#I'm in love with herrrrrrrrr

[pinacoladamatata]

just rambling about my favorite tav below

She has a bad habit of casting feather fall and jumping off things especially during combat but they forget it only lasts for a minute and Astarion keeps having to catch (revive) her when they plummet to the ground bc he's the rogue and they only one w enough movement speed to get to her

Tavirr (not her real name) is the youngest daughter of Quenthel, 6th child out of 7, with one younger brother who is like 12, and she loves him very much. And she didn't want to flee her home but she did immediately after hesitating during her trial bc she knew Lolth would send someone after her. And she's convinced the tadpole is what's blocking lolth's assassins ability to know her location. So early on she is the only other person, aside from Astarion, who doesn't want to immediately be rid of it once they realize they aren't turning.

To top it off, right before the mindflayer abduction she saw a *presence* of eilistraee for the first time and she's slowly been struggling with her faith. What if Lolth isn't worth it? What if she moved on? And it's only getting reinforced bc Shadowheart and Lae'zel going through what they do.

When i created her backstory (back in like patch 3) i had no idea it was going to be such a good narrative foil to Astarion. He's quick to anger and she's fucking impassive as hell. he's known nothing but trauma for 200 years while she's been pampered royalty. he's stunned by receiving a hug, she's going crazy missing intimacy after killing her spouse for her 5th trial. he's secretly insecure, she secretly thinks she could be a better god than lolth. He's an "oldest sibling" she's the baby of the baenre girls. Astarion's considering doing cazador's ritual to become *the* most powerful vampire in the realms, she's contemplating using the netherese crown to become a god so she can kill lolth out of revenge.

She was also trying to manipulate Astarion into an alliance i.e. sex for protection. But feelings become a problem. And she's actually invested in killing cazador now but she's fairly certain Astarion won't help her kill Lolth and fully expects him to go his own way once all is done.

this also literally decided she was going to romance him in early access when i fought the goblins and dror ragzlin sparta kicked her into the spider pit. (the nerve? the audacity? she's a fucking baenre?) but anyway it triggered the spider dialogue, she convinced the spiders she was lolth, but then acid damage knocked her out and Astarion was the only party member who could reach her via a combo of the mobile feat, bonus action dash and boots of speed. and bc of this silly game mechanic i decided it was very romantic

And the ascendant ritual! Oof. She was kind of hoping he would just do it.

BUT he didn't go through with the ritual?! so i imagine tav was like "Tell all the spawns to go to Menzoberranzan and ask for Myrinel, tell them Ryna sent you" which probably prompts Gale to be like "um excuse me? Myrinel Baenre?" bc gale reads books so he's probably heard of her, and Tav's like "yes she's my oldest sister." and that's how the rest of the gang finds out she's basically the fucking princess of Menzoberranzan

she's totally not feeling guilty or in any way responsible for all these spawn and not wondering if astarion *should* have done the ritual bc she thinks this vampire ascendant thing sounds like it could have helped her kill lolth and take her place with the help of the crown.

And she's still grieving like her spouse died (was killed by her, on lolth's orders) less than a month ago by the time she wakes up on the beach. She thinks she failed her 5th trial bc she hesitated on killing them, but she didn't actually fail it and her crisis of faith is entirely her own making, and she actually has lolth's favor, meaning there never were assassins after her. And she's gonna have to either take the crown and go apeshit or, or, she could move on... But that's terrifying

[forcebookish]

remember when a no-powers, eighteen-year-old cordelia stepped between an unconscious buffy and a vampire then bullied him into fleeing?

[nyxorra]

OooOOOooo... quaggan must be brave...

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Me: I'm going into the korean "Like Mother Like Daughter" tag. I don't care if I'm spoiled. TT0TT I just....I need an outlet! I need to look at other people fanning about it! Me, comes back stumbling: Was that Rangshi I just saw? O_O Blue eyed!Rangi and pale!Kyoshi????? Brain: You can't keep relating everything back to Rangshi- Me:

Brain: NVM holy shit what the fuck??????

[leafofkudzu]

7 kirslin 24 teekzi?

7. Do they have a favorite mount?

Kirslyn's favorite is definitely her ley griffin, there's something about the speed and agility of its flight which really speaks to her. Don't ask me how she got a ley griffin because I haven't figured it out yet, but considering it's a griffin with ley energy blasting out of its body it's safe to say she didn't acquire it in any normal way (I'm leaning towards Mists shenanigans during LWs4 but I'm still in LWs3 territory in terms of mapping out her story so things are kind of vague atm).

24. Which canon character do/would they get along with the best?

Teekzi's obvious choice is Taimi - as soon as the little squirt rolled onto the scene she swooped in like a protective big sister, and considering Taimi is close in age to her actual little sister it came very naturally to her to watch over her but also let her grow and mature into the capable adult she is nowadays. However despite the sister-like bond they have they don't really have much in common aside from a shared connection to Zojja in their pasts, and so therefore the less obvious but probably best matching choice is actually Rox - considering the two are both rangers and also both had devourer pets at the time they met they bonded relatively quickly and shared a lot of the same opinions throughout their time together in the story. OOC I often found Rox having similar reactions to myself, and considering Teekzi's 'canon' reactions to things are based on my own, I feel like they'd definitely be the closest friends out of everyone (aside from Aurene ofc). Also I miss Frostbite. :c

[yourlocalduckgremlin]

*UNHOLY DEMONIC SCREECHING*

THANK YOUUUUUU I LOVE IT SO MUCH

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

SHE'S SO CUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I dunno if I'm late to the drawing request party but more Ragacow pls? (She's very pretty)

One bimbo strawberry cow COMIN UP

[silviakundera]

a very official and unserious ranking of chinese mini-dramas I've watched. Mini-drama = 5-15 min episodes. Color coded "sets" that had same actor or writer.

1. Night of Love with You (2022) - the unbeatable. the ULTIMATE. villain 4 villain romance with a protagonist who knows she is in a manga series... but something has gone wrong, because how did she and the heroic female lead get switched this time?!

2. Provoke (2023) - Republican era noir revenge saga. Unresolved sexual tension. Glamour. Great lighting. Hot people in period costume giving VIBES. She married her mortal enemy as a concubine and keeps a murderboard. I'm in love w her.

3. The Deliberations of Love (2023) - Married consort of a prince dies with him due to the struggle for the throne. Then she wakes up in the past, only for this ambitious idiot to get them killed again! Receiving yet another chance after 2 awful deaths, she's determined to choose life over love and not marry into the royal family again. But it's not quite so simple... especially when the prince starts to feel echoes of their past life together. The romantic chemistry is what sells this lil tropey drama. She keeps subconsciously drifting back into acting like his familiar spouse and then he starts vibing too.

4. A Familiar Stranger (2022) - Like with Provoke, I think everyone's seen this one? Conniving prime ministers daughter face-switches an innocent girl who is searching for her sister and pining away for this hot general who saved her once. Wow what luck, the horrible marriage the prime minister's daughter wanted to escape is with her dream man. This all sounds very wtf but this director x screenwriter combo creates these moody pieces that have a certain dream logic.

5. Zhang Gong Zhu Zai Shong (2022) - The emperor's sister is tyrannical and keeps a stable of hot men. Political intrigue ensues. ngl this one is real choppy but is ranked high due to my bias for achingly hot leading ladies who step on a breathless delicate ML. 🔥 She makes me SWEAT.

6. The Killer is Also Romantic (2022) - Mr and Mrs Smith in costume drama imperial era china. It should be higher, but for an English speaker it's dragged down the list by terrible subs.

7. My Decoy Bride (2023) - Hidden identities, assassin marries her target in imperial era china. Same male actor as Deliberations of Love who builds good energy with his costars. But less budget, worse subs, choppy editing. Still fun. Probably ranked way too high but idc I was entertained.

8. Dong Lan Xue (2023) - 3 min episodes of broken Murder Couple ❤. The slighted 7th prince and his ex-prostitute maid who are out for blood & revenge. (It's that badass lady & her delicate suitor again. Love this webisode pair. love herrrrrrrrr)

9. Miss Mystery (2023) - Republican era revenge drama in a similar vein as Provoke but lacking it's elite lighting, sets, & cinematography. To her it's Fake Marriage but he agrees because he liiiiikes her. The couple has chemistry, gives good power-couple, and the FL is out for bloody revenge. It's a fun ride. But the writing isn't as strong as Provoke and the uneven acting of the supporting cast drags it down the list.

10. What's Wrong with My Princess (2023) - The standard reborn revenge tale played straight. Female general helped a prince fight for the throne, then he & her sister have her murdered when vulnerable and pregnant. Gasp! She wakes up years earlier on her wedding day to this other prince she'd married once, only to kill for her evil lover boy. Now she plots the downfall of lover boy & her sis, joining hands with the husband she betrayed the 1st time around. It's... exactly what it sounds like lol. Nothing stands out and the script is a string of tropes. But it delivers exactly what it promises.

11. Everlasting Bride (2023) - Republican era revenge with added spy games. Like Miss Mystery & Provoke, strong character intros & first meeting. They're mysterious and well-dressed and dangerous to know. More polished than Miss Mystery. The leads here are more filtered and more conventionally attractive. But I have to admit that there's a charm about how rough around the edges Miss Mystery is. And I like the lead actress in Miss Mystery a lot more. The first 3rd is pretty fire, then it lost steam for me.

12. Forever Love (2023) - It's that smoldering guy from Maid's Revenge (absent from this list because due to crap ending). Absolutely extra in every way, a tropey hormonal mess, to the point one can argue it circles back around to be ART. Female protagonists for 1-10 are all great & fun. Alas I can't say the same for #12. 💀

Haven't Finished:

Butterfly Lover (2023) - I have a serious hate for open-endings and I heard this has one, so I paused on it. It's from that amazing director&screenwriter combo, though (Provoke, Familiar Stranger, Killer is also Romantic...). So I know it's worth watching.

Romantic aka Love Strikes Back (2023) - I started this but stalled out. idk it wasn't compulsively watchable for me. Other people loved it.

[accirax]

initial thoughts on DCAS episode 21

AKA, the finale :O this will be a doozy...

for Going Through It as frequently and as strongly as Jake does, i find it hilarious that all of his promotional material always looks like it was ripped straight from a dorky high school girl's instagram feed. also, go Ashley, roast that clown (/lh)

that's such a cute drawing omg!!! i always have fun thinking about how good the drawing is in the context of the universe it was drawn in. like, to us, his proportions look kinda off, but in their universe, the giant heads and tiny waists are actually really accurate. Hunter is going to be the next great artist fr.

... i thought that the point was supposed to be that Jake grew more than anyone here, which is why he was facing down Riya. i mean, i guess you could say that Ally had to grow a new personality for the beginning of the season, and then have that character develop. she is more changed from s2 Ally than Jake is from s1 Jake because Jake had more of a character in s1.

and boy, would it suck if that promise was left unfulfilled! (/s)

it is true that this (if she actually remained on Riya's team the whole time) is kind of a win-win for Ellie. either Riya loses, or she gets $100K. both are acceptable.

this was such a cute/fitting response for Jake to have. it's a really great button on their relationship.

i love how smug they look at no one wanting to help Riya.

WHEN THE FUCK WERE YOU WATERBOARDED???

actually, we know that Tom is a terrible liar, so maybe he got waterboarded by the mob boss after they figured out he was lying in the interrogation.

w... what...?

dare i say iconic

i know that they didn't really have time, but with Alec and Ellie working together (and Alec protecting Ellie, as he did here), i had kind of hoped that we'd get a bit more closure on their relationship. like, does Ellie still hate Alec for betraying her? or is the fact that they were going to be in the villains alliance together mean that they'd cross that bridge? maybe i'm just forgetting, but their relationship feels somewhat unresolved. (i mean relationship platonically btw; no hate to people who ship them but i don't need to know if they're a couple or not because the canon answer is obviously no)

i don't know if this was really necessarily but good for you girl

this is like the first time Fiore has cared about anyone ever :,D Fiore and Alec the duo ever!!!

A GENUINE SMILE????????

why are you preventing this from happening? you know Gabby, so you should know that this would absolutely work.

rewatching the beginning of the episode after knowing the end, i sorta wanted to question whether Ashley abstaining from helping could have accidentally lost Jake the win. however, Tom is just so doggedly determined to cover his man that i think he probably was the best guy for the job. like, would Ashley dive for him? idk.

okay, 1) WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU THINK THAT WAS GOING TO DO, RIYA?!?!, and 2) HOW THE FUCK DID GABBY NOT LOSE HER ARM FROM THIS. IMAGINE IF SHE DID. THIS WAS WILD.

... does Riya understand how pain works? or the American healthcare system? Ellie surely wanted to use that money for something else, dude.

so they are kinda sweeping Tom's wrongdoings under the rug, huh? sigh. hopefully it's just a "for now" thing to be further explored in the miniseries.

i love Trevor's little :3 face

and boy, would it suck if this favor was left unfulfilled! (/s)

i watched a compilation of each Disventure Camp character's first and last lines, and let me just say, it's really weird that "Go, Jake!" (said with Aiden) is James' last line ever.

GIVE UP ON HERRRRRRRRR

(also, glad his foot seems to be doing better)

i know i probably would have made fun of this scene for being super corny/moving too fast if Tom had said "i love you," but it's perhaps equally funny that he didn't. like, c'mon bro, you can't even muster the L word in this incredibly dramatic and heroic moment?

COPE

oh boy...

y'know, beyond just not having a good time slot in which to do so, i also kinda put off writing these initial thoughts because i just really didn't feel like having to write anything about ONC's choice regarding the winner of the season. everyone online seems to have these really radical opinions-- either saying that this was a brilliantly subversive and poetic choice, or that the entire season (and perhaps even s2 before it) are ruined by the choice to let Riya in. the truth is, i'm incredibly neutral.

on one hand, i'm incredibly disappointed. if you've been keeping up with these initial thoughts throughout the season, or especially my episode-by-episode power rankings, you'll know that i've very firmly believed that Jake was going to be the winner of this season since the beginning of the merge. and it's not because he's my favorite character and i really wanted him to win or anything-- i have a generally favorable opinion on Jake, but it was mostly because i thought that the arcs and messages of the season would be best capped off with a Jake win. therefore, it's saddening to believe that they didn't capitalize on all that potential just for the sake of shock value.

then again, i really appreciate what ONC was trying to do with Riya. i can tell that they must have felt like they had a lot to prove with Riya in DCAS given how mixed her reception was in s2. so, they put in a lot of work to "fix" her character in DCAS, and, on the whole, i think they got a lot better! as much as i was predicting the Jake win, i was also kind of dreading it, just because it was the sort of cheesy, fanservicey ending that could be predicted from a mile away. so i appreciate the boldness to go for an unexpected ending, and the refusal to stagnate in cookie cutter fan-pleasing storylines when your artistic heart is driving you in another direction.

which is why, in the end, i have no strong opinions. i think that the character writing absolutely could have been set up to establish viewer expectations better, but i also don't think that the entire season is unwatchable because Riya wins. the truth of the matter is still that all of the other contestants besides Yul are the real winners of the season, because they made friends and grew as people. if you rewatch the season, you can still see the gang do just that. but the equal truth is that all of the promises those friends made and the goal that drove them to improve might all feel a bit more hopeless with the knowledge that Connor never did get to one-up Riya. People who needed the money more, like Ashley, Alec, or Ellie didn't get a cent of it. and unlike it would be for Jake, who had a lot of connections with a lot of people, many contestants had pretty much no bearing on the winner of the season at all.

i want to believe that the Disventure Camp writing can and will continue to overall get better, but i also can't ignore the obvious signs of growing pains. can't bring myself to get all too mad at them either, though. mostly, i just want to stay out of any drama.

it really shows that Jake hasn't been able to look at social media since the beginning of the show. trust me, buddy, not everyone was rooting for you.

unsurprising that tomjake gets the last kiss of the season/era.

cite your sources, please (/j)

i guess the real person Riya was lying to all along... was herself. *vine boom* because, seriously, how the fuck did she not realize that it wasn't just acting anymore? when she double-broke Connor's foot and tried to make Ally think that Jake lied about being suicidal???

[timesicle]

ONE YEAR OF ME BEING WITH MY BELOVED WIFE!!!!! I love patty so much, like honestly she's gotten me through a lot and I love herrrrrrrrr :3 I'm glad Cass n her can be happy

[messengerofmechs]

MALL GOTH! MALL GOTH!

Darkfall :) She's Pollux's security and safety director handling things like safety of projects both artistic and industrial. (reflective vest not pictured). A lot of her protection of the art pieces on Pollux is heavily tied to the spiritual and cultural importance of art both to Pollux and the people who create it, though, she's never made a piece herself. She often says she hasn't found her muse yet if asked. Her hobby instead is taking care of the arboretum and the UV lights on her frame help with that. She's survived the Empire's take over of Pollux with her wits and knowledge of the city's insides. Darkfall has a great loyalty to the city and its people and its shown in her upkeep of the place even despite dodging drones and the Prince. She's very glad to see Castor again and get assistance on repairing the damage done to Pollux... even if she's a little wary of the alliance with space pirates.

[wangxiians]

have you seen xuan lu dancing to yi nan ping? (yanli’s character song) she’s so graceful and beautiful 🥺

[ramblinseahorsey]

Her 💛

Prunus was right, she is SUCH a sweetheart! And so gentle with her cute little wielder, if you keep getting closer, she backs way up to give you space, and even when you back up, she pauses and tentatively steps closer, always being careful and slow, but trying to get as close to you as she can while still being oh so mindful and giving you space.

Cocking her head like a puppy this way and that, and looking at you like you're an interesting little beetle you see on your porch, which to her, we are! I fell for this lovely lady due to her wonderful personality, but her mannerisms and sick design are so good too. you can color up to 8 pairs of legs on her, although the yellow in the back is quite faded due to her lair's shadow, but I wonder how far on she might keep going past what we can see! Big lady...

Her name is such a clever irony, imho. As all the surface peoples of Picnic are named after foods, Feasts' insectoids all are named after plants, drosera being the first ever confirmed and classified carnivorous plant. Bug named after a bug eater! Charles Darwin wrote, “…at the present moment, I care more about Drosera than the origin of all the species in the world.” She truly is magnificent. Drosera, or sundew, in general, can live up to 50 years, but considering her lore on watching the wielder line throughout the centuries, she's got her namesake beat!

Queen Drosera my beloved

[rhymeswithumbrella]

I'm here to defend the pancake!!! She GREW OKAY SHES A PLUMP PANCAKE NOW THAT ID LOVE TO GENTLY SMACK

i will accept that she is not one of those fluffy japanese pancakes now yes okay 🤧 she did in fact work hard for that apple bottom jeans, boots with the fur (with the fur), the whole club was lookin at herrrrrrrrr. she hit the flo!! (she hit the flo)

[maraczeks]

strange but true thread pt 1

[daechwitatamicrecs]

THE PAIRINGS LISTING HAS ME SHAKING IN MY BOOOOOOOOOOTS WHAT'S ABOUT TO HAPPENNNNNNNN

opening line has me NARROWING ME EYES.

noooooooooooooooooo the gaminnnnnnnnnnnnggggggggg with herrrrrrrrr (just know that when i'm complaining i'm usually smiling because i will eat this drama UP)

RAHHHHHHH I HATE THIS (i dont i love it this is so much fun lol)

would love to know what taehyung's up to for, *checks notes*, four hours at a time while these two game....

OH SHIT

OH SHIT HE SAID THE THIN

G

OH MY GOD

OH MY ODF WHE SAID IT

BROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

kim taehyung secret genius :)

brooooooooooooooo oh my god he is in suuuuuuuch a bad space someone get this guy a muffin or something he needs some emotional carbs

(me when cath makes taehyung sad: FIX IT FIX IT FIX IT me when cath makes jungkook sad: cackle cackle cackle sorry jungkook it's not personal)

okay here are my final thoughts bc i read this earlier in the week and had a few days to marinate:

I feel like what you're setting up is a situation where jungkook does not actually have real romantic feelings for dilara, but he thinks he does. he may even, at some point, think he loves her. but i think what you've created here is a dynamic that shows his immaturity at this stage and how he likes the parts of himself that he sees in her, he likes the nice feeling of being kindred with someone, and he likes the nice feeling of "winning" her attention and time. i don't think it's on purpose, but she's something for him to win at. but he certainly doesn't see her complexity, and he certainly doesn't love her. the reactions after her crash did an incredible job of showcasing that.

Another World

Summary: Jungkook finds himself going down a path he never intended - and his best friend might just be collateral damage.

Pairing: Jungkook x OC, Taehyung x OC

Genre: Angst

Rating: 18+

Word Count: 7.7 K

Warnings: none

A/N: Whew. This required some research. A disclaimer for any gaming fans out there: the kind of liberties I have taken with the video games described in this fic cannot be overstated. Think Troy butchering The Illiad source material (but with good plot anyway). Set over a period of a couple of months, starting a month after Los Angeles pt. 2)

Tagging: @bbl32 @ggukkieland @bangtannoonalvg @pb-n-juju @juciu @jeoncookie-bts @quarter-life-crisis2 @dreaming-with-happiness @meirkive  @faearchives @margopinkerton @sumzysworld @purpleseoul7 @kflixnet (italics cannot be tagged. If you want to be added to the taglist, drop a comment or ask)

Listen to: "layla" by eric clapton

taehyung masterlist | jungkook masterlist | main masterlist

Jungkook liked gaming. He liked how immersive it was, how fast it was, how much it required him to get into character and beat the bad guys. Most of all, Jungkook liked to win. Video games were winnable, for the most part. Whether it was rules, strategy or just plain speed, gaming was about beating the bad guys and winning the game.

It may have been due to this reason that all the games he owned and played broadly followed this narrative: hero, quests, bad guys, save the world, win. When he and Dilara moved away from FIFA and Real Racing (both extremely winnable games), this was how Jungkook had introduced her to his collection and invited her to play Mortal Kombat. 

Dilara hadn’t been super impressed, although she’d played without fuss. She was in London and he was in Seoul, the night beginning for her and for him, the dawn nearing. They played together, shooting, jumping, killing, running. Winning. She’d played with supreme focus (he could see her on the video at the bottom of the screen). Her eyes were trained on the screen, slight frown on her forehead that remind him ostensibly of Taehyung, her fingers moving rapidly on the console, not uttering a single word except at the beginning of the game: save the cheerleader, save the world.

Jungkook hadn’t got the reference, but she’d said it wryly, as though it was a joke only some people were meant to get. Still, she played with him and four hours later, when they were less than halfway done, she’d sat back in her chair and raised her arms over her head, stretching.

“Don’t get lazy,” he’d commanded, still in the zone. He’d tapped his headset. “We still have so many levels to complete.”

“JK,” she’d sighed. It must have been hot in London; her neck and chest were shining in the fluorescent light from the screen. She swept her long hair up into a bun and her tank top rode up slightly, suddenly revealing how tight it was.

Jungkook had looked away out of habit. It never did well to check out your friends’ girlfriends. 

“Don’t you need to sleep? Isn’t it morning for you?”

It was - but Jungkook had the day off. He told her as much but she told him she had to sleep. 

“In the middle of the game?” He was aghast. “How can you do that?”

She’d wrinkled her nose. “It’s not a cliffhanger. We can just pick it back up tomorrow. The next levels will be the same. Just shoot ‘em all.” She made a finger gun and pointed it at him before dropping her hand. “There’s no story. All the characters are just… graphic. There’s no emotion, no empathy, no… passion to save the world.”

He’d stared. “It’s saving the world. You need passion to do that?”

Dilara had chuckled tiredly. “Even guns and explosions can have a compelling story. Have you ever played Yakuza?”

Of course Jungkook had played Yakuza. It wasn’t bad, but it had been a lot of information to keep track of. Too many characters, too many plots. He’d played until he’d won, but only because it would’ve killed him not to.

“I have to be at the factory at eight am. I’m going to bed.” She’d pushed back her chair and stood up, and the screen filled for a moment with her chiselled torso, hips, and tan thighs from under her shorts. This time, it took Jungkook a moment longer to look away.

He’d bid her goodnight with a bit of half-hearted whining until she promised to resume play the next day. Once she’d logged off, Jungkook switched back to his screen and took a sip of his Americano, debating continuing without her anyway.

A moment later, he’d sighed and switched off the game, heading to bed.

—

The day Jungkook realised he wasn’t cut out for elaborate, story-telling games was the day he played A Way Out with Dilara.

She had told him about it in passing, mentioning that she’d also only played it once, years ago, before life had got in the way. Jungkook had been about to shut it down with glee right then but she’d seemed so mournful about never playing it again that he’d relented and bought the game, sending her an invite to login as well.

“It’s like I’m sixteen again,” she sniffed dramatically, making herself comfortable on her chair. The Red Bull logo on her oversized t-shirt came into full focus for a moment while she adjusted her camera, and Jungkook grinned in satisfaction.

“Well, you wouldn’t shut up about it so you basically forced me to buy it.”

“You know what? Even if that’s true, it’s going to be so worth it. This is the best game, JK,” she added, her face shining. “Emotional connections, moral conundrums, deep friendships…” She sighed and shook her head in wonder. “Just the best,” she repeated.

Jungkook raised his eyebrows at this display but said nothing. “Shall we start?” he asked.

“Yes. Okay, now, don’t worry about not getting the game initially,” she informed him. “I haven’t played it in forever either and I’m sure with the updates and everything, it’ll practically be a different game.

This, Jungkook supposed, was in response to a rather childish moment he’d had a couple of weeks prior where, amidst his inability to grasp the concept of the game, he’d sort of shrieked, yanked off his headphones and proceeded throw himself on the bed in the gaming room, face down for several minutes while Dilara called his name in irritation.

He scowled. “I’ll be fine. Will you?”

Dilara grinned sheepishly; she didn’t take well to losing either. “I’ll be okay. I’m Vince and you’re Leo?”

They commenced the game then. The story read more like a movie than a video game; Jungkook watched in awe as their characters, both in prison and holding a grudge against the same mobster, formed a begrudging alliance and escaped.

It was a gorgeous game; the screen, the special effects, the dialogue - he and Dilara read them out as quickly as possible, eager to move through the game.

“Oh, my God,” muttered Jungkook after a while, shaking his head slowly as Leo and Vincent, on the run from the law, made a campfire in the dead of night. “That’s why Vincent hates Harvey, too?”

“Harvey was an arsehole,” said Dilara with feeling. “There’s a reason Vincent wanted to partner with Leo, even if it meant he risked getting caught. There’s nothing like common hatred of a person to bring two people together.”

Jungkook stole a glance at her, which she caught. 

“What?” she asked, chuckling and looking a bit embarrassed. “That’s the fun of these games. You have to really get into it.”

He smiled without meaning to. “I get it. He killed Vincent’s brother. Vincent gets to hate him.”

“Shut up. Ooh, look, it’s Leo’s story now.” They started reading the dialogue boxes together, Jungkook reading them out in slightly accented English, when a sound cut through the soft soundtrack.

“Helicopter!” Dilara yells. “It’s the cops! Okay, go left!”

“No, I think it’s right!” The screen changed as both characters ran through the wilderness, the animated figures running faster than Jungkook could ever hope to. “Okay, we have to get into that house, I think.”

Their characters took shelter in a hut, evading the police, and looting the place for clothes, weapons and a truck.

“It’s a car chase!” Jungkook exclaimed. “You should drive!”

“You know it’s not a real truck, right?” she called out, but still manoeuvring Vincent into the driver’s seat. “Okay, let’s go! Seatbelt on!”

“I thought you said it wasn’t real!”

“I didn’t stutter, JK!”

Jungkook snorted before getting back into character, his heart racing; if the cops caught them, they were back in prison, meaning the game was over.

“Cliff!”

“Get out of the car! There’s a rowboat! And go from behind the trees!” she added as the sounds of the police’s gunshots got louder. They hopped into a conveniently placed rowboat by the banks of a thrashing river and began steering with their controllers.

“Is that a - is that a waterfall?”

“Jump!”

“What?” Jungkook’s eyes widened in a panic. “We don’t have life jackets!”

“It’s not a real river, JK!” Dilara yelled as she threw her character into the water, escaping a gunshot by a nanosecond. “Leo knows how to swim!”

Feeling his ears get hot, Jungkook obeyed and Leo jumped. The two characters somehow made it through the river and landed on the other side, the police finally no longer in sight.

“Whew.” Jungkook exhaled and takes off his headphones for a moment, shaking his hair out of his eyes. He put them back on to see Dilara grinning in the pop out screen.

“Great game, huh?”

“Holy shit. This is what you meant by emotional connection?” When she nodded, he shook his head. “Crazy. Oh, wait - Leo’s story.” He read the dialogue again, his own tone sounding more and more surprised. “Harvey betrayed Leo, too? What a jerk!”

“Villians,” was all Dilara said by way of explanation. “Oh, look! Aww…”

Jungkook followed an instruction to call home with a nearby telephone. “Leo has a wife and kid? What is this game?” he exclaimed. “This is like - like something that should be in the Oscars! Where are the machine guns and the aliens?” 

“I can see your eyes tearing up, Jeon, so don’t give me that.”

He didn’t even bother defending himself; he was more engrossed in this fully human story than he ever had been in a video game before. He glanced at Dilara again, his stomach settling comfortably when he realised he wasn’t alone.

It was a flurry of activity after that: purchasing arms, being betrayed by the arms dealer, getting in touch with a mysterious pilot from Vincent’s past who offered to fly them to Mexico to escape. The pilot also dropped another bombshell.

“Vincent has a kid?”

“Vincent is having a kid,” she corrected him. “Okay, we have an option to go to the hospital. We’re going, right? No way is Vincent abandoning his daughter before she’s even born.”

“He’s not abandoning - okay, sure,” he said quickly, catching Dilara’s surprisingly troubled expression. “It could be a trap, though.”

But Dilara ignored him, and both characters headed to the hospital. Warning bells instantly went on in Jungkook;s head, for he’d played enough video games to know what a calm spell looked like before they got attacked. But he followed Dilara until Vincent met his newborn baby girl, Julie.

“I’ve never made it this far in this game,” murmured Dilara, her voice wobbling slightly. Jungkook couldn’t help but feel like this was a slight overreaction over an animated baby, but something stopped him from commenting on it. 

“Gwaenchanha?” he ventured, but at that moment, a pop-up appeared on the screen, informing them that the police had surrounded the hospital.

“Told you!” Jungkook exclaimed, but his heart raced with excitement. What a game. 

“I’m not sorry!” she replied as they rushed out of the hospital. “I swear to God, JK, if you and Tae are ever running from the police and I’m in the hospital giving birth to his kid, you better make sure he’s there!”

“Er, sure thing,” he assured her, before changing the subject. “Okay, we have to split up.” With no indication either way, he went right while Vincent went left. He avoided the police as best he could while continuously keeping an eye on the split screen to see Dilara’s progress as well. 

She escaped; Jungkook breathed a sigh of relief and took his eyes off his own screen for a moment too long to see Dilara pump her fist in the air - long enough to get captured.

“Shit!” He’d lost the game - swallowing his disappointment, for Dilara hadn’t yet, he urged her to continue. “Go! Keep going!”

“I can’t,” she muttered determinedly, turning Vincent around and going back into the hospital with his gun loaded. “We’re in this together, mate - if you lose, we both lose.”

Despite the tension, Jungkook felt his stomach flip in excitement: he loved playing with Dilara. She was competitive, she took risks and she was good at gaming. It had been a long time since he’d met someone who matched this well with him online; it was no surprise that he constantly looked forward to their next session.

“Okay, hold still -” Dilara frowned in concentration, aiming her gun - only two bullets left - at the cop who had Leo in a headlock. Her thumb swiped over the controller ever so slightly and shot the cop straight in the head.

“You saved me!” Jungkook gasped, immediately spurring his character on and out of that damn hospital.

“Don’t sound so shocked,” she muttered, although she looked relieved as well, a grin flashing across her face.

They escaped after that, taking up the pilot’s offer to take them to Mexico, where they were ambushed by the mobster Harvey and his men. There was the old school gaming face-off: guns, fire, jumping off buildings and eliminating NPCs left and right.

“Oh, my God,” said Jungkook in surprise. “We did it. We killed Harvey.” He looked up hopefully at Dilara. “Is that it? Does that mean we win?”

“I don’t know…” The game told them that now that Harvey was dead, they could return to the US but the moment they did, they were surrounded by the police again. “Oh, no…”

“No! Come on!” Jungkook whined, frustrated now, but something was wrong. He frowned as one of the policemen, took the gem they had stolen from Harvey from Leo’s hand and handed it to Vincent… along with his gun.

“Oh, no…”

“Wait…” Jungkook frowned. “Why did the cop just -” He squinted at the screen to read the dialogue box, even though Dilara was reading it out loud. “Is - is Vincent a cop?” His eyes darted to Dilara’s picture in the pop-out. “Are you undercover?”

“Shit, I had no idea,” she murmured. “I told you I’d never reached this far in the game before.” 

His stomach churned. We’re in this together, she’d said. “I’m supposed to take you hostage now,” he stated, reading the instructions. Before she could shrug in acceptance, he subdued her and ran. It ensued in a chase again, but this time between Leo and Vincent, with Leo trying to run and Vincent trying to catch him.

It’s not real. Jungkook knew, he knew Dilara knew, and he knew the game was set up to be a certain way for the story. But it still stung, being betrayed, and before he knew it, he was being chased into a warehouse by Dilara, both of them injured and losing energy.

“Some game, Komyshan,” he muttered, sighing. He didn’t know how long they’d been playing; bonding over their shared hatred of Harvey felt like hours ago, as did each of them discovering they had kids. He chanced another look at Dilara on the pop–out and paused.

Her eyes were wet, tear tracks down her cheeks. He started, suddenly wondering if her sixteen-year-old self knew that she would have to betray her ally like this.

They climbed up the warehouse and onto the roof, both their energy packs beeping to indicate they were running out. There were their guns, bright and clear. This, Jungkook knew, was the end. One of them got the gun and shot the other, and the other died at the hands of a one-time ally.

She was still crying, even as her fingers flew over the buttons on the controller. Jungkook watched, as though in slow motion, as Vincent on screen dove for the gun and pointed it at Leo, shooting him, ending the game.

“What - what did you do?” Dilara frowned, looking taken aback. “You didn’t even go for your gun. Did - did you let me win?” she demanded, sounding horrified.

“No!” But didn’t he, though? Jungkook couldn’t tell. “I - I didn’t see the gun,” he explained weakly. He fell silent as the epilogue appeared on screen. 

“Vincent tells Linda about Leo’s death…” she read out, swallowing, “... and goes back to his wife and newborn daughter.” Dilara blinked rapidly.

“That’s a happy ending, right?” Jungkook murmured. “He didn’t have to abandon his daughter.”

Dilara was quiet for a moment. Then she chuckled softly, without humour, not looking away from the screen. “Jesus Christ, JK,” she sighed. “It’s not real. It's just a game.”

Jungkook nodded but it didn’t matter. He hadn’t seen Dilara ever break down in front of him like that, even though she’d held it together reasonably well. It stayed in his mind even as he went to bed at dawn, the image of her biting her lip while her eyes swam with tears at a fictional character leaving his wife and newborn at the hospital, and he privately came to a conclusion: he was not cut out for story-telling games. 

—

The worst loss Jungkook had ever faced in a video game was the night he invited Taehyung to play. 

He didn’t truthfully know what he’d been expecting when he’d invited the older member to join. All he remembered was that years before Dilara entered their lives, Taehyung had been the person who stayed up with him into the wee hours of the night when they were crippled with jet lag and played video games all night.

But it didn’t feel the same. Even the way the plan came to life felt… off. They were in a supermarket in Seoul, during a serendipitous week where their tour schedule and Dilara’s F1 calendar had somehow coincided to have all of them in the same location. A get-together had been planned which Hoseok had volunteered to host, with all seven members, Seokjin’s girlfriend Seulgi, Sooah, Chaeyoung and Dilara in attendance. All the members had been delegated by Namjoon, who seemed to be making a huge effort to gather everyone together, to bring different accompaniments for the night; in the gigantic mall, five out of seven members roamed around trying to fulfil their duties. 

Taehyung, Jungkook and Dilara had been dispatched to purchase liquor and mixers. On their way to the store, Taehyung bumped into a friend and, after fondly introducing Dilara as his girlfriend, encouraged her and Jungkook to go on without him.

“How are you balancing this thing?” Jungkook asked tightly, as he tried to keep the cart he was standing from bumping into any of the aisles.

“It’s called steering,” she said knowledgeably, her much smaller frame somehow managing to manoeuvre the cart with ease, almost as if she were riding a manual scooter.

“Race you to the end?” 

She grinned as they positioned their carts next to each other. “Remember, we buy what we break.”

“Good thing we can both afford it.” Jungkook winked at her, half-heartedly dodging her playful kick to his shin. “Ready?”

“Go!” 

They were careful to keep quiet and not attract attention, staying at the back of the store where they were the only customers. They stifled their giggles while trying to maintain their balance and simultaneously sabotage the other. 

“Careful, Lara,” he called to her as her cart wobbled slightly.

“Oi, you don’t get to call me that,” she admonished him, wincing and straightening her cart. “Something’s wrong with this cart, ugh…”

“Oh, yeah? Brake failure?” he taunted her. “You can’t blame everything on your engineers, you know?”

Dilara gasped as she turned her cart at the last minute to avoid hitting a standalone shelf of bottles. “How dare you, Jeon Jungkook. I’m going to kill -” She gasped again, out of his sight this time, followed by a soft oof! from someone else. Just as Jungkook spurred his cart on to make sure she hadn’t hurt herself, he heard the giggles - both of them.

“You’re not allowed to do that in here,” he heard Taehyung’s deep voice, and his heart sank unexpectedly. “You could be arrested for that, you know?”

Jungkook appeared just in time to see Taehyung tugging Dilara backwards to him, gripping both her wrists loosely in one hand. His head was tilted towards the side of her face while she smiled in a way that made Jungkook feel as though he’d walked in on something extremely private.

Fortunately, she caught sight of him and stepped away from Taehyung, albeit still staying close. “Alright, don’t we have stuff to buy?” she asked, changing the subject. “Who has the list?”

Jungkook and Taehyung both opened the group chat to check the list compiled in it, naming different liquors out of order. “Why don’t we split up?” Dilara suggested. “I’ll go to the wine section,” she volunteered, waving at both of them and disappearing behind the aisle, leaving both boys to scan the hard liquors.

“Whiskey, obviously,” stated Taehyung, picking up a bottle of Glen Fiddich and checking the price. “Probably the first bottle Hobi hyung will ever have in his house.”

Jungkook forced a chuckle. “True. I don’t think I’ll be able to stay long enough to see him at that stage of the night, though.”

“Oh, yeah? Got plans?” He raised his eyebrows mock-seriously. “Hot date tonight?”

Yeah, but it’s with your girlfriend. It was only a moment later when he looked up to see Taehyung frowning slightly at him that he realised he’d said the words out loud. “No, I just meant -” He let out another choked laugh, his heart jolting in panic. “We - well, she wanted to game tonight. We don’t have a schedule tomorrow, so…” He cleared his throat.

Taehyung paused for a moment, but then simply nodded. “I meant to ask you, Jungkook,” he said after a moment, now examining another bottle. “Is everything okay?”

“I - how do you mean?”

“I mean, like with you and me. Are you mad at me or something?”

Jungkook’s eyes widened. “N-no. Not at all. Why would you think that?”

Taehyung shrugged. “You’ve been a little short with me the last couple of days,” he remarked casually. “Did I do something?”

He shook his head, lost for words, for this was getting seriously out of hand. What was wrong with him? The tiredness from the tour was bound to catch up sometime but were his moods that erratic, that Taehyung could have  misinterpreted them for hostility?

“No, you didn’t,” he answered honestly. “I’m just tired, I swear,” he added, throwing an arm around Taehyung’s shoulders and squeezing them. “Sorry, hyung.”

Taehyung nodded, seemingly a little surprised at this reaction. “Oh, don’t worry about it. Get some sleep tonight, maybe.”

“We’re gaming tonight, though,” he answered apologetically. “You know, you should join us,” he suggested, still reeling in the mild panic that Taehyung might think he was angry with him. “We used to game all the time, before. It’s been ages since we’ve done that.”

Taehyung raised his eyebrows, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Are you sure? Wait, do I still need to let you win?”

Jungkook scoffed, hugely relieved. “Don’t worry, Dilara has beaten me more than once so losing isn’t as shocking as it was before.”

Taehyung grinned and was about to respond when Hoseok appeared out of nowhere, looking distinctly unamused.

“Wasting time, are we?” Before either of them could respond, he slapped Jungkook lightly on the shoulder. “You - go get the beer. And you - wine. Now. Now,” he repeated when Taehyung opened his mouth to argue.

They exchanged a meaningful look and went their separate ways, Jungkook straight towards the fridges with the beer. After filling an entire cart with multiple six packs of different brands, he looked around for the others, finally spotting Namjoon in the middle of the store, typing on his phone.

“Hey. Got what we need?” Namjoon asked when Jungkook joined him and peered into the cart. “This is just beer. What about the rest?”

“Hoseok hyung was with Taehyung and Dilara getting that stuff…”

Hoseok joined them then. “Take me with you,” he stated to Namjoon, looking mildly traumatised.

Namjoon frowned. “What are you talking about? Have you guys got everything?” All three of them turned to see Taehyung and Dilara by the wines, seemingly in a serious conversation. “What’s going on over there?”

Hoseok raised his eyebrows. “Well,” he began, “Taehyung is pretending to be a wine connoisseur giving a tour of his private winery to Dilara, a socialite who is trapped in a loveless marriage.”

Namjoon stared at him, evidently able to make neither head nor tail of this statement. “What?”

Hoseok nodded. “Yeah. Like I said, please take me with you.”

Namjoon responded, but Jungkook barely heard him; he watched Taehyung and Dilara, standing apart but still close together, their hands brushing and their gazes fixed on each other, apparently having forgotten that they were not alone. 

The party was supposed to start in three hours; they simply did not have time for this right now. “I’ll get them,” he volunteered, abandoning the older members with the cart of beer and striding over to the happy couple.

“Sorry, guys,” he muttered, stepping in between them, for that’s where the Pinot coincidentally was. “Namjoon hyung sent me - he’s getting really impatient.” He pretended not to notice Taehyung’s annoyed sigh or Dilara self-consciously fluffing out her hair.

Later that night, after a pleasant evening at Hoseok’s apartment, Jungkook settled into the gaming chair in his own, ready to play Trine. In light of Taehyung joining them, Jungkook put forward the one three-person game they had in their backlog, a medieval fantasy game with Zoya the Thief, Amadeus the Wizard, and Pontius the Knight, played by Dilara, Taehyung and Jungkook respectively.

Jungkook was determined to have this session go well. He wasn’t exactly sure why or what it was, but he felt as though he had something to prove to Taehyung, probably because he was the guest during their regular two-person gaming sessions.

Trine was different from A Way Out, mostly in the sense that while the latter was a human story of moral conflict and emotional connections, Trine was, in every sense of the word, a game. Three misfits having to free themselves of a magical curse, each with their own weapons and abilities - it was straightforward and promised to be fun. 

Dilara, in Jungkook’s opinion, was made to play Zoya the Thief. Zoya’s skill was archery and with her excellent hand-eye coordination, Dilara shot every single arrow exactly where she was aiming, her brow furrowed slightly in concentration. Jungkook and his character, Pontius the Knight, watched in awe, his sword dangling uselessly at his side - until something appeared out of nowhere and hit him in the head.

“What was that?” he demanded, his eyes darting across the screen and groaning when he saw that Pontius’s energy level had dipped. Without thinking, he slashed his sword through the air, the animated flame at the end of it rising but causing no damage.

“Pay attention!” Taehyung - or Amadeus - had evidently thrown some kind of object at Pontius. As Jungkook watched, Amadeus conjured up another similar looking object, while Taehyung grinned in the pop-out screen. Begrudgingly, Jungkook had to admit that even Taehyung was made to play Amadeus the Wizard - quick, witty and wearing ridiculous robes.

“Oi!” Dilara’s voice rang through his headphones. “You both know we’re all on the same side, right?”

Jungkook rolled his eyes as they continued through the game, entering a ruined castle.

“Okay, here goes.” Taehyung cleared his throat as a dialogue by Amadeus appeared on the screen, and proceeded to read the entire thing in a gruff, grandiose sort of voice that Jungkook supposed he considered a wizard’s. Through the dramatics, he could hear Dilara laughing at the voice and when he glanced at the pop-up screen, saw her looking at something to her side, and it occurred to him for the first time that Taehyung and Dilara were sitting in the same room.

The thought annoyed him more than he expected. This wasn’t how gaming was supposed to be done. Gaming was different timezones, dead of night, coffee runs and straining eyes - not sitting ten feet apart in the same bedroom and giggling at inside jokes. 

It didn’t get better as the night went on. The game went well; in fact, they were progressing at an alarming rate, finding objects, overcoming obstacles, gaining points and keeping their energy levels at an all-time high. All three of their characters seemingly worked well together, their powers in perfect tandem.

However, Jungkook was slowly starting to regret inviting Taehyung to play - not because he wasn’t good, but because it wasn’t right. There was a disturbance; he didn’t seem to understand Jungkook and Dilara’s normal trash talk, had a habit of making rather asinine observations in the graphics of the game that more often than not, ended up leading to a clue the other two had missed, and seemed to be more interested in the personality of all three characters than the actual quest.

Most frustratingly, Taehyung was beating the game - and the other players. He seemed to be able to come up with the most absurd solutions to problems - and all of them worked. During a play where they had to get at a clue that was sneakily tucked into the ceiling, Jungkook and Dilara were looking for ways to unlock a ladder that the game was offering them for a certain number of points. 

“Do you have enough energy to break through the wall with your arrows?” Jungkook urged her.

“I can try…” Dilara aimed and Zoya shot an arrow which simply bounced against the wall. “I don’t think that’s the way. And I’m running out of arrows. There has to be another way to break down that wall.”

“Okay, well, the ladder is behind it. Maybe we can blow it up?” 

“You’re the one with the flaming sword.”

“Maybe I can throw it at the wall or something… burn it down…” Jungkook searched the screen frantically, passing by Amadeus, who was using his power of conjuring to simply create cube-shaped objects. “Taehyung hyung? Some help?”

“Yeah, hang on just a sec…” Taehyung, seemingly ignoring their conundrum entirely, was now stacking the objects one above the other with a slight gap between the edges, levitating the ones at the top. “There,” he said, once they almost reached the ceiling. “Use those as steps and get to the top.”

Dilara gasped and Zoya immediately sprinted up the slanting tower of blocks, easily retrieving the clue from the ceiling. “It worked!” she exclaimed in wonder, the character jumping down gracefully. ��My hero,” she said dramatically, looking out the side of her screen again, which Taehyung returned with a grin and a wink at her.

Jungkook poked his tongue into his cheek. “We have, like, seven more clues left,” he said stonily, but his words were drowned in the midst of their joking and laughing. This, right here, was the problem, he reflected: he, Jungkook, had the obvious goal, which was to collect the most points and win the damn game, whereas Taehyung’s primary objective seemed to be to make Dilara laugh, the game a mere secondary.

He wondered why Dilara wasn’t more annoyed, for she enjoyed winning just as much as he did. But she seemed equally excited at the prospect of a fellow player reading out the dialogues as though they were a script, inventing a voice for Zoya and changing her accent, getting immersed in the characters and the story along with Taehyung, with Jungkook having to remind them that time was running out.

“We’re going to lose,” he stated sullenly after a while, when it seemed unlikely that they would finish before their energy packs died. 

“Not necessarily,” pointed out Dilara, moving Zoya through an empty corridor to look for the last clue - the Trine.

“Found it,” said Taehyung casually, as though he had just found his sock and not the Trine that would allow them to win the entire game. “Let’s go?”

“Yes - oh, my God!” Jungkook ran down the castle, making sure Zoya and Amadeus were both following Pontius, his heart racing with the familiar anticipation of possibly winning the game.

“Ah, my controller is stuck.” Taehyung clicked his tongue as the animated Amadeus slowed down without Taehyung speeding him along. 

“What? Don’t you dare make us lose this, Tae!” Dilara threatened him, when they’d almost reached the final destination, where they could see the other two artifacts they must combine with the Trine.

“Wh - I can’t help this! Lara - catch!” Amadeus flung the Trine - the Trine - to Zoya, who lunged for it at the last moment, fumbled it and dropped it just as the timer ran out.

“No!” Jungkook dropped his controller and covered his mouth in horror. “No, no no!” He glared at the pop-out screen, vindicated to see Dilara glaring out the side of her screen before she stood up and disappeared from view, reappearing in Taehyung’s video.

“I’m going to kill you,” she muttered to Taehyung, who grabbed her hands to stop her from doing any damage. It was a few more seconds before Jungkook realised they had moved on from the momentary seriousness to mock-anger, until Taehyung tugged at their clasped hands playfully and she fell into his lap, giggling.

Jungkook watched, dumbfounded, until Taehyung, laughing, said into the speaker, “This was so much fun, really. I think I’ll head to bed now, though,” he added, as Dilara got off his lap and went to her own laptop, pulling on her headphones.

“Yeah?” Jungkook muttered. “No rematch?”

“We’ve been playing for three hours,” he remarked. “You want to play more?”

“I want to win. Dilara?” he asked hopefully. 

“Oh, I -” She bit her lip, apparently mulling. On the pop-out screen, Taehyung had already logged off. Jungkook stared at her, his stomach churning in premature disappointment as she looked at something off screen and visibly tried to hide a smile.

“Dilara?”

“Uh… I think I’m done for tonight, too. But let’s play Person 5 tomorrow, JK. Without Taehyung,” she added deliberately, Taehyung’s muffled protests audible in her background. “Had fun, though, love. Good night!”

Jungkook swallowed as the screen went dark. Had fun? Jungkook didn’t think he’d ever hear Dilara say that about a game she had lost, even though he had never seen her laugh this much while gaming before.

Still reeling from the loss, he went straight to his gaming menu and clicked on Real Racing. No characters, no story - just cars and speed. It was weird playing this game alone, but he needed this win right now. 

Anything to not feel like a loser.

—

Sometime in the summer of that year when the group was in New York, wrapping up the America leg of the tour before starting in Europe, Dilara Komyshan DNF-ed a race.

Partly due to jetlag and partly due to the fact that it was pouring outside, almost all the members were in the suite where the race was being aired. Only Yoongi and Jimin weren’t there, the former because he was working and the latter because he was in the gym.

Jungkook had declined Jimin’s offer to work out together; he was tired, and there was the race. He would work out later, for sure. The rest of the members lounged about, doing various activities while the race played at low volume. It was beyond exciting, real-life cars going at a speed of three hundred kilometres an hour between the gorgeous mountains of Mugello, Italy.

Jungkook wished he were there; Italy had been one of his favourite countries to visit during the Red Bull collaboration last year. The views were incredible, the weather was summery, the air was pristine and the house they’d lived in had been so beautiful and rustic, with enough space outside for him and Dilara to work out together while she went through her extended break-up with Taehyung.

Jungkook sneaked a glance at the aforementioned member. Taehyung didn’t look like he was thinking about Italy last year at all; his gaze was fixed on the screen, biting his lip and tensing up every time Dilara’s car was shown on screen, as though he expected her to crash any second. 

Therefore, when her car did touch another car and they both spun out, Jungkook flinched and Taehyung was on his feet instantly, eyes wide at the screen. It didn’t seem like a violent crash, but he stayed standing, the veins in his neck popping as he stared until Dilara climbed out of the car and took off her helmet.

“Oh, thank God,” he muttered, sighing hugely in relief and sitting back down, dropping his head in hands.

Jungkook frowned; of course he was glad Dilara was okay, but she was also disappointed, for sure. She had effectively lost the race - didn’t Taehyung care about that?

The rest of the race went by with far less interest from anyone in the suite, Dilara appearing briefly in the garage, having changed into jeans and a team t-shirt. From the sounds of it, the commentators seemed to agree that it was a “racing incident”, though caused by Dilara who had apparently attempted a very ambitious overtake that had gotten away from her. 

Taehyung’s face was unreadable; he was flitting between looking at the screen and constantly checking his phone, most likely waiting for a text from Dilara. The race ended and the winners were celebrated, followed by post-race interviews where Dilara was asked about nothing but the crash.

“I did speak to Carlos as soon as we were out of the car,,” she said, nodding. looking a bit cornered with several mics being shoved at her. “We’ve sorted that out. It’s definitely really unfortunate about both our races; it wasn’t the intention and I wish we’d been able to continue, but at the same time…” She shrugged. “It was a gap, you know? What kind of a driver would I be if I didn’t take the opportunity?”

“Even if it was at the cost of a fellow driver?” asked a faceless journalist off screen.

“No - of course not.” Dilara frowned and shook her head. “Like I said, Carlos and I talked about it and I’m - I’m very sorry, obviously. But I tried to go for the gap and he tried to block it - we would’ve both done the same thing if the roles were reversed, I’m sure.” But she looked visibly rattled. The interview ended then and Lewis Hamilton appeared on screen for his interview.

Jungkook reached for his phone and typed out a text.

Jungkook [11:15] I saw the race. I’m sorry. Let me know if you want to get your mind off it. We can play anything you want :)

It didn’t take long for her response to arrive. Jungkook waited, recalling how this had genuinely helped her get over a bad race earlier in the year.

Dilara [11:20] Thanks, JK. Just don’t feel like it today though. Sorry.

As Jungkook read her message, once, twice, thrice, trying to process this and not feel disappointed, Taehyung’s phone buzzed on his lap.

He answered it immediately, jumping to his feet. “Hey,” he said softly, as he walked away towards the rooms. Jungkook stared after him as he nodded at the conversation, his voice growing quieter as he left the group, eventually going into his bedroom and closing the door behind him.

A couple of hours later, after Jungkook had dragged himself to the gym and worked out harder than his body was technically allowing him, he sat at his laptop with a coffee, knowing he had only a little while before it was night in Austria.

Jungkook [14:40] Last chance? We can play Life Is Strange. Seeing me play a teenage girl might make you feel better. I’ll do the voice too.

Dilara [14:44] Haha. That might. Will have to take a raincheck though. Sorry.

Jungkook [14:45] No problem. Let me know if you want to talk or anything.

Dilara [14:46] I will. Thanks, JK. You’re a good friend. The best actually. 

The message stayed in Jungkook’s mind the rest of the day, through rehearsal, soundcheck and the concert. The best. The best. He was her best friend. He’d cheered her up on a bad day, even if it was only on text, even if it was only for a moment.

Later that night, once everyone else was asleep but for some reason, he was still awake, Jungkook checked his phone. He didn’t know what he was expecting to find; it was the crack of dawn in Italy and almost the next night in Korea. The only people he knew were in remotely the same timezone as him were on this very floor of the hotel.

He turned to Jimin with whom he was sharing a room. After a long and borderline nauseating conversation with Sooah that Jungkook had accidentally walked in on, Jimin had finally gone to sleep and was now dead to the world. Jungkook reached for his laptop and opened it to Life Is Strange, connecting his headphones before the sound could disturb Jimin.

As it turned out, it was a good thing Dilara had declined taking part in this game for it didn’t seem to have a multi-player option at all. The single player was to assume the character of Max, a photography student in Arcadia Bay with the power to turn back time. It was the most cerebral game Jungkook had ever played; it was difficult, required concentration that was in short supply for Jungkook right now, and he found himself missing having a partner to solve the puzzles and quests with.

But Jungkook was a solo player, as was Max. He started feeling a kind of kinship with Max, who also seemed to be surrounded by people in her hometown and yet, played alone. The game began with Max experiencing a vision of a tornado during class that destroyed the town, following which, while stepping out to calm down, she witnessed a fellow student shoot another in the head and kill her.

Jungkook flinched at the gunshot, the sudden sound startling him, when he discovered Max’s new ability to rewind time. Upon going back in time to before the student - Nathan - shot the girl, Max saved her, a girl who was apparently Max’s childhood friend Chloe, now her partner in solving a series of mysterious deaths in the town of Arcadia Bay.

Jungkook imagined Dilara reading Chloe’s dialogue, even though Chloe wasn’t a player. Chloe had a very similar vibe to Dilara, he felt; they looked nothing alike, but there was a determination of a kind that Dilara had. Chloe was sensitive, asking for Max’s help to find out what happened to her missing friend Rachel, brave in her desire to fight the bad guys not afraid to cry when they discovered that Rachel was dead.

Jungkook sniffed but powered through; this was exactly the kind of game Dilara liked, with characters and story and human relationships and connections on screen. He got it now, now that it was Max and Chloe against the world. Best friends. He watched, played, went through every motion to keep them together, including going back in time to save Chloe’s father from dying in a car crash. When that alternate reality meant that Chloe was instead injured in the crash and paralyzed from the waist down, Jungkook didn’t hesitate: he went back in time once again, letting her father die and saving Chloe once again.

It was almost dawn when the game was coming to an end. Jungkook could tell the end was nearing because the timeline was meant to span less than a week, but he couldn’t tell where it was going. He frowned as the game took him, Max, to San Francisco for the opportunity to display her photo at an art gallery. It almost felt as though the game was getting away from him, for why had the story moved so far away from Arcadia Bay and from Chloe?

Max calls Chloe.

Jungkook read the dialogue, his heart skipping a beat, for here it was: the tornado, the one that Max had had a vision of hours ago at the beginning of the game, was here in Arcadia Bay, threatening to destroy everything and everyone. 

The game took Max back to the moment she took the gallery photo and Jungkook swallowed, the lump in his throat painful as he and Max descended into a pit of alternate realities that existed as a result of them messing with time, only to come to the heartbreaking conclusion that it all began because Max had saved Chloe from being shot.

“No,” whispered Jungkook out loud, his voice breaking. This was why he hated story-telling games, he thought angrily, biting his lip and feeling his eyes fill up anyway. What was the point? You got attached to a character, to her best friend, to her family, and just when you thought you were making it, it imploded and forced you to choose between two equally important things, between freedom and the ally you made in prison, or between your best friend and your integrity.

What was he supposed to do now? Let the town be destroyed to save Chloe, a character who wasn’t even a player? That definitely wasn’t how the game was designed; he couldn’t imagine the programmers would consider that a win. No, if he had to win the game, he had to save the world. Save the cheerleader, save the world, Dilara had said, months ago. It always came down to saving the world.

Jungkook followed the instructions, his vision blurring as Max went back to Arcadia Bay while the storm approached, reuniting with Chloe when the moment of truth arrived. Jungkook’s finger hovered over the button on the controller, his face screwed up as he clicked on the option in the dialogue box.

He watched motionlessly as the animation exploded, the storm rolling in and destroying Arcadia Bay, the entire town razed to the ground. As the camera panned around the devastation, Jungkook swallowed the lump in his throat and let the tears stream silently down his face as Chloe appeared amidst the ruins, alive and relieved. She and Max clasped hands and left Arcadia Bay together, leaving the wreckage behind them.

—

Thanks for reading. Don’t forget to leave a review :)

[rose-tinted-kalopsia]

PART 2 OF MY INCOHERENT YELLING UNDER THE CUT!!!! :D

we're starting WITH THISSSS BC HUHUHUUUU 😭😭😭😭 CALEEEBBBB 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 WJFKNWHFJSKJFHSKD the way he knows he might be overstepping but also we're like no sorry its just im not feeling great... AND HE KNOWSSSSS 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

okokokokok and now. WE'RE GOING BACK IN WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE THE MAIN STORY.

KSDHGKJSDHGKJHVSKJFNKJ this mf he's soo... i want to SHAKE HIM. AFFECTIONATELY.

"I'm Caleb. I'll always be by your side." HUHUHU THE :( THE PARALLELS THE :(((((((((( HE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY TO SOOTHER HERRRR :(((((((

"That's just how things work, pipsqueak." YYYYYYYYYELLLLLLLIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG

AND THE ?????????????? THE WAYHIS TONE CHANGES WHEN HES TALKING TO EVERYONE ELSE. IM SOBBING "COME BACK TO ME WHEN THE BAUBLE AROUND HIS NECK GROWS A BRAIN" OH MY GODDDDDDD WKJEHGKJHVKJSFHGKJDKJFGH HES SOOO

"I HAVEN'T EVEN DISCIPLINED YOU." SIR !!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭

"It's an order." IMMWKJEHSGKJHVSKJXFDHGKJDFXHGCKVJ oh man the VOICELINES IM STARRING

i am sO FUCKING. IN LOVE. WITH YOU.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"you're putting my evol to good use like always." HWJKHFKWHSKDJGH SOBBING CRYING ON THE FLOOR. THE WAY HE. EFFORTLESSLY OPENS THE. CAN. HES SO. OHHHH HE HAS SUCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH GOOD CONTROL OF HIS EVOL DOESNT HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

mc being afraid of thunder................. ooooooouuuuhhhhhhh defaulting back to that ohshc scene with hikaru againnnnn............

"....you ungrateful pipsqueak." YELLING

I LOVE THEIR DYNAMIC SO MUCH WHATTHEFUCK

HOLD

HOLD

OHMYGOD HOLD

"like the ones who are involved in this incident" I JUST NOTICED?????? and this is ever, right...... luke and kieran callback....... what is WITH ever's obsession with twins.........................

HFWKJSHKJGHKJVSHFDKGJHVKDJFXHKGJHDKFJGN

"is that the only reason?" UUUUUUU THE WAY HIS VOICE GOES ALL SOFT AND HE GLANCES AWAY AND AND AND AND. OHHHHH THE YEARNIIIIINNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

".... iiii'm just messing around. what's wrong? cat got your tongue?" CALEB PLEASEHKDGHFKGKDJFV

wtf im so obsessed with the way he says "alright, alright~!" UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

ZAYNE

HOYGODMYOEHRDKGHEKDRFHGDHRGK HOMYGODHOMYGOSDHGJHDFKJGSFNXKGJHVSKJDXHGKJSDHFKXJGHVDFKJVN

WAIT WAIITAWITHAEHT CHOTTO MATTE KUDASAITHOEWSHDGNKJDCFNKJGCNBDKJFMCNGKBJDFNCK IC ANGKDRJFG

Z AY N E

SJKDFHJWEJGKJDS THEY BOTH HAVE A "wTF R U DOING HERE" MOMENGHKJ I CANNOT I CANNOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

WAIYWAIT I CANF BREATHE

"is this the confidential schedule you talked about two weeks ago? don't worry, i'll experience memory loss once i'm back in linkon." IMMMMMMM WHEEZIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGG

OH GOD OH GOD. HIS VOICE IS SO SOFT. IM SOBBING SO HARD RN.

WHAT THE HELL I MISSED ZAYNE

OH MY GOD

EHSDGKJSHKJDFGHKJVHSDKFJXGHJDBFJHCBGJVHF

SORRY CALEB WAIY I NEED

IM HAVING SUCHA MOMNEF

ok back to regular programming.

ahem.

poor mia... she needs a crisis therapist </3

OUGH SHES TENN <///3

SJDFRJEWHKSHKJSE ZAYNE. ZAYNE YOURE SOOO. OUGHHH THE WAY HE TALKS TO HERRRRRRRRR THE WAY HEEEEEEE

ok sorry

mc im sorry but youre terrible with dealing with crisis patients. thats a terrible approach. oh my god. too many you statements, diving right into what happened without establishing any sort of rapport... that couldve triggered an immediate emotional response and youd get kicked out girl youre terrible at this im so sorry

CLOCKED IT SEEEEE SHE'S TEARING UP !!!! >:( SHE'S GONNA CRY MC >:(

A LITTLE DOGGIE PLUSHIE 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 NOOOOOOOOOOO

ZAYNE YOURE SO SILLY WHQETSKFKSJDF COME HERE ILL KISS YOU

oh 😭 zayne doesn't know about caleb, right 😭😭 "the fleet feels different this time" huhu oh zayne.. if only you knew ...

😭 BUT I WISH WE COULD TELL HIM !!! MC SAY SOMETHINGGGGGGGG :( THAT'S HIS FRIEND TOO !!!!!!!!!!!11

"i'm afraid i'll bother you when you're busY" answered with "we both have to deal with challenges, one after another. if we want to see each other, then there will be moments like this where we can sit together. no matter how hectic things get." ZAAAYYNNNEEEEEEEEEEE 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 WHAT THE HELL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IM WSIDHGKJDFCHGJDHFKJGHKJSDRHG I LOVE YOU 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 WHY IS HE SO GOOD AT THIS WHKGJD HE'S SO GOOD AT REASSUING HER WHY DOES HE SAY THE RIGHT THINGSSSSSSSSS :( AHUHU oh man,,,,,,,,,,,,,, i love him zayne why are you soooooo my ideal....

IM SUPPOSED TO BE PINING FOR CALEB DAMMIT ZAYNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

NOOOOOO 😭😭😭😭THAT'S WHY THEY WANT KEVI?! 😭😭😭😭😭😭 IT'S THE... CRYSTAL THING :( IT'S THE SAME, RIGHT?! 😭😭😭😭😭 AHUHU THE TRANSFORMATION THING THE.. !!! THE THING LUKE AND KIERAN HAVE TOO..... on a twin, no less...

ohhh its the fragment...??? HUH......................

ough... my heart...

i wonder if these twins were experiments before too? :( is that why they're after kevi......... why does it seem like they want kevi more than mia though....

ONLY ONE TWIN TRANSFORMED.. OR LIKE, HAS THE CRYSTAL THING... i wonder why. does the anomaly never affect both twins...

IM YELLING SOBBINGHJKSNXKJCBVHDKJF THE WAY ZAYNE KNOWS SHE MIGHT RAMBLE ON THE MOMENT HE ANSWERS AND HE SAYS CALM DOWN AND

"WHEN HIS VOICE COMES THROUGH THE PHONE, IT'S ALMOST AS IF A WARM HAND IS SOOTHING MY TROUBLED MIND." ZAYNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

ok now what's bothering me is that. they're directly addressing the story branches... but also the experiences that mc went through with the guys. so this BASICALLY means. you really did have to play through all of them to get the full story BUT it also means that.. the relationship progression... is being vaguely addressed... and that all of them happened with all three of them... and that's kind of... mn,,... what's the point of separate branch stories... it might as well really just have been different mainstory chapters... hhh

they're keeping the romantic subtext a little bit, no? :/ zayne is so sweet in this... he wouldn't have been if they didn't go through chansia together... hhh this makes me kind of upset... theyre going to keep romantic subtext in the main main story while never directly addressing the relationship... i'd hfsdg really hate to see "omg mc is dating all 5 of the guys at the same time" ughhh i wish they didn't do this

but neway..

i wonder, if.... like... if zayne and dr. noah get a chance to look over luke and kieran, would it help? do luke and kieran still have the threat of transformation over them if it's been two years since the last known record of it happening (as far as we know?)... i wonder if zayne and dr. noah can help them too ;o;

WHFKJHSKJDHGKSKDJG THERE'S A YUAN-TI IN LOVE AND DEEPSPACE? LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

BUT HE HAS LONG HAIR... HIS DESIGN IS KINDA PRETTY... DAMNHE HAS A WHOLE PORTRAIT AND EVERYTHING, LIKE, SO HE'S GONNA BE PRETTY IMPORTANT HUH-?!

AN APPLE 😭😭😭😭IM WHEEZING CALEB PLEASE

NOT THE WAY CALEB COMES FROM GROCERY SHOPPING LIKE THIS QHWKAJSHFKJSHDKJGHVKSJ I CANNOT WITH HIM HES SO WHGSKJDGHKSJD SILLYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

"THE SUPERMARKET WASN'T HAVIN' A SALE ON PRODUCE TODAY, AND MY BULLETS AREN'T EXACTLY CHEAP" BROOOO HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

"eat some fruit. i'll be right back" IM WHEEZING SO HARDDDDDDDDDD

JWEHSFKJWHKJDSHGKJHDKJFG ??? "perfect vesssel my asss! it doesssn't even look as good as usss unfinished productsss." <- ultima what are u doing here. /JJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJ

CALEB'S ONE-LINERS HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA "i see it's shedding season again, Viper." THIS GUY IMMM

oh damn. THERE S A TIME LIMIT? WHAT SGOINF ON

"wouldn't you sssay your overprotectivenesss bordersss obsess-" IM DYING

"Lay a hand on her again, and I will kill you." OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

FLASHBACKS TO THAT CHAPTER WITH XAVIER IN THE ALLEY GHKVSJHFDGKJSRKJH

HE TOWEL-DRIES OUR HAIR FOR US :(((( CALEEEBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB HUHU THATS SO ACTS OF SERVICE OF YOUU....

HUHU THE WAY HE. CASUALLY JUST COMBS THROUGH OUR HAIR.. ITS SO SOFT :(

"There's no rush. We have more than enough time together." THIS IS A LINE FROM MC?!?!?!?! OMG GIRLLLLLLLLLL

??????????????? DESPITE???? THE DAA HAVING CLOSE CONNECTIONS W THE FLEET ?????????????????? HE'S JUST??? NEVER??? THEY DON'T KNOW ?????? OMG CALEB... you have so many secrets 😭😭😭😭😭😭

"To reassure me, Caleb gently pats my head." OUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH CALEB :((((((((((

"don't worry. they will find him." HWJFKHEKJ NOOOOOOOO 😭😭 WRONG ANSWER 😭😭 IM SOBBING OUGH

OHHHHHH THE MISCOMMUNICATION. THE SECRETS. OHMYGODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

OTTO 😭😭😭😭😭

CALEB NOOOOOOO 😭 SHAKING YOU SHAKING YOU SHAKING YOU SHAKING YOU

GIVE HER SOME AGENCYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY CALEB CMONNNNNNNNNNNNN

"you're lying." "what about you, then?" OH MY GOSHGJKHKJRDV THEY CAN'T KEEP ANYTHING FROM EACH OTHERRRR

"for some reason, this version of caleb feels like a stranger." SOBBING SOBBING SOBBING SOBBING

WE MADE A PINKY PROMISEEEE :(((

CALEEEEEEBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

oooouhghhhhhh i can feel the tensionnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

AUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THE WAY HE. HOLDS. THE WAY HE HOLDS OUR HAND THE.

"if i kept you here with me like this... would you think i'm being too selfish?" that's so jumin han of you but you know what. at least you're asking

iM HSKJDNGKVFMC

oh caleb:( baby :(( you're bearing too much weight on your shoulders :( share it with us :(

the world is ours to save, not yours </3

HUHU THE LIL HAND KISS :( CALEEEEBBBBBBBBBB :((( UGH COME HERE 😭😭😭😭 I WANT TO HOLD YOUUUUUUUUUU 😭😭😭😭

oh mc :( your nightmares:( i want to hug you too :(

"but somehow i got dizzy and actually slept..." HELP. HELP? I- WAIT A SEC-

HELP

CHOTTO MATTE KUDASAI

WHAT IS WITH THIS TENSION

MIA?!?! 😭😭😭😭😭

WHAT IN THE 5D CHESS IS GOING ON

WHAT THE HELL????????????????

they're really selling the whole "temptation from the serpent" idea here 😭😭😭 with knowledge, no less... "don't you want to know?" viper, buddy, PLEASE 😭😭😭😭

viper is truly hilarious in his own right though LMFAO i like him

dude. "the professor said if we damage the bird's neuromuscular system, it won't be able to fly. but it will believe it can." WHY ARE WE PLAYING AROUND WITH CONDITIONING, KEVI? WHAT ARE WE DOING

this is so unsettling omfg...

DUUUUUUUUUUUUDDDDDDDEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

WHAT IN THE HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLL ISSS GOING ONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

OH MY GOD. OH MY GOD THATS WHY. THATS WHY MC TALKS ABOUT THE CHIP. OH MY GODDD THATS WHY IN THE TRAILER SHE-

CALEEEEEEEEEBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB

"letting your emotions run wild and blaming yourself for every little mistake... it will only hold you back."

whoah

we're going back down repression lane, huh...

CALEB WHAT ARE YOU DOING BUDDYYYYYY 😭😭😭

THE TENSION BRO 😭😭😭😭 I CANT DO THISSSS

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THE MEMORIESSSSS WHJVHKJFH THE FLASHBACKS ARE KILLING MEEEEE

HE'S SUCH A SCIENCE KID OMG. hehe i was so right... he's a STEM person.. hehe.. i love him..

"why is he acting like nothing happened? why is it always so difficult to understand what he's thinking?"

mY HEART

HER DOUBTS.. THE QUESTIONS... MAN. IM ACTUALLY KINDA PROUD SHES STARTING TO QUESTION THINGS WHJFKSDJ I WAS WORRIED SHE MIGHT BE AN UNBOTHERED QUEEN ABOUT IT AGAIN

OK BUT the way theyre approaching the topic of talking it out is so SO filled with tension and i think its so appropriate for the nature of their relationship omg

HE REALLY-?!

CALEB 😭😭😭😭 PLEASE 😭😭😭😭

oh my god... these ... "abominations" or whatever the heck...

the transformation... this is so. this is so crazy to me .

i keep thinking of luke and kieran HFWKNJDNGKFJWER

oh, are they after the aether core...? huh...

"pass the test" does passing the test mean being able to resist the onslaught of the transformation like kevi did? does this mean... hypothetically speaking, people like- kieran? or whichever one of the twins transformed in that anecdote? HWKFSKJFD

but then if that's the case.. does it mean they'll always be able to resist the transformation..? does it end if you resist it once? is it just gone? like, we saw kevi looks so normal... does the chip do something to prevent the transformation too??? DOES THE TRANSFORMATION HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH MEMORIES? BC THE CHIP DOES STH WITH MEMORIES?

"are you mad at me?"

he'S TRULYYY. SO PUPPY 😭😭😭😭😭 BABYYY CMERE LET ME HUG YOUUU 😭😭😭

"you... what have you been doing behind my back?" <- YOU GO GIRL

"anyone who dares to wield power that isn't theirs must pay the price." whoah..............

😭😭😭 AUUUUU THEYRE ARGUING.....

"I will protect you." CALEB 😭😭😭😭😭 BUDDY SIT DOWN AND LISTEEENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

man. the irony that falls on me for being a xavier main who can't stand miscommunication WHFKJHSKDGH AND THEN THISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

caleb, baby, love, i love you, BUT LISTEEEENNNNNNNNNNN

DON'T YOUUU "MORNIN'" MEEEEEEEEEEEEE

it's totally a different case from elbie/jumin... like i can totally get why he's doing htis and i still love him with his whole heart but omg i

"you already figured out everything, right? ...Aren't i pathetic?" BABY 😭😭😭😭😭😭 DID YOU REALLY..?

IM CRYING??????? CALEB-

mc scares me lowkey LMAOHGKJEHKJ SHES SO BADASS IN THIS? LIKE DAMN YOU GO GIRL 😭😭😭😭😭

WHKFVKSDKJ CYBEZIN.. THE DRUG CALEB TALKED ABOUT IN THE START ABOUT OVERDOSE-

TORING CHIPS

I guess at least they're self aware they have the chips......

CALEB?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭

THEYRE REALLY SERIOUSLY GOING JUMIN HAN ON THIS, DAMN

ITS NOT AS INTENSE AS LIKE... ELBIE.. BUT... DAMN

THE WAY HE SWALLOWS 😭 THE WAY HE TENSES 😭😭😭 OH MY POOR BABY 😭😭😭😭

he's restraining himself so much from somethingggg 😭 ugh what are you hidinggg 😭😭😭

"if being with me only brings you pain, then just put up with this for three more days." IM SOBBINGG :((

"i'll be gone. aren't you happy that you won't have to see me then?" :( oh im so illlllllll :(((((

you can honestly just. see so much of his struggles with authority and being the caretaking figure SO MUCH i was looking forward to how they would characterize this and i'm actually kind of happy to see this conflict with him!!!!!! there's so much depth here. i can feel it. I DONT KNOW ANYTHING BUT I CAN FEEL ITTT HES SO INTERESTING TO ME ahhhHH i want to pick at his brain... i want to analyze him... its makiNG ME JUMPYYYYY

"so i have to listen to the colonel even when it comes to eating and drinking now?" "you can be mad, but don't let it affect your health." "i'm not mad."

"growing up, we knew each other so well. better than most, even. i could see through your lies when you'd blink. bite your lip, and i could tell you were upset."

"i wonder. how did you turn into someone i hardly recognize?" im SOOO 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

OH THIS SCENEEEE THE ARGUMENTTTT IM S O ILL RNNNN 😭😭😭😭😭 I'M SO WHFKJSHKDGHKJDV THIS IS TICKLING MY BRAIN SO MCUH BUT MY HEART ALSO HURTS JUST AS MUCH ICANTTTTTT

THE WAY HE'S TENSING UP 😭😭😭😭 the liNES THE HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

NO NO NONO NO NO NO NO NO DON'T LEAVE. COME BACK HERE. COM EBACK HERE AND SOLVE THE PROBLEM WITH ME WAIT WAIT WAIT WE CAN TALK THIS OUT COME BA C K H E R E

MC WANTS TO CRY AND I WANT TO CRY WITH HER HUHU 😭😭😭😭

"i can't figure out what's real or fake with caleb. but what i know for sure is that this person who's important to me... i don't want to lose him a second time."

ORZ

the conflict with them is so 😭 they have so many issues they need to work out because of the distance that put them at odds for the time they spent apart and it's so- considering that their relationship has been so close?! you can feel the pain from BOTH ends because they aren't handling it properly but they both 😭 they both love each other sO MUCH 😭😭😭😭

like it just. feels like... you can really sympathize with mc... its not frustrating that she's giving him so much benefit of the doubt (at least for me) bc this is the caleb she grew up with, and why is he acting different? like she cant understand it.. shes trying to wrap her head around it and it HURTS bc she's not familiar anymore with the person she thought she knew the best.... LIKE JUST. THAT SHIT HURTS LIKE HELL HUHU and you FEEL IT YOU FEEL MC'S PAIN BC. WE WERE THERE TOO !!! WE WAITED SO LONG FOR HIM TOO !! WE SAW HIM AND HOW HE WAS AND WE KNOW THERE'S A DIFFERENCEEEEE and she's not familiar with it and neither are we and aNDDDDD just !!!!!!!! THE PAIN HUHU infold really put us in her shoes its just so !!!!!

BUT IT BETTER NOT END LIKE THIS 😭😭😭😭 IT BETTER NOT END LIKE THIS.. IM GOING TO SOB SO HARD..

...

THE PRICE CALEB PAID TO BE "BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE"??? 😭😭😭😭😭😭

THE SENSATION THE

THE

STOP

stop iT

STOPP

NOOOO

HUHU 😭😭😭 WHAT DO YOU MEAN!! WHAT DO YOU 😭😭😭 HE REALLY 😭😭😭 I 😭😭😭😭

WHOAH A POEM

...

...

WHAT THE HELL. IS IT REALLY ENDING LIKE THAT?? JUST?? JUST LIKE THAT?! JUST LIKE THAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

HODL ON 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

NOOOOOOOOOO NOT A SINGLE DROP OF CLOSUREEEEEEEEE😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

:D SERVER'S OPEN!!!!!! this will make zero sense for anyone who goes under the cut i just needed somewhere to liveblog so youll see this post get updated sporadically and it will probably be just filled with keysmashes LMAO

[jumpy bouncy noises] ITS LOAAADDDIIIIINNNGGGGGGGGGG

Lord help me and my internet for loading this slowly its like watching a snail </3 IMSTILL BOUNCING BUT AT WHAT COST. AT WHAT COSTTTTTTT

so close yet so far...

75% YOU CAN DO IT YOU CAN DO IT IM CHEERING YOU ON GO GO GO OG GO GO

WHY IS IT STUCK AT 92% WNFKJW HELP

[secret agent voice] i'm in 😎😎😎

WHY?!

HWHDHWHHDHWHEHWHWHOOAAAAAHHH?!?! ITS SO PRETTY 😭😭😭😭 NOW THAT ITS ACTUALLY ON MY SCREEN

OOUUUU IM SO EMO RN

*PATHETIC WHIMPERS* 😭😭😭

ok ok ok ok ok ok. STORY TIME

oh my poor mc.... fellow chronic nightmare haver...

FUCKING EVERRRRRRRRR WHEN I CATCH YOU EVERRRRRRRRRRRR <- automatic reaction after one (1) ever mention

WHAT THE HELL????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

ohhhhhhhHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDHFWKJSEDNGKJVHNDKFJHBNKJDFNCXKJVMF "is the new fleet colonel defying the hunters association" HE'S NEW????????????? AND HE'S DOING WHAT NOWWWWWWWWWWWW??????????????

WHAT ARE WE DOING WHY ARE WE IN THE UNIFROMFSKJGNJDK "ROOKIE" IM SCREAMINF

why IS the fleet investigating a crime scene.... is that what they do??? why are they involved im crying

"prohibiting hunters from investigating" oh I GET IT. OK BRO

oHMYGOD JENNA

omfg the AUTHORITY QWHFNVKDJGHJ GOOSEBUMPS.CHILLS.

"concerned about the confidentiality" FLASHBACKS TO THE CALL WITH CALEBGVBDKF IM SOBBING SO HARD RN

"jenna shows a rare instance of exasperation" SORRY JENNA T^T

JENNA YOU'RE LITERALLY MVP OMFHGKEJRSNDFKJG I LOVE YOU HUHUHUHUHUHU

i like how, realistically this wouldn't have been possible,,, bc military is super strict about the info they have on cadets,,, like omg if they did that w the military academy here there'd be hella price to pay HWJSKFNVSKJDFBUT SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF !!!!!!!!

SHE'S FUCKING WEARING IT 😭😭😭😭😭😭 HUHUHUHUHUHUHUHUHU😭

"butting heads with the association" GHWEJSKDGNVKJEDFKJGH SMOOTH MF YOU THINK YOU'RE SO SLICK...................

"don't poke your nose in places where it doesn't belong" yeah that's an accurate representation 😭 authority and position mean hella. if you're just a cadet... a rookie at that... you don't get to do much if they say you can't 😭

I FUCKING CHOKEDHKEJRHGNKJDF THAT'S LUKE'S VA?????????? IM CRYIN RNHYGKEJDG ID RECOGNIZE THAT IN A HEARTBEAT 😭😭😭😭😭

I CANT DO THIS I CANTHFVWKJSD IM JUST SEEING LUKE WHAT THEY CANF DO THIS TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE I KNNNOOWWWW THE TWINS ARE JUSTTT SIDE CHARACTERSSSS BUT COME OOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

😭

OTL OTL OTL

sorry anyway. back to regular programming.

WAIT

HIS EYES. HIS EYES ARE SO. WEHKJGDHVKHSKDFJGHVKEJDFNGKJVDNFKJGHNVKJNKGVJDNKFJCNVKDJFNJKGHDKFVNKDJF HOLY FUCK

"UNFORTUNATELY FOR THEM, I ALREADY DANCED WITH DEATH ONCE." SIR. MARRY ME

OH GODDAMMIT I CANT STAR LINES YET COME OOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

haha he used limitless. /jJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJ

I LOVE HOW WE STARTED BOTH CALEB'S AND SYLUS' DEBUT CHAPTERS WITH MURDER LIKE YES. GET EM BOYS

THE WAY HE

THE WAY HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

THE WAY HE FHEKJSDRNKJFGHKDJRHWIPED THE BLOOD OFF OF

OH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

"maggots" hELP HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA THIS CAPTAIN DUDE

OHM YGOD

HE HGERKJSDKGJSD THE FUCKINGKRHSDKGJ TOM CRUISE-

IM CRYIGNSDKFJ SOHARDF

FUCKHDFKJGHFUKCING HELL WHY IS

HES SO GODDAM ATTRACTINVERKJG

WAIT

joseph.........

"his voice... sounds familiar." NO SHIT GIRLIEHGKBJDFHXKGJBNKDFJNV

STOPESHGKJSHK "I'D RECOGNIZE YOUR VOICE IN AN INSTANT" APPLIES TO BOTH OF THEM 😭😭😭😭😭

HES SO FUCKING HOT BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

the tone of voice the. the GAZE. the WORDS. the. EVERYTHING. hejkfhWHFDSJ HE CARRIES HIMSELF WITH SUCH. COLD. RUTHLESSNESS

AND HES SO. SMART. HES SO. HES SO

OUGHHHHHHHHHHHHH HIS BRAIN

FUCK IT I WANF HIM

OH SHITGNVKDFSJHGKD WE'RE TALKINF ABOUT COGNITIVE DISSONANCE OHMYGOFHSKJDFH CALEB I FUCKING LVOE YO U

HIS EVOL IS SO FUCKINF POWERFUL

OH MY GODHFEWNKJDSNKGJNVKJDFNXCKVJDNMFXKJGN

OHH MYGODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

CALEB YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

"the order is cold, and everyone snaps out of their daze."

*SWOONS*

OMYGODWHGSKSKJD SHE RECOGNIZES THE EVOL 😭 THE FLASHBACK IMSOBBINGS O HARD RN

"it's not because i'm scared. i heard this voice before. i know this voice."

SCREAMING CRYING THROWINF UP

"no need." "I'll do it myself." IIIIIIIIMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMYELLINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

[ R E S T ]

I NEED A MOMENF WAIY

..

ok back to regular programming.

"can you really be called a small fish?" OH HE'S TEASING HER 😭

IM ABOUT TO SOB IM SOBBGINKRJDFHKJGKDVJFHKJGOHHYMGOD THE WAY HE REVEALED HIMSEJFKSHKJDF THE HAT THE HAT THE

"show some respect to the farspace fleet's colonel." SIR YES SIRRRRRRRRRR

i cant believe i cant star his lines yet. i already have a collection in my head

. MY GIRL'S DELUSIONALHGKJWHSDKJGHKSJD I GET IT. I WOULD BE TOO. I FEEL YOU MC. I FEEL YOU.

"watch your mouth." SIR

OH THE EYES. THE GAZE HE. oh hes losing it. oh hes trying so hard to act calm. oh caleb you absolute fucking puppy

"smart move." LET ME STAR HIS LINESSSSSSSLET MEEEEE STARRR THHEEEEEEEMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

KEJHRGKJHWKJRHG I CANNOT WITH HIM HES SO WHGJDVKJH THE KABEDON THE. THE NECKLACE. THE WAY HE'S LOOKING AT HERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR IM SOBBING HES TRYING SO HARD. YOU THINK YOURE SOOOOOOOOOOO SLICK CALEBBB. ITS NOT WORKINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG I CAN SEE YOUR YEARNIIIINNNNNGGGGGGGGG

"i... i miss him." IM SOBBING SO HARD

"do what you're told, and don't cause any trouble." SIR YES SIRRRRRRRRRRR

"be obedient, and it will be over before you know it."i need. immediately. to hear this line in japanese. IM PLAYING THE ENTIRE THING IN JAPANESE LATER OK HOLDON. he calls us a good girl i know it I JUST KNOW IT I KNOW HE DOES.

IM FUCKING WHEEEEEEEEEZIIIIIIINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG THE BATON FHKJSDHKJGHS HE'S HAVING SO MUCH FUN I CANT WITH HIM OH CALEB YOU'RE NOT SLICK AT ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

HE'S BEEN WATCHING HER THIS WHOLE TIME 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 IM . I CANT DO THIS HE'S SO CONCERNED HES USING THIS AS AN EXCUSE TO ASKHER OHMYGOD HES SO PUPPY. HIS EXPRESSION. HES SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

NOT THE WAY HE JUST GOES :D

"did i scare you? :(" IM GOING TO CRY YOURE SUCH A PUPPY

the more pathetic he gets, the more i love him. let it be known.

THE HUG THE HUG WE GOT THE HUG OH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

MC'S VOICE ACTING 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 TOP TIER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IM ABOUT TO SOB WITH HER AWWW WHAT THE HELL THGKWJSDKJ MY HEART

STARTS SOBBING CRYING THROWING UP

CALEB YOUUUUU 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

WE GOT A LIL APPLE PATPAT 😭😭😭 IM SOOO 😭😭😭 WHAT THE HELL I LOVE HIM 😭😭😭😭😭

SOBBING CRYING ON THE FLOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 WE HAVE A SECRET SPOT 😭😭😭 OMIGODDD 😭😭😭😭😭😭

oops ok image limit. PART 2 OF MY INCOHERENT YELLING IN THE REBLOGS <3