#I've been on the dating scene for so long which has kept me busy but that's like a bunch of first and second dates.

[bithegarden]

had a little party and got to see my friends todaay!! :D

[but-the-library-of-alexandria]

In honour of #CRAspecFestWk2 I feel that this is the perfect time to Soft Launch the fact that I have been working on an Aeor Date Shadowgast fic for a little while... I wanted to have a lot more of it finished before I revealed it but fuck it lol, maybe this will motivate me to write!

I'm being a little Fancy with format lol, I've tentatively decided to present it as a kind of Found Manuscript, the manuscript in question being the research diary Essek kept during the trip, which starts out being strictly business with a few slips and deliberate ommissions, and slowly gets more and more personal until he's barely writing about the research at all and it's just fully a personal journal lol. It's a Getting Together fic so expect a lot of Longing as well as a bit of early relationship honeymoon phase

Anyway, in the interest of getting some Aspec Vibes out there this week, see below the cut to read some curated snippets from three scenes which may or may not be used in the final version, which I feel touch upon the Demisexual Experience to some extent:

Snippet 1: a pre-gettting-together musing on different 'speeds' of attraction:

I am not stupid. I do know that the feeling is mutual. Nor do I think he is stupid, and I am sure he knows as well. Similar as we are, I find him easy to read, although, different as we are, I suspect we came at it very differently. Like fire and ice, Cheszara said, and it does ring true: I am glacially slow to move, while Caleb’s feelings catch quickly and burn bright. I dare not wonder how much earlier he arrived upon it than I did. I’m afraid that, if I asked, he’d say, immediately. He has the capacity for it, in a way that I don’t. In the past year or so alone - according to Jester and Beau and my own eyes - that spark has kindled for half a dozen people (if you count the three of them who have taken turns in the same body). Of course, when I think of that, a quiet voice in the back of my head that still has a shred of humility (that voice is never very loud in wizards) asks how I can possibly hope, being one of so many options, to be the one he chooses. Perhaps in my slowness to bloom, the moment has passed, and someone else’s claim has taken precedence. The much louder voice of my ego (again, a wizards’ trait) takes an inventory and reassures me that I am probably the best option, or close to it. 

That likely speaks more of his questionable taste than it does of my virtue. 

But no, I am certainly not afraid that he does not feel the same, or that I would be a bad choice for him, but despite what some may think, that does not leave me with nothing to fear. He may feel more for someone else. He may feel against his will, and choose to reject those feelings. He may be advised away by others. He may find that the life he wants to live does not have room for everything he wants, and compromises must be made. His logical mind may make a different choice from what I will generously call his heart (generously to myself, anyway). The simple phenomenon of two people feeling similarly towards each other does not make everything else fall away; life is many-faceted, timing is important, and circumstances must align - choices, as I have learnt the hard way, must be made consciously and hollistically, with consideration for the ripple effect they will have. To want something does not always lead to choosing it. 

I would choose it, of course. But I am only half the authority. 

Snippet 2: a flashback featuring Marion, my favourite aspec headcanon, which is maybe only tangientally aspec and more about just Being Hot But Not Wanting A Lot Of Sex in general, but I wanted to include it bc I love it lol:

“It's ‘break',” Marion said. 

“What?”

“The lyric,” she said, referring to the song I'd just finished. She was sitting next to me on the piano stool. “I break every lovely thing I touch. You said burn, instead of break. Why?”

“I misspoke,” I told her honestly. 

“Why?” she did not let me escape her question so easily. 

I shrugged evasively. “Common is not my first language.”

She was not fooled. “You don't have to tell me why,” she said. “Just ponder it yourself.”

“I don't need to ponder,” I allowed her a glimpse of the truth: “I know why.”

“Beauty,” she said, in a change of subject that seemed incongruous at the time, “is not always the blessing some people think it is, is it?”

“I don't know - you've built quite an empire with yours.”

She gave a perfectly charming laugh. “Oh, I like that - an empire of beauty! What an amusing turn of phrase. Well, perhaps - but don't pretend you have not learned to turn your own curse to your advantage. You would not look like you do if you had not.”

With a smile I reminded her that the face she was looking at was not my real face. She knew what my real face looked like, of course, but we were in public, so at this moment it was hidden behind an illusion.

“Exactly,” she said. “If you resented your pretty face so much, you'd take this opportunity to wear an ordinary one, to blend into a crowd - but you have chosen another just as beautiful as the original. If you did not wish to be beautiful, you need not wear all that finery, the jewellery, the shimmer, any of it. You could try to hide, but you don't.”

I did not know what to say. She narrowed her eyes perceptively.

“It is strange, isn't it? How frightening it is to walk through the world, minding your own business and yet affecting people regardless - breaking hearts and making waves you never intended to, simply because of how people react to something you carry with you always, something out of your control -” she leaned in and added in a conspiratorial stage whisper: “but isn't it even more awful to hide your face under a plain veil, and walk down the street without seeing a single child gaze up at you in awe as you go by?” 

She had perfectly captured a feeling I had never even thought to put into words, the strange paradox of going through life as an object of desire to people you had no desire to captivate: the coexisting dread of catching someone looking at you with hunger, wondering if they’re calculating in their head how much resistance they'd be willing to push through, how much they'd be willing to risk to get their hands on you - alongside a habitual dependence upon being able to slide through any barrier with a well-timed smile and a well-chosen perfume. The endless longing for the world to ignore your exterior and see a value in you that is more than skin deep, and yet the impossibility of being able to untangle your own self-worth from the crutch of your looks. The strange addiction of beauty, of resenting it and all the unwanted side-effects it brings to you and the people around you, and yet being too intoxicated by the sight of your own face in the mirror to ever give it up. I held Marion's gaze, and in each other we saw someone who knew that depressingly shallow truth: beauty is power, and like any power, it is as dangerous as it is irresistible, and it most commonly falls to those who can do the least good with it. 

I told her why I'd said burn instead of break, and she grinned as though I'd given her the most delightful gift. I know the feeling: it is far more enjoyable to watch the chequered romances of others than it is to be in the ring yourself.

Snippet 3: an open conversation about demisexuality, the most on-the-nose acknowledgement of it but also probably the least likely to make it into the final cut bc I think it's a little TOO on the nose as it currently is:

“Life certainly can be stranger than fiction,” I said with a smile. “I must admit that if someone had come back in time and told me on the day we first met that this is where we would be a year later, I might have struggled to believe them.”

“I certainly would not have,” Caleb agreed. “Not that I would have been surprised at my own feelings, of course, but surprised at my luck. I daresay you’d have been equally surprised on both counts. I don’t believe your eye was on me as mine was on you, on day one.”

“Don’t take it personally,” I said, not feeling inclined to lie, “but I’m afraid that’s not really how my brain works. I have never seen a stranger and felt that kind of attraction to them.”

“Really?” His tone was curious, but not particularly surprised or disbelieving. 

“No. It’s not that I don’t care for appearances or…” I struggled for the word in common, “presence, at all - I can make aesthetic judgements, and once I am attracted to someone, I do find those things attractive, it’s simply that… well, for most people the attraction comes first, and then as you get to know the person you come to truly care for them - for me, the attraction tends to come last. If it comes at all, that is; it is not guaranteed, of course.” 

“Seems convenient,” he said. “You’re never going to find yourself drawn into an impulsive entanglement you regret.”

“It feels less incongruous as I get older,” I allowed, “but you can imagine the animosity in my student days, when everyone wanted my… attention, and I would not give it. And don’t think I’ve never been attracted to someone I wished I wasn’t; to know someone intimately, to be close to someone, is not necessarily the same as liking and respecting them.” 

“Very true.”  

Thanks for reading if you did! This is only my second fic in uhhh over ten years lol, and only my second long(ish) form fic - I hope to post the first chapter this week, if I'm feeling brave!

@cr-aspec-fest

[bright-omens]

Do you have any miles headcannons it can be angst or fluffy or a little bit of both. It's up to you

Haha. You gave me too much power. Also, I wasn't super sure if you meant general headcanons or, like, x reader kinda ones, so you get general hc's (if that's not what you wanted, I apologize and will write whatever it is you actually wanted lol). Anyways! On with the headcanons :D

TW: Angst, slight mentions of SH, mention of panic attack, mention of drugs, mention of sex

Fluffy headcanons

He absolutely adores the piano. I think it's canon that he at least knows how to play the piano, but I feel like he really likes it and kinda uses it as a stress reliever of sorts

I feel like he'd also just like the sound of a piano being played, which is what made him want to learn in the first place (The mental image of him serenading his lover by playing the piano. I ascend)

Personally, I feel like he's neurodivergent in some way, so when he gets really excited or happy, he stims in very subtle ways. Like, watch the scene where Miles is telling everyone to go to Tiger's race, and that's what I'm talking about

He's the type of friend that's there for his friends no matter what. He will drop everything just to help them if they need it

He is a little shit though and he will mess around with them and tease them if they do something stupid

I honestly feel like his mom is actually really supportive of him being gay and encourages him to wear what he wants and to do what he wants to do (y'all saw how she kept Simon from the party right? I know she said it was because he was spreading rumors about her son, but part of me feels like it's because she knew and didn't want him to be exposed)

In a modern AU, he's a Swiftie and also loves Lana Del Rey (but only specific songs). I take no critisism

I feel like he definitely had an attraction to Adam at one point, but then Nina showed an interest in Adam, and he backed off. Adam never knew that Miles liked him, and was confused as to why Miles started acting slightly differently when him and Nina got together

Miles did get over the attraction though, so it's not like he was heartbroken or anything

He ends up knowing a lot about cars after dating Tiger

I also feel like Tiger was his first actual relationship. Before Tiger, it was all just one-night stands

Angsty Headcanons

After the Tiger incident, he has trust issues

It takes him a while to fully trust someone again (especially in a romantic sense)

He's back to one-night stands and uses it as a coping mechanism

He also falls further into drugs for a while

We never see his dad in the movie, so I feel like he just kinda...left him and his mom, which really upset him when he was younger, but now he really doesn't care

He kinda went into a really dark place after the whole Tiger incident

Once he realized that he had no friends, he had a panic attack on the train and just cried the entire time

When the letters were first revealed, he briefly considered harming himself

If he ever does get a boyfriend again, I feel like he'd do his best to keep said boyfriend at arms length. He'd feel terrible for it, but he just wanted to protect himself

He misses his mom and his friends, and will cry himself to sleep sometimes because of how much he misses them and wishes he could see them all again

That's all I have! Sorry this took so long, I've been busy and swamped with work these last few days and I hate it lmao

[hollymbryan]

Blog Tour + #Review: KILT TRIP by Alexandra Kiley!

Welcome to Book-Keeping and my stop on the HTP Books in-house blog tour for Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley! I've got all the details for you below, along with my review!

About the Book

title: Kilt Trip author: Alexandra Kiley publisher: Canary Street Press release date: 5 March 2024

For fans of Emily Henry and Sarah Morgenthaler comes a brand-new Scotland-set romantic comedy. In this enemies-to-lovers romance, one woman discovers more than the just the magic of the heartland's lochs and landscapes—but not before clashing with the proud Scotsman she's forced to work with. Addie Macrae has always followed her wanderlust. As a travel consultant, she turns struggling businesses into world-class tour groups. Her job comes with the perk of jetsetting around the globe, which means never being in one place for too long—just the way she likes it. Since her mom passed away ten years ago and her father never stopped grieving, no place has felt like home anyway. But when she’s sent on assignment to help a family-run tour group in Scotland—the one place she swore she’d never go—Addie has to shed her emotional baggage and turn on the professional charm. Logan Sutherland’s family business is operating just fine, thank you very much. The Heart of the Highlands was never meant to make the family rich, rather to teach sightseers to appreciate the beauty of Scotland’s hidden gems, which are more captivating than any tourist trap. The last thing Logan wants is some American "expert" pushing Outlander-themed tours and perpetuating myths about the Loch Ness Monster. And for a travel consultant, Addie oddly doesn’t seem interested in learning about the land Logan loves. Equally put off by each other, the new colleagues clash on every company decision. Then Logan discovers Addie does have a personal connection to Scotland—it was her late mother’s favorite place, one that now lives on in a handful of faded Polaroids Addie kept from her parents’ Honeymoon. She wants to seek out the places in the pictures, but is worried that she's too late to capture the wonder of following in her mother's footsteps. Logan is convinced he can help Addie get some closure, and the two realize, when they agree, they actually work pretty well together.  But Addie’s contract with The Heart is almost up, and the business is still losing money. They can’t afford distractions, but there’s no denying the intense chemistry between Addie and Logan. Besides, how can Addie do her job properly if she hasn’t explored all Scotland has to offer?

Add to Goodreads: Kilt Trip Purchase the Book: Bookshop | B&N | BAM | Amazon

About the Author

Alexandra Kiley writes big-hearted romances full of banter, found-family, and deep love. When she’s not writing, you can find her drinking tea, hiking, or gazing adoringly at the mountains of Colorado where she lives with her husband and two kids. Her novels are inspired by her semester in Scotland where she fell in love with not only the lush and magical land, but also the people who invited her into their homes and made her feel like family.

Connect with Alexandra: Website | Twitter | Instagram

My 5-Star Review

I desperately want to visit Scotland and have since I was younger. Outlander is one of my faves - I read the books as they came out (yes I'm old lol) and I adore the show - and I watched so many Hallmark Christmas movies set in Scotland 🙈 So when I heard about Kilt Trip and the chance to be part of the street team for Alexandra Kiley, I jumped at the chance! American travel company consultant travels to Scotland and meets hot tour guide in a kilt?? Sign me the eff up! 😂

I'm so happy to have been able to read an early copy of this delightful romance. I laughed, I swooned, I cried - literally every emotion ran through my body reading this book! There are some open door scenes, but they are relatively mild, what we used to call "tasteful" (even though it's not my favorite way to describe it). Logan was gaaaahhhhh just gorgeous and swoon worthy!! 😍 I absolutely loved him from jump. Addie is a strong woman, my word she is stubborn, but she's carrying so much grief with her and she's been so hurt that she has walls up for days. Logan may just be the one who can finally do that! Plus there's an amazing family, snooty sheep, adorable hairy coos, and so. Many. Kilts.

Any fan of romance needs to read this one, it's an absolute delight (even when I was crying - thanks Alexandra) and I want everyone to read it and then gush with me about it! Thanks again, Alexandra, for having me on the team!

Rating: 5 Stars!

**Disclosure: I received an early e-copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for purposes of this blog tour.

[haystarlight]

Disabilities and Disclosure

@lollytea made a post about this idea and I went with it.

I don't have dyslexia. If you or someone you know has it, I'd appreciate your input!

@avatarmerida @fairytales-and-folklore

______________________________________________

"Disabilities and Disclosure"

"I'm gonna have to borrow that book when you're done with it!"

Willow wasn't really thinking when she made that promise. She'd been too caught up in Hunter's cool outfit and his sweet smile to realize what she was signing up for. She'd been so preoccupied with flirting with the cute boy she didn't bother to think she was actually going to have to read that book later.

At first, she put it off. They were busy fighting villains, rebuilding society, rebuilding their homes, starting a new semester at Hexside. Then, a few months after she and Hunter started dating, he remembered she had expressed interest in reading Cosmic Frontier.

Oh no.

"Here you go! you can keep it, I have another copy at home."

"Aww, Sunflower, this is so nice of you."

Hunter blushed, he always blushed when she called him that.

Aw fuck. The book was even bigger than she remembered.

"A little fat, ain't it?" She chuckled nervously "how did you read it all in 2 days?"

"Haha well, yeah. I don't wanna brag but you do remember I've been called a 'genius teen prodigy'," He said this in a tone that sounded like he did want to brag. "it's not that fat, tho. A regular reader like you can probably kill it in a week or two. And then you can share your thoughts with me, Gus and Camila!"

Yeah. Sure. A regular reader like her.

A week or two. Sure.

Hunter must've sensed her uncertainty because his voice immediately dropped from excitement to comfort.

"Hey, I won't get upset if you don't like it. Just so you know."

"Aw, yeah, I wasn't worried about that. But thanks."

She tried looking at the summary on the back and almost got a headache. She knew he wouldn't mind if she didn't like it... But would he be disappointed if she couldn't even finish it?

"Oh, and I hope you're cool with this... I kinda wrote stuff on the margins," he said this bashfully.

Willow opened the book on the first page. The first two pages of every book are always blank before the actual story gets started. She'd always considered that a waste of paper.

This time, however, she saw on the first blank page something written in Hunter's perfect calligraphy. He had such nice handwriting. Her writing was so messy in comparison.

Even she was able to read the three simple words written there with love and care.

'To my Captain 💛'

What had she done?

______________________________________________

The days passed by and no matter how hard she tried, the damn book was impossible to finish.

It's not that she couldn't read at all! She could read! She was 16, not 5!

But some words were harder to understand than others. Words that were really long and complicated gave her the hardest time. It didn't help that all these characters had odd names that looked impossible to pronounce and even harder to spell. She kept getting headaches whenever she stared at a page for too long.

She had always been like this, since she started school. It was one of the reasons abominations were so much harder for her than plants, abominations required a lot of reading and theory, plants were direct hands-on action. She had so many memories of staying up late with her parents trying to help her as she agonized over the homework.

And, as the days passed, she kept avoiding having to talk to Hunter. He always asked her how far into the book she was, which scene had she gotten to, who was her favorite character so far. And Gus was no better. Gus knew of Willow's reading issue but it seemed like the young boy had forgotten about it as he got caught up in the excitement as well.

One day, Willow was alone, sitting on the school steps when she suddenly couldn't take it anymore and screamed in frustration, throwing the book away from her.

Luckily, someone caught it.

"Wow! You must be really angry at this thing," Luz said, in between scared and impressed. "did your favorite character die or something? I hate it when that happens."

Willow sighed.

"No, it's just... it's so hard to read."

"Really? It says here the age rating is 13 and up," Luz pointed at the back of the book.

Willow groaned.

"Is it because you don't understand all the weird sci-fi things? I know you guys still don't know a lot about the human world. It makes sense you don't get all the space and science-y thingies," she laughed. "heck, I'm a human and even I don't get it half the time! It's super confusing, you don't have to feel bad for -"

"That's not it either, Luz."

There was a silence between the two of them. Luz felt the weight of that silence and sat down next to her. The human carefully laid a hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"Hey. You don't have to tell me but it looks like it'll make you feel better to tell someone."

"It's... I don't... it's not that I can't read or write! You've seen me do it! I know how to read and write! I'm not a baby!"

Luz simply stared at her, waiting for her to continue.

"But, even though I can do it, I find it very... difficult. There's lots of words that I can't spell because they're too long, the letters sometimes like... move around and blurr together even when I'm wearing my glasses!" She took off the golden frames as if to clarify. "and I keep getting headaches and I hate it when a sentence has too many comas and -"

"Oh, you have dyslexia!"

Willow stopped her rant to look at her friend. She put her glasses back on, confused.

"What?"

"Oh, that's what humans call it! I don't know how witches call it or if it even has a name here. I didn't know witches could have dyslexia... but I guess it makes sense cause human brains are very similar to witch brains. I wonder if-"

"Luz, what's dyslexia?"

"Oh, right, sorry," she smiled apologetically. "it's a learning disability. It's what you just described. Someone who has a hard time reading, who can't spell long words, who struggles with big books... etcetera."

Willow looked shocked, her mouth slightly opened. It has a name? Other people have it?

"I'm not a doctor so I can't really diagnose you. But, if you want, we can do some research! There's lots of info on the human realm! It's actually a really common thing so we have lots of methods to help make it easier. We can look up Cosmic Frontier audiobooks! You can just listen to it, no reading required."

Despite of herself, Willow smiled. Luz was a really good friend.

"Thank you, Luz. That sounds nice."

"And I bet Hunter will love to help! You know how he loves research!"

The smile dropped as quickly as it had come, replaced by panic.

"NO! DON'T TELL HUNTER!"

"Okay, why?"

"He just... Hunter's so smart and I'm..."

"You're smart! Just because you have a learning disability doesn't make you not smart! Mom has ADHD and she's super smart!"

"What's ADHD?"

"Oh, it's another learning disability. I think I have it too but that's a conversation for another day."

"Mmmkay," Willow shrugged and went back to the matter at hand. "Hunter's so smart and he's such a good reader and... and he's always going on and on about how talented and clever I am and he admires me so much and... I don't want him to be disappointed or to see me different."

Luz stayed silent for a moment while she contemplated what to say. She finally settled on:

"I'm not gonna tell him because I respect your privacy but I think you should tell him. Hunter loves you but he doesn't have you on a pedestal, he knows you're a person with limits and weaknesses. He's not going to be disappointed if you tell him this."

Willow didn't respond but she knew her friend was right. Oh, where would she be without Luz the human?

______________________________________________

A few days of research and information gathering with the assistance of Luz and Camila, and Willow was now ready to come clean to her boyfriend.

She sat with him on a picnic they'd set up in the forest as she laid out all the information. Hunter would occasionally ask a question but, for the most part, he just let her speak. In the end, Willow stared at him in deep dread.

"Wow, ok. Thanks for telling me this," he stopped to take a sip of apple blood before continuing. "how can I help?"

Willow stared at him, processing the words.

"You want to help?" She asked incredulously.

"You're my girlfriend and you need help, therefore, I'm willing to do what I can. Is that not how it works?"

Willow couldn't help but smile. Hunter was getting better at this relationship thing.

"Yeah, thank you. I was just... I was being paranoid."

Hunter tilted his head, offering her to go on.

"You're always... you're so smart and well-read and... you always tell me how talented and clever you think I am and you compliment me for knowing so much about flyer derby and plants and insects... I feel like I'll disappoint you if I'm actually not as smart as you think I am."

Hunter frowned. He did tend to go on about how amazing his girlfriend was, he couldn't help it! He loved her! And she had always looked so happy when he said those things, responding with a smile or a blush or a thank you or paying him a compliment in return.

He didn't realize that maybe there was a bit of a negative side to it.

"Willow, I'm not gonna be disappointed in you for having limits and weaknesses. Nobody's perfect! And that's fine! You're the one who taught me that!

The plant witch snorted. It was true, she had been the one to teach Hunter that. Why couldn't she remember her own advice?

"There it is," Hunter said, fondly.

"There what is?"

"You snort like a pig when you laugh, you kick people in your sleep, you take pictures of strangers on the street like a creeper..." He counted on his fingers. "I could keep going but the point is, I know you're not perfect. It's okay to not be perfect. I don't love you because you're flawless! I love you because you're Willow and you're impossible not to love."

He said that last part so sincerely, she had to believe him. The plant witch grabbed her boyfriend in a tight hug. He hugged her back and she felt the warmth fill her with comfort.

"I love you too, Sunflower."

They kissed. They'd already kissed so many times, it came naturally to them by now. Willow was long familiar with the taste of his lips but it still somehow brought firebees to her stomach no matter how many times she did it. It never got old, she would never get tired of it.

Every time they kissed, like clockwork, flowers came out of Willow's head. It was like her heart and her magic couldn't control themselves when she felt his kisses. This time, the flowers on her hair were white bellflowers.

"Now, back to the 'how can I help?' thing," Hunter said, after they had broken apart. "I think I have an idea you might like."

______________________________________________

Normal people would simply find a Cosmic Frontier audiobook for Willow to listen to. Or maybe they would read to her out loud. Or maybe they'd show her the movie adaptation (tho, she'd been told by Hunter, Gus and Camila that the movie was awful and did a terrible job at adapting the original source material).

Hunter wasn't a normal person, not by a long shot.

He'd decided to act out all of the memorable scenes from the book like it was a play. After telling the others, they had also been incredibly excited to help.

Everyone did something. Willow built the stage and props, Hunter made the costumes and wrote the scripts, Vee and Gus were on special effects with their shapeshifting and illusions respectively, Amity brought some abominations for extra manpower and Luz and Camila put together a playlist of songs that went perfect with every scene. Eda and King brought snacks.

When the night of the premiere finally came, Willow sat down at the Owl House's backyard with Luz, Amity, King, Eda and Raine as they watched it all unfold. Luz took out her phone and started recording because she wanted to put it on Mewtube, Amity didn't understand anything that was going on, Eda ate all the snacks and King fell asleep on Raine's lap halfway through. Perfection.

It wasn't a quality production, it was very low budget and DIY. It reminded Willow of those plays the bard witches from the drama club at Hexside often did. It was silly and weird but it was wonderful.

At the heart of it all were the actors. Vee obviously knew how to play a convincing alien monster, Gus and Camila were not professionals but they felt such passion and appreciation for their character's plight that they could bring themselves to do a pretty good performance. And Hunter was just IN IT! He was an artist lost in his art and Willow never wanted him to stop ever.

His voice cracked with emotion on the dramatic scenes, he stricked poses and smiled at the audience, he recited every line from memory, he even cried on the sad parts. It was hard not to love the book when it inspired something so incredible on all these people she loved.

When the play ended, the actors took a bow and everyone clapped. Luz was the loudest, woohoo-ing and wolf whistling. She cheered so loud, King woke up with a yelp.

Willow made flowers with her magic, throwing them at the stage enthusiastic. Gus caught one and pointed a finger gun, winking at her. Vee caught one and giggled. Camila caught one and her smile got even bigger.

She threw a whole bouquet of roses. Hunter caught it and blew her a kiss.

Yup, this was her new favorite book.

[nossbean]

For the WIPs, would love to know more about #7, we held our breath 👀

Okay so this one is back from where I was doing a pandemic watch of New Girl and was Very Taken with the scene when Jess and Nick finally kiss, around the same time I wanted to practice writing makeouts and sexual tension, AND the whole thing earlier in the episode with Nick going out the window to avoid Jess struck me as a Jaime mood (if with something of a different vibe) so I played around with some dynamics. It's been mostly written for Some Time (which is why it actually has a title!) and I've been toying with posting it for literal months, whether to do it as its own thing or as part of a collection of snippet fics since I'm not likely to do much more in this AU. I think eventually it will probably be part of the latter, but for now, here's a bit of it!

Brienne and Jaime have been shoved in a room together in the midst of a game, banished until they provide evidence they've kissed. They've tried arguing their way out, lying their way out and forcing their way out to no avail:

“Look,” she said, and Jaime cut an incredulous look at her. She was distracted for a beat, looking at him closely for the first time since they had been trapped here. The line of his jaw was particularly sharp at this angle, his neck long and accentuating his shoulders clearly defined by his tailored t-shirt. His arms crossed drew attention to his biceps, to sculpted forearms, the veins leading down across the nobbles of his wrists, to his strong hands. They were feet away from one another, and it was ridiculous, but she imagined she could feel the heat from his skin. She swallowed, met his gaze and found his eyes narrowed, watching her closely. Her words lodged in her throat: anger flashed in his eyes and something else. Hurt? Nothing about his expression made any sense to her. 

She cleared her throat, tried again. “Look. I-I’ve kissed people.” Jaime’s lips curled at this, and her cheeks heated.

She remembered, suddenly, that night when he’d encouraged her to have a one-night stand shortly after she’d moved in and when she was still nursing her broken heart, and she had rhapsodized to him about how whatever other people did safely was their business but she would never kiss anyone she didn’t want to see again. 

It was partly self-defensive. If she made herself out to be a serial monogamist, her friends were less likely to push her to use dating apps or try to pick up men at bars or set her up on blind-dates. They meant well; Brienne knew how those tunes would go. But mainly, in her heart of hearts, she was a romantic. She wanted to be swept off her feet. She wasn’t made for such things, she had learned that well enough by now. It just meant she kept those romantic aspirations secret. And now stayed safely ensconced in her admittedly somewhat mediocre relationship with Hyle, where she knew exactly what to expect and never got her hopes up for anything else.

But Jaime wouldn’t believe she was so cavalier about this. And that… That was part of the problem. The other problem was.

The main problem was.

The problem was Jaime. And things she had thought about even when she told herself she shouldn’t. 

But she’d agreed to play this godsforsaken game — never again with ‘Red Viper’ rules — and she’d be damned if she didn’t follow through. 

So she ignored her flush, tipped her chin up, looked down her nose at him, still watching her, incredulous. “I’ve kissed people,” she said again forcefully. “You’ve kissed people. It’s not a big deal to just...”

He scoffed, his frown deepening as he looked ceiling-wards, but after a beat, he dropped his head and searched her face. She tried to look certain, tried to keep her other feelings hidden. She didn’t understand the gathering heat behind his expression, how his frown was loosening by the time his gaze fell to her arms wrapped around herself, and when he looked up, something soft now around his mouth, his eyes a shade darker, her stomach swooped. He pushed away from the wall and took a step towards her and her heart was the sea at its most playful, scampering up the shore to dance back, and absurdly she felt herself straightening, her hands tightening where they clutched her biceps.

“It’s. We’re not getting out of here until...” She trailed off, took a breath and tried again. “We should just do it. Just… Kiss.”

He took another step, tilted his head, eyes shining in the low light, and a lock of his hair fell across his forehead and she wanted to reach out, brush it back —

His voice was low, seemed to skim across her skin, when he said, “Is that what you want?”

Yes.

Her cheeks burned, and she fumed at herself, but it also wasn’t a lie, her breath catching and a tug of want from her core at the very thought, but there was Hyle, godsdamnit, but still she couldn’t stop looking at Jaime, watching him take another step. Jaime could be — he could be cruel, with his jokes, and a chill passed across her shoulders that maybe that’s all this was — 

Jaime didn’t lie. Not to her. And she couldn’t actually remember when last he’d needed to apologise to her — except about Hyle — he’d learned where her lines were, and surely he would know a joke about this would be a line too far. Which meant.

Which meant she should stop this. Whatever this was. They were friends. Best friends. She should stop this.

Jaime was so close now. She had imagined earlier that she could felt his heat when he was feet away from her, she knew it now. Their friends — Hyle — were still chanting kiss! kiss! kiss! from the other side of the door as if this were a game, as if she wasn’t thinking — for the hundredth, thousandth time, guiltily — about how his lips might feel on hers, about licking into his mouth and learning how he tasted — she had always guessed whiskey this time of night, though more likely beer tonight thanks to the game — and about how hot he would be under her hands if she slid them across the firm planes of his chest, down, around his ribs, flat to his back to pull him flush against her, run her palms down the muscular lines of him to grasp —

“What’s taking so long?” Margaery complained loudly from the other side. Brienne was going to kill her, she could hear the mischief lacing her voice. “We’ve got a godsdamned game to finish!”

There was a chorus of yeah!s and then someone’s fist hit the door, then many hands started slapping it in time with kiss! kiss! kiss! kiss!

“No,” she finally answered, defiant. Jaime’s eyes flashed, her face and chest were hot and her heart would not stop — she cleared her throat, said more forcefully, “No, I don’t want that. It’s just — the game.”

He raised an eyebrow at her as if to say liar. Brienne opened her mouth to snap at him, but there was a tension in his face that stopped her. From the corner of her eyes, she saw as his hands flexed, and as he shook them loose. She knew what that meant. Jaime could usually school his expression when he wanted to, so his tells were elsewhere. In his hands, she had watched him, nervous with Melara, flexing his hands and forcing them loose, all while looking otherwise easy and relaxed. When finally he’d stretched his arm around her back, and Melara had sunk into his hold, his fingers twitched, settling on her shoulder. 

His hands flexed again, and Brienne swallowed thickly. Then his tongue darted out, wetting his lips, which then stayed parted, his teeth a flash of white in the soft overhead lighting, and she swallowed back a whimper, caught between wanting to step forward and wanting to step back — Forward and everything changed. Back… she didn’t know what back might mean, and — Jaime tossed his head, another tell, no matter how casual it looked, and gods, but he wanted her looking at him, and she always wanted to be looking at him, oh this was a disaster, but forward seemed the more appealing and he was so close now, it would be one step — 

“Just pretend he’s me, Brienne!” Hyle shouted, accompanied by wolf whistles and catcalls, and the heat fizzled like water tossed on a fire. The moment gone, left only with smoke, inexplicably acrid between them.

Jaime’s lips thinned, then he muttered, “Not like this,” and stepped away. He looked around the room, before striding to the window.

Brienne watched disconcerted, feeling dizzy and disappointed and guilty, and it took her too long to realize he was wrestling with the window catch. “What the hells are you doing?”

“You want to return to your precious Hyle,” he grunted, finally getting the catch open. “And I don’t want to be in here with you for another minute.” He shoved the pane so the window popped open, and hoisted himself up. “So. I’m going.”

Before she could do more than shout his name, he was up and out, onto the ledge that was four-fucking-storeys above ground, pressed flat against the glass and shuffling towards the living room.

Endless WIP meme

[moonshineboyz]

[17:40]

Pairing: volleyball player!Juyeon × volleyball player! fem reader

Genre: Smut, enemies with benefits

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: swearing, unprotected sex, rough/hate (?) sex, usage of the word slut, mentions of choking and spanking, lowkey public sex, brief fingering

a/n: i know juyeon is not holding a volleyball but let's just pretend. i got this idea from listening to lying is the most fun a girl can have without taking her clothes off by panic! at the disco 🤠 i'm not sure if i like the ending but,,, (@annyeongffs enjoy bb)

masterlist ♡

“Okay guys, let’s wrap up for today. Both teams did great!” The coach called and everyone got out of their positions, stretching out the tense muscles and walking out of court. “Nuh uh, minus you two Juyeon and Y/N.” He called again making you stop in your tracks. “You’re gonna take the volleyballs and net to the equipment room and pump up the basketballs. That’s what you get for arguing and swearing at each other every five minutes even during practice.”

You cursed under your breath sending a death glare towards Juyeon, who just looked at you expressionless. ‘Stupid son of a bitch.’

The coach left the court with the remaining of your team mates that waved at you from afar. You waved back and went to collect the scattered balls letting the boy get the net, since he was taller.

“If you weren’t so annoying, I could be going to my dorm right now.” He said when you walked past him on your way to the equipment room. You thought in giving a rude reply but bit your tongue not to curse back at him, already feeling your blood boil. “I'm talking to you.” You turned on your heel to face him.

“What do you mean? It’s your fault! You were throwing the ball too far for me to catch it in time!” You snarled.

“Isn’t it the whole point? Make the ball touch the floor on your adversary's side? I think you're just complaining because you're not that good of a player." Juyeon had just finished getting the net out of the first pole and glared at you with a raised brow. He really was getting under your skin.

"For your information, I'm the second best in the female team. I just can't deal with bullshit coming from a jerk like you."

Fuming, you turned your back again, walking away to fight back the temptation of throwing one of the balls in your arms directly at his annoying handsome face. Juyeon knew exactly how to get on your nerves and you couldn't stand having to be in the same room with him for too long without getting annoyed or bickering.

You were looking into the lockers searching for a second air pump, since there wasn't any other way and you had to pump up the balls, the best option was to you two do it separately so you could go home as soon as possible. While you were at it Juyeon entered the equipment room bringing the net and you quickly thought of a way to get yourself out of that situation.

"Here, the air pump." You handed him the object, to which he accepted but kept looking at you puzzled. "I didn't find another one, so, you do it."

"And what you're gonna do?"

"Go home!? What else do you expect me to do? Blow out the balls like they're balloons?" Your eyes rolled at how he scoffed at you, arms crossing in front of your body.

"I mean, I know something else you'd like to blow." A cheeky grin grew on his lips and past scenes of his dick on your mouth flashed through your mind.

“Shut the fuck up, will you? You’re so fucking annoying.” You raised your voice taking the boy aback for a moment, your jaw clenched and brows furrowed. “I can’t even stand looking at y-"

The words died at your throat as Juyeon dropped the air pump to grab your jaw firmly, pushing you up against the nearest wall. He was close, his tall figure towering over yours as he looked down at you with dark eyes.

“If you want to yell at me so bad, then I'll give you a reason to do so.” He muttered through gritted teeth and you could feel he was getting mad as well.

“Fuck you.” You scoffed trying to masquerade the fact that your heart was beating fast.

“Oh, you just did on semi-finals night, darling.” Juyeon let go of your face to brush his knuckles against the skin of your cheek, trailing south till it reached the side of your neck. You wished you didn’t shiver at the light touch, making it obvious to him that you enjoyed it. “Speaking of which, where have you been these past weeks? Were you too busy with that asshole from the basketball team?”

You didn’t even notice when you started to hold your breath but you were already feeling intoxicated by the low tone of his voice, knowing exactly what he was implying. His longs fingers wrapping around your throat not helping at all, and you thanked the sound of your racing heart wasn’t audible.  

“Why? Jealous much?” It took everything in you to let that out in a disinterested voice, sticking to an attitude not to let him win in any circumstance.

“C'mon, doll, you know I'd never date you; this is just for the fun. You’re just someone to hook up with.” He took a step closer, few inches away to press his body against yours. His skin was still glistening from the after practice sweat and you could almost say he looked hot, even though your mouth told otherwise.  

“And that’s all you can get after all. You’re good in bed but you’re as charming as a rock. No surprise you’re single.” Juyeon quirked a brow, his eyes dark as ever.

“Aw, you’re not attracted to me? Yeah, keep lying to yourself, darling. This is the most fun you can have besides taking your clothes off, isn’t it?” His breath fanned at your lips as the grip on your throat tightened, making him chuckle when a small moan dared to scape you. “Gosh, I really missed your pretty little pussy swallowing my dick and you screaming my name.”

You hated Juyeon to the moon and back with your whole being. He was arrogant, full of himself and egocentric, but what you hated the most was the fact that he knew how to touch you and make you feel things in a way you’d never experienced before, and you’d never admit that out loud. You'd never admit to his face how you also missed him pounding into you while you hooked up with other guys.

It was hard to recall when or even how you two started having this type of relationship, an 'enemies with benefits' kind you could say, because you clearly weren’t friends at all. You would pay not to have to spend the practice time looking at his face, and Juyeon would rather die than bumping into you in the hallways.  

But both couldn’t deny the sexual tension, and maybe that’s what led you to it, or maybe that was only a tactic to release stress, and you just happened to be there for each other. What’s a better way to calm your nerves than fucking your enemy? The sex was great after all and you couldn’t name any other boy who has ever made you cum so hard. Perhaps the hate towards each other really did add fuel to the fire and made things more interesting, competing who could make the other orgasm the fastest.

"I hate you so much." You said trying not to moan again when Juyeon pressed his torso against yours, sneaking his knee between your thighs, to which you rolled your hips grinding down on it.

"It's reciprocal, I just like to fuck you dumb." His hands went to your waist, grabbing hard and pulling you more into him. You were already melting at the tip of his fingers and didn't think twice before crashing your lips together and tugged at his hair with force as he moved his leg to cause more friction on your core. His big hands roaming all over your body roughly and squeezing your ass. A hiss came out of Juyeon's lips when you scratched his back underneath the shirt, sure to leave red marks. "Don't start a game you know you're gonna lose."

Juyeon pulled you by the wrist to the old desk to careless bend you over it. You couldn't lie saying you didn't like how everything was rough with him, it made a shiver run down your spine every time he kissed you hard and pulled your hair as you cursed at him digging your nails into his skin. He never cared about whether or not he was leaving bruises on your hips, neck and inner thighs, but neither did you. You secretly enjoyed admiring them later in the mirror.

“Here? Really?”

“It’s not like we haven’t done this before. Plus, everyone left, you can scream all you want.” A hand came down hard on your right ass cheek making you yelp. Another smack on the left side and you winced in pain arching your back. “You look good in the team's uniform, but look even better when I'm filling you up.”

He massaged your ass before harshly pulling your tight shorts down to your ankles and you stepped out of them, feeling his hands travel up your legs and holding your hips to press his hard on on your clothed core. You sighed grinding against him, your mind already getting hazy.

The boy brought you up to leave hungry kisses down your neck and bit on the curvature. Your breath hitched when his short nails raked the skin of your belly and you let your head rest on his shoulder, closing your eyes lost in the sensations. “Now tell me, is it still me that makes you sweat? Did you think of me when you were in bed with them?” He growled in your ear biting your lobe, making you grind harder.

“Not even for a second, didn’t even cross my mind.” Lucky you your mouth worked faster than your body so you didn’t dumbly nod agreeing with him. “You’re good but not the best.” You weren’t even ashamed in lying.

Juyeon let out a dark chuckle and grabbed your throat while the other hand squeezed one of your breasts. “We both know I've got a hotter touch, a better fuck than any guy you’ll ever meet. Or else you wouldn’t be coming back begging for my cock whenever you feel horny.”

“You wish.”

“Then why are you still here?” He teased licking your neck and smirked when you shuddered.

“Didn’t you say you missed my pussy? Then fuck me already.” You huffed impatient to which his only answer was to rub circles in your clit over your damp underwear. Juyeon pushed you back to bend over the desk, quickly and roughly pulling your panties down that you’d had stumbled if you were standing straight. “You’re gonna rip my panties, you asshole.”

He scoffed, slapping you once again. “You didn’t complain the other times I did.” His hand palmed himself through the shorts while the other went to your core, fingers playing with your wet folds. You whimpered when he slid one digit inside and added a second right after already moving, making your back arch. “Think I need to remind you that you’re just a fuck toy, not some porcelain doll. They must’ve treated you so nicely, but you like it rough, don’t you?”

Juyeon removed his fingers from you and pulled his own shorts down just enough to free his member and teased your slit with the tip, making you bite your lip in anticipation. Your breath got cut short when he gripped your waist and pushed in in one quick thrust, his cock disappearing into your warmth and your pussy clenched at the feeling of every inch of him stretching you open.

He didn't give you time to even take a deep breath and started moving in a fast pace, grabbing your hips with force. You could feel your whole body getting hot, sweat starting to form on your temples, skin prickling. "How someone so annoying like you have a pussy so good?" He groaned giving a hard, sharp thrust making you gasp and lifted your right leg to put over the desk. You were there so open for him; bent over that he could do anything. And you enjoyed every part of it.

Breathy moans were leaving your lips mixing with obscene wet sounds from your dripping cunt and his hips slamming yours recklessly now, going deeper and deeper inside you. Juyeon was holding you so strong and digging his nails in your skin that you were sure it'd leave bruises. "F-fuck, Juyeon!" You screamed out when he pulled almost all of his length out just to pushed it back in with a quick motion. He smirked to himself and kept repeating it, just to see you writhe and lose your mind.

His hand pulled your ponytail to which you winced but couldn't contain a moan. Your knuckles were turning white holding onto the desk for dear life as Juyeon completely rammed into you. "Not so talkative right now, huh?" He grabbed both your arms, pinning them behind your back with his own hands. "Look at you clenching so desperately. Gonna cum on my cock like a good slut?" His voice was low, watching your whole body shake as you approached your high, loud and breathy sounds escaping your lips.

You came crying out his name, shaking violently and trying to roll your hips back to get more of him. Juyeon pulled out slowly, feeling your walls fluttering and you whimpered at the emptiness. Even though you were sensitive, Juyeon's dick was so good that it never failed to make you want more and more.

A last sigh left you before you got pushed to your knees facing his cock. "Now be the good little slut and you are and put this mouth to a better use."

[lovecolibri]

Okay, SO. This is a long and highly speculative ask that could potentially make sense to answer after 6.14 airs and we know more information, but right now I'm going off of spoilers from the early release. Eddie ends the episode single and open to dating but not actively dating. As far as I know, he didn't yell, "I'M STRAIGHT!" during the episode. And sadly, that is the best possible outcome that I could imagine from a writer like Nadia and a showrunner like Kristen.

What I've seen others continue to worry about - and have worried about myself, if I'm being honest - is that Marisol returns and since Eddie is now in a "good place"for dating, he will choose her (although I think this is a somewhat unnecessary storyline to show that he is in a "good place" because it wasn't like he was in a "bad place" generally to date after Ana...he just didn't want to date HER, which I thought was the entire fucking point of that storyline, but I digress).

Marisol's actress' captions was, "I don't know if it's out yet so I can't quite say but I just love when I work." We know that she posted it in late March. People fixated on the "it" as meaning one episode. And if that's true, I'm just very confused how she wouldn't know if her episode was out?? Especially if she was going to be playing a fairly significant role in terms of Eddie dating?? And if she's coming back in a later episode, like 6.17 or even the finale, how would she not be aware of the much later airdate?? I realize I sound a bit unhinged with the question marks, but the actress has been in the business for years and doesn't seem like an idiot. It just struck me as weird!

The other view of this, which is more negative, is that she meant "it" by "the news that I'm going to be returning to the show." Maybe she assumed that the show or her agent was going to release that information and she was waiting for the "okay" to say more. Her posting that selfie at Fox around the filming of the finale could support that theory that she's gearing up for a more serious role as a love interest (hence making the "it" being "the return"). Again, this is negative, but I don't know if I'm reading too much into what "it" means here because I find it unrealistic that she wouldn't know when her episode comes out...

ALL of that said, it's possible that she did film for 6.14 or even an earlier episode and her scene got cut (hence why she deleted the picture)? Maybe the episode WAS supposed to end with Eddie choosing to date her, but they decided to nix the scene. It would make a lot of sense because Nadia was the one who created her character.

Honestly, I'm going to need a leak or something about this character because every time I see an anonymous ask or theory about Marisol...the suspense of where this is going for Eddie ... AHHHH! LOL. What are your thoughts??

Well, it was good to wait until after 6x15 to answer this because we know from the synopsis guest cast list that she will be back in 6x17. I'm fairly certain with the lid they have kept on any of the women around Buck and Eddie, that she was probably told not to say anything. That pic she posted was, unlike her other ones from 6a, not on set or in her trailer or in costume or anything, it was just her outside a studio that 911 fans happened to know is the one 911 uses. Most people wouldn't have been able to pick up on that so she probably thought it was safe to post but of course the whole thing blew up and that's likely why the pic was taken down. We know the pick that was posted of L was also taken down when that sparked some backlash as I'm sure the show didn't want anyone to know she was back on set. No one really knew anything about Natalia until the synopsis came out so that was kept pretty under wraps too and ONLY really sparked talk because of Aisha's live where that name came up (and we all saw Oliver's reaction because he KNEW what fans were gonna do hearing he was going on dates).

IDK what the plan is for Marisol if it's for more than one episode or not, but this late in the season I'm sure it's all just testing the waters to see how the majority of the audience responds to the character so they can plan out season 7. I personally don't care where it's going because I'm never going to like or praise or accept the show throwing random women at Buck or Eddie at this point. They already both had THEE breakup where they did the thing they needed to do (mostly) with Eddie putting himself first instead of what he thought he had to do for Chris, and Buck being the one to walk away instead of being left again (even if he only did it because someone else got hurt and not because it was what HE needed to do for HIMSELF because HE was miserable, but that's on KR for fucking up that storyline to push L and not ending BT back in 5a 🤷🏻‍♀️). At this point, it's all just a repeat of storylines while they try to find women that will stick with the audience which to me is just bad storytelling from a bad showrunner. Not that I don't think they could make it work out in the end and give some reason for Buck and Eddie getting growth out of it. Hell, fandom has come up with plausible explanations by the droves! I'm just not sure if the show WILL, because Kristen has proven herself to be spiteful and doesn't see Buddie at all, and unless Timmy comes back and takes the reins or someone else takes over I just see this endless cycle continuing to the end of the show and Buck and Eddie being single so they can throw out the tired PR line that it allows all fans to be happy and see what they want in that relationship which is another way of saying they refused to commit one way or the other because they're cowards. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[mythicalgemwrites]

Selkie x F! Reader (Linn) Part 1

Sorry for not posting earlier guys! I've been very busy with online classes.

Warnings: mentions of drowning. Pics are not mine, all credits go to the owner!

M! Selkie X F! Reader

Living on an island your whole life has its perks. From the fresh scent of the salty ocean air to the calming sounds of the waves crashing lazily, it never failed to wake you up with a serenity that could be found nowhere else. You had lived alone with your Toller pup for the past couple years, in the house that your grandparents had left for you. You grew up with them, as your parents always had to move from town to town due to their profession. They were both marine biologists and had taken up a job at a top secret research facility when you were 12, so they decided to let you stay with your beloved grandparents. However, on a stormy day a couple years ago, when you were 19, both your grandparents got caught in a storm while they were out fishing, and they never came back. During the funeral, you had found out that in their will, they had stated that you should get the house, in the event of something tragically happening to them.

And that’s how you got the house three years ago. When it became too lonely, you decided to adopt a Toller puppy for company, and you had named him Sam, which was your grandpa’s nickname. He provided good company and unconditional love, which is important in every home. The house had its own dock leading to the beach, so every morning, after your walk, you’d put Sam’s retriever genes to good use and play fetch with him, fetching the ball from the ocean was one of his favorite past times. Whenever you brought him to the beach, you sometimes feared he was going to be the reason why someone almost drowned. To date, you were grateful nothing like that had ever happened, but you sometimes couldn’t brush off that fear. You were a writer, and sometimes, you couldn’t control how far your imagination went, and sometimes, the words you put on paper would be some of your worst fears, if they were to come alive.

As the days go by, and the weather gets chilly, you would often take Sam on a walk to the nearby cove, usually in the warmer months it would be filled with children playing by the beach and in the waters, but as the weather got cooler, it was mostly couples going on romantic walks, or some who preferred the solitude, just came to enjoy the sunset. On this particular day, there weren’t many people by the cove, just a couple strangers. It was around 6:15 when you threw the ball the last time, and waited for Sam to retrieve it. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath, fully inhaling the chill autumn air, when you heard a whelp coming from the water. Opening your eyes, you saw Sam caught on a wave, and struggling to get back to you. In a panicked state, you took off into the water, not worrying about the growing current, but more worried about your faithful companion, struggling in grasps of strong waves, at least for a dog his size. As you grab him by his collar, attempting to pull him out, another wave comes crashing into the two of you, causing you to go under. Trying to call for help, and failing, as the water fills your lungs, you stop struggling, knowing it might make your situation worse, however, Sam starts barking, with his head barely above the water.

Suddenly, you could feel yourself being pulled out of the water, and being held against a broad chest by strong arms. Once you reached the water, you looked at your savior, beautiful greenish-blue grey eyes met yours, and you saw a cute familiar face looking back at you. It was Linn, the barista in the cute local café. You had to admit, you’ve always had a crush on him, but from afar. You didn’t know anything about him, except that people claimed that his family had lived on the island for years, centuries even.

He had shaggy brown hair, and small freckles were scattered along his face. With his help, you got up from the ground and called out to Sam. “Are you alright? I saw you getting pulled under and saw your dog barking. Do you want me to call someone?” he asked , in a boyishly deep smooth voice. Gaping like a goldfish out of the water, it took you a few seconds to process what was said. Coughing, you rasped out “ Yes… I’m fine, thank you! My dog , Sam, got caught in the waves, and I tried to get him out.” you started babbling like a lost child. “ Can I call someone to come get you?” He asked again, a hint of concern in his eyes. “ oh, no… no it’s okay, I live alone, well with Sam. There’s no one to call.” you said, trying not to act like a 15 year old who just couldn't help but be nervous around her crush. “I’ll be fine, really, I just need to walk home and dry out. Thanks again for helping!” you exclaimed. Calling Sam to you, the both of you started to walk home. “ Hey! Wait!” you heard Linn calling from behind, “ I’ll walk you home, if that’s okay. It’s getting dark anyway. I’ll see to it that you both get home safe,”. Before you could say anything, you felt him putting his jacket over you, helping with the chill. You didn’t realize you were freezing until he wrapped his jacket around you.

When the three of you reached your home, Sam was happy to be back in the warm embrace of his bed. Standing by the door “ Would you like to come in? Maybe a cup of coffee… or tea or anything else, if you prefer?” quickly giving him the option of whatever he preferred, to make sure you didn't seem ignorant. Sure, he worked as a barista in the local café, but that doesn't mean he loved coffee, right? “ Um, sure! Anything will do,” he said, as he followed you in. Looking around, you kicked yourself in your head, not keeping up to the schedule you set yourself for cleaning up around the cottage. Sure, it was decent, but paper everywhere? A heaping amount of mugs were strewn around your coffee table, as you sat there working on your next work.

Quickly picking them up and moving them to the sink, you filled up the kettle and turned it on to boil. “ There’s tea and coffee in the cabinet above the kettle, feel free to help yourself. I’ll go get dried up,” the words left you, as if you were telling them to an old friend, hoping to not make a fool of yourself anymore, you gave him a sheepish smile and made your way upstairs to your bedroom.

(Linn pov)

I made my way to the cabinet, looking through the various tea blends. Something which would help with the cold temperature would be nice. There in the right corner of the cabinet, was a box of peppermint tea. It would definitely help make her feel better, since she was soaked to the bone. I can’t help but feel a sense of concern for her. This beautiful strong woman that I always encounter in the café I worked in, and possibly have a crush on, I can’t believe I never spoke to her. I’ve always seen her writing in the corner of the café, in her spot, as my coworkers and I have labeled it. She always seems so sure of herself, and always seems ready for anything, but today, out in the water when I saw her struggling, something came over me. I had to save her, felt a sense of protectiveness for her, hence why I offered to walk her home. Taking two bigger than average mugs from the cabinet, I filled them up with the boiling water, after placing a tea bag in each and placing them on the coffee table before the couch. Her dog was in front of the heater, longing for some warmth and hoping to dry off. I heard soft footsteps coming down the stairs.

As I got to the bottom of the stairs, I saw Sam laying before the heater, trying to get warm. Making my way to the tiny laundry room, I picked up Sam’s towel. Making my way to him, from the corner of my eye I saw Linn, sitting on the couch, two steaming mugs of what seemed to be one of my teas in front of him.

“ I made some peppermint tea, it helps with colds, we don’t want you to catch one now do we?” grinned Linn.

Thanking him, and taking the mug he held one, I sat next to him on the couch. Keeping some distance between us, I asked him if he wanted to use the bathroom to clean up.

“ If you have any spare clothing that might fit, I’d like that! It’s okay if you don’t though!” he nervously exclaimed. “ I do have some spare clothing that belonged to my grandpa, they should fit. Gimme a sec! I’ll go grab ‘em, and a towel too!” I exclaimed, leaving the cozy embrace of the couch.

Making my way to my room, where I kept a spare drawer full of my grandparent’s clothes, I dug out a jumper and a pair of pajama pants which belonged to my grandpa.

When I went down, I saw Linn drying Sam with the towel that I had left by his dog bed, and Sam being the belly rub loving dog he is, happily accepted Linn drying him with the towel, belly rubs being a necessity. Letting out a chuckle at the scene before my eyes, I held out the spare clothes and a fresh towel to Linn.

“ There’s a bathroom two doors left from the stairs upstairs,” I exclaimed, reaching for the doggy towel he left by the couch and chucking it in the laundry room. “Thank you,” he exclaimed, leaving to go to the bathroom.

Once Sam was dry enough, I picked up my mug of tea, making myself comfortable on the couch. Looking out the living room window, rain droplets trickling down the class, I sip on my tea, waiting for my guest to arrive from the bathroom. A couple minutes passed, looking up when I heard soft footsteps heading towards me, I offered Linn a smile and patted down the space next to me on the couch. “ Here, you can leave once the storm stops,” I handed him the mug.

We both sat beside each other, talking about what we remember about my grandparents and how we never spoke to each other when we were younger. Sam sitting at our feet. The dying fire casted a warm allure on his face, illuminating the soft scattered freckles. Hours passed as we enjoyed each other's company over another mug of tea, laughing at all the brief mutual moments that were shared between us. He mentioned that he would always get excited to see me whenever I visited my grandparents by the docks. I didn’t want to admit it, but I always loved to catch a few glimpses of him, whenever he wasn't looking as well.

I laughed at his words, tired but somehow feeling rejuvenated. It had been a long time since I last laughed with someone. It felt good to let go.

His expression of awe paused me mid laughter. He was gazing into my eyes, as I his. For a brief moment, his gaze averted to my lips. Moving his gaze up to my eyes, as soft as a whisper “ May I kiss you?” he asked, a foreign emotion lingered behind his now soft eyes.

Giving him a gentle nod, I felt him place his hand at the nape of my neck. Inhaling a deep breath, his scent which reminded me of the sea with a hint of musky peppermint enveloped my senses.

Linn leaned in, gently bringing my face towards his. He closed his eyes, and for a brief few seconds I admired him until mine shut involuntarily as I felt his lips on mine. After a few seconds, he pulled away, still gazing into my eyes, “ I’ve been wanting to do that for quite a while now,” he said, with a sheepish grin, before kissing me again.

He deepened the kiss a little, giving my bottom lip a light lick before pulling away. “ I regretted not telling you how I felt about you earlier… I did ask permission from your grandpa before he passed. The last thing he said to me was, he’d be happy if you chose me,” he paused for a second, a hint of sadness and regret casting a shadow on his blue eyes. “ I… I need to tell you something. I might … might not be who you expect. And I understand if I’m not who you want,” he stammered. Grunting, “ The rain’s about to stop. I should probably get going,” he said as he started to get up.

Grabbing onto his hand, “ No...don’t! Please… It’s late, you should stay!” I stopped him. “And I’ve had a silly little crush on you too… I just never knew how to tell you” I whispered. He sat next to me, slowly, as if I were made of fine china. That, at any moment, I might crumble. “ You did?” he breathed, his breath close enough that I could feel it on my face.

“ I also know what you are. Grandpa made sure to educate me on myths, and he said some were not myths. I’ve seen you carry your pelt around sometimes,” I closed his hand between mine. “I know you’re a selkie, Linn. I don’t want you to hide that from me.” I breathed, gazing into his eyes. I could catch a glimpse of adoration in them. “Thank you… for not running away, even when you knew what I was,” he sighed. I gazed at his lips, before catching them with mine, a soft peck, to let him know I accepted him for who he is.

[martelldoran]

unsolicited tfatws opinions because i have them vol. 1

warning: here be spoilers

starting on the positive because there were things i did like in the episode

things i liked

sam wilson: *exists*

me:

sam's storyline was definitely the strongest of the two in this ep and i liked pretty much everything he did.

the opening aerial fight! was! so! cool! seeing batroc again was a nice nod to tws too and an interesting parallel to steve's lumerian star fight. i loved seeing his quick tactical thing, seeing how he fights, and the way he utilises the wings even in close quarters.

sam speaks arabic!

sam fixes redwing! (validation of a hc of mine that he's good with robotics. maybe that's a widely held fandom one as well? idk)

i instantly found torres to be really endearing and i'm looking forward to seeing more of him throughout the series. the relationship between him and sam has a lot of potential.

the manipulation of the government and general set up for sam's storyline felt strong. good basis for a story and pertinent to the current political landscape.

sam's speech as he handed over the shield was well written and gave me the same kind of vibes as the 'the price of freedom is high' speech. they could be quite nicely paralleled side by side.

sam's family! look, i'm a sucker for domestic moments for our faves so the entire sequence where we got this insight into sam's past, his relationship with his sister, and where he's come from was brilliant. i like sarah a lot and seeing her frustration with her brother for trying to come in and fix things when he's been gone for so long felt really realistic. i felt for her a lot. because you can tell there's so much there bubbling under the surface, a mix of love and resentment and frustration that was palpable as they talked about what to do with their parents' house/boat/business. so, give me all of the sarah wilson moments pls n thnx.

seeing the consequences of the snap (hi, i am refusing to call it the fucking blip. marvel, my god, get better names for shit.) idk how in depth they're really going to go into it all but at least they attempted something here with the scenes at the bank.

bucky's nightmare sequence as the winter soldier. it was such a brilliant reminder about how terrifying tws actually is. he's silent and ominous and THAT MUSIC. his presence is legitimately unsettling from the moment you see him. (but he runs around like a bull in a china shop which does make me 🤔 when i remember he's supposed to be a g h o s t s t o r y. idk. not exactly stealth and shadow work. but that doesn't look cool on screen so 🤷🏻‍♀️)

and on that note, vindication of my 'they sleep on the floor after coming back' headcanon. literally had raymond holt screaming in my head the second i saw bucky wake up on his living room floor. does my heart break for him? yes. was i smug about being right? also yes.

leah seems cool. could she actually be telepathic??? since she hit every single one of bucky's boats while they played battleships? i would like to see it. 😂 there's def more to her character than meets the eye since she's slated to be in all six episodes.

bucky having one (1) old man friend even if the reason behind it was heartbreaking.

so, yeah. these things i genuinely liked.

things i didn't like

the therapy scene. i genuinely hated it. there's a different between a no nonsense therapist and someone being deliberately antagonistic and that definitely erred on the side of the latter imo. she tells him to 'get over it' and mocks him for not reaching out and meeting people. media in general doesn't do a good job of depicting therapy so this is just yet another poor offering into the canon. i'm tired. i want healthy depictions of therapy already. it's supposed to be a supportive environment ffs.

plus she kept calling him james 🤮 genuinely wouldn't be surprised if she turns out to be a bad guy plant. which i think is a cliche at this point? 🤔

bucky's new look. which i know we've seen before now but i've not offered my unsolicited opinion on it. it's just sebastian stan in an ugly leather jacket. it's generic male lead#346. it's broification. someone said they made him look like brock rumlow and now i can't unsee it. 😭 rip to bucky with the good hair. i'd have loved to see him with some curls tbh. or a wave that kind of calls back to his pre-war days. anyway. i digress. character design is 0/10.

would have been nice to see him cut his hair as a marker of him starting a new chapter and coming into his own personhood.

rhodey's disability was just? glossed over? no visible assistive tech at all?

the date. just the fact it was there at all. it was heavy handed and not subtle and we know why they put that in there within the first 10 minutes of bucky's screen time. that's all i'm going to say about it. if you follow me, you know where i stand. we don't need poorly written romance. get it in the bin.

there was no acknowledgement of bucky's relationship with steve. if there was a memorial to be had then bucky should have been there. maybe these will come later but i'm not holding my breath.

is steve dead? i assumed that the party line was that young steve died in the battle and no-one knew about old steve . but did they actually kill steve off-screen? what a kick in the teeth if that's the case. let me just cut open a wound for them to pour the salt straight into, shall i?

things i'm mostly neutral on

john walker. he looks like a cop and his wink at the camera gave me the creeps but i'm interested to see how that pans out. i hope sam beats 50 shades of star spangled shit out of him.

the flag smashers. premise of a world without borders is interesting and a believable concept given what's happened in universe. there's a lot of scope there i think. that said, the name is dumb.

right. i think that covers everything for now. my expectations going in were really low, i won't lie. before the premiere i tried to stay away from the trailers and tv spots and the hype in general so i was pleasantly surprised at how much i enjoyed certain aspects of the show.

in conclusion, some good, some bad, some ugly and i will be cherry picking my favourite nuggets for fic at a later point. also, i'm still a skrull!Steve truther. real steve is chilling with some wakandan goats 😌💖✨

[somersetmummy]

(A/N) This is a TNA one shot, taking place immediately following book 1 chapter 12 (the gala balcony scene). Characters, some storyline and some dialogue property of Pixelberry.

Story told from point of view of MC Katie Hide. Internal character thoughts are written in italics.

I tried to think about how they would get through the rest of the gala after their little extra curricular activities on the balcony….so here it is!

Original characters: Katie Hide (MC), Sam Dalton, Vivienne Dalton, Mason Sr Dalton, Carter

New characters: Laney, Ryan

Content warning: Some light adult language

Summary: Nanny Katie Hide and her boss Sam Dalton finally take their relationship to the next step on the night of the gala, but just when they should be feeling elated, things spiral quickly. Can they get through the rest of the evening together now that things have changed for good?

Word count: 3462 (I’m out of control!)

- Bonus social edits at the end -

Alone on the balcony, looking out over the city's twinkling lights, she should've been basking in the afterglow of the best sex of her life but instead she feels empty. Her resolve held strong in front of Sam as he skulked off seemingly full of regret but now, her mind races through every minute detail of what had just happened.

Instead of taking the time to carefully ingrain every delicious detail of their time together into her memory, she painfully second guessed every move, every touch, every whispered promise. Once her exhausted mind began to fray she decided to sweep the whole thing under the carpet determined to save face, for now. Collecting herself, she absentmindedly ran her fingers up and down her arms, goose bumps standing proud, finally giving in to the cold night air.

On her way back towards the ballroom, while wondering how the hell she was going to get through the rest of the evening, she prolongs her return to reality by ducking into one of the lavish bathrooms to freshen up.  The room is quiet, an older lady leaves as she enters, another younger girl, probably around her age, is refreshing her makeup by one of the opulent vanity's. She sits down on the plush velvet ottoman in the middle of the vanity area with a sigh, not really sure what to do next.

"Well you look like you've been through the ringer!"

Turning towards the kind voice, the girl who was doing her makeup, a warm glow pours out to her as the stranger looks her up and down with genuine concern. Her face is one of those which feels familiar, like someone she could’ve known her whole life. It is enough to encourage her to open up a little and feels like a relief to have someone to talk to after feeling so alone out on that balcony.

"I'm sort of having the best night of my life as well as the worst. And to top it all off I've left my purse in the main room..." She gestures towards her untidy hair and slightly smudged makeup by way of an explanation.

The stranger offers a knowing look in reply.

“So are you here with someone? Your dress is divine by the way."

Smoothing the front of her dress, Katie replies absentmindedly, "Oh no, I'm just here with my boss, filling in an empty seat at the last minute." Hesitant to share more with someone she'd just met, she kept the more intimate details to herself.

"Me too, well sort of. I'm a stylist, one of my clients insisted I join them to make sure they look perfect all night long, god forbid her dress creases when she sits down for dinner!" She waves Katie over to the vanity and the open make up case. "Here, use whatever you need." She continues watching as Katie gratefully grabs a brush and some powder. "I'm really just starting out but figure these sorts of events are great publicity if I can dress the right people. I mean they're all living on another planet of course but they love to be in the spotlight and gush about their outfits, which is great for me!"

The pair chat easily together for a while before Katie glances at the time on her phone screen realising she'd been gone much longer than anticipated. She’d enjoyed having an ally and getting her mind off the car crash of a moment with Sam, truth be told, she’d much rather stay here in the safety of her mirrored cave and the kindness of a stranger than plaster a smile on her face and return to the Dalton’s table. With a wistful smile she turns to the stranger.

"I suppose I should be getting back, although I can't say I'm looking forward to it."

"I'm Laney by the way." She holds her hand out to Katie and they share a gentle shake.

"I'm Katie. I've really enjoyed hiding out in here with you, thanks for everything." Leaving Laney to pack up the overly large purse full of beauty treasures, Katie heads back towards the bustling ballroom. Barely making it into the room, Laney breathlessly catches up to her holding out a business card.

"Hey, I thought maybe we could meet up for a coffee sometime, you know if you want to have someone in the real world to spend time with!" She points over to someone across the room and continues animatedly, "You said you went to NYIT right? I'm sure my friend Ryan would love to meet you too, he did his Grad course there and always loves a trip down memory lane!"

Taking the card, Katie’s eyes are drawn to Sam over Laney's shoulder. He looks just as he did before the balcony, the ever professional businessman, as if nothing had ever happened. He gives a slight tip of his head in Katie’s direction, motioning for her to join him back at the table.

The new friends share a quick hug promising to catch up soon and she makes her way over to Sam who won't quite meet her eye. Despite the frostiness between them, he's a gentleman at heart and doesn't think twice about pulling out her chair, tucking it in gently as she sits. As the bustle of dinner being served continues around them, the thorny silence between them grows thick with unspoken feelings.

After a whirlwind of Sam and his parents catching up over the exploits of various family friends and tales of the boys, Vivienne turns to smile at Katie.

"Now dear, we're being rude talking around you as though you're not here. Sam tells me you're quite the budding scientist yourself?"

She looks to Sam to see him offering a helpless smile and shrug of the shoulders and can’t help but wonder whether he’d shared anything about his previous employees with his mother, or if she was the first. As Katie pulls her eyes away from Sam’s, she pushes down all the feelings which bubbled up inside her and plasters on her most professional smile.

"Yes, Mrs Dalton, I have a Masters in Chemistry and up until recently was managing projects for Panacea Labs."

Being the expert that she is at reading people, Katie astutely notices how Mr Dalton’s ears prick, he clearly didn't know that there was more to her than being 'just a nanny', whatever that means.

"Please dear, you're practically family, call me Vivienne."

A warm glow fills her body at the thought of being accepted into the fold of the Dalton family. Smiling back at Vivienne, she continues to share stories of her experiences in the industry, her passion for science and her love for exploring through the twins eyes.

"Mickey and Mason are such a brilliant example of how a love of science can be developed at a young age. They're so curious and passionate about exploring, it's such a pleasure to be a part of."

Next to her, barely able to disguise the pride he feels for her, Sam tries his best to remain outwardly impassive while watching the rest of the table listen attentively, completely captivated by her storytelling. He'd meant it earlier on the balcony when he'd agreed that she was meant to be by his side, a partner not a secret he had to hide his feelings for. He just didn't know how to make it a reality, trapped within his own life. But in this moment, his feelings bubble to the surface and it takes everything he has not to take her in his arms in front of everyone and let them come flooding out for all to see.

After all, it wasn’t Katie’s fault that his true feelings for her hit him like a tonne of bricks earlier that evening while he watched her effortlessly talk Selene into keeping her shares. In front of his parents no less. Right there, everything he loves about her shone out for everyone to see and he realised he was deeply and helplessly in love. It just wasn’t with his fiancée. Hell that's the reason he took Katie out to the balcony in the first place, to steal a moment to share how he really feels but as always he was too much of a coward to do anything about it in fear or letting everyone else down and jeopardising his sons future.

He knows that the only way to try to push through it all is to detach himself from Katie as much as possible, even if it means becoming the bad guy. In his mind, she deserves better, she deserves the damn fairytale and that's just not something he's able to give.

As they move through the plentiful courses of dinner, Mason Sr continues to interrogate Katie on her knowledge and opinions of various scientific and business theories, although his directness falters as the meal goes on and they both seem to enjoy the lively debates. Vivienne occasionally interjects with questions of her own about Katie’s family, her life back in England and whether it's difficult to be far from home. To Katie, it almost feels like she’s on a 'meet the parents' date which in her mind could be going a lot worse.

When coffee is finally offered, Mason Sr stands abruptly, eyes focussed on Sam.

��Ladies, while this evening's discussions have been...interesting, I think it's time we get down to some business." He nods curtly at Sam before gesturing towards a quieter bar area off the back of the room.

Sam stands to follow him but not before turning to Katie and instinctively placing a hand on her shoulder. She involuntarily shudders at his touch as her mind races back to the last time they touched on the balcony.

"This shouldn't take too long, will you be ok here?"

"Of course she will darling, I'm not going to bite her!" Vivienne cuts in before she can reply. Sam nods in approval towards her and lingers for a moment before walking away to meet his father. Katie's shoulder still tingling at the memory of his touch.

Katie looks across the ballroom taking in the general splendour and jovial atmosphere while Vivienne takes the opportunity to really look at her, contemplating how much to share with her. After taking a few sips of coffee, she turns herself to fully face Katie and offers a warm smile.

"I can see why the boys are so taken with you...all of them."

The honesty of her comment takes Katie by surprise. Unsure how to respond, she slowly turns to meet Vivienne’s eye, raising her eyebrow slightly in question.

"You're all the things Sam said you were. He was right when he told me we'd get on well."

The intensity of Vivienne’s gaze is so strong Katie daren't look away.

"I want to thank you for everything you've done for them all. They've come alive again since having you in their life. Poor Sara was taken from him far too soon, from us all really...it was all so hard on Sam and the boys." She trails off clearly lost in memory. "I know he cares for you and wants you to feel part of the family."

“Shit” she thinks to herself. Feeling like a rabbit caught in headlights, Katie's mind races. Does she know? How can she, they've only met once before, surely that's not enough to make her suspicious?

"I think Sam's just taken pity on me because I'm so far from home and he knows I don't have any family around. He and the boys have been so gracious in making me feel welcome."

Hoping she sounds convincing she takes a sip of coffee, relishing the opportunity to hide her blushing cheeks behind the cup. Vivienne suddenly looks up with Katie follow her gaze over her shoulder. Behind her, Laney is standing with a cowboy-next-door handsome man in tow, a welcome interruption. His dirty blonde hair is slightly unkempt, his frame more lean than Sam's but he still carries an athletic look, he smiles charmingly at Katie.

“Excuse me" Laney directs to Vivienne before turning to speak to Katie. “This is my friend Ryan who I was telling you about earlier."

Katie reaches out to shake his hand which he is already holding out towards her.

"I hear you're a fellow NYIT grad? You look far too respectable to have hung out in the sort of dives I used to find myself in!"

"Try me..." she challenges with a twinkle in her eye.

Laney rolls her eyes with boredom and escapes, business card in hand, to fawn over an awkwardly dressed woman at another table.

"Would you like to dance? I promise not to break out the old NYIT match day chant moves!"

She can't help but laugh at his natural charm. After looking to Vivienne, who waves her hand in approval, she lets Ryan lead her out to the dance floor where they sway together at ease in each other's company reminiscing. It’s a far cry from the intimate dance with Sam earlier that evening, instead Katie could relax into it knowing that she wasn’t trying to hide anything, and it felt freeing.

As Sam's discussion, or more accurately argument, with his father comes to an end he heads back to the table where he notices his mother is sitting alone.

“Where's Katie?" He asks forgetting to hide the panic in his voice, worried for the second time that evening, after she had disappeared to the bathroom for half an hour, that Katie had thought better of compromising herself for him and fled the gala.

Vivienne nods towards the dance floor, Sam's eyes follow and a bolt of jealousy hits him right in the heart as he sees her in the arms of another man.

With a steely glare he starts towards her but is stopped by Vivienne's hand firmly holding him back by his arm.

“Leave her be, she's enjoying herself."

Letting out an almost inaudible sigh he sits down next to his mother but can't pull his eyes away, so enthralled that his mother's voice is almost a whisper in the background.

"She really is wonderful darling, I know even your father is impressed, of course he'll never say it." Her arm still resting on his, she studies Sam's face before continuing, "What a shame you’d not met her sooner.”

Allowing himself for a moment to hope that his mother's glowing reference suggests she is in approval of his relationship with Katie becoming something more, Sam smiles and leans forward ready to gush even more. He catches himself just in time as the ever repeating voices in his head remind him of his responsibility and everyone else's expectations of him, instead he brings it back to the boys.

"Yes she's brilliant with Mason and Mickey, they're lucky to have her."

Dancing and talking together with Ryan, Katie had almost forgotten about Sam and their earlier tryst on the balcony, grateful for the distraction and if she was being honest the attention. It's not every day that she goes to the effort of dressing up at the last minute and schmoozes the un-scmoozable to help her sort-of-boyfriend look good, it's nice to have someone sweep her off her feet and put her first for once.

"Your boyfriend doesn't seem too happy about us dancing together" Ryan nods towards Sam who is trying to get their attention, his parents behind him appear to be getting ready to leave.

"He's not my boyfriend."

Ryan's eyes widen sensing an opportunity. “Well I guess that's good news for me...can I call you sometime, take you out for dinner?"

She drops her gaze, shaking her head slightly.

“I'm sorry, I don't think it's a good idea..." trailing off, he gently lifts her chin to look up at him.

"But you're single...?"

"No, I...it's...it's complicated" she stutters while looking over his shoulder at Sam, who looks less than thrilled.

"Well, if you change your mind, Laney has my number." With that, he kisses her hand and watches the silk of her gown cling to her hips as she walks away.

Returning to the table, Mason Sr takes Katie’s hand and shakes it almost warmly.

“Pleasure to see you again Katie. Excellent damage control with Selene earlier...very impressive."

He moves to Sam, impassively shaking his hand as Vivienne envelopes her in a hug, kissing each cheek.

"Wonderful to see you again dear, give those grandsons of mine one of these from me!"

Katie smiles tenderly back at her, nodding in agreement.

After the Dalton's leave, Katie and Sam remain at the table, sipping their drinks in awkward silence, steadily interrupted by acquaintances of Sam's wanting to talk business. Finally, noticing Katie’s arm propping up her tired head, Sam stands.

“I think that's enough shop talk for one night, let's get you home."

Waiting for the limo to pull to the front of the building Sam notices her shiver in the cold night air. He takes off his jacket and wraps it around her shoulders, the most contact they’ve had all evening since being intertwined on the balcony together. His gaze lingers on hers, neither able to look away. She tries to read his thoughts as she looks deep into his eyes but all she sees is a muddle of pain, confusion and longing. It doesn't make her feel any better.

"Mr Dalton..." the driver says with a small cough as he stands by the open limo door.

Sam pulls away and walks her over to the limo with his hand hovering behind the small of her back, not daring to touch. Once settled in their seats it doesn't take long for the gentle motion of the car to send Katie to sleep, her head lulling and dropping onto Sam's shoulder.

It takes everything he has for him not to wrap his arms around her, his mind conflicted thinking of the nights events. The incredible connection they shared on the balcony, the fire within him burning hotter and brighter than ever before, his mother's glowing review, hell even his father had been impressed and suggested during their conversation in the bar that Katie’s role within the Dalton empire might be wasted as just a nanny. But none of these thoughts could quite suppress his feelings of guilt at falling for another woman, his responsibility to his sons, the business and their legacies. At least not in his mind.

Back in the penthouse, Sam makes his way into the open plan living area to find, thinking him for his help with the boys. Katie hangs back, not wanting to make small talk in front of Carter, who is incredibly astute and would no doubt piece together that things were not as they seemed.

"Miss Hide, you're a vision!"

Walking towards the elevator, Carter beams at her like a proud dad seeing his daughter on her wedding day.

“I didn't get the chance to see you before you left, my my..."

"Thank you Carter. And thank you for watching the boys, I hope they weren't too much trouble?!"

He taps his nose, keeping secret whatever mischief they got up to that evening. She smiles back at him knowingly as he steps into the elevator and the doors close.

As she turns back towards the living room she is halted by Sam standing right in front of her, so close, she almost crashes into him. Sheepishly she hands him his jacket as he offers a bottle of water in exchange.

‘You should never go to bed dehydrated" he blurts out, trying to fill the gaping silence.

“Sam...."

"Goodnight Katie, thank you for your help this evening, I appreciate you coming."

Unable to muster up enough energy to argue push any further, Katie drops her gaze to the floor as she shakes her head disappointedly. She walks away without a word, her heart aching more than she thought possible.

TAG List: @shewillreadyou @chemist-ana @txemrn @silma-words @thefrenchiemama @secretaryunpaid @sfb123

- Bonus - photo posted by Katie the morning after followed by a conversation with Jenny (before Sam drops the Italy bombshell and she was supposed to have the day off!)

[blackdogdesignuk]

The Diner Dilemma

Written by Blackdogdesignuk

-

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30510615

-

Warnings: explicit, smutt, porn without plot, maybe a slight plot. Sub/Dom play, light bdsm, forced orgasms, hand free, sex toys, humiliation, exhibitionism, hint at kink shaming, restraints, Mr. not-much-dialogue Whiskey, no consent, clit slapping, girl on girl. girl on boy.

Summary:

You've never felt such conflicting feelings before, as Poppy meanly flicked your pert nipples you felt the embarrassment creep over your face but deep down a small stab of shameless pleasure inside was eating away at you. Neither of you were trained for this sort of torture.

Notes:

Self insert warnings: It's a female self insert, I think, she has a vagina anyway and I'm using she/her pronouns ...also she's blushing petal pink which suggests her skin tone as Caucasian, she's based on me, a pale ass white girl. Also she has a name, or a nickname anyhow. I've no idea what I'm doing.

2.4k words I believe of the most self indulgent thing I've ever written. To be honest it's the only thing I'd class as a fanfiction I've written. I write short poems not porn but this whole scene came to me whilst participating in the (solo) business of pleasure. That's when I thought, Jesus there is something wrong with me... Maybe other people will like this too? 😳😂

Also do I know how to use page breaks? .. 😒 no.

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

"Well if this isn't the most interesting situation we've found ourselves In!"

Poppy exclaimed playfully. The setting sun was blinding you slightly through the big diner windows, bathing the whole bar area in a warm orange glow. Poppy Adams was pacing the retro diner floor in front of the table you were currently tied to. Shivering with adrenaline and maybe cold because you had been embarrassingly stripped down to your knickers and the very thin, very see through strappy top you wore under your work clothes. The ropes rubbing against your wrists behind your back were burning into you as you slienty struggled against your restraints.

"Now see here Miss" exclaimed Agent Whiskey "Your boarish robot hounds almost ripped my good hand clean off!"

"Quiet down please Jack" Miss Adams' sickly sweet baby voice disgusted you "I set a very clever honeytrap for one of those sneaky undercover agents who were following me and well.. here you are! Agent... Babydoll is it?" She nodded at you "yes you look like a Babydoll... Poor sweet girl fell for it hook, line and sinker... I didn't expect you to be with her" Poppy kicked Whiskey's boots "Intel suggested you were undercover in London with Kingsman. How wrong we were and I've managed catch not one but TWO Statesman agents in my sticky web! What a bounty eh?" Poppy Adams smiled whilst seating herself at the bar, swinging her legs playfully.

You glanced over at your partner hoping he had been formulating a plan to get you both out of this mess, however he looked just as confused as you were with his hands tied to the table legs behind his head and they had even secured him around his broad middle. Like a trussed up pig ready for slaughter, least he’d kept his jeans on you though jealously.

Poppy cleared her throat "Now we are going to play a little game my dears, we've all the time in the world whilst I wait from your bosses about my demands and I'm bored and feeling a little evil this morning"

Your heartbeat kicked up a notch as she clicks her fingers and one of her minions barged through the kitchen double doors, dragging some sort of dentist/barbers chair. He heaved it loudly across the floor until it was positioned in front of you.

As Poppy opened a box she'd pulled out from behind the bar, her henchman was busying himself with untying you from the table and man handling you into this very hard and very uncomfortable chair. It was as dated as the rest of this joint you thought, like something you'd find in a 1920's barbers, however this one had been modified clearly as it had big buckle straps on the arms where your wrists would go, metal stirrups and more straps where your legs would be resting on the small platform.

You watch confused as he quickly made himself scarce and you see Poppy had now armed herself a black leather handled flogger, it had gunmetal grey chains hanging down delicately from where she'd wrapped it around her wrist.

Oh shit.

Poppy Adams pushed you back forcefully into the chair until every soft part of you was exposed. You wouldn't be that embarrassed, it was an empty room, however you were hyper aware of the fact Agent Whiskey was tied up and eye level with your crotch a literal stone's throw away from you.

Smiling as she stung your thigh with a sharp bite of her cat o' nine tails Poppy then almost lovingly parted your legs and placed your feet into into the stirrups of the medical contraption. Completely.. completely vulnerable you thought as she buckled your wrists tight and pulled a small lever on the chair which made the metal stirrups spread your legs wide to keep you in place and exposed fully.

Sheepishy you glanced up to make eye contact with Agent Whiskey, trying to give him an apologetic look but to your suprise you found he was blushing severely and his eyes were darting around, looking at everything but you. Even his ears were slowly turning pinker by the second and you swear he had a small bead of sweat making its way down his temple.

You've never felt such conflicting feelings before, as Poppy meanly flicked your pert nipples you felt the embarrassment creep over your face but deep down a small stab of shameless pleasure inside was eating away at you. Neither of you were trained for this sort of torture.

What a bitch you thought.

"No Agent Whiskey" Poppy snapped as she walked over to him "give your colleague your full attention, she obviously wants it, the least you can do is look whilst I torture her in front of you"

Poppy grabbed Jack's face with it hand and directed it at you. "I think you'll like the show I'm going to give you? You may try look away in some sort of twisted respect agent but the tight bluge in your jeans is a dead give away that your enjoying this as much as I am."

"This is not right Ma'am....I can't.. p-pleeeasagggh" stuttered Whiskey helplessly as Poppy Adam's jumped off his lap and slapped your partner across the face, cutting short his pleas. Turning quickly around she walked to grab a big pink dildo from the case on the bar, it was about 10 inches long and the tasteful thickness of it suprised you. You felt sure you had the same one in your bedside drawer at home..

Walking up behind you Poppy leant over your shoulder, making bedroom eyes at Jack whilst the she nibbled your ear and slowly dragged the sex toy down your body, teasing your skin.. slowly...slowly.. until she came to the outside of your lacy knickers. Pressing a button on the side, it started vibrating at the tip which caused you to jump unexpectedly as the vibrations tickled your clit through the fabric of your underwear. She worked at you for a good few minutes. Pulling hot pants from your lips and giving you cold sweats whilst you tried to stop your eyes rolling in to the back of your head.

"Oh Honeybee, I'm going to make you cum for me now, right here in front of your colleagues and there isn't a thing you can do about it. I'm in control.." she whispered into your ear whilst squeezing your nipple with her other free hand. "..and there is nothing you can do about it, your body will betray you and I will get what I want" a sharp jolt of pleasure shot through your crotch as she caught your clit in just the perfect spot. You gasped surprising even your self at how thicky sexual it sounded.

Deciding the fabric was hindering her efforts, Poppy swiftly tugged them off and dragged them down your legs, catching them slightly on the metal parts of the chair. Abandoning you a moment she spat on her hand and slapped your clit which was now becoming more swollen by the minute, you mewled at the shock of the sting. Your nipples hard as bullets now as she slid the whole length slowly in to your aching pussy. The sound of it sliding in to your wet cunt was so obscene and Jack was just staring now, mouth slighty parted, the buttons on his jeans threatening to pop at any moment. This did nothing but spur you on despite the degrading act being forced upon you, deep down being the submissive was always a fantasy of yours. Did Poppy know this? Or did she not expect you to like this sort of kink torture? Maybe you were more fucked up than you originally thought.

Your face prickled with shame as a pink glow crept over your cheeks. Concious of your nose and chin as it always threatened to betray you when you were very aroused turning a rosy pink petal colour. Thinking back to the many nights you'd spent in hotel rooms during undercover missions with your partner. Thinking about when you came hard but silently, stifling a fist into your mouth, knowing Agent Whiskey was in the next room and secret wishing it was him who'd given you such a long, wet, sticky orgasm. Your face sold you out though, it was a dead give away when you answered the door to his frantic knocks and requests to get dressed, informing you about the change of plans from HQ. You suspected he did know...he's not dumb. Jack's eyes had shot from your crumpled up bed sheets back to your flushed cheeks and chin, lingering on your face a little longer than you'd expect..

That same flushed look you had then was painted over your face now and he knew it too as he seemingly couldn't now break eye contact with you.

As Poppy fucked you messily with the dildo, your body abandoned you getting more juicy and slippery by the minute. The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife, and was only penetrated by the obscene sound of your gushing pussy and your uneven pants, trying to catch your breath and fight against the unwanted pleasure rocking thorough your body. Miss Adam's slowly removed the plastic member that she was fucking your cunt with and dipped two fingers deep into you, coating them in your slick.

Thankful for the breather you closed your eyes for a moment but when you opened them you watched horrified as she'd wandered over to Whiskey and smeared your creamy mess all over Jack's face, forcefully slipping a finger into his mouth so he could taste that sweet nectar. You bit your lip as Jack was clearly struggling against wanting to take control of the situation and enjoying this too much.

Did he like it? What is she doing now? She's touching his jeans.. oh Jesus, please... Don't...

Jealousy panged deep in your stomach. Poppy was now sliding his zipper down but she didn't really need to help him much more as the button popped it's self open. Quickly realising why as it was absolutely magnificent. Looking into his big brown eyes you couldn't tell if he was enjoying your pain or sympathising with it, but his now thick, beautiful, coffee coloured cock was standing to attention and jerking with each grunt he made in an attempt to clean his new creamy moustache off with his tounge.

Poppy just laughed staring at the sorry sight she'd created. "I've heard of men cumming hands free before but I've never witnessed it, let's see Babydoll do you think we could make it happen for him? It would be humiliating right? ESPECIALLY as I’d forgot to mention the live feed you have in that fancy cowboy hat you're wearing Whiskey, it's playing all this fun back to your HQ right?"

Fuck!

You gasped, hoping Ginger had enough respect for you both to turn off the audio and video feed but leaving the GPS tracking active so we could at least be rescued.

"Yes, yes, I know they can track you, in all honesty I wasn't expecting any ransom I just wanted to fuck with you both for shits and giggles to be honest" Poppy smirked.

You blinked, looking back at Jack for some sort of reaction to this horrifying news but he just had his eyes closed and was thrusting his hips into nothingness, beads of sticky precum were dripping from the tip of his dick on to his jeans. That big beautiful dick swaying and twitching in the air, it was mesmerising. Clearly Poppy was paying attention too as she drapped the chains of the whip over his throbbing cock causing Whiskey to cry out and jump in anticipation.

"You dirty boy Jack Daniels" she scoffed and pulled her flail back so fast it caught the tip of his penis sharply making him whimper in pain.

Paying her attention back to you, she took the vibrating member in her perfectly manicured hands and held it on your clit. It was too painfully long, stoking your fire relentlessly, not letting you have even a second to compose your self as you struggled to fight down the familiar sensation quite literally buzzing in your nerve endings.

For fuck sake, I don't want this! I can't give her the satisfaction of the screaming orgasm she's forcing out of me.

You writhed, swinging between pleasure and pain, it was too intense. Too sensitive. Your thighs were shaking with anticipation as you edged closer and closer to your climax. Agent Whiskey stared intensely at your body, his chest rising fast now, he looked like a man possessed. He was close, you could tell. His face contorted in to an almost painful state of bliss.

Glassy eyed, his rhythm faultered and his hips tensed as thick ropes of cum shot out of his spent cock and splattered on to his heaving stomach. Once, twice, three times he twitched releasing more and more hot creamy fluid. Jack gasped for air as his orgasm dribbled down slowly over his beautiful tanned skin making quite a mess of his public hair. His face shined with sweat whilst he stared at you, beautiful brown eyes apologising, shame painted across his expression.

"Oh d-darlin.." he managed to stutter.

Well, that was the final nail in your coffin. Tipping you over the edge, you let out the filthiest moan you had ever given anyone, inspired out of darkest depths of your depraved mind. Your orgasm gushed out of your swollen slippery pussy and slid down the shaft of the dildo she was using to finish you off. It pooled satisfyingly in a creamy mess just above your asshole, threatening to spoilt the leather chair you were strapped to.

''There you go Babydoll, we got there in the end didn't we... You both must have been sooo tightly wound. What... Was that a record 4 minutes until Whisky shot his load hmm?" She sneered with that stupid baby voice and then leaned in close to your face "..and you clearly have had a lot of practice havn't you? Look at that pretty pussy all messed up. I might even get him to crawl over here and clean you up huh? But that would be just what you want I now suspect..."

BOOM..

Poppy's sentence was interrupted by a huge explosion from the back of the Diner, as a dozen men ran in to the room.

You closed your eyes in relief. God damn it, Ginger. Took your time honey...

Notes:

I don't think forced orgasm and light bondage will have a huge audience but I would never forgive myself if I didn't make this into at least a paragraph or more.

I have also created a piece of art to go along side this story see my socials here to find it -https://linktr.ee/blackdogdesignuk also a video showing the 'making of' the sketch my tiktok - search Bettyblushes

Please excuse any grammatical errors mistakes, I truly tried to catch them all but it's been a hot decade since I studied at school. 😬

[katsukisbeatingheart]

if you want

· - - - -

he has a bit of a difficult time being patient.

word count: 2143

a03

pt. 2

It was a little untoward but did as good a job as any.

A blush burst like confetti in a rage rash across his cheeks; and if you didn't know any better, you'd think the mighty Katsuki was actually maybe a little embarrassed.

"Well?"

He shifted in his place, trying—and failing—to maintain a façade of a complacent blasé boy just casually asking out a close friend.

"Close" was a bit of a stretch for you. Yes, you found him quite brash and obnoxious and a little insensitive; but you couldn't deny what he meant to you. At least, you thought highly of him, and you were sure you could tell him anything—but you weren't positive that was reciprocated.

Was he one of your best friends? Yes.

Would you even dare to ask him how he felt about you? No.

You! Didn't! Want! To! Ruin! What! You! Had! It had taken what seemed like ages for him to finally warm up to you, without, like, actually exploding—and if you think you'd run the risk of watching that go down in flames? You considered yourself an idiot.

However, unbeknownst to you—Katsuki thought you were the world. If he could put it to words and send them out through that angry trap cursing everything to hell—he'd say you were a force of nature. A worthy rival, a trusted partner, and a kind and wonderful friend.

Except all he's got are angry bees and a tornado in his brain, at all times. As such, anyone he admired, he felt the need to challenge. On all levels physical, he planned to annihilate them. Which wasn't necessarily the case, well, in your case.

Although, there were—a few physical levels— He shook that thought away. That's an idea for a later date. The blush flared. 'Much later.'

But really, he loved provoking you. Only because you're so cute and intelligent and warm and messy—so, so messy—and he got a serious kick out of that. You're complex and human and alive. Despite your faults, you refused to let anything stop you in the end game—you refused to let that keep you from what you wanted. He watched you grow, and evolve and adapt to those weaknesses, and suddenly the line between strengths and not began to blur. He even dared to call you one of his personal heroes.

Thankfully for him, no one in the class noticed for the longest time.

Unsurprisingly, Kirishima was the first.

Bakugo would casually watch you walk into the room, head in his hand, eyes trailing each step you took. A silent Ejirou, sitting beside his best friend minding his own business, would look up startled—at the now fuming boy with a hand to his temple, or rubbing the back of his neck.

"You alright there, man?"

"Stomachache."

The dear boy would stare on in confusion, but keep to himself—a man's business was his business. Puzzled, he witnessed Katsuki all but sprint out the door, noticeably more red than his usual complexion. Then, minutes later, Katsuki would return, smelling notably more of burning sugar, and looking like he'd run maybe half a mile. Kiri wouldn't question it. Until, after that, across the room you'd laugh at something Denki or Ochacko had said, and Bakugo would stand right back up again.

"What's wrong?"

"It's back again." And that'd be the end of that.

It became a reoccurring thing throughout the weeks, when finally—bewilderdly—Kirishima would come to the conclusion Katsuki had been stubbornly avoiding. He popped the question a few weeks later.

"You like someone, don't you."

Class had taken a recess, and his best friend took the liberty to gravitate toward him with a pencil and notebook in hand to work on an upcoming assignment—hopefully without being disturbed, which already wasn't happening.

Bakugo's whole body twitched. "I– you– what– you weirdo what is that supposed to mean?"

Kirishima blinked owlishly at his friend. He wasn't sure what to say next, as he honestly didn't think he'd get this far.

"Well... you've been acting kinda strange lately... around someone in particular..."

Bakugo raised his eyebrows defensively. He hoped that did a good job of masking his expression, because he suddenly had a pretty good idea as to where this was going.

"Well, I mean..." Kirishima dragged a path along with his eyes, coming to a stop at an angle, gazing at you covertly through his lashes. Katsuki rolled his eyes, trying really hard to keep his heart from racing anymore than it already was. He pointedly looked back down at his paper, a tighter grip on his pencil.

"I don't know what the fuck you're talking about."

Eijiro couldn't keep a grin from crawling across his smug face.

"Oh, but I think you do."

After that, the secret couldn't keep to itself and the rest of the class began to trickle into the loop. Much to the surprise of everyone, they weren't all that surprised because they thought you're quite wonderful. But Katsuki? And a crush?

He couldn't help it; the guy seriously respected you.

With all of the determination rivalling theirs to become professional heroes, the class set to work on making this happen. They split up and rearranged classroom chores, made up excuses as to why they couldn't make it to study sessions where you and Bakugo attended, and shut out any outside obstacles—curfews, misplaced lunch seatings, Mineta.

"Oh, no, it's okay! You go ahead, I've got this," you chirped, in a positively upbeat mood. It was so absurdly warm, Kaminari felt guilty about moping the entire day to get out of his after school tasks. He'd managed to convince you he had a sick baby bird at home to tend to, before having to return to the dorms later tonight. Of course, that was a lie.

'It's for a good cause. It's for a good cause. It's for a good cause. It's for a good cause.' Denki knew he was a simpleton; but he'd be damned if he didn't have his moments.

"Are you sure? I'd really hate to trouble you, ya know," he offered, conjuring his best solicitous veneer, silently hoping he wasn't overdoing it now.

"No, yeah! Go on ahead; I heard you mention you had some personal things to take care of—you sounded really stressed about it." Denki had to will himself from openly clutching his chest and bursting into tears.

'Attentive and kind as always! I would expect nothing less of you.'

He opened his mouth to reply with something a little more heartfelt, but the burning gaze of Mina—probably stealthily situated peering through the windows facing the hall—stared holes into the back of his head. Kaminari's mouth snapped shut, and he took that as his cue to bounce. "Great! Awesome. Noice, thank you—" he rambled in an absolutely-not-guilty-at-all lilt. At the door though, he paused, throwing a suggestive smile over his shoulder, "—you kids have fun."

You wrinkled your eyebrows, not yet having received the eight new text messages from your other friends, conveniently busy with their own matters, as well.

After a while, Katsuki came to realize that this dancing around his feelings business was getting to be a little old. He felt pathetic, ordinarily used to tackling things head on. It took some serious convincing, on his part—but he knew what he wanted.

He tried small things, at first—microscopic, all considered, but this was Bakugo. Katsuki began propping doors open for you to pass by if you were walking together, like a real gentleman would.

He dropped snacks by your desk;"You forgot your money again, didn't you, dumbass?"

Always kept an extra water bottle on hand with your name on it; "Don't need you passing out during class, idiot."

He even gave you a little star sticker he had "found" on his way back from an orthodontist appointment; "It was stuck to the bottom of my shoe. I don't want it, you take it." It was in too perfect condition for that to be true.

By then he felt silly, recognizing that this probably wasn't going to be enough to get his point across; even if his friends, at least, noticed the small attempts (trying very hard to keep their mouths shut, all the while).

Katsuki didn't know where the fire was, but eventually he'd had enough of himself. This was going to happen, and it was going to happen today.

After an afternoon of mulling and seriously suppressed grins, Bakugo approached you with an imperceptibly wavering stride. He could launch himself into the heat of a fight no problem, but Katsuki Bakugo was not perfect—no matter how arrogant and prideful he was to admit that.

"Hey. Come practice with me."

You blinked in surprise, running your fingers along the hem of your uniform almost self consciously. It was nearing the evening, and you'd figured he would've joined everyone in studying back at the dorms.

'Although, I suppose sparring is a form of studying,' you reasoned with yourself.

'But... why me?'

He brought you to a secluded clearing, amongst the woodlands surrounding the campus. It wasn't so deep in as to hide evidence, but it was free enough from prying eyes and ears—he made sure of that, with a totally justified menacing promise on his classmates' lives. The overhang of leaves, swooping branches, and glistening waters—complete with lil frogs leaping amongst the moss—made this probably one of the best places he could think of for this exact situation. It was definitely the most fairy tale thing he had ever seen, which said a lot—his mother had dragged him and his father to TDL on many an occasion when he was a child.

Of course, he supposed it was just his stupid, newly developed romantic bastard brain romanticizing everything.

Setting the scene was the trick—because if that had gone wrong, then this would've been glossing near "patronizing", and would probably be much closer to a threat. In a way, you wryly wondered if it really was.

"Hey," he nearly barked. "Anyone home?"

You'd been standing in a silent stupor long enough for Katsuki to grow nervous-impatient. He'd put his hands in his pockets and kicked a little bit at the ground beneath him, trying to maintain some sense of calm. The glower in his eyes gave him away.

Your lips popped open in a fish face motion as you grappled for your words. "I–I– I'm really– I–" Your tongue stumbled over itself. Katsuki gave you an expectant look and you felt your cheeks turn a brand new shade of red.

"I just– I can't– I don't–"

You tried so hard, trying to find the right words. They stubbornly refused to appear, wrestling with each other in the deepest part of your gradually dizzying consciousness. Your hands trembled, waving around aimlessly, making a point you hadn't even begun to form yet.

Bakugo suddenly felt as though he had hit a wall. An invisible one, because this was exactly the thing he was trying to avoid. It grated at his ego and he was slowly getting more and more agitated, his deepest insecurities writhing under his skin. You stuttered and gestured, wringing your slicked palms on your clothes.

After a long, silent moment, his face fell into a stone cold stare you'd never seen directed at you before. It morphed from uncertainty, to a grimace you associated with catching a bad smell, and into an equable scowl. Your heart thumped to the pit of your stomach.

A forcibly steady breath through the nose. "Fine."

He straightened his posture.

"I get it."

The dark look stared down at you, something you were sure was one of his special moves. "It's whatever. It doesn't matter, anyway." Except it did.

Your eyebrows knitted, your pulse quickening. "Katsuki, I– that's not–"

Biting back a sneer, Bakugo seethed through his teeth. "Save it," he hissed. "I don't want to fucking do this if I'm the only one giving my all."

The shock that came to you is what you assumed being struck by lightning felt like. You wanted to laugh, and tell him that was such a Katsuki thing to say in a situation like this; but he was already stomping away, taking strides to double yours.

"Katsuki, wait!" You called out, feeling coming back to your legs, and made to move in after him. "Katsuki!"

His silhouette gradually disappeared into the leaves that had initially felt so welcoming, like they promised something.

You went as quick as you could, mindful of the roots and pockets of earth at your feet.

As Bakugo slid out of reach, his words were a deafening whisper in the hushed world around you.

"Just—leave me alone."

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{a/n: hello!! i have this split up bc i wanted to write a few more scenes under the same premise... plus!! having something extra to do gives me a little more motivation & inspiration to make new things; thanks for reading<3}

[managedmischiefs]

told you so//tom holland

warnings: fainting, hospitals, IV, malnourishment, talk of Heath Ledger and his death, sad boi Tom

///

inspired by tom's insta story where he thanked fans for his teen choice award win

///

Tom is always dedicated to his work and will do whatever he can to make the audience believe his character. He works endless hours on his lines, on understanding his character, and getting into the mindset of his role. But something he always dedicated a large amount of time to is his weight.

Spider-Man is an incredibly physical role. Tom was on set and doing stunts every day. He needed the muscle to support that, and he had to keep his weight constant so that his suit fit him and he didn't cause a giant problem for the wardrobe department.

But for Cherry, he's playing a veteran that is riddled with PTSD. He studied up on the disorder and discovered the effect it has on the human body, and decided that he needed to lose some of his muscle and drop some weight.

He didn't tell me this flat out though. I noticed him eating less and less over a week, after a particularly long and in depth production meeting. He decreased breakfast from a full meal to just a protein shake, and refused dinner on most days and replaced it with a workout at the gym. To say this new diet scares me is an understatement.

I'm not an actor. I don't completely understand his world. But I've been dating Tom for a few years, and I know enough to recognize that weight changing is a common practice in Hollywood. But just because it's common doesn't mean that it's right. I've heard horror stories in the media of certain roles burning out actors and ruining their lives, and that is the last thing I want to happen to Tom.

I watch as Tom comes sauntering into the kitchen, passing me with nothing but a kiss to my cheek and a whispered good morning, his voice gravely with sleep. I'm up early to study for an upcoming exam, papers already sprawled out on the island.

I sneakily watch as Tom pulls out ingredients such as protein powder, bananas, and peanut butter, then the blender. "Are you, uh-" I huff out a breath, looking down at my textbook, trying to make the conversation more nonchalant, "gonna have more than just a shake?"

"Don't think so," Tom murmurs as he starts slicing the banana. "I'm on this diet still, you know that." I open my mouth to respond but chose not to say anything, just shaking my head and deciding to drop the subject again. "What?" Tom quips after a moment of silence. "You have something else to say. I know you. Don't lie, you've got something to say."

I drop my highlighter and swing around on my barstool to face him. "Tommy, I'm just nervous about this diet, okay? I know that it's working and you're losing weight and muscle like you want to, but I'm just nervous how this is gonna affect your body and your health in the future. The last thing I want to happen is for this to ruin you."

Tom drops the banana in his hand and rushes over, placing his hands on my cheeks. "This isn't gonna ruin me. I'm okay, yeah? I'm completely fine. I'm just twenty pounds lighter. That's all."

My eyes widen and I grab onto his thinning wrists. "You've lost twenty pounds? Baby, that's too much. That's way too much! You told me ten pounds at first and I said that was too much, but twenty? That's too much!"

"It's not too much. I'm healthy, I promise." Tom swears, leaning his head forward and kissing my forehead. "We're only a week into shooting and the Russo's said everything looks great."

"I don't give a shit what the Russo's think. I care about you and your health-"

Tom huffs out a breath and drops his hands. "I am fine. You don't need to worry about me. My trainer says I'm fine, the medic on set says I'm fine, everyone agrees that I'm fine. I've only got another two months of this diet and then I'll have to bulk up for the next Avengers movie and I'll be back to the way I was before." He turns around and quickly finishes off his protein shake, putting it in a cup and closing the lid. "I'll see you tonight, okay? Good luck on your exam, I know you'll crush it."

He's kissing me and he's out the door before I can say anything else. Okay, so, that conversation didn't go anywhere close to what I had planned.

I pack up my books and head off to class for my exam, which is actually quite difficult. Or maybe I was just too busy thinking (worrying) about Tom to focus on a test. I guess I'll never know.

After my exam, I hurry off to my study of human behaviors class, hoping that today's topic will distract me from worrying about how my boyfriend is doing on set. But, of course, that hope is crushed when my professor pulls up a picture of Heath Ledger.

"Today we're going to be talking about Heath Ledger, and how his preparation for the role of the Joker effected him. Some believe the intense preparation even added to his death." She saunters around the front of the room without a care in the world, babbling on and on about how Ledger got into his character by locking himself in a hotel room and keeping a dark diary, filled with quotes, pictures, and his lines.

"Ledger was so deep into his character that he turned to medication to help him do things as simple as sleeping. Maggie Gyllenhaal even said that she could barely look at him while filming, and the crew was too nervous to be around him between takes because he would still be in character. So I pose this question to you all, did his dedication to his role and the extreme preparation for this role lead to his death?"

Oh god. Please no. This is exactly what I don't need to hear right now. Not today. Not while Tom is filming Cherry and I can't be with him at all times. Not when I get one text a day from him since he's so busy shooting scenes. Not ever.

Multiple hands shoot up to respond to the professors question. She picks a bubbly blonde in the front row. "His preparation definitely led to his death. He pushed himself too far and he couldn't handle the pressure of the movie, the pressure of stardom, the pressure of the Joker being so engrained in his mind. He couldn't shake it when filming ended, and it truly made him become some version of a psychopath."

Another student butts in. "Yeah, it's so obvious. He turned to drugs because he couldn't handle the role."

One other adds his opinion. "It's like Natalie Portman in Black Swan. She had to lose all this weight so she ate almonds and carrots for, like, months on end. And then she was in rehearsals all day and she dislocated a rib, but kept training. She said she thought she was gonna die on most days. It's very possible for actors to get so wrapped up in role that they lose a bit of reality. I totally think Heath Ledger died because of the Joker."

With that last student, I pick up my backpack and laptop and go stomping out of the lecture hall, choking back tears. I dramatically throw my belongings into my car and speed off, wiping my cheeks and trying to keep my emotions together.

I park in the first spot I see and jump out of my car, heading off to Tom's trailer, hoping that he'll be there, although the chances are slim. I've only been to Tom's trailer for Cherry once, and it was the first week of him filming. It's been lived in now, so I'm sure it looks quite different.

I hadn't expected his trailer to be a complete mess. At home, Tom is a little messy but always cleans up after himself. He clearly hasn't cleaned or let anyone clean up after him. There's clothes and shoes all over the floor and furniture, the sheets are messed up on the bed like he's been tossing and turning while sleeping, and the kitchen area is a complete wreck. There's a pile of papers and books on the coffee table that I make the terrible decision to investigate.

Having PTSD just messes up your whole life. I couldn't even get the energy to clean my house, or even my room, or my kitchen, or anything. I would throw things around and I would break things and just leave them. PTSD left me completely unable to function as a human. I couldn't sleep. How would I be expected to clean up after myself when I'm falling asleep standing?

Of course, his trailer like this is to keep himself in the character. I wonder if his costars can stand to look at him between takes.

The trailer door opens a moment later and I'm wishing it's Tom, but it's Harrison coming in, nonchalantly kicking a shoe aside to get to the fridge. "Oh hey, didn't know you were coming by. Tom didn't mention it."

"Is Tom gonna die?" I blurt out, my eyes pooling up with tears. Harrison's eyes widen at the wild question. "I'm scared he's gonna die. He's so into this character and he's gonna die, isn't he?"

"Oh my gosh, breathe, love. Tom isn't gonna die. Where are you getting this from?" Harrison takes a few steps closer to me, but it doesn't comfort me in any way.

"He's not eating, Harrison. I've seen him make food but I haven't seen him actually eat anything in almost a month. He's dealing with this disgusting trailer every day. I barely ever see him because he comes home and either goes straight to sleep or he's out at the gym until I'm asleep."

"Maybe you should talk to him." Harrison suggests. "Honestly, I'm worried about him too and I think you're the only person he'll listen to. You just gotta learn to keep your cool." He places his hands on my shoulders. "Why don't you go home and get some rest? I think you're just as tired as he is because you're stressing about it. I'll make sure that Tom goes straight home instead of going out, okay?"

I throw my arms around Harrison's waist in a much needed hug. "Thank you, Haz. You're the best."

"Yeah, I know I am." Harrison jokes with a shrug, letting me go. "Go, get out."

///

Tom doesn't come home for a while, not until I'm laying in bed, eyelids fluttering, ready to sleep. But the bedroom door creaks open, letting in a little bit of light. I listen as Tom bustles around the room to pull off his clothes, leaving him in just boxers for bed. He climbs into bed beside me, wrapping his arms around my waist. I sigh contently, melting into his embrace.

"How was your day?" I murmur, sleep slurring my words.

"It was fine. Go to sleep, you're exhausted." Tom whispers, placing lazy kisses to the back of my neck. "I love you."

///

The next morning is normal. Tom wakes up before me and takes a shower, leaving me alone in bed. But I get up and throw on a comfy sweater, preparing for my day of classes. Tom is heading downstairs as I'm pulling on my leggings, presumably for breakfast.

But just as I'm finishing brushing out my hair, I hear a relatively loud thump from downstairs. I immediately pause, listening for a yelled sorry from Tom, just anything.

"Tom?" I shout, creeping towards the open bedroom door. When I don't hear anything in response, I panic. I run downstairs and into the kitchen, finding the worst sight I could think of.

Tom is unconscious on the floor, a spot of blood on his forehead, and a whole slew of food on the stove. I drop to my knees, pushing Tom's hair out of his forehead. I reach onto the island and grab Tom's phone, unlocking it and dialing 999. I babble off to the operator that my boyfriend fainted when I was in the other room and I don't know exactly what happened, but that he's unconscious. She promises that an ambulance is two minutes away, that I should keep calm, and not move him.

I put the phone on speaker as I wait, setting it on the floor. And just as I do, Tom starts to stir, his eyebrows scrunching up and his head starting to swivel. I lean over him and place a hand on his cheek, forcing a smile, despite his closed eyes. "Hi, sweetheart. Hi, baby." I coo softly, my thumb rubbing across the skin. "Stay right where you are, okay?"

"What happened?" He murmurs, words slurred.

"I think you fainted. There's an ambulance coming, just don't move, baby boy, you'll be okay." I instruct him.

"Work." He whispers, head falling to the side.

"Don't worry about work. I'll call someone later on and tell them. You don't worry about that right now, okay? Just relax, I've got you."

The paramedics come knocking at the front door a moment later, sending me running over to answer it. I lead the paramedics over to where Tom is still laying in the kitchen, watching the paramedics lift him onto the stretcher and strap him in.

Tom reaches for me, making me rush over to his side. I place a hand on his cheek, moving my thumb against his soft skin, giving him a smile. "I'm right here, Tommy. Do you want me to call Harrison, or your mum or dad? Anyone?" Tom just nods, so I assume he wants someone. "Do you want me to come in the ambulance with you?" He nods again. "Okay, then I'm gonna go get some stuff and get right in there with you." He nods a third time, eyes closing all the way now.

I rush around the house in just a few seconds, pulling on a sweatshirt. I collect a backpack with a sweats for Tom, our wallets, our phones, chargers, money, and whatever I can find that we could need.

Tom is just being loaded into the ambulance when I go to lock the door and jump inside. I'm exiled to the corner while the paramedics start working on Tom, leaving me to send out texts to his family to tell them what's going on.

I'm with him every step of the way. I'm there as he rides to the hospital, I'm there as he gets brought right into a room, and I'm there as a doctor comes in to see him. But I'm pushed out a moment later to fill out paperwork, and I have to be separated from Tom.

I rush my way through the paperwork so I can get back to Tom. He would never leave me alone if I was in this situation, and I don't plan to do that to him. So I return the clipboard to a nurse and she leads me back to a different waiting room.

"You can just stay here until the doctor comes around to get you." I nod but have to hold in my groan. I just want to be with Tom.

I sit down and decide to check my phone, finding a few texts. Nikki and Dom says that the whole family is on their way, and Harrison says him and Tuwaine are leaving their golf outing to get here, but it's going to take a while.

I'm not sure how much time passes from when I get to the waiting room and when a doctor comes. Maybe it was ten minutes, maybe it was an hour. I wouldn't know. But a doctor comes around to get me, thankfully refraining from calling out Tom's name and avoiding any possible fan run-ins.

I jump up and rush toward him, smiling nervously. The doctor asks again if I'm here for Tom, to which I nod, and he leads me away from the waiting room.

"So, it seems that he's very malnourished." The doctor tells me, which is no surprise at all. "He is severely underweight and is also very dehydrated. Do you know why this is happening?"

We stop outside of his room and continue talking. "He's preparing for a movie role. His character has PTSD so he decided to lose a bit of weight. I told him it was too much but he swore he was fine."

"Do you know how much he lost?" I tell him twenty pounds and then a little about Tom's diet, and I can tell but his surprised face that Tom is in for some deep shit. "Wow, that's a lot for someone his age and weight. Basically, his body can't handle the work that he's making it do. If he's working on a film set and he's not eating properly, or at all, his body is going to give out because it can't support him. For now, I've got him on an IV drip to hydrate him and I'll come back in a little while to talk to you two about what to do from here."

"Okay, thank you so much. I can go in now?" The doctor nods and then heads off.

Tom's eyes are closed when I enter the room, but I can't quite tell if he's sleeping. Even still, there's a nurse taking his vitals who smiles at me, quickly finishing up and leaving the room.

Tom stirs when I sit in the chair beside his bed, scrunching up his crooked nose. I grab onto his free hand and move my thumb against his knuckles, taking a deep breath. "I can tell you're awake." I murmur, the tiniest smile on my face. "I know you too well."

The corners of Tom's mouth lift up in the tiniest, his eyes fluttering open slowly. "Hi." He mumbles, the word slurred.

"Hi, sweet boy." I keep my voice sweet and smooth. "How are you feeling?"

"Bad." Tom spits out, sighing. His eyes are squinting and he looks like he's in pain.

"Does your head hurt? The lights hurt?" He nods, so I stand and turn off the light, watching the wrinkles in his forehead smoothen out. "Did the doctor check you for a concussion?"

"I-I don't know."

I let go of Tom's hand again and poke my head out of the hospital room, flagging down a nurse. I tell her my concern and she promises to get a doctor in soon, then goes on her way.

"A doctor is coming, Tom." I take my seat again and lace our fingers.

A silence falls over us for a moment, but the quiet makes me more aware of the way Tom's hands are shaking.

"Are you feeling okay?" I whisper. "You're shaking. I just wanna make sure you're-"

"I'm sorry." And suddenly he's breaking down in tears, sobbing loudly. "You were right, I was wrong."

"Shh, sweetheart." I coo, moving to sit on the side of his bed. "Let's not talk about that right now. Right now, just relax and-"

"I don't wanna be here. I wanna go home." He whines, hand squeezing mine as tight as he can, which isn't much at all. He's far too weak.

"I know you do. But you've gotta be here so the doctors can help you get better so you can get home and get back to work. So let's not cry," I wipe my thumbs over his cheeks, "and just relax as much as you can. You can watch tv, close your eyes, so whatever. A doctor is hopefully coming soon to help you."

Tom looks at me with huge puppy eyes, rimmed red from tears. "You're not gonna leave me, right?"

A smile appears on my cheeks, but it feels forced. "Of course I'm not gonna leave you, pretty boy. I'll be right by your side this whole time and for the rest of your life, you know that."

His lips push out in a pout. "You can still call me pretty boy when I'm like this?"

"You'll always be my pretty boy." I leave forward and press a few kisses to his cheek, hopefully calming him down a bit.

The doctor comes back into the room a few moments later, and Tom forces me to hold his hand while the doctor inspects him again, this time for a concussion.

"Yep, your girlfriend is right, you've got a mild concussion. I'd assume you hit your head on something when you fainted, whether it was a cabinet or the floor. It's not too bad though, you should be fine in two or three weeks. But even still, I wanna keep you for the rest of the day. I know it's early, so we'll see how you're feeling later and see if you need to stay the night or you can go. We've got you on an IV to give you some vitamins and some essential things you've been missing out on over the past few weeks. You know where the nurses button is, if you need anything. I'll see you two later."

///

The rest of the day passes incredibly slowly. Tom's family shows up just a little bit after the doctor leaves. They stay for an hour or two, just to keep Tom entertained, but he's being very quiet and really only wants to talk to me. But his family is babying him and talking to him like a child. And as much as I do that to him when I'm consoling him, he absolutely hates when his family does it.

And then Harrison and Tuwaine show up and wreak havoc. I know it's for entertainment purposes and to make Tom laugh. They show up and throw a backpack onto Tom's bed, what's filled with my laptop, smuggled in fast food, some extra clothes for Tom, and a handful of dvd's. Then they loudly make their way around Tom's room, inspecting every single thing that is on the walls or in the relatively empty cabinets. I'm tempted to kick them out so they don't get in trouble, but Tom is laughing and his spirits are lifted, so I don't bother.

By the time a nurse is coming around with lunch for Tom, he's starving. I can hear his stomach rumbling, but that's a sound I've grown accustomed to.

Tom pushes around his food, not interested in the bland hospital food. "I really want what Haz and Tuwaine brought." He eyes the McDonald's bag on the other side of the room. "I don't want this shit."

"I don't know if your stomach can handle that. You haven't had fast food in months and I don't know if that's good for you-"

"Please, baby, I'm so hungry and this looks terrible." Tom begs, pushing the tray of food away from him.

I easily comply, not wanting to put up a fight with him when he's feeling so tortured at the moment. I open the bag and find a ridiculous amount of food, more than me and Tom could ever eat.

"God, these idiots must have bought the whole store out. What do you want-burger, fries, nuggets?"

"Yes." He responds, making me roll my eyes.

"You're impossible." I pull out a small fry, a cheeseburger, and six piece nugget and hand it over to him, watching him smile happily. "You're nuts. Please eat slowly and drink a lot of water. I don't want you getting sick and throwing up."

"Can we watch a movie too?" He shoves a nugget in his mouth and gestures to my laptop. I agree, pulling up Netflix and starting a random movie, setting my computer on the bed.

Thankfully, Tom doesn't have to stay the night. He's built up enough strength through the IV, food, and relaxation for the doctor to feel good about him going home. So he gets out of his hospital gown and into some sweats, signing discharge papers and wobbling out of the hospital room. And since I rode in the ambulance with Tom, Harrison comes to pick us up and drive us home.

"Looking a bit better, mate." Harrison says, giving Tom a bro hug when we get to the car.

"Thanks for picking us up." Tom mumbles before jumping into the backseat.

"Thank you so much, Haz. You're the best." I give him a tight hug before sitting beside Tom in the backseat and heading home.

///

"Do you wanna go up to bed or stay on the couch?" I ask once we step inside, dropping our bags beside the door. Tessa is off at his parents house, so our house is silent.

"I wanna go shower, and then go to bed." He mumbles, taking the lead upstairs and hobbling into the connected bathroom. I collect him some fresh boxers and a tee shirt, putting them on the counter for him when he's done. I busy myself by changing the sheets and fixing up the bed, distracting myself from the craziness of the day.

"Babe!" Tom starts calling. "Baby!"

I panic, fearing the worst, rushing into the bathroom. "What? What's wrong?"

"Will you come in with me?" He asks like a child, pouting, his curls dripping over his forehead.

"I thought something was wrong." I groan, but begin stripping off my clothes anyways. I step into the warm water and sigh of relief, happy to wash away the stress of the day. I immediately wrap my arms around Tom's skinny waist, burying my face in his neck. "I'm just glad you're okay."

"Yeah, me too." Tom sighs, hand running up and down my back gently. "Thank you for being there for me. You're the best girlfriend ever."

"Thanks." I chuckle with an eye roll. "I'm just glad you're home."

We finish up in the shower not long after, since being exposed to the warm water for too long could make Tom faint again. So we get dressed and crawl into bed, curling up under the cold duvet. I rest my head on Tom's chest and close my eyes, trying to drift off to sleep.

"You can say it now, you know?" Tom murmurs, lips ghosting over my forehead.

I smile softly, letting a beat pass. "I told you so."

[jenna--ortega]

okay so it’s not my business and i guess i get it for newcomers to this site to see a name and assume it’s the actual celebrity but it always makes me laugh when i see those types of asks 🤣 anyways

hello again winnie! so about universal studios yes it is a theme park but it has backlots and sets where shows are filmed so it has two types of tours. one comes with the park (the studio tour) where it takes you around the backlot and you see different sets where movies were filmed like back to the future and it doubles as two rides with king kong and fast&furious. one of the best things about the park tbh. the one that costs extra is the vip tour and they walk you around the park and take you to warehouses where set pieces are kept and you don’t have to wait in the lines as much. if you ever go i’d recommend going during halloween just because they do extra but either way the food is good and makes it worth the price. i used to work there and i may have access to some leftover tickets if you’re interested!

&yes! it is so good i’m only on s3 but castle and casket have me in a chokehold. though now i wish i had watched aos since you seem to like it more 😅 so please lmk!

well now i’m jealous i wanted to play the violin and yes i play the flute and saxophone. also want to learn how to play the harp. i love the sound, like it seems so calming. so you’ve done recitals? did you enjoy them? sorry to hear that you were forced to play instruments you never wanted to but i have to admit that i laughed at the side comment 😆

i try to listen to a bit of everything but mainly r&b and pop. i like rock music and i’ve been getting into classical too. it makes nice background noise when i’m making edits.

what about sports? and movies? what are your favorite foods and are you looking forward to the upcoming holidays?

-psc secret santa

Hi there 👋 it's funny to see there's actually newcomers and people are trying to figure out how the site works. But actually we don't know how this shit works half the time because it's not actually functioning most of the time 🤣

That sounds amazing 😍 I'll be sure to visit next time I'm in the area. I've always wonder what it's like to work in a theme park, I've seen so many people working over at Disneyland during the summers in uni. But I just didn't think I'm right for the job, can't stand the heat/ sun and generally not a cheery person. But people seems to have lots of fun. Just wondering though, do your tickets have expiry dates 😅

Omg now that you're on s3, can we talk about the s2 finale?!!!!! It always had me in tears 😭😭😭😭 they could've been together right then & there. I mean I get it, they're kinda the main couple, so the writers had to drag out their relationship for multiple seasons to come. But still talk about bad timing 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 also, s2 is probably one of my fav, especially the 2 episodes case tick tick tick & boom 😍 there're gonna be some iconic scenes in s3, not gonna spoil it for you.

Do I like aos more than castle?! I don't think so. I just happened to be obsessing with AoS when I started giffing and I guess I got too comfortable, like I know the scenes, which ones work well with each other etc. Castle will always have a special place in my heart, and Kate Beckett is my first on screen idol, like nothing will quite live up to your first love. But aos did come close. Personally I was already really interested in this kind of black ops operation in the marvel movies and wished they had more screen time, and marvel turning it into a TV show is basically a dream come true. I just love Melinda May since ep 1, and has been relating to her since ep 2, and I don't think I've ever related to a character this much. Like female badasses are often written as cold and closed off with the excuse of a traumatic experience, and there's little depths to their characters, either because it's a movie or a series that didn't survive long enough for character devInnelopment. But with May, sure the tropes applied, but even early on you can see that she has a heart and that she cares very deeply. And that she smiles and play jokes secretly. Her whole quiet, stoic personality wasn't necessarily the outcome of the trauma, but more so just who she is, and it just felt very natural and genuine to me and I relate soooo much, and I guess her being Chinese helped with that too. Like it was from that moment I understand how important diversity and representation are to so many people.

This got kinda long, but you got me into talking about castle & aos so it's bound to happen. I would highly recommend aos if you like sci-fi & marvel. They had more tie-ins with the movies in s1-s3, but honestly the show got better when they kinda diverged from it and did their own thing. The writing is pretty mind blowing, and the fight scenes & cgi got better each season. It's ridiculous the amount of stuff they did in the timeframe they had. My personal favs are s1 & s4, s1 mostly for nostalgia and it was the world/ characters building season, s4 (maybe ep 9 forward) was simply phenomenal. S5 was mind blowing you'll probably have to watch it twice to understand everything 😅

Harp is such a beautiful instrument, but it's like huge and expensive. Where I live, very few people's apartments are big enough to store that. So it's a very rich people kind of instrument to us. And I have only listened to it in a handful of occasions. But I know more kids are learning it these days, because apparently piano is too basic 😒 The only recitals I've done are in competitions and exams and idk if it counts, and those are really stressful. But I do enjoy playing the piano in front of (non-judgy) friends & families where we just basically chill, usually people I play in front of know how to play it too so they wouldn't care if there's a slip or it's not perfect etc. It's more so sharing what pieces we were playing at the moment.

I would say violin could be way more complicated, but idk how it compares to playing the flute because I know it is hard to play the flute well too. But I think it wouldn't hurt to take some lessons and see if you like it or not.

I'm not really into sports, but I do like swimming and it's pretty much the only thing I did as a kid. I just love being in the water, it's so calming & cooling. Just the pools though, preferably indoors, the beach really isn't for me. I've always wanted to learn Kung Fu was a kid, like I can feel it in my blood, but my parents only made my younger brother who doesn't want to learn it to go to taekwondo lessons, and don't allow me to go. As a kid, I thought because it's not ladylike, but I found out years and years later it's because my parents saw that I was so good at it and I often fight with my brother (because he's an a**hole as a kid) and there's pretty much no fighting chance for my brother, so my parents wanted to equip him with some fighting skills. But jokes on them, he hates it and drops it after a couple lessons and I kinda resented them for that. It wasn't until in my early 20s that my dad suggested we take some lessons from a Thai boxing coach that his colleagues recommended, because I gained quite some weight after my weight loss rebound. My whole family went for the first couple of lessons, and the coach straight up asked if I have learnt wing chun (another type of Kung Fu) before because I punch like that style, and I said no I've never had any lessons, then I turned to my mum and said now you see how you've wasted a Kung Fu talent (kidding not kidding). I need to work on my cardio but I would say my instincts are pretty good, even more so as a kid, it got "duller" overtime because I often being called "over reactive" to stimuli (like getting hit/ touch accidentally by people/ objects).

I'm more of a TV show kind of person, especially those 20+ eps per season like how it used to be. There's more room for character development and more things for me to obsess over. Good movies are like a nice treat, but I watched it and moved on. Some of my favourite series are hp, Narnia, marvel, basically the ones I grew up with.

Favourite foods: Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Italian, French (mostly pastries & desserts)

We don't do much for Christmas but I've always loved my mum's gingerbreads. I used to look forward to Starbuck's peppermint mocha, but it has kinda been discontinued here for years. I actually went to a Starbucks while travelling in the states just to get peppermint mocha 🤣 I do love peppermint, in tea, sweets, chocolate, etc.

The bigger holiday we celebrate is actually Chinese new year a month later. My mum always makes all these traditional foods and snacks and they're so delicious, store bought ones, even the fanciest ones can't compare (especially the first 2 pics). It's like a lot of work. I'll just put in some pics for you in case you have no idea what I'm talking about 😅

And then there're ones that we just buy from the store.

Basically a lot of fried food 😅

I always say I don't talk much, but when asked the right questions I blab on and on about it, hope you don't mind.

Merry Christmas! 🎄

[choisgirls]

Boi, hi, I've been waiting for this. Could I request the RFA boys (+ V & Searan)'s reactions to finding out MC is a Victoria's Secret model and finding out by MC dragging them to a show before disappearing leaving them sitting alone for awhile before they walk out and yeah (I'm so sorry this is so long and I totally get if you don't want to write this. Have a great day!)

A/N: b o i you sentthis in literally *right* after I opened requests and I giGGLED SO HARD AT YOURENTHUSIASM it really made my day, so i hope you like this ~Admin 404

ALSO Y'ALL, IT’S YA GIRLS BIRTHDAY TODAY (june 20) SO IF YA NEED ME I PROBABLY WON’T BE BACK UNTIL LATER TODAY,HAVE FUN, BEHAVE, I LOVE YOU

*YOOSUNG:

               -He was already red as hell andnervously sweating when you just mentioned taking him to the show

               -“Isn’t Victoria Secretthat one… you know… sexy clothing store?”

               - yes, yes it is

               -The whole way there, he’smuttering to himself

               -Honestly trying to hold backtears because he feels so awkward

               -Wants to look at you and onlyyou!! He doesn’t want you to feel bad about him looking at other partiallynaked women

               - WHAT IF HE GETS A BONER MCHE CANT HELP IT AND IT’LL BE PUBLIC WHY IN THE WORLD DID YOU BRING HIM HERE

               -Holds onto your wrist when youtry to leave him there alone and you have to drag him a little bit beforetelling him that he’d be fine and you’d be back in just a little bit

               -He tries to fold himself up asmuch as possible to hide himself from the people giving him weird looks

               - it didn’t help

               -When the show started, a smallshriek rose up from the back of his throat and he covered his eyes with hishands, though he peeked through his fingers because his curiosity got the bestof him

               -But the first person he saw wasyou? And you were in some absolutely gorgeous,lacey, and very short nightgowns? Where are your pants? Are you in jUSTUNDERWEAR? ARE THOSE WINGS??

               -The poor boy has a full blownnose bleed. His face is as red as Saeyoung’s hair. He’s stuttering andmuttering to himself because he has absolutely no (comprehensive) words

               -He struggles to look you in theeye after the show! Kept trying for a solid hour to compliment you but thewords kept getting stuck on his tongue.

               -That night he held you cautiously,but still close enough to feel his heart race

               -Like, wow, he’s dating a mODEL!He knew you were beautiful inside and out but it’s just amAZING! He would havenever expected it

*ZEN:

               -“Why are we going to afashion show?”

               -“I’m beautiful, I shouldbe one of the models!”

               - thanks for being modest zen

               -You didn’t tell him what kindof fashion show, but he agreed to go anyway

               -Famous people are always seenat these things, he feels like he fits in!

               -He was so ready to complimentthe hell out of you to make sure you know he’s got all eyes for you

               -But when he turned back to you,you were gone?

               -P A N I C

               -Before he could look around foryou though, the show started

               -And the people behind him weregrumbling about him being in their way so he sat down and silently hoped thatmaybe you just excused yourself to the restroom

               -But as the show started, hewatched as multiple models walked out in different sorts of lingerie

               -He felt so AWKWARD! He justwanted you to come back so he could focus on you instead of these other wome-

               -There was one model thatcaptured his eye and he thought she was just absolutely breathtaking. Just bythe curve of your face, let alone your hips, he knew it was you

               -He couldn’t help himself, hecheered for you like it was a football game people had to pull him down tohis seat

               -He practically lifted you intothe air and spun you around afterwards, showering you in more compliments thanusual (which is a lot). Reminded you constantly throughout the rest of thenight how proud he was of you!

               -Also had to use all of hiswillpower to fight the inner beast the rest of the night

*JAEHEE:

               -She’s always wanted to attendfashion shows, but has always been way too busy

               -Not to mention she didn’t evenget to go to any for work reasons damn jumin

               -So she was extremely excited tohear that you were going to bring her to one!

               -She likes any and allinformation about where the two of you go so she was very shaken by the factthat you wouldn’t tell her what kind of show this was

               -What if it was a super fancyfashion show and she wasn’t presentable? What if it was super casual and she’stoo dressed up? WHAT IF IT WAS SECRETLY A STRIP CLUB AND YOU DIDN’T TELL HER

               -She was trying to get you togive her hints about what kind of show this was

               -Actually got frustrated whenyou didn’t give her any sort of hint

               - acts like a child andpouts, completely ignoring you

               -Simply nods her head inacknowledgement when you excuse yourself

               -The music started to play notlong after that and she started to get really giggly and excited! But there wasno sign of you?

               -She figured she would justrecord the show until you made it back, so you could watch it later on when youwere home!

               -The moment she got her phoneready, she hit record and looked down at the lit up screen

               -But when she did look, all shesaw was you? Walking down the catwalk? In some very revealing lingerie?

               -Had to do a double-take fromthe screen and up at the stage to make sure it was truly you

               -And holy shit??? Like, you gogirl?? 10/10 she was so excited to see you up there, strutting your stuff!

               -Any outfit you had modeled, sheplanned on buying matching outfits for the two of you as soon as possible

*JUMIN:

               -He’s tried to avoid any type ofshow at all costs

               -It’s just not his type ofscene, you know?

               -Watching all these women strutaround in ridiculous outfits, acting high and mighty, wanting nothing butattention (so he thought)

               -He just wanted to take this dayoff, sit at home with his precious girls (you and Elizabeth, obviously), andrelax

               -Instead, you had begged him tocome to this show, which you wouldn’t even tell him the theme of

               -And of course he agreed, you’rehis beloved and he wanted to do anything he could to make you happy

               -If that meant he had to watchthis agonizing show, then he would

               - he only wished he couldhave his wine as well

               - honestly thought aboutsneaking in a flask because he hated these things that much

               -Whined like a child when youtold him to stay put because you’d be right back

               -“But MC! I dislike thesethings, you can’t truly expect me to stay here alone, can you?”

               -You left anyway, and found yourway to the stage, only to walk out and see Mr. Trustfund Kid’s jaw clench- hiswhole body moving forward to the edge of his seat, a hand covering his mouthand his eyebrows knitted together

               -He was pleasantly surprised tosee you walk out in some gorgeous lingerie

               -But he was also immediatelyjealous of every other pair of eyes that set on you and your body

               -He swore to himself that you’llknow for sure that you’re his and only his later that night

               -Not to mention that every setof lingerie featured in the show would soon be in your closet for a private,up-close showing for him and only him

*SAEYOUNG:

               -He doesn’t get out much

               -But if you wanna go somewhere,then he! Is! Going! Somewhere!

               -Whatever you want to do, hewill do it for you!

               -You want to go to some sort offashion show?

               -He probably won’t enjoy it,since it’s not really something he’s into, but he will still go with you tomake you happy

               -Every fashion show he’s everseen had such ridiculous outfits

               -He’s hoping they’re just asterrible this time so he has something to make jokes about and keep himselfentertained

               -Lowkey threw a hissy fit whenyou told him you were leaving for a little bit

               -He was there for you! You can’tleave

               -“Fine if you won’t sit andstay then I’ll make fun of the outfits by myself”

               -When the music started he satforward, completely ready to slaughter the first outfit with insults

               -Except it was really cute. Andsexy. And oN YOU.

               -He literally fell out of hischair onto the floor, people had to help him get back up

               -Not before he turned as red ashis hair, though

               -From then on, every time youcame on stage, he would whoop and howl, causing you to almost lose your cool acouple of times

               - ends up surprising youweeks later wearing that same lingerie for you, wink wonk

*V:

               -He’s been to many shows

               -Well okay he’s photographedmany shows

               -Never sat and enjoyed onehimself

               -But completely willing to gowith you! He enjoys the art of the fashion

               -Doesn’t even matter what kindof show, he is 500% ready and willing to go

               -Of course he has his cameratoo, but not to take pictures of the models!

               -He wanted to take pictures ofyour reactions, how the bright lights shine on your face, how you can see thepassion in your eyes

               -HE WAS SO EXCITED, AAAAAA

               -When the music started he wasworried about you missing the show

               -He didn’t want to photographthe sadness in your eyes!

               -But he looked up at the stageto see you, walking out from behind the curtain with upmost confidence

               -Shining bright, dripping insexiness, and giving off a “I’m a badass” vibe

               -And he. was. lOVING IT.

               -It made him so nervous to seehis precious angel like that but he knew he couldn’t miss the opportunity

               -So every time you came out inany outfit, he was sure to take the most amazing photos of you, in an attemptto capture how much love he has for you in each one

               - wants a private photoshootbehind the scenes afterwards, wink wonk

*SAERAN:

               -You thought Saeyoung hatinggetting out of the house?

               -We all know Saeran is 10 timesworse

               -You are physically dragging himto this show because he’s so against it

               -“Why the fuck would I wantto watch people parading around the stage in stupid outfits”

               -Because?? Just go with meanyway??

               -He’s holding onto your arm,letting his feet drag against the floor when you try to leave him in the crowdalone

               -“Saeran I need to go dosomething!” “Oh no, you are NOT leaving me alone with ALL THESEPEOPLE”

               -You did leave him alone though,and he is LIVID.

               -He planned on not talking toyou for the remainder of the night because of it. Maybe he’d keep up the silenttreatment until tomorrow. Who knows?

               -The loud music started to playand he already hated everything about this

               -He watched as a few womenwalked out on stage, each in a progressively more revealing outfit

               -Until his arms unfolded when hesaw you in this sexy bra and panties set

               -Matching them to the largewings hanging behind you

               -Immediately snapping photos onhis phone for later blackmail

               - and also using them asresearch references to get those outfits for later

               - practically pounces youbehind the stage, attacking your whole body in kisses

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