great or small the role, but I do think there has to be particular consideration for Ronaldo, given his position in the game and his contribution to it.

He told United before the start of the season that he wanted to go. He made no pretence about that. What has ensued is much like Jesse Lingard’s treatment by the club last season, only on a far greater scale. United could have sold Lingard to West Ham in January, chose not to and then didn’t use him.

If I was Ten Hag, I would be concerned about having Ronaldo around the place because if you are not going to use him, you know he’s going to have a voice in the dressing room. That’s certainly not conducive to a harmonious working environment.

The communication between manager and player is clearly not what it should be and despite what happened on Wednesday, I think it is incumbent on United to do better by him. To go to whatever lengths necessary not to humiliate the man in such a way.

He will certainly feel he is not being shown any respect, in what is without doubt the worst period of his career. He is being tested in a way he would never have expected, at the twilight of his playing days.

He seemed to reflect that in the statement he put out on Thursday night. These seemed to be the words of a man genuinely taking responsibility for his actions, rather than running from them. He was in at 8.30am to train with the Under 21s on Friday.

But if the current situation persists and he is put through more of these indignities on the substitutes’ bench, his behaviour could continue to be off. And that could lead to what I think will be the worst outcome of all this: that United’s supporters will remember him for what’s happening during the rest of this season, or at least for as long as he is kept in Manchester, rather than those golden years and brilliant goals.

If this continues, United will end up destroying Ronaldo’s legacy. The least the club owe him is not to allow that to happen. To stop putting him through this

[fruti2flutie]

luca (2021) post-credits+

massimo cries once the train is gone. so do daniela & lorenzo. "it gets better with time," giulia's papà tells them. it still hurts; alberto stays in the rain until he can't hear the wheels on the tracks anymore.

giulia & luca talk all the way to genoa. about motors, about cars, about classmates, about uniforms, about weasels - seriously, about things luca has no idea what to even imagine! "my mamma will love you," she gushes, and then she talks about her mamma, about paint, about clay... luca sits, heart pounding but thrilled nevertheless.

luca tells giulia's mamma his secret the night they arrive. whether she knows already or not, it doesn't matter; he wants to tell her himself anyway. she holds onto him, strokes his hair, and it's just like he's with his own mamma.

the school in genoa is incredible. luca learns a countless number of things: geography, literature, chemistry, architecture, food... the world is so much bigger than the waters below portorosso. he finds more friends he can count on, and telling them his secret is hard but gets easier. giulia is there when he needs her, and he's there when she needs him. luca still dreams of the vespa & alberto, and he wonders what else they can do for their adventure to come.

alberto does well in portorosso, all things considered. at first the cityfolk are awkward, the fishermen especially wary, but the children know alberto as alberto, regardless of his skin or scales, and they love him for who he is. the sea monster posters are pulled off the walls & the harpoons are put away. after some time, it feels like not much has changed at all in the city - though ercole's insults for him become exclusively fish-related. alberto looks the other way because he knows that there will always be people who don't want to change.

massimo teaches alberto about human living. he learns how to cook perfect pasta, how to count coins & bills, how to get machiavelli to purr. the days are spent in the sun making deliveries & on the waters catching fish. less & less alberto thinks, silenzio bruno. he gets comfortable, he feels safe, and the tally marks on the island become so faraway.

(and alberto gets his own knife!!!)

in turn, alberto teaches massimo about the sea. there are beaches with the softest sands, jagged rocks with the most unforgiving edges. small sea monster villages, crab contests, fish farms... massimo asks about the sea monsters who raised him, and alberto gives him a lie. but the lie doesn't last long, isn't meant to; alberto tells massimo about a mamma he's forgotten & a papà who forgot him. massimo doesn't say much, he never really does, but he always keeps the tableware set for alberto, always greets him with, "buongiorno," and when alberto loses his way, massimo tries to find him.

daniela & lorenzo visit the city often. grandma paguro comes ashore, too, usually to play scopa with the other elders. lorenzo talks for hours about crustaceans with the fishermen; daniela plays ball with the mothers & children in town. they have dinner at massimo's house, whatever pasta alberto is attempting to make & whatever massimo cooks just in case. they talk about the land & the sea, the weather & the seasons, about giulia & luca. luca's parents claim they don't miss him terribly, but alberto knows it's a brave front because he does, too.

there are birthdays. there are anniversaries. there are letters. there are phone calls. there are two calendars that are marked every morning until summer arrives. there is longing.

the train brings giulia & luca back to portorosso a year later. both of them are taller but so is alberto, freckled & tanned by the sun. alberto boasts that he's now the tallest of the bunch, and giulia bets she'll at least outgrow luca by year's end. defensively, luca says she's the smallest when they're in water; she can't refute the statement. still, the three's welcoming embrace is as warm as the summer breezes.

luca has missed his family. he returns to the water & sees his mamma, his papà, and even his uncle ugo. the fish & crabs welcome him home as well, and the water has never looked bluer. he tells them every story he can, and it still doesn't feel like enough. they tell him stories, too, and he feels whole.

when staying in portorosse, luca & alberto sleep outside. giulia's room had turned into alberto's while she was away, but he gladly gives it up to sleep beside luca atop the tree. they talk underneath the not-anchovies, and the conversations never seem to stop. it feels just like last summer, but when they awaken to dewy mornings they no longer hide their tails.

massimo lets them take the boat to sea. giulia paddles while alberto & luca guide her from the water. she only accepts a helpful push from the boys when her face gets as red as her hair. and then they arrive at the island, untouched for months, and alberto sheepishly shows her what used to be his home. there is the collection of human items, the spare parts to the vespa he & luca built, the tally marks. giulia, being giulia, tells them everything about the items, how the tower must've been a lighthouse, how the tree must be decades old.

alberto listens to her speak, how excited she is to teach them, how thoughtful she is to hear him, and he says, "sorry." she doesn't understand; neither does luca. it's all in the past, but alberto wants to own up to it. "i wasn't fair to you back then. i thought you were gonna take him away," alberto says. "i didn't want to be..." alone, he doesn't say, but they hear it.

"stupido," giulia remarks, but there are tears in her eyes as the word leaves her lips. her arms wrap around him in a tight hug. "you're my fratello now, okay? luca, too."

"is luca my fratello?" alberto jokes & giulia laughs, "only if you want him to be." and luca hugs them both, even tighter. when they return to land, they sit on the pier & eat two-scoop gelato.

eventually, alberto apologizes to luca, too. "i shouldn't have done that to you," he says. they are on the beach, facing the night sky, the shore keeping their feet webbed. luca doesn't know what he's talking about, doesn't realize what he means.

"that time when i biked us into the sea, and then we... we fought," alberto continues, and luca remembers. of course he does. the dread, the frustration, the shame... the fear of being different, and the regret that he didn't say he was. alberto being his true self while luca just couldn't bear revealing his secret.

"hey," luca says. "it's okay. i'm okay." because alberto never said i forgive you to him either, but he was okay then, and they're okay now.

the summer goes on.

they enter the portorosso cup race as a team of three (granted alberto & luca don't swim) and they win - fair & square. giulia doesn't throw up along the way & no rain comes down for any surprises. the prize money doesn't go towards another vespa but to a new boat for the marcovaldos. granted, the underdogs would need to win a dozen more cups to buy the entire thing, but it's a start.

[ilikekidsshows]

Hi! I loved the Adrinette analysis you made...do you think you could make a similar one for Ladybug and Chat Noir over seasons 1 to 3?

I knew I was leaving myself open for this ask, and I kinda dreaded it, because 80% of Ladynoir screen time is dedicated to defeating an Akuma, meaning the characters have something else to focus on rather than progressing their relationship, and most the relationship stuff is just Marinette being really stubborn and refusing to properly look at her partner. In other words, there's significantly more screen time, but also proportionally less stuff going on in Ladynoir than in Adrinette because the characters are superheroes on the job and one party is actively resisting any development happening. It's also a very different kind of arc and relationship to Adrinette where the goal is just the two of them getting closer and more comfortable with each other. Ladynoir has that as well as all the trust issues and superhero team dynamics. Basically, this post is definitive proof that Miraculous has had plot development before season four, and it has had a lot of it. I got almost dizzy with it while compiling this.

Once again, I’m trying to go in a somewhat chronological order to properly track the relationship.

In 'Origins', we only get one-sided Ladynoir stuff. Marinette is new on the job and completely focused on solving the Akuma problem and nothing else. Meanwhile, Adrien actually takes note of his partner. He sees her flounder but ultimately put together a clever plan. He sees her lose faith but ultimately pick herself up and deliver a really badass speech at Hawk Moth. It's really no wonder he fell in love. The number one thing he learned about Ladybug is that she can fail and the second thing was that she could pick herself up again and grab the win anyway. I've brought up earlier in the Top Adrinette Scene discussion that Adrien is very scared of failing, because his father does not forgive failure, so Ladybug being someone who can turn a failure into a win understandably makes his heart go pitter-patter.

Meanwhile, Marinette barely noticed her partner. As I said, she was fully focused on solving the problem, but she was also getting distracted by her own insecurities. Marinette's first experience with Cat Noir was that he was kinda smooth and seemed to be much more confident than Marinette. Her second experience was that he tended to leap before he looked, but was perfectly willing to listen to her say-so. We have a very brief attempt at flirtation from Cat Noir, that Ladybug barely seems to even notice.

In 'Bubbler', Cat Noir actually gets to flirt with his Lady. He's clearly intent on getting her to notice what he's getting at, but Ladybug seems mostly exasperated with him. At this point their partnership is new and Marinette is most likely thinking back to their first case, when Cat Noir was so patient and supportive and not this...much. She still doesn't tell him to quit it, though, meaning she’s trying to accept him being a lot.

'Stormy Weather' has Cat Noir continuing in his attempts to get Ladybug to notice him and this time she responds playfully when they're not right in the middle of a tense situation. She's getting used to this being Cat's way of interacting with her and keeping the mood light.

'Lady Wifi' has the pair discussing the secrecy between them, with Adrien actively making the decision that honoring Ladybug's wishes concerning keeping their secret identities is more important than knowing the identity of the girl he's in love with, that doing so is the proper way to love her. 'Lady Wifi' is also the first time Marinette panics at the idea of something romantic being suggested about her and Cat Noir, when Alya says Adrien might be Cat Noir, that Cat Noir might be the boy she's repeatedly told Alya she's in love with.

'Copycat' shows us for a fact that Ladybug has no idea that Cat Noir's flirtations with her are genuine, and Cat Noir is growing tired of his feelings going entirely unnoticed.

Because of his growing frustration over not being able to communicate his feelings to Ladybug in a manner that she'd take seriously, Adrien goes the extra mile to write her a love poem in 'Dark Cupid'. When he receives a response that appeared with no sender, just a ladybug, he entertains the thought that Ladybug answered his poem and does in fact return his feelings (not realizing that Ladybug would need to know his identity to deliver such a note to him specifically, but Adrien does generally worry less about secret identities than Marinette). 'Dark Cupid' is also the first occasion of Marinette's by-now patented plan "Pretend to be in Love with Cat Noir" to solve problems, except that she was absolutely certain that a True Love's Kiss could occur between them, so there isn't even much room for pretending, but Marinette's denial is so powerful, she'll try.

In 'The Mime' we see Cat Noir actually testing Ladybug's receptiveness to a date, by suggesting that they could have gone to the play together if they didn't have to detransform. Ladybug replies that she has other plans before zipping away, and Cat Noir merely smiles after her. His feelings are growing, and he might still be remembering the love note he got. In fact, this is probably why he says "We are meant to be," in 'Gamer'.

In 'Animan' Ladybug actually does some of her own flirting with Cat Noir by giving him chin scritches. We also see a very straightforward gesture of affection from Cat Noir to Ladybug, when he hugs her in relief after the battle. Ladybug smiles softly at him, seeing that her partner cares about her well-being, while Cat Noir jumps back, embarrassed over his own reaction, or perhaps even afraid of censure. Adrien isn't the type of person to suddenly grab people in a hug, most likely because such "overly emotional" displays are discouraged in the Agreste household. This is the first occasion of Adrien projecting his father's supposed reaction to a thing he does on Ladybug, so he runs away from her.

In 'Simon Says', Cat Noir clings to Ladybug when faced with Gabriel looking at him weirdly (he's trying to figure out if he's Adrien, but Adrien himself never realizes his father was suspicious of his identity). At this point, Ladybug has started to become something of a security symbol to Adrien specifically against his father.

'Reflekta' is the episode where Cat Noir reminds Ladybug that he doesn't just deliver quips and he is actually a hero in his own right, even with diminished capabilities, in response to Marinette almost leaving him behind because he couldn't use his Cat Noir powers, because he'd "just slow (her) down", and then it turns out she couldn't have won without him. However, with the scene of Cat Noir taking the hit, Ladybug also starts on the process of realizing exactly how important her partner is to her success. Noticeably, it's while they're plotting together that Ladybug responds to his flirtation by flirting back, even if not very well (protip, Marinette, demeaning someone isn't funny to anyone but the person doing the demeaning, the other person is not suddenly lacking a sense of humor). Cat Noir is also a bit softer with his overtures in this episode, his cheeky flirtation gaining a bit more intimacy.

In 'Antibug', we can see the lessons Ladybug learned in 'Reflekta' sticking, with Ladybug listening to and valuing Cat Noir's input, unlike how the last time he tried to give her advice in a Chloé situation in 'Evillustrator', when she acknowledged he was right but couldn't bring herself to follow his advice. She also flirts with Cat Noir of her own volition, when she rings his bell. Cat Noir also keeps showing genuine warmth towards Ladybug instead of being just cheeky, when Ladybug compliments him. They affirm their bond after taking down Antibug.

The events of 'Reflekta' and 'Antibug' together influence what happens in 'Volpina', where Marinette is very suspicious of a new superhero showing up, without ever suspecting she could have been an Akuma in disguise. Cat Noir is her partner, and Cat Noir is her only partner. She’s not only learned his value, but has grown possessive over him. There's no need for any outsider. This jealousy over Cat Noir is actually something Marinette doesn't get over during the first three seasons the way she learns to deal with her jealousy over Adrien.

By the time 'The Collector' happens, Adrien has developed enough trust in his partner to ultimately believe her over her suspicions about Gabriel being Hawk Moth. This episode also has the first time Marinette voices concern over Cat Noir's emotional well-being instead of merely physical, who, of course, can't tell her what's wrong because it would break the secret identity clause.

'Prime Queen' has some very nice mutual Ladynoir flirting at the start of the interview. However, they're both mortified when Nadja comes out with the pictures. Cat Noir is confused, because he had no idea that their relationship could even give that impression, he must have been feeling like he hasn't been making much progress in getting closer to Ladybug. Meanwhile, Marinette goes defensive for the first time since 'Lady Wifi' only, this time, even more so. She even runs out on Cat Noir when he, very understandably, wants an explanation why he head to learn from a reporter that she'd planted one on him instead of from her. The episode confirms that Marinette will refuse to, in any way, discuss anything romance-related in relation to Cat Noir, even when there's an innocent explanation, like breaking an Akuma's spell. She's so defensive it's suspicious.

We also have another occasion of Marinette "pretending" to be in love with Cat Noir to solve a problem. While Cat Noir purrs either over the confession, having her close, or both. Marinette also jumped at the chance to "pretend" to confess her love so eagerly, that it left Prime Queen unimpressed. Still, Marinette refused to commit to the "ruse" enough to kiss Cat Noir while he's actually conscious and aware of it, because then she'd have to deal with the aftermath of kissing him.

'Dark Owl' has the first true test of faith between Ladybug and Cat Noir, when both of them have to trust the other not to look while they have to recharge. Although, considering 'The Collector', this is actually the first test only for Ladybug. At the end of the episode, Adrien also genuinely asks Ladybug out on a date for the very first time when they unexpectedly have free time from Owl-sitting, but Marinette preferred to skip off to spend time with Alya since she hadn’t gotten to see her while being so busy with The Owl's antics for so long.

'Glaciator' has Cat Noir planning an actual outing for Ladybug. The thing is, before 'Glaciator', Marinette's response to Cat Noir asking her out has always been that she has other plans, no can do. However, in 'Glaciator', she specifically says: "We'll see," and then she ends up ghosting him because she forgot to even send him a message that she didn't feel like going anywhere. At the same time, Gabriel purposefully stands him up for dinner, causing Adrien to project onto the Ladybug situation so hard that he doesn't think Ladybug even sees him as a real friend. Considering Adrien was under the same impression about Marinette in 'Puppeteer 2', it is typical for Marinette to send these kinds of mixed signals (which is fitting, considering how clear communication seems to be the biggest bullet point in her character development agenda).

On the upside, Cat Noir's compromised emotional state led to him being more frank about his feelings to first Marinette and later to Ladybug, finally making Marinette understand that Cat Noir is actually in love with her and how sensitive her partner can really be and that she can hurt his feelings. Notably, in this episode, Marinette particularly enjoys employing her "Pretend to be in love with Cat Noir" gambit, this time even going as far as kissing him, after finding out he's actually in love with her. Indeed, at the end of the episode, her rejection to Cat Noir is entirely focused on her having feelings for someone else (as well). She never once said she doesn't love him, and, in fact, never claims so in the English dub.

In 'Sapotis' we also see a brief glimpse of Marinette's jealousy over Cat Noir when he welcomes Alya onto the team so warmly but, because Rena Rouge was a teammate Marinette herself chose and trusts, she doesn't feel threatened enough to express it more than by merely keeping an eye on their interaction. 'Sapotis' also starts the arc of Cat Noir starting to lose faith in Ladybug having his best interest in mind when Rena Rouge appears out of nowhere and he's expected to just accept that no-questions-asked.

'Gorizilla' notably has Marinette repeatedly voicing her belief that Cat Noir will show up, something Adrien appreciates a great deal, going as far as blushing over something so simple. He's astounded by the fact that his Lady has faith in him, but it seems he still believes it despite the notion being strange to him.

'Frightningale' really drives home the arc going on in this season. 'Riposte' was the first time we saw Ladybug and Cat Noir seamlessly working together to neutralize an Akuma, but in this episode, they move in perfect synch while fighting Frightningale while handcuffed together. Cat Noir and Ladybug's teamwork has reached phenomenal levels.

I've repeatedly said that 'Syren' is less about Cat Noir and Ladybug's relationship and more about Fu's relationships with his two chosen. Still, this is the episode where Marinette gets put on the spot and comes through for her partner and Cat Noir learns that Ladybug keeping secrets from him wasn't of her own volition, but because of Fu, restoring his faith in her completely.

It's most likely because of the trust Ladybug showed towards him in 'Gorizilla' and their perfectly synchronized teamwork in 'Frightningale' that Cat Noir tries to confess to Ladybug again in 'Frozer'. These two episodes could give Cat Noir hope that he might be winning Ladybug over, especially since, as I said before, Ladybug has not said she doesn't have feelings for him. But she, of course, rejects him, although it's notably with more wistfulness than the last time, especially when she comments how she doesn't think it's possible for the "other boy" to not be a concern. 'Frozer' takes place during the arc in season two that covers Marinette's growing frustration at her inability to progress with Adrien the way she wants to and the discontent shows in her interaction with Cat Noir as well.

The change in how Marinette regards Cat Noir's input in fights between season one and two is especially noticeable in 'Style Queen' and 'Maledictator'. Both times Cat Noir is absent in a fight and this influences how Marinette approaches fighting the Akumas. In 'Style Queen' Marinette tries to play it sneaky but also needs to be saved by Plagg's intervention in his holder's absence. In 'Maledictator', Marinette's plan involved siccing the brainwashed Cat Noir on the Akuma's goons. Cat Noir has become necessary to Marinette, which is why he's able to galvanize her during 'Heroes' Day' by reminding her that the two of them against the world is what's always worked.

Season three as a whole revolves around Adrien losing faith that Ladybug could ever return his feelings the way he wishes and Marinette getting several warning signs about how she could lose Cat Noir. I might even go as far as saying that this season has negative Ladynoir development (in that their relationship grows more frayed and brittle instead of stronger).

A big reason for this new development direction is 'Reflekdoll', which, according to the production codes, happens early in the season. In this episode, Ladybug and Cat Noir learn the worst possible (false) lessons about themselves and each other and they carry those lessons for the rest of the season. In my 'Reflekdoll' conflict analysis, I wrote that Ladybug basically "learns" that Cat Noir is fae-like in that he isn't bothered by mortal things like stress or heartbreak. Cat Noir, meanwhile, "learns" that, while it doesn't matter if Ladybug makes a mistake because she can always fix it, him making a mistake makes him fundamentally less worthy as a hero and a person, so he could never be as valuable as Ladybug even as a person and not only strategically.

'Weredad', meanwhile, is the quintessential evidence episode for Marinette being both possessive and in denial about Cat Noir. She's literally pretending to be in love with him to him, while totally denying to herself that she feels anything for him, all the while she's feeling jealous over him seemingly moving on from her to be in love with her. The reason it's so important that no one but Marinette herself and Tikki know what went down in this episode is that Marinette's denial would never last if someone actually questioned this whole mess.

This is also an episode where we can clearly see the aftermath of what 'Reflekdoll' did to Cat Noir. He's once again projecting his situation with his father onto someone else (this time Tom), but he's also blatantly refusing to fight Tom at full strength, because he feels that it's his fault he got Akumatized, allowing himself to get hurt severely because he feels he's not that important, that he might even deserve it.

'Oblivio' has Ladybug once again do the whole: "How dare you say I'm in love with Cat Noir I am quitting this conversation right now!" routine. Cat Noir also got actual confirmation that something about him made his Lady want to kiss him when their memories had been wiped.

'Desperada' has the semi-infamous scene of Ladybug saying she doesn't need Cat Noir and, while she learns the valuable lesson that yes she flipping does, this is also the episode where Adrien repeatedly fails to use the Snake Miraculous correctly, having to give it up to someone else, feeling like an undeserving failure *turns to look at 'Weredad' and then at ‘Reflekdoll*.

'Kwamibuster' is an episode where everyone keeps telling Ladybug not to trust Cat Noir and she believes it to the degree that she sees him as a bigger threat than a Kwami-targeting Akuma. In other words, Cat Noir being treated like a part-time hero again in season four is because of 'Kwamibuster'.

'Gamer 2.0' is actually an important episode for the Ladynoir dynamic. This is the episode where Marinette takes on way too much responsibility (voluntarily) and is really stressed about it, while Cat Noir dismantles that stress with his good humor and positive outlook. This episode enforces the lesson that was stated outright in 'Reflekdoll': "Everyone has their role", and Cat Noir's role is to be the jokester who makes Ladybug feel better. Also, Cat Noir doesn’t even hesitate to make a sacrifice play for his Lady, because he’s less important.

'Timetagger' foreshadows that Marinette's words of affirmation are losing their effect. She repeatedly says things like "I trust Cat Noir", "You're irreplaceable", "You know you're the best", but she doesn't know how to express her regard to Cat Noir in actions. And it's important to note that Adrien was raised among liars and manipulators. Even if he doesn't doubt Ladybug's intentions, he might doubt the depth and truth of her feelings for him. Because Ladybug is so nice, she might lie about valuing him to make him feel better. Words aren't enough when words are the only thing between you and your insecurities. This is also an episode that feeds into Cat Noir's worthlessness arc, with Bunnyx repeatedly insisting that Ladybug in the future is just awesome, while Cat Noir broke her Miraculous. Even Ladybug shoots him down at the end of the episode when he tries to ask for extra affirmation, claiming he "already knows he's great".

In 'Puppeteer 2', Cat Noir's hope from 'Oblivio' that Ladybug might be starting to be won over by him comes back to bite him when the wax Ladybug gets close to him by pretending to be coming onto him. He only realized she was a fake because she smelled wrong, something that comes back to haunt him in 'Ladybug', when he's faced with a perfect copy, whose only difference to the original is that she's apparently in love with him. The villains clearly know he’s so in love with Ladybug it sometimes blinds him.

With the villains using this clear weakness as an in, it's no wonder that Cat Noir finally makes the decision to move on from Ladybug in 'Heart Hunter'. He tries one more time to test her interest to see if she'd be jealous of him dating and, when she's merely overjoyed, he decides to finally move on to Kagami. However, when faced with the actual reality of Cat Noir giving his attention to someone else instead of her (instead of in addition to her), Ladybug actually finds herself hurt and questions the lack of "My Lady" in Cat Noir addressing her, but she instantly denies it when Cat Noir notices. Denial denial denial...

Aaaaaand that's a wrap! Putting this together made me realize just how interconnected the show really is but no one notices because there aren’t any secret identities being revealed, people getting together or lore being revealed. Even something that seems like a breather episode like 'Gamer 2.0' has a larger role in the arc of developing the relationship between our main heroes.

[jikookiekosmos]

Pick Your Fighter || jjk (Part 1)

➥Pairing: gamer!jk/gamer!reader, fuckboy!jk

➥Summary: Jeon Jungkook has it all - talent, charm, and the looks that have every girl falling at his feet. Add being the Arcade Champion of 5 years to that list and he feels like he’s on top of the world. He’s in for a rude awakening, though, when he’s faced with his greatest challenge yet: you.

➥Genre: enemies to lovers, (attempts at) humor, angst, smut, fluff

➥Rating: 18+

➥Words: 13.5k

➥Content Warnings: fuckboy!jk (I feel like that’s a warning on it’s own), mentions of insecurity, cursing (fuck is like jk’s fave word lmao), jk doesn’t like to share, yoongi has to put up with a lot bless him, mentions of gaming (particulalrly Overwatch and Mortal Kombat which I’ve played before so I felt like I knew enough to include them), jk likes to tease the reader, mentions of a blowjob, reader gives back what jk dishes out, jk is a sore loser, alcohol consumption, the word ‘whore’ is used once, jk handles jealousy the only way he knows how: fucking (not the reader this time but don’t worry we’ll get there), oral (m. receiving), protected sex, penetration, rough sex, somewhat dom!jk? (he gets a little rough and kinda mean so), hair pulling, crying during sex, oral (f. receiving), jk can’t get reader out of his head

A/N: ok so I know I said this would be my next one shot but I decided to split it into multiple parts instead! I figured it’d be easier that way since there’s a good bit I have planned for the over-arching storyline. This part is more so to introduce everyone to the characters, things will start heating up in the following chapters. I don’t have any kind of specific update schedule but ideally I’d like to get updates out every few weeks at the latest!

Forever giving a special thank you to @dntaewithluv​​ for being my biggest supporter here and my best friend. You always help me stay motivated during my writing processes and I love you so much ❤️ also thank you for beta-reading for me as usual, you’re the best~

I hope anyone who reads this enjoys it! Please let me know what you think, if you’d like~

taglist: @inlovewiththemoonn @min-nicoleee @fan-ati--c​ @sugaslittlekookies @1-in-abillion @yopjm @emsuzz @dreamsindreamss @justvibingsblog 

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“Jungkook, I don’t care how good you are at this game,” Yoongi started as he rubbed his temples, “you still need to listen to me.”

Jungkook groaned. “I’m listening, alright? Damn, lighten up, Yoon.”

He was currently sitting with his feet propped up on Yoongi’s desk tossing a small rubber ball in the air, looking bored out of his mind. Yoongi glared at him once more before sighing and turning back to the board he was writing on.

“The tournament is a little different this year, they have more contestants-”

“More people for me to beat, then.” Jungkook smirked and tossed the ball once more with enough force that it hit one of the ceiling tiles before returning to his hand.

Yoongi could feel a headache coming on. Jungkook was his best friend and he loved him to death, but times like these made him wonder if becoming Jungkook’s sponsor may have been one of the worst decisions he’s ever made.

“Please pay attention,” Yoongi croaked. After staying up most of the night talking with other sponsors about tournament planning, he really didn’t have the energy to deal with Jungkook being uncooperative.

Jungkook must have been able to detect this since he pocketed the ball and sat up straight, now focusing all his attention on his tired friend.

“Alright, you’ve got my undivided attention. I’m all yours.” He motioned to the board before crossing his arms over his chest. Yoongi sighed, running a hand through his brown hair and shooting a grateful glare Jungkook’s way before he picked up where he left off.

“Ok so as usual, you’re in the fighting division. Most of your competitors are repeat contestants, but there will be a few new names. Would you care to know anything about them like their stats, years of experience, all that?”

Jungkook simply shook his head, much like he always did every time Yoongi presented him with this question. If there was something Yoongi would never understand, it was the fact that Jungkook had the inside scoop for this every year, but he never took advantage of it.

“You know I don’t care about all that. Not like it matters anyway, my skills don’t depend on anyone but me.” He ran a hand through his unruly dark hair before letting it settle back in front of his eyes.

Yoongi nodded. “Fair enough. Figured I’d try anyway in case you changed your mind.”

Jungkook flashed him a brilliant smile. “Since when do I change my mind on anything? You of all people know just how stubborn I can be.”

Yoongi chuckled as he started writing on the board again. “That I do, Kook.” He finished filling in the initials of the contestants in the different branches, Jungkook’s eyes watching him the whole time. When Yoongi was finally done, he capped the blue marker and laid it on the table next to the board. Jungkook hopped up out of his chair, rolling up the sleeves of his black hoodie before he placed his hands in his pockets.

“Wanna hang out tonight? You’ve been pretty busy lately; it’d be good for you to blow off some steam.” Jungkook could be cocky, arrogant, and was considered the epitome of a fuckboy by most people, but he definitely had a soft spot when it came to Yoongi. A decade of friendship tended to do that to people sometimes.

Yoongi smiled as he stretched. “Sorry kid, I can’t tonight. Already got plans.”

Jungkook frowned. He hadn’t been expecting that.

“Can I ask what those are?”

Yoongi snorted as he grabbed his bag from his desk. “What are you, my keeper?” Jungkook huffed in frustration when Yoongi passed him. They were walking out of the arcade now, having used the back staff room for tournament planning.

“If you must know, I’m hanging out with Y/N tonight.”

At the mention of your name, Jungkook could feel himself bristling. It didn’t have anything to do with you specifically, it was more of the fact that he had to share his best friend with you. Jungkook was a selfish person and he hated sharing anything, which of course included his best friend who was probably the most important person to him on this miserable planet. Yoongi knew this but he never backed down, always telling him to ‘suck it up, Kook, because she’s not going anywhere.’

You and Yoongi met a few years ago when you both were baristas working at the same café and an instant friendship formed between the two of you, much to Jungkook’s dismay. He could avoid you much easier now that he was living in his own apartment, but during those years he shared a space with Yoongi, he saw more of you than he preferred to.

And that wasn’t even taking into consideration the fact that you both annoyed the fuck out of each other, so a hang out session with all 3 of you posed a slim chance of being successful.

“Ah, again? What’s that, like the third time this week?”

Yoongi turned slightly so he could pat Jungkook’s cheek, making the younger boy duck before he could continue. “Aww Kook, are you jealous?”

“Absolutely not,” Jungkook grimaced, delving his hands further in his pockets. “Just don’t see what you find so fascinating about her is all.”

Yoongi frowned. “Jungkook, she’s really not that bad if you give her a chance-”

“Yeah, well, maybe I don’t want to.” He kicked at a stray pebble on the street as they continued walking in the direction of their apartment complex.

“Then that’s your loss. Which sucks because, regardless of what you believe, she doesn’t have a bad opinion of you.”

Jungkook snorted. “Bullshit. Everyone has a bad opinion of me. Even you sometimes.” He finished his statement with a grin and Yoongi hoped that meant he was joking.

He wasn’t.

Jungkook knew there were 2 things in this world he was an absolute beast at: gaming and fucking. He was aware that most people didn’t like him beyond his gaming ability and, at least where women were concerned, how he was in bed. When he wasn’t making other Overwatch players scream at him through his headset because he was winning, he was making women of his choosing scream into his mattress.

And that was exactly how Jungkook preferred things.

Yoongi knew this as well, and he’d witnessed Jungkook go on this self-destructive spiral over the last several years with him being one of the only people Jungkook could count on. It pained him to see Jungkook have such a low opinion of himself regarding most things, and he hoped that in time, Jungkook would be able to see just how great of a person he truly was.

A deep sigh escaped the older man as they rounded the last corner before their complex came into view. “We can hang out tomorrow, Kook. Promise.”

Jungkook was still frowning but it seemed to soften a bit at Yoongi’s offer. He couldn’t really be mad at Yoongi for wanting to spend time with other friends when he had his own as well. Maybe he’d call up Tae and see if he wanted to play a few matches tonight if he wasn’t too busy.

Which is exactly what Jungkook did once he was settled for the night. He and Tae played Overwatch for a few hours, swapping plays of the game (POTGs) between each other and laughing at the distress from the opposite team members after each round.

These two were in their element here, and it made sense considering Tae was actually entered into the PC games portion of the arcade tournament where he’d been champion for the last few years. Both of them carried their division titles proudly and had grown a lot closer because of their mutual interest in gaming and other things they found out along the way.

Basically, Tae was probably the second closest person to Jungkook behind Yoongi, but even that was a stretch. Jungkook didn’t allow people into his life easily, and it took years for Tae to break down those barriers.

He didn’t see that happening with another person anytime soon, and he was completely fine with that. 2 people was enough to keep up with, anyway…at least, that was how Jungkook viewed it.

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You were in the zone, tongue gently peeking out of the corner of your mouth as you focused on the TV in front of you, expertly pressing the buttons on your controller to land a perfect combo. The timer had barely even started and you already had your opponent’s health down to a third of what they started with. Of course, competing against AI opponents had nothing on those in the real world, but hey practice was practice, right?

You’d just managed to K.O. your computer counterpart – raising your arms in a tiny victory pose as you did – when you heard the doorbell ring. You hopped up and jogged to the door, opening it without another thought. There was only one person it could be; you rarely had company, and when you did it was typically always the same person.

Yoongi grinned, arms full of bags that you knew had to contain yours and his favorite snacks. It was customary whenever you would spend nights like these together, either he or you would stop by the grocery store before convening in one of your apartments, having made purchases of snacks and goodies galore.

“Yoonie!” you greeted him cheerfully, reaching out to take a few of the bags so he could enter your apartment properly. When the two of you had everything set on your dining room table, he pulled you into a hug.

“Hey there.” His glance drifted over to your living room area where the TV was projecting its light throughout the otherwise dimly lit room. “I see you’ve been busy.”

You shrugged. “I had a couple of extra hours to kill after my shift ended earlier. Besides, the tournament is only a few days away. I need to be in the best shape possible for it.”

It was a Wednesday night, but neither of you had work the following day, so you offered for Yoongi to drop by and help you with some pointers for the competition since it was your first time entering. That invitation had now turned into the usual sleepover you were accustomed to, but Yoongi still kept his word on helping you out.

With the tournament happening Saturday, you didn’t have many days left to train and get ready. You didn’t doubt your ability – you knew you were good at games, despite the stereotypes that say otherwise – but it never hurt to practice.

Yoongi interrupted your thoughts by ruffling your hair, chuckling when you swatted his hand away. “If you ask me, I think you’ve prepared enough. I’ve seen what you can do and you’re honestly one of the best I’ve seen at this particular game.”

The game in question was Mortal Kombat II, one of the games in an old school fighting series that you grew up playing with some friends from many years ago that you didn’t talk to anymore. And while you may have drifted from people during different stages in your life, your love for gaming was one thing that remained constant throughout.

“Thanks, Yoongs.” You couldn’t help but crack a smile at his praise, especially since you knew it was genuine. And high praise it was, considering he’d seen a lot of expert players in his time of helping with the tournaments.

“Anytime. Now,” he plopped onto the couch and you resumed your seat on a cushion you placed on the floor in front of your coffee table, “let’s talk strategy.”

You had picked up the controller to start the next round, but at his words you laid it in your lap instead and cocked your head to the side while giving him a confused look. “Strategy?”

Yoongi nodded. “Strategy. You’re gonna need at least a semblance of one if you want to stand a chance in this competition.”

You gulped. “I-I thought I’d just go in and give it my all.”

Yoongi smiled gently, reassuringly. “I know. And that is what you need to do. But you also need to consider every possible scenario. This isn’t just playing against a friend you know or a random person through a server. You’re going up against other trained experts, with some who have been doing this for years.”

You looked down at the controller in your hand, unconsciously squeezing the plastic. Strategy? You hadn’t really put much thought into it, outside of perfecting your skills and just doing your best. Above all, this was supposed to be something fun for you. Just an extra outlet and a way to maybe potentially make more friends who shared your interest in this hobby.

But with the way Yoongi was talking, it sort of just scared you.

“I’m not trying to scare you,” he continued. Sometimes you swore he could read your thoughts, but that wouldn’t surprise you, seeing as he is your best friend, after all. “I just want you to go in with the right mindset for what to expect.”

“I appreciate it,” you mustered up what you hoped would be a convincing smile. You could tell Yoongi didn’t buy it, but he didn’t press further.

“Ok, new plan. I’ll watch you play a few rounds and then give you my opinion on anything I think you might could change to improve what you’re doing. Sound good?”

You agreed, genuinely smiling this time. “Sounds good.”

After almost half an hour of you playing while Yoongi quietly observed you, he finally spoke up again.

“Alright, I think I’ve noticed something that you can work on.”

You paused the game and turned toward him, giving him your full attention while your hands rested in your lap.

Yoongi leaned forward so that his elbows were on his knees, hands clasped together while he pursed his lips. “You have this…thing you do. Right before your K.O. combo. It’s almost like you hesitate for a second.”

You blinked a few times, trying to recall when you might have done that. “Really?”

“Mhm. I’ve never picked up on it before, but then again, I’ve also never watched you with a critical eye before now either.”

You frowned, forehead creasing with the effort. When did you hesitate? You pretty much went in for the final blow as soon as you were able to-

“I know you’re probably trying to remember when you did it, but I’m telling you it’s always that split second right before you go in for the kill. And that’s not really a problem, except…” Yoongi trailed off, leaving you nearly bouncing on your cushion with the curiosity that consumed you.

“Except what?”

Yoongi brought his eyes up to stare into yours, and the seriousness you found there made you gulp again.

“Except there is one player I know who only needs a second of hesitation to turn an entire match around.”

You understood immediately who he was talking about.

“Jungkook.”

Yoongi nodded in affirmation. “Yup. Kook is the undisputed king of turning around an entire game within a pivotal moment all because someone hesitates. And it doesn’t even have to be a conscious thing, a lot of the time they do it without realizing. But he can pick up on it nearly every time, and it’s always something he uses to his advantage.”

Honestly, you weren’t surprised. Jungkook wasn’t the reigning champion for just any old reason. He had the skill and the talent to outshine everyone who had faced him in the past.

This year, however, you were a new challenger. And the idea of taking him down a peg from actually beating him at his own game excited you more than it probably should have.

Still, you couldn’t help but wonder…

“Why are you telling me this though? Aren’t you rooting for him, too? I mean – you’re literally his sponsor so that has to be against a code of ethics or something along those lines.”

Yoongi’s laughter took you off guard, but the sound made you smile nonetheless.

“You’re right. I probably shouldn’t be telling you any of this or helping you out at all. But,” he leaned forward more so he could boop your nose from where you were still seated in front of the coffee table. “You’re my best friend, too. And that matters more to me than any sponsorship or shit like that. I’ll be rooting for the both of you equally.”

You scrunched up your nose a little at the contact before you beamed at him. Never had you expected to have a friend as amazing as him in your life, but you were grateful for it every day.

“Besides,” Yoongi went on, straightening his posture again before sinking back into the couch, “I also did offer to tell Kook about his competitors and their strengths, weaknesses, all that.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Oh? And what happened with that?”

A gummy smile spread out across his face. “He didn’t wanna know. So, it’s his loss.”

You hummed as you thought it over. “That makes no sense, why wouldn’t he-”

“You’ve known him long enough to realize that he is perhaps one of the most stubborn people ever, maybe even the most stubborn. He’s too prideful to accept ‘handouts’ of information like that. One day I think that pride of his might be his downfall,” Yoongi started trailing off near the end there, but you could still just barely make out what he said. You didn’t feel like you were supposed to have heard it, though, so you didn’t ask for him to elaborate.

“Well, I’m not too prideful to ask for info. Are there any other tricks or secrets you can let me in on about our boy Mr. Jeon?” Your tone was teasing but you also wouldn’t turn down any additional info Yoongi could offer you.

Yoongi groaned. “God, do not let him hear you call him that. I swear it’ll go directly to his head and make his ego swell even larger.” You giggled and Yoongi smiled.

“But no, I can’t give you any more info beyond that, because that would be basically violating my terms as sponsor. Can’t give you everything now, can I?”

“I meeean, you could…”

He chuckled. “But I’m not going to. End of discussion.”

You pouted lightheartedly and Yoongi simply shook his head, his smile growing wider.

“Honestly, what am I going to do about you two? You know, you’re both more alike that either of you want to admit-”

You covered your ears. “Sorry, can’t hear you over how ridiculous that sounds.”

“Case in point,” Yoongi replied as he pulled your hands away. “What you just did is a very Jungkook thing to do.”

You clutched at your chest in feigned horror. “Min Yoongi, you take that back right now.”

He laughed at your distress. “Nope. Now, show me what you’re going to do about that habit of yours. We have all night to figure it out.”

A grateful smile stretched across your face as you saw him settle in and get comfortable. He was rummaging through one of the snack bags, and the familiar warmth you always felt around him blossomed in your chest once more.

You really loved Yoongi so much, and not at all in a romantic way, but very much in the ‘you’re my best friend and I’ll protect you with my life forever’ kinda way. And you knew Yoongi felt the exact same about you.

So you did as he said and picked up your forgotten controller again, spending the next several hours perfecting your technique until you both agreed it was acceptable.

You were ready for the competition.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

Meanwhile, in the apartment complex down the block from yours, Jungkook was laughing at Taehyung’s screams of disbelief as their opponent took him down a third time during that round.

“What the fuck?!” drifted through his headset and Jungkook could only chuckle. He knew Tae was good, of course; he was great at the game, actually. But it was times like these where he somewhat enjoyed seeing Tae crumble a bit when he lost. Tae liked to walk around as if he was the god of Overwatch himself, so it was nice to occasionally see him shaken up.

Yes, Jungkook was a hypocrite, and yes, if anyone ever beat him at his best game, he would be pissed off as well.

“Fucking Mercy, they aren’t supposed to be offensive, stop shooting at me and heal your party members!”

Jungkook took out the other team’s healer just as Tae was finishing his cry of rage. He could hear Tae’s breathing then, followed by him clearing his throat before speaking again at a more normal volume.

“Thanks, Kook.”

“Don’t mention it, I do need you back here to cover for me, though.” Jungkook was playing as Widowmaker like he usually did, so he was set up ready to snipe the other team’s members whenever they appeared in his line of sight. Of course, Jungkook was more of an offensive player, so he didn’t stay in one spot for too long.

“On my way, just keep an eye on that bitch Mercy for me, will you?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Jungkook muttered in response. “By the way, how are you feeling about the tournament?”

It was the question Jungkook asked every year in the days leading up to the competition, so Tae always expected it.

“I’m feeling fine about it, I know most of the players since a lot of them are repeat competitors from last year.” He stopped speaking for a moment to focus on shooting down and enemy who was trying to sneak up on Jungkook, making Jungkook hum in appreciation as he did.

“My sponsor got me inside details on those I didn’t know, too, so I feel more prepared. What about you? Did Yoongi give you the hookup?”

“Nah, I turned it down.” For a few seconds, the only sounds that could be heard were the clicks of their mouses and keyboards.

“Dude, you have probably the best sponsor for this kinda shit, why do you always say no? Seems dumb if you ask me.”

“Good thing I didn’t fucking ask you then, dick.” Jungkook wasn’t actually mad at Tae, this was just how they liked to tease each other; lighthearted banter sprinkled with vulgar language. Jungkook figured it was somewhat poetic if you really thought about it.

“Seriously, Kook, I don’t get you sometimes. And we’re on the same wavelength a lot.”

Jungkook sighed. “I just don’t feel the need to know, alright? I like going into it blind and coming out on top. The victory is sweeter that way.”

He could hear Tae’s noise of disapproval just before he got another headshot. His last shot ended up being the POTG, bringing a smile to his face as he watched the video playback.

“I mean, I get that I guess. I did hear a rumor though that we got some chicks joining this year, so that ought to be interesting.”

They were in the queue now waiting for the next match to start. Team members from their previous game asked if they could stay on their team, but Jungkook and Tae both declined the invites as usual. They preferred to keep to themselves, even though some of their prior teammates were damn good.

“There’s no way, we’ve never had that before.” Jungkook readjusted his headset, carding a hand through his dark mop of curls before rolling his head around on his shoulders, stretching to get more comfortable.

“Well, there’s at least 1 for sure. I know that much because my sponsor confirmed it.”

At this, Jungkook’s curiosity was piqued. “Oh? Did he say what division?”

“Nah, it’s not mine and that’s all the info I got. Wouldn’t it be something though if they were going up against you?”

Jungkook laughed loudly in his empty apartment. “Me? A girl facing off against me? God, you’re fucking hilarious, Tae.”

“I’m being serious though! We don’t know yet-”

“I’ll humor you for a second then, alright? Say I do go up against a girl. We already know what that outcome will be. And I do hate seeing women cry, especially at my expense, but I’m not going easy on anyone I compete against.”

Taehyung hummed on the other end as 30 seconds left on the countdown timer signaled another match was about to start. “I know you won’t, but I do think it would throw you for a loop, so it’s better to mentally prepare for that kinda curveball now.”

Jungkook scoffed, getting ready for the next round. “Yeah, sure, alright. I’ll ‘prepare’ for it.”

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

The next few days flew by thanks to your work shifts and you practicing pretty much every night leading up to the tournament. There wasn’t a reason for you to overdo it, but you liked to compete against others and do your best, so you practiced whenever you had the chance.

And it had paid off. Yoongi told you he could definitely see an improvement in the way you played.

“If I’m honest, I think you have a really good chance of going far. Not that I thought you didn’t before, but it’s even more evident now.” He gave you his signature gummy smile while the two of you were seated in the competitors waiting area.

“Thanks, Yoonie. By the way, where’s Jungkook?” You craned your neck to look around Yoongi, but the tall, dark-haired boy was nowhere to be seen.

“Ah, he’s probably chilling in the back. Says he has no interest in seeing other competitors play besides the ones he’s facing against. He does this every year.”

“Interesting,” you mused. “Does he know I’m competing this time?”

Yoongi shrugged, moving to stand. “Dunno. He didn’t say anything about it, so I doubt he knows. To be completely honest, I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he finds out.” He grinned.

You followed suit and stood from your spot, since you were in one of the first matches. “Bold of you to assume I’ll even go up against him.”

Yoongi’s grin widened. “Something just tells me you will. Call it divine intuition.”

“If you’re wrong, you owe me a coffee,” you suggested. It pulled a chuckle from the boy, which is what you had hoped for.

“Deal. But if I’m right?”

“Then I owe you a coffee. Or whatever beverage of your choice.”

“Sounds good to me,” Yoongi replied, leading you to where your match was set to start. “Best of luck, just remember what you’ve been working on and I’m sure you’ll be fine.” He gave you one last pat on the shoulder before leaving to go find Jungkook, or at least that’s what you assumed.

His first match wouldn’t be for a little bit, you knew that from the roster, but you didn’t want to focus on him right now. Your priority was pushing your nerves away and embracing the adrenaline rush that always came to you when competition was involved.

It was that kind of mindset that got your through your first match with a flawless victory. You took that feeling with you the rest of the way through your matches until the final one, where you knew you were going to need all the motivation you could muster.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

Jungkook miraculously somehow didn’t run into you at all during the tournament. This was probably because of 2 reasons:

1) He had no idea you were there to start with and 2) he didn’t stick around long enough to see who else was competing in his division whenever he finished his matches.

As soon as Jungkook defeated his opponents – which generally happened within the first minute or so of playing – he would make his way to the back room where he would scroll mindlessly through his phone until his next round time approached.

He blew through all his matches, ignoring Yoongi’s encouragement to stick around and watch the rest of the games unfold. Occasionally he would check in on Tae and watch him play a few games, but he knew Tae was bound to win so there wasn’t really much of a point to.

At last, it was time for the final match. Jungkook stretched as he was leaving the back room of the arcade, walking confidently with his hands in his pockets. He smirked the whole way there, admiring the looks he got from patrons who had been viewing the tournament the whole time with excitement.

He made it to the arcade machine before his opponent did, but he didn’t mind it at all. He rolled up his hoodie sleeves and ran a hand through his hair before letting it slightly fall back into his eyes. He peered over the heads of those in the crowd, looking for Yoongi since he was supposed to be around for every one of his matches.

When he spotted Yoongi, he smiled, watching as the man weaved his way through the thickening crowd. Jungkook’s smile faltered, however, when he saw who was following behind his friend, their hand wrapped up in Yoongi’s own.

“What the fuck?”

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

“No fucking way,” you heard Jungkook exclaim when you got close enough. You rolled your eyes as you settled into your spot beside him, and he was still staring at you as if you had multiple heads.

You were growing impatient with his gawking so you whirled to face him. “Can I help you, Jungkook?”

He cracked that stupid, shit-eating grin you were unfortunately used to. “Nah, just wondering why you’re here. You lost, babygirl?”

“Ugh, do not call me that,” you answered immediately, focusing instead on Yoongi’s solemn face behind him instead of his words. “And no, I’m not lost. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

Jungkook looked genuinely confused, it was almost laughable.

“Uhh…you do realize you’re in an arcade, yeah?”

You just nodded curtly, looking at the clock on the wall. There were still a few minutes left before your match was set to start, but you seriously just wanted it over with already.

“Arcades are where people go to play games,” Jungkook continued, speaking slower as if to get the point across. You huffed and your grip on the joystick in front of you tightened.

“I’m aware of that. I’m not fucking stupid.”

Jungkook’s sudden laughter annoyed you further. He propped an elbow onto the machine, leaning over and almost closer to you. “Never said you were. But if you know that, then again, why are you here?”

You gestured vaguely to the arcade machine in front of you. “Isn’t it obvious?”

Jungkook’s face dropped and it finally looked like he was understanding.

“Wait. You play games?”

“It would appear so, yes.”

“And you’re here for the competition?”

“Yup,” you popped your lips on the ‘p.’ “Why else would I willingly be around you this long?”

You didn’t even know why you were saying those words and you could tell Yoongi was surprised as well. You and Jungkook teased each other, sure, but you never showed any real animosity towards him.

However, he was really starting to irritate you with his ‘you’re a girl so you obviously don’t play games’ bullshit. You never tolerated it from anyone else before and you certainly weren’t going to start now.

Your words didn’t seem to faze him, though; if anything, he got even more cocky because of it.

“Damn, I don’t remember you being this feisty before. I like it.”

You groaned before he continued.

“What’d you have to do to get in by the way, did you blow the guy at the door or something?”

Out of the corner of your eye you could see Yoongi stepping forward while others around you ‘ooooh’ed at Jungkook’s jab. You held up your hand somewhat so Yoongi would know you could handle this, and he stopped moving.

“Nope, I’m here because of pure skill. And unlike some people, my talents extend past gaming.” You crossed your arms and stared at the clock again, seeing there was less than a minute now until you both would be able to start. Amidst the murmurs of the crowd you two had drawn, you heard Jungkook’s boisterous laugh.

“Oh babygirl, if you wanted to see my skills outside of this, I would be happy to oblige-”

“That’s enough, Kook,” Yoongi finally made his way up to you two and clapped a hand on Jungkook’s shoulder. “Let her be. Just compete against her and show good sportsmanship about it.”

Jungkook’s brows knitted together. “Wait…so she’s actually my final opponent? Like for real? Yoon, you gotta be fucking with me.”

“Well, I’m not, and you would’ve known that if you paid attention to the results at the end of each round. But you didn’t and you’re here so suck it up and play.”

Jungkook’s bewildered expression nearly made you laugh, but you almost felt bad for him.

Almost. He got himself into this situation by ignoring Yoongi’s help, so you wouldn’t feel too much pity for him.

“If that’s too much for you, forfeiting is always an option.” You busied yourself with readjusting your necklace you were wearing while you causally threw that offer out there.

Jungkook glared at you then, and the usual fire rekindled back to life in his eyes. This is what you liked to see, since you were competitive by nature yourself.

Now the real fun could begin.

“In your dreams,” he grumbled, moving back to a standing position and cracking his knuckles. You recognized this as his ‘fighting prep stance’ since you’d observed it in the years prior when you would watch the tournament. This way, you knew Jungkook meant business and you couldn’t be more thrilled about it.

The person who was in charge of tracking time signaled that the two of you could start, so you rolled your shoulders back and prepared yourself.

“Ladies first,” Jungkook gestured to the arcade machine as he let you have first pick from the character select screen. “It’d be unfair for me to put you at a disadvantage early on.”

“Wow, such a gentleman,” you rolled your eyes and selected your best fighter. You couldn’t wait to wipe that stupid, smug smile off his face.

Jungkook only shrugged. “What can I say? Gotta make up for it now so I don’t feel too bad about the defeat I hand you later.”

“You sure talk a big game, now let’s see if you can back it up.” You crossed your arms while you waited for him to choose a character. He looked you up and down once before he gave you a lopsided grin.

“With pleasure.”

Jungkook looked at your character choice and scoffed, making you feel hot with exasperation.

“Kitana? Really? Well, guess that makes sense, seeing as you’re a girl and all.”

You bristled at the comment but quickly shook it off, fingers flexing around the joystick. You were both playing Mortal Kombat II, much to your delight, seeing as this is the game where some of your favorite characters had been introduced. You loved the classic first game, but you were more in your element with this one for sure.

“Pick someone, Kook. Don’t keep me waiting.”

He grinned and chose a character, clearly wanting to say more but deciding against it.

“I’ll go with Sub-Zero. He’s not my best character, but I’ll consider this a special match and go easy on you just this once.”

If you’d been gripping the joystick any harder, you’re sure you would have tore it off.

“Just fucking fight me already,” you grumbled, determined to not let him get the best of you. He was eating it up however, taking his sweet time choosing the stage for the two of you to fight on.

Once the stage was chosen and the game countdown ended, you got to work. The arcade combos were a little different than what you were used to, seeing as you generally played on a console with a controller, but you were a fast learner.

Unfortunately, you weren’t fast enough, seeing as Jungkook beat you in the first round. You had already known his gaming skills were impressive, but even he surpassed what you thought he could do.

“Aye, way to go, Kook!” You heard someone cheering from the crowd, and when you turned to look you could see it was Taehyung, who you knew solely by association. Jungkook turned too, giving his friend a thumbs up before returning his attention to the screen again.

You could tell from the corner of your eye that he was fixing his gaze on you, that ever present cocky grin at home on his face. You didn’t give him the time of day and instead looked to Yoongi in the crowd.

Yoongi was looking at you with soft eyes, and you saw him mouth ‘Proud of you.’ which reinvigorated you with a newfound confidence.

There were still 2 rounds to go, only 1 if he beat you again, but you had faith in yourself. If you could beat him even once just to see him squirm a little bit, then you’d be happy.

The next round started and this time, you chose a different technique. You worked on getting behind him at every opportunity so you could attack that way.

You heard Jungkook let out a surprise gasp beside you when you landed a combo that took out a significant chunk of his health. His movements started faltering and you used that to your advantage, landing more combos until finally, you had his health down to the last little bit-

You finished him off with a K.O. and the entire crowd quieted down. No one had ever beat Jungkook in any of the rounds he played during his 5 years as champion here and you had just put an end to that streak.

Behind you there was a cheer and you recognized who it was immediately. Yoongi was cheering for you, clapping his hands. You gave him a bright smile, noticing how Jungkook beside you had whirled around to also face Yoongi. You chanced looking and flinched at the pure venom Jungkook was sending Yoongi’s way with his glare.

Yoongi didn’t care, though. He told you he was there for both of you and supported you both equally, and he intended it to stay that way. A few other people in the crowd cheered now, and you noticed how Taehyung was staring at you with his jaw slack.

You swallowed. Was this really that big of a deal?

According to Jungkook it was, because he was starting the next round before you were properly situated. You worked fast to get your bearings about you and just barely avoided his first hit.

Your strategy from the previous game wasn’t going to work this time, that much you knew, since Jungkook was countering everything you’d thrown as him so far. You were almost sure you heard him actually growling as he ducked closer to the machine, as if that would help him play better.

As much as he was deterring your attacks, you were doing the same, and the countdown timer for the round was down to 30 seconds before either of you had gotten the other’s health down halfway.

Then, for reasons you were unsure of, Jungkook had faltered yet again in his technique.

It could’ve been because he was still flustered by your previous victory, but you weren’t letting the chance go to waste. You snuck behind him and landed your most powerful combo, getting his health down to a tiny sliver.

Jungkook looked absolutely defeated, trying his hardest to block your attacks and save his last little bit of health. It was to no avail, however, and the final round ended just as the previous one had.

You did it. You beat Jungkook. The Jeon Jungkook. You beat him at his own game.

The two of you had garnered quite the crowd during your match. There was a moment of pure silence before they erupted into cheers loud enough to almost make you want to cover your ears. Yoongi was rushing forward to congratulate you, and the smile on your face was widening by the second before you could even attempt to stop it.

Or at least it was until you looked over. Jungkook was bracing himself against the machine, staring at the screen with sheer incredulity, jaw clenched and looking like he might fall over any second.

You reached out a hand. “Jungkook-”

“Don’t fucking touch me,” he growled. You retracted your hand and took a step back. Tae was approaching him from the other side, a look of concern on his face. He looked up at you, eyes unreadable, and all you did was nod before you turned away to try and find Yoongi.

When you did, you were met with a hug so tight it knocked the breath out of you.

“You did it, you actually fucking did it! I still can’t believe it. I’m so proud of you!” Yoongi was beaming at you so brightly you couldn’t help but smile back, even though you were still worried about Jungkook. When you looked over your shoulder, you noticed he and Tae were both gone now.

You didn’t know why, but something about that caused a dull ache to gnaw away at your chest.

“We need to go celebrate. Let me call Luna and see if she wants to go out for drinks.” Yoongi was raising the phone to his ear before he asked “You down?”

You nodded, always happy to spend time with Yoongi and his girlfriend who you had also grown close to. You bit your lip as you continued to think about Jungkook, not used to this newfound worry.

“Perfect. We can get together in a few hours at the bar down the street.” He started talking through the phone receiver and you scanned the crowd one last time, hoping to see that unruly dark hair somewhere in the sea of people.

But you couldn’t find Jungkook. And that shouldn’t bother you, but for some reason, it did.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

“Jungkook, slow down!” Tae was jogging after Jungkook in an attempt to catch up to him. Jungkook had started speed walking away from the arcade, hands deep in his pockets and hood pulled up over his head. He didn’t even stop to get his second place prize because the very thought of it made his stomach churn.

How the fuck could something like this happen to him? And why did it have to be you who did it?

He was cursing your name under his breath when Tae finally managed to make it to his side, catching his breath as he held onto Jungkook’s sleeve.

“Kook, wait,” Tae said in between breaths. “Talk to me. What’s wrong-”

“Don’t you dare ask me that when you know good and fucking well what’s wrong.” Jungkook sneered and it made Tae cringe. He’d never seen Jungkook seething like this in all their years of friendship, and quite frankly, it made him feel unpleasant.

“Ok, so you got beat. Not a big deal, alright? Stop acting like it’s the end of the world.”

Tae’s attempt to lighten the mood did the exact opposite. Jungkook whirled around, eyes swirling with emotion, almost as black as obsidian.

“Not a big deal? Not a big deal?! How about you,” he stopped for a moment to poke Tae squarely in the chest, “get defeated and then come tell me how it fucking feels.”

Tae frowned, shoving Jungkook’s hand away. “Kook, in case you’ve forgotten, I did get beat. My first year in the tournament I got my ass handed to me during the last round of the last match. Do you remember what you told me? Hm?”

Jungkook stiffened because yes, he did remember, and now it was coming back to bite him in the ass.

“Firstly, you laughed and said I needed to suck it up and ‘get good.’ Granted, you were 19 then, so I let it slide because maturity and all that. But it’s basically the same thing, you lost and you need to take it in stride-”

“Tae, this shit isn’t supposed to happen to me. It’s me. I’m not supposed to be beat like this.”

“You’re not fucking perfect, Kook!” Tae had raised his voice in exasperation, but he took a deep breath before he continued. “Look. I’m going out tonight with a few others to celebrate me winning my division. And I’m not inviting you so I can rub it in your face, but I am inviting you because I think going out would help.”

Jungkook didn’t respond, instead choosing to stare at the pavement underneath their feet. They were only a few blocks away from the arcade but they had stopped beside one of the downtown restaurants.

“In fact, I’m highly encouraging you to go out tonight. Get tipsy, maybe meet someone and fuck all that frustration out of your system. You seem to be pretty good at that, from what you always brag about.”

At this comment, Jungkook cracked a tiny smile. Tae was right; maybe going out would be good for him. He needed some kind of stress relief after what he had just endured, and if that entailed drinking and fucking someone until all they knew was his name, then so be it.

“Fuck it, let’s go then.” Jungkook shrugged his hood off of his face and fixed Tae with his signature smirk.

Tae wrapped an arm around his shoulders and they continued walking. “That’s my boy! We can get ready at my place, unless you wanna head back and change first-”

“Nah, I can pick up chicks just as easy in this as I can anything else.” And it was true; Jungkook’s success rate with picking up women was relatively the same regardless of what he wore. His outfit of choice usually consisted of what he wore now: dark hoodie, fitted jeans, and some style of black combat boots to complete the look.

Tae nodded. “Fair enough. Off we go then!” He chatted the entire way back to his apartment, and Jungkook was only half-listening. The other parts of his brain were preoccupied with thoughts of someone it shouldn’t have been.

He found himself thinking about you, and your crestfallen face when he had snapped at you back at the arcade. He felt like maybe that should bother him-

-but every time he thought about the utter and humiliating defeat he suffered at your hands, he just got mad all over again.

So now, the only thought he would allow to enter his mind that pertained to you was a simple one: fuck you.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

Yoongi texted you to let you know he and Luna were waiting outside your apartment to drive to the bar. You had changed into something a little more on par for the occasion; a dress that hugged your figure and was long enough to reach mid-thigh, but still modest in the way that it left plenty to the imagination. Luna had actually bought this particular dress for you during one of your many shopping trips with her, so you knew she’d be delighted to see you in it.

You were proven right when you heard the excited squeal coming from the window of the passenger seat as you carefully stepped down the stairs outside your apartment.

“You look hot, that dress suits you so well,” Luna gushed to you as you got in the backseat and fastened your seatbelt. Yoongi chuckled from the driver’s seat.

Luna playfully smacked Yoongi’s arm before he put the car back into drive. “Yoonie! Doesn’t she look great? You better tell her right now.”

Both of you laughed at Luna’s persistence and then Yoongi locked eyes with you. “Yeah, you do look good, Y/N. You usually do though, so I don’t know why you,” he broke off to tickle Luna, making her giggle, “forced me to say that.”

“Because she should hear it from everyone!” Luna huffed as if to say that should have been obvious. Yoongi looked at you through the rearview mirror.

“Sorry, she’s already had some to drink tonight, so she’s a little more eccentric than we’re used to-”

“You love it and you fucking know it,” Luna cut him off with a kiss on his cheek. He smiled and returned it with a quick peck on the lips. You heart soared at the scene in front of you.

You were one of those people who ‘loved love,’ despite not being in a relationship yourself. You weren’t ready for something like that again, not after how your last one ended, but you could always be happy for those people who were in loving, healthy relationships. Especially if you were close to them, like you were these two.

“Alright, should we be off, then?” Yoongi put the car into drive and glanced once more at you and Luna in case either of you protested. You simply nodded and Luna was looking at her phone now, so Yoongi took that as his cue to leave.

The three of you arrived not much later since the bar wasn’t far. Your apartment complexes were thankfully located in a good part of town surrounded by popular venues so there was always something to do.

When all of you were seated and had drinks of your choice, you finally chose to ask the question that had been plaguing your mind.

“Has anyone checked on Jungkook?”

Yoongi’s face dropped a little bit and Luna just rolled her eyes.

“Yoongi tried to but Kook is being a giant baby and won’t accept his calls. He’s probably out getting trashed or something.”

“Luna,” Yoongi said with a little bit of a stern tone.

“What? It’s the truth. And I’m tired of seeing you two sulk about him. We are here to have fun. Jungkook can be a problem for tomorrow.”

Luna made it clear the situation wasn’t up for debate as she raised her glass. Yoongi looked at you and shrugged before doing the same, and you joined in, clinking yours against theirs in a toast for…something.

You weren’t really sure. Luna didn’t say anything, so maybe you thought it was for forgetting about Jungkook.

That was, unfortunately for you, easier said than done. It was made even harder when you saw that familiar head of curls walk into the bar several feet away.

“Fuck,” you said under your breath, chugging down the rest of your drink which admittedly was probably not your smartest idea. Yoongi pursed his lips and followed your line of sight. His eyes widened when he saw Jungkook.

“Well shit, who would’ve guessed he’d come here, too.”

“Certainly not me,” you let out a nervous laugh, feeling the alcohol finally start to settle in.

Luna was just coming back from the restroom and when she noticed Jungkook too, she rolled her eyes and grabbed your wrist. “You. Me. Dance floor. Now.”

You didn’t have time to protest, nor did you really want to. You knew Yoongi wanted to talk to Jungkook, and this would give him the perfect chance to.

“We are getting as far away from that asshole as possible,” Luna grumbled. When she had secured a spot on the floor, she started dancing, helping you move in time with the beat as she kept her hands on your waist.

Your anxiety was ebbing away slowly, thanks to the combined effort of Luna’s distraction and the alcohol finally taking effect, and you eventually forgot about Jungkook altogether for the time being.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

Jungkook walked into the bar behind Tae, a little less cheery about the outing than he had been a few hours prior. He just wasn’t really in the mood to mingle and would much rather sulk on his bed and re-watch old episodes of his favorite anime shows.

“Kook, find us somewhere to sit, I’ll go grab some drinks. You want your usual?” Tae was doing his best to help liven the mood and Jungkook really did appreciate him for it. He offered a small smile, even though it didn’t quite touch his eyes.

“Yeah, thanks TaeTae.”

Jungkook maneuvered himself through the slew of people standing around, trying to find an empty table that could seat a few others since he wasn’t sure how many would be joining him and Tae tonight. On his way to a free table he froze, recognizing the man sitting not 10 ft. away from him instantly.

Jungkook wasted no time walking over and spinning their chair around, met with a flustered Yoongi as he did.

“Jungkook, hey,” Yoongi managed to get out, clearly caught off guard since he’d been facing the opposite direction.

“Hey,” he said flatly. He didn’t take the time to think about why Yoongi might be at a bar alone and instead opted for getting straight to the point.

“You abandoned me.”

Yoongi’s face fell. “Kook-”

Jungkook held up a hand. “No, let me finish first, then you can say your piece.” He took a deep breath and Yoongi waited.

“You were supposed to be on my side, you know? Like fuck dude, I already have to share you with her in all other aspects of my life, but this was the one thing that was supposed to be sacred, supposed to be mine.”

Jungkook knew deep down he was acting like a child, but the image of Yoongi cheering you on while you defeated him would forever be burned into his brain and he couldn’t help but think of it as some form of betrayal.

Yoongi waited to see if there would be more before he straightened up in his chair. “Look kid,” he started, seeing Jungkook flinch at the term. “I know you’re upset, and you have a right to be. You feel like this is the end-all-be-all but it’s not. And regardless of how you feel, that’s no reason to take it out on me or Y/N just because she beat you.”

Jungkook backed up a step at Yoongi’s words, the hurt written all over his face. What hurt the most, though, was he knew Yoongi was right. It wouldn’t be fair for Jungkook to realistically hold a grudge against him or you.

But dammit, right now he was going to try.

“So you are taking her side. I should’ve fucking known,” Jungkook muttered. Yoongi took a deep breath and placed a hand on Jungkook’s shoulder, half expecting him to move, but slightly surprised when he didn’t.

“I’m not taking anyone’s side and I know you know that.” He squeezed Jungkook’s shoulder for emphasis and Jungkook gulped. Yoongi was right, yet again.

Sometimes he really hated just how much Yoongi was right.

“Why are you here anyway? And why are you by yourself?” He was changing the topic, a typical Jungkook move to deflect attention away from what was bothering him. Yoongi wasn’t a fan of it, but for right now he didn’t want to fight back about it.

“I’m not by myself, Luna and Y/N are here too, we’re celebrating-”

Jungkook cut him off with a groan. “Of fucking course she’s here too.” He threw his hands up in exasperation and walked away from Yoongi, ignoring the call of his name as he got further from his best friend.

Jungkook parked himself at the table he’d found previously, turning all the way around so he wouldn’t have to see the table with Yoongi. The table where you would eventually find your way back to.

Honestly if Jungkook had to see you one more time today, he thought he may genuinely lose it-

“Yo, is that Y/N?” Tae’s voice cut through his thoughts and he gritted his teeth together.

“I don’t know, is it,” Jungkook answered in a mocking tone, ignoring Tae’s look of confusion while he took a sip of the drink now in front of him.

“I mean…pretty sure it is. You know her better than I do, but if that is her, she’s kinda really hot.”

This comment made Jungkook’s eyes dart up and look around, although he wasn’t sure why. Maybe he just wanted to confirm that Tae was looking at someone completely different.

But as he followed Tae’s line of sight, his eyes fell on you, and for a moment his breath was stolen from him.

He’d never seen you quite like this before, letting yourself go as you danced, seemingly not caring about the fact that your dress had hiked up high on your thighs, barely covering your ass now-

Tae was right, much to Jungkook’s disappointment. You looked good. Really good.

And he really fucking hated it.

“Yeah, that’s uh- that’s her.” He downed another quick gulp from his glass, shaking his head as the liquid surged down his throat.

“Holy shit,” Tae responded as he also took a drink from his own glass. “She’s by herself too; wonder if she’s here with a date.”

Jungkook looked at Tae with eyes full of horror, as if Tae had just admitted to committing one of the worst possible crimes. “You cannot be fucking serious right now, dude.”

Tae swirled his glass as he stared at it, the ice clinking against the sides. “So what if I am?” He brought up his gaze to pierce Jungkook, his eyes unreadable. “What does that matter to you? Last I checked, you pretty much despise her.”

Jungkook swallowed. Tae had a point – if he went and hit on you, it shouldn’t matter to Jungkook in the slightest. But for some reason the very idea of it made his blood boil, and he tried to drown that feeling in more alcohol.

“It doesn’t matter to me specifically, I just don’t know how you could consider sleeping with the enemy.”

Tae erupted into roaring laughter, patting the table with his hand as if Jungkook had just told him the funniest fucking joke. Jungkook grimaced.

“Oh man, ‘sleeping with the enemy,’ that’s a good one, Kook.” When Jungkook didn’t join him in his laughter, he rolled his eyes. “For fuck’s sake, she beat you in a video game. Lighten up and let a man get laid, yeah?”

Jungkook thought the burning sensation of anger that befell him now was from Tae’s proclamation of you having beaten him earlier. When he realized it was what else Tae had said, he downed the last of the contents in his glass and slammed it down onto the table.

“Fuck,” he cursed out, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He looked out at you in the crowd once more, painfully aware yet again of how attractive you looked tonight, and how much it was driving him crazy that he noticed.

It really pissed him off that you were out here having fun, looking this good, and his friend was fucking fawning over you as if you didn’t just ruin part of his life earlier.

He needed to find a girl and fast.

Luckily, he managed to spot a familiar face near you on the dance floor, currently cozied up to another girl. Tae had already started making his way to you – or at least that’s what Jungkook assumed he was doing – so he followed suit and strolled into the thicket of people himself.

As Jungkook passed by, he could see Tae was already putting the moves on you, and you were smiling so sweetly at him that it almost made Jungkook’s stomach flip. He tried to avoid you, but you weren’t letting him off the hook that easily.

“Jungkook,” you called for him as you tugged on his sleeve. With a frustrated sigh, he turned to face you and immediately regretted it when he did. Tae had moved slightly off to the side, chatting with someone else now, but still in your general proximity.

This close to you – and it was pretty fucking close considering you were both standing in between a sea of other dancing bodies – he could see just how plump your lips were and how much your eyes still managed to shimmer in the dim lighting of the bar.

Jungkook’s breathing was stuttered, but he quickly regained his composure.

“What do you want,” he asked, tone dripping in pure malice. You frowned and he almost wished he could take it back-

-but his brain reminded him he’s supposed to be pissed off at you, so he didn’t do that.

“I just wanted to make sure you’re ok is all. You rushed off before I could talk to you-”

“Why the fuck would I want to talk to you after you humiliated me like that,” he was having to raise his voice to be heard over the music, but it must’ve looked to you like he was getting angrier, if the way you slightly cowered was anything to go by.

Nonetheless, you turned your chin up at him in defiance, and that stirred something inside of him, but he chalked it up to the buzz setting in.

“For the record, I never intended to humiliate you. And despite what you may think, I don’t dislike you. I actually really enjoyed playing against you-”

“I don’t want to stand here and listen to this,” he tugged his sleeve from your grasp and started to walk away, but not before he added over his shoulder “Have fun being a whore for someone else tonight.”

He didn’t dare look at your face and he was mentally kicking himself for letting those words fall from his lips. He’d never treated you that way before, and now wasn’t a good example of a time to start when you were just trying to check on him.

Sober Jungkook would have handled that much differently, but Tipsy Jungkook?

Yeah, he could be a bit of a prick sometimes.

He managed to make it to the other girl without much trouble, only bumping into other dancers a few times. When he was in front of her, she blinked her eyes and her smile stretched slowly into a grin.

“Well, if it isn’t Jungkook,” she said in a neutral tone. “It’s been a while.”

He nodded to the other girl who was still clinging to her back, looking a little worse for wear. “Yeah, it uh, it has."

“So what brings you over here then? Surely you didn’t come all the way across the dance floor just to see me?”

He gave her his best confident smile, and the way she melted under his gaze he knew he had her hooked.

“That’s exactly why I came over here,” he ducked down to continue speaking to her where only she would hear, his lips ghosting along the shell of her ear. “I remember how good you feel wrapped around me and I just couldn’t stay away.”

He pulled back to see the way her eyes widened and her breathing quickened.

Oh yeah, she was going to end up in his bed tonight.

“I-I um…I need to make sure my friend gets home safe first. I’m DD tonight so-”

“Not a problem, baby. You still have my number, right?” She nodded, clearly affected by his voice that was oozing charm and sounded as sweet as honey.

He flashed her another dazzling smile. “Great. Just text me later and I can send you my address again.”

He was going to have her text him and make it seem like he was being considerate, but in actuality, he forgot her fucking name and wasn’t bothering to try to remember it. Plus, her taking her friend home would give him a little more time to sober up so he could fuck her properly the way he wanted to.

As the girl moved to get her friend away from the crowd and outside, Jungkook was confidently strolling back to his table, making sure he double-checked that he had everything before calling an Uber. He also needed to let Tae know he was dipping out.

Unfortunately, Tae was still enamored by you, so Jungkook was forced to see you in some capacity at least one more time before he left.

“Hey, Tae, I’m about to get an Uber back to my place. You gonna be alright?”

Jungkook tried his hardest to ignore the way your arms were wound around Tae’s neck and how Tae had his hands practically digging into your waist, holding you flush against his chest. From where Jungkook was standing, he could see the cleavage spilling from your dress now since you were squished up against Tae.

He shut his eyes quickly and looked to the side. Not for your modesty or anything like that, but because he was getting turned on by fucking cleavage of all things, and not just any cleavage, but yours.

“What? Oh, Kook, hey! Yeah, I’ll be fine. Y/N offered to give me a ride home.” Jungkook saw Tae wink at you and his jaw clenched.

“Yeah ok whatever, just get home safe.” After that he strolled back to the table and confirmed he hadn’t left anything before stepping through the door of the bar out into the cool night air. An Uber arrived to pick him up a few minutes later, and Jungkook was just thankful he was still wearing his hoodie because he’d never live it down if a fucking Uber driver of all people noticed he was somewhat hard.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

Hours later he was hard again, but this time he had his dick shoved down the throat of the girl from the bar.

She had dropped to her knees almost immediately after making it to his bedroom, and he wasn’t going to complain. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, still mostly clothed, as was she, but the way she was taking his cock had her makeup smearing as tears rolled down her face.

“Fuck, just like that,” he praised her, grip tight in her hair as he pushed her down further. He could hear the choked gasp when he hit the back of her throat, and he at least had enough of a memory to know that this girl in particular liked choking on his cock.

Nonetheless, he still let her know that if it was too much she just had to tap his thigh and he’d release his hold on her. She hadn’t yet though, so he picked up his pace as he began thrusting harder into her mouth.

“Shit, baby, your mouth feels so good,” he was letting out soft moans, not quite worked up enough to be loud, but thoroughly enjoying himself still. Getting sucked off was probably one of his favorite ways to relieve stress.

Everything was going fine until he looked down again-

-and instead of seeing her face, he was picturing yours.

“Oh shit,” he exclaimed, and the girl thought it was because of what she was doing, so she moaned around him in her mouth, the vibrations bringing him more pleasure.

He closed his eyes tightly, swallowing once before moaning again. He figured it was just a fluke, a one-time thing, it wouldn’t happen again-

But when he looked at her a second time, your face was still all he could imagine.

And that got him a lot closer than he wanted in that moment.

Picturing you instead of the girl on her knees in front of him had his high approaching faster and he was severely confused by it. Maybe he was still too tipsy to really differentiate what kind of images should and should not be arousing him?

Well, he knew that was a lie; Jungkook had very much sobered up so he couldn’t blame what was happening on the alcohol.

So he instead decided to place the blame on you and your outfit choice for the night. It wasn’t his fault you chose to go out dressed up like that, drawing the attention of plenty of other bargoers, he was sure.

And the idea of you taking Tae home had him tangling his fingers in the other girl’s hair so hard that she actually whimpered, which was something he had not heard from her before.

He had enough of a mind to check on her, pulling her off of him to make sure she was alright. She simply pouted and nodded her head before he guided her back and she swallowed him down in one go.

Her throat constricting around him again had him focusing on her and what her sinful lips can do.

Maybe if he tried looking down just one more time…

He did and immediately had to pull her off. Because she had just hollowed out her cheeks and holy fuck imagining you like that for him almost had him blowing his load-

Yeah, this could not be healthy for him. He needed to fuck her and come back to his senses.

“What’s the matter,” she asked and he almost cringed at the sound of her voice. It wasn’t what he wanted to hear, who he wanted to hear.

“Nothing, I just really wanna fuck you now,” he pulled her in for a kiss before asking “Do you want me to?”

She nodded her head vigorously, making him smirk. He started shedding his clothes and she did the same. Jungkook got off the bed to find a condom, and when he returned she was already on the bed in the position she knew he liked: face down, ass up.

He figured that he really must have left an impression on the women he fucked if they remembered all the things he liked.

He settled in behind her and ripped the foil with his teeth, putting the condom on a second later. He smacked her ass, relishing in the sound she let out when he did. He had the decency to make sure she was wet enough too despite her practically begging for him, lunging two fingers inside of her and stretching them out. The feeling of her slick walls told him she was more than ready to take him.

He pushed in slowly at first, inch by inch so she could get adjusted to the stretch. She was holding onto the bed sheets, sighing out his name, begging for him to move. Once he bottomed out, he swiftly pulled back until just the tip remained sheathed in her heat, before ramming into her all the way.

“Oh fuck, Jungkook,” she moaned out, his thrusts moving her more up the bed and almost making her collide with the headboard, if it hadn’t been for his forceful grip on her hips pulling her back. He grunted with the effort, pleased that now he could stare at the back of her head instead of her face, and maybe now he wouldn’t be thinking about you-

Well fuck. He was still thinking about you while trying not to think about you.

When had you invaded all the corners of his mind? And how the fuck was he going to get you out?

He was pulled back to reality when the girl let out a whine, noticing that he had slowed down somewhat.

“Jungkook, fuck me, please,” she begged for him and he felt his cock twitch. What he wouldn’t give to have you underneath him begging like that-

It was obvious to him then that maybe what he needed was to just fuck and get it over with and then the thoughts of you would disappear, too. Clearly trying to fight it wasn’t getting him anywhere, so he let it consume him instead.

And it certainly made a world of difference.

If he closed his eyes, he could picture you laid out underneath him, ass up in the air and screaming for him to pound into you until you couldn’t walk anymore. And God, the sounds you would make, he could just imagine it now-

“Jungkook,” the girl moaned out his name again, pulling him out of his reverie. He didn’t want that, didn’t want to hear her calling out his name.

“Shut up and take it,” he gritted, not really caring about being mean since again, he knew that she was one of the ones who liked it. The excited whine he was met with further confirmed that, and he kept fucking into her faster. He flexed his fingers, digging harder into her flesh when he felt her walls tighten around him.

He was focusing on you again, thinking about what you sounded like, wondering whether you would moan or whimper the harder he fucked into you, picturing how you looked when he had you completely fucked out. Each image that flashed through his mind made his release seem more and more inevitable until-

“Go harder, Jungkook, please,” the girl practically screamed from under him. He smacked her ass again, harder this time, making her whine.

“I told you to shut the fuck up and take what I give you,” he growled. “And since it seems you can’t listen,” he continued, pulling her up by her hair, “it looks like I’m going to have to make you.”

His hand that had wound its way into her hair snaked around and clamped over her mouth, muffling her cries as he fucked her harder and deeper. The new angle with her up almost flush against him had his hips almost stuttering.

“Fuck, that’s it,” he moaned out, letting his head fall back and his eyes screw shut from the ecstasy he was feeling in this moment. His long hair was damp with sweat, and his abs were flexing with the exertion as he somehow again managed to pick up his pace. The girl was screaming into his hand now, her tight walls clenching around him and coaxing out his orgasm much faster now.

“Holy shit, you feel so good around me--” he had just enough of a grip on himself to stop before he continued, because he knew the next word that was about to come flying out of his mouth was your name, and that would be a bit hard to explain to the girl he was fucking into oblivion right now.

“Fuck, I’m gonna cum soon, fuck, shit,” Jungkook was getting more vocal now as he felt the coil in him threatening to snap, not sure if she was also close yet, but using her to get himself there anyway. He’d return the favor, of course, but he needed to get off first and get you out of his mind.

“Gonna let me use this pussy however I want?” he moaned by her ear, being rewarded with another loud scream and the flutter of her walls around him. “Yeah? Gonna let me fuck you the way I like? Fuck you hard enough you can’t walk for days?”

The girl was nodding behind his palm, tears running down her face again. Fuck, what he wouldn’t give to have you crying from pleasure, pleasure he was giving you.

She reached a hand around and tugged on his locks, pulling a loud groan from him and providing him with the last push he needed to drag him over that edge.

“Fuck, I’m cumming, ah-”

Moments later he filled up the condom, listening to the girl’s continued cries behind his palm and still imagining she was you as he thrusted a few more times to ride it out. When he was done, he removed his hand from around her mouth and pulled out of her carefully, letting her fall back onto the bed, her breathing rapid.

He had just experience what was easily one of the best orgasms he’d had in a while, and he was still breathing pretty hard himself.

After he disposed of the condom, he crawled back into the bed, flipping the girl over and surprising her. He pulled her down the bed to where his face was in between her legs, spreading them wide for him. He looked up at her fucked out expression, pleased with himself that even though she hadn’t cum yet, he had still managed to ruin her this much already.

When her eyes landed on him, she moaned again. He gave her a smile and simply said “I’m not done with you yet,” before he attached his mouth to her clit.

The reaction was immediate, the girl nearly screeching as her hands found purchase in his hair again, tugging at the dark strands and making him groan in return. He flicked his tongue across her clit fast and with enough pressure to have her squirming, and when he plunged two fingers inside and crooked them just right, he knew it wouldn’t be long before she’d be falling apart.

“Jungkoo-”

He placed a smack on her thigh, making her stop herself with a moan.

“Just moan for me. Don’t speak, just wanna hear all those pretty sounds you can make,” he instructed her before he continued his ministrations against her cunt. She obeyed him and he was grateful for it.

He didn’t want to hear her talk, because whenever she did, it messed up the illusion that it was you. He blamed his continued thoughts about you on him still being in his post-orgasm high, picturing you as the one squirming with your hands buried in his hair as he had you exploding all over his tongue again and again.

The vision made him shut his eyes with a grunt, causing his dick to twitch again. Before he could get lost in the idea further, he felt the girl clench harder than she had the whole night, followed by a loud scream and gushing of her release around his fingers. He continued to fuck into her with his fingers at a rapid pace, collecting every bit of her release with his tongue before she pushed him away due to oversensitivity.

When it was all said and done, they were laying beside each other in the bed, the only sound being their shared labored breathing as they both stared up at the ceiling. The two of them knew how this would go: either she would ask to stay the night, or she would leave. Jungkook always left the decision up to his guests unless he just didn’t vibe with them like that, so he didn’t make any moves to ask her to leave or help her get comfortable. The choice was up to her, and she knew it.

Instead of voicing what she wanted, however, she did something unexpected.

“Where the fuck did all that come from,” she asked, still somewhat breathless. Jungkook propped himself up on an elbow so he could look down at her, relieved now that he was actually seeing her face and no one else’s.

“What do you mean? You know I’ve always fucked you good.”

She chuckled at that. “No, I know, believe me. You’re still one of the best I’ve ever had.” He smirked at that while she continued. “But something about it was…different tonight. It’s a good different but still different.”

Jungkook’s brows furrowed. “Care to elaborate?”

“Well,” she thought about it for a second, “for a little bit it felt like you were just using me for your own pleasure, instead of simply acting like you were. Like, you were basically fucking me to get out something that had you worked up. Not that I’m complaining,” she added when she saw Jungkook’s expression, “I just thought it was interesting. That’s all.”

Jungkook nodded curtly, not even reacting when the girl placed a gentle kiss underneath his jaw. When she leaned back, she patted his cheek.

“I’m gonna head home, but maybe I’ll see you around, yeah?”

Jungkook nodded again, giving her a parting kiss before watching her gather her things and leave his bedroom. He heard the click of his front door being shut once she exited, and suddenly his apartment was much too quiet for him.

Hell, maybe he should’ve asked her to stay this time around. At least that way he’d have some company that could keep him out of his head where his thoughts were still filled with you.

He sighed heavily and got up to take a shower, scrubbing the events of the night away and hoping that with each second he spent under the waterfall, he could wash away those pesky lingering thoughts about you. He soon realized that was just wishful thinking and when he laid down in bed once more, now clean and in fresh clothes, his mind was running rampant.

He didn’t like it. He was supposed to hate you, like utterly despise you. But for some reason, he felt like he couldn’t do it anymore, and he didn’t know why.

And that terrified the absolute fuck out of him.

⊱──────── ✬ ✬ ✬ ────────⊰

➥Part 2

➥PYF Spotify Playlist (songs I listened to for inspo)

➥Series Masterlist

➥All Works Masterlist

[object-show-analysis]

Flower’s character arc and where it came from

A lot of people seem to think Flower’s actions in the final episode of BFB were out of character or came out of no where. So let’s talk about it.

Most claims I see when people accuse characters of acting “ooc” in the finale seem to come from an inability to recognize the slow progression/change in goals. Yes, characters like Four and Firey all might seem out of character if you judge them from the first time we see them in the show, but what they’ve been trying to achieve has been slowly changing throughout the course of BFB, to the point where it was relatively easy to predict their actions in the final episode.

But when it comes to Flower, it’s even more than that. Her actions line up with everything we’ve been told about her since episode 1.

From Episode 1 of BFDI we’ve known one thing about Flower. Her motivation is Attention. She wants to be Seen. She wants to be Admired. She wants to be Loved. A good season one example of this is her first ever line in the show:

She hasn’t even shown her face yet and she’s already asked someone to what they think of her physical appearance.

This behavior can be dated back to the Firey Comics, but as those don’t count as fully canon in the BFDI lore, I won’t discuss them.

Early on it’s established that Flower wants attention and admiration from other people, so you can imagine it must have hurt when she’s the first to get eliminated.

And we Know it hurt her. But we’ll get back to that in a moment.

BFB put a lot of effort into giving the very 2D characters more 3D personalities. In the first episode of BFB, we get an interesting parallel to Flower’s appearance being insulting in the first episode of BFDI

Ruby claims, seemingly out of no where, that she thinks Flower is beautiful. This immediately grabs Flower’s attention. As up until this point, no one has seemed to believe she was attractive.

Flower is later seen in episode 5 of BFB to be astonished by Ruby’s opinion of her, asking her to help get other people to think she’s beautiful as well. This re-establishes the idea that Flower’s main goal is to be seen as beautiful.

When Ruby says that she no longer thinks Flower is beautiful, it upsets Flower quite a lot. Leading to her changing her appearance in any way she can, allowing herself to be berated by Ruby in an effort to make Ruby like her again. All because “it does feel nice being called beautiful again,”

So right away we already know a few things about Flower

1. She wants people to think she’s beautiful

2. She’s willing to do things that are frustrating or demeaning if it means people will think she’s beautiful

3. It makes her feel good when someone says she’s beautiful

This behavior seems to stay solid for most of BFB, though the root of her desire does seem to shift.

The desire to be seen as beautiful widens over time into a desire to be Liked. As she shows in more and more competitions a desire to impress her team.

The fact that she wants to be liked seems to become more obvious post-split. Starting with her getting angry when Taco wants to be with Spongy instead of her, and her reaction Firey thinking of her as a friend in BFB 18.

Clearly Flower puts a lot of value on people who like her. And over time she develops more friends who really understand her and care about her. (Most notably Firey, Loser and Leafy), to the point where she’s not afraid to turn Taco away when she rethinks Flower’s alliance offer.

She is still very trusting and eager to form new relationships, which leads to TD being able to manipulate her in episode 27, but over all Flower seems to really evolve as a character. Shes more confident in herself and her abilities. She works to be more understanding of the people around her. And she tries very hard in everything she does.

She makes it clear in BFB 24 that elimination is something she fears a lot, which is understandable considering she was the only person to be completely alone in the TLC in BFDI, and being eliminated would undo all the hard work she put in.

Her panicked monologue after Purple Face leads her to believe she’s being eliminated tells us a lot about her. She tells us “I played the whole season wanting to redeem myself” which proves she’s been working hard to undo past mistakes and become a kind person. She feels humiliated at the very idea of being eliminated.

But something interesting that will be important to her behavior in episode 30 is that while she’s going over all her regrets, never once does she mention the actual prize. She says she wanted to prove everyone wrong again. “Everyone” being the people who thought she’d get out. She wants to show that she’s worth something. She wants to redeem herself. And in her eyes, winning is the way to do that. The actual prize of the game was never in her mind.

This is why it doesn’t seem surprising when she gives Gelatin the BFB. She knows he wanted it more than anyone else. And in the end, the prize wasn’t what she wanted at all. This is the same reason she eventually forfeits the BFDI to the announcer as well. Though she was reluctant to give it up as a sign of her effort. The actual prizes weren’t what she was fighting for.

Flower wanted something far more valuable than the BFDI and the BFB. She wanted people. People who saw her as beautiful. People who supported her. People that loved her. And people who she loved back. That’s what winning was to her.

And considering the show ends with her wishing two of her best friends good luck on their journey, and then turning to look at all the other people that she’s formed bonds with over the course of the show

She really did win, didn’t she?

[graykageyama]

dream come true.

synopsis: when you fall in love, you fall in love deep. they become your world, while you became theirs. they’re your dream, and you are theirs. but all it takes is a change of heart to change the courses of your dreams, and maybe only one dream can come true. 

pairing: Suna x reader

genre: angst

word count: 3k +

Part 2: but you were my dream, too

“And then Atsumu never saw it coming. So he was running from his fangirls right? He ran like he was running away from an apocalypse. As stupid as he is, he never saw it coming. He ran straight to the gym and when he opened the door, he triggered the trap. Dude, got the whole floor wet.” Suna laughed hard as he tells you about his day - well trying as he can barely get the words out.

You glance towards his direction and you just cannot believe that this man is your boyfriend - he looks so ethereal under the glow of the street lamps lighting your way home before the dusk completely envelops both of you. With his gym bag slung over his shoulder and his other hand warming yours, his head tilted back as he tried to catch his breath, this was another rare moment where Suna -your Suna Rintarou- is completely carefree, defenseless and well, just him. His piercing, slanted eyes which usually intimidates most people, are now closed. Even with his awkward hair style still damp from practice, and hunched-over posture, you still think of him as your Mr. Perfect.

You’ve been  together since the start of your third year in high school, and honestly, this is so far your best year. Being friends with him and the twins since first year of highschool, you can’t help but to just fall for him. Despite his usually cold persona, he is always so sweet to you. He makes sure to walk you home everyday, since he always asks you to watch him at practice. It’s amazing really, how he can transform to this scary, intimidating middle blocker into an adorable fox always seeking for your affections. He loves it when you hand his towel, or maybe dry his hair with your gentle touches. You know he secretly loves how you cheer for him even in practice games. You also know to yourself that you would want to do these things for him even in the far future. Even if it would mean you would have to sacrifice your dreams to become Suna’s perfect wife, you know that you’re going to stay with him for the rest of your life. To become Suna’s number one fangirl is now your dream.

“Y/N?” Suna calls out, interrupting your thoughts. “Watch this. Ain’t he stupid?”He laughs again as he shows you the video clip of Atsumu being drenched with water, and his face flat on the floor. “Yeah, he is. He falls for it every time. Smart athlete on the court, but in reality, he’s pretty stupid. Kita-san and the other alumni must have had a hard time in handling you three. ”  You laugh along at his story. “He misses Kita-san though, the dude cries when he remembers how Kita-san took care of him when he got sick.”

“Well, Tsumu can be a baby sometimes, that’s why we love him” He faintly slows down his pace as he asks, “Come to think of it Y/N, I’ve never seen you cry. I mean, I wouldn’t want to make you cry or anything, but even when we were still friends, you never cried.”

Pinching his side, you giggle “I cry too, dumbass. I’m human too.I don’t know though, I just don’t cry easily I guess.” You shrug. “What about you? I rarely see you in tears, too.” You tease as you poke your tongue out. He smirks as he looks over at you,”I don’t easily get affected by my emotions and honestly I don’t need too, sweetcheeks. There’s no reason too. I always win.” He lets out another hearty laugh, as you think. That’s true. No one can really beat and outwit Suna. Maybe only the french fry from Karasuno, but I guess no one can easily faze him.  

Suna lets go of your hand as you both stopped in front of your house. He clasps your hands together with his one hand as he places the other on the top of your head, “I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah? Rest well, Miss I-don’t-easily-cry.” Placing a tender kiss on your forehead, you shut your eyes. This had been your routine with your boyfriend ever since you got together, but you would never wish for anything else to replace these moments.

---

As you both graduated from Inarizaki, you decide to follow your dream - your Suna - and support him as he aspires to be a professional Volleyball player. You go to a University near where he is training so that it would be more convenient for him to fetch you. Life goes by quickly. Your boyfriend trains hard day and night and hones his skills and game sense. You study a business course to help you land a good job, a job that can still be pretty flexible to work with according to Suna’s. You rarely see your boyfriend nowadays, but no doubts cross your mind as you are assured that you were Suna’s one and only, his love of his life. Whenever you think otherwise, you try to remember these evidence of his love and assurance.

----

You closed the door as you said your goodbyes to your mom. It pains you to see her get cheated on by your dad, but you couldn’t do anything about it. You sat on the couch and hugged your knees together. Forcing your eyes shut to keep you from crying and sharing her pain, but alas - your tears betrayed you as it streamed down your face.

How can the guy you loved for so many years, easily replace you?

Suna saw your broken state as he gave you a warm hug. He didn’t say anything, but you’re comforted by his silence and the small circles he rubbed on your back. You looked up at his eyes and cried, “It’s so scary, Rin. How one day you’re hopelessly in love with your best friend for so many years, but then they suddenly act like you are just trash - disposable, replaceable, and no longer wanted. They were so perfect in my eyes, you know? But why did he cheat on her? He just gave up in the middle of solving their problem. Why? I’m scared, Rin. Will that happen to us?”

Suna tilted your head to maintain the eye contact you had initiated. With his soft voice, he said “No matter what happens, I will never hurt you, leave you, and will never make you cry intentionally.” He wiped away your tears, then placed his hand on top of your head. Kissing your temple softly, he assured you. “I will never go away, no matter how rough it may become. Every single day for the rest of my life, I will be by your side.”

---

You both try to make your relationship work, spending all of your free time together. He is still the Suna you loved. Always affectionate to you alone, and always caring about you.

Things are going great to the both of you. You are now in your last months in university, and Suna gets scouted to play for the EJP Raijins, a V. League Division 1 team. You are so proud of your boyfriend. He is finally reaching his dreams, and your dream of seeing him so successful is also coming true. You understand how he puts more effort in his training, with him usually coming home to dim lights. But you try your hardest as his girlfriend to warm up the dinner you have prepared for him earlier. With only the kitchen lights lit, you always wait for your boyfriend to come home, to greet him with a kiss even if it is past 11pm. This is just the life of a professional athlete, and you, as his partner, should adopt this life too.

“Y/N baby, no need to wait for me. I’m not coming home tonight. Coach offered to let me sleep at his place since we’re just really fatigued from the hard training we had today.”

This slowly becomes a habit, and you are getting frustrated over the lack of attention you’ve been receiving. You understand this was his job, and he needs to work hard with the season coming up soon. But does he have to be away for almost every day of the week? You rarely get to see him now, with most encounters only at night. He’d usually go home at 1 am, and when you’re lucky, you get to feel your lover’s intimate touches again. But before dawn cracks up, he's out on his training again, and who knows when he’s coming home.

“Hey, Rinnie. I miss you so much babe, and I know you’ve been training really hard, but I’d like to spend some time with you.” You approached your boyfriend as you saw him packing his things up for training. “Maybe I could go by your gym and visit you! I could make some packed lunches for you and your teammates too, and maybe I can finally meet them.”

“I’ll try Y/N, I can’t say much now with our new training schedule.” He utters out rather coldly, while shoving his equipment down his gym bag.

“Ohhh okay. But are you able to come home early on Wednesday? Just for one night, pretty please? You’re rarely home these days and I--”

“Well, I just can’t laze around right? I’d have to work hard in order to feed the both of us. Can you stop being clingy, and act like a more understanding girlfriend. It’s getting pathetic how you’re acting like I’m not doing this for the both of us.” He zipped up his bag and slings it over his shoulder. He went up to your frozen state, and gave a light kiss to your temple. “Look, I don’t really want to fight. I’m sorry. But please be an understanding girlfriend for me, and stop being extra clingy.” He walked up to the door, and left - leaving you to blame yourself for being another burden to your partner. Although he said some hurtful things, he says he’s sorry right?

---

You love routines, and it makes you feel your life has a structure it has to follow. But this new routine was not one you would wish to have, to be honest, you did not know when did your old routines fall out. Suna’s rarely home, if he used to go home once a week, now, he only goes home to pick some of his clothes, makes love to you if you ask him to, and leaves the next day. His texts are getting drier each day, even taking hours to reply to yours. You’re scared. Even his words don’t seem to assure you now, he feels so far away. He’s slipping through your fingers, and you know you need to do something to keep your relationship together.

“Rin love, can you go home tonight? I just really miss you terribly, and honestly, I’ve been craving your touch for so long. Come home tonight, love.” (Sent, 2:51 PM)

“Ok.” (Received, 4:30 PM)

You’re ecstatic. You’re finally going to spend time with your boyfriend after such a long time. You prepare his favorite dinner, and you choose to wear his favorite nightgown for you. As you hear his steps outside the apartment, you greet him with your sweetest smile.

“Hi, Rinnie. I’m glad you’re home” You give him a tight hug, as you offer to take his gym bag.

“Let’s get this over with, Y/N. Go now to the room, I’ll just wash up.” He mutters as he steps out of his shoes. You stand frozen, as you suppress the tears forming in your eyes. “I made dinner, Rinnie. Your favorite, actually. Come eat with me? ” You try to invite him again, holding his hands as you try to lead him to the kitchen.

“Ï’m a busy man, Y/N. What more can you ask from me? You said you wanted my touches and love, right? That’s why I’m here. I need to go back to the dorms immediately, and honestly I just want to have it over with.”

“Rin,” you called out. “Can you at least spare me some time and attention that  you have been refusing to give me over these past months? All I’m asking is to spend time with you. I’m even trying my best to make time for you. Why are you like this?”

The eyes. The eyes you never had thought would frighten you as much as it did to the other players in the court, pins you down. Suna glares as he seethes through his teeth, “Make time for me? You don’t even have a job yet after graduating a few months ago. You stay here, enjoying your life as I worked hard to keep this up. You are demanding too much from me, Y/N. And now you are asking me for my share in this relationship? Well aren’t you one selfish woman.”

You cower away from his gaze, but you still try to express your frustrations. “I never asked for an expensive life. I just wished to be with you, Rin! To support you with your dreams.” You lift your head to meet his gaze.  “I’ll always try to take care of you, Rin. You are my dream. Seeing you pursue yours, makes me feel as if I’m accomplishing my dream too. But all I’m asking is for you to still treat me as your favorite girl, your partner, and I can give back ten times more than what you can give me, just please give me the small attention and love I have been craving for.”

“Well, sorry to disappoint you Y/N, but you’re the least of my priorities now. And aren’t you pathetic? Sacrificing your dream to support mine? You’re just lazy to pursue yours, and you’re just leeching off of me. I’m so disappointed in you, Y/N. You’re getting more pathetic each day.”

“I wanted to go and look for a job, but how could I when I don't know how you are lately? How is our relationship lately? It’s like it’s hanging by the thread now, Rinnie.”

“Well, just cut the damn thread, then!” He forcefully slams the counter as his eyes snap backs to yours. “Ï can’t deal with this right now. If you keep on acting up Y/N, just stop. Have some pity over yourself.” Suna picks up his things, and leaves. Shutting the door as hard as he could, the loud bang conceals the sound of your shattered heart.

---

Weeks go by slowly as you patiently wait for your boyfriend’s return. He wouldn’t leave me right? He promised .He promised.. Scrolling up to your text messages, you reviewed the texts you’ve sent him.

“Hey Rinnie, I’m sorry for the things I’ve said. I hope you’re taking care of yourself, babe.” (Sent. April 13, 8:53 AM.)

“Hey baby! Please don't skip your meals, and drink lots of water too! Drink your water, bitch!” (Sent. April 14, 10:14 AM.) You slightly smiled as you reminisced how both of you loved to tell that to each other after hearing it from a famous personality, finding it amusing and adding it to your routine.  

“Call me whenever your free, okay? Don’t forget to rest in between, Rinnie. I miss you.” (Sent. April 14, 8:42 PM.)

The text messages go on for two weeks, still with no replies from your Rinnie. As you are cleaning the apartment, you hear the awaited notification tone ring. You immediately grabbed your phone and checked out the notification. But it was not from Rin, it was from your friend from university calling you up.

“Hey, Y/N-san. Congratulations to Suna and his team for winning the pre-seasonal tournament. It’s all over the news right now.” Akaashi exclaimed over the phone. Your heart leaps upon hearing your boyfriend’s name. Rushing over to see the news for yourself, your heart flutters as you see your perfect man - in his wet jersey while holding the medal wrapped around his neck as the reporter angled the microphone in front of him. Your perfect man responds casually and smug, as usual.

I’m so proud of you baby. Always had, and always will. I knew you could do it, Rin.

But your thoughts are interrupted as the reporter asks, “Is there any special someone you would want to celebrate this victory with, Mr. Suna?”

Suna looks over at the camera and he smiles bright. Brighter than the ones you’ve seen when you were with him during these past months. “Yeah, actually I do.” He replies as he smiles back at the reporter. “She’s just the best and I’ve been training really hard for her, you know? Gotta make my baby proud.”

The spark of hope ignites within your heart upon hearing those words. Even when doubts clouded your mind, you still never fail to have faith in him. You always believe that everything will be perfectly fine, and your Rin will always stay by your side. He said he’ll never go away, and you know that you’re here to stay.  “I will never go away, no matter how rough it may become. Every single day for the rest of my life, I will be by your side.”

But what you see next finally wakes you up from your own self-deception. Suna Rintarou. Your Rin. Has his arms around another girl as he smiles back again to the reporter. “She’s the girl I’m talking about.” As if it wasn’t enough, Suna placed his hand on top of her head and placed a tender kiss on her temple.

I’m supposed to be that girl, that should have been me.  I should be the one greeting you back from your training. I should be the one with you as you receive your recognition. That should be me. That used to be me.

Even though it hurts, you stare at the couple in front of you and see how Rin was just casually cool and okay, as though he wasn’t the cause of your heart breaking.

All this time. While you have been fixing your own shattered heart, someone else is mending his - no, there was nothing to fix as it has been replaced. It’s so unfair, how can you be so fine? All the fights we’ve gone through, I even deceived myself that I was being a burden to you. Convincing myself to no longer bother you as it may faze you and your performance, too. It takes so much for me to just go through the day, and live for you, for us. But I guess you’re my dream, right? You win again, Rin. You always did.

Dreams do come true, they said. But it seems only your dream came true. And it’s wonderful to see you reaching your dreams, love. Even if it meant that my dream won’t come true.

A/N: HNGHHH, I am sorry for Y/N becoming so heads over heels over him, which is why she’s hurting so much!! But reality’s a bitch, there really are people who be martyrs for love :<  Would love to hear you thoughts uwu reblogs, likes, comments, asks and messages are very much appreciated! There will be a part 2!! Will try to post within this week, after doing my requirements T.T .  

Message me or send an ask if you want to be tagged for the update! <3

~juju 

[charlie-rulerofhell]

For they know exactly what they do

Today there was a pretty long article published in the German newspaper FAZ, written by Julia Schaaf. Since there were quite a few interesting topics raised in it and Måneskin talked about some new aspects (or in more detail), I translated the whole thing (it might also have helped me to procrastinate).

Full interview in English under the cut.

For they know exactly what they do

June 22, 2021

Four young rock musicians from Rome are today's hottest band. Måneskin are enchanting Europe. Why? We met them for an interview.

Every romance needs its founding myth, an anecdote from the beginning, something you can tell later in more difficult times for self-assurance.

In the case of the band Måneskin, who first had Italy and now half of Europe wrapped around their fingers, and who are now trying to conquer the rest of the world with their rock music, there is the story of the shoe box. Rome, around five years ago: Four teenagers who are meeting every day after school in their rehearsal room to make music together, and sometimes they play their songs on the Via del Corso in the city centre in front of a changing audience. One day they want to record their own stuff. They find a studio that they can actually afford and as they go there they bring a shoe box, with the name of the band written on it, 'moonshine' in Danish, the bassist's mother is Danish. In the box: around seven kilogram of coins. The things you get from playing music on the streets. Everyone searching through Instagram for photos from that time can find four hippies with children's faces, three boys in batik, the girl is wearing a straw hat.

As they have to pay [for the recording], frontman Damiano David, 22, says that there was this guy, Angelo, and his bandmate Victoria De Angelis, 21, is interrupting: “No, Andrea, not Angelo”, and all of them have to laugh because a rigid studio manager with the Italian name 'angel' would be even funnier for a founding myth. David continues his story: “The guy was completely dumbfounded. 'We can't do that.' We went: 'Sure we can, that's worth the same even if it's just 20 cent coins, it's still 300 euros.” Thomas Raggi, 20, the guitarist of the band, is gasping for air as he laughs, while drummer Ethan Torchio, 20, is smiling dreamily. David finishes: “And then we snuck off before he was able to count it.” [the German text says 'verdrücken' here which is just a colloquial way of saying 'we left', but it entails some sort of a dramatic exit, so yeah, let your thoughts get creative how they left exactly :D].

Four young musicians on the verge of global fame are sitting on a white interview sofa in Berlin, completely styled, babbling across each other like overeager teenagers.

Ever since the Roman band first won the music festival Sanremo and then also the Eurovision Song Contest, carried by the enthusiasm of European viewers, you could say Måneskin has become a phenomenon. “Rock 'n' Roll never dies!”, Damiano David yelled fueled by the adrenaline of winning, and the insinuation that circulated on social media of the singer snorting during the counting of votes in front of a live camera – including their strict denial followed by a negative drug test result – might have given an additional boost to their public interest, their exploding album, ticket and merch sales, and their outstanding success on Spotify.

“We think it's a shit prejudice against rock music that there always have to be drugs involved. We fully threw ourselves into our participation with the utmost professionalism. We give everything for the music. So of course we don't want people to think that we can only do that because we take drugs.” – Victoria De Angelis

Prior to Eurovision, Måneskin was more of an insider's tip outside of Italy. Handmade rock music, not creating something entirely new but paying homage to the good old times with classic guitar riffs and cracking drum beats, being a lot of fun but also quite fragile and vulnerable at times and, first and foremost, conveying a captivating energy. Finally, on the stage of Rotterdam, live after so many months of isolation and renunciation, this wave of energy spilled straight over into European living rooms. It seemed easy to (mistakenly) interpret the winning song “Zitti e buoni” (Shut up and behave) as a declaration of frustration of our youth in times of a pandemic. In fact, singer Damiano David is singing about the favourite topic of the band: the unrelenting need to, against all odds, be yourself, despite or perhaps because you are different. The message fits their provocative sex appeal, which the band uses to demonstrate their independence of gender norms at any given time. But the core essence of rock music has always been the promise of unlimited freedom.

Thus at the first moment, the meeting with Måneskin is kind of startling. It's Wednesday, we are in the top floor of the new Sony head quarters in Berlin. The four Italians have just started their two-week long promotion tour through Europe. In the afternoon there will be a live concert in a queer club [the SchwuZ, but that's not mentioned here] in Neukölln, which will be streamed via TikTok. Around one million viewers will watch the show, some of them even from Brazil, so people at Sony are pretty excited [for Måneskin to come here]. But at first, these stunningly gorgeous creatures [yes, that's the exact wording :D] are standing surrounded by an entourage of people – their management, PR team, a stylist, a photographer, people who can hold a smartphone or a cigarette if needed [this paragraph is worded a little weirdly, especially taking into account that basically their whole team / 'entourage' is just friends of them, but it seems like the journalist didn't know that or maybe they just wanted to describe their first impression]. They seem like fictional / artificial characters out of a Hollywood movie. Transparent frill blouses with blazers and flared leather trousers, even the platform boots, everything brand-new, the makeup makes their faces look like a glossy magazine cover even in person. The smokey eyes of De Angelis and Raggi make them look smug and bored. Later, on the pictures it will probably look cool.

So of course your first impression might be: This band is under contract to industry giant Sony ever since their success on an Italian casting show [X Factor] in Winter 2017. The music industry must have its hand in the game when a band is photographed half-naked by Oliviero Toscani and styled by Etro. Also, one does not simply rent a villa with a pool in Rome to produce new music there, isolated from the rest of the world. And who else went to London for two whole months, shortly before the winter lockdown, just for inspiration? After the TikTok concert in Berlin – De Angelis and David are now wearing fishnet shirts that sparkle with every move, their bare nipples covered with an X of black tape – the band is posing with a few influencers. In the world of social media you would call that 'producing content'. But what does that mean for a band who are preaching their hosanna of authenticity? How authentic is Måneskin? And is their pointedly casual approach to sexuality and gender cliches in today's pop-cultural spirit more than a marketing strategy?

We're in the interview, the recording device is running for not even five minutes, when Victoria De Angelis says: “Actually, we just try to be ourselves and do what we really want to do.” And really: The more you listen to those four how they speak about the early days of the band in their slurred Roman dialect, about the shoe box and their own experiences with being different, but most importantly about their shared obsession [with music], the more you realise that [De Angelis] is  very serious. Ethan Torchio, who got his first drum kit at the age of six or seven from his father because he was beating everything he could reach, says: “For me, music is like food. I cannot live without it.” The bassist next to him laughs at his pathos. Singer Damiano David applauds the otherwise more reserved friend for his truthfulness [it says 'klarer Punkt', meaning 'for the point he makes', but it makes it seem like Damiano is agreeing with Ethan here, although it doesn't indicate whether he agrees that yes, music is everything for Ethan or that he understands and feels the same].

De Angelis and guitarist Raggi already knew each other from middle school and they were the ones who tried to form a band at the age of only 13, a band that actually took music seriously.

De Angelis: “It's just difficult at that age to find other people who really put everything into music and who truly commit themselves and are willing to invest a lot of their time.”

Raggi: “We set strict rules and scheduled fixed times for the rehearsals, for every day.”

David: “Fever, stomach ache, there was no excuse. Even if you were feeling sick in the rehearsal room. At least you were in the rehearsal room.”

The way the four of them talk across each other, completing each other's sentences, taking turns in talking and sometimes joking about each other, seems intimate and playful. Singer David remembers how at first bassist [De Angelis] was merciless towards him when it came to her first metal band project, as she told him that he wasn't committed enough [to the music]: “Back then I was still playing Basketball. I was one of the people that Vic absolutely didn't want [in her band].” Drummer Torchio was later discovered through Facebook, even though there had already been a drummer, a close friend, but he was not good enough. It seems as if even back then music was everything for them. Even if it meant that only Raggi managed to graduate.

And why rock, why rock music of all things? Because it's great, the four of them say in unison. David adds: “Actually, it's a genre that allows you to do everything you want to do.”

When they played on the street, they were laughed at by their classmates. But not only there. De Angelis explains that she never wanted to be a typical girl: “I was always deterred by those stupid boxes that people put you in, and that are just restricting and constraining you, because something is only regarded as male or female. I always rejected that. Instead, I just wanted to do the things I enjoyed doing, I went skating and played football.” Torchio says: “Friends who are not friends anymore were already telling me at the age of ten that those“ – he grabs his long, silky black hair – “were wrong. Because I'm a boy and boys are meant to have short hair, long hair is only for girls. I was bullied a lot for that.”

“Compared to the past, people in our age became much more open-minded. It gets better.” – Thomas Raggi

Frontman David on the other hand, for whom eye shadow, jingling earrings and nail polish as well as his bare torso with the tattoos have become trademarks by now, says: “I was actually more of the average boy.” De Angelis convinced him to try out some eyeliner, which he describes as a spiritual awakening: “I liked myself much more [with makeup]. I saw myself more as myself. As if it had been a suppressed desire of mine.” On a trip to Copenhagen with the others, when he realised that it really didn't matter what people were thinking about him, he got his first fake fur [coat? the article doesn't specify that] in a second-hand shop and let his clothing style be guided by his own love to experiment: “I realised that my whole life I was just going at half speed.” When it comes to diversity all four of them are becoming almost missionary.

At the same time, their success is not only opening doors for them. Back home in Rome they are barely able to go out on the street due to all the paparazzi. “[You need a] hoodie and huge sunglasses”, David says, “the mask is quite helpful, too.” And still, none of them is complaining, and Torchio explains why: “Even if those experiences right now may have sides that are not so pleasant, we still know that for us a dream is coming true. We experience something that we always had in our minds, so we are willing to face every consequence that this entails.”

So is the band facing difficult times, is Måneskin going to change with all the success? Again, all of them answer at the same time.

David: “I'm not worried about that.”

Raggi: “No way!”

De Angelis: “On the contrary. Everything that happened to us happened because we are who we are, so we want to continue the exact same way and stay ourselves.”

Just a few hours later, they are at the stage in Neukölln, bouncing around like pinballs, hammering at their instruments, flirting with each other. “We are out of our minds, but different from the others”, David sings their winning hymn against conformism, and: “The people talk, unfortunately they talk.” Here on stage, the four paradise birds [a German word describing someone with a flamboyant personality] with their half-nude-glittering outfits are radiating an incredible energy with the utmost sincerity, and you begin to wish there was a live audience instead of the TikTok cameras, absorbing and spreading this energy. Måneskin. A cry for a life after the pandemic, a cry for freedom and a better world.

“We do what we wished for all our lives.” – Ethan Torchio