#I’m sorry I can’t articulate how happy this ask made me but !!!!!

[byclairs]

Party slander incoming.... (long, not sorry).

the duffers forgot that one of the crucial charms in making up a teen friends group and team is showing the emotional scenes between them, emphasizing their connection, and the group dynamic as a whole that the characters share in the team. the party, frankly, lacks any of those things, and even if they have some moments here and there they are extremely low and under developed and underwhelmingly portrayed, especially in s4-s3. we are meant to believe mike is the leader of the group, when his interaction with other characters seems to be very low and unpleasant at times. him not really caring much for dustin and not knowing where he is, his unpleasent relations with max and not even interacting with her in her hardest times, him ignoring lucas and not even bothering talking to eddie while missing lucas's game, his wack as relationship with both el and will... these are just weird stuff to include. even if mike is meant to have conflict whether friendship or romance wise, we gotta see him interact with the other party members in an emotional aspect but there is just nothing going on there. will and el are supposed to be siblings who only talked to each other 2 times at best. max virtually has no relationship to will or mike. so we have people headcanoning madhweeler vibes or madwise stuff in the fandom, because their frienship is lacking so much. even dustin and lucas, whom had one of the best dynamics in s1-s2 get largely ignored in favor of dustin being paired up with steve and eddie. lucas's treatment within the party is really bad, and so is will's. will and el not keeping contact with the other party members is bad etc. they have no actual emotional talks, no actual deep dynamics or relationships, if they talk at all it usually revolves around romantic issues instead of friendship moments or interpersonal talks or personal conversations. only max and el have those moments from s3... which also seem very thin.

the writers took inspo from other team dynamics and friends group from other shows/movies/franchises but they missed the mark in portraying them in st when it comes to using the team dynamic and elements for the Party.

[sunnylua]

loml | G. Satoru

angst, arranged marriage;

-

You had to excuse yourself from the table. The sight of a woman, who’s now the fiancee of the man who swore he’d give you the stars and the moon, intertwining her fingers with his. It made you want to throw up. Your heart clenched in the worst way as you stepped out of the café.

Such an idiot. He really thought it was a good idea for me to meet her.

You left for a few years and you came back to this. The love of your life marrying someone else.

He had to excuse himself too, following you outside. He gently tapped your shoulder once he reached you.

“Hey, is everything okay?” He asked, his signature smile on his lips, which immediately faded when he sensed something was off.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just needed some air.” You replied.

“You’re a terrible liar.” He leaned back on a wall next to you.

A dry chuckle escaped your lips. “I hate that you know me well.”

His expression continued worried. “Talk to me. What’s wrong?” He was still your best friend after all.

You sighed. “I don’t know, I just don’t feel very comfortable.” Uncomfortable was an understatement. You felt like your heat was being ripped out of your chest.

He nodded. “You don’t feel comfortable seeing us together.” You didn’t want to admit it to him, but he already knew.

“Can you blame me? How was I supposed to expect you were going to marry someone… and so suddenly.” You looked away from his eyes, you felt ashamed.

Satoru let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to surprise you like this. It's just..." He took a deep breath, trying to gather his thoughts and articulate what he wanted to say. He knew that there was no easy way to explain the situation.

“It's just... my clan. They basically forced me to marry her. They wanted someone from another powerful family to continue their bloodline. It's a stupid tradition, I know..."

He paused for a moment, his eyes searching your face for any sign of understanding. He wasn’t trying to make excuses, he just wanted you to understand the difficult position he was in.

You sighed. “I can’t even be mad at you…” As much as you wanted to blame him for it, you couldn’t. You knew it wasn’t his fault, or hers.

Satoru’s shoulders relaxed, relieved that you weren't angry at him. He took a step closer to you, his hand gently reaching out to touch your shoulder. He looked into your eyes, his expression filled with guilt. "I never wanted this, you know? I never wanted to marry someone I don’t even love...”

You took a deep breath, looking away from him. “You look good together, might be convenient.”

Satoru's jaw tightened as he clenched his fists at his sides. He knew deep down that what you said had some truth to it, but hearing it out loud made him feel a pang of frustration and anger. "Is that all you see it as? A convenient arrangement? Do you think I actually wanted this, that I'm happy to marry a woman I don't even love?"

“I know you don’t, but that’s what it is now.” You were saying things you didn’t mean, your logic fighting with your emotions.

Satoru's expression softened once again. He knew you were right, but hearing it from you stung nonetheless. He let out a defeated sigh and leaned against the wall. "Yeah... you're right. That's what it is now. A convenient arrangement that I'm forced into."

You looked at him, seeing his sad eyes made your heart ache. “I’m sorry this is happening…” You sighed.

Satoru shook his head, his eyes falling to the ground. He appreciated your sympathy, but it didn’t make the situation any easier to bear. “Don’t be sorry. It’s not your fault. I’m the one who should be apologizing to you. I should have told you about this sooner..."

After a short silence you spoke. “Don’t invite me to the wedding.”

Your words hit Satoru like a punch to the gut. He flinched slightly, his mind spinning. He hadn't even considered the wedding. And now, hearing you refuse to attend... It hurt. A lot. "You... what?”

You press your lips, your eyes were getting teary “God, don’t even tell me the date or the place.”

As your eyes filled with tears, Satoru's expression turned pained. He hated seeing you like this, but he knew he was the one who caused it. He swallowed the lump in his throat and spoke quietly. "I... I won't tell you the date. But... Damn it, yn. Will I even see you again before that?"

“Would it make sense to?” Your tears finally ran down your cheeks.

Satoru's voice caught in his throat. He knew the answer to your question, but it didn’t make it any easier to accept. He took a deep breath, trying to keep his composure. "No... it probably wouldn’t make sense. But damn it, I don’t care. I want to see you."

You slightly shook your head. “It’s not fair… for me or for her.” Your voice cracked. You wanted to tell him that you loved him and you’d wait for him. To run away with you.

Satoru frowned at your words, his brows furrowing. "Since when were you so concerned about what's fair? Since when has life ever been fair to us?"

“You’re right. Nothing is fair.” Your voice became firm as you looked at him again.

Satoru took another step closer to you again. "Exactly. Life's not fair, and we've both been through our fair share of unfairness. But that doesn't mean… that doesn't mean we have to give up on the things we care about."

“So what will you do, huh? What, Satoru?” You were getting irritated, this whole situation wouldn’t have been happening if you didn’t leave for that stupid mission. “Are you going to ignore the fact that you’re getting married and meet me behind them all?”

Satoru let out a frustrated exhale, running a hand through his hair. He knew that what he was about to say next was wrong, but he couldn’t help himself. "Yes. That’s exactly what I want to do. I want to ignore that I’m getting married and continue seeing you. I don’t want to lose you."

You looked at him in the eyes that were now tearing up despite looking angry. “You know you can’t…”

Satoru’s heart sank as he watched the tears well up in your eyes. He knew you were right, but he couldn’t bring himself to accept it. "Damn it yn, I know! I know it’s stupid and selfish, but I can’t help it. I can’t bear the thought of losing you."

“I don’t want this either… but you’re losing me.”Those words escaped your lips hurting both the both of you. Those words resounded loudly as if they were the only words that could be heard.

Satoru’s heart squeezed in his chest as you said those words. He took a step back, his arms hanging limply at his sides. "You’re right, I did. But I don’t want to accept it. I don’t want to accept that I can’t see you anymore. That I can’t touch you.”

“It’s time to start facing it, Satoru.” You said quietly looking away.

“Easier said than done… how do you expect me to feel when I’m losing the woman I love the most in my life.” He said irritated.

“And how do you think I feel? Coming back after two years to see you hand in hand with the perfect woman?!” You almost cried saying this, feeling like you had a knife twisting in your chest.

Satoru took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. He hated seeing you so upset, and it was killing him knowing that there was nothing he could do to change the situation. "I wish things could be different. I wish I could choose who I wanted to be with. But the clan…" He trailed off, his voice filled with bitterness.

“It’s always the clan…” You said under your breath. “There’s no more today say. You… you should go back inside. We’ve been here for so long.” You wiped your tears with the back of your hand.

Satoru looked conflicted. He didn’t want to go back, he wanted to spend more time with you, but he knew he didn’t have a choice. He reluctantly nodded, his expression resigned. "Yeah, you’re right. I should go back."

He looked at you, his eyes red and tear stained cheeks. “I’m sorry, yn. I really am…”

“I am too…”

The both of you parted ways. Walking back to your new lives without each other. It turned from calling the love of your life to loss of your life.

-

Lua’s note: damn

[m1ckeyb3rry]

hii! so happy for you and your 500! ^_^

i really loved how you wrote isagi! could i request something like listening to music and sharing earphones with him? and while he's commenting about the music reader told him to listen, reader finds herself staring at him. and maybe isagi's friends are secretly filming them bc of how cringey (lovingly) their relationship are HSHS feel free to ignore, thank youu!!

── READ IT AND WEEP!

Synopsis: You and your boyfriend listen to some music together, while an unlikely trio of strikers watches in disgust/fascination/apathy at the scene before them.

Event Masterlist

Pairing: Isagi x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 1.8k

Content Warnings: fluffy to a corny extent tbh but it’s okay it’s cute, chigiri and bachira are dumbasses (affectionate), nagi is an unwilling accomplice, karasu converts nagi into a subway surfers kid offscreen

A/N: anonnnn i’m so glad to hear you liked pathways isagi!! and tysm for the congrats 💖 i hope you didn’t think i ignored this, i’m sorry it took me a bit to get to! i did incorporate your suggestion at the end hehe i love a good opportunity to write shenanigans…i wasn’t sure which characters to pick but for some reason the three i chose were calling to me HAHA they just felt like they would be the ones to do smth like that!!

Additional: part of my 500 follower event! see the event description and rules to make a request of your own.

“It reminds me of you,” you explained as Isagi made a face at the bright pink album cover of the song you were trying to convince him to listen to. “Stop trying to be all macho and cool! It’s not like your friends are around to judge you for listening to basic pop music instead of your normal stuff. Come on, I know you’ll like it.”

“Okay,” he said hesitantly. “Let me read the lyrics first.”

“What kind of spoiler is that? Just listen to the song!” you said.

“I can’t understand the lyrics if I just listen to the song, and you said that it reminds you of me, so I want to know what you mean by that,” he said.

“How about you read the lyrics afterwards?” you bargained. He shook his head resolutely.

“No, because then the listening experience won’t be as strong,” he said. Sighing, you looked up the song’s lyrics and handed him your phone, holding onto his bicep and reading over his shoulder as he scrolled through the singer’s downright over-the-top articulations about how much she loved her boyfriend.

“It doesn’t sound as crazy when she’s singing it,” you muttered when Isagi’s ears turned red.

“No, no, this is sweet,” he said, pretending to cough in an attempt to disguise his laughter. “I can’t believe you think so highly of me.”

“Of course I do,” you said. “You’re my one and only boyfriend. You’re not the only one who gets to be cheesy, you know. I do as well — though only sometimes. Certainly not anywhere near as often as you are.”

“Right, being cheesy is my role,” he said, his cheek resting against your hair as you slumped into him. “Okay, since this is your way of showing affection, and since the lyrics are so charming, I guess I should probably listen to it. Give me one of your earbuds.”

“Gross, you didn’t bring your own?” you teased even as you handed one over to him. He rolled his eyes, shoving it into his ear, kissing your forehead as he did so.

“Super gross, I know,” he said. “You can play it whenever you’re ready.”

The familiar notes of the intro played, but you had played the song a million times before, so you hardly paid attention. Instead, you focused on Isagi, the way he frowned slightly as the first verse began, like he was concentrating very hard. It was endearing, that he was putting so much effort into the simple task; you knew it would’ve been much easier for him to pretend to be interested so he could get it over with, but he had never been like that. If you asked him to do something, he would put a hundred percent into it, a hundred percent or sometimes more, just so that he could make you happy.

You noticed, idly at first and then on purpose, that his body was different, his face angular in a way that it hadn’t been when he had left for Blue Lock. It was these changes you took stock of as he sat in peace, eyes shut as he listened to the music. He looked less like a boy and closer to the man he would one day become. You wondered how much he would change the next time he left, if you would even recognize him when he came back again.

In the end, though, you concluded that no matter how he had grown and how he was yet to grow, he was still at his core your Isagi. Isagi who listened to your music and gave piggyback rides to your younger siblings. Isagi who stopped in convenience stores so he could buy snacks for the stray cats and helped you pick what clothes you should wear for any given event. Isagi who loved you and who you loved in return.

“It’s really good,” he said, startling you out of your daze. “I liked it more than I thought I would! She has a really good voice, and you’re right — it does all sound much more natural when she’s singing it.”

“Is it getting added to the playlist?” you said.

“Hm,” he said. “Maybe the one I listen to at home, but I don’t know what the others would say if I was on speaker duty during one of our workouts and that started blasting. I think Barou and Raichi would probably die.”

You didn’t know that much about either of those two, but from what little Isagi had told you, that sounded in character enough, so you nodded in agreement.

“Good enough for me. It’s okay, I’m not mad! See, I have different playlists for different occasions, too, so it only makes sense that you would as well,” you said.

“I’m glad you’re not upset. I really do like it, just so you know. Send me more songs like it when you get home — I want to make a playlist of ones that remind me of you,” he said. 

“Why, so you can play it during your group workouts and make your single teammates jealous?” you said, elbowing him in the side. He chuckled.

“Nah, that would be cruel. I think I’ll bring my own pair of headphones to Blue Lock — I’ve definitely scored enough goals that they’ll let me keep them at this point — and whenever I miss you, I’ll listen to it,” he said.

“Oh,” you said, swallowing, taken aback at the casual way he always said such romantic things. “Um, well, if you have your phone, you could also just text me…”

It was his turn to be taken aback. “Oh, right. I guess I could do that too…but if you’re asleep, then I’ll listen to it! We get up pretty early, you know, and I don’t want to wake you when you should be resting.”

“Sounds like a plan,” you said. “But let’s not talk about you leaving right now. For the moment, I’m glad you’re on break and can spend time with me.”

“Me, too,” he said. “I love you, Y/N. Just as much as that singer loves her boyfriend. Actually, more.”

“I love you, too,” you said. “More than that singer could ever love anyone. Way more.”

He exhaled through his nose, and then he wrapped his arm around your waist, scooting impossibly closer to you on the park bench the two of you were sharing and humming the melody of the song as you watched people walk by. 

“Nagi!” Chigiri hissed from where he, Bachira, and Nagi were hiding in a bush — or at least, they were trying to. It was somewhat difficult to hide the towering Nagi, who was also not exactly cooperating in their covert mission or participating in their attempt at masterful disguise. “Did you get it?”

“What?” Nagi said with a yawn, still holding his phone up, pointed towards where Isagi and his girlfriend — the girlfriend whose existence they had all been convinced was a myth or tall tale — were sitting together. “Get what? Why are we even here? You guys told me that we were leaving the bowling arena to get snacks.”

“Give me that!” Chigiri said, snatching the phone from Nagi, who whined in protest. Bachira hushed him, reaching up to pat him on the head, though that only made Nagi pout like a child. “What? Why is this open to Subway Surfers?”

“Oh, Karasu downloaded it on my phone while we were all in the arcade, and I’ve been playing it ever since,” Nagi explained. “It’s kind of fun. I’m trying to get the national high score.”

“You were supposed to be filming Isagi and The Girlfriend!” Bachira said, emphasizing the words ‘the girlfriend’ as if she was some kind of legendary being. “That’s why we brought you along! You’re always playing on your phone, so it wouldn’t be suspicious for you to have it out, but you were secretly supposed to be taking videos as blackmail, not actually playing on it!”

“You guys didn’t tell me that,” Nagi said. “You told me that we were all going to buy chips and fruit jellies together.”

“We literally told you,” Chigiri said, face-palming. “We said when we got here, ‘look, Nagi, that’s Isagi and his girlfriend. Take a video of them.’ Anyways, why else would we be standing in a bush so creepily if we weren’t doing reconnaissance?”

Nagi shrugged. “Dunno, maybe it’s a common hobby or something.”

Chigiri narrowed his eyes at him, unable to discern if he was being serious or not. He decided to err on the side of caution, given how genuinely strange most of his Blue Lock peers were. “It’s not.”

“Okay, you know what? It’s fine. They’re still there, so we can get some footage now!” Bachira said, taking Nagi’s phone from Chigiri and using it to take pictures of Isagi and his girlfriend as they curled up with one another on the park bench.

“Use your own phone,” Nagi said, though he didn’t try to take the device back by force — it would be a hassle, and he was pretty sure that Bachira would give it back soon.

True to form, Bachira sent the photos to a group chat he created with himself, Nagi, and Chigiri, and then he gave Nagi his phone back, earning him a quiet cheer as Nagi was finally able to return to Subway Surfers.

“These are perfect,” Chigiri said. Nagi, whose little avatar had just been caught by the policeman, scowled slightly.

“By the way, why do you guys think that these are worthy of being used as blackmail?” he said.

“Uh, because it’s embarrassing that Isagi of all people is so lovey-dovey?” Bachira said.

“Exactly,” Chigiri said.

“I think it’s more embarrassing that he has a girlfriend and no one else does,” Nagi said conversationally, without even looking up from the screen. Bachira and Chigiri exchanged horrified looks and then, in unison, whipped out their phones to delete the offending material, Chigiri also taking the liberty of doing the same on Nagi’s.

“I can’t believe we didn’t consider that angle,” Bachira said, shaking his head. “Nagi, man, you’re a lifesaver.”

Nagi grunted, obviously uninterested in Bachira’s praise. 

“This is why they call him the lazy genius,” Chigiri said in approval. “Listen, the three of us are the only ones who can confirm the existence of Isagi’s girlfriend. That means that the next time he brings her up, we have to double down on denying it. You guys in?”

“Yup, sounds like fun!” Bachira said. “Nagi?”

Nagi looked up at them. “Will you guys pay for my chips and fruit jellies like you said you would?”

Chigiri and Bachira glanced at one another before nodding, silently agreeing to split the bill. 

“Sure, we got it!” Bachira said.

“Just don’t expect anything on the same level as whatever Reo buys you. We’re not that rich!” Chigiri said. Nagi shrugged.

“Whatever,” he said. 

“Then it’s a deal!” Chigiri said.

“Deal!” Bachira said.

“Deal,” Nagi agreed, shoving his phone in his pocket as the three of them traipsed towards the closest convenience store, leaving Isagi and Y/N blissfully alone and unaware that they had ever been there in the first place.

[1ore]

Hi, I've been following you since Ye Olde Esk Days and you've always been a huge inspiration for me as a fellow gender-questioning neurodivergent lesbian both in art and science.

I've been wanting to reach out because I'm considering enrolling in Enviroinmental Sciences (or something in that ballpark) in 1 or 2 years and wanted to ask how your experience studying it has been to you as a person with an artistic bakground? I am afraid my ADHD might get in the way of maths, and that I might not be "smart" enough to pursue a degree in STEM, despite the fact I've always been interested in scientific subjects and in the conservation efforts around the area (and the river) I grew up in. so, yeah, I don't really know what else to say xmx I hope this message wasn't too much, and thank you for taking the time to read it. Your art and its message has always meant a lot to me! (also, happy Pride month!)

ONE OF US! ONE OF US!

So, funny enough, math anxiety is part of what what led me to Environmental Science in the first place. My degree is a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Science, not a Bachelor of Science, because IIIIIII didn’t want to take more semesters of calculus and organic chemistry than I had to 🤪 I struggled with math in highschool, and by the time I went back to school, it had been more than 5 years since I last took a math class. I was also more interested in the interdisciplinary parts of Environmental Science, so a BA let me put more credit hours towards classes in policy, law, social science, humanities, etc.

As far as I know, having a BA hasn’t held me back. I’ve been accepted into internships and other programs doing “real science” just fine. Maybe this won’t always be true, but I’ve figured out that I like teaching and engaging people in science more than I like being in academia, so that works out fine for me.

As for my experience with ADHD and math/science courses, I have euuuauuuehhh a lot of thoughts. This gets dense, sorry.

First, my ADHD came with a side of anxiety, which manifested as a compulsion to do well academically regardless of how much my mental health suffered. Doing busy work felt like hell on earth for reasons that were then mysterious to me, but disappointing my teachers felt Worse. So I became really good at, like, academic minmaxing, not so much learning or taking care of myself. It’s hard to articulate. I want to say I was muddling through these classes as a professional test-taker and not a student, and also not applying myself fully. But at the same time, I felt like I was well beyond my breaking point? This made more sense to me later when I got the diagnosis LOL. my capacity for doing the things I’m supposed to do, the way I’m supposed to do them, is lower than other peoples’. So either I do what I’m not supposed to do, or I do it “the wrong way.” <- meaningless.

I say all that because coursework is a poor metric of how “good” you are at science or math, or whether you'll enjoy doing them outside of the classroom. We know this LOL but I want to reiterate it. I learned how to get really good grades without learning how to reason my way through why xyz methodology is justified, or how to ask questions and be curious about what’s happening around me. It’s corny but it’s true. on one hand I still struggle with these, because I’m still working under the assumption that whatever’s going on in my head is the “wrong” way to do it. But ADHD does a lot of heavy lifting for us with lateral thinking and being able to make connections that other people can’t always see. If you want to do Science ™ (as in academic research,) this is an awesome tool to have in your toolkit.

There’s also a whole world of environmental work outside of academia that demands its own skillset, which coursework may or may not teach. Like, if you want to do hands-on restoration work or interpretive work or field technician stuff, this is less “can you spit out the balanced equation for photosynthesis on command” and more “can you operate a woodchipper” or “are you comfortable with public speaking and customer service.“ This is another part of what attracted me to envirosci--how wide-ranging the job market is. The backdrop of science is the same, but your day-to-day responsibilities can look wildly different.

Also, if it’s any encouragement, being an arts person has been a huge plus in my experience. My most recent employer told me outright that the artsy scicomm stuff in my resume is what made them think “oh, we need her.” Art and science are wives LOL a lot of the skills you hone as an artist are invaluable in science, especially if you’re doing any kind of communication work. (<- has seen some poorly-written papers and incomprehensible figures in her time)

Going along with that, back when I was yea high and wanted to do art professionally, I remember people telling me that you only go to art school for the professional connections. A lot of STEM careers are locked behind having a specialized degree, but I think this advice is still applicable here. Being a “good student” hasn’t helped me as much as abandoning my anxiety and sending cold emails, showing up at peoples’ guest lectures and office hours, participating fully and sincerely, etc. The stuff I did outside the classroom was more meaningful to me, in the end. (That said, I was lucky to have several classes that were more skills/training-oriented for things like GIS, field botany, conducting environmental assessments for NEPA, etc. You can swing projects for classes like these as opportunities to build skills or create portfolio pieces.)

OK. I thiiiink that’s everything I have for you? I hope that answers your question. If not, I can give it another shot. I'll also leave you with this answer from beloved mutual Heedra re: what Environmental Science as a major is like. I can't believe it's 6 years old because it's part of what put Environmental Science on my radar in the first place LOL

[undead-discourse]

Hey OP, has this blog and all the asks and stuff you get influenced any of your perspectives on shipping discourse and general media stuff?

Oh, for sure.

I don’t think my opinions on “problematic” media or whatever itself have changed at all, but my opinions on these communities definitely have. Of course, I can’t talk about every single proshipper/anti and I’m generalizing here and this is entirely just from my experience. If it doesn’t fit you, it doesn't fit you.

I don’t really know how to articulate this very well so I’m sorry if this makes no fucking sense.

The communities everyone has built feel so backwards. Going into this, I assumed the community built around problematic media would be centered around said problematic media, but instead, it’s centered around defending it while also never engaging with it at all. It feels so bizarre to me that you’ve created a community around “live and let live, just enjoy the fiction you want to, it doesn’t matter at all actually” and yet 99% of all posts I see from proship blogs is about being proship and not them actually just enjoying their little fictional guys. In my experience, there seems to be more “fictional incest is okay because it’s fiction” posts than “here’s a drawing of some fictional incest, which is okay because it’s just fiction” posts, if that makes sense.

I don’t know, it just feels bad, man. Running this blog has made me significantly less happy, and I don’t really know why anyone would subject themselves to such a soul-crushing community long-term when they don’t even care all that much. I don’t know why someone would run a proship (or anti) blog where you only post about being morally better than the other “side” about your fiction, while also… Never posting or reblogging anything about the fiction you like. It just feels like nobody is happy or posting about the things that make them happy, ever.

I have the opposite problem with antis and proshippers. Antis have some fucked up opinions and I think they’re awful, but at least they don’t post about other shit. It’s possible to enjoy the things an anti has made without being an anti because they don’t exclusively post about being an anti. The #anti and #antiship tags are overrun with crossposts because nobody fuckin uses those hashtags. Antis don’t post under ship discourse tags or search through ship discourse tags or follow blogs exclusively about ship discourse like proshippers do.

I obviously can't speak for anyone else, but from my experience running this blog, it is exhausting constantly surrounding yourself with a community entirely built off of outrage. Of course harassment and bullying are bad and of course we should be anti-harassment. But I feel like that should be the baseline for the community and not everything the community thinks and does.

The term “ignorance is bliss” comes to mind. You don’t have to post about “wow antis sure do suck haha” all the time when you could post about your fictional blorbos instead. Post your blorbos dammit, even if they’re siblings or what the fuck ever, it’ll make you happier than posting about discourse.

Enjoy whatever fiction you want, but at least post about things you enjoy. You can quit posting about discourse if it makes you feel worse, I promise it doesn’t make you an anti I swear.

[nobodysdaydreams]

😍❓ for the ask game :)

Thank you for responding to the ask game I made! 🥰 I hope you are having a lovely day!

😍-published lines or a section of a fic that you loved writing?

Oh this is a good one. I'll go with a section from Chapter 2 of my Book Martina redemption fic (Who You Were Meant To Be on AO3)

"I know you don't want to see or speak to them. But now that I know that you really are sorry, all that's left for you to do is apologize. I'm sure Mr. Benedict and the Society would accept your apology. And then we could all be friends, and you wouldn’t have a problem celebrating my birthday with them!” SQ exclaimed, excited to have found the solution to his predicament. 

Martina laughed.

“Is that supposed to be a joke?” she asked.

“No,” SQ replied, “I’m being honest. They accepted my apology, and I’m friends with them now.”

“Yeah, but I’m me and you’re you.”

“What does that have to do with anything? We both worked for Mr. Curtain. We both hurt them.”

“Yeah, but it’s different. You’re… you’re nice.”

“So are you. Or maybe you could be if you wanted to be.”

“No, I couldn’t,” Martina replied. “Look, we both worked for Mr. Curtain, but it was never the same. You actually believed that what we were doing was good and right, and you never wanted to hurt anybody. I thought what we were doing would bring me success and make me happy, and I enjoyed hurting other people. You had selfless reasons, I had selfish ones. People like you get redemption and forgiveness, okay? People like me don’t. That’s just the way the world works.”

SQ paused and thought a bit about what Martina had said.

“I’m not sure that’s true,” he observed, “or at least, it can’t be true all the time. Because I forgave you.”

Martina struggled to think of something clever to say to SQ’s objection, but she couldn’t find the words. And strangely, a part of her felt like she didn’t want to find them. That for once in her life, she was actually, surprisingly, okay with losing an argument. Because she just wanted to accept what SQ was saying was true, even if she knew it wasn’t.

“You shouldn’t have,” she finally mumbled.

I loved writing these lines. It's hard for me to articulate exactly why, but I love the concept of forgiveness and how it's discussed here. Martina points out that intentions matter, which is true, but SQ counters with his own point that even if you did something bad intentionally, that doesn't mean forgiveness is impossible or unattainable. He's the first person to show Martina that kind of love, friendship, and understanding, and Martina doesn't want to fight it (even if she can't accept it yet). It's hopeful, and I love the message, I love redemption stories, and the way the dialogue shows it... I'm sorry, I can't articulate, but I hope you get what I was going for here.

❓-any WIP snippet you want!

Hm...now this is a hard one. Because I have a lot to choose from, but I think I'll go with a funny snippet from a character who I haven't written a lot for yet, but was a character than many encouraged me to write for.

“Oh, I’m afraid it’s far more serious than that sir,” warned Cannonball in grave tone. “It appears that one of our passengers was caught smuggling illegal contraband into the country.”

“WHAT!” exclaimed Noland, then suddenly conscious of the fact that others could be listening, began to whisper.

“And…what exactly did they attempt to smuggle in?” he asked.

Cannonball leaned in and whispered.

“Tangerines.”

Noland gasped in horror.

“Tangerines? Cannonball, this may be the greatest threat to my career yet! Just think of the ecological damage that even one single tangerine could inflict!”

“It would be truly catastrophic,” agreed Cannonball seriously, shaking his head at the senseless tragedy.

“It’s hard to imagine what sort of cold-blooded individuals would dare attempt such an infamous plot,” continued Noland.

“Oh, they’ve caught the culprits,” explained Cannonball. “Don’t worry sir. Things might not be hopeless yet. We’ve been asked to deal with them personally. If our punishment is harsh enough, that is if we can make an example of these fruit filching criminals, it may yet redeem us. And show the world that we do not tolerate environmental carelessness aboard our vessels.” 

“Very well,” agreed Noland. “Then though it may be harsh, we shall do what we must.”

[weepingwillows-sweethibiscustea]

OKAY. RWRB MOVIE REVIEW.

(Disclaimer that these are all only my opinions)

I imagined Philip as looking more like Philza Minecraft, to be completely honest. So tell me why they made him kinda..???

THEY FUCKED UP HIS CHARACTERIZATION (imo). In the book, he’s just a victim of what he was born into as well. He’s rigid & kinda a dick because it was what he was taught to be to survive, the movie completely took that away, giving him literally two scenes.

AND THEN THEY GIVE GOOD GRACE TO THE KING? Bro. No. Stop it.

I feel as though they were afraid to criticize the British monarchy too hard, which is why they gave the king the good grace they did (plus other changes done, I don’t think they included the cliticization of the British Museum stealing all those artifacts either)

Frothing at the mouth over the fact they not only took away Luna, but completely got rid of the fucking sex abuse scandal in favor of a jealousy plot. Explodes you with my mind.

Going back to my point above that one, I feel they might not have wanted to add that seeing how many Richards are out there. Can’t fan too many flames, huh?

They also gave Bea way less screen time, & took away the whole “Powder Princess” thing, I think the way they talked about their dad passing & how it effects the family was kind of cheap.

AND they fucked up Henry’s moms characterization. She just straight up wasn’t in it, only mentioned, & in a negative light. Again, they really didn’t give the dad passing the attention it deserved.

The beginning went by pretty damn fast. But in all fairness for that & I suppose a lot of points, the movies already two hours long with all that missing, so I suppose I can give some leniency on some of these points.

June obviously wasn’t there either, but it at least doesn’t feel like anybody’s missing. I guess they managed the Nora & June merge well. THEY DID NOT MANAGE THE LIAM & LUNA MERGE WELL.

Seriously fuck them for taking away Luna & subsequently his character arc

THEY UN-DIVORCED ELLEN & OSCAR. I UNDERSTAND IT WOULD HAVE ADDED A LOT OF SCREEN TIME THEY DIDN’T HAVE BUT COME ON.

Do love all the terms of endearment Henry uses, honestly don’t remember if that’s in the book or not.

Can we circle back around to how attractive Philip is. Sorry who said that.

I like the way they handled the cake scene better, definitely feels more realistic.

Admittedly also kinda happy the Henry magazine photo thing wasn’t added, kind of made me cringe reading about it lmao

OH YEA THEY TOOK OUT THE SCENE WHERE ALEX CALLS HENRY TO VENT ABOUT HIS PARENTS(?), IT WAS SUCH AN IMPORTANT MOMENT FOR THEIR RELATIONSHIP BOO

Is there a copy right reason they couldn’t include Henry being a Star Wars fan? If they just simply choose not to then I am Disappointed.

Really liked how they did the phone calls, with them appearing in front & them as though they’re in the same room, together. Great touch.

Edit to add this bullet point because it’s really important to me. Alex says he’s bisexual, Henry says he’s gay. Ellen asks if Alex is gay, fluid, bi, pan. Ellen references transgender people. They talk about the LGBT+ community. They say all these words, they don’t whisper them, or talk around them. They say them loud & clear as day. Idk, this just makes me really happy because of how often you’ll see people talk around these words like they’re bad or dirty words (yes I’m aware this is a movie where they have gay sex multiple times on screen but it’s still important to me shut up)

FINAL THOUGHTS.

It was alright. I don’t regret watching it. It was entertaining, but admittedly not the type of movie I’d usually watch, so I think other people could enjoy it way more then I did. But I definitely still enjoyed it despite all my criticisms.

Definitely not as good as the book, but not bad at all. I’d say it’s absolutely worth the watch.

I’m sure you can also find posts that can better articulate why this movie is so groundbreaking & important as well, which is something I didn’t particularly touch on in this post.

[skylarmoon71]

Savitar (Flash) : Fanfiction - Chapter 9

“This is (Y/N). My cousin. (Y/N) these are my friends and coworkers. There’s Hank, Wu, Rosalee, Monroe and Captain Renard.”

You smile, giving them all a little greeting.

“You missed Adalind. Kelly decided to go to work with his mother today.”

“That’s fine. I still can’t believe you have a son. It’s so great.”

There’s a little girl on the couch smiling.

“This is Diana, my daughter.” Renard states. You smile at the girl, and she walks over.

“Nice to meet you Ms. (Y/N).”

“Nice to meet you too. Oh my goodness you’re so beautiful.” 

Her smile gets brighter as she does a little twirl. Her eyes move to Savitar. He’s been doing his best to go unnoticed. You realize it’s a bit selfish to be dragging him around and putting him in these situations, but you really want him to open up. Even if it’s just a little.

Diana walks over to Savitar. Her eyes are fixated on his scar and Renard raises his hand to gesture her back.

“Diana, it's impolite to stare.”

Savitar looks down at her.

“Are you sad?” She asks.

He’s not sure how to answer the question. Sad wasn’t the word he would use. She’s looking at him so earnestly and when he kneels to her height, you’re a bit impressed.

“I’m not sure.”

That’s probably the most honest he’s been.

Everyone is a bit silent. Diana reaches her hand out, placing it on his right cheek. He doesn’t understand why the gesture calms him so much. She smiles.

“Don’t worry, Ms. (Y/N) loves you too.”

Her statement makes your eyes widen, and Savitar swallows, looking up at you. Diana pulls her hand away, moving back to Renard and he picks her up.

“You can’t just go around touching people okay. Always ask for permission.” She nods.

“Sorry Daddy, I will. “ She looks at Savitar.

“I’m sorry Mister.”

He stands upright.

“It’s alright Diana. Thank you.” He gives her a smile.

“I’m going to step outside. It was nice meeting all of you.” That’s what he says as he turns his back. The door closes behind him and you’re not sure what to say.

“Well, that was a bit strange. Even by our standards.” Wu states. You’re not sure what he means by that, but you’re a bit concerned about Savitar.

“Would you excuse me, I’m going to check on him.” Nick nods.

“Of course, we'll be here.”

You head on after him and Renard looks at Diana.

“Did you see something Diana?”

She nods.

“Mhmm, he has superpowers that make him really fast. It also made him very sad.”

They aren’t sure what to make of the statement.

“Great, I hope he’s not another big bad.” Monroe says. Rosalee just runs a hand down his shoulder.

“We’ll be fine. We’ve survived much worse.”

Boy did they know it.

~

Savitar had taken a seat on the steps of the porch, eyes fixed on the sky.

“Hey, need company?”

He glances in your direction, then looks down. You sit. Although you’d formulated an entire speech in your mind, it feels useless now. What can you really say? It feels a bit difficult to articulate the right words. Especially after what Diana said. You’ve been trying your best to be a good friend. To help him. Regardless of the feelings you have. He needs guidance right now.

“I don’t expect anything from you Savitar.” You finally get yourself to say it.

“We’re both in an awkward position. The only thing that I want right now is your happiness. Not hurt or pain or a need for revenge. When you look at Barry or Iris or even Team Flash, I want you to be okay. With them, with me.”

You hope that you get your point across. He finally turns to you, truly looks at you. Those eyes, they do something to you. It’s not pity, or hate or even anger. You can’t explain what it is. Because it’s not something you’re used to.

“Were you aware that in other universes, Barry Allen doesn’t end up with Iris West.”

That’s not what you expect him to say.

“I..I don’t follow…”

His hand slides over, and when he places it lightly over yours, you’re a bit distracted.

“On earth 2, Barry Allen is in fact married to Iris West. It’s fate. We’re destined to flock to that love. But there are so many universes. Iris West isn’t just one individual being. There are many different versions of Iris West for Barry Allen. Various names, faces, identities. There’s a universe out there where Barry finds his personal version of love. His lightning rod. My lightning rod. “

You aren’t sure what to say.

“I guess I just hope that someday I’ll figure out who that person is for me.”

His hand tightens just a little over yours, and you find yourself unable to properly breathe.

The door behind you opens.

“O-Oh, my bad. Nick was just getting a little worried. I’ll leave you two alone.” Monroe ramblings awkwardly, closing the door and Savitar pulls away, standing up. He looks down at you, extending a hand.

“Let’s get back in there.”

You just nod bashfully as you stand, taking his hand. 

[synth-esthesia]

NMF 10/14/22: “Being Funny In A Foreign Language”

In which she listens to her favorite 'New Music Friday' release, “Being Funny in a Foreign Language” by The 1975, all the way through and attempts to articulate her first impressions of the album…by sharing her first music review/blog post/brain dump with the internet, I guess.

Since the release of their first studio album in 2013—”The 1975—the band has begun each one of their albums with an introductory song named after them: The 1975. This song is the prelude to the album’s overarching progression and sound, the hors d'oeuvre to their main dish.

The intro on their newest album, “Being Funny In A Foreign Language,” borrows the opening piano chord-progression/beat from LCD Soundsystem’s “All My Friends,” setting the tone for the album: synth-pop, nostalgic goodness with a splash of experimentation.

I felt heavy “I like it when u sleep” vibes from “Looking For Somebody (To Love)”—with another LCD sample—and “Oh Caroline,” with the heavy synth influence and upbeat riffs. These two songs, out of the entire 11-track album, made me want to get up and DANCE, a similar vibe that I get when I hear “Love Me” come on. However, as a whole, the album is ‘softer’ and departs from the band’s traditional use of boosted riffs and frontman Matt Healy’s harder-hitting vocals.

Both in preparation for the album and gearing up for its release, Healy spoke often about the experimentation this album was set to bring, in addition to paying homage to their indie-pop roots. The real meat here is with their single releases…an undoubtedly strategic—and, frankly, masterful—execution of introducing said experimentation into the world. Their pre-release lineup was, in my opinion, the band’s metaphorical toe-dip into the pond of changing their sound. Sorry, did I say toe-dip? I think I meant cannon-ball.

“Part Of The Band” was the first single they dropped and boy do I love it…but boy was I shocked upon my first go-around. Violins? Heavy acoustic guitar? Heaaavy cello? I mean, I love it, but I was absolutely not expecting that. I spent 20 minutes searching for the song that POTB reminds me of and here it is: “Breathe” by Seinabo Sey. Are they likely related? Probably not. However, I love highlighting the ties between two different artists with such distinct styles.

From there, they released “Happiness,” an uncanny, canonical track to appease the purists and assuage any lingering frustrations over the previous release. And hey, I can’t say I was bummed. I have danced around alone in my room, with my silly little headphones in, to that track more times than I can count.

Next came “I’m In Love With You” and then “All I Need To Hear.” The former gave me “It’s Not Living (If It’s Not With You)” vibes but, again, without those lovely, lovely classic-rock acoustics and powerful keyboard use. “All I Need To Hear” is a melancholy, slower track, with both acoustic and electric guitar, and a more indie-rock flow.

This mixed-genre beat is not something new for The 1975. “Notes On A Conditional Form” was by-far their most experimental album with tracks that spanned from this similar, indie-rock influence to heavy-metal-sounding tracks like “People.” However, with only 11 songs on the entire album, this album does much more than just experiment; “Being Funny In A Foreign Language” is emblematic of the band’s radical acceptance of a years-long struggle to break out of the indie-rock mold that they entered into almost 10 years ago. The 1975 no longer feels the need to ask for permission when toeing the line between genres: they’re just doing it.

Which I truly, truly admire.

The band did an excellent job balancing their new, experimental sound with their familiar sound throughout the album, however, I am not quite sure how I feel about the former itself. While I absolutely love how they played around with a new funky, folk-rock sound within their usual synth-heavy, indie-pop sound, it is still something that I have to sit with.

My only ‘miss’ was “Human Too,” however, that’s mainly because the vocals and acoustics felt too soft to me…not in the sense of volume but of their body. The one thing this album is leaving me with—besides an abundance of energy and excitement, especially for their tour—is Matt Healy MUST’VE had a torrid affair with John Mayer, because I don’t think I ever could’ve seen this sharp, blue-grass-loving turn coming. But, alas, it was a beautiful, fun album filled with genre-bending exploration, and, I must say, I love it…even if my inner-grunge-child wants to push back against the softness.

Author's note: this was reposted from my old blog, originally written Oct. 14, 2022. First time writing about music as opposed to just keeping these thoughts in my head, critiques welcome.

[dolls-self-ships]

Hi!! I was scrolling through the selfshipp tag and you popped up and I saw ur shipp with hades.

Honestly so powerfull of you ,u 2 make a great couple!( I also selfshipp w/ 2 Disney character Jack skellington/the shadow man)

Have a nice day/night

(voidselfshipp/jerico)

aaa thank you so much !!!! I’m glad you like my ship 🥺 Also very powerful of you to ship with Jack Skellington and Shadow Man 😤💕

[legit9thlunaticwarrior]

he grew on me, im not sorry aboot it. why do i feel like this got hella long?

|remember to leave feedback and i love all you heathens|

‘Stargazer’ Ridge Holland (Luke) x fem!reader

^after his call up to the main roster, pete introduces reader to his new allies^

- sheamus (stephen) - shot in the dark but im guessing his eyes are somewhere between green and hazel. im going with hazel for the sake of my sanity - im an perpetually anxious person so reader is too, just bare with me - time is an illusion  - a happy place of mine is the great state of vermont so imma use it. im not from there but i got people i love there. *FAKE PARK NAME* - “donna, how the fuck did you manage to put a size thing in a fluff fic?” shhhhhhhhhh

Y/N POV:

Through working in the wardrobe department for WWE and by association, NXT, I met my best friend, Pete. At this point in our friendship, he was more like my brother. When he told me he was going to the main roster for SmackDown and wanted me to do his gear, I was over the moon. He had worked so hard and is getting the run he deserves. He had pulled some strings so I could be there for his debut.

I waited with him in the gorilla as he wanted me to meet his stable-mates. I was always anxious when meeting new people but I knew they would be good people if they were aligned with Pete. I fixed my black skirt and retucked the ‘Bruiserweight’ shirt into it. When I turned around to say something to Pete, I walked into a hard chest “Oh my God. I am so sorry.” I frantically apologized. I looked up to see a tall man with the most beautiful hazel eyes, a cute scruffy beard, dressed in grey slacks, dress shoes, a blazer, and a cap covering his head. The last thing I noticed was my hands on his bare chest. Pulling them away, “Sorry I should have been paying attention-” “Don’t worry love. You must be Y/N.” Way to go on a first impression. “Y/N? Hey you’re the one that made my Royal Rumble gear, aren’t ya?” Another man spoke up; this one I knew. “Yeah, that’s me. Great to see you Stephen.” The handsome wall I walked into had yet to tell me his name. I looked over at him and he was staring at me, leading Stephen to elbow him. “I’m Luke.” he took my hand, kissing the back of it making my face heat up, “What a gentleman you are. Sorry about before. Again.” “Well if you wanted to make it up to me, how about a date after the show?” he said smoothly with a wink. “Y-yes. I would love to!” Stephen laughed, “Don’t make her nervous, Ridgie.” Then Pete came over to the three of us, “I see you’ve met Y/N, lads?” “Someone is already putting the moves on her.” Pete looked at Luke then me. “You know she is like my sister, right? Treat her right, or you’ll never wrestle again.” “Pete!” I scolded. Luke just nodded. They were told it was time to go out so I hugged Pete and told Stephen and Luke good luck. Not without a wink and “See you for our date, love.” from Luke; there was something about him calling me ‘love’ that made my butterflies erupt in my tummy and my heart beat faster. Kayla brought me back to reality, “You and Ridge Holland? I like it.” 

I was talking to Kayla as I waited for the three men to return from their locker room. I noticed her look over my shoulder and smirk then I felt a tap on my shoulder, “You still up for that date?” I nodded and bit my lip as I twirled my hair around my finger. This time he wasn’t shirtless: he was dressed in jeans, basic t-shirt with a leather jacket and sneakers. He somehow looks more handsome. I hugged Kayla goodbye and Luke led me to his rental. He opened the car door for me and even waited until I was buckled to close it. Never had that happen before, I thought. When he got in the driver's seat I had to ask, “Where are we going?” “Well, I actually had asked Pete and he said you were a stargazer. He also told me this is your home state. ‘Louise Creek’ sound familiar?” I couldn’t even articulate how happy I was; my only reaction was reaching over to hug him. “That park means, everything to me. I can’t thank you enough.” “You don’t have to thank me.” 

Having been to this park my whole life, I knew exactly where to go so you could see the moon and the stars perfectly. He opened the door for me to get out and he laid a blanket over the hood of the car. Being much shorter than him, he lifted me by my hips to sit on the blanket, soon taking a seat next to me; us both laying back with his arms wrapped around me. “When I was younger, my friends and I would ride our bikes down here. We’d skip rocks, tightrope walk over fallen trees, even catch frogs in that river down there. I brought one home one day, her name was Wally. Oh you should have seen the look on my mom’s face! I guess begging worked because she let me keep her for a while.” I reminisced. He chuckled, “How’d you know it was a girl? And why Wally?” “I was into science and animals. I was like nine; it seemed like a cool name.” I shrugged. 

We stayed there just looking at the night sky and talking, learning about each other, until I sat up and pointed at something. “Look! A shooting star, make a wish.” Please kiss me. “What did you wish for?” I nudged him, “I can’t tell you or it won’t come true.” “Who made that rule?” I looked up at him “Because this was my wish~” he lifted my chin gently and kissed me softly. My hand went to his cheek in response. When we pulled away, “Well I guess we wished for the same thing.” I whispered. “Cheeky girl.” I couldn’t tell if it was the adrenaline from what just happened or the growing chill in the air but I couldn’t help but shiver. He seemed to notice and wrapped me in his leather jacket that we had our heads on previously. “You look so pretty in my jacket, love.” 

It was time for us to go so as he put the blanket back in the car, I leaned over the bar that separated the parking area from a small hill; thanking all my lucky stars for this night. I felt Luke’s hands on my hips and he planted a kiss to the top of my head. “How would you say our first date went?” I turned my head to look at him, “I’m glad you said ‘first’. I had an amazing time Luke. Thank you.” He turned me to face him as his hands went under the jacket to find their place on my lower back, “Y/N, you don’t have to keep thanking me. Plus, the other part of my wish came true.” I tilted my head confused “What’s that?” “Getting to see the most beautiful woman in my favorite leather.” I hummed, “Maybe another star will fall and we can wish for me to get tossed into a storyline? I can wear it while I watch you kick ass in the ring.” He smiled “You are way too cute to be the bad guy, my love.” I blushed, “Now I’m your love?” “Only if you want to.” My answer was in the form of a kiss with nothing but passion behind it. When we pulled away, his hazel eyes seemed to sparkle in the moonlight. “The answer is yes, Luke.” 

~The Next Morning~ 

When I got up the next morning I saw all the notifications from Instagram. Luke had tagged me in a post? I opened it to see a gorgeously taken picture of me when I was leaning over the bars. 

ridgewwe Found something more beautiful than the moon 🐸

His nod to Wally made me smile even more. I checked my text messages to see one from him:

My Gentleman: Hope you slept well princess. I’m sorry we couldn’t stay the night together. Pete and Stephen would never leave us alone. If you don’t have plans, dinner at 7?

Y/N: they are quite nosey. i’d love to! don’t be late!

My Gentleman: Wouldn’t dream of it my love

~~~~~~~

lovely taglist babes (dm or comment to be added) @josiewrites​ @rubyred1980 @chrisdickinson @night-of-the-living-shred @xkennyxomegax

[gb-patch]

Asks Collection: December 15th, 2021

I’ve got a collection here of asks that aren’t questions, but are just really nice messages that I’ve kept saved in my inbox for the past months. Thank you all so much for sending me your experiences and kind words. I’m sorry I don’t post these kinds of asks quickly up on the blog, it makes me happy to see them when I’m answering the questions and I also get pretty shy when responding to sweet messages, aha. But thank you again for sending them! I appreciate it a lot ^^

I just started playing Our Life after downloading it from steam just yesterday since I was looking for LGBTQ+ content and I can’t tell you how much I adore this game. I originally planned to only play an hour or two but I was sucked right in for almost six hours. I love the freedom that is given to the player in this game and just how much choices affect later steps! I also enjoy the high, medium, and low initiative, it was thoughtful to include that in, especially given the comfort level of players. And the dialogue is beautiful! I’m currently going through a difficult life transition at the moment and some of the dialogue in the game really spoke to me in some way. I didn’t really feel alone while playing it which might sound silly but it provided some brief comfort while playing. There’s just a lot about this game and clearly a lot of effort and passion was put into this. I don’t think I’m able to articulate just how much I adore this game. Thank you so much for creating this!

💖

I just want it to be known, I have had thassolphobia my entire life. Lake water? Scary as hell. Aqauriams? So terrifying there's nothing but water and *shudder* marine creatures. The ocean? No. Hell no. Once on vacation my family thought it would be funny to take me to the ocean and when we were on the beach I got so scared I /fainted/

But, because this damn green haired boy loves the ocean I have put in so much effort to get over it. I used to cry if I thought too much about jellyfish. I now can watch videos of great whites being pet by people. A phobia I have ALWAYS had, is so much better now because I felt the need to improve myself for a fake ass man. I don't know whether to thank you for making a fictional character who made me want to get over my fears, or curse you for making a fictional character I like so much but will never ever meet.... But I've decided to thank you. This game was a wonderful experience and it brought me a lot of happiness, and self improvement apparently. Please tell every single person who worked on Cove how amazing everyone finds him.

💖

Hey I just want to say I adore the game a lot, it’s incredibly addictive and I love the passion and love that went into creating this game. I just bought the dlc recently and I just want to thank you for having Cove be Panromantic demisexual. I’m currently questioning my romantic orientation after some reevaluation and I’m demisexual myself, and I cried various times playing the game, seeing various aspects of myself in Cove. I would elaborate more but I feel like this is long enough already. Just thank you, thank you so much for creating this game. ❤️❤️❤️

💖

I think i’m in love

With a fictional being I—

Wow

💖

hi!! id just like to say that cove and our life in general helped me realize and accept im demiromantic!! so thank you !!! <3 -tom

💖

Check him out while Cove checked in. The word play was amazing. I laughed so hard! That's my MC. He's definitely think like that. I am always amazed by subtle change made to fit MC's personality. For example, how Cove describes MC after market incident fits my MC every time. Thanks for the great game! I can't wait for step 4, dlcs, and next game!

💖

I just finished playing Our Life and I'm pretty sure it's now my favourite game! I can't wait for part four!!!

💖

I just finished OL a couple days ago and I wanted to say that it was so amazing that it’s become one of my favorite things I’ve ever played. The attention to detail is wonderful, the writing is brilliant and it’s so heartwarming, wholesome and cute that it’s made me tear up many times. I’m sad that I had to eventually finish it, but I’m very glad that I played it in the first place because it’s definitely a one of a kind. I’ve played a lot of dating sims/romantic visual novels and if I’m being honest - a lot of them are mediocre (not all of course). Our Life scratches the itch that I’ve always had - to want a game that lets me be me in it without any consequences and to have a romantic story that continuously makes my heart flutter as I read it. I hate having to pick an option just because the love interest would like it more, but that’s not the case with Our Life! I was so surprised with how well the little customizations were pulled off. I can’t wait for step 4 and the wedding dlc and then again for any future projects that are in the works for other games which is also why I joined the patreon, I just couldn’t help myself. Sorry for dumping so many compliments, but I wanted to show my appreciation. It’s well deserved.

💖

dwidhwqihswqiqswq your games are so good i can't- I literally just saw the characters and some scenes and I already love this game- good job btw

💖

ahhh I just wanted to say that I enjoyed ol 1 so much (literally spent hours on it and on making a mc for it lmao) and that I'm super excited for both what is being added to ol 1 and also ol 2. like more exited than I think I've ever been for a game release lmao. 

💖

I love Cove squeaks thank you 😭😭😭

💖

just read the answers/questions from july10 and first of all, all the love to the person who found out they were ace thanks to this game, as a fellow asexual the options and representations in game really made me happy!! also wanna add that the game helped me get closer to finding a label for my gender as it offered explanations i didnt have words for myself and by that finding my way to an identity, big thank you for that

💖

Thank you for making Our Life. I have really bad gender dysphoria at times and it made me extremely happy to get to "experience" growing up as my preferred gender. It was like getting to live a life I didn't have, even briefly. I've never had a game give me nostalgia for things I've never personally experienced before and relationships I didn't actually have. I look forward to your future works! Thanks again.❤

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❀ Hello! I'm absolutely smitten with both Our Life games, and I'm really excited for the development of the second version! I'm very happy with how inclusive you all are in regards of different cultures and body types / appearances, as someone who is plus-sized myself it feels really nice seeing Tamarack being the same. I hope you have a nice day! <3 ❀

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Hey! Just found out there’s an official tumblr and just wanted to say, the game is super awesome! The first time I played it it mostly out of boredom (and because it was free) and I was kind of planning to clown on it for being A Dating Sim, but as I played I figured out there’s a was a lot there, and I Quickly figured out that this was one of the first times in anything like this that it let me pick options that were… well, not “normal”, I guess?

When I realized you could chose to be nonverbal, or upset at fire works, or upset about plans changing, or even just choosing not wanting to be touched! everytime it happened I got so genuinely happy, especially with how the others react to you. Even if you can’t put a name to it, I’ve not found a game like this that’s let’s you act this nurodivergent. And It means a whole lot, like a Whole lot. I could probably go on forever, but I just wanted you to know that I absolutely love playing and getting to choose options like that, it’s made OL real important to me, and the few friends I’ve dragged into it too, so, thanks! Keep up the awesome work! I’m really excited to play the new one as soon as I can!

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I don't have a question :) I just want to say that Our Life is one of the best things to ever happen to me and I am so, SO excited for Now and Forever, as it takes place in a much more 'me' setting (beautiful forest, lots of rainy weather). I really hope the series just continues to grow, with Our Life 3, 4 and beyond. There's so much potential for different settings, scenarios, and relationships and I look forward to all you do in the future :) Thank you so much for the best escape from reality

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Bro this game has made me so unexpectedly emotional and question who I choose as my friends. I absolutely love Cove. So thank you for killing my taste in real men and for making such an impactful game. I am definitely buying the DLC. 💜

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So like I had to erase Our Life a while ago since I needed more space for other game and of course I did it after finish it, and when I tell you I did it crying is by no way an exaggeration. I love your game so much and it make me so happy to the point I felt incomplete when I finally reached the end so now seen how you guys are giving us bonus “playrounds” (and one of this is even the long waited wedding!!) I be honest with you.... it sorta makes me wanna cry again because I’ll be able to see not only my boy again but the entire family and- yisus- it just makes me so happy.

I guess I’m resume what i meant to say is, thank you. For creating this game and for still coming back to give us more content 🤲🏼🌹 (and also I beg you don’t make me incredibly nostalgic at the en because I swear I don’t know if I could emotionally and mentally take it, sound like a joke but it’s a cry for mercy)

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Thank you for having positive fat representation ❤️ fat bodies are beautiful and if they were more normalised in media I think there wouldn't be so much fat phobia. You guys always amaze me 🥰

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uhh this may sound weird or something but i just wanna show some appreciation to yall, our life helped me through some really bad times   and even helped me find out my identity, so, thanks a lot, i love you all <3

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So I just finished Step 3, I recently discovered this game and binged it for these past 3 days, and I really enjoyed it. Irl I've haven't had a close relationship with anyone romantically. But playing Our Life and sticking by Cove's side has made me feel more loved than I ever had in my life, and I bawled my eyes out while the credits were rolling. I know this is probably a weird ask for you to receive, but I wanted to let you know how much your story that you created has positively impacted my life. Thank you for making me feel loved, and I cannot wait for the next and final chapter to Cove's story!

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hi! i just wanted to thank you so much for creating the world of our life: beginning and always!!! it's brought me so much joy and it's made me so happy, it's officially one of my comfort games and i genuinely cannot thank you enough for making it

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I wanted to tell you for a while, but never thought it was important enough - this game changed my life. It made me realize my sexuality, it helped me see the things I want in life and it - just brought so much comfort for me. To see it end gives me such a bittersweet feeling, but it'll always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for all your hard work - thank you for giving me something to go back to when life becomes too much! Step 4 was beyond great!

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I really love how Cove’s feelings are portrayed about his parents’ divorce, it hit very close to home for me since I was in a similar position to Cove in Step 1. His feelings evolved and changed over time in a realistic way in each Step, and I really admired how the writing nailed it. Also, I loved how the story and art created the feeling of the perfect childhood summer of a lifetime, one that you hold close to your heart and think of fondly for the rest of your life. Thank you & the Our Life team for the incredible game, I can’t wait for the wedding DLC!

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[a-lil-perspective]

Papa Hunter may not be the greatest of cooks around, but he knows backwards and forwards what recipes makes the Junior Hunters feel better. The right chicken soup with just enough thyme when they're sick. The uj cake is not too overwhelming and doesn't have the nuts that Hunter Junior #3 doesn't like for cozy winter days at home. The special birthday pancakes. The mashed potatoes that are somehow better than anyone else's at holidays. The special secret noodle dish that they only have when Cyare isn't around that Crosshair also loves, but will never admit (Hunter Junior #2 is the only one with this knowledge and is sworn to secrecy). And finally the cinnamon toast he always makes when someone has a bad day or a booboo or just needs a little mood boost. Even Auntie likes it and it's the closest she gets to liking Hunter and even appreciates that he never remarks on it, just quietly makes it when he senses she needs it. (Sorry if that last one is too much, it just makes me sad that she dislikes Hunter so hard when I'm sure he's trying to make up for bad decisions and regrets of the past. Do I want everyone to be friends and have a happy ending? Darn tooting. But feel free to ignore it.)

His recipes are simple and unfussy but they always turn out juuuuuuuust right and hit the spot, especially for his little batch.

OKAY FIRST OFF I NEED TO SAY. I absolutely love your takes, how well you know these characters and how you just nail it every time. It shows a lot of thought and effort put into my little universe (bless your sweet soul I’m so sorry XD) and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. Like literally I’m blown away. You just understand the dynamics so well and it gives me some comfort, knowing that my stuff must make sense in some capacity; too often I feel like I struggle to articulate myself and it’s a real burden for me. So anyway I just wanted to say thank you.

ALSO it’s crazy to me, that even though I haven’t openly named all the girls yet (because I’m still deciding on some names XD) I’ve got all their personalities down, and it’s so wild to me that you just inherently know their personalities despite me having provided the bare minimal. (Ex: Hunter Junior #2 being the secret bearer which is ACCURATE because Nessa is a good sweet girl. Absolutely precious. And Hunter Junior #3 being picky (Raya is a delightful handful XD) it just blows my mind. You are awesome.

NOW ONTO THE ASK THAT I LOVE WITH ALL MY HEART.

Yes Hunter is a subpar cook BUT as you said, he knows the fan favorites down to a tee. The A+ thyme chicken soup when they’re sick. The perfectly mellow Uj cake.

ALSO THE SUPER SECRET NOODLE DISH WHICH FACILITATES THEIR NOODLE SHOP STARTUP. IT WAS HUNTER’S OBSCURE RECIPE EVERYBODY. GIVE IT UP.

AND MY FAVORITE FAVORITE BIT WITH AUNTIE.

Please do not be sorry for this!! As I said I adore the depth you go into; it feels like my own thoughts broadcasted back at me and it’s such a comfort and delight.

Although it made me SAD in the best way. Yes Delana has a lot of hard feelings towards Hunter and yes he is trying so hard to make amends for his past regrets. And while they’ll never have a fully-fledged relationship there is some kindredness between them that is very rich.

Hunter delivers some of his famous cinnamon toast to a certain new mama after she’s just had Asher. :)) Scores some points with Cross there.

[broadwayandnetflix]

Done - Bo Burnham x Reader

Warnings: Language 

Request:  can you make like something where bo gets mad and no fluff just pure angst

Theme: ANGST.

Word Count: 1.3k

A/N: y’all I am so sorry about this one. but the lovely @asi-42 requested this and I really hope I delivered with the angst! more fics coming soon! 

How do you help someone who’s crumbling in front of you? How do you help them when they want nothing to do with you?

Or at least that’s what it felt like when you were dating Bo. You felt clueless, and the idea of helping him with whatever he was going through just didn’t seem doable.

His temper was heightened, and exhaustion practically clung to the man. It stuck to his hair, his ragged clothes, and his heart. You wanted to wring him of it all, pull him close, hold him tight.

Except, it didn’t seem like he wanted that, or not from you at least. That damn guest house making it seem as though the man was a million miles away from you.

Even when he was inside the shared house, his eyes never quite reached yours, his shoulders often tensed and uncomfortable. It broke your heart into two, seeing him pull away from you.

You had asked him what he wanted, what he needed from you. What you could do to help him, but all you would receive was silence.

Deafening silence.

Those once adoring blue eyes that used to be reserved for you, and only you. Now faded, dull, and drained. It made you hurt in ways you didn’t even know you could break.

But nevertheless, you loved him. Without question, you did, and of course, he loved you. He just had to be tired of you, tired of whatever thing you two were doing.

You wondered what you had done, what finally set off that flag in his brain. Did you lose your appeal? Did he find something else to bring him joy?

It definitely wasn’t that special that he was working on. Or maybe it was. You weren’t sure, but with each morning he left you to your own devices, you couldn’t seem to shake that thought.

Even at night when you saw the lights flashing through the window shutters, the muffled singing, and the discarded clattering of equipment.

You knew you didn’t stand a chance, that is, until it all went pitch black. Or the guest house did, for that matter.

You had been sitting at the kitchen table, nursing a glass of wine. Sometimes you felt pathetic waiting for something that was never gonna come.

Except you still held your breath, hoping that maybe he’d come in and give you a kiss. Praying that he’d touch you again, give you some form of love and care.

Anything, really.

Yet along with the darkness came the silence. Maybe Bo had used the pull-out bed was your first thought, or perhaps he was coming outside.

Yet still nothing.

That is until you had heard the sounds of what appeared to be muffled cries. A sound that sounded a little bit too real. You felt yourself rise out of your seat before becoming hesitant.

Should you go to him? Or was that gonna make things worse? You sighed. Why did you doubt the man you loved? Everything was gonna be okay; it’s Bo. Your Bo. The man who loved you.

You knocked on the door of the guest house awkwardly, hearing the scuffling of feet and sniffling. It made your heart drop a bit, realizing that it was real.

He really had been crying.

The door opens with a click, and you can briefly see some form of relief flicker in his eyes. Only for a second, as they hardened a bit, back to those lifeless blues that you had grown accustomed to.

“Yeah?” he croaks, leaning against the doorframe.

“Are you okay? I’m just getting worried about you sweetie.” you say, shifting your feet anxiously.

“No, yeah I’m fine. Just go back to bed, I’m just working.” Bo mutters, not even daring to meet your eyes.

“Are you sure?” you pry before his eyes snap up at yours.

“Are you daft? I said I’m fine, now please just let me get back to work please.” he barked, going to close the door.

Except something in him stops as he carefully looks down at you, with an expression you couldn’t quite decipher.

His figure practically looming over you; he had never made you feel so small. It almost made you jolt, and he had noticed. You could see him soften slightly before rubbing his hands through his hair.

He looked like an absolute stranger to you. This wasn’t your Bo; this was someone else.

Whether it was his hair absolutely disheveled, the bags hanging under his eyes. Or the unkempt beard that held onto his chin.

“I-I think I need a break.” he said quietly, after some time.

You felt yourself lighten up a bit, clearly from the fact that he was potentially putting his project at rest.

Yet his expression told you anything but that. A sigh escaped his lips as he tried to articulate the words to you.

“I need a break from us. I just can’t do this anymore. I can barely take care of myself, let alone you.” Bo’s words hung in the air.

They didn’t mean to hurt you; you knew he’d never intentionally hurt you. Except they did, he broke you.

This didn’t feel real. It certainly didn’t feel right, and you wanted to snap up from your bed. As if this was all some poorly designed dream and that Bo was still in love with you.

Except this wasn’t a dream, and Bo was still in front of you exasperatedly, trying to stand still.

It was like time had stood still, and your body, much like molasses, was stuck to the patio floor. Dwarfed by Bo’s taller figure, who was fidgeting, trying to figure out what to do with you.

“Okay.” you managed to whisper through your fog-like state.

“Okay?” he asks incredulously.

“Yes, Bo, Okay.” you reply matter of factly, the words bitter on your tongue.

His eyes darken just a tiny bit, giving you a flicker of annoyance. Clearly, he’d expected something more from you. A fit, maybe? Anything that would salvage the relationship.

“Fine, thanks for your understanding.” he scoffs as if he couldn’t believe you.

You honestly thought you had it in you too, to fight for the two of you, but much like Bo. The pandemic had worn you out; you were tired. Forcing someone to love you wasn’t on your list of priorities.

You took a step backward, away from the guest house. Away from Bo. Bo watching your every move, analyzing you like a fucking hawk.

It all stung. It did. The idea of losing Bo like this was downright devastating. Once the door to the house closed behind you, it hit you.

Tears stream rapidly down your cheeks as you try to cope with an empty house and relationship.

Bo had grown tired of you. Not his special, not the pandemic, you. Even if he wanted a break, what would happen then? Would he come back and be met with the same realization?

That you were just another box on his long list of priorities? Just being pushed off to the side, so he can check you off when it suits him best.

You placed whatever you could fit into a suitcase that you had used when the two of you went traveling. Your vision blurred with your tears while you tried to flee as quickly as you could.

Did you love him? Of course. Did you want him to be happy? Always. Except, it appeared that you wouldn’t be the person that would help him achieve everything he needed.

You shoved everything you could into your car and started it, giving yourself a second to breathe. Not even noticing as Bo stood by the window watching as you hit the gas and drove away from him, from your relationship.

Not allowing yourself to notice him wondering if he really did make a mistake. If he really did fuck up big this time.

[samuel-de-champagne-problems]

Honest and Truly

Summary: Spencer has his prom 10 years late, but none of that matters when it's with the girl of his dreams.

Word Count: 4.8 k

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female (She/Her)-- Fluff

CW: Minimal vulgar language (PG-13)

Author's Note: This just might be my most favorite thing I've written in a very long time :) Also listen to the song I linked, it makes the title and the ending make more sense! thank you to @spookydrreid and @writhingintheroses for helping me a particular scene!!

Add yourself to my taglist! It makes it much easier for me :)

Honest and Truly

“A prom?” Spencer asks, realizing that the conversation had entered uncharted territory, a territory in which he had not a single clue how to navigate. Spencer, being a preteen in high school, never attended prom.

“Yes, Reid. A prom,” Penelope says, staring at him over the many monitors and stuffed cats that littered her desk, “It’s going to be so much fun!” she says, excitedly.

“That sounds like, uh, I’ll have plans that night,” Spencer tells Penelope, spinning around in the swivel chair as he eats his turkey and cheese sandwich. He usually enjoys their lunches together, but when Penelope gets an idea in her head, there’s no stopping her.

@s“Now I don’t believe that for a second, Reid. The only time that you have plans is when you’re with Y/N. And Y/N is going to be at this prom,” Garcia says, her pink glasses sliding down her nose. She winks at Reid, almost like she enjoys watching him squirm.

“How do you know that she’s going? Did she say she’s going?” Spencer asks, unable to conceal his eagerness that Y/N could be attending. Spencer might hate dancing and those fancy shoes that are too tight on his toes, but all that can be talked away if Y/N is there.

“Yes, she’s going because you’re asking her. That and I’m making everyone go,” Penelope says matter of factly.

Spencer opens his mouth, attempting to talk away Penelope’s suggestion. But Spencer Reid is a smart man and he knows better than trying to argue his way out with Penelope. Especially when it comes to Y/N. He might have an excellent poker face, but Spencer can’t hide his love for Y/N.

“I’m not going to ask her. You know she’ll think it’s because-” Spencer says, prepping for a long winded rant before the door of Penelope’s office swings open.

Y/N, with two coffees in hand, floats into the room like she’s walking on air. Or maybe it’s Spencer’s mind that’s floating when Y/N walks in. He can never tell. Whenever he’s near her, it’s like everything is sweeter, lighter and airier. Wordlessly, she passes the coffee to Spencer. Feeling her fingertips graze his reminds him of how pathetic he must be. He nods, telling her thanks, knowing that he’s unable to fully articulate just how grateful he is for the littlest things.

“Who are you not going to ask and to where, Spence?” Y/N says, leaning against the filing cabinets and sipping her coffee. Penelope, never one to be quiet, silently watches as Spencer and Y/N converse. Spencer looks up at her, feeling that light and airy feeling again. He brushes his hair that falls against his forehead nervously thinking of an answer.

“I- uh, I was thinking of asking my mother to come stay with me for a couple of weeks. You know, she hasn’t seen DC in a couple of years. And I do have some personal days banked,” Spencer says, telling Y/N a small white lie.

“She’s in Vegas, right?” Y/N asks, interested in what Spencer is saying, which is something that he’s still not used to. Spencer nods, smiling awkwardly.

“Yeah, she says that she likes the heat,” Spencer says, hating how formal and cold the conversation sounds. It’s normally flowing with easy and familiarity, but something is wedged between them. Penelope, long forgotten by the pair, types rapidly on her keyboard.

“You know, Spence. If you’re up for it maybe we can have lunch or meet at Elmwood Park. I’d love to meet the woman that made my favorite person,” she says, staring directly into Spencer’s eyes. Her stare is so intense that it’s like she’s looking into his soul. He thinks that if she looks deep enough she’ll see her own reflection because his soul belongs to her.

“I-I uh,” Spencer says, immediately thinking that he should actually invite his mother out for a visit, “I think that’s a good idea. She likes the sites and all,” he tells her nervously, trying to ease his beating heart.

He’s her favorite person.

Out of all the people in this city, this world. He’s her favorite person. Spencer, a lover of math, is tempted to figure out the odds of being his favorite person’s favorite person. He knows it’s slim. He knows it’s rare. It’s something magical and Spencer is terrified he’s going to ruin it. He’s terrified he’s going to fuck something up that’s not even his.

“It’s a date,” Y/N says, turning to Penelope, who’s still long forgotten, “Oh, Penny, you need to yell at Morgan for me. He ate my leftovers,” she tells Penelope, who feigns horror, “And now I don’t have lunch”

“How dare he!” Penelope says, her exaggerated response inciting chuckles, “he can get away with murder because he’s pretty,” she says, shaking her head.

He knows that she’s pretending to be disappointed, but he still doesn’t like to see it. Spencer unwraps the other half of his turkey and cheese sandwich and hands it to Y/N. She looks surprised, as if Spencer just handed her a million bucks.

“Spence, you don’t have to,” Y/N says, softly, handing back the half of the sandwich, “It’s your sandwich, I don’t want you to feel-”

“Eat it, Y/N,” Spencer says firmly, looking straight at Y/N, “You need to eat something. We both live off coffee as it is,” he says, hoping that Y/N will take the sandwich.

He’s looking straight at her and she’s looking straight at him. Spencer wonders if he looks deep enough he’ll reach her soul. He dares to think that if he can find her soul, he’ll stare at his face. He’s her favorite person after all, that’s got to count for something.

“Thanks, Spence,” Y/N says, smiling softly, “You make the best sandwiches,” she tells him, taking a bite of the sandwich as Garcia’s eyes flit from Spencer to Y/N. Back and forth, she watches the pair engage in the world’s best miscommunication.

“Y/N, did you hear? I’m throwing a prom!” Garcia says excitedly, hoping that Y/N’s reaction will be more enthusiastic than Spencer’s.

“A prom?” Y/N asks, unconvincingly, “God, I hated my prom. I got punched spilled all over my dress and my date tried to sneak alcohol into the banquet hall. It was a shitshow,” Y/N says, remembering the less than happy memories from high school.

“I didn’t go to prom. You know, between being a 12 year old and a dork,” Spencer says, self deprecatingly, “It’s not the ideal scenario, but I am familiar with the cultural significance of proms in American high school,” Spencer says, speaking to no one in particular, yet looking at Y/N directly.

“Maybe we’ll both get the prom night we deserve, Spence,” Y/N offers, tossing out her wax paper wrapper. She walks past him and it’s like the air is sweeter. He believes in science, but loves magic. Y/N is magic.

“Maybe,” Spencer says, refusing to make eye contact with Penelope, “you know, sorry to uh, cut this short. I have some paperwork to finish. Hotch’s been on me all day about it. So, uh, see you later,” he says, walking out of Penelope's office like a bat out of hell.

He tries to ignore the knowing stares from Penelope and Y/N’s confusion as he ducks out and walks into the bullpen. Spencer doesn’t have paperwork. He finished all his paperwork by 11:12 am. But what Spencer does have is a flight from Vegas to Quantico to book.

And prom shopping.

___

As it turns out, Spencer doesn’t know much about teenage American culture. Sure he’s seen 90s movies that Y/N forced him to watch. But it was quite difficult to pay attention when all he could feel was Y/N’s fingers brushing up against his in their shared bucket of popcorn or her head laying against his shoulder when she got tired.

He doesn’t know much of anything when it comes to romance. But he knows that he loves Y/N— and hopefully that’s enough. He still hasn’t asked her if she’d go with him. Honestly, he’s not too sure why he even has to ask her in the first place. She’s going to be there already, but Garcia and Morgan convinced him that it’s part of the so-called “Prom Experience”

“Spence,” Y/N says, she’s perched on the tall bar stool and rests her elbows on her kitchen island, “did you find a suit yet? I was thinking that we can go to that vintage store on Rock Ave. They have a surprisingly good size selection, and I think that this whole vintage thing fits your aesthetic really well,”

“My aesthetic?” Spencer questions, again lost at sea.

“You know, you’re like nerdy chic. Equal parts dorky and equal parts handsome,” she tells him. He feels his cheeks burn at her words.

Handsome

“I don’t know if that’s a compliment or not,” Spencer says, eyeing Y/N over the rim of his hot coffee.

“It is,” Y/N says like it’s the easiest thing in the world. Like him being handsome is just as obvious as him being dorky, “And get your wallet. We’re going to the vintage store,”

Spencer has a hate-love relationship with weekends. He loves spending time with Y/N where it was so easy to pretend that she loves him as he loves her. He hates the weekends for the same reason he loves them. Spencer knows that it’s all fake. It’s a façade of the truth.

“Spence! You’d look great in this,” Y/N suggests, holding up a gray sports coat, “I think it will match your eyes perfectly,”

“If you think so, Y/N,” Spencer says, nodding his head in agreement. She continues eyeing him as if she’s imagining what he’d look like in the jacket. He has to admit, it’s a very nice jacket.

“Come on, Spence. There’s a mirror over in the corner. Try it on for me,” she requests and not even a second later Spencer finds himself being dragged by the hand to try on the suit jacket.

Y/N holds the jacket open for him as he slips it on through his arms. He’s surprised to realize that it fits perfectly. He looks into the mirror, staring at his face and Y/N, who tugs and smooths the jacket. Spencer can’t look too much longer because if he does the lines between reality and fantasy will be difficult to distinguish. As much as he wants to stare into the mirror all day long, pretending that this is real, he much rather it actually be real. But wishing and dreaming only ends up with battle wounds and broken hearts.

“You look very handsome, Spencer. Very handsome,” Y/N says, staring into the mirror too now. But she’s not looking at the jacket, she’s looking at him. The beat of silence lasts longer than what’s comfortable, “Um, I think, I saw some pants that would look good on you, with this jacket, I mean,” she says, stumbling over her words. She’s not looking in the mirror any more, her gaze is noticeably away from Spencer and the mirror.

“Okay, uh, whatever you think, Y/N,” Spencer says, “I’m not even sure why I agreed to this thing. I don’t dance,” he says, regretting his choice to go to Penelope’s prom, but feeling guilty for maybe disappointing Y/N all in one breath.

“Did you ask her yet?” Y/N asks, holding up a pair of similarly gray colored pants. She must notice his confusion, “You know Austin, the woman you heroically saved. Does any of it ring a bell, Spence?” Y/N teases. Spencer feels his cheeks burn and his heart tighten, that happens a lot around Y/N.

“Oh Austin, uh no. She wasn’t interested in me, after all,” Spencer says, shifting his weight and staring at his converse, “I mean, I should have seen it coming. It’s transference, that’s like Psych 101,” he says, feeling strange. It was odd when Austin broke up with him, even if you can consider it breaking up. He felt a strange sense of relief when it happened, like a weight was lifted off his shoulders.

Y/N clicks her tongue in annoyance as she walks over to Spencer. Tugging slightly on the sleeves of the jacket she says, “well she’s not as smart as I thought she was. You have to be a complete fool to let someone like you go,” she says quietly. She’s standing too close, looking too beautiful, and seeming too perfect for Spencer to not be completely enamoured.

Then it breaks, like shattered glass. The rosey glasses are lifted, leaving only cheeks that sting with nervousness and hearts the yearn for something a little more tangible.

“Stop staring at me and go try it on,” Y/N says, handing him the pair of pants, “Oh and I’m going to look for a vest and a tie to match. This store is unbelievable,” she tells him, pushing him into the makeshift dressing room.

Spencer puts on the pants, which fit, despite being maybe an inch or two loose in the waist. He looks into the tall mirror, which is noticeably empty without Y/N standing with him. A floating hand, belonging to Y/N appears. She holds a burgundy tie and a dark brown vest, both of which are very Spencer. He smiles slightly, strangely happy that Y/N has picked something out that’s perfect for him.

“Tell me when you’re decent,” she says, her voice muffled by the curtain that separates them. He sticks his head out of the curtain, his eyes immediately finding Y/N’s.

“Ohh, Spence, you look amazing. Very handsome,” she says, her hands clasped around the tie, tugging just like she did with his suit jacket before, “What do you think?” she asks, looking at him curiously.

“It’s nice,” Spencer offers, approaching this like he does everything: cautiously, “I do like the texture,” he says, running his hands up and down the sleeves of the jacket.

“You look more than nice, Spence. I know I’ve said it like 30 times, but you look very handsome,” she says. Spencer hopes that she means it. He needs something to be real. Sometimes besides what he feels, because what he feels is the realest thing in the world.

“It’s nice to hear,” Spencer says, “you know from someone who’s not my mother,” he jokes, shrugging off the jacket and grabbing the hanger from Y/N.

“You deserve to hear it,” Y/N says so softly Spencer wonders if she’s saying it all. That beat of silence, followed by the awkwardness is back.

“So, uh, I saw a dress that I’m going to try on,” Y/N tells him, her gaze shifting everywhere but Spencer’s eyes.

“I’ll go pay for this,” Spencer says, walking back into the dressing room and the mirror that lies to his face.

___

Back in Y/N’s car, Spencer shifts in the passenger seat trying to find a way to sit comfortably while holding his suit jacket, pants and vest. Y/N hangs up her dress, that’s wrapped in a gown bag. She wouldn’t let Spencer see the dress, despite her practically picking out his entire outfit.

“So what’s next,” Spencer asks, as Y/N gets into the car. She smiles over at him sheepishly, leading Spencer to think she’s got another trick up her sleeve.

“I’ve got a confession, Spence. And please don’t hate me for it,” Y/N says, her voice coming out a little nervous as she eyes Spencer.

“I don’t think I could ever hate you, even if I tried. And I’m certain I’ll never have to,” he says softly, resting his hand over hers on the console. He rubs the back of her hand gently, thinking about just how easy things are with her. If he could only be a little braver, maybe then the mirror wouldn’t be so empty.

“Okay. I knew that things didn’t work out with you and Austin. I overheard you telling Derek,” Y/N confesses, “And I know that it makes me a horrible friend or whatever, but I’m sorry that I eavesdropped,”

“Oh, uh how much did you hear?” Spencer asks, suddenly quite nervous. He can feel his heart drop, waiting for the moment when Y/N laughs at the thought of her loving him. He knows that it’s not fair to her, but then again all is fair is love and war.

“Enough to know that you’re still hung up or or someone else. I left once my conscience got the better of me. Once a Girl Scout, always a Girl Scout,” she says, making the three finger salute that’s common in scouting, “I just wanted to hear it from you, you know you’re my favorite person and all,” she says, a frown forming.

“I think, uh,” Spencer says, “That I was just a little embarrassed. You know how Derek and Penelope and Emily and JJ can get. It’s basically just you and Hotch who aren’t jumping down my throat about being, you know, alone,” he says, chuckling awkwardly.

“They just want to help you, Spence. In their own ways, but I’m always on Team Spencer. You never got to worry about that,” Y/N offers, squeezing his hand.

He considers what she says, not responding verbally, but nodding his head. He hasn’t ever had someone on his “team”, so it’s strange. But a good kind of strange.

“Spence, you okay? I wanted to give you something. To be truthful, I’ve been thinking about how I was going to do this for awhile,”

“Ask me what?” he questions, wondering what she has in store. He watches as Y/N rummages in his bag, clearly looking for something. He’s thoroughly confused when she pulls out a TI-84.

“What on earth?” Spencer says, as she places the calculator in his hands. Her sly grin, beaming up at him only further proves his point: his heart just beats faster around her.

“Just shut and press the on button. You’d think that a genius would know how to work a calculator,” she comments, rolling her eyes playfully.

“You know, I never used these. I can just do it in my head faster,” Spencer says, winking at Y/N when she pushes him teasingly.

“God, Spencer just turn it on!” she demands, very apparently getting more and more impatient.

He turns the calculator on and is brought to a green screen that has a picture of a graph. Spencer raises his eyebrow, as if to ask Y/N for the next direction.

“Press the graph button,” she says, getting quieter as Spencer looks at her.

He presses the button that she said to, waiting for whatever is supposed to happen. Spencer watches as the screen draws four black lines running parallel to each other. A curved line is drawn on the first two black lines, forming the letters “P” and “R”. The screen continues to draw, making an oval that looks like an “O” and the last two parallel lines are joined together with a “v” shape, forming the letter “M”. He takes a second glance, reading the 4 letter word slowly.

P-R-O-M

“Well?” she asks, waiting for his answer.

He’s speechless. Spencer blinks. It’s like his brain has stopped working. It’s a prom, a stupid prom that’s 10 years too late. But it’s the girl of dreams that’s asking him. And that’s the stuff those rom-coms he couldn’t pay attention to are made of.

“I mean, of course. Of course, Y/N,” Spencer says, dropping the calculator into the cup holder and leaning in to hug Y/N.

His heart stops again. Falling into that tricky habit of either speeding up or stopping when she’s around. He thinks he’s ready to implode when she pecks his cheek. Her lips don’t linger, hardly touching his skin for it to be considered a kiss.

“I don’t think I’d want to go with anyone else,” she says, mumbling into his skin. She seals his fate with her lips against his skin. Never again will Spencer imagine what it’s like to have her lips against his skin. Even though it’s a fraction of the time he’d want, it’s tattooed in his mind.

“I’m not much of a dancer, by the way,” Spencer says, reluctantly letting go and sitting back into the passenger’s seat, “so don’t expect too much,” he jokes.

“Oh you better watch it, Doctor Reid. I’m getting you on the dance floor, even if you hate it,” Y/N says, smiling as she backs out of the parking spot and turns into the street.

Spencer looks out the window, thinking to himself that there’s probably nothing he can hate if he’s doing it with Y/N.

--

Spencer didn’t go to prom in high school. He didn’t do a lot of the traditional things that most former high schoolers reminisce about at his age. He didn’t go to football games or have a best friend to make lifelong memories with.

He didn’t have any of that, until now.

But it’s prom night, 10 years late. His hands are sweaty and his mouth feels dry. Spencer wasn’t this nervous for even his first day at the BAU all those years ago. He tries to fix the burgundy tie that Y/N picked out at the vintage store. It looks crooked and twisted. Nothing like when Y/N tied perfectly in the store for him. He supposes that he can wait till she comes to pick him up.

The mirror, again, is noticeably empty without Y/N standing beside him. He can get lost in there, thinking about her standing with him. He does, because it feels like seconds later when he hears a rapid knocking on his apartment door.

Standing on the other side of the door is Y/N. She wears a sage green dress that looks like it’s made of softest silk. He smiles at her, not sure if he can trust his words. Spencer doesn’t think he’ll be able to do much thinking when all he can focus on is the tiny straps that rest on her shoulders or how the sage green compliments her skin tone.

“You look, god. You’re beautiful,” Spencer says, partly under his breath partly aloud to Y/N, “so beautiful,” he says again, focusing on her eyes.

“And you’re looking very dashing in that suit, Spence,” she says, pushing her way in, “do you need help with your tie?” she asks, looking at the tie he holds in his hand.

“Yes, please,” he says sheepishly. He holds out the burgundy colored tie, but takes his hand back as an idea crosses his mind, “oh wait here, I’ll be right back,” Spencer says, walking quickly to his bedroom.

“Alright,” Y/N says sceptically, “Don’t ditch me, Reid!” she calls out from the living room.

Spencer returns, hiding the new tie behind his back. He places an olive green tie with dusty blue and pink flowers in her hands. He notices her smile grow, realizing that he’s picking a new tie for a reason.

“I might not know much about prom, but I think that we’re supposed to match. You know, since we’re going together,” he offers, “but I need help putting it on,” he says.

“We’re going to match!” Y/N says excitedly. As she unbuttons the first button on Spencer’s cream colored shirt he holds his breath. He can’t breathe when she’s this close. Her fingers are quick and nimble as they feed the tie around his neck and elegantly create a knot. If Spencer wasn’t already in love, he knows that watching her eyes twinkle and her tongue poke out as she concentrates would make him declare it then and there.

“So handsome,” she says, using that quiet voice that makes it seem like she’s talking to herself rather than him, “I can’t wait to dance with you,” she tells him tugging the tie.

“I’m not going to be good, Y/N. I’m going to be a fool,” Spencer says, lamenting already about what an idiot he’s going to look like in front of Y/N.

“That’s nonsense, Spence,” Y/N says, waving him away with a toss of her hand, “You’re going to be the best dancer there,” she tells him rubbing her hand up and down his arm, like she did at the store.

“Would you believe it, if I told you I never danced with anyone?” Spencer says, being the most honest and true he’s ever been.

“We can change that,” Y/N says, stepping towards Spencer and linking her hand in his. She squeezes, restarting and stopping his heart all in one go, “oh wait we need music,” she says, feeling around for where her phone usually is.

“I got it,” Spencer says, stepping away from Y/N. He walks over to the small record player in the corner of his living room. He doesn’t play it too often, the records he has were once his mother’s and they’re too painful to play most days. But Spencer’s sure that he can make every exception to all his rules for Y/N. Maybe he’ll get some happy memories out of it.

“Going old school I see,” Y/N says, teasingly as Spencer walks over grabbing both his hands in hers, “everything about you is very charming, Doctor Reid,” she says, softly swaying to the jazzy tunes of Sarah Vaughan.

“I’m not too sure about that,” Spencer says, following Y/N’s lead as she floats around his living room, carrying him everywhere she goes. She rests her head against his chest and Spencer swears that she’s going to get a concussion from how hard his heart beats.

They’re alone, no audience to witness the moment that Spencer wonders if he can dare to call intimate. It’s intimate to him because every moment with Y/N is intimate. Maybe if someone had told Spencer that dancing like this could bring pure paradise all the way from your fingertips to your eyelashes, maybe he would have done it sooner.

“You’re quite the romantic, Spencer,” Y/N says as the song comes to a close. The record player stops, but they don’t stop swaying, “And you told me you couldn’t dance,” she scoffs lightly, with her head still resting against his chest.

“Is that okay with you?” He asks, “me being romantic,”

“I don’t think that I’d want it any other way, Spencer,” Y/N says, removing her head from his chest and her hand from his. She cups his face, touching him lightly. Y/N holds him like he aches to be held. It’s gentle and tender, yet leaves him desiring more.

“Honest?” Spencer asks, daring to be brave.

“Truly,” she responds.

Spencer shifted slightly, so he can also hold her face in his hands. Y/N drops her hands though, wrapping them around Spencer’s waist to pull them closer together. Spencer’s phantom fingers are like that dance around that dance around Y/N’s skin.

It’s Y/N that initiates the kiss. She moves in slowly and tenuously, looking just as nervous as Spencer is. He’s shaky slightly, the anticipation getting to his head when all he can see is Y/N’s eyes looking into his and all he can think about is how soft her skin is. It’s all he’s ever wanted to think about. Her lips are soft and pillowy.

But it’s more than that.

Kissing her is everything to Spencer. It’s the breathy sighs she lets out as he moves his hands and rests them securely behind her neck. It’s the peachy scent of her perfume that’s so sweet and strong it should be overwhelming when all it is, is intoxicating. Kissing her is dizzying and terrifying, but wonderful and sweet. He can’t tell where his lips start and where her’s end, but it doesn’t matter.

He doesn’t open his eyes because he knows he’s facing the mirror. But unlike before, he doesn’t need a mirror to know what he’s looking at. He can look into his soul for that.

“Very romantic,” Y/N says, smiling through the quick kisses she plants on his jawline, “I always thought you’d be a romantic,” he tells him.

Spencer brushes his thumb over Y/N’s bottom lip. It’s puffy and bitten from his kisses, but he thinks that it would be a shame to not bite and kiss it some more. He smiles so hard he knows that he’ll wake up in the morning and his mouth will hurt. But that’s the least of his worries if Y/N’s there to kiss it better.

“Honest?” Spencer says, calling back to the song, that’s now their song.

“Truly,”

---

TAGLIST (ADD YOURSELF HERE)

@shemarmooresfedora @willowrose99 @calm-and-doctor @spideygenius @measure-in-pain @nomajdetective @spencerreid9 @saspencereid @laurakirsten0502 @winifrede @muffin-cup @idonotexiste @pastelbabygirl19 @strawberryspence @g0lden-cth @spookydrreid

[loverofallthingssarah]

In the garden, we meet again

Synopsis: Billie is dating Delia's daughter and Y/n wants to tell her mom that they are dating.

WARNING: none

Word count: 1.4K

A/N: sorry for any mistakes

You see Billie Dean Howard make her way to your mom, Cordelia Goode, in the greenhouse as she normally does every Saturday morning. Your mom and Billie usually spend their Saturday afternoons gossiping and drinking tea. What your mom doesn’t know is after Billie leaves, you sneak out to go see Billie. For the last three months, Billie and you have been in a relationship. At first, you thought we were just messing around but a week ago when Billie told you she loved you for the first time. The feeling of pure joy and happiness hadn’t left your body since that night, but you knew you both had a hard decision to make.

“Hey, mom! Hi, Billie!” You say as you walk into the greenhouse and see them sitting at a patio table your mom put in for tea time with Billie. You walk closer to them and you notice Billie’s gaze grazing your body and you shiver in excitement.

“Hi sweetie, do you want to join Billie and me for tea?” Your mom asks politely and you nod as you scoot a chair closer to Billie.

Billie and Delia start gossiping about what’s been going on in their lives since their last Saturday tea and you sit there watching Billie’s lips move with conversation. Your eyes are glued to the tip of her tongue with each articulation. This didn’t go without notice to Billie and you feel her hand wrap around your thigh as she smirks while continuing the conversation with ease. You choke on your tea immediately at Billie’s boldness.

“Sweetheart, are you okay?” Your mom asks while reaching around patting your back.

“Yes, princess, are you okay?” Billie smirks. You roll your eyes as you start to recover, “y-yeah, I’m f-fine… but I think I-I’m going to go inside now. I hope you two have fun.”

“Oh we certainly will princess, but I hope to see you later,” Billie winks, “before I head home, of course.”

You head inside bypassing all the other witches until you make it into your room. Laying on the bed you think about how you’re going to have to sneak away with Billie tonight and lie to your mom. The realization of how much that sucks for her hurts you a bit and you know you have to discuss this with Billie. Hours pass as you just think more and more about the situation you’re in and how much you love and respect your mom and Billie. You’ve already made a decision but now you’ve got to tell Billie. It’s time to tell your mom about the relationship between you both, even if your mom had a hard time at first you knew she would eventually come around.

One thing to note about your mom, the supreme, is that her greatest accomplishment was being your mother. She would do anything and everything to give you the best life possible. If she knew Billie truly made you happy, she would accept it… you hoped. You hear your phone buzz, and you notice you have a text from Billie, ‘Delia and I just finished tea, transmute to my car, and let’s head home, princess.’ It gave you butterflies every time Billie referred to her house as your home, ‘Okay, baby. I’ll be right there.’

Quickly grabbing your things, you transmute to Billie Dean’s black Lexus, “My, my princess, how I missed you…”

“Miss Billie Dean Howard, you are quite the charmer aren’t you,” you say in an exaggerated New Orleans accent. You both burst out laughing as Billie pulls her car onto the road.

Billie and I pull up to her house. We go inside and sit on her plush couch to cuddle. I look over at her, “Billie… I think it’s time we tell my mom.”

“I don’t think that's a good idea, babydoll. She wouldn’t like what we have together. I love your mom. She is one of my dearest friends, and I don’t want to ruin either one of our relationships with her, y/n,” Billie explains thoughtfully.

“Baby, I understand your concerns, but I can’t keep lying to my mom about us. I can’t. She deserves more than that… from both of us,” you plead to Billie.

“No, I’m not telling your mom. End of story,” Billie says as if she is the only one to make decisions in this relationship. “You can’t just make those decisions by yourself, Billie. We are in a relationship and we have to talk about this. You can’t just cut me off and shut me out.”

“I’m not telling her, Y/n,” Billie answers again sternly. “Billie, be serio-,” you try to get out, “No, y/n. Absolutely not.”

You get up and start to grab my things and pack them up, Billie asks, “What are you doing, princess?”

“I’m going home,” you say curtly as you zip up your bag. Billie looks at you confused, “what, why?”

“Because I’m not going to keep sneaking around my mom like this. She deserves more than that and not just that, Billie. Because my mom can’t know about us, it's like the rest of the world can’t know about us, and I’m through with that. I… we… deserve more than that. So, until you figure out where your priorities lie, I’ll be at the academy. Come find me when you’re ready to be brave,” and without a second look, you transmute back to the coven to a cold and empty bed.

Weeks passed and you hadn’t heard from Billie, and you were avoiding her every Saturday when she was over. You weren’t hurt and a little embarrassed and just wasn’t ready to face her. Billie was due to be over in a few minutes and so you stood up from your stool in the greenhouse to make your way inside, your mom stopped you, “Sweetheart, I have to run out to pick up some things and I need you to keep Billie company until I get back, okay?”

“Mom, I really don’t think that a good ide-,” she interrupts you, “Perfect, thank you so much, Y/n. I’ll be back soon.”

You huff as you take your original seat as you wait for Billie to arrive, and soon enough you hear the familiar click of your Jimmy Choos.

“Oh, hi princess,” Billie says delicately as she sees you instead of Delia. “My mom just told me to keep you company while she ran errands. I didn’t really have much choice.”

Time passes slowly in silence, until, “Can we please talk, y/n? These past few weeks have been torture. I miss you, dearly,” Billie whispers out. “Billie I still feel the same way,” you say but Billie interjects, “I’m ready.”

“What?” you question. “I’m ready to tell, Delia. I’m ready to be brave, for you… for us…,” Billie says gently. You smile brightly, which ignites Billie’s pearly grin, “I love you, Y/n.” Billie pulls you closer to her as you reply with a simple, “I love you too.” Before you know it Billie's lips are attached to yours in the most passionate yet gentle kiss. You both are lost in the moment until you hear, “Looky here.”

You recognize the voice and your blood runs cold, “Mom?” Billie tenses as she realizes you’ve been caught, “Delia, I-.”

“Save it,” your mom says. You brace yourself for her to start yelling and freaking out but that never comes, “Did you both really think I was that oblivious to you two? I’ve known since the very beginning. Neither one of you are that sneaky, especially you Billie. I notice those touches, which I expect to stop when I’m around. And you, Y/n, you are my daughter. There is not one thing you do that I don’t know about.”

“Mom? You’re okay with this?” you question as Billie’s hand squeezes yours. “Well, at first it confused me a little. I’m not super happy with the age difference nor the fact you are my daughter and Billie is my best friend, but I’ve accepted the fact that you both make each other happy. And that’s all I can really ask for.”

You jump for joy and rush to your mom and pull her into a bear hug, “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“Be careful, princess or you’re going to break her, “ Billie says and you all chuckle. “But really, thank you, Delia. I really do love Y/n and I’m thrilled to know you’re accepting of you,” she whispers out to your mom as she comes closer to pull us all in a hug. “Of course, I love you both. Now, how about some tea?”

sfw taglist: @orchid-fairy @rainbow-hedgehog @twistedpoeticjustice @tissaias-lover @peggycarter-steverogers @magnificent-paulsonn @mrsdeanhoward @citizenoftheworld-stuff-blog @commanderspeach @lanawinters-ily @lntlmate @sapphicforsarahh @talulahmae @billiedeansgirl @dreamypqulson @goodeday2u